Inkjet recording device

Abstract

The present invention provides an inkjet recording device that uses a syringe pump to supply ink, enabling both the prevention of damage due to excessive pressure on the flow path and the detection of abnormalities in the flow path in a simple and low-cost manner. [Solution] The inkjet recording device comprises a recording head, an ink container, an ink supply unit, a drive mechanism, a timer, a home position detection unit, and a control unit. The ink supply unit includes a sub-tank, an ink flow path, and a syringe pump having a cylinder and a piston. When the control unit performs a purging operation using the syringe pump, it presses the piston in the home position by a preset pressure amount, then measures the travel time from the start of the pulling operation until it reaches the home position using a timer, and determines that an abnormality has occurred in the ink supply unit if the travel time is shorter than a threshold.

Claims

1. A recording head having multiple nozzles for ejecting ink, An ink container for containing the aforementioned ink, A sub-tank for temporarily storing the ink supplied from the ink container, An ink channel through which the ink circulates from the sub-tank through the recording head back to the sub-tank, A syringe pump comprising: a cylinder positioned downstream of the sub-tank and upstream of the recording head with respect to the ink flow direction of the ink channel, having an outlet connected to the recording head and a filling port connected to the sub-tank at one end and an open end at the other; and a piston inserted into the cylinder and movable in one direction approaching the one end and in the other direction approaching the other end; An ink supply unit including, A drive mechanism that performs a pressing operation to move the piston toward one end and a pulling operation to move it toward the other end, A timer for measuring the movement time of the piston, A home position detection unit that detects when the piston is in the home position, A control unit that controls the drive mechanism, In an inkjet recording device equipped with, The aforementioned drive mechanism is Motor and, One or more gears that transmit the driving force of the motor to the piston, A torque limiter mounted on one of the aforementioned gears, It has, When the control unit performs a purging operation to forcibly push the ink out of the nozzle of the recording head using the syringe pump, After performing the pressing operation on the piston in the home position by a predetermined set pressing amount, the time it takes to move from the start of the pulling operation to the home position is measured by the timer. An inkjet recording apparatus characterized in that it can execute an abnormality detection mode that determines that an abnormality has occurred in the ink supply unit if the aforementioned travel time is shorter than a threshold.

2. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the threshold is determined by a ratio calculation with respect to the time required to move the piston, which has been pressed by the set pressing amount, to the home position by the pulling operation.

3. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit executes the abnormality determination mode when performing the purge operation immediately after replacement and maintenance work on the ink supply unit or the recording head.

4. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit executes the abnormality determination mode when the purging operation is performed for the first time after the inkjet recording apparatus has been left unused for a long period of time.

5. The control unit, when performing the purge operation, executes the abnormality determination mode and if the travel time is shorter than the threshold, The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the abnormality determination mode is executed again when the next purging operation is performed, and an abnormality is determined to have occurred in the ink supply unit only if the travel time is shorter than the threshold.

6. The system includes a notification unit that notifies the user that an abnormality has occurred in the ink supply unit. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, when the control unit performs the abnormality determination mode and determines that an abnormality has occurred in the ink supply unit, it notifies the occurrence of the abnormality using the notification unit.

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