Abstract:
A liquid ejection head is operable to eject a liquid droplet toward a target position. A transporter feeds a first target medium toward the target position in a first direction. An ejector ejects the first target medium to the outside of the apparatus. The ejector includes a first roller and a second roller adapted to nip the first target medium transported from the target position in the first direction. A guide member is disposed at a position closer to the outside of the apparatus than the ejector, and has a guide face along which a tray member on which a second target medium is mounted is fed toward the target position in a second direction which is opposite to the first direction. The guide member is pivotable between a first position for closing the guide face and a second position for opening the guide face to support the tray member.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to a recording apparatus in which a recording head performs recording on an optical disk as a recording medium which is transported while being mounted on a tray. The present invention also relates to a liquid ejection apparatus in which a liquid ejection head ejects a liquid droplet toward an optical disk as a target medium which is transported while being mounted on a tray.  
         [0002]     The term “liquid ejection apparatus” as used herein means that it includes not only a recording apparatus such as a printer in which an ink jet recording head is used to eject ink from the recording head and thus perform recording on the recording medium, a copying machine, and a facsimile machine, but an apparatus in which liquid corresponding to its application, instead of the ink, is ejected from a liquid ejection head corresponding to the aforesaid ink jet recording head toward a target medium corresponding to the recording medium. For example, the liquid ejection head includes a color material ejection head used in color filter manufacture for a liquid crystal display, etc., an electrode material (conductive paste) ejection head used in electrode formation for an organic EL display, a field emission display (FED), etc., and a specimen ejection head serving as a precision pipette.  
         [0003]     As an ink jet printer (referred to hereinafter as a “printer”) given as an example of the recording apparatus, there is one capable of recording directly on a label surface of an optical disk such as a compact disk. That is, the printer is configured such that a plate-shaped tray, on which the optical disk as a recording medium is mounted, is transported on a paper transporting path to be subjected to the recording operation.  
         [0004]     In such a printer, an attachment for guiding the tray is detachably attached to the front side of the printer. The attachment is attached when the recording onto the optical disk is performed. The tray is fed to the recording section by a transporting roller while being supported by the attachment (see Japanese Patent Publication No. 2003-211757A).  
         [0005]     In such a printer, when the attachment is not in use, it must be detached from the printed and managed separately. Further, it must be attached to the printer again when it is used. Such operations sometimes would be troublesome for a user.  
         [0006]     Besides, such a printer comprises an ejection roller which ejects a transported medium (i.e., paper or the tray) to the outside of the printer. The ejection roller includes a drive roller and a follower roller. Since the follower roller is disposed at a side facing a recording surface of the medium, a toothed roller which is brought into point contact with the recording surface is adopted as the follower roller to avoid the ink transfer from the recording surface. However, in a case where the toothed roller comes in press contact with the label surface of the optical disk, there is anxiety that the recorded data placed immediately below the label surface is broken.  
         [0007]     Accordingly, there is provided a releaser which moves the follower roller away from the drive roller in order to prevent the follower roller (toothed roller) from being brought into contact with the label surface of the optical disk. Such a releaser is operated by actuating a dedicated lever provided in the printer (see Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-192782A). The follower roller and the lever is generally interlocked by way of a link.  
         [0008]     In a case where the follower roller is configured to be interlocked with the movement of another component of the printer without providing the above dedicated lever, the number of components of the printer can be reduced and the downsizing of the printer can be attained. Further, careless actuation of the lever can be prevented. On the other hand, however, since a link for performing such an interlocking must be provided with high accuracy, thereby increasing the costs.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a convenient recording apparatus or a liquid ejection apparatus, in which recording or liquid ejection is performed with respect to a medium such as an optical disk with a simple and easy operation.  
         [0010]     It is also an object of the invention to provide a recording apparatus or a liquid ejection apparatus, in which an ejection follower roller is moved interlocking with the movement of another component, and the positions of the ejection follower roller and the another component are precisely determined irrespective of tolerances of components of a link therebetween.  
         [0011]     In order to achieve the above objects, according to the invention, there is provided a liquid ejection apparatus, comprising:  
         [0012]     a liquid ejection head, operable to eject a liquid droplet toward a target position;  
         [0013]     a transporter, which feeds a first target medium toward the target position in a first direction;  
         [0014]     an ejector, which ejects the first target medium to the outside of the apparatus, the ejector comprising a first roller and a second roller adapted to nip the first target medium transported from the target position in the first direction;  
         [0015]     a guide member, disposed at a position doser to the outside of the apparatus than the ejector, and having a guide face along which a tray member on which a second target medium is mounted is fed toward the target position in a second direction which is opposite to the first direction, the guide member being pivotable between a first position for closing the guide face and a second position for opening the guide face to support the tray member.  
         [0016]     With this configuration, since the apparatus is provided with the guide member which is selectably placed in either the first position (non-use condition) or the second position (use condition) by the simple and easy pivotal movement, it is very convenient for the user because it is not necessary to attach or detach the guide member in accordance with the situations of use, and it is therefore not necessary to separately manage the guide member from the apparatus.  
         [0017]     Preferably, the guide member closes a part of a path through which the first target medium is transported, when the guide member is placed in the second position. The guide member opens the path when the guide member is placed in the first position.  
         [0018]     With this configuration, the guide member in the non-use condition will not interfere with the transportation and the stacking of the first target medium.  
         [0019]     Preferably, a stacker is disposed at a position closer to the outside of the apparatus than the ejector. The stacker being pivotable between a first position at which extending directions of the guide member placed in the first position thereof and the stacker are roughly made parallel to each other, and a second position for supporting the first target medium ejected by the ejector and allowing the guide member to be pivoted.  
         [0020]     With this configuration, the guide member may be accommodated inside the stacker when the stacker is placed in the first position thereof, the installation space of the guide member can be reduced.  
         [0021]     Preferably, a releaser places the second roller in a first position at which the second roller comes in contact with the first roller, when the guide member is pivoted to the first position, and places the second roller in a second position at which the second roller is separated from the first roller, when the guide member is pivoted to the second position thereof.  
         [0022]     Here, it is preferable that the releaser comprises: a support member, which supports the second roller; a guide pin, extended from the support member; a guide plate, formed with a slot along which the guide pin is movable, the slot having a first end corresponding to the first position of the second roller and a second end corresponding to the second position of the second roller; an urging member; and a link, comprising a lever member, engaged with the guide pin and the urging member such that the guide pin is urged toward the first end of the slot when the guide member is placed in the first position thereof, and such that the guide pin is urged toward the second end of the slot when the guide member is placed in the second position.  
         [0023]     With the above configurations, since the position of the guide pin (the second roller) is flexibly controlled by the link utilizing the urging force of the urging member. The link does not require so high precision, thereby reducing the costs. In other words, the positions of the guide member and the second roller can be controlled irrespective of the dimensional accuracies of the link.  
         [0024]     It is further preferable that: the urging member urges the lever member in a single direction; and the lever member is so configured that the direction urging the guide pin is changed in accordance with a pivoted angle of the guide member.  
         [0025]     With this configuration, the releaser can be realized with a simple and low-cost structure.  
         [0026]     It is also preferable that the link comprises a lever member having a first end portion formed with a hole to which the guide pin is loosely fitted, and a second end portion fitted with a rotary shaft of the first roller so as to be pivotable thereabout.  
         [0027]     With this configuration, since a part of the link is provided with the rotary shaft of the first roller, the installation space and the component cost can be reduced. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0028]     The above objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail preferred exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0029]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a printer according to one embodiment of the invention, showing a state that a stacker is closed;  
         [0030]      FIG. 2  is a schematic view of an internal structure of the printer;  
         [0031]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the printer, showing a state that the stacker is opened and a tray guide is closed;  
         [0032]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the printer, showing a state that the stacker is opened and the tray guide is opened;  
         [0033]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the printer, showing a state that the stacker is closed and the tray guide is closed;  
         [0034]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the printer, showing a state that the stacker is opened and the tray guide is closed;  
         [0035]      FIG. 7  is a side view of the printer, showing a state that the stacker is opened and the tray guide is opened;  
         [0036]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a releaser incorporated in the printer;  
         [0037]      FIG. 9  is a side view of the releaser, showing a state that the tray guide is closed;  
         [0038]      FIG. 10  is a side view of the releaser, showing a state that the tray guide is operated; and  
         [0039]      FIG. 11  is a side view of the releaser, showing a state that the tray guide is opened. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0040]     One embodiment of the invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.  
         [0041]     As shown in  FIG. 1 , a printer  1  is provided with a feeder  2  at the rear part thereof, on which recording paper (hereinafter, referred as paper P) is mounted in an inclined posture. A stacker  13  is provided on a lower casing  17  (see  FIG. 5 ) which constitutes a bottom section of the printer  1 . The stacker  13  includes a stacker body  14  and a substacker  15 , and is pivotable about a pivot shaft  14   a  (see  FIG. 5 ) between a closed position shown in  FIG. 1  and an opened position shown in  FIG. 3 . When a user opens the stacker body  14  and pulls out the substacker  15 , a stacking face on which the paper P is stacked can be made.  
         [0042]     An upper center part of a housing  11 , a cover  12  is provided. The cover  12  is opened when the operation for replacing an ink cartridge is performed, for example.  
         [0043]     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the feeder  2  comprises a hopper  21 , a feeding roller  23 , a retard roller  27 , and guide rollers  25 ,  26  to feed paper P one by one toward a transporter  300  disposed an upstream side of a recording head  39 . The transporter  300  comprises a drive roller  33  and a follower roller  34  which is brought into press contact with the drive roller  33  to be rotated by the rotation of the drive roller  33 .  
         [0044]     More specifically, the hopper  21  is a plate-shaped member which is pivotable about a not-shown pivot center provided at an upper end portion thereof. By the pivot movement of the hopper  21 , the paper P stacked thereon is brought into contact with the feeding roller  23  or separated therefrom. The feeding roller  23  has a D-shaped cross section such that an arcuate portion comes in contact with the paper P to be fed to the downstream side of the paper transporting path. The rotation of the feeding roller  23  is so controlled that a flat portion opposes to the paper P when the paper P is nipped between the drive roller  33  and the follower roller  34 , in order to reduce the transportation resistance. This condition is shown in  FIG. 2 .  
         [0045]     The retard roller  27  is configured so as to come in press contact with the arcuate portion of the feeding roller  23 . In a case where a single sheet of the paper P is duly fed, the retard roller  27  is rotated (clockwise in  FIG. 2 ) while coming in contact with the paper P. In a case where there are plural sheets of the paper P between the retard roller  27  and the feeding roller  23 , the retard roller  27  is not rotated because a friction coefficient between the sheets is smaller than a friction coefficient between the retard roller  27  and the paper P. Therefore, the uppermost paper P is certainly separated from the next paper P and duly fed, thereby avoiding the overlapped feeding of the paper P.  
         [0046]     The guide rollers  25 ,  26  are freely rotatable so as to prevent the transporting resistance from generating when the paper P transported by the drive roller  33  and the follower roller  34  comes in contact with the feeding roller  23 .  
         [0047]     The paper P fed by the feeder  2  reaches the transporter  300  while being guided by a guide member  29 . The follower roller  34  is rotatably supported on a holder  31 . The holder  31  is attached on a not-shown main frame which constitutes a base body of the printer  1  by way of a not-shown spring. The paper P having reached the transporter  300  is transported to the downstream of the paper transporting path by the rotation of the drive roller  33  with a fixed pitch.  
         [0048]     The recording head  39  is disposed at the downstream side of the transporter  300 . A platen  41  is disposed so as to oppose to the recording head  39 . The recording head  39  is mounted on a bottom portion of a carriage  35  which is reciprocately moved in a primary scanning direction while being guided by a guide shaft  37 . Independent ink cartridges (not shown) for a plurality colors are mounted on the carriage  35  so that the respective colors of ink are supplied to the recording head  39  within the carriage  35 .  
         [0049]     The platen  41  for defining a distance between the paper P and the recording head  39  is formed with a plurality of ribs  43  and a plurality of recesses  42 . Ink ejected to the outside of the paper P is received by an ink absorbing member (not shown) disposed within each of the recesses  42 , so that a marginless printing in which printing is performed without providing any margins at the ends of the paper P can be realized. The discarded ink is lead to a waste ink tray (not shown) disposed below the platen  41  through the ink absorbing member.  
         [0050]     There are provided an auxiliary roller  46  and an ejector  400  comprising drive rollers  44  and follower rollers  45  at the downstream side of the recording head  39 . The drive rollers  44  are arrayed on a rotary shaft  44   a . The follower rollers  45  are arrayed on a frame  47  formed from a metal plate elongated in the primary scanning direction, and respectively brought into contact with the drive rollers  44  to be rotated by the rotation of the rotary shaft  44   a . The paper P which has been subjected to the recording operation is nipped by these rollers to be ejected toward the stacker  13 . The auxiliary roller  46  arranged at the upstream side of the ejector  400  comes in contact with the paper P from above and is rotated by the transportation of the paper P while restricting an upward movement of the paper P, thereby maintaining the distance between the paper P and the recording head  39 .  
         [0051]     The printer  1  is adapted to perform the ink jet recording with respect to the label surface of the optical disk such as a compact disk, in addition to the above described paper P. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the optical disk D is transported along the paper transporting path while being mounted on a plate-shaped tray T. The tray T is individually provided from the printer  1 , and is inserted from the front side of the printer  1  while being guided by a tray guide  18 .  
         [0052]     The tray guide  18  is disposed at the downstream side of the ejector  400  so as to be pivotable between a closed (vertical) position shown in  FIG. 3  and an opened (horizontal) position for supporting the tray T shown in  FIG. 4 .  FIGS. 1 and 5  show a state that both of the tray guide  18  and the stacker  13  are in the closed position. In this state, since the tray guide  18  is placed inside the stacker  13 , the installation space of the tray guide  18  can be reduced.  
         [0053]      FIGS. 3 and 6  show a state that the stacker  13  is in the opened position but the tray guide  18  is in the closed position.  FIGS. 4 and 7  show a state that both of the stacker  13  and the tray guide  18  are in the closed position. In this state, the stacker  13  is slightly inclined upward to prevent the stacked paper P from being dropped.  
         [0054]     Since the printer  1  is provided with the tray guide  18  which is selectably placed in either the closed condition (non-use condition) or the opened condition (use condition) by the simple and easy pivotal movement, it is very convenient for the user because it is not necessary to attach or detach the tray guide  18  in accordance with the situations of use, and it is therefore not necessary to separately manage the tray guide  18  from the printer  1 .  
         [0055]     As shown in  FIGS. 4 and 7 , the tray guide  18  closes a part of the paper transporting path when it is placed in the opened position, while the tray guide  18  is escaped from the paper transporting path when it is placed in the closed position. Therefore, the tray guide  18  in the non-use condition will not interfere with the transportation and the stacking of the normal target medium (i.e., the paper P).  
         [0056]     Next, a releaser  50  for separating the follower rollers  45  from the drive rollers  44  will be described. Specifically, the releaser  50  moves the follower rollers  45  between a first position at which the follower rollers  45  are brought into contact with the drive rollers  44  and a second position at which the follower rollers  45  are separated from the drive rollers  44 . Toothed rollers which are brought into point contact with the recording surface are adopted as the follower rollers  45  to avoid the ink transfer from the recording surface. However, in a case where the toothed rollers come in press contact with the label surface of the optical disk D, there is anxiety that the recorded data placed immediately below the label surface is broken. Therefore, the releaser  50  separates the follower rollers  45  from the drive rollers  44  when the recording is performed directly onto the label surface of the optical disk D, so that the follower rollers  45  are prevented from coming in contact with the label surface of the optical disk D.  
         [0057]     The releaser  50  is configured such that the follower rollers  45  are separated from the drive rollers  44  interlocking with the pivotal movement of the tray guide  18  by way of a link  60 . As shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the link  60  comprises a link rod  51  and a link lever  53 . More specifically, the link lever  53  includes a cylindrical portion  53   a  and lever portions  53   b ,  53   c  extended from the cylindrical portion  53   a . The cylindrical portion  53   a  is fitted with an end of the rotary shaft  44   a , so that the link lever  53  is pivotable about the rotary shaft  44   a  (clockwise or counterclockwise in  FIG. 9 ). The link rod  51  is engaged with a projection  18   c  which is arranged in an offset position from a pivot shaft  18   b  of the tray guide  18 , while being engaged with a projection  53   e  provided on the lever portion  53   b  of the link lever  53  so as to link the tray guide  18  and the link lever  53 .  
         [0058]     Two guide pins  48 ,  49  are extended from each of longitudinal ends of the frame  47  supporting the drive rollers  45 , and are loosely fitted into guide slots  56   a ,  56   b  formed in a guide plate  55  arranged adjacent to each of the longitudinal ends of the frame  47 . The guide slots  56   a ,  56   b  are step-shaped slots. The frame  47  is displaced in accordance with the movement of the guide pins  48 ,  49  within the guide slots  56   a ,  56   b , thereby changing the height position of the follower rollers  45  relative to the drive rollers  44 .  
         [0059]     The frame  47  is configured so as to be displaced also by the link lever  53 . Specifically, a hole  53   d  is formed in an end portion of the lever portion  53   c , and the guide pin  48  is loosely fitted into the hole  53   d . When the tray guide  18  is pivoted about the pivot shaft  18   b , the link  60  is operated such that the lever portion  53   c  pushes the guide pin  48  so as to move along the guide slot  56   a , thereby displacing the frame  47 .  
         [0060]     Since the guide slots  56   a ,  56   b  extend stepwise, the frame  47  slides forward (the right side in the drawings) while being displaced upward as shown in FIGS.  9  to  11 . This movement is to avoid the carriage  35  which is situated immediate above the frame  47  in the condition of  FIG. 9 . That is, the frame  47  can be displaced upward without colliding with the carriage  35 .  
         [0061]     As shown in  FIGS. 9 and 11 , the guide pin  48  is held at positions corresponding to the first and second positions of the follower rollers  45 , not by the lever portion  53   c  but by a V-shaped lever member  57  which is pivotable about a pivot shaft  58 . An urging force generated by a tension spring  59  is applied to one end  57   a  of the lever member  57 , so that the lever member  57  is pivotable counterclockwise in  FIG. 9 . The other end  57   b  of the lever member  57  is engaged with the guide pin  48 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , a slope face  57   c  pushes the guide pin  48  toward the lower end of the guide slot  56   a  (the left side of the drawings) so that the follower rollers  45  are held in the first position (i.e., the position coming in contact with the drive rollers  44 ). On the other hand, as shown in  FIG. 11 , a top face  57   d  pushes the guide pin  48  toward the upper end of the guide slot  56   a  so that the follower rollers  45  are held in the second position (i.e., the position being separated from the drive rollers  44 ).  
         [0062]     In the state shown in  FIGS. 1 and 5 , the tray guide  18  is placed at the closed position so as to extend vertically along a wall  11   a  which extend downward from the upper front part of the housing  11 . The stacker  13  is also placed at the closed position so as to extend vertically along the tray guide  18 .  
         [0063]     In the state shown in  FIGS. 3 and 6 , only the stacker  13  is pivoted forward to establish a condition that the normal target medium such as the paper P can be stacked thereon. A stopper (not shown) is provided to define the inclined angle of the stacker  13  such that the paper P ejected by the ejector  400  is prevented from being dropped from the stacker  13 .  
         [0064]     In the state shown in  FIGS. 4 and 7 , both of the stacker  13  and the tray guide  18  are pivoted forward to establish a condition that the tray T can be inserted from the front section of the printer  1 . A stopper (not shown) is provided to stop the pivotal movement of the tray guide  18  such that a guide face  18   a  (see  FIG. 4 ) extends horizontally, thereby the tray guide  18  can be horizontally led to the paper transporting path.  
         [0065]     When the tray guide  18  is operated so as to move from the closed position shown in  FIG. 6  to the opened position shown in  FIG. 7 , as shown in FIGS.  9  to  11 , an inner periphery of the hole  53   d  in the lever portion  53   c  is first brought into contact with the guide pin  48  in accordance with the pivotal movement of the tray guide  18 , so that the guide pin  48  is slid along the guide slot  56   a . Incidentally, the lever member  57  is pivoted clockwise in  FIG. 10  by the guide pin  48  against the elastic force of the tension spring  59 .  
         [0066]     When the guide pin  48  reaches the top face  57   d , the direction of the urging force that the guide pin  48  receives from the lever member  57  changes. That is, when the guide pin  48  is in contact with the slope face  57   c  of the lever member  57 , the guide pin  48  is urged toward the lower left end of the guide slot  48 , thereby holding the follower rollers  45  at the first position. On the other hand, when the guide pin  48  is in contact with the top face  57   d  of the lever member  57 , since the guide member  48  is loosely fitted with the hole  53   d , it is urged toward the upper right end of the guide slot  56   a , thereby holding the follower rollers  45  at the second position. Although the lever member  57  is merely urged in one direction by the single tension spring  59 , the slope face  57   c  and the top face  57   d  are configured so as to be able to change the urging direction for the guide pin  48  on the other hand.  
         [0067]     The guide pin  49  is moved along the guide slit  56   b  in accordance with the displacement of the guide pin  48 . The guide slit  56   b  is formed with a flat section  56   c  at the upper end thereof to prevent the guide pin  49  which is not provided with any urging member from displacing downward.  FIG. 11  shows a state that the guide pin  49  is held at the flat section  56   c.    
         [0068]     In other words, the releaser  50  comprises a bi-stabilizer in which the direction that the lever member  57  urges the guide pin  48  is switched in accordance with the pivot angle of the tray guide  18  through the use of the single tension spring  59  which urges the lever member  57  in the single direction. Accordingly, the releaser  50  can be configured with a simple structure at a low cost. Although it is not shown, at the side of the other longitudinal end of the frame  47 , the same releaser  50  is provided.  
         [0069]     The tray guide  18  for changing the height position of the driven rollers  45  must be provided with a certain precision in connection with the range of the pivotal movement, in order to establish the positional relationship shown in  FIG. 5  relative to the wall  11   a  and the stacker  13 , for example. On the other hand, the driven rollers  45  must be provided with a certain precision in order to prevent the driven rollers  45  at the first position from being pressed against the drive rollers  44  excessively, and to secure the distance between the driven rollers  45  at the second position and the label surface of the optical disk D. In this context, the link rod  51  and the link lever  53  for interlocking the tray guide  18  and the guide pin  48  need to be provided with high precision increasing the costs.  
         [0070]     However, in this embodiment, since the position of the guide pin  48  (the follower rollers  45 ) is flexibly controlled by the link  60  utilizing the urging force of the tension spring  59 . The link rod  51  and the link rod  53  do not require so high precision, thereby reducing the costs. In other words, the positions of the tray guide  18  and the driven rollers  45  can be controlled irrespective of the dimensional accuracies of the link rod  51  and the link lever  53 .  
         [0071]     In this embodiment, the driven rollers  45  are interlockingly displaced in accordance with the pivotal movement of the tray guide  18  by way of the link  60 . However, the driven rollers  45  may be interlocked with the movement of another component in the printer  1  by way of a link configured as described the above. If such a component must be provided with a certain precision for some reasons, the above described advantages can be attained effectively.  
         [0072]     Although the present invention has been shown and described with reference to specific preferred embodiments, various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the teachings herein. Such changes and modifications as are obvious are deemed to come within the spirit, scope and contemplation of the invention as defined in the appended claims.