EP0689936A2 - Recording apparatus and ink cassette therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

A recording apparatus includes a recording head for effecting an recording operation on a recording material while it is being moved; a plurality of detectors for detecting plural conditions of the apparatus; a controller for effecting the recording operation in accordance with the conditions detected by the detectors; the plurality of detectors includes a detecting element movable together with the recording head and a plurality of members to be detected corresponding to the conditions of the apparatus and disposed along a movement path of the detecting element.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION AND RELATED ART
• The present invention relates to a serial type recording apparatus provided with a carriage for carrying a recording head which is preferably detachably mountable on the carriage, and an ink cassette therefor.
• The present invention is particularly effective to a recording apparatus of an ink jet type having, in addition to a usual sheet feeding function, an automatic sheet feeding function, recovery function for sucking the ink in the recording head and the like.
• Further, the present invention relates to an ink cassette functioning as an ink container detachably mountable to the recording apparatus.
• A recording apparatus, particularly a serial type printer, requires a moving mechanism for the carriage carrying a recording head thereon, a sheet feeding device for feeding the recording material such as sheet and an automatic sheet feeding mechanism. In addition, when the recording apparatus is of an ink jet type, it may require head capping means for preventing failure of ink ejection attributable to the drying of the ink adjacent to the ink ejection outlets and a pumping means. In the conventional apparatus, these mechanisms and the devices are generally driven by separate driving means such as motors, solenoids and/or the like.
• In a less expensive recording apparatus, one reversible motor is employed to effect plural operations.
• However, the provision of the independent driving sources for the respective functions results in the costly apparatus and the requirement of the space for the wiring therefor. It is possible to use a reversible motor together with a one-way clutch to function as driving sources for the sheet feeding and the automatic sheet feeding (ASF), but it results in the incapability of the reverse feeding of the recording sheet, thus degrading the performance of the apparatus, and in addition, the mechanism becomes extremely complicated with the increase of the multi-function mechanisms.
• Figure 16 is a perspective view of an ink jet printer as an exemplary recording apparatus of this kind.
• Figure 17 is a side view illustrating details of a part of the ink jet printer of Figure 16.
• The apparatus comprises afriction roller 5 for feeding arecording sheet 6 by friction to a recording position. Thefriction roller 5 is supported on ashaft 43 which is rotatably supported by left and right side plates not shown of the sheet feeding device. Therecording sheet 6 is guided along the outer periphery of thefriction roller 5 by apaper pan 38, and is press-contacted to thefriction roller 5 by an unshown pinch roller. Thus, when thefriction roller 5 is rotated, therecording sheet 6 is fed by the friction force to theplaten 4 provided above thefriction roller 5. The rotational movement of thefriction roller 5 is effected by the rotational driving of afeed motor 21 through anintermediate gear 20 fixed on the shaft of thefriction roller 43. Thesheet confining plate 8 functions to guide therecording sheet 6 fed to theplaten 4 so that it is urged toward theplaten 4, by which the recording surface of therecording sheet 6 is maintained flat along theplaten 4.
• Faced to the recording surface of therecording sheet 6 established by theplaten 4, an inkjet recording head 1 mounted on thecarriage 2 is brought. More particularly, thecarriage 2 is slidably engaged with aguide shaft 3 and arear guide shaft 45 extending parallel with theplaten 4 between the unshown left and right side plates at the opposite ends of aframe 44 of the printer. Thecarriage 2 is connected with a part of atiming belt 47 extended parallel with theguide shaft 2 around pulleys at the opposite ends of the printer. By this, thecarriage 2 is moved along theguide shaft 3 and therear guide shaft 45 by acarriage motor 46 through thetiming belt 47. Together with the movement, the inkjet recording head 1 effects its recording operation. The recording head is driven for the recording by recording signals supplied from a controller provided on a print board through arecording head cable 48.
• The ink ejected by the driving of the recording head is supplied from anink cartridge 27 through an ink tube 58 and asubordinate container 51 to the inkjet recording head 1. At a position adjacent to a recording region covered by the movable range of the inkjet recording head 1, a recovery means 52 is disposed which includes acap 13 movable toward and away from the ink ejection side of the inkjet recording head 1 and an unshown pump for sucking the ink from the ink ejection outlets through thecap 13. Adjacent to the recovery means 52 and along the moving path of therecording head 1, there is provided awiper 26 for removing residual ink, water droplet, dust or the like deposited on the ink ejection side surface of the inkjet recording head 1.
• Designated by areference numeral 11 is a home position sensor for discriminating a position of themovable recording head 1, wherein the position when thesensor 11 detects a part of thecarriage 2 is deemed as a home position, that is a reference position for the control of the movement of the ink jet recording head. Designated by areference numeral 53 is an ink cartridge sensor for discriminating whether theink cartridge 27 for supplying the ink is loaded or not.
• Figure 17 is a side view of the recovery means 52 of Figure 16 in detail. Thecap 13 faced to the ejection side of the inkjet recording head 1 and thepump 24 for sucking the ink are movable by a rotation of apump cam 23 in left-right directions and up-down directions in the Figure, respectively. Thepump cam 23 is driven by an unshown pump motor. In order to discriminate the rotational position of thepump cam 23, a recovery meanshome position sensor 54 is mounted at a side of thepump cam 23. Thehome position sensor 11 is detected while thepump cam 23 being rotated, and the rotational position upon the detection is stored, and the operations of thecap 13 and thepump 24 are controlled on the basis of rotation degree from the stored position.
• With this structure, however, the leads for the sensors for various discriminations in the recording apparatus are scatteredly disposed, and therefore, the wiring from the sensor to theprint board 49 having a controller for controlling the apparatus in accordance with the detections of the sensors, are complicated. The wiring is further made complicated due to the existence of therecording head cable 48 for supplying the recording signal to the inkjet recording head 1, with the result of difficulty in the servicing. The complicated wiring results in an expensive apparatus, together with the necessity of the long leads.
• Furthermore, when the structure of the apparatus is complicated, the mechanism for detecting presence or absence of an ink cassette which is detachably mountable to the recording apparatus is a problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a recording apparatus provided with detecting means on the carriage, and the various conditions of the apparatus are discriminated on the basis of the detections by the detecting means at predetermined carriage positions, by which the wiring for the various sensors are not scatteredly arranged, so that the servicing operation and the assembling operations are made easier.
• According to this aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus for effecting a recording operation on a recording material while a recording head is being moved, and wherein a plurality of detecting means for detecting plural conditions of the apparatus, and the apparatus is controlled in accordance with the outputs of the detecting means, and wherein the plurality of said detecting means comprises one detecting element movable together with the recording head and the plurality of members to be detected disposed along the movable path of the detecting element, corresponding to the respective conditions. With the apparatus of this structure, various conditions of the apparatus can be detected together with the movement of the recording head, and in addition, the detection signals may be transmitted along the wiring path for driving the recording head.
• It is another object of the present invention to provide a recording apparatus wherein one driving source is selectively operated for plural functions in interrelation with the movement of the carriage outside its recording region.
• In this aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus having a carriage and a recording head thereon, wherein the recording operation is performed while the carriage is being moved along the recording material, and a driving source for feeding the recording material in a direction substantially perpendicular to the carriage movement direction, comprising a plurality of gears driven by the driving source and arranged in a direction parallel to the movement direction of the carriage, and a gear member which is engageable with the carriage outside the recording region and which is engageable with selective one of the plural gears corresponding to a position of the carriage, wherein the recording material can be fed with the gear member meshed with one of the plural gears, and an operation other than the recording material feeding is possible when it is meshed with another one of the plural gears.
• According to this aspect of the present invention, the gear member engageable with the carriage when the carriage is outside the recording region is meshed with selective one of the plural gears corresponding to the carriage position, and therefore, the recording material can be fed using one of the plural gears, and another operation is possible with the same driving force by the meshing engagement with the gear member with another one of the plural gears at a different position of the carriage. Thus, different operations can be performed with a single driving source without necessity of complicated mechanism.
• Another aspect of the present invention deals with a problem that when a movable member is detected along its movement path as in the first aspect of the present invention and if a member or members to be detected which is movable toward and away from the path, the movement of the movable member can be affected depending on the position of the members to be detected. According to this aspect of the present invention, an ink cassette (movable member) detachably mounted in the recording apparatus is provided with a stopper mechanism.
• It is a further object of the present invention to provide a small size recording apparatus by improving an ink cassette detecting mechanism.
• It is a further object of the present invention to provide a recording apparatus improved in one or more of the aspects described above.
• These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon a consideration of the following description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of an entire ink jet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 2 is a side view of a carriage and an ink cartridge in the apparatus of Figure 1.
• Figure 3 is a somewhat schematic view illustrating a transparent type sensor.
• Figure 4 is a somewhat schematic perspective view illustrating an operation of detecting means.
• Figure 5 is a control flow chart of detecting means shown in Figure 4.
• Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the ink jet printer.
• Figures 7A and 7B are flow charts illustrating control operation shown in Figure 6.
• Figure 8 is a somewhat schematic perspective view illustrating an operation of the detecting means according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 9 is a flow chart illustrating an operation of the detecting means shown in Figure 8.
• Figures 10 and 11 are sectional views illustrating detection of absence of the recording sheet according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 12 is a somewhat schematic perspective view illustrating an operation of the detecting means shown in Figure 11.
• Figure 13 is a somewhat schematic view illustrating a reflection type sensor according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 14 is a perspective view illustrating an operation of the sensor shown in Figure 13.
• Figure 15 is a flow chart illustrating an operation of the detecting means shown in Figure 14.
• Figures 16 and 17 are a perspective view and a partial side view of a conventional ink jet printer.
• Figure 18 is a sectional view of a recording apparatus equipped with an automatic sheet feeder (ASF).
• Figures 19 and 20 are perspective view illustrating a driving gear switching mechanism, according to another aspect of the present invention.
• Figures 21A illustrates a driving gear switching mechanism for the mechanism shown in Figures 19 and 20.
• Figure 21B illustrates in detail a slide gear shaft used in the mechanism of Figure 21A.
• Figures 22A, 22B and 22C illustrate engagement between a carriage and a cap carrier, according to an aspect of the present invention.
• Figure 23 is a perspective view showing a modified gear teeth in a driving gear switching mechanism, according to an aspect of the present invention.
• Figures 24A, 24B, 25A and 25B illustrate a mechanism for detecting an ink cassette, wherein Figures 24A and 25A show it before the ink cassette is loaded into the apparatus; and Figure 24B and 25B show the ink cassette after it is loaded.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
• Referring to the accompanying drawings, the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.
• In the following description, an ink jet printer is taken, similarly to the description of the conventional apparatus, and therefore, in Figures 1 - 15, the same reference numerals as in Figures 16 and 17 are assigned, and the detailed description thereof are omitted for simplicity.
• Figures 1 - 7 illustrate detecting means for an ink jet printer according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of an ink jet printer illustrating the general arrangement thereof. Figure 2 is a side view of a carriage and an ink cartridge of the ink jet printer. Figure 3 is a somewhat schematic top plan view to illustrate an operational principle of a transparent type sensor of detecting means used in this embodiment. Figure 4 is a perspective view illustrating a fundamental operation of the detecting means. Figure 5 is a flow chart illustrating control steps for the detecting means. Figure 6 shows a relationship between a position of the carriage having the detecting means and various operations. Figures 7A and 7B are flow charts illustrating the control steps.
• As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an inkjet recording head 1 is mounted on acarriage 2 which is movable along aguide shaft 3 while the ejection side of thehead 1 is being faced to aplaten 4. To theplaten 4, arecording sheet 6 is supplied by rotation of afriction roller 5, so that therecording head 1 effects recording on therecording sheet 6. Thecarriage 2 has an integrally formedspring member 2a which is slidably engaged with arail 7a disposed on apaper guide 7. By the engagement of thespring member 2a with therail 7a, thecarriage 2 is urged in a rotational direction about the guidingshaft 3. Thecarriage 2 is provided with anabutment portion 2b at its platen side. By the rotational urging by thespring member 2a, theabutment portion 2b is abutted to asheet confining plate 8. As will be understood, thecarriage 2 travels while theabutment portion 2b is in sliding contact with thesheet confining plate 8, and therefore, the inkjet recording head 1 is maintained spaced from therecording sheet 6 with a predetermined gap. Therefore, a stabilized recording operation is possible.
• Adjacent a rear side of the inkjet recording head 1, electric contacts are provided to receive recording signals. The contacts are electrically connected to ahead connector 9. Thehead connector 9 is mounted on ahead print board 10. Thehead print board 10 is electrically connected with an unshown print board by an unshown head cable. Thecarriage 2 is also provided with ahome position sensor 11 in the form of a light transparent type sensor and a sheetwidth detecting sensor 12 in the form of a light reflection type sensor. Thehome position sensor 11 functions to discriminate various conditions in the recording apparatus. The sheetwidth detecting sensor 12 functions to detect a width of therecording sheet 6 by the difference in the light reflection from therecording sheet 6 and from the other portion.
• A cap of recovery means is mounted on a recovering means movingportion 14. Together with the movement of the recoveringmeans moving portion 14 along the recovering meansshaft 15, thecap 13 is moved toward and away from an ink ejection side of the inkjet recording head 1 by way of movement of acam 16 disposed behind thecap 14, so that the capping state and non-capping-state are selectively established. The leftward movement of the recovery means movingportion 14 in Figure 1 is provided by engagement of anarm 17 of the recovering means with aprojection 2c of thecarriage 2 when the carriage is moved to the left. On the other hand, the movement of the recoveringmeans moving portion 14 to the right is effected by urging force to the right by aspring 18.
• Designated by areference numeral 19 is a switchable transmission gear train which establishes different transmission pads to switch the transmission in accordance with positions of thecarriage 2 and the recovery means movingportion 14. More particularly, the driving force of thefeed motor 21 is transmitted to anintermediate feed gear 20 through thetransmission gear train 19 to rotate thefriction roller 5. On the other hand, the driving force of thefeed motor 21 is transmitted to thepump gear 22 through thegear train 19 to rotate thepump cam 23 formed integrally, by which thepump 24 is driven.
• Within the movable region of the inkjet recording head 1, and at a position adjacent to thegap 13, absorbingmeans 25 and awiper 26 are provided. When therecording head 1 is moved, the absorbingmeans 25 absorbs water droplet or the like on the surface of the recording head at the ejection side, and thewiper 26 removes dust or residual ink thereon.
• Adjacent the left-hand end in the recording head movable region, acartridge guide 28 is disposed, along which anink cartridge 27 is mounted into or dismounted from the apparatus, during which aneedle 29 fixed on thecartridge guide 28 pierces the cartridge or is pulled out therefrom. The ink in theink cartridge 27 is supplied to the inkjet recording head 1 through an unshown ink tube. On thecartridge guide 28, a homeposition detecting flag 30 is mounted at a fixed position to determine a position of thecarriage 2. Thehome position flag 30 is disposed at a slit of thehome position sensor 11 of thecarriage 2, by the movement of thecarriage 2. By this, the home position is detected. Similarly, to the left, in Figure 1, of the homeposition detecting flag 30 on thecartridge guide 28, there is an inkcartridge detecting flag 31. When theink cartridge 27 is inserted on thecartridge guide 28, aprojection 28b of an ink cartridge lever 28a formed integrally with thecartridge guide 28 is pressed, by which the ink cartridge lever 28a is resiliently flexed, and therefore, its leadingend 28c is moved backwardly. By this, acam 31a of the inkcartridge detecting flag 31 is urged upwardly, and similarly, the inkcartridge detecting flag 31 is rotated about theshaft 31b of theflag 31, so that theflag 31c is unset (laid down). As a result, when theflag 31c is set (upright), thehome position sensor 11 is switched from its on-state to off-state by the movement of thecarriage 2, so that the absence of theink cartridge 27 is detected.
• The homeposition detecting flag 32 for the recovery means is mounted for rotation about apivot 32a disposed behind thecartridge guide 28 in Figure 1. The detecting flat 32 has aflag portion 32c and alever portion 32b formed at a position across thepivot 32a fromflag portion 32c. When thelever portion 32b is lowered by apump cam projection 23a of thepump cam 23, theflag portion 32c is set into a moving path of thecarriage 2. By this, thesensor 11 and theflag portion 32c are engaged by the movement of thecarriage 2, and therefore, it is detected that the recovering means is at its home position. If it is not at the home position, theflag portion 32c is not set, and therefore, the recovery means is not detected.
• Thehome position sensor 11 used in this embodiment is a light transmitting type sensor, as shown in Figure 3. Normally, the light emitted from an emittingelement 33 is received by alight receiving element 34, so that the sensor is in the on-state. When the flag is set into the slit, the light emitted from the emittingelement 33 is blocked, so that the electric current through thelight receiving element 34 is stopped (sensor becomes off-state), so that the presence of the flag can be detected.
• Referring to Figures 4 and 5, an example of control for detecting various conditions will be described. Figure 5 is a flow chart of initial processing steps in the ink jet printer.
• As shown in Figure 4, the home position detecting fixedflag 30, the inkcartridge detecting flag 31 and the recovering means homeposition detecting flag 32 are disposed in the order named from the right-hand side of Figure 4. In order to detect the homeposition detecting flag 30 to detect the initial position of therecording head 1 at first, thecarriage 2 is moved to the right in Figure 4 through a distance not less than (L1+L2) at step S51, and thereafter, thecarriage 2 is moved to the left at step S52. Then, at step S53, thecarriage 2 is moved while discriminating the whether the flag is detected or not. When the flag is detected, it is discriminated that the first detected flag is the home position detecting fixedflag 30. At step S54, the position is stored as a home position A. Then, at step S55, thecarriage 2 is moved to the left from the home position A through a distance which is approximately (L1+L2), by which thehome position sensor 11 is moved to a position C in the Figure, that is, the position where theflag portion 32c of the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32 can be detected. Here, thecarriage 2 is retained at the current position C, and thepump cam 23 is rotated at the next step S56. By the rotation, theflag portion 32c of the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32 is detected (step S57), and then, the position is stored as the home position of thepump cam 23 at step S58.
• After the initial operation is completed, thecarriage 2 and thepump cam 23 are controlled on the basis of the stored home positions by movement or rotation through known degrees with the reference of the home positions. When thecarriage 2 is moved until thehome position sensor 11 reaches the position B, the state of thehome position sensor 11 is checked, by which the discrimination is made as to whether or not theink cartridge 27 is mounted.
• In the ink jet printer of the first embodiment of the present invention, a carriage motor (CR motor) is used to move thecarriage 2 with reference to the home position of therecording head 1. Figure 6 shows the relationship between the step numbers of the carriage motor (angular position) and the operations corresponding thereto.
• Figures 7A and 7B are flow charts illustrating the control steps performed on the basis of the positions of thecarriage 2 from the initial operation of the ink jet printer to the first column recording. The carriage motor (CR motor) is provided with an encoder for detecting the rotational position thereof.
• The flow charts will be described. At steps S701, S702 and S703, the carriage motor is rotated through 50 steps while checking an output of the encoder at each of the steps, by which thecarriage 2 is moved to the right (as seen in Figure 6). When thecarriage 2 before the initial processing is within 50 steps from the right end of the apparatus, thecarriage 2 stops by abutment to the right end, and therefore, the carriage motor is no longer rotated with the result of unchanged output of the encoder. In this case, the reverse drive of the carriage motor is terminated at this time, and the operation proceeds in the manner similar to the case in which the 50 step movement is completed. Next, at steps S704 and S705, the carriage motor is rotated in the forward direction one by one step, so that thecarriage 2 moved to the left until thehome position sensor 11 detects the homeposition detecting flag 30, and when theflag 30 is detected, the position at this time is stored as the home position at step S706.
• At steps S707 and S708, the carriage motor is rotated forwardly through 11 steps to move thecarriage 2 to an ink cartridge detecting position, where the state of thehome position sensor 11 is checked. When theflag portion 31c of the ink cartridge detecting flat 31 is detected, that is, when thesensor 11 is in off-state, it is discriminated that theink cartridge 27 is not mounted, and the operation flow branches out to an error routine for the case of the absence of the ink cartridge. When theflag portion 31c is not detected, that is, when thesensor 11 is in on-state, it is discriminated that theink cartridge 27 is mounted, and the subsequent steps are executed.
• At step S709, the carriage motor is rotated in the forward direction through 37 steps further, so that thecarriage 2 is moved to the pump operating position. At this position, the transmission path of the switchabletransmission gear train 19 is for thepump gear 22, and therefore, the rotation of the feed motor 21 (LF motor) rotates thepump cam 23 through thepump gear 22. While thecarriage 2 is being retained at this position, the state of thehome position sensor 11 is detected at step S710. When theflag portion 32c of the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32 is detected, that is, when thesensor 11 is in the off-state, thefeed motor 21 is once reversely rotated at step S712, S713 and S714 to establish the state of no flag portion (32c detection). After this state is established, or when theflag portion 32c is not detected at the step S710, thefeed motor 21 is rotated in the forward direction at steps S714 and S715. The position where thehome position sensor 11 detects the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32 is stored as the home position of the recovery means.
• Further, at steps S716 - S721, the feed motor is rotated forward further with reference to the home position of the recovery means while thecarriage 2 is retained at the position, and a series of recovery operations is performed, which includes a forced air supply operation, a sucking operation, a sucking state retaining operation and an idle sucking operation. Then, at steps S722 - S725, the carriage motor is rotated reversely through 21 steps to return thecarriage 2 to the LF (line feed) operating position, by which the transmission path of the switchabletransmission gear train 19 is switched to theintermediate feed gear 20. Then, thefeed motor 21 is rotated reversely and forwardly, the adverse affect of the backlash of the gear is removed by shifting to one side. Thereafter, the recording operation is started at step S726 from the position after 88 step reverse rotation of the carriage motor.
• Figures 8 and 9 are somewhat schematic perspective view of an apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention and a flow chart illustrating the operation thereof.
• Figure 8 is similar to Figure 4, that is different from Figure 4 in that the home position detecting fixedflag 30 has a width Wa which is different from a width Wb of the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32 and of the inkcartridge detecting flag 31. In Figure 8, the width Wa is smaller than the width Wb. In Figure 4, the homeposition detecting flag 30 is required to be at the right end. However, in this embodiment, the position of the home position detecting fixedflag 30 may be at any position relative to the inkcartridge detecting flag 31 and the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32. In Figure 8, the home position detecting fixedflag 30 is between the inkcartridge detecting flag 31 and the recovery means homeposition detecting flag 32.
• Referring to the flow chart of Figure 9, the initial operation of the ink jet printer of Figure 8 will be described.
• First, at step S101, thecarriage 2 is moved through a distance not less than L2 to the right (as seen in Figure 8). Next, at step S102, thecarriage 2 is moved to the left while monitoring by thehome position sensor 11 to detect the position where the flag is switched from the non-detection state to the detection state. At step S103, the flag is detected, and then, the carriage is moved further to the left from the detection position (S104) through a predetermined distance which is not less than the width Wa approximately and not more than the width Wb to confirm the detection by thehome position sensor 11. At step S105, the discrimination is made as to whether the width of the flag is Wa or Wb. If it is Wb, it is discriminated that the detected flag is theflag portion 31c of the inkcartridge detecting flag 31. Then, the operation returns to the step S102 through the step S106 to move the carriage to the left. If the width of the flag is Wa, the detected flag is discriminated as being the homeposition detecting flag 30. Then, at step S107, the current position is stored as the home position B. Subsequently, at steps S108 - S111, thecarriage 2 is moved further to the left through a distance approximately L2, and the initial operation of the pump cam is performed.
• Figures 10 - 12 show a third embodiment of the present invention. Figures 10 and 11 are sectional views for illustrating the operation of aflag 36 for detecting absence of the recording sheet in this embodiment. Figure 12 is a somewhat schematic perspective view illustrating the structure of the detecting means used in this embodiment.
• Figure 10 shows the state in which there is no recording sheet; and Figure 11 shows the state in which therecording sheet 6 is loaded. When therecording sheet 6 is not supplied, or when the trailing edge of therecording sheet 6 passes by alever 37, thesheet absence lever 37 is not prevented from counterclockwise rotation in this Figure about thepivot 37a, and therefore, the sheetabsence detecting flag 36 rotates in the clockwise direction about thepivot 36b by the weight of theflag portion 36a of the sheetabsence detecting flag 36, by which thesheet absence lever 37 is raised by its rotation about thepivot 37a. In this state, theflag portion 36a of the sheetabsence detecting flag 36 is out of the slit of thehome position sensor 11.
• As shown in Figure 11, when therecording sheet 6 is supplied to between thefriction roller 5 and thepinch roller 39 along thepaper pan 38, thesheet absence lever 37 is lowered by therecording sheet 6. By the lowering of thesheet absence lever 37, the sheetabsence detecting flag 36 is rotated clockwisely about thepivot 36b, and therefore, theflag portion 36a is inserted into the slit of thehome position sensor 11.
• As shown in Figure 12, the sheetabsence detecting flag 36 has theflag portion 36a having a width larger than those of the other three flags. By this, the detection is possible only when the sheet is fed when the carriage is within a range D in the Figure at the time of the trailing edge detection of therecording sheet 6, and therefore, the carriage position is not limited when the sheet is fed.
• Figures 13 - 15 show a fourth embodiment of the present invention, wherein a light reflection type sensor is used to detect various states.
• Figure 13 schematically shows the structure of a sheetwidth detecting sensor 12 of a light reflection type. When the refractive index of theobjects 40 to be detected is high, the light emitted from thelight emitting element 33 is detected by the light receiving element. When it is low, the light from thelight emitting element 33 does not reach the light receiving element, and therefore, no current flows through the light receiving element.
• As shown in Figure 14, along the moving path of the sheetwidth detecting sensor 12 and within a region adjacent to the left of the recording region in which therecording sheet 6 is fed, there are provided a home position detecting fixed reflectingplate 41 having a widtha and an ink cartridge detecting reflectingplate 42 having a width b, and movable upwardly and downwardly in accordance with mounting and dismounting of the ink cartridge, respectively. The surfaces of the home position detecting fixed reflectingplate 41 and the ink cartridge detecting reflectingplate 42 are coated in such that a white level (high reflective index) similarly to therecording sheet 6. On the contrary, the portion hatched in this Figure, that is, the surface of theplaten 4, for example, has a surface such that the black level (low refractive index) is provided thereby.
• Figure 15 is a flow chart illustrating the initial processing in the ink jet printer. At step S161, the carriage is first moved to the right, as seen in Figure 15, through a predetermined distance. Then, at step S162, the carriage is moved to the left, while monitoring by the sheetwidth detecting sensor 12, to look for the white level position. At step S163, the white level is detected, and then, at steps S164, S165 and S166, the leftward movement is continued until the black level is detected, while counting a distance counter (not shown). By this, the white level width is counted, and at step S167, the discrimination is made as to whether the width isa or not. If the width is nota, the detected white level is not that of the home position detecting fixed reflectingplate 41, and therefore, the operation returns to the step S162, and the leftward movement of thecarriage 2 is further continued. If the width isa, the position is stored as a home position A at step S168. Thereafter, the presence or absence of the ink cartridge or the like can be detected by moving the carriage through a known degree with reference to the home position.
• According to the structure and control in the first, second, third and fourth embodiment, the wiring for the detection of various conditions of the apparatus is only for thesensor 11 or for thesensor 12 on the carriage. The wiring can be disposed on the head print board of the carriage. Therefore, the results of the sensing can be transmitted to the print board through the head cable in a single route.
• Further, a single sensor may be enough for functioning as the home position sensor, the ink cartridge detection sensor, the recovery means home position sensor and the like.
• In the foregoing embodiments, the conditions of the recording apparatus to be detected are the presence or absence of the ink cartridge, the presence or absence of the recording sheet and the home position of the recovering means. However, the conditions to be detected may be another. For example, the condition to be detected includes the presence or absence of a font cartridge, the open or close state of a cover. By increasing the number of detecting flags, the detection may be effected by a single sensor.
• In the foregoing embodiments, the detecting means are for the ink jet printer, but the embodiments are applicable to the other type recording apparatus if the recording operation is effected while a carriage is moved.
• As will be understood from the foregoing description, according to the embodiments of the present invention, the various conditions of the apparatus can be detected together with the movement of the recording head, and the detection signals may be transmitted through the same wiring path for driving the recording head.
• As a result, the servicing and assembling of the apparatus are made easier. In addition, the various conditions can be discriminated using a minimum number of detecting elements, and therefore, the number of the detecting elements can be reduced with the result of significant reduction of the cost.
• As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the flag is inserted into or retracted from the detection path of the detecting element. The flag is inserted or retracted in association with the ink cassette. The structure suitable for such an ink cassette will be described.
• In the case where theink cassette 27 is mounted into the apparatus, when the attempt is made to retain the ink cassette at a predetermined position with a more or less tolerable margin, theflag 31 may displace to such a position as to obstruct the movement of the carriage, when it is mounted. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the ink cassette is provided with tapered portion at the two upper corner of which are leading when it is inserted into the apparatus. Twostopper members 84 are provided at positions continuing from the taper.
• In a cover for the ink cassette mounting at a side of theupper paper guide 7, there are twoprojections 86 at upper corners. Theprojections 86 permit passage of the tapered portion of the ink cassette, but prevents it when they are engaged with thestoppers 84. The position of engagement between the projections and thestoppers 84 is such that theflag 31c is outside the movable region of thecarriage 2 so that the carriage movement is not obstructed, when theink cassette 27 acts on the ink cartridge lever portion 28a. In addition, the engaging position is so determined that theflag 31c is out of contact with thesensor 11, but is assuredly in the clearance formed in thesensor 11.
• Therefore, theink cartridge 27 can assuredly supply the ink, and simultaneously, a member insertable into and retractable from the movement path of a movable detecting element such as aflag 31 is prevented from being inserted beyond a predetermined position.
• Referring to Figures 18 - 23, major parts of the recording apparatus of Figure 1 will be described. As shown in Figure 18, the fixedplaten 4 functions to retain therecording sheet 6 with a predetermined clearance from the ejection side surface of therecording head 1. Thefeed roller 5 functions to feed therecording sheet 6. Thepinch roller 66 is press-contacted to thefeed roller 5 to be driven by thefeed roller 5 and to form a nip between thefeed roller 5 and thepinch roller 66 to feed therecording sheet 6 through the nip. Apinch roller holder 83 functions to provide the press-contact force to thepinch roller 66. It is made of stainless steel plate or the like, and the spring force thereof is effective to urge thepinch roller 66 to thefeed roller 5.
• Therecording sheet 6 supplied by thefeed roller 5 and thepinch roller 66 is retained by the fixedplaten 4 inclined backwardly at approximately 30 degrees, and therefore, it is easy to watch the print. Therecording sheet 6 on which the recording operation has been performed is gripped by a dischargingroller 62 and aroller 63 press-contacted thereto, and then is discharged to astacker 61. Figure 18 shows the apparatus of Figure 1 under the condition that anouter cover 64 and an automatic sheet feeding device (ASF) are provided. The recording sheet may be supplied manually at the front side, and recording sheet may be supplied by therear ASF 60. If apin feed tractor 67 is used, continuous paper is usable. The fixedplaten 4 may be provided with a heater at its back side, by which the ink which is not easily dried can be used.
• The description will be made as to the ink supplying system, the recovery system and the sheet feeding system. Those systems are disposed concentratedly at the left side of the recording range of Figure 1. By doing so, the drive transmission mechanisms are simplified, and the space required thereby is reduced. In addition, the driving source is used for various purposes. Thefeed motor 21 is the driving source. As will be described hereinafter, thefeed motor 21 functions to drive thefeed roller 5, thedischarge roller 62 and theASF 60, and in addition, it can operate the recovery system through a series of recovering operation.
• The recovery device, as described in conjunction with Figure 1, comprises acap 13, a cap carrier for carrying thecap 13, acap guide shaft 15 for guiding thegap carrier 13A carrying thecap 13, a rail for moving thecap member 13 to the ink ejection side 1A of the recording head, aspring 18 for urging the right side initial position thecap member 13, apump 24 for sucking the ink.
• In the recovery operation, after the capping is effected, a vacuum is produced in thecap 13 by driving thepump 24 with which thecap 13 communicates through an unshown tube, so that the ink is sucked through the nozzle of therecording head 1.
• Referring to Figures 19 and 20, the switching mechanism for thefeed motor 20 will be described.
• In Figure 19, areference numeral 68 designates an idler gear for transmitting the driving force from thefeed motor 20 to adrive gear 70 supported on aslidable gear shaft 69. Theslidable gear shaft 69 has a "D" shaped cross-section, and aslidable gear 71 slidable together with theslidable gear shaft 69 is supported on theslidable gear shaft 69 by a slidingholder 72. The slidingholder 72, as shown in Figure 20, is provided with forkedlegs 72A extending downwardly. Thelegs 72A are engaged with a channel-like member 74 supported in parallel with thegear shaft 69 by aframe 73, by which together with the movement of the legs 72a along thechannel 74, the slidinggear 71 moves together with the slidingholder 72. Asecond arm 13C is projected from thecap carrier 13A to the channel likemember 74, and aleaf spring 13D is supported on an end of thesecond arm 13C. Theleaf spring 13D is gripped between the forkedlegs 72A of the slidingholder 72.
• As will be described hereinafter, when thegap 13 is moved to the left by the engagement with thecarriage 2, the slidingholder 72 is moved in the same direction through theleaf spring 13D, the slidinggear 71 is maintained at the position corresponding to thecap 13. Thegear train 19 having module meshable with the slidinggear 71 is supported by theframe 73 above the slidinggear 71, as shown in Figure 20.
• Disposed at the most light of thegear train 19, are sheet feeding gears 79 including alarge gear 80A and asmall gear 80B. Thelarge gear 80A is meshed with the slidinggear 71, and the small gear 88B is meshed with the dischargingroller gear 62A through theidler gear 20. Thefeed roller 7 and the dischargingroller 62 may be rotated in the forward and backward direction through thefeed gear 75 and the dischargingroller gear 62 by thefeed motor 21 under the condition that the slidinggear 71 is meshed with the sheetfeeding output gear 79.
• Referring to Figure 20, theASF output gear 78 has the same number of teeth and the same module as the coaxiallarge gear 80A. It is meshable with the slidinggear 71 depending on the position of the slidinggear 71, and is meshed with theinput gear 60A of theASF 60. Therefore, under the condition that the slidinggear 71 is meshed with theoutput gear 78 of theASF 60, theinput gear 60A may be rotated in the forward or backward direction. For example, the sheet may be fed by theASF 60 by its forward rotation, and by the reverse rotation, a more complicated functional operation can be performed such as selection from first and second bins.
• Apump output gear 17 disposed at the most left of thegear train 19 in Figure 20, is meshed with the slidinggear 71 at the most left position, as shown in Figure 21A (chain lines), and one of the pump output gears 77 is meshed with a driving gear 31A for thepump cam 23. Therefore, when the slidinggear 71 is moved to such a position, thefeed motor 21 drives thepump cam 23, and thecam 23 causes thepump 24 to effect the pumping action. As described in the foregoing, depending on the stop position of thecarriage 2, the driving force of thefeed motor 21 can be transmitted through the slidinggear 71 selectively to a sheetfeed output gear 79, anASF output gear 78 and thepump output gear 77.
• Together with the movement of thecarriage 2 to the left outside the recording region, thecap carrier 13A is moved, depending on the position of thecarriage 2. Together with the movement of thecap carrier 13A, theslide gear 71 is meshed with the above output gears. The operation will be described. In the switching operation of the output gear, theleaf spring 13D connected between thecap carrier 13A and the slidingholder 72 functions as a buffer.
• When thecarriage 2 moves to the left from the right recording region in Figure 1 to the position shown in Figure 22A and further to the position shown in Figure 22B, therecording head 1 is engaged with the arm 13B of thecap carrier 13A, and thereafter, thecap carrier 13A is now movable along the guidingshaft 15. In Figures 22A - 22C, (A) - (D) indicate four positions which can be taken by thecap carrier 13A together with the slidingholder 72 and the slidinggear 71 while carrying thecap 13. In the positions (A) - (C), as shown in Figure 22C, for example, thecap 13 is pushed toward therecording head 1 by anoperating arm 13E of thecap 13 guided along therail 81. The position D is a waiting position before the sheet feeding during the recording operation. As shown in Figure 22C, when thecarriage 2 is at the position D, the slidinggear 71 is meshed with the sheetfeeding output gear 79, although the meshing engagement is not shown in the Figure. With this state, the sheet can be fed by themotor 21.
• At the position D, the recording head is faced to the cap, wherein the preliminary ejection not performing the recording operation can be performed in response to the electric signal to the electrothermal transducers of the recording head. In this embodiment, the preliminary ejection is performed at the start of the printing operation and the recording operation is continuously performed for one minute.
• When thecarriage 2 is moved to the left beyond the position D, the slidinggear 71 becomes out of engagement with the sheetfeeding output gear 79 at the position B, and is engaged with theASF output gear 78. However, in this case, if the teeth are not meshed with each other, the proper meshing engagement with theASF output gear 78 is not established. However, thecap carrier 13A is forced to the position corresponding to the position (B), upon which the difference in the movement distances due to the mismatch of the teeth is absorbed by theflexible leaf spring 13D. When thefeed motor 21 is driven thereafter, the slidinggear 71 is driven through thedriving gear 70, as shown in Figure 3, by which the proper engagement is established when the teeth are matched, and therefore, theASF output gear 78 can be driven.
• For example, immediately after the sheet is fed while the slidinggear 71 is in meshing engagement with the sheetfeeding output gear 79, the teeth of these gears are in firm engagement, and therefore, they are not easily disengaged from each other due to the friction therebetween. Even in this case, the firm engagement state is temporarily maintained by theflexible leaf spring 13D, and then, thefeed motor 21 is reversely rotated to remove the frictional strong engagement between the teeth.
• The position (A) is a position for performing the recovery operation such as pumping operation or the like. Figure 22C shows this. With this state, the slidinggear 44 can be meshed with thepump output gear 32. As shown in Figure 21A, thepump 24 can be driven through thepump cam 23 by one of thegears 77A. The position (C) is a position for waiting with therecording head 1 being capped. The sheet can be fed even under this condition.
• Figure 23 shows the gear teeth of the slidinggear 71 and the gears in thegear train 19 meshable with the slidinggear 71. They are rounded at theteeth tips 82 smoothly for the smooth switching engagement with the slidinggear 71.
• As described in the foregoing, according to the structure described in conjunction with Figures 18 - 23, there are provided a train of plural gear arranged in parallel along a movement direction of the carriage and driven by a sheet feeding driving source, and a gear member for meshing engagement with a selected one of the plural gears depending on the position of the carriage outside the recording region, wherein the sheet can be fed when the gear member is meshed with one of the gears of the gear train; and an operation other than the sheet feed is possible when the gear member is meshed with another one of the plural gears. Therefore, plural desired operation can be performed selectively using a single driving source. Thus, the cost can be significantly reduced; both of the forward and backward rotation of the driving source can be used; and therefore, the latitude in the operation can be increased.
• In addition, the number of operations performed with the single driving force can be easily increased or reduced by increasing or decreasing the number of gears of the gear train. If it is combined with the cap moving mechanism, the capping or the recovery operations can be interrelatedly performed.
• Figures 24 and 25 show a compact ink cassette detecting structure. Where a protection member for protection from the needle or needles are provided, the size of the device is increased due to the necessity of the provisions of the presence or absence detecting circuit for the ink cartridge and switching members therefore. Figures 24A, 24B, 25A and 25B illustrate the structure for eliminating such inconveniences, and the size of the entire apparatus can be reduced. The structure of this embodiment is replaceable with the ink cassette detecting structure using the flag of Figure 1. In this embodiment, an openable protection plate made of electrically conductive material is provided around theneedles 29 for connecting the ink cartridge with the recording apparatus. The protection plate openable in association with insertion of the ink cartridge.
• Upon completion of the insertion of the ink cartridge, the protection plate completes the circuit in the ink cartridge presence or absence detecting circuit means, by which the presence of the ink cartridge can be detected. The electrically conductive portion may be only at the switching portion or portions.
• Figure 24 best shows the protection member and the needle. Theink cartridge 27 is detachably mountable to be pierced by aneedle 29 communicating with the recording head through an ink supply tube, when the ink cartridge is correctly mounted. Aneedle covering plate 91 is hinged for rotation at its one end and is provided with awindow 91A adjacent the tip end of the needle. The hinge of the coveringplate 91 is provided with a twisted coil spring to urge the coveringplate 91 toward the tip end of the needle.
• A pawl is effective to lock thecovering plate 91. When there is no cartridge, the opening and closing of the coveringplate 91 is prevented. Twoelectrodes 88 and 89 constitute a part of acircuit 90 for detecting the presence of theink cartridge 3 at the rear side.
• When theink cartridge 27 is inserted in the direction indicated by an arrow, thepawl 87 is pushed by a side of the cartridge to release the locking of the needle cover. Theneedle cover 91 now free to rotate is directly pressed by thecartridge 27 and is rotated backwardly while exposing the tip end of the needle through thewindow 91A. Sooner or later, theneedle 29 is completed to be connected with the ink cartridge, and an end of theneedle cover 91 are brought into contact with theelectrodes 88 and 89. Theneedle cover 91 having the electrically conductive portion now short-circuits the detectingcircuit 90 to reduce the electric resistance from infinity to several milli-ohm., the reduction is detected as the presence of the cartridge. Thecircuit 90 may be such as to detect the resistance change, and another change, and the change of the resistance may be from the large side to the small side, or from the small side to the large side.
• When theink cartridge 27 is retracted, theneedle cover 91 is pushed to the front by the coil spring together with the retraction of the cartridge, and then, it is locked by thepawl 87 now reset. With this state, the tip end of the needle can be protected when foreign matter is inserted, and in addition, even if a hand of an operator is erroneously inserted, it can be protected from the damage.
• Figures 25A and 25B are perspective views of the similar structure but for the case of plural ink cartridges used. Theink cartridge 27A includes three difference color ink containers, and anink cartridge 27B contains one color ink. Correspondingly, the main assembly of the recording apparatus is provided with threeneedles 29 for theink cartridge 27A and aneedle cover 94 having the corresponding three windows, and oneneedle 29 for theink cartridge 27B, and aneedle cover 93 having a corresponding single window. Theink cartridges 27A and 27B is provided withpawls 87A and 87B corresponding to thepawl 87 of Figure 24A. Whenplural ink cartridges 27A and 27B are to be inserted, the twoelectrodes 88 and 89 of the ink cartridge presence or absence detecting circuit are constituted by the needle covers 93 and 94 made of electrically conductive material. Acommon electrode 95 is effective to contact theneedle cover 23 and theneedle cover 94 when both of thecartridges 27A and 27B are inserted. In this case, the conductive portion of theplates 93 and 94 may be formed only at the circuit completing portion.
• As described in the foregoing, according to this embodiment, the needle protection plate which is opened only when the ink cartridges inserted is made of electrically conductive material, and therefore, the presence of the cartridge can be detected upon completion of the cartridge insertion, so that the number of parts of the switches or the like can be reduced, and therefore, the cost can be decreased.
• By the elimination of the necessity of the switches or the like, the required space can be reduced.
• In addition, the problem of erroneous detecting operation due to dissolved air in the ink when the presence or absence of the ink cartridge and/or the ink cartridge due to the change in the resistance through the ink, can be solved by the circuit completed by the mechanical contact.
• The present invention is particularly suitably usable in a bubble jet recording head and recording apparatus developed by Canon Kabushiki Kaisha, Japan. This is because, the high density of the picture element, and the high resolution of the recording are possible.
• The typical structure and the operational principle of preferably the one disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740,796. The principle is applicable to a so-called on-demand type recording system and a continuous type recording system particularly however, it is suitable for the on-demand type because the principle is such that at least one driving signal is applied to an electrothermal transducer disposed on a liquid (ink) retaining sheet or liquid passage, the driving signal being enough to provide such a quick temperature rise beyond a departure from nucleation boiling point, by which the thermal energy is provide by the electrothermal transducer to produce film boiling on the heating portion of the recording head, whereby a bubble can be formed in the liquid (ink) corresponding to each of the driving signals. By the development and collapse of the the bubble, the liquid (ink) is ejected through an ejection outlet to produce at least one droplet. The driving signal is preferably in the form of a pulse, because the development and collapse of the bubble can be effected instantaneously, and therefore, the liquid (ink) is ejected with quick response. The driving signal in the form of the pulse is preferably such as disclosed in U.S. Patents Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262. In addition, the temperature increasing rate of the heating surface is preferably such as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,313,124.
• The structure of the recording head may be as shown in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,558,333 and 4,459,600 wherein the heating portion is disposed at a bent portion in addition to the structure of the combination of the ejection outlet, liquid passage and the electrothermal transducer as disclosed in the above-mentioned patents. In addition, the present invention is applicable to the structure disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application Publication No. 123670/1984 wherein a common slit is used as the ejection outlet for plural electrothermal transducers, and to the structure disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 138461/1984 wherein an opening for absorbing pressure wave of the thermal energy is formed corresponding to the ejecting portion. This is because, the present invention is effective to perform the recording operation with certainty and at high efficiency irrespective of the type of the recording head.
• The present invention is effectively applicable to a so-called full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum recording width. Such a recording head may comprise a single recording head and a plural recording head combined to cover the entire width.
• In addition, the present invention is applicable to a serial type recording head wherein the recording head is fixed on the main assembly, to a replaceable chip type recording head which is connected electrically with the main apparatus and can be supplied with the ink by being mounted in the main assembly, or to a cartridge type recording head having an integral ink container.
• The provision of the recovery means and the auxiliary means for the preliminary operation are preferable, because they can further stabilize the effect of the present invention. As for such means, there are capping means for the recording head, cleaning means therefor, pressing or sucking means, preliminary heating means by the ejection electrothermal transducer or by a combination of the ejection electrothermal transducer and additional heating element and means for preliminary ejection not for the recording operation, which can stabilize the recording operation.
• As regards the kinds of the recording head mountable, it may be a single corresponding to a single color ink, or may be plural corresponding to the plurality of ink materials having different recording color or density. The present invention is effectively applicable to an apparatus having at least one of a monochromatic mode mainly with black and a multi-color with different color ink materials and a full-color mode by the mixture of the colors which may be an integrally formed recording unit or a combination of plural recording heads.
• Furthermore, in the foregoing embodiment, the ink has been liquid. It may be, however, an ink material solidified at the room temperature or below and liquefied at the room temperature. Since in the ink jet recording system, the ink is controlled within the temperature not less than 30^oC and not more than 70^oC to stabilize the viscosity of the ink to provide the stabilized ejection, in usual recording apparatus of this type, the ink is such that it is liquid within the temperature range when the recording signal is applied. In addition, the temperature rise due to the thermal energy is positively prevented by consuming it for the state change of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink material is solidified when it is left is used to prevent the evaporation of the ink. In either of the cases, the application of the recording signal producing thermal energy, the ink may be liquefied, and the liquefied ink may be ejected. The ink may start to be solidified at the time when it reaches the recording material. The present invention is applicable to such an ink material as is liquefied by the application of the thermal energy. Such an ink material may be retained as a liquid or solid material on through holes or recesses formed in a porous sheet as disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 56847/1979 and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 71260/1985. The sheet is faced to the electrothermal transducers. The most effective one for the ink materials described above is the film boiling system.
• The ink jet recording apparatus may be used as an output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as computer or the like, a copying apparatus combined with an image reader or the like, or a facsimile machine having information sending and receiving functions.
• While the invention has been described with reference to the structures disclosed herein, it is not confined to the details set forth and this application is intended to cover such modifications or changes as may come within the purposes of the improvements or the scope of the following claims.

Claims (18)

1. A container (27) detachably mountable to a recording apparatus of a kind having a carriage (2) movable in a scanning direction transversely of a recording material, said container including a member (31c) to be detected movable toward the movement path of said carriage in response to mounting of said container into said apparatus; and a control member (28a) for controlling said member to be detected to be out of the movement path when the container is not in said apparatus.
2. An ink cassette detachably mountable in a recording apparatus having a member (31c) to be detected movable toward and away from a movement path of a detecting element (11) mounted on a carriage for carrying a recording head supplied with ink from said ink cassette; an actuator (28a) for moving said member to be detected into the movement path when said ink cassette (27) is mounted in said recording apparatus and for retracting aid member to be detected away from the movement path when said ink cassette is detached from said apparatus; said cassette comprising a stopper (84) engageable with said recording apparatus for preventing said ink cassette from being inserted beyond a properly mounted position, wherein said stopper is effective to stop said member (31c) to be detected at a predetermined position in the movement path.
3. A system comprising a recording apparatus including a carriage (2) for carrying a recording head (1) and movable in a scanning direction for effecting a recording operation, a plurality of detecting means for detecting plural conditions of said apparatus, control means for controlling the recording operation in accordance with the conditions detected by said detecting means, a member (31c) to be detected movable toward the movement path of said carriage in response to mounting of said container into said apparatus; and a control member (28a) for controlling said member to be detected to be out of the movement path when the container is not in said apparatus, and a container (27) detachably mounted on said recording apparatus.
4. A recording apparatus, comprising:
      a carriage (2) for carrying a recording head (1) for effecting a recording operation on a recording medium;
      detectable means (30,31,32) for representing operational conditions of said apparatus disposed along a scanning path of said carriage;
      a sensor (11) on said carriage, for sensing said detectable means; and
      control means for controlling the recording operation in accordance with the conditions detected by said sensor;
      characterised in that said detectable means comprises at least one member (31 or 32) disposed a predetermined distance away from said first member and movable between a position detectable by said sensor (11) and a position not detectable thereby.
5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, characterised in that the at least one member (31) is provided for indicating whether or not an ink cartridge is mounted on said apparatus.
6. A recording apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising an actuator (8a) for moving the at least one member (31) to be detected into the movement path when an ink cartridge is mounted in the recording apparatus and for retracting the at least one member (31) when the ink cartridge is detached from said apparatus.
7. A recording apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a stopper (84) engageable with said recording apparatus for preventing the ink cartridge from being inserted beyond a properly mounted position.
8. A recording apparatus, comprising:
      a recording head for effecting an recording operation on a recording material while it is being moved;
      a plurality of detecting means for detecting plural conditions of said apparatus;
      control means for effecting the recording operation in accordance with the conditions detected by said detecting means;
      said plurality of detecting means includes a detecting element movable together with said recording head and a plurality of members to be detected corresponding to the conditions of the apparatus and disposed along a movement path of said detecting element.
9. An apparatus according to Claim 8, wherein at least one of the members to be detected is movable toward and away from the movement path corresponding to the condition to which said at least one of the members to be detected is associated.
10. An apparatus according to Claim 8 or 9, wherein said detecting element is for detecting a reference position of said recording head.
11. An apparatus according to Claim 8, 9 or 10, wherein said detecting element is for detecting a width of the recording material.
12. A recording apparatus, comprising a recording head:
       a carriage for carrying the recording head, wherein a recording operation is effected on a recording material while said carriage is being moved along the recording material;
       a driving source for feeding the recording material in a direction perpendicular to a movement direction of said carriage;
       plural gears to be driven by said driving source and arranged in parallel with the movement direction of said carriage;
       a gear member engageable with selective one of said gears, corresponding to a position of said carriage outside a recording region of said carriage;
       wherein when said gear member is in meshing engagement with one of said plural gears, the recording material can be fed, and when said gear member is in meshing engagement with another one of said gears, an operation other than the recording material feeding operation can be effected.
13. A recording apparatus according to Claim 12 wherein said recording head ejects a liquid droplet by a bubble formed by thermal energy produced by an electrothermal transducer, wherein the operation other than the recording material feed operation is to temporarily moving the carriage to a position where the recording head is faced to capping means, and wherein the electrothermal transducer is supplied with an electric signal to cause the recording head to preliminary eject the liquid to the capping means.
14. An apparatus according to Claim 12 or 13, further comprising a plurality of detecting means for detecting plural conditions of said apparatus; control means for effecting the recording operation in accordance with the conditions detected by said detecting means; said plurality of detecting means includes a detecting element movable together with said recording head and a plurality of members to be detected corresponding to the conditions of the apparatus and disposed along a movement path of said detecting element, wherein at least one of the members to be detected is movable toward and away from the movement path corresponding to the condition to which said at least one of the members to be detected is associated.
15. A container detachably mountable to a recording apparatus of Claim 14, comprising:
       a member to be detected moved toward the moving path in response to mounting of said container into said apparatus; and
       a control member for controlling said member to be detected to be out of the movement path when the container is not in said apparatus.
16. An ink cassette detachably mountable in a recording apparatus, comprising:
       a member to be detected movable toward and away from a movement path of a detecting element mounted on a carriage for carrying a recording head supplied with ink from said ink cassette;
       an actuator for moving said member to be detected into the movement path when said ink cassette is mounted in said recording apparatus and for retracting said member to be detected away from the movement path when said ink cassette is detached from said apparatus, said actuator being actable on said recording apparatus;
       a stopper engageable with said recording apparatus for preventing said ink cassette from being inserted beyond a properly mounted position, wherein said stopper is effective to stop said member to be detected at a predetermined position in the movement path.
17. An ink jet recording apparatus, comprising:
       an ink supply member insertable into an ink cartridge;
       a protection member for protecting said ink supply member, said supply member being movable;
       discrimination circuit for discriminating mounting of said ink cartridge;
       wherein said protection member is movable to open said ink supply member by mounting of said ink cartridge, and wherein said protection member functions as a switching member to which said discrimination circuit is responsive.
18. An apparatus according to Claim 17, further comprising a recording head including a carriage for carrying the recording head, wherein a recording operation is effected on a recording material while said carriage is being moved along the recording material; a driving source for feeding the recording material in a direction perpendicular to a movement direction of said carriage; plural gears to be driven by said driving source and arranged in parallel with the movement direction of said carriage; a gear member engageable with selective one of said gears, corresponding to a position of said carriage outside a recording region of said carriage; wherein when said gear member is in meshing engagement with one of said plural gears, the recording material can be fed, and when said gear member is in meshing engagement with another one of said gears, an operation other than the recording material feeding operation can be effected.

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