APPLICATION APPARATUS AND INKJET RECORDING APPARATUS

• US 20090231405A1
• Filed: 03/11/2009
• Published: 09/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: FUKUI, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 8,109,625 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/102
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0015 for treating before, during or after printing or for uniform coating or laminating the copy material before or after printing selective coating B41J2/2114
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0022 using convection means, e.g. by using a fan for blowing or sucking air
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0017 Application of ink-fixing material, e.g. mordant, precipitating agent, on the substrate prior to printing, e.g. by ink-jet printing, coating or spraying

Abstract

An application apparatus has: a supply device which supplies a liquid in which a treatment agent having a prescribed function is dissolved; an application device which applies the liquid supplied from the supply device, onto a medium; and a condensing device which condenses the liquid supplied to the application device from the supply device during a period until the liquid is applied to the medium.

Claims

1. An application apparatus comprising:

a supply device which supplies a liquid in which a treatment agent having a prescribed function is dissolved;

an application device which applies the liquid supplied from the supply device, onto a medium; and

a condensing device which condenses the liquid supplied to the application device from the supply device during a period until the liquid is applied to the medium.

2. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the condensing device has a heating device which heats the liquid supplied from the supply device to the application device so as to condense the liquid.

3. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the condensing device has an air blowing device which blows air onto the liquid supplied from the supply device to the application device so as to condense the liquid.

4. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the condensing device has a dehumidification device which dehumidifies ambient environment of the liquid supplied from the supply device to the application device so as to condense the liquid.

5. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the condensing device condenses the liquid to a degree equal to or greater than a solubility of the treatment agent.

6. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the condensing device condenses the liquid so that a solvent component is removed from the liquid.

7. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the treatment agent has a function of reacting with an ink so as to aggregate or insolubilize a coloring material of the ink.

8. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the liquid contains a high-boiling-point solvent.

9. The application apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the application device is a roller that rotates and abuts against the medium which is traveling so as to apply the liquid deposited on an outer circumferential surface of the roller onto the medium;

the supply device deposits the liquid on the outer circumferential surface of the roller so as to supply the liquid; and

the condensing device condenses the liquid which has been deposited on the outer circumferential surface of the roller by the supply device, during the period until the liquid is applied to the medium.

10. The application apparatus as defined in claim 9, wherein a circumferential speed of the roller is set to be slower than a speed of the medium which is traveling.

11. The application apparatus as defined in claim 9, further comprising a re-dissolving device which re-dissolves the liquid remaining on the roller.

12. An image forming apparatus which applies to a medium a liquid in which a treatment agent having a function of reacting with an ink so as to aggregate or insolubilize a coloring material of the ink and ejects the ink onto the medium to which the liquid has been applied in such a manner that an image is formed, the image forming apparatus comprising the application apparatus as defined in claim 1 which applies the liquid to the medium.