Systems and methods for servicing ink-jet pens containing reactive inks
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorDennis P Parazak
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention is drawn to systems and methods for remediating printhead cross-contamination wherein at least one of the ink-jet inks has undergone crashing. Specifically, a method of minimizing or reversing crashing of a first ink-jet ink that has reacted with a second ink-jet ink on a printhead can comprise the steps of dispensing a reactive cleaning fluid that is chemically configured to react with the first ink-jet ink after crashing; and cleaning a printhead having a crashed inkjet ink thereon with the reactive cleaning fluid, thereby minimizing or reverse crashing at the printhead.
Claims25
A method of printing two inkjet inks reactive with one another from a printer having a common printhead while maintaining pen reliability, comprising:
- a) jetting a first ink-jet ink from a common printhead;
- b) jetting a second ink-jet ink from the common printhead, wherein the second ink-jet ink is reactive with the first ink-jet ink such that when the first ink-jet ink contacts the second ink-jet ink at the printhead, crashing of at least one of the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink occurs forming a crashed ink;
- and
- c) dispensing reactive cleaning fluid onto the printhead before or after crashing occurs, wherein the reactive cleaning fluid is chemically configured to react with the crashed ink, thereby minimizing or reversing crashing at the printhead.
A method of reversing crashing of a first ink-jet ink that has been crashed by a second ink-jet ink at a printhead, comprising:
- a) dispensing a reactive cleaning fluid that is chemically configured to react with the first ink-jet ink after crashing;
- and
- b) cleaning a printhead having a crashed inkjet ink thereon with the reactive cleaning fluid, thereby reversing crashing at the printhead.
An ink-jet printing system, comprising:
- a) a first ink-jet ink;
- b) a second ink-jet ink that is reactive with the first ink-jet ink such that when the first ink-jet ink contacts the second ink-jet ink, crashing of one of the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink occurs;
- c) printing architecture configured for jetting the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink onto a substrate, wherein cross-contamination between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can occur on a printhead;
- d) a reactive cleaning fluid formulated to minimize or reverse crashing that occurs on the printhead upon contact between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink;
- and
- e) a dispenser apparatus for holding a reservoir of reactive cleaning fluid, and for dispensing the reactive cleaning fluid onto the at least one printhead.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.