Abstract: The present invention is directed at a liquid discharge device having reduced crosstalk, which slows the rate of change of liquid discharge speed, and is suitable as a printing head. The liquid discharge device includes a piezoelectric actuator and a flow passage member. The piezoelectric actuator has a plurality of driving electrodes from on a piezoelectric ceramic layer, and a plurality of piezoelectric displacement elements is disposed longitudinally and laterally with regularity. In the flow passage member, a plurality of liquid compressing chambers is formed with liquid outlet orifices. The piezoelectric actuator is placed on the flow passages member, so that the driving electrodes correspond in position to the liquid compressing chambers.

Abstract: A printhead module includes a plurality of rows of printhead nozzles, at least some of the rows including at least one displaced row portion, the displacement of the row portion including a component in a direction normal to that of a pagewidth to be printed, wherein the displaced row portions of at least some of the rows are different in length than the displaced row portions of at least some of the other rows.

Abstract: A method for correcting an amount of ejected ink in a line head inkjet printer, includes measuring an amount of ink ejected from each block including at least one nozzle, nozzles formed in an inkjet head, the nozzles divided into the blocks; and obtaining a correction factor for each block on a basis of the measured amount of ejected ink in each block. The correction factors make a difference among the blocks in that an amount of ejected ink per nozzle becomes small.

Abstract: A line head inkjet printer includes an inkjet head, a controller and a storage unit. The controller generates n kinds of waveforms used to eject different amounts of ink from the nozzles (3?n (natural number)). The storage unit stores a combination of m kinds of waveforms selected from the n kinds of waveforms, for each block including at least one nozzle (2?m (natural number)?n?1). When the printer conducts gradation printing with using m kinds of waveforms selected from the n kinds of waveforms, a difference among the blocks in an amount of ejected ink per nozzle in a case of using the stored combinations of m kinds of waveforms for the respective blocks is smaller than that in a case of using one and the same combination of m kinds of waveforms for all the blocks.

Abstract: An actuator unit for applying pressure to liquid in each of pressure chambers formed in a passage unit includes a piezoelectric layer; a common electrode formed on one surface of the piezoelectric layer to be positioned over the pressure chambers; and electric field blocking layers formed on an opposite surface of the piezoelectric layer from the one surface to be opposed to the common electrode and outside regions of the respective pressure chambers. Each electric field blocking layer is porous and lower in dielectric constant than the piezoelectric layer. The actuator unit further includes lands each positioned to sandwich an electric field blocking layer between the land and the piezoelectric layer; and individual electrodes formed on the opposite surface to be opposed to the respective pressure chambers and the common electrode and neighbor the respective electric field blocking layers. Each individual electrode is electrically connected to the corresponding land.

Abstract: An ink-jet head having a passage unit including pressure chambers each having one end coupled to a nozzle and the other end to be coupled to an ink supply source. The pressure chambers are arranged along a plane to neighbor each other. The ink-jet head further includes actuator units attached to a surface of the passage unit for changing the volume of each pressure chamber. Each actuator unit includes pressure generation portions respectively corresponding to pressure chambers, and is formed to extend over the pressure chambers. The actuator units are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the passage unit so that each neighboring actuator units partially overlap each other in the lateral direction of the passage unit. Each actuator unit has a basic region where many pressure generation portions are formed in a matrix, and an additional region neighboring the basic region in the lateral direction of the passage unit.

Abstract: An inkjet head has: a channel unit having a plurality of nozzles and a plurality of pressure chambers respectively communicating with the nozzles; and an actuator unit on the channel unit and having a piezoelectric sheet, a plurality of individual electrodes respectively arranged to positionally correspond to the pressure chambers respectively and a common electrode sandwiching the piezoelectric sheet together with the plurality of individual electrodes. The actuator unit has a thickness of 20 ?m to 100 ?m and a surface roughness of the end face of the actuator unit including an intersection with channel unit and the actuator unit is 0.15 ?m to 0.5 ?m, and at least part of the end face is sealed by a resin film.

Abstract: An ink-jet recording apparatus of one aspect of the invention comprises nozzles are arranged on an ink ejection surface in a matrix in a first direction in which a recording medium is conveyed and a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. The plurality of nozzles are grouped into a plurality of nozzle sets, each of the plurality of nozzle sets includes nozzles arranged along the second direction. The plurality of nozzle sets are spaced from one another in the first direction by first distances, each of the first distances is an integral multiple of a distance that is obtained by multiplying a unit distance by 2n-1. The unit distance corresponds to a highest resolution among first resolutions with respect to the first direction of an image to be formed on the recording medium.

Abstract: A line head inkjet printer includes an inkjet head, a storage unit, and a controller. The inkjet head includes a flow path unit and individual electrodes. The flow path unit is formed with pressure chambers communicating with nozzles. The individual electrodes correspond to the pressure chambers. The storage unit stores a table in which plural blocks, each of which includes at least one nozzle, are ranked in accordance with an amount of ejected ink per nozzle in each block. The controller generates plural kinds of waveforms, which are used to eject different amounts of ink from the nozzles. The controller selects a waveform for each block from the plurality kinds of waveforms on a basis of the table stored in the storage unit so that a difference among the blocks in the amount of ejected ink per nozzle becomes small. The controller outputs the selected waveforms to the individual electrodes.

Abstract: A head unit comprises: first and second heads, each having an ink ejecting face including a nozzle group, the nozzle group including plural nozzle rows extending in a first direction and arranged in a second direction orthogonal, each nozzle row including a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink arranged along the first direction at a predetermined interval; and a holder for holding the first and second heads. Each of the nozzle groups of the first and second heads includes a rectangular region in which the plurality of nozzles are arranged apart at a predetermined distance in the first direction to form a rectangular shape. The first and second heads are held by the holder in parallel with each other so that the plurality of nozzles included in the rectangular regions of the first and second heads, respectively, are arranged apart at the predetermined distance in the first direction.

Abstract: An inkjet head includes a passage unit having a pressure chamber which is in communication with a nozzle and which is defined by a recessed portion provided in one surface of the passage unit; and an actuator unit including: (a) an oscillating plate fixed to the one surface of the passage unit so as to close the recessed portion defining the pressure chamber; (b) a piezoelectric layer disposed on the oscillating plate so that the piezoelectric layer and the oscillating plate cooperate with each other to constitute a piezoelectric unimorph; (c) a first electrode provided on a side of one surface of the piezoelectric layer so as to correspond to the pressure chamber; and (d) a second electrode provided on a side of an other surface of the piezoelectric layer and opposed to the first electrode in a direction of thickness of the piezoelectric layer. The pressure chamber has an elongate shape.

Abstract: A controller of an ink jet head includes a waveform information storage section for storing waveform patterns concerning a plurality of types of drive signals capable of making positions of dots formed on print paper by ejecting ink from nozzles different from each other with respect to a predetermined direction orthogonal to a relative moving direction between the print paper and the ink jet head. The controller further includes a waveform selection section for selecting one drive signal from among the plurality of drive signals stored in the waveform information storage section so that the same type of drive signal is not selected n or more successive times (where n is a natural number of two or more) for each nozzle.

Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus has liquid ejection heads. Each liquid ejection head has a liquid ejection surface, including nozzles, and a gap is formed between the liquid ejection heads. A sealing member is positioned in the gap, and the sealing member forms a surface. The sealing member joins the liquid ejection surface of a liquid ejection head to an adjacent liquid ejection surface of another liquid ejection head. A wiper wipes each liquid ejection surface and the surface formed by the sealing member.

Abstract: A liquid ejection device with a plurality of liquid ejection heads each having a liquid ejection surface that is elongated in a main scanning direction and is formed with a plurality of liquid ejection ports. The plurality of liquid ejection surfaces defines a first liquid ejection area and a second liquid ejection area. Further, the device may have a recording medium conveyor mechanism configured to convey a recording medium in a sub scanning direction to pass the recording medium through an area facing the plurality of liquid ejection surfaces. Additionally, the device may have a maintenance unit, including a first maintenance tray, a second maintenance tray and a maintenance tray moving mechanism configured to move the first maintenance tray and the second maintenance tray in a predetermined direction.

Abstract: A sheet conveying device may include a belt having a plurality of throughholes, a fan disposed so as to interpose a portion of the belt placed in a return run position between the fan and a portion of the belt placed in the forward run position, and a case that defines a chamber with a portion of the belt placed in the forward run position. The fan creates a negative pressure within the chamber by drawing air through the throughholes of the endless belt, thereby removing dust and other unwanted particles and debris from the endless belt. In one or more examples, a brush may also be included to provide further removal of unwanted dust and particles. Further, in one or more configurations, the sheet conveying device may also include belt rollers and/or supporting members.

Abstract: An ink jet printer is provided with a passage unit, an actuator, and a pulse applying device. The passage unit comprises a nozzle, a pressure chamber, and an ink passage located between the nozzle and the pressure chamber. The actuator faces the pressure chamber and comprises a first electrode, a second electrode to which a reference potential can be applied, and a piezoelectric element located between the first electrode and the second electrode. The pulse applying device is capable of applying a first voltage pulse to the first electrode such that the nozzle discharges an ink droplet, and a second voltage pulse to the first electrode such that the nozzle does not discharge the ink droplet. A voltage change on a leading edge and/or a trailing edge of the second voltage pulse is greater than a voltage change on a leading edge and/or a trailing edge of the first voltage pulse.

Abstract: There is provided an inkjet head printing device, which includes an inkjet head having an ink flow channel unit and a piezoelectric actuator unit, and a pulse generator that determines first pulse patterns to be applied to electrodes respectively corresponding to nozzles determined to eject the ink, each of the first pulse patterns having a first potential which causes each of the plurality of nozzles to eject the ink. The pulse generator further determines a second pulse pattern to be applied to at least one of electrodes respectively corresponding to nozzles determined not to eject the ink, the second pulse pattern having a second potential which does not cause each of the plurality of nozzles to eject the ink.

Abstract: An ink-jet recording apparatus includes an ink-jet head formed with an ejection face, and an ejection control board fixed to the ink-jet head. A head cover forms a container space that contains therein the ejection control board. The container space has an air inflow port and an air outflow port. An airflow generator generates an airflow that goes into the container space through the inflow port and out of the container space through the outflow port. Through the outflow port, an airflow filtered by the filter goes out of the container space across a plane including the ejection face.

Abstract: An ink-jet recording apparatus includes a brush, a suction unit, and a wiper. The brush brushes off matters adhering to an ink ejection face of an ink-jet head. The suction unit sucks the matters brushed off by the brush. The wiper has a contact face to be brought into contact with the ink ejection face to remove matters adhering to the ink ejection face. A brush moving mechanism is provided for moving the brush in parallel with the ink ejection face. A wiper moving mechanism is provided for moving the wiper in parallel with the ink ejection face. The wiper moving mechanism can move the wiper with bringing the contact face of the wiper into contact with the ink ejection face. A controller of the ink-jet recording apparatus controls the brush moving mechanism to move the brush to brush off adhering matters from the ink ejection face, and controls the suction unit to suck the adhering matters.

Abstract: Individual electrodes each substantially shaped like a parallelogram are arranged on a piezoelectric sheet in an actuator unit. A land portion is electrically connected to one of acute-angled portions of each individual electrode. Each land portion is disposed between other two adjacent individual electrodes. A C-shaped groove portion is formed around each land portion so as to pierce the piezoelectric sheet along the outer shape of the land portion.