Print Head Maintenance Assembly Guide Rail Wiper Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Large print heads pose space constraints within printing devices, making it challenging to accommodate larger wiper plates effectively for cleaning print heads.
Innovation Solution
The use of a maintenance cartridge with a guide rail that engages with a wiper assembly, allowing the wiper element to be moved and positioned relative to the print head path, thereby accommodating larger wiper plates without increasing the device's footprint.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If larger wiper plates are used to clean larger print heads, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but device footprint increases
Solution Approach 1:
The wiper plate is made movable relative to the print head through a guide rail mechanism. The maintenance cartridge can move the wiper plate between a retracted position (reducing footprint) and an extended position (increasing cleaning effectiveness). This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize between the two conflicting requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of increasing the footprint in the horizontal plane, the solution extends the wiper plate in the vertical dimension using a guide rail. This allows larger wiper plates to be accommodated without increasing the device's horizontal footprint, effectively moving the solution to another spatial dimension.
2Manufacturing precision
If larger wiper plates are used, then cleaning coverage is improved, but space constraints within the device are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The guide rail mechanism enables the wiper plate to dynamically adjust its position and orientation. The maintenance cartridge can retract the wiper plate when not in use and extend it during cleaning operations, allowing larger wiper plates to be accommodated within the device's volume constraints.
Solution Approach 2:
The wiper plate can be retracted into or nested within the maintenance cartridge when not in use. This nesting arrangement allows the larger wiper plate to be stored compactly within the device volume, only extending when needed for cleaning operations.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a print head maintenance cartridge, a printing device and a method of cleaning a print head. The print head maintenance assembly comprises a maintenance cartridge that is movable along a first direction and a wiper assembly comprising a wiper element for wiping a print head. The wiper element extends along the first direction. The maintenance cartridge comprises a guide rail extending along the first direction. The guide rail is to engage with the wiper assembly to adjust a position of the wiper element depending on a relative position between the maintenance cartridge and the wiper assembly in the first direction.