Printer Head Position Tracking After Emergency Stop
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional inkjet printers fail to restart printing from a desired position after an emergency stop, resulting in wasted work and lower print quality due to the inability to determine the recording head's position accurately after the driving motor's excitation is cut off.
Innovation Solution
An inkjet recording apparatus with position determining means, such as a rotary encoder, that continuously determines the recording head's position relative to the recording medium even after an emergency stop, allowing for precise movement to a desired restart position using controlling means, enabling continuous recording without starting from the beginning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the driving motor's excitation is cut off for emergency stop, then safety is improved, but the ability to determine recording head position is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent separates the position determination function from the motor excitation system by introducing an independent encoder that continuously monitors motor position even when excitation is cut off. This segmentation allows safety stops while maintaining position tracking capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The encoder acts as an intermediary device that indirectly measures motor position without requiring motor excitation. It provides position information to the control device independently of the motor's operational state, enabling position determination during emergency stops.
2Manufacturing precision
If printing restarts from the beginning after emergency stop, then position accuracy is maintained, but productivity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The control device performs preliminary position calculation before restarting printing. It calculates the appropriate restart position based on encoder data from the emergency stop point, allowing the system to resume printing at the correct location without restarting from the beginning.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from the encoder to determine where to restart printing. The control device continuously receives position information from the encoder, uses this feedback to calculate the restart position, and adjusts the printing process accordingly to maintain quality while improving efficiency.
3Manufacturing precision
If printing continues to ideal stop position, then print quality is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control device performs multiple functions: it manages normal printing operations, processes emergency stop commands, continuously tracks position via the encoder, calculates optimal stop positions, and determines restart locations. This multi-functionality avoids adding separate dedicated devices for each function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the position determination, emergency stop processing, and restart control functions into the existing control device. By merging these functions rather than adding separate systems, the patent improves print quality while minimizing the increase in device complexity.
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
Enables high-quality printing by allowing the recording head to restart from a desired position, reducing waste and resetting time, and maintaining print quality by avoiding visible boundary lines.
Implementation Method 1
position determining means, such as a rotary encoder, that continuously determines the recording head's position relative to the recording medium
Data Source
AI summary
A printer that restarts printing from a desired print position after an emergency stop is provided. A printer according to the present disclosure includes a head printing on a work, a driving motor moving at least one of the head and the work in order to change a print position on the work, a rotary encoder and an encoder counter determining a position of the head relative to the work, a control device supplying electric power to the encoder after excitation of the driving motor is turned off during printing and enabling the encoder counter to continue counting.