Cleaning apparatus and method of assembly therefor for cleaning an inkjet print head

A cleaning apparatus for cleaning an inkjet print head, comprising:

• a. a rotatable first spindle for supplying a web therefrom;
• b. a rotatable second spindle disposed proximate said first spindle for receiving the web thereon, the web being capable of extending from said first spindle to said second spindle while slidably engaging the print head for cleaning the print head;
• c. a web drive coupled to said first spindle and said second spindle for driving the web from said first spindle to said second spindle, said web drive including:
• i. a rotatable drive roller disposed proximate said first spindle for engaging the web supplied from said first spindle, so that said drive roller pulls the web from said first spindle with a predetermined back-tension force;
• and
• ii. a clutch coupled to said second spindle for controlling rotation of said second spindle, so that said second spindle pulls the web onto said second spindle with a predetermined forward-tension force greater than the back-tension force, in order that the web is wrinkle-free while the web slidably engages the print head.

A method of assembling a cleaning apparatus for cleaning an inkjet print head, comprising the steps of:

• a. providing a web supply for supplying a web therefrom;
• b. disposing a web receiver relative to the web supply for receiving the web thereon, the web being capable of extending from the web supply to the web receiver while slidably engaging the print head for cleaning the print head;
• and
• c. disposing a web drive relative to the web supply and the web receiver for driving the web from the web supply to the web receiver, the web drive being adapted to pull the web from the web supply with a first tension force and to pull the web onto the web receiver with a second tension force greater than the first tension force, so that the web is wrinkle-free while the web slidably engages the print head.

A method of assembling a cleaning apparatus for cleaning an inkjet print head, comprising the steps of:

• a. providing a rotatable first spindle for supplying a web therefrom;
• b. disposing a rotatable second spindle proximate the first spindle for receiving the web thereon, the web being capable of extending from the first spindle to the second spindle while slidably engaging the print head for cleaning the print head;
• c. coupling a web drive to the first spindle and the second spindle for driving the web from the first spindle to the second spindle, the step of coupling the web drive including the steps of:
• i. disposing a rotatable drive roller proximate the first spindle for engaging the web supplied from the first spindle, so that the drive roller pulls the web from the first spindle with a predetermined back-tension force;
• and
• ii. coupling a clutch to the second spindle for controlling rotation of the second spindle, so that the second spindle pulls the web onto the second spindle with a predetermined forward-tension force to the web greater than the back-tension force, in order that the web is wrinkle-free while the web slidably engages the print head.