Patent ID: 8205961

Claim:
An inkjet recording apparatus that records an image by discharging ink from an inkjet recording head, said inkjet recording apparatus comprising: a disposal liquid tank that accommodates disposal ink that is discharged from the inkjet recording head for purposes other than recording, the disposal ink being viscous or solidified and unevenly accumulating in a heap, in at least some instances; an ink dispersing member that disperses the unevenly accumulated disposal ink heap throughout the disposal liquid tank, said ink dispersing member having a plate-like surface facing the disposal ink heap, plural ribs formed on said plate-like surface to protrude from the plate-like surface toward the disposal ink heap, and dispersion outlets to spray cleaning liquid to the ribs, said ink dispersing member rotating around an axis of revolution, said plate-like surface being normal to the axis of revolution, said ribs being disposed symmetrically with respect to the axis of revolution and being configured and disposed to extend generally in a radial direction, and a combination of the cleaning liquid sprayed on the ribs and the rotation of the ink dispersing member around the axis of revolution reducing adherence of ink to the ribs; a cleaning unit that cleans the ink dispersing member; and a moving member that lowers the ink dispersing member to a first position to reach the disposal ink heap already accumulated in the disposal liquid tank and moves the ink dispersing member upward to a second position where the ink dispersing member does not reach the disposal ink and where the cleaning member cleans the ink dispersing member.