Image forming apparatus

Abstract

To inhibit unevenness of multiple ink components occurring in a passage connecting a main tank in which an ink is stored with an ink head part having a heating device in an image formation device which uses the ink containing the multiple components having melting points different from each other, heats the ink, and discharges the ink.SOLUTION: An image formation device includes: a main tank in which an ink is stored; an ink head part which includes a first heating device for heating the ink and discharges the heated ink; a supply passage which supplies the ink from the main tank to the ink head part; and a second heating device for heating the supply passage. The second heating device starts heating at a predetermined timing so that a temperature of a specific region in the supply passage becomes a second temperature (a melting point of a component having the highest melting point) or higher.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Claims

1. A main tank for storing ink containing multiple types of components with different melting points, The first heating device heats the ink, and the ink head unit ejects the heated ink, A supply channel for supplying the ink from the main tank to the ink head section, A second heating device for heating the aforementioned supply channel, Equipped with a control device, The supply channel includes a specific region where, when the first heating device is heating the ink and the second heating device is not heating the supply channel, the temperature is above a first temperature, which is the melting point of the component with the lowest melting point among the multiple types of components, and below a second temperature, which is the melting point of the component with the highest melting point. The control device starts heating by the second heating device at a predetermined timing so that the temperature of the specific region becomes equal to or greater than the second temperature. The aforementioned ink is a gel ink, The image forming apparatus wherein each of the aforementioned multiple types of components is a wax that functions as a gelling agent, or a component contained within one wax that functions as a gelling agent.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control device starts heating by the second heating device in response to at least one of the following events occurring: the power to the image forming apparatus is turned on, and a first predetermined time has elapsed since the second heating device stopped heating.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device initiates heating by the second heating device when ink clogging occurs.

4. The system further includes a supply pump that sends the ink from the main tank to the ink head section, The aforementioned ink head section is A storage tank for storing the ink delivered by the supply pump, The system further includes a sensor for detecting the amount of ink in the storage tank, The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control device starts heating by the second heating device if, within a second predetermined time after the supply pump is driven, the amount of liquid in the storage tank detected by the sensor does not reach a first threshold.

5. The system further includes a pressure sensor for detecting the pressure of the ink in the supply channel, The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control device starts heating by the second heating device when the value detected by the pressure sensor reaches a second threshold.

6. The system further includes a supply pump that sends the ink from the main tank to the ink head section, The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device drives the supply pump after the second heating device has started heating but before the temperature of the specific region reaches the second temperature.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device controls the first heating device to dissolve the plurality of components to a sol state.

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