US 10,239,313 B2Granted

Inkjet head drive apparatus

AssigneeToshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsYasuhito Kiji, Ryutaro Kusunoki

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Abstract

An inkjet head drive apparatus comprises a pressure chamber, an actuator, a nozzle and a drive signal output section. The pressure chamber accommodates an ink. The actuator increases or decreases volume of the pressure chamber through an applied a voltage. The nozzle is connected with the pressure chamber to eject the ink through the change in the volume of the pressure chamber. When an ejection pulse for the ejection of the ink from the nozzle is repeated for equal to or greater than three times, the drive signal output section outputs a drive signal having a driving waveform including an initial ejection pulse having a first voltage amplitude and the second ejection pulses and the pulses thereafter having a second voltage amplitude smaller than the first voltage amplitude to the actuator.

Claims12

Dependent claims

An inkjet head drive apparatus, comprising:

an actuator configured to increase or decrease volume of the pressure chamber configured to accommodate an ink through an applied voltage;
a nozzle plate forming a nozzle configured to be connected with the pressure chamber to eject the ink through change in the volume of the pressure chamber;
a drive signal output section configured to output, if an ejection pulse for the ejection of the ink from the nozzle is repeated for equal to or greater than three times, a drive signal of a driving waveform including an initial ejection pulse having a first voltage amplitude and a second ejection pulses and pulses thereafter having a second voltage amplitude smaller than the first voltage amplitude to the actuator, wherein an interval between centers of pulse widths of successive ejection pulses in the driving waveform is set to be a cycle of a main acoustic resonance frequency;
and
a switch configured to switch a voltage source of the initial ejection pulse and a voltage source of the second ejection pulses and pulses thereafter,
wherein the second voltage amplitude is a voltage amplitude which enables speed of an ink droplet ejected with last ejection pulse to be higher than that of an ink droplet ejected by an initial ejection pulse.

3 more elements

A drive method of an inkjet head, comprising:

outputting, if an ejection pulse for the ejection of the ink from a nozzle configured to eject an ink through change in a volume of a pressure chamber is repeated for equal to or greater than three times, a drive signal of a driving waveform including an initial ejection pulse having a first voltage amplitude and a second ejection pulses and pulses thereafter having a second voltage amplitude smaller than the first voltage amplitude to an actuator configured to increase or decrease volume of the pressure chamber through an applied voltage, wherein an interval between centers of pulse widths of successive ejection pulses in the driving waveform is set to be a cycle of a main acoustic resonance frequency;
and
switching a voltage source of the initial ejection pulse and a voltage source of the second ejection pulses and pulses thereafter,
wherein the second voltage amplitude is a voltage amplitude which enables speed of an ink droplet ejected with last ejection pulse to be higher than that of an ink droplet ejected by an initial ejection pulse.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/730,857Filed 12 Oct 2017 · continuation
Priority: 3 May 2016
Published: US 2018/0037027 A18 Feb 2018
Granted: 26 Mar 2019
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

B41J 2/04588
Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits: using a specific waveform
B41J 2/04541
Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits: specific driving circuit
B41J 2/04581
Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits: controlling heads based on piezoelectric elements
B41J 2/04591
Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits: width of the driving signal being adjusted

Family

Application15/145,242Parent of this continuation · filed 3 May 2016
US 2018/0037027 A1Pre-grant publication · published 8 Feb 2018
US 9,815,279 B1Parent of this continuation
US 2017/0320322 A1Published application
US 10,239,313 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.