Abstract: The ink jet recording apparatus includes an image forming device for forming an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink containing a solvent and color particles dispersed in the solvent, a fixing device for fixing the image formed on the recording medium by the image forming device, a collecting device for selectively collecting air containing the solvent from an atmosphere in proximity to the fixing device, and a removing device for removing the solvent from the solvent-containing air collected by the collecting device.

Abstract: An ink-jet recording device including: an irradiating unit that irradiates an ultraviolet ray, an ink-jet head that ejects an ink toward a recording medium, the ink capable of curing by the ultraviolet ray irradiated from the irradiating unit, a conveying unit that conveys the recording medium to a position opposed to the ink-jet head, and a filter unit including a photocatalyst activated by the ultraviolet ray.

Abstract: According to an ink-jet recording device and an ink-jet recording method by discharging and impacting an ink containing a charged fine particle as a small droplet due to an electrostatic force onto a recording medium and curing the ink by irradiation with an actinic energy ray immediately after the image formation by ink discharge, a fixing step by heating becomes unnecessary; a situation that the ink is volatilized by heat does not take place so that it becomes gentle against the set-up environment; and it becomes possible to realize high-speed recording with high definition and easy handling by electrostatic discharge and impacting of a small ink droplet.

Abstract: A liquid ejection head ejects droplets of solution in which charged particles are dispersed by exerting electrostatic force on the solution. The head includes an insulating ejection substrate including through holes, ejection electrodes arranged to respectively correspond to the through holes, and solution guides that respectively pass through the through holes and protrude from the ejection substrate. Each solution guide includes a support portion of flat-plate shape and a tip end portion of flat-plate shape that is extendingly provided to form a step in a thickness direction in an end portion of the support portion and is thinner than the support portion. An image recording apparatus includes the liquid ejection head and an image corresponding to image data is recorded on a recording medium.

Abstract: An ink recording device includes: an ink cartridge storing an ink curable by irradiation with an actinic energy ray, the ink cartridge having an ink stirring member inside thereof; and an drive section disposed lateral to the ink cartridge and in a position facing to the stirring member at a time installing the ink cartridge on the installing section.

Abstract: The ink jet head ejects ink droplets onto a recording medium and includes an ejection port substrate having ejection ports for ejecting the ink droplets and a control device that controls ejection of the ink droplets from the ejection ports. Each of the ejection ports has an outer opening formed on a side facing the recording medium and an inner opening formed on a side opposite to the side facing the recording medium. At least the inner opening has a shape anisotropy. A first opening area of the outer opening is larger than a second opening area of the inner opening. The ink jet recording apparatus includes the above ink jet head and a supporting device that supports the recording medium and the ink jet head is used to record an image corresponding to image data on the recording medium supported by the supporting device.

Abstract: The fine droplet ejecting device includes a ejection unit having an ejection port, and for continuously ejecting fine droplets by applying an electrostatic force to a solution or ink having an electrical charge containing at least fine particles and a medium, a deflecting unit for deflecting the fine droplets ejected from the ejection unit based on a control signal and a recovering unit for recovering either one of the fine droplets flying straight after being ejected from the ejection unit and the fine droplets having a flight direction deflected by the deflecting unit. The ejection unit may further include a resolution enhancing unit for deflecting the fine droplets in a direction different from the flight direction deflected by the deflecting unit. The device can eject the fine droplets stably at high speed, and can reduce a cost. The ink jet recording apparatus uses the fine droplet ejecting device.

Abstract: The ink jet recording method and apparatus convey a recording medium to a position opposing an ink jet head by a conveyor and record an image onto the recording medium conveyed to the position with the ink jet head by ejecting ink droplets from at least one ejection portion toward the recording medium through exertion of electrostatic force on ink in accordance with an image signal. The method and apparatus pass through the position a strong electric field formation portion giving to the ejection portion an electric field strength stronger than that of the recording medium or give to the ejection portion an electric field strength stronger than that formed in the ejection portion in a non-ink droplet ejection period during the recording of the image on the recording medium, immediately before the recording medium and the ink jet head are relatively moved to the image recordable position.

Abstract: The present invention provides a control method for controlling an ink jet head. The inkjet head includes an ejection port substrate having ejection ports for ejection of the droplets, ejection electrodes respectively being located in a position corresponding to each of the ejection ports, and a guard electrode formed in the ejection port substrate. The control method includes the steps of: applying a drive voltage to each of the ejection electrodes in accordance with a drawing signal; and applying an AC bias voltage to the guard electrode, the AC bias voltage having the same frequency as the drive voltage applied to each of the ejection electrodes and alternately repeating a first voltage and a second voltage being lower than the first voltage.

Abstract: An ink jet recording apparatus ejects ink droplets toward a recording medium by causing an electrostatic force to act on ink containing charged colorant particles. The ink jet recording apparatus includes ink ejecting device for ejecting the ink droplets by causing a predetermined electrostatic force to act on the ink, ejection property detecting device for detecting a spontaneous ejection property of the ink droplets, and ejecting condition control device for controlling ejecting conditions for the ink droplets according to the spontaneous ejection property detected by the ejection property detecting device.

Abstract: An ink concentration detecting method and recording apparatus cause one of a cleaning liquid and ink of known ink concentration to flow through an ink passage through which the ink is to flow, detect a first ink concentration in the ink passage in an operation state in which ink of predetermined ink concentration flows through the ink passage, and detect a second ink concentration in the ink passage after the cleaning liquid is caused to flow through the ink passage to clear the ink passage or in a state in which the ink of known ink concentration is caused to flow through the ink passage. The method and apparatus detect ink concentration in the ink passage in the operation state based on the first ink concentration and the second ink concentration. Precise ink concentration of the ink to be supplied to an ink jet head is obtained.

Abstract: The ink concentration detecting method and apparatus detect ink concentration of ink containing charged colorant particles. The method and apparatus detect ejection state of ink droplets ejected by causing predetermined electrostatic force to act on the ink, and detect the ink concentration in correspondence to the detected ejection state of the ink droplets. The apparatus includes an ejection detecting device for detecting the ejection state and a concentration detecting device for detecting the ink concentration. The electrostatic ink jet recording apparatus includes an ink ejecting device for ejecting the ink droplets at predetermined frequency corresponding to the ink concentration and the ink concentration detecting apparatus.

Abstract: The ink jet recording apparatus includes an ink jet head that causes an electrostatic force to act on ink containing charged colored particles based on an image signal to eject an ink droplet on a recording medium, an ink supply unit that supplies the ink to the ink jet head, an ink collection unit that collects the ink not ejected from the ink jet head and a particle diameter distribution narrowing unit that narrows a particle diameter distribution of the charged colored particles contained in the ink. The narrowing unit includes an electrode cleaning unit that cleans an electrode for generating electrophoresis in the ink.

Abstract: A method of lithographic printing is disclosed, which includes forming an image based on signals of image data directly on a printing plate precursor mounted on a plate cylinder of a printing press, thereby preparing a printing plate, and conducting lithographic printing, wherein the formation of the image on the printing plate precursor is carried out by an ink jet recording method in which oil-based ink is ejected utilizing an electrostatic field.

Abstract: An ink jet printing method which comprises: directly forming an image on a printing medium on the basis of signals of image data; and fixing the image to produce a printed matter, wherein said image formation is carried out by an ink jet system of ejecting an oily ink by an electrostatic field. The method preferably further comprises cleaning an ink jet head, said cleaning step comprising: immersing said ink jet head in a cleaning solution; and applying voltage to said ink jet head. Alternatively, the method preferably further comprises, when a malfunction happens, either or both of stopping the image formation and eliminating a cause of the malfunction. Also disclosed are printing apparatuses suitably used for these methods.

Abstract: An on-press recording type lithographic printing method comprising mounting a plate material on a plate cylinder of a press, ejecting an oil-based ink onto the plate material from a recording head having a plurality of ejection channels utilizing an electrostatic field according to signals of image data to directly form an image on the surface of the plate material and prepare a printing plate, and then effecting the lithographic printing using the printing plate as it is, wherein the distance of the ejection channels is 170 &mgr;m, or more (150 dpi (150 dots per inch) or less as calculated in terms of resolution of recorded image).

Abstract: An inkjet recording device and inkjet recording method capable of forming a high quality image with a simple structure. A transport belt position detection component detects a position of an end portion of a transport belt and outputs the detected position to a system control section. A recording medium position detection component detects a position of an end portion of a recording medium and outputs the detected position to the system control section. A position control component is capable of moving on the basis of instructions from the system control section for movement across a transport direction.

Abstract: The ink jet recording apparatus includes an image forming device for forming an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink containing a solvent and color particles dispersed in the solvent, a fixing device for fixing the image formed on the recording medium by the image forming device, a collecting device for selectively collecting air containing the solvent from an atmosphere in proximity to the fixing device, and a removing device for removing the solvent from the solvent-containing air collected by the collecting device.

Abstract: In order to provide an image recording apparatus enabling to recover vapor of solvent efficiently, an image recording apparatus, which records an image on a recording medium, comprising in a housing thereof a water vapor removing section which removes water vapor, and a solvent recovering section which recovers vapor of organic solvent, which evaporates within the housing is provided.

Abstract: An ink jet printing process for forming an image directly on a printing medium by an electrostatic ink jet method of ejecting an oil ink using electrostatic field based on signals of image data and preparing a printed matter by fixing the image and an ink jet printing apparatus comprising image-forming means of forming an image directly on a printing medium based on signals of image data and image-fixing means of fixing the image formed by the image-forming means to obtain a printed matter, the image-forming means being an ink jet drawing device of ejecting an oil ink from an ejection head using electrostatic field.