Printing device

Abstract

To eliminate the need for a tank installation area that is different from a housing installation area.SOLUTION: A printing device 1 includes a head that discharges ink onto a printing medium; a housing in which the head is located; a discharger 40 that discharges a processing liquid onto the printing medium; and a processing liquid tank 9 that stores the processing liquid to be supplied to the discharger 40. The processing liquid tank 9 is located in the housing 8.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing apparatus having a discharger that discharges a treatment liquid onto a printing medium to form an ink undercoat or an ink overcoat. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an inkjet printer (printing device) that includes a main body having multiple ink heads and supported by two legs, a casing that covers the main body, and multiple ink tanks that store ink to be supplied to each of the multiple ink heads. At least a portion of each ink tank is arranged to overlap vertically with the casing, thereby saving space in the inkjet printer. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2021 / 132283 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When forming an image on a print medium, a pre-treatment liquid that serves as a base for the ink may be applied to the print medium before printing. Also, a post-treatment liquid that forms a top layer for the ink may be applied after printing to coat the image formed on the print medium. Based on these considerations, the present inventors conceived of providing a printing device with a discharger that discharges treatment liquid for applying the treatment liquid to the print medium, and a treatment liquid tank that stores the treatment liquid.

[0005] The inkjet printer described in Patent Document 1 is designed to save space, thereby minimizing the printer's size and the installation area. However, the printer itself does not include a discharger or a treatment liquid tank. If the treatment liquid tank were located outside the housing of the printing device, a tank installation area separate from the housing installation area would be required. Furthermore, because the consumption of treatment liquid can be greater than that of ink, the capacity of the treatment liquid tank may be larger than that of the ink tank. In this case, if the treatment liquid tank were located outside the housing, a large tank installation area separate from the housing installation area would be required, resulting in a larger installation area for the entire housing and treatment liquid tank.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a printing device that does not require a tank installation area separate from the housing installation area. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The printing device of the present invention comprises a head that ejects ink onto a printing medium, a housing in which the head is arranged, a discharger that ejects a treatment liquid to form an ink base or ink top layer on the printing medium, and a treatment liquid tank that communicates with the discharger and stores the treatment liquid to be supplied to the discharger, and the treatment liquid tank is arranged within the housing. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the printing device of the present invention, the treatment liquid tank is disposed within the housing, so when installing the printing device, a tank installation area separate from the housing installation area is not required. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic perspective view of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the internal structure of the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is a front view of the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 4] 2 is a schematic diagram showing a treatment liquid supply line from a treatment liquid tank to a discharger and a treatment liquid supply line from an external tank to the treatment liquid tank of the printing device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] 4 is a front view of the main part of the printing device shown in FIG. 3 with the cover removed. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a right side view of the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 7] 2 is a perspective view of the main part of the printing device shown in FIG. 1 with the cover removed, showing a pump, valves, and connectors arranged in a housing. FIG. [Figure 8] 2 is a plan view showing the external shape of the housing of the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed when a print start command is input to the printing device shown in FIG. [Figure 11] 1A is a diagram showing the state when the platen has reached the treatment liquid ejection region from the set position, and FIG. 1B is a diagram showing the state when the platen has passed the treatment liquid ejection region. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed when a command to start supplying a treatment liquid is input to the printing apparatus shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] <Embodiment> A printing device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the up-down direction (the "vertical direction" in the present invention) and the front-rear direction (the "direction intersecting the vertical direction" in the present invention) are defined based on the state in which the printing device 1 is installed and ready for use (the state in FIG. 1), and the left-right direction is defined when viewing the printing device 1 from the front. In the following description, the left-right direction is sometimes referred to as the main scanning direction, and the front-rear direction is sometimes referred to as the sub-scanning direction.

[0011] The printing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is an inkjet printer that prints by ejecting ink onto a print medium. The printing device 1 prints a color image on the print medium using seven colors of ink: white, black, yellow, cyan, magenta, green, and orange. The print medium is not particularly limited as long as it is possible to form an image by ejecting ink onto it, and examples include fabric and paper. In this embodiment, the print medium is, for example, a T-shirt containing polyester fibers. When printing on the print medium (T-shirt) using the printing device 1, a treatment liquid that forms a base onto which the ink is ejected is applied to the print medium. The treatment liquid reacts with the ink ejected onto the base to aggregate the ink components and prevent bleeding. The volatile components of the treatment liquid include an organic acid such as formic acid.

[0012] In the following, the white ink of the seven color inks will be referred to as "white ink." When referring to the six color inks of the seven color inks (black, cyan, yellow, magenta, green, and orange) collectively or when not specifying any of them, they will be referred to as "color ink." When referring to white ink and color inks collectively or when not specifying any of them, they will simply be referred to as "ink." White ink is used in printing to represent the white part of an image or as a base for color inks. Color inks are ejected on top of a base of white ink and are used to print color images.

[0013] 1 to 3, the external configuration of the printing device 1 will be described. As shown in Fig. 1, the printing device 1 includes a housing 8, a platen 12, a transport mechanism 14, an operation unit 15, a display screen 16, a discharger 40 (see Fig. 2), and a control unit 80 (see Fig. 9).

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the housing 8 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the housing 8 has a frame 2 and a cover 3. The frame 2 is configured in a lattice pattern with multiple shafts extending in the front-rear, left-right, or up-down directions. The cover 3 is configured from multiple plate-like members fixed to the frame 2 so as to cover the outer periphery of the frame 2. A platen opening 13 is formed in the front of the cover 3 of the housing 8, approximately in the center in the left-right and up-down directions. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the platen (the "support portion" of the present invention) 12 is made of a plate-like member having a substantially rectangular planar shape. The upper surface of the platen 12 is a support surface 12A that supports the print medium. The support surface 12A has a rectangular shape.

[0015] The housing 8 also has a dispenser cover 8A. The dispenser cover 8A is located in the front portion of the cover 3 and above the platen opening 13. The dispenser cover 8A is formed in the shape of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped box that is open at the bottom, and covers the dispenser 40. The dispenser cover 8A is located above the platen 12.

[0016] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the housing 8 houses seven ink tanks 10 each storing seven colors of ink. The seven ink tanks 10 store, in order from the rear, white, magenta, cyan, yellow, black, green, and orange ink. The housing 8 also houses a cleaning liquid tank 11 that stores cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid tank 11 is disposed in front of the seven ink tanks 10 and is aligned with these ink tanks 10 in the front-to-rear direction. The cleaning liquid tank 11 is connected to a maintenance unit (both not shown) by piping, and cleaning liquid is supplied to the maintenance unit.

[0017] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, each ink tank 10 has an ink supply unit 10A. The cleaning liquid tank 11 also has a cleaning liquid supply unit 11A. These supply units 10A, 11A are parts for supplying ink and cleaning liquid corresponding to each tank, and are arranged exposed to the outside from the housing 8. The ink supply unit 10A has an ink supply port (not shown) for supplying ink into the ink tank 10, and a lid 10A1. The ink supply port opens at the top of the ink tank 10. The lid 10A1 is detachably attached to the ink supply port, which allows the ink supply port to be opened and closed.

[0018] The cleaning liquid supply unit 11A has a cleaning liquid supply port (not shown) and a lid 11A1 for supplying cleaning liquid into the cleaning liquid tank 11. The cleaning liquid supply port is open at the top of the cleaning liquid tank 11. The lid 11A1 is detachably attached to the cleaning liquid supply port, which allows the cleaning liquid supply port to be opened and closed. A processing liquid tank 9 is also housed within the housing 8. The processing liquid tank 9 is in communication with the dispenser 40 and stores the processing liquid to be supplied to the dispenser 40. Details of the processing liquid tank 9 will be described later.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, the operation units 15 are provided at positions on either side of a platen support unit 37 (described later), which is located forward of the platen opening 13. The operation units 15 output information according to operations by an operator to a control unit 80 (described later). By operating the operation units 15, the operator can input to the control unit 80 a print start command (including print data) to start printing by the printing device 1. The print data includes image data of the image to be formed on the print medium. The display screen 16 is provided on the front surface of the cover 3, above and to the right of the platen opening 13. The display screen 16 displays various information. The display screen 16 is also composed of a touch panel and has operation buttons for supplying treatment liquid.

[0020] The transport mechanism 14 transports the platen 12, on which the printing medium is placed, between the inside and outside of the housing 8 through the platen opening 13. When the platen 12 is positioned in the treatment liquid ejection area P4 (see FIG. 2), treatment liquid is ejected from the ejector 40, and the treatment liquid is applied to the printing medium. Then, when the platen 12 is positioned in the print transport area P3 (the position indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2) inside the housing 8 shown in FIG. 2, ink is ejected from the head 30, which will be described later, and printing is performed. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transport mechanism 14 has a support base 36, a platen support section 37, a pair of left and right rails 38, a transmission member 39, and a sub-scanning motor 26 (see FIG. 9).

[0021] 2 and 3, the platen support portion 37 has a tray 37A and a support portion 37B. The tray 37A is formed with a discharge port (not shown) for discharging the processing liquid inside the tray 37A. A pipe (not shown) is connected to the discharge port, and the processing liquid inside the tray 37A is discharged to a waste liquid section via the pipe.

[0022] 3, the support portion 37B extends vertically and supports the platen 12 from below. The lower end of the support portion 37B is fixed to the tray 37A, connecting the tray 37A and the platen 12.

[0023] As shown in Figure 2, the pair of left and right rails 38 extend in the front-rear direction and support the platen support portion 37 so that it can move in the front-rear direction. The pair of rails 38 are disposed on a support base 36 that is disposed below the platen support portion 37. The support base 36 also extends in the front-rear direction. The support base 36 and the pair of rails 38 extend from the rear to the front of the housing 8 and protrude outside the housing 8. A transmission member 39 is connected to the platen support portion 37 and the sub-scanning motor 26, and moves the platen support portion 37 in the front-rear direction, i.e., the sub-scanning direction, in response to the driving of the sub-scanning motor 26.

[0024] The operator places the print medium on the support surface 12A of the platen 12 when the platen 12 is positioned forward of the front surface of the housing 8, i.e., outside the housing 8. The position of the platen 12 shown in FIG. 2 is a set position P1 where the platen 12 supports the print medium. The treatment liquid discharge area P4 is located midway along the transport path of the platen 12, and is an area where treatment liquid is discharged from a spray nozzle 41 (described later) of the discharger 40. It is located below the spray nozzle 41 (i.e., in the discharge direction of the treatment liquid). Furthermore, before printing on the print medium, the platen 12 moves from the set position P1 to a pre-printing standby position P2 (a position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2). The pre-printing standby position P2 is located behind the treatment liquid discharge area P4 and the print transport area P3, at the rear end of the transport path of the platen 12. The print transport area P3 is an area in the transport path of the platen 12 that vertically overlaps with the movement path in the main scanning direction (left-right direction) of the head 30 (described later). The movement path of the heads 30 in the main scanning direction is the path between the rear end of the rearmost head 30 (white head 31) and the front end of the frontmost head 30 (color head 34).

[0025] The internal structure of the printing device 1 will now be described. As shown in Fig. 2, the printing device 1 includes heads 31 to 34 and a movement mechanism 7 inside a housing 8. The movement mechanism 7 includes a guide shaft 20 and a carriage 6 fixed to the frame 2. As shown in Fig. 2, the guide shaft 20 is made up of a front shaft 21, a rear shaft 22, a left shaft 23, and a right shaft 24.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 2 , the front shaft 21 is disposed at the front end of the frame body 2 and extends in the left-right direction from the left end to the right end of the frame body 2. The rear shaft 22 is disposed at approximately the center of the frame body 2 in the front-rear direction and extends in the left-right direction from the left end to the right end of the frame body 2. The left shaft 23 is disposed at the left end of the frame body 2 and extends in the front-rear direction from the left end of the front shaft 21 to the left end of the rear shaft 22. The right shaft 24 is disposed at the right end of the frame body 2 and extends in the front-rear direction from the right end of the front shaft 21 to the right end of the rear shaft 22. The front shaft 21 and the rear shaft 22 support the carriage 6. The transport mechanism 14 is fixed to the frame body 2.

[0027] As shown in Fig. 2, the carriage 6 is supported by a front shaft 21 and a rear shaft 22 so as to be movable in the main scanning direction. The carriage 6 is plate-shaped and extends in the front-rear and left-right directions. The carriage 6 extends from the front shaft 21 to the rear shaft 22. As shown in Fig. 2, the carriage 6 is provided with white heads 31 and 32 and color heads 33 and 34.

[0028] The white heads 31, 32 and the color heads 33, 34 each have the same structure and are rectangular parallelepiped in this embodiment. Hereinafter, when the white heads 31, 32 and the color heads 33, 34 are referred to collectively or when one of them is not specified, they will be referred to as "head 30." As shown in FIG. 2, the white heads 31, 32 are located at the rear of the carriage 6. These white heads 31, 32 are arranged with a shift in the front and rear. The white heads 31, 32 are connected via piping to an ink tank 10 that stores white ink, and white ink is supplied from the ink tank 10.

[0029] 2, the color heads 33 and 34 are located in front of the white heads 31 and 32. These color heads 33 and 34 are also positioned offset forward and backward, similar to the white heads 31 and 32. The color heads 33 and 34 are connected via pipes to six ink tanks 10 that store color ink, and color ink is supplied from these ink tanks 10.

[0030] A plurality of nozzles (not shown) are formed on the underside of each head 30. The plurality of nozzles of the white heads 31 and 32 eject white ink downward. The plurality of nozzles of each color head 33 and 34 are arranged so that six nozzle rows extending in the front-to-rear direction are aligned in the left-to-right direction. Each of the six nozzle rows of each color head 33 and 34 corresponds to a different color ink. In other words, the plurality of nozzles of each color head 33 and 34 ejects color ink of the color corresponding to its respective nozzle row downward.

[0031] The movement mechanism 7 has a drive belt 7A and a main scanning motor 7M. The drive belt 7A is connected to the rear end of the carriage 6. The drive belt 7A is mounted on the rear shaft 22 and extends in the left-right direction. The left end of the drive belt 7A is connected to the main scanning motor 7M. When the main scanning motor 7M is driven, the drive belt 7A moves the carriage 6 in the left-right direction along the front shaft 21 and the rear shaft 22. In other words, the movement mechanism 7 moves the carriage 6, on which the head 30 is mounted, in the main scanning direction. Figure 2 shows the carriage 6 positioned at the right end of its movement range R.

[0032] In FIG. 2, the movement range R of the head 30 is shown as the maximum range over which the carriage 6 can move in the main scanning direction. The head 30 is primarily positioned at one of the maintenance position B1, the ejection region B2, and the head standby position B3 by the movement mechanism 7. The maintenance position B1 is located at the left end of the movement range R of the head 30, and is a position where the head 30 is maintained by a maintenance unit such as a wiper or cap (not shown). When not printing, the printing device 1 moves the head 30 to the maintenance position B1 to perform maintenance by the maintenance unit. The ejection region B2 is an area between the maintenance position B1 and the head standby position B3 in the main scanning direction, and is an area in the movement path of the head 30 that vertically overlaps with the transport path (print transport region P3) of the platen 12. Furthermore, when the head 30 passes through the ejection region B2 by the carriage 6, the head 30 ejects ink according to print data and prints on the print medium on the platen 12. The head standby position B3 is located at the right end of the movement range R of the head 30, and is the position where the operator is positioned when performing operations such as cleaning of the head 30. The printing device 1 moves the head 30 to the head standby position B3 and places it on standby, based on a command input from the operation unit 15 by the operator, for example.

[0033] The printing device 1 moves the platen 12 in the sub-scanning direction by driving the sub-scanning motor 26 in the printing transport area P3, and moves the carriage 6 in the main scanning direction by driving the main scanning motor 7M in the ejection area B2, thereby moving the printing medium relative to the head 30 in the sub-scanning direction and the main scanning direction.

[0034] The operation of moving the head 30 in the main scanning direction and discharging ink onto the printing medium when the head 30 faces the printing medium is called an "ejection scan." The printing device 1 prints on the printing medium by repeating ejection scans and moving the platen 12 in the sub-scanning direction. For example, during an ejection scan, the printing device 1 ejects white ink from the white heads 31 and 32 to form a base for color inks on the printing medium. During an ejection scan, the printing device 1 ejects color inks from the color heads 33 and 34 onto the base formed on the printing medium, printing a color image.

[0035] As shown in Fig. 4, the dispenser 40 has seven spray nozzles 41 arranged side by side in the left-right direction. These spray nozzles 41 are covered by a dispenser cover 8A. As shown in Fig. 4, each spray nozzle 41 has a discharge port 41A on its bottom surface. Furthermore, the spray nozzle 41 is configured to be able to discharge the treatment liquid in a mist downward from the discharge port 41A.

[0036] The dispenser 40 also has a pump 43, piping 44 connecting the processing liquid tank 9 and each spray nozzle 41, and a valve 45. The pump 43 is disposed midway along the piping 44, and supplies the processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 to the seven spray nozzles 41 under the control of the control unit 80. The valve 45 is disposed midway along the piping 44, between the seven spray nozzles 41 and the pump 43. The valve 45 is an open / close valve that is in an open state when the processing liquid is supplied from the processing liquid tank 9 to each spray nozzle 41, and is in a closed state when the processing liquid is not supplied from the processing liquid tank 9 to each spray nozzle 41. The opening and closing operation of the valve 45 is controlled by the control unit 80.

[0037] In this configuration, the control unit 80 drives the pump 43 and controls the valve 45 to be open, so that the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid tank 9 is supplied to each spray nozzle 41 via the pipe 44. The treatment liquid supplied to the spray nozzle 41 spreads in a fan shape and is discharged in the form of a mist from the spray nozzle 41. This allows the treatment liquid to be applied to the print medium.

[0038] 2, 5, and 6, the entire treatment liquid tank 9 is disposed within the housing 8. The treatment liquid tank 9 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and an internal space for storing the treatment liquid is formed therein. As shown in FIG. 6, the treatment liquid tank 9 is disposed below the head 30 and the platen 12, and forward of the ink tank 10 and the cleaning liquid tank 11. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the treatment liquid tank 9 is disposed approximately in the center of the housing 8 in the left-right direction, and is disposed within the housing 8 below the platen support portion 37 and the support base 36, overlapping them in the up-down direction.

[0039] 1 and 6, the housing 8 has a protrusion 8B that protrudes forward. The protrusion 8B is located in the front portion of the cover 3 and below the platen opening 13. The protrusion 8B has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape and is located below the support base 36, overlapping the support base 36 in the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the protrusion 3B has a door 8B1 on its front surface. The protrusion 8B has an internal space and is configured as a square tube whose front is closed by the door 8B1. The door 8B1 is configured to be openable and closable by two hinges 8B2, and opening the door 8B1 connects the inside of the housing 8 to the outside.

[0040] 3 and 5, the processing liquid tank 9 faces the door 8B1 in the front-to-rear direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the processing liquid tank 9 has a processing liquid supply unit 9A. The processing liquid supply unit 9A has a supply port (not shown) and a lid 9A1 for supplying the processing liquid into the processing liquid tank 9. The supply port opens at the front upper part of the processing liquid tank 9. The lid 9A1 is detachably attached to the supply port, which allows the supply port to be opened and closed.

[0041] With this configuration, by opening the door 8B1, the operator can open the lid 9A1 of the processing liquid tank 9. This allows the operator to directly supply the processing liquid from the processing liquid bottle containing the processing liquid through the supply port of the processing liquid tank 9.

[0042] 4, the housing 8 is provided with a pipe 61, a pump 62, a valve 63, a filter 64, and a connection part 65. As shown in FIG. 7, the pipe 61, the pump 62, the valve 63, the filter 64, and the connection part 65 are disposed to the right of the treatment liquid tank 9 and in front of the ink tank 10 and the cleaning liquid tank 11.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 4, one end of the piping 61 (the "supply flow path" of the present invention) is connected to the processing liquid tank 9, and the other end is connected to a connection part 65. The piping 61 communicates the processing liquid tank 9 with the outside of the housing 8 via the connection part 65. As shown in FIG. 6, the connection part 65 is fixed to the right side surface (the outer surface of the present invention) 8C of the housing 8. The connection part 65 is a known female joint and is configured to be connectable to a male joint. In other words, the connection part 65 is connectable to a male joint provided at the end of the piping 71 connected to an external tank 70 arranged outside the housing 8. As shown in FIG. 4, the external tank 70 is arranged in an external tank installation area G2 for installing the external tank 70, which is an area separate from the housing installation area G1 for installing the housing 8.

[0044] Here, we will explain the housing installation area G1 of the printing device 1. As shown in Fig. 8, the housing installation area G1 in this embodiment is the area surrounded by the outline of the housing 8 (shown by the solid line in Fig. 8) when the installed printing device 1 is viewed from above, and does not include the operation unit 15 located forward of the front end of the protruding portion 8B of the housing 8, the front portion of the platen support portion 37, and the front portion of the support base 36 (shown by the two-dot chain line in Fig. 8).

[0045] The external tank 70 stores a processing liquid that can be supplied to the processing liquid tank 9. The external tank 70 is a tank that can store a larger amount of processing liquid than the processing liquid tank 9. As shown in FIG. 4, the connection part 65 is fixed to the right side surface of the housing 8, so that the pipe 71 connected to the external tank 70 can be easily connected to the connection part 65 from outside the housing 8. The connection part 65 may be of any type as long as it can connect the pipe 61 and the pipe 71.

[0046] 4 and 7, the pump 62 is disposed in the middle of the piping 61, and is configured to be able to supply the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9 under the control of the control unit 80. The pump 62 is also disposed in a position closer to the right side of the housing 8 than the processing liquid tank 9. In other words, the pump 62 is disposed in a position closer to the outside of the housing 8 in the left-right direction than the processing liquid tank 9. This makes it easier for an operator to access the inside of the housing 8 from the outside to perform maintenance on the pump 62.

[0047] The valve 63 is disposed midway along the pipe 61, between the pump 62 and the filter 64. The valve 63 is an open / close valve that is open when the processing liquid is supplied from the outside to the processing liquid tank 9, and is closed when the processing liquid is not supplied from the outside to the processing liquid tank 9. The opening and closing operation of the valve 63 is controlled by the control unit 80.

[0048] The filter 64 is disposed midway along the piping 61, between the valve 63 and the connection part 65. The filter 64 captures foreign matter in the processing liquid supplied from the external tank 70 via the connection part 65. This makes it possible to prevent foreign matter from being mixed into the processing liquid supplied to the processing liquid tank 9 via the supply flow path. The filter 64 is also disposed closer to the right side surface of the housing 8 than the processing liquid tank 9. In other words, the filter 64 is disposed closer to the outside of the housing 8 in the left-right direction than the processing liquid tank 9. This makes it easier for an operator to access the inside of the housing 8 from the outside and clean the filter 64.

[0049] 4, the housing 8 is provided with a pipe (the "discharge flow path" of the present invention) 66, one end of which is connected to the bottom of the treatment liquid tank 9. The pipe 66 communicates with the internal space of the treatment liquid tank 9. The other end of the pipe 66 is located outside the housing 8 and is provided with a plug (not shown). This makes it possible to discharge the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid tank 9 to the outside by opening the plug of the pipe 66, for example, before transporting the printing device 1. This makes it possible to prevent the treatment liquid from leaking when the printing device 1 is being transported.

[0050] The electrical configuration of the printing device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 9. The control unit 80 is provided with a CPU 81, a ROM 82, a RAM 83, and a flash memory 84. The CPU 81 controls the printing device 1 and is electrically connected to the ROM 82, RAM 83, and flash memory 84. The ROM 82 stores a control program for the CPU 81 to control the operation of the printing device 1, as well as information required by the CPU 81 when executing various programs. The ROM 82 stores, for example, the positions of the carriage 6 (head 30) based on the rotation angle of the main scanning motor 7M, and the positions of the platen 12 based on the rotation angle of the sub-scanning motor 26. The RAM 83 temporarily stores various data used in the control program. The flash memory 84 is non-volatile and stores print data for printing, etc.

[0051] 9, the control unit 80 is electrically connected to the main scanning motor 7M, the sub-scanning motor 26, the four head driving units 301 to 304, the operation unit 15, the pumps 43 and 62, and the valves 45 and 63. The main scanning motor 7M, the sub-scanning motor 26, the head driving units 301 to 304, the pumps 43 and 62, and the valves 45 and 63 are driven under the control of the control unit 80.

[0052] The main scanning motor 7M and the sub-scanning motor 26 are provided with encoders 7M1 and 261, respectively. The encoder 7M1 detects the rotation angle of the main scanning motor 7M and outputs the detection result to the control unit 80. The encoder 261 detects the rotation angle of the sub-scanning motor 26 and outputs the detection result to the control unit 80.

[0053] The four head driving units 301-304 correspond to the white heads 31, 32 and the color heads 33, 34, respectively, and are included in these heads 31-34. Each head driving unit 301-304 is made up of a plurality of driving elements (piezoelectric elements or heat generating elements) that can selectively impart energy to ink in a plurality of individual flow paths that communicate with a plurality of nozzles in the head 30. When driven, each of these head driving units 301-304 imparts energy to the ink in the white heads 31, 32 and the color heads 33, 34, causing the ink to be selectively ejected from the corresponding nozzles.

[0054] <Printing control> The control by the control unit 80 when printing an image on a print medium will be described with reference to Fig. 10. When the operator operates the operation unit 15 and inputs a print start command to the printing device 1, the control unit 80 reads a control program from the ROM 82 and operates to execute the flow of Fig. 10. The flow of Fig. 10 will be described below.

[0055] The control unit 80 first determines whether a print start command has been input (S1). Before operating the operation unit 15 to input the print start command, the operator places a print medium (e.g., a T-shirt) that has not been coated with treatment liquid on the support surface 12A of the platen 12. The platen 12 is positioned at the set position P1 when not printing. When not printing, the printing device 1 normally has the head 30 positioned at the maintenance position B1, and the head 30 is capped with a cap from a maintenance unit (not shown) to cover the multiple nozzles of the head 30.

[0056] If a print start command has not been input (S1: NO), S1 is repeated until the print start command is input. On the other hand, if a print start command has been input (S1: YES), the control unit 80 controls the sub-scanning motor 26 to start transporting the platen 12 from the set position P1 toward the treatment liquid discharge region P4 (S2), as shown in FIG.

[0057] Next, the control unit 80 starts driving the pump 43, and then drives the valve 45 to the open state (S3). As a result, the treatment liquid is supplied from the treatment liquid tank 9 to each spray nozzle 41 via the piping 44, and the treatment liquid is ejected in a mist from each spray nozzle 41. Therefore, the treatment liquid ejected in a mist is applied to the printing medium supported by the platen 12 as it passes through the treatment liquid ejection area P4. As a result, a base coated with the treatment liquid is formed on the printing medium in a substantially uniform manner.

[0058] Next, as shown in FIG. 11(b), the control unit 80 closes the valve 45 and stops driving the pump 43 (S4) when the platen 12 passes through the treatment liquid discharge area P4. This stops the supply of treatment liquid to each spray nozzle 41, and the discharge of treatment liquid from each spray nozzle 41 stops. In this embodiment, the treatment liquid is controlled so that it is discharged over the entire support surface 12A of the platen 12, thereby applying the treatment liquid to the entire surface of the print medium. However, by appropriately changing the drive timing of the pump 43 and the valve 45, the treatment liquid may be applied to only a portion of the print medium in the front-to-back direction. Furthermore, when applying the treatment liquid to only a portion of the print medium, the treatment liquid may be applied only to an area corresponding to the image area formed by discharging ink onto the print medium.

[0059] Next, when the platen 12 reaches the pre-printing standby position P2 based on the detection result from the encoder 261, the control unit 80 controls the sub-scanning motor 26 to stop the platen transport (S5).

[0060] Next, the control unit 80 executes a printing process to print an image on the printing medium (S6). The control unit 80 controls the sub-scanning motor 26 based on the detection result from the encoder 261 to move the platen 12 from the pre-printing standby position P2 to the print transport area P3.

[0061] Then, the control unit 80 controls the main scanning motor 7M based on the detection results from the encoder 7M1, moves the carriage 6 from the maintenance position B1 to the discharge area B2, and positions the head 30 opposite the printing medium placed on the platen 12.

[0062] With at least a portion of the platen 12 positioned in the print transport region P3 and the carriage 6 positioned in the discharge region B2, the control unit 80 controls the head drivers 301-304, the main scanning motor 7M, and the sub-scanning motor 26 to alternately perform discharge scanning and forward movement of the platen 12, thereby printing on the print medium. That is, when printing on the print medium, the platen 12 is transported forward from the pre-print standby position P2 to the print transport region P3. First, white ink is discharged from the nozzles of the white heads 31 and 32 onto the base of the print medium formed by applying the treatment liquid, forming a base (mainly for color inks). Then, ink is discharged from the nozzles of the color heads 33 and 34 onto the base formed on the print medium after passing the white heads 31 and 32, forming an image. Note that the white portion of the image is the base portion formed with white ink. Therefore, color ink is not discharged onto the base portion.

[0063] Next, when printing on the print medium based on the print data is completed (end of printing process), the control unit 80 controls the sub-scanning motor 26 based on the detection result from the encoder 261 to stop the platen 12 at the set position P1. The operator removes the print medium with the image formed on it from the platen 12 placed at the set position P1. At this time, the control unit 80 also controls the main scanning motor 7M based on the detection result from the encoder 7M1 to move the carriage 6 leftward from the discharge area B2 and stop it at the maintenance position B1. This completes the flow in FIG. 10.

[0064] <Control of processing liquid supply> With reference to FIG. 12, the control by the control unit 80 when supplying the treatment liquid from the external tank 70 to the treatment liquid tank 9 will be described. The operator connects the pipe 71 connected to the external tank 70 to the connection unit 65. After this, the operator operates the operation button on the display screen 16 when supplying the treatment liquid from the external tank 70 to the treatment liquid tank 9. The operator also operates the operation button when stopping the supply of treatment liquid to the treatment liquid tank 9. When the operator operates the operation button on the display screen 16 and inputs a command to start supplying treatment liquid to the printing device 1, the control unit 80 reads and operates a control program from the ROM 82, thereby executing the flow of FIG. 12. The flow of FIG. 12 will be described below.

[0065] The control unit 80 first determines whether a processing liquid supply start command has been input (S21). If the processing liquid supply start command has not been input (S21: NO), S21 is repeated until the processing liquid supply start command is input. On the other hand, if the processing liquid supply start command has been input (S21: YES), the control unit 80 starts driving the pump 62 and then drives the valve 63 to an open state (S22). As a result, the processing liquid in the external tank 70 is supplied to the processing liquid tank 9 via the piping 61.

[0066] Next, the control unit 80 determines whether a command to stop supply of the processing liquid has been input (S23). If a command to stop supply of the processing liquid has not been input (S23: NO), S23 is repeated until a command to stop supply of the processing liquid is input. On the other hand, if a command to stop supply of the processing liquid has been input (S23: YES), the control unit 80 drives the valve 63 to a closed state and stops driving the pump 62 (S24). This stops the supply of the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9. This ends the flow of FIG. 12.

[0067] The external tank 70 may further include a liquid level sensor that detects the amount of processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9. In this case, when the liquid level sensor detects that the amount of processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 is equal to or less than a first predetermined amount (lower limit), it may output an empty signal to the control unit 80. The control unit 80 may determine that a processing liquid supply start command has been received when it receives this empty signal. In this manner, simply by connecting the piping 71 connected to the external tank 70 to the connection unit 65, the processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 is automatically supplied to the processing liquid tank 9 via the piping 61 when the amount of processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 is equal to or less than the first predetermined amount. Furthermore, when the liquid level sensor detects that the amount of processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 is equal to or greater than a second predetermined amount (upper limit) that is greater than the first predetermined amount, it may output a full signal to the control unit 80, indicating that the processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 9 is full. The control unit 80 may determine that a processing liquid supply stop command has been received when it receives this full signal. In this manner, the supply of the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9 is automatically stopped.

[0068] As described above, according to the printing device 1 of this embodiment, the treatment liquid tank 9 is disposed inside the housing 8. Therefore, when installing the printing device 1, a tank installation area for installing the treatment liquid tank 9 that is separate from the housing installation area G1 is not required.

[0069] The treatment liquid tank 9 is located below the head 30. This means that the center of gravity of the printing device 1 is lower than when the treatment liquid tank 9 is located above the head 30. This improves the stability of the installed printing device 1 and makes it possible to prevent the printing device 1 from tipping over, etc.

[0070] The treatment liquid tank 9 is located below the platen 12. This causes the center of gravity of the printing device 1 to be lower than when the treatment liquid tank 9 is located above the platen 12. This improves the stability of the installed printing device 1 and prevents the printing device 1 from tipping over, etc.

[0071] Furthermore, the platen 12 is positioned at a certain height above the installation surface of the printing device 1 so that an operator can set the printing medium thereon. The platen 12 is configured to be movable in the front-to-rear direction, and the head 30 and carriage 6 are positioned above the platen 12. Furthermore, a maintenance unit such as a wiper and a cap is positioned below the head 30, which is positioned at the maintenance position B1. As a result, dead space is likely to occur below the transport path of the platen 12 within the housing 8. In this embodiment, the treatment liquid tank 9 is positioned below the transport path of the platen 12. Therefore, dead space is less likely to occur below the transport path of the platen 12, and the printing device 1 can be made more compact. As a result, it is possible to prevent the printing device 1, which includes the treatment liquid tank 9, from becoming larger, and the housing installation area G1 can also be prevented from becoming larger.

[0072] A pipe 61 is connected to the processing liquid tank 9. This allows the processing liquid to be supplied to the processing liquid tank 9 from outside the housing 8.

[0073] A connection part 65 is provided on the right side surface of the housing 8. This makes it possible to supply the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9.

[0074] A pump 62 is also provided within the housing 8. This makes it easier to supply the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9.

[0075] Furthermore, the ink supply section 10A of the ink tank 10 is disposed so as to be exposed to the outside of the housing 8. This makes it easier to supply ink to the ink tank 10.

[0076] The housing is also provided with a door 8B1 facing the processing liquid tank 9. This makes it easier to perform maintenance of the processing liquid tank 9 (such as checking for leakage of processing liquid).

[0077] As a modified example, a plurality of processing liquid tanks 9 may be provided within the housing 8. In this case, the processing liquid supply line supplying the processing liquid from each processing liquid tank 9 to the spray nozzle 41 is configured to be switchable. This makes it possible to supply the processing liquid from the desired processing liquid tank 9 to the spray nozzle 41. Furthermore, it becomes possible to store different types of processing liquid in each of the multiple processing liquid tanks 9, making it possible to eject the desired processing liquid from the spray nozzle 41. Furthermore, it becomes possible to store the same type of processing liquid in multiple processing liquid tanks 9, making it possible to store more processing liquid. Moreover, the multiple processing liquid tanks 9 can be distributed and arranged within the housing 8. Furthermore, when the processing liquid in one processing liquid tank 9 runs out, the processing liquid from another processing liquid tank 9 can be supplied to the spray nozzle 41.

[0078] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

[0079] The processing liquid tank 9 may be disposed above the platen 12 or the head 30. Furthermore, the processing liquid tank 9 does not have to overlap the platen support portion 37 in the up-down direction. In other words, the processing liquid tank 9 may be disposed to the left or right of the platen support portion 37 in the left-right direction. Furthermore, the processing liquid tank 9 may be disposed below the head 30 and to the left or right of the platen 12 or the platen support portion 37. Furthermore, the processing liquid tank 9 may be disposed behind the head 30 in the front-rear direction.

[0080] In the above-described embodiment, the spray nozzle 41 of the dispenser 40 is covered by the dispenser cover 8A of the housing 8, but it may be disposed outside the housing 8 and on the transport path of the platen 12. Also, the housing 8 does not need to have the dispenser cover 8A.

[0081] Furthermore, the dispenser 40 is not limited to a configuration in which the treatment liquid is dispensed from the spray nozzles 41. Furthermore, the dispenser 40 may have a configuration similar to that of the head 30. Furthermore, although the dispenser 40 in the above-described embodiment has seven spray nozzles 41, it may have one to six, or eight or more spray nozzles 41.

[0082] Furthermore, although the discharger 40 discharges a pretreatment liquid that forms a base, it may also discharge a posttreatment liquid that overcoats an image on the print medium. That is, the treatment liquid may be discharged onto the print medium after ink has been discharged onto the print medium to form an image. In this case, after the printing process of S6, i.e., before the platen 12 reaches the treatment liquid discharge area P4, a process similar to S3 is performed, and then, after the platen 12 passes the treatment liquid discharge area P4, a process similar to S4 is performed. In this way, it is possible to overcoat the image on the print medium (form an ink top layer).

[0083] As a modified example, the color heads 33, 34 may each have four nozzle rows, and magenta, cyan, yellow, and black inks may be ejected from the four nozzle rows of each head 33, 34, without ejecting green and orange inks from the color heads 33, 34. In this case, there is no need to provide ink tanks for storing green and orange inks.

[0084] As another modification, a total of six heads may be provided, with additional heads provided between head 31 and head 33 and between head 32 and head 34 in the front-to-rear direction. In this case, each of color heads 33 and 34 may have four nozzle rows, and magenta, cyan, yellow, and black inks may be ejected from the four nozzle rows of each of heads 33 and 34, while green and orange inks may be ejected from two additional heads. As yet another modification, two additional heads of the six heads may be used as ejectors to eject post-treatment liquid, instead of the green and orange inks, for overcoating an image on a printing medium. In this case, a post-treatment liquid tank storing post-treatment liquid may be provided instead of the ink tanks storing green and orange inks, and the post-treatment liquid may be supplied from the post-treatment liquid tank to the two heads. Alternatively, a post-treatment liquid tank may be provided within housing 8, similar to processing liquid tank 9, and the post-treatment liquid may be supplied from the post-treatment liquid tank to the two heads.

[0085] Furthermore, the transport mechanism 14 does not necessarily have to have the sub-scanning motor 26. In this case, the platen 12 may be moved manually. That is, the transport mechanism may have a configuration that allows the platen 12 to be moved between the set position P1 and a passing position where the platen 12 passes through the treatment liquid discharge region P4.

[0086] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the head 30 ejects ink from multiple nozzles while being moved in the main scanning direction (left-right direction) by the movement mechanism 7, which is a so-called serial head, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a printing device equipped with a line head that extends across the entire length of the printing medium (platen 12) in the main scanning direction and is positioned so as not to move in the ejection area B2.

[0087] Furthermore, the piping 61, the pump 62, the valve 63, the filter 64, and the connection part 65 do not have to be provided in the housing 8. In other words, the processing liquid tank 9 may be configured so as not to be connectable to the external tank 70. Furthermore, the processing liquid tank 9 does not have to be connected to the external tank 70. Furthermore, instead of the piping 61, a gutter (the "supply flow path" of the present invention) that can supply the processing liquid to the processing liquid tank 9 from outside the housing 8 may be provided in the housing 8. In this case, the processing liquid can be poured into the gutter from outside the housing 8 to supply the processing liquid to the processing liquid tank 9. Furthermore, the connection part 65 may have any configuration as long as it can be connected to the piping 71 of the external tank 70. Furthermore, the connection part 65 may be provided on an outer surface of the housing 8 other than the right side surface 8C. A pump that supplies the processing liquid from the external tank 70 to the processing liquid tank 9 may be provided on the external tank 70 side. In this case, the pump 62 does not have to be provided inside the housing 8.

[0088] Furthermore, the pump 62 and the filter 64 may be located farther from the outside of the housing 8 than the treatment liquid tank 9. Furthermore, the piping 66 as a discharge flow path may not be provided. The housing 8 may not be provided with a door 8B1 facing the treatment liquid tank 9. Furthermore, the housing 8 may not have a protrusion 8B. Furthermore, the ink supply unit 10A and the treatment liquid supply unit 9A may each be composed of a supply port without having a lid 10A1, 9A1. Furthermore, these supply units 9A, 10A may have any configuration as long as they are configured to be able to supply liquid.

[0089] Furthermore, the control unit 80 in the above-described embodiment may use a microcomputer, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or the like as a processor instead of the CPU 81. In this case, the main processing may be distributed among multiple processors. The non-transitory storage medium, such as the ROM 82 or the flash memory 84, may be a storage medium capable of retaining information regardless of the period for which the information is stored. The non-transitory storage medium may not include a temporary storage medium (e.g., a transmitted signal). The control program may be downloaded (i.e., transmitted as a transmission signal) from a server connected to a network (not shown) and stored in the ROM 82 or the flash memory 84. In this case, the control program may be stored in a non-transitory storage medium, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) provided in the server.

[0090] In the above-described embodiment and modified examples, the volatile components of the treatment liquid include organic acids, but this is not limited to this. In other words, the volatile components of the treatment liquid may include components other than organic acids that react with the ink in the nozzles to cause aggregation or discoloration. Furthermore, the treatment liquid does not necessarily have to include volatile components such as organic acids. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 1 Printing device 8. Housing 8B1 Door 8C Right side (outer surface) 9 Processing liquid tank 10 Ink tank 10A Ink supply unit 12 Platen (support part) 30 heads 40 Dispenser 61 Piping (supply flow path) 62 Pump 64 filters 66 Piping (exhaust flow path) 70 External Tank G1 chassis installation area

Claims

1. a head that ejects ink onto a print medium; a housing in which the head is disposed; a discharger that discharges a treatment liquid for forming an ink undercoat or an ink overcoat on a printing medium; a treatment liquid tank that is in communication with the dispenser and stores a treatment liquid to be supplied to the dispenser, A printing apparatus characterized in that the treatment liquid tank is disposed within the housing.

2. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the treatment liquid tank is located below the head.

3. a support section configured to be movable between the inside and outside of the housing in a direction intersecting the vertical direction and configured to support a print medium; 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the treatment liquid tank is located below the support portion.

4. 2. The printing device according to claim 1, further comprising a supply flow path disposed within the housing, the supply flow path connecting the outside of the housing with the treatment liquid tank, and supplying the treatment liquid from the outside of the housing to the treatment liquid tank.

5. a connection part that can be connected to an external tank that stores a processing liquid is provided on an outer surface of the housing; one end of the supply flow path is connected to the treatment liquid tank; The printing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the other end of the supply flow path is connected to the connection portion.

6. The printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a pump is provided within the housing to supply the treatment liquid from the external tank connected to the connection portion to the treatment liquid tank via the supply flow path.

7. 7. The printing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the pump is disposed at a position closer to the outside of the housing than the treatment liquid tank.

8. a filter is provided in the supply flow path, 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the filter is disposed at a position closer to the outside of the housing than the treatment liquid tank.

9. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a discharge flow path is connected to the treatment liquid tank for discharging the treatment liquid from the treatment liquid tank to the outside of the housing.

10. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid tank is provided in a plurality of tanks.

11. an ink tank communicating with the head and storing ink to be supplied to the head; 2. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank has an ink supply portion exposed to the outside of the housing.

12. The housing is provided with an openable and closable door, 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the door faces the treatment liquid tank.

Images