Printer Carriage Cleaning Accessory and Vacuum Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Printers operating in dirty environments suffer from quality defects due to airborne contaminants like cloth fibers and cellulose fibrous elements, which clog nozzles and deposit on the platen, leading to issues such as cracking or flaking in printed products, and printing fluid remnants can stick to the platen, affecting printer performance.
Innovation Solution
A printing apparatus with an integrated cleaning mechanism, including a cleaning accessory with bristles and a vacuum conduit system, where the cleaning accessory is attached to the carriage to remove contaminants from the platen during a servicing operation, and the vacuum conduit extracts the removed contaminants, enhancing the quality of printed products and extending the printer's lifespan.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the printer operates in a dirty environment, then productivity is maintained, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to contaminant deposition on the platen
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning accessory performs preliminary cleaning actions by scraping the platen surface before contaminants can cause significant quality defects, preventing rather than correcting problems
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning accessory acts as an intermediary between the platen and airborne contaminants, intercepting particles before they deposit on the printing surface
2Device complexity
If no cleaning mechanism is installed, then device complexity is reduced, but reliability deteriorates due to nozzle clogging and platen contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning accessory enables the printer to clean itself during operation, with the carriage and cleaning accessory being integral parts of the printer system that perform autonomous maintenance
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning mechanism performs preliminary cleaning before contaminants can cause reliability issues such as nozzle clogging or platen adhesion problems
3Manufacturing precision
If the cleaning accessory continuously cleans the platen, then manufacturing precision is improved, but use of energy increases due to continuous motor operation
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning accessory operates periodically during carriage movements rather than continuously, utilizing existing carriage motion to perform cleaning functions at intervals
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning function is integrated into the existing carriage movement cycle, ensuring that cleaning actions occur continuously during normal operation without requiring separate energy-consuming cycles
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
The integrated cleaning mechanism effectively removes contaminants and printing fluid remnants, improving print quality and extending the printer's operational life by preventing nozzle clogging and ensuring consistent performance.
Implementation Method 1
a vacuum source is controlled to cause vacuum conditions to the at least the print area of the platen
Data Source
AI summary
A printing apparatus is disclosed herein. The apparatus comprises a platen and a carriage. The platen has a printing zone, the platen being to hold a media moveable along a media path direction. The carriage includes a cleaning accessory interface couplable to a cleaning accessory, the cleaning accessory to remove contaminants from the platen upon the carriage's movement; and a conduit connectable to a vacuum source to extract the removed contaminants from the printing zone.