JP2015218419A - Ink-jet recording apparatus and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink-jet recording apparatus which can stably form an image with high quality by removing fibers and dusts on a fabric when performing inkjet printing.SOLUTION: The ink-jet recording apparatus comprises: conveyance means for conveying a fabric 10; recording means 2 for performing recording by discharging ink to the fabric according to an ink jet system; and cleaning means 8 for cleaning the fabric 10. The cleaning means 8 is disposed at an upstream side of the recording means 2 in a conveyance direction of the fabric 10 and has an adsorption member for adsorbing the fabric 10 and an adsorption member cleaning part for cleaning the adsorption member.

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and an image forming method.

  Inkjet printers (inkjet recording apparatuses) have advantages such as low noise, low running cost, and easy color printing, and are therefore widely used in general households as digital signal output devices. It is also widely used for industrial purposes, and is used not only for sign graphics and digital printing, but also for dyeing fabrics. The use of ink jet for textile printing has been studied for a long time, and it has become possible to obtain high image quality on patterns with delicate and large number of colors that could not be obtained by conventional screen printing. Ink-jet textile printing allows very small ink droplets to adhere to the fabric, so that an amount of ink sufficient for coloring can be attached to the fabric, dyeing efficiency can be improved, and drainage can be reduced. It is known that it can be.

  However, in ink jet textile printing, the amount of ejected ink droplets is small, so if dust such as lint or dust is present on the fabric, the ink droplets are blocked by the dust, and the adhesion to the fabric is suppressed and formed on the fabric. Defects will occur in the image. In addition, fine dust adheres to the head, causing ejection failure. Further, in recent years, ink-jet printing using pigment ink has been performed due to the development of a fine dispersion technique for pigments. However, since pigment printing can be performed without pretreatment, dust tends to remain on the fabric. Accordingly, since the pigment ink is easily fixed on the cloth surface, white spots are easily generated due to the influence of dust.

On the other hand, Patent Document 1 reports an ink jet printing apparatus provided with a cleaning means for cleaning a support after the fabric is peeled off, for the support that conveys the fabric. According to this, the cleaning means sucks and removes the residual substances remaining on the support, so that not only residual ink and cleaning liquid on the support but also residual solid substances such as fluff, lint, dust, etc. It can be removed even.
Patent Document 2 reports an ink jet recording apparatus provided with an adhesive member that moves in association with the movement of the ink jet recording means. According to this, since the mark and thread waste adhere to the adhesive member, it is possible to reduce the adhesion of dust such as mark and thread scrap around the discharge port, and no ink non-discharge occurs for a long time. It is said that a stable and high-quality image can be obtained.
In Patent Document 3, there is reported an ink jet printing medium obtained by performing a process for removing frays of fibers or fibers generated at a cut portion of a printing medium material. According to this, it is said that printing with good operability can be performed without print defects due to poor fabric transportability, head rubbing, and nozzle clogging.
Patent Document 4 reports an inkjet printing apparatus having a cleaning unit that cleans a belt from which a print medium has been removed with respect to a belt that conveys the print medium, and the cleaning unit has a peripheral surface made of a polymer porous medium. A wiping roller is provided. According to this, it is supposed that the belt can be cleaned and the adhesive force of the adhesive layer on the belt surface can be maintained.

  However, even these techniques are still insufficient for removing fibers and dust on the fabric, and further improvements have been demanded. Further, there has been a demand for an ink jet recording apparatus that can remove fibers and dust on a fabric and stably form a high-quality image.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus that can remove fibers and dust on a fabric when performing ink jet printing and can stably form a high quality image.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention includes a conveying unit that conveys a fabric, a recording unit that discharges and records ink on the fabric by an inkjet method, and a cleaning unit that cleans the fabric. The cleaning means is provided upstream of the recording means in the transport direction of the fabric, and further includes an adsorption member that adsorbs the fabric and an adsorption member cleaning portion that cleans the adsorption member. Features.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the inkjet recording device which can remove the fiber and dust on the fabric at the time of inkjet printing, and can form a high quality image stably can be provided.

It is a schematic diagram at the time of seeing an example of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention from the side surface. It is a schematic diagram when an example of the principal part of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention is seen from the bottom face. It is a schematic diagram about an example of an ink cartridge. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating an example of the static electricity application part in the cleaning means. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating an example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a fabric contact. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating an example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a cleaning member contact. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the outline | summary of an example of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the other example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a fabric contact. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the other example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a cleaning member contact. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the other example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a fabric contact. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the other example of the location where an adsorption | suction means and a cleaning member contact. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of the inkjet recording device which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of an inkjet recording device. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of an inkjet recording device. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of an inkjet recording device. It is a figure which shows the example when there is no image defect in the fabric after image formation. It is a figure which shows the example in case an image defect exists in the fabric after image formation.

  Hereinafter, an ink jet recording apparatus and an image forming method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below, and other embodiments, additions, modifications, deletions, and the like can be changed within a range that can be conceived by those skilled in the art, and any aspect is possible. As long as the functions and effects of the present invention are exhibited, the scope of the present invention is included.

The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a transport unit that transports the fabric 10, a recording unit 2 that performs recording by discharging ink to the fabric 10 by an ink jet method, and a cleaning unit 8 that cleans the fabric 10. The means 8 is provided upstream of the recording means 2 in the conveyance direction of the fabric 10 and has an adsorption member that adsorbs the fabric 10 and an adsorption member cleaning unit that cleans the adsorption member.
The adsorbing member has an adsorbing force to the fabric 10, and the adsorbing method may be any of electrical, physical, and chemical methods. For example, adsorption by static electricity, adsorption by air suction, adsorption by an adhesive, and the like can be mentioned. Hereinafter, a configuration example of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to an adsorption method.

<First Embodiment>
An embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described. An ink jet recording apparatus according to this embodiment is shown in FIGS. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment as viewed from the side, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining the main part when viewed from the bottom side.

  The adsorption method in this embodiment is based on an electrical method. The adsorbing member is a charging drum 81 (charging member) that rotates in contact with or near the fabric 10, and the adsorbing member cleaning unit includes a charge eliminating member 89 that removes static electricity from the surface of the charging drum 81, and the charging drum 81. And a brush 90a (charging cleaning member) for cleaning the surface. Further, the cleaning unit 8 includes a static electricity applying unit 82 that applies static electricity to the charging drum 81, and the neutralizing member sequentially from the position where the fabric 10 and the charging drum 81 are in contact with each other or in the vicinity of the rotation direction of the charging drum 81. 89, a brush 90a (charging cleaning member) and a static electricity application unit 82 are provided.

  The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment is a serial type image forming apparatus, and includes a recording unit 2, a transport mechanism unit 5, and the like inside the apparatus main body. The fabric 10 is sent. Then, while the fabric 10 is intermittently transported in the horizontal direction by the transport mechanism unit 5, dust and fibers on the surface of the fabric 10 are removed by the cleaning unit 8, and then droplets are directed downward in the vertical direction by the recording unit 2. The required image is recorded by discharging. Thereafter, the recorded fabric 10 is sent out from the discharging portion 6, and the fabric 10 is wound and collected on the winding portion 7.

  In the present embodiment, a main guide member 21, a secondary guide member 22, a carriage 23, a recording head 24, and a head tank 29 are illustrated as the recording unit 2. The recording means 2 slidably holds a carriage 23 on which a recording head 24 is mounted by means of a main guide member 21 and a sub guide member 22 which are horizontally mounted between the left and right side plates 11L and 11R, and is driven by a main scanning motor 25. It moves and scans in the main scanning direction via a timing belt 28 passed between the pulley 26 and the driven pulley 27.

The carriage 23 has recording heads 24a and 24b each composed of a liquid discharge head for discharging ink droplets of each color of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), black (K), and white (W). 24c, 24d, and 24e (referred to as “recording head 24” when not distinguished from each other) are arranged in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction, and the droplet discharge direction is vertical. Wearing downwards.
The liquid discharge head constituting the recording head 24 includes a piezoelectric actuator such as a piezoelectric element, a thermal actuator that utilizes a phase change due to liquid film boiling using an electrothermal conversion element such as a heating resistor, and a metal due to a temperature change. A shape memory alloy actuator using phase change, an electrostatic actuator using electrostatic force, or the like provided as pressure generating means for generating a pressure for discharging a droplet can be used.

The carriage 23 can also be mounted with a droplet discharge head that discharges a fixer that reacts with ink to enhance the fixability of the ink. The carriage 23 is mounted with a head tank 29 for supplying ink of each color corresponding to each nozzle row of the recording head 24. Ink is supplied to the head tank 29 from an ink cartridge that is detachably attached to the apparatus main body.
An example of the ink cartridge is shown in FIG. The ink cartridge 30 has an ink tank 32 for each color, and yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), black (K), and white (W) are shown in the figure. It can be changed as appropriate. Further, the ink cartridge 30 is provided with a panel 33 as necessary.

  Since the recording head 24 has a droplet discharge direction that is vertically downward, it is preferable to form a negative pressure in order to prevent liquid dripping, and the head tank 29 has a negative pressure maintaining function as well as a function as a buffer tank. preferable.

In the present embodiment, it is preferable that at least a part of the liquid chamber portion, the fluid resistance portion, the vibration plate, and the nozzle member of the recording head 24 is made of a material containing at least one of SUS, silicon, and nickel.
Since SUS is compatible with a wide range of liquid inks and has high thermal conductivity, a head composed of a SUS member can form a head with excellent temperature controllability. In addition, when silicon is used, processing can be performed using semiconductor technology or MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) technology, so that extremely fine and high-precision processing is possible.
As for the nickel member, a metal thin film can be manufactured by an electroforming technique, and a highly accurate shape can be created. Nickel is easily dissolved by making it acidic, so the ink adaptability is low. However, by electroforming with an alloy such as palladium, a metal thin film component having high durability and excellent workability can be produced.

  The nozzle diameter of the nozzle of the recording head 24 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 50 μm or less, and more preferably 10 μm to 30 μm.

  An encoder sensor 121 including a transmission type photosensor that reads a pattern of the encoder scale 121 is mounted on the carriage 23 by placing an encoder scale 121 having a predetermined pattern between both side plates 11L and 11R along the main scanning direction of the carriage 23. 123 is provided. These encoder scale 121 and encoder sensor 123 constitute a linear encoder (main scanning encoder) that detects the movement of the carriage 23.

  Further, a maintenance / recovery mechanism 9 for maintaining and recovering the nozzle state of the recording head 24 is disposed in a non-printing area on one side of the carriage 23 in the scanning direction. The maintenance / recovery mechanism 9 includes caps 92a, 92b, 92c, 92d, and 92e for capping each nozzle surface of the recording head 24 (referred to as “cap 92” when not distinguished) and a wiper that wipes the nozzle surface. A member (wiper blade) 93 and an empty discharge receiver 94 for receiving droplets when performing an empty discharge for discharging droplets that do not contribute to recording in order to discharge a thickened recording liquid (ink) are provided. .

  In the maintenance and recovery of the nozzles of the recording head 24, the carriage 23 is moved to a position facing the maintenance and recovery mechanism 9 which is the home position, and the cap 92 is used to perform suction and discharge from the nozzles to perform nozzle suction. Furthermore, by performing a maintenance and recovery operation such as idle ejection for ejecting droplets that do not contribute to image formation, image formation by stable droplet ejection can be performed.

  The printing fabric 10 wound around the sending section paper tube 41 of the feeding section 4 is fed between the upper and lower feeding rollers 51, 52 of the transport mechanism section 5, and then discharged along the platen 53. It is fed from between the upper and lower feed rollers 61 and 62 of the cloth part 6. And it winds up by fixing to the winding part paper tube | pipe 71 of the winding part 7, and rotating the winding part paper pipe | tube 71 with a motor.

  A code wheel 154 is attached to the shaft 52a of the feed roller 52, and an encoder sensor 155 including a transmission type photo sensor for detecting a pattern formed on the code wheel 154 is provided. These code wheel 154 and encoder sensor 155 constitute a rotary encoder (feed encoder) 156 that detects the rotation amount and rotation angle of the feed roller.

Similarly, a code wheel 157 is attached to the shaft 62 a of the feed roller 62, and an encoder sensor 158 including a transmission type photo sensor for detecting a pattern formed on the code wheel 157 is provided. These code wheel 157 and encoder sensor 158 constitute a rotary encoder (feeding encoder) 159 that detects the rotation amount and rotation angle of the feeding roller.
The amount of rotation of the feeding rollers 51 and 52 and the feeding rollers 61 and 62 are the same or controlled so that the feeding rollers 61 and 62 are slightly larger so that tension is applied to the fabric 10 on the platen 53 in the conveying direction. The fabric 10 is prevented from floating.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment configured as described above, the cloth 10 is fed from the cloth feeding section 4 in the horizontal direction for each carry amount corresponding to one scan. Therefore, by driving the recording head 24 according to the image signal while moving the carriage 23, ink droplets are ejected from the upper side to the lower side of the stopped fabric 10, and one line is recorded. After the fabric 10 is conveyed by a predetermined amount, the next line is recorded. The fabric 10 that has been recorded is fed out from the feed-out unit 6 and wound up by the winding-up unit 7.

  The cleaning unit 8 of the present embodiment is provided upstream of the recording unit 2 in the conveyance direction of the fabric 10, and includes a charging drum 81 that adsorbs the fabric 10 and an adsorbing member cleaning unit that cleans the charging drum 81. doing. Further, the cleaning unit 8 includes a static electricity applying unit 82 that applies static electricity to the charging drum 81. In the present embodiment, the charging drum 81 is used as the charging member. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a belt shape described later can be used.

  In FIG. 1, the suction member pressing portion 83 is illustrated, and the charging drum 81 that is the suction member is pressed against the fabric 10 by the suction member pressing portion 83 and rotates in synchronization with the conveyance of the fabric 10. As a result, the surface of the charging drum 81 and the fabric 10 are synchronized, and dust (adhered matter) on the surface of the fabric 10 can be adsorbed to the surface of the charging drum 81 while being contacted (or in the vicinity) (details). Will be described later). The charging drum 81 is charged by applying an electrostatic charge to the surface by the static electricity applying unit 82.

FIG. 4A shows a configuration example of the charging drum 81. FIG. 4A schematically shows a cross section of the charging drum 81 and shows a configuration example in which a conductive layer 202 and an insulating layer 201 are laminated. The static electricity applying unit 82 includes a charging roller 203 and an AC bias supply unit 204 used by the charging roller 203 to apply static electricity to the charging drum 81. The charging roller 203 rotates while being in contact with the charging drum 81, and applies static electricity to the surface of the charging drum 81.
In FIG. 4A, the charging drum 81 has a two-layer structure. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and if the insulating layer 201 is a layer in contact with (or in the vicinity of) the static electricity application unit 82. A single layer structure can also be used.

Examples of the material of the insulating layer 201 include PET (polyethylene terephthalate), PEI (polyetherimide), PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride), PC (polycarbonate), ETFE (tetrafluoroethylene and ethylene copolymer), PTFE ( Polytetrafluoroethylene) or an elastomer. In addition, it is preferable that these are materials which do not contain a conductive control material. The volume resistivity of the insulating layer 201 is preferably 10 ¹² Ωcm or more, and more preferably 10 ¹⁵ Ωcm or more. The thickness of the insulating layer 201 is preferably 20 to 100 μm.
As a material of the conductive layer 202, the above resin or elastomer containing carbon, a metal material, or the like can be used. The volume resistivity of the conductive layer 202 is preferably 10 ⁵ to 10 ⁷ Ωcm. The thickness of the conductive layer 202 is preferably 50 to 200 μm.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the charging roller 203 is connected to an AC bias supply unit 204 that applies an AC bias of 2 kV to 3 kV, for example. The preferable range of the AC bias to be applied is ± 1.2 kV to ± 4.0 kV, more preferably ± 1.6 kV to ± 2.4 kV. When the value of the AC bias is higher than the lower limit value, a sufficient suction force can be obtained and dust can be sufficiently removed. If it is less than the upper limit value, the adsorption to the fabric 10 will not be too strong, and the static electricity application part 82 and the fabric 10 can be smoothly separated after the dust is removed. Further, it is possible to make it difficult for residual charges to remain on the fabric 10, and it is possible to prevent the ink droplet from being bent due to the influence of the residual charges, thereby reducing the landing position accuracy and mist.

With the AC bias supplied to the charging roller 203, as shown in FIG. 4A, the insulating layer 201 of the charging drum 81 is alternately charged with positive and negative charges in the moving direction of the charging drum 81. Can do. Further, as described above, the insulating layer 201 of the charging drum 81 that charges positive and negative charges has a volume resistivity of preferably 10 ¹² Ωcm or more, and more preferably 10 ¹⁵ Ωcm or more. In the case where the insulating layer 201 is formed so as to satisfy this, positive and negative charges charged in the insulating layer 201 can be prevented from moving at the boundary, and positive and negative charges are alternately applied to the insulating layer 201. It can be charged stably.

  When an image output instruction is given to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment, the charging drum 81 is rotated by a drive motor in synchronization with the transport speed of the fabric 10, and at the same time, the AC bias is supplied from the AC bias supply unit 204 to the charging roller 203. Is applied.

  Next, a mechanism for cleaning the fabric 10 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5A, the charging roller 203 and the AC bias supply unit 204 cause the insulating layer 201 of the charging drum 81 to alternately have positive and negative charges with respect to the moving direction of the charging drum 81. Become charged. Then, on the surface of the charging drum 81, a minute electric field is generated as shown by the arc-shaped arrow in FIG. The fabric 10 is attracted to the charging drum 81 where the minute electric field is generated, and the electrostatic force on the charging drum 81 acts on the fibers on the fabric 10, and the fibers of the fabric 10 are attracted to the charging drum 81.

  In order to adsorb the fibers of the fabric 10 to the charging drum 81 in this way, the position where the charging roller 203 is in contact with the charging drum 81 is in the vicinity of the position where the charging drum 81 and the fabric 10 are in contact (or in the vicinity), and The upstream side of the position where the charging drum 81 and the fabric 10 are in contact with each other is preferable. That is, it is preferable that the static electricity applying unit 82 applies static electricity to the charging drum 81 on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the charging drum 81 from the position where the fabric 10 and the charging drum 81 are in contact with each other. With such a configuration, a minute electric field can be reliably generated on the surface of the charging drum 81 at a position where the cloth 10 and the charging drum 81 are in contact with each other, and the cloth 10 is stably adsorbed by the charging drum 81. Can be made.

  When there is dust 220 (attachment) on the fabric 10, as shown in FIG. 5B, the charging drum 81 and the dust 220 come into contact with each other, and the fabric 10 and Both dusts 220 are attracted to the charging drum 81. Thereafter, when the fabric 10 is pulled away from the charging drum 81, the dust 220 on the surface of the fabric 10 is adsorbed to the charging drum 81 as shown in FIG. 5C, and the dust 220 is removed from the fabric 10. Can do.

In addition, the charging drum 81 of the present embodiment adsorbs the fabric 10 in contact with or near the fabric 10 and cleans it. As long as the charging drum 81 can adsorb the fabric 10 and adsorb dust and fibers on the surface of the fabric 10, the charging drum 81 and the fabric 10 do not necessarily need to be in contact with each other. In the form, the charging drum 81 and the fabric 10 are preferably in contact with each other.
Further, when the charging drum 81 is formed in a two-layer structure of the insulating layer 201 and the conductive layer 202, the positive charge and the negative charge charged on the insulating layer 201 are discharged to some extent while the charging drum 81 rotates. The fabric 10 can be more easily separated from the charging drum 81.

  In the above description, the mode in which the recording head 24 reciprocates in the main scanning direction and ink droplets are ejected onto the fabric 10 to form an image has been described. Here, an example in which the conveyance of the fabric 10 stops when the recording head 24 moves on the fabric 10 and ejects ink droplets will be described. For example, after an image for one line is formed, the fabric 10 is conveyed for a certain distance, and an image for the next line is formed. In the above description, the AC bias is supplied to the charging drum 81 even when the fabric 10 is stopped. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the fabric 10 is stopped, the supply of the AC bias applied to the charging roller 203 may be stopped.

  Further, the rotation of the charging drum 81 can be stopped according to the conveyance status of the fabric 10 and the supply of the AC bias to the charging roller 203 is stopped when the charging drum 81 is stopped. Good. In this way, by stopping the supply of the AC bias, the charge applied to the portion of the charging drum 81 that contacts the charging roller 203 is removed by the AC bias supply unit 204, or a charge is generated in an unintended direction. Can be prevented. Thereby, when the charging drum 81 continues to rotate, the fabric 10 can be stably cleaned.

  Further, when the charging drum 81 is charged, the current flowing between the charging drum 81 and the charging roller 203 is very small. However, when a charge is continuously applied to a part of the charging drum 81, heat is applied to the charging drum 81. May occur. In this case, pinholes are generated in the charging drum 81, which may cause leakage. In contrast, by stopping the supply of the above-described configuration, that is, the AC bias according to circumstances, generation of pinholes and leakage can be suppressed, and the charging drum 81 can be prevented from being damaged.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, a pressing roller 84 (pressing the fabric 10 from the charging drum 81 side, which is downstream of the cloth 10 and the charging drum 81 in contact with or near the position in the conveyance direction of the fabric 10. It is preferable to include a pressing member. As described above, since the surface of the charging drum 81 is charged with the static electricity application unit 82, the cloth 10 is attracted to the charging drum 81 when the charging drum 81 and the cloth 10 are in contact with each other. When the fabric 10 is pulled toward the cleaning unit 8, the fabric 10 may not be transported satisfactorily, and the position of the ink droplets may be shifted during image formation by the recording unit 2, and a stable image may not be formed. For this reason, it is preferable to press the fabric 10 with a pressing member, and thereby it is possible to prevent displacement of ink droplets in image formation by the recording means 2.

  Further, it is preferable that the pressing roller 84 is made of a conductive substance (conductor) and connected to an earth circuit. Thereby, static electricity remaining on the surface of the fabric 10 can be removed by the charging drum 81. By removing the charge remaining on the surface of the fabric 10, it is possible to suppress the bending of the ink droplets and improve the landing position accuracy.

Examples of the material of the pressing roller 84 include a metal member such as SUS and a rubber member containing carbon. The volume resistivity of the pressing roller 84 is preferably 10 ⁷ Ωcm or less. The pressing roller 84 can be supported by a bearing or the like, and is preferably in contact with the electrode member and connected to an earth circuit.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the suction member cleaning unit in the present embodiment includes a static elimination member 89 that removes static electricity on the surface of the charging drum 81, and a brush 90 a (charging cleaning member) that cleans the surface of the charging drum 81. Have. Further, a neutralizing member 89, a brush 90 a, and a static electricity applying unit 82 are provided in order along the rotation direction of the charging drum 81 from a position where the fabric 10 and the charging drum 81 are in contact with each other or in the vicinity thereof. Note that the charging cleaning member may have a trash box 91 (container) for collecting deposits on the charging drum 81 as necessary.

  An example of a flow in which the suction member cleaning unit in this embodiment cleans the suction means is shown in FIG. The arrows in FIG. 6 conceptually show the rotation direction of the charging drum 81. In FIG. 6A, positive and negative charges are alternately applied to the insulating layer 201 in the charging drum 81, and the dust 220 is attracted to the charging drum 81 by a minute electric field generated on the surface of the charging drum 81. Yes. As shown in FIG. 6B, static electricity (positive or negative charge) on the surface of the charging drum 81 is removed by the charge removing member 89. Since the portion that has passed through the neutralizing member 89 is neutralized, the attraction force is lost and scraped off by the brush 90a as shown in FIG. 6C. The suction member cleaning unit may have a trash box 91 (container) as shown in FIG. 1, and the trash scraped off by the brush 90 a can be accumulated in the trash box 91.

The neutralizing member 89 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a neutralizing brush.
The charging cleaning member is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a blade-like wiper and a brush-like wiper. Further, when a rotating member such as a rotating brush is used as the charging cleaning member, the rotation direction is not particularly limited, and the charging cleaning member may be rotated in the same direction as the charging drum 81, or may be rotated in the opposite direction to be charged. The surface of 81 may be swept away.
It is preferable that the wiper or brush used for the charging cleaning member has conductivity and is connected to the ground so that the surface does not remain charged and adsorbs dust, and it is difficult for the charge to remain.
As materials for the brush, there are ELEVY with carbon attached around nylon and conductive performance, monoeite mainly composed of nylon 66, blended with nylon 6 and conductive carbon black, and copper sulfide bonded to acrylic fiber. A sanderlon having a conductive performance is preferable.

  In this way, by cleaning the surface of the charging drum 81, the adsorption force to the fabric 10 can be easily maintained, and the attached dust can be efficiently collected.

  Next, an outline of the control unit of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to a block diagram of FIG. The control unit 500 temporarily stores a CPU 501 that controls the entire apparatus, various programs including a program that causes the CPU 501 to execute control (processing) according to the present embodiment, a ROM 502 that stores other fixed data, and image data and the like. RAM 503, a rewritable non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 504 for holding data even while the apparatus is powered off, image processing for performing various signal processing, rearrangement, etc. on image data, and other entire apparatus And an ASIC 505 for processing input / output signals for controlling.

In addition, a head drive control unit 508 including a data transfer unit for driving and controlling the recording head 24 and a drive signal generating unit, and a recording head driver (recording head IC) for driving the recording head 24 provided on the carriage 23 side. 509. In addition, a carriage unit movement motor drive control unit 510 for driving and controlling the main scanning motor 25 that moves and scans the carriage 23 is provided.
Further, the feeding section paper tube 41 winding the cloth 10 before printing is rotated to feed the cloth 10 and the feeding roller 51 is rotated to feed the cloth 10 to the printing section. The feed motor 522 is held. Further, a feeding motor 521 that rotates the feeding roller 61 that feeds the fabric 10 and maintains the position thereof, and a winding unit motor 524 that rotates the winding unit paper tube 71 that winds the fed fabric 10 are provided. A medium transport motor drive control unit 520 that drives and controls these motors is provided.

The control unit 500 is connected to an operation panel 514 for inputting and displaying information necessary for the apparatus.
The control unit 500 has a host I / F 506 for transmitting and receiving data and signals to and from the host side, such as an information processing device such as a personal computer, an image reading device such as an image scanner, and a digital camera. The data is received by the host I / F 506 from the host 600 side such as an imaging apparatus via a cable or a network.

  Then, the CPU 501 of the control unit 500 reads and analyzes the print data in the reception buffer included in the host I / F 506, performs necessary image processing, data rearrangement processing, and the like by the ASIC 505, and drives the image data to the head drive. The data is transferred from the control unit 508 to the head driver 509. Note that generation of dot pattern data for image output is performed by the printer driver 601 on the host 600 side.

  The head drive control unit 508 transfers the above-described image data as serial data, and outputs a transfer clock, a latch signal, a control signal, and the like necessary for transferring the image data and confirming the transfer to the head driver 509. In addition to this, it includes a drive signal generation unit composed of a D / A converter for converting D / A conversion of drive pulse pattern data stored in the ROM 502, a voltage amplifier, a current amplifier, and the like. A drive signal composed of a plurality of drive pulses is output to the head driver 509.

  The head driver 509 applies a drive pulse that constitutes a drive signal provided from the head drive control unit 508 to the recording head 24 based on image data corresponding to one row of the recording head 24 that is input serially. 24 is driven. At this time, the drive signal is selectively applied to a drive element (for example, a piezoelectric element) that generates energy for ejecting droplets of the recording head 24, thereby forming an image corresponding to the drive pulse of the head driver 509. The In addition, by selecting a driving pulse constituting the driving signal, for example, droplets having different droplet amounts such as large droplets, medium droplets, and small droplets can be ejected to separate dots having different sizes.

  The I / O 513 acquires information from the main scanning encoder, the feed encoder 156, the feed encoder 159, and the sensor 515 including various sensor groups mounted on the apparatus, and extracts information necessary for printer control. The extracted information is converted into a head drive control unit 508, a carriage unit movement motor drive control unit 510, a medium transport motor drive control unit 520, a maintenance / recovery unit drive control unit 534, an ink supply unit drive control unit 535, and a cleaning unit control unit. Used to control 540.

The sensor 515 includes an optical sensor (medium sensor) 160 provided on the carriage 23 for detecting the position of the paper, a thermistor for monitoring the temperature and humidity in the machine, a sensor for monitoring the voltage of the charging drum, and each machine body. There are interlock switches for detecting the opening and closing of the cover, and the I / O 513 can process various sensor information.
For example, the CPU 501 detects a speed detection value and a position detection value obtained by sampling a detection pulse from the encoder sensor 123 constituting the main scanning encoder, and a speed target value and a position target value obtained from a previously stored speed / position profile. Based on the above, a drive output value (control value) for the main scanning motor 25 is calculated. Based on the calculated drive output value (control value), the main scanning motor 25 that moves the carriage unit is driven via the carriage unit movement motor drive control unit 510.

Similarly, a speed detection value and a position detection value obtained by sampling a detection pulse from the encoder sensor 155 constituting the feed encoder 156, and a speed target value and a position target value obtained from a previously stored speed / position profile. Based on this, a drive output value (control value) for the feed motor 522 is calculated. Based on the calculated drive output value (control value), the feeding motor 522 is driven via the medium transport motor drive control unit 520.
Similarly, the delivery motor 521 is driven via the medium transport motor drive control unit 520 based on the detection pulse from the delivery encoder 159.

Further, the control unit 500 drives the maintenance motor 525 via the maintenance / recovery unit drive control unit 534 to move the cap 92 of the maintenance / recovery mechanism 9 forward and backward with respect to the nozzle surface of the recording head 24, so 94 is moved to drive the suction pump.
In addition, the supply motor 31 is driven via the ink supply unit drive control unit 535 and the supply pump (not shown) is operated, so that ink is supplied from the ink tank 32 to the head tank 29 or the head tank 29. The ink is sent back to the ink tank 32.

  The cleaning unit 8 synchronizes with the medium transport motor drive control unit 520 and drives the unit drive motor 541 via the cleaning unit control unit 540 to rotate the charging drum 81 in accordance with the transport speed of the fabric 10. At that time, a voltage is applied to the static electricity application unit 82 via the charging voltage supply unit 542 to charge the surface of the charging drum 81.

  The charging voltage is also controlled by the charging voltage supply unit 542 to determine the amount of voltage applied to the static electricity application unit 82. Regarding the positive and negative charging widths, the charging voltage supply unit 542 obtains the positive / negative inversion frequency of the voltage to be a predetermined charging width from the number of rotations of the unit drive motor, and the charging voltage supply unit 542 controls the voltage to charge the charging width of the charging drum. To control.

Next, an aspect of the ink jet recording method in the present embodiment will be described.
In the ink jet recording method, a stimulus (energy) is given to ink by a stimulus generating means, and ejected and ejected as droplets to form an image. In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the stimulus is not particularly limited and can be appropriately selected depending on the purpose, and includes heat (temperature), pressure, vibration, light, and the like. These may be used individually by 1 type and may use 2 or more types together. Among these, heat and pressure are preferable.
Examples of the stimulus generating means include a heating device, a pressurizing device, a piezoelectric element, a vibration generating device, an ultrasonic oscillator, a light, and the like. Specifically, for example, a piezoelectric actuator such as a piezoelectric element, a heating resistor. Examples include a thermal actuator that uses a phase change caused by film boiling of a liquid using an electrothermal conversion element such as a shape memory alloy actuator that uses a metal phase change caused by a temperature change, and an electrostatic actuator that uses an electrostatic force.

  There are no particular restrictions on the mode of flying of the inkjet ink, and it varies depending on the type of the stimulus. For example, when the stimulus is “heat”, a recording signal is output to the inkjet ink in the recording head. Give the corresponding thermal energy. For example, a method of applying using a thermal head or the like, generating bubbles in the inkjet ink by the thermal energy, and ejecting and ejecting the inkjet ink as droplets from the nozzle holes of the recording head by the pressure of the bubbles Etc.

  When the stimulus is “pressure”, for example, a voltage is applied to a piezoelectric element bonded to a position called a pressure chamber in an ink flow path in the recording head. As a result, there is a method in which the piezoelectric element is bent, the volume of the pressure chamber is reduced, and the inkjet ink is ejected and ejected as droplets from the nozzle holes of the recording head.

The size of the droplets of the ink jet ink to be ejected is preferably, for example, 3 × 10 ¹⁵ m ³ to 40 × 10 ¹⁵ m ³ ( ³ pL to 40 pL), and the speed of the ejection ejection Is preferably 5 m / s to 20 m / s. The driving frequency is preferably 1 kHz or more. The resolution is preferably 60 dpi or more, and more preferably 150 dpi or more.

The fabric 10 is not particularly limited as long as it is a fabric.
As fibers used for the fabric, cellulose fibers such as cotton, hemp, rayon and cupra, polyamide fibers such as silk, nylon and wool, synthetic fibers such as polyester, acrylic, diacetate and triacetate can be used. Such a fiber is processed into a yarn and used as a fabric as a fabric. There are no particular restrictions on the weaving method, and gold width, broad, twill, satin, tropical, taffeta, muslin, decyne, georgette, double feathers, etc. can be used. It is also possible to make a blend.
Examples of such a fabric 10 include a cotton-gold width, cotton broad, cotton satin, polyester tropical, silk feather double, T / C broad, and the like. In the case of a cotton material, the fabric 10 is preferably not subjected to gloss processing such as mercerization.
In the present invention, not only a cloth but also a cloth can be applied, and it can be used for a knitted fabric as well as a cloth. As knitting, knitting can use jersey, knit, double picket, tengu, and the like, and the fiber type can be single or mixed using a plurality of types.

<Second Embodiment>
Hereinafter, other embodiments of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described. In addition, the description about the same point as the said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted. A schematic diagram of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment is shown in FIG.

  The adsorption method in this embodiment is based on a physical method. The adsorbing member in the present embodiment is an endless porous material that rotates in contact with or near the fabric 10, and the cleaning means 8 further includes a porous material suction portion that sucks the inside of the porous material. ing. The porous material suction portion is a portion excluding a position where the fabric 10 and the porous material are in contact with each other or in the vicinity thereof, and does not suck at least a part inside the porous material and in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the porous material. A positive pressure part is provided. The adsorbing member cleaning unit in the present embodiment cleans the surface of the porous material at a position facing the positive pressure portion from the outer peripheral surface of the porous material. Details will be described below.

  In this embodiment, a suction drum 87 is used as the porous material, and the surface of the suction drum 87 is provided with pores communicating with the inside. The inside of the suction drum 87 is connected to a suction pump (not shown), and the air inside the suction drum 87 is sucked and kept at a negative pressure. In addition, the inside of the suction drum 87 is partitioned by a partition plate 103, and is connected to a suction pump to maintain a negative pressure area 101 and a positive pressure area 102 that is maintained at atmospheric pressure or positive pressure. (Positive pressure part) is formed. In order to keep the positive pressure area 102 at atmospheric pressure or positive pressure, it can be connected to a pressure pump, for example.

The material of the suction drum 87 is not particularly limited, and the same material as that of the charging drum 81 can be used. Further, the values of the negative pressure and the positive pressure are not particularly limited and can be appropriately changed, and the pore diameter of the porous material is not particularly limited and can be appropriately changed.
In addition, it does not restrict | limit especially as a material of the partition plate 103, A well-known thing can be used.

Next, how the suction drum 87 cleans the fabric 10 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 9A, the inside of the suction drum 87 (above the paper surface) is in a negative pressure state by the porous material and the suction pump, and a negative pressure area 101 is formed. When there is dust 220 (attachment) on the fabric 10, as shown in FIG. 9B, the suction drum 87 and the dust 220 come into contact with each other, and the fabric 10 and the dust 220 are separated by the suction force of the suction drum 87. Both are adsorbed to the suction drum 87. Thereafter, when the fabric 10 is pulled away from the suction drum 87, the dust 220 on the surface of the fabric 10 is adsorbed to the suction drum 87 as shown in FIG. 9C, and the dust 220 is removed from the fabric 10. Can do.
At this time, when the fabric 10 is pulled away from the suction drum 87, the pressing roller 84 has a function of suppressing the fabric 10 from being attracted and pulled up by the suction drum 87 and suppresses smooth conveyance and jamming of the fabric 10. Will work like that.
There is no restriction | limiting in particular as the pressing roller 84, An electroconductive thing may be sufficient and a nonelectroconductive thing may be sufficient.

Next, FIG. 10 shows an example of a flow in which the suction member cleaning unit in this embodiment cleans the suction means. The arrow on the right side of FIG. 10 conceptually shows the rotation direction of the suction drum 87, and the arrow pointing upward or downward on the paper conceptually shows the flow of air.
In FIG. 10A, the inside of the suction drum 87 is in a negative pressure state, and a negative pressure area 101 is formed. The surface of the suction drum 87 has pores communicating with the inside, and when in the negative pressure area 101, the air on the surface of the suction drum 87 is sucked, and the substance in contact with the surface is adsorbed on the surface of the suction drum 87. It is like that. For this reason, the dust 220 away from the surface of the fabric 10 is transported while being adsorbed by the suction drum 87.
In FIG. 10B, the partition plate 103 partitions the negative pressure area 101 and the positive pressure area 102, and the positive pressure area 102 is maintained at atmospheric pressure or positive pressure. As shown in FIG. 10B, when the dust 220 moves to the positive pressure area 102, the air on the surface of the suction drum 87 is not sucked, so that the surface adsorption force is lost.
In FIG. 10C, the suction drum 87 rotates and enters the positive pressure area 102, so that the suction force disappears, and the suction force of the suction drum 87 is reduced. The dust 220 attached to the suction drum 87 is scraped off by the suction member cleaning unit. The suction member cleaning unit may have a trash box 91 (container) as shown in FIG. 8, and the trash scraped off by the brush 90 b can be accumulated in the trash box 91.

  As described above, the suction member cleaning unit cleans the surface of the suction drum 87 at a position facing the positive pressure area 102 from the outer peripheral surface of the suction drum 87.

  The suction member cleaning section of the present embodiment is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a blade-like wiper and a brush-like wiper. Further, when a rotating member such as a rotating brush is used as the suction member cleaning unit, the rotation direction is not particularly limited, and the rotation may be in the same direction as the suction drum 87, or may be rotated in the opposite direction and sucked. The surface of the drum 87 may be swept away.

  Thus, by cleaning the surface of the suction drum 87, the adsorption force to the fabric 10 can be easily maintained, and the attached dust can be efficiently collected.

<Third Embodiment>
Hereinafter, other embodiments of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described. In addition, the description about the same point as the said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted. FIG. 11 shows a schematic diagram of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment.

  The adsorption method in this embodiment is based on a chemical method. The adsorbing member is an adhesive member to which an adhesive is applied, and the adsorbing member cleaning unit reduces the adhesive force of the adhesive member with a cleaning liquid and removes adhering matter attached to the adhesive member. And a cleaning liquid removing member that removes the cleaning liquid adhering to the adhesive member. Details will be described below.

  FIG. 11 shows an example in which an adhesive belt 88 is used as the adsorption member. The adhesive belt 88 is stretched by a plurality of drive rollers 85, pressed by the suction member pressing portion 83, and is in contact with the fabric 10. Further, FIG. 11 shows a brush 90c (adhesive cleaning member) that scrapes off deposits on the surface of the adhesive belt 88, a cleaning liquid 96, a wiper 95, and a drying unit 98. In the cleaning liquid removing member of this embodiment, the wiper 95 and the drying unit 98 remove the cleaning liquid attached to the adsorption member.

A configuration example of the adhesive belt 88 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 12A, the adhesive belt 88 has an adhesive layer 211 formed by applying an adhesive substance to the base material layer 210.
Examples of the material of the base material layer 210 include a rubber member alone or a surface of a canvas coated with a rubber member. As the rubber member, butyl rubber, ethylene / propylene rubber, EPDM (ethylene / propylene / diene rubber), urethane rubber, silicone rubber, fluorine rubber, or the like can be used. For the canvas, synthetic fibers such as polyester and nylon can be used. Moreover, the film thickness of the base material layer 210 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 200 μm to 2 mm.

The pressure-sensitive adhesive layer 211 is formed with a high-viscosity resin applied and dried to provide the adhesiveness. At this time, the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the resin is preferably −30 ° C. or lower.
The applied resin can be any of water-soluble, oil-soluble, and emulsion types, and can be used by appropriately changing the durability of the adhesive strength of the resin and the fabric type of the fabric 10.
Examples of the material of the adhesive layer 211 include water-soluble materials such as polyvinyl alcohol resins, polyacrylamide resins, carboxymethyl cellulose resins, and starch resins.
Examples of oil-soluble materials include acrylic resins and silicone resins.
Examples of the emulsion type include synthetic resin emulsions such as ethylene vinyl acetate emulsion, SBR emulsion, acrylic emulsion, acrylic silicone emulsion, and urethane emulsion.
Also, a plurality of types of resin to be applied can be mixed and used, and a water-soluble resin film can be applied on the oil-soluble resin film to increase the adhesive force.
The thickness of the adhesive layer 211 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 10 μm to 1 mm.

Next, how the adhesive belt 88 cleans the fabric 10 will be described with reference to FIG. The adhesive belt 88 and the dust 220 come into contact with the adhesive belt 88 shown in FIG. 12A as shown in FIG. 12B, and the fabric 10 and the dust 220 are both attached to the adhesive belt by the adhesive force of the adhesive belt 88. Adsorb to 88. Thereafter, when the fabric 10 is pulled away from the adhesive belt 88, as shown in FIG. 12C, the dust 220 on the surface of the fabric 10 is adsorbed to the adhesive belt 88, and the dust 220 is removed from the fabric 10. Can do.
At this time, when the fabric 10 is pulled away from the adhesive belt 88, the pressing roller 84 has a function of suppressing the fabric 10 from being pulled up by the adhesive force of the adhesive belt 88 and suppresses smooth conveyance and jamming of the fabric 10. Will work.
There is no restriction | limiting in particular as the pressing roller 84, An electroconductive thing may be sufficient and a nonelectroconductive thing may be sufficient.

  The position where the adhesive belt 88 is immersed in the cleaning liquid 96, the position where the cleaning liquid 96 is removed by the wiper 95, and the position where the adhesive belt 88 is dried by the drying unit 98 are not limited. However, it is preferable that the drying unit 98 dries the adhesive belt 88 after the cleaning liquid 96 is removed by the wiper 95 and before the adhesive belt 88 contacts the fabric 10. As a result, the adhesive belt 88 whose adhesive strength has been lowered by the cleaning liquid 96 is dried, and the adhesive belt 88 can adsorb the fabric 10 in a state where the adhesive strength is restored.

Next, an example of a flow in which the suction member cleaning unit in this embodiment cleans the suction means is shown in FIG. The arrow on the right side of FIG. 13 conceptually shows the moving direction of the adhesive belt 88.
As shown in FIG. 13A, the dust 220 adhering to the adhesive belt 88 is carried while adhering to the adhesive belt 88, and is immersed in the cleaning liquid 96 together with the adhesive belt 88 as shown in FIG. 13B. . In the adhesive layer 211 on the surface of the adhesive belt 88 by the cleaning liquid 96, the adhesive force of the adhesive is reduced, and thereafter, it is scraped off by a brush 90c that contacts and cleans the adhesive belt 88 as shown in FIG. The dust 220 scraped off is dropped into the cleaning liquid reservoir and accumulated.
Then, as shown in FIG. 13D, the cleaning belt 96 is removed from the adhesive belt 88 after cleaning by the wiper 95. Thereafter, the cleaning liquid 96 adhering to the adhesive belt 88 is dried by the drying unit 98, and the adhesive belt 88 is restored to its adhesive force and can be reused.

The adhesive cleaning member is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a blade-like wiper and a brush-like wiper. Further, when a rotating member such as a rotating brush is used as the adhesive cleaning member, the rotation direction is not particularly limited, and the rotation may be in the same direction as the movement direction of the adhesive belt 88 or in the opposite direction. The surface of the adhesive belt 88 may be swept away.
The cleaning liquid 96 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include an ethanol aqueous solution, an isopropyl alcohol aqueous solution, a surfactant aqueous solution, and a mixed solution thereof.
Although it does not restrict | limit especially as the drying part 98, For example, a halogen heater, a warm air dryer, etc. are mentioned. The drying temperature is not particularly limited, and may be a temperature at which the attached cleaning liquid 96 can be dried and removed.

As described above, since the strong adhesive force can be exhibited by using the adhesive belt 88, the dust adhered to the fabric 10 can be removed firmly, and the dust can be scattered by collecting the dust in the cleaning liquid 96. And can be efficiently recovered.
Even if the adsorbing member is an adhesive member (adhesive belt 88) coated with an adhesive, if the fabric 10 can be adsorbed, the fabric 10 and the adhesive member need to be in contact with each other. There is no. However, when it is separated, it is considered that it is difficult to show a dust peeling effect. Therefore, the fabric 10 and the adhesive belt 88 are preferably in contact with each other.

<Fourth Embodiment>
Hereinafter, other embodiments of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described. In addition, the description about the same point as the said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted. A schematic diagram of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment is shown in FIG.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the charging drum 81 of the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 14, the charging belt 86 is stretched by a driving roller 85, the charging belt 86 is pressed against the fabric 10 by the suction member pressing portion 83, and the charging belt 86 is in contact with the fabric 10.
Further, the number of the adsorbing member pressing portions 83 is not particularly limited, but two in the present embodiment are illustrated, whereby the area where the charging belt 86 is in contact with the fabric 10 can be increased. The fabric 10 can be adsorbed.

  An example of the configuration of the charging belt 86 is shown in FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C, the charging belt 86 can have a single layer structure including only the insulating layer 201 or a multilayer structure in which the conductive layer 202 and the insulating layer 201 are stacked. 4C, the insulating layer 201 is in contact with the fabric 10 and the charging roller 203, and the conductive layer 202 is formed on the side not in contact with the fabric 10 and the charging roller 203.

Also in the case of the charging belt 86, fibers and dust on the fabric 10 can be removed as shown in FIG.
As the material of the insulating layer 201 of the charging belt 86 and the material of the conductive layer 202, the same materials as those of the above-described charging drum 81 can be used. The volume resistivity and the like can be the same as that of the charging drum 81.
Also in the case of the charging belt 86, the dust 220 attached to the charging belt 86 can be removed as shown in FIG.

The image forming method according to the present invention uses an inkjet recording apparatus including a conveying unit that conveys a fabric, a recording unit that discharges and records ink on the fabric by an inkjet method, and a cleaning unit that cleans the fabric. An image forming method. The cleaning means is provided upstream of the recording means in the transport direction of the fabric, and has an adsorption member that adsorbs the fabric and an adsorption member cleaning portion that cleans the adsorption member. And
In the present invention, the adsorbing member is preferably an endless belt or a drum.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to examples and comparative examples. In addition, this invention is not limited to the Example illustrated here.

Example 1
For the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1, a cotton broad cloth having a width of about 25 cm which is not subjected to mercerization as the fabric 10 to be printed, Artisti 700 series pigment ink manufactured by Dupont as ink, and MH5440 manufactured by Ricoh as an ink jet head are used. A solid image was formed on the fabric 10 and the printing was evaluated.
The cleaning means 8 includes a surface of a 6 cm diameter aluminum tube with an EPDM (ethylene / propylene / diene rubber) thickness of 4 cm, a carbon roller-containing EPDM thickness 150 μm conductive layer and ETFE (Tetra). Copolymer of fluoroethylene and ethylene) A charging drum 81 having a volume resistivity of 10 ¹⁵ Ωcm coated with a thickness of 40 μm was used. The charging drum 81 was charged by applying an AC bias of 3 kV.
The suction member cleaning unit is provided with a neutralizing brush (static eliminating member 89) made of sanderlon upstream of the charging cleaning member (brush 90a), and the charged cleaning member has a brush 90a made of conductive nylon monoeate and dust collecting. A trash can 91 was provided.

The printing evaluation was performed on the following items.
-Initial durability-
The initial printed matter was visually evaluated for missing images and printed spots. The evaluation criteria were as follows.
◯: No missing image or uneven printing on printed matter up to 50 m ×: No missing image or uneven printing on printed matter up to 50 m

-Long-term durability-
After evaluating the initial durability of the ink jet recording apparatus, printing was performed on the fabric 10 at a predetermined distance for several days, and the presence or absence of image defects or print spots was evaluated. The evaluation criteria were as follows.
○: No image loss or uneven printing even after printing for 10 days or more Δ: No image loss or uneven printing after printing for 10 days, but no image loss or uneven printing is observed after 10 days ×: 10 days Image missing or printed spots occur within

  When the printing evaluation was performed on the apparatus of Example 1, it was confirmed that the printed matter up to 100 m had no image defect and was good and there was no problem in actual use. There were no printed spots and the image quality was good. At this time, as shown in FIG. 18, the fabric 10 had no image defect. Further, even when printing was performed for 10 days or more, no image chipping or printing spots occurred.

(Comparative Example 1)
For Example 1, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Example 1 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between Example 1 and Comparative Example 1 is that the static eliminating member 89 and the brush 90a of the apparatus in Example 1 are removed.
When printing evaluation was performed on this apparatus, the printed matter up to 20 m was good without any image loss. However, after 30 m or more, lint accumulated in the charging portion and the charge to the charging drum 81 leaked, and the image remained on the fabric surface and image chipping occurred. At this time, as shown in FIG. 19, a lint mark remained on the fabric 10, and image defect occurred.

(Example 2)
For Example 1, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Example 1 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between the first embodiment and the second embodiment is that the charging drum 81 of the apparatus in the first embodiment is changed to the suction drum 87 in the second embodiment, the static electricity applying unit 82 and the charge removal member 89 are removed, and the suction pump is used. It is provided. A partition plate 103 is provided inside the suction drum 87, and a negative pressure area 101 and a positive pressure area 102 are provided. In addition, as the brush 90b which is an adsorption member cleaning part, the same thing as the brush 90a in FIG. 1 was used.
As a result of printing evaluation for this apparatus, it was confirmed that the printed matter up to 100 m was good with no image missing, and there was no problem in actual use. There were no printed spots and the image quality was good. Further, even when printing was performed for 10 days or more, no image chipping or printing spots occurred. After the evaluation for 10 days (after printing for 10 days), it was confirmed that fine dust was adsorbed on the surface of the suction drum 87 and the suction efficiency was reduced. The original adsorption power was restored by cleaning with a brush and vacuum cleaner.

(Comparative Example 2)
For Example 2, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Example 2 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 8 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between the second embodiment and the second comparative example is that the partition plate 103 and the brush 90b constituting the positive pressure area 102 are removed from the apparatus in the second embodiment.
When this apparatus was subjected to printing evaluation, the printed matter up to 10 m was good without any image missing. However, at 20 m or more, lint accumulated on the drum surface, and when the accumulation was large, new adsorption could not be performed, and lint remained on the fabric 10 to cause image loss.

(Example 3)
For Example 1, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Example 1 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between Example 1 and Example 3 was that the charging drum 81 of the apparatus in Example 1 was changed to an adhesive belt 88, and the static electricity application unit 82 and the charge removal member 89 were removed. Further, a brush 90 c and a cleaning liquid 96 were provided, a wiper 95 was further provided, and a hot air dryer was provided as the drying unit 98.
The adhesive belt 88 was prepared by applying and drying 100 μm of Nicazole CL-303 (made by Nippon Carbide Co., Ltd., resin emulsion) on the surface of an endless belt having an EPDM (ethylene / propylene / diene rubber) thickness of 2 mm.
The suction member cleaning portion is provided with a nylon brush 90 c, a cleaning liquid 96, and a cleaning liquid reservoir 97 that receives the cleaning liquid 96, and 1 wt% aqueous ethanol solution was used as the cleaning liquid 96.
As a result of printing evaluation for this apparatus, it was confirmed that the printed matter up to 100 m was good with no image missing, and there was no problem in actual use. There were no printed spots and the image quality was good. When used continuously, there was no image chipping after printing for 10 days, but after 10 days, the adhesive strength decreased and lint remained on the fabric 10 to cause image chipping.

(Comparative Example 3)
For Comparative Example 1, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Comparative Example 1 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 15 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between Comparative Example 1 and Comparative Example 3 is that the charging drum 81 in Comparative Example 1 is an adhesive belt 88. As the adhesive drum 99, a roller wide telescopic shaft manufactured by Nitoms was used.
When the printing evaluation was performed on this apparatus, adhesive strength was obtained up to 5 m, but after that, lint remained on the surface of the fabric 10, and image loss occurred due to the remaining lint.

Example 4
For Example 1, printing evaluation was performed in the same manner as Example 1 except that the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was replaced with the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. The difference between the first embodiment and the fourth embodiment is that the charging drum 81 of the apparatus in the first embodiment is changed to a charging belt 86 in the fourth embodiment. Further, as shown in FIG. 14, there are two suction member pressing portions 83. The charging belt 86 was produced by forming an ETFE layer on the surface of an endless belt made of EPDM.
As a result of printing evaluation for this apparatus, it was confirmed that the printed matter up to 100 m was good with no image missing, and there was no problem in actual use. There were no printed spots and the image quality was good.

  Table 1 below shows the results of printing evaluation in Examples 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Recording means 4 Feeding part 5 Conveying mechanism part 6 Discharging part 7 Winding part 8 Cleaning means 9 Maintenance recovery mechanism 10 Fabric 11L, 11R Side plate 21 Main guide member 22 Subordinate guide member 23 Carriage 24 Inkjet head 25 Main scanning motor 26 Drive pulley 27 Driven pulley 28 Timing belt 29 Head tank 30 Ink cartridge 31 Supply motor 32 Ink tank 33 Panel 41 Feeding section paper pipe 51, 52 Feed roller 52a, 62a Shaft 53 Platen 61, 62 Feed roller 71 Winding paper pipe 81 Charging drum 82 Static electricity application unit 83 Adsorption member pressing unit 84 Pressing roller 85 Driving roller 86 Charging belt 87 Suction drum 88 Adhesive belt 89 Static elimination member 90a, 90b, 90c Brush 91 Trash bin 92 Cap 93 Wafer Par blade 94 Empty discharge receptacle 95 Wiper 96 Cleaning liquid 97 Cleaning liquid storage section 98 Drying section 99 Adhesive drum 101 Negative pressure area 102 Positive pressure area 103 Partition plate 121 Encoder scale 154, 157, 161 Code hole 123, 155, 158, 162 Encoder sensor 156 Rotary encoder (feed encoder)
159 Rotary encoder (feed-out encoder)
160 Optical sensor (medium sensor)
163 Rotary encoder (cleaning section encoder)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 201 Insulating layer 202 Conductive layer 203 Charging roller 204 AC bias supply part 210 Base material layer 211 Adhesive layer 220 Garbage 500 Control part 501 CPU
502 ROM
503 RAM
504 NVRAM
505 ASIC
506 Host I / F
508 Head drive control unit 509 Head driver 510 Carriage unit movement motor drive control unit 513 I / O
514 Operation panel 515 Sensor 520 Medium transport motor drive controller 521 Feed motor 522 Feed motor 523 Feeder motor 524 Winding motor 525 Maintenance motor 534 Maintenance recovery unit drive controller 535 Ink supply unit drive controller 540 Cleaning unit controller 541 Unit drive motor 542 Charge voltage supply unit 600 Host 601 Printer driver

JP 2001-277656 A JP-A-6-15818 JP-A-7-70951 JP 11-192694 A

Claims (7)

Conveying means for conveying the fabric;
A recording means for performing recording by discharging ink to the fabric by an inkjet method;
Cleaning means for cleaning the fabric,
The cleaning means is provided upstream of the recording means in the conveyance direction of the fabric, and has an adsorption member that adsorbs the fabric and an adsorption member cleaning portion that cleans the adsorption member. Inkjet recording device. The adsorbing member is a charging member that rotates in contact with or near the fabric,
The adsorbing member cleaning unit includes a static elimination member that removes static electricity on the surface of the charging member, and a charging cleaning member that cleans the surface of the charging member,
Furthermore, the cleaning means has a static electricity applying unit that applies static electricity to the charging member,
The neutralization member, the charging cleaning member, and the static electricity application unit are provided in order from the position where the cloth and the charging member are in contact with each other or in the vicinity of the rotation direction of the charging member. 2. An ink jet recording apparatus according to 1. The adsorbing member is an endless porous material that rotates in contact with or near the fabric,
Further, the cleaning means has a porous material suction part for sucking the inside of the porous material,
The porous material suction portion is a portion excluding a position where the fabric and the porous material are in contact with each other or in the vicinity thereof, and does not suck at least a part inside the porous material and in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the porous material. Provide a positive pressure part,
The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the suction member cleaning unit cleans the surface of the porous material at a position facing the positive pressure portion from an outer peripheral surface of the porous material. The adsorbing member is an adhesive member formed by applying an adhesive,
The adsorbing member cleaning unit reduces an adhesive force of the adhesive member with a cleaning liquid, and removes an adhering matter attached to the adhesive member, and a cleaning liquid removing member that removes the cleaning liquid attached to the adhesive member. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:   5. A pressing member that presses the fabric from the side of the suction member, further downstream of the fabric and the suction member in contact with or near the position in the transport direction of the fabric. Any one of the inkjet recording apparatuses.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the suction member is an endless belt or a drum. Conveying means for conveying the fabric;
A recording means for performing recording by discharging ink to the fabric by an inkjet method;
An image forming method using an ink jet recording apparatus comprising a cleaning means for cleaning the fabric,
The cleaning means is provided upstream of the recording means in the conveyance direction of the fabric, and has an adsorption member that adsorbs the fabric and an adsorption member cleaning portion that cleans the adsorption member. Image forming method.