Liquid Ejection Nozzle Abnormality Detection and Recovery Timing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In liquid ejection apparatuses, such as printers, the maintenance operation to clear abnormal nozzles can result in wasteful ink ejection if the period between the scheduled maintenance and actual recording is long, leading to increased viscosity of ink and the need for repeated discharge.
Innovation Solution
A liquid ejection apparatus with a controller that performs inspection driving and stores flag information when an abnormal nozzle is detected, delaying the recovery operation until a user-initiated signal is received, thus avoiding unnecessary ink discharge during the waiting period.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the maintenance operation is performed at a scheduled time, then the nozzle abnormality is detected and recovery is initiated, but the ink viscosity increases during the waiting period causing wasteful repeated discharge
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary inspection driving to detect abnormal nozzles and stores flag information in advance, but delays the actual recovery operation until a user-initiated signal is received. This preliminary detection without immediate recovery action prevents ink waste while maintaining nozzle monitoring reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the timing of the recovery operation based on user behavior patterns. Instead of fixed scheduled maintenance, the recovery is triggered adaptively when the user activates the apparatus, optimizing the balance between nozzle maintenance and ink conservation.
2Loss of substance
If the recovery operation is delayed until user activation, then ink waste is reduced, but the nozzle may remain abnormal for a longer period
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary inspection driving to detect abnormal nozzles and stores flag information in advance, but delays the actual recovery operation until a user-initiated signal is received. This preliminary detection without immediate recovery action prevents ink waste while maintaining nozzle monitoring reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors nozzle status through inspection driving and provides feedback by storing abnormality information. This feedback mechanism ensures that nozzle conditions are tracked and will be addressed during the next user activation, maintaining system reliability.
3Reliability
If frequent maintenance operations are performed, then nozzle reliability is maintained, but productivity decreases due to repeated interruptions
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs inspection driving periodically to monitor nozzle status, but only executes recovery operations when abnormality is detected and user activation occurs. This periodic monitoring with conditional recovery reduces unnecessary interruptions while maintaining nozzle performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system autonomously detects nozzle abnormalities through inspection driving and stores diagnostic information without requiring user intervention. The recovery operation is then automatically executed when the user activates the apparatus, eliminating the need for manual maintenance scheduling and reducing productivity impact.
Data Source
AI summary
When inspection driving is performed by a liquid ejection head, a signal output circuit outputs a determination signal indicating whether a nozzle is an abnormal nozzle. A controller receives a first signal different from a signal responsive to a user operation of the liquid ejection apparatus; in response to receiving the first signal, performs the inspection driving and, in response to determining that the determination signal transmitted from the signal output circuit indicates that the abnormal nozzle exists, stores flag information in a memory. The flag information indicates that a recovery operation needs to be performed. After storing the flag information, the controller receives a second signal that is the signal responsive to the user operation of the liquid ejection apparatus; and in response to receiving the second signal and determining that the memory stores the flag information, controls a recovery device to perform the recovery operation.