JP2005262649A - Liquid ejecting apparatus and maintenance method for liquid ejecting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A liquid ejecting apparatus that efficiently performs an appropriate recovery operation and a maintenance method for the liquid ejecting apparatus are provided.
An inkjet recording apparatus 1 determines a mode of operation of a cleaning operation or a flushing operation from a recovery operation control means 65 for controlling a recovery operation including a cleaning operation and a flushing operation, and a recovery operation table prepared in advance. Action determining means 6
9. The operation determining unit 69 selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on the information regarding the set installation area, and in the selected recovery operation table, an operation mode with a degree of liquid discharge corresponding to the use situation. The recovery operation control means 65 executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means 69.
[Selection] Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus such as a printer having a liquid ejecting head that ejects liquid droplets from a nozzle opening, a display manufacturing apparatus, an electrode forming apparatus, or a biochip manufacturing apparatus.
In particular, the present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus that recovers the droplet ejection capability of a nozzle opening of a liquid ejecting head and a maintenance method for the liquid ejecting apparatus.

A liquid ejecting apparatus having a liquid ejecting head that ejects liquid from a nozzle opening is known for various liquids, and a typical example is a recording mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus. You can raise the head. Accordingly, the ink jet recording apparatus will be described as an example.

The recording head described above discharges the liquid pressurized in the pressure generation chamber as a droplet from the nozzle opening toward the target, but if the printing time is long or the time for which it is left unused is long, A phenomenon occurs in which the ink solvent gradually evaporates from the nozzle opening and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening gradually increases. As a countermeasure against such a phenomenon, periodic cleaning is performed to remove the thickened ink by ink suction from the nozzle opening by the pump, but if the degree of thickened ink is severe, it cannot be sufficiently removed by the ink suction operation in a short time. In many cases, the ink suction time is increased. However, if the ink suction time is lengthened, a large amount of ink is sucked and the thickened ink is removed, but a large amount of ink of normal viscosity is sucked, and the ink is wasted.

Therefore, the recovery operation mode selected based on the elapsed time from the previous execution of the recovery operation, the cumulative print time that has been printed without capping by the capping means, and the elapsed time from the end of the previous print operation is executed. An ink jet recording apparatus configured as described above has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below). In the apparatus as shown in Patent Document 1, the recovery operation mode selected based on the time as described above is executed. However, the thickening phenomenon as described above is caused by the climatic characteristics, season, etc. of the area where the apparatus is placed. Accordingly, the degree of thickening varies. For example, when used in a high humidity environment, moisture evaporation is slow and difficult to thicken. On the other hand, in a low humidity environment, moisture evaporation is fast and the viscosity tends to increase.

For this reason, even if the recovery operation mode is executed based on the time as described above, the speed of thickening varies depending on the installation area, and therefore, an imbalance tends to occur between the degree of ink drying and the selected recovery operation mode. In many cases, the clogging is not sufficiently recovered in the recovery operation mode that is executed, or the unnecessary recovery operation mode causes the ink to be consumed wastefully. Thus, the recovery operation mode selected based on the elapsed time from the previous recovery operation execution, the cumulative print time that has been printed without capping by the capping means, and the elapsed time from the end of the previous print operation is selected. The optimal recovery operation is not executed by executing.

Also, there is an ink jet recording apparatus that can perform an appropriate printing operation and a recovery process of the printing function in an appropriate print head in accordance with the suitability of each ink and recording paper corresponding to the requirements specific to each region and country. It has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 2 below).
JP 2000-289229 A JP 2000-218825 A

However, in the apparatus as shown in the above-mentioned Patent Document 2, the recovery operation of the printing function in the appropriate print head is executed in accordance with the suitability of each ink and recording paper corresponding to the requirements specific to each region and country. However, as described above, the thickening phenomenon varies in the degree of thickening depending on the use state of the apparatus.

For this reason, even if the printing function recovery process is performed according to the suitability of the ink and recording paper corresponding to the requirements specific to each region and country, the clogging will not be sufficiently recovered by the recovery operation performed. In many cases, the ink is wasted by performing the recovery operation more than necessary. As described above, the apparatus as shown in Patent Document 2 has a problem that it is difficult to execute an appropriate recovery operation and the efficiency is poor.

SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a liquid ejecting apparatus that efficiently performs an appropriate recovery operation and a maintenance method for the liquid ejecting apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention seals the nozzle opening and a liquid ejecting head that applies a pressure fluctuation to a pressure generating chamber communicating with the nozzle opening, and ejects liquid droplets from the nozzle opening. Capping means, suction means for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening sealed by the capping means, cleaning operation for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening by the suction means, and flushing operation for jetting droplets from the liquid jet head A recovery operation control means for controlling the recovery operation, and an operation determination means for determining an operation mode of a cleaning operation or a flushing operation from a recovery operation table prepared in advance. Depending on the number of cleaning modes and flushing modes A plurality of types including at least one of them are prepared, and the operation determining means selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on the information on the set installation area, and the selected recovery operation table. In the above, the operation mode of the degree of liquid discharge according to the use situation is determined, and the recovery operation control means executes the cleaning operation or the flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means. .

Therefore, since the recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area is selected based on the information related to the set installation area, various installation areas (for example, a humid area, a high temperature and low humidity area, a low temperature and low humidity area) are selected. Even in a region, liquid is not drained wastefully in the cleaning operation or flushing operation, so that the consumption of the liquid can be greatly reduced and the ejection failure of the droplets can be effectively prevented or eliminated. be able to. In this way, regardless of the installation area, it is possible to prevent or eliminate the liquid droplet ejection failure by discharging a small amount of liquid from the nozzle opening in the cleaning operation or the flushing operation. In spite of this, it is possible to prevent the liquid from being discharged, but it is impossible to prevent or eliminate the liquid droplet ejection failure unless a large amount of liquid is discharged. It is possible to prevent that the injection failure cannot be effectively prevented or eliminated.

In addition, in the selected recovery operation table, an operation mode with a degree of liquid discharge corresponding to the use situation is determined, and a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is automatically executed based on the determined operation mode. Usage situation (for example, situation where injection time is long,
Even when the recovery operation is not performed for a long time), wasteful discharge and consumption of liquid can be further reduced in the cleaning operation or flushing operation, and droplet ejection defects can be prevented or eliminated more effectively. can do. As a result, for example, when the thickening of the liquid near the nozzle opening is severe due to the usage situation, the clogging is reliably recovered by the cleaning operation, and when the viscosity is not so thick, the flushing operation causes clogging with less liquid consumption. Can be recovered.

Since the cleaning operation or the flushing operation is automatically executed based on the operation mode determined in this way, clogging can be efficiently recovered according to the installation area, and sufficient recovery can be performed if necessary. The action can be executed. Thereby, the reliability of injection can be ensured, and excessive liquid discharge can be suppressed and the running cost can be reduced.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the usage state includes a recovery operation elapsed time from the previous recovery operation by the recovery operation control unit, and when the power is turned on, the operation determination unit includes the cleaning mode and An operation mode corresponding to the recovery operation elapsed time is determined from the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control unit executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit. Can automatically perform the recovery operation for the liquid jet head in an operation mode corresponding to the recovery operation elapsed time before starting the jetting of the droplet onto the target, Occurrence can be prevented in advance.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the operation determining unit determines the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the recovery operation elapsed time is longer, the recovery operation elapsed time is longer and the liquid near the nozzle opening is longer. When the viscosity of the liquid is high, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation can be performed based on an operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening is large. On the contrary, when the recovery operation elapsed time is short and the viscosity of the liquid in the vicinity of the nozzle opening is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is small. As a result, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the recovery operation elapsed time.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the usage state includes a printing pause time from the end of the previous ejection of the liquid droplet to the ejection of the liquid droplet, and from the nozzle opening of the liquid ejecting head based on the ejection start signal. When a droplet is ejected, the operation determining means determines an operation mode corresponding to the printing pause time from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control means is the operation determining means. When performing the cleaning operation or the flushing operation based on the determined operation mode, the recovery to the liquid ejecting head is automatically performed in the operation mode corresponding to the print pause time before the ejection of the droplet onto the object is started. The operation can be performed efficiently, and the occurrence of the ejection failure of the droplets can be prevented in advance.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the operation determining unit determines the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the printing pause time is longer, the printing pause time is longer and the viscosity of the liquid near the nozzle opening is longer. When the is high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening is large. On the contrary, when the printing pause time is short and the viscosity of the liquid near the nozzle opening is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is small. As a result, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the printing pause time.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the usage state includes a cumulative ejection time in which the nozzle opening of the liquid ejecting head is ejected without being sealed by the capping unit, and the operation determining unit includes An operation mode corresponding to the cumulative ejection time is determined from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control unit executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit. In this case, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the cumulative injection time.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the operation determining unit determines the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the cumulative ejection time is longer, the cumulative ejection time is longer and the viscosity of the liquid near the nozzle opening is longer. When the is high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening is large. Conversely, when the cumulative ejection time is short and the viscosity of the liquid in the vicinity of the nozzle opening is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is small. Thereby, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the cumulative injection time.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the information regarding the installation area includes a climatic condition corresponding to the installation area, a recovery operation suitable for the climatic condition of the installation area can be executed. For example, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation with a high liquid discharge degree is performed when the climatic conditions of the installation area are high temperature and low humidity, and a cleaning operation with a low liquid discharge degree is performed in a humid area. Alternatively, a flushing operation can be performed. As a result, even if the installation area has various climatic conditions (for example, humid climate, high temperature and low humidity, low temperature and low humidity), the liquid is wasted in the cleaning operation or flushing operation. Thus, liquid consumption can be greatly reduced, and droplet ejection defects can be effectively prevented or eliminated.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the climatic condition is set in advance in the information regarding the installation area, an appropriate recovery operation according to the climatic condition can be automatically executed. In particular, the destination of the device, ie, the climatic conditions, is often known in advance at the time of shipment from the factory. In such a case, setting the climatic conditions in advance reduces the number of setting items by the user, which can be caused by setting errors. Proper use can be reduced.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the preset climatic condition is changed by receiving the user's input, the user can input the climatic condition himself. For example, the climatic conditions of equipment such as those used in Southeast Asia or Europe are often set according to the destination of the equipment at the time of shipment from the factory. Because you can't plan on being used in conditions, by allowing users to set their own climatic conditions at such times,
The recovery operation according to the user's climatic conditions can be surely executed.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention, the information regarding the installation area includes the installation environment of the user. For example, when the installation environment of the user is an installation environment with air conditioning indoors, the degree of liquid discharge is A large cleaning operation or a flushing operation is performed, and a cleaning operation or a flushing operation with a low degree of liquid discharge can be performed in an indoor environment where there is no air conditioning. As a result, even if the installation area has various climatic conditions (for example, an installation environment with air conditioning indoors, an installation environment without air conditioning indoors, or an installation environment without air conditioning outdoors), the liquid can be used in a cleaning operation or a flushing operation. The liquid is not discharged unnecessarily, the consumption of the liquid can be greatly reduced, and the ejection failure of the droplet can be effectively prevented or eliminated.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, when the installation environment of the user among the information on the installation area is set by receiving the user's input, the user inputs information on the installation environment by himself / herself. be able to. The installation environment of equipment such as indoor use with air conditioning or outdoor use cannot be scheduled at the time of shipment from the factory, and varies depending on the purpose of use of the user. By allowing the user to set the installation environment by himself / herself, the recovery operation according to the installation environment of the user can be surely executed.

In order to achieve the above object, a maintenance method for a liquid ejecting apparatus according to the present invention includes a liquid ejecting head that ejects liquid droplets from the nozzle opening by applying a pressure fluctuation to a pressure generating chamber communicating with the nozzle opening, and the nozzle Capping means for sealing the opening, suction means for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening sealed by the capping means, cleaning operation for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening by the suction means, and droplets from the liquid ejecting head A recovery operation control means for controlling a recovery operation including a flushing operation for injecting water, and an operation determination means for determining an operation mode of a cleaning operation or a flushing operation from a recovery operation table prepared in advance. Multiple cleaning modes and multiple A plurality of types including at least one of the flushing modes are prepared, and the operation determining means selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on the information on the set installation area and the selected operation area. In the recovery operation table, the operation mode of the degree of liquid discharge corresponding to the use situation is determined, and the recovery operation control means executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means. Is the gist.

Therefore, as described above, since the cleaning operation or the flushing operation is automatically executed based on the determined operation mode, the clogging can be efficiently recovered according to the installation area, and is also necessary. Sufficient recovery operation can be executed.
Thereby, the reliability of injection can be ensured, and excessive liquid discharge can be suppressed and the running cost can be reduced.

  Next, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.

In the following description, an ink jet recording apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as a kind of liquid ejecting apparatus)
Take "Recording device" as an example. This recording apparatus uses liquid droplets discharged from nozzle openings (
Characters and images are recorded by landing liquid ink) on the surface of recording paper (a type of printing medium) that is an ejection target, and is also a type of image recording apparatus.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a peripheral structure of a recording apparatus 1 to which the liquid ejecting apparatus of the invention is applied.

The recording apparatus 1 includes an ink cartridge 2 and a carriage 3 to which a liquid ejecting head (hereinafter referred to as “recording head”) 10 that ejects ink (droplets) is attached.

The carriage 3 is connected to a stepping motor 5 via a timing belt 4,
Guided by the guide bar 6, the recording paper 7 reciprocates in the paper width direction (main scanning direction). The carriage 3 has a box shape that opens to the top, is attached so that the nozzle surface of the recording head 10 is exposed on the surface (the lower surface in this example) facing the recording paper 7, and accommodates the ink cartridge 2. It is like that.

Then, ink is supplied from the ink cartridge 2 to the recording head 10 and ink droplets are ejected onto the upper surface of the recording paper 7 while moving the carriage 3 so that images and characters are printed on the recording paper 7 in a dot matrix. Yes. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 8 denotes a cap as a capping unit that prevents the nozzles from drying as much as possible by sealing the nozzle openings 30 of the recording head 10 during a printing pause, and reference numeral 9 denotes a wiper blade that wipes the nozzle surface of the recording head 10. . Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a guide bar 6 is inserted into the carriage 3.

Although not shown here, a suction pump 11, which is a suction means for sucking ink from the nozzle opening 30 sealed by the cap 8, is provided below the cap 8. Reference numeral 12 denotes a waste liquid tank as a waste ink storage section for storing ink sucked by the suction pump.

As shown in FIG. 3, one end of a tube 11 a through which the ink sucked from the suction pump 11 flows is connected to the cap 8, and the discharge side of the suction pump 11 is connected to the waste liquid tank 12. . The cap 8 is operated by the operation (cleaning operation) of the suction pump 11.
The ink waste liquid discharged inside is configured to be absorbed and held by the waste liquid absorbent 13 accommodated in the waste liquid tank 12.

The suction pump 11 increases or decreases the suction force (negative pressure) applied to the recording head 10 in the state sealed by the cap 8 under the control of the pump driving means 29 that controls the suction pump 11. It has become. Thereby, the degree (including force, amount and time) of discharging ink from the nozzle opening 30 sealed by the cap 8 is changed.

  Next, the recording head 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a recording head 10 using a piezoelectric vibrator used in the recording apparatus.

The recording head 10 is configured by joining an ink flow path unit 32 in which a nozzle opening 30 and a pressure generation chamber 31 are formed, and a head case 34 in which a piezoelectric vibrator 33 is accommodated.

The ink flow path unit 32 includes a nozzle plate 35 having a nozzle opening 30 formed therein,
A flow path forming plate 38 in which a space corresponding to an ink chamber 36 common to the pressure generating chamber 31 and an ink supply port 37 for communicating these is formed, and an elastic plate 3 that closes the opening of the pressure generating chamber 31.
9 are laminated.

The piezoelectric vibrator 33 is a so-called longitudinal vibration mode vibrator that contracts in the longitudinal direction in a charged state upon input of a drive signal and extends in the longitudinal direction in the process of discharging from the charged state. The piezoelectric vibrator 33 has its other end fixed to the base 40 with its tip abutting against an elastic plate 39 that forms a part of the pressure generating chamber 31.

In this recording head 10, the pressure generating chamber 31 expands / contracts in response to the contraction / extension of the piezoelectric vibrator 33, and ink is sucked and ink droplets are ejected by pressure fluctuations in the pressure generating chamber 31. Yes. That is, the recording head 10 applies pressure fluctuations in the pressure generating chamber 31 communicating with the nozzle openings 30 and ejects droplets from the nozzle openings 30.

When ink droplets are ejected by such a recording head 10, a so-called “strike” ejection method is performed in order to improve the printing resolution by ejecting as small ink droplets as possible. In this “pulling”, first, a voltage is applied to the piezoelectric vibrator 33 to be contracted, and in a state where the meniscus of the nozzle opening 30 is pulled to some extent, the piezoelectric vibrator 33 is returned to the original state and the pressure generating chamber 31 is filled. Is pressed to eject ink droplets.

Further, in the recording head 10, when there is no print data and the recording head itself is in a resting state, the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is dried and clogged. For this reason, the recording head 10 is sealed with the cap 8 while the printing operation is not performed. However, if the recording head 10 is left sealed for a long period of time, the ink solvent in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 30 is slightly applied. Volatilization increases the viscosity, and troubles such as inability to print immediately or deterioration in print quality are likely to occur. Furthermore, the nozzle opening 30 that continuously ejects ink by printing operation is supplied with new ink one after another, so that clogging hardly occurs, but the nozzle opening 30 is located at the upper end or the lower end and has an extremely low chance of ejecting ink. In the opening 30, the ink near the nozzle opening 30 dries and thickens during printing, and clogging is likely to occur. Therefore, when the unused time is increased or the printing time during use is increased, the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening becomes more intense.

In order to deal with such a problem, as one of the preliminary operations before the start of printing, when the power is turned on to the recording apparatus 1 or when a printing signal is first input, each nozzle is irrelevant to printing. By forcibly ejecting ink from the opening 30, the clogging of the nozzle opening 30 is eliminated, and recovery operations such as “flushing operation” and “cleaning operation” for recovering ink droplet ejection capability are performed by a flushing control means 26 described later. (FIG. 3) and cleaning control means 27 (FIG. 3)
It is executed by.

The “flushing operation” is executed based on a flushing mode, which will be described later, under the control of a flushing control means 26, which will be described later. By applying a drive signal unrelated to print data to the piezoelectric vibrator 33, the nozzles of the recording head 10 are used. A droplet is ejected from the opening 30 and the thickened ink around the nozzle opening 30 is discharged in advance. In the flushing operation, in order to discharge (discharge) the thickened ink more strongly, when applying a drive voltage to the piezoelectric vibrator 33, a voltage higher than the voltage at the time of printing is applied at the highest frequency.

The “cleaning operation” is executed based on a cleaning mode described later under the control of a cleaning control unit 27 described later. The “flushing operation” is performed when the nozzle opening 30 is not completely recovered. This process is executed in order to eliminate clogging in the vicinity of thickened ink or to prevent clogging. Then, the suction pump 11 applies a negative pressure to each nozzle opening 30, and a predetermined suction degree (suction force, suction amount,
Including the suction time), the liquid is sucked from the nozzle opening 30 of the recording head 10 and the pressure generating chamber 31 is sucked.
The ink with thickened inside is forcibly discharged before printing.

As described above, in the operation mode of the recovery operation, the cleaning mode in which the suction pump 11 sucks the liquid from the nozzle opening 30 and the nozzle opening 3 of the recording head 10 are used.
A flushing mode in which droplets are ejected from 0 is included. For example, when the viscosity of the liquid near the nozzle opening 30 is severe, the clogging is reliably recovered by the cleaning mode,
When the viscosity is not so much increased, the clogging can be recovered with less liquid consumption by the flushing mode. Thus, clogging can be efficiently recovered by an appropriate maintenance mode corresponding to the degree of viscosity increase of the liquid.

In the present embodiment, three types of cleaning operations are set: a first timer cleaning operation, a second timer cleaning operation, and a third timer cleaning operation. In the first timer cleaning operation, the second timer cleaning operation, and the third timer cleaning operation, the suction degree (suction force) of the suction pump 11 is different, and the suction pump 11 is in turn.
The degree of suction is increasing.

As described above, as the cleaning mode, the cleaning mode in which the suction degree of the suction pump 11 is different is set. Therefore, when the installation area is high temperature and low humidity, the suction mode of the suction pump 11 is high. If the installation area is humid, the cleaning operation can be executed based on a cleaning mode in which the suction pump 11 has a low suction level.

At this time, the flow rate of the ink sucked can be changed by changing the suction force. Further, when the suction degree is the suction amount, as in the above, when the installation area is at high temperature and low humidity, the cleaning operation is executed based on the cleaning mode in which the suction amount of the suction pump 11 is large. When the temperature is low temperature and high humidity, the cleaning operation can be executed based on the cleaning mode in which the suction amount of the suction pump 11 is small. Further, when the degree of suction is the suction time, as in the case described above, when the installation area is high temperature and low humidity, the cleaning operation is executed based on the cleaning mode in which the suction pump 11 has a long suction time. When the temperature is low temperature and humidity, the cleaning operation can be executed based on the cleaning mode in which the suction time of the suction pump 11 is short. Thus, in the present invention, “suction degree” includes suction force, suction amount, suction time, etc., and the suction pump 11 sucks ink from the nozzle openings 30 at a suitable suction degree in accordance with the use environment in the cleaning operation. By doing so, the amount of ink discharged due to suction, the discharge time, the flow rate at the time of discharge, etc. become appropriate, so that ink is not discharged unnecessarily, and ink consumption can be greatly reduced. In addition, ejection failure of ink droplets can be reliably and effectively prevented or eliminated.

In addition, a high negative pressure cleaning operation can be performed as a cleaning operation for increasing the suction degree. In this high negative pressure cleaning operation, the open / close valve provided in the liquid flow path (for example, the tube 11a) moving from the liquid supply source (ink cartridge 2) to the suction pump 11 via the recording head 10 is closed. This is a recovery operation in which the on-off valve is opened from a state in which a negative pressure is accumulated between the suction pump 11 and the on-off valve by a predetermined degree.

In this case, the flow path opening / closing control for opening / closing the opening / closing valve (choke valve) provided in the liquid flow path (tube 11a) moving from the liquid supply source (ink cartridge 2) to the suction pump 11 via the recording head 10. Means. In the cleaning mode, negative pressure is accumulated between the suction pump 11 and the on-off valve by suction with the suction pump 11 in a state where the on-off valve is closed by the flow path opening / closing control means. A high negative pressure cleaning mode in which the on-off valve is opened from the state may be included. Then, the operation determining means 6
When the high negative pressure cleaning mode is determined in 9, the high negative pressure cleaning operation may be executed based on the operation mode.

Thus, when the recovery operation is performed based on the high negative pressure cleaning mode, the negative pressure applied to the vicinity of the nozzle opening 30 rapidly increases in a short time. Accordingly, the ink suction flow rate in the recording head 10 suddenly reaches a high flow rate level, and the ink can be discharged from the nozzle openings 30 at once. As a result, the thickened ink is also strongly sucked, and the fresh ink is filled in the nozzle openings 30 and the like, and good liquid ejection is obtained.
At the same time, residual bubbles that are stagnant in the recording head 10 and are difficult to remove can be discharged at once. Thus, without specially increasing the suction capacity of the suction pump 11,
Since a strong negative pressure can be applied to the cap 8 according to the degree of increase in the viscosity of the ink, the recovery operation can be executed efficiently.

Further, when a high negative pressure cleaning operation is employed in an off-carriage type printer in which the ink cartridge 2 is not mounted on the carriage 3, the ink is disposed so that the on-off valve is interposed between the ink cartridge 2 and the recording head 10. From the cartridge 2 to the recording head 10
The on-off valve is provided in a liquid flow path (liquid supply flow path) that moves to
You may make it control opening / closing of the on-off valve provided in the flow path of the liquid which moves to the suction pump 11 via the recording head 10 from the ink cartridge 2. FIG. Thus, when a recovery operation is executed based on the high negative pressure cleaning mode, negative pressure can be accumulated between the suction pump 11 and the on-off valve via the recording head 10. That is, it is effective because a negative pressure can be directly applied to the recording head 10.

  Next, the system configuration of the recording apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

As illustrated, the recording apparatus 1 is connected to a host computer 45. The host computer 45 is equipped with a printer driver 47. In response to a command from an input device 49 such as a keyboard or a mouse, the paper size, monochrome / color printing selection, recording mode selection, font data, etc. and printing are performed. Commands, etc. can be input.

Further, a display 50 is connected to the host computer 45, and the display 50 can confirm the input status by the input device 49, and the status of the recording device 1, for example, the ink of each installed ink cartridge. Information such as the remaining amount can be displayed visually.

Further, in this embodiment, the user can set the installation area and the installation environment of the recording apparatus 1 from the host computer 45 by a setting screen (FIG. 4) described later which is an example of a driver screen displayed on the display 50. It can be done.

The recording apparatus 1 includes a CPU (Central) that is an arithmetic device that controls various devices.
(Processing Unit) 61, a ROM (Read-O) that stores an installation area selection table described later, a recovery operation determination table described later, a program for operating the apparatus, and the like.
nly Memory) 62 and a RAM (Ran) that also serves as a temporary work area for the program
and a control circuit 64 including a dom Access Memory) 63.

The CPU 61 functions as a recovery operation control unit 65 that controls a recovery operation including the cleaning operation and the flushing operation, and an operation determination unit 69 that determines an operation mode of the cleaning operation or the flushing operation from a recovery operation table described later. Have

The ROM 62 stores a plurality of types of recovery operation tables including at least one of a plurality of cleaning modes and a plurality of flushing modes (FIGS.
FIG. 12) is constructed and stored. The ROM 62 also has an installation area selection table (FIG. 5) for selecting the recovery operation table from the plurality of types of recovery operation tables.
Is built and stored.

The operation determining means 69 refers to the installation area selection table (FIG. 5), selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on the information on the set installation area, and also selects the selected recovery operation. In the table, the operation mode of the liquid discharge degree is determined in accordance with the use status (cleaning elapsed time, cumulative printing time, pause timer elapsed time described later).

The recovery operation control means 65 performs a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means 69. For example, when the operation mode determined by the operation determining unit 69 is the flushing mode, the flushing operation is performed by controlling the flushing control unit 26 based on the operation mode. On the other hand, when the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit 69 is the cleaning mode, the cleaning operation is performed by controlling the cleaning control unit 27 based on the operation mode.

In this embodiment, the operation mode includes a flushing mode for performing the flushing operation, a first timer cleaning mode for performing a first timer cleaning operation (referred to as “first TCL mode”), and a second timer for performing the second timer cleaning operation. A cleaning mode (referred to as “second TCL mode”) and a third timer cleaning mode (referred to as “third TCL mode”) for performing the third timer cleaning operation are set.

Further, the flushing mode includes a plurality of types of flushing modes in which the discharge degree of the ink discharged from the nozzle opening 30 for discharging the black ink and the nozzle opening 30 for discharging the color ink is different.

The control circuit 64 has a cleaning timer (C) as a detecting means for detecting the use state.
L timer) 71, cumulative print timer 73, pause timer 75, and power switch 77 are connected.

The cleaning timer 71 includes the flushing control unit 26 and the cleaning control unit 2.
7 is configured to be supplied with a control signal. In response to the control signal, the accumulated time is reset to zero and immediately starts to count up the elapsed time.
That is, the cleaning timer 71 functions as an elapsed time counting means for measuring the cleaning elapsed time (T1) that is the recovery operation elapsed time from the previous recovery operation (after execution of the cleaning operation in this embodiment).

The cleaning elapsed time (T1) counted by the cleaning timer 71 is the CPU 6
1 is read by the operation determining means 69.

The cleaning elapsed time (T1) may be a recovery operation elapsed time from the previous execution of the cleaning operation.

The cumulative print timer 73 is configured to be supplied with a control signal when printing is performed from the print control means 91. The cumulative print timer 73 is configured such that a reset signal is also supplied from the cleaning control means 27 to the cumulative print timer 73. Thus, the cumulative print timer 73 operates so that the cumulative time is reset to zero by the reset signal from the cleaning control means 27 and the print cumulative time is counted up by the control output from the print control means 91. In other words, the cumulative print timer 73 functions as an ejection time timer that counts the cumulative print time (T2), which is the cumulative jet time during which the recording head 10 is printing (jetting) without being capped by the cap 8.

The accumulated print time (accumulated time output) counted by the accumulated print timer 73 is read by the operation determining means 69 of the CPU 61. By doing this,
Since the cleaning operation is executed based on the accumulated printing time (T2) after the thickened ink is almost completely discharged by the previous cleaning operation, a recovery operation more suitable for the use situation can be executed. it can.

The pause timer 75 is configured to be supplied with a control output from the print control means 91. Then, it is reset to zero at the end of printing, and starts immediately and acts to count up the elapsed time. That is, the pause timer 75 is a printing pause time from the end of the previous ink ejection to the time of ink ejection (continuous capping time after the end of printing).
It functions to count the pause timer elapsed time (T3).

The pause timer elapsed time (T3) counted by the pause timer 75 is read by the operation determining means 69 of the CPU 61.

The power switch 77 is a switch for the user to turn on the device or turn off the device.

The recovery operation of this embodiment is performed when the power is turned on and before printing is started.

When the power is turned on, the operation determining unit 69 refers to the installation area selection table (FIG. 5), and sets the installation area based on information on the set installation area (in-process settings and user settings described later). Is selected from the plurality of cleaning modes and the plurality of flushing modes (T1).
The operation mode corresponding to the cumulative printing time (T2) is determined (S5 in FIG. 6). Then, the recovery operation control means 65 performs a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means 69 (S7, S11 in FIG. 6).

Further, when ink is ejected from the nozzle openings 30 of the recording head 10 based on the ejection start signal (printing start signal) (that is, when printing is started), the installation area selection table (
Referring to FIG. 5), the recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area is selected based on the information on the set installation area (S22 in FIG. 7), and the operation determination means 69 performs the cleaning mode and flushing mode. The operation mode corresponding to the cleaning elapsed time (T1), the accumulated printing time (T2), and the pause timer elapsed time (T3) is determined from the inside (FIG. 7).
S24). Then, the recovery operation control means 65 performs a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination means 69 (S26, S31 in FIG. 7).

The flushing control unit 26 controls the head driving unit 28 under the control of the recovery operation control unit 65 based on the flushing mode determined by the operation determination unit 69, and executes the flushing operation.

The cleaning control unit 27 controls the pump driving unit 29 under the control of the recovery operation control unit 65 based on the cleaning mode determined by the operation determination unit 69, and executes the cleaning operation.

Specifically, the cleaning control means 27 is controlled by the operation determining means 69 to the first TC.
When the L mode is determined, the first TCL operation is executed by controlling the pump driving means 29 based on the operation mode. When the second TCL mode is determined by the operation determining means 69, the second TCL operation is executed by controlling the pump driving means 29 based on the operation mode. When the third TCL mode is determined by the operation determining means 69, the third TCL mode is controlled by controlling the pump driving means 29 based on the operation mode.
Perform the action.

As described above, the flushing control means 26 and the cleaning control means 27 perform the recovery operation for discharging the liquid (here, the ink in the pressure generation chamber or in the vicinity of the nozzle opening) from the nozzle opening 30 with the liquid discharge degree (force, amount). (Including time) in different operating modes.

For example, when the user recognizes a printing failure state and operates the cleaning command switch 81, the cleaning control unit 27 detects the operation (CL
) It is configured to receive a control signal from the command detection means 83. Thereby, the cleaning control means 27 controls the pump drive means 29 and executes a manual cleaning operation.

The print control unit 91 connected to the host computer 45 and the CPU 61 generates bitmap data based on print data including a print start signal transmitted from the host computer 45, and controls the head drive unit 28 based on this data. It is configured to control and perform printing.

The head driving unit 28 is configured to generate a driving signal under the control of the print control unit 91 so as to eject ink droplets from the recording head 10. Also,
As described above, the head drive means 28 is capable of ejecting ink droplets based on print data,
In response to a command from the flushing control means 26, the recording head 10 is driven to perform the flushing operation.

As described above, the pump driving means 29 applies a negative pressure to the recording head 10 that is sealed in the cap 8 by the suction pump 11 under the control of the cleaning control means 27, and forcibly ejects ink from all the nozzle openings 30. Execute the cleaning operation to suck in. Prior to the flushing operation, a preliminary suction operation is performed in which a negative pressure is applied to the recording head 10 that is also sealed in the cap 8 to suck a small amount of ink in the nozzle opening 30 portion.

Next, a setting screen displayed on the display 50 will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, on the setting screen, the user can set the installation area and the installation environment of the apparatus. Southeast Asia, Central Africa, Central and South America, Australia, North America, South America, South Africa, Central America, North and North America, Europe, and other regions are used as installation areas. In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the installation area is set in Southeast Asia as the destination. These are set in advance as in-process settings, but the user can arbitrarily set the installation area as necessary.

Among the information regarding the installation area, the climatic conditions are set in advance for each destination (shipment destination) of the apparatus, and therefore, an appropriate recovery operation according to the climatic conditions can be automatically executed. In particular, the destination of the device, ie, the climatic conditions, is often known in advance at the time of shipment from the factory. In such a case, setting the climatic conditions in advance reduces the number of setting items by the user, which can be caused by setting errors. Proper use can be reduced.

Southeast Asia, Central Africa, and Central and South America are classified as “humid” in terms of climate conditions.
North America, the southern part of North America, and central Africa are classified as “high temperature and humidity” as climatic conditions, and the central and northern parts of North America, Europe, and others are classified as “low temperature and low humidity (warm)”.

In this way, information about the installation area includes climatic conditions according to the installation area.
It is possible to carry out recovery operations suitable for the climatic conditions of the installation area. For example, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation with a large liquid discharge degree is performed when the climatic condition of the installation area is, for example, an area where the temperature is high and the humidity is low, and a liquid discharge degree is small when the apparatus is a humid area. A cleaning operation or a flushing operation can be performed. As a result, even when the installation area is in various climatic conditions, ink is not wasted in the cleaning operation or flushing operation, and ink consumption can be greatly reduced, and ink ejection failure can be reduced. It can be effectively prevented or eliminated.

In addition, the said installation area is not restricted to said kind, Arbitrary areas can be employ | adopted.
Moreover, the said climatic conditions are not restricted to said kind, Arbitrary climatic conditions can be employ | adopted.

In addition, the installation environment includes an installation environment with air conditioning indoors (with air conditioning indoors), an installation environment without air conditioning indoors (indoors without air conditioning), and an outdoor installation environment without air conditioning (outdoor "semi-outdoor"). It is used. The user can select an installation environment according to his / her installation environment from among these as user settings.

In other words, since the information related to the installation area includes the installation environment of the user, if the installation environment of the user is an installation environment with air conditioning indoors, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation with a large liquid discharge rate is executed. In the case of an installation environment where there is no air conditioning indoors, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation with a small degree of liquid discharge can be performed. As a result, even if the installation area has various climatic conditions (as described above, installation environment with air conditioning indoors, installation environment without air conditioning indoors, installation environment without air conditioning outdoors, etc.) In operation, ink is not discharged unnecessarily, ink consumption can be greatly reduced, and ink droplet ejection defects can be effectively prevented or eliminated.

In addition, the said installation environment is not restricted to said kind, Arbitrary installation environments can be employ | adopted. In addition, as a user setting, you can enter information such as country and address for the user,
The recovery operation table may be selected based on the information. Alternatively, the user may select the ink discharge degree such as “normal” where the ink discharge degree is low and “strong” where the ink discharge degree is high. Then, the recovery operation table may be selected according to the selection, or the operation mode may be determined.

When determining the installation area and installation environment on the setting screen as described above, the user
It is set by operating the input device 49 such as a mouse, selecting an arbitrary region or environment from the plurality of installation regions and installation environments, and clicking the “OK” button displayed on the setting screen with the pointer. The contents are determined, and the contents are stored in the RAM 63 of the recording apparatus 1 as information regarding the installation area via the host computer 45. When the user operates the “cancel” button displayed on the setting screen with the input device 49 such as a mouse, the setting screen is closed without being transmitted from the host computer 45 to the present apparatus. .

In this way, the preset climatic condition is changed to another climatic condition by accepting a user input to select another locating area from a plurality of locating areas on the setting screen. Therefore, the user can input the climatic conditions by himself / herself. The climatic conditions for equipment such as those used in Southeast Asia or Europe are often set according to the equipment's destination at the time of shipment from the factory. Can't be scheduled for use in
By enabling the user to set the climatic conditions by himself / herself in such a case, the recovery operation according to the climatic conditions of the user can be surely executed.

Moreover, since the installation environment of the user among the information related to the installation area is set by receiving the user's input on the setting screen, the user can input information related to the installation environment by himself. The installation environment of equipment such as indoor use with air conditioning or outdoor use cannot be scheduled at the time of shipment from the factory, and varies depending on the purpose of use of the user. By allowing the user to set the installation environment by himself / herself, the recovery operation according to the installation environment of the user can be surely executed.

  Next, the installation area selection table will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, in the installation area selection table, the in-process setting and the user setting have a correlation. In this installation area selection table, a recovery operation table for determining an operation mode more suitable for the installation area in which the apparatus is installed is determined based on the in-process setting and the user setting.

More specifically, in the present embodiment, the recovery operation table is roughly divided into five types: a first table group (FIG. 8) to a fifth table group (FIG. 12). These table groups include a power-on table referred to in a power-on recovery operation process (FIG. 6) described later and a print start referred to in a pre-printing recovery operation process (FIG. 7) described later. The previous table is set.

For example, when the in-process setting is set to “humidity” and the user setting is set to “indoor with air conditioning”, when a power-on recovery operation process (FIG. 6) described later is executed, It is determined in the second table for loading (FIG. 9A). Similarly to the above, when the in-process setting is set to “humidity” and the user setting is set to “indoor with air conditioning”, recovery is performed when a recovery operation process before printing start (FIG. 7) described later is executed. The operation table is determined to be the second table before printing (FIG. 9B).

Thus, the installation area selection table is configured such that an appropriate recovery operation table is selected according to the installation area.

Next, a power-on recovery operation process that is an example of an operation process of the recording apparatus 1 will be described with reference to a flowchart of FIG.

The process shown in FIG. 6 is realized by the CPU 61 of the recording apparatus 1 executing a program stored in the ROM 62. In the following, “S” means a step.

First, the CPU 61 determines whether or not the user operates the power switch 77 to turn on the power (S1). If it is determined that the power is turned on (“YES” in S1).
), The process proceeds to S2, and if it is determined that the power is not turned on (“NO” in S1), the process waits until the power is turned on.

When the power is turned on (S1), power is supplied to the actuator (various devices), and the CPU
61 starts a program stored in the ROM 62 and performs an initialization process (S
2). In this initialization process, for example, it is determined whether or not the ink supply path is initially filled with ink and whether or not the ink cartridge 2 is loaded.

Next, the CPU 61 refers to the installation area selection table (FIG. 5), and based on the information about the installation area (installation area information), the first table for power-on shown in FIGS. 8 (A) to 12 (A). , Recovery operation for power-on from any of the recovery operation determination tables of the second table for power-on, the third table for power-on, the fourth table for power-on, and the fifth table for power-on A determination table is determined (S3).

Next, the CPU 61 receives the timing results from the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73, and determines the cleaning elapsed time (T1) and the cumulative print time (T2) (S
4). Next, the CPU 61 refers to the power-on recovery operation determination table determined in S3, and determines an operation mode based on each determination result in S4 (S5).

Here, with reference to FIG. 8 to FIG. 12, the recovery operation determination table for power-on will be described.

As shown in FIG. 8A, in the first table for power-on, the horizontal axis represents the cleaning elapsed time (T1) by the cleaning timer 71, and the vertical axis represents the cumulative printing time (T2) by the cumulative printing timer 73. The operation mode and the processing rank of the recovery operation to be executed corresponding to these two timing times are described in a matrix format.

When both the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73 are short, the flashing mode is determined. In this case, “Fb =
As indicated by “XXXX” and “Fy = YYYY”, shots (empty discharge) in units of four-digit numbers (thousands) are made from the nozzle openings 30 that discharge black ink and the nozzle openings 30 that discharge color ink. This means that normal print quality can be guaranteed.

In addition, when both the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73 are long (when the flushing mode is not determined), any cleaning is performed based on the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73. The mode is determined.

Each of the tables shown in FIGS. 9 (A) to 12 (A) also has an operation mode and a processing rank of the recovery operation to be executed corresponding to the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73, respectively. Is described in a matrix format. In these tables, the first table for power-on (FIG. 8A) and the second table for power-on (FIG. 9 (FIG. 9)).
A)), a third table for power-on (FIG. 10A), a fourth table for power-on (FIG. 1).
1 (A)), the operation mode for executing a stronger recovery operation is determined in the order of the power-on recovery operation table shown in the fifth table at power-on (FIG. 12A).

Further, the operation determining means 69 determines an operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the cleaning elapsed time (T1) is longer in each of the tables shown in FIGS. 8 (A) to 12 (A). Therefore, when the elapsed cleaning time (T1) is long and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is high, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is executed based on an operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening 30 is large. can do. On the contrary, when the cleaning elapsed time (T1) is short and the viscosity of the liquid near the nozzle opening 30 is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is small. . Thereby, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the cleaning elapsed time (T1).

Further, since the operation determining means 69 determines the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the cumulative print time (T2) is longer, the cumulative print time (T2) is longer and the nozzle opening 30 is longer. When the viscosity of the nearby ink is high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be performed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening 30 is large. Conversely, the cumulative printing time (T2) is short, and the nozzle opening 30
When the viscosity of the nearby ink is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of ink discharge is small. Thereby, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the cumulative printing time (T2).

Referring to FIG. 6 again, when the operation mode is determined as described above (S5), CPU 61
Determines whether or not a cleaning operation is necessary (S6). If it is determined that the cleaning operation mode is necessary (“YES” in S6), the process proceeds to S7, and if it is determined that the cleaning operation mode is not necessary (“NO” in S6), the process proceeds to S11. The determination of whether or not the cleaning operation mode is in S6 is based on the condition based on the time measured by the cleaning timer 71, the cumulative print timer 73, and the pause timer 75 as a result of referring to the recovery operation determination table according to the installation area. This is performed depending on whether the condition is a region of the first TCL mode, the second TCL mode, or the third TCL mode. If it belongs to these areas, it is determined that the cleaning operation mode is necessary (“YES” in S6).

If the cleaning operation is necessary (“YES” in S6), the CPU 61 controls the cleaning control means 27 and executes the cleaning operation based on the determined cleaning mode (S7).

Specifically, the CPU 61 transmits a control command to the cleaning control unit 27 so as to execute the cleaning operation in the cleaning mode determined from the first TCL mode, the second TCL mode, and the third TCL mode.

Next, the CPU 61 resets the cleaning timer 71 and the pause timer 75, causes them to start timing (S8), and resets the cumulative print timer 73 (S9).
. Next, the CPU 61 performs a print start preparation process for preparing to start printing based on a print command including print data input from the host computer 45 (S10), and ends the recovery operation process when the power is turned on.

Again, returning to the description of S6 above, if the cleaning operation is not necessary ("NO" in S6)
The CPU 61 performs the flushing operation based on the determined number of flashing modes (S11). Next, the CPU 61 resets the pause timer 75, causes the pause timer 75 to start measuring time (S12), and proceeds to S10.

As described above, when the power is turned on, the operation determination unit 69 determines an operation mode corresponding to the cleaning elapsed time (T1) from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control unit 65 The cleaning operation or the flushing operation is executed based on the operation mode determined by the operation determining means 69. For this reason, the recovery operation for the recording head 10 can be performed efficiently and efficiently in an operation mode corresponding to the cleaning elapsed time (T1) before the ink ejection to the object is started. Occurrence can be prevented in advance.

The operation determining means 69 determines an operation mode corresponding to the cumulative printing time (T2) from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control means 65 is set to the operation mode determined by the operation determining means 69. Based on this, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is performed. For this reason, it is possible to efficiently execute an appropriate recovery operation according to the accumulated printing time (T2).

  Next, the recovery operation process before starting printing will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the CPU 61 determines whether or not a print start signal (ejection start signal) has been received from the host computer 45 (S21). If it is determined that the print start signal has been received (S
If “YES” in 21), the process proceeds to S22, and if it is determined that the print start signal has not been received (S2).
1 is “NO”) and waits until a print start signal is received.

Next, when the print start signal is received (“YES” in S21), the CPU 61 refers to the installation area selection table (FIG. 5), and based on the installation area information, FIG. 8 (B) to FIG. 12 (B). Recovery of any of the first table A before printing start, the second table A before printing start, the third table A before printing start, the fourth table A before printing start, and the fifth table A before printing start shown in FIG. From the operation determination table, a recovery operation determination table for before printing is determined (S22).

Next, the CPU 61 receives the time measurement results from the pause timer 75 and the cumulative print timer 73, and performs the cleaning elapsed time (T1), the cumulative print time (T2), and the pause timer elapsed time (
T3) is determined (S23).

Next, the CPU 61 refers to the recovery operation determination table for before starting printing determined in S22, and determines an operation mode based on each determination result in S23 (S24).

Here, with reference to FIG. 8 to FIG. 12, a recovery operation determination table for before the start of printing will be described.

As shown in FIG. 8B, in the first table A before printing (table A), the horizontal axis indicates the pause timer elapsed time (T3) by the pause timer 75, and the vertical axis indicates the cumulative value by the cumulative print timer 73. The printing time (T2) is shown, and the operation mode and the processing rank of the recovery operation to be executed corresponding to these two timing times are described in a matrix format.

When both the time measured by the pause timer 75 and the cumulative print timer 73 are short, the flashing mode is determined. In this case, black ink is supplied as indicated by “Fb = XX” to “Fb = XXXX” and “Fy = YY” to “Fy = YYYY” according to the time measured by the pause timer 75 and the cumulative print timer 73. Shots (empty ejection) in units of two-digit to four-digit order (several tens to thousands) are executed from the nozzle openings for discharging and the nozzle openings for discharging color ink. In other words, this means that normal print quality can be guaranteed.

The time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73 is 5
If it is longer than the time (when the flushing mode is not determined), the first table B for before printing is referred to.

In the first table B before printing start (table B) shown in FIG. 8B, the horizontal axis indicates the cleaning elapsed time (T1) by the cleaning timer 71, and the vertical axis indicates the cumulative printing time (T2) by the cumulative printing timer 73. The operation mode and the processing rank of the recovery operation to be executed corresponding to these two timing times are described in a matrix format.

8B corresponds to the table A, and as described above, the pause timer elapsed by the pause timer 75 of the first table A before print start. This is applied when the time (T3) is a fixed time (in this embodiment, 5 hours or more).

In the first table B before printing start, the flushing operation is selected as the recovery operation while the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative printing timer 73 is short. In this case, in the table B shown in FIGS. 8B to 12B, “Fb = XX
XX ”and“ Fy = YYYY ”, the nozzle openings 3 for discharging black ink
From the nozzle opening 30 for discharging 0 and color ink, a shot (empty discharge) is performed in units of several four-digit order (several thousands).

In addition, when both the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73 are long (when the flushing mode is not determined), any cleaning is performed based on the time measured by the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73. The mode is determined.

Each table A shown in FIG. 9B to FIG. 12B should be executed corresponding to the time measured by the pause timer 75 and the cumulative print timer 73, like the first table A before printing start. The operation mode of recovery operation and its processing rank are described in a matrix format.

Further, in each table B shown in FIGS. 9B to 12B, the horizontal axis indicates the time measured by the cleaning timer 71, and the vertical axis indicates the accumulation, similarly to the first table B before starting printing. The time measured by the print timer 73 is shown, and the recovery operation to be executed corresponding to these two time measured and its processing rank are described in a matrix format. And it applies when the pause timer elapsed time (T3) by the pause timer 75 of the corresponding table A is a fixed time (5 hours or more).

In these tables A and B, the first table before printing is started (FIG. 8B)
Second table before printing start (FIG. 9B) Third table before printing start (FIG. 10B)
), A fourth table before printing start (FIG. 11B), and a fifth table before printing start (FIG. 12 (B)).
The operation mode for executing a stronger recovery operation is determined in the order of the recovery operation table for starting printing shown in B)).

Thus, in each table A shown in FIGS. 8B to 12B, the flushing operation is selected as the recovery operation when the cleaning elapsed time (T1) by the pause timer 75 is less than 5 hours. When the elapsed cleaning time (T1) is 5 hours or more, the corresponding table B is referred to, and the cleaning timer 71 and the cumulative print timer 73 are referred to.
The operation mode is determined based on the time measured by.

That is, in each table A shown in FIGS. 8B to 12B, the operation determining unit 69 determines an operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the pause timer elapsed time (T3) is longer. It has become. For this reason, when the pause timer elapsed time (T3) is long and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation is executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge from the nozzle opening 30 is large. can do. On the other hand, when the pause timer elapsed time (T3) is short and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is not so high, the cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge is small. . This
An appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed in accordance with the length of the pause timer elapsed time (T3).

Further, as in the case of the above power-on, the operation determining means 69 performs the cumulative printing time (T2
) Is determined to be an operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge is greater. Therefore, when the cumulative printing time (T2) is long and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is high, the nozzle opening 30 The cleaning operation or the flushing operation can be executed based on the operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge is large. Conversely, the cumulative printing time (T
When 2) is short and the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is not so high,
A cleaning operation or a flushing operation can be performed based on an operation mode in which the degree of ink discharge is small. Thereby, an appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to the length of the cumulative printing time (T2).

Further, the operation determining means 69 determines an operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge is larger as the cleaning elapsed time (T1) is longer in each table B shown in FIGS. 8B to 12B. As the cumulative print time (T2) is longer, the operation mode is determined such that the degree of liquid discharge is larger. Therefore, as described above, according to the length of the cleaning elapsed time (T1) and the cumulative print time (T2). An appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently performed.

Referring again to FIG. 7, when the operation mode is determined as described above (S24), the CPU
61 determines whether or not a cleaning operation is required (S25). If it is determined that the cleaning operation is necessary as in the power-on recovery operation process (S6 in FIG. 6) described above ("YES" in S25), the process proceeds to S26, and it is determined that the cleaning operation is not necessary. (“NO” in S25), the process proceeds to S32.

When the cleaning operation is necessary (“YES” in S25), the CPU 61 controls the cleaning control unit 27 and executes the cleaning operation based on the determined cleaning mode (S26). Next, the CPU 61 resets the cleaning timer 71,
The cleaning timer 71 starts timing (S27), and the cumulative print timer 73 is reset (S28).

Next, the CPU 61 stops and resets the pause timer 75 (S29), and causes the cumulative print timer 73 to start measuring time (S30). Next, the CPU 61 performs a print start process for starting printing based on a print command including a print start signal (S31), and ends the recovery operation process before the start of printing.

Returning to the description of S25, the CPU 61 determines that the cleaning operation is not necessary (S2).
5 is “NO”), the flushing operation is executed based on the flushing mode of the determined number of shots (S32), and the process proceeds to S29.

Thus, the nozzle openings 3 of the recording head 10 are based on the ejection start signal (printing start signal).
When ink is ejected from 0 (when printing is started), the operation determining unit 69 determines an operation mode corresponding to the pause timer elapsed time (T3) from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, The recovery operation control unit 65 performs a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit 69. For this reason, the recovery operation for the recording head 10 can be effectively executed automatically in the operation mode corresponding to the pause timer elapsed time (T3) automatically before the ejection of the ink onto the object is started. Occurrence of injection failure can be prevented in advance.

The operation determining means 69 determines an operation mode corresponding to the cumulative printing time (T2) from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control means 65 is set to the operation mode determined by the operation determining means 69. Based on this, a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is performed. For this reason, the cumulative printing time (T
An appropriate recovery operation can be efficiently executed according to 2).

As described above, it is equipped with multiple recovery operation tables with different parameters (such as the cleaning elapsed time, flushing mode with different number of flushing shots, cleaning mode with different suction level, etc.), and the installation based on the information about the installation area Since the recovery operation table corresponding to the area is selected, ink can be used in the cleaning operation or the flushing operation even in various installation areas (for example, a humid area, a high temperature and low humidity area, and a low and low temperature area). Is not wastefully discharged, ink consumption can be greatly reduced, and ink ejection defects can be effectively prevented or eliminated. In this way, regardless of the installation area, it is possible to prevent or eliminate ink ejection defects by discharging a small amount of ink from the nozzle opening 30 in the cleaning operation or the flushing operation. On the other hand, even if a large amount of ink is not discharged, the ink ejection failure cannot be prevented or eliminated, but only a small amount of ink is ejected and the ink is ejected. It is possible to prevent the failure from being effectively prevented or eliminated.

In addition, in the selected recovery operation table, an operation mode with a degree of liquid discharge corresponding to the use situation is determined, and a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is automatically executed based on the determined operation mode. Usage situation (for example, situation where injection time is long,
Even when the recovery operation is not performed for a long time), wasteful discharge and consumption of ink can be further reduced in the cleaning operation or flushing operation, and ink ejection defects can be more effectively prevented or eliminated. be able to. Thus, for example, when the viscosity of the ink near the nozzle opening 30 is severely increased depending on use conditions, the cleaning operation reliably recovers clogging. When the viscosity is not so thick, the flushing operation reduces the amount of liquid consumed. Clogging can be recovered.

Since the cleaning operation or the flushing operation is automatically executed based on the operation mode determined in this way, clogging can be efficiently recovered according to the installation area, and sufficient recovery can be performed if necessary. The action can be executed. As a result, it is possible to ensure ejection reliability and to suppress excessive ink discharge and to reduce running costs.

In the above embodiment, the piezoelectric vibrator 33 is in the longitudinal vibration mode, but is not limited to this, and the bending vibration mode may be used.

In the above-described embodiment, the pressure generating element is a piezoelectric vibrator. However, a liquid heating element may be used to eject the liquid. Further, the liquid storage means in the present invention includes an ink tank mounted on the main body side of the ink jet recording apparatus in addition to the type in which the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage shown in the above embodiment, and pressure fluctuations are applied to the carriage. It may be of a type equipped with a sub-tank that absorbs water.

Further, the control of the storage device can be provided as a program. Such a program is a flexible disk attached to the computer, a CD-ROM (Compac
t Disc-Read Only Memory), ROM, RAM, and a memory card such as a memory card can be recorded and provided as a program product. Alternatively, the program can be provided by being recorded on a recording medium such as a hard disk built in the computer. In addition, the program can be provided through a network such as a telecommunication line or a satellite communication line. The program products offered are:
It is installed in a program storage unit such as a hard disk and executed. The program product includes the program itself and a recording medium on which the program is recorded.

The above embodiment is intended for an ink jet recording apparatus. However, the liquid ejecting apparatus obtained by the present invention is not only intended for ink for an ink jet recording apparatus, but a glue, a nail polish, a conductive material. Liquid (liquid metal) or the like can be ejected. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, the ink jet recording head using ink that is one of the liquids has been described. However, the colors used for the manufacture of color filters such as recording heads and liquid crystal displays used in image recording apparatuses such as printers. Material injection head, organic EL display, FED (
The present invention can also be applied to all liquid ejecting heads that eject liquid, such as electrode material ejecting heads used for electrode formation such as surface emitting displays) and bio-organic ejecting heads used for biochip manufacturing.

Since the recovery operation according to the installation area is executed as described above, the liquid ejecting state of the liquid ejecting head can be maintained soundly, and a good liquid ejecting apparatus that can be used in various fields is obtained. Therefore, it is possible to provide an excellent liquid ejecting apparatus that can meet market expectations and can be used in a large industrial application.

1 is a perspective view of an ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a recording head mounted on the recording apparatus. 2 is a system configuration diagram of the recording apparatus. FIG. It is a figure which shows a setting screen. It is a figure which shows an installation area selection table. It is a flowchart which shows recovery operation processing at the time of power-on. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a recovery operation process before starting printing. It is a figure which shows a 1st table. It is a figure which shows a 2nd table. It is a figure which shows a 3rd table. It is a figure which shows a 4th table. It is a figure which shows a 5th table.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording device, 2 Ink cartridge, 3 Carriage, 4 Timing belt, 5
Stepping motor, 6 guide bar, 7 recording paper, 8 cap, 9 wiper blade, 10 liquid ejecting head (recording head), 11 suction pump, 11a tube, 12
Waste liquid tank, 13 Waste absorbing material, 26 Flushing control means, 27 Cleaning control means, 28 Head drive means, 29 Pump drive means, 30 Nozzle opening, 31 Pressure generating chamber, 32 Ink flow path unit, 33 Piezoelectric vibrator, 34 Head Case, 35 Nozzle plate, 36 Ink chamber, 37 Ink supply port, 38 Flow path component plate, 39 Elastic plate, 40 Base, 45 Host computer, 47 Printer driver, 49 Input device,
50 display, 61 CPU, 62 ROM, 63 RAM, 64 control circuit 65
Recovery operation control means, 69 operation determination means, 71 CL timer, 73 cumulative print timer,
75 pause timer, 77 power switch, 81 cleaning command switch, 83 cleaning command detection means, 91 print control means

Claims (13)

A liquid ejecting head that applies pressure fluctuations in a pressure generating chamber communicating with the nozzle opening, and ejects liquid droplets from the nozzle opening;
Capping means for sealing the nozzle opening;
A suction means for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening sealed by the capping means;
A recovery operation control means for controlling a recovery operation including a cleaning operation for sucking a liquid from a nozzle opening by the suction means and a flushing operation for ejecting a droplet from the liquid jet head;
An operation determining means for determining an operation mode of a cleaning operation or a flushing operation from a recovery operation table prepared in advance;
Depending on the installation area of the recovery operation table, a plurality of types including at least one of a plurality of cleaning modes and a plurality of flushing modes are prepared,
The operation determining means selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on information on the set installation area, and in the selected recovery operation table,
Determine the operation mode of the liquid discharge degree according to the usage situation,
The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recovery operation control unit executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit. The usage status includes the recovery operation elapsed time from the previous recovery operation by the recovery operation control means,
When the power is turned on, the operation determining means determines an operation mode corresponding to the recovery operation elapsed time from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control means is the operation determining means. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a cleaning operation or a flushing operation is performed based on the determined operation mode. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operation determining unit determines an operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the recovery operation elapsed time is longer. The above use situation includes a printing pause time from the end of the previous droplet ejection to the ejection of the droplet,
When droplets are ejected from the nozzle openings of the liquid ejecting head based on the ejection start signal, the operation determining means determines an operation mode corresponding to the print pause time from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recovery operation control unit performs a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determination unit. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the operation determining unit determines the operation mode in which the liquid discharge degree is larger as the printing pause time is longer. The usage situation includes a cumulative ejection time in which the nozzle opening of the liquid ejection head is ejected without being sealed by the capping means,
The operation determining means determines an operation mode corresponding to the cumulative injection time from the cleaning mode and the flushing mode, and the recovery operation control means performs cleaning based on the operation mode determined by the operation determining means. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus performs an operation or a flushing operation. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the operation determining unit determines an operation mode in which the degree of liquid discharge is larger as the cumulative ejection time is longer. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information related to the installation area includes climatic conditions according to the installation area. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein climatic conditions are set in advance in the information regarding the installation area. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the preset climatic conditions are changed by receiving a user input. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information regarding the installation area includes a user's installation environment. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the installation environment of the user among the information related to the installation area is set by receiving user input. A liquid ejecting head that applies pressure fluctuations in a pressure generating chamber communicating with the nozzle opening, and ejects liquid droplets from the nozzle opening;
Capping means for sealing the nozzle opening;
A suction means for sucking liquid from the nozzle opening sealed by the capping means;
A recovery operation control means for controlling a recovery operation including a cleaning operation for sucking liquid from a nozzle opening by the suction means and a flushing operation for ejecting liquid droplets from the liquid jet head;
Preparing an operation determining means for determining an operation mode of a cleaning operation or a flushing operation from a recovery operation table prepared in advance;
As the recovery operation table, a plurality of types including at least one of a plurality of cleaning modes and a plurality of flushing modes are prepared according to the installation area of the apparatus,
The operation determining means selects a recovery operation table corresponding to the installation area based on information on the set installation area, and in the selected recovery operation table,
Determine the operation mode of the liquid discharge degree according to the usage situation,
The liquid ejecting apparatus maintenance method, wherein the recovery operation control means executes a cleaning operation or a flushing operation based on the operation mode determined by the operation determining means.

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