Printer, control method, and non-transitory computer readable medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2023001712-A1
Application number	US-202217809422-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 28, 2022
Priority date	Jun 30, 2021
Publication date	Jan 5, 2023
Grant date	—

Abstract

A printer includes a platen, a first head, a second head, a first lamp, and a second lamp. The first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp are moved relatively with respect to the platen in a main scanning direction, and the platen is moved from the second head toward the first head relatively with respect to the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp, repeatedly. The second head ejects the second ink onto the object to be printed placed on the platen while the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp are moving in the main scanning direction. The first lamp irradiates light onto the second ink on the object to be printed while the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp are moving in the main scanning direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A printer comprising:
a platen configured to have an object to be printed placed thereon; a first head configured to eject a first ink onto the object to be printed, the first ink being a photocurable ink; a second head aligned with the first head in a sub-scanning direction, and configured to eject a photocurable second ink onto the object to be printed; a first lamp aligned with the first head in a main scanning direction, and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed, the main scanning direction being orthogonal to the sub-scanning direction; a second lamp aligned with the second head in the main scanning direction, and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed; a processor; and a memory storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, instruct the processor to perform processes comprising:
performing a first movement and a second movement repeatedly, the first movement moves the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp relatively with respect to the platen in the main scanning direction, the second movement moves the platen in a direction, of the sub-scanning direction, from the second head toward the first head, relatively with respect to the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp,
ejecting the second ink from the second head onto the object to be printed during the performing of the first movement, in a gloss print mode; and
irradiating, after the performing of the second movement and the ejecting of the second ink, the light from the first lamp onto the second ink ejected onto the object to be printed, during the performing of the first movement, in the gloss print mode.

2 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first lamp includes a first light source, the second lamp includes a second light source, and in a height direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction, the first light source is disposed at a position separated further from the platen than a position of the second light source with respect to the platen.

3 . The printer according to claim 2 , wherein
the first lamp includes a first housing in which the first light source is provided, the second lamp includes a second housing in which the second light source is provided, and in the height direction, the first housing is disposed at a position further separated from the platen than a position of the second housing with respect to the platen.

4 . The printer according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a fourth lamp provided opposite to the second lamp with respect to the second head in the main scanning direction, and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed.

5 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
in the gloss print mode, the computer-readable instructions further instruct the processor to perform steps comprising: causing the first lamp to irradiate the light onto the object to be printed, and causing the second lamp to be extinguished.

6 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first lamp and the second lamp are configured by a single irradiation device.

7 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first head ejects, as the first ink, a clear ink having a higher optical transparency than a color ink, and the second head ejects the color ink as the second ink.

8 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first head ejects a color ink as the first ink, and the second head ejects, as the second ink, a clear ink having a higher optical transparency than the color ink.

9 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first head ejects the first ink that is ultraviolet curable, the second head ejects the second ink that is ultraviolet curable, and the first lamp and the second lamp irradiate ultraviolet light.

10 . The printer according to claim 1 , wherein
the second head further ejects a white ink as a third ink.

11 . A printer comprising:
a platen configured to have an object to be printed placed thereon; a first head configured to eject a first ink onto the object to be printed, the first ink being a photocurable ink; a second head aligned with the first head in a sub-scanning direction, and configured to eject a photocurable second ink onto the object to be printed; a first lamp aligned with the first head in a main scanning direction, and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed, the main scanning direction being orthogonal to the sub-scanning direction; a second lamp aligned with the second head in the main scanning direction, and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed, the first lamp being disposed, in a height direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction, at a position further separated from the platen than a position of the second lamp with respect to the platen; a processor; and a memory storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, instruct the processor to perform processes comprising:
moving the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp relatively with respect to the platen in the main scanning direction,
gloss ejecting the first ink from the first head onto the object to be printed during the moving of the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp, in a gloss print mode; and
gloss irradiating the light from the first lamp onto the first ink ejected onto the object to be printed, during the moving of the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp, in the gloss print mode.

12 . The printer according to claim 11 , further comprising:
a third lamp provided opposite to the first lamp with respect to the first head in the main scanning direction and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed, wherein the first lamp and the third lamp are disposed at the same position as each other in the height direction, and the moving of the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp includes outward moving and return moving, the outward moving moves the first head, the second head, the first lamp, the second lamp, and the third lamp to one side in the main scanning direction relatively with respect to the platen, the return moving moves the first head, the second head, the first lamp, the second lamp, and the third lamp to another side in the main scanning direction relatively with respect to the platen, the gloss irradiating of the light includes first irradiating and second irradiating, the first irradiating irradiates the light from the first lamp onto the first ink ejected onto the object to be printed, during one or both of the outward moving and the return moving, the second irradiating irradiates the light from the third lamp onto the object to be printed, after one or both of the outward moving and the return moving.

13 . The printer according to claim 11 , further comprising:
a third lamp provided opposite to the first lamp with respect to the first head in the main scanning direction and configured to irradiate light onto the object to be printed, wherein in the height direction, the first lamp is disposed at a position further separated from the platen than a position of the third lamp with respect to the platen, the moving of the first head, the second head, the first lamp, and the second lamp includes outward moving and return moving, the outward moving moves the first head, the second head, the first lamp, the second lamp, and the third lamp, in a direc

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Kobayashi Akihiro
• Nishimoto Takahiro
• Nukui Kosuke
• Hasebe Kenta
• Takeda Kengo

Classifications

• B41J11/00214 Primary

  using UV radiation · CPC title

• B41J2/21

  for multi-colour printing · CPC title

• B41J19/207

  Encoding along a bar · CPC title

• B41J2/2117

  Ejecting white liquids · CPC title

• B41J11/00212

  Controlling the irradiation means, e.g. image-based controlling of the irradiation zone or control of the duration or intensity of the irradiation · CPC title