JP2011051281A - Inkjet head cleaning device and inkjet printer - Google Patents

Abstract

To improve cleaning power by suppressing uneven cleaning.
An inkjet head cleaning device is supported in a cleaning chamber by a cleaning container that forms a cleaning chamber for cleaning a nozzle surface of the inkjet head, a cleaning liquid bottle that stores cleaning liquid, and a cleaning chamber. A main nozzle blade 121 in which an injection hole for injecting cleaning liquid is formed, a sub nozzle blade 131 in which an injection hole for injecting cleaning liquid is rotatably supported by the main nozzle blade 121, and the parent nozzle blade 121 and the sub nozzle A pressure feed pump 105 that supplies cleaning liquid to the blades 131 is provided. As a result, the child nozzle blade 131 can move indefinitely in various directions with respect to the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40, so that the cleaning liquid can be uniformly and uniformly bathed on the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40. The cleaning power of the nozzle surface 42 can be improved.
[Selection] Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to an inkjet head cleaning device that cleans the nozzle surface of an inkjet head and an inkjet printer equipped with the inkjet head cleaning device.

  In general, in an ink jet printer, ejection failure occurs due to nozzle clogging of an ink jet head due to ink and ink aggregates attached around the nozzle. In particular, in a large format ink jet printer, such a discharge failure occurs remarkably. Therefore, conventionally, wiping is performed by periodically cleaning the nozzle surface of the inkjet head by rubbing it with rubber or felt.

  However, with wiping, it is difficult to completely remove ink aggregates adhering to the nozzle surface and ink aggregates clogging the nozzle holes. In addition, since the wiping directly rubs the head surface, there is a possibility that the head surface may be damaged or that aggregates or other dust may be pushed into the nozzle holes. In this case, not only does the ejection failure not recover, but the ink-jet head must be replaced, and there is a problem that the maintenance cost associated with the replacement of the ink-jet head increases.

  Therefore, in Patent Document 1, it is considered that the ink aggregate clogged in the nozzle holes and the ink aggregate adhered to the nozzle surface are dissolved and removed by spraying the cleaning liquid toward the nozzle surface of the inkjet head. Yes. In the cleaning device described in Patent Document 1, a cylindrical cleaning chamber injection nozzle having an injection hole in parallel with an array of nozzle holes of an inkjet head is arranged in the cleaning chamber, and the cleaning chamber injection nozzle is rotated in the axial direction. However, the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle is sprayed from the cleaning chamber injection nozzle, and the falling cleaning liquid is discharged to the waste liquid tank.

JP 2008-201021 A

  However, the cleaning device described in Patent Document 1 rotates a cylindrical cleaning chamber injection nozzle arranged in parallel with the arrangement of nozzle holes, and since the arrangement of the cleaning chamber injection nozzle is unchanged, cleaning is performed. The separation distance to the chamber injection nozzle is non-uniform depending on the position of the nozzle surface. Further, since the cleaning liquid sprayed from the spray hole of the cleaning chamber spray nozzle is always applied to the nozzle surface while drawing the same spray locus, cleaning unevenness occurs between the position where the cleaning liquid directly hits and the position where it does not hit directly. In addition, power for rotating the cleaning chamber spray nozzle is required, and a large amount of cleaning liquid must be sprayed to clean the nozzle surface.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet head cleaning apparatus and an ink jet printer that can improve cleaning power by suppressing cleaning unevenness.

  An inkjet head cleaning device according to the present invention includes a cleaning container that forms a cleaning chamber that cleans the nozzle surface of an inkjet head, and a first nozzle that is rotatably supported in the cleaning chamber and has an injection hole that injects a cleaning liquid. A second nozzle part that is rotatably supported by the first nozzle part in the cleaning chamber and has an injection hole for injecting the cleaning liquid, and a cleaning liquid supply that supplies the cleaning liquid to the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part And means.

  In this inkjet head cleaning device, since the second nozzle portion is rotatably supported by the first nozzle portion, the second nozzle portion rotates the first nozzle portion so that the rotation axis of the first nozzle portion is rotated. As the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part are rotated on the center circle, the second nozzle part rotates while moving on the circle. As a result, the second nozzle part can move indefinitely in various directions with respect to the nozzle surface of the inkjet head, so that the cleaning liquid can be uniformly and uniformly bathed on the nozzle surface of the inkjet head. Detergency can be improved.

  In this case, it is preferable that the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion are rotatably supported on an axis perpendicular to the nozzle surface. When such a configuration is adopted, the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion rotate along a plane parallel to the nozzle surface, so that the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion do not depend on the rotation position. The separation distance between the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part and the nozzle surface can be made constant. Thereby, since the cleaning power with respect to an arbitrary position of the nozzle surface can be made uniform, the cleaning unevenness of the nozzle surface can be further suppressed.

  The first nozzle part and the second nozzle part are formed with injection holes for injecting the cleaning liquid, and the injection holes are inclined in a direction inclined with respect to the rotation axes of the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part. Preferably it is directed. When such a configuration is adopted, when the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection holes provided in the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part, the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part have a reaction force against the injection of the cleaning liquid. However, since the direction of the reaction force is deviated from the axial direction of the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion, a rotational force acts on the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion. For this reason, since the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part can be rotated by spraying the cleaning liquid without separately providing power for rotating the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part, the number of parts can be reduced. It can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  The cleaning container preferably further includes an ultrasonic generator that generates ultrasonic waves in the cleaning chamber. When such a configuration is adopted, the cleaning liquid is filled in the cleaning chamber, and the ultrasonic wave is generated from the ultrasonic generator while the nozzle surface is immersed in the cleaning liquid. Since the nozzle surface can be cleaned, aggregates adhering to the nozzle surface can be effectively removed.

  An inkjet printer according to the present invention includes any one of the inkjet head cleaning devices described above and a wiping maintenance device that wipes the nozzle surface.

  According to the inkjet printer of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the inkjet head cleaning device described above, the cleaning liquid adhering to the nozzle surface and the residue that could not be removed by the inkjet head cleaning device can be wiped off. The head can be effectively cleaned. As a result, ink droplet ejection defects can be effectively suppressed, and maintenance costs associated with replacement of the inkjet head can be reduced.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to improve cleaning power by suppressing cleaning unevenness.

1 is a schematic front view of an ink jet printer equipped with an ink jet head cleaning device according to an embodiment. It is a schematic front view of the inkjet printer shown in FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the inkjet head cleaning apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a front view of a main nozzle blade and a child nozzle blade. It is a top view of a main nozzle blade and a child nozzle blade. It is the figure which showed the rotation area | region of the main nozzle blade and the child nozzle blade. It is the VII-VII sectional view taken on the line shown in FIG. It is the VIII-VIII sectional view taken on the line shown in FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the inkjet head cleaning apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the state with which the washing | cleaning chamber was filled with the washing | cleaning liquid. It is a figure which shows the other example of a child nozzle blade | wing.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of an inkjet head cleaning device and an inkjet printer according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the embodiment, the inkjet head cleaning device according to the present invention is described as being mounted on an inkjet printer that prints an image or the like on a medium M using UV ink that is cured by irradiation with UV (Ultra Violet). In all drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals.
[First Embodiment]

  FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of an inkjet printer equipped with an inkjet head cleaning device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the ink jet printer shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inkjet printer 1 has a slider shaft 20 spanning a Y direction perpendicular to the X direction, which is the conveyance direction of the medium M, above the platen 10 on which the medium M is mounted. The slider base 30 is movably held on the slider shaft 20. Therefore, the slider base 30 is guided by the slider shaft 20 and can move in the Y direction. The slider base 30 is connected to a traction mechanism using a wire, a ball, or the like, and can be moved in the Y direction by driving and controlling a driving source such as a motor.

  A head unit 50 on which an ink jet head 40 for discharging ink droplets is mounted is fixed to the slider base 30.

  The inkjet head 40 is provided with a nozzle plate 41 having a plurality of nozzle holes for discharging ink droplets. A nozzle surface 42 for ejecting ink droplets is formed on the surface of the nozzle plate 41 on the platen 10 and the medium M side.

  In addition, UVLED irradiators 60 that irradiate UV are fixed to the head unit 50 on both sides in the X direction. For this reason, by moving the slider base 30 in the Y direction, the head unit 50 and the UVLED irradiator 60 can be simultaneously moved in the Y direction. When the slider base 30 is moved in the Y direction, ink droplets are ejected from the head unit 50 and UV is irradiated from the UVLED irradiator 60, thereby ejecting ink droplets and media in one scan. Ink droplets that have landed on M can be cured.

  A maintenance device 70 for wiping the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 using rubber, felt or the like is provided below the inkjet head 40 when the head unit 50 is moved to one end (left side in FIG. 1). It has been. Then, an inkjet head cleaning device 100 for cleaning the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 by spraying a cleaning liquid below the inkjet head 40 when the head unit 50 is moved to the other side (right side in FIG. 1) end. Is provided.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the inkjet head cleaning apparatus according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 100 includes a cleaning container 101 into which a cleaning liquid is jetted and a cleaning liquid bottle 102 that stores the cleaning liquid as main components, and the cleaning container 101 is raised to clean the cleaning container 101. The nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 is cleaned by spraying a cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid is a cleaning liquid that can dissolve ink aggregates, and a cleaning liquid mainly composed of a solvent constituting the ink is used. Hereinafter, the configuration of the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 100 will be described in detail.

  The cleaning container 101 is provided to be movable up and down. The cleaning container 101 is formed in a box shape having an open upper surface, and a cleaning chamber S into which cleaning liquid is jetted is formed. On the upper part of the cleaning chamber S, a locking portion 111 that locks the inkjet head 40 is attached so as to cover the cleaning chamber S. An opening 112 into which the nozzle plate 41 is inserted into the cleaning chamber S is formed at the center of the locking portion 111. For this reason, the opening 112 is formed larger than the outer shape of the nozzle plate 41 and smaller than the outer shape of the inkjet head 40. The locking portion 111 is formed in a horizontal plane whose top surface is perpendicular to the vertical direction so that when the inkjet head 40 is locked, the nozzle surface 42 has a horizontal plane facing downward in the vertical direction. ing.

  An elastic rubber cap 113 is attached to the upper surface of the locking portion 111. The rubber cap 113 is not limited to rubber and may be made of any material having elasticity. The rubber cap 113 is formed in substantially the same shape as the locking portion 111. For this reason, when the cleaning container 101 is raised, the inkjet head 40 is locked to the locking portion 111 in a state where the nozzle plate 41 is inserted into the cleaning chamber S from the opening 112, and the inkjet head 40 comes into close contact with the rubber cap 113. The cleaning chamber S is sealed. Thus, sealing the cleaning chamber S prevents the cleaning liquid from leaking out of the cleaning chamber S.

  A supply pipe 103 for supplying the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 is attached to the lower part of the cleaning container 101. The supply pipe 103 is a pipe that communicates the cleaning liquid bottle 102 with the cleaning chamber S. The supply pipe 103 is disposed so as to protrude upward from the center of the bottom surface of the cleaning chamber S. The supply pipe 103 is provided with a pumping pump 105 that pumps the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 to the cleaning chamber S. The cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 is supplied into the cleaning chamber S through the supply pipe 103 by pumping the cleaning liquid by driving the pressure pump 105.

  A discharge pipe 104 for discharging the cleaning liquid sprayed in the cleaning chamber S is attached to the lower part of the cleaning container 101. The discharge pipe 104 is a pipe that communicates the cleaning liquid bottle 102 with the cleaning chamber S. A valve 106 that opens and closes the discharge pipe 104 is attached to the discharge pipe 104. In addition, a filter 107 that removes aggregates and the like removed from the nozzle surface 42 by cleaning is attached to the discharge pipe 104 at the connection with the cleaning chamber S.

  As the filter 107, a metal filter, an etching filter, or the like is used. The mesh of the filter 107 is preferably large enough to appropriately remove aggregates contained in the cleaning liquid without extremely increasing the passage resistance of the cleaning liquid. For example, a mesh filter 107 of about 2 to 15 μm is employed. In this way, by attaching the filter 107 to the discharge pipe 104, the cleaning liquid that has cleaned the nozzle surface is filtered and discharged to the cleaning liquid bottle 102, so that deterioration of the quality of the cleaning liquid can be suppressed. As a result, the nozzle surface can be cleaned again with the cleaning liquid discharged to the cleaning liquid bottle 102 without discarding the cleaning liquid in a single cleaning, so that the cleaning liquid can be reused.

  In the cleaning chamber S, there are a parent nozzle blade 121 that is rotatably supported by the cleaning container 101 and ejects cleaning liquid, and a child nozzle blade 131 that is rotatably supported by the parent nozzle blade 121 and ejects cleaning liquid. Has been placed.

  FIG. 4 is a front view of the parent nozzle blade and the child nozzle blade. FIG. 5 is a plan view of the parent nozzle blade and the child nozzle blade. FIG. 6 is a view showing a rotation region of the parent nozzle blade and the child nozzle blade. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII shown in FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 7, the parent nozzle blade 121 is a plate shape that is elongated and extends in one direction, and has a mountain-shaped cross section that swells upward. The parent nozzle blade 121 is rotatably supported by a rotating mechanism 122 disposed in the central portion of the cleaning chamber S. The rotation mechanism 122 is fixed to the cleaning container 101 such that the vertical axis is the rotation axis A. Therefore, the parent nozzle blade 121 can rotate along a plane parallel to the nozzle surface 42. The rotation mechanism 122 is in communication with the supply pipe 103 protruding from the bottom of the cleaning chamber S. For this reason, the main nozzle blade 121 is supported by the rotation mechanism 122 so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis as the rotation axis A in the central portion of the cleaning chamber S, and is supplied from the supply pipe 103 via the rotation mechanism 122. The cleaned cleaning liquid is supplied.

A flow path 125 through which the cleaning liquid supplied from the rotation mechanism 122 flows is formed inside the parent nozzle blade 121. A plurality of injection holes 126 through which the cleaning liquid flowing through the flow path 125 is injected are formed in the one blade portion 123 of the parent nozzle blade 121 extending to one side with the rotation mechanism 122 as a base. These injection holes 126, in order to vigorously inject cleaning liquid, a diameter d _1, taking into account the influence of the injection force or pressure loss, as appropriate optimum value is set.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, all the injection holes 126 are directed in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle θ _{1 with} respect to the rotation axis A of the rotation mechanism 122 and the parent nozzle blade 121. In FIG. 7, the injection hole 126 is directed in a direction inclined to the left side with respect to the rotation axis A by an angle θ ₁ . Thus, since the injection hole 126 is directed in a direction inclined with respect to the rotation axis A, when the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection hole 126, the reaction force against this injection force is the other blade portion of the parent nozzle blade 121. Therefore, the main nozzle blade 121 rotates by this reaction force.

If the inclination angle θ ₁ of the injection hole 126 is increased, the rotational speed of the parent nozzle blade 121 can be improved, and if the inclination angle θ ₁ of the injection hole 126 is reduced, the injection force of the cleaning liquid on the nozzle surface 42 is improved. Can be made. Therefore, the inclination angle θ ₁ of each injection hole 126 is appropriately set depending on factors such as the injection force for injecting the cleaning liquid onto the nozzle surface 42 and the rotation speed of the parent nozzle blade 121.

  On the other hand, a child nozzle blade 131 is attached to the other blade portion 124 of the parent nozzle blade 121 extending to the other side with the rotation mechanism 122 as a base portion via a rotation mechanism 132.

  As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6 and FIG. 8, the child nozzle blade 131 is a plate shape that is elongated and extends in one direction, and has a mountain-shaped cross section that swells upward. The child nozzle blade 131 is rotatably supported by a rotation mechanism 132 attached to the other blade portion 124 of the parent nozzle blade 121. The rotation mechanism 132 is fixed to the other blade portion 124 of the parent nozzle blade 121 such that the axis line is the rotation axis B in the vertical direction. For this reason, the sub nozzle blade 131 can rotate along a plane parallel to the nozzle surface 42, and the sub nozzle blade 131 rotates as the main nozzle blade 121 rotates as shown in FIG. 6. Accordingly, it is possible to rotate while moving. The rotating mechanism 132 is in communication with a flow path 125 formed in the parent nozzle blade 121. For this reason, the sub nozzle blade 131 is rotatably supported by the rotation mechanism 132 with the vertical axis as the rotation axis B, and the cleaning liquid supplied from the flow path of the parent nozzle blade 121 is supplied via the rotation mechanism 132. Is done.

  A flow path 135 through which the cleaning liquid supplied from the rotation mechanism 132 flows is formed inside the child nozzle blade 131.

A plurality of injection holes 136 and a plurality of injection holes 137 through which the cleaning liquid supplied to the flow path 135 is injected are formed in the one wing part 133 and the other wing part 134 that extend on both sides with the rotation mechanism 132 as a base. Has been. These injection holes 136 and injection holes 137, in order to vigorously inject cleaning liquid, the diameter d _2, taking into account the influence of the injection force or pressure loss, as appropriate optimum value is set.

As shown in FIG. 8, all the injection holes 136 formed in the one wing part 133 and all the injection holes 137 formed in the other wing part 134 are in relation to the rotation axis 132 of the rotation mechanism 132 and the child nozzle wing 131. It is oriented in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle theta ₂ Te. The inclination direction of the injection hole 136 and the inclination direction of the injection hole 137 are point-symmetric with respect to the rotation axis B. Therefore, when viewed from above, the inclination direction of the injection hole 136 and the inclination direction of the injection hole 137 are opposite to each other, but when viewed from the rotation axis B, the inclination direction of the injection hole 136 and the inclination direction of the injection hole 137 are Are in the same direction. In FIG. 8, since the child nozzle blade 131 is viewed from above, the injection hole 136 is formed in a direction inclined to the left side by an angle θ _{2 with} respect to the rotation axis B, and the injection hole 137 is rotated. It is formed in a direction inclined at an angle θ ₂ on the right side with respect to the axis B. Thus, since the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137 are directed in a direction inclined with respect to the rotation axis B, when the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137, the injection force against the injection force in the injection hole 136 is reduced. A reaction force acts on one wing portion 133, and a reaction force against the injection force in the injection hole 137 acts on the other wing portion 134. Since the direction of the reaction force acting on the one wing portion 133 and the direction of the reaction force acting on the other wing portion 134 are the same as seen from the rotation axis B, the child nozzle blade 131 self-rotates by these reaction forces. To do.

In addition, if the inclination angle θ ₂ of the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137 is increased, the rotation speed of the child nozzle blade 131 can be improved, and if the inclination angle θ ₂ of the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137 is reduced, the nozzle surface. The jetting power of the cleaning liquid with respect to 42 can be improved. Therefore, the inclination angle θ ₂ of each injection hole 136 and each injection hole 137 is appropriately set depending on factors such as the injection force for injecting the cleaning liquid onto the nozzle surface 42 and the rotation speed of the sub nozzle blade 131.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the child nozzle blade 131 rotates by itself while moving along a circle having a radius from the rotation axis A to the rotation axis B around the rotation axis A. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the length L ₁ of the one blade portion 133 and the other blade portion 134 of the child nozzle blade 131 is the length from the rotation axis A of the parent nozzle blade 121 to the rotation axis B of the child nozzle blade 131. It is longer than _{L 2.} As a result, the sub nozzle blades 131 rotate while moving, so that the entire surface of the nozzle surface 42 can be exposed to the cleaning liquid without unevenness.

  Next, the operation of the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 100 will be described.

  First, in order to clean the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40, the inkjet head 40 is moved and the inkjet head 40 is disposed above the cleaning container 101 of the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 100.

  Next, the cleaning container 101 is raised, the inkjet head 40 is brought into close contact with the rubber cap 113, and the nozzle plate 41 is inserted into the opening 112 of the locking portion 111. As a result, the cleaning chamber S is sealed, and the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 is inserted into the cleaning chamber S.

Next, the valve 106 of the discharge pipe 104 is opened, and the pumping pump 105 is driven to pump the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 to the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131. Then, in the cleaning chamber S, the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection hole 126 of the parent nozzle blade 121 toward the nozzle surface 42, and the cleaning liquid is supplied from the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137 of the child nozzle blade 131 toward the nozzle surface 42. Be injected. At this time, since the injection hole 126 is oriented in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle θ _{1 with} respect to the rotation axis A of the parent nozzle blade 121, a reaction force against the cleaning liquid injection force acts on the parent nozzle blade 121. The parent nozzle blade 121 rotates by itself. Further, since the injection hole 136 and the injection hole 137 are oriented in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle θ _{2 with} respect to the rotation axis B of the child nozzle blade 131, a reaction force against the spraying force of the cleaning liquid is applied to the child nozzle blade 131. Works. For this reason, the child nozzle blade 131 self-rotates while moving as the parent nozzle blade 121 self-rotates.

  The cleaning liquid sprayed from the spray holes 126, 136, and 137 is poured onto the nozzle surface 42. As a result, ink aggregates adhering to the nozzle surface 42 and ink aggregates clogging the nozzle holes are dissolved by the cleaning liquid. In addition, in order to dissolve these aggregates suitably, it is advisable to immerse the nozzle surface 42 in the cleaning liquid for about 5 to 30 minutes.

  On the other hand, the cleaning liquid bathed on the nozzle surface 42 falls to the bottom of the cleaning chamber S due to its own weight. At this time, since the cross sections of the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 are formed in a mountain shape, the cleaning liquid does not stay in the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 and falls to the bottom of the cleaning chamber S. . The cleaning liquid accumulated at the bottom of the cleaning chamber S is filtered by the filter 107 and discharged to the cleaning liquid bottle 102 through the discharge pipe 104. The cleaning liquid collected in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 is circulated in the cleaning liquid bottle 102, the supply pipe 103, the cleaning container 101, and the discharge pipe 104 by being pumped again to the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 by the pumping pump 105. The

When the cleaning of the nozzle surface 42 by the inkjet head cleaning device 100 is completed, the cleaning container 101 is lowered, and then the inkjet head 40 is moved to place the inkjet head 40 above the maintenance device 70. Then, by wiping the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 by the maintenance device 70, the cleaning liquid adhering to the nozzle surface 42 and the residue that could not be removed by the inkjet head cleaning device 100 are wiped off, and the inkjet head 40 is cleaned. Exit.
[Second Embodiment]

  Next, an inkjet head cleaning device according to a second embodiment will be described. FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an inkjet head cleaning apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the cleaning chamber is filled with the cleaning liquid.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the inkjet head cleaning device 200 is the same as the inkjet head cleaning device 100 according to the first embodiment except that an ultrasonic generator 210 that generates ultrasonic waves is provided. is there. For this reason, only the items different from the first embodiment will be described below.

  The inkjet head cleaning apparatus 200 is provided with an ultrasonic generator 210 at the bottom of the cleaning chamber S. The ultrasonic generator 210 is equipped with an ultrasonic generating element that generates ultrasonic waves, and can generate ultrasonic waves above the cleaning chamber S.

  Next, the operation of the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 200 will be described.

  First, as in the first embodiment, when the inkjet head 40 is disposed above the cleaning container 101, the cleaning container 101 is raised to bring the inkjet head 40 into close contact with the rubber cap 113 and the nozzle plate 41 is engaged. Insert into the opening 112 of the stop 111.

  Here, in the second embodiment, the valve 106 of the discharge pipe 104 is closed.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the pumping pump 105 is driven to pump the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid bottle 102 to the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131. Then, as in the first embodiment, in the cleaning chamber S, the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection holes 126 toward the nozzle surface 42 while the parent nozzle blade 121 rotates by itself. Further, the sub nozzle blade 131 self-rotates while moving along with the self-rotation of the parent nozzle blade 121, and the cleaning liquid is ejected from the ejection hole 136 and the ejection hole 137 toward the nozzle surface 42. As a result, ink aggregates adhering to the nozzle surface 42 and ink aggregates clogging the nozzle holes are dissolved by the cleaning liquid.

  At this time, since the valve 106 of the discharge pipe 104 is closed, the cleaning liquid that has cleaned the nozzle surface 42 and dropped to the bottom of the cleaning chamber S is not discharged from the discharge pipe 104 but is retained in the cleaning chamber S. The

  Therefore, the cleaning liquid is continuously ejected from the main nozzle blade 121 and the sub nozzle blade 131 until the cleaning chamber S is filled with the cleaning liquid. Then, as shown in FIG. 10, when the cleaning chamber S is filled with the cleaning liquid and the nozzle surface 42 is immersed in the cleaning liquid, the pumping of the cleaning liquid by the pressure pump 105 is stopped and ultrasonic waves are generated from the ultrasonic generator 210. . Then, the ultrasonic wave generated from the ultrasonic generator 210 is applied to the cleaning liquid and transmitted to the nozzle surface 42, and the nozzle surface 42 is immersed in the cleaning liquid to which the ultrasonic wave is applied. As a result, the aggregate is dissolved by the cleaning liquid while ultrasonic waves are applied to the nozzle surface 42 and aggregates, and therefore, the aggregate of ink adhered to the nozzle surface 42 and the aggregate of ink clogged in the nozzle holes are dissolved. Is dramatically promoted.

  Thereafter, when a predetermined time elapses, generation of ultrasonic waves by the ultrasonic generator 210 is stopped, and the valve 106 of the discharge pipe 104 is opened. Then, the cleaning liquid filled in the cleaning chamber S is filtered by the filter 107 and then discharged to the cleaning liquid bottle 102 through the discharge pipe 104.

  When the cleaning of the nozzle surface 42 by the inkjet head cleaning device 100 is completed, the cleaning liquid adhered to the nozzle surface 42 by wiping the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 by the maintenance device 70 as in the first embodiment. Then, the residue that could not be removed by the inkjet head cleaning apparatus 100 is wiped off, and the cleaning of the inkjet head 40 is completed.

  As described above, in the inkjet head cleaning device 100 according to the first embodiment, since the child nozzle blade 131 is rotatably supported by the parent nozzle blade 121, the child nozzle blade 131 rotates the parent nozzle blade 121. As a result, the main nozzle blade 121 moves on a circle around the rotation axis A of the parent nozzle blade 121, and further, the main nozzle blade 121 and the sub nozzle blade 131 rotate, so that the sub nozzle blade 131 moves on this circle. Rotate while. Thereby, since the child nozzle blade 131 can move indefinitely in various directions with respect to the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40, the cleaning liquid can be uniformly applied to the nozzle surface 42 of the inkjet head 40 evenly. The cleaning power of the nozzle surface 42 can be improved.

  Further, since the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 rotate along a plane parallel to the nozzle surface 42, the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 121 and The separation distance between the child nozzle blade 131 and the nozzle surface 42 can be made constant. Thereby, since the cleaning power with respect to the arbitrary position of the nozzle surface 42 can be made uniform, the cleaning unevenness of the nozzle surface 42 can be further suppressed.

  Further, when the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection hole 126, the injection hole 136, and the injection hole 137 provided in the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131, the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 are counteracted against the injection of the cleaning liquid. Although the force is generated, the direction of the reaction force is shifted with respect to the axial direction of the rotation axis A of the parent nozzle blade 121 and the rotation axis B of the child nozzle blade 131. A rotational force acts. For this reason, since the master nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 can be rotated by spraying the cleaning liquid without separately providing power for rotating the parent nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131, the number of parts can be reduced. It can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  Furthermore, according to the ink jet head cleaning apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment, the ultrasonic generator 210 generates ultrasonic waves while the cleaning chamber S is filled with the cleaning liquid and the nozzle surface 42 is immersed in the cleaning liquid. In addition, since the nozzle surface 42 can be cleaned with the cleaning liquid while applying ultrasonic vibration to the nozzle surface 42, the aggregates attached to the nozzle surface 42 can be effectively dissolved.

  Further, by providing the inkjet printer 1 with the inkjet head cleaning devices 100 and 200 and the wiping-type maintenance device 70 for wiping the nozzle surface 42, in addition to the above-described effects of the inkjet head cleaning devices 100 and 200, nozzles Since the cleaning liquid adhering to the surface 42 and the residue that cannot be removed by the inkjet head cleaning apparatuses 100 and 200 can be wiped off, the inkjet head 40 can be effectively cleaned. Thereby, defective ejection of ink droplets can be effectively suppressed, and maintenance costs associated with replacement of the inkjet head 40 can be reduced.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, the injection hole 126 formed in the parent nozzle blade 121 and the injection hole 136 and injection hole 137 formed in the child nozzle blade 131 are all inclined with respect to the rotation axis A and the rotation axis B. However, as in the child nozzle blade shown in FIG. 11, only some of the injection holes are directed in a direction inclined with respect to the rotation axis A and the rotation axis B, and the other injection holes are set to the rotation axis A. In addition, it may be directed upward in the same direction as the rotation axis B. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating another example of the child nozzle blade. Fig.11 (a) is a top view of a child nozzle blade | wing, FIG.11 (b) is the bb sectional view taken on the line of Fig.11 (a). As shown in FIG. 11, the child nozzle blade 151 is rotatably supported by the rotation mechanism 122, and a flow path 153 through which the cleaning liquid flows is formed therein. A plurality of injection holes 154 that are directed upward in the vertical direction are formed in both of the blades in the child nozzle blade 151 and directed in a direction inclined by 90 ° in FIG. 11 from the rotation axis of the child nozzle blade 151. One injection hole 155 is formed on each wing. With this configuration, the main nozzle blade 121 and the child nozzle blade 131 can be self-rotated while maintaining a high jetting power of the cleaning liquid on the nozzle surface 42.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Inkjet printer, 10 ... Platen, 20 ... Slider axis, 30 ... Slider base, 40 ... Inkjet head, 41 ... Nozzle plate, 42 ... Nozzle surface, 50 ... Head unit, 60 ... Irradiator, 70 ... Maintenance device, 100 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Inkjet head cleaning apparatus, 101 ... Cleaning container, 102 ... Cleaning liquid bottle, 103 ... Supply pipe, 104 ... Discharge pipe, 105 ... Pressure feed pump, 106 ... Valve, 107 ... Filter, 111 ... Locking part, 112 ... Opening, 113 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Rubber cap, 121 ... Parent nozzle blade, 122 ... Rotating mechanism, 123 ... One blade portion, 124 ... Other blade portion, 125 ... Flow path, 126 ... Injection hole, 131 ... Sub nozzle blade, 132 ... Rotating mechanism, 133 ... One wing part, 134 ... the other wing part, 135 ... flow path, 136 ... injection hole, 137 ... injection hole, 151 ... child nozzle , 153 ... passage 154 ... injection hole, 155 ... injection hole, 200 ... ink jet head cleaning device, 210 ... ultrasonic generator, A ... rotation axis, B ... rotary shaft, M ... medium, S ... washing chamber.

Claims (5)

A cleaning container that forms a cleaning chamber for cleaning the nozzle surface of the inkjet head;
A first nozzle part that is rotatably supported in the cleaning chamber and has an injection hole for injecting a cleaning liquid;
A second nozzle part that is rotatably supported by the first nozzle part in the cleaning chamber and has an injection hole for injecting a cleaning liquid;
Cleaning liquid supply means for supplying a cleaning liquid to the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part;
An inkjet head cleaning apparatus comprising:   The inkjet head cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first nozzle part and the second nozzle part are rotatably supported on an axis perpendicular to the nozzle surface. The first nozzle part and the second nozzle part are formed with injection holes through which cleaning liquid is injected,
The inkjet head cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the ejection hole is directed in a direction inclined with respect to a rotation axis of the first nozzle portion and the second nozzle portion. In the washing container,
The inkjet head cleaning device according to claim 1, further comprising an ultrasonic generator that generates ultrasonic waves in the cleaning chamber. An inkjet head cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A wiping maintenance device for wiping the nozzle surface;
An ink jet printer comprising:

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