Inkjet printer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8991966-B2
Application number	US-201313853214-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 29, 2013
Priority date	Jul 31, 2012
Publication date	Mar 31, 2015
Grant date	Mar 31, 2015

Abstract

An inkjet printer including a feeding device configured to feed a sheet in a feeding direction, a platen configured to support the sheet, a recording device configured to eject ink on the sheet, contacting members configured to contact the sheet, a detector configured to detect an end portion position of the sheet in a width direction, and a controller configured to control the feeding device and the recording device is provided. The contacting members are arranged at intervals in the width direction, and the controller performs a suppression process in which at least one of the feeding device and the recording device is controlled to suppress a contact of the sheet with the recording device when the end portion position detected by the detector is a position between the two adjacent contacting members.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An inkjet printer comprising:
a feeding device configured to feed a sheet in a feeding direction;
a platen configured to support the sheet fed by the feeding device;
a recording device configured to eject ink from nozzles on a recording side of the sheet supported by the platen;
a plurality of contacting members disposed between, in the feeding direction, the feeding device and the recording device and configured to contact the recording side of the sheet, the contacting members being arranged at intervals in a width direction which is orthogonal to the feeding direction,
a detector configured to detect an end portion position of the sheet in the width direction; and
a controller configured to control the feeding device and the recording device,
wherein the controller performs a suppression process in which at least one of the feeding device and the recording device is controlled to suppress a contact of the sheet with the recording device when the end portion position detected by the detector is a position between the two adjacent contacting members.

2. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the controller performs the suppression process when the end portion position is distanced more than a predetermined distance from one of the contacting members that is a member closest to the end portion position.

3. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein a contact position where the contacting members contact the sheet is between the platen and the nozzle in a height direction which is orthogonal to the feeding direction and the width direction, and
wherein the controller performs the suppression process when a first distance between the end portion position of the sheet and one of the contacting members that is a member closest to the end portion position in the width direction is longer than a second distance between the contact position and the nozzles in the height direction.

4. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of ribs formed extending along the feeding direction on the platen to contact a back side of the sheet, the back side being a reverse side of the recording side, the plurality of ribs and the plurality of contacting members being arranged alternately,
wherein the controller performs the suppression process when the end portion position is located between one of the ribs, which contacts the sheet and is closest to the end portion position of the sheet, and one of the contacting members, which does not contact the sheet and is closest to the end portion position of the sheet.

5. The inkjet printer according to claim 4 , wherein a first contact position where the ribs contact the sheet is a position between the recording device and a second contact position where the contacting members contact the sheet in a height direction which is orthogonal to the feeding direction and the width direction.

6. The inkjet printer according to claim 4 , further comprising a storage configured to store a predetermined region in the width direction, wherein the controller performs the suppression process when the end portion position detected by the detector is located in the predetermined region, and
wherein the predetermined region is defined, such that when the end portion position is located in the predetermined region, one of the ribs is a member closest to the end portion positions among all the contacting members and the ribs which contact the sheet.

7. The inkjet printer according to claim 4 , further comprising a storage configured to store positions of the contacting members and the ribs, and
wherein the controller performs the suppression process when one of the ribs is a member closest to the end portion position among all the contacting members and the ribs which contact the sheet, based on the end portion position of the sheet, the contacting members and the ribs.

8. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the detector is disposed on the recording device and includes an optical sensor having a light emitting element configured to emit a light to the sheet or the platen and a light receiving element configured to receive the light reflected from the sheet or the plated, and
wherein the detector detects a position at which an amount of the light received by the light receiving element exceeds a predetermined amount as the end portion position of the sheet.

9. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the controller performs the suppression process when the sheet is a plain sheet.

10. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the feeding device includes an upstream side rollers configured to nip the sheet at an upstream side of the recording device in the feeding direction, and a downstream side rollers configured to nip the sheet at a downstream side of the recording device in the feeding direction,
wherein the controller performs the suppression process when the sheet is nipped by only the upstream side rollers or the downstream side rollers.

11. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the suppression process includes a suspend process to suspend an operation of at least one of the feeding device and the recording device.

12. The inkjet printer according to claim 1 , wherein the suppression process includes a float-coping printing process for printing an image on the sheet, in which the controller controls:
the feeding device to feed the sheet at a speed which is slower than a predetermined speed;
the recording device, which is configured to move in the width direction, to move in the width direction at a speed which is slower than a predetermined speed; or
the recording device to eject the ink on the sheet where an amount of the ink is less than a predetermined amount.

13. The inkjet printer according to claim 11 , further comprising:
a discharge tray to which the sheet is discharged; and
an operation device configured to generate an operation signal in response to a user operation,
wherein the controller controls the feeding device to feed the sheet to the discharge tray when the operation signal is generated by the operation device after the suspend process is performed.

14. The inkjet printer according to claim 11 , further comprising:
a discharge tray to which the sheet is discharged; and
an operation device configured to generate a first operation signal and a second operation signal in response to a user operation,
wherein the suppression process includes a float-coping printing process for printing an image on the sheet, in which the controller controls:
the feeding device to feed the sheet at a speed which is slower than a predetermined speed;
the recording device, which is configured to move in the width direction, to move in the width direction at a speed which is slower than a predetermined speed; or
the recording device to eject the ink on the sheet where an amount of the ink is less than a predetermined amount,

wherein the controller controls the feeding device to feed the sheet to the discharge tray when the first operation signal is generated by the operation device after the suspend process is performed, and
wherein the controller performs the float-coping printing process when the second operation signal is generated by the operation device after the suspend process is performed.

15. The inkjet printer according to claim 14 , wherein the controller is further configured to calculate an amount of the ink ejected on the sheet based on image data indicating the image to be printed on the sheet, and
wherein the controller performs the float-coping printing

Assignees

• Arakane Satoru
• Horade Kenta
• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Arakane Satoru
• Horade Kenta

Classifications

• B41J11/0095

  Detecting means for copy material, e.g. for detecting or sensing presence of copy material or its leading or trailing end · CPC title

• B41J11/005 Primary

  Guides in the printing zone, e.g. guides for preventing contact of conveyed sheets with printhead · CPC title

• B41J13/0009 Primary

  control of the transport of the copy material · CPC title

• B41J13/00

  Devices or arrangements {of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers,} specially adapted for supporting or handling copy material in short lengths, e.g. sheets · CPC title

• B65H31/00

  Pile receivers (carriers used for associating, collating or gathering articles B65H39/00) · CPC title