Liquid Jetting Apparatus Ink Solidification Prevention
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ink-jet printers face issues with the solidification and accumulation of easily-solidifying inks on flushing receiving parts, leading to increased printing time due to prolonged flushing processes.
Innovation Solution
A liquid jetting apparatus that jets a first liquid and a second liquid, where the second liquid is more likely to solidify, onto specific landing positions during flushing, allowing the first liquid to dissolve and prevent accumulation, while optimizing the movement and jetting processes to minimize flushing time without affecting the printing process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If flushing is performed by jetting black ink first then color inks sequentially with the ink-jet head stopped twice, then the black ink is prevented from solidifying and accumulating, but the flushing time increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the jetting of black ink and color inks into a single flushing operation where both types of ink are jetted simultaneously from aligned nozzles. This merging of operations allows the color inks to prevent solidification of black ink while completing the flushing process in one action rather than requiring separate stopped operations, thus reducing flushing time while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary positioning of the ink-jet head to align nozzles for both black ink and color inks before initiating the flushing process. This preliminary alignment action enables simultaneous jetting of multiple ink types without requiring the head to stop multiple times, thereby preventing ink solidification accumulation while minimizing time loss during flushing.
2Productivity
If the ink-jet head moves slowly to allow black ink and color inks to land on the same position during flushing, then the flushing can be performed during printing, but the flushing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the flushing process into two independent parts: black ink jetting from one nozzle and color ink jetting from another nozzle, both occurring simultaneously during head movement. This segmentation allows each ink type to be jetted independently while maintaining synchronized movement, enabling flushing during printing without requiring slow head movement, thus preserving productivity while minimizing time loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a temporal sequence of flushing operations to a spatial parallelism where black ink and color inks are jetted simultaneously from different nozzles. This dimensional change from time-based sequencing to space-based parallelism allows the flushing process to occur during printing operations, maintaining high productivity without increasing flushing time.
3Reliability
If multiple flushing operations are performed sequentially to prevent ink accumulation, then ink solidification is prevented, but the total printing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple flushing operations into a single simultaneous operation where black ink and color inks are jetted together from aligned nozzles. This combining of what would otherwise be sequential operations prevents ink accumulation and solidification while reducing the total number of flushing cycles, thereby maintaining reliability without significantly impacting printing speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent ensures continuous useful action by performing flushing operations during the printing process itself rather than as separate interruptions. The simultaneous jetting of black ink and color inks during head movement maintains continuous productivity while effectively preventing ink accumulation, eliminating the need for separate flushing cycles that would reduce printing speed.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution prevents the solidification and accumulation of inks on the flushing receiving part, reducing the overall printing time by streamlining the flushing process without increasing the jetting process duration.
Implementation Method 1
the first liquid to land on the first landing position, and the second liquid to land on the second landing position... the first liquid to dissolve and prevent accumulation
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided a liquid jetting apparatus including: a liquid jetting head including first and second nozzles from which the first and second liquids are jetted, respectively; a head driving unit; a flushing receiving part including first and second landing positions; and a controller. The controller causes the first and second liquids to be jetted from the first and second nozzles such that the first and second liquids land on the first and second landing positions respectively, in a case that a flushing process is performed in a state that a liquid-jetting process is performed. The controller controls the liquid jetting head to move during a period between jetting of the first and liquids land on the second landing position, in the case that the flushing process is performed in a state that the liquid-jetting process is not performed.