Printer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10668729-B2
Application number	US-201815984887-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 21, 2018
Priority date	Mar 14, 2016
Publication date	Jun 2, 2020
Grant date	Jun 2, 2020

Abstract

There is provided a printer including: a liquid jetting head; a receiving section; a waste-liquid storing section; a connecting channel connecting the receiving section and the waste-liquid storing section; a pump; and a controller. The controller executes: printing; recovering nozzles; discharging the liquid, which is present in at least one of the receiving section and the connecting channel, to the waste-liquid storing section, after the recovering of the nozzles. Under a condition that there is no input of the print data before the discharging of the liquid, the controller executes the discharging of the liquid continuously after the recovering of the nozzles; under a condition that there is an input of the print data before the discharging of the liquid, the controller executes the printing after the recovering of the nozzles and then executes at least a part of the discharging of the liquid after the printing.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A printer comprising:
a liquid jetting head having a plurality of nozzles;
a receiver;
a waste-liquid storage;
a connection channel connecting the receiver and the waste-liquid storage;
a pump provided on the connection channel at an intermediate portion thereof; and
a controller configured to control the liquid jetting head and the pump to execute:
printing based on a print data input to the controller;
recovering the plurality of nozzles by discharging the liquid from the plurality of nozzles toward the receiver; and
discharging the liquid, which is present in at least one of the receiver and the connection channel, to the waste-liquid storage without discharging the liquid from the plurality of nozzles,

wherein under a condition that there is an input of the print data to the controller before the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to start the printing after the recovering of the plurality of nozzles and then the controller controls the pump to execute at least a part of the discharging of the liquid in at least one of the receiver and the connection channel to the waste-liquid storage without discharging the liquid from the plurality of nozzles.

2. The printer according to claim 1 , wherein under a condition that there is no input of the print data to the controller before the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to execute maintenance including the recovering the plurality of nozzles and the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage.

3. The printer according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to execute second discharging in which the liquid present in at least one of the receiver and the connection channel is discharged to the waste-liquid storage,
wherein during a period in which the recovering the plurality of nozzles is executed, the controller controls the pump to execute the second discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage.

4. The printer according to claim 1 , wherein under the condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage, the controller controls the pump to execute entirety of the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage after the printing.

5. The printer according to claim 1 , wherein under the condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage, the controller controls the pump to execute the part of the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage before the printing and to execute a reminder of the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage after the printing.

6. The printer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the receiver includes:
a cap having a recessed portion, the cap being contactable with the liquid jetting head such that the recessed portion covers the plurality of nozzles; and
a cap switching device configured to switch a state of the cap between an atmosphere shut-off state in which a space defined by the recessed portion and the liquid jetting head is sealed without communicating with an outside of the cap, and an atmosphere-communication state in which the recessed portion communicates with the outside of the cap;

wherein in a case that the discharging of the liquid to the waste-liquid storage is executed, the controller controls the pump and the cap switching device to execute an idle suction operation in which the pump is activated in the atmosphere-communication state to discharge the liquid inside the recessed portion, and
wherein under a condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the idle suction operation, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to execute the printing after the recovering of the plurality of nozzles, and then controls the pump and the cap switching device to execute at least a part of the idle suction operation after the printing.

7. The printer according to claim 6 , wherein in a case that the recovering of the plurality of nozzles is executed, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to execute a flushing operation in which the liquid is jetted from the plurality of nozzles toward the recessed portion.

8. The printer according to claim 7 , wherein under a condition that a predetermined condition is satisfied, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to execute the flushing operation with a liquid jetting amount of the liquid greater than that under a condition that the predetermined condition is not satisfied; and
the controller controls the pump and the cap switching device to:
execute the part of the idle suction operation before the printing and execute a reminder of the idle suction operation after the printing, under a condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the idle suction operation and that the predetermined condition is satisfied, and
execute entirety of the idle suction operation after the printing, under a condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the idle suction operation and that the predetermined condition is not satisfied.

9. The printer according to claim 7 , wherein the plurality of nozzles includes a plurality of first nozzles for jetting first liquid and a plurality of second nozzles for jetting second liquid which is different from the first liquid;
wherein the recessed portion of the cap is a single recessed portion capable of covering the plurality of first nozzles and the plurality of second nozzles;
wherein the cap switching device includes a cap moving device configured to move the cap between a contact position at which the cap makes contact with the liquid jetting head and a separate position at which the cap is separated from the liquid jetting head; and
wherein the controller is configured to control:
the pump and the cap switching device to execute a suction purge operation in which the pump is activated to suck the liquid from the plurality of first nozzles and the plurality of second nozzles, in the state that the cap makes contact with the liquid jetting head to cover the plurality of nozzles, and
the liquid jetting head to execute, as the flushing operation, a post-purge flushing operation in which the liquid is jetted from the plurality of nozzles to the recessed portion, after the suction purge operation.

10. The printer according to claim 9 , wherein in the case that the recovering of the plurality of nozzles is executed, the controller controls the pump and the cap switching device to execute the idle suction operation after the post-purge flushing operation; and
under the condition that there is the input of the print data to the controller before the idle suction operation, the controller controls the pump and the cap switching device to execute the part of the idle suction operation before the printing, and to execute a reminder of the idle suction operation after the printing.

11. The printer according to claim 7 , wherein under a condition that the print data is input to the controller, the controller controls the liquid jetting head to execute, as the flushing operation, a pre-print flushing operation in which the liquid is jetted from the plurality of nozzles toward the recessed portion, before the printing; and
wherein in a case that the idle suction operation is executed after the pre-print flushing operation, the controller controls the pump and the cap switching device to execute entirety of the idle suction operation after the printing.

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Iida Shotaro

Classifications

• B41J2/16511 Primary

  Constructions for cap positioning (B41J2/16547 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B41J2/16538

  with brushes or wiper blades perpendicular to the nozzle plate · CPC title

• B41J2/16532

  by applying vacuum only · CPC title

• B41J2/1652

  by driving a fluid through the nozzles to the outside thereof, e.g. by applying pressure to the inside or vacuum at the outside of the print head · CPC title

• B41J2002/16573

  Cleaning process logic, e.g. for determining type or order of cleaning processes · CPC title