LIQUID-EJECTING APPARATUS

• US 20120037071A1
• Filed: 08/03/2011
• Published: 02/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: SHIONO, Shohei
• Application Number:
  US13/196,943
• Publication Number:
  US 20120037071A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 118/695
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/175 Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor

Abstract

A liquid-ejecting apparatus includes a liquid container that contains a liquid containing a substance that can settles, and a vessel that is connected to the liquid container with a tube and receives the liquid from the liquid container. An ejecting head is connected to the vessel. The ejecting head receives the liquid from the vessel and ejects the liquid. The liquid-ejecting apparatus includes also an agitation unit that agitates the liquid in the vessel, and a control unit that controls a first operation that ejects the liquid from the ejecting head and a second operation that causes the agitation unit to agitate the liquid after the first operation.

Claims

1. A liquid-ejecting apparatus comprising:

a liquid container that contains a liquid containing a substance that can settle;

a vessel connected to the liquid container with a tube, the vessel receiving the liquid from the liquid container;

an ejecting head connected to the vessel, the ejecting head receiving the liquid from the vessel and ejecting the liquid;

an agitation unit that agitates the liquid in the vessel; and

a control unit that controls a first operation that ejects the liquid from the ejecting head and a second operation that agitates the liquid with the agitation unit after the first operation.

6. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit causes the first operation to be performed again after the second operation.

2. A liquid-ejecting apparatus comprising:

a liquid container that contains a liquid containing a substance that can settle;

a vessel connected to the liquid container with a tube, the vessel receiving the liquid from the liquid container;

an ejecting head connected to the vessel, the ejecting head receiving the liquid from the vessel and ejecting the liquid to an ejection target medium;

an agitation unit that agitates the liquid in the vessel;

a control unit that controls a first operation that ejects the liquid from the ejecting head to something other than the ejection target medium, a second operation that agitates the liquid in the vessel with the agitation unit, and a third operation that ejects the liquid to the ejection target medium; and

an evaluation device that evaluates whether or not the elapsed time after the completion of any of the first operation, the second operation after the first operation, and the third operation is equal to or more than a first threshold time,

wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the first operation to be performed.

4. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the second operation to be further performed after the first operation.

7. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the second operation to be performed after the first operation, and then the first operation to be performed again.

10. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first threshold time is a time equal to or more than the time needed for the substance that can settle to settle completely in the vessel and the tube.

12. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit causes the third operation to be performed during the second operation, and when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the amount of liquid ejected in the first operation is 0.4 times or more and less than 1.0 times the capacity of the tube.

3. A liquid-ejecting apparatus comprising:

a liquid container that contains a liquid containing a substance that can settle;

a vessel connected to the liquid container with a tube, the vessel receiving the liquid from the liquid container;

an ejecting head connected to the vessel, the ejecting head receiving the liquid from the vessel and ejecting the liquid to an ejection target medium;

an agitation unit that agitates the liquid in the vessel;

a control unit that controls a first operation that ejects the liquid from the ejecting head to something other than the ejection target medium, a second operation that agitates the liquid in the vessel with the agitation unit, and a third operation that ejects the liquid to the ejection target medium;

an input device with which an operator inputs a specific command to the liquid-ejecting apparatus; and

an evaluation device that evaluates whether or not the elapsed time from the completion of any of the first operation, the second operation after the first operation, and the third operation until the specific command is inputted with the input device is equal to or more than a first threshold time,

wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the first operation to be performed.

5. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the second operation to be performed after the first operation.

8. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the second operation to be performed after the first operation, and then the first operation to be performed again.

9. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the evaluation device determines whether or not the elapsed time is equal to or more than a second threshold time longer than the first threshold time, and less than the first threshold time, and when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the second threshold time and less than the first threshold time, the control unit causes the second operation to be performed.

11. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first threshold time is a time equal to or more than the time needed for the substance that can settle to settle completely in the vessel and the tube.

13. The liquid-ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit causes the third operation to be performed during the second operation, and when the elapsed time is equal to or more than the first threshold time, the amount of liquid ejected in the first operation is 0.4 times or more and less than 1.0 times the capacity of the tube.