Recording apparatus, control method, and storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12447746-B2
Application number	US-202218148893-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2022
Priority date	Jul 17, 2020
Publication date	Oct 21, 2025
Grant date	Oct 21, 2025

Abstract

A recording apparatus includes a recording unit, a scanning unit configured to perform relative scanning by moving the recording unit and a recording medium relative to each other at least once with respect to a unit region on the recording medium, a recovery unit configured to perform a recovery operation for maintaining or recovering a recording performance of the recording unit for application of a recording material, and a control unit configured to control the recovery unit, wherein the control unit acquires recording mode information about recording of an image to be performed on a recording medium for (n+1)-th page (n being a natural number) and determines, based on the acquired recording mode information, whether to perform an inter-page recovery operation at timing after recording of an image on a recording medium for n-th page ends and before recording of an image on a recording medium for (n+1)-th page starts.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image recording apparatus, comprising:
a recording unit configured to record an image by applying a recording material to a recording medium;
an execution unit configured to execute relative scanning of the recording unit and the recording medium with respect to a unit region on the recording medium; and
a recovery unit configured to perform a recovery operation for maintaining or recovering a recording performance of the recording unit for application of the recording material,
wherein, based on a value corresponding to a number of dots recorded after the recovery operation performed last time and based on a number of times of the relative scanning for completion of an image at a unit region of an (n+1)-th page, the recovery unit performs the recovery operation at a timing that is after recording of an n-th page but before recording of the (n+1)-th page, where the n is a natural number,
wherein
in a case of a one-pass mode, in which the number of times of the scanning for completion of the image at the unit region of the (n+1)-th page is once, the recovery unit performs the recovery operation when the value is greater than a first threshold,
in a case of a multi-pass mode, in which the number of times of the scanning for completion of the image at the unit region of the (n+1)-th page is twice or more, the recovery unit performs the recovery operation when the value is greater than a second threshold, and
the first threshold is greater than the second threshold.

2. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the execution unit includes
a main scanning unit configured to perform main scanning to move the recording unit in a first direction, and
a sub-scanning unit configured to perform sub-scanning to move the recording medium in a second direction intersecting with the first direction.

3. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the recording unit includes a plurality of recording elements configured to apply the recording material, and
the value corresponds to a number of times of driving the plurality of recording elements.

4. The image recording apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein
the value is a value weighted based on a number of times of driving per unit area.

5. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
based on the number of dots recorded after the recovery operation performed last time, the recovery unit performs the recovery operation at a timing that is after a start of the recording of the n-th page but before an end of the recording of the n-th page.

6. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the recording unit includes a discharge port surface from which ink, as the recording material, is discharged, and
the recovery operation performed by the recovery unit is wiping of the discharge port surface by using a wiping member.

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Danzuka Toshimitsu
• Kato Masataka
• Kango Hiroto
• Takekoshi Rie
• Tomida Akihiro
• Yamamuro Tomoki
• Ishimi Keita
• Narumi Kazuki
• Yokozawa Taku
• Suzuki Kazuo
• Sato Kazuhiko

Classifications

• B41J2/04551

  using several operating modes · CPC title

• H04N1/12

  using the sheet-feed movement {or the medium-advance or the drum-rotation movement} as the slow scanning component, {e.g. arrangements for the main-scanning}({sheet-feed movement by translatory movement of a flat picture-bearing surface H04N1/1008; main-scanning using oscillating or rotating mirrors H04N1/113; } using multi-element arrays H04N1/19) · CPC title

• H04N1/00084 Primary

  Recovery or repair, e.g. self-repair · CPC title

• B41J29/38

  Drives, motors, controls or automatic cut-off devices for the entire printing mechanism · CPC title

• B41J25/001

  Mechanisms for bodily moving print heads or carriages parallel to the paper surface · CPC title