Orthogonal rotary wiping system for inkjet printheads

A service station for servicing an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, the printhead having a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, comprising:

• a platform moveable in a wiping direction;
• and
• a printhead wiper supported by the platform to wipe the face plate parallel to the linear nozzle array when the platform is moved in the wiping direction, wherein the wiper comprises at least two wiper blades spaced apart to define an interior region therebetween, with the blades each having opposing inboard and outboard surfaces, with the inboard surfaces of each blade facing toward the interior region, wherein each blade terminates in a wiping edge having a rounded surface joining the outboard surface, and the wiping edge of each blade terminates angularly with the inboard surface.

A service station for servicing an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, the printhead having a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, comprising:

• a platform moveable in a wiping direction;
• and
• a printhead wiper supported by the platform to wipe the face plate parallel to the linear nozzle array when the platform is moved in the wiping direction, wherein the wiper comprises at least two wiper blades spaced apart to define an interior region therebetween, wherein the wiper has a wiping edge comprising a wiping surface having a width covering a portion of the face plate adjacent the nozzle array, and wherein the wiping edge comprises recessed land portions surrounding the wiping surface.

A service station for servicing an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, the printhead having a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, wherein the ink ejecting nozzles are arranged in at least two linear arrays, the service station comprising:

• a platform moveable in a wiping direction;
• and
• a printhead wiper supported by the platform to wipe the face plate parallel to the linear nozzle array when the platform is moved in the wiping direction, wherein the wiper comprises at least two wiper blades spaced apart to define an interior region therebetween, wherein the wiper has a wiping edge comprising a wiping surface having a width covering a portion of the face plate adjacent the nozzle array, wherein the wiping edge comprises one wiping surface per linear nozzle array, with adjacent wiping surfaces separated by a recessed land portion.

A method of wiping an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, the printhead having a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, with the nozzles arranged on the face plate in plural linear arrays, with adjacent arrays separated by a nozzle-free region, the method comprising the steps of:

• positioning a wiper to engage the face plate;
• and
• wiping the face plate through relative motion of the wiper and face plate along the length of the linear nozzle array, wherein the wiping step further comprises the steps of wiping at least two adjacent arrays, and allowing ink residue to escape into the nozzle-free region.

A service station for servicing an inkjet printhead that traverses along a scanning axis of an inkjet printing mechanism, the service station comprising:

• a tumbler body supported to pivot about a first axis substantially parallel to the scanning axis;
• and
• a printhead wiper supported by the tumbler body to wipe the printhead during pivotal movement of the tumbler body, wherein the wiper comprises at least two wiper blades spaced apart to define an interior region therebetween, and wherein the blades each have opposing inboard and outboard surfaces, with the inboard surfaces of each blade facing toward the interior region, with each blade terminating in a wiping edge having a rounded surface joining the outboard surface.

A service station for servicing an inkjet printhead that traverses along a scanning axis of an inkjet printing mechanism, with the printhead having a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, the service station comprising:

• a tumbler body supported to pivot about a first axis substantially parallel to the scanning axis;
• and
• a printhead wiper supported by the tumbler body to wipe the printhead during pivotal movement of the tumbler body, wherein the printhead wiper is supported by the tumbler body to wipe the face plate parallel to the linear nozzle array, and wherein the printhead wiper comprises a pair of spaced apart wiper blades, with each blade having an outboard surface and terminating in a wiping edge having a rounded surface joining the outboard surface, the wiping edge comprising a wiping surface to contact a portion of the face plate adjacent the nozzle array and the wiping edge also comprising recessed land portions surrounding the wiping surface to define an escape passageway for ink residue to be pushed away from the array by wiping surface.

A printhead wiper for wiping an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, the wiper comprising:

• a base mountable to the inkjet printing mechanism;
• and
• a pair of spaced apart wiper blades projecting from the base to selectively engage and wipe the printhead, with each blade terminating in a wiping tip having a rounded edge, wherein the wiping tip of each blade also has an angular edge.

A printhead wiper for wiping an inkjet printhead of an inkjet printing mechanism, wherein the printhead has a face plate defining a group of ink ejecting nozzles extending therethrough in a linear array, wherein the nozzle array is surrounded by a nozzle-free region of the face plate, the wiper comprising:

• a base mountable to the inkjet printing mechanism, wherein the base is mountable to support the blades to wipe the face plate parallel to the linear nozzle array;
• and
• a pair of spaced apart wiper blades projecting from the base to selectively engage and wipe the printhead, with each blade terminating in a wiping tip having a rounded edge, wherein the wiping tip defines an escape passageway for any ink residue to be channeled toward the nozzle-free region of the face plate.