Liquid droplet discharge device

The droplet ejection device addresses soiling and maintenance issues by using a partitioned liquid receiving groove and additional mechanisms to manage ink and treatment liquid, ensuring clean operation and reduced maintenance.

JP2025168773APending Publication Date: 2025-11-12KONICA MINOLTA INC
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2024073512
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-04-30
Publication Date
2025-11-12

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Droplet ejection devices using a platen-supported conveyance system face issues with droplets adhering to the conveyance unit, leading to soiling of subsequent recording media, and ink accumulation in the ink receiving groove requires frequent maintenance.

Method used

A droplet ejection device with a conveying unit that includes a liquid receiving groove with a partition to separate ink and treatment liquid, and features such as a wiping member, liquid outflow unit, or vibration unit to prevent ink accumulation and soiling.

Benefits of technology

Prevents recording medium soiling and reduces maintenance efforts by effectively managing ink and treatment liquid within the device, allowing for wider media use and improved productivity.

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Abstract

To provide a liquid droplet discharge device capable of achieving suppression of contamination of a recording medium and reduction of labor of maintenance.SOLUTION: A liquid droplet discharge device 1 includes: a conveyance part 10 that conveys a recording medium M stretched across a plurality of rollers; and a liquid droplet discharge part 20 that discharges liquid containing an insoluble particle onto the recording medium M. The conveyance part 10 includes a liquid reception groove 131 that receives liquid discharged from the liquid droplet discharge part 20. The liquid reception groove 131 includes, for example, a partition part 1312 as a deposition suppression part that suppresses deposition of the liquid.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1B
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a droplet ejection device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, droplet ejection devices are known that eject droplets from nozzles provided on a nozzle face and land them at desired positions on a recording medium. In particular, droplet ejection devices using a platen-supported conveyance system are known, in which a rolled recording medium is supported on its underside by a platen and directly pulled out and conveyed by another roller, without using a conveyor belt. By adopting a beltless configuration for the recording medium conveyance section, which does not use a conveyor belt, the droplet ejection device can be made smaller and lighter. Furthermore, in belt conveyance systems using a conveyor belt, an adhesive is used to secure the recording medium to the conveyor belt, and this adhesive is applied using an organic solvent. In contrast, a beltless configuration eliminates the need for adhesive application, making it environmentally preferable.

[0003] In droplet ejection devices, droplets may pass through the recording medium or spill over the recording medium. In the case of a droplet ejection device using a belt conveyance system, a cleaning unit that removes droplets adhering to the conveyance belt downstream in the conveyance direction from the droplet ejection unit can be provided to prevent subsequent recording media from being soiled. However, particularly in the case of a droplet ejection device using a platen-supported conveyance system, droplets adhering to the conveyance unit remain, which can result in subsequent recording media being soiled by the droplets. Furthermore, even in configurations that do not include a platen, droplets that pass through the recording medium can potentially soil the device.

[0004] Therefore, for example, Patent Document 1 describes a configuration in which an inkjet recording apparatus, which is a droplet ejection apparatus, is provided with an ink receiving groove that receives and collects dropped ink in an area directly below the inkjet head. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4333969 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, even if an ink receiving groove is provided, if ink that has solidified in the ink receiving groove accumulates, it may stain the recording medium. Therefore, it is necessary to periodically maintain the ink receiving groove to prevent ink accumulation, which is time-consuming.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a droplet ejection device that can prevent the recording medium from being soiled and reduce the maintenance work. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The invention described in claim 1 is a droplet ejection device, a conveying unit that conveys a recording medium stretched between a plurality of rollers in a conveying direction; a droplet ejection unit that ejects a liquid containing insoluble particles onto the recording medium, the transport unit includes a liquid receiving groove that receives liquid that has bled through or spilled out of the recording medium, out of the liquid discharged from the droplet discharge unit; The liquid receiving groove includes a deposition suppression portion that suppresses deposition of the liquid.

[0009] The invention described in claim 2 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 1, The droplet ejection section includes an ink ejection section that ejects ink containing a pigment.

[0010] The invention described in claim 3 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 2, The droplet ejection unit includes a treatment liquid ejection unit that ejects a treatment liquid containing an aggregating agent that aggregates the ink.

[0011] The invention described in claim 4 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 3, the accumulation suppression unit is a partition unit extending in a width direction intersecting with the transport direction, The partition divides the liquid receiving groove into an ink receiving portion that receives the ink and a treatment liquid receiving portion that receives the treatment liquid.

[0012] The invention described in claim 5 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 4, The transport unit includes a support unit that supports the recording medium being transported.

[0013] The invention described in claim 6 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 5, The liquid receiving groove is provided in the support portion, The partition portion and the top surface of the support portion are at approximately the same height.

[0014] The invention described in claim 7 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 1, The liquid receiving groove has a depth of 5 cm or more.

[0015] The invention described in claim 8 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 1, The accumulation suppression unit is a wiping member that scans the inside of the liquid receiving groove at a predetermined timing.

[0016] The invention described in claim 9 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 1, The deposition suppression portion is a liquid outflow portion that causes the liquid to flow into the liquid receiving groove.

[0017] The invention described in claim 10 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 1, The deposition suppression unit is a vibration unit that vibrates the liquid receiving groove.

[0018] An eleventh aspect of the present invention is the droplet ejection device according to the third aspect, The droplet ejection section includes the treatment liquid ejection section located upstream of the ink ejection section in the transport direction.

[0019] The invention described in claim 12 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 11, The droplet ejection section includes the treatment liquid ejection section at a position spaced apart from the ink ejection section in a width direction intersecting the transport direction.

[0020] The invention described in claim 13 is the droplet ejection device described in claim 3, the droplet ejection unit includes the ink ejection unit and the treatment liquid ejection unit, and the ink ejection unit and the treatment liquid ejection unit are positioned on a straight line in a width direction that intersects with the transport direction, a first driving unit that drives the droplet ejection unit in a width direction that intersects with the transport direction; and a second drive unit that drives the liquid receiving groove in the width direction in synchronization with the driving of the droplet ejection unit by the first drive unit.

[0021] The invention described in claim 14 is the droplet ejection device described in any one of claims 1 to 13, The recording medium has a porosity of 5% or more. [Effects of the Invention]

[0022] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the recording medium from being soiled and reduce the maintenance work. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1A] 1 is a top view showing a schematic configuration of a first embodiment of an inkjet recording apparatus. [Figure 1B] FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line IB-IB in FIG. 1A. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main operating elements of the inkjet recording apparatus. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a top view showing the arrangement of droplet ejection units. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is an enlarged top view of a deposition suppression unit according to a second embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 11 is an enlarged top view of a deposition suppression unit according to a third embodiment. [Figure 6]FIG. 10 is an enlarged top view of a deposition suppression unit according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a top view showing the arrangement of droplet ejection units according to a modified example. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a side cross-sectional view showing a partition portion according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0024] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the scope of the invention is not limited to the illustrated examples. In the following description, components having the same functions and configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted.

[0025] [First embodiment] [Overall configuration] FIG. 1A is a top view showing a schematic configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus 1, which is one embodiment of a droplet ejection device according to this embodiment. FIG. 1B is a side cross-sectional view taken along line IB-IB in FIG. 1A. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 includes a transport unit 10, a droplet ejection unit 20, and a control unit 30. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 forms an image by ejecting ink onto a recording medium M being transported.

[0026] 1A and 1B. In the following description, the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction will also be referred to as the width direction, conveyance direction, and height direction, respectively.

[0027] (Recording medium) The recording medium M is a continuous, long roll. The recording medium M is, for example, a fabric. Specifically, the recording medium M may be a plain woven fabric made of cotton or a cupra fabric made of cotton.

[0028] (Transportation section) The transport unit 10 transports the recording medium M in a transport direction. The transport unit 10 includes a pull-out unit 11, a winding unit 12, and a support unit 13.

[0029] {Extraction section, winding section} The drawer 11 holds the recording medium M so that it can rotate freely. The winding unit 12 winds up the recording medium M drawn out from the drawer 11 into a roll. With this configuration, the transport unit 10 transports the recording medium M stretched between the rollers of the drawer 11 and the winding unit 12 in a so-called roll-to-roll manner. Note that the rollers that transport the recording medium M are not limited to the drawer 11 and the winding unit 12. A known transport roller that applies a predetermined tension to the recording medium M while forming a transport path for the recording medium M may be provided between the drawer 11 and the winding unit 12.

[0030] {Support part} The support section 13 is a plate-like member that flatly supports the lower surface of the recording medium M being conveyed in a section between the draw-out section 11 and the wind-up section 12 of the conveyance section 10, facing the droplet discharge section 20. By providing the support section 13, it is possible to suppress deterioration in image quality caused by bending of the recording medium M when forming an image by the droplet discharge section 20. In this embodiment, the support section 13 has an ink receiving groove 131, which is a liquid receiving groove.

[0031] (ink receiving groove) The ink receiving groove 131 is a recessed portion provided on the upper surface of the support portion 13. The ink receiving groove 131 receives liquid that is ejected from the droplet ejection portion 20 but does not land on the recording medium M, thereby preventing the support portion 13 from being soiled. The ink receiving groove 131 is about 5 cm long in the transport direction and about 5 to 10 cm long (depth) in the height direction, and is provided across the entire width. If the ink receiving groove 131 is at least 5 cm deep, even if some ink accumulates, the accumulated ink can be removed before maintenance processing. The ink receiving groove 131 is provided with a hole portion 1311 and a partition portion 1312.

[0032] {hole} The hole 1311 is provided so as to penetrate from the bottom of the ink receiving groove 131 through the support part 13. The hole 1311 is in communication with a predetermined recovery tank T via a recovery path made of, for example, a tube extending in the vertical direction. While FIG. 1A illustrates a configuration in which a single hole 1311 is provided in each of the treatment liquid receiving part 131a and the ink receiving part 131b, a plurality of holes 1311 may be provided in each of the treatment liquid receiving part 131a and the ink receiving part 131b.

[0033] It is also possible to provide a single common hole 1311 for both the treatment liquid receiving section 131a and the ink receiving section 131b. However, as shown in Figures 1A and 1B, it is more preferable to provide separate holes 1311 for the treatment liquid receiving section 131a and the ink receiving section 131b. This is because this configuration can prevent the ink and treatment liquid from coagulating within the hole 1311.

[0034] {Divider} The partition portion 1312 is a protrusion provided in the ink receiving groove 131. In this embodiment, the partition portion 1312 is provided across the entire width of the ink receiving groove 131, approximately at the center of the ink receiving groove 131 in the transport direction. In other words, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the partition portion 1312 divides the ink receiving groove 131 into a treatment liquid receiving portion 131a on the upstream side in the transport direction and an ink receiving portion 131b on the downstream side in the transport direction.

[0035] When ink mixes with a treatment liquid (described later) in the ink receiving groove 131, ink tends to accumulate particularly in the ink receiving groove 131. Therefore, in this embodiment, ink accumulation is suppressed by dividing the ink receiving groove 131 into a treatment liquid receiving portion 131a that receives the treatment liquid and an ink receiving portion 131b that receives the ink by a partition 1312. In this way, in this embodiment, the partition 1312 is an accumulation suppression portion that suppresses ink accumulation in the ink receiving groove 131.

[0036] 1B, it is preferable that the partition 1312 has a height that is approximately the same as the top surface of the support portion 13 and a height that is approximately the same as the depth of the ink receiving groove 131 (i.e., approximately 5 to 10 cm). With this configuration, the partition 1312 abuts against the underside of the recording medium M, just like the support portion 13, and it is possible to suppress the occurrence of bending of the recording medium M that would be caused by providing the ink receiving groove 131 in the support portion 13. Therefore, the length of the ink receiving groove 131 in the transport direction can be made longer compared to when the height of the partition 1312 is lower than the depth of the ink receiving groove 131.

[0037] (Droplet discharge part) The droplet ejection unit 20 forms an image by ejecting color inks at appropriate timing based on image data acquired from an external device or the like onto the recording medium M transported by the transport unit 10. The droplet ejection unit 20 includes a carriage 21 on which an ink ejection unit 22 is mounted, the ink ejection unit 22 including a plurality of inkjet heads 221 that eject ink of each color, for example, C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow), and K (black).

[0038] {carriage} 3 is a schematic top view of the droplet ejection unit 20. In the droplet ejection unit 20, an ink ejection unit 22 and a treatment liquid ejection unit 23 are mounted on a carriage 21. The carriage 21 has, for example, a belt stretched between two pulleys that are rotated by a motor (not shown). The carriage 21 causes the ink ejection unit 22 and the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 to scan in the width direction by the rotation of the motor based on a drive signal output by the control unit 30. In this way, the control unit 30 functions as a first drive unit that causes the droplet ejection unit 20 to scan in the width direction.

[0039] The inkjet recording device 1 according to this embodiment is a serial head type that forms an image by ejecting color inks from the ink ejection units 22 onto the recording medium M while scanning the carriage 21 in the width direction. Note that an image may be formed by scanning the carriage 21 once, or may be formed by scanning the carriage 21 multiple times.

[0040] The inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is an in-line coating type, in which the droplet ejection unit 20 performs pre-treatment by ejecting the treatment liquid from the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 and then forms an image by ejecting ink from the ink ejection unit 22.

[0041] {Ink ejection section} The ink ejection unit 22 includes a plurality of inkjet heads 221 that eject color inks. Each inkjet head 221 includes a color ink tank, a flow path, a piezoelectric element, a plurality of nozzles, etc. As shown in Fig. 3, a plurality of inkjet heads 221 are mounted on the carriage 21 in the width direction. Under the control of the control unit 30, the inkjet heads 221 eject the color inks onto the recording medium M by applying pressure fluctuations to the color inks supplied from the tanks to the nozzles via the flow paths using the piezoelectric elements.

[0042] The color ink ejected by the ink ejection unit 22 is, for example, pigment ink, which contains pigment, resin particles (binder resin), and water.

[0043] {Treatment liquid discharge section} The treatment liquid discharge unit 23 includes a treatment liquid discharge head 231. Similar to the inkjet head 221, the treatment liquid discharge head 231 includes a tank for the treatment liquid, a flow path, a piezoelectric element, a plurality of nozzles, etc., and discharges the treatment liquid under the control of the control unit 30.

[0044] The treatment liquid ejected by the treatment liquid ejection head 231 is, in more detail, a pretreatment ink containing, for example, an aggregating agent, and is mixed in liquid form with the color ink ejected by the inkjet head 221. The pretreatment ink contains at least an aggregating agent, and may also contain other components such as a solvent, a surfactant, or water. The aggregating agent contained in the pretreatment ink is not particularly limited as long as it generates aggregates when it comes into contact with the color ink, and examples of the aggregating agent include a polyvalent metal salt, an organic acid, or an inorganic acid.

[0045] 3, the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 is disposed at a position separated from the ink ejection unit 22 in both the transport direction and the width direction. With this configuration, images can be formed on both the outward and return paths of the carriage 21, thereby improving productivity. Furthermore, by arranging the ink ejection unit 22 and the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 at a distance, particularly in the transport direction, it is possible to prevent the ink and treatment liquid from adhering to and agglomerating on the partition portion 1312.

[0046] (Control unit) The control unit 30 is a processor that controls the overall operations of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 and the maintenance apparatus 2. The control unit 30 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 31, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 32, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 33, a storage unit 34, and the like.

[0047] {CPU} The CPU 31 reads out various control programs and setting data stored in the ROM 33, stores them in the RAM 32, and executes the programs to perform various arithmetic processing.

[0048] {RAM} The RAM 32 provides a working memory space for the CPU 31 and stores temporary data. The RAM 32 may include a non-volatile memory.

[0049] {ROM} The ROM 33 stores various control programs and setting data executed by the CPU 31. Note that the ROM 33 may be replaced by a rewritable nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory.

[0050] {Storage section} The storage unit 34 stores print jobs input from an external device and image data of images to be recorded related to the print jobs. For example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) is used as the storage unit 34. Alternatively, a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) or the like may be used in combination with the storage unit 34.

[0051] [Effects of the first embodiment] As described above, in the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to this embodiment, the transport unit 10 transports the recording medium M stretched between multiple rollers. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to this embodiment also includes a partition 1312, which is an accumulation suppression unit, in the ink receiving groove 131. More specifically, the partition 1312 divides the ink receiving groove 131 into a treatment liquid receiving portion 131a on the upstream side in the transport direction and an ink receiving portion 131b on the downstream side in the transport direction. This configuration can suppress the accumulation of ink in the ink receiving groove 131, which is caused by aggregation of ink and treatment liquid. This can reduce the effort required for maintenance while suppressing contamination of the recording medium.

[0052] In particular, in conventional beltless inkjet recording devices, users often restrict the use of recording media with a small porosity to prevent ink or treatment liquid bleed-through. Porosity is the ratio of non-fiber portions (voids) to the imaged area when a predetermined area of ​​the recording medium is optically photographed. A standard porosity is less than 5%. Furthermore, in conventional beltless inkjet recording devices, restrictions must be placed on the width of the image formation area to prevent ink or treatment liquid from spilling over the edges of the recording medium. However, in the inkjet recording device 1 according to the present embodiment, even if ink or treatment liquid bleed-through or spill-over occurs, ink accumulation can be prevented by the partition 1312, which is a deposition suppression unit. Therefore, such restrictions are not necessary.

[0053] Furthermore, in this embodiment in particular, the accumulation of ink in the ink receiving groove 131 can be suppressed simply by providing the simple structure of the partition portion 1312, which is also advantageous in terms of cost.

[0054] [Second embodiment] Next, an inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Note that the same components as those in the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment differs from the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment in that the deposition suppression unit is a wiping member 1313.

[0055] <Wiping material> The wiping member 1313 is a maintenance blade that wipes away ink and other substances that have adhered to the ink receiving groove 131 by rubbing against the ink receiving groove 131, and is made of, for example, rubber. The shape of the wiping member 1313 in a side view is substantially the same as the shape of the ink receiving groove 131 in a side view, and the lengths of the wiping member 1313 in the transport direction and the vertical direction are the same as or slightly shorter than those of the ink receiving groove 131. The wiping member 1313 scans the ink receiving groove 131 at predetermined intervals under the control of the control unit 30.

[0056] [Effects of the second embodiment] According to this configuration, before the ink dries and hardens in the ink receiving groove 131 or before the ink coagulates with the treatment liquid, it can be wiped away by the wiping member 1313 or pushed out so that it drops into the hole 1311. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ink from accumulating in the ink receiving groove 131 and soiling the recording medium M.

[0057] [Third embodiment] Next, an inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Note that the same components as those in the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the third embodiment differs from the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the first and second embodiments in that the deposition suppression unit is a liquid outflow unit 1314.

[0058] The liquid outflow unit 1314, under the control of the control unit 30, constantly causes a predetermined liquid to flow into the ink receiving groove 131 at least during image formation by the droplet ejection unit 20. The liquid that is outflowed by the liquid outflow unit 1314 is preferably water in terms of cost, safety, and its relationship with the ink and treatment liquid, but is not limited to this.

[0059] [Effects of the third embodiment] According to this configuration, before the ink dries and hardens in the ink receiving groove 131 or coagulates with the treatment liquid, the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge portion 1314 causes the ink to flow down to the hole 1311. This prevents the ink from accumulating in the ink receiving groove 131 and soiling the recording medium M.

[0060] [Fourth embodiment] Next, an inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Note that the same components as those in the inkjet recording apparatuses 1 according to the first to third embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the fourth embodiment differs from the inkjet recording apparatuses 1 according to the first to third embodiments in that the deposition suppression unit is a vibration unit 1315.

[0061] The vibration unit 1315 vibrates the support unit 13 under the control of the control unit 30, thereby applying vibration to the ink receiving groove 131. Specifically, the vibration unit 1315 includes a vibration member that is rotatable around a fixed axis, and vibrates the support unit 13 by rotating the vibration member using an electromagnetic solenoid.

[0062] [Effects of the fourth embodiment] According to this configuration, before the ink dries and hardens in the ink receiving groove 131 or before the ink coagulates with the treatment liquid, the vibration of the vibration unit 1315 causes the ink to roll and fall to the hole 1311. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ink from accumulating in the ink receiving groove 131 and soiling the recording medium M.

[0063] [Other configurations] Although the present invention has been specifically described above based on the embodiments thereof, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be modified in various ways within the scope of the invention as defined in the claims and their equivalents.

[0064] For example, in the carriage 21, the configuration in which the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 is disposed at a position spaced apart from the ink ejection unit 22 in the transport direction and width direction has been exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this. As shown in Fig. 7, the ink ejection unit 22 and the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 may be disposed side by side in a straight line in the width direction.

[0065] In this configuration, as shown in Fig. 7, the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 is provided outside the ink ejection unit 22, at an end of the carriage 21 in the width direction. In this configuration, treatment liquid is ejected from the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 at the front of the carriage 21 in the scanning direction (to the left in Fig. 7), and ink is ejected from the ink ejection unit 22 at the rear of the carriage 21 in the scanning direction. In this configuration, the control unit 30 functions as a second drive unit that drives the support unit 13 in the width direction in accordance with the scanning of the carriage 21 in the width direction. With this configuration, the ink and treatment liquid can be received in the ink receiving groove 131.

[0066] 1B illustrates an example in which the divider 1312 is upright, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the divider 1312 may be inclined at a predetermined angle.

[0067] In addition, although the above example illustrates a configuration in which the ink receiving groove 131 is provided in the support portion 13, the present invention is not limited to this. In particular, the transport portion 10 does not need to include the support portion 13, and the ink receiving groove 131 may be configured separately from the transport portion 10.

[0068] Furthermore, in the above description, the droplet ejection device is an inkjet recording device 1 that includes the ink ejection unit 22 and the treatment liquid ejection unit 23 and ejects ink and treatment liquid, but the present invention is not limited to this. The configuration of the present invention is widely applicable to any droplet ejection device that ejects a liquid that contains insoluble particles and can accumulate in a liquid receiving groove. [Explanation of symbols]

[0069] 1. Inkjet recording device (droplet ejection device) 10 Conveying section 11 Drawer section (roller) 12 Winding section (roller) 13 Support part 131 Liquid receiving groove (ink receiving groove) 131a Processing liquid receiving portion 131b Ink receiving part 1312 Partition 1313 Wiping material 1314 Liquid outflow section 1315 Vibration section 20 Droplet discharge part 22 Ink ejection section 23 Processing liquid discharge section 30 control unit (first drive unit, second drive unit) M Recording medium

Claims

1. a conveying unit that conveys a recording medium stretched between a plurality of rollers in a conveying direction; a droplet ejection unit that ejects a liquid containing insoluble particles onto the recording medium; a liquid receiving groove that receives liquid that has bled through or spilled out of the recording medium, out of the liquid discharged from the droplet discharge unit; The liquid receiving groove includes a deposition suppression portion that suppresses deposition of the liquid.

2. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein the droplet ejection section includes an ink ejection section that ejects ink containing a pigment.

3. The droplet ejection device according to claim 2 , wherein the droplet ejection unit includes a treatment liquid ejection unit that ejects a treatment liquid containing a flocculating agent that causes the ink to aggregate.

4. the accumulation suppression unit is a partition unit extending in a width direction intersecting with the transport direction, 4. The droplet ejection device according to claim 3, wherein the partition divides the liquid receiving groove into an ink receiving portion that receives the ink and a treatment liquid receiving portion that receives the treatment liquid.

5. The droplet ejection device according to claim 4 , wherein the transport unit includes a support unit that supports the recording medium being transported.

6. The liquid receiving groove is provided in the support portion, 6. The droplet ejection device according to claim 5, wherein the partition section and the top surface of the support section are at substantially the same height.

7. 2. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid receiving groove has a depth of 5 cm or more.

8. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein the deposition suppression unit is a wiping member that scans the inside of the liquid receiving groove at a predetermined timing.

9. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein the deposition suppression portion is a liquid outflow portion that causes the liquid to flow into the liquid receiving groove.

10. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein the deposition suppression unit is a vibration unit that vibrates the liquid receiving groove.

11. The droplet ejection device according to claim 3 , wherein the droplet ejection section includes the treatment liquid ejection section on an upstream side of the ink ejection section in the transport direction.

12. The droplet ejection device according to claim 11 , wherein the droplet ejection section includes the treatment liquid ejection section at a position spaced apart from the ink ejection section in a width direction intersecting the transport direction.

13. the droplet ejection unit includes the ink ejection unit and the treatment liquid ejection unit, and the ink ejection unit and the treatment liquid ejection unit are positioned on a straight line in a width direction that intersects with the transport direction, a first driving unit that drives the droplet ejection unit in a width direction that intersects with the transport direction; The droplet ejection device according to claim 3 , further comprising: a second drive unit that drives the liquid receiving groove in the width direction in synchronization with the driving of the droplet ejection unit by the first drive unit.

14. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein the recording medium has a porosity of 5% or more.

Citation Information

Patent Citations

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    JP4333969B2