JP3871019B2 - Liquid ejector - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention includes an ink jet recording head that discharges ink droplets from nozzle openings by pressurizing ink supplied to a pressure generating chamber communicating with nozzle openings for discharging ink droplets through piezoelectric elements or heating elements. The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As the liquid ejecting apparatus, for example, a plurality of pressure generating chambers that generate pressure for ejecting ink droplets by piezoelectric elements or heat generating elements, a common reservoir for supplying ink to each pressure generating chamber, and each pressure generating chamber There is an ink jet recording apparatus including an ink jet recording head having a nozzle opening that communicates with the ink jet recording apparatus. The ink jet recording apparatus applies ejection energy to ink in a pressure generating chamber that communicates with a nozzle corresponding to a print signal. Ink droplets are ejected from the nozzle openings.
[0003]
In addition, in such an ink jet recording head, a bubble jet type provided with a resistance wire for generating Joule heat by a drive signal in a pressure generating chamber as a pressure generating means, and a part of the pressure generating chamber with a diaphragm The vibration plate is roughly divided into two types of piezoelectric vibration type in which ink droplets are ejected from nozzle openings by deforming the vibration plate with a piezoelectric element. Two types have been put into practical use: those using a longitudinal vibration mode piezoelectric element that expands and contracts in the axial direction, and those using a flexural vibration mode piezoelectric element.
[0004]
In these ink jet recording heads, bubbles contained in the ink may remain in the pressure generating chamber or the like, and printing defects such as missing dots may occur. Therefore, the ink jet recording apparatus is provided with a suction cap to which a suction pump for sucking ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening is connected.
[0005]
The suction cap performs capping on the end face of the ink jet recording head to suck the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening, and also performs capping on the end face of the ink jet recording head that has been waiting for printing for a predetermined time or longer. Ink drying and thickening can be prevented.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in order to prevent drying and thickening of the ink near the nozzle opening that has been waiting for a predetermined time or more, in order to capping with the suction cap, the ink is first discharged into the suction cap and the moisture retaining member in the suction cap is moisturized. There is a need to. For this reason, before entering the standby state, there is a problem that ink is always ejected and ink consumption is fast.
[0007]
In addition, even if an attempt is made to prevent drying and thickening of the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening that has been left standing for a long time with the suction cap, there is a problem that the suction cap cannot completely prevent drying and thickening of the ink.
[0008]
In view of such circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus that reduces the wasteful consumption of ink by preventing drying and thickening of ink near a nozzle opening.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Invention]
According to a first aspect of the present invention for solving the above-described problems, an ink jet recording head comprising a pressure generating chamber communicating with a nozzle opening and a pressure generating means for generating a pressure for discharging ink in the pressure generating chamber. And an ink supply means for supplying ink to the ink jet recording head, and a contact cap that tightly contacts the surface of the ink jet recording head and seals each nozzle opening. And suction means having a suction cap that covers the nozzle opening and sucks ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening and is provided with a moisturizing member therein, depending on the standby state of the ink jet recording head. The cap for capping the head is either the contact cap or the suction cap The selection means selects the suction cap until the next printing operation is performed after the suction means performs the suction operation, and the selection means includes the suction means. In the liquid ejecting apparatus, the contact cap is selected after a predetermined time has elapsed after performing the suction operation.
[0010]
In the first aspect, the nozzle opening can be reliably sealed by the contact cap to prevent drying and thickening of the ink near the nozzle opening. In addition, wasteful consumption of ink can be prevented by appropriately selecting a cap to be capped on the recording head.
Further, since the moisture retaining member in the suction cap is moisturized by the suction operation, it is possible to reliably prevent the ink near the nozzle opening from drying and thickening by the suction cap.
Furthermore, after a predetermined time has elapsed, capping with a close-contact cap can reliably prevent drying and thickening of the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening.
[0033]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on embodiments.
[0034]
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a liquid ejecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.
[0035]
The liquid ejecting apparatus of the present embodiment is, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus. As shown in FIG. 1, the recording head units 1A and 1B having an ink jet recording head include ink cartridges 2A and 2B that constitute ink supply means. The carriage 3 on which the recording head units 1A and 1B are mounted is provided on a carriage shaft 5 attached to the apparatus main body 4 so as to be movable in the axial direction. The recording head units 1A and 1B eject a black ink composition and a color ink composition, respectively.
[0036]
A drive motor 6 is provided in the vicinity of one end of the carriage shaft 5, and a first pulley 6 a having a groove on the outer periphery is provided at the tip of the shaft of the drive motor 6. Further, in the vicinity of the other end portion of the carriage shaft 5, a second pulley 6b corresponding to the first pulley 6a of the drive motor 6 is rotatably provided, and these first pulley 6a and second pulley are provided. A timing belt 7 made of an elastic member such as rubber is hung between the belt 6b.
[0037]
Then, the driving force of the driving motor 6 is transmitted to the carriage 3 via the timing belt 7, so that the carriage 3 on which the recording head units 1 A and 1 B are mounted is moved along the carriage shaft 5. On the other hand, the apparatus body 4 is provided with a platen 8 along the carriage 3. The platen 8 can be rotated by a driving force of a paper feed motor (not shown), and a recording sheet S that is a recording medium such as paper fed by a paper feed roller is wound around the platen 8 and conveyed. It has become so.
[0038]
Further, as will be described in detail later, for example, capping the end face of an ink jet recording head that has been left for a long time on the side of the platen 8 that is the end of the carriage 3 in the moving direction to prevent drying of ink near the nozzle opening. An adhesion cap 30 is provided.
[0039]
Further, the ink jet recording apparatus is provided with a suction cap 40 that sucks ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening adjacent to the contact cap 30 in the non-printing area.
[0040]
Here, an ink jet recording head mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus as described above will be described. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an ink jet recording head according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
[0041]
An ink jet recording head 10 shown in FIG. 2 is a type having a longitudinal vibration type piezoelectric element. A plurality of pressure generating chambers 12 are arranged in parallel on the spacer 11, and the pressure generating chambers 12 are arranged on both sides of the spacer 11. Are sealed by a nozzle plate 14 having nozzle openings 13 and a diaphragm 15. The spacer 11 is formed with a reservoir 17 that communicates with each pressure generation chamber 12 via an ink supply port 16 and serves as a common ink chamber for the plurality of pressure generation chambers 12. An ink cartridge (not shown) is connected.
[0042]
On the other hand, the tip of the piezoelectric element 18 is in contact with the area corresponding to each pressure generation chamber 12 on the opposite side of the vibration plate 15 from the pressure generation chamber 12. These piezoelectric elements 18 are laminated by sandwiching piezoelectric materials 19 and electrode forming materials 20 and 21 vertically in a sandwich shape, and an inactive region that does not contribute to vibration is fixed to a fixed substrate 22. The fixed substrate 22, the vibration plate 15, the spacer 11, and the nozzle plate 14 are integrally fixed via a base 23.
[0043]
In the ink jet recording head 10 configured as described above, ink is supplied to the reservoir 17 via the ink flow path communicating with the ink cartridge, and is distributed to each pressure generating chamber 12 via the ink supply port 16. Actually, the piezoelectric element 18 is contracted by applying a voltage to the piezoelectric element 18. As a result, the diaphragm 15 is deformed together with the piezoelectric element 18 (upwardly in the drawing), the volume of the pressure generating chamber 12 is expanded, and ink is drawn into the pressure generating chamber 12. Then, after filling the inside up to the nozzle opening 13 with ink and then releasing the voltage applied to the electrode forming materials 20 and 21 of the piezoelectric element 18 in accordance with the recording signal from the drive circuit, the piezoelectric element 18 is expanded. To return to the original state. As a result, the vibration plate 15 is also displaced to return to the original state, so that the pressure generating chamber 12 is contracted, the internal pressure is increased, and an ink droplet is ejected from the nozzle opening 13.
[0044]
In such an ink jet recording head 10, if the printing operation is not performed for a long time, the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 is dried, and clogging or ejection failure occurs.
[0045]
For this reason, a non-printing area of the ink jet recording apparatus is provided with an adhesion cap 30 that is in close contact with the nozzle plate 14 and closes each nozzle opening 13 to prevent the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 from drying.
[0046]
Further, in the ink jet recording head 10, bubbles contained in the ink remain in the pressure generation chamber 12, and printing defects such as missing dots may occur. Therefore, a suction cap 40 that covers the nozzle opening 13 is provided adjacent to the contact cap 30 in the non-printing area of the ink jet recording apparatus. For example, a vacuum pump is connected to the suction cap 40 via a tube 42. A suction device 41 such as a suction device 41 is connected, and the suction device 41 sucks ink in the pressure generation chamber 12 through the nozzle opening 13.
[0047]
Here, the contact cap 30 and the suction cap 40 will be described in detail.
[0048]
3 is a schematic perspective view of the contact cap and the suction cap, FIG. 4 is a plan view and a sectional view of the contact cap, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the suction cap.
[0049]
As shown in FIG. 3, the contact cap 30 is provided to face the nozzle opening 13 in a non-printing area in the moving direction of the carriage 3. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the contact cap 30 has a plate shape and is formed to have a size so as to be in close contact with the nozzle plate 14 and cover all the nozzle openings 13.
[0050]
In the present embodiment, the material for forming the contact cap 30 is formed of an elastic member such as rubber so as to securely contact the nozzle plate 14 and not damage the surface of the nozzle plate 14.
[0051]
Such a close cap 30 is in close contact with the nozzle plate 14 to seal the nozzle opening 13 as shown in FIG. 4 when the ink jet recording head 10 is left without performing a printing operation for a long period of time. Ink near the opening 13 is prevented from drying. At this time, since a meniscus is formed on the ink liquid surface by the surface tension at the nozzle opening 13, a space of about 3 μm is formed between the surface of the contact cap 30 and the ink liquid surface. For this reason, ink does not adhere to the surface of the contact cap 30.
[0052]
In addition, since it is necessary for such a close cap 30 to be in close contact with the nozzle plate 14 to close the nozzle opening 13, a pressing means for pressing the close cap 30 against the nozzle plate 14 with a predetermined pressure is provided. Also good.
[0053]
In addition, the close cap 30 is configured to block all the nozzle openings 13. However, the close cap is not limited to this as long as the close cap can reliably seal each of the nozzle openings 13. A plurality of contact caps may be provided corresponding to the colors of the columns so that the respective nozzle caps block the nozzle openings of the respective ink columns.
[0054]
Further, when pigment ink is used as the ink, the piezoelectric element 18 of the ink jet recording head 10 is driven in a state where the nozzle opening 13 is in close contact with the contact cap 30, and the ink in the pressure generating chamber 12 and the reservoir 17 is driven. You may make it perform stirring operation which stirs.
[0055]
By this stirring operation, it is possible to prevent thickening due to the ink in the pressure generation chamber 12 and the reservoir 17 being settled, and the occurrence of unstable ejection due to the thickened ink and the density unevenness of the printed matter due to the settled pigment ink. Can be prevented.
[0056]
On the other hand, the suction cap 40 of the present embodiment is provided so as to face the nozzle plate 14 of the ink jet recording head 10 and is provided so as to cover all of the plurality of nozzle openings 13 provided in the nozzle plate 14. .
[0057]
The suction cap 40 has a suction port 40 a that faces the nozzle plate 14 and opens over all the nozzle openings 13. The suction cap 40 covers all of the nozzle openings 13 by the edges of the suction ports 40 a coming into contact with the surface of the nozzle plate 14. The suction cap 40 has a communication port 40b communicating with the suction port 40a on the surface opposite to the suction port 40a, and a suction device 41 is connected to the communication port 40b via a tube 42.
[0058]
Such a suction cap 40 abuts the edge of the suction port 40a on the surface of the nozzle plate 14, and the suction device 41 sucks the ink to suck the ink in the pressure generating chamber 12, thereby causing printing failure due to bubbles or the like. It is used during the suction operation to prevent the ink and has the role of preventing drying and thickening of the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 by covering all of the nozzle opening 13 in the same manner as the contact cap 30.
[0059]
Here, FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of a configuration for controlling the ejection of ink by such an ink jet recording head.
[0060]
As shown in FIG. 6, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the ink jet recording head 10 that is a mechanism unit that actually performs printing, and the suction that sucks ink near the nozzle openings 13 of the ink jet recording head 10. The apparatus 41 and the control part 50 which controls operation | movement of this inkjet recording head 10 and the suction device 41 are provided.
[0061]
The control unit 50 includes a print control unit 51, a recording head drive circuit 52, a print position control unit 53, a selection unit 54, a suction unit 55, and a time measuring unit 56.
[0062]
The print control unit 51 controls the printing operation of the ink jet recording head 10 and, for example, causes the ink jet recording head 10 to eject ink via the recording head drive circuit 52 in response to the input of a print signal.
[0063]
Further, the printing position control means 53 performs positioning in the main scanning direction and the sub scanning direction during printing and capping of the ink jet recording head 10. Specifically, the printing position control means 53 drives the drive motor 6 to move the carriage 3 in the main scanning direction, thereby positioning the ink jet recording head 10 in the main scanning direction, and drives a paper feed motor (not shown). The platen 8 is rotated to move the recording sheet S in the sub-scanning direction, thereby positioning the ink jet recording head 10 with respect to the recording sheet S in the sub-scanning direction.
[0064]
The selection unit 54 selects a cap to be capped on the ink jet recording head 10 from the contact cap 30 or the suction cap 40 according to the standby state of the ink jet recording head 10.
[0065]
In the present embodiment, the selection unit 54 selects the suction cap 40 in a long-term standby state in which printing is not performed for a long period after the recording apparatus is turned off. This is because, when the power is turned on in a long-term standby state, a suction operation may be performed by the suction means 55 which will be described in detail later, so if capping with the contact cap 30, there is a time loss for changing to the suction cap. May occur. For this reason, the selection means 54 is previously capped with the suction cap 40 in the long-term standby state in which the power is cut off.
[0066]
The selection unit 54 selects the contact cap 30 in a short-term standby state in which power is turned on after printing is finished but printing is not performed. This is to prevent the ink from being dried and thickened in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 as much as possible in the standby state between printings, thereby reducing the frequency of the suction operation and preventing wasteful consumption of ink.
[0067]
In the capping by the contact cap 30 or the suction cap 40, the printing position control unit 53 moves the ink jet recording head 10 to a region facing the contact cap 30 or the suction cap 40 based on the result selected by the selection unit 54. Thus, each of the nozzle openings 13 is sealed or covered with the contact cap 30 or the suction cap 40 to prevent drying and thickening of the ink near the nozzle openings 13.
[0068]
In the present embodiment, the selection unit 54 maintains the suction cap 40 until the first printing operation is performed after the power is turned on from the long-term standby state. As a result, the time loss for changing to the contact cap 30 can be eliminated, and the speed up to the first printing operation can be increased. Of course, the selection means 54 selects the contact cap 30 and changes the cap when a predetermined time elapses after the power is turned on from the long standby state until the first printing operation is performed. It may be.
[0069]
The suction unit 55 causes the suction device 41 to perform a suction operation of sucking ink in the vicinity of the nozzle openings 13 of the ink jet recording head 10 at a predetermined timing.
[0070]
Specifically, the suction unit 55 moves the ink jet recording head 10 to a position facing the suction cap 40 via the printing position control unit 53, and drives the suction device 41 by capping the ink jet recording head 10 with the suction cap 40. By doing so, the suction operation is performed.
[0071]
Further, the time measuring unit 56 measures the stop time of the piezoelectric element 18, and the suction unit 55 performs a suction operation based on the measurement result of the time measuring unit 56.
[0072]
This suction operation is performed at a predetermined timing such as when the nozzle opening 13 is clogged, when the ink cartridge is replaced, before printing, or between printing. In this embodiment, the power is turned on. The elapsed time in the standby state in which printing is not performed is measured by the time measuring unit 56, and when the measurement result of the time measuring unit 56 is equal to or longer than the predetermined time, the suction operation is performed. Further, even when the power is turned on from the long-term standby state described above, the elapsed time in the long-term standby state is measured by the time measuring unit 56, and when the measurement result of the time measuring unit 56 is equal to or longer than the predetermined time, the suction operation is performed. It has become.
[0073]
In this way, when the suction operation is performed, the moisture retaining member in the suction cap 40 is moisturized with ink by the suction operation, and the suction cap 40 can sufficiently prevent the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 from being dried. In such a standby state after the suction operation, the means 54 may select the suction cap 40 without selecting the contact cap 30 until the next printing operation is performed.
[0074]
Hereinafter, based on the flowchart of FIG. 7, an ink ejection operation of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described.
[0075]
As shown in FIG. 7, when the power is turned off in step S <b> 1, the selection unit 54 selects the suction cap 40 in step S <b> 2 and the ink-jet recording head 10 is moved to the suction cap by the printing position control unit 53. The ink jet recording head 10 is capped with the suction cap 40 by moving to an area facing the head 40. If the power is turned on in step S3 (step S3: Yes), the selection unit 54 selects the suction cap 40 in step S4, and the printing position control unit 53 does not move the ink jet recording head 10. The ink jet recording head 10 is capped with the suction cap 40 as it is.
[0076]
If the power is not turned on in step S3 (step S3: No), the ink jet recording head 10 stands by in a state of being capped by the suction cap 40 until the power is turned on.
[0077]
When a print signal is input in step S5 (step S5: Yes), in step S6, the print control unit 51 causes the ink jet recording head 10 to perform printing via the recording head drive circuit 52, and in step S5. If the print signal is not input (step S5: No), the ink jet recording head 10 stands by in the state of being capped by the suction cap 40 until the print signal is input. At this time, the selection unit 54 may select the contact cap 30 when a standby state in which printing is not performed elapses for a predetermined time.
[0078]
Then, after printing is performed in step S6, if another print signal is input in step S7 (step S7: Yes), the ink jet recording head 10 performs printing again in step S6, and in step S7. When no other print signal is input (step S7: No), the selection unit 54 selects the contact cap 30 in step S8, and the print position control unit 53 is the region where the ink jet recording head 10 faces the contact cap 30. Then, the inkjet recording head 10 is capped with the contact cap 30.
[0079]
Thereafter, when the power is turned off in step S9 (step S9: Yes), the ink jet recording head 10 is capped by the suction cap 40 in step S2, and is in a long standby state until the power is turned on in step S3. Become.
[0080]
If the power is not cut off in step S9 (step S9: No), the ink jet recording head 10 is in a standby state with being capped by the contact cap 30 (steps S5 to S9).
[0081]
As described above, in a short-term standby state in which the power is turned on but printing is not performed, the selection unit 54 selects the contact cap 30, and the contact cap 30 closes the nozzle opening 13 and closes the nozzle opening 13. By preventing the ink from drying, it is possible to reliably prevent the ink near the nozzle opening 13 from drying and thickening, to reduce the frequency of the suction operation by the suction means 55, and to prevent wasteful ink consumption and reliably. Printing can be performed.
[0082]
In the present embodiment, the selection unit 54 selects the suction cap 40 in a long-term standby state where the power is cut off and printing is not performed. However, the selection unit 54 is not limited to this, and the selection unit 54 has a power supply. You may make it select the contact | adherence cap 30 also in the cut | disconnected long-term standby state. Thereby, even in the long-term standby state, it is possible to lengthen the period for preventing the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 from drying and thickening. However, when the power is turned on, the standby state in which the power is turned off is reduced. If it is longer than the predetermined time, it is necessary to perform the suction operation by capping with the suction cap 40.
[0083]
In the above description, after the suction operation, the nozzle cap 13 is covered with the suction cap 40 to prevent the ink from drying. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the selection means 54 after the suction operation is performed. May select the contact cap 30 and prevent drying of the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening 13 until the next printing is executed by the contact cap 30.
[0084]
As described above, the selection unit 54 may select the contact cap 30 or the suction cap 40 as appropriate depending on the standby state of the ink jet recording head 10.
[0085]
In the present embodiment, the contact cap 30 and the suction cap 40 are arranged side by side in the movement direction of the carriage 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, as shown in FIG. Are arranged in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction 3, and are arranged on the nozzle plate 14 of the ink jet recording head 10 in accordance with the situation where the selection means 54 or the printing position control means 53 uses the contact cap 30 </ b> A and the suction cap 40. You may make it replace | exchange to the position which opposes.
[0086]
In the present embodiment, the elastic cap member is simply used as the material for the contact cap 30, but a member having a low water vapor transmission rate can be used in order to more reliably prevent the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening from being dried and thickened. It is preferable.
[0087]
Furthermore, it is good also as an adhesion cap of the two-layer structure of an elastic member and a metal member. In this case, the side that contacts the nozzle plate is made of an elastic member, so that the nozzle surface is not damaged, and the ink near the nozzle opening is more reliably dried and thickened with a metal member having a very low water vapor transmission rate. It becomes possible to prevent.
[0088]
In the present embodiment, the longitudinal vibration type ink jet recording head has been described as an example of the ink jet recording head 10. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a flexural vibration type ink jet recording head or a bubble jet may be used. Needless to say, the present invention can be applied to a liquid ejecting apparatus including an ink jet recording head having various structures such as an ink jet recording head.
[0089]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the close-contact cap that tightly contacts the nozzle opening side surface of the ink jet recording head and seals each nozzle opening, and the suction cap that covers the nozzle opening and sucks ink near the nozzle opening. The selection means selects the cap for capping the recording head from the close-up cap and the suction cap according to the state of leaving the recording head, so that the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening is reliably dried in the standby state of the ink jet recording head. Can be prevented.
[0090]
In addition, since the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening is securely sealed in the contact cap, it is not necessary to discharge the ink in the cap before capping by the suction cap to keep the moisturizing member in the suction cap moist. Can be prevented.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a liquid ejecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an ink jet recording head according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a suction cap and a contact cap according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIGS. 4A and 4B are a plan view and a cross-sectional view of a contact cap according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIGS.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a suction cap according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a control configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an ink ejection operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing another example of the arrangement of the contact cap according to the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1A, 1B Recording head unit
2A, 2B ink cartridge
3 Carriage
4 Device body
5 Carriage shaft
6 Drive motor
6a first pulley
6b Second pulley
7 Timing belt
8 Platen
10 Inkjet recording head
11 Spacer
12 Pressure generation chamber
13 Nozzle opening
14 Nozzle plate
15 Diaphragm
16 Ink supply port
17 Reservoir
18 Piezoelectric elements
19 Piezoelectric materials
20, 21 Electrode forming material
22 Fixed substrate
23 base
30 Adhesive cap
40 Suction cap
41 Suction device
42 tubes
50 Control unit
51 Print control means
52 Recording head drive circuit
53 Print position control means
54 selection means
55 Suction means
56 Timekeeping

Claims (1)

An ink jet recording head comprising a pressure generating chamber communicating with the nozzle opening and a pressure generating means for generating a pressure for discharging the ink in the pressure generating chamber, and an ink supply for supplying ink to the ink jet recording head A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising:
A close-up cap that tightly contacts the nozzle opening side surface of the ink jet recording head and seals each of the nozzle openings, and sucks ink in the vicinity of the nozzle openings and covers the nozzle openings, and a moisture retaining member is provided inside. A suction means having a suction cap, and a selection means for selecting a cap for capping the ink jet recording head according to a standby state of the ink jet recording head from one of the contact cap and the suction cap. The selection means selects the suction cap until the next printing operation is performed after the suction means performs the suction operation, and the selection means performs the suction operation after the suction means performs the suction operation. The liquid ejecting apparatus is characterized in that the contact cap is selected after a predetermined time has elapsed.

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