A detection circuit of a printer head, a printer and a printing method

Abstract

The application relates to a detection circuit of a printer nozzle head, which comprises a power supply module, and is characterized in that the detection circuit further comprises: a thermistor array comprising a plurality of thermistors, each thermistor corresponding to a nozzle in the nozzle head; a gating module electrically connected with each thermistor; a power supply end of the power supply module being connected with the gating module; and a control module comprising a detection port for detecting the voltage between the power supply end of the power supply module and the gating module, the control module being connected with a control end of the gating module. The application further discloses a printer comprising the detection circuit of the printer nozzle head and a printing method. The application has the advantages that the circuit can detect each nozzle to obtain the state of each nozzle, and can shield the faulty nozzle during printing, so that the printer can still be used when a small number of nozzles in the nozzle head are faulty, the utilization rate and service life of the nozzle head are improved, and the printing effect is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of printing technology, in particular to a detection circuit of a printer nozzle, a printer and a printing method. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the inkjet printing technology, the ink needs to be heated before the ink can be effectively output to achieve good printing effect. The existing technology is to heat the nozzle directly by a heating device after the ink enters the nozzle, the temperature of the ink rises instantaneously, and then bubbles are generated to realize the output printing of ink droplets. The nozzle of the existing inkjet printer is composed of multiple nozzles. If a single nozzle or multiple nozzles of the nozzle are abnormal, it will cause the image printed to have problems such as lines and blank spaces. Therefore, each nozzle needs to be detected.

[0003] In order to solve this technical problem, a kind of nozzle nozzle detection method, device, equipment, inkjet printer and medium are disclosed in Chinese patent application No.CN 201810168361.5 (application publication No.CN110202937A), which comprises: obtaining the detection time for detecting all nozzles, when starting to detect the nozzle of the nozzle, obtaining the start ink ejection time and stop ink ejection time of all nozzles according to the detection time; according to the start ink ejection time and stop ink ejection time of all nozzles, send detection signal through the predetermined jet trajectory of all nozzles, the predetermined jet trajectory is the motion trajectory of the ink droplet jetted by the nozzle under normal conditions; control all nozzles to jet ink at the same time and obtain the feedback signal after the detection signal passes through the predetermined jet trajectory of all nozzles; according to the feedback signal, determine whether each nozzle of the nozzle is abnormal. Although the above-mentioned detection method can realize the abnormal detection of the nozzle, the heating device of the nozzle may be short-circuited or open-circuited when the printer is started or after working for a period of time, which may cause the nozzle part of the nozzle to not output ink, and the phenomenon of complete non-ink output. The above-mentioned detection method cannot realize short-circuit or open-circuit detection.

[0004] In addition, the existing method only detects the short circuit of the entire nozzle. According to the existing method, it is determined that the entire nozzle is short-circuited and cannot work as a whole. In actual use, in order to save resources, if only a single nozzle or a small part of the nozzles in the nozzle are short-circuited, the nozzle can actually continue to be used, but the existing method cannot detect the short-circuit or open-circuit condition of a single nozzle, so further improvement is needed. SUMMARY

[0005] The first technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide a detection circuit of a printer nozzle capable of detecting the short-circuit and open-circuit state of a single nozzle in the nozzle.

[0006] The second technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide a printer capable of periodically identifying the state of a print head.

[0007] The third technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide a printing method capable of reducing the image loss caused by the abnormality of a print head of a printer and improving the utilization rate of the print head.

[0008] The technical solution adopted by the present application to solve the first technical problem is a detection circuit of a print head of a printer, comprising:

[0009] a power supply module;

[0010] characterized in that it further comprises:

[0011] a thermistor array comprising a plurality of thermistors, each thermistor corresponding to a respective nozzle provided in the print head;

[0012] a gating module electrically connected to each thermistor, the power supply end of the power supply module being connected to the gating module; and

[0013] a control module comprising a detection port for detecting the voltage between the power supply end of the power supply module and the gating module, the control module being connected to the control end of the gating module.

[0014] In order to turn on or turn off the detection circuit, a first switch module connected to the control module is further included, and the power supply end of the power supply module is connected to the gating module through the first switch module.

[0015] In order to protect the detection circuit, a voltage dividing module is preferably further included, which is arranged between the power supply end of the power supply module and the first switch module or between the first switch module and the gating module.

[0016] Preferably, the first switch module comprises a first MOS transistor and a third MOS transistor, the source of the first MOS transistor being connected to the power supply end of the power supply module, the drain of the first MOS transistor being connected to the gating module, the gate of the first MOS transistor being connected to the drain of the third MOS transistor, the gate of the third MOS transistor being connected to the control module, and the source of the third MOS transistor being grounded.

[0017] In order to prevent the surrounding components from being broken down due to the excessively fast switching rate of the MOS transistor, the first switch module further comprises a third resistor and a fifth resistor, the third resistor being connected between the gate of the third MOS transistor and the control module, and the fifth resistor being connected between the gate of the first MOS transistor and the drain of the third MOS transistor.

[0018] Preferably, the voltage dividing module comprises a first resistor arranged between the power supply end of the power supply module and the first switch module, and the source of the first MOS transistor is connected to the power supply end of the power supply module through the first resistor.

[0019] In order to prevent the detection signal of the detection port from being damaged by excessive voltage and current, preferably, a protection circuit is further included, the protection circuit comprising a second resistor and a Zener diode, the negative electrode of the Zener diode being connected to one end of the second resistor, the other end of the second resistor being connected between the drain of the first MOS transistor and the gating module, and the detection port of the control module being connected to the Zener diode and the second resistor in correspondence, and the positive electrode of the Zener diode being connected to the ground.

[0020] In order to solve the second technical problem, a printer is provided, comprising a nozzle, characterized in that it further comprises the detection circuit of the printer nozzle as described above.

[0021] In order to realize the printing work of the printer, preferably, a second power supply circuit for supplying power to the printer nozzle during its work is further included, the second power supply circuit comprising a second switch module connected to the control module, and the power supply end of the power supply module being connected to the gating module through the second switch module.

[0022] Preferably, the second switch module comprises a second MOS transistor and a fourth MOS transistor, the source of the second MOS transistor being connected to the power supply end of the power supply module, the drain of the second MOS transistor being connected to the gating module, the gate of the second MOS transistor being connected to the drain of the fourth MOS transistor, the gate of the fourth MOS transistor being connected to the control module, and the source of the fourth MOS transistor being connected to the ground.

[0023] In order to prevent the surrounding components from being broken down due to the excessively fast switching rate of the MOS transistor, the second switch module further comprises a fourth resistor and a sixth resistor, the fourth resistor being connected between the gate of the fourth MOS transistor and the control module, and the sixth resistor being connected between the gate of the second MOS transistor and the drain of the fourth MOS transistor.

[0024] In order to solve the third technical problem, a printing method of the printer as described above is provided, characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

[0025] Step 1: Before the printer performs the printing work, the control module controls the detection circuit to detect the thermistor in each nozzle of the printer nozzle, and feeds back the detection result to the control module, so as to determine the state of each nozzle of the printer nozzle according to the size of the detection signal, the state being one of the following states: short-circuit state, open-circuit state, deviation state and normal state; wherein the short-circuit state and the open-circuit state are fault states.

[0026] Step 2, when all the nozzles in the printer head are detected, the first switch module is closed by the control module;

[0027] Step 3, the control module judges whether the proportion of the nozzles in the printer head in the fault state exceeds the preset value, if yes, an error is reported and the replacement is ended, if not, the control module issues a gating signal to the gating module to shield the nozzles in the fault state, and reorders the other nozzles, and then enters step 4;

[0028] Step 4, the heating parameters of the nozzles in the deviation state are reset;

[0029] Step 5, a new printing decoding is generated, the second switch module is opened by the control module, and then the power supply module supplies power to the printer head through the second power supply circuit, receives the printing task and executes the printing task.

[0030] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the present application are that the gating module is electrically connected with the thermistors in each nozzle in the head, so that the control module can gate the gating module and detect the single nozzle in turn, and the control module can analyze the resistance value of the thermistors in each nozzle through the detection signal of the detection port, so that the detection circuit can detect each nozzle to obtain the state of each nozzle, and the faulty nozzle is shielded during printing, so that the printer head can still be used when a small part of the nozzles in the head are faulty, the utilization rate and service life of the printer head are improved, and the printing effect is also improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0031] Figure 1 It is a detection circuit module diagram in the embodiment of the present application.

[0032] Figure 2 It is a circuit diagram of the detection circuit in the embodiment of the present application.

[0033] Figure 3 It is a flow chart of the printing method of the printer in the embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] The present application will be further described in detail below in combination with the embodiments of the drawings.

[0035] As Figures 1-2As shown, the detection circuit of the printer head in the embodiment includes a power supply module 1, a voltage division module 6, a first switch module 5, a thermistor array 2, a gating module 3 and a control module 4. The power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 is electrically connected to the gating module 3 through the voltage division module 6 and the first switch module 5 connected in series, and the control module 4 is connected to the first switch module 5 and the gating module 3 respectively, so as to control the on-off of the first switch module 5 and send a gating signal to the gating module 3. In the embodiment, the control module 4 is a single-chip microcomputer.

[0036] The printer head is composed of a plurality of nozzles. In order to detect each nozzle, the above-mentioned thermistor array 2 and gating module 3 are arranged in the printer head. The thermistor array 2 includes a plurality of thermistors, each of which is electrically connected to the gating module 3, and the first switch module 5 is electrically connected to the gating module 3 in the printer head. The number of thermistors is determined according to the number of nozzles in the printer head, and each thermistor is arranged in a corresponding nozzle in the printer head. The resistance of the thermistor changes with the change of the temperature of the nozzle, and the resistance-temperature relationship of the thermistor is determined according to the material characteristics. Therefore, the abnormal condition of each nozzle can be determined according to the resistance of the thermistor. In the embodiment, there are 432 thermistors, i.e. 432 nozzles in the printer head. The above-mentioned thermistor array 2 is arranged in a specific order and each thermistor is defined by a label, which is defined as H1-H432. The relationship between the thermistor and the nozzle is not limited to one-to-one in the embodiment, and more than one thermistor can be arranged in each nozzle.

[0037] In addition, the control module 4 further includes a detection port T3 for detecting the voltage between the power supply end of the power supply module and the gating module, so that the control module 4 can calculate the resistance of the turned-on thermistor according to the detected voltage.

[0038] In the embodiment, the first switch module 5 includes a first MOS tube Q1, a third resistor R3, a fifth resistor R5 and a third MOS tube Q3. The source of the first MOS tube Q1 is connected to the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1, the drain of the first MOS tube Q1 is connected to the gating module 3, the gate of the first MOS tube Q1 is connected to the drain of the third MOS tube Q3 through the fifth resistor R5, the gate of the third MOS tube Q3 is connected to the control module 4 through the third resistor R3, and the source of the third MOS tube Q3 is grounded. The above-mentioned first MOS tube Q1 is a PMOS tube, and the third MOS tube Q3 is an NMOS tube. Of course, a triode can also be used. Figure 2 As shown, the third resistor R3 is connected to the first port T1 of the control module 4.

[0039] The voltage dividing module 6 is arranged between the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 and the first switch module 5, or between the first switch module 5 and the gating module 3. In the embodiment, the voltage dividing module 6 comprises a first resistor R1, and the source of the first MOS tube Q1 is connected to the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 through the first resistor R1. The number and resistance of the voltage dividing resistor are set according to actual needs. In the embodiment, the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 inputs a 15V voltage.

[0040] The detection circuit further comprises a protection circuit 7, which comprises a second resistor R2 and a voltage stabilizing tube D1. The negative electrode of the voltage stabilizing tube D1 is connected to one end of the second resistor R2, the other end of the second resistor R2 is connected between the drain of the first MOS tube Q1 and the gating module 3, and the voltage stabilizing tube D1 and the second resistor R2 are correspondingly connected to the detection port T3 of the control module 4, and the positive electrode of the voltage stabilizing tube D1 is connected to the ground end GND. In this way, the detection signal can be effectively prevented from being damaged when the current or voltage in the detection circuit is too large, thereby protecting the detection process.

[0041] The detection principle of the detection circuit is as follows:

[0042] The control module 4 controls the first switch module 5 to be turned on, that is, the control module 4 sends a turn-on signal through the first port T1, the level of the first port T1 changes from low to high, the third MOS tube Q3 is turned on, the third MOS tube Q3 is turned on to pull down the gate of the first MOS tube Q1, so that the first MOS tube Q1 is turned on, and the power supply input of the power supply module 1 is divided by the first resistor R1, and then reaches the nozzle part through the first MOS tube Q1. In addition, the control module 4 sends a gating signal to the gating module 3, and sequentially gates each nozzle in the printer nozzle, at the same time, the first resistor R1 and the thermistor in any nozzle form a voltage dividing circuit, the voltage dividing voltage is obtained through the detection port T3 and fed back to the control module 4, and by setting a query table between the voltage and the resistance in the control module 4, the resistance of the thermistor corresponding to the nozzle can be obtained, and the short circuit, open circuit and deviation of the thermistor can be determined according to the comparison between the actual resistance and the theoretical resistance.

[0043] The detection circuit can be applied in a printer, and the printer nozzle can be detected when the printer is started, a new nozzle is replaced or an error is reported.

[0044] The printer in the embodiment comprises a first power supply circuit formed by the power supply module 1, the voltage dividing module 6, the first switch module 5 and the gating module 3. In order to make the detection circuit of the printer nozzle execute only when detection is needed, and not to affect the normal work of the printer nozzle, a second power supply circuit is further arranged between the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 and the printer nozzle, such as Figure 2As shown, the second power supply circuit further comprises a second switch module 8 connected with the control module 4, and the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1 is connected with the gating module 3 through the second switch module 8. In the embodiment, the second switch module 8 comprises a second MOS tube Q2, a fourth resistor R4, a sixth resistor R6 and a fourth MOS tube Q4, the source of the second MOS tube Q2 is connected with the power supply end VCC of the power supply module 1, the drain of the second MOS tube Q2 is connected with the gating module 3, the gate of the second MOS tube Q2 is connected with the drain of the fourth MOS tube Q4 through the sixth resistor R6, the gate of the fourth MOS tube Q4 is connected with the control module 4 through the fourth resistor R4, and the source of the fourth MOS tube Q4 is grounded. The above-mentioned second MOS tube Q2 is a PMOS tube, the fourth MOS tube Q4 is an NMOS tube, and of course, a triode mode can also be adopted. As shown in the figure, Figure 2 As shown, the fourth resistor R4 is connected with the second port T2 of the control module 4.

[0045] As shown, Figure 3 The printing method of the printer comprises the following steps:

[0046] Step 1: Before the printer performs a printing task, the detection circuit detects the thermal resistor in each nozzle of the printer head through the control of the control module 4, and feeds back the detection result to the control module 4, and then judges the state of each nozzle of the printer head according to the size of the detection signal, which is one of the following states: short-circuit state, open-circuit state, deviation state and normal state; wherein the short-circuit state and the open-circuit state are fault states;

[0047] Step 2: After the detection of all nozzles of the printer head is completed, the control module 4 closes the first switch module 5;

[0048] Step 3: The control module 4 judges whether the proportion of the nozzles of the printer head in the fault state exceeds a preset value, if yes, an error is reported and the printer is replaced, and the process is ended; if not, the control module 4 issues a gating signal to the gating module 3 to shield the nozzles in the fault state, and reorders the other nozzles, and then goes to step 4;

[0049] Step 4: The heating parameters of the nozzles in the deviation state are reset;

[0050] Step 5: A new printing decoding is generated, the second switch module 8 is opened through the control of the control module 4, and then the power supply module 1 supplies power to the printer head through the second power supply circuit, receives a printing task and executes the printing task.

[0051] The above-mentioned deviation state refers to that the resistance value of the thermal resistor is within the set range of the theoretical resistance value, but has a certain deviation from the theoretical set value, and the heating parameter in step 4 is the heating time, that is, the heating time can be increased or decreased to adjust the different heating amount, so as to realize stable image processing.

[0052] The principle of printing in step 5 is that the control module 4 sends a conducting signal through the second port T2, the level of the second port T2 is changed from low to high, the fourth MOS tube Q4 is turned on, the fourth MOS tube Q4 is turned on, the gate of the second MOS tube Q2 is pulled low, the second MOS tube Q2 is turned on, and the power supply module 1 supplies power input to the printhead part after passing through the second MOS tube Q2. In addition, the control module 4 sends a strobe signal to the strobe module 3, and sequentially selects each nozzle in the printer printhead, and the control module 4 sends a strobe signal to the strobe module, and the 432 nozzles of the printhead are normally inked according to the image selection.

[0053] Therefore, the detection circuit in the present application can detect the state of each nozzle in the printhead, and the skipping action of each nozzle can be realized by the state of each nozzle during printing of the printer, and the image forming path can be recalculated, which can eliminate the problems of image missing and short circuit of the circuit system for a short time, can obviously improve the utilization rate of the printhead, and can improve the service life of the printhead.

Claims

1. A printing method of a printer, characterized by: The printer comprises a nozzle and a detection circuit of the printer nozzle, and the detection circuit of the printer nozzle comprises: a power supply module (1); a thermistor array (2) comprising a plurality of thermistors, each thermistor corresponding to a nozzle in the nozzle; a gating module (3) electrically connected with each thermistor, a power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) being connected with the gating module (3); and a control module (4) comprising a detection port (T3) for detecting the voltage between the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) and the gating module (3), the control module (4) being connected with a control end of the gating module (3); a first switch module (5) connected with the control module (4), the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) being connected with the gating module (3) through the first switch module (5); a second power supply circuit for supplying power for the printer nozzle during work, the second power supply circuit comprising a second switch module (8) connected with the control module (4), the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) being connected with the gating module (3) through the second switch module (8); a printing method of the printer comprising the following steps: Step 1: Before the printer performs a printing operation, the control module (4) controls the above detection circuit to detect the thermistors in each nozzle of the printer nozzle, and feeds back the detection result to the control module (4), and then judges that each nozzle of the printer nozzle is in one of the following states according to the size of the detection signal: short-circuit state, open-circuit state, deviation state and normal state; wherein the short-circuit state and the open-circuit state are fault states; Step 2: After all the nozzles in the printer nozzle are detected, the control module (4) closes the first switch module (5); Step 3: The control module (4) judges whether the proportion of the nozzles in the fault state of the printer nozzle exceeds a preset value, if yes, an error is reported and the process is ended, if not, the control module (4) issues a gating signal to the gating module (3) to shield the nozzles in the fault state, and reorders the other nozzles, and then goes to Step 4; Step 4: The heating parameters of the nozzles in the deviation state are reset; Step 5: A new printing decoding is generated, and the control module (4) opens the second switch module (8), and then the power supply module (1) supplies power to the printer nozzle through the second power supply circuit, receives a printing task and performs the printing task.

2. The printing method of claim 1, wherein: Further comprising a voltage dividing module (6) arranged between the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) and the first switch module (5), or between the first switch module (5) and the gating module (3).

3. The printing method of claim 2, wherein: The first switch module (5) comprises a first MOS tube (Q1) and a third MOS tube (Q3), the source of the first MOS tube (Q1) is connected to the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1), the drain of the first MOS tube (Q1) is connected to the gating module (3), the gate of the first MOS tube (Q1) is connected to the drain of the third MOS tube (Q3), the gate of the third MOS tube (Q3) is connected to the control module (4), and the source of the third MOS tube (Q3) is grounded.

4. The printing method of claim 3, wherein: The first switch module (5) further comprises a third resistor (R3) and a fifth resistor (R5), the third resistor (R3) is connected between the gate of the third MOS tube (Q3) and the control module (4), and the fifth resistor (R5) is connected between the gate of the first MOS tube (Q1) and the drain of the third MOS tube (Q3).

5. The printing method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The voltage division module (6) comprises a first resistor (R1) arranged between the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) and the first switch module (5), and the source of the first MOS tube (Q1) is connected to the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1) through the first resistor (R1).

6. The printing method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: Further comprising a protection circuit (7), the protection circuit (7) comprises a second resistor (R2) and a zener diode (D1), the negative electrode of the zener diode (D1) is connected to one end of the second resistor (R2), the other end of the second resistor (R2) is connected between the drain of the first MOS tube (Q1) and the gating module (3), and the zener diode (D1) and the second resistor (R2) are correspondingly connected to the detection port (T3) of the control module (4), and the positive electrode of the zener diode (D1) is connected to the ground end (GND).

7. The printing method of claim 1, wherein: The second switch module (8) comprises a second MOS tube (Q2) and a fourth MOS tube (Q4), the source of the second MOS tube (Q2) is connected to the power supply end (VCC) of the power supply module (1), the drain of the second MOS tube (Q2) is connected to the gating module (3), the gate of the second MOS tube (Q2) is connected to the drain of the fourth MOS tube (Q4), the gate of the fourth MOS tube (Q4) is connected to the control module (4), and the source of the fourth MOS tube (Q4) is grounded.

8. The printing method of claim 7, wherein: The second switch module (8) further comprises a fourth resistor (R4) and a sixth resistor (R6), the fourth resistor (R4) is connected between the gate of the fourth MOS tube (Q4) and the control module (4), and the sixth resistor (R6) is connected between the gate of the second MOS tube (Q2) and the drain of the fourth MOS tube (Q4).

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