JP6561613B2 - Conveying apparatus and inkjet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a conveyance device that conveys a sheet, and an inkjet recording apparatus that includes the conveyance device and records an image on a sheet by an inkjet method.

  Conventionally, a conveying apparatus that conveys a sheet is known. As an apparatus provided with such a transport apparatus, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus that records an image on a sheet by an ink jet recording method is exemplified.

  In the transport device and the ink jet recording apparatus, the drive transmission is switched as disclosed in the image recording apparatus of Patent Document 1 in order to transmit the output of one motor to a plurality of drive units. More specifically, a switching gear is provided that is slidable along the axial direction of the drive gear while meshing with a drive gear that is driven and transmitted from the motor. A plurality of receiving gears for transmitting the driving force to the driving units are arranged corresponding to the sliding positions of the switching gear. The switching gear is engaged with each receiving gear by sliding.

JP 2013-71407 A

  However, in the drive transmission switching in the image recording apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to execute a meshing operation for satisfactorily meshing with the receiving gear when the switching gear slides. The meshing operation is an operation in which a predetermined amount of forward rotation and reverse rotation of the switching gear is performed a predetermined number of times, and therefore requires a lot of time.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide means capable of quickly executing drive transmission switching.

  (1) A transport device according to the present invention includes a slide gear that is slidably supported on a support shaft along an axial direction, a first gear that can mesh with the slide gear, and a first gear that rotates coaxially with the first gear. A clutch gear having two gears, a motor for applying a driving force to one of the second gear or the slide gear, a driving unit that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the other of the second gear or the slide gear, A slide mechanism that slides the slide gear; a roller that rotates when a driving force is applied from the motor to convey the sheet; and a control unit that controls the motor and the slide mechanism. The clutch gear includes a first surface and a second surface provided on one of the first gear and the second gear and spaced apart along the circumferential direction, and the other of the first gear and the second gear. And a contact portion that is located between the first surface and the second surface in the circumferential direction and is capable of contacting the first surface and the second surface. The distance in the circumferential direction between the contact portion with the first surface and the contact portion with the second surface in the contact portion is greater than the distance in the circumferential direction between the first surface and the second surface. Is also short. The control unit controls the motor in a state where the slide gear and the first gear are engaged with each other, and the contact portion is not in contact with either the first surface or the second surface. A rotation process for rotating the clutch gear so as to be in a state; a slide process for controlling the slide mechanism to slide the slide gear after the start of the rotation process; and a process after the start of the slide process; After a predetermined time from the end of the rotation process, a forward / reverse rotation process is executed in which the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the motor are alternately performed at least once.

  According to the above configuration, when the control unit executes the rotation process, the contact part is not in contact with either the first surface or the second surface. As a result, the first gear is rotatable by the gap between the contact portion and the first and second surfaces. As a result, the operation of sliding the slide gear to mesh with the first gear and the operation of sliding the slide gear meshed with the first gear to separate from the first gear can be executed smoothly.

  However, the possibility that smooth sliding is hindered by the sliding gear being caught by the first gear does not become zero.

  Therefore, in the above-described configuration, the forward / reverse rotation process is executed a predetermined time after the slide gear is moved in the slide process. As a result, even if the slide gear is caught by the first gear in the slide process, the hook of the slide gear with the first gear can be eliminated by the forward / reverse process. In addition, since the slide of the slide gear is normally likely to be smoothly executed because the first gear is freely rotatable, the forward and reverse rotations of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation processing may be the minimum necessary number of times. . Thereby, sliding of a slide gear can be performed rapidly.

  (2) The control unit starts to execute the rotation process and the slide process simultaneously.

  According to the above configuration, the slide process can be ended earlier than when the slide process is started after the rotation process.

  (3) The control unit determines a rotation amount to be executed first among the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process, in the circumferential direction between the first surface and the second surface. In the forward / reverse rotation processing, the rotation amount is equal to or greater than the distance obtained by subtracting the circumferential distance between the contact portion with the first surface and the contact portion with the second surface at the contact portion. Of the normal rotation and reverse rotation of the motor, the rotation amount to be executed later is determined from the distance in the circumferential direction between the first surface and the second surface with respect to the first surface in the contact portion. The rotation amount is less than the rotation amount corresponding to the distance obtained by subtracting the circumferential distance between the contact portion and the contact portion with the second surface.

  According to the above configuration, the contact portion is reliably separated from the first surface and the second surface immediately after the motor is rotated in one of the forward rotation and the reverse rotation and then rotated in the other of the normal rotation and the reverse rotation. Can be made.

  (4) The driving unit is driven by being given a driving force for rotation executed later in the forward rotation and reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process. The roller rotates and conveys the sheet by applying a driving force of rotation executed later in the forward rotation and reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process.

  Of the normal rotation and reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process, the driving force is not transmitted from the first gear to the second gear during the rotation executed later. Therefore, the driving force is not transmitted to the driving unit. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the drive unit from unintentionally driving in the forward / reverse rotation process.

  (5) An ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes the transport device and a recording head that ejects ink from a nozzle toward the sheet transported by the roller, and the recording head is directed toward the sheet. And a carriage that can move to a basic position outside the printing area. The slide gear is separated from the first position meshed with the first gear and the first gear, and the second gear on the first direction side which is one of the axial directions with respect to the first position. Can slide to position. The slide mechanism includes a carriage, a biasing member that biases the slide gear in the first direction, and a protruding portion that protrudes into a moving area of the carriage, and is slidably supported on the support shaft. And a lever member that holds the slide gear in the first position against the urging force of the urging member by contacting the carriage at the basic position with the protrusion. In the slide process, the control unit moves the carriage from the basic position toward the print area.

  According to the above configuration, when the carriage is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide processing, the slide gear slides from the first position to the second position by the urging force of the urging member. At this time, even if the slide gear is caught by the first gear, the hook of the slide gear to the first gear can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation process.

  (6) For example, an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a roller gear that is provided on a roller shaft of the roller, rotates integrally with the roller, and meshes with the slide gear. The motor applies a driving force to the slide gear via the roller gear. The roller gear meshes with the slide gear regardless of whether the slide gear is in the first position or the second position.

  (7) For example, the driving unit is a maintenance mechanism that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear and performs maintenance of the recording head.

  (8) The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes the transport device, a plurality of transmission gears that are arranged at intervals along the axial direction, each meshable with the slide gear, and the roller A print head that discharges ink from nozzles toward a sheet conveyed by the print head, a print area in which the print head can discharge ink toward the sheet, and a carriage that moves to a basic position outside the print area And comprising. The plurality of transmission gears are disposed at least on a first transmission gear that transmits the driving force of the motor to the driving unit, and on a first direction side that is one of the axial directions with respect to the first transmission gear. And a second transmission gear for transmitting the driving force of the motor to the roller. The slide gear is slidable at least in a first position meshed with the first transmission gear and a second position meshed with the second transmission gear. The slide mechanism includes a carriage, a biasing member that biases the slide gear in the first direction, and a protruding portion that protrudes into a moving area of the carriage, and is slidably supported on the support shaft. And a lever member that holds the slide gear in the first position against the urging force of the urging member by contacting the carriage at the basic position with the protrusion. In the slide process, the control unit moves the carriage from the basic position toward the print area.

  According to the above configuration, when the carriage is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide processing, the slide gear slides from the first position to the second position by the urging force of the urging member. At this time, since the urging force of the urging member becomes weaker as the slide gear that slides approaches the second position, the possibility that the slide gear is caught by the second transmission gear is less than the possibility that the slide gear is caught by the first transmission gear. Is also expensive. However, even if the slide gear is caught by the second transmission gear, the hook of the slide gear to the second transmission gear can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation process. Of course, the forward / reverse rotation processing can also eliminate the catch of the slide gear on the first transmission gear.

  (9) For example, the motor applies a driving force to the second gear. The first gear meshes with the slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear.

  (10) For example, the roller is a feeding roller that conveys a sheet supported by a tray toward a conveyance path formed in the apparatus.

  (11) For example, the driving unit is a cap that moves between a covering position where the carriage covers the nozzle at the basic position and a separation position away from the nozzle when the driving force is transmitted from the motor. is there.

  (12) The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes the transport device, a plurality of transmission gears spaced apart from each other along the axial direction, and ink from the nozzle toward the sheet transported by the roller. And a print area in which the print head can eject ink toward the sheet, and a carriage that moves to a basic position outside the print area. The slide gear is disposed in contact with the first slide gear on a first direction side which is one of the axial directions with respect to the first slide gear and the first slide gear. It is comprised by the 2nd slide gear meshable with a transmission gear. The roller conveys the sheet by rotating the sheet supported on the tray toward a conveyance path formed in the apparatus and a roller in contact with the sheet on the conveyance path. It is comprised with a conveyance roller. The ink jet recording apparatus includes a roller gear that is provided on a roller shaft of the transport roller, rotates integrally with the transport roller, and meshes with the first slide gear. The clutch gear includes a first clutch gear that meshes with the first slide gear and a second clutch gear that meshes with the second slide gear. The motor includes a first motor that applies a driving force to the first slide gear via the roller gear, and a second motor that applies a driving force to the second gear of the second clutch gear. The driving unit includes a first driving unit that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear of the first clutch gear, and a second driving unit that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second motor. And comprising. The plurality of transmission gears are arranged at least on the first direction side with respect to the first transmission gear and a first transmission gear that transmits the driving force of the second motor to the second driving unit, A second transmission gear configured to transmit the driving force of the second motor to the feeding roller. The slide gear includes at least a first position where the first slide gear meshes with the first gear of the first clutch gear and the second slide gear meshes with the first transmission gear, and the first slide gear. Is separated from the first gear of the first clutch gear and is slidable to a second position where the second slide gear meshes with the second transmission gear. The roller gear meshes with the first slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear. The first gear of the second clutch gear meshes with the second slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear. The slide mechanism includes a carriage and a protruding portion that protrudes in a movement region of the carriage, and is slidably supported on the support shaft. The slide mechanism is opposite to the first direction with respect to the first slide gear. A lever member disposed in contact with the first slide gear on the second direction side, a first urging member for urging the lever member in the first direction, and the second slide gear with the first slide gear. A second urging member that urges the urging member in the second direction with a smaller urging force than the urging member. The first slide gear is held at the first position against the urging force of the first urging member by the carriage of the basic position coming into contact with the protrusion, and the carriage is moved from the protrusion to the carriage. By moving away from the first position, the second position is moved by the biasing force of the first biasing member. In the slide process, the control unit moves the carriage from the basic position toward the print area.

  According to the above configuration, when the carriage is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide process, the first slide gear slides from the first position to the second position by the biasing force of the first biasing member. At this time, even if the first slide gear is caught by the first gear, the hooking of the first slide gear to the first gear can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation process.

  According to the above configuration, when the carriage is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide process, the second slide gear is pushed by the first slide gear to slide from the first position to the second position. At this time, since the urging force of the urging member becomes weaker as the sliding second slide gear approaches the second position, the possibility that the second slide gear is caught by the second transmission gear is that the second slide gear is the first transmission. It is higher than the possibility of getting caught in the gear. However, even if the second slide gear is caught by the second transmission gear, the hooking of the second slide gear to the second transmission gear can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation process. Of course, the forward / reverse rotation process can also eliminate the catch of the second slide gear on the first transmission gear.

  (13) For example, the first driving unit is a maintenance mechanism that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear of the first clutch gear and performs maintenance of the recording head. In addition, the second driving unit is a cap that moves between a covering position where the carriage covers the nozzle at the basic position and a separation position away from the nozzle when the driving force is transmitted from the second motor. It is.

  (14) The controller is configured to move the cap from the covering position to the separation position by controlling the motor in a state where the carriage is at the basic position and the cap is at the covering position. And the rotation process is executed during the cap movement process, and the slide process is executed after the cap movement process and the rotation process.

  According to the above configuration, the movement of the cap and the rotation of the clutch gear are executed in parallel. Therefore, the execution start time of the slide process can be advanced.

  (15) In the rotation process, the control unit controls the first motor in a state where the first slide gear and the first gear of the first clutch gear are engaged with each other, so that the contact unit , A first rotation process for rotating the first clutch gear such that the first clutch gear is not in contact with either the first surface or the second surface, and the first of the second slide gear and the second clutch gear. In the state in which the gear is engaged, the second clutch gear is controlled such that the second motor is controlled so that the contact portion is not in contact with either the first surface or the second surface. A second rotation process for rotating the cap, and in a state where the carriage is in the basic position and the cap is in the covering position, the second motor is controlled to move the cap away from the covering position. Place A cap moving process of moving to the run. Further, the control unit executes the first rotation process during the execution of the cap movement process, executes the second rotation process after the execution of the cap movement process, and executes the second rotation process after the start of the second rotation process. Execute slide processing. The forward / reverse rotation process is a first forward / reverse rotation in which the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the first motor are alternately performed at least once after the start of the slide process and after a predetermined time from the end of the first rotation process. A second forward / reverse rotation process that alternately executes forward rotation and reverse rotation of the second motor at least once each after a predetermined time after the start of the slide process and after the end of the second rotation process; including.

  According to the above configuration, the movement of the cap and the rotation of the first clutch gear are executed in parallel. Therefore, the execution start time of the slide process and the forward / reverse process can be advanced.

  (16) The control unit starts execution of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process simultaneously.

  According to the above configuration, the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process can be ended earlier than when the execution start timings of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / backward rotation process are different.

  (17) The total number of forward rotations and reverse rotations of the motor that applies driving force to the plurality of transmission gears in the forward / reverse rotation processing is equal to or greater than the number of the plurality of transmission gears.

  When the slide gear is caught by the transmission gear, the slide gear can be released from being caught by the rotation of the motor only once by the forward or reverse rotation of the motor. Therefore, if the total number of forward rotations and reverse rotations of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation processing is equal to or greater than the number of the plurality of transmission gears, the slide gear is temporarily caught by all the transmission gears in the sliding process. Even all the catches can be taken off.

  (18) The first transmission gear is a gear arranged at the most upstream position in the first direction among the plurality of transmission gears. The second transmission gear is a gear arranged at the most downstream position in the first direction among the plurality of transmission gears. The predetermined time related to the motor that applies driving force to the plurality of transmission gears is longer than the time required for the slide gear to move from the first position to the second position by the biasing force of the biasing member. It's time.

  According to the above configuration, the slide gear can slide from the first position to the second position during a predetermined time. Further, even if the slide gear is caught by one of the plurality of transmission gears when sliding from the first position to the second position, the slide gear transmits the transmission when the motor is rotated forward or backward. The hook with the gear can be removed.

  (19) The distance between the transmission gears in the axial direction is longer than the length of the slide gear in the axial direction.

  According to the above configuration, the slide gear can be prevented from meshing simultaneously with the plurality of transmission gears.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to quickly switch drive transmission.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the multifunction machine 10. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the internal structure of the printer unit 11. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the carriage 23 and the guide rails 43 and 44. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the printer unit 11. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the maintenance mechanism 110 and the waste ink tank 120. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the first transmission unit 181, the third transmission unit 183, the fourth transmission unit 184, and the switching mechanism 170. FIG. 7A is a schematic diagram of the second transmission unit 182, the fifth transmission unit 185, and the switching mechanism 170, and FIG. 7B illustrates the second transmission unit 182, the sixth transmission unit 186, and the switching unit. FIG. 7C is a schematic diagram of the mechanism 170, and FIG. 7C is a schematic diagram of the second transmission unit 182, the seventh transmission unit 187, and the switching mechanism 170. FIG. 8 is a perspective view around the switching mechanism 170 and the conveyance roller 60. FIG. 9 is a right side view of FIG. FIG. 10 is a plan view of the periphery of the switching mechanism 170 when the slide gear 160 is positioned at the left position LP. FIG. 11 is a plan view of the periphery of the switching mechanism 170 when the slide gear 160 is positioned at the center position MP. FIG. 12 is a plan view of the periphery of the switching mechanism 170 when the slide gear 160 is positioned at the right position RP. FIG. 13 is a plan view of the periphery of the holding portion 173 and the roller gear 180. 14A and 14B are perspective views of the first clutch gear 191, and FIGS. 14C and 14D are perspective views of the second clutch gear 192. FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining a process performed when the slide gear 160 is moved in the left-right direction 9. FIG. 16A is a schematic diagram showing a mechanism 141 in a modified example, and FIG. 16B is a schematic diagram showing a mechanism 142 in the modified example. FIG. 17 is a time chart showing the operation of each of the motors 101, 102, and 103 when moving the slide gear 160 in the left-right direction 9.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described. The embodiment described below is merely an example of the present invention, and it is needless to say that the embodiment of the present invention can be changed as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention. Further, the vertical direction 7 is defined with reference to the state in which the multifunction machine 10 is installed (the state shown in FIG. 1), and the front-rear direction 8 is defined with the side where the opening 13 is provided as the front side (front). A left-right direction 9 is defined when the multifunction machine 10 is viewed from the front side (front side).

[Overall configuration of MFP 10]
The multifunction machine 10 (an example of an ink jet recording apparatus) is generally formed in a rectangular parallelepiped as shown in FIG. The multifunction machine 10 has various functions such as a facsimile function and a print function. The multi-function device 10 has a printer unit 11 that records an image on one side of a sheet 12 (see FIG. 2) using an inkjet recording method at the bottom. The printer unit 11 may record images on both sides of the paper 12.

  The printer unit 11 includes a transport device that transports the paper 12, a recording unit 24 that records an image on the paper 12 transported by the transport device, and a platen 42 that supports the paper 12 transported by the transport device. Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the transport device includes a first feeding unit 15, a second feeding unit 34, a feeding tray 20 (an example of a tray), a multipurpose (an abbreviation of Multi Purpose, hereinafter “MP”). The tray 31 (an example of the tray), the discharge tray 21, the transport roller unit 54, and the discharge roller unit 55 are provided. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the transport device includes a feeding motor 101 (an example of a second motor), a transport motor 102 (an example of a first motor), a control unit 130, a driving force transmission mechanism 70, and the like. The maintenance mechanism 110 is provided.

[Feed tray 20, discharge tray 21, MP tray 31]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the feeding tray 20 is inserted and removed in the front-rear direction 8 through an opening 13 formed in the front surface of the printer unit 11. The feeding tray 20 supports a plurality of stacked sheets 12. The discharge tray 21 is disposed on the upper side of the feeding tray 20. The discharge tray 21 supports the paper 12 discharged by the discharge roller unit 55 through the opening 13. The MP tray 31 is configured to be inclined obliquely upward from the back of the printer unit 11 toward the rear. The MP tray 31 supports a plurality of stacked sheets 12.

[First feeding unit 15 and second feeding unit 34]
As shown in FIG. 2, the first feeding unit 15 includes a first feeding roller 25 (an example of a roller and a feeding roller), a feeding arm 26, and a shaft 27. The first feeding roller 25 is rotatably supported on the leading end side of the feeding arm 26. The first feed roller 25 transports the paper 12 supported by the feed tray 20 in the transport direction 16 toward the transport path 65 described later by the forward rotation of the feed motor 101 (see FIGS. 4 and 9). Rotate in the direction (ie, forward rotation). The transmission of the driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the first feeding roller 25 will be described in detail later. The feeding arm 26 is rotatably supported on a shaft 27 supported by the frame of the printer unit 11.

  The second feeding unit 34 feeds the uppermost sheet 12 stacked on the MP tray 31 toward the conveyance path 65. The second feeding roller 35 (an example of a roller and a feeding roller), the feeding arm 36, and the shaft 37 constituting the second feeding unit 34 are substantially common to the respective components of the first feeding unit 15. Further, the second feeding unit 34 includes a lifter 38 that is rotatably supported on the shaft 35 </ b> A of the second feeding roller 35. The lifter 38 is indicated by a broken line in FIG. 2 and is shown in a solid line in FIG. 2 and a non-feeding position where the lifter 38 is in contact with the MP tray 31 (paper if the paper is supported on the MP tray 31). It rotates between a feeding position separated from the MP tray 31 (or a sheet when the sheet is supported on the MP tray 31). Further, the rotation tip of the lifter 38 is located outside the outer peripheral surface of the second feeding roller 35. As a result, the lifter 38 at the non-feed position separates the second feed roller 35 from the paper 12 on the MP tray 31. On the other hand, the lifter 38 at the feeding position brings the second feeding roller 35 into contact with the paper 12 on the MP tray 31.

  The lifter 38 is rotated from the feeding position to the non-feeding position by the forward rotation of the feeding motor 101 (see FIG. 4). On the other hand, the lifter 38 rotates from the non-feeding position to the feeding position by the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101. The second feed roller 35 rotates in a direction (that is, forward rotation) in which the paper 12 supported by the MP tray 31 is transported in the transport direction 16 by the reverse rotation of the feed motor 101. The transmission of driving force from the feed motor 101 to the lifter 38 and the second feed roller 35 will be described in detail later.

[Conveyance path 65]
As shown in FIG. 2, a conveyance path 65 through which the paper 12 passes is formed inside the printer unit 11. The conveyance path 65 indicates a space defined by the guide members 18 and 19 facing each other with a predetermined interval inside the printer unit 11. The conveyance direction 16 of the paper 12 in the conveyance path 65 is indicated by a one-dot chain line arrow in FIG.

  The conveyance path 65 according to the present embodiment includes a curved conveyance path and a linear conveyance path that extends linearly. The curved conveyance path is a path that makes a U-turn while extending upward from below on the rear side of the printer unit 11. The straight conveyance path is a path from the conveyance roller unit 54 to the discharge tray 21 through the recording unit 24 and the discharge roller unit 55.

[Conveying roller unit 54]
As shown in FIG. 2, the transport roller unit 54 is disposed on the upstream side in the transport direction 16 with respect to the recording unit 24. The conveyance roller unit 54 includes a conveyance roller 60 (an example of a roller) and a pinch roller 61 that face each other. The transport roller 60 is driven by a transport motor 102 (see FIGS. 4 and 8). The pinch roller 61 is rotated along with the rotation of the conveyance roller 60. The transport roller unit 54 rotates forward when the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted. The forward rotation is a rotation in a direction in which the sandwiched paper 12 is transported in the transport direction 16. That is, the conveyance roller 60 conveys the paper 12 by rotating in a state of being in contact with the paper 12 on the conveyance path 65. Further, the transport roller portion 54 can be rotated in the reverse direction opposite to the normal rotation when the reverse driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted.

[Discharge roller section 55]
As shown in FIG. 2, the discharge roller unit 55 is disposed downstream of the recording unit 24 in the transport direction 16. The discharge roller portion 55 includes a discharge roller 62 and a spur 63 that face each other. The discharge roller 62 is driven by the transport motor 102 (see FIGS. 4 and 8). The spur 63 is rotated along with the rotation of the discharge roller 62. The discharge roller unit 55 is capable of forward rotation for transporting the sandwiched paper 12 in the transport direction 16 by transmitting the forward driving force of the transport motor 102. Further, the discharge roller portion 55 is capable of reverse rotation in the reverse direction to the normal rotation when the reverse driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is transmitted.

[Recording unit 24]
As shown in FIG. 2, the recording unit 24 is disposed between the conveyance roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 in the conveyance direction 16. The recording unit 24 is disposed so as to face the platen 42 in the vertical direction 7. The recording unit 24 includes a carriage 23 and a recording head 39. As shown in FIG. 3, an ink tube 32 and a flexible flat cable 33 are extended from the carriage 23. The ink tube 32 supplies ink from the ink cartridge to the recording head 39. The flexible flat cable 33 electrically connects the control board on which the control unit 130 is mounted and the recording head 39.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the carriage 23 is supported by guide rails 43 and 44 that extend in the left-right direction 9 at positions spaced in the front-rear direction 8. The carriage 23 is connected to a known belt mechanism provided on the guide rail 44. This belt mechanism is driven by a carriage motor 103 (see FIG. 4). That is, the carriage 23 connected to the belt mechanism that moves circumferentially by driving the carriage motor 103 can reciprocate in the main scanning direction along the left-right direction 9.

  The recording head 39 is mounted on the carriage 23 as shown in FIG. A plurality of nozzles 40 are formed on the lower surface of the recording head 39. The recording head 39 ejects ink from the nozzle 40 as fine ink droplets. In the process of moving the carriage 23, the recording head 39 ejects ink droplets onto the paper 12 that is transported by the transport roller unit 54 and supported by the platen 42. As a result, an image is recorded on the paper 12.

  The carriage 23 reciprocates in a range in which the recording head 39 can eject ink droplets onto the paper 12 in the left-right direction 9 during image recording on the paper 12. Specifically, the carriage 23 reciprocates in a range in which at least a part of the recording head 39 is directly above the conveyance path 65 and the platen 42. Hereinafter, the range in which the carriage 23 reciprocates during image recording is referred to as a print area.

  The carriage 23 can move to the right of the printing area. In other words, the carriage 23 can move outside the printing area. Hereinafter, the position of the carriage 23 that has moved to the right of the printing area is referred to as a basic position. That is, the carriage 23 can move to the printing area and the basic position. The basic position may be on the left side of the print area.

[Platen 42]
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the platen 42 is disposed between the transport roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 in the transport direction 16. The platen 42 is disposed so as to face the recording unit 24 in the vertical direction 7 and supports the paper 12 conveyed by the conveyance roller unit 54 from below.

[Maintenance mechanism 110 and cap 114]
A maintenance mechanism 110 (an example of a drive unit and a first drive unit) illustrated in FIG. 5 performs maintenance of the recording head 39. In the present embodiment, the maintenance mechanism 110 sucks ink from the nozzles 40 of the recording head 39 and sends the sucked ink to the waste ink tank 120 through the tube 121.

  The maintenance mechanism 110 is disposed below the movement path of the carriage 23 and to the right of the right end of the platen 42. That is, the maintenance mechanism 110 is located at a position deviating from the conveyance path 65 in the left-right direction 9 and is arranged to the right of the printing area. The maintenance mechanism 110 is disposed directly below the carriage 23 at the basic position.

  In FIG. 5, the waste ink tank 120 is schematically illustrated to show that the maintenance mechanism 110 and the waste ink tank 120 are connected by the tube 121. It does not indicate the positional relationship with the components.

  The maintenance mechanism 110 includes a movable portion 111, a cam mechanism 112 that moves the movable portion 111 in the vertical direction 7, a tube 121 through which ink flows, and a pump 113 that sucks ink.

  The movable part 111 is provided with a cap 114 made of a rubber material (an example of a drive part and a second drive part). The cap 114 is provided at a position facing the carriage 23 at the basic position in the vertical direction 7. Specifically, the cap 114 is provided at a position facing the nozzle 40 formed on the lower surface of the recording head 39 mounted on the carriage 23 in the vertical direction 7. The cam mechanism 112 is driven by the feed motor 101 (see FIG. 4), and moves the movable portion 111 in the vertical direction 7. The cap 114 comes into contact with the lower surface of the recording head 39 mounted on the carriage 23 at the basic position when the movable portion 111 is moved upward. At that time, the cap 114 covers the nozzle 40. As described above, the cap 114 is moved to the separation position separated from the nozzle 40 and the covering position that is in contact with the lower surface of the recording head 39 and covers the nozzle 40 by transmitting the driving force from the feeding motor 101. To do.

  One end of a tube 121 is connected to the cap 114. The tube 121 is a flexible resin tube. The other end of the tube 121 is connected to the waste ink tank 120.

  The pump 113 is a rotary tube pump in the present embodiment. The pump 113 includes a casing having an inner wall surface and a rolling roller that rolls along the inner wall surface. The tube 121 is disposed between the rolling roller and the inner wall surface. The rolling roller is driven by a conveyance motor 102 (see FIGS. 4 and 8). By driving the rolling roller, the tube 121 is handled, the ink in the nozzle 40 is sucked into the tube 121, and the ink in the tube 121 moves from the upstream side (cap 114) to the downstream side (waste ink tank 120). Extruded.

  The waste ink tank 120 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped box shape having an internal space. An ink absorber (not shown) is accommodated in the internal space. The waste ink tank 120 can store the ink sucked from the nozzles 40 when the ink absorber absorbs the ink.

  Transmission of driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 and transmission of driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112 (cap 114) will be described in detail later.

[Driving force transmission mechanism 70]
The driving force transmission mechanism 70 is configured by combining all or part of a gear, a pulley, an endless annular belt, and the like. 6 to 9, the driving force transmission mechanism 70 includes a first transmission unit 181, a second transmission unit 182, a third transmission unit 183, a fourth transmission unit 184, a fifth transmission unit 185, and a sixth transmission unit. A transmission unit 186, a seventh transmission unit 187, and a switching mechanism 170 are provided. The specific configuration (for example, the number of gears) of the driving force transmission mechanism 70 is not limited to the one described below.

  The first transmission unit 181 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the conveyance roller 60 and the switching mechanism 170. The second transmission unit 182 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 to the switching mechanism 170. The third transmission unit 183 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 from the conveyance roller 60 to the discharge roller 62. The fourth transmission unit 184 transmits the driving force of the transport motor 102 from the switching mechanism 170 to the pump 113. The fifth transmission unit 185 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 from the switching mechanism 170 to the cam mechanism 112. The sixth transmission unit 186 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 from the switching mechanism 170 to the first feeding roller 25. The seventh transmission unit 187 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 from the switching mechanism 170 to the second feeding roller 35. The switching mechanism 170 switches the transmission destination of the driving force of the feeding motor 101 and the conveyance motor 102.

[First transmission unit 181]
6 and 8, the first transmission unit 181 includes a pulley 71 that rotates integrally with the shaft of the transport motor 102, and a pulley 72 that rotates integrally with the shaft 60A of the transport roller 60 (an example of a roller shaft). , And an endless annular belt 73 laid over pulleys 71 and 72. As a result, the transport roller 60 rotates in the forward direction when the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted, and rotates in the reverse direction when the reverse drive force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted. As the transport roller 60 rotates, the roller gear 180 of the switching mechanism 170 that rotates integrally with the shaft 60A of the transport roller 60 rotates. As described above, the first transmission unit 181 transmits the driving force of the transport motor 102 to the transport roller 60 and the switching mechanism 170.

[Second transmission unit 182]
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, the second transmission unit 182 includes a pulley 79 that rotates integrally with the shaft of the feed motor 101, a pulley 80, and an endless annular belt 82 that is stretched over the pulleys 79, 80. And a gear 83 that rotates integrally with the shaft of the pulley 80, and a gear 84 that meshes with the gear 83. The gear 84 meshes with the second gear 192 </ b> B of the second clutch gear 192 of the switching mechanism 170. As a result, the feeding motor 101 applies a driving force to the second clutch gear 192. Specifically, the second clutch gear 192 rotates in the forward direction when the forward driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted, and rotates in the reverse direction when the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted. As described above, the second transmission unit 182 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 to the switching mechanism 170.

[Third transmission unit 183]
As shown in FIG. 6, the third transmission portion 183 includes gears 75 and 76 that mesh with each other, pulleys 77 and 78, and an endless annular belt 81. The gear 75 meshes with the gear 76 and rotates integrally with the shaft 60 </ b> A of the transport roller 60. The gear 76 and the pulley 77 rotate coaxially and integrally. The pulley 78 is attached to the shaft 62 </ b> A of the discharge roller 62. The belt 81 is stretched around pulleys 77 and 78. As a result, the discharge roller 62 rotates in the forward direction when the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted, and rotates reversely when the reverse drive force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted. As described above, the third transmission unit 183 transmits the driving force of the transport motor 102 from the transport roller 60 to the discharge roller 62.

[Fourth Transmission Unit 184]
As shown in FIG. 6, the fourth transmission portion 184 includes a gear 85 that meshes with the second gear 191 </ b> B of the first clutch gear 191 of the switching mechanism 170, and a rolling roller of the pump 113 that meshes with the gear 85. And a gear 86 that rotates integrally with the shaft. As a result, the pump 113 performs a suction operation when the forward driving force is transmitted from the second gear 191B of the first clutch gear 191 and is released into the atmosphere by the reverse driving force transmitted from the second gear 191B. Perform the action. The second gear 191 </ b> B receives driving force from the transport motor 102 via the roller gear 180, the first slide gear 160 </ b> A, and the first gear 191 </ b> A of the first clutch gear 191. Specifically, the roller gear 180 meshes with the first slide gear 160A. The first slide gear 160A can mesh with the first gear 191A. The second gear 191B can rotate integrally with the first gear 191A. Details of the first slide gear 160A and the first clutch gear 191 will be described later. From the above, the fourth transmission unit 184 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 from the switching mechanism 170 to the pump 113.

[Fifth transmission unit 185]
As shown in FIG. 7A, the fifth transmission unit 185 includes a gear 87 that meshes with the receiving gear 165 of the switching mechanism 170, and a gear 88 that is provided in the cam mechanism 112 and meshes with the gear 87. ing. The receiving gear 165 receives a driving force from the feeding motor 101 via the second clutch gear 192 and the second slide gear 160B. More specifically, the first gear 192A of the second clutch gear 192 can rotate integrally with the second gear 192B to which the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted by the second transmission portion 182. The first gear 192A meshes with the second slide gear 160B. The second slide gear 160B can mesh with the receiving gear 165. Details of the second slide gear 160B and the second clutch gear 192 will be described later. As the gear 88 rotates, the cam mechanism 112 is driven. When the cam mechanism 112 is driven, the movable portion 111 including the cap 114 moves up and down. As described above, the fifth transmission unit 185 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 (reverse driving force in the present embodiment) from the switching mechanism 170 to the cam mechanism 112.

[Sixth transmission unit 186]
As shown in FIG. 7B, the sixth transmission unit 186 includes gears 89 and 91, pulleys 94 and 95, an endless annular belt 97, a sun gear 98, a pendulum gear 99, and an arm 100. It consists of

  The gear 89 meshes with the receiving gear 167 of the switching mechanism 170. The receiving gear 167 receives the driving force from the feeding motor 101 via the second clutch gear 192 and the second slide gear 160B, similarly to the receiving gear 165 described above. The sun gear 98 rotates integrally with the gear 89 coaxially. The pendulum gear 99 meshes with the sun gear 98 and contacts and separates from the gear 91. One end of the arm 100 is rotatably supported by the sun gear 98, and the other end supports the pendulum gear 99 so that it can rotate and revolve. The gear 91 and the pulley 94 rotate coaxially and integrally. The pulley 95 rotates integrally with the first feeding roller 25 coaxially. The belt 97 is stretched around pulleys 94 and 95.

  As the sun gear 98 rotates, the pendulum gear 99 revolves around the sun gear 98 while rotating. Then, the pendulum gear 99 is separated from the gear 91 when the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the sun gear 98 as indicated by a broken line in FIG. On the other hand, the pendulum gear 99 meshes with the gear 91 when the forward rotation driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the sun gear 98 as shown by a solid line in FIG. As a result, the sixth transmission unit 186 does not transmit the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 to the first feeding roller 25. On the other hand, the sixth transmission unit 186 rotates the first feeding roller 25 in the forward direction by the forward driving force of the feeding motor 101. As described above, the sixth transmission unit 186 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 from the switching mechanism 170 to the first feeding roller 25.

[Seventh transmission unit 187]
The 7th transmission part 187 is comprised with the gear 156 and the gear train 157 as FIG.7 (C) shows. The gear train 157 includes a plurality of gears 157A to 157C in which adjacent gears mesh with each other.

  The gear 156 meshes with the receiving gear 166 of the switching mechanism 170. The receiving gear 166 receives the driving force from the feeding motor 101 via the second clutch gear 192 and the second slide gear 160B, similarly to the receiving gear 165 described above. The gears 156 and 157A rotate integrally with the shaft 37. The gear 157 </ b> C rotates integrally with the shaft 35 </ b> A of the second feeding roller 35. A torque limiter is disposed between the shaft 35 </ b> A of the second feed roller 35 and the lifter 38. As a result, the lifter 38 does not rotate clockwise beyond the non-feeding position indicated by the broken line in FIG. 7C, but counterclockwise beyond the feeding position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 7C. Does not rotate around. In other words, the lifter 38 rotates between the feeding position and the non-feeding position.

  The seventh transmission unit 187 configured as described above rotates the second feeding roller 35 reversely by the forward driving force of the feeding motor 101 and rotates the lifter 38 toward the non-feeding position. As a result, the sheet 12 supported by the MP tray 31 is not fed to the transport path 65 by the forward rotation driving of the feeding motor 101. On the other hand, the seventh transmission unit 187 rotates the second feeding roller 35 forward by the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 and rotates the lifter 38 toward the feeding position. As a result, the sheet 12 supported by the MP tray 31 is fed to the transport path 65 by the reverse rotation driving of the feeding motor 101. As described above, the seventh transmission unit 187 transmits the driving force of the feeding motor 101 from the switching mechanism 170 to the second feeding roller 35.

[Switching mechanism 170]
The switching mechanism 170 can switch the transmission state of the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 and the feeding motor 101 to the first state, the second state, and the third state. The first state is a state in which the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is transmitted to the pump 113 and the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the cam mechanism 112. The second state is a state in which the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is not transmitted to the pump 113 and the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the second feeding roller 35 and the lifter 38. The third state is a state in which the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is not transmitted to the pump 113 and the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the first feeding roller 25.

  The switching mechanism 170 is provided on the right side of the platen 42. As shown in FIG. 8, the switching mechanism 170 includes a slide gear 160, a roller gear 180, three receiving gears 165, 166, and 167 (an example of a transmission gear), a slide mechanism 150, and a clutch gear 190. ing.

[Slide gear 160, roller gear 180, and receiving gears 165, 166, 167]
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10 to 12, the slide gear 160 is supported by a support shaft 174 extending in the left-right direction 9. The slide gear 160 can rotate around the support shaft 174. Further, the slide gear 160 is located to the left of the right position RP (an example of the first position) and the right position RP shown in FIG. 12 along the left-right direction 9 that is the axial direction of the support shaft 174. The center position MP shown (an example of the second position) is located to the left of the center position MP and is movable (slidable) to the left position LP (an example of the second position) shown in FIG.

  The slide gear 160 includes a first slide gear 160A and a second slide gear 160B. Each of the slide gears 160A and 160B can rotate about the support shaft 174 and can move along the axial direction (left-right direction 9) of the support shaft 174.

  The second slide gear 160B is disposed on the left side (an example of the first direction) of the first slide gear 160A. That is, the second slide gear 160B is arranged on the left side of the first slide gear 160A. The first slide gear 160A and the second slide gear 160B are disposed in contact with each other.

  The second slide gear 160B includes a gear main body 161 having teeth formed on the outer periphery, and a convex portion 162 extending rightward from the gear main body 161 toward the first slide gear 160A. The diameter of the convex portion 162 is smaller than the diameter of the gear body 161. The protruding tip of the convex portion 162 and the first slide gear 160A are in contact with each other by a biasing force of a first coil spring 168 and a second coil spring 169 described later. As a result, the tooth portion of the first slide gear 160A and the tooth portion (gear body 161) of the second slide gear 160B are arranged at an interval in the left-right direction 9.

  The first slide gear 160 </ b> A meshes with the roller gear 180 regardless of the position of the slide gear 160. That is, the first slide gear 160A meshes with the roller gear 180 regardless of whether the slide gear 160 is in the right position RP, the center position MP, or the left position LP (see FIGS. 10 to 12).

  The roller gear 180 is fixed to the shaft 60 </ b> A of the transport roller 60 at the right end of the transport roller 60. As a result, the roller gear 180 rotates integrally with the transport roller 60. As described above, the driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted to the first slide gear 160A via the roller gear 180.

  The first slide gear 160A meshes with or separates from the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 of the clutch gear 190 depending on the position of the slide gear 160.

  The second slide gear 160B meshes with the first gear 192A of the second clutch gear 192 of the clutch gear 190 regardless of the position of the slide gear 160. That is, the second slide gear 160B meshes with the first gear 192A regardless of whether the slide gear 160 is in the right position RP, the center position MP, or the left position LP (see FIGS. 10 to 12). ).

  The second slide gear 160B meshes with one of the three receiving gears 165, 166, and 167 depending on the position of the slide gear 160. That is, each of the three receiving gears 165, 166, and 167 can mesh with the second slide gear 160B.

  The receiving gears 165, 166, and 167 are arranged in a state of being spaced apart along the left-right direction 9. The receiving gear 166 is disposed on the left side of the receiving gear 165. The receiving gear 167 is disposed on the left side of the receiving gear 166. That is, the receiving gear 165 is disposed on the rightmost side (the most upstream position facing left) among the three receiving gears 165, 166, and 167. The receiving gear 167 is disposed on the leftmost (leftmost downstream position) of the three receiving gears 165, 166, and 167.

  The distance between the receiving gears 165 and 166 in the left-right direction 9 and the distance between the receiving gears 166 and 167 in the left-right direction 9 are longer than the length in the axial direction (left-right direction 9) of the gear body 161 of the second slide gear 160B.

  As shown in FIG. 12, when the slide gear 160 is positioned at the right position RP, the first slide gear 160 </ b> A meshes with the roller gear 180 and the first gear 191 </ b> A of the first clutch gear 191. Thereby, the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is transmitted to the pump 113 via the first slide gear 160A and the first clutch gear 191 (see FIG. 6).

  When the slide gear 160 is positioned at the right position RP, the second slide gear 160B meshes with the first gear 192A and the receiving gear 165 of the second clutch gear 192. Thereby, the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the cam mechanism 112 that moves the cap 114 up and down via the second slide gear 160B and the receiving gear 165 (see FIG. 7A). The receiving gear 165 is an example of a first transmission gear.

  As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, when the slide gear 160 is located at the left position LP or the center position MP, the first slide gear 160A meshes with the roller gear 180, but the first clutch gear 191 has the first gear. It is separated from one gear 191A. Thereby, the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is not transmitted to the first clutch gear 191.

  As shown in FIG. 11, when the slide gear 160 is located at the center position MP, the second slide gear 160B meshes with the first gear 192A and the receiving gear 166 of the second clutch gear 192. Thereby, the driving force of the feed motor 101 is transmitted to the second feed roller 35 and the lifter 38 via the second slide gear 160B and the receiving gear 166 (see FIG. 7C).

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the slide gear 160 is positioned at the left position LP, the second slide gear 160 </ b> B meshes with the first gear 192 </ b> A of the second clutch gear 192 and the receiving gear 167. Thereby, the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the first feeding roller 25 via the second slide gear 160B and the receiving gear 167 (see FIG. 7B). The receiving gear 167 is an example of a second transmission gear.

  In the present embodiment, three receiving gears are provided, but the number of receiving gears is not limited to three. The receiving gear includes at least a gear that transmits driving force to the cam mechanism 112 and a gear that transmits driving force to the feeding roller (the first feeding roller 25 or the second feeding roller 35). The condition may be 2 or 4 or more. For example, when the multifunction machine 10 does not include the MP tray 31 and the second feeding roller 35, two receiving gears are provided. Further, for example, the multifunction machine 10 includes two upper and lower feed trays that are inserted and removed in the front-rear direction 8 through the opening 13, and feed rollers are provided corresponding to the upper and lower two feed trays. In this case, four receiving gears are provided.

  Further, the slide gear 160 may be movable to a position other than the positions described above in addition to the positions described above (right position RP, center position MP, left position LP) according to the number of receiving gears. .

[Slide mechanism 150]
The slide mechanism 150 is a mechanism that moves the slide gear 160 in the left-right direction 9. The slide mechanism 150 includes a carriage 23 (see FIG. 2), a lever member 175 (see FIG. 8), a first coil spring 168 (an example of a first biasing member, see FIG. 10), and a second coil spring 169 (second An example of an urging member (see FIG. 10) and a holding portion 173 (see FIG. 13) are provided. In FIG. 8, the first coil spring 168 and the second coil spring 169 are not shown.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, the lever member 175 is disposed in contact with the first slide gear 160A on the right side (an example of the second direction) side with respect to the first slide gear 160A. That is, the lever member 175 is disposed on the right side of the first slide gear 160A.

  The lever member 175 includes a main body portion 175A that is in contact with the first slide gear 160A, and a protruding portion 175B that protrudes upward from the main body portion 175A. A support shaft 174 is inserted through the main body 175A. Thus, the main body 175A is supported by the support shaft 174 so as to be movable in the left-right direction 9 and rotatable. The protrusion 175 </ b> B extends to a movement area outside the printing area in the movement area of the carriage 23. As a result, the protrusion 175B can be pressed to the right by contacting the carriage 23 that moves to the right.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the first coil spring 168 is disposed on the right side of the lever member 175. A support shaft 174 is inserted through the first coil spring 168. One end of the first coil spring 168 is in contact with the lever member 175. The other end of the first coil spring 168 is in contact with a frame (not shown) of the printer unit 11. Thus, the first coil spring 168 can bias the lever member 175 leftward.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the second coil spring 169 is disposed on the left side of the second slide gear 160B. A support shaft 174 is inserted through the second coil spring 169. One end of the second coil spring 169 is in contact with the gear body 161 of the second slide gear 160B. The other end of the second coil spring 169 is in contact with the frame 176 of the printer unit 11. Accordingly, the second coil spring 169 can bias the second slide gear 160B to the right.

  The biasing force of the second coil spring 169 is smaller than the biasing force of the first coil spring 168. As a result, the slide gear 160 (the first slide gear 160A and the second slide gear 160B) and the lever member 175 are urged leftward.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the holding portion 173 is provided above the main body portion 175 </ b> A of the lever member 175. An opening 177 is formed in the holding portion 173. In the opening 177, the protruding portion 175B of the lever member 175 is inserted from below to above. A first stopper 178, a second stopper 179 provided to the right of the first stopper 178, and an inclined surface 172 provided to the right of the second stopper 179 are formed at the edge of the opening 177. Has been.

  The first stopper 178 abuts on the protrusion 175B in a state where the slide gear 160 is located at the left position LP. Thereby, the lever member 175 is restricted from moving leftward from the left position LP by the urging force of the first coil spring 168. On the other hand, the first stopper 178 does not restrict the movement of the lever member 175 to the right.

  The second stopper 179 engages with the protrusion 175B in a state where the slide gear 160 is located at the center position MP. As a result, the lever member 175 is restricted from moving leftward from the central position MP by the urging force of the first coil spring 168. On the other hand, the second stopper 179 does not restrict the movement of the lever member 175 to the right.

  In a state in which the slide gear 160 is held at the left position LP (a state in which the protruding portion 175B is engaged with the first stopper 178), the protruding portion 175B is brought into contact with and pushed by the carriage 23 that moves to the right. Then, the lever member 175 moves to the right against the urging force of the first coil spring 168. At this time, the second slide gear 160B urged to the right by the second coil spring 169 moves to the right as the lever member 175 moves. The first slide gear 160A moves to the right when pushed by the moving second slide gear 160B. The slide gear 160 is held at the central position MP by the protrusion 175B engaging with the second stopper 179.

  In a state where the slide gear 160 is held at the center position MP (a state where the protruding portion 175B is engaged with the second stopper 179), the protruding portion 175B is brought into contact with and pushed by the carriage 23 that moves to the right. Then, the lever member 175 moves to the right against the urging force of the first coil spring 168. At this time, the second slide gear 160B urged to the right by the second coil spring 169 moves to the right as the lever member 175 moves. The first slide gear 160A moves to the right when pushed by the moving second slide gear 160B.

  At this time, the protrusion 175 </ b> B moves along the inclined surface 172. Thereby, the lever member 175 rotates so that the protrusion part 175B may move back.

  In a state in which the protruding portion 175B is positioned to the right of the second stopper 179, the carriage 23 is kept in contact with the protruding portion 175B, whereby the slide gear 160 is held at the right position RP. The position of the carriage 23 at this time is a basic position. That is, the slide gear 160 is held at the right position RP against the urging force of the first coil spring 168 when the carriage 23 at the basic position comes into contact with the protruding portion 175B.

  When the carriage 23 moves to the left and is separated from the protrusion 175B while the slide gear 160 is held at the right position RP, the lever member 175 moves to the left by the urging force of the first coil spring 168. At this time, as described above, since the protrusion 175B has moved rearward, it does not engage with the second stopper 179 and moves to the left from the second stopper 179. As a result, the lever member 175 moves to the left until the protrusion 175B contacts the first stopper 178. At this time, the slide gear 160 is pushed by the lever member 175 and moves from the right position RP to the left position LP. That is, the slide gear 160 is moved to the left position LP by the urging force of the first coil spring 168 when the carriage 23 is separated from the protrusion 175B.

  The protrusion 175B moves along an inclined surface 171 formed in the vicinity of the first stopper 178 at the edge of the opening 177 when the lever member 175 moves to the left. Thereby, the lever member 175 rotates so that the protrusion 175B moves forward.

[Clutch gear 190]
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, the clutch gear 190 includes a first clutch gear 191 and a second clutch gear 192. The first clutch gear 191 includes a first gear 191A and a second gear 191B. The second clutch gear 192 includes a first gear 192A and a second gear 191B.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 12, the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 meshes with the first slide gear 160A when the slide gear 160 is located at the right position RP. As shown in FIG. 6, the second gear 191 </ b> B of the first clutch gear 191 meshes with the gear 85 of the fourth transmission portion 184.

  As shown in FIGS. 7, 8, and 10 to 12, the first gear 192A of the second clutch gear 192 is engaged with the second slide gear 160B. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the second gear 192 </ b> B of the second clutch gear 192 meshes with the gear 84 of the second transmission portion 182.

  Hereinafter, the configuration of the first clutch gear 191 will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 (A) and 14 (B).

  The first gear 191A is rotatably supported by a support shaft 151 (see FIG. 8) extending in the left-right direction 9. Similarly to the first gear 191A, the second gear 191B is also rotatably supported by the support shaft 151. That is, the second gear 191B rotates coaxially with the first gear 191A.

  The right surface 193 of the first gear 191A is provided with two convex portions 194 and 195 (an example of a contact portion) that protrude rightward. In other words, two convex portions 194 and 195 projecting toward the second gear 191B are provided on the surface (right surface 193) of the first gear 191A facing the second gear 191B. The convex portions 194 and 195 are arranged at intervals in the circumferential direction 104 of the right surface 193. The lengths of the convex portions 194 and 195 in the circumferential direction 104 are the same. Here, as will be described later, one end surface of the convex portion 194 in the circumferential direction 104 can be in contact with the side surface 198A of the concave portion 198, and the other end surface of the convex portion 194 in the circumferential direction 104 is Abutment is possible. That is, the length of the convex portions 194 and 195 in the circumferential direction 104 is the distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the contact portion with the side surface 198A and the contact portion with the side surface 198B in the convex portions 194 and 195.

  Two concave portions 198 and 199 are provided on the left surface 197 of the second gear 191B (the surface of the second gear 191B facing the first gear 191A). The recesses 198 and 199 extend along the circumferential direction 104. One end of the recess 198 in the circumferential direction 104 is partitioned by a side surface 198A (an example of the first surface). The other end of the recess 198 in the circumferential direction 104 is partitioned by a side surface 198B (an example of the second surface). One end of the recess 199 in the circumferential direction 104 is partitioned by a side surface 199A (an example of the first surface). The other end of the concave portion 199 in the circumferential direction 104 is partitioned by a side surface 199B (an example of the second surface).

  The distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 198A and 198B is the same as the distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 199A and 199B. The distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 198A and 198B and the distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 199A and 199B are longer than the length of the convex portions 194 and 195 in the circumferential direction 104.

  The first gear 191A and the second gear 191B are arranged with the right surface 193 of the first gear 191A and the left surface 197 of the second gear 191B facing each other. At this time, the convex portion 194 is inserted into the concave portion 198. That is, the convex portion 194 is located between the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the concave portion 198. Further, the convex portion 195 is inserted into the concave portion 199. That is, the convex portion 195 is located between the side surfaces 199A and 199B of the concave portion 199.

  Since the first clutch gear 191 is configured as described above, the first clutch gear 191 rotates as follows.

  In a state where the convex portion 194 is not in contact with the side surface 198A, the first gear 191A to which the forward rotation driving force is transmitted from the transport motor 102 rotates in a direction in which the convex portion 194 approaches the side surface 198A (forward rotation). At this time, the first gear 191A idles with respect to the second gear 191B. That is, the second gear 191B does not rotate. When the convex portion 194 comes into contact with the side surface 198A and pushes the side surface 198A by the normal rotation of the first gear 191A, the second gear 191B rotates positively integrally with the first gear 191A. Instead of pressing the convex portion 194 against the side surface 198A or pressing the convex portion 194 against the side surface 198A, the convex portion 195 may be pressed against the side surface 199A.

  On the other hand, the first gear 191A to which the reverse driving force is transmitted from the conveyance motor 102 in a state where the convex portion 194 is not in contact with the side surface 198B rotates in a direction in which the convex portion 194 approaches the side surface 198B (reverse rotation). At this time, the first gear 191A idles with respect to the second gear 191B. That is, the second gear 191B does not rotate. When the convex portion 194 comes into contact with the side surface 198B and pushes the side surface 198B by the reverse rotation of the first gear 191A, the second gear 191B rotates reversely integrally with the first gear 191A. Instead of the convex portion 194 abutting and pushing the side surface 198B or the convex portion 194 abutting and pushing the side surface 198B, the convex portion 195 may abut against the side surface 199B and push.

  Note that the lengths of the convex portions 194 and 195 along the circumferential direction 104 do not have to be the same, provided that the first gear 191A can idle by a predetermined amount relative to the second gear 191B. Further, the distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 198A and 198B and the distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 199A and 199B may not be the same.

  In the present embodiment, the first gear 191A includes two convex portions and the second gear 191B includes two concave portions. However, the number of the convex portions and the concave portions is not limited to two.

  In the present embodiment, the first gear 191A has a convex portion and the second gear 191B has a concave portion into which the convex portion is inserted, but the second gear 191B has a convex portion and the first gear 191A. May have a recess into which the projection is inserted.

  In the present embodiment, the first gear 191A includes a convex portion, and the second gear 191B includes a concave portion into which the convex portion is inserted. However, the first gear 191A is provided on one of the first gear 191A and the second gear 191B. As long as the convex portion is configured to be inserted between two surfaces provided at intervals in the circumferential direction 104 on the other of the first gear 191A or the second gear 191B, the configuration is not limited to the configuration of the present embodiment. .

  For example, each of the first gear 191A and the second gear 191B includes two convex portions provided at intervals in the circumferential direction 104, and one convex portion of the first gear 191A or the second gear 191B is the other. It may be inserted between the opposite side surfaces of the two convex portions. In this case, the facing side surfaces are examples of the first surface and the second surface.

  Hereinafter, the configuration of the second clutch gear 192 will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 (C) and 14 (D). Since the second clutch gear 192 has substantially the same configuration as the first clutch gear 191, the correspondence between the components of the second clutch gear 192 and the components of the first clutch gear 191 is mainly described. Is done.

  The first gear 192A is rotatably supported on a support shaft 152 (see FIG. 8) extending in the left-right direction 9. Similarly to the first gear 192A, the second gear 192B is also rotatably supported by the support shaft 152. That is, the second gear 192B rotates coaxially with the first gear 192A.

  The right surface 143 of the second gear 192B corresponds to the right surface 193 of the first gear 191A. The convex portions 144 and 145 (an example of the contact portion) of the second gear 192B correspond to the convex portions 194 and 195 of the first gear 191A, respectively.

  The left surface 147 of the first gear 192A corresponds to the left surface 197 of the second gear 191B. Through holes 148 and 149 penetrated in the direction along the support shaft 152 (left and right direction 9) in the first gear 192A correspond to the recesses 198 and 199 provided in the left surface 197 of the second gear 191B, respectively. Note that the through holes 148 and 149 of the first gear 192A may be concave portions provided in the left surface 147. Further, the recesses 198 and 199 of the second gear 191B may be through holes penetrating in the left-right direction 9. The side surfaces 148A and 148B of the through hole 148 correspond to the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the recess 198, respectively. The side surfaces 149A and 149B of the through hole 149 correspond to the side surfaces 199A and 199B of the recess 199, respectively. The side surfaces 148A and 149A are examples of the first surface, and the side surfaces 148B and 149B are examples of the second surface.

  The second gear 192B and the first gear 192A are arranged with the right surface 143 of the second gear 192B and the left surface 147 of the first gear 192A facing each other. At this time, the convex portion 144 is inserted into the through hole 148. That is, the convex portion 144 is located between the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the through hole 148. Further, the convex portion 145 is inserted into the through hole 149. That is, the convex portion 145 is located between the side surfaces 149A and 149B of the through hole 149.

  Since the second clutch gear 192 is configured as described above, the second clutch gear 192 rotates as follows.

  In a state where the convex portion 144 is not in contact with the side surface 148A, the second gear 192B to which the forward rotation driving force is transmitted from the transport motor 102 rotates in a direction in which the convex portion 144 approaches the side surface 148A (forward rotation). At this time, the second gear 192B idles with respect to the first gear 192A. That is, the first gear 192A does not rotate. When the convex portion 144 comes into contact with the side surface 148A and presses the side surface 148A by the normal rotation of the second gear 192B, the first gear 192A rotates positively integrally with the second gear 192B. Instead of pressing the convex portion 144 in contact with the side surface 148A or pressing the convex portion 144 in contact with the side surface 148A, the convex portion 145 may be pressed in contact with the side surface 149A.

  On the other hand, in a state where the convex portion 144 is not in contact with the side surface 148B, the second gear 192B to which the reverse driving force is transmitted from the transport motor 102 rotates in the direction in which the convex portion 144 approaches the side surface 148B (reverse rotation). At this time, the second gear 192B idles with respect to the first gear 192A. That is, the first gear 192A does not rotate. When the convex portion 144 abuts on the side surface 148B and pushes the side surface 148B by the reverse rotation of the second gear 192B, the first gear 192A rotates reversely integrally with the second gear 192B. Instead of the convex portion 144 abutting and pressing the side surface 148B or the convex portion 144 abutting and pressing the side surface 148B, the convex portion 145 may abut against the side surface 149B and press.

[Control unit 130]
As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 130 includes a CPU 131, a ROM 132, a RAM 133, an EEPROM 134, and an ASIC 135, which are connected by an internal bus 137. The ROM 132 stores a program for the CPU 131 to control various operations. The RAM 133 is used as a storage area for temporarily recording data and signals used when the CPU 131 executes the program, or as a work area for data processing. The EEPROM 134 stores settings, flags, and the like that should be retained even after the power is turned off.

  The ASIC 135 is connected to a feed motor 101, a transport motor 102, a carriage motor 103, and the like. The ASIC 135 generates a drive signal for rotating each motor, and controls each motor based on this drive signal. Each motor rotates forward or backward according to a drive signal from the ASIC 135. For example, the control unit 130 controls the driving of the feeding motor 101 to rotate the feeding rollers 25 and 35 or drive the cam mechanism 112. In addition, the control unit 130 controls the driving of the conveyance motor 102 to rotate the rollers 60 and 62 and drive the pump 113. Further, the control unit 130 controls the drive of the carriage motor 103 to reciprocate the carriage 23. The control unit 130 controls the recording head 39 to eject ink from the nozzles 40. As described above, the control unit 130 controls the motors 101, 102, 103 and the slide mechanism 150.

[Processes performed when the slide gear 160 moves]
Hereinafter, referring to the flowchart of FIG. 15 and the time chart of FIG. 17, it is performed when the slide gear 160 is moved in the left-right direction 9 in a state where the slide gear 160 is engaged with the first gears 191A and 192A. The process is described. Each process is executed by the CPU 131 of the control unit 130. The following processes may be executed by the CPU 131 reading out and executing a program stored in the ROM 132, or may be realized by a hardware circuit mounted on the control unit 130.

  When the maintenance of the recording head 39 is executed, the slide gear 160 is moved to the right position RP and is in a state of being engaged with the first gears 191A and 192A as shown in FIG. 12 (S10). ). Specifically, the control unit 130 drives the carriage motor 103 to move the carriage 23 to the right. Thereby, the protrusion 175 </ b> B of the lever member 175 is pushed by the carriage 23. As a result, the slide gear 160 moves to the right position RP by the urging force of the second coil spring 169. As described above, when the slide gear 160 is located at the right position RP, the carriage 23 is located at the basic position.

  In this state, maintenance of the recording head 39 is executed (S20). This will be described in detail below. First, the control unit 130 drives the feed motor 101 in the reverse direction. As a result, the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 is changed to the second transmission portion 182, the switching mechanism 170 (second clutch gear 192, second slide gear 160 </ b> B, and receiving gear 165, as shown in FIG. 7A. ) And the fifth transmission unit 185. As a result, the movable portion 111 in a state of being separated from the lower surface of the recording head 39 moves upward and comes into contact with the lower surface of the recording head 39. At that time, the cap 114 moves from the separation position to the covering position and covers the nozzle 40. Note that, as a result of the second clutch gear 192 rotating by the reverse drive of the feed motor 101, the convex portion 144 of the second gear 192B and the side surface 148B of the first gear 192A are in contact with each other.

  Next, the control unit 130 drives the conveyance motor 102 to rotate forward. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 6, the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 includes the first transmission unit 181, the switching mechanism 170 (the roller gear 180, the first slide gear 160A, and the first clutch gear 191), and the first 4 is transmitted to the pump 113 via the transmission unit 184. As a result, the pump 113 is driven and ink is sucked from the nozzle 40. Next, the control unit 130 drives the transport motor 102 in the reverse direction. As a result, the reverse driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted to the pump 113 in the same manner as in the forward driving. As a result, the pump 113 is opened to the atmosphere. Note that as a result of the first clutch gear 191 being rotated by the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102, the convex portion 194 of the first gear 191A and the side surface 198B of the second gear 191B are in contact with each other.

  After the maintenance of the recording head 39 is completed, the control unit 130 is on standby (S30: No). Then, when a user operates the operation panel 17 (see FIG. 1) provided on the front upper portion of the multifunction device 10 to give a print command to the control unit 130 from the operation panel 17 to the sheet 12, or the multifunction device. When an instruction to print on the paper 12 is given to the control unit 130 from an external device (not shown) such as a personal computer connected to the computer 10 by wire or wirelessly (S30: Yes), the control unit 130 performs the first rotation processing ( An example of the rotation process) and the cap movement process are executed in parallel (S40). In addition, the control part 130 performs a 1st rotation process and the 2nd rotation process mentioned later as a rotation process.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17, the control unit 130 drives the feed motor 101 in the reverse direction while driving the transport motor 102 in the forward direction (T1 to T3 in FIG. 17) (T1 in FIG. 17). T2). The first rotation process is executed by the forward drive of the transport motor 102, and the cap movement process is executed by the reverse drive of the feed motor 101.

  In this embodiment, the forward rotation drive of the carry motor 102 and the reverse drive of the feed motor 101 are started at the same time (T1 in FIG. 17), but the forward drive of the carry motor 102 and the feed motor 101 are The start timing with the reverse drive may not be the same.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the forward rotation driving of the transport motor 102 ends at a timing earlier than the end timing of the reverse rotation driving of the feeding motor 101 (T2 in FIG. 17) (T3 in FIG. 17). This is because the forward drive of the conveyance motor 102 is the forward drive of the carriage motor 103 in the slide processing described later (in FIG. 17, the forward drive of the carriage motor 103 is started at the timing T2, but from the timing T2. This may be started later.) So as not to affect. Note that the end timing of the forward rotation drive of the transport motor 102 is the same as the end timing of the reverse rotation drive of the feeding motor 101 on the condition that the end timing is before the start timing of the slide process (T2 in FIG. 17). It may be after the end timing.

  Hereinafter, each of the first rotation process and the cap movement process will be described.

  The rotation process is a process for rotating the clutch gear 190. The first rotation process is a process of rotating the first clutch gear 191 of the clutch gear 190.

  The control unit 130 drives the conveyance motor 102 to rotate forward so as to rotate in the direction opposite to the last rotation direction (reverse rotation) at the time of execution of step S20 (T1 to T3 in FIG. 17). As a result, the forward driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is changed to the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 via the first transmission portion 181, the roller gear 180, and the first slide gear 160A as shown in FIG. Is transmitted to. As a result, the first gear 191A rotates in a direction in which the convex portion 194 moves away from the side surface 198B of the second gear 191B and approaches the side surface 198A. At this time, the rotation amount of the first gear 191A due to the driving of the conveyance motor 102 is suppressed to less than a predetermined amount. Here, the predetermined amount is an amount obtained by subtracting the length along the circumferential direction 104 of the convex portion 194 of the first gear 191A from the distance along the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the second gear 191B. . Thereby, in the first rotation process, the first gear 191A is rotated such that the convex portion 194 is not in contact with the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the second gear 191B. As a result, the first gear 191A and the second gear 191B can idle with respect to each other.

  The rotation amount of the first gear 191A can be detected by a known means. As known means, for example, a rotary encoder is used. The rotary encoder includes an encoder disk and an optical sensor. The encoder disk rotates together with the first gear 191A or the first gear 191A, a roller, a gear, or the like that can transmit a driving force. The optical sensor reads the rotating encoder disk to generate a pulse signal, and outputs the generated pulse signal to the control unit 130. The controller 130 detects the amount of rotation of the first gear 191A based on this pulse signal.

  Further, the control unit 130 can detect the relative position of the first gear 191A with respect to the second gear 191B as follows. That is, at the start of the first rotation process, the convex portion 194 and the side surface 198B are in contact with each other. And the control part 130 can detect the distance along the circumferential direction 104 of the convex part 194 and the side surface 198B by detecting the rotation amount of the 1st gear 191A from this state. That is, the relative position of the first gear 191A to the second gear 191B can be detected.

  The cap moving process is a process of moving the movable portion 111 in a state of being in contact with the lower surface of the recording head 39 in step S20. The control unit 130 drives the feeding motor 101 in reverse (T1 to T2 in FIG. 17). As a result, the driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted to the cam mechanism 112 as in step S20. As a result, the movable portion 111 moves downward and is separated from the lower surface of the recording head 39. At that time, the cap 114 moves from the covering position to the separated position. Note that, as a result of the second clutch gear 192 rotating by the reverse drive of the feed motor 101, the convex portion 144 of the second gear 192B and the side surface 148B of the first gear 192A are in contact with each other.

  After the end of the cap movement process, the control unit 130 executes the second rotation process (an example of the rotation process) and the slide process in parallel (S50). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17, the control unit 130 drives the feed motor 101 in the normal direction as the second rotation process (T2 to T4 in FIG. 17), and forwards the carriage motor 103 as the slide process. Rolling drive is performed (T2 to T5 in FIG. 17). The second gear 192 </ b> B rotates until the first gear 192 </ b> A and the second gear 192 </ b> B are idled by the forward rotation of the feed motor 101. As the carriage motor 103 rotates forward, the carriage 23 moves from the basic position toward the printing area.

  In the present embodiment, the second rotation process and the slide process are started simultaneously (T2 in FIG. 17). Note that the slide process may be started after the start of the second rotation process. That is, the slide process is executed after the start of the second rotation process.

  Hereinafter, each of the second rotation process and the slide process will be described.

  The second rotation process is a process of rotating the second clutch gear 192 of the clutch gear 190.

  The control unit 130 drives the feed motor 101 to rotate forward so as to rotate in the direction opposite to that at the time of execution of step S20 (T2 to T4 in FIG. 17). Thereby, the forward driving force of the feed motor 101 is transmitted to the second gear 192B of the second clutch gear 192 via the second transmission portion 182 as shown in FIG. As a result, the second gear 192B rotates in a direction in which the convex portion 144 moves away from the side surface 148B of the first gear 192A and approaches the side surface 148A. At this time, as in the case of the first rotation process, the rotation amount of the second gear 192B due to the driving of the feeding motor 101 is suppressed to less than a predetermined amount. Here, the predetermined amount is an amount obtained by subtracting the length along the circumferential direction 104 of the convex portion 144 of the second gear 192B from the distance along the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the first gear 192A. . Accordingly, in the second rotation process, the second gear 192B is rotated such that the convex portion 144 is not in contact with the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the first gear 192A. As a result, the first gear 192A and the second gear 192B can idle with respect to each other.

  In the second clutch gear 192, the rotation amount of the second gear 192B and the relative position of the second gear 192B with respect to the first gear 192A are detected by known means as in the case of the first clutch gear 191. be able to.

  The slide process is a process of moving the slide gear 160 to the left from the right position RP. The control unit 130 drives the carriage motor 103 to rotate forward to move the carriage 23 from the basic position toward the printing area (T2 to T5 in FIG. 17). That is, the carriage 23 is moved to the left from the basic position. As a result, the slide gear 160 moves toward the left position LP by the urging force of the first coil spring 168. Here, the first gear 191A can idle with respect to the second gear 191B by the first rotation process, and the first gear 192A can idle with respect to the second gear 192B by the second rotation process. . Therefore, the movement of the slide gear 160 is executed smoothly.

  The control unit 130 counts the elapsed time from the end of the second rotation process (T4 in FIG. 17) (S60). The elapsed time may be counted by a timer circuit built in the CPU 131, for example, or may be performed by executing a time counting program stored in the ROM 132 or the like.

  When the counted elapsed time reaches a first predetermined time t1 (see FIG. 17) described later (S60: Yes), the controller 130 executes forward / reverse rotation processing (T6 to T8 in FIG. 17) described later (FIG. 17). S70). The forward / reverse rotation process is executed by the control unit 130 after the start of the slide process (T2 in FIG. 17). That is, the controller 130 executes the forward / reverse rotation process after the start of the slide process (T2 in FIG. 17) and after the first predetermined time t1 after the end of the second rotation process (T4 in FIG. 17) (S70). .

  As the first predetermined time t1 (T4 to T6 in FIG. 17), a time longer than the time required for the slide gear 160 to move from the right position RP to the left position LP by the biasing force of the first coil spring 168 is set. The time required for the slide gear 160 to move from the right position RP to the left position LP by the biasing force of the first coil spring 168 is, for example, the spring constant of the first coil spring 168, the weight of the slide gear 160, the right position RP, and the left position. It can be determined by the distance in the left-right direction 9 between the LPs.

  The forward / reverse rotation process (T6 to T8 in FIG. 17) in step S70 includes a first forward / reverse rotation process and a second forward / reverse rotation process. In the first forward / reverse process, the control unit 130 controls the transport motor 102 to alternately perform forward rotation and reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 at least once. In the second forward / reverse rotation process, the control unit 130 controls the feed motor 101 to alternately execute forward rotation and reverse rotation of the feed motor 101 at least once.

  In the present embodiment, the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process are started at the same time (T6 in FIG. 17), but the start timings of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process are the same. It does not have to be.

  For example, the first forward / reverse rotation process may be started before the second forward / reverse rotation process. In this case, in addition to the elapsed time from the end of the second rotation process (T4 in FIG. 17), the control unit 130 also counts the elapsed time from the end of the first rotation process. The first forward / reverse rotation process is not after the first predetermined time t1 from the end of the second rotation process (T4 in FIG. 17) but after the second predetermined time t2 from the end of the first rotation process (T3 in FIG. 17). Be started.

  Even if the start timings of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / backward rotation process are simultaneous, the first forward / backward rotation process is performed for a second predetermined time from the end of the first rotation process (T3 in FIG. 17). It may be started after t2. The second predetermined time t2 in this case is shown in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation process and the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation process are each performed once. It may be more than once.

  In the first forward / reverse rotation processing, the transport motor 102 first performs rotation in the direction opposite to the rotation direction for performing the suction operation of the pump 113 of the maintenance mechanism 110, and then performs rotation in the rotation direction. In the present embodiment, the pump 113 performs a suction operation when the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is transmitted. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the conveyance motor 102 executes the reverse rotation first and the normal rotation later.

  In the second forward / reverse rotation process, the feeding motor 101 rotates the second feeding roller 35 in the direction in which the paper 12 is fed, and the direction opposite to the rotational direction for moving the cap 114 of the maintenance mechanism 110 up and down. The rotation in the rotation direction is executed first, and the rotation in the rotation direction is executed later. In the present embodiment, the second feeding roller 35 and the cap 114 rotate or move up and down when the reverse driving force of the feeding motor 101 is transmitted. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the feeding motor 101 performs forward rotation first and reverse rotation later.

  If the slide gear 160 has reached the left position LP without being caught by the receiving gears 165 and 166 in the slide processing in step S50, the feeding motor 101 performs the forward rotation first in the second forward / reverse rotation processing. When the reverse rotation is performed later, the first feeding roller 25 rotates in the direction in which the paper 12 supported by the feeding tray 20 is fed by the forward rotation of the feeding motor 101. As a result, the paper 12 is slightly fed by the amount corresponding to the rotation. However, the sheet 12 is fed to the conveyance path 65 by a feeding process (S80) described later. Therefore, there is no problem even if the paper 12 is fed a little in the forward / reverse rotation processing (S70).

  On the other hand, in the slide process of step S50, when the slide gear 160 is caught by the receiving gear 165 and does not reach the left position LP but is positioned at the right position RP, in the second forward / reverse process, the feeding motor 101 is Even if the forward rotation is executed first and the reverse rotation is executed later, the cap 114 does not move up and down. This is because the cap 114 is not driven in the forward rotation of the feed motor 101 that is executed first, and the clutch gear 190 is idled during the reverse rotation of the feed motor 101 that is executed later, so that the drive is not transmitted to the cap 114. is there.

  In the slide process of step S50, when the slide gear 160 is caught by the receiving gear 166 and does not reach the left position LP but is positioned at the center position MP, in the second forward / reverse process, the feeding motor 101 is Even if the forward rotation is executed first and the reverse rotation is executed later, the second feeding roller 35 does not feed the paper 12. This is because the lifter 38 is rotated to the non-feeding position in the forward rotation of the feeding motor 101 that is executed first, and the clutch gear 190 is idled in the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101 that is executed later. This is because the drive is not transmitted to the feed roller 35.

  In the present embodiment, the amount of rotation (reverse rotation) in the direction executed before the transport motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation process and the direction executed in front of the feed motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation process. The amount of rotation (forward rotation) is set as follows.

  The amount of reverse rotation, which is the rotation in the direction executed before the transport motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation process, is the amount of rotation by which the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 rotates by a first predetermined amount or more. Here, the first predetermined amount is an amount obtained by subtracting the length along the circumferential direction 104 of the convex portion 194 of the first gear 191A from the distance along the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the second gear 191B. It is. As a result, the convex portion 194 comes into contact with the side surface 198B when the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 is completed.

  The rotation amount of the forward rotation, which is the rotation in the direction executed before the feeding motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation process, is the rotation amount by which the second gear 192B of the second clutch gear 192 rotates more than the second predetermined amount. . Here, the second predetermined amount is an amount obtained by subtracting the length along the circumferential direction 104 of the convex portion 144 of the second gear 192B from the distance along the circumferential direction 104 between the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the first gear 192A. It is. As a result, the convex portion 144 comes into contact with the side surface 148A at the time when the forward rotation of the feeding motor 101 is completed.

  In the present embodiment, the rotation amount (forward rotation) in the direction executed after the transport motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation process and the rotation in the direction executed after the feed motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation process ( The amount of rotation of (reverse rotation) is set as follows.

  The amount of forward rotation, which is rotation in the direction executed after the transport motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation processing, is the amount of rotation by which the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 rotates by less than the first predetermined amount. . Thereby, when the forward rotation of the conveyance motor 102 is finished, the convex portion 194 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 198A and 198B.

  The rotation amount of the reverse rotation, which is the rotation performed after the feeding motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation process, is the rotation amount by which the second gear 192B of the second clutch gear 192 rotates by less than the second predetermined amount. is there. Thereby, when the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101 is finished, the convex portion 144 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 148A and 148B.

  In the present embodiment, the forward and reverse rotation amounts of the feeding motor 101 in the second forward / reverse rotation processing are the teeth of the second slide gear 160B, the first gear 192A, and the receiving gears 165, 166, and 167. The amount of rotation is greater than the gap between the teeth. Further, the forward and reverse rotation amounts of the conveyance motor 102 in the first forward / reverse rotation processing are rotation amounts greater than the clearance between the teeth of the first slide gear 160A, the first gear 191A, and the roller gear 180.

  In the present embodiment, in the forward / reverse rotation process, the start timing of the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 and the forward rotation of the feed motor 101 is the same timing (T6 in FIG. 17). The start timing of the reverse rotation of the feed motor 101 is the same timing (T7 in FIG. 17), and the end timing of the forward rotation of the transport motor 102 and the reverse rotation of the feed motor 101 is the same timing (in FIG. 17). T8). However, these timings may not be the same timing.

  After the forward / reverse rotation process (S70), the control unit 130 executes a feeding process (S80). The control unit 130 drives the feed motor 101 to rotate forward in the feeding process. As a result, the first feeding roller 25 rotates forward and the sheet supported by the feeding tray 20 is fed to the conveyance path 65.

  The sheet fed to the conveyance path 65 contacts the conveyance roller unit 54. At the timing when the sheet comes into contact with the conveyance roller unit 54, the conveyance motor 102 is driven in reverse or stopped. As a result, the sheet is skewed and corrected by coming into contact with the conveyance roller unit 54.

  Next, the control part 130 performs a conveyance process (S90). In the conveyance process, the control unit 130 switches the conveyance motor 102 from reverse rotation driving or stop to normal rotation driving. As a result, the conveyance roller 60 rotates forward, and the sheet is nipped by the conveyance roller unit 54 and conveyed in the conveyance direction 16 directly below the recording unit 24.

  Next, the control unit 130 executes a printing process (S100). In the printing process, the control unit 130 performs a recording operation for ejecting ink droplets from the nozzles 40 of the recording head 39 while reciprocating the carriage 23, and drives the conveyance motor 102 to rotate forward by a predetermined amount so that the sheet corresponds to the line feed. The carrying operation for carrying is carried out alternately. Thereby, an image is recorded on the sheet.

  After printing on the sheet is completed, the control unit 130 executes a discharge process (S110). The control unit 130 drives the transport motor 102 to rotate forward in the discharge process. As a result, the discharge roller 62 rotates forward, and the sheet is nipped by the discharge roller portion 55 and conveyed in the conveyance direction 16. As a result, the sheet is discharged to the discharge tray 21.

  In order to record an image on the sheet supported by the MP tray 31, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 to the right between step S70 and step S80, and moves the slide gear 160 to the left position. A process of moving from the LP to the center position MP may be executed. In this case, in the next feeding process (S80), unlike the case where an image is recorded on the sheet supported by the feeding tray 20, the feeding motor 101 is driven in reverse. Thereby, the lifter 38 is rotated toward the feeding position, and the second feeding roller 35 is rotated forward. As a result, the sheet supported by the MP tray 31 is fed to the conveyance path 65.

[Operational effects of this embodiment]
According to the above embodiment, when the control unit 130 executes the first rotation process, the convex portion 194 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 198A and 198B. As a result, the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 is rotatable by the gap between the convex portion 194 and the side surfaces 198A and 198B. As a result, the slide gear 160 is slid to engage the first slide gear 160A with the first gear 191A, and the first slide gear 160A that is engaged with the first gear 191A is slid to be separated from the first gear 191A. Can be smoothly executed.

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, when the control unit 130 executes the second rotation process, the convex portion 144 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 148A and 148B. Accordingly, the first gear 192A of the second clutch gear 192 is rotatable by the gap between the convex portion 144 and the side surfaces 148A and 148B. As a result, while maintaining the state in which the second slide gear 160B and the first gear 192A are engaged, the operation of engaging the second slide gear 160B with any of the receiving gears 165 to 167, and any of the receiving gears 165 to 165 The operation of sliding the second slide gear 160 </ b> B meshed with 167 away from the receiving gears 165 to 167 can be executed smoothly.

  However, the possibility that smooth sliding is hindered by the sliding gear 160 sliding on the first gears 191A and 192A and the receiving gears 165 to 167 is not zero.

  Therefore, in the above embodiment, the forward / reverse rotation process (S70) is executed after the start of the slide process (S50) and after a predetermined time t1 (S60: Yes) after the end of the second rotation process (S50). Thus, even if the slide gear 160 is caught by the first gears 191A and 192A and the receiving gears 165 to 167 in the slide process (S50), the first gear of the slide gear 160 is obtained by the forward / reverse rotation process (S70). The catching with 191A, 192A and the receiving gears 165 to 167 can be eliminated. In addition, since the slide of the slide gear 160 is normally likely to be smoothly performed when the first gears 191A and 192A are rotatable, the feed motor 101 and the transport motor 102 in the forward / reverse rotation process (S50). The forward rotation and the reverse rotation of may be the minimum necessary number of times. Thereby, the slide of the slide gear 160 can be performed quickly.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the second rotation process and the slide process are started simultaneously (S50, T2 in FIG. 17). Therefore, the slide process can be terminated earlier than when the slide process is started after the second rotation process.

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the rotation amount of the rotation executed in the forward direction of the conveyance motor 102 and the feeding motor 101 in the forward / reverse rotation process (S70) is equal to or greater than the predetermined amount, The amount of rotation is less than a predetermined amount. Thereby, in the forward / reverse rotation process (S70), immediately after the feeding motor 101 and the conveyance motor 102 are rotated to one of the forward rotation and the reverse rotation, and then rotated to the other of the forward rotation and the reverse rotation, the convex portion 194 is moved. The protrusions 144 can be reliably separated from the side surfaces 148A and 148B by reliably separating them from the side surfaces 198A and 198B.

  In the above embodiment, the cap 114 and the second feeding roller 35 are driven by applying a reverse rotation driving force of the feeding motor 101. According to the above embodiment, the driving force from the second gear 192 </ b> B to the first gear 192 </ b> A is the reverse rotation that is executed later among the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101 in the forward / reverse rotation process (S <b> 70). Not transmitted. Therefore, the driving force is not transmitted to the cap 114 and the second feeding roller 35. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the cap 114 and the second feeding roller 35 from being unintentionally driven in the forward / reverse rotation process.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the pump 113 of the maintenance mechanism 110 performs a suction operation when the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is applied, and the reverse driving force of the transport motor 102 is applied. To release the atmosphere. According to the embodiment described above, the pump 113 performs an air release operation during the reverse rotation that is performed first among the normal rotation and the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 in the forward / reverse rotation process. On the other hand, during the forward rotation that is executed later among the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 in the forward / reverse rotation process, the driving force is not transmitted from the first gear 191A to the second gear 191B. Therefore, the driving force is not transmitted to the pump 113. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the pump 113 from performing an unintentional suction operation in the forward / reverse rotation process.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, when the carriage 23 is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide process (S50), the first slide gear 160A is moved from the right position RP to the left position by the urging force of the first coil spring 168. Slide to LP. At this time, even if the first slide gear 160A is hooked to the first gear 191A, the hook of the first slide gear 160A to the first gear 191A can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation processing (S70).

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, when the carriage 23 is moved from the basic position to the printing area in the slide process (S50), the second slide gear 160B is pushed by the first slide gear 160A, so that the right position RP is reached. Slide to the left position LP. At this time, since the urging force of the first coil spring 168 becomes weaker as the sliding second slide gear 160B approaches the left position LP, the possibility that the second slide gear 160B is caught by the receiving gear 167 is that the second slide gear 160B is The possibility of being caught by the receiving gear 165 is higher. However, even if the second slide gear 160B is caught by the receiving gear 167, the hooking of the second slide gear 160B to the receiving gear 167 can be eliminated by the forward / reverse rotation processing (S70). Of course, the forward / reverse rotation processing (S70) can also eliminate the catch of the second slide gear 160B on the receiving gears 165 and 166.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, since the first rotation process is executed during the cap movement process (S40), the movement of the cap 114 and the rotation of the first clutch gear 191 are executed in parallel. . Therefore, the execution start time of the slide process (S50) and the forward / reverse rotation process (S70) can be advanced.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process are started simultaneously (T6 in FIG. 17). Therefore, the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process can be ended earlier than when the execution start timings of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process are different.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the first predetermined time t1 is a time longer than the time required for the slide gear 160 to move from the right position RP to the left position LP by the biasing force of the first coil spring 168. Therefore, the slide gear 160 can slide from the right position RP to the left position LP during the first predetermined time t1. In addition, even if the slide gear 160 is caught by any of the three receiving gears 165 to 167 when the slide gear 160 slides from the right position RP to the left position LP, the slide gear 160 is connected to the feeding motor 101 and the conveying motor. The hook with the receiving gears 165 to 167 can be released by rotating the wheel 102 forward or backward.

  Moreover, according to said embodiment, the space | interval in the left-right direction 9 of each receiving gear 165-167 is longer than the length in the left-right direction 9 of the gear main body 161 of the 2nd slide gear 160B. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the second slide gear 160B from meshing simultaneously with the plurality of receiving gears.

[Modification 1]
In the above embodiment, because the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 is performed for maintenance of the recording head 39 to release the air to the atmosphere, the convex portion 194 of the first gear 191A is It was clear that the side surface 198B of the second gear 191B was in contact. Therefore, in the first rotation process, the transport motor 102 is rotated (forward rotation) only in one direction. Thus, the first gear 191A is rotated such that the convex portion 194 is not in contact with the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the second gear 191B. As a result, the first gear 191A and the second gear 191B are , It became possible to idle each other.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the convex portion of the second gear 192 </ b> B is started at the start of the second rotation process because of the reverse rotation driving of the feeding motor 101 executed for the movement of the cap 114 in the maintenance of the recording head 39. It was apparent that 144 was in contact with the side surface 148B of the first gear 192A. Therefore, in the second rotation process, the feeding motor 101 is rotated (forward rotation) only in one direction. Accordingly, the second gear 192B is rotated so that the convex portion 144 is not in contact with the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the first gear 192A. As a result, the first gear 192A and the second gear 192B are , It became possible to idle each other.

  As described above, in the above-described embodiment, in the rotation process (first rotation process and second rotation process), the transport motor 102 and the feed motor 101 are rotated only in one direction.

  However, in the maintenance of the recording head 39, when only the cap 114 is driven and the pump 113 is not driven, the convex portion 194 of the first gear 191A and the side surfaces 198A and 198B of the second gear 191B are It is unclear whether or not it is in contact. When the maintenance of the recording head 39 is not performed (when the cap 114 is not driven), the convex portion 144 of the second gear 192B and the side surfaces 148A and 148B of the first gear 192A are in contact with each other at the start of the second rotation process. Whether it is in contact or not is unknown.

  In such a case, in the rotation processing (first rotation processing and second rotation processing), at least one of the transport motor 102 or the feeding motor 101 may be rotated in both directions.

  For example, in the first rotation process, the conveyance motor 102 may be driven in the forward direction after being driven in the reverse direction.

  The amount of reverse rotation by reverse rotation driving of the conveyance motor 102 at this time is the amount of rotation by which the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 rotates by the first predetermined amount or more in the above embodiment. As a result, the convex portion 194 comes into contact with the side surface 198B when the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 is completed.

  Further, the rotation amount of the forward rotation by the forward rotation drive of the transport motor 102 executed after the reverse rotation drive is a rotation amount by which the first gear 191A of the first clutch gear 191 rotates by less than the first predetermined amount. Thereby, when the forward rotation of the conveyance motor 102 is finished, the convex portion 194 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 198A and 198B.

  In the first rotation process described above, the pump 113 opens to the atmosphere by the previous rotation (reverse rotation) of the transport motor 102, while the driving force of the subsequent rotation (forward rotation) of the transport motor 102 is transmitted to the pump 113. Not. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the pump 113 from performing an unintentional suction operation. In the first modification, in consideration of the operation of the pump 113, the transport motor 102 is driven to rotate in the reverse direction and then driven in the normal direction. However, the transport motor 102 may be driven in the reverse direction and then driven in the reverse direction.

  Further, for example, in the second rotation process, the feeding motor 101 may be driven to rotate in the reverse direction after being driven in the normal direction.

  The amount of forward rotation by forward rotation of the feed motor 101 at this time is the amount of rotation by which the second gear 192B of the second clutch gear 192 rotates more than the second predetermined amount in the above embodiment. Thereby, at the time when the forward rotation of the feeding motor 101 is finished, the convex portion 144 is in contact with the side surface 148A.

  Further, the rotation amount of the reverse rotation by the reverse drive of the feeding motor 101 executed after the forward rotation drive is a rotation amount by which the second gear 192B of the second clutch gear 192 rotates by less than the second predetermined amount. Thereby, when the reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101 is finished, the convex portion 144 is not in contact with any of the side surfaces 148A and 148B.

  In the second rotation process described above, transmission of the reverse rotation driving force of the feed motor 101 that moves the cap 114 and feeds the paper 12 to the second feed roller 35 is performed by the second gear 192B and the first gear 192A. Is inhibited between. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the cap 114 and the second feeding roller 35 from being driven unintentionally. In the first modification, in consideration of the operation of the cap 114 and the second feed roller 35, the feed motor 101 is driven to rotate backward after being driven forward, but after the feed motor 101 is driven to rotate backward. You may drive forward rotation.

  As described above, in the rotation process (the first rotation process and the second rotation process), the conveyance motor 102 and the feeding motor 101 are rotated in both directions, so that the positions of the convex portions 194 and 144 at the start of the rotation process are obtained. Even if it is unknown, the first gear 191 and the second gear 192 can be idled at the end of the rotation process.

[Modification 2]
In the above embodiment, the number of forward rotations and the number of reverse rotations of the transport motor 102 and the feeding motor 101 in the forward / reverse rotation processing are each one. That is, the total number of forward rotations and reverse rotations of the feed motor 101 in the forward / reverse rotation process is two. However, the total number of times is not limited to two. The total number of times is preferably equal to or greater than the number of the plurality of receiving gears. For example, when the three receiving gears 165 to 167 are provided as in the above embodiment, the total number of times is preferably three or more.

  When the second slide gear 160B is caught by any of the receiving gears 165 to 167, the second slide gear 160B is rotated only once by the forward or reverse rotation of the feeding motor 101, thereby receiving the receiving gear. You can remove the hook. Therefore, when the total number of forward rotations and reverse rotations of the feed motor 101 in the forward / reverse rotation process (S70) is 3 or more, which is the number of the plurality of receiving gears 165 to 167, the second slide gear. Even if 160B gets caught by all the receiving gears 165 to 167 in the sliding process, all the catches can be released.

[Modification 3]
In the above embodiment, transmission of driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 and transmission of driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 are as follows. In either case, the driving force transmission mechanism 70 is used. In the driving force transmission mechanism 70, the first slide gear 160A and the second slide gear 160B are in contact with each other, and the movements of both the gears 160A and 160B are related to each other. That is, transmission of driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 and transmission of driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 are related to each other. It was.

  However, transmission of driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 and transmission of driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 are independent of each other. It may be. The multifunction machine 10 may include only a mechanism that transmits the driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 in the driving force transmission mechanism 70 in the above-described embodiment. The multifunction machine 10 is a mechanism that transmits driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 in the driving force transmission mechanism 70 in the above embodiment. You may have only.

  In this case, the mechanism 141 that transmits the driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 has a configuration shown in FIG. That is, the mechanism 141 has a configuration in which a mechanism for transmitting a driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 is omitted from the driving force transmission mechanism 70. FIG. 16A shows a state where the first slide gear 160A is located at the right position RP.

  Further, the mechanism 142 that transmits the driving force from the feeding motor 101 to the cam mechanism 112, the first feeding roller 25, and the second feeding roller 35 has a configuration shown in FIG. That is, the mechanism 142 has a configuration in which a mechanism for transmitting a driving force from the conveyance motor 102 to the pump 113 is omitted from the driving force transmission mechanism 70. FIG. 16B shows a state where the second slide gear 160B is located at the right position RP. In FIG. 16B, the main body 175A of the lever member 175 is in contact with the second slide gear 160B.

[Other variations]
In the above embodiment, the contact portions are the convex portions 194, 195, 144, and 145 that are inserted one by one between the concave portions 198, 199, 148, and 149. However, the shape of the contact portion is not limited to the shape of the convex portions 194, 195, 144, and 145 in the above embodiment (shape as shown in FIG. 14). For example, two convex portions that protrude rightward from the right surface 193 of the first gear 191 </ b> A and that are spaced apart in the circumferential direction 104 may be inserted into the concave portion 198. In this case, the two convex portions are an example of a contact portion. One of the two convex portions can contact the side surface 198A, and the other of the two convex portions can contact the side surface 198B. The distance in the circumferential direction 104 between the contact point with the side surface 198A on one of the two protrusions and the contact point with the side surface 198B on the other of the two protrusions is the circumference between the side surfaces 198A and 198B. It is shorter than the distance in the direction 104.

  In the above embodiment, the lever member 175 is disposed on the right side of the first slide gear 160A, but may be disposed at other positions. For example, the lever member 175 may be disposed between the second slide gear 160B and the second coil spring 169.

  In the above embodiment, the transport device is mounted on the printer unit 11 that records an image on the paper 12, but the transport device may be mounted on a device other than the printer unit 11. For example, the conveyance device may be provided in the multifunction machine 10 or the like and mounted on a scanner that reads an image written on the paper 12.

10 ... MFP 25 ... 1st feeding roller (roller)
35 ... Second feed roller (roller)
60 ... Conveying roller (roller)
101 ... Feed motor (motor)
102 ... Conveyance motor (motor)
104 ... circumferential direction 110 ... maintenance mechanism (drive unit)
130 ... Control unit 144 ... Convex part 148A ... Side surface (first surface)
148B ... Side surface (second surface)
150 ... slide mechanism 160 ... slide gear 174 ... support shaft 190 ... clutch gear 191 ... first clutch gear 192 ... second clutch gear 191A ... first gear 191B ... Second gear 192A ... first gear 192B ... second gear 194 ... projection 198A ... side surface (first surface)
198B ... Side (second side)

Claims (19)

A slide gear slidably supported on a support shaft along the axial direction;
A clutch gear having a first gear meshable with the slide gear and a second gear rotating coaxially with the first gear;
A motor for applying a driving force to one of the second gear or the slide gear;
A drive unit that is driven by driving force transmitted from the other of the second gear or the slide gear;
A slide mechanism for sliding the slide gear;
A roller that rotates and conveys a sheet by applying a driving force from the motor;
A control unit for controlling the motor and the slide mechanism,
The clutch gear is
A first surface and a second surface provided on one of the first gear and the second gear at intervals along the circumferential direction;
An abutment provided on the other of the first gear and the second gear and positioned between the first surface and the second surface in the circumferential direction and capable of contacting the first surface and the second surface And
The distance in the circumferential direction between the contact portion with the first surface and the contact portion with the second surface in the contact portion is greater than the distance in the circumferential direction between the first surface and the second surface. Is also short,
The control unit
In a state where the slide gear and the first gear are engaged, the motor is controlled so that the contact portion is not in contact with either the first surface or the second surface. A rotation process for rotating the clutch gear;
After the start of the rotation process, a slide process for controlling the slide mechanism and sliding the slide gear;
A forward / reverse rotation process for performing forward rotation and reverse rotation of the motor alternately at least once each after the start of the slide process and a predetermined time after the end of the rotation process;   The transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit starts to execute the rotation process and the slide process simultaneously. The control unit
Of the normal rotation and reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process, the rotation amount of the rotation executed first is determined from the circumferential distance between the first surface and the second surface at the contact portion. More than the rotation amount corresponding to the distance obtained by reducing the distance in the circumferential direction of the contact portion with the first surface and the contact portion with the second surface,
Of the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process, the rotation amount to be executed later is determined from the distance in the circumferential direction between the first surface and the second surface in the contact portion. 3. The transport device according to claim 1, wherein the amount of rotation is less than a rotation amount corresponding to a distance obtained by subtracting a distance in the circumferential direction between a contact point with the first surface and a contact point with the second surface. The drive unit is driven by being given a driving force of rotation executed later among the forward rotation and reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process,
4. The sheet according to claim 3, wherein the roller rotates and conveys the sheet by being given a driving force of rotation executed later among the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the motor in the forward / reverse rotation process. Conveying device. A transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4;
It has a recording head that discharges ink from nozzles toward the sheet conveyed by the roller, and the recording head moves to a printing area where ink can be discharged toward the sheet and to a basic position outside the printing area. A carriage capable of,
The slide gear is separated from the first position meshed with the first gear and the first gear, and the second gear on the first direction side which is one of the axial directions with respect to the first position. Slidable into position,
The slide mechanism is
The carriage,
A biasing member that biases the slide gear in the first direction;
The carriage has a projecting portion projecting in a moving region of the carriage, and is slidably supported on the support shaft. When the carriage in the basic position contacts the projecting portion, the slide gear is attached to the biasing member. A lever member that holds the first position against an urging force;
The control unit is an ink jet recording apparatus that moves the carriage from the basic position toward the printing area in the slide processing. Provided on the roller shaft of the roller, comprising a roller gear that rotates integrally with the roller and meshes with the slide gear;
The motor applies a driving force to the slide gear via the roller gear,
The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the roller gear meshes with the slide gear regardless of whether the slide gear is in the first position or the second position.   The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the driving unit is a maintenance mechanism that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear to perform maintenance of the recording head. A transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4;
A plurality of transmission gears that are spaced apart from each other along the axial direction, each capable of meshing with the slide gear;
It has a recording head that discharges ink from nozzles toward the sheet conveyed by the roller, and the recording head moves to a printing area where ink can be discharged toward the sheet and to a basic position outside the printing area. A carriage for
The plurality of transmission gears are disposed at least on a first transmission gear that transmits the driving force of the motor to the driving unit, and on a first direction side that is one of the axial directions with respect to the first transmission gear. A second transmission gear for transmitting the driving force of the motor to the roller,
The slide gear is slidable to at least a first position meshed with the first transmission gear and a second position meshed with the second transmission gear;
The slide mechanism is
The carriage,
A biasing member that biases the slide gear in the first direction;
The carriage has a projecting portion projecting in a moving region of the carriage, and is slidably supported on the support shaft. When the carriage in the basic position contacts the projecting portion, the slide gear is attached to the biasing member. A lever member that holds the first position against an urging force;
The control unit is an ink jet recording apparatus that moves the carriage from the basic position toward the printing area in the slide processing. The motor applies a driving force to the second gear,
The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first gear meshes with the slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the roller is a feeding roller that conveys a sheet supported by a tray toward a conveyance path formed in the inkjet recording apparatus.   9. The drive unit according to claim 8, wherein the drive unit is a cap that moves between a covering position where the carriage covers the nozzle at the basic position and a separation position where the carriage is separated from the nozzle when a driving force is transmitted from the motor. The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of 10. A transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4;
A plurality of transmission gears spaced from each other along the axial direction;
It has a recording head that discharges ink from nozzles toward the sheet conveyed by the roller, and the recording head moves to a printing area where ink can be discharged toward the sheet and to a basic position outside the printing area. A carriage for
The slide gear is disposed in contact with the first slide gear on a first direction side which is one of the axial directions with respect to the first slide gear and the first slide gear. It consists of a second slide gear that can mesh with the transmission gear,
The roller
A feeding roller for conveying the sheet supported by the tray toward a conveyance path formed in the inkjet recording apparatus ;
It is comprised with the conveyance roller which conveys the said sheet | seat by rotating in the state contact | abutted to the sheet | seat on the said conveyance path,
A roller gear provided on a roller shaft of the transport roller, rotating integrally with the transport roller, and meshing with the first slide gear;
The clutch gear includes a first clutch gear that meshes with the first slide gear, and a second clutch gear that meshes with the second slide gear,
The motor includes a first motor that applies a driving force to the first slide gear via the roller gear, and a second motor that applies a driving force to the second gear of the second clutch gear.
The drive unit is
A first drive unit that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear of the first clutch gear;
A second drive unit that is driven by driving force transmitted from the second motor,
The plurality of transmission gears are arranged at least on the first direction side with respect to the first transmission gear and a first transmission gear that transmits the driving force of the second motor to the second driving unit, A second transmission gear that transmits the driving force of the second motor to the feeding roller;
The slide gear includes at least a first position where the first slide gear meshes with the first gear of the first clutch gear and the second slide gear meshes with the first transmission gear, and the first slide gear. Is slidable from the first gear of the first clutch gear and slidable to a second position where the second slide gear meshes with the second transmission gear,
The roller gear meshes with the first slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear,
The first gear of the second clutch gear meshes with the second slide gear regardless of the position of the slide gear,
The slide mechanism is
The carriage,
The first projection gear has a projecting portion projecting in a moving region of the carriage, is slidably supported on the support shaft, and is located on a second direction side opposite to the first direction with respect to the first slide gear. A lever member disposed in contact with the slide gear;
A first biasing member that biases the lever member in the first direction;
A second urging member that urges the second slide gear in the second direction with a smaller urging force than the first urging member;
The first slide gear is held at the first position against the urging force of the first urging member by the carriage of the basic position coming into contact with the protrusion, and the carriage is moved from the protrusion to the carriage. By being separated, the first biasing member is moved to the second position by the biasing force,
The control unit is an ink jet recording apparatus that moves the carriage from the basic position toward the printing area in the slide processing. The first drive unit is a maintenance mechanism that is driven by a driving force transmitted from the second gear of the first clutch gear and performs maintenance of the recording head.
The second drive unit is a cap that moves between a covering position where the carriage covers the nozzle at the basic position and a separation position away from the nozzle when the driving force is transmitted from the second motor. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 12. The control unit
In a state where the carriage is at the basic position and the cap is at the covering position, a cap moving process is performed to move the cap from the covering position to the separation position by controlling the motor.
Execute the rotation process during the cap movement process,
The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the slide process is executed after the cap movement process and the rotation process. The control unit
In the above rotation process,
In a state where the first slide gear and the first gear of the first clutch gear are engaged with each other, the first motor is controlled so that the abutment portion is on either the first surface or the second surface. A first rotation process for rotating the first clutch gear so as to be in a non-contact state;
In a state where the second slide gear and the first gear of the second clutch gear are engaged with each other, the second motor is controlled so that the abutting portion is on either the first surface or the second surface. Performing a second rotation process of rotating the second clutch gear so as to be in a non-contact state,
A cap moving process for controlling the second motor to move the cap from the covering position to the separation position in a state where the carriage is at the basic position and the cap is at the covering position;
Performing the first rotation process during the cap movement process;
The second rotation process is executed after the cap movement process is executed,
The slide process is executed after the start of the second rotation process,
The forward and reverse processing is
A first forward / reverse rotation process in which the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the first motor are alternately executed at least once after the start of the slide process and after a predetermined time from the end of the first rotation process;
And a second forward / reverse rotation process that alternately executes forward rotation and reverse rotation of the second motor at least once after the start of the slide process and a predetermined time after the end of the second rotation process. Item 14. The ink jet recording apparatus according to Item 13.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the control unit starts execution of the first forward / reverse rotation process and the second forward / reverse rotation process simultaneously. The total number of forward rotations and reverse rotations of the motor that applies driving force to the plurality of transmission gears in the forward / reverse rotation processing is equal to or greater than the number of the plurality of transmission gears.
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of 6. The first transmission gear is a gear arranged at the most upstream position in the first direction among the plurality of transmission gears,
The second transmission gear is a gear arranged at the most downstream position in the first direction among the plurality of transmission gears,
The predetermined time related to the motor that applies driving force to the plurality of transmission gears is longer than the time required for the slide gear to move from the first position to the second position by the biasing force of the biasing member. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the inkjet recording apparatus is time. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein an interval between the transmission gears in the axial direction is longer than a length of the slide gear in the axial direction.

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