JP2006224548A - Ink jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink jet recorder in which one detector for detecting the end of a recording sheet in the width direction also serves to detect at least the upper end of the recording sheet furthermore. <P>SOLUTION: The ink jet recorder is arranged such that a media sensor 101 can move as a rotary member 102 rotates while being interlocked with reciprocal movement of a carriage 5 in the main scanning direction. When the rotary member 102 rotates, the media sensor 101 detects both front/rear ends and right/left ends of a recording sheet. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by ejecting ink from a recording means to a recording medium, and more particularly, performs recording on the entire surface of the recording medium by ejecting ink to a region larger than the four sides of the recording medium. The present invention relates to a recording apparatus.

An example of an apparatus that records on a recording medium such as a recording sheet is an ink jet recording apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, it is known that a recording sheet fed by a sheet feeding roller from a sheet feeding tray that is detachably attached to the lower part of the apparatus is conveyed U-turned from the bottom to the recording unit. The leading edge of the recording paper is detected by the detecting means arranged on the transport path, and the leading edge of the recording paper is abutted against the resist roller in a stopped state to correct the recording paper. Then, the registration roller is rotated in the transport direction, and the recording paper is sent again to the recording unit to form an image on the recording paper (see Patent Document 1).

  In such a printer, when the paper feed roller rotates due to the rotational force of the drive motor, it rotates in the direction opposite to the paper transport direction, and the drive motor rotates in reverse when the leading edge of the transported recording paper arrives. A printer that reverses the direction and sends a recording sheet to a printing unit is known (see Patent Document 2).

  First, the drive source is reversed to rotate the paper feed roller in the transport direction to feed out the recording paper. When the leading edge of the recording sheet is detected by the detecting means and a predetermined amount of conveyance is detected by a rotary encoder disposed on the registration roller shaft, the drive source is rotated forward to rotate the registration roller. Rotate in the transport direction. At this time, a force fed from the upstream side by the paper feed roller in a state where the leading edge of the recording paper of the registration roller is abutted is applied, a loop is formed on the transport path, and skew is corrected.

  However, when the drive source is rotated forward from this state and the registration roller is rotated in the transport direction, the paper feed roller is rotated in the reverse direction of the transport, so that the drive is cut off via the planetary gear mechanism so as to rotate freely. Therefore, the conveyance force is not applied to the paper, and the leading edge of the recording paper may not be caught in the registration roller.

Also, if a recording paper jam is detected by the recording paper jam detection sensor when the recording paper edge contacts the recording head or is caught by a device, the carriage motor is stopped and printing is performed. The carriage on which the head is mounted is stopped at the recording paper jam occurrence location (see Patent Document 3).
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-315637 (5th page, FIG. 2) JP 2000-335758 A (6th page, FIG. 1) JP 2002-36523 A (6th page, FIG. 1)

  As described above, the detection means for detecting the leading edge of the recording paper is arranged on the upstream side of the registration roller, and since the encoder is not attached to the registration roller shaft, the encoder detects that the recording paper is not caught in the registration roller pair. The recording paper is not actually sent from the transported amount. Therefore, ink is ejected long before the recording paper reaches the recording start position, and a part of the image is recorded on the recording paper, and a large amount of ink floats as mist. Therefore, there is a problem that the back surface of the front end of the recording paper is further soiled.

  In order to detect the recording paper jam, it is necessary to include the recording paper jam detection sensor disclosed in Patent Document 3. However, if the recording paper jam detection sensor is omitted to simplify the apparatus, the recording paper jam detection sensor is provided downstream of the registration sensor. There is nothing on the side that can detect the recording paper. Therefore, when a recording paper jam occurs due to a collision between the recording head and the recording paper, the jam cannot be detected until an abnormal current flows through the LF motor that drives the conveyance roller or the carriage motor that drives the carriage. Therefore, the recording head may be damaged, or a low capacity motor may not be able to withstand overload.

  Therefore, the present invention provides an ink jet recording apparatus in which one detector that detects an end portion in the width direction of a recording sheet further serves to detect at least the upper end of the recording sheet.

  An ink jet recording apparatus made to achieve the above object will be described with reference to FIG. 1 (the main scanning direction is the y-axis direction and the sub-scanning direction is the x-axis direction, that is, the recording medium conveyance direction). A recording head A5 in which a plurality of nozzles A6 for ejecting ink droplets are arranged on a medium (corresponding to recording paper P in the embodiment), and a carriage A2 in which the recording head A5 is mounted and reciprocated in the main scanning direction (in the embodiment) Is equivalent to the carriage 5), conveying means for conveying the recording medium in the sub-scanning direction x orthogonal to the main scanning direction y, and detecting means A1 (in the embodiment, the media sensor 101 detects the presence or absence of the recording medium). And a supporting means A3 (which corresponds to the rotating member 102 in the embodiment) that is attached to the carriage A2 and supports the detecting means A1. Means that among the plurality of nozzles A6, the detecting means A1 can be moved in the area A12 between the upstream area and the downstream area in the nozzle array area used when recording on the recording medium. It is a feature.

  Here, “upstream region” and “downstream region” of “upstream region and downstream region in nozzle arrangement region” will be described. “Upstream side” refers to the side on which the recording medium is carried into the printing position, and “downstream side” refers to the side on which the recording medium is discharged. Therefore, the “upstream area” refers to the nozzle arrangement area on the side where the recording medium is carried into the printing position, and the “downstream area” refers to the nozzle area on the side where the recording medium is discharged. Refers to the sequence region.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, the support means is, among the plurality of nozzles, between the upstream area and the downstream area in the nozzle arrangement area used for recording on the recording medium. The detection means can be moved.

Therefore, the upstream end of the recording medium can be detected before the nozzles in the upstream area of the nozzle arrangement area start to discharge ink.
In addition, when the registration sensor described in the background art detects the passage of the rear end of the recording medium after the passage of a predetermined time, the detection means mounted on the carriage does not detect the passage of the rear end of the recording medium. It is possible to detect the occurrence of a jam in which the recording medium is clogged in the ink jet recording apparatus within the recording area to be recorded on the recording medium.

Therefore, the reciprocating operation of the carriage can be stopped immediately, and it is not left until the drive source driving the carriage is overloaded.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the nozzle arrangement area used when recording on the recording medium according to the first aspect is replaced with a nozzle arrangement area used when performing borderless image recording (in FIG. 1). A11: where A14 indicates a nozzle area used during borderless image recording).

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, the distance between the ink discharge start position and the detection unit is shorter than when the front end of the recording medium is detected by a conventional registration sensor and ink is discharged after a predetermined time. . For this reason, at the time of borderless image recording, it is possible to start discharging ink just before the leading edge of the recording medium or just before the leading edge of the recording medium.

  As a result, the amount of wasted ink that does not land on the recording medium during borderless image recording can be reduced, and the amount of ink mist can be reduced, thereby preventing problems such as back contamination of the recording medium. it can.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the support means in any one of the first and second aspects can be rotated by a carriage via a support shaft, and the support means is interlocked with the reciprocating movement of the carriage in the main scanning direction. It is characterized in that the detection means is configured to be movable by rotating.

According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, the support means rotates, so that the detection means can detect both the front and rear ends and the left and right ends of the recording medium.
Accordingly, it is possible to detect any of the front end, the left and right ends, and the rear end of the recording medium with only one detection means.

  Further, as shown in claim 4, the support means in claim 3 may be as follows. In other words, a drive pulley that is rotationally driven by a drive source, a driven pulley that is rotatably supported, a driving pulley, and a timing belt that is fixed between the driven pulley and that fixes the carriage. The pulley attached to the carriage rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the source so that it can rotate.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, the support means can be rotated in conjunction with the reciprocation of the carriage without requiring another drive source in addition to the drive source to rotate the support means. .

Therefore, it is possible to provide an apparatus that can move the detection means at a low cost with a simple structure.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, when performing borderless image recording, the carriage is moved to the conveyance reference side of the recording medium, When the recording medium is conveyed by a predetermined amount by the conveying means, the presence or absence of the recording medium is detected by the detecting means, and according to the presence or absence of detection of the recording medium, the recording medium is conveyed by a predetermined amount, In order to perform control for reciprocating the carriage and detecting the edge of the recording medium by the detection means, when performing edgeless image recording, the carriage is moved to the conveyance reference side of the recording medium, and the conveyance is performed. When the recording medium is conveyed by a predetermined amount by means, the presence or absence of the recording medium is detected by the detection means, and the recording medium is detected by the conveyance means according to the presence or absence of detection of the recording medium. While quantitative transport, characterized in that it comprises a control means for performing control to detect an edge of the recording medium by the detection means by reciprocating the carriage.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, when a recording command to a recording medium is input from a computer such as a personal computer, the ink jet recording apparatus first moves the carriage to the transport reference position. The conveyance reference position is either the center or the side surface of the recording medium, and the carriage can be moved to this position.

  Accordingly, when the recording medium has various sizes such as A4 size, letter size, legal size, postcard size, etc., the size of the recording medium can be reliably detected no matter which size of the recording medium is conveyed.

  When the leading edge of the recording medium is detected, the side edge is detected next. At this time, the detection means moves to substantially the same position as the recording position on the recording medium, and more accurate detection of the side edge is possible.

Therefore, at the time of borderless image recording, it is possible to start discharging ink from the edge of the side edge.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, after the trailing end of the recording medium is detected by the detecting means arranged on the upstream side of the carriage, the recording medium is recorded by a predetermined conveyance amount. In order to stop the rotation of the driving source when the trailing end of the recording medium is not detected by the detection unit mounted on the carriage after the feed is performed, the control unit according to claim 5 further includes an upstream side of the carriage. After detecting the trailing edge of the recording medium by the detecting means disposed in the recording medium, after feeding the recording medium by a predetermined conveyance amount, the detecting means mounted on the carriage does not detect the trailing edge of the recording medium. It is characterized by stopping the rotation of the drive source.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, after the trailing end of the recording medium is detected by the detection means arranged on the upstream side of the carriage, the recording medium is fed by a predetermined conveyance amount and then mounted on the carriage. When the detection means does not detect the trailing edge of the recording medium, the rotation of the drive source can be stopped.

  Therefore, the reciprocating operation of the carriage and the transporting operation of the recording medium can be stopped immediately, and the drive source that drives the carriage and the transporting roller is not left to a state where an overload is applied.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a recording head in which a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink droplets are arranged on a recording medium; a carriage mounted with the recording head and reciprocating in the main scanning direction; A conveying means for conveying the image in a sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction, a detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a recording medium, and a supporting means attached to the carriage and supporting the detecting means. Among these nozzles, the detection means can be moved to a downstream area in an array area of nozzles used when recording on a recording medium.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus having this configuration, the support means can move the detection means to a downstream area in the nozzle arrangement area used when recording on the recording medium among the plurality of nozzles.

  Therefore, after the trailing edge of the recording medium is detected by the registration sensor and then conveyed by a predetermined conveyance amount, if the trailing edge of the recording medium is not detected by the detection means mounted on the carriage, it is recognized that a jam has occurred. it can.

Embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a multi-function device (MFD) 1 according to an embodiment which is an example of an ink jet recording apparatus, and FIG. 3 is a side sectional view thereof.

  The multi-function device 1 has a printer function, a copy function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the multi-function device 1 is used for reading an original on a synthetic resin housing 2. An image reading device 12 is provided.

  The image reading device 12 is configured to be vertically openable and closable with respect to the housing 2 around a pivot (not shown) provided at the left end thereof. Further, a document cover body 13 covering the upper surface of the image reading device 12 is attached to the image reading device 12 so as to be able to be opened and closed up and down around a pivot 12a (see FIG. 3) provided at the rear end thereof. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a placement glass plate 16 is provided on the upper surface of the image reading device 12 for placing the document for reading by opening the document cover 13 upward. Below that, a guide image sensor (CIS: Contact Image Sensor) 17 for reading a document extends in a direction parallel to the carriage 5 moving in the main scanning direction shown in FIG. 3 (main scanning direction, left-right direction). A reciprocating movement is provided along the shaft 44.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an operation including an operation button group 14a for performing an input operation and a liquid crystal display unit (LCD) 14b for displaying various types of information is provided in front of the image reading device 12. A panel portion 14 is provided.

  On the other hand, at the bottom of the housing 2, a paper feeding unit 11 for feeding recording paper P as a recording medium (conveyed medium) is provided. In the paper feeding unit 11, a paper feeding cassette 3 that accommodates recording paper P in a stacked (stacked) state is attached to and detached from the housing 2 in the front-rear direction via an opening 2 a formed on the front side of the housing 2. It is provided as possible. In the present embodiment, the paper feed cassette 3 is a recording paper P of A4 size, letter size, legal size, postcard size, etc., whose short side (width) is in the paper feed direction (sub-scanning direction, front-rear direction, arrow A direction). A plurality of sheets can be stacked (stacked) in a direction extending in a direction (main scanning direction, left-right direction) orthogonal to the direction of storage.

  As shown in FIG. 3, an inclined separation plate 8 for separating the recording paper is disposed on the back side (rear end side) of the paper feed cassette 3. The inclined separation plate 8 is formed in a convex curved shape in plan view so as to protrude at the center in the width direction (left-right direction) of the recording paper P and to recede toward the left and right ends in the width direction of the recording paper P. . At the center in the width direction of the recording paper P, there is provided a sawtooth elastic separation pad for abutting the leading edge of the recording paper P to promote separation.

  Further, in the paper feeding unit 11, a base end portion of a paper feeding arm 6a for feeding the recording paper P from the paper feeding cassette 3 is mounted on the housing 2 side so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction. An LF (conveyance) motor 132 (not shown in FIG. 3) is fed to a paper feed roller 6b provided at the tip of the paper feed arm 6a by a gear transmission mechanism 6c provided in the paper feed arm 6a. The rotational driving force from FIG. 8) is transmitted. The recording paper P accumulated in the paper feed cassette 3 is separated and conveyed one by one by the paper feed roller 6b and the elastic separation pad of the inclined separation plate 8 described above. The recording paper P separated in such a manner as to advance in the paper feeding direction (arrow A direction) passes through a laterally U-shaped path formed in the gap between the first conveyance path body 60 and the second conveyance path body 52. The paper is fed to the recording unit 7 provided above (high position) of the paper feed cassette 3 through the feed path 9 including the feed path 9.

FIG. 4 is a partial plan view of the multi-function device 1 with the image reading device 12 removed.
In the figure, the recording unit 7 (not shown) is a horizontally long plate-like shape that is supported by a main frame 21 formed in an upwardly open box shape and a pair of left and right side plates 21a and extends in the left-right direction (main scanning direction). It is provided between the first guide member 22 and the second guide member 23. An ink jet recording head 4 (see FIG. 3) that records an image on recording paper P by discharging ink from the lower surface of the recording unit 7 and a carriage 5 on which the recording head 4 is mounted are provided.

  The carriage 5 is slidably supported across the first guide member 22 on the upstream side in the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction) and the second guide member 23 on the downstream side, and can reciprocate in the left-right direction. Yes. A timing belt 24 extends on the upper surface of the second guide member 23 arranged downstream in the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction) so as to extend in the main scanning direction (left-right direction) in order to reciprocate the carriage 5. It is wound. A CR (carriage) motor 131 that drives the timing belt 24 is fixed to the lower surface of the second guide member 23.

  On the other hand, in the recording unit 7, a flat platen 26 extending in the left-right direction facing the recording head 4 is provided on the lower surface of the recording head 4 in the carriage 5 between the guide members 22 and 23. 21 is fixed.

  As shown in FIG. 3, on the upstream side of the platen 26 in the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction), a drive roller 50 is provided as a transport (registration) roller for transporting the recording paper P to the lower surface of the recording head 4. A nip roller 51 is disposed below the drive roller 50. Further, on the downstream side of the platen 26 in the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction), the recording paper P that has passed through the recording unit 7 is driven to be conveyed to the paper discharge unit 10 along the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction). A paper discharge roller 28 and a spur roller (not shown) urged toward the paper discharge roller 28 are disposed opposite to the paper discharge roller 28.

  The paper discharge unit 10 on which the recording paper P recorded by the recording unit 7 is discharged with its recording surface facing upward is disposed above the paper supply unit 11, and the paper discharge port 10 a is an opening on the front surface of the housing 2. Opened in common with 2a. The recording paper P discharged from the paper discharge unit 10 in the paper discharge direction (arrow B direction) is accumulated and accommodated on a paper discharge tray 10b located on the inner side of the opening 2a.

  An ink storage unit (not shown) is provided at the front right end position of the housing 2 covered with the image reading device 12. In this ink storage unit, four ink cartridges each containing ink of four colors (black (Bk), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y)) for full-color recording are stored in the image reading apparatus. It is mounted so that it can be attached and detached with 12 open upward. The ink cartridges for each color and the recording head 4 described above are connected by four flexible ink supply pipes, and the inks stored in the ink cartridges are each ink supply pipe (not shown). To the recording head 4.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the carriage peripheral mechanism 100 including a function of detecting the end of the recording paper P mounted in the multi-function device of the present embodiment.
Main components of the carriage peripheral mechanism 100 according to the present embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the carriage peripheral mechanism 100 according to the present embodiment includes a media sensor 101 that detects an edge of the recording paper P, a rotating member 102 that supports the media sensor 101 and rotatably supports the carriage 5. A carriage motor 131, a drive pulley 103 that is rotationally driven by the carriage motor 131, a driven pulley 104 that is rotatably supported, a timing belt 24 that is installed between the drive pulley 103 and the driven pulley 104, An encoder 110 (not shown in FIG. 5; see FIG. 8) that detects the position of the central portion of the rotating member 102 in the main scanning direction, and rotates in conjunction with the movement of the timing belt 24, thereby rotating the rotating member 102. An intermediate transmission member 106 that can be rotated and a timing belt movement amount detection sensor that detects a movement amount of the timing belt 24. Comprising a 107 (not shown.).

  The media sensor 101 is preferably a non-contact sensor that can detect the presence or absence of the edge of the recording paper P without contacting the recording paper P. The media sensor 101 in this embodiment includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element. The light emitting element and the light receiving element are directed in the same direction, and light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected on the recording paper P or the platen 26 (not shown in FIG. 5; see FIG. 3), and the reflected light is received. The element detects. As shown in FIG. 6, the driving power source of the media sensor 101 arranges electrodes concentrically on the rotating member 102 on which the media sensor 101 is arranged, and connects the media sensor 101 and the electrode 109. The electrode on the rotating member 102 is electrically connected by contacting an electrode terminal 108 provided on the carriage 5 side.

The carriage 5 includes an ink tank and a recording head 4, and in the present embodiment, a carriage member 102 that rotatably supports the media sensor 101 is provided.
The rotating member 102 is a ring-shaped member, and the carriage is formed with circular ribs that are in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the ring-shaped member. The rotating member 102 that is a ring-shaped member is: The carriage is rotatably supported by the carriage.

  A configuration for allowing the rotating member 102 to rotate will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, the drive pulley 103 that is rotationally driven by the carriage motor 131, the driven pulley 104 that is rotatably supported, the drive pulley 103, and the driven pulley 104, and the recording head 4. A timing belt 24 for fixing the carriage 5 provided with the above is provided.

  The rotating member 102 is configured to be rotatable when the intermediate transmission member 106 attached to the carriage 5 rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the carriage motor 131. Therefore, the media sensor 101 supported by the rotating member 102 is rotatable.

  The encoder unit 110 is preferably a magnetic encoder that can detect the position of the central portion of the rotating member 102 in the main scanning direction without contact. The encoder unit 110 is provided with a linear scale type linear encoder so that the position of the central portion of the rotating member 102 in the main scanning direction can always be detected.

The timing belt movement amount detection sensor 107 is a sensor that detects the movement amount of the timing belt 24 by reading a pattern on a linear scale.
In such a carriage peripheral mechanism 100, when performing borderless image recording on the recording paper P, the rotation of the rotating member 102 first moves the media sensor 101 to a position where the leading edge of the recording paper P is detected. Next, when the rotating member 102 further rotates, the media sensor 101 moves to a position where both ends of the recording paper P are detected. Then, the recording head 4 starts printing upon detecting both ends of printing. Further, the multi-function device 1 detects the jam state and the completion of recording of the content to be recorded, and stops the carriage motor 131.

  In order to move the carriage 5 so as to satisfy the above operation or to stop the carriage motor 131, the multi-function device 1 includes a carriage drive control device 2000.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the carriage drive control device 200 receives a command from the CPU 205 that controls the multi-function device 1 and performs carriage motor drive control for driving a carriage motor 131 that is an actuator of the carriage 5. A function for generating a PWM signal for controlling the rotation speed and direction of the carriage motor 131, a brake signal for generating a braking force for the carriage motor 131 to stop, and an encoder unit. ASIC 270 having a calculation unit for calculating the position of the carriage 5 in the main scanning direction based on the encoder signal fetched from 110, and a carriage motor for driving or stopping the carriage motor 131 based on the PWM signal or braking signal generated by the ASIC 270 Configure with driver 245 It is.

The CPU 205 executes a vector control program that generates a PWM signal and a braking signal, which are command signals for driving or stopping the carriage motor.
Further, the carriage motor drive control device 200 stores various parameters used for controlling the carriage motor 131, a vector control program for generating PWM signals and braking signals necessary for the motor control, and a program for overall control of the entire device. ROM 210, image reading section 12 for reading an image, head driver 250 for controlling recording of the recording head 4, LF motor driver 240 for driving or stopping the LF motor 132, and recording paper P conveyance for detecting the conveyance position of the recording paper P Encoder 235, registration sensor 230 for detecting recording paper P fed by the paper feed roller, RAM 215 for storing various control signals and detection signals, modem 220 for network communication, wired control data signal obtained by modem 220, , A mark containing the content to be printed The NCU 225 for converting the data signal so as to communicate with the network, the operation button unit 14a for accepting various control commands to the multi-function device 1, the liquid crystal display unit 14b, and the received various control commands can be determined by the CPU 205 of the multi-function device 1. A panel interface 255 for converting signals and a USB interface 260 for exchanging various control signals with an external personal computer and print data signals including contents to be printed are provided. However, since the registration sensor 230 described above can detect the upper end of the recording paper P by the media sensor 101, it is not always necessary in this embodiment.

  On the other hand, in FIG. 8, the ROM 210 has a recording paper P edge detection processing program for the CPU 205 to perform various processes and control command generation every time the edge of the recording paper P is detected, and a nozzle surface to prevent the nozzle from drying. Carriage evacuation processing program for the CPU 205 to generate a processing command for moving the carriage to a special position for capping, a paper feeding operation stop processing program for the CPU 205 to generate a paper feeding operation stop processing command for the recording paper P, recording A paper discharge processing program for causing the CPU 205 to generate a processing command for discharging paper to the paper discharge tray 10b (not shown in FIG. 8, see FIG. 3) is included.

  Next, the edge detection processing of the recording paper P executed by the CPU 205 as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Subsequently, as described above, the carriage motor stop process executed by the CPU 205 will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 11 (a) and 11 (b).

  In the edge detection process of the recording paper P shown in FIG. 10, first, in S300 (S represents a step), a drive setting process of the carriage 5 for moving the carriage 5 to the conveyance reference side of the recording paper P is performed.

Next, in S310, a command to move the carriage 5 to the upper end detection position of the recording paper P is issued.
In step S320, a paper feed process start command for conveying the recording paper P by a predetermined amount is issued.
Next, in S330, it is determined whether or not the upper end of the recording paper P has been detected. If it is determined that the upper end is not detected by the media sensor 101, the process proceeds to S340. If it is determined that the upper end is detected, the process proceeds to S360.

  When the process proceeds to S340, it is determined whether the paper feed time is within a predetermined time. If the paper feed time is within the predetermined time, the process returns to S330 for determining whether or not the upper end of the recording paper P has been detected. On the other hand, if the paper feeding time is not within the predetermined time, the recording paper P jam being fed, the recording paper P not present, the recording paper P is set misplaced, etc., and detection error processing is performed in S350. Here, the detection error process is a process that stops the paper feeding operation, displays a message indicating a paper feeding error on the liquid crystal display of the apparatus or the display unit of the personal computer, and prompts the operator to remove the cause. .

  Then, the process further proceeds to S540, where an end detection end process of the recording paper P is performed. Here, the end detection end processing is processing for resetting all processing for detecting the end of the recording paper P and moving the carriage 5 to the cap position.

On the other hand, when the process proceeds to S360, a paper feed operation stop command for stopping the paper feed operation is issued.
After stopping the paper feeding operation, the recording paper P is conveyed by the conveying roller, and the contents to be recorded on the recording paper P are recorded by the recording head. At this time, the carriage motor 131 is moved clockwise in step S370 so that the carriage moves to the position where the media sensor 101 can detect the left end, which is one end of the recording paper P in the main scanning direction, for example. The command to be issued is issued.

  In S380, it is determined whether the left end of the recording paper P has been detected. If it is determined that the left end is detected by the media sensor 101, the process proceeds to S390. If it is determined that the left end is not detected, the process proceeds to S420.

  When the process proceeds to S420, it is determined whether or not the maximum print width, which is an example of the recording internal capacity to be recorded in the main scanning direction, has been exceeded. If the maximum print width is not exceeded, the process returns to S380 for determining whether the media sensor 101 has detected the left edge of the recording paper P. On the other hand, if it exceeds the maximum printing width, the process proceeds to S430, a detection error process is performed, and a sheet end detection end process is performed in S540.

  On the other hand, in S390, a command to store the left end position of the recording paper P is issued. As shown in FIG. 12, the method of calculating the left end position of the recording paper P is detected by a timing belt movement amount detection sensor 107 (not shown) as shown in FIG. There is a method of performing the calculation process.

  In Equation 1, γ is the radius of the rotating member 102, χ is the moving amount of the timing belt 24, that is, the moving distance of the carriage 5, and θ is the rotation of the media sensor 101 rotated by the rotating member 102. Is an angle.

  Next, the following calculation processing is performed on the position of the media sensor in the main scanning direction using the rotation angle θ of the media sensor 101 calculated by the above formula 1.

In Equation 2, γ is the radius of the rotating member 102, and χ _POS is the position in the main scanning direction of the rotating member 102 detected by the encoder unit 110 that detects the position of the rotating member 102 in the main scanning direction. Yes, θ is the rotation angle of the media sensor 101 rotated by the rotating member 102.

Using the above equation 2, the sheet left edge position χ edge _POS is obtained, and a command to be stored in the RAM 215 is issued.
The reason for calculating and holding the left edge position of the paper is that once the left edge position of the recording paper P is stored, there is no need to perform the calculation again, and the edge in the main scanning direction is calculated based on the held value. This is because no image recording is possible.

  In this embodiment, a command to move the carriage motor 131 clockwise is issued so that the left end, which is one end in the main scanning direction of the recording paper P, is moved to a position where the media sensor 101 can detect in S370. In step S390, since the left end position of the recording paper P is stored, the media sensor 101 detects the right end position of the recording paper P, which is the other end in the main scanning direction. Therefore, the carriage 5 is moved so that the media sensor 101 moves to a position where the right end can be detected. In S400 and S410, in order to move the carriage 5, a command for rotating the carriage motor 131 counterclockwise opposite to the rotation direction in S370 is output.

  In S440, which proceeds after the processing of S410, it is determined whether or not the media sensor 101 has detected the right edge of the recording paper P. If the right end is detected, the process proceeds to S450. If the right end of the recording paper P is not detected, the process proceeds to S460.

If the process proceeds to S450, a command to store the right edge position of the sheet is issued.
The equations used to calculate the right end position of the recording paper P are Equation 1 and Equation 2. The right end position of the recording paper P is calculated using Equations 1 and 2.

The sheet right edge position χ edge _POS is obtained using the above-described equation 2, and a command to store in the RAM 215 is issued.
The reason for calculating and holding the right edge position of the paper is that once the right edge position of the recording paper P is stored, it is not necessary to perform the calculation again, and the edge in the main scanning direction is determined based on the holding value. This is because no image recording is possible.

Next, the process proceeds to S480, and a print start command is issued.
Subsequently, in S490, in order to move the media sensor 101 to a position where the trailing edge, which is the edge of the recording paper P, can be detected, a command to move the carriage motor 131 is issued.

  Then, the process proceeds from S490 to S500, and it is determined whether the media sensor 101 has detected the trailing edge of the recording paper P. If it is determined that the trailing edge of the recording paper P has been detected, the process proceeds to S520, and a command for discharging the recording paper P to the paper discharge tray 10b is issued. Further, the process proceeds to S540, where a paper edge detection end processing command is issued.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S500 that the trailing edge of the recording paper P is not detected, the process proceeds to S510.
In S510, it is determined whether or not the paper discharge time, which is the time for discharging the recording paper P to the paper discharge tray, is within a predetermined time. If it is determined that the paper discharge time is not within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to S530 to perform detection error processing, and further proceeds to S540 to issue a paper edge detection end processing command. If it is determined that the paper discharge time is within the predetermined time, the process returns to S500 where it is determined whether the media sensor 101 has detected the trailing edge of the recording paper P.

  Next, a case where it is determined in S380 that the media sensor 101 has not detected the left edge of the recording paper P will be described. If it is determined in S380 that the media sensor 101 has not detected the left edge of the recording paper P, the process proceeds to S420.

In S420, it is determined whether or not a maximum print width, which is an example of a recording internal capacity to be recorded in the main scanning direction, has been exceeded. If it is determined that the maximum print width is not exceeded, the process returns to S380 where it is determined whether the media sensor 101 has detected the left edge of the recording paper P. If it is determined that the maximum print width has been exceeded, the process proceeds to S430 to perform detection error processing, and further proceeds to S540 to perform paper end detection end processing.

  Next, a case where it is determined in S440 that the media sensor 101 has not detected the right edge of the recording paper P will be described. If it is determined in S440 that the media sensor 101 has not detected the right edge of the recording paper P, the process proceeds to S460.

  In S460, it is determined whether or not the maximum print width, which is an example of the recording capacity to be recorded in the main scanning direction, has been exceeded. If it is determined that the maximum print width is not exceeded, the process returns to S440 where it is determined whether the right edge of the recording paper P has been detected. If it is determined that the maximum print width has been exceeded, the process proceeds to S470, detection error processing is performed, and paper edge detection end processing is performed in S540.

  Next, the CPU 205 executes the retracting of the carriage 5, the stop of the feeding operation of the recording paper P, and the discharge tray of the recording paper P when a paper jam, paper out, paper setting error, and the like are detected. Three processes of paper discharge up to 10b will be described with reference to flowcharts shown in FIGS. 11 (a) and 11 (b).

First, according to this flowchart, a paper jam during paper feeding, a paper out, and a paper setting error will be described.
The “jam state” can be considered as a paper jam when the recording paper P is fed and a paper jam and state when printing on the recording paper P. If it demonstrates with the flowchart of FIG. 10, it will correspond to the state determined to NO by the determination process of S340, and the state determined to NO by the determination process of S510, respectively.

Further, “no paper” may be a state where the upper end of the recording paper P is not detected. If it demonstrates with the flowchart of FIG. 10, it corresponds to the state determined to NO by the determination process of S330.
“Paper setting error” refers to a setting error when the recording paper P is set in the paper feed cassette 3 (see FIG. 3). If it demonstrates with the flowchart of FIG. 10, it corresponds to the state determined to NO by the determination process of S330, or the state determined to NO by the determination process of S340. Or it corresponds to the state determined as NO in the determination process of S500 or the state determined as NO in the determination process of S510.

  Therefore, the upper end or lower end of the recording paper P is necessary as a determination content for issuing commands for the three processes of retracting the carriage 5, stopping the feeding operation of the recording paper P, and discharging the recording paper P to the paper discharge tray. Whether the recording paper P is fed or discharged is within a predetermined range.

The flowchart shown in FIG. 11A shows a carriage retraction process for moving the nozzle surface to a special position where capping is performed to prevent the nozzle from drying.
First, in S600, it is determined whether or not the upper end of the recording paper P has been detected. If the media sensor 101 determines that the upper end is not detected, the process proceeds to S610.

If it is determined that the upper end has been detected by the media sensor 101, the carriage retracting process ends.
In step S610, it is determined whether the paper feed time is within a predetermined time. If it is determined that the paper feed time is not within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to S620, and a paper feed operation stop process and a carriage retract process execution command are issued. If it is determined that the paper feed time is within the predetermined time, the determination is continued in S600.

  Next, the flowchart shown in FIG. 11B shows processing for stopping the feeding operation of the recording paper P and processing for discharging the recording paper P to the paper discharge tray 10b. However, at the time of error stop at the time of paper discharge, since the recording paper P is under the carriage 5, the carriage 5 is not moved so that the carriage 5 is not caught on the jammed recording paper P.

  First, in S700, it is determined whether or not the lower end of the recording paper P has been detected. If it is determined that the lower end is not detected by the media sensor 101, the process proceeds to S710. If it is determined that the lower end is detected by the media sensor 101, the process proceeds to S730, and an execution command for processing to discharge the recording paper P to the paper discharge tray 10b is issued.

  In S710, it is determined whether the paper discharge time is within a predetermined time. If it is determined that the paper discharge time is not within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to S720, and an execution command for paper feed operation stop processing is issued. If it is determined that the paper discharge time is within the predetermined time, the determination is continued in S700.

As described above, according to the ink jet recording apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) The rotation member 102 can move the media sensor 101 between the upstream area and the downstream area in the nozzle arrangement area used when recording on the recording paper P among the plurality of nozzles. It is.

Therefore, the upstream end of the recording paper P can be detected before the nozzles in the upstream area of the nozzle arrangement area start to discharge ink.
If the registration sensor 230 in FIG. 8 detects the passage of the trailing edge of the recording paper P after the passage of a predetermined time, and the passage of the trailing edge of the recording paper P is not detected after a predetermined time has elapsed, the recording paper P It is possible to detect the occurrence of a jam in which the recording paper P is jammed by the multi-function device 1 within the recording area to be recorded.

Therefore, the reciprocating operation of the carriage 5 can be stopped immediately, and the carriage motor 131 driving the carriage 5 is not left to be overloaded.
(2) Further, the nozzle arrangement area used when recording on the recording paper P is set as the nozzle arrangement area used when performing borderless image recording. As a result, according to the multi-function device 1, the distance between the ink discharge start position and the detection unit is shorter than when the conventional registration sensor 230 detects the leading edge of the recording paper P and discharges ink after a predetermined time. Therefore, at the time of borderless image recording, it is possible to start ink ejection just before the leading edge of the recording paper P or just before the leading edge of the recording paper P.

(3) The rotation of the rotating member 102 allows the media sensor 101 to detect both the front and rear ends and the left and right ends of the recording paper P.
Therefore, the media sensor 101 can detect any of the front edge, the left and right edges, and the rear edge of the recording paper P with only one media sensor 101.

  (4) Further, the timing of fixing the carriage 5 that is installed between the drive pulley 103 that is driven to rotate by the carriage motor 131, the driven pulley 104 that is rotatably supported, the drive pulley 103, and the driven pulley 104. The rotation member 102 includes a belt 24 and is configured to be rotatable by the intermediate transmission member 106 attached to the carriage rotating in conjunction with the rotation of the carriage motor 131. Therefore, the rotation member 102 can be rotated in conjunction with the reciprocation of the carriage 5 without requiring another drive source in addition to the carriage motor 131 in order to rotate the rotation member 102.

Therefore, it is possible to provide an apparatus that can move the media sensor 101 at a low cost with a simple structure.
(5) When a borderless image recording is performed, if a recording command to the recording paper P is input from a computer such as a personal computer, the multi-function device 1 first moves the carriage 5 to the transport reference position. The conveyance reference position is either the center or the side surface of the recording paper P, and the carriage 5 can be moved to this position.

  Therefore, when the recording paper P has various sizes such as A4 size, letter size, legal size, postcard size, etc., the size of the recording paper P can be reliably detected regardless of the size of the recording paper P being conveyed.

  (6) When the leading edge of the recording paper P is detected, the side edge is detected next. At this time, the media sensor 101 moves to substantially the same position as the recording position on the recording paper P, and more accurate detection of the side edge is possible.

Therefore, ink ejection can be started from the edge of the side edge at the time of borderless image recording.
(7) After the trailing edge of the recording paper P is detected by the media sensor 101 arranged on the upstream side of the carriage 5, the recording paper P is fed by a predetermined conveyance amount, and then recorded by the media sensor 101 mounted on the carriage 5. If the trailing edge of the paper P is not detected, the rotation of the carriage motor 131 can be stopped.

  Therefore, the reciprocating operation of the carriage 5 and the transporting operation of the recording paper P can be stopped immediately, and the carriage motor 131 that drives the carriage 5 and the driving roller 50 is not left to be overloaded.

As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various aspect can be taken within the technical scope of this invention.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, as an example of moving the media sensor 101, the configuration including the driving pulley 103, the driven pulley 104, the timing belt 24, and the intermediate transmission member 106 is realized by rotating the rotating member 102. As long as the media sensor 101 can be moved to positions where the leading edge, the left edge, the right edge, and the trailing edge of the recording paper P can be detected appropriately, the rotating member 102 does not have to be a disk-shaped member. Conceivable.

It is a conceptual explanatory view of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the multi-function device of an embodiment. It is a sectional side view of the multifunctional device of an embodiment. It is a partial top view of a multi-function device in a state where an image reading device is removed. It is a perspective view showing the structure of a carriage peripheral mechanism. It is explanatory drawing which comprises the drive power supply of a media sensor. It is a top view showing the drive mechanism for rotating or moving a media sensor. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the carriage drive control apparatus with which the multi-function apparatus of this embodiment is equipped. It is a flowchart showing the carriage scanning process performed by CPU. (A) is a flowchart showing a carriage retracting process for moving the nozzle surface to a special position for capping the nozzle surface to prevent the nozzle from drying, and (b) is a recording paper feeding operation executed by the CPU. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a stop process and a process of discharging a recording sheet to a discharge tray. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for calculating a main scanning direction position of a media sensor from a main scanning direction position of a carriage encoder.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Multifunctional device, 3 ... Paper feed cassette, 4 ... Recording head, 5 ... Carriage, 6a ... Paper feed arm, 6b ... Paper feed roller, 7 ... Recording part, 10 ... Paper discharge part, 10b ... Paper discharge tray, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Paper feed part, 12 ... Image reading apparatus, 14 ... Operation panel part, 14a ... Operation button group, 14b ... Liquid crystal display part, 16 ... Car glass plate, 21 ... Main frame, 24 ... Timing belt, 26 ... Platen , 28 ... discharge roller, 44 ... guide shaft, 50 ... drive roller, 100 ... carriage peripheral mechanism, 101 ... media sensor, 102 ... rotating member, 103 ... drive pulley, 104 ... driven pulley, 106 ... intermediate transmission member, 107 ... Timing belt movement detection sensor 108 ... Carriage side electrode terminal 109 ... Electrode 110 ... Encoder part 112 ... Auxiliary tray sensor 112a ... Projection , 131 ... Carriage motor, 132 ... LF motor, 200 ... Carriage drive control processor, 205 ... CPU, 210 ... ROM, 215 ... RAM, 220 ... Modem, 225 ... NCU, 230 ... Registration sensor, 235 ... Encoder for paper conveyance 240, LF motor driver, 245, carriage motor driver, 250, head driver, 255, panel interface, 260, USB interface, 270, ASIC, P, recording paper.

Claims (7)

A recording head in which a plurality of nozzles for discharging ink droplets on a recording medium are arranged;
A carriage mounted with the recording head and reciprocating in the main scanning direction;
Conveying means for conveying the recording medium in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction;
Detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the recording medium;
A support means attached to the carriage and supporting the detection means;
The supporting means includes
Among the plurality of nozzles, the detection means is movable between an upstream area and a downstream area in the nozzle arrangement area used when recording an image on the recording medium. An ink jet recording apparatus.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle array area is a nozzle array area used when performing borderless image recording. The support means is rotatable on the carriage via a support shaft,
3. The ink jet recording according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit is configured to be movable by the support unit rotating in conjunction with the reciprocation of the carriage in the main scanning direction. apparatus.   A driving pulley that is rotationally driven by a driving source, a driven pulley that is rotatably supported, a timing belt that is installed between the driving pulley and the driven pulley, and in which the carriage is fixed. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the support unit is configured to be rotatable by rotating a pulley attached to the carriage in conjunction with rotation of the drive source. .   When performing borderless image recording, if the carriage is moved to the conveyance reference side of the recording medium and the recording medium is conveyed by a predetermined amount by the conveying means, the presence or absence of the recording medium is detected by the detection means. Detecting and detecting the edge of the recording medium by the reciprocating carriage and reciprocating the carriage while conveying the recording medium by a predetermined amount according to the presence or absence of detection of the recording medium The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit that performs control. The control means includes
After the trailing end of the recording medium is detected by the detecting means disposed on the upstream side of the carriage, the recording medium is fed by a predetermined conveyance amount, and then the trailing end of the recording medium is detected by the detecting means mounted on the carriage. 6. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the rotation of the drive source is stopped when no detection is detected. A recording head in which a plurality of nozzles for discharging ink droplets on a recording medium are arranged;
A carriage mounted with the recording head and reciprocating in the main scanning direction;
Conveying means for conveying the recording medium in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction;
Detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the recording medium;
Supporting means attached to the carriage and supporting the detection means;
The supporting means includes
The said detection means is enabled to move to the downstream area | region in the arrangement area | region of the said nozzle used when recording an image on the said to-be-recorded medium among these nozzles. The inkjet recording apparatus of any one.