Recording apparatus

Abstract

To more appropriately guide a user to perform maintenance of an optical sensor.SOLUTION: Dividing a lateral width range on a paper surface on which ink can be ejected into a plurality of areas according to easiness of adhesion of ink to the optical sensor when ink is ejected at a point of the lateral width range; Calculating, for each of the areas, a degree of influence on an output value of the optical sensor due to adhesion of ink at the time from an influence coefficient on the output value of the optical sensor when the ink set for the area is ejected and a cumulative number of times of ejection obtained by accumulating the number of times of ejection of the ink by the recording head for each of the areas; SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Inkjet recording apparatuses are equipped with various sensors for appropriately detecting and measuring the operating status and recording conditions of the apparatus, and optical sensors are sometimes used as such sensors.

[0003] Optical sensors are exposed to ink mist generated by ink ejection from the print head, and become gradually contaminated with increasing printing frequency. Specifically, mist refers to fine ink droplets generated by the print head's ejection operation or by bouncing off the print medium. Because of their slow speed, they float in the space between the print head and the print medium. When printing is performed in a state where such mist is generated, the mist floats as the carriage moves, and some of it adheres to the surface of the optical sensor's elements. When mist adheres to light-emitting and light-receiving elements, the amount of light emitted and received by the light-emitting and light-receiving elements is blocked by the mist, reducing the performance of the sensor itself. As a result, various controls based on the sensor's detection results may not be able to be performed effectively.

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for determining the performance of the optical sensor by counting the number of times the recording head ejects ink from image data, calculating the degree of influence that the light-emitting element receives from the accumulated number of ejections and the coefficient of the influence that the ejection has on the light-emitting element, and comparing this value with a predetermined threshold value. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2008-273087 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, in Patent Document 1, the number of ink ejections is counted uniformly across the entire image data, and the difference in the ease with which mist adheres to the optical sensor due to differences in ink ejection positions is not taken into consideration.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a more appropriate timing for instructing a user to perform maintenance on an optical sensor. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention is characterized in that it comprises a print head that ejects ink onto a print medium based on print data, a carriage that scans the print head back and forth, an optical sensor, and a counting means that counts the cumulative number of times the print head has ejected ink, and further comprises a storage means that stores a setting in which a print medium capable of ejecting ink is divided into a plurality of areas in the scanning direction of the print head, and an influence coefficient that is set for each of the divided areas and that affects the output value of the optical sensor when ink is ejected in that area, and the counting means counts the cumulative number of times the print head has ejected ink for each of the divided areas and for each of the scanning directions, calculates the influence frequency of ink adhesion on the output value of the optical sensor from the influence coefficient for each of the divided areas and the cumulative number of ejections for each of the divided areas, and comprises a determining means that determines the performance of the optical sensor by comparing the influence frequency with a predetermined threshold value. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to more appropriately guide a user to perform maintenance on an optical sensor. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view illustrating an example of the internal configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2]FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating the arrangement of each optical element of the optical sensor according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a control configuration mainly related to paper width detection of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] 10 is experimental data showing the amount of ink adhering to an optical sensor depending on the area onto which ink is ejected and the printing direction in the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart illustrating each step of an optical sensor performance determination mode executed by a CPU in the first embodiment. [Figure 6] 10 is an image of a screen that notifies the user of how to deal with the situation when it is determined that the performance of the optical sensor in the first embodiment is not sufficient for paper width detection. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing ink ejection area division and influence coefficients in the second embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart illustrating each step of a carry motor encoder performance determination mode executed by a CPU in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] (First embodiment) A first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0012] 1 is a perspective view illustrating the internal configuration of the inkjet printing apparatus of this embodiment. A carriage 101 is equipped with an optical sensor 102 used for various detection operations, a print head 103 that ejects four colors of ink according to print data, and a carriage motor encoder 110 that detects the position of the carriage. The carriage 101 scans back and forth in the X direction (scanning direction) on a shaft 105 as a carriage belt 104 rotates due to the rotation of a carriage motor 109. At this time, the carriage motor encoder 110 detects slits in a carriage motor linear scale 111 that is installed parallel to the shaft 105, thereby enabling the direction, position, and speed of carriage movement to be detected.

[0013] Meanwhile, the recording medium 106 is intermittently transported in the Y direction by transport rollers 108. The transport rollers 108 rotate in conjunction with the rotation of a transport belt 113 caused by the rotation of a transport motor 112. At this time, the direction, position, and speed of the transport operation can be detected by detecting slits in a transport motor wheel-type scale 114 attached to the shaft of the transport roller 108 with a transport motor encoder 115. The area on the recording medium 106 supported in the Z direction by the platen 107 is the area to be printed by the print head 103. During printing, the print head 103 mounted on the carriage 101 performs one print scan on the recording medium 106 transported to a predetermined position by the transport rollers 108. That is, while the carriage 101 is moving in the X direction, the print head 103 ejects ink toward the recording medium 106 at appropriate timing according to the print data. When one print scan is completed, the transport roller transports the print medium 106 a predetermined distance in the Y direction, and the area of ​​the print medium 106 where the next print scan is to be performed is positioned on the platen 107. By alternately repeating such print scans and transport operations, an image is formed on the print medium 106 in stages.

[0014] 2 is a side view illustrating the arrangement of each optical element of the optical sensor 102 employed in this embodiment. The optical sensor 102 employed in this embodiment is composed of one light-emitting element 201 and one light-receiving element 202. Specifically, the light-emitting element 201 is an LED such as a red LED, and the light-receiving element 202 is a photodiode. Hereinafter, the light-emitting element 201 will be referred to as the LED 201, and the light-receiving element 202 will be referred to as the photodiode 202. The LED 201 is disposed in a position where light emitted from the LED 201 can be reflected by the recording medium 106 and received by the photodiode 202.

[0015] The optical sensor of this embodiment is used to read patterns recorded on a recording medium for registration adjustment to adjust the ejection timing, and may also be used to detect the edge position of the recording medium and measure reflected light to identify the type of recording medium.

[0016] 3 is a block diagram illustrating the control configuration of the inkjet recording device employed in this embodiment, mainly related to the printing operation and paper width detection. A CPU 301 controls the entire recording device as well as various arithmetic processing in accordance with control programs, parameters, and various tables stored in a ROM 309. RAM 300 is used as the working area for this.

[0017] Image data sent from an externally connected host computer 302 is input to the CPU 301 via an interface (not shown). The CPU 301 converts the received image data into print data compatible with the printing device, i.e., cyan, magenta, yellow, and black print signals, and stores them in the print buffer 303. The print signals stored in the print buffer 303 are binary signals indicating whether each ink color will print a dot for each pixel (1) or not (0). By counting only the print data (1), the number of times each ink color is ejected can be obtained. The CPU 301 adds the number of times each ink color is ejected, acquired in this way, to the previous cumulative number of times stored in the EEPROM 304, and overwrites the EEPROM 304 with the new cumulative number of times ejected.

[0018] The LED drive circuit 305 performs the operation of turning on and off the LED 201 installed in the optical sensor 102 in accordance with instructions from the CPU 301 .

[0019] The photodiode 202 generates a current according to the intensity of the received light, and this current is converted into a voltage by an I / V conversion circuit 306, and then amplified to an appropriate level by an amplifier circuit 307. The output voltage from the amplifier circuit 307 is monitored by the CPU 301, and the CPU 301 can adjust the gain level so that the amplified voltage has an appropriate value for A / D conversion. The voltage amplified to an appropriate value is converted into a digital signal, such as 10 bits, by an A / D conversion circuit 308 and temporarily stored in the RAM 300.

[0020] A transport motor driver 310 drives a transport motor 112, which provides the transport force for the recording medium 106, in accordance with instructions from the CPU 301, and the direction, position, and speed of the transport motor 112 are detected by a transport motor encoder 115. A carriage motor driver 312 drives a carriage motor 109, which provides the moving force for the carriage 103, in accordance with instructions from the CPU 301, and the direction, position, and speed of the carriage motor 109 are detected by a carriage motor encoder 110. A head driver 314 drives the print head 103 in accordance with instructions from the CPU 301 to eject ink from the print head 103 based on print data stored in a print buffer 303. Text and images are displayed on a display device 315 to notify the user that an abnormal operation has occurred or to guide the user in the appropriate operation.

[0021] Next, the operation of detecting the edge and width of the recording medium 106 executed by the CPU 301 of this embodiment will be described.

[0022] As described above, the CPU 301 controls the transport motor driver 310 to drive the transport motor 311 to feed the recording medium, and controls the carriage motor driver 312 to drive the carriage motor 313 to scan the carriage 101 in the left-right direction. At this time, the movement direction, position, and speed of the carriage 101 are detected by a pulse signal output by the carriage motor encoder 110 when the carriage motor encoder 110 detects the slits in the carriage motor linear scale 111.

[0023] The optical sensor 102 is mounted on the carriage 101 and scans the surface of the recording medium 106 together with the carriage 101. The LED drive circuit 305, in response to instructions from the CPU 301, activates the LED 201 installed within the optical sensor 102. Light reflected from the surface of the recording medium 106 is received by a photodiode 202, which then converts the reflected light intensity to 10 bits via an A / D conversion circuit 308. The output of the photodiode 202 varies depending on the intensity of the reflected light. At the edges of the recording medium 106, the reflected light intensity decreases, and the output also decreases accordingly. An output threshold for edge detection is stored in advance in the ROM 309 or EEPROM 304. The edges of the recording medium 106 can be detected by detecting the position where the output value of the photodiode 202 falls below the threshold. By performing similar detection operations at both ends of the recording medium 106, the left and right edge positions and the width of the recording medium 106 can be calculated. This completes the paper width detection process of this embodiment.

[0024] Next, the performance determination operation of the optical sensor 102 of this embodiment will be described.

[0025] First, the range in the width direction of the recording medium 106 into which ink can be ejected is divided into multiple areas according to the ease with which ink ejected at that location adheres to the optical sensor 102, and these specified values ​​are stored in the ROM 309 or the EEPROM 304. The area division method will now be described. As an example of experimental results, there is data showing the amount of ink ejected in forward printing and reverse printing that adhered to the optical sensor 102 in each of the left (A), center (B), and right (C) areas of the paper surface 106 in the case where the optical sensor 102 is arranged as shown in Figure 4. From these results, it can be seen that there are significant characteristics in terms of the tendency of ink adhesion amount = ink adhesion ease, that is, left (A) > center (B) > right (C), and reverse printing > forward printing. The reason why the amount of mist adhering is greatest in the reverse printing on the left side (A) is that in the configuration of the first embodiment shown in Figure 1, when the carriage 101 on which the optical sensor 102 is located turns back, a large turbulence is generated, causing the mist that is stirred up to adhere to the optical sensor 102, which is located immediately downstream. The turbulence becomes smaller as you move from the left side to the center and then to the right side, and the amount of mist that adheres also decreases. Furthermore, during forward printing, the sensor 102 is located upstream of the head in the head movement direction, making it difficult for the stirred up mist to adhere to it.

[0026] Based on the above results, the left side in the width direction (scanning direction) is divided into three areas: A, the center B, and the right side C. Furthermore, for each area, the ease with which ink adheres to the optical sensor 102 (= influence coefficient (Y) indicating the degree of influence on the optical sensor) is set separately for forward printing and backward printing, that is, for each scanning direction. The coefficients are set as follows: A area backward printing: Ya, B area backward printing: Yb, C area backward printing: Yc, A area forward printing: Yd, B area forward printing: Ye, C area forward printing: Yf.

[0027] The cumulative number of ejections is counted and stored for each of the forward and reverse printing operations in the aforementioned areas A, B, and C. The cumulative number of ejections for each operation is Xa for area A reverse printing, Xb for area B reverse printing, Xc for area C reverse printing, Xd for area A forward printing, Xe for area B forward printing, and Xf for area C.

[0028] Here, the process of determining the cumulative number of ejections during a printing operation will be described.

[0029] As explained in the block diagram section, the CPU 301 can obtain the number of times each ink color is ejected by counting the print data (1) among the print signals (binary signals indicating whether each ink color will print a dot for each pixel (1) or not (0)) stored in the print buffer 303. In addition, the ink ejection position and the direction of forward printing and reverse printing are obtained by counting the pulse signals output by the carriage motor encoder 110, and from this information, it is possible to count the number of inks ejected within the range of each of the aforementioned areas (A / B / C) for forward printing and reverse printing while actually performing the printing operation.

[0030] When a predetermined amount of printing operation is completed, the cumulative number of ejections up to that point is read from EEPROM 304, and this is added to the number of ejections for the current printing operation to obtain a new cumulative number of ejections, which is then overwritten in EEPROM 304. This completes the process of determining the cumulative number of ejections.

[0031] 5 is a flowchart illustrating the steps of the optical sensor performance determination mode executed by the CPU 301 of this embodiment. Such an optical sensor performance determination mode is executed before reflectance measurement is performed by the optical sensor 102. For example, this is before feeding the recording medium 106 at the start of printing.

[0032] When the optical sensor performance determination mode is started, in step S401, the CPU 301 reads the current cumulative number of ejections (X) and the aforementioned influence coefficient (Y) that indicates the degree of influence on the optical sensor, both of which are stored in the EEPROM 304. Here, the current cumulative number of ejections indicates the cumulative value of the number of ejections since the optical sensor was attached to the recording device or since the last maintenance process was performed on the optical sensor. The reason why the cumulative number of ejections for each color is obtained to determine the performance of the optical sensor is that the amount of mist that adheres to the optical sensor 102 and reduces performance is correlated with the cumulative number of ink ejections.

[0033] In step S401, once the reading of the cumulative number of discharges and the influence coefficient is complete, in step S402, the CPU 301 calculates the influence degree (influence level) (R) that indicates the degree of influence of the mist on the optical sensor 102 from the obtained values ​​of the cumulative number of discharges (X) and the influence coefficient (Y). The larger the influence degree (R) value, the more mist adheres to the optical sensor 102, indicating that the paper width detection accuracy of the optical sensor 102 is low. The influence degree R can be calculated using the following formula. R=(Xa×Ya)+(Xb×Yb)+(Xc×Yc)+(Xd×Yd)+(Xe×Ye)+(Xf×Yf)

[0034] Here, R is calculated for each ink color, and for example, if the ink consists of four colors, black (Bk), magenta (M), cyan (Cy), and yellow (Y), it will be R(Bk), R(M), R(Cy), and R(Y) for each ink color. Also, since the degree of influence when ink adheres to the optical sensor 102 differs depending on the ink color, an influence coefficient (Cl) is set for each color, and these are Cl(Bk), Cl(M), Cl(Cy), and Cl(Y). The final influence coefficient R(total) is calculated using the following formula: R(total)=(Cl(Bk)×R(Bk))+(Cl(M)×R(M))+(Cl(Cy)×R(Cy))+(Cl(Y)×R(Y))

[0035] Once the influence level (R(total)) is calculated in step S402, the process proceeds to step S403, where the CPU 301 reads out a determination threshold previously stored in the EEPROM 304 and compares it with the calculated influence level (R(total)). In this embodiment, there are two determination thresholds. The first threshold is an influence level at which adjustment of the drive pulse output from the LED drive circuit 305 and adjustment of the gain level of the amplifier circuit 307 are required to perform correct paper width detection. The second threshold is an influence level at which correct paper width detection by the optical sensor 102 can be performed after the above adjustments have been made, and the second threshold is greater than the first threshold.

[0036] In step S403, the CPU 301 compares the influence degree with the first threshold value and the second threshold value. If the comparison result shows that the influence degree value is less than the first threshold value, it is determined that the performance of the optical sensor is capable of supporting paper width detection, and the process proceeds to step S404, where a predetermined paper width detection operation is performed.

[0037] On the other hand, if the influence degree value is equal to or greater than the first threshold value and less than the second threshold value in step S403, the process proceeds to step S405, where the drive pulse output from the LED drive circuit 305 and the gain level of the amplifier circuit 307 are adjusted, and the predetermined paper width detection operation is executed in step S404. If the influence degree value is equal to or greater than the second threshold value, it is determined that the performance of the optical sensor is insufficient for paper width detection, and the process proceeds to step S406, where the paper width detection operation is stopped and a notification of the corrective action that the user should take is made. The user may be notified by displaying the information on the display device 315, or by notifying a personal computer connected via an interface such as USB, or a server connected to the network via a wired LAN or wireless LAN.

[0038] This completes the process.

[0039] As the notification of the corrective action to be taken by the user in step S406, for example, a screen recommending that the user perform maintenance processing on the optical sensor is displayed on the display device 315, as shown in Fig. 6. Alternatively, if the optical sensor itself is replaceable, a display recommending that the user replace the sensor may be displayed. After such processing is performed, the cumulative number of discharges recorded in the EEPROM 304 is reset.

[0040] In the first embodiment, there are two determination thresholds in step 403, but there may be only one influence degree, which is the limit at which paper width detection can be performed correctly, or there may be three or more determination thresholds.

[0041] In the first embodiment, the influence coefficient (Y) is set individually (Ya to Yf) for all combinations of divided areas and printing directions. However, as shown in FIG. 4, if the influence coefficient (Y) can be expressed by multiplying the area influence coefficient and the printing direction influence coefficient, Set the area influence coefficients as YAarea, YBarea, YCarea, and the print direction influence coefficients as YToward, YReturn. Ya~Yf, Ya=YAarea×Yforward, Yb=YBarea×Yforward, Yc=YCarea×Yforward, Yd=YAarea×Yreturn, Ye=YBarea×Yreturn, Yf=YCarea×Yreturn Specifically, in the case of Figure 4, the coefficients are YAarea=1.0, YBarea=0.5, YCarea=0.3, Youtward=1.0, Yreturn=0.3.

[0042] Using the method described above, the degree of ink adhesion to the optical sensor due to ink ejection, i.e., the degree of impact on the output value of the optical sensor, can be calculated with high accuracy, and adjustments, maintenance, or guidance can be carried out at the appropriate time.

[0043] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, a case will be described in which the present invention is applied to a conveyance motor encoder 115. Portions that are the same as those in the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0044] As described above, the transport motor encoder 115 is attached to the shaft of the transport roller 108 that transports the recording medium 106. The transport motor encoder 115 detects the slits in the transport motor wheel-type scale 114 to detect the direction, position, and speed of the transport operation, making it an optical sensor necessary for controlling the transport of the recording medium 106. Because the transport roller's transport accuracy is most demanding near the ink ejection area, it is often installed near the ink ejection area. As a result, the transport motor encoder 115 is also installed near the ink ejection area, where ink is likely to adhere. When the amount of ink adhering to the transport motor encoder 115 increases, the amplitude of the output pulse signal decreases and the rise and fall times become sluggish. This makes it impossible to detect the correct position and speed, resulting in malfunctions such as distorted output images and recording medium clogging. The purpose of this embodiment is to accurately estimate the amount of ink adhering to the transport motor encoder 115 and evaluate its performance.

[0045] Next, the performance determination operation of the transport motor encoder 115 (hereinafter referred to as the encoder 115) will be described.

[0046] FIG. 7 shows area division and influence coefficients for each divided area in the performance determination operation of the encoder 115 of the second embodiment.

[0047] First, the range in the width direction of the recording medium 106 onto which ink can be ejected is divided into a plurality of areas according to the ease with which ink ejected at that location will adhere to the encoder 115 .

[0048] Here, in the case of the encoder 115 placement as shown in Figure 7, adhesion is generally more likely in areas close to the encoder 115. However, during backward printing, printing is performed while moving in the direction toward the encoder 115, so the range in which the influence coefficient is set to be large is wider than during forward printing, when printing is performed while moving in the direction away from the encoder 115.

[0049] Following this trend, when printing backwards, the left side of the width is divided into three areas: A2, the center B2, and the right side C2. When printing forwards, the area is divided into three areas: A3, B3, and C3, which have different ranges than when printing backwards.

[0050] The ink adhesion to the encoder 115 (= the influence coefficient (Y) indicating the degree of influence on the encoder 115) is as follows: A2 area of ​​reverse printing and A3 area of ​​forward printing: Ya, B2 area of ​​reverse printing and B3 area of ​​forward printing: Yb, C2 area of ​​reverse printing and C3 area of ​​forward printing: Yc, which are values ​​common to reverse printing and forward printing. Set as.

[0051] The cumulative number of discharges is counted and stored for each of the areas A2 / B2 / C2 during reverse printing and A3 / B3 / C3 during forward printing. The cumulative number of discharges for each is: A area reverse printing: Xa2, B area reverse printing: Xb2, C area reverse printing: Xc2, A area forward printing: Xa3, B area forward printing: Xb3, C area forward printing: Xc3.

[0052] The cumulative number of ejections during the printing operation is calculated in the same process as in the first embodiment for the A2, B2, and C2 areas during backward printing and the A3, B3, and C3 areas during forward printing.

[0053] 8 is a flowchart illustrating the steps of the carry motor encoder performance determination mode executed by the CPU 301 of this embodiment. This carry motor encoder performance determination mode is executed before driving the carry motor, for example, before feeding the recording medium 106 at the start of printing.

[0054] When the optical sensor performance determination mode is started, in step S801, the CPU 301 reads out the current cumulative number of ejections (X) and the influence coefficient (Y) indicating the degree of influence on the optical sensor, both of which are stored in the EEPROM 304. Here, the current cumulative number of ejections indicates the cumulative value of the number of ejections since the optical sensor was attached to the recording apparatus or since the last maintenance process was performed on the optical sensor.

[0055] The reason why the cumulative number of ejections of each color is obtained to determine the performance of the optical sensor is that the amount of mist that adheres to the encoder 115 and reduces performance is correlated with the cumulative number of ejections of ink.

[0056] Once the reading of the cumulative number of discharges and the influence coefficient is completed in step S801, the influence degree (influence level) (R), which indicates the degree of influence of the mist on the encoder 115, is calculated from the obtained values ​​of the cumulative number of discharges (X) and the influence coefficient (Y) in step S802. The larger the influence degree (R) value, the more mist adheres to the encoder 115, indicating the high possibility that the encoder 115 will output an abnormal pulse. The influence degree R can be calculated using the following formula. R=(Xa2+Xa3)×Ya+(Xb2+Xb3)×Yb+(Xc2×Xc3)×Yc

[0057] Here, R is calculated for each ink color, and for example, if the ink consists of four colors, black (Bk), magenta (M), cyan (Cy), and yellow (Y), the values ​​for each ink color are R(Bk), R(M), R(Cy), and R(Y). Also, since the degree of influence when ink adheres to the encoder 115 differs depending on the ink color, an influence coefficient (Cl) is set for each color, and these are Cl(Bk), Cl(M), Cl(Cy), and Cl(Y). The final influence coefficient R(total) is calculated using the following formula: R(total)=(Cl(Bk)×R(Bk))+(Cl(M)×R(M))+(Cl(Cy)×R(Cy))+(Cl(Y)×R(Y))

[0058] After the influence degree (R(total)) is calculated in step S802, the process proceeds to step S803, where the CPU 301 reads out a judgment threshold value previously stored in the EEPROM 304 and compares it with the calculated influence degree (R(total)). The judgment threshold value is the influence degree at which the encoder 115 can output normal pulses.

[0059] If the comparison result in step S803 shows that the value of the influence degree does not reach the threshold value, it is determined that the performance of the encoder 115 is within the normal operating range, and the process proceeds to step S804, where a predetermined conveyance motor drive operation is performed.

[0060] On the other hand, if the value of the impact degree is equal to or greater than the threshold value in step S803, it is determined that the performance of the encoder 115 is such that normal pulses cannot be output, and the process proceeds to step S805, where the drive of the transport motor is stopped and a notification of the corrective action that the user should take is made. As a method of notifying the user, the notification may be made on the display device 315 of the recording apparatus main body as in the first embodiment, or may be made to a personal computer connected via an I / F such as USB, or to a server connected to a network via a wired LAN or wireless LAN.

[0061] This completes the process.

[0062] After notifying the user in step S805 that the carry motor drive operation has been stopped, the user may be advised to perform maintenance processing on the encoder 115, for example. Also, if the encoder 115 itself is replaceable, the user may be advised to replace the part. After performing such processing, the cumulative number of ejections recorded in the EEPROM 304 is reset. This concludes the description of the operation of the carry motor encoder performance determination mode.

[0063] As described above, according to this embodiment, the performance of the optical sensor is determined by determining the deterioration of the optical sensor's performance from the cumulative number of ink ejections and the degree of impact that ink has on the optical sensor, taking into account the location of ink ejection and the direction of carriage movement at that time. This makes it possible to accurately estimate the deterioration of the optical sensor's performance, taking into account the impact of air currents generated by the carriage's reciprocating movement, which is unique to serial printers, and as a result, maintenance can be performed at a more appropriate time.

Claims

1. a print head that ejects ink onto a print medium based on print data; a carriage for reciprocatingly scanning the recording head; an optical sensor; a counting means for counting the cumulative number of times the recording head has discharged ink, a storage means for storing a setting in which a recording medium onto which ink can be ejected is divided into a plurality of areas in the scanning direction of the recording head, and a coefficient of influence set for each of the divided areas on the output value of the optical sensor when ink is ejected in that area; and the counting means counts the cumulative number of times the recording head has ejected ink for each divided area and for each scanning direction; a determining unit that determines the performance of the optical sensor by calculating the degree of influence of ink adhesion on the output value of the optical sensor from the influence coefficient for each divided area and the cumulative number of ejections for each divided area, and comparing the degree of influence with a predetermined threshold value.

2. the influence coefficient is set for each area and for each scanning direction of the print head when ejecting ink, The recording device according to claim 1, wherein the determining means calculates a degree of influence of ink adhesion on the output value of the optical sensor from the influence coefficient for each divided area and each scanning direction and the cumulative number of ejections for each divided area and each scanning direction, and determines the performance of the optical sensor by comparing the degree of influence with a predetermined threshold value.

3. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the influence coefficient is set to a common value in the scanning direction of the print head when ejecting ink for each of the areas.

4. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the range of the area is set in accordance with how easily ink adheres to the optical sensor when ink is ejected in the area.

5. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the influence degree calculated by the determining means exceeds the predetermined threshold value, the operation using the optical sensor is stopped.

6. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the influence degree calculated by the determining means exceeds the predetermined threshold, the recording apparatus has a notifying means for informing the user of a method of dealing with the problem.

7. 7. The recording apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the count of the cumulative number of ejections is reset when the user implements the corrective measure.

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