Moistening device, recording system, and intermediate unit

Abstract

To provide a moistening device capable of optimizing moistening, and to provide a recording system and an intermediate unit.SOLUTION: The moistening device 40 includes a transport section, a spray section 42, and a movement section 46. The moistening device 40 moistens the medium M by spraying the moistening liquid HL thereon. The transport section transports the medium M along the transport direction Y1. The spray section 42 sprays the moistening liquid HL on the medium M transported by the transport section. The movement section 46 moves the spray section 42.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a humidifying device, a recording system, and an intermediate unit that humidify a medium by spraying a humidifying liquid thereon.

Background Art

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming apparatus including a conveyance unit that conveys a medium and an image forming unit that forms an image on the medium with toner or the like. This image forming apparatus includes a humidifying device that sprays a humidifying liquid on the medium. The humidifying device has a plurality of ejection ports that eject the humidifying liquid and a shutter that opens and closes the ejection ports. The ejection ports are arranged side by side in the width direction of the sheet. The shutter opens and closes each ejection port, switches between spraying and non-spraying of the humidifying liquid, and ejects only to necessary portions. The humidifying liquid is sprayed in a fan shape from the plurality of ejection ports. The width, interval, and spraying angle of the ejection ports are set so that the spraying regions to the sheet from adjacent ejection ports overlap each other.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, although the humidifying device described in Patent Document 1 can switch between spraying and non-spraying, the positions of the ejection ports and the spraying angles (ejection directions) are predetermined, and there is room for further improvement for optimizing humidification. That is, since the positions of the ejection ports and the spraying angles (ejection directions) are predetermined, there is a problem that the degree of freedom is low and it is difficult to optimize humidification. Therefore, there is a demand for a humidifying device capable of optimizing humidification.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The humidifying device for solving the above problems is a humidifying device that sprays a humidifying liquid onto a medium for humidification, and includes a conveying unit that conveys the medium along a conveying direction, a spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto the medium conveyed by the conveying unit, and a moving unit that moves the spraying unit.

[0006] The recording system for solving the above problems includes a recording device that performs recording by discharging a liquid onto a medium, and the humidifying device. The intermediate unit for solving the above problems is provided between a recording device that records on a medium and a post-processing device that performs post-processing on the medium recorded by the recording device, and is an intermediate unit that conveys the medium from the recording device to the post-processing device, and includes the humidifying device and a drying device that dries the medium.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0007]

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[0008] Hereinafter, embodiments of the recording system will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the recording system 10 includes a recording device 20, an intermediate unit 15, and a post-processing device 60. The intermediate unit 15 is disposed between the recording device 20 and the post-processing device 60. The recording system 10 is a system that performs post-processing by the post-processing device 60 on a medium M on which the recording device 20 has recorded characters or images. The intermediate unit 15 performs a predetermined process necessary before the post-processing device 60 performs post-processing on the recorded medium M discharged from the recording device 20 on the recorded medium M. The intermediate unit 15 sends the medium M on which the predetermined process has been performed to the post-processing device 60. The post-processing device 60 performs post-processing on the medium M.

[0009] In the recording system 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, three mutually intersecting (for example, orthogonal) directions are indicated by the XYZ coordinate system, and are referred to as the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction, respectively. The recording system 10 includes a transport path T passing through the interiors of the respective devices 20, 60, etc. that make it up. Since the X direction is parallel to the width direction of the medium M transported along the transport path T in the recording system 10, it is also referred to as the width direction X. Also, since the Y direction is parallel to the horizontal transport direction in which the medium M is transported at the portion where the medium M is transferred between the respective devices in the transport path T, it is also referred to as the transport direction Y. Also, since the Z direction is parallel to the vertical direction, it is also referred to as the vertical direction Z.

[0010] In the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the intermediate unit 15 includes a humidifying device 40 and a drying device 50. The intermediate unit 15 may include a reversing device 30. Thus, the intermediate unit 15 of the present embodiment can selectively perform one or more of the reversing process, the humidifying process, and the drying process on the recorded medium M. Thus, the recording system 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 includes a recording device 20, a reversing device 30, a humidifying device 40, a drying device 50, and a post-processing device 60.

[0011] In the recording system 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the medium M is conveyed from the recording device 20 located on the far right toward the post-processing device 60 located on the far left. Between the devices, the medium M is transferred by being conveyed in the conveying direction Y from the upstream device to the downstream device. Within each of the devices 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, the medium M is also conveyed in a direction different from the conveying direction Y. That is, within each of the devices 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 constituting the recording system 10, the medium M is conveyed in a conveying direction Y1 that changes according to the conveying position. The conveying direction Y1 is a direction orthogonal to the width direction X.

[0012] The recording system 10 shown in FIG. 1 and the recording system 10 shown in FIG. 2 differ in the order in which the devices constituting the intermediate unit 15 are arranged in the conveying direction Y. That is, in the recording system 10 shown in FIG. 1, the reversing device 30, the humidifying device 40, and the drying device 50, which constitute the intermediate unit 15, are arranged in this order. That is, after the reversing device 30 reverses the recorded medium M carried in from the recording device 20, the humidifying device 40 humidifies the reversed medium M.

[0013] On the other hand, in the recording system 10 shown in FIG. 2, the humidifying device 40, the reversing device 30, and the drying device 50, which constitute the intermediate unit 15, are arranged in this order. That is, after the recorded medium M carried in from the recording device 20 is humidified by the humidifying device 40, the reversing device 30 reverses it.

[0014] Thus, in the recording system 10 of the present embodiment, the post-recording medium M recorded by the recording device 20 is humidified by the humidifying device 40, and then the humidified medium M is dried by the drying device 50. Also, in the recording system 10 shown in FIG. 1, the humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M recorded by the recording device 20 and the medium M reversed by the reversing device 30. Further, in the recording system 10 shown in FIG. 2, the reversing device 30 reverses the medium M humidified by the humidifying device 40. The recording system 10 of the present embodiment performs post-processing on the medium M recorded by the recording device 20 and humidified by the humidifying device 40 by the post-processing device 60.

[0015] The recording device 20 records on the medium M. The recording device 20 is, for example, an inkjet printer that ejects a liquid such as ink onto the medium M. In an inkjet printer, after recording where a liquid such as ink adheres, the medium M swells and elongates as the medium fibers absorb the solvent component (for example, water) in the ink, and then shrinks as the moisture evaporates from the medium fibers during the subsequent drying process. Such a phenomenon is likely to occur on the side of the medium M where a liquid such as ink adheres. Therefore, the recorded medium M is likely to curl due to swelling and shrinking caused by the liquid such as ink adhering to its surface. This type of curl is likely to occur due to, for example, the recording location on the medium M being biased to one of the first surface and the second surface, and the liquid such as ink that adheres being distributed over a specific part of the entire surface of the medium M. Therefore, by suppressing the distribution of moisture, that is, the deviation in moisture content, in the recorded medium M, the curl of the medium M is suppressed. Therefore, the recording system 10 of the first embodiment has a decal function for suppressing the curl of the medium M.

[0016] The recording system 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes, in order from the upstream in the conveyance direction of the medium M, a recording device 20, a reversing device 30, a humidifying device 40, a drying device 50, and a post-processing device 60. The recording system 10 shown in FIG. 2 includes, in order from the upstream in the conveyance direction of the medium M, a recording device 20, a humidifying device 40, a reversing device 30, a drying device 50, and a post-processing device 60.

[0017] First, the recording device 20 will be described. The recording device 20 includes one or more cassettes 21, a first conveyance unit 22, and a liquid ejection unit 23. The recording device 20 may include a housing 24. In this case, the cassette 21, the first conveyance unit 22, and the liquid ejection unit 23 may be housed inside the housing 24.

[0018] The cassette 21 accommodates the medium M. The cassette 21 can accommodate the medium M in a loaded state. The cassette 21 is inserted in a detachable state with respect to the housing 24. The user can replenish or replace the medium M in the cassette 21 by pulling out the cassette 21 from the housing 24. The recording apparatus 20 may include a medium placement section on which the medium M to be fed can be placed in addition to or instead of the cassette 21. The medium placement section may be a feed tray provided on the side surface of the housing 24. In FIGS. 1 and 2, an example is shown in which the medium M conveyed along the conveyance path T in the recording system 10 is fed from a medium placement section (not shown) in the recording apparatus 20.

[0019] The first conveyance unit 22 conveys the medium M from the cassette 21 along the conveyance path T1. The first conveyance unit 22 includes a feeding unit (not shown) that feeds the medium M from the cassette 21 one by one. The first conveyance unit 22 conveys the fed medium M along the conveyance path T1.

[0020] The liquid ejection unit 23 records on the medium M. The liquid ejection unit 23 is disposed at a position facing the conveyance path T1. The liquid ejection unit 23 records on the medium M conveyed along the conveyance path T1. The liquid ejection unit 23 may be, for example, a liquid ejection head that ejects a liquid such as ink. The liquid ejection head may be, for example, an inkjet head. In this case, the liquid ejection unit 23 records characters or images on the medium M by ejecting a liquid such as ink from the nozzles toward the medium M.

[0021] The conveyance path T1 may include a discharge path T11, a reversing path T12, and a discharge path T13. The discharge path T11 is a path for discharging the medium M after recording to a downstream device. The discharge path T11 is a path for discharging the recorded medium M from a discharge port (not shown) that opens to the side surface of the housing 24. The first conveyance unit 22 includes a discharge roller pair 26 for discharging the medium M at a position near the discharge port of the discharge path T11. The reversing path T12 is a path for reversing the medium M recorded on the first surface to a position where it can be recorded on the second surface. The reversing path T12 is a path for sending the reversed medium M to the recording position of the liquid ejection unit 23 with the second surface facing the liquid ejection unit 23. Here, for example, the first surface is the front surface of the medium M, and the second surface is the back surface of the medium M. Also, the discharge path T13 is a path for discharging the recorded medium M to the discharge stacker 25.

[0022] The reversing device 30 includes a reversing unit 31. The reversing unit 31 has a function of reversing the medium M. The reversing device 30 includes a second conveyance unit 32 for conveying the medium M along the conveyance path T2. The reversing device 30 may include a housing 33 that houses the reversing unit 31 and the second conveyance unit 32. The housing 33 has a carry-in port (not shown) for carrying in the medium M and a discharge port (not shown) for discharging the medium M. The conveyance path T2 may include a reversing path T21 for reversing the medium M and a conveyance path T22 for conveying the medium M without reversing it while keeping the front and back orientations as they are. The reversing path T21 is, for example, a switchback path. The reversing unit 31 includes a conveyance roller 34 and a flap 35. The conveyance roller 34 carries in and out the medium M along the reversing path T21. The flap 35 selects the carry-in path and the carry-out path of the medium M along the conveyance path T2. Thereby, the reversing unit 31 reverses the medium M by conveying the medium M along the switchback path. The conveyance path T22 is, for example, a path that extends horizontally from the carry-in port to the discharge port. The conveyance path T22 is a path for conveying the medium M carried in from the carry-in port of the housing 35 in a horizontal posture and discharging it from the downstream discharge port. In the reversing device 30, whether to reverse the medium M may be selected according to the post-processing content of the post-processing device 60.

[0023] The humidifying device 40 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M to humidify the medium M. The humidifying device 40 includes a third conveying unit 41 as an example of a conveying unit and a spraying unit 42. The third conveying unit 41 conveys the medium M along the conveying direction Y1. The spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M conveyed by the third conveying unit 41. The spraying unit 42 may be one or a plurality (for example, two). The humidifying device 40 may include a housing 43 that houses the third conveying unit 41 and the spraying unit 42. The third conveying unit 41 conveys the medium M carried in from the intake of the housing 43 along the conveying path T3. The third conveying unit 41 includes two pairs of conveying rollers 44 that convey the medium M along the conveying path T3. The spraying unit 42 humidifies the medium M by spraying the humidifying liquid HL toward the medium M conveyed along the conveying path T3.

[0024] In the present embodiment, a pair of spraying units 42 are arranged on both sides sandwiching the conveying path T3. One (upper) spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL toward the first surface Ma of the medium M. The other (lower) spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL toward the second surface Mb, which is the surface opposite to the first surface Ma of the medium M. The medium M is conveyed in the horizontal conveying direction Y1. The pair of spraying units 42 are arranged in a state of facing each other at positions on both sides sandwiching the conveying path T2 in the vertical direction Z.

[0025] Specifically, the humidifying device 40 includes a first humidifying unit 40A and a second humidifying unit 40B. The first humidifying unit 40A sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the first surface Ma (see FIG. 3) of the medium M. The second humidifying unit 40B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the second surface Mb (see FIG. 3), which is opposite to the first surface Ma of the medium M. The first humidifying unit 40A includes a spraying unit 42 that sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the first surface Ma of the medium M. The second humidifying unit 40B includes a spraying unit 42 that sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the second surface Mb of the medium M.

[0026] The drying device 50 includes a fourth conveying unit 51 and a heating unit 52. The fourth conveying unit 51 includes one or a plurality (for example, two) of conveying roller pairs 53 that convey the medium M along the conveying path T4. The heating unit 52 heats the medium M. The heating unit 52 includes, for example, one or a pair of heating rollers 54. In the drying device 50 of the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a pair of heating rollers 54 heated to a predetermined heating temperature rotate while sandwiching the medium M, so that both sides of the medium M can be heated. The medium M is dried by being heated by the heating rollers 54. The drying device 50 may include a housing 55 that houses the fourth conveying unit 51 and the heating unit 52.

[0027] The post-treatment device 60 includes one or a plurality (for example, two) of post-treatment units 61. The post-treatment device 60 includes a fifth conveying unit 62 that conveys the medium M. The post-treatment device 60 may include a housing 63 that houses the post-treatment unit 61 and the fifth conveying unit 62. The fifth conveying unit 62 conveys the medium M carried in from the intake port of the housing 63 along the conveying path T5. The fifth conveying unit 62 has one or a plurality of conveying roller pairs 64 that convey the medium M along the conveying path T5 and a flap 65 that selects the path of the medium M at a branch point in the middle of the conveying path T5. The post-treatment unit 61 includes a tray 66, a post-treatment mechanism 67, and a discharge roller 68. The tray 66 receives the carried-in medium M. The post-treatment mechanism 67 performs post-treatment on the medium M placed on the tray 66. The discharge roller 68 discharges the medium M on which the post-treatment by the post-treatment mechanism 67 has been performed. The post-treatment device 60 includes one or a plurality (for example, three) of discharge trays 69 on which the discharged medium M is loaded. The discharge trays 69 may partially include those for loading the medium M discharged without undergoing post-treatment.

[0028] Here, the post-processing includes post-processing performed on a single medium M and post-processing performed on a plurality of media M. Examples of the post-processing performed on a single medium M include a process of forming a fold and a process of forming a perforation. Examples of the post-processing performed on a plurality of media M include a middle binding process of binding and discharging a plurality of media M in a folded state, a stapling process of stapling a plurality of media M with a staple, etc. The post-processing performed on a plurality of media M may be a process of aligning the media M in predetermined numbers or a process of discharging the media M in a state where they are slightly shifted in the width direction X by predetermined numbers. Further, the post-processing may be a punching process of making holes in the media M. Note that the transport unit 12 of the recording system 10 is configured by the first transport unit 22, the second transport unit 32, the third transport unit 41, the fourth transport unit 51, and the fifth transport unit 62 provided in each of the devices 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 constituting the recording system 10.

[0029] (First Embodiment) Hereinafter, the detailed configuration of the humidifying device 40 will be described. First, with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5, the humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment will be described.

[0030] <Configuration of the First Embodiment> As shown in FIG. 3, the third transport unit 41 (hereinafter, also simply referred to as "transport unit 41") includes a transport roller pair 44 and a guide plate 45 that guides the medium M along the transport path T3. The transport roller pair 44 is composed of a pair of serrated rollers 44A having a plurality of tooth portions with pointed tips along the outer periphery. The spraying unit 42 is, for example, a nozzle. A pair of spraying units 42 are respectively arranged at two positions facing each other with the transport path T3 interposed therebetween. The guide plate 45 has an opening 45A that exposes a portion of the medium M corresponding to the spraying target area where the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid. The pair of transport roller pairs 44 rotate in the rotation direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 3 to transport the medium M in the transport direction Y1. The spraying unit 42 can spray the humidifying liquid in a region sandwiched between two transport roller pairs 44 arranged at two different positions in the transport direction Y1. Note that the transport roller pair 44 may be composed of a pair of ceramic rollers in which ceramic powder impregnated in the surface layer of the outer periphery of the roller is exposed.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 4, the humidifying device 40 includes one or a plurality of spraying parts 42 in the width direction X. In the example shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the humidifying device 40 includes a plurality of spraying parts 42. The humidifying device 40 includes a moving part 46 that moves the spraying part 42. The moving part 46 in this embodiment rotates the spraying part 42 with respect to a rotation axis 47 along the conveyance direction Y1. That is, the moving part 46 in this embodiment is a rotation mechanism 460 that rotates the spraying part 42 with respect to a rotation axis 47 along the conveyance direction Y1. The rotation mechanism 460 includes a rotation axis 47 and a motor 48 that is a driving source of the rotation axis 47. The rotation axis 47 is connected to the output axis of the motor 48 in a state where power can be transmitted directly or via a speed reduction mechanism (not shown).

[0032] In the example including a plurality of spraying parts 42 shown in FIG. 4, the spraying part 42 has a first spraying part 42A and a second spraying part 42B. The first spraying part 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL into a central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X that intersects the conveyance direction Y1. The second spraying part 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL into a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the spraying part 42 sprays the humidifying liquid into end regions A2 on both sides sandwiching the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X. The moving part 46 rotates the second spraying part 42B with respect to the rotation axis 47.

[0033] Specifically, the plurality of spraying parts 42 include one fixed first spraying part 42A and two rotatable second spraying parts 42B. The fixed first spraying part 42A is disposed at a position facing the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X. The rotatable second spraying part 42B is disposed at a position facing the end region A2 of the medium M in the width direction X.

[0034] The first humidifying unit 40A and the second humidifying unit 40B each include a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B that constitute the first humidifying unit 40A and the first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B that constitute the second humidifying unit 40B are arranged at positions facing each other with the transport path T3 therebetween. Note that the first humidifying unit 40A and the second humidifying unit 40B may be arranged at different positions in the transport direction Y1. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the first humidifying unit 40A and the second humidifying unit 40B are not distinguished from each other.

[0035] <Operation of the First Embodiment> As shown in FIG. 4, when the width size of the medium M is the first size which is large, the two second spraying units 42B are arranged in a rotating posture that points in the first direction. The two second spraying units 42B spray the humidifying liquid toward the medium M in the first direction. Also, as shown in FIG. 5, when the width size of the medium M is the second size which is smaller than the first size, the two second spraying units 42B are arranged in a rotating posture that points in the second direction which is a direction closer to the central region A1 than the first direction. The two second spraying units 42B spray the humidifying liquid toward the medium M in the second direction.

[0036] By moving the spraying unit, it is possible to optimize humidification, such as being able to handle various medium sizes without increasing the number of spraying units or making the humidification amount uniform over the entire surface of the medium M. Increasing the number of spraying units according to the maximum medium width leads to an increase in manufacturing cost and power consumption. Since there is no need to increase the spraying unit 42, it leads to a reduction in manufacturing cost and power consumption.

[0037] Since the central region A1 is a region that is humidified regardless of the width size of the medium M, the first spraying unit 42A does not rotate. By rotating the second spraying unit 42B located on the end side, it is possible to humidify the entire medium M of various width sizes only by the rotation of the two spraying units 42B.

[0038] (Second Embodiment) Next, with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, a second embodiment of the humidifying device 40 will be described. In the second embodiment, the configuration of the moving unit 46 is different from that of the first embodiment. Except for the configuration of the moving unit 46, the configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment. Therefore, below, the configuration of the moving unit 46 of this embodiment will be mainly described.

[0039] <Configuration of the Second Embodiment> As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the moving unit 46 of the second embodiment moves the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X intersecting the conveying direction Y1. One or more spraying units 42 are provided. When there are a plurality of spraying units 42, the plurality of spraying units 42 may include a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL into a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the end regions A2 on both sides sandwiching the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X.

[0040] Specifically, the plurality of spraying units 42 include one fixed first spraying unit 42A and two movable second spraying units 42B. The fixed first spraying unit 42A is disposed at a position facing the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X. The movable second spraying unit 42B is disposed at a position facing the end region A2 of the medium M in the width direction X.

[0041] The moving part 46 moves the second spraying part 42B in the width direction X intersecting the conveying direction Y1. That is, the moving part 46 is a moving mechanism 463 that moves the second spraying part 42B in the width direction X. The moving mechanism 463 includes a guide rail 464, a motor 465, and a power transmission mechanism 466. The guide rail 464 guides the second spraying part 42B to be movable in the width direction X. The motor 465 is a drive source that moves the second spraying part 42B in the width direction X along the guide rail 464. The power transmission mechanism 466 transmits the driving force of the motor 465 to the second spraying part 42B as the power for the second spraying part 42B to move. The power transmission mechanism 466 may be, for example, a belt-type power transmission mechanism. The power transmission mechanism 466 that is a belt-type power transmission mechanism includes a pair of pulleys 467 and an endless timing belt 468. One of the pair of pulleys 467 (the right side in FIG. 6) is connected to the output shaft of the motor 465. The timing belt 468 has two belt parts extending parallel to the width direction X. One of the two second spraying parts 42B is fixed to one belt part, and the other second spraying part 42B is fixed to the other belt part. For this reason, when the motor 465 is driven to rotate forward, the two second spraying parts 42B move in a direction away from each other in the width direction X. When the motor 465 is driven to rotate reversely, the two second spraying parts 42B move in a direction approaching each other in the width direction X. Note that the power transmission mechanism 466 is not limited to a belt-type power transmission mechanism, and any mechanism that can convert rotation into linear motion in the width direction X may be used. The power transmission mechanism 466 may be a ball screw mechanism or the like.

[0042] <Operation of the Second Embodiment> As shown in FIG. 6, in the case of the large-sized medium M1 with a large width dimension, the two second spraying parts 42B are arranged at positions relatively far apart from each other in the width direction X. The three spraying parts 42 spray the humidifying liquid HL toward the large-sized medium M1. For example, the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the three spraying parts 42 at a predetermined spread angle may be sprayed so as not to overlap each other on the medium M1.

[0043] Also, as shown in FIG. 7, in the case of the small-sized medium M2 with a small width dimension, the two second spraying parts 42B are arranged at positions relatively separated by a small distance in the width direction X. The three spraying parts 42 spray the humidifying liquid HL toward the small-sized medium M2. In the example shown in FIG. 7, since the spread angle of the spraying part 42 is substantially constant, when it is the small-sized medium M2, the humidifying liquid HL from each spraying part 42 overlaps on the medium M2. Generally, in the case of a spray nozzle or the like, when the injection pressure is reduced, the spread angle tends to become smaller. Therefore, when it is the small-sized medium M2, by adjusting the injection pressure of the spraying part 42 to be smaller than that of the large size, the overlap of the humidifying liquid HL between the spraying parts 42 may be adjusted to be smaller.

[0044] Since the central region A1 is the region to be humidified regardless of the width size of the medium M, the first spraying part 42A does not move. By moving the second spraying parts 42B located on the end side in the width direction X, the entire medium M of various width sizes can be humidified only by the movement of the two spraying parts 42B.

[0045] (Third Embodiment) Next, with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, a third embodiment of the humidifying device 40 will be described. In the third embodiment, the configuration of the moving part 46 is different from that of each of the above embodiments. The configurations other than the configuration of the moving part 46 are the same as those of each of the above embodiments. Therefore, hereinafter, the configuration of the moving part 46 of the present embodiment will be mainly described.

[0046] The humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M recorded by the liquid ejection unit 23 (see FIGS. 1 and 2). The humidifying device 40 may include one or a plurality of spraying units 42. When there are a plurality of spraying units 42, the plurality of spraying units 42 include a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the central region A1 in the width direction X of the medium M. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the end regions A2 which are the regions on both sides in the width direction X with respect to the central region A1 in the width direction X. The first spraying unit 42A in the first humidifying unit 40A of the present embodiment is separated from the medium M more than the second spraying unit 42B. For example, the spraying unit 42 is movable in a direction intersecting the medium M. Therefore, the first spraying unit 42A can be separated from the medium M more than the second spraying unit 42B like the first humidifying unit 40A, but conversely, it can also approach the medium M more than the second spraying unit 42B like the second humidifying unit 40B.

[0047] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the humidifying device 40 of the present embodiment includes a moving unit 46 that moves the spraying unit 42 in a direction intersecting the medium M. The moving unit 46 is a moving mechanism 70 configured to be able to move the spraying unit 42 in the vertical direction Z which is a direction intersecting the medium M.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 9, the moving unit 46 of the present embodiment is a moving mechanism 70 configured to be able to move the second spraying unit 42B not only in the direction intersecting the medium M (vertical direction Z) but also in the direction intersecting the conveyance direction Y1 of the medium M (width direction X). Hereinafter, the detailed configuration of the moving mechanism 70 will be described.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 9, the moving mechanism 70 includes a lifting mechanism 71 and a horizontal moving mechanism 72. The lifting mechanism 71 is a mechanism that moves the spraying unit 42 in a direction intersecting the medium M. The horizontal moving mechanism 72 is a mechanism that moves the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X intersecting the conveyance direction Y1 of the medium M.

[0050] First, the horizontal movement mechanism 72 includes a carriage 73, a guide rail 74, a motor 75 as a drive source, and a power transmission mechanism 76. The spray unit 42 is attached to the carriage 73. The spray unit 42 is provided on the carriage 73 in a direction capable of spraying the humidifying liquid HL toward the medium M. The guide rail 74 guides the carriage 73 so as to be movable in the width direction X. The motor 75 is a drive source for moving the carriage 73. The power transmission mechanism 76 is a mechanism for transmitting the driving force of the motor 75 to the carriage 73. The power transmission mechanism 76 converts the rotation of the motor 75 into the linear motion of the carriage 73. In the example shown in FIG. 9, the power transmission mechanism 76 is, for example, a belt-type power transmission mechanism. The power transmission mechanism 76 which is a belt-type power transmission mechanism includes a pair of pulleys 77 and an endless timing belt 78. The timing belt 78 is wound around the pair of pulleys 77. The carriage 73 is fixed to a part of the timing belt 78. One of the pair of pulleys 77 (the right side in FIG. 9) is connected to the output shaft of the motor 75. When the motor 75 is driven to rotate forward and backward, the carriage 73 reciprocates in the width direction X by the power transmitted through the power transmission mechanism 76.

[0051] The lifting mechanism 71 shown in FIG. 9 is a mechanism for moving (lifting) the horizontal movement mechanism 72 in the vertical direction Z. The lifting mechanism 71 includes a motor 79 as a drive source and a pair of rack and pinion mechanisms 80. The rack and pinion mechanism 80 includes a pinion 82 fixed to a rotating shaft 81 connected to the output shaft 79A of the motor 79 and a rack 83 meshing with the pinion 82. The pair of rack and pinion mechanisms 80 are respectively arranged at two positions spaced apart in the width direction X. By driving the pair of pinions 82 to rotate forward and backward by driving the motor 79 forward and backward, the rack 83 is configured to be able to move up and down.

[0052] Support portions 84 extend downward from the lower ends of the pair of racks 83. A pair of pulleys 77 and a motor 75 that constitute the horizontal movement mechanism 72 are supported by the pair of support portions 84. Therefore, when the motor 75 is driven forward, the horizontal movement mechanism 72 rises via the rise of the rack 83. As a result, the carriage 73 and the spraying unit 42 rise. Due to this rise, the spraying unit 42 moves away from the medium M. On the other hand, when the motor 75 is driven in reverse, the horizontal movement mechanism 72 descends via the descent of the rack 83. As a result, the carriage 73 and the spraying unit 42 descend. Due to this descent, the spraying unit 42 approaches the medium M. Thus, the spraying unit 42 can move in two directions, the width direction X and the vertical direction Z.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 9, a motor 85 indicated by a two-dot chain line in the same figure may be provided as a drive source for rotating the spraying unit 42 on the carriage 73. The spraying unit 42 may be configured to rotate about a rotation axis 86 indicated by a two-dot chain line in the same figure along the conveyance direction Y1 by the driving force of the motor 85. That is, in addition to the movement (lifting) in the vertical direction Z and the movement in the width direction X, the spraying unit 42 may be configured to be rotatable so as to be able to change the direction in which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed. Further, by eliminating the horizontal movement mechanism 72 from the movement mechanism 70 shown in FIG. 9, a lifting mechanism 71 for lifting and lowering the spraying unit 42 and a moving unit 46 including a rotation mechanism capable of changing the spraying direction by rotating the spraying unit 42 about the rotation axis 86 may be provided.

[0054] <Operation of the Third Embodiment> The medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23 is also humidified by the moisture in the liquid such as ink. In general, the printing amount tends to be larger in the center in the width direction X of the medium M and smaller at the ends. Therefore, the first spraying unit 42A at the center is separated from the medium M, and the second spraying unit 42B at the end is brought closer to the medium M. Thereby, it is possible to relatively reduce the humidification amount at the center of the medium M and relatively increase the humidification amount at the end of the medium M. Thereby, the uneven humidification in the width direction X of the medium M is suppressed.

[0055] Also, when the first spraying unit 42A in the central part is moved away from the medium M, the humidification amount in the central part of the medium M can be relatively reduced. However, considering the total humidification amount on both the front and back surfaces of the medium M, there may be cases where it is preferable that the total humidification amounts on the front and back surfaces are balanced between the central regions A1 and the end regions A2. Therefore, in the lower second humidifying unit 40B shown in FIG. 9, contrary to the upper first humidifying unit 40A, the first spraying unit 42A in the central part may be brought closer to the medium M, and the second spraying unit 42B at the end may be moved away from the medium M.

[0056] (Fourth Embodiment) Next, with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, a fourth embodiment of the humidifying device 40 will be described. The fourth embodiment is characterized by control using the moving unit 46. The configuration of the moving unit 46 may be the same as any of the above embodiments. Hereinafter, as an example, the moving unit 46 is assumed to be the same as in the second embodiment. In this fourth embodiment, the control unit 100 controls the positions of the plurality of spraying units 42 so that the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the plurality of spraying units 42 adheres uniformly to the medium M.

[0057] By the control unit 100 controlling the positions of the spraying units 42, the humidification amount over the entire surface of the medium M is made uniform. Thereby, optimization of humidification is achieved. The humidifying device 40 of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 10 includes a plurality of spraying units 42. The plurality of spraying units 42 includes a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 10, the first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the central region A1 of the medium M. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the end region A2 of the medium M. The central region A1 where the first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL and the end region A2 where the second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL overlap. The region where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed only by the first spraying unit 42A is defined as the first region A10. The overlapping region where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed by the first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B is defined as the second region A20.

[0059] The moving part 46 moves at least one of the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B. The control unit 100 controls the moving part 46 so that the humidification amount in the first area A10 where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed only by the first spraying part 42A is equal to the humidification amount in the second area A20 where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed by the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B. In this way, the moving part 46 moves the spraying part 42 so that the humidification amount is equal throughout the width direction X intersecting the conveying direction Y1. Here, "so that it becomes equal" does not necessarily only mean that the actual humidification amounts are equal. It is sufficient that the humidification amounts of the first area A10 and the second area A20 are controlled to approach each other.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 10, the spraying part 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL so as to spread at a predetermined spreading angle. Therefore, the concentration of the humidifying liquid HL is higher closer to the center of the diffusion area sprayed in a substantially conical shape, and lower closer to the peripheral edge. For this reason, when the central area A1 and the end area A2, which are the spraying areas of the plurality of spraying parts 42A and 42B, are not overlapped, the concentration of the humidifying liquid HL becomes lower toward the peripheral side of each area A1, A2. As a result, a distribution of the humidification amount occurs over the entire surface of the medium M. For this reason, in this embodiment, by overlapping the central area A1 and the end area A2, the humidification amount of the overlapped part is increased. Thereby, the distribution of the humidification amount is reduced.

[0061] The control unit 100 controls the moving part 46 (see, for example, FIG. 7) to move at least one of the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B so that the humidification amount in the first area A10 is equal to the humidification amount in the second area A20. In the example shown in FIG. 10, when the first spraying part 42A is fixed and the second spraying part 42B is movable, the control unit 100 controls the moving part 46 to move the second spraying part 42B so that the humidification amount in the first area A10 is equal to the humidification amount in the second area A20.

[0062] In FIG. 10, the entire area in the width direction X where the medium M exists is defined as the medium area MA, and the entire area where the three spraying units 42 spray the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M is defined as the spraying area IA. Also, the intersection point of the axis of the first spraying unit 42A and the medium M, that is, the center of the first area A10 (or the central area A1), is defined as the injection position IP. The position within the spraying area IA in the width direction X is indicated by the distance from the injection position IP.

[0063] FIG. 11 is a graph showing the moisture content of the medium M humidified by the humidifying device 40 shown in FIG. 10. In this graph, the horizontal axis indicates the distance (mm) from the injection position IP, and the vertical axis indicates the moisture content (%). For simplicity, a graph is shown assuming that the moisture content of the medium M before humidification is uniform throughout, but the moisture content of the medium M before humidification may also be considered. The graph line G1 indicates the moisture content in the central area A1 where the first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL. The two graph lines G2 indicate the moisture content in the two end areas A2 where the two second spraying units 42B spray the humidifying liquid HL.

[0064] The graph line Gt indicates the total moisture content obtained by summing the moisture contents of the respective graph lines G1 and G2 for the positions indicated by the distance from the injection position IP. As can be seen from the graph line Gt, the moisture content of the humidifying liquid HL sprayed by the three spraying units 42A and 42B on the entire surface of the medium M is uniform. The control unit 100 controls the position of the second spraying unit 42B via the moving unit 46 so that the total moisture content obtained by summing these is uniform regardless of the position in the width direction X based on the moisture content for each area determined from the respective spraying characteristics of the first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B.

[0065] <Operation of the Fourth Embodiment> The sprayed humidifying liquid HL diffuses in a conical shape. Therefore, the moisture content of the medium M tends to decrease as it moves away from the injection position IP, which is the center of the spraying range, in the width direction X. Thus, by overlapping the edge of the end region A2 with the second region A20, which is at the edge of the central region A1 and has a relatively small humidification amount, the second region A20 is humidified by the two spraying units 42A and 42B. This increases the humidification amount of the second region A20. The moving unit 46 adjusts the distance in the width direction X between the first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B by moving the second spraying unit 42B in the width direction X, so that the humidification amount of the second region A20 is equal to the humidification amount of the first region A10 by the first spraying unit 42A alone. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the unevenness of the humidification amount in the width direction X. Note that the moving unit 46 may be of a rotational type (Fig. 5) of the first embodiment, a translational type (Fig. 7) of the third embodiment, or a type including a translational type and a lifting type (Fig. 9) of the fourth embodiment. Also, at least one of the first spraying unit 42A and the second spraying unit 42B may move. For example, the first spraying unit 42A may be movable and the second spraying unit 42B may be fixed.

[0066] <Electrical Configuration of Recording System 10> Next, with reference to Fig. 12, the electrical configuration of the recording system 10 will be described. As shown in Fig. 12, the recording system 10 includes a control unit 100 that comprehensively controls it. In the present embodiment, the control unit 100 includes a first control unit 101, a second control unit 102, a third control unit 103, a fourth control unit 104, and a fifth control unit 105 that individually control the respective devices 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60. Note that the first control unit 101 may be provided in the recording device 20, and the fifth control unit 105 may be provided in the post-processing device 60. In this case, each of the control units 102 to 104 may be provided in the corresponding devices 30, 40, 50, or may be provided in the recording device 20 or the post-processing device 60.

[0067] The first control unit 101 records on the medium M by controlling the first conveyance unit 22 and the liquid discharge unit 23 that constitute the recording device 20. The second control unit 102 reverses the medium M by controlling the second conveyance unit 32 and the reversing unit 31 that constitute the reversing device 30.

[0068] The third control unit 103 humidifies the medium M by controlling a third transport unit 41, a first humidifying unit 40A, and a second humidifying unit 40B that constitute the humidifying device 40. Specifically, the third control unit 103 humidifies the first surface Ma of the medium M by controlling a spray unit 42 and a moving unit 46 that constitute the first humidifying unit 40A. The third control unit 103 humidifies the second surface Mb of the medium M by controlling a spray unit 42 and a moving unit 46 that constitute the second humidifying unit 40B.

[0069] The fourth control unit 104 dries the medium M by heating by controlling a fourth transport unit 51 and a heating unit 52 that constitute the drying device 50. The fifth control unit 105 performs post-processing on the medium M by controlling a fifth transport unit 62 and a post-processing unit 61 that constitute the post-processing device 60. The fifth control unit 105 controls the post-processing unit 61 to perform, for example, binding processing or stapling processing as post-processing on the medium M.

[0070] Sensors 111 to 115 and encoders 117 and 118 provided in any one or more of the devices 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 are electrically connected to the control unit 100. Further, recording data PD is input to the control unit 100 (specifically, the first control unit 101) from a host device (not shown). The recording data PD includes recording condition information and image data. The recording condition information includes information such as the type of the medium M (medium type), the medium size, the recording mode, and the recording color (color / monochrome). The image data is dot data including density values (pixel values) corresponding to the discharge amounts of liquids such as ink discharged from a plurality of nozzles of the liquid discharge unit 23 for each pixel. The first control unit 101 discharges droplets from the nozzles in discharge amounts corresponding to the density values of the respective pixels (dots) of the image data. Characters or images are recorded on the medium M by a plurality of dots formed by a plurality of droplets landing on the medium M. The image data in the recording data PD is used to grasp the amount of liquid discharged onto the medium M.

[0071] The first sensor 111 detects the medium M conveyed along the conveyance path T at a position upstream of the spray section 42 in the humidifying device 40 in the recording system 10 in the conveyance direction Y. The first sensor 111 may be provided in the recording device 20 or in the humidifying device 40. When provided in the recording device 20, the first sensor 111 detects the medium M at a predetermined position on the conveyance path T1 of the medium M in the recording device 20. The control unit 100 acquires the position of the medium M in the recording system 10 based on the position where the first sensor 111 detects the medium M and the conveyance amount of the medium M starting from that position. When the position of the medium M acquired based on the detection result of the first sensor 111 enters a position facing the humidifying region of the spray section 42, the control unit 100 starts spraying the humidifying liquid HL onto the spray section 42.

[0072] The second sensor 112 is a width sensor that detects the width size of the medium M. The width size detected by the second sensor 112 is information capable of specifying the size of the medium M. The control unit 100 can acquire the size information of the medium M from the width size detected by the second sensor 112. The control unit 100 specifies the width range to be sprayed onto the spray section 42 based on the width size information detected by the second sensor 112. The control unit 100 controls the moving unit 46 to move the spray section 42 within a moving range in which spraying is possible within the specified width range. Note that the second sensor 112 detects the width size of the medium M at a position upstream of the spray section 42 in the humidifying device 40 in the recording system 10 in the conveyance direction Y1. The second sensor 112 may be provided in the recording device 20 or in the humidifying device 40.

[0073] The third sensor 113 detects at least one of the temperature and humidity inside the recording system 10 or in the peripheral area outside its housing. The control unit 100 acquires one of the temperature and humidity based on the detection result of the third sensor 113. The control unit 100 may acquire the moisture content rate of the medium M before recording based on at least one of the temperature and humidity. When determining the humidification amount to be sprayed by the spraying unit 42, the control unit 100 may subtract the amount of water corresponding to the moisture content rate caused by humidity and the like from the target humidification amount. Further, instead of being configured to acquire one of the temperature and humidity, the third sensor 113 may be a moisture content detection sensor that detects the moisture content rate of the medium M. The third sensor 113 composed of a moisture content detection sensor may detect the moisture content rate of the medium M before recording at a position upstream of the liquid discharge unit 23 in the conveyance direction Y1, or may detect the moisture content rate of the medium M after recording at a position downstream of the liquid discharge unit 23 in the conveyance direction Y1. In the latter case, the third sensor 113 can detect the moisture content rate including the moisture in the liquid such as ink attached to the medium M by recording. Note that the third sensor 113 composed of a moisture content detection sensor may be arranged at three or more locations including the central portion and both end portions in the width direction X of the medium M.

[0074] The fourth sensor 114 is a position sensor that detects the moving position of the spraying unit 42 moved by the moving unit 46. In the humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment, the fourth sensor 114 may be an angle sensor that detects the rotation angle of the spraying unit 42. Further, in the humidifying device 40 of the third embodiment, the fourth sensor 114 may be a distance sensor that detects the distance between the spraying unit 42 and the medium M.

[0075] The fifth sensor 115 is a position sensor that detects the origin position on the moving path along which the second spraying unit 42B moves in the width direction X in the second embodiment. The fifth sensor 115 detects the second spraying unit 42B when it is at the origin position.

[0076] The first encoder 117 detects the rotation of a motor 465 which is a drive source for moving the second spraying unit 42B in the width direction X. When the control unit 100 detects from the fifth sensor 115 that the second spraying unit 42B is at the origin position, it resets a first counter (not shown). Each time the control unit 100 detects a pulse edge of an encoder signal which is a pulse signal input from the first encoder 117, it increments the first counter. As a result, the count value of the first counter becomes a value corresponding to the moving position of the second spraying unit 42B moving in the width direction X. The control unit 100 acquires the moving position of the second spraying unit 42B in the width direction X from the count value of the first counter.

[0077] The sixth sensor 116 is an origin sensor that detects in the third embodiment that it is at the origin position in the direction (for example, the vertical direction Z) intersecting the medium M of the spraying unit 42. The second encoder 118 detects the rotation of a motor 79 which is a drive source for moving the spraying unit 42 in the vertical direction Z. When the control unit 100 detects from the sixth sensor 116 that the spraying unit 42 is at the origin position in the vertical direction Z, it resets a second counter (not shown). Each time the control unit 100 detects a pulse edge of an encoder signal which is a pulse signal input from the second encoder 118, it increments the second counter. As a result, the count value of the second counter becomes a value corresponding to the moving position of the spraying unit 42 in the vertical direction Z. The control unit 100 acquires the moving position of the spraying unit 42 in the vertical direction Z from the count value of the second counter.

[0078] The control unit 100 includes a storage unit 107. The storage unit 107 may be provided in, for example, the third control unit 103, or may be provided in the control unit of another device that performs humidification control. A program shown in a flowchart in FIG. 13 is stored in the storage unit 107. The control unit 100 (for example, the third control unit 103) performs the humidification control shown in FIG. 13 by executing the program read from the storage unit 107.

[0079] <Regarding Humidification Control> Next, the humidification control performed by the control unit 100 (third control unit 103) will be described. The moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 based on the size information of the medium M to be humidified. That is, the control unit 100 optimizes the humidification control in which the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M by controlling the moving unit 46 based on the size information of the medium M. The control unit 100 acquires the size information of the medium M from, for example, the recording data PD. When the size information of the medium M is the first size, the control unit 100 controls the moving unit 46 so that each spraying area of the plurality of spraying units 42 is moved farther in the width direction X than when the size is the second size smaller than the first size. For example, in the humidifying device 40 of each of the above embodiments having three spraying units 42, the moving unit 46 is controlled as follows.

[0080] When the size information of the medium M is the first size, the control unit 100 moves the second spraying unit 42B so that the center-to-center distance between the central region A1 and the end region A2 is increased in the width direction X more than when the size is the second size smaller than the first size. In other words, when the size information of the medium M is the second size, the control unit 100 moves the second spraying unit 42B so that the center-to-center distance between the central region A1 and the end region A2 is decreased in the width direction X more than when the size is the first size larger than the second size.

[0081] The moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 based on the target humidification amount. That is, the control unit 100 optimizes the humidification control in which the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M by controlling the moving unit 46 based on the target humidification amount. The target humidification amount refers to the amount of the humidifying liquid HL per unit area of the medium M required to make the moisture content of the medium M uniform. In the present embodiment, the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed onto the medium M after recording in which the liquid discharge unit 23 discharges a liquid such as ink. However, the liquid such as ink discharged onto the medium M contains a humidifying component such as water. Therefore, the control unit 100 obtains, for each unit area, the target humidification amount that can make the medium M have the target moisture content, including the amount of water or the like, which is the humidifying component in the liquid such as ink on the medium M.

[0082] FIG. 14 shows an example in which the medium M to be humidified is divided into regions for each of a plurality of unit areas. In the example shown in FIG. 14, one region obtained by dividing the medium M into n parts (where n is a natural number of 2 or more) is defined as a unit area. FIG. 14 shows an example where n = 9, and the medium M is divided into 9 parts. The region indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 14 is the image region ID based on the image data. The image region ID is a region in the medium M where an image is recorded by discharging a liquid such as ink from the liquid discharge unit 23. Note that in FIG. 14, the medium M is divided into n equal parts (n = 9), but it is not necessarily required to be divided equally.

[0083] The control unit 100 calculates the amount of liquid such as ink to be attached to the image region ID based on the image data. The control unit 100 discharges an amount of liquid corresponding to the pixel value (concentration value) of each pixel in the image data from the nozzles. For this reason, the control unit 100 calculates the amount of liquid for each region shown in FIG. 14 from the pixel values of the image data.

[0084] The humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23. The target humidification amount is set based on the amount of liquid discharged by the liquid discharge unit 23. Here, the pixel values of the image data included in the recording data PD may be indicated by, for example, 4-tone values. The control unit 100 (for example, the first control unit 101) obtains the discharge amount, which is the amount of droplets discharged from the nozzles of the liquid discharge unit 23, based on the 4-tone pixel values of each pixel. The 4-tone values correspond to the dot sizes where the droplets land on the medium M. The 4-tone values are indicated by 00 (no discharge), 01 (small dots), 10 (medium dots), and 11 (large dots).

[0085] For example, the maximum discharge amount, which is the discharge amount of large dots, is set to 100%. With respect to the maximum discharge amount, the values indicating the discharge amounts of no discharge, small dots, and medium dots as percentages are referred to as duty values (Duty values). The control unit 100 calculates the amount of liquid such as ink for each region based on the large, medium, and small dot sizes and the duty value for each dot size. Further, the control unit 100 obtains the water content by recording for each region from the ratio of the humidifying component (for example, water) in the liquid amount (for example, ink amount) for each region. The control unit 100 acquires the target humidifying amount corresponding to the type of the medium M from the storage unit 107. The control unit 100 obtains the humidifying amount to be applied by spraying for each region by subtracting the water content for each region from the target humidifying amount. Note that the target humidifying amount may be set based on other factors such as temperature and humidity in addition to or instead of the type of the medium M.

[0086] Based on the humidifying amount to be applied by spraying obtained for each region of the medium M, the control unit 100 controls the moving unit 46 and the spraying unit 42 to apply the necessary humidifying amount to the corresponding region. When the water content of the medium M is equal to or more than a predetermined value, humidifying is not executed. Therefore, the control unit 100 determines whether the water content of the medium M is equal to or more than the predetermined value. When the water content of the medium M is less than the predetermined value, the control unit 100 sprays the humidifying liquid HL in an amount insufficient for the target humidifying amount onto the medium M. On the other hand, when the water content of the medium M is equal to or more than the predetermined value, since the water content satisfies the target humidifying amount, the medium M is not humidified. Note that instead of the water content, the water content ratio may be used. The water content ratio may be the weight of water per unit weight of the medium M or the volume of water per unit volume of the medium M. Also, if it is not necessary to change the water content according to the thickness of the medium M, the thickness of the medium M may be regarded as the unit thickness "1", and the water content per unit area of the medium M may be used as the water content ratio. Further, when considering the thickness of the medium M, the water content ratio may be obtained using the thickness corresponding to the type of the medium M.

[0087] The control unit 100 obtains the water content of the medium M based on the liquid discharge amount discharged onto the medium M. For example, the control unit 100 may obtain the water content or moisture content of the medium M based on the above-described image data composed of dot data included in the recording data PD. In this case, the recording system 10 may include a sensor that detects either the temperature or the humidity. The control unit 100 may obtain the water content or moisture content of the medium M based on either the temperature or the humidity. Further, the control unit 100 may acquire the type of the medium M. The control unit 100 may acquire the type of the medium M based on the medium type information regarding the type of the medium M, which is one of the print condition information included in the recording data PD. The control unit 100 may obtain the water content or moisture content of the medium M based on the medium type information.

[0088] The moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 based on the conveyance speed of the medium M by the conveyance unit 22. The control unit 100 acquires the recording mode from the recording condition information. The recording modes include a low-resolution recording mode and a high-resolution recording mode. The low-resolution recording mode is a mode in which a low-resolution image is recorded on the medium M by the liquid discharge unit 23 discharging liquid while the medium M is conveyed at a high conveyance speed. The high-resolution recording mode is a mode in which a high-resolution image is recorded on the medium M by the liquid discharge unit 23 discharging liquid while the medium M is conveyed at a low conveyance speed. The control unit 100 controls the conveyance unit 12 to convey the medium M at a conveyance speed corresponding to the recording mode acquired from the recording condition information. Note that the control unit 100 may change the conveyance speed of the conveyance unit 41 of the humidifying device 40 so that the required humidifying amount per unit area of the medium M can be applied within a range where the medium M does not stay.

[0089] The humidifying amount per unit area of the medium M when the conveyance speed is the first conveyance speed is smaller than the humidifying amount per unit area of the medium M when the conveyance speed is the second conveyance speed, which is lower than the first conveyance speed. Therefore, the spraying unit 42 may be moved based on the conveyance speed. Thereby, it is possible to obtain an optimal humidifying amount at each location of the medium M. By moving the spraying unit 42, it is possible to suppress a change in the spraying amount and suppress the usage amount of the humidifying liquid HL.

[0090] For example, in the humidifying device 40 of the third embodiment, the spraying unit 42 can be moved in a direction intersecting the medium M. The control unit 100 may perform control to bring the spraying unit 42 closer to the medium M as the conveyance speed acquired from the information in the recording mode is higher. Further, the control unit 100 may perform control to increase the overlapping area of the spraying regions of the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the plurality of spraying units 42 by rotating or linearly moving the second spraying unit 42B of the first embodiment or the second embodiment as the conveyance speed acquired from the information in the recording mode is higher. Furthermore, the control unit 100 may increase the output at which the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL as the conveyance speed of the medium M is higher. By increasing the output of the spraying unit 42, the spraying amount and spraying pressure of the humidifying liquid HL per unit time increase. Note that the conveyance speed may be acquired by the control unit 100 based on the output signal of an encoder that detects the rotation of a motor (not shown), which is the drive source of the third conveyance unit 41 that conveys the medium M.

[0091] <Operation of the First Embodiment> Next, the operation of the recording system 10 in the first embodiment will be described. Here, the humidifying control process performed by the control unit 100 executing the program shown in FIG. 13 will be described. Note that the process of determining the moisture content of the medium M may be performed for each region obtained by dividing the medium M into n parts as shown in FIG. 14.

[0092] First, in step S11, the control unit 100 acquires the recording data PD. For example, the user operates an operation unit such as a keyboard of the host device to instruct the recording system 10 (particularly the recording device 20) to start recording. The control unit 100 of the recording system 10 receives the recording data PD including an instruction to start recording from the host device. The recording data PD includes recording condition information and image data. The recording condition information includes information such as the type of the medium M, the medium size, and the recording mode. Further, the recording condition information may include information such as post-processing conditions.

[0093] In step S12, the control unit 100 obtains the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M. The control unit 100 calculates the amount of liquid discharged by the liquid discharge unit 23 onto the medium M based on the image data in the recording data PD. Further, the control unit 100 calculates the content of, for example, water, which is a humidifying component in the liquid, from the amount of liquid discharged onto the medium M. The control unit 100 calculates the moisture content W1, which is the water content per unit area of the medium M. Further, the control unit 100 may calculate the moisture content W1 per unit volume of the medium M using the thickness determined from the type of the medium M. For example, when the medium M is paper, even if the water content per unit area is the same for thin paper and thick paper, the moisture content per unit volume is different. Even if the amount of liquid discharged onto the medium M is the same, thin paper is more likely to curl than thick paper. Therefore, the ease of curling of the medium M may be evaluated in consideration of the thickness of the medium M. The thickness of the medium M is determined according to the type (medium type) of the medium M included in the recording condition information. The control unit 100 may calculate the moisture content per unit volume based on the thickness of the medium M defined by the type of the medium M and the water content per unit area of the medium M. Further, the control unit 100 may calculate the moisture content W1 for each of n regions obtained by dividing the medium M into n parts.

[0094] Note that at least one of the humidity and temperature detected by the third sensor 113 may be referred to for the calculation of the moisture content W1. Further, the third sensor 113 may be a moisture content sensor. In this case, the control unit 100 may obtain the moisture content, which is the detection result of the third sensor 113. The third sensor 113 including this type of moisture content sensor may be located, for example, downstream of the liquid discharge unit 23 in the conveyance direction Y1 in the recording system 10. In this case, the third sensor 113 detects the moisture content of the recorded medium M onto which the liquid has been discharged by the liquid discharge unit 23. In this way, the control unit 100 obtains the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M.

[0095] In step S13, the control unit 100 acquires the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb of the medium M. The moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb is calculated by the same method as the method for calculating the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma in step S11. The control unit 100 calculates the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb based on the water content per unit area obtained from the image data used for recording on the second surface Mb and the thickness of the medium M obtained from the information regarding the type of the medium M.

[0096] In step S14, the control unit 100 determines whether the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma is greater than or equal to the first threshold WS1 (W1 ≥ WS1). In this case, as shown in FIG. 14, if the moisture content is greater than or equal to the first threshold WS1 in all of the n regions, it may be determined that W1 ≥ WS1 is satisfied. Alternatively, it may be determined individually for each of the n regions whether the moisture content W1 is greater than or equal to the first threshold WS1. Also, the first threshold WS1 may be changed according to the type of the medium M. For example, the first threshold WS1 may be changed according to the thickness of the medium M. For example, when the medium M is paper, thin paper is more likely to curl than thick paper. Therefore, for thick paper with a larger thickness than thin paper with a smaller thickness of the medium M, the first threshold WS1 may be set to a larger value. If the control unit 100 satisfies W1 ≥ WS1, it proceeds to step S15. On the other hand, if the control unit 100 does not satisfy W1 ≥ WS1, it proceeds to step S16. Note that it may be determined individually for each of the n regions whether W1 ≥ WS1 is satisfied, and the processing after step S14 may be performed for each of the n regions.

[0097] In step S15, the control unit 100 determines whether the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2 (W2 ≥ WS2). For the second surface Mb, it may also be determined whether W2 ≥ WS2 is satisfied for each of the n regions shown in FIG. 14. In this case, if the moisture content is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2 in all of the n regions, it may be determined that W2 ≥ WS2 is satisfied. Also, it may be determined individually for each of the n regions whether the moisture content W2 is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2. Further, similar to the first threshold value WS1, the second threshold value WS2 may be changed according to the type of the medium M. If the control unit 100 satisfies W2 ≥ WS2, it proceeds to step S17. Also, if the control unit 100 does not satisfy W2 ≥ WS2, it proceeds to step S18.

[0098] On the other hand, in step S16, the control unit 100 determines whether the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2 (W2 ≥ WS2). This determination process is the same as the process in step S15. If the control unit 100 satisfies W2 ≥ WS2, it proceeds to step S19. Also, if the control unit 100 does not satisfy W2 ≥ WS2, it proceeds to step S20. Note that the threshold values WS1 and WS2 in each process from step S14 to step S16 correspond to an example of the target humidification amount. The threshold values WS1 and WS2 are preferably 5% or more as an example. Further, the threshold values WS1 and WS2 are more preferably 8% or more as an example.

[0099] In step S17, the control unit 100 conveys the medium M. That is, the medium M is conveyed without spraying the humidifying liquid HL. Thus, when the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M is equal to or greater than the first threshold value WS1 and the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb of the medium M is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2, the moisture content of the medium M is sufficient, so the medium M is not humidified. For example, if double-sided recording is performed on the medium M and the moisture content contained in the liquid adhering to both sides is sufficient for the amount required to suppress curling, there is no need to humidify the medium M.

[0100] In step S18, the control unit 100 conveys the medium M while spraying the humidifying liquid HL onto the second surface Mb of the medium M. In this way, when the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M is equal to or greater than the first threshold value WS1 and the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb of the medium M is less than the second threshold value WS2, the control unit 100 sprays the humidifying liquid HL in an amount insufficient for the target humidification amount onto the second surface Mb of the medium M. For example, this applies to the case of single-sided recording in which liquid is ejected only onto the first surface Ma. Whether it is single-sided recording or double-sided recording, if a predetermined amount or more of liquid adheres to only one side, the medium M is likely to curl. When liquid adheres to one side of the medium M, the medium M swells due to the liquid and is likely to stretch. When only one side of the medium M stretches, the medium M curls. Therefore, if the moisture contents W1 and W2 of both sides of the medium M are both equal to or greater than their respective threshold values SW1 and SW2, both sides of the medium M swell and stretch according to their respective moisture contents, so that curling of the medium M is suppressed.

[0101] In step S19, the control unit 100 conveys the medium M while spraying the humidifying liquid HL onto the first surface Ma of the medium M. In this way, when the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M is less than the first threshold value WS1 and the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb of the medium M is equal to or greater than the second threshold value WS2, the control unit 100 sprays the humidifying liquid HL in an amount insufficient for the target humidification amount onto the first surface Ma of the medium M. For example, this applies to the case of single-sided recording in which liquid is ejected only onto the second surface Mb. Whether it is single-sided recording or double-sided recording, if a predetermined amount or more of liquid adheres to only one side, the medium M is likely to curl. For example, even in the case of double-sided recording, if a predetermined amount or more of liquid adheres only to the second surface Mb but not to the first surface Ma, the medium M is likely to curl. When the first surface Ma reaches the target humidification amount by spraying the humidifying liquid HL, the moisture contents W1 and W2 of both sides of the medium M both become equal to or greater than the threshold values WS1 and WS2. In this case, both sides of the medium M swell and stretch according to their respective moisture contents, so that curling of the medium M is suppressed.

[0102] In step S20, the control unit 100 conveys the medium M while spraying the humidifying liquid HL onto the first surface Ma and the second surface Mb of the medium M. In this way, when the moisture content W1 of the first surface Ma of the medium M is less than the first threshold value WS1 and the moisture content W2 of the second surface Mb of the medium M is less than the second threshold value WS2, the humidifying liquid HL in an amount insufficient for the target humidification amount is sprayed onto each of the first surface Ma and the second surface Mb of the medium M. For example, this applies to the case of single-sided recording with a small printing amount or the case of double-sided recording with a small printing amount on both sides. By spraying the humidifying liquid HL onto both the first surface Ma and the second surface Mb to reach the target humidification amount, the moisture contents W1 and W2 on both surfaces of the medium M both become equal to or higher than the threshold values WS1 and WS2. In this case, since both surfaces of the medium M swell and expand according to the respective moisture contents that satisfy the target humidification amount, curling of the medium M is suppressed.

[0103] In addition, when the moisture content is acquired for each region obtained by dividing the medium M into n regions, the region where the moisture content is less than the threshold value may be selected and the humidifying liquid HL may be sprayed onto the spraying unit 42. The control unit 100 acquires the position of the region from the conveyance position of the medium M and the number indicating the position of the medium M in the n regions, for the position of the region where the moisture content is less than the threshold value. Then, the control unit 100 controls the movement of the spraying unit 42 and the output for switching the spraying / shutting off of the spraying unit 42 so as to be able to select the target region on the medium M. The spraying unit 42 includes a solenoid valve such as an electromagnetic needle valve that opens and closes the spray port. The control unit 100 controls the solenoid valve to control the position of the needle valve housed in the spray port of the spraying unit 42 according to the region pointed by the spray port of the moved spraying unit 42, thereby switching the opening and closing of the spray port and the injection amount of the humidifying liquid HL when in the open state.

[0104] When the spraying unit 42 is positioned such that the moving unit 46 directs it towards the target area, the control unit 100 causes the spraying unit 42 to spray a quantity of the humidifying liquid HL that is insufficient by an amount relative to the target humidification amount. Further, when the spraying unit 42 ceases to be directed towards the target area, the control unit 100 stops the spraying of the humidifying liquid HL by the spraying unit 42. Also, the amount insufficient relative to the target humidification amount differs between areas where the moisture content is less than the threshold value. Therefore, the spraying amount per unit area of the spraying unit 42 may be adjusted so that the insufficient amount of the humidifying liquid HL can be sprayed for each area. As a method for adjusting the spraying amount per unit area of the spraying unit 42, the moving speed of the spraying unit 42 may be changed, the distance of the spraying unit 42 from the medium M may be changed, or the output of the spraying unit 42 may be changed. Alternatively, two or three of these may be combined. The change in the output of the spraying unit 42 may include at least one of a change in the spraying amount per unit time and a change in the spread angle at which the spraying unit 42 sprays.

[0105] <Effects of the First Embodiment> Therefore, according to this first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. (1) In the first embodiment, the humidifying device 40 includes a conveying unit 41, a spraying unit 42, and a moving unit 46. The humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M by spraying a humidifying liquid HL onto it. The conveying unit 41 conveys the medium M along the conveying direction Y1. The spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M conveyed by the conveying unit 41. The moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit 42, it becomes possible to optimize humidification, such as corresponding to various sizes of the medium M without increasing the number of spraying units 42, or making the humidification amount uniform throughout the medium M. Increasing the number of spraying units 42 according to the maximum paper width leads to an increase in manufacturing cost and power consumption. In contrast, according to this embodiment, since the number of spraying units can be minimized, an increase in manufacturing cost and power consumption can be suppressed. By moving the spraying unit 42, the spraying area can be expanded compared to a configuration where the spraying unit is fixed. For example, the number of spraying units 42 can be kept smaller than the number of spraying units required according to the medium width in the case of a fixed spraying unit. Thereby, the manufacturing cost of the humidifying device 40 can be reduced. Moisture can be evenly applied to both the front and back sides of the medium M. There is no need to control the output change of the spraying unit 42, and the coating amount can be adjusted.

[0106] (2) Particularly in the first example, the moving unit 46 rotates the spraying unit 42 with respect to a rotation axis 47 along the conveying direction Y1. According to this configuration, by rotating the spraying unit 42, it is possible to humidify the entire medium M of various sizes without increasing the number of spraying units 42.

[0107] (3) In the first embodiment, the humidifying device 40 includes a plurality of spraying units 42. The plurality of spraying units 42 includes a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X that intersects the conveying direction Y1. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the end region A2, which is a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. The moving unit 46 rotates the second spraying unit 42B with respect to the rotation axis 47. According to this configuration, since the central region A1 is the region to be humidified regardless of the width size, it does not rotate, and by rotating the spraying unit 42 located on the end side, it is possible to humidify the entire paper of various width sizes with only the minimum rotation of the spraying unit 42.

[0108] (4) Particularly in the second embodiment, the moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X that intersects the conveying direction Y1. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X, it is possible to humidify the entire medium M of various width sizes without increasing the number of spraying units 42.

[0109] (5) In the second embodiment, the humidifying device 40 includes a plurality of spraying units 42. The plurality of spraying units 42 includes a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the central region A1 of the medium M in the width direction X. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the end region A2, which is a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. The moving unit 46 moves the second spraying unit 42B in the width direction X that intersects the conveying direction Y1. According to this configuration, since the central region A1 is the region to be humidified regardless of the width size of the medium M, the first spraying unit 42A does not move, and by moving the second spraying unit 42B located on the end side in the width direction X, it is possible to humidify the entire medium M of various width sizes with only the minimum movement of the spraying unit 42.

[0110] (6) In the third embodiment, the moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 in a direction intersecting the medium M. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit 42 in a direction intersecting the medium M, the range sprayed by one spraying unit 42 can be changed. Therefore, without increasing the number of spraying units 42, the entire medium M with various width sizes can be humidified.

[0111] (7) Particularly in the third embodiment, the humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23. There are a plurality of spraying units 42, including a first spraying unit 42A and a second spraying unit 42B. The first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL on the central region A1 in the width direction X of the medium M. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL on the end region A2, which is a region different from the central region A1 in the width direction X. The first spraying unit 42A is separated from the medium M more than the second spraying unit 42B. According to this configuration, the medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23 such as an inkjet head is also humidified by the moisture in the liquid such as ink. Also, generally, the printing amount is larger in the center of the medium M, so the liquid discharge amount tends to be larger, and the printing amount is smaller at the ends of the medium M, so the liquid discharge amount tends to be smaller. Therefore, by separating the first spraying unit 42A at the center from the medium M and bringing the second spraying unit 42B at the end closer to the medium M, the humidification amount in the central region A1 can be relatively reduced, and the humidification amount in the end region A2 different from the central region A1 can be relatively increased. Thus, uneven humidification in the width direction X of the medium M can be suppressed.

[0112] (8) In the first embodiment, the moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 based on the size information of the medium M to be humidified. According to this configuration, the spraying unit 42 is moved based on the size information (especially width size information) of the medium M. For example, the moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 to a position, orientation, or distance where it can spray almost the entire width direction X of the medium M based on the size information of the medium M. Therefore, without increasing the number of spraying units 42, the entire medium M with various width sizes can be humidified.

[0113] (9) The moving part 46 moves the spraying part 42 based on the target humidification amount. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying part 42 based on the target humidification amount, an optimal humidification amount can be achieved at each location of the medium M.

[0114] (10) Particularly in the fourth embodiment, the humidifying device 40 includes a plurality of spraying parts 42. The plurality of spraying parts 42 includes a first spraying part 42A and a second spraying part 42B. The moving part 46 moves the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part so that the humidification amounts in a first region A10 where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed only by the first spraying part 42A and a second region A20 where the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed by both the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B become equal. According to this configuration, since the sprayed humidifying liquid HL diffuses at a predetermined diffusion angle, there may be a difference in the humidification amount depending on the positional relationship with the spraying part 42. At this time, by humidifying the second region A20 where the humidification amount is small at the edge side of the spraying range by the first spraying part 42A with the spraying range of the second spraying part 42B at the edge side, the humidification amount of the second region A20 is increased. Then, by humidifying with the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B, the humidification amount of the second region A20 is increased to be equal to the humidification amount of the first region A10 humidified only by the first spraying part 42A. That is, the moving part 46 changes at least one of the position, orientation, and distance of at least one of the first spraying part 42A and the second spraying part 42B by movement, so that the humidification amount of the second region A20 at the edge side of the spraying range is adjusted to match the humidification amount of the first region A10 at the center of the spraying range. Therefore, unevenness in the humidification amount in the width direction X of the medium M can be suppressed.

[0115] (11) In the fourth embodiment, the moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 so that the amount of humidification is equal throughout the width direction X intersecting the conveyance direction Y1. According to this configuration, since the sprayed humidifying liquid HL diffuses, there may be a difference in the amount of humidification depending on the positional relationship with the spraying unit 42. Moreover, by moving the spraying unit 42 so that the amount of humidification is uniform throughout the width direction X, unevenness in the amount of humidification in the width direction X can be suppressed. In the second and third embodiments, the moving unit 46 may move the spraying unit 42 so that the amount of humidification is equal throughout the width direction X intersecting the conveyance direction Y1.

[0116] (12) The humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment humidifies the medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23. The target humidification amount is set based on the amount of liquid discharged by the liquid discharge unit 23. According to this configuration, the medium M recorded by the liquid discharge unit 23 such as an inkjet head is also humidified by the moisture in the liquid such as ink. Therefore, by setting the target humidification amount based on the discharge amount of the liquid, the final moisture content can be made more appropriate.

[0117] (13) The humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment does not perform humidification when the water content of the medium M is equal to or more than a predetermined value. According to this configuration, since humidification is not performed when it is unnecessary, excessive humidification of the medium M can be avoided. For example, it is possible to reduce insufficient drying caused by excessive humidification of the medium M. Also, since the spraying unit 42 is not caused to perform unnecessary spraying, power consumption can be suppressed.

[0118] (14) The humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment includes a first humidifying unit 40A and a second humidifying unit 40B. Each of the first humidifying unit 40A and the second humidifying unit 40B includes a spraying unit 42. The first humidifying unit 40A sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the first surface Ma of the medium M. The second humidifying unit 40B sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the second surface Mb opposite to the first surface Ma of the medium M. According to this configuration, by humidifying both sides of the medium M, the humidification amounts of the front and back surfaces can be appropriately adjusted. For example, if the moisture contents of the front and back surfaces of the medium M are different, this may cause curling. Since the humidification amounts of the front and back surfaces of the medium M can be appropriately adjusted, curling of the medium M can be effectively suppressed.

[0119] (15) The recording system 10 of the first embodiment includes a recording device 20 that performs recording by discharging a liquid onto the medium M and a humidifying device 40. When recording is performed by discharging a liquid, curling may occur after the medium M dries. However, curling can be suppressed by humidifying the medium M with the humidifying device 40.

[0120] (16) The recording system 10 of the first embodiment further includes a drying device 50 that dries the medium M recorded by the recording device 20 and humidified by the humidifying device 40. According to this configuration, by drying the medium M containing moisture by recording and humidification with the drying device 50, curling of the medium M can be suppressed as compared with the case of drying without humidification. In addition, since an image can be fixed on the medium M by drying, the alignment of the medium M discharged from the drying device 50 can be improved. For example, when a plurality of media M are bundled in the post-processing device 60, the alignment is improved, so that post-processing such as stapling or binding in the middle can be performed on the neatly aligned bundle of media M.

[0121] (17) The recording system 10 shown in FIG. 1 further includes an inverter 30 that inverts the medium M recorded by the recording device 20. The humidifying device 40 humidifies the medium M inverted by the inverter 30. According to this configuration, while the medium M is being inverted by the inverter 30, the moisture in the liquid such as ink applied by recording is pre-dried, and then the amount of moisture is adjusted by spraying the humidifying liquid HL by the humidifying device 40. Therefore, compared with the configuration in which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed on the medium M before pre-drying, humidification can be performed while suppressing bleeding of the ink recorded on the medium M. Then, after suppressing curl by humidification, the moisture due to the humidification performed for suppressing the curl can finally be dried by the drying device 50.

[0122] (18) The recording system 10 shown in FIG. 2 further includes an inverter 30 that inverts the medium M recorded by the recording device 20. The inverter 30 inverts the medium M humidified by the humidifying device 40. According to this configuration, by inverting the medium M on which recording and humidification have been performed by the inverter 30, the moisture applied by recording and humidification can be dried by the conveyance time.

[0123] (19) The recording system 10 further includes a post-processing device 60 that performs post-processing on the medium M recorded by the recording device 20 and humidified by the humidifying device 40. According to this configuration, by humidifying the medium M to be post-processed, curl can be suppressed, and thus the accuracy of the post-processing can be improved.

[0124] (20) The recording system 10 may further include an acquisition unit that acquires size information of the medium M to be humidified. The acquisition unit may be a second sensor 112 that detects the size information, or may be a part of the control unit 100 that acquires the size information from the recording condition information in the received recording data PD. Based on the size information acquired by the acquisition unit, the control unit 100 moves the spraying unit 42. According to this configuration, the control unit 100 moves the spraying unit 42 based on the size information of the medium M (particularly the width size information), so that the entire medium M of various width sizes can be humidified without increasing the number of spraying units 42 according to the maximum size of the medium M.

[0125] (21) The intermediate unit 15 is provided between a recording device 20 that records on the medium M and a post-processing device 60 that performs post-processing on the medium M recorded by the recording device 20. The intermediate unit 15 conveys the medium M from the recording device 20 to the post-processing device 60. The intermediate unit 15 includes a humidifying device 40 that humidifies the medium M. The intermediate unit 15 may further include a drying device 50 that dries the medium M. Further, the intermediate unit 15 may include an inversion device 30 that inverts the medium M. According to this intermediate unit 15, the recorded medium M can be humidified, so that curling of the medium M can be suppressed.

[0126] (Second Embodiment) Next, with reference to FIGS. 15 to 18, the second embodiment will be described. In the first embodiment, once the position of the spraying unit 42 is determined by the moving unit 46, the spraying unit 42 is basically not moved relative to the medium M being conveyed. In this second embodiment, the spraying unit 42 is moved by the moving unit 46 during the conveyance of the medium M. In the second embodiment, only the configuration of the humidifying device 40 and the configuration of moving the spraying unit 42 during the conveyance of the medium M are different, and other configurations of the recording system 10 and other control contents of the humidifying device 40 are the same as those in the first embodiment. Also, since the configurations of each of the humidifying units 40A and 40B in the second embodiment are basically the same, only the configuration of one of the humidifying systems of the humidifying device 40 will be described below.

[0127] <Fifth Example> First, the main part of the humidifying device 40 of the fifth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 15. As shown in FIG. 15, the humidifying device 40 includes a spraying unit 42 and a moving unit 46. The spraying unit 42 is one or more, but two examples will be described. The humidifying device 40 includes a moving unit 46 that moves a plurality of spraying units 42.

[0128] The moving unit 46 moves the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X, which is a direction intersecting the conveyance direction Y1 of the medium M. That is, the moving unit 46 is a parallel movement mechanism 90 that moves the spraying unit 42 in the width direction X, which is a direction parallel to the medium M.

[0129] The parallel movement mechanism 90 includes a motor 91 as a drive source and a power transmission mechanism 92 that transmits the driving force of the motor 91 to the spraying unit 42. The power transmission mechanism 92 includes a movable part 93 that supports the spraying unit 42, a rack 94, and a link mechanism 95. The movable part 93 is rotatably supported about a rotation axis 93A along the conveyance direction Y1. The movable part 93 has a plurality of tooth parts 93B formed along a virtual arc centered on the rotation axis 93A at an end opposite to the spraying unit 42 side. The rack 94 is arranged in a posture such that its longitudinal direction is parallel to the width direction X. On the surface of the rack 94 facing the movable part 93, a plurality of tooth parts 94A that can mesh with the tooth parts 93B of the movable part 93 are formed at a constant pitch in the width direction X. The tooth parts 94A of the rack 94 and the tooth parts 93B of the movable part 93 are meshed. When the rack 94 reciprocates in the width direction X, which is its longitudinal direction, the spraying unit 42 rotates within a predetermined angle range about the rotation axis 93A through the meshing of the tooth parts 93B and 94A.

[0130] The link mechanism 95 includes a rotating plate 96 and a link member 97. The rotating plate 96 rotates by the driving force of the motor 91. The rotating plate 96 is, for example, a disc. The link member 97 is a plate member having a predetermined length. Both ends of the link member 97 are connected to the peripheral edge of the rotating plate 96 and one end of the rack 94 on the rotating plate 96 side via two pins 97A and 97B. That is, one end of the link member 97 is rotatably connected to the peripheral edge of the rotating plate 96 via the pin 97A. Also, the other end of the link member 97 is rotatably connected to one end of the rack 94 via the pin 97B.

[0131] When the rotating plate 96 rotates by the drive of the motor 91, one end of the link member 97 moves in a circular motion along with the rotation of the rotating plate 96, so that the other end of the link member 97 moves in the width direction X. Due to this movement in the width direction X, the rack 94 connected to the other end of the link member 97 via the pin 97B reciprocates in the width direction X. The movable part 93 rotates about the rotation axis 93A by the power transmitted from the reciprocating rack 94 via the tooth parts 93B and 94A. In this way, when the plurality of spray parts 42 reciprocally rotate within a predetermined angle range, the spray area A3 of the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spray part 42 on the medium M reciprocates in the width direction X.

[0132] <Sixth Embodiment> Next, the main part of the humidifying device 40 of the sixth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 16. The humidifying device 40 shown in FIG. 16 is different from the fifth embodiment in the configuration of the parallel movement mechanism 90 which is the moving part 46. The parallel movement mechanism 90 shown in FIG. 16 includes a motor 91 which is a drive source and a power transmission mechanism 92, similarly to the fifth embodiment. The configurations of the movable part 93 and the rack 94 in the power transmission mechanism 92 are the same as those in the fifth embodiment. The configuration for reciprocating the rack 94 by the driving force of the motor 91 is different from the fifth embodiment.

[0133] As shown in FIG. 16, in addition to the movable part 93 and the rack 94, the power transmission mechanism 92 includes an eccentric cam 98 and a spring 99. The eccentric cam 98 has an elliptical shape. The eccentric cam 98 eccentrically rotates about the eccentric shaft 98A by the driving force of the motor 91. A cam follower 94B formed by one end of the rack 94 is in contact with a cam surface 98B formed by the outer peripheral surface of the eccentric cam 98. The spring 99 biases the rack 94 in a direction pressing it against the eccentric cam 98. Therefore, when the eccentric cam 98 rotates by the driving of the motor 91, the rack 94 reciprocates in the width direction X.

[0134] In this way, the movable part 93 rotates about the rotation shaft 93A by the power transmitted through the tooth parts 93B and 94A, so that the spraying part 42 reciprocally rotates within a predetermined angular range. As a result, the spraying area A3 on the medium M of the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spraying part 42 reciprocally moves in the width direction X.

[0135] <Seventh Embodiment> Next, with reference to FIG. 17, the main part of the humidifying device 40 of the seventh embodiment will be described. The configuration of the parallel movement mechanism 90, which is the moving part 46, of the humidifying device 40 shown in FIG. 17 is different from that of the fifth and sixth embodiments. The parallel movement mechanism 90 shown in FIG. 17 includes a motor 91 as a driving source and a power transmission mechanism 92. The configurations of the movable part 93 and the rack 94 in the power transmission mechanism 92 are the same as those in the fifth and sixth embodiments. The configuration for reciprocating the rack 94 by the driving force of the motor 91 is different from that of the fifth and sixth embodiments.

[0136] As shown in FIG. 17, in addition to the movable part 93 and the rack 94, the power transmission mechanism 92 includes a rotating plate 96 and a guide member 130. The rotating plate 96 rotates by the driving force of the motor 91. The rotating plate 96 has a pin 96A at its peripheral edge. One side surface (left side surface) of the guide member 130 is fixed to one end of the rack 94. The guide member 130 has a vertically long shape and has a long hole 131 extending along its longitudinal direction. The pin 96A is inserted into the long hole 131.

[0137] When the rotary plate 96 rotates driven by the motor 91, the pin 96A performs a rotational motion. Due to this rotational motion of the pin 96A, while the pin 96A reciprocates within the long hole 131, the guide member 130 reciprocates in the width direction X. As a result, the rack 94 reciprocates in the width direction X together with the guide member 130.

[0138] In this way, the movable part 93 rotates about the rotation shaft 93A by the power transmitted through the tooth parts 93B, 94A, and thus the spraying part 42 reciprocally rotates within a predetermined angular range. As a result, the spraying area A3 on the medium M of the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spraying part 42 reciprocates in the width direction X.

[0139] The control unit 100 controls the moving part 46 to move the spraying part 42 so that the humidifying amount is equal throughout the entire width direction X intersecting the conveying direction Y1. In this way, the moving part 46 moves the spraying part 42 so that the humidifying amount is equal throughout the entire width direction X intersecting the conveying direction Y1. The humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spraying part 42 diffuses. There may be a difference in the humidifying amount depending on the positional relationship with the spraying part. Moreover, by moving the spraying part 42 so that the humidifying amount becomes uniform throughout the entire width direction, unevenness in the humidifying amount in the width direction X can be suppressed.

[0140] <Operation of the Second Embodiment> Next, the operation of the recording system 10 of the second embodiment will be described. The humidifying control executed by the control unit 100 in the humidifying device 40 including the two spraying parts 42 and the moving part 46 (parallel movement mechanism 90) shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 will be described.

[0141] The control unit 100 acquires the conveyance position of the medium M carried into the humidifying device 40. When the leading end of the medium M enters the humidifying area of the spraying unit 42, the control unit 100 starts spraying the humidifying liquid HL. The control unit 100 drives the motor 91, causing the two spraying units 42 to rotate around the rotation axis 93A. The two spraying units 42 reciprocally rotate within a predetermined angular range around the rotation axis 93A. The predetermined angular range is set according to the medium M with the maximum width. The control unit 100 acquires size information from the recording condition information or the detection result of the second sensor 112. The control unit 100 controls the spraying range according to the width size of the medium M specified from the size information. The control unit 100 controls the angular range to be sprayed on the spraying unit 42 by switching the on / off of the solenoid valve.

[0142] FIG. 18 shows a spraying area A3 of the medium M on which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed by the spraying unit 42. The two spraying units 42 spray the humidifying liquid HL from their respective spray ports while reciprocatingly rotating about a rotation axis 93A along the conveying direction Y1. The medium M to be sprayed is conveyed at a constant conveying speed in the conveying direction Y1. The locus of the intersection of the axis passing through the spray port of the spraying unit 42 and the medium M is defined as the spraying path. The spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL onto the medium M such that the spraying path draws a zigzag on the medium M being conveyed in the conveying direction Y1 at a constant conveying speed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 18, the humidifying liquid HL adheres to two rows of zigzag-shaped spraying areas A3 extending along the conveying direction Y1. Therefore, with as few as two spraying units 42, the humidifying liquid HL can be sprayed almost uniformly over the entire surface of the medium M having different width sizes. Here, the width of the spraying area A3 centered on the zigzag-shaped spraying path can be changed by changing the output of the spraying unit 42. The control unit 100 makes the first output, which is the output of the spraying unit 42 when the conveying speed of the medium M is the first speed, larger than the second output, which is the output of the spraying unit 42 when the speed is a second speed lower than the first conveying speed. That is, the control unit 100 increases the output of the spraying unit 42 as the conveying speed of the medium M increases. When the output of the spraying unit 42 is increased, the spraying pressure increases and the spreading angle widens. Thus, the control unit 100 may control the spraying unit 42 such that the width of the spraying area A3 widens as the conveying speed of the medium M increases. Also, for example, a moving part 46 to which a lifting mechanism 71 shown in FIG. 9 is added may be configured to make the parallel movement mechanism 90 of the fifth to seventh embodiments liftable. In this case, the control unit 100 may control the lifting mechanism 71 of the moving part 46 to move the spraying unit 42 away from the medium M to widen the width of the spraying area A3. For example, the control unit 100 raises the spraying unit 42 so as to increase the distance between the spraying unit 42 and the medium M as the conveying speed of the medium M increases, thereby widening the width of the spraying area A3. Thereby, even when the conveying speed of the medium M changes, it is possible to optimize the uniform spraying of the humidifying liquid HL over the entire surface of the medium M.

[0143] Also, in the configuration including the moving part 46 shown in FIGS. 15 to 17, instead of the rack 94, a long guide member may be used, and a plurality (for example, two) of spraying parts 42 may be fixed to the guide member at intervals in the width direction X. Thus, when the motor 91 is rotationally driven, the guide member reciprocates in the width direction X, and the plurality of spraying parts 42 reciprocate in the width direction X. That is, the moving part 46 is configured as a parallel movement mechanism. Even with the moving part 46 composed of this type of parallel movement mechanism, the humidifying liquid HL can be sprayed onto the zigzag-shaped spraying area A3 shown in FIG. 18. Also, the humidifying liquid HL may be sprayed so that the zigzag-shaped spraying areas A3 shown in FIG. 18 overlap at the edge portions on each side. Thereby, the humidifying liquid HL may be sprayed substantially uniformly over the entire width direction X of the medium M.

[0144] Furthermore, in the configuration including the moving part 46 shown in FIGS. 15 to 17, a fixed first spraying part 42A may be added at the central position in the width direction X of the two spraying parts 42, and a configuration in which the two spraying areas A3 are end regions A2 may be adopted. In this case, as shown in FIG. 19, in the width direction X, the humidifying liquid HL can be sprayed onto the central region A1 and the end regions A2 (spraying areas) that depict zigzag-shaped injection paths on both sides thereof. Also, similar to the third embodiment, the two spraying parts 42 may be used as the second spraying part 42B, and the first spraying part 42A may be configured to be farther from the medium M in the direction (for example, the vertical direction Z) intersecting the medium M than the second spraying part 42B.

[0145] Note that the control unit 100 can also execute the program shown in FIG. 13. As shown in FIG. 14, the control unit 100 determines the moisture content for each region obtained by dividing the medium M into n parts. Control may be performed to spray the amount of the humidifying liquid HL that is insufficient for the target humidification amount onto the regions where the moisture content is less than the threshold value. The control unit 100 may adjust the spraying amount of the humidifying liquid HL by controlling the rotation speed of the spraying part 42 and the on / off of the electromagnetic valve of the spraying part 42. Also, when the electromagnetic valve of the spraying part 42 is an electromagnetic valve whose opening degree or flow rate can be changed, the spraying amount per unit time of the spraying part 42 may be adjusted by changing the opening degree or flow rate.

[0146] <Effects of the Second Embodiment> Therefore, according to this second embodiment, the effects (1) to (21) in the first embodiment can be obtained in the same manner. In particular, the following effects can be obtained.

[0147] (22) The moving part 46 rotates the spraying part 42 with respect to the rotation axis 93A along the conveying direction Y1. According to this configuration, when the spraying part 42 rotates, the whole can be humidified for media M of various sizes without increasing the number of spraying parts 42.

[0148] (23) The moving part 46 of the second embodiment moves the spraying part 42 during the conveyance of the media M by the conveying part 41. For example, the moving part 46 causes the spraying part 42 to perform a swinging motion as the movement of the spraying part 42 during the conveyance of the media M. Therefore, the whole in the width direction X of the media M can be humidified without increasing the number of spraying parts 42.

[0149] (24) The moving part 46 of the second embodiment moves the spraying part 42 based on the conveyance speed of the media M by the conveying part 41. According to this configuration, since the humidification amount per unit area changes depending on the conveyance speed, by moving the spraying part 42 based on the conveyance speed, an optimal humidification amount can be achieved at each location of the media M. It responds by moving the spraying part 42 in response to a change in the conveyance speed. For example, in a configuration where the spraying amount is changed in response to a change in the conveyance speed, when the conveyance speed increases, it is necessary to increase the injection amount. In contrast, since the moving speed of the spraying part 42 may be changed in response to a change in the conveyance speed, an increase in the spraying amount can be suppressed, and the usage amount of the humidifying liquid HL can be suppressed.

[0150] (25) The moving part 46 of the second embodiment includes a motor 91 which is a common drive source for synchronizing the movement of the plurality of spraying parts 42, and a power transmission mechanism 92. Therefore, since the plurality of spraying parts 42 move synchronously, the humidifying liquid HL can be efficiently sprayed over a wide range of the media M while suppressing inappropriate overlap of the respective spraying regions.

[0151] Note that the above-described embodiment can also be changed to the forms such as the modification examples shown below. Furthermore, a combination of the above-described embodiment and the modification examples shown below can be used as a further modification example, or a combination of the modification examples shown below can be used as a further modification example.

[0152] · Instead of the first configuration shown in FIG. 1 and the second configuration shown in FIG. 2, the recording system 10 may have the third configuration shown in FIG. 20. That is, the recording system 10 may be configured to arrange a medium feeding device 120, a humidifying device 40, a recording device 20, a reversing device 30, a drying device 50, and a post-processing device 60 in order from the upstream in the conveyance direction Y. The medium feeding device 120 includes a medium storage unit 121 and a feeding unit 122. The medium feeding device 120 may include a housing 123 that houses the medium storage unit 121 and the feeding unit 122. The medium storage unit 121 has a large cassette or basket capable of storing more than twice the maximum loading number of the cassettes 21 (see FIG. 1) of the medium M. The feeding unit 122 has a feeding roller 124 and a discharge roller pair 125. The feeding roller 124 feeds the medium M one by one from the medium storage unit 121. The discharge roller pair 125 sends the medium M out of the housing 123 at a position downstream of the feeding roller 124. The medium feeding device 120 supplies the medium M to the humidifying device 40. Thus, the recording device 20 shown in FIG. 20 performs recording on the medium M humidified by the humidifying device 40. Also, in this third configuration, the control unit 100 shown in FIG. 12 may include a sixth control unit 106 shown by a two-dot chain line in the same figure for controlling the medium feeding device 120. According to this configuration, recording can be performed on the medium M whose humidity is adjusted by the humidifying device 40, and the final curl can be suppressed.

[0153] · The conveying direction Y1 by the conveying unit 41 does not have to be horizontal. For example, as shown in FIG. 21, the conveying unit 41 (see FIG. 3) may convey the medium M from below to above in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction. In this case, the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spraying unit 42 is affected by gravity. In FIG. 21, when it is assumed that there is no influence of gravity, the medium M at the position where the spraying unit 42 faces the spraying start position HS where the spraying of the medium M in the humidifying region HA should start is shown by a two-dot chain line. Since the humidifying liquid HL sprayed from the spraying unit 42 is affected by gravity, the spraying region of the humidifying liquid HL shown by the solid line in FIG. 21 descends. Therefore, the spraying unit 42 may start spraying before it faces the humidifying region HA of the medium M. Specifically, the spraying unit 42 may start spraying the humidifying liquid HL at the position of the medium M shown by the solid line in FIG. 21 before the spraying unit 42 faces the spraying start position HS of the humidifying region HA of the medium M. According to this configuration, by conveying the medium M in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, the horizontal size of the humidifying device 40 can be suppressed. On the other hand, in that case, since spraying is performed in a direction intersecting the vertical direction Z, the sprayed humidifying liquid HL is affected by gravity. That is, the spraying region of the humidifying liquid HL shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 21 descends to the position of the spraying region of the humidifying liquid HL shown by the solid line in the same figure due to the influence of gravity. In this case, by starting spraying before facing the spraying start position HS of the humidifying region HA, humidification can be performed from the tip of the humidifying region HA. Further, by conveying the medium M in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction (for example, the vertical direction Z), it is possible to suppress the accumulation of the humidifying liquid HL in the conveying path T3. Note that the direction intersecting the horizontal direction is not limited to the vertical direction Z, and may be an oblique direction including direction components of both the vertical direction Z and the horizontal direction.

[0154] · As shown in FIG. 22, the conveying unit 41 may convey the medium M from above downward in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction. The spraying unit 42 may continue spraying even after the medium M no longer faces the humidifying region HA of the spraying unit 42. In FIG. 22, when it is assumed that there is no influence of gravity, the medium M at the position where the spraying unit 42 faces the spraying end position HE at which the spraying in the humidifying region HA of the medium M should end is shown by a two-dot chain line. The spraying unit 42 may also perform spraying on the medium M shown by a solid line in FIG. 22 after the spraying unit 42 no longer faces the spraying end position HE of the humidifying region HA of the medium M. According to this configuration, by conveying in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction (for example, the vertical direction Z), the horizontal size of the humidifying device 40 can be suppressed. On the other hand, in that case, since spraying is performed in a direction intersecting the vertical direction Z, the sprayed humidifying liquid HL is affected by gravity. That is, the spraying region of the humidifying liquid HL shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 22 drops to the position of the spraying region of the humidifying liquid HL shown by the solid line in the same figure due to the influence of gravity. By continuing to spray even after the spraying unit 42 no longer faces the spraying end position HE of the humidifying region HA, humidification can be performed up to the rear end of the humidifying region HA. Further, by conveying the medium M in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction (for example, the vertical direction Z), accumulation of the humidifying liquid HL in the conveying path T3 can be suppressed. Note that the direction intersecting the horizontal direction is not limited to the vertical direction Z, and may be an oblique direction including direction components in both the vertical direction Z and the horizontal direction.

[0155] · In the third embodiment shown in FIG. 8, it may be a moving unit 46 in which the elevating mechanism 71 shown in FIG. 9 is abolished. In this way, even in a state where the position in the vertical direction Z cannot be changed, the first spraying unit 42A may be arranged at a position farther from the medium M than the second spraying unit 42B.

[0156] · The second spraying unit 42B included in the humidifying device 40 of the first embodiment may spray the humidifying liquid HL while moving it relative to the medium M being conveyed, similar to the spraying unit 42 of the second embodiment. That is, the first spraying unit 42A sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the central region A1 shown in FIG. 19, which is the central part in the width direction X of the medium M. The second spraying unit 42B sprays the humidifying liquid HL while moving to the end region A2 shown in FIG. 19, which is the end of the medium M in the width direction X. As a result, as shown in FIG. 19, on both sides of the central region A1, the end regions A2 are zigzag-shaped, so that the spraying region can be expanded in the conveying direction Y1 by a small number of spraying units 42A and 42B. Also, in each embodiment, in the configuration including the first spraying unit 42A, the first spraying unit 42A may be a movable type instead of a fixed type. For example, the first spraying unit 42A may be moved by a moving unit 46 similar to the second spraying unit 42B. In this case, in the second embodiment, the moving unit 46 may move the first spraying unit 42A via a common power transmission mechanism 92 with the second spraying unit 42B so as to be synchronized with the second spraying unit 42B.

[0157] · The method of obtaining the size information may be directly detected by the second sensor 112 or the like, or may be an indirect acquisition such as user input, size information registered for each cassette 21, or size information included in the recording data PD.

[0158] · The acquisition unit that acquires the size information and the control unit 100 that performs the humidifying control of the humidifying device 40 based on the size information may be provided in the humidifying device 40. Also, the acquisition unit and the control unit 100 may be provided in other devices other than the humidifying device 40, such as a recording device 20, a post-processing device 60, and a host device such as a personal computer.

[0159] · The target humidification amount may be set for the entire single medium, or may be set for each region obtained by dividing (n-dividing) the medium M into a plurality of parts. Also, the control unit 100 of the recording system 10 may acquire the target humidification amount from a server through a network.

[0160] · The humidifying liquid HL may be other than water. For example, in order to prevent the bleeding of the ink of the image recorded on the medium M by the liquid ejection unit 23, the humidifying liquid HL may contain a primer component. The humidifying liquid HL may contain an antifreezing agent, an evaporation inhibitor, and the like.

[0161] · In the first embodiment, the first spraying unit 42A may be rotated. · In each embodiment, the configuration may include only one spraying unit 42. Even in this configuration, by moving one spraying unit 42 by the moving unit 46, almost the entire area of the medium M can be appropriately humidified. Since only the minimum number of one spraying unit 42 is required, optimization of humidification can be performed.

[0162] · The spraying unit 42 may uniformly humidify the entire medium M by optimizing at least one of the swinging speed (number of times), the distance from the medium M, and the conveyance speed. For example, by controlling the conveyance speed of the medium M conveyed in the humidifying device 40 to a speed different from the conveyance speed determined by the recording mode, optimization of humidification per unit area for the medium M may be achieved.

[0163] · The spraying unit 42 may be configured to be able to change the output for spraying the humidifying liquid HL. Further, the spraying unit 42 may have a spread angle adjustment function in which the spread angle is changed in accordance with the change of the output, or the spread angle may be adjustable independently of the output.

[0164] · The spraying unit 42 may be moved by the moving unit 46 to widen the humidifying area in the conveyance direction Y1 of the medium M. For example, the spraying unit 42 may be swung and rotated about a rotation axis along the width direction X, or the spraying unit 42 may be moved along the conveyance direction Y1 which is a direction parallel to the medium M. Further, the swinging rotation of the spraying unit 42 may be a free rotation via, for example, a cross joint or the like.

[0165] · The outputs of spraying the humidifying liquid HL by each of the plurality of spraying units 42 may be made different. That is, the spraying amounts of the humidifying liquid HL may be made different among the plurality of spraying units 42. ·All of the plurality of spraying units 42 may be configured to be movable by the moving unit 46.

[0166] ·In a configuration having three or more plurality of spraying units 42, the spraying units 42 at both ends may be fixed, and one or a plurality of spraying units 42 located closer to the center may be movable. ·The spraying unit 42 is not limited to a configuration in which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed on both sides of the medium M, and may be a configuration in which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed only on one side of the medium M. In this case, the one side on which the humidifying liquid HL is sprayed may be the recording surface to which a liquid such as ink adheres, or the non-recording surface on the side opposite to the recording surface.

[0167] ·The water content or moisture content may be a value directly detected by a third sensor 113 composed of a moisture content detection sensor or the like, or may be a value indirectly estimated from conditions such as the liquid discharge amount, temperature, humidity, and type of the medium M. The water content or moisture content and the presence or absence of humidification may be judged for the entire medium, or may be judged for each of a plurality of divided regions.

[0168] ·The control unit 100 may calculate the moisture content from data previously acquired according to the temperature, humidity, and medium type. ·The control unit 100 may be the control unit of one device. For example, when the control unit 100 is the first control unit 101 of the recording device 20, the control unit 100 may be configured to control a plurality of other devices other than the recording device 20. In this case, the control unit 100 may give an instruction by communication to the control unit of another device other than its own device (for example, the recording device 20). Also, one or more of the devices constituting the recording system 10 may not be provided with individual control units.

[0169] · Each device constituting the recording system 10 does not matter the order of drying, inversion, and humidification. The order of performing drying after humidification is preferable in that the humidifying liquid HL can be dried early. The order of performing drying before humidification may also be acceptable. For example, after the liquid discharge unit 23 discharges a liquid such as ink and the discharged liquid such as ink is semi-dried by the drying device 50, the humidifying liquid HL may be sprayed to humidify the medium M. In this case, bleeding of the recording with the liquid such as ink into the humidifying liquid HL can be suppressed. By spraying the humidifying liquid HL after the recording on the medium M with the liquid such as ink has been fixed to a certain extent in this way, a decrease in the recording quality due to humidification of the medium M may be suppressed.

[0170] · The recording system 10 may not include the inversion device 30. Also, the recording system 10 may not include the post-processing device 60. The recording system 10 may have a configuration including only the recording device 20 and the humidifying device 40.

[0171] · The recording system 10 may have a configuration including both a humidifying device 40 arranged upstream of the recording device 20 and a humidifying device 40 arranged downstream of the recording device 20. That is, a configuration may be adopted in which curl of the medium M before recording is removed by humidification and then curl of the medium M due to a liquid such as ink after recording is removed.

[0172] · The recording device 20 may be configured to record on a long medium M such as roll paper. In this case, the humidifying device 40 may humidify the recorded medium M after the recording device 20 cuts it with a cutter. Also, when humidifying the medium M upstream of this type of recording device 20, the humidifying device 40 may humidify the long medium M such as roll paper.

[0173] · The spraying of the humidifying liquid HL may be performed with an output intensity such that the humidifying liquid HL does not hit the medium M. For example, a configuration may be adopted in which the medium M is passed through a humidifying chamber, and the spraying unit 42 sprays the humidifying liquid HL into the humidifying chamber to adjust the humidity of the humidifying atmosphere in the humidifying chamber. In this case, the spraying unit 42 may spray the humidifying liquid HL in a direction not facing the medium M.

[0174] ·The plurality of spraying units 42 may have different types of movement. For example, a rotary spraying unit 42 such as a head swing and a translational spraying unit 42 may be mixed. A rotary spraying unit 42 or a translational spraying unit 42 and a distance-changing spraying unit 42 capable of changing the distance from the medium M may be mixed.

[0175] ·The drying by the drying device 50 is not limited to heating, and may be only blowing without heating. Also, a configuration may be adopted in which the drying time is increased by simply lengthening the time for transporting the transport path T4. ·The intermediate unit may be divided into a plurality of devices, or may be a single device in appearance and have different roles inside.

[0176] ·The recording system 10 may be divided into a plurality of devices, or may be a single device in appearance and have different roles inside. ·The serrated rollers 44A constituting the transport unit 41 may have serrated rollers 44A on both opposing sides, or may have serrated rollers 44A on only one side. Also, such serrated rollers 44A may be on both sides sandwiching the spraying unit 42 in the transport direction Y1, or may be on only one of the sides.

[0177] ·The medium M is not limited to paper or the like, and may be an envelope, cardboard, fabric, synthetic resin film, laminated medium, etc. When the medium M contains at least a part of a synthetic resin material, the humidifying liquid HL may be a liquid other than water that can humidify the medium M. The humidifying liquid HL may contain an organic solvent.

[0178] ·The recording device 20 is not limited to a recording device (inkjet printer) including a liquid discharge unit 23 that discharges a liquid such as ink as a recording unit for recording on the medium M. The recording device 20 may be, for example, a dot impact printer or a laser printer. In short, the recording unit such as a recording head by which the recording device 20 records on the medium M is not limited to the liquid discharge unit 23. The recording unit may be a recording head of another recording method such as a dot impact recording method or a laser recording method instead of the liquid discharge unit 23. Note that the recording device 20 may be a printing device.

[0179] Hereinafter, the technical idea grasped from the above-described embodiments and modification examples will be described together with the effects. (A) A humidifying device that humidifies by spraying a humidifying liquid onto a medium, comprising: a conveying unit that conveys the medium along a conveying direction; a spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto the medium conveyed by the conveying unit; and a moving unit that moves the spraying unit. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit, it is possible to optimize humidification, such as being able to handle various medium sizes without increasing the number of spraying units, or making the humidification amount uniform throughout the medium. For example, in a configuration where the entire medium is humidified by a fixed spraying unit that cannot move, it is necessary to arrange a large number of spraying units at intervals in the width direction according to the maximum width size of the medium, and it is difficult to optimize humidification by using a small number of spraying units required for humidification. Also, in a configuration where the entire medium is humidified by a fixed spraying unit, only a predetermined humidification method can be taken, such as the spraying widths (spraying regions) slightly overlapping, and it is difficult to optimize humidification by increasing the degree of freedom in the humidification method, such as changing the overlap of the spraying regions. In contrast, since it is a configuration including a movable spraying unit that can be moved by the moving unit, at least one of the optimization of humidification that can use a small number of spraying units required for humidification and the optimization of humidification by increasing the degree of freedom in the spraying method so that the spraying method can be changed for various media can be realized.

[0180] (B) In the humidifying device according to (A) above, the moving unit may rotate the spraying unit with respect to a rotation axis along the conveying direction. According to this configuration, by rotating the spraying unit, it is possible to humidify the whole of media of various sizes without increasing the number of spraying units.

[0181] (C) The humidifying device according to (B) above includes a plurality of the spraying units. The plurality of spraying units include: a first spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid into a central region of the medium in a width direction intersecting the conveying direction; and a second spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid into a region different from the central region in the width direction. The moving unit may rotate the second spraying unit with respect to the rotation axis.

[0182] According to this configuration, since the central region is the region to be humidified regardless of the width size and does not rotate, and the spray part located on the end side rotates, it is possible to humidify the entire sheet of various width sizes with only the minimum rotation of the spray part.

[0183] (D) In the humidifying device described in (A) above, the moving part may move the spray part in the width direction intersecting the conveying direction. According to this configuration, by moving the spray part in the width direction, it is possible to humidify the entire sheet of various width sizes without increasing the number of spray parts.

[0184] (E) The humidifying device described in (A) above includes a plurality of the spray parts. The plurality of spray parts include a first spray part that sprays a humidifying liquid onto a central region of the medium in the width direction, and a second spray part that sprays a humidifying liquid onto a region different from the central region in the width direction. The moving part may move the second spray part in the width direction intersecting the conveying direction. According to this configuration, since the central region is the region to be humidified regardless of the width size, the first spray part does not move, and by moving the second spray part located on the end side in the width direction, it is possible to humidify the entire medium of various width sizes with only the minimum movement of the spray part.

[0185] (F) In the humidifying device described in (A) above, the moving part may move the spray part in a direction intersecting the medium. According to this configuration, by moving the spray part in a direction intersecting the medium, the range sprayed by one spray part can be changed. Therefore, it is possible to humidify the entire medium of various width sizes without increasing the number of spray parts.

[0186] (G) In the humidifying device described in (F) above, the humidifying device that humidifies the medium recorded by the liquid discharge unit, comprising a plurality of the spraying units, wherein the plurality of the spraying units include a first spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid in a central region in the width direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the medium, and a second spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid in a region different from the central region in the width direction, and the first spraying unit may be spaced apart from the medium more than the second spraying unit.

[0187] According to this configuration, the medium recorded by the liquid discharge unit is also humidified by the moisture of the liquid such as ink. Also, generally, the liquid discharge amount tends to be larger in the center of the medium and smaller at the ends. Therefore, by separating the first spraying unit in the central portion from the medium and bringing the second spraying unit at the end closer to the medium, the humidification amount in the central portion can be relatively reduced and the humidification amount at the end can be relatively increased, thereby suppressing uneven humidification in the width direction.

[0188] (H) In the humidifying device described in (A) above, the moving unit may move the spraying unit based on the size information of the medium to be humidified. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit based on the size information (especially the width size information), it is possible to humidify the entire paper of various width sizes without increasing the number of spraying units.

[0189] (I) In the humidifying device described in any one of (A) to (H) above, the moving unit may move the spraying unit based on the target humidification amount. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit based on the target humidification amount, an optimal humidification amount can be achieved at each location of the medium.

[0190] (J) In the humidifying device described in (A) above, comprising a plurality of the spraying units, wherein the plurality of the spraying units include a first spraying unit and a second spraying unit, and the moving unit may move at least one of the first spraying unit and the second spraying unit so that the humidification amount in a first region where the humidifying liquid is sprayed only by the first spraying unit is equal to the humidification amount in a second region where the humidifying liquid is sprayed by the first spraying unit and the second spraying unit.

[0191] According to this configuration, since the humidifying liquid sprayed from the spraying unit diffuses, there may be a difference in the amount of humidification on the medium depending on the positional relationship with the spraying unit. At this time, by humidifying a second region with a small amount of humidification on the edge side of the spraying range by the first spraying unit on the edge side of the spraying range of the second spraying unit, the amount of humidification can be increased. Then, the amount of humidification in the second region sprayed from both the first spraying unit and the second spraying unit is made equal to the amount of humidification in the first region sprayed only by the first spraying unit. Therefore, unevenness in the amount of humidification in the width direction of the medium can be suppressed.

[0192] (K) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (J) above, the moving unit may move the spraying unit so that the amount of humidification is equal throughout the width direction intersecting the conveyance direction. According to this configuration, since the sprayed humidifying liquid diffuses, there may be a difference in the amount of humidification depending on the positional relationship with the spraying unit. Moreover, by moving the spraying unit so that the amount of humidification is uniform throughout the width direction, unevenness in the amount of humidification in the width direction can be suppressed.

[0193] (L) The humidifying device that humidifies the medium recorded by the liquid discharge unit in the humidifying device according to (I) above, wherein the target humidification amount may be set based on the amount of liquid discharged by the liquid discharge unit. According to this configuration, the medium recorded by the liquid discharge unit is also humidified by the moisture in the liquid such as ink. Therefore, by setting the target humidification amount based on the discharge amount of the liquid such as ink, the final moisture content of the medium can be made more appropriate.

[0194] (M) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (L) above, the moving unit may move the spraying unit based on the conveyance speed of the medium by the conveying unit. The faster the conveyance speed of the medium, the smaller the humidification amount per unit area of the medium. According to this configuration, by moving the spraying unit based on the conveyance speed, an optimal humidification amount can be achieved at each location of the medium. By moving the spraying unit in response to a change in the conveyance speed, it is possible to suppress a change in the spraying amount. Therefore, the usage amount of the humidifying liquid can be suppressed.

[0195] (N) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (M) above, when the water content of the medium is equal to or more than a predetermined value, humidification may not be performed. According to this configuration, since humidification is not performed when it is unnecessary, excessive humidification of the medium can be avoided. For example, it is possible to suppress the power consumption of the spraying unit by reducing unnecessary spraying.

[0196] (O) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (N) above, it may include a first humidifying unit that sprays a humidifying liquid onto a first surface of the medium, and a second humidifying unit that sprays a humidifying liquid onto a second surface of the medium opposite to the first surface, and each of the first humidifying unit and the second humidifying unit may include the spraying unit. According to this configuration, by humidifying both surfaces of the medium, the humidification amounts of the front and back surfaces can also be appropriately adjusted.

[0197] (P) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (O) above, the conveying unit conveys the medium from below to above in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, and the spraying unit may start spraying before the spraying unit and the humidifying region of the medium face each other.

[0198] According to this configuration, by conveying the medium in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, the horizontal size of the humidifying device can be suppressed. On the other hand, in that case, the spraying unit sprays the humidifying liquid in a direction intersecting the vertical direction. Therefore, the sprayed humidifying liquid is affected by gravity. By starting spraying before the medium faces the humidifying region, it is possible to humidify from the tip of the humidifying region.

[0199] (Q) In the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (O) above, the conveying unit conveys the medium in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction from above to below, and the spraying unit may perform spraying even after the humidifying region of the spraying unit and the medium no longer face each other.

[0200] According to this configuration, by adopting a configuration in which the medium is conveyed in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, the horizontal size of the humidifying device can be suppressed. On the other hand, in that case, the humidifying liquid is sprayed in a direction intersecting the vertical direction, so the sprayed humidifying liquid is affected by gravity. By performing spraying even after the humidifying region no longer faces each other, it is possible to humidify up to the rear end of the humidifying region.

[0201] (R) The recording system includes a recording device that performs recording by discharging liquid onto a medium, and a humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (Q) above. When recording is performed by discharging liquid, curling may occur when the medium dries. According to this configuration, by humidifying the medium with the humidifying device, curling of the medium can be suppressed.

[0202] (S) In the recording system according to (R) above, the recording device may perform recording on the medium humidified by the humidifying device. According to this configuration, it is possible to perform recording by discharging liquid onto the medium whose humidity has been adjusted by the humidifying device, and finally suppress curling of the medium after recording.

[0203] (T) In the recording system according to (R) or (S) above, a drying device for drying the medium recorded by the recording device and humidified by the humidifying device may be further provided. According to this configuration, by drying the medium containing moisture by recording and humidifying with the drying device, curling of the medium can be suppressed compared to the case without humidification. Also, the image can be fixed, and the alignment of the medium discharged from the drying device can be improved.

[0204] (U) In the recording system according to any one of (R) to (T) above, the recording system further includes an inverter for inverting the medium recorded by the recording device, and the humidifying device may humidify the medium inverted by the inverter. According to this configuration, the moisture applied by recording can be temporarily dried while being inverted by the inverter, and then the amount of moisture can be adjusted by the humidifying device, and finally dried by the drying device.

[0205] (V) In the recording system according to any one of (R) to (U) above, the recording system further includes an inverter for inverting the medium recorded by the recording device, and the inverter may invert the medium humidified by the humidifying device. According to this configuration, by inverting the medium on which recording and humidifying have been performed with the inverter, the moisture applied by recording and humidifying can be dried by the conveyance time.

[0206] (W) In the recording system according to any one of (R) to (V) above, the recording system may further include a post-processing device for performing post-processing on the medium recorded by the recording device and humidified by the humidifying device. According to this configuration, by humidifying the medium to be post-processed, curling can be suppressed, and thus the accuracy of post-processing can be improved.

[0207] (X) In the recording system according to any one of (R) to (W) above, the recording system further includes an acquisition unit for acquiring size information of the medium to be humidified and a control unit, and the control unit may move the spraying unit based on the size information acquired by the acquisition unit. According to this configuration, by the control unit moving the spraying unit based on the size information of the medium (especially the width size information), the entire medium of various width sizes can be humidified without increasing the number of spraying units.

[0208] (Y) The intermediate unit is provided between a recording device that records on a medium and a post-processing device that performs post-processing on the medium recorded by the recording device, and is an intermediate unit that conveys the medium from the recording device to the post-processing device. The intermediate unit includes the humidifying device according to any one of (A) to (Q) above and a drying device that dries the medium. According to this configuration, curling of the medium can be suppressed by humidifying the medium.

Explanation of Signs

[0209] 10…Recording system, 12…Conveyor section, 15…Intermediate unit, 20…Recording device, 21…Cassette, 22…First conveyor section (conveyor section), 23…Liquid ejection section, 24…Housing, 25…Discharge stacker, 26…Discharge roller pair, 30…Inversion device, 31…Inversion section, 32…Second conveyor section, 32…Conveyor section, 33…Housing, 34…Conveyor roller, 35…Flap, 35…Housing, 40…Humidifying device, 40A…First humidifying unit, 40B…Second humidifying unit, 41…Third conveyor section (conveyor section), 42…Spraying section, 42A…First spraying section, 42B…Second spraying section, 43…Housing, 44…Conveyor roller pair, 44A…Sawtooth roller, 45…Guide plate, 45A…Opening, 46…Moving section, 47…Rotating shaft, 48…Motor, 50…Drying device, 51…Fourth conveyor section (conveyor section), 52…Heating section, 53…Conveyor roller pair, 54…Heating roller, 55…Housing, 60…Post-treatment device, 61…Post-treatment section, 62…Fifth conveyor section (conveyor section), 63…Housing, 64…Conveyor roller pair, 65…Flap, 66…Tray, 67…Post-treatment mechanism, 68…Discharge roller, 69…Discharge tray, 70…Moving mechanism, 71…Lifting mechanism, 72…Horizontal moving mechanism, 73…Carriage, 74…Guide rail, 75…Motor, 76…Power transmission mechanism, 77…Pulley, 78…Timing belt, 79…Motor, 79A…Output shaft, 80…Rack and pinion mechanism, 81…Rotating shaft, 82…Pinion, 83…Rack, 84…Support section, 85…Motor, 86…Rotating shaft, 90…Parallel moving mechanism, 91…Motor, 92…Power transmission mechanism, 93…Movable section, 93A…Rotating shaft, 93B…Tooth section, 94…Rack, 94A…Tooth section, 94B…Cam follower, 95…Link mechanism, 96…Rotating plate, 96A…Pin, 97…Link member, 97A…Pin, 97B…Pin, 98…Eccentric cam, 98A…Eccentric shaft, 98B…Cam surface, 99…Spring, 100…Control section, 101…First control section, 102…Second control section, 103…Third control section, 104…Fourth control section, 105…Fifth control section, 107…Memory section, 111…First sensor, 112…Second sensor, 113…Third sensor, 114…Fourth sensor, 115…Fifth sensor, 116…Sixth sensor, 117…First encoder, 118…Second encoder, 120…Media feeding device, 121…Media storage section, 122…Feeding section, 123…Housing, 124…Feeding roller, 125…Discharge roller pair, 130…Guide member, 131…Long hole, 460…Rotating mechanism463... Moving mechanism, 464... Guide rail, 465... Motor, 466... Power transmission mechanism, 467... Pulley, 468... Timing belt, M... Medium, M1... Large-sized medium, M2... Small-sized medium, Ma... First surface, Mb... Second surface, MA... Medium area, T... Conveyor path, T1... Conveyor path, T11... Discharge path, T12... Inversion path, T13... Discharge path, T2... Conveyor path, T21... Inversion path, T22... Conveyor path, T3... Conveyor path, T4... Conveyor path, T5... Conveyor path, HL... Humidifying liquid, A1... Central area, A2... End area, A10... First area, A20... Second area, A3... Spraying area, PD... Recorded data, G1... Graph line, G2... Graph line, Gt... Graph line, IA... Spraying area, ID... Image area, IP... Injection position, W1... Moisture content, W2... Moisture content, WS1... First threshold value, WS2... Second threshold value, HA... Humidifying area, HS... Spraying start position, HE... Spraying end position, X... Width direction, Y... Conveying direction, Y1... Conveying direction, Z... Vertical direction (cross direction).

Claims

1. A humidifying device that humidifies a medium by spraying a humidifying liquid, comprising: a conveying unit that conveys the medium along a conveying direction; a spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto the medium conveyed by the conveying unit; a moving unit that moves the spraying unit; The humidifying device is characterized by comprising the above components.

2. The humidifying device according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit rotates the spraying unit with respect to a rotation axis along the conveying direction.

3. The device includes a plurality of spraying units, The plurality of spraying units include: a first spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a central region of the medium in a width direction intersecting the conveying direction; a second spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a region different from the central region in the width direction; and The humidifying device according to claim 2, wherein the moving unit rotates the second spraying unit with respect to the rotation axis.

4. The humidifying device according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit moves the spraying unit in a width direction intersecting the conveying direction. The humidifying device is characterized by the above feature.

5. The device includes a plurality of spraying units, The plurality of spraying units include: a first spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a central region of the medium in the width direction; a second spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a region different from the central region in the width direction; and The humidifying device according to claim 4, wherein the moving unit moves the second spraying unit in a width direction intersecting the conveying direction.

6. The humidifying device according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit moves the spraying unit in a direction intersecting the medium. The humidifying device is characterized by the above feature.

7. The humidifying device that humidifies a medium recorded by a liquid discharge unit, comprising: a plurality of spraying units, The plurality of spraying units include: a first spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a central region of the medium in a width direction intersecting the conveying direction of the medium; a second spraying unit that sprays the humidifying liquid onto a region different from the central region in the width direction; and The humidifying device according to claim 6, wherein the first spraying unit is spaced apart from the medium more than the second spraying unit.

8. The humidifying device according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit moves the spraying unit based on size information of the medium to be humidified.

9. The humidifying device according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit moves the spraying unit based on a target humidification amount.

10. The device includes a plurality of spraying units, The plurality of spraying units include a first spraying unit and a second spraying unit. ​ The moving unit moves at least one of the first spraying unit and the second spraying unit so that the humidification amount in the first region where the humidifying liquid is sprayed only by the first spraying unit is equal to the humidification amount in the second region where the humidifying liquid is sprayed by the first spraying unit and the second spraying unit. The humidifying device according to claim 9, characterized in that.

11. The moving unit moves the spraying unit so that the humidification amount is equal throughout the width direction intersecting the conveying direction. The humidifying device according to claim 9, characterized in that.

12. The humidifying device that humidifies the medium recorded by the liquid discharging unit, The target humidification amount is set based on the amount of liquid discharged by the liquid discharging unit. The humidifying device according to claim 9, characterized in that.

13. The moving unit moves the spraying unit based on the conveying speed of the medium by the conveying unit. The humidifying device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

14. When the water content of the medium is equal to or more than a predetermined value, humidification is not performed. The humidifying device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

15. A first humidifying unit that sprays a humidifying liquid on the first surface of the medium, A second humidifying unit that sprays a humidifying liquid on the second surface opposite to the first surface of the medium, Having, Each of the first humidifying unit and the second humidifying unit includes the spraying unit. The humidifying device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

16. The conveying unit conveys the medium from below to above in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, The spraying unit starts spraying before the spraying unit and the humidifying region of the medium face each other. The humidifying device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

17. The conveying unit conveys the medium from above to below in a direction intersecting the horizontal direction, The spraying unit continues to spray even after the spraying unit and the humidifying region of the medium no longer face each other. The humidifying device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

18. A recording device that performs recording by discharging liquid onto a medium, The humidifying device according to any one of claims 1 to 17, A recording system comprising.

19. The recording device performs recording on the medium humidified by the humidifying device. The recording system according to claim 18, characterized in that.

20. The recording system according to claim 18, further comprising a drying device that dries the medium recorded by the recording device and humidified by the humidifying device.

21. The recording system further comprises an inverter for inverting the medium recorded by the recording device, wherein the humidifying device humidifies the medium inverted by the inverter. The recording system according to claim 20, characterized in that.

22. The recording system further comprises an inverter for inverting the medium recorded by the recording device, wherein the inverter inverts the medium humidified by the humidifying device. The recording system according to claim 18, characterized in that.

23. The recording system according to claim 18, further comprising a post-processing device for performing post-processing on the medium recorded by the recording device and humidified by the humidifying device. The recording system according to claim 18, characterized in that.

24. An intermediate unit provided between a recording device for recording on a medium and a post-processing device for performing post-processing on the medium recorded by the recording device, the intermediate unit transporting the medium from the recording device to the post-processing device, the humidifying device according to any one of claims 1 to 17, and a drying device for drying the medium. The intermediate unit is characterized by comprising.

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