Method and a device for detecting clogged nozzles

A method of detecting and selectively clearing a clogged nozzle of a plurality of nozzles in an ink cartridge, comprising the steps of:

• performing a printing operation on a portion of a sheet of paper;
• scanning said portion of said sheet of paper to generate read data;
• analyzing said read data to determine whether all of said plurality of nozzles are expelling ink;
• and
• when any nozzle of said plurality of nozzles is determined to be clogged from analyzing said read data, then selectively sending a purge signal only to each nozzle determined from said read data to be clogged of said plurality of nozzles to selectively purge only each nozzle determined to be clogged to restore normal operation.

A printer, comprising:

• a body enclosing a means for forming images on a cut sheet of a printable medium, said body comprising:
• a shaft attached to an inner surface of said body;
• a carriage attached to said shaft for sliding movement;
• a monitor attached to said body;
• and
• a belt transferring power from a motor to said carriage to move said carriage in a reciprocating manner;
• a print head attached to said carriage, said print head having a plurality of nozzles that propel a plurality of ink drops onto said printable medium;
• a scanner attached to said carriage;
• a controller for sending a print command to said print head to mark a portion of said printable medium;
• said scanner for reading said portion of said printable medium and generating a read data signal;
• an image processor for converting said read data signal into a binary data signal;
• and
• a detection processor that determines whether said binary data signal corresponds to any of said plurality of nozzles being clogged to selectively purge only each nozzle determined from said binary data signal to be clogged of said plurality of nozzles.

A method of detecting clogging in a plurality of nozzles in an ink cartridge, comprising the steps of:

• performing a printing operation on a portion of a sheet of paper;
• scanning said portion of said sheet of paper to generate read data;
• converting said read data into binary data via a converter, said binary data having a plurality of bits, each one of said plurality of bits indicating whether a corresponding one of said plurality of nozzles in said ink cartridge is clogged;
• and
• analyzing said binary data to determine whether any of said plurality of nozzles is clogged to selectively purge only each nozzle determined from said binary data to be clogged of said plurality of nozzles.