Inkjet control method, ink supply system, storage medium, and computer program product

Abstract

The present application discloses an inkjet control method, an ink supply system, a storage medium, and a computer program product, relating to the technical field of inkjet printing. By designing an ink supply system with a hierarchical multi-level ink path and an inkjet control method that combines pump control, air control, and valve control, the pressure difference between branches divided from the same main ink path is reduced, ensuring uniform ink supply pressure at the nozzle inlet, and improving the control accuracy and response speed of the ink supply system. Thereby, the stability and uniformity of inkjet printing with multiple nozzles and large sizes are improved, and the ejected ink droplets are made to approach the ideal state as much as possible.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the technical field of inkjet printing, and particularly to an inkjet control method, an ink supply system, a storage medium, and a computer program product. Background Art

[0002] In the existing inkjet printing technology, the ink supply system is a key factor affecting printing quality. Traditional ink supply systems usually adopt a single inlet, and a main ink path is branched into multiple branches to connect the nozzles. As the number of nozzles in the ink supply system increases, the pressure difference between the branches branched from the same main ink path becomes larger; the ink supply pressure at the inlet of each nozzle is uneven, affecting the consistency of the ink droplet speed and the ink dot position; the ink supply system lacks real-time pressure monitoring and intelligent adjustment capabilities, with a slow response; the layered multi-stage ink path has a large flow resistance, and it is easy to have insufficient power at the end of the nozzle. These problems are particularly obvious in the inkjet printing process of multi-nozzle large-size prints, resulting in poor uniformity of the finished product. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The main purpose of this application is to provide an inkjet control method, an ink supply system, a storage medium, and a computer program product, aiming to solve the technical problems of poor stability and uniformity in the inkjet printing of multi-nozzle large-size prints, and the ink droplets ejected being in a non-ideal state.

[0004] To achieve the above object, this application proposes an inkjet control method, which is applied to an ink supply system. The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes an ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a nozzle, a circulating ink bottle, a variable-speed pump, and an ink supply bottle that are sequentially passed through. Among them, the layered multi-stage ink path is a one-to-two or one-to-many ink path at each level, and a one-to-two or one-to-many intelligent valve is provided at the ink path bifurcation, and a pneumatic chamber is provided at the nozzle inlet of the last-stage ink path; the inkjet control method includes:

[0005] Determine the pending pump speed adjustment amount of the variable-speed pump based on the liquid levels between the circulating ink bottle and the ink supply bottle;

[0006] Determine the pending adjustment degree of the intelligent valve based on the ink path flow rates of the branched ink paths at each level of the layered multi-stage ink path;

[0007] Determine the pending pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber based on the inlet pressure of the nozzle;

[0008] Through the integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber, determine the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount, the target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree, and the target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value.

[0009] In one embodiment, the step of determining the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the to-be-determined pump speed adjustment amount through the integrated control of the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes:

[0010] Based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rate, the inlet pressure, and the preset weight attenuation factors corresponding to the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the first regulation weight corresponding to the liquid level;

[0011] Based on the first regulation weight corresponding to the liquid level, the to-be-determined pump speed adjustment amount, the to-be-determined pressurization value, and the integral compensation parameter of the pneumatic control for the pump speed control, determine the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the to-be-determined pump speed adjustment amount.

[0012] In one embodiment, the step of determining the target adjustment degree corresponding to the to-be-determined adjustment degree through the integrated control of the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes:

[0013] Based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rate, the inlet pressure, and the preset weight attenuation factors corresponding to the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate;

[0014] Based on the second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate, the to-be-determined adjustment degree, the to-be-determined pump speed adjustment amount, and the differential feedforward parameter of the pump speed control for the valve control, determine the target adjustment degree corresponding to the to-be-determined adjustment degree.

[0015] In one embodiment, the step of determining the target pressurization value corresponding to the to-be-determined pressurization value through the integrated control of the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes:

[0016] Based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rate, the inlet pressure, and the preset weight attenuation factors corresponding to the adjustable speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure;

[0017] Based on the third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure, the to-be-determined pressurization value, the to-be-determined adjustment degree, and the proportional coupling parameter of the valve control for the pneumatic control, determine the target pressurization value corresponding to the to-be-determined pressurization value.

[0018] In one embodiment, the inkjet control method further includes:

[0019] Obtain the initial pressure and the initial flow rate set based on the spraying target, where the spraying target is that the ink droplet form ejected by the nozzle is in the expected ideal form;

[0020] Based on the initial pressure and the initial flow rate, use an ink supply system to perform inkjet printing and obtain real-time ink droplet data of the ink droplets;

[0021] When the real-time ink droplet morphology corresponding to the real-time ink droplet data does not meet the injection target, optimize the initial pressure and the initial flow rate based on the injection target to obtain a real-time pressure and a real-time flow rate;

[0022] Based on the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate, use an ink supply system to perform inkjet printing until the real-time ink droplet morphology corresponding to the new real-time ink droplet data meets the injection target.

[0023] In one embodiment, the initial pressure or the real-time pressure serves as the adjustment target for the air pressure chamber; the liquid level difference calculated from the initial pressure and the initial flow rate or the liquid level difference calculated from the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate serves as the adjustment target for the adjustable speed pump.

[0024] In one embodiment, after the step of using an ink supply system to perform inkjet printing based on the initial pressure and the initial flow rate and obtaining real-time ink droplet data of the ink droplets, the following steps are further included:

[0025] Predict the nozzle state based on the nozzle historical data related to the nozzle state;

[0026] Optimize the initial pressure and the initial flow rate based on the injection target and the predicted nozzle state to obtain a real-time pressure and a real-time flow rate.

[0027] In addition, to achieve the above object, the present application also proposes an ink supply system. The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes an ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a nozzle, a circulating ink bottle, an adjustable speed pump, and an ink supply bottle that are sequentially passed through. The layered multi-stage ink path is a two-way or multi-way ink path at each level. A two-way or multi-way intelligent valve is provided at the ink path bifurcation, and an air pressure chamber is provided at the nozzle inlet of the last-stage ink path. The ink supply system further includes: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor. The computer program is configured to implement the steps of the inkjet control method as described above.

[0028] In addition, to achieve the above object, the present application also proposes a storage medium. The storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program is stored on the storage medium. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the inkjet control method as described above are implemented.

[0029] In addition, to achieve the above object, the present application also provides a computer program product. The computer program product includes a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the inkjet control method as described above are implemented.

[0030] One or more technical solutions proposed in this application have at least the following technical effects:

[0031] In this application, an ink supply system is provided. The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes an ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a nozzle, a circulating ink bottle, a variable-speed pump, and an ink supply bottle that are sequentially passed through. Among them, the layered multi-stage ink path is a two-way or multi-way ink path at each level. An intelligent valve for two-way or multi-way is provided at the ink path bifurcation, and a pneumatic chamber is provided at the nozzle inlet of the last-stage ink path.

[0032] In this application, an inkjet control method applied to the above ink supply system is provided. In this method, first, a pending pump speed adjustment amount of the variable-speed pump is determined based on the liquid levels between the circulating ink bottle and the ink supply bottle; a pending adjustment degree of the intelligent valve is determined based on the ink path flow rates of the bifurcated ink paths at each level of the layered multi-stage ink path; and a pending pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber is determined based on the inlet pressure of the nozzle. Then, through the integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber, a target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount, a target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree, and a target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value are determined.

[0033] Therefore, by designing an ink supply system with a layered multi-stage ink path and an inkjet control method that integrates pump control, air control, and valve control, the pressure difference between the branches separated from the same main ink path is reduced, the ink supply pressure at the nozzle inlet is ensured to be uniform, and the control accuracy and response speed of the ink supply system are improved. In this way, the stability and uniformity of inkjet printing for multi-nozzle large-size are improved, and the ejected ink droplets are made to approach the ideal state as much as possible. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] The accompanying drawings here are incorporated into the specification and form a part of this specification, showing embodiments consistent with this application, and are used together with the specification to explain the principles of this application.

[0035] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the accompanying drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, for those of ordinary skill in the art, other accompanying drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0036] Figure 1 It is a system schematic diagram provided for the first embodiment of the ink supply system of this application;

[0037] Figure 2 It is an ink path schematic diagram provided for the first embodiment of the ink supply system of this application;

[0038] Figure 3Schematic flow chart provided for the first embodiment of the inkjet control method of this application;

[0039] Figure 4 Schematic flow chart provided for the second embodiment of the inkjet control method of this application;

[0040] Figure 5 Schematic application diagram provided for the second embodiment of the inkjet control method of this application;

[0041] Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the device structure of the hardware operating environment involved in the inkjet control method in the embodiments of this application.

[0042] The implementation, functional features, and advantages of this application will be further described in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Specific implementation manners

[0043] It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the technical solutions of this application and are not used to limit this application.

[0044] To better understand the technical solutions of this application, the following will be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the specification and specific implementation manners.

[0045] The embodiments of this application provide an ink supply system. Refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , Figure 1 Schematic system diagram provided for the first embodiment of the ink supply system of this application, Figure 2 Schematic ink path diagram provided for the first embodiment of the ink supply system of this application.

[0046] The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes a sequentially passing ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a nozzle, a circulating ink bottle, a variable-speed pump, and an ink supply bottle. Among them, the layered multi-stage ink path is a one-to-two or one-to-many ink path at each level. An intelligent valve of one-to-two or one-to-many is provided at the ink path bifurcation, and a pneumatic chamber is provided at the nozzle inlet of the last-stage ink path.

[0047] The ink supply system adopts a layered multi-stage ink path design. Each stage of the ink path is divided into two or more, and the length of the ink pipes in each stage of the ink path is the same. A micro solenoid valve is used as the intelligent valve to intelligently adjust the outlet flow rate, and the ink is evenly distributed to the nozzle inlets through the multi-stage ink path.

[0048] Liquid level sensors are respectively installed at the ink supply bottle (main ink bottle) and the circulating ink bottle (recycling ink bottle) to respectively monitor the liquid levels of the two ink bottles in real time and serve as the feedback data of the pump control system. Regarding the pump control system: A circulating ink path is provided between the ink supply bottle and the circulating ink bottle, and a variable-speed pump is provided in the middle of the circulating ink path. By controlling the variable-speed pump, the pressure difference between the ink supply bottle and the circulating ink bottle is kept stable and meets the inkjet requirements.

[0049] Further, on the basis of the hierarchical multi-level ink path, an intelligent adjustment element, namely an intelligent valve, is introduced. A micro solenoid valve is set as the intelligent valve at each bifurcation point of the hierarchical multi-level ink path. According to the working state and requirements of the nozzle, the ink flow rate and pressure of each branch are dynamically adjusted to further improve the uniformity and flexibility of ink distribution.

[0050] An air pressure chamber is set at the inlet of the nozzle. Further, a pressure sensor can be installed behind the air pressure chamber. By dynamically adjusting the air pressure of the last-level ink path where the nozzle is located, problems such as insufficient power caused by different pressures at the nozzle and excessive flow resistance caused by pressure fluctuations in the ink supply system can be quickly responded to. When the ink supply stops, compressed air can be introduced into the ink path through the air pressure chamber to remove air bubbles and ink stains in the ink path.

[0051] In one embodiment, pressure sensors can be installed on each ink path branch to monitor the pressure of each branch in real time and give an alarm when abnormal pressure is detected to prompt timely fault detection and adjustment of the ink supply system. An anti-foaming device, namely an ink air bubble elimination device, can be added at the inlet of the circulating ink bottle to ensure that there is no air bubble interference in the ink supply system to avoid problems such as nozzle clogging and uneven printing. In addition, there is the following safety protection mechanism: when abnormalities occur in pump control, air control, and valve control, the ink supply system automatically alarms and switches to the safe mode to prevent damage to the nozzle.

[0052] In addition, a nozzle ink drop monitoring system can be set corresponding to the nozzle spraying area. A high-speed imaging system or an optical sensor is used to monitor the ink drops ejected from the nozzle, and the state of the ink drops is analyzed by combining computer vision algorithms, such as analyzing the ink drop diameter, speed, and distribution uniformity, identifying ink drop abnormalities (such as deviation, breakage, unevenness, etc.), and providing real-time feedback to the closed-loop control system. A deep learning model can also be used to predict the change trend of ink drops to improve the inkjet stability. The closed-loop control system combines the nozzle ink drop monitoring data to dynamically adjust parameters such as the pressure and flow rate of the ink supply system. It adopts intelligent PID control or fuzzy control to keep the ink drop characteristics stable. A digital twin model is added to optimize the spraying parameters according to historical data to improve the system adaptability.

[0053] Based on the above ink supply system, an embodiment of the present application provides an inkjet control method, referring to Figure 3 , Figure 3 which is a schematic flowchart of the first embodiment of the inkjet control method of the present application.

[0054] In this embodiment, the inkjet control method is applied to the above ink supply system, and the inkjet control method includes steps S10 to S40:

[0055] Step S10, determine the to-be-adjusted pump speed adjustment amount of the adjustable-speed pump based on the liquid levels between the circulating ink bottle and the ink supply bottle;

[0056] In pump control, according to the liquid level heights of the ink supply bottle and the circulating ink bottle detected in real time, the pump speed is dynamically adjusted to maintain the liquid level difference between the ink supply bottle and the circulating ink bottle, so as to achieve a stable flow pressure difference. In one embodiment, the formula of the PID control algorithm is as follows: U(t)=K_p·e(t)+K_i·∫[e(t)d(t)]+K_d·d / dt e(t), where U(t) is the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount of the adjustable-speed pump, e(t) is the difference between the actual liquid level difference and the target liquid level difference between the main ink bottle and the circulating ink bottle, and K_p, K_i, and K_d are the proportional, integral, and differential coefficients respectively.

[0057] Step S20, determine the undetermined adjustment degree of the intelligent valve based on the ink flow rates of the bifurcated ink paths at each level of the hierarchical multi-level ink path;

[0058] In valve control, the ink path bifurcation joint is set as an electromagnetic deformation structure. According to the real-time pressure distribution, the valve degree is automatically adjusted using the PID control algorithm to dynamically compensate for the flow resistance changes caused by differences in the working states of the connection structure and the ink path pipes. In one embodiment, the formula of the PID control algorithm is as follows: U1(t)=K1_p·e1(t)+K1_i·∫[e1(t)d(t)]+K1_d·d / dt e1(t), where U1(t) is the undetermined adjustment degree of the intelligent valve, e1(t) is the deviation between the flow rate ratio of two or more ink paths at the outlet and the target value, and K1_p, K1_i, and K1_d are the proportional, integral, and differential coefficients respectively. It should be noted that the working objective of the intelligent valve or the function of setting the intelligent valve is to make the multiple bifurcated ink paths behind the intelligent valve have the same flow rate. Therefore, the target value compared with the ratio in e1(t) is 1, that is, to make the flow rate ratio of two or more ink paths close to 1.

[0059] Step S30, determine the undetermined pressurization value of the air pressure chamber based on the inlet pressure of the nozzle;

[0060] In air control, combined with the pressure data fed back by the pressure sensor on the last-level ink path, fine-tuning is performed using the PID control algorithm, and auxiliary air pressure is added to the low-pressure branch to quickly balance the pressures of each branch, ensuring that the ink supply pressure of each nozzle reaches the target value uniformly during inkjet, so as to achieve a high degree of consistency in the ink droplet speed and position of each nozzle. In one embodiment, the formula of the PID control algorithm is as follows: U2(t)=K2_p·e2(t)+K2_i·∫[e2(t)d(t)]+K2_d·d / dt e2(t), where U2(t) is the undetermined pressurization value of the air pressure chamber, e2(t) is the deviation between the inlet pressure of the nozzle and the target pressure value, and K2_p, K2_i, and K2_d are the proportional, integral, and differential coefficients respectively.

[0061] Step S40: By fusing the control of the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber, determine the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount, the target adjustment degree corresponding to the undetermined adjustment degree, and the target pressurization value corresponding to the undetermined pressurization value.

[0062] Based on PID pneumatic control relying on a pressure sensor, PID valve control relying on a flow sensor, and PID pump control relying on a liquid level sensor, taking the determined adjustment amounts as the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount, the undetermined adjustment degree, and the undetermined pressurization value respectively, and further performing fused control on the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber instead of separate control for each, to determine the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount, the target adjustment degree corresponding to the undetermined adjustment degree, and the target pressurization value corresponding to the undetermined pressurization value.

[0063] By fusing the data of the liquid level sensor, the flow rate sensor, and the pressure sensor, comprehensively judge the system state, establish a relationship coupling algorithm between the inkjet printing stability and uniformity and the rotational speed of the adjustable-speed pump, the valve opening of the intelligent valve, and the pressurization pressure of the pneumatic chamber, so that the ink supply system automatically distributes the control weights of pump control, valve control, and pneumatic control according to the real-time working conditions, and obtains the final actual control parameters, namely the target pump speed adjustment amount, the target adjustment degree, and the target pressurization value.

[0064] It should be noted that the basis and principle of the above relationship coupling algorithm are as follows: The pump speed adjustment amount U(t) of the adjustable-speed pump is affected not only by itself but also by the pressurization value U2(t) of the pneumatic chamber; the adjustment degree U1(t) of the intelligent valve is affected not only by itself but also by the pump speed adjustment amount U(t) of the adjustable-speed pump; the pressurization value U2(t) of the pneumatic chamber is affected not only by itself but also by the adjustment degree U1(t) of the intelligent valve.

[0065] In a feasible implementation manner, step S40 includes:

[0066] Based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rate, and the inlet pressure, as well as the preset weight attenuation factors corresponding to the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the first control weight corresponding to the liquid level;

[0067] Based on the first control weight corresponding to the liquid level, the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount, the undetermined pressurization value, and the integral compensation parameter of pneumatic control for pump speed control, determine the target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount.

[0068] Regarding pump control, the first control weight wh corresponding to the liquid level can be determined according to the following formula:

[0069] wh = [exp(-λe(t)) / (exp(-λe(t)) + exp(-λ1e1(t)) + exp(-λ2e2(t)))]

[0070] The target pump speed adjustment amount U'(t) corresponding to the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount can be determined according to the following formula:

[0071] U'(t) = wh · [U(t) + α∫U2(t)dt]

[0072] Where λ, λ1, and λ2 are the weight decay factors of each subsystem, namely the adjustable speed pump, intelligent valve, and pneumatic chamber (the greater the error, the higher the weight of the corresponding subsystem), e(t) is the difference between the actual liquid level difference and the target liquid level difference between the main ink bottle and the circulating ink bottle, e1(t) is the deviation between the flow rate ratio of two or more ink paths at the outlet and the target value, e2(t) is the deviation between the inlet pressure of the nozzle and the target pressure value, U(t) is the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount of the adjustable speed pump, U2(t) is the undetermined pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber, and α is the integral compensation parameter of pneumatic control for pump control.

[0073] In another feasible implementation manner, step S40 includes:

[0074] Based on the liquid level, ink path flow rate, and inlet pressure, as well as the preset weight decay factors corresponding to the adjustable speed pump, intelligent valve, and pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate;

[0075] Based on the second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate, the undetermined adjustment degree, the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount, and the differential feedforward parameter of pump control for valve control, determine the target adjustment degree corresponding to the undetermined adjustment degree.

[0076] Regarding valve control, the second regulation weight wv corresponding to the ink path flow rate can be determined according to the following formula:

[0077] wv = [exp(-λ1e1(t)) / (exp(-λe(t)) + exp(-λ1e1(t)) + exp(-λ2e2(t)))]

[0078] The target adjustment degree U1'(t) corresponding to the undetermined adjustment degree can be determined according to the following formula:

[0079] U1'(t) = wv · [U1(t) + βdU(t) / dt]

[0080] Among them, λ, λ1, and λ2 are the weight decay factors of each subsystem, namely the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber (the greater the error, the higher the weight of the corresponding subsystem). e(t) is the difference between the actual liquid level difference and the target liquid level difference between the main ink bottle and the circulating ink bottle. e1(t) is the deviation between the flow ratio of two or more ink paths at the outlet and the target value. e2(t) is the deviation between the nozzle inlet pressure and the target pressure value. U(t) is the undetermined pump speed adjustment amount of the adjustable-speed pump. U1(t) is the undetermined adjustment degree of the intelligent valve. β is the differential feedforward parameter of pump control to valve control.

[0081] In another feasible implementation manner, step S40 includes:

[0082] Based on the liquid level, ink path flow rate, and inlet pressure, as well as the preset weight decay factors corresponding to the adjustable-speed pump, intelligent valve, and pneumatic chamber respectively, determine the third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure;

[0083] Based on the third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure, the undetermined pressurization value, the undetermined adjustment degree, and the proportional coupling parameter of valve control to pneumatic control, determine the target pressurization value corresponding to the undetermined pressurization value.

[0084] Regarding pneumatic control, the third regulation weight wa corresponding to the inlet pressure can be determined according to the following formula:

[0085] wa = [exp(-λ2e2(t)) / (exp(-λe(t)) + exp(-λ1e1(t)) + exp(-λ2e2(t)))]

[0086] The target pressurization value U2'(t) corresponding to the undetermined pressurization value can be determined according to the following formula:

[0087] U2'(t) = wa · [U2(t) + γU1(t)]

[0088] Among them, λ, λ1, and λ2 are the weight decay factors of each subsystem, namely the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber (the greater the error, the higher the weight of the corresponding subsystem). e(t) is the difference between the actual liquid level difference and the target liquid level difference between the main ink bottle and the circulating ink bottle. e1(t) is the deviation between the flow ratio of two or more ink paths at the outlet and the target value. e2(t) is the deviation between the nozzle inlet pressure and the target pressure value. U2(t) is the undetermined pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber. U1(t) is the undetermined adjustment degree of the intelligent valve. γ is the proportional coupling parameter of valve control to pneumatic control.

[0089] Based on the first embodiment of the present application, in the second embodiment of the present application, the same or similar content as that in the above-mentioned first embodiment can be referred to the above introduction and will not be repeated hereinafter. On this basis, please refer to Figure 4 and Figure 5, the inkjet control method further includes steps T10 to T40:

[0090] Step T10: Obtain the initial pressure and initial flow rate set based on the ejection target, where the ejection target is that the droplet shape ejected by the print head is in the expected ideal shape;

[0091] At the initial control moment of the ink supply system, in order to make the droplet state meet the requirements of inkjet printing stability and uniformity, the initial flow rate and pressure can be input based on manual experience and with reference to the ejection target, and fusion control and inkjet are performed based on the initial flow rate and pressure, so that the droplet shape of the droplets ejected by the print head is in the expected ideal shape.

[0092] Step T20: Based on the initial pressure and initial flow rate, use the ink supply system to perform inkjet and obtain the real-time droplet data of the droplets;

[0093] After obtaining the initial pressure and initial flow rate set based on the ejection target, based on the initial pressure and initial flow rate, use the ink supply system to perform inkjet and obtain the real-time droplet data of the droplets. At the same time, the state of the ejected droplets is monitored in real time through the droplet observation system, including the droplet volume and droplet shape (whether there are satellite droplets), etc., the real-time droplet data of the ejected droplets is obtained, and compared with the target droplet volume and droplet shape corresponding to the ejection target, etc.

[0094] Step T30: When the real-time droplet shape corresponding to the real-time droplet data does not meet the ejection target, optimize the initial pressure and initial flow rate based on the ejection target to obtain the real-time pressure and real-time flow rate;

[0095] Step T40: Based on the real-time pressure and real-time flow rate, use the ink supply system to perform inkjet until the real-time droplet shape corresponding to the new real-time droplet data meets the ejection target.

[0096] When the real-time droplet shape corresponding to the real-time droplet data does not meet the ejection target, optimize the initial pressure and initial flow rate based on the ejection target to obtain the real-time pressure and real-time flow rate.

[0097] That is to say, after using the ink supply system to perform inkjet based on the initial pressure and initial flow rate, the obtained real-time droplet data is compared with the droplet data corresponding to the ejection target, and when the droplets do not meet the ejection target, the initial flow rate and pressure are cyclically feedback optimized, so that under the inkjet control of the new real-time pressure and real-time flow rate, the new droplets continuously approach the droplet state under the ejection target.

[0098] The control parameters (flow rate and pressure) for the nozzle to eject ink droplets are dynamically changing. At a certain moment, fusion control is performed with the corresponding real-time target parameters. After the fusion control is completed, if the ink droplet state does not meet the standard, the real-time target parameters are further adjusted, and a new round of fusion control is performed with the latest target parameters until the ejection target is met.

[0099] For the case where there are differences in the target parameters corresponding to the ejection target, through a digital twin model (physical modeling and simulation model, measured MAP graph, empirical formula, etc.), by comparing the state parameters, the control parameters such as flow rate and pressure can be optimized. After obtaining the optimized target control parameters such as the target flow rate and pressure values, they are automatically fed back to the ink supply system, and the multi-sensor fusion control intelligent algorithm is used to adjust the control parameters, and iterate and optimize to ensure the uniformity of ink droplets and the inkjet effect.

[0100] In a feasible implementation manner, the initial pressure or the real-time pressure is used as the adjustment target of the pneumatic chamber; the liquid level difference calculated from the initial pressure and the initial flow rate or the liquid level difference calculated from the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate is used as the adjustment target of the variable-speed pump.

[0101] In pneumatic control, the input initial pressure or the adjusted real-time pressure can be used as the adjustment target of the pneumatic chamber, and this adjustment target is the target pressure value referred to by e2(t); in pump control, the liquid level difference calculated from the input initial pressure and the initial flow rate, or the liquid level difference calculated from the adjusted real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate, can be used as the adjustment target of the variable-speed pump, and this adjustment target is the target liquid level difference referred to by e(t).

[0102] In another feasible implementation manner, after step S20, it further includes:

[0103] Predict the nozzle state based on the nozzle historical data related to the nozzle state;

[0104] Optimize the initial pressure and the initial flow rate based on the ejection target and the predicted nozzle state to obtain the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate.

[0105] When the real-time ink droplet morphology corresponding to the real-time ink droplet data does not meet the ejection target and the initial pressure and flow rate or the new real-time pressure and flow rate are optimized, considerations related to the nozzle state such as the nozzle fatigue life can also be added to further optimize the functional parameters that change over time. In this way, the time required for optimization can be shortened.

[0106] Predict the nozzle status through the nozzle historical data related to the nozzle status and machine learning algorithms, and adjust the ink supply parameters in advance. Among them, the nozzle historical data refers to the data related to the nozzle status such as the nozzle usage data and the nozzle physical data, and the nozzle status includes the nozzle clogging, wear and other statuses. After the nozzle is used for a long time, the performance of the nozzle will be damaged. To eject ink droplets in an ideal state, it is necessary to adjust the ink supply parameters. That is to say, as the usage time increases, the ink supply parameters are automatically adjusted according to the nozzle usage record. In one embodiment, the ink supply parameters are adjusted according to the predicted nozzle status: if the nozzle is worn severely, the nozzle pressure and flow rate are reduced.

[0107] It should be noted that the above examples are only for understanding the present application and do not constitute a limitation to the inkjet control method of the present application. Based on this technical concept, more forms of simple transformation are within the protection scope of the present application.

[0108] Furthermore, the ink supply system provided by the present application further includes: at least one processor; and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein, the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor so that the at least one processor can execute the inkjet control method in the first embodiment above.

[0109] Next, refer to Figure 6 , which shows a schematic structural diagram of an ink supply system suitable for implementing the embodiments of the present application. The ink supply system in the embodiments of the present application may include, but is not limited to, mobile terminals such as mobile phones, laptop computers, digital broadcast receivers, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), PADs (Portable Application Descriptions), etc., and fixed terminals such as digital TVs, desktop computers, etc. Figure 6 The ink supply system shown is only an example and should not bring any limitation to the functions and usage scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0110] Such as Figure 6As shown, the ink supply system may include a processing device 1001 (such as a central processing unit, a graphics processing unit, etc.), which may perform various appropriate actions and processes according to a program stored in the read-only memory 1002 or a program loaded from the storage device 1003 into the random access memory 1004. In the random access memory 1004, various programs and data required for the operation of the ink supply system are also stored. The processing device 1001, the read-only memory 1002, and the random access memory 1004 are connected to each other through a bus 1005. An input / output interface 1006 is also connected to the bus. Generally, the following systems may be connected to the input / output interface 1006: an input device 1007 including, for example, a touch screen, a touchpad, a keyboard, a mouse, an image sensor, a microphone, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, etc.; an output device 1008 including, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal Display), a speaker, a vibrator, etc.; a storage device 1003 including, for example, a magnetic tape, a hard disk, etc.; and a communication device 1009. The communication device 1009 may allow the ink supply system to communicate with other devices wirelessly or wiredly to exchange data. Although the figure shows an ink supply system having various systems, it should be understood that it is not required to implement or have all the shown systems. Instead, more or fewer systems may be implemented or had.

[0111] In particular, according to the embodiments disclosed in the present application, the processes described above with reference to the flowcharts may be implemented as computer software programs. For example, the embodiments disclosed in the present application include a computer program product, which includes a computer program carried on a computer-readable medium, and the computer program includes program codes for performing the methods shown in the flowcharts. In such an embodiment, the computer program may be downloaded and installed from a network through the communication device, or installed from the storage device 1003, or installed from the read-only memory 1002. When the computer program is executed by the processing device 1001, the above-mentioned functions defined in the methods of the embodiments disclosed in the present application are executed.

[0112] The ink supply system provided by the present application adopts the inkjet control method in the above-mentioned embodiments, and can solve the technical problems that the inkjet printing stability and uniformity of multiple nozzles with large sizes are poor, and the ejected ink droplets are in a non-ideal state. Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the ink supply system provided by the present application are the same as those of the inkjet control method provided by the above-mentioned embodiments, and other technical features in the ink supply system are the same as those disclosed in the method of the previous embodiment, and will not be elaborated here.

[0113] It should be understood that the various parts disclosed in the present application may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. In the description of the above embodiments, specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in a suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0114] As described above, it is only the specific implementation manner of the present application. However, the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present application can easily think of changes or substitutions, which should all be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the said claims.

[0115] The present application provides a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program instructions (i.e., computer programs) stored thereon, and the computer-readable program instructions are used to execute the inkjet control method in the above embodiments.

[0116] The computer-readable storage medium provided by the present application may be, for example, a USB flash drive, but is not limited to electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems or devices, or any combination of the above. More specific examples of the computer-readable storage medium may include, but are not limited to: electrical connections having one or more wires, portable computer disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) or flash memory, optical fibers, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination of the above. In this embodiment, the computer-readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that contains or stores a program, and the program can be used by or in combination with an instruction execution system or device. The program code contained on the computer-readable storage medium can be transmitted by any appropriate medium, including but not limited to: wires, optical cables, RF (Radio Frequency), etc., or any suitable combination of the above.

[0117] The above computer-readable storage medium may be included in the ink supply system; or it may exist separately and not be assembled into the ink supply system.

[0118] The above computer-readable storage medium carries one or more programs, which, when executed by the ink supply system, cause the ink supply system to: determine a pending pump speed adjustment amount of the adjustable-speed pump based on the liquid levels between the circulating ink bottle and the ink supply bottle; determine a pending adjustment degree of the intelligent valve based on the ink flow rates of the branched ink paths at each level of the hierarchical multi-stage ink path; determine a pending pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber based on the inlet pressure of the print head; and determine a target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount, a target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree, and a target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value through the integrated control of the adjustable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber.

[0119] Computer program code for performing the operations of the present application may be written in one or more programming languages or combinations thereof. The programming languages include object-oriented programming languages such as Java, Smalltalk, C++, and also include conventional procedural programming languages such as the "C" language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer, execute as a stand-alone software package, execute partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or execute entirely on the remote computer or server. In the case of a remote computer, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or may be connected to an external computer (e.g., through the Internet using an Internet service provider).

[0120] The flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the possible architectures, functions, and operations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present application. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, a program segment, or a part of code that contains one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function. It should also be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than that marked in the accompanying drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks shown may actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in the block diagram and / or flowchart, and the combinations of blocks in the block diagram and / or flowchart, may be implemented by a dedicated hardware-based system for performing the specified functions or operations, or may be implemented by a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0121] The modules involved in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in software or in hardware. In some cases, the name of the module does not constitute a limitation on the unit itself.

[0122] The readable storage medium provided by the present application is a computer-readable storage medium, and the computer-readable storage medium stores computer-readable program instructions (i.e., computer programs) for executing the above inkjet control method, which can solve the technical problems of poor stability and uniformity of inkjet printing with multiple nozzles of large size and the ejected ink droplets being in a non-ideal state. Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the computer-readable storage medium provided by the present application are the same as those of the inkjet control method provided by the above embodiments, and will not be elaborated here.

[0123] The present application also provides a computer program product, including a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the steps of the inkjet control method as described above.

[0124] The computer program product provided by the present application can solve the technical problems of poor stability and uniformity of inkjet printing with multiple nozzles of large size and the ejected ink droplets being in a non-ideal state. Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the computer program product provided by the present application are the same as those of the inkjet control method provided by the above embodiments, and will not be elaborated here.

[0125] The above are only some embodiments of the present application, and do not limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structural transformation made by using the content of the specification and drawings of the present application under the technical concept of the present application, or direct / indirect application in other related technical fields, is included in the patent protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. An inkjet control method, characterized in that, The inkjet control method is applied to an ink supply system. The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes an ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a print head, a circulating ink bottle, a variable-speed pump, and an ink supply bottle that are sequentially passed through. Among them, the layered multi-stage ink path is a one-to-two or one-to-many ink path at each level, and a one-to-two or one-to-many intelligent valve is provided at the ink path bifurcation, and a pneumatic chamber is provided at the print head inlet of the last-stage ink path. The inkjet control method includes: Determine a pending pump speed adjustment amount of the variable-speed pump based on the liquid levels between the circulating ink bottle and the ink supply bottle; Determine a pending adjustment degree of the intelligent valve based on the ink path flow rates of the bifurcated ink paths at each level of the layered multi-stage ink path; Determine a pending pressurization value of the pneumatic chamber based on the inlet pressure of the print head; Determine a target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount, a target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree, and a target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value through integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber; The step of determining a target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount through integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes: Determine a first regulation weight corresponding to the liquid level based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rates, and the inlet pressure, and preset weight decay factors respectively corresponding to the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber; Determine a target pump speed adjustment amount corresponding to the pending pump speed adjustment amount based on the first regulation weight corresponding to the liquid level, the pending pump speed adjustment amount, the pending pressurization value, and an integral compensation parameter of pneumatic control for pump speed control.

2. The inkjet control method according to claim 1, wherein The step of determining a target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree through integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes: Determine a second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rates, and the inlet pressure, and preset weight decay factors respectively corresponding to the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber; Determine a target adjustment degree corresponding to the pending adjustment degree based on the second regulation weight corresponding to the ink path flow rate, the pending adjustment degree, the pending pump speed adjustment amount, and a differential feedforward parameter of pump speed control for valve control.

3. The inkjet control method according to claim 1, wherein, The step of determining a target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value through integrated control of the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber includes: Determine a third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure based on the liquid level, the ink path flow rates, and the inlet pressure, and preset weight decay factors respectively corresponding to the variable-speed pump, the intelligent valve, and the pneumatic chamber; Determine a target pressurization value corresponding to the pending pressurization value based on the third regulation weight corresponding to the inlet pressure, the pending pressurization value, the pending adjustment degree, and a proportional coupling parameter of valve control for pneumatic control.

4. The inkjet control method according to claim 1, wherein The inkjet control method further includes: Obtain an initial pressure and an initial flow rate set based on a spraying target, where the spraying target is that the ink droplet form ejected by the print head is in an expected ideal form; Based on the initial pressure and the initial flow rate, use an ink supply system to perform inkjet printing and obtain real-time ink droplet data of the ink droplets. When the real-time ink droplet shape corresponding to the real-time ink droplet data does not meet the spraying target, optimize the initial pressure and the initial flow rate based on the spraying target to obtain a real-time pressure and a real-time flow rate. Based on the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate, use the ink supply system to perform inkjet printing until the real-time ink droplet shape corresponding to the new real-time ink droplet data meets the spraying target.

5. The inkjet control method according to claim 4, wherein, The initial pressure or the real-time pressure is used as the adjustment target of the air pressure chamber; the liquid level difference calculated from the initial pressure and the initial flow rate or the liquid level difference calculated from the real-time pressure and the real-time flow rate is used as the adjustment target of the adjustable speed pump.

6. The inkjet control method according to claim 4, characterized in that After the step of using the ink supply system to perform inkjet printing and obtaining real-time ink droplet data of the ink droplets based on the initial pressure and the initial flow rate, the following steps are further included: Predict the nozzle state based on the nozzle historical data related to the nozzle state. Optimize the initial pressure and the initial flow rate based on the spraying target and the predicted nozzle state to obtain a real-time pressure and a real-time flow rate.

7. An ink supply system, characterized in that, The circulating ink supply path of the ink supply system includes an ink supply bottle, a layered multi-stage ink path, a nozzle, a circulating ink bottle, an adjustable speed pump, and an ink supply bottle that are sequentially passed through. The layered multi-stage ink path is a one-to-two or one-to-many ink path at each level. An intelligent valve of one-to-two or one-to-many is provided at the ink path bifurcation. An air pressure chamber is provided at the nozzle inlet of the last-stage ink path. The ink supply system further includes: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor. The computer program is configured to implement the steps of the inkjet control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A storage medium, characterized in that, The storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program is stored on the storage medium. When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the steps of the inkjet control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the steps of the inkjet control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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