INK-JET WIPING APPARATUS, AND WIPING METHOD USING THIS

• US 20110074869A1
• Filed: 09/27/2010
• Published: 03/31/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: KANATA, Yoshio, MURO, Masahiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,439,478 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/25
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/16552 using cleaning fluids

Abstract

A wiping apparatus having a gas injection aperture that injects gas, and a guide section that has a convexly curved surface and has an apex and over which gas injected from the gas injection aperture is blown, and, in this wiping apparatus, foreign substance adhering to a nozzle plate of an ink-jet head placed above the guide section is blown away by gas guided along the curved surface of the guide section.

Claims

1. A wiping apparatus comprising:

a gas injection aperture that injects gas; and

a guide section that has a convexly curved surface which has an apex, and over which the gas injected from the gas injection aperture is blown,

wherein a foreign substance adhering to a nozzle plate of an ink jet head placed above the guide section is blown away by the gas guided along the curved surface of the guide section.

2. The wiping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a curvature radius of the curved surface is 5 to 200 millimeters.

3. The wiping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an angle of incidence of the gas injected from the gas injection aperture with respect to the curved surface is 30 to 90 degrees.

4. The wiping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the curved surface is a convex cylindrical surface having a top line; and

the gas injection aperture is a slit having a long axis parallel to the top line of the curved surface.

5. The wiping apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a gas suction aperture that sucks in the foreign substance that is blown away,

wherein the gas suction aperture and the gas injection aperture are facing each other across the guide section.

6. The wiping apparatus according to claim 5, wherein:

the curved surface is a convex cylindrical surface having a top line;

the gas injection aperture is a slit having a long axis parallel to the top line of the curved surface; and

the gas suction aperture is a slit having a long axis parallel to the top line of the curved surface.

7. The wiping apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a housing that houses the guide section, wherein:

the housing has;

an injection aperture plate and a suction aperture plate that are separated from each other and form a roof of the housing; and

an opening section that is formed between the injection aperture plate and suction aperture plate and where the top line of the curved surface is exposed;

the gas injection aperture is a gap between the curved surface and the injection aperture plate; and

the gas suction aperture is a gap between the curved surface and the suction aperture plate.

8. The wiping apparatus according to claim 7, wherein, the injection aperture plate and the suction aperture plate each have a surface facing the nozzle plate,

a portion of the surface in the vicinity of the opening section is parallel to the nozzle plate.

9. The wiping apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a diffuser plate that distributes the gas inside the gas injection aperture.

10. An ink-jet apparatus comprising a wiping apparatus according to claim 1.

11. A nozzle plate wiping method comprising the steps of:

providing a wiping apparatus according to claim 1;

placing an ink-jet head above the wiping apparatus so that the curved surface and the nozzle plate are facing each other; and

injecting gas from the gas injection aperture, moving the wiping apparatus relative to the nozzle plate while maintaining a fixed distance between the curved surface and the nozzle plate, and blowing away foreign substance adhering to the nozzle plate by means of gas guided along the curved surface.

12. The wiping method according to claim 11, wherein a flow rate of the gas injected from the gas injection aperture is 15 meters per second or above.

13. The wiping method according to claim 11, wherein a distance between the curved surface and the nozzle plate is 0.2 to 1.5 millimeters.