KR20140092618A - Apparatus for printing image on a paper - Google Patents

Apparatus for printing image on a paper Download PDF

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Publication number
KR20140092618A
KR20140092618A KR1020130004886A KR20130004886A KR20140092618A KR 20140092618 A KR20140092618 A KR 20140092618A KR 1020130004886 A KR1020130004886 A KR 1020130004886A KR 20130004886 A KR20130004886 A KR 20130004886A KR 20140092618 A KR20140092618 A KR 20140092618A
Authority
KR
South Korea
Prior art keywords
ink
module
wiper
wiper roller
roller
Prior art date
Application number
KR1020130004886A
Other languages
Korean (ko)
Inventor
이현국
Original Assignee
엘지전자 주식회사
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by 엘지전자 주식회사 filed Critical 엘지전자 주식회사
Priority to KR1020130004886A priority Critical patent/KR20140092618A/en
Publication of KR20140092618A publication Critical patent/KR20140092618A/en

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/165—Prevention or detection of nozzle clogging, e.g. cleaning, capping or moistening for nozzles
    • B41J2/16517—Cleaning of print head nozzles
    • B41J2/16535—Cleaning of print head nozzles using wiping constructions
    • B41J2/16541—Means to remove deposits from wipers or scrapers
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/165—Prevention or detection of nozzle clogging, e.g. cleaning, capping or moistening for nozzles
    • B41J2/16579—Detection means therefor, e.g. for nozzle clogging
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/165—Prevention or detection of nozzle clogging, e.g. cleaning, capping or moistening for nozzles
    • B41J2002/16582—Maintenance means fixed on the print head or its carriage

Landscapes

  • Ink Jet (AREA)

Abstract

A document output apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a print head having an ink nozzle portion on a bottom surface thereof; And a maintenance module provided movably below the print head and provided for maintenance of the ink nozzle unit. The maintenance module includes a wiper roller for wiping ink adhering to the ink nozzle unit, And an ink removing mechanism for removing the ink absorbed by the wiper module, wherein the ink removing mechanism comprises: a vibrator mounted on a rotating shaft of the wiper roller; And a sensor mounted on the upper side of the wiper roller to sense the degree of contamination of the wiper roller.

Description

[0001] Apparatus for printing image on a paper [0002]

The present invention relates to a document output apparatus including a printer.

The document output device is a device coupled to a host device including a computer and outputs image data transmitted from the host device to a print medium including paper in accordance with a print signal applied from the host device. Such a document output apparatus includes a print medium supply unit for supplying a print medium, an image forming unit for forming an image on the print medium, and a discharge unit for discharging the print medium on which the image is formed.

Specifically, the image forming section can be divided into an inkjet method using ink, and a laser jet method using toner and laser, depending on the printing material. The document output device of the inkjet method is a method in which ink is jetted onto the printing paper through an ink nozzle provided in the print head. The inkjet document output device includes a shuttle system in which the print head moves in the left and right direction, a PSA (Page Straight Array) printer formed in a length corresponding to the width of the printing paper, Can be divided into printers.

Recently released PSA or pagewidth printers have reached print speeds of around 60 ppm (Page Per Minute). A PSA or pagewidth printer-related patent is the printhead structure of the applicant Silverbrook research Pty Ltd.

On the other hand, in the case of an ink-jet printer, printing is performed in such a manner that ink droplets are separated from the ink nozzles and fall on the printing paper through a piezoelectric or thermal electric field in the print head. In the case of such an ink jet printer, the maintenance of preventing the contamination of the print head before and after printing is directly related to the performance and the life of the printer. For this reason, a wiper module for cleaning the ink nozzle portion of the print head periodically is mounted.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a maintenance module and a print head having a conventional print head cleaning function, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a wiper module constituting a conventional maintenance module.

1 and 2, a conventional pagewidth printer includes a print head 10 having a length corresponding to the width of a print sheet, a maintenance module 1 provided movably below the print head 10, .

In detail, the maintenance module 1 includes a module sled 2, a capping module 3 mounted on the module sled 2, a platen module 4 and a wiper module 5.

More specifically, the wiper module 5 includes a wiper roller 5a for wiping ink formed on the ink nozzle portion of the print head 10, an ink absorbing ink absorbed by the wiper roller 5a in contact with the wiper roller 5a A transfer roller 5b for reabsorbing the ink, and a scraper 5c for squeezing the ink absorbed by the transfer roller 5b.

When ink is transferred to the transfer roller 5b after the wiper roller 5a rotates and wipes ink formed on the print head 10, ink is discharged from the transfer roller 5b by the scraper 5c And is discharged to the outside through the drain hole 2a formed at the bottom of the module sled 2. [ More details are disclosed in U.S. Published Patent Application No. 2011-0279533, and a further explanation will be omitted.

In the conventional wiper module as described above, the contamination level of the wiper roller can not be precisely known, and the ink absorbed in the wiper roller is again deposited on the ink nozzle part of the print head, which may cause the print paper to be contaminated during the printing process .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems and provides a document output device capable of minimizing contamination degree of the wiper roller and the print head by effectively separating the ink absorbed in the wiper by sensing the degree of contamination of the wiper roller .

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a document output apparatus including a print head having an ink nozzle unit on a bottom surface thereof; And a maintenance module provided movably below the print head and provided for maintenance of the ink nozzle unit. The maintenance module includes a wiper roller for wiping ink adhering to the ink nozzle unit, And an ink removing mechanism for removing the ink absorbed by the wiper module, wherein the ink removing mechanism comprises: a vibrator mounted on a rotating shaft of the wiper roller; And a sensor mounted on the upper side of the wiper roller to sense the degree of contamination of the wiper roller.

The document output apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention having the above-described structure has the following effects.

There is an advantage that the contamination of the ink nozzle portion can be minimized by detecting the state of the wiper module before and after the printing operation to remove the ink absorbed in the wiper module according to the degree of contamination of the wiper module.

Further, since the transporter roller and the scraper member for removing the ink absorbed in the wiper module are not required, the design and assembly process is simplified and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

In addition, since the wiper roller is directly vibrated by using the high-power ultrasonic vibration to remove the ink absorbed in the wiper module, the ink removing efficiency is improved compared to a method of indirectly removing ink using a conventional transfer roller or a scraper .

In addition, since it is not necessary to secure a space for mounting an existing transfer roller or a scraper, it is possible to achieve a compact maintenance module.

1 is a perspective view showing a maintenance module and a print head having a conventional print head cleaning function.
2 is a perspective view showing a wiper module constituting a conventional maintenance module.
3 is a partial perspective view showing a maintenance module configuration of a document output apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;
4 is a schematic view illustrating a wiper module cleaning mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a document output apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view showing a maintenance module of the document output device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating a wiper module cleaning mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 and 4, a maintenance module 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a maintenance module 20 for cleaning the ink nozzle portion of the print head 10, (Not shown) of the print head.

In detail, the maintenance module 20 includes a capping module 22, a platen module 23, a wiper module 24, and a module sled (not shown) 21). The capping module 22, the platen module 23 and the wiper module 24 can be lifted and lowered from the module sled 21, respectively. The module sled 21 is movable in the forward and backward directions so that each of the three modules is positioned directly below the ink nozzle portion in a specific mode.

The capping module 22 is a device that performs a capping function to block the ink nozzle portion from coming into contact with outside air when the printhead 10 is in the operation stop state.

The capping module 22 includes a body 221 forming an outer appearance, a frame 222 mounted on an outer circumferential surface of the body 221 to reinforce the rigidity of the body 222, And a wick bar 224 which is inserted into a depression recessed at a predetermined depth from the upper surface of the body part 222. [ The wick bar 224 projects further from the upper surface of the body part 221 and extends to a lower height than the upper end of the capper 223.

The capper 223 has a serpentine shape or a meander line and is made of a flexible material. In the capping mode, the upper end of the capper 223 is brought into close contact with the bottom surface of the print head 10. The upper end of the capper 223 is brought into close contact with an outer area of the print zone including the ink nozzle unit 141 so as to block the contact with the outside air. The lower end of the capper 223 is fitted and fixed in a groove formed on both sides of the body 221, and a part of the lower end of the capper 223 is covered by the upper end of the frame 222. Therefore, the capper 223 is not separated from the body 221 by the frame 222.

In detail, when the capping module 22 is operated, the module sled 21 moves forward or backward so that the capping module 22 is positioned directly below the ink nozzle portion of the print head 10 do. In this state, the capping module 22 rises to seal the ink nozzle area. Then, a pressure priming operation is periodically performed to prevent the ink nozzle portion from being clogged. The ink ejected from the ink nozzle part during the pressure prime operation is sprayed onto the wick bar 224 provided in the capping module 22 and impregnated.

On the other hand, the platen module 23 allows the printing paper to maintain a proper distance from the ink nozzle part when the printing paper passes through the printing zone, that is, the ink nozzle part in the printing process, As shown in FIG.

In detail, a slit 233 is elongated at the central portion of the upper surface of the platen module 23, and the slit 233 is positioned at a position corresponding to the ink nozzle portion. A plurality of guide ribs 232 are arranged at both edges of the slit 233 in a direction crossing the slit 233. Each of the plurality of guide ribs 232 protrudes obliquely toward the slit 233. Therefore, when the printing paper is drawn into the image forming portion, the printing surface is guided by the guide rib 232 to approach the ink nozzle portion.

A wick bar 234 of the same material as the wick bar 224 provided in the capping module 22 is provided below the slit 233. The wick bar 234 protrudes to a lower height than the upper end of the guide rib 232 so that the transfer of the printing paper is not disturbed by the wick bar 234 during the printing process. The wick bars 234 may be arranged along the slits 233 at a plurality of intervals. Of course, it is also possible to mount a single wick bar.

Here, the reason why the wick bar 234 is installed in the platen module 23 will be described. The platen module 23 ascends and moves toward the ink nozzle portion of the print head 10 when printing is started. Before the module sled 21 is moved forward or backward, the same operation as described in the operation description of the capping module 22 is performed.

Then, a spitting process is performed before the printing (BOJ: Before Before Job), between the printing paper being printed and the next printing paper (P2P: Page To Page) and after the printing (EOJ: End Of Job) do. In detail, the splitting process is performed so that the ink nozzle portion always maintains a wet condition, and ink of different colors is prevented from being mixed in the ink nozzle portion, Action. At this time, the wicker structure is also provided in the platen module 23 to absorb ink ejected from the ink nozzle unit. The wick bars provided in the platen module 23 may be made of a hydrophilic porous material to absorb the ink well, and hydrophilic polyethylene may be used as an example. Of course, the wick bars 224 of the capping module 22 may be made of the same material.

Meanwhile, the wiper module 24 functions to remove ink and foreign matter adhering to the print head 10 at a point of time after the pressure prime operation is completed, before or after the printing operation is started. The wiping operation by the wiper module 24 can be variously programmed to be performed at an appropriate time.

In detail, the wiper module 24 may have a cylindrical shape having a length corresponding to the length of the ink nozzle unit 141. And it can be made of a porous material which absorbs ink well. When the wiping operation is started, the module sled 21 linearly moves first so that the wiper module 24 is positioned directly below the ink nozzle unit. Then, the wiper module 24 rises to the ink nozzle portion and moves linearly while wiping the surface of the print head including the ink nozzle portion. When the wiping operation is completed, the wiper module 24 descends again and moves to the home position of the wiper module 24.

The ink removing process of the wiper module 24 is performed while the wiper module 24 returns to its original position.

In detail, a wiper module cleaning mechanism or a wiper module ink removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

The wiper module 24 includes a body 243, a wiper roller 242 rotatably coupled to the body 243 and made of a hydrophilic material capable of absorbing ink, A shaft 241 passing through the center of the wiper roller 242 to rotate the wiper roller 242 and a drain guide 244 guiding the ink falling from the wiper roller 242 to the drain tray 30 .

The wiper module cleaning mechanism 50 includes a vibrator 51 which is coupled to the shaft 241 and generates ultrasonic vibration of high output and a vibrator 51 which is disposed at a position spaced from the upper side of the wiper roller 242, And a sensor 52 which is fixed to the wiper roller 242 and senses the degree of contamination of the wiper roller 242. The sensor may be a photo-coupler sensor using light. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any kind of sensor equipped with a function of detecting the degree of contamination of the wiper roller 242 is possible.

Although the sensor 52 has been described as being mounted on the printer case 40, it need not necessarily be mounted on the printer case 40. That is, when the wiper module 24 is in the stop position, it may be mounted on one side of the fixing part located in the upper right room of the wiper roller 242.

Meanwhile, the drain tray 30 is provided below the module sled 21 to discharge the ink falling from the wiper module 24. The ink delivered to the capper module 22 and the platen module 23 flows downward and flows into the drainage flow path provided at the bottom of the module sled 21, It is collected. The waste ink collected by the drainage channel is transferred to a separate drainage tray or a drainage sponge, and is discharged to the outside.

The operation of the wiper module cleaning mechanism 50 will now be described. When the wiper module 24 is returned to its original position after cleaning the print head, the sensor 52 is turned on and the wiper roller 242 ) Is detected. For example, when the sensor 52 is a photocoupler sensor, light is emitted from the sensor 52, and the degree of contamination of the wiper roller 242 is detected according to the amount of light received by the wiper roller 242 . Then, when the degree of contamination of the wiper roller 242 becomes equal to or higher than the set level by the detection result and it is determined that the ink removal is necessary, the vibrator 51 operates.

More specifically, when power is applied to the vibrator 51, high output pulsed wave vibration is generated, and the ink absorbed by the wiper roller 242 is mechanically expanded and compressed by the shaft 241 caused by the pulsed wave, And drops to the drain guide 244. Then, the ink falling on the drain guide 244 flows toward the drain tray 30, and is eventually discarded to the outside of the document output apparatus.

As described above, by attaching the vibrator 51 to the shaft 241 of the wiper roller 242 and mounting the sensor 52 for detecting the degree of contamination of the wiper roller 242, a separate transfer roller or scraper There is no need to mount the members, and it is not necessary to secure a separate space for mounting them. As a result, there is an additional advantage that the size of the maintenance module 20 can be designed more compactly.

Claims (5)

A print head having an ink nozzle portion on its bottom surface;
And a maintenance module movably installed below the print head and provided for maintenance of the ink nozzle unit,
The maintenance module includes:
And a wiper roller for wiping the ink adhering to the ink nozzle unit,
And an ink removing mechanism for removing the ink absorbed by the wiper module,
The ink removing mechanism includes:
A vibrator mounted on a rotating shaft of the wiper roller; And
And a sensor mounted at a predetermined position on the upper side of the wiper roller to detect a degree of contamination of the wiper roller. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the vibrator includes an ultrasonic generator that vibrates a rotation axis of the wiper roller. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
Wherein the sensor comprises a photocoupler sensor. The method of claim 3,
A body portion for supporting the wiper roller,
And a drain guide formed on an upper surface of the body portion to guide the discharge of the ink falling from the wiper roller. 5. The method of claim 4,
A module sled accommodating the wiper module,
Further comprising a drain tray provided below the module sled,
And the ink flowing along the drain guide is guided to the drain guide.
KR1020130004886A 2013-01-16 2013-01-16 Apparatus for printing image on a paper KR20140092618A (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
KR1020130004886A KR20140092618A (en) 2013-01-16 2013-01-16 Apparatus for printing image on a paper

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
KR1020130004886A KR20140092618A (en) 2013-01-16 2013-01-16 Apparatus for printing image on a paper

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KR20140092618A true KR20140092618A (en) 2014-07-24

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KR1020130004886A KR20140092618A (en) 2013-01-16 2013-01-16 Apparatus for printing image on a paper

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2017127988A (en) * 2016-01-18 2017-07-27 セイコーエプソン株式会社 Liquid jet device

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2017127988A (en) * 2016-01-18 2017-07-27 セイコーエプソン株式会社 Liquid jet device

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