Inkjet recording device

Abstract

To suppress washing liquid for washing a nozzle surface from leaking.SOLUTION: An inkjet recording device comprises: a plurality of inkjet heads 12; a washing liquid supply device that supplies washing liquid to the plurality of inkjet heads 12; a removing device 32 that removes adhering matters from nozzle surfaces 14F of the plurality of inkjet heads 12; a blocking member (head base 15) that blocks gaps between the plurality of inkjet heads 12; a surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81) that surrounds the removing device 32, and is open to the inkjet heads 12 side; and storing means that when removing adhering matters using the removing device 32, stores the nozzle surfaces 14F in a space A formed using the blocking member and the surrounding member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 14

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] In an inkjet recording apparatus, during a period when an image forming job is not being executed, moisture may evaporate from the ink in the nozzles of the inkjet head, and it is conceivable that the nozzles may become clogged due to an increase in the viscosity of the ink. Therefore, a purge process is performed to discharge the ink in the nozzles into a cap for the purpose of preventing clogging. However, if the ink remaining on the nozzle surface is left unattended, there are problems such as ink dropping onto the sheet during the execution of an image forming job or the ink sticking to the nozzle surface. Therefore, techniques for removing the ink remaining on the nozzle surface have been studied. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a configuration in which ink is removed from the nozzle surface by sliding a blade that contacts the nozzle surface.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the cleaning liquid bulges out from the holes of the supply member adjacent to the nozzle surface and the blade scrapes up the cleaning liquid and then slides along the nozzle surface, there is a problem that the cleaning liquid easily leaks to the surroundings. Also, since the amount of the cleaning liquid supplied to the nozzle surface is small, there is a problem that the ink removal ability is low. Although it is expected that the ink removal ability will be improved by supplying more cleaning liquid, there is a problem that the leakage to the surroundings also increases when the supply amount of the cleaning liquid is increased.

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to suppress leakage of a cleaning liquid for cleaning a nozzle surface.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, an inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a plurality of inkjet heads, a cleaning liquid supply device that supplies a cleaning liquid to the plurality of inkjet heads, a removing device that removes deposits from the nozzle surfaces of the plurality of inkjet heads, a closing member that closes a gap between the plurality of inkjet heads, a surrounding member that surrounds the removing device and has an opening on the inkjet head side, and a housing means that houses the nozzle surfaces in a space formed by using the closing member and the surrounding member when removing the deposits by using the removing device.

[0007] The closing member may be integrated with the plurality of inkjet heads, and the housing means may form the space by bringing the surrounding member into contact with the closing member by moving the surrounding member or the closing member.

[0008] The closing member may include through holes into which the plurality of inkjet heads are fitted, and the nozzle surfaces of the inkjet heads fitted into the through holes may be exposed to the surrounding member side.

[0009] The cleaning liquid supply device may spray or atomize the cleaning liquid toward the nozzle surfaces.

[0010] The housing means may house the nozzle surfaces in the space during a period when image formation is not performed by the plurality of inkjet heads.

[0011] The cleaning liquid supply device may supply the cleaning liquid to the nozzle surfaces during a period when image formation is not performed by the plurality of inkjet heads.

[0012] The cleaning liquid supply device may include a heater that heats the cleaning liquid.

Advantages of the Invention

[0013] According to the present invention, leakage of the cleaning liquid for cleaning the nozzle surface can be suppressed.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014]

Figure 1

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0015] Hereinafter, an inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] First, the overall configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 1 is a front view schematically showing the internal configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of the inkjet head 12. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the inkjet head 12. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the ink supply unit 60. Hereinafter, the front side (front side) of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 will be the front side of the paper in FIG. 1, and the left and right directions will be described with reference to the direction of viewing the inkjet recording apparatus 1 from the front. In each figure, U, Lo, L, R, Fr, and Rr indicate up, down, left, right, front, and rear, respectively.

[0017] The inkjet recording apparatus 1 (see FIG. 1) includes a rectangular parallelepiped main body housing 3. Inside the main body housing 3 at the lower part, there are provided a paper feed cassette 4 for accommodating single-sheet sheets S such as plain paper and coated paper, and a paper feed roller 5 for feeding the sheet S out to the right from the paper feed cassette 4. Above the paper feed cassette 4, there is provided a transport unit 7 for adsorbing the sheet S and transporting it in the Y direction. Above the transport unit 7, there is provided an image forming unit 6 for discharging ink to form an image. At the upper right part of the main body housing 3, there are provided a discharge roller 8 for discharging the sheet S on which an image is formed, and a discharge tray 9 on which the discharged sheet S is stacked.

[0018] Inside the main body housing 3, a conveyance path 10 is provided that extends from the paper feed roller 5 through the gap between the conveyance unit 7 and the image forming unit 6 to the discharge roller 8. The conveyance path 10 is mainly formed by plate-like members that face each other with a gap for the sheet S to pass through, and conveyance rollers 17 that sandwich and convey the sheet S are provided at a plurality of locations in the conveyance direction Y. A registration roller 18 is provided upstream of the image forming unit 6 in the conveyance direction Y.

[0019] The conveyance unit 7 includes an endless conveyance belt 21, a support plate 23, and a suction unit 24. The conveyance belt 21 has a number of ventilation holes (not shown) and is wound around a drive roller 25 and a driven roller 22. The support plate 23 has a number of ventilation holes, and its upper surface is in contact with the inner surface of the conveyance belt 21. The suction unit 24 sucks air through the ventilation holes of the support plate 23 and the conveyance belt 21 to adsorb the sheet S to the conveyance belt 21. The drive roller 25 is driven in the counterclockwise direction by a drive unit (not shown) including a motor and a reduction gear, so that the conveyance belt 21 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, and the sheet S adsorbed to the conveyance belt 21 is conveyed in the Y direction.

[0020] The image forming unit 6 includes head units 11Y, 11Bk, 11C, 11M (collectively referred to as the head unit 11). The head unit 11 includes one or more inkjet heads 12, for example, three inkjet heads 12 arranged staggeredly (see Figure 2). Ink containers 20Y, 20Bk, 20C, 20M (collectively referred to as the ink container 20) filled with yellow, black, cyan, and magenta ink, respectively, are connected to the head units 11Y, 11Bk, 11C, 11M.

[0021] The inkjet head 12 (see FIG. 3) includes a rectangular parallelepiped housing 12H having a longitudinal direction in the front-rear direction, a nozzle plate 14 provided at the bottom of the housing 12H, and a socket 12S to which a pipe for supplying ink is connected. The nozzle plate 14 includes a large number of nozzles 14N arranged in the front-rear direction. The nozzle 14N includes a branch flow path 14B branched from the downstream side of the socket 12S and a discharge port 14A provided on a nozzle surface 14F which is the lower surface of the nozzle plate 14. The diaphragm 14V also serves as a part of the inner wall of the branch flow path 14B. A pressurizing element 14Z is provided on the diaphragm 14V. As the pressurizing element 14Z, a piezoelectric element, an electrostatic actuator, a heater, or the like is used. A drive circuit 12D for driving the pressurizing element 14Z is connected to the pressurizing element 14Z.

[0022] The inkjet recording apparatus 1 includes an ink supply unit 60 (see FIG. 4). In the figure, an ink supply unit 60 corresponding to one color of ink is shown, but in this embodiment, since four colors of ink are used, four similar ink supply units 60 are provided. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 includes a container mounting portion 61 on which an ink container 20 is mounted, a filter 62 for filtering ink, a pump 63 for sucking ink from the ink container 20 through the filter 62, and a sub-tank 64 for storing the ink sent out from the pump 63.

[0023] The liquid level in the sub-tank 64 is adjusted to be slightly lower than the nozzle surface 14F. Due to the head difference between the liquid level and the nozzle surface 14F, negative pressure acts on the ink in the nozzle 14N, and a meniscus is formed in the nozzle 14N. After the ink is ejected from the inkjet head 12, the surface tension of the ink acts to reduce the surface area of the meniscus, and due to the negative pressure generated thereby, the reduced amount of ink is drawn from the sub-tank 64 into the inkjet head 12.

[0024] The control unit 2 (see FIG. 1) includes an arithmetic unit and a storage unit (not shown). The arithmetic unit is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The storage unit includes storage media such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory). The arithmetic unit reads and executes the control program stored in the storage unit to perform various processes. Note that the control unit 2 may be realized by an integrated circuit that does not use software.

[0025] A display operation unit 19 is provided at the upper part of the main body housing 3 (see FIG. 1). The display operation unit 19 includes a display panel, a touch panel laminated on the display panel, and a keypad (not shown). The control unit 2 causes the display panel to display a screen representing the operation menu, status, etc. of the inkjet recording apparatus 1, and controls each part of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the operations detected by the touch panel and the keypad.

[0026] The basic image forming operation of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 is as follows. When an image forming job is input to the inkjet recording apparatus 1 from the display operation unit 19 or an external computer, etc., the paper feed roller 5 feeds the sheet S from the paper feed cassette 4 to the conveyance path 10, and the registration roller 18 whose rotation has been stopped corrects the skew of the sheet S. When the registration roller 18 feeds the sheet S to the conveyance unit 7 at a predetermined timing, the conveyance unit 7 sucks the sheet S onto the conveyance belt 21 and conveys it in the Y direction. The drive circuit 12D supplies a discharge signal corresponding to the image data to the pressure element 14Z in synchronization with the conveyance of the sheet S. Thus, ink is discharged from the nozzles 14N, and an image is formed on the sheet S. The discharge roller 8 discharges the sheet S on which the image has been formed to the discharge tray 9.

[0027] [Head Base] FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the image forming unit 6. FIG. 7 is an exploded view showing the image forming unit 6. FIGS. 14 to 16 are cross-sectional views showing the removing device 32. The image forming unit 6 includes a plurality (four in this embodiment) of head units 11 and a head base 15. The head base 15 is fixed to the main body housing 3 and supports the head units 11.

[0028] The head base 15 is a rectangular flat plate-like member. The sizes of the head base 15 in the front-rear, left-right directions are larger than the circumscribed rectangle R (see FIG. 7) that encloses all the nozzle surfaces 14F. In other words, the length of the head base 15 in the front-rear direction (see FIG. 14) is longer than the length from the front end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most forward to the rear end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most rearward. Also, the length of the head base 15 in the left-right direction (see FIG. 16) is longer than the length from the left end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most leftward to the right end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most rightward.

[0029] The head base 15 includes a plurality (twelve in this embodiment) of through holes 15H. The through holes 15H are formed in an elongated rectangular shape in the front-rear direction. The nozzle plate 14 (see FIGS. 3, 7, 14) is formed in an overall elongated rectangular parallelepiped shape in the front-rear direction, but at the front end portion and the rear end portion of the nozzle plate 14, protruding portions 14P protruding forward and rearward are provided respectively. The lower surface of the protruding portion 14P is at a position higher than the nozzle surface 14F. The lower portion of the nozzle plate 14 including the nozzle surface 14F fits into the through hole 15H. The head base 15 closes the gaps between the plurality of inkjet heads 12. The nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 fitted in the through hole 15H is exposed. The connecting member 13C is provided below the rear protruding portion 14P with the head base 15 interposed therebetween (see FIGS. 3, 14).

[0030] [Maintenance Device] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the maintenance device 30. FIGS. 8 to 11 are perspective views showing the maintenance device 30. The maintenance device 30 includes a frame 33, a carriage 34, a removal device 32, a lifting device 35, and a slide device 36.

[0031] [Frame, carriage] The frame 33 (see FIG. 8) is fixed to the main body housing 3 and supports the carriage 34 and the conveyance unit 7. The carriage 34 supports the removal device 32. The removal device 32 includes a blade 82.

[0032] [Lifting device] The conveyance unit 7 is supported by the frame 33 via the lifting device 35 (see FIG. 5). The lifting device 35 is composed of, for example, a ball screw, a belt drive device, or the like. The lifting device 35 raises and lowers the conveyance unit 7 between an image forming position (see FIG. 8) when image formation is performed and a lower retracted position (see FIG. 9) below the image forming position. When moving the conveyance unit 7 to the image forming position, the conveyance unit 7 is positioned so that the distance between the conveyance belt 21 and the nozzle surface 14F becomes a distance suitable for image formation. When moving the conveyance unit 7 to the lower retracted position, a space is formed between the upper surface of the conveyance belt 21 and the nozzle surface 14F where the removal device 32 can be moved.

[0033] [Slide device] The carriage 34 is supported by the frame 33 via the slide device 36 (see FIG. 5). The slide device 36 is composed of, for example, a ball screw, a belt drive device, a rack and pinion, or the like. The removal device 32 is supported by the carriage 34 and slides in the left - right direction together with the carriage 34 by the slide device 36. When the conveyance unit 7 is in the lower retracted position, the slide device 36 slides the removal device 32 between a lateral retracted position (see FIG. 9) not facing the image forming unit 6 and an opposing position (see FIG. 10) facing the image forming unit 6.

[0034] In the facing position, the removal device 32 can be moved up and down using the conveyance unit 7. Specifically, the conveyance unit 7 can move up and down inside the carriage 34 with the removal device 32 placed on the upper part of the conveyance unit 7. The lifting device 35 moves the removal device 32 between a separation position where the blade 82 is separated from the nozzle surface 14F (see FIG. 10) and a contact position where the blade 82 contacts the nozzle surface 14F (see FIG. 11).

[0035] [Removal device] FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the removal device 32. FIG. 13 is an exploded view showing the removal device 32. The removal device 32 includes a waste liquid tray 81 and a blade unit 84 that slides with respect to the waste liquid tray 81.

[0036] [Waste liquid tray] The waste liquid tray 81 is fixed to the carriage 34. The waste liquid tray 81 includes a rectangular bottom 81B when viewed from above and upright side wall portions 81S provided over the entire circumference at the front, rear, left, and right edges of the bottom 81B. In other words, the waste liquid tray 81 is open on the inkjet head 12 side. The upper edge portions of the side wall portions 81S are formed at the same height over the entire circumference. The size of the waste liquid tray 81 in the front-rear and left-right directions (see FIGS. 13 and 15) is smaller than the size of the head base 15 in the front-rear and left-right directions.

[0037] Also, the size of the waste liquid tray 81 in the front-rear and left-right directions is larger than the circumscribed rectangle R (see FIG. 7) that includes all the nozzle surfaces 14F. In other words, the length of the waste liquid tray 81 in the front-rear direction (see FIG. 14) is longer than the length from the front end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most forward to the rear end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most rearward. Also, the length of the waste liquid tray 81 in the left-right direction (see FIG. 16) is longer than the length from the left end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most leftward to the right end portion of the nozzle surface 14F of the inkjet head 12 located most rightward.

[0038] The upper surface of the bottom 81B (see FIG. 13) is inclined so as to become lower from both front and rear ends toward the center. In the center of the bottom 81B in the front-rear direction, a groove 81G extending along the left-right direction is provided. The groove 81G is inclined so as to become lower from both left and right ends toward the center. At the center of the groove 81G in the left-right direction, a discharge port 81H penetrating in the up-down direction is provided. A suction pump 68 and a waste liquid tank 69 are connected to the discharge port 81H (see FIG. 4). Rails 81R having the front-rear direction as the longitudinal direction are provided at both left and right ends of the waste liquid tray 81.

[0039] [Blade Unit] The blade unit 84 (see FIG. 13) includes a blade 82 and a support plate 83 that supports the blade 82. The blade 82 is a flexible plate-like member formed of rubber or the like. A plurality (12 in this embodiment) of blades 82 are arranged in the same positional relationship as the inkjet head 12. The support plate 83 includes a bottom 83B and upright side wall portions 83S provided at both left and right ends of the bottom 83B. Wheels 83W supported by shafts having the left-right direction as the axial direction are provided near both front and rear ends of the left and right side wall portions 83S. The wheels 83W are placed on the rails 81R and roll along the rails 81R. The removing device 32 is provided with a driving device 85 (see FIG. 5) for sliding the blade unit 84 in the front-rear direction. The driving device 85 is composed of, for example, a ball screw, a belt driving device, a rack and pinion, or the like.

[0040] [Cleaning Liquid Supply Device] The inkjet recording apparatus 1 includes a cleaning liquid supply device 13 that supplies a cleaning liquid (see FIGS. 3 and 4). The cleaning liquid supply device 13 includes a cleaning liquid tank 13T that stores the cleaning liquid, a pump 13P that sends out the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank 13T, a sub-tank 13S that stores the cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning liquid tank 13T, and a connection member 13C provided on the rear side of the nozzle plate 14. The connection member 13C is provided with a supply port 13A that penetrates in the vertical direction. By adjusting the liquid level height in the sub-tank 13S, the cleaning liquid bulges out from the supply port 13A. The blade 82 scrapes the cleaning liquid from the supply port 13A, and thus the cleaning liquid is supplied to the nozzle surface 14F.

[0041] Next, the operation of the maintenance device 30 will be described. The following operations are executed by the control unit 2 controlling each part of the maintenance device 30.

[0042] When executing an image forming job (see FIG. 8), the removing device 32 is arranged at the lateral retracted position, and the conveyance unit 7 is arranged at the image forming position.

[0043] The purge process and the wipe process are executed at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing is, for example, when a predetermined time has elapsed after the image forming job is completed. When performing the purge process and the wipe process, the control unit 2 moves the conveyance unit 7 to the lower retracted position by the elevating device 35 (see FIG. 9), and moves the carriage 34 to the opposing position by the slide device 36 (see FIG. 10). At this time, the removing device 32 is located at the separated position. Next, the control unit 2 raises the conveyance unit 7 by the elevating device 35 to raise the removing device 32 to the contact position (see FIG. 11).

[0044] At the contact position, the upper edge of the side wall portion 81S of the waste liquid tray 81 is pressed against the head base 15 over the entire circumference (see FIGS. 14 and 16). Further, the lower portion of the nozzle plate 14 of each inkjet head 12 is fitted into the through hole 15H of the head base 15. That is, a space A is formed by the waste liquid tray 81, the head base 15, and the nozzle plate 14. The blade unit 84 is disposed inside the space A.

[0045] The blade unit 84 is located at the wiping start position (see FIG. 14). The wiping start position is the rear end of the slidable range of the blade unit 84. At the wiping start position, the blade 82 is located behind the connecting member 13C provided on the rear side of the nozzle surface 14F.

[0046] Subsequently, the control unit 2 increases the pressure in the nozzles 14N of the inkjet heads 12 to eject ink (purge process). Next, after the control unit 2 bulges the cleaning liquid from the supply port 13A of the connecting member 13C, the drive device 85 slides the blade unit 84 forward (wiping process). Then, the blade 82 scrapes the cleaning liquid from the supply port 13A and slides forward along the nozzle surface 14F. The blade 82 is pressed against the nozzle surface 14F and advances while being bent, scraping the ink adhering to the nozzle surface 14F. The ink is diluted by the cleaning liquid, drops onto the waste liquid tray 81, and is discharged from the discharge port 81H to the waste liquid tank 69.

[0047] The blade unit 84 stops at the wiping end position (see FIG. 15). The wiping end position is the front end of the slidable range of the blade unit 84. At the wiping end position, the blade 82 is located on the front side of the nozzle surface 14F.

[0048] In this embodiment, since the gap between the plurality of inkjet heads 12 is blocked by the head base 15, leakage of the cleaning liquid upward from the gap between the plurality of inkjet heads 12 is suppressed. Also, since the waste liquid tray 81 is blocked by the head base 15, leakage of the cleaning liquid to the outside of the waste liquid tray 81 is suppressed.

[0049] In this embodiment, even if the space A is not sealed, the effect of suppressing leakage of the cleaning liquid can be obtained. However, the higher the sealing performance of the space A, the higher the effect of suppressing leakage of the cleaning liquid. Therefore, a configuration for enhancing the sealing performance of the space A may be added. For example, by providing a sealing material (not shown) at the upper edge of the side wall portion 81S of the waste liquid tray 81, leakage of the cleaning liquid between the waste liquid tray 81 and the head base 15 is suppressed. Note that the sealing material may be provided on the lower surface of the head base 15.

[0050] After the wiping process is completed, the control unit 2 waits until an image forming job is input while the removing device 32 is disposed at the contact position. During this period, since the nozzle surface 14F is accommodated in the space A, an increase in the viscosity of the ink in the nozzles 14N is suppressed. Also, sticking of the ink to the waste liquid tray 81 and the head base 15 is suppressed.

[0051] When an image forming job is input, the control unit 2 lowers the removing device 32 to the separated position by the elevating device 35 (see FIG. 10), then slides the removing device 32 to the side standby position by the slide device 36 (see FIG. 9), and then raises the transport unit 7 to the image forming position by the elevating device 35 (see FIG. 8), and then executes the image forming job.

[0052] According to the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment described above, a plurality of inkjet heads 12, a cleaning liquid supply device 13 that supplies a cleaning liquid to the plurality of inkjet heads 12, a removing device 32 that removes deposits from the nozzle surfaces 14F of the plurality of inkjet heads 12, a closing member (head base 15) that closes the gap between the plurality of inkjet heads 12, a surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81) that surrounds the removing device 32 and has an opening on the inkjet head 12 side, and a housing means (lifting device 35) that houses the nozzle surface 14F in a space A formed by using the closing member (head base 15) and the surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81) when removing deposits using the removing device 32. According to this configuration, leakage of the cleaning liquid for cleaning the nozzle surface 14F can be suppressed.

[0053] Further, according to the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the closing member (head base 15) is integrated with the plurality of inkjet heads 12, and the housing means (lifting device 35) forms the space A by bringing the surrounding member and the closing member into contact with each other by moving the surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81). According to this configuration, the fitting of the inkjet heads 12 to the head base 15 can be stabilized. Note that, instead of moving the surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81), it may be configured to bring the surrounding member and the closing member into contact with each other by moving the closing member (head base 15).

[0054] Further, according to the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the closing member (head base 15) includes through holes 15H into which the plurality of inkjet heads 12 are fitted, and the nozzle surfaces 14F of the inkjet heads 12 fitted into the through holes 15H are exposed to the surrounding member (waste liquid tray 81) side. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from entering the electric circuit provided in the inkjet head 12.

[0055] Further, according to the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the housing means (lifting device 35) houses the nozzle surface 14F in the space A during a period when image formation by the plurality of inkjet heads 12 is not performed. According to this configuration, an increase in the viscosity of the ink in the nozzles is suppressed. Further, adhesion of the ink to the waste liquid tray 81 and the head base 15 is suppressed.

[0056] The above embodiment may be modified as follows.

[0057] In the above embodiment, as an example of the cleaning liquid supply device 13, an example was shown in which the blade 82 scrapes the cleaning liquid bulged from the supply port 13A of the connection member 13C. However, the cleaning liquid supply device 13 may be configured to inject or spray the cleaning liquid toward the nozzle surface 14F. Specifically, nozzles (not shown) for injecting or spraying the cleaning liquid are provided on the front side of each blade 82 of the blade unit 84. The nozzles slide in the front-rear direction together with the blade 82. According to this configuration, more cleaning liquid is supplied to the nozzle surface 14F, so that the ink removal ability can be enhanced.

[0058] In the above embodiment, an example was shown in which the housing means houses the nozzle surface 14F in the space A during a period when image formation by the inkjet head 12 is not performed. In addition to this, the cleaning liquid supply device 13 may supply the cleaning liquid to the nozzle surface 14F during a period when image formation by the inkjet head 12 is not performed. For example, the cleaning liquid may be supplied to the nozzle surface 14F by periodically executing a wiping process. According to this configuration, an increase in the viscosity of the ink in the nozzle 14N can be suppressed.

[0059] In addition to the configuration of the above embodiment, the cleaning liquid supply device 13 may include a heater 13H (see FIG. 4) for heating the cleaning liquid. In the example of FIG. 4, the heater 13H is provided in the cleaning liquid tank 13T, but the heater 13H may be provided in the cleaning liquid tank 13T, the sub-tank 13S, or the flow path through which the cleaning liquid flows. According to this configuration, the ink removal ability can be enhanced due to softening of the adhered ink and a decrease in the viscosity of the cleaning liquid.

[0060] In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the removing device 32 is slid into the space formed by lowering the conveyance unit 7 has been shown. However, it may be configured such that the removing device 32 is slid into the space formed by raising the imaging unit 6.

[0061] In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the head base 15 is integrated with the inkjet head 12 has been shown. However, the head base 15 may be provided in the waste liquid tray 81. In this case, the waste liquid tray 81 is always closed by the head base 15. When the removing device 32 is raised from the separated position to the contact position at the facing position, the lower portion of the nozzle plate 14 is fitted into the through hole 15H of the head base 15, and the gap between the inkjet heads 12 is closed.

[0062] In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the blade unit 84 slides in the front-rear direction with respect to the waste liquid tray 81 has been shown. However, the blade unit 84 may be fixed to the waste liquid tray 81, and the waste liquid tray 81 as a whole may be configured to slide in the front-rear direction.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0063] 1 Inkjet recording apparatus 12 Inkjet head 13 Cleaning liquid supply device 13H Heater 14F Nozzle surface 15 Head base (closing member) 15H Through hole 32 Removing device 35 Lifting device (accommodating means) 81 Waste liquid tray (surrounding member)

Claims

1. A plurality of inkjet heads, A cleaning liquid supply device for supplying a cleaning liquid to the plurality of inkjet heads, A removing device for removing deposits from the nozzle surfaces of the plurality of inkjet heads, A closing member for closing the gaps between the plurality of inkjet heads, A surrounding member that surrounds the removing device and has an opening on the inkjet head side, An inkjet recording apparatus comprising: a housing means for housing the nozzle surface in a space formed by using the closing member and the surrounding member when removing the deposits using the removing device.

2. The closing member is integrated with the plurality of inkjet heads, The housing means forms the space by bringing the surrounding member into contact with the closing member by moving the surrounding member or the closing member. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that.

3. The closing member includes through holes into which the plurality of inkjet heads are fitted, The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the nozzle surface of the inkjet head fitted into the through hole is exposed on the surrounding member side.

4. The cleaning liquid supply device according to claim 1, characterized in that the cleaning liquid is sprayed or atomized toward the nozzle surface.

5. The housing means according to claim 1, characterized in that the nozzle surface is housed in the space during a period when image formation is not performed by the plurality of inkjet heads.

6. The cleaning liquid supply device according to claim 5, characterized in that the cleaning liquid is supplied to the nozzle surface during a period when image formation is not performed by the plurality of inkjet heads.

7. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning liquid supply device includes a heater for heating the cleaning liquid.

Images