JP2000318182A - Ink jet recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide an ink jet recording apparatus that performs an optimal cleaning operation without wasting ink and notifies a user of an optimal ink filling time. SOLUTION: An ink remaining amount calculating means for calculating an ink remaining amount which is an amount of recording ink held by an ink jet recording apparatus, a recording preparation operation for setting the recording head to a state suitable for recording, and a recording operation of a predetermined amount. A consumption ink amount that is an amount of ink required for performing the recording preparation operation and the recording operation, and comparing the remaining ink amount with the consumption ink amount. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a notifying unit for notifying a user of a message indicating that the amount of ink exceeds the remaining amount of ink.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus, and more particularly to an ink jet recording apparatus for notifying a user of the timing of replacing an ink tank or refilling ink.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A so-called serial type recording apparatus in which an operating section equipped with a recording head reciprocates on a recording medium in a fixed direction and, at the time of the movement, ejects a recording member from the recording head and performs recording on the recording medium. Is widespread. Recording methods used in this serial type recording apparatus include a wire dot method, a thermal method, a thermal transfer method, and an ink jet method.

[0003] In particular, the ink jet recording method is a method in which ink droplets are ejected from respective ejection ports in a recording head, and the ink droplets land on the recording medium to form an image. Since recording can be performed without recording, high-speed, high-definition, low-noise recording operation is possible, and it has been rapidly spreading in recent years.

[0004] Hereinafter, a recording apparatus of the ink jet recording system is also referred to as an "ink jet recording apparatus".

[0005] The ink jet recording apparatus has an ink tank for storing ink in a recording head. The ink tank communicates with the ejection port via an ink path, and the ink is filled up to the ejection port. In the initial state, the ink tank has a predetermined amount of ink. However, a recording operation or an ejection recovery processing operation (hereinafter, “cleaning operation”) is performed.
), The ink is consumed. Therefore, if printing is performed up to a certain amount, the ink runs out, and further printing cannot be performed. Therefore, although the ink tank and the ink cartridge integrated with the recording head are replaced, or the recording head and the ink tank are separate bodies, operations such as replacement of only the ink tank and replenishment of ink (hereinafter, referred to as “replacement”)
These operations are collectively referred to as “ink filling operation”.

Therefore, in order to inform the user of the ink filling time, when the remaining amount of ink becomes low, a message is displayed on a display device to alert the user or a confirmation window is provided on the recording head. There is also an ink jet recording apparatus that allows a user to visually check the apparatus, and also includes an indicator that changes according to the remaining amount of ink.

[0007] In order to display a message of the ink filling time to the user, the control unit in the ink jet recording apparatus needs to keep track of the remaining amount of ink. However, since it is difficult to always accurately measure the remaining amount of ink in the recording head, an estimated value by calculation is usually used for the remaining amount of ink.

As a method of calculating the remaining amount of ink, a method called "dot count residual detection" is well known. This is because the amount of ink consumed in one ejection is measured in advance, the number of ejections and the number of cleaning operations are counted, and the number of times is accumulated to calculate the amount of ink consumed in the recording operation and the cleaning operation. This is the method that is required. This method does not require a special device for detecting the remaining amount of ink, and can be obtained only by calculation, so that it has the advantage of minimizing cost and is widely used.

Further, as described above, the ink is ejected not only at the time of recording but also at the time of a cleaning operation. The cleaning operation is performed in the following state.

For example, when a long time has passed since the previous recording operation, dust is attached to the discharge port, or the ink inside the discharge port is thickened. In some cases, recording may not be performed at a correct position due to the fact that ink is not ejected or the ejection amount is small. Therefore, when time has passed since the previous recording operation, a pre-printing cleaning operation (hereinafter also referred to as a “recording preparation operation”) is performed before recording. The pre-printing cleaning operation removes dust and thickened ink from the discharge ports by suctioning a predetermined amount of ink from each discharge port of the recording head and discharging it by preliminary discharge, etc., so that normal discharge can be performed. It is to be.

In addition, air bubbles may be generated in the ink due to vibration during transportation, or air bubbles may enter the ink supply path when the ink tank is replaced. In some cases, and the ink path or the ejection port is not properly filled with ink. If the ink filling is insufficient, the energy generating element for discharging the ink will be in an empty heating state, and the energy generating element itself may be damaged. In order to prevent such a situation, it is desirable to perform a cleaning operation of discharging a fixed amount of ink after filling the ink. Therefore, a device that presents a message to a user or automatically performs a cleaning operation has been put to practical use. Note that the cleaning operation after ink filling is referred to as “installation cleaning operation” and is distinguished from the above-described “pre-printing cleaning operation”.

In a conventional ink jet recording apparatus, when a recording command is input, a pre-printing cleaning operation is first performed, and thereafter, the remaining amount of ink is detected. Is sent to the user. That is, the ink filling timing is performed immediately before the start of the printing operation immediately after the cleaning before printing or immediately after the end of the printing operation of one or more printing media.

When the ink is filled, an installation cleaning operation is further performed, and thereafter, a recording operation is performed.

In recent years, there is also a recording apparatus provided with a scanner for reading an image such as a photograph.

A scanner generally has a plurality of light sources and a light receiving sensor. Light emitted from the light source irradiates a document via a light emitting fiber, and reflected light from the document is received from the light receiving sensor to read the document. It is a mechanism that can be done.
In accordance with the intensity of the light received by the light receiving sensor, control is performed to determine the density of the document, that is, the density gradation.

[0016]

In the control structure of the conventional ink jet recording apparatus, as described above, the ink filling timing is immediately before the start of the recording operation or immediately after the end of the recording operation. When an attempt is made to start a recording operation, first, a pre-printing cleaning operation is performed. In this operation, the ink runs out, and the ink is filled. Then, the installation cleaning operation is performed by the ink filling. In this manner, two cleaning operations are performed before the start of the recording operation.

In other words, the cleaning operation is performed excessively, resulting in a loss of user's convenience in terms of time and economy.

When printing an image having a very high density such as an image read by a scanner, a large amount of ink is required for printing. Therefore, the ink remains at the end of the pre-printing cleaning operation, but the ink may run out during the printing of one page. In order to prevent such a situation, the user has to fill the ink before the printing operation.

However, since the user cannot detect the current amount of ink and the amount of ink required for printing before the printing operation, the user must determine whether the current amount of ink can print one page of print data. Could not. For this reason, ink filling may be performed excessively or ink filling may be insufficient. Further, the installation cleaning operation is performed every time the ink is filled, and the ejected ink is wasted.

In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, an object of the present invention is to provide
Performs an optimal cleaning operation without wasting ink,
Another object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus for notifying a user of an optimal ink filling time.

[0021]

An ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention for solving the above-mentioned conventional problems is an ink jet recording apparatus which performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head onto a recording medium. An ink remaining amount calculating unit for calculating an ink remaining amount which is an amount of recording ink; and a consumed ink amount which is an amount of ink required for a recording preparation operation and a predetermined amount of recording operation for setting the recording head to a state suitable for recording. The consumed ink amount calculating means to calculate before performing the recording preparation operation and the recording operation, comparing the remaining ink amount and the consumed ink amount,
When the consumed ink amount exceeds the remaining ink amount, a notifying means for notifying the user of a message indicating that the ink is insufficient is provided.

According to the above arrangement, before performing the recording preparation operation, the consumed ink amount calculating means calculates the consumed ink amount necessary for recording the document, and the consumed ink amount exceeds the remaining ink amount. In this case, the user is notified of the message of ink shortage, and the user performs the ink preparation and then performs the recording preparation operation and the recording operation. It can be performed.

[0023]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment to which the recording apparatus of the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a document creation processing apparatus to which the recording apparatus of the present invention is applied (hereinafter, also referred to as "word processor").
FIG.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II of FIG.

The document creation processing apparatus has a keyboard 1 as input means, and when a user operates the keyboard 1, information such as text is input. In addition, a pointing device such as a mouse (not shown) can be attached.

The input information such as text is displayed on a display 2 such as an LCD.

The information such as the sentence thus input is recorded in the recording unit 3 based on a print command from the user. The recording unit 3 includes a recording head 3a.
Reference numeral a denotes an ink cartridge provided with a head unit having a plurality of ejection opening arrays and an ink tank unit storing ink. In the case of running out of ink, only the ink tank unit can be replaced.

The head section includes a BK head for discharging black ink, a Y head for discharging yellow ink, an M head for discharging magenta ink, and a C head for discharging cyan ink. Each head has a plurality of ejection ports arranged in a row, and each ejection port row is connected to an ink tank of each color via an ink path. Further, ink is supplied from an ink tank and is filled up to each discharge port. A heating element, which is an electrothermal converter, is provided in an ink path near each ejection port. At the time of ink ejection, bubbles are generated in the ink by the heat energy of the heating element, and ink droplets are formed by the pressure generated by the bubbles. Is discharged. When the method of ejecting ink by using this thermal energy is used, the ejection ports can be arranged compactly and with high density, so that high-density recording can be performed. The method of ejecting ink is not limited to the above-described method, and a method using an electromechanical transducer such as a piezo element, a method of emitting heat by irradiating an electromagnetic wave such as a laser, and ejecting ink droplets by the action of the heat may be used. May be used.

The recording unit 3 rotates the conveying roller 3d and the pinch roller 3f pressed against the conveying roller 3d to draw in the recording medium 5 inserted from the insertion port 4, conveys the recording medium 5 in the direction of arrow A, and sends the recording medium 5 to the recording head 3a. Install so that they face each other. The carriage 3b has a recording head 3a mounted thereon, and the recording medium 5
Is set at a fixed position, the recording medium 5 scans from one end in the direction of arrow B along the guide shaft 3c. The recording head 3a performs recording by discharging ink droplets from each discharge port during this scanning. When the recording head 3a moves to the other end of the recording medium 5, the conveying roller 3d and the pinch roller 3f are rotated to convey the recording medium 5 by a predetermined amount in the direction of arrow A. By repeating the scanning of the recording head 3a and the conveyance of the recording medium 5 in this manner, recording is performed on the entire recording medium 5. When the recording operation is completed, the discharge roller 3g and the spur roller 3h pressed against the discharge roller 3g are rotated to discharge the recording medium 5 from the discharge port 8. At this time, the spur roller 3h contacts the recording surface of the recording medium 5 and removes excess ink so that the user does not stain the recording surface immediately after recording even if the user touches the recording surface. Further, a transport guide 3i is provided so that the recording medium 5 can be transported and discharged smoothly. Further, a sheet sensor 3j is provided in the middle of the conveyance path of the recording medium 5, and the sheet sensor 3j detects the presence or absence of the recording medium 5 when the recording medium 5 comes into contact therewith.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the document creation processing device.

The movement of the carriage 3b in the direction of arrow B is performed as follows.

The carriage 3b is connected to the carriage motor 12 via a carriage belt, and the carriage 3b moves by the rotation of the carriage motor 12.

The ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment replaces the recording head 3a on the carriage 3b with a serial scanner 7 (hereinafter, also referred to as "scanner head").
, The original can be read.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a serial scanner.

The serial scanner 7 includes the recording head 3
a light source 7a composed of the same number of pixels as the number of discharge ports of a;
An optical system including a mirror 7b for reflecting light from the light source 7a and a lens 7c for forming an image of the reflected light;
Alternatively, it includes a light receiving sensor which is a solid-state imaging device such as a photodiode array. In addition, the light source 7a generally includes “Red (R)”, “Green (G)”, “Bl
ue (B) ", and the read image produces data from the results of irradiation with three types of light sources.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the serial scanner.

When a document to be read (hereinafter, referred to as a "read document") is inserted from the insertion slot 4 and conveyed to a predetermined position by the conveyance rollers 3f in the same manner as in the recording operation, the read document is transmitted from the light source 7a. Light is irradiated (step 501), and light reflected from the read original is
b, an image is formed by the lens 7c (Step 502), the light amount is read by the CCD 7d (Step 503), and the read light amount is converted into a voltage (Step 504).
The data is converted (step 505) and transmitted to the control unit. The light irradiation may be performed all the time, but it is desirable to perform the irradiation as necessary in consideration of the durability of the light source.

Next, the electrical configuration of the document creation processing device will be described.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the document creation processing device.

In accordance with input data from the keyboard 1 and the like, the CPU 10a controls the entire document creation processing apparatus. The timer section 10b is composed of a plurality of timers.
The timer counts in accordance with the control signal from the PU 10a, and manages the time for executing the control. Various control programs and data are stored in the ROM 10c.
The PU 10a reads these and executes processing according to the control program. The control program is RO
It may be stored not only in the M10c but also in an external storage device such as the FDD 9 and a hard disk drive. Data generated during execution of the processing is temporarily stored in the RAM 10d. The RAM 10 d is also used as a buffer area for storing input data from the input means and a VRAM area for displaying data on the display 2. Further, a readable and writable EEPROM 10e is also provided.

A drive command from the CPU 10a is transmitted to each drive unit via a driver of each drive unit, and each drive unit is driven according to the drive command. In the case of this embodiment,
A scanner driver 7e for controlling the serial scanner 7,
An ejection heater driver 3ad for controlling the recording head 6, and a carrier motor driver 1 for controlling the carrier motor 12.
2d, transport motor driver 1 for controlling transport motor 11
1d.

The scanner driver 7e has A
/ D converter 7f, D / A converter 7g, RAM7
h and an oscillation circuit 7i for generating a timing signal necessary for the reading operation, and also have a plurality of image processing functions. This image processing is performed as follows. First, according to a control program stored in the ROM 10c, necessary signals such as an enable signal and a write signal are input to the scanner driver 7e from the CPU 10a, so that the input data obtained as a result of driving the CCD 7d is temporarily stored in the scanner driver 7e. The image reading data is stored in a storage area in each of the light sources “R”, “G”,
CPU1 as digital serial data according to "B"
0a is controlled.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a circuit configuration for detecting whether or not the recording head and the scanner head are mounted. This circuit configuration is independently owned by the recording head and the scanner head.

One end of the mounting detection signal ID of the recording head 3a is connected via an FPC (not shown) to a portion HS1 of the carriage 3b where the recording head 3a is mounted, and when the recording head 3a is mounted, HS1 is connected to a ground (GND) of the main body control unit via the FPC.
Conduction with 2. The other end of the ID is connected to the input terminal IP of the CPU 10a and one end of the resistor R. The other end of the resistor R is connected to a power supply VCC (+5 V) of the main body control unit.

When the recording head or the scanner head is mounted on the carriage 3b, HS1 and HS1 are set as described above.
Since the connection between the two is conducted, the IP detects L. If nothing is mounted on the carriage 3b, the IP detects H. The CPU 10a uses the value of this IP to set the print head,
Or, determine whether the scanner head is mounted.
Thus, it is determined whether the mode is the recording mode or the scanner mode.

Incidentally, if dust adheres to the vicinity of the discharge port or the viscosity of the ink inside increases, the ink amount of the discharged ink droplet may be inappropriate or the discharge direction may be different. Therefore, it is necessary to perform a cleaning operation for periodically removing dust and ink attached thereto.

The cleaning operation includes a suction operation, a preliminary discharge operation, a wiping operation, a capping operation, and the like.
Alternatively, they are performed in combination. Each operation will be described below.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the suction operation is performed using a suction recovery device 3k provided in the recording unit 3. Explaining the operation in detail, at the time of non-printing, the print head 3a moves to the home position (broken line portion in FIG. 3), and the ejection port array 3a3 is covered with the cap 31. In such a state, the suction recovery device 3k is driven before the printing operation to suck the ink near the ejection port from the cap 31 to remove the thickened ink and dust near the ejection port. The drive timing of the suction recovery device 3k is as follows. When the recording head 3a completes the recording operation,
Move to home position. When the carriage reaches the point II, the driving force is transmitted from the transport motor 11 to the suction recovery device 3k, and the ink in the head portion is sucked from the cap 31. In addition, while the suction recovery device 3k is operated by the transport motor 11, the gear 3m and the transport roller 3d that transmit the drive are also operated. This suction operation is the most powerful cleaning operation. Therefore, after the previous recording,
After several days, it is effective to remove the ink and the like which are considerably thickened near the discharge port.

In the preliminary ejection operation, the recording head 3a is moved to the preliminary ejection receiver 13 shown in FIG.
The ink is ejected from all the ejection openings several times on the nozzle 3. This preliminary ejection operation is performed before or during the printing operation, and is effective for removing air bubbles that have entered the ink path and dust attached to the ejection openings during the printing operation.

The wiping operation is performed when the recording head 3a shown in FIG.
n, the ejection port array 3a3 comes into contact with the blade 3n during this passage, thereby removing excess ink attached to each ejection port. When the suction operation, the preliminary discharge operation, and the like are performed, the cap 31 and the preliminary discharge
And the ink is slightly attached to the ejection port array 3a3. If the printing operation is performed in this state, a so-called “discharge” occurs. Therefore, the wiping removes excess ink on the face surface of the recording head 3a, and the “discharge” occurs.
It is effective to avoid.

The capping operation is to cover the ejection port array 3a3 with the cap 31 during non-recording in order to keep the ink ejection state of the recording head 3a good and normal. By covering the ejection port array 3a3 in this way, drying of the ink near the ejection ports can be prevented. The cap 31 is made of an elastic material such as rubber. By closing the cap 31, the ejection port array 3a3 can be sealed, and this sealing is released when the recording operation starts. In addition, capping may be performed in a case other than the printing operation or during the printing operation, when the ejection of the ink is not performed for a predetermined time or more.

An idle suction operation for removing the ink accumulated in the cap 31 by the suction operation is also performed periodically. This is an operation of sucking the cap 31 and sending the sucked waste ink to a waste ink tank (not shown). This is also performed when closing the cap 3l.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a cleaning operation combining the above-described operations.

When a cleaning operation command is input, the cap 31 closing the recording head 3a is opened (step 801), and preliminary ejection is performed (step 802). After the preliminary ejection, wiping is performed three times (step 803) to remove excess ink from the ejection ports. Next, the stubborn ink that could not be removed by the preliminary ejection is removed by a suction operation (step 80).
4) Perform empty suction twice (step 805). The wiping is performed four times again (step 806), and the empty suction is performed once (step 807). Preliminary ejection is performed again (step 808), and the recording head 3 is again moved with the cap 3l.
a is sealed (step 809). Note that this is an example of the cleaning operation, and may be performed in another order. In this embodiment, the pre-print cleaning operation and the installation cleaning operation are performed in this mode. Each operation may be stored in the ROM 10c as one subroutine on software.
The cleaning operation may be a software configuration in which parameters are set in advance so that the configuration order and the number of each operation can be easily changed.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the recording operation of the document creation processing apparatus of the present embodiment. A control program for executing this process is stored in the ROM 10c.

When the power of the apparatus is turned on and the user reads a document with a scanner head or the like and issues a recording operation execution command (step 901), a "print menu" is displayed on the screen (step 902).

FIG. 10 shows an example of the print menu.

When the user inputs an appropriate recording embodiment from the "print menu" and issues an execution command, the CPU 10a
Determines whether or not the input data (original) can be recorded with the current ink remaining amount. If recording is not possible, a message to replenish the ink is issued to the user. When the user refills the ink, the recording unit 3 performs a pre-print cleaning operation based on the above-described flowchart (step 90).
3). The details of the processing in the CPU 10a will be described later.

When the pre-printing cleaning operation is completed, the recording medium set in the insertion slot is inserted into a predetermined position (step 904). When the recording medium is inserted into the predetermined position, the cap 31 is opened to allow the recording head 3a to move (Step 905). The ink cartridge waits just above the cap 31 for one minute (step 906). If no print command is input during this standby, the cap 31 is closed again to control the recording head 3a to be hermetically closed.

When a print command is input during this standby (step 907), the ink cartridge moves to the II position, performs wiping processing on the discharge port, and then moves to the pre-discharge receiver to perform pre-discharge. After that, the recording operation is started. During this printing operation, preliminary ejection is performed every 12 seconds.
When the recording of all the input data is completed (step 90)
9) discharge the recorded recording medium (step 910);
Wiping by the blade 3n and preliminary discharge are performed again, and the recording head 3a is sealed with the cap 31 (step 911). Thus, the recording operation ends.

As described above, the CPU 10a determines whether or not the input data can be recorded, and performs the cleaning operation and the recording operation according to the determination. Next, this CPU
The determination process in 10a will be specifically described.

Among the above-described cleaning operations, those that actually consume the ink are the suction operation and the preliminary ejection operation. According to the result measured in advance, the ink consumed in the suction operation and the preliminary ejection operation, that is, the waste ink is 0.2%.
4 g.

Similarly, according to the result of measurement in advance, the ink ejection amount from one ejection port of the recording head 3a is 80 ng in BK per ink droplet and 40 in color (Y, M, C).
ng. When the ink tank is in the FULL state and the ink amount is a color head, BK is 2.1 g, Y,
M and C are each 1.61 g.

Using the values measured in advance as described above, the amount of ink required to record the input data (hereinafter, referred to as “consumed ink amount”) is predicted. Then, it is determined whether or not the input data can be recorded. Hereinafter, the amount of waste ink is represented by Xg, 1
The discharge amount per ink droplet is determined by Yn regardless of the color of the ink.
g, the amount of ink in the ink tank in the FULL state is Zg.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a process for determining whether or not input data can be recorded.

It is assumed that the remaining amount T2g of ink in the ink tank until the previous recording operation is stored in the EEPROM 5e in advance. Note that the remaining ink amount T2 is a calculated value obtained by subtracting the amount of ink consumed in the printing operation from the initial state Zg of the ink tank every time the printing operation is performed, as shown in Expression 1.

Ink remaining amount T2 = Z−T1 * Y / 100000−ΔX−E (Equation 1) E is the amount of ink consumed by preliminary ejection during recording or the like.
In addition, since E is very small, it may be ignored.

If the user has selected the image reading mode, an image reading command is received (step 11).
01), whether or not the scanner head is mounted is detected by the circuit for detecting whether or not the head is mounted (step 1102). If the scanner head is not mounted, a message "Replace the scanner head" is displayed on the display unit 2 (step 1103), and the user is prompted for replacement. When the scanner head is mounted, image reading starts.

The input data read by the scanner head is transferred from the light source for each of "R", "G", and "B". As is well known, since color printing is density data, image data of luminance data is converted into density data. At this time, the number of dots of each color can be counted by counting the image data that is the luminance data. Specifically, assuming that image data is transmitted as 8-bit serial data, when one byte of data is received (step 1104), the register in which the data is stored is stored nine times, including the carry flag. The rotation is performed, the carry flag is checked each time, and the corresponding color is cumulatively added (steps 1106 to 1106).
110). Step 1 until reception of input data is completed
When the reception of the input data is completed (step 1111), the number of dots (= T1) for each component color (Y, M, C) of the input data is calculated (step 1112).

Next, when the "print menu" for executing the recording operation is called (step 1113), it is confirmed that the scanner head and the recording head have been exchanged (step 1114). The remaining amount T2 of the ink tank obtained by the operation is stored in the EEPROM 5e.
(Step 1115). Further, the type of head mounted on the carriage is confirmed, and the waste ink amount X corresponding to the pre-printing cleaning operation is read from the ROM 10c (step 1116).

Here, the remaining amount T2 of the ink tank is compared with the amount of ink consumed in the current printing operation. Note that the consumed ink amount is obtained by Expression 2.

Ink consumption (g) = T1 * Y + X (Equation 2) When the remaining amount of the ink tank is larger than the ink consumption in the current recording, that is, when T2> T1 * Y + X (step 1117), It is determined that the remaining amount of the ink tank is enough to record one page, and a pre-print cleaning operation is performed (step 1118). Thereafter, when a print command is received (step 1119), a recording operation is executed according to the above-described procedure (step 1120).

On the other hand, if the above-mentioned T2> T1 * Y + X does not hold, it is determined that there is not enough ink in the ink tank to print one page. Message is displayed on the display 2 (step 1121), and prompts the user to fill the ink. When the shortage of ink is filled (step 112)
2) The installation cleaning operation is performed (step 1123), and the recording operation is performed according to step 1119 and thereafter. As described above, when the shortage of ink is filled, the install cleaning operation is performed, and thus the pre-print cleaning operation is omitted because the equivalent processing has already been performed.

As described above, before the printing operation is performed, the amount of consumed ink necessary for the printing operation is calculated, and the consumed ink amount is compared with the remaining amount of ink. The cleaning operation is performed after the cleaning.
The cleaning operation can be performed effectively without wasting ink in the cleaning operation of each time.

Although the case where the image data read by the scanner head is recorded as it is has been described as an example, a part of the read image data is often changed and recorded. In such a case, after the image data is completely received in step 1112, even if some editing is added to the image data, even if the value of T1 does not largely change and the edited portion is ignored, the result of the present invention is as follows. It is possible to get enough.

Further, in the present embodiment, the control configuration is such that the amount of ink consumed until the completion of one-page printing is obtained. T2> X (Equation 3) T2> 2 * T1 * Y + X (Equation 4) Equations 3 and 4 May be changed as necessary.

In the above-described determination processing, the original read by the scanner head is used as input data, and the processing is based on the input data. However, the present invention can be applied to other cases.

When the original read by the scanner head is input data, the number of dots can be counted at the same time when the luminance data is converted into the density data. For example, when the document data from the keyboard is the input data, Since the number of processes for once reading one page by the CPU 10a and counting the number of dots increases, extra memory capacity and processing time of the processing device may be required. Accordingly, in the case of a document read by the scanner head, the comparison processing may be performed by the above-described formula 2 (corresponding to step 1116), and in other cases, the comparison processing may be performed by T2> X.

(Others) The present invention includes a means (for example, an electrothermal converter, a laser beam, or the like) for generating thermal energy as energy used for performing ink ejection, particularly in an ink jet recording system. An excellent effect is obtained in a recording head and a recording apparatus of a type in which the state of ink is changed by the thermal energy. This is because according to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

The typical structure and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and giving a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs on the heat acting surface of the recording head. Liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis.
This is effective because air bubbles inside can be formed. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As this pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination configuration (a linear liquid flow path or a right-angled liquid flow path) of a discharge port, a liquid path, and an electrothermal converter as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications. U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 59600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is effective even if the configuration is based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit. That is, according to the present invention, recording can be reliably and efficiently performed regardless of the form of the recording head.

Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of a recording medium on which a recording apparatus can record. Such a recording head may have a configuration that satisfies the length by a combination of a plurality of recording heads, or a configuration as one integrally formed recording head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as described above, the recording head fixed to the apparatus main body or the electric connection with the apparatus main body or the ink from the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be supplied or a cartridge-type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself is used.

It is preferable to add a recording head ejection recovery unit, a preliminary auxiliary unit, and the like as the configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If these are specifically mentioned, the recording head is heated using capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer, another heating element or a combination thereof. Pre-heating means for performing the pre-heating and pre-discharging means for performing the discharging other than the recording can be used.

The type and number of recording heads to be mounted are not limited to those provided only for one color ink, for example, and for a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. A plurality may be provided. That is, for example, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, but may be any of integrally forming a printing head or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of the recording modes of full color by color mixture.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid. However, an ink which solidifies at room temperature or lower and which softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. In general, the ink jet method generally controls the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Sometimes, the ink may be in a liquid state. In addition, in order to positively prevent the temperature rise due to thermal energy by using the energy of the state change from the solid state of the ink to the liquid state, or to prevent the ink from evaporating, the ink is solidified in a standing state and heated. May be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start to solidify when reaching the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, the ink
JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-7
As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1260, it is also possible to adopt a form in which the sheet is opposed to the electrothermal converter in a state where it is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, the form of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is not limited to those used as image output terminals of information processing equipment such as computers, copying apparatuses combined with readers and the like, and facsimile apparatuses having a transmission / reception function. It may take a form.

[0089]

By using the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, before the recording preparation operation is performed, the consumed ink amount calculating means calculates the consumed ink amount necessary for recording the original, and this consumed ink amount is calculated. , If it exceeds the ink level,
Since the user is notified of the message of ink shortage and performs the recording preparation operation and the recording operation after the user has filled the ink, it is necessary to perform recording without excessively ejecting ink in the recording preparation operation before recording. Can be.

Also, the original is read by the scanner head,
Since the number of recording dots is calculated at the same time that the read luminance data is converted into density data, the amount of ink consumed can be calculated by one data read, and the processing time can be reduced. That is, since the recording operation can be executed immediately after the original is read by the scanner head, the recording can be performed without causing the user to feel a loss time.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a document creation processing apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the document creation processing device.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a serial scanner.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the serial scanner.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of a document creation processing device.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram for detecting whether or not the head is mounted;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a cleaning operation.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a recording operation of the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a print menu.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a process of determining whether input data can be recorded.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 keyboard 2 display 3 recording unit 3a recording head 3b carriage 3c guide shaft 3d transport roller 3f pinch roller 3g paper discharge roller 3h spur roller 3i transport guide 3j sheet sensor 3k suction recovery device 3l cap 3m gear 3n blade 4 insertion hole 5 Medium 7 Serial scanner 7a Light source 7b Mirror 7c Lens 7d CCD 10a CPU 10b Timer section 10c ROM 10d RAM 10e EEPROM 11 Transport motor 12 Carriage motor 13 Preliminary discharge receiver 14 Sensor

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium, comprising: an ink remaining amount calculating unit for calculating an ink remaining amount which is an amount of recording ink held by the ink jet recording apparatus. Consumed ink for calculating a consumed ink amount, which is an amount of ink required for a recording preparation operation and a predetermined amount of recording operation for setting the recording head to a state suitable for recording, before executing the recording preparation operation and the recording operation Comparing the remaining ink amount with the consumed ink amount, and, if the consumed ink amount exceeds the remaining ink amount, a notifying unit that notifies the user of a message indicating that the ink is insufficient. Characteristic inkjet recording device. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ink remaining amount calculating means calculates the remaining ink amount by subtracting an ink amount consumed in said printing operation and a printing preparation operation from a previous value of the remaining ink amount after executing the printing operation. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the ink consumption calculating unit calculates a value obtained by integrating the number of dots obtained from input data to be printed and the amount of ink required to print one dot, and a predetermined value required for the printing preparation operation. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an ink consumption is calculated by adding the ink amount of the ink. 4. An image reading device for reading a document by an optical device, wherein the consumed ink amount calculating device calculates the consumed ink amount by using data read by the image reading device. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1. 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said image reading means includes a scanner head, and said scanner head is replaceable with said recording head. 6. An ink jet recording apparatus which performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head onto a recording medium, comprising: an ink remaining amount calculating means for calculating an ink remaining amount which is an amount of recording ink held by the ink jet recording apparatus. An ink consumption amount calculation unit that calculates an ink consumption amount, which is an amount of ink required for a recording preparation operation for setting the recording head to a state suitable for recording, before executing the recording preparation operation; An ink jet recording apparatus, comprising: a notifying unit for notifying a user when the consumed ink amount exceeds the remaining ink amount by comparing with the consumed ink amount. 7. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording preparation operation includes an operation of sucking a predetermined amount of ink from a recording head. 8. The recording head according to claim 1, wherein the recording head includes a plurality of recording elements, and the recording elements generate bubbles in the ink by using thermal energy, and discharge the ink by generating pressure of the bubbles. Item 8. An ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 7.