Patent ID: 8147050

Claim:
A liquid droplet jetting apparatus which jets droplets of a liquid, comprising: a liquid droplet jetting head having nozzles which jet the liquid droplets, and in each of which a meniscus of the liquid is formed at an end of the each of the nozzles; a liquid supply channel through which the liquid is supplied to the liquid droplet jetting head; an air-discharge channel which communicates with the liquid supply channel; a purge mechanism which performs a liquid purge of discharging the liquid from the nozzles of the liquid droplet jetting head; a suction mechanism which is connected to the air discharge channel so as to suck air through the air discharge channel; and a controller which controls the purge mechanism and the suction mechanism to selectively perform a first purge mode in which the control mechanism controls the suction mechanism to perform a first air-discharge purge of discharging an air inside the liquid supply channel via the air-discharge channel while maintaining the meniscus of the liquid in the nozzles, and a second purge mode in which the control mechanism controls the suction mechanism to perform a second air-discharge purge of discharging the air inside the liquid supply channel via the air-discharge channel while destroying the meniscus of the liquid in the nozzle and then the control mechanism controls the purge mechanism to perform the liquid purge.