JPH11132788A - Linear encoder supporting device and image recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To remarkably improve the accuracy of the relative positional relation between a linear scale and a reciprocating body by fixing both end sections of a rail supporting a linear scale and a reciprocating body with the same fixing means respectively. SOLUTION: The supporting device of a linear encoder assembled in an image recording device is provided with encoder support bases 221, 223 fixing the end sections of a linear scale 220 and the end sections of rail 240 supporting a carriage 200 serving as a reciprocating body in the lump, for example. The support bases 221, 223 are provided with storage grooves storing the end sections of the linear scale 20 and through holes storing the end sections of the rail 240, thereby the relative positional relation between an encoder head 210 mounted on the carriage 200 supported to slide on the rail 240 and the linear scale 220 can be accurately detected. A film boiling ink jet type recording means is removably mounted on the carriage 200.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a linear encoder supporting device for supporting a linear encoder for accurately detecting the position of a reciprocating moving body, and an image recording apparatus including the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art First, the configuration of a conventional linear encoder support device will be schematically described.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of an image recording apparatus provided with a conventional linear encoder support device.
FIGS. 10A and 10B are enlarged views of a supporting and fixing portion of the linear encoder, and FIG. 10A is a side view,
(B) is sectional drawing which follows the EE line | wire of (a).

In FIG. 9, reference numerals 91 and 92 denote both side plates as both walls of a housing for supporting a linear encoder. This housing is a member constituting a main body chassis in the image recording apparatus. Both side plates 91 and 92 maintain a predetermined separation distance and are parallel to each other and form a pair. Encoder fixing holders 229 and 230 are fixed to predetermined positions on both side plates 91 and 92, respectively. Both encoder fixing holders 229 and 2
Between 30, a linear scale 220 is provided,
Both ends are provided with both encoder fixing holders 229 and 23
It is configured to be indirectly fixed to the housing by being positioned at 0. The end of the linear scale 220 is fixed through the through hole 91a of the side plate 91 of the housing.

[0005] On the linear scale 220, an encoder head 210 that can reciprocate in the length direction thereof is arranged. Equal intervals (for example, 40
The encoder head sensor 211 detects the memory information assigned to 0 dpi) and reads the position accurately. The encoder head 210 is positioned and fixed to a carriage 200 on which a recording unit of the image recording apparatus is mounted. The carriage 200 is a linear scale 2
The carriage roller 251 slidably supported on a rail 240 disposed parallel to the rail 20 and mounted on the side of the carriage 200 is guided by a roller rail 250 disposed parallel to the rail 240. It has become. That is, the carriage 200 slides with respect to the linear scale 220 by sliding in the main scanning direction while being guided by the rail 240 and the roller rail 250. The carriage 200 has a recording head (not shown) as a recording means for recording an image by ejecting various inks (Y, M, C, K) onto a recording medium (not shown).
Is installed.

Here, the rails 240 and roller rails 250 are positioned and fixed to side plates 91 and 92 of the housing, respectively. In particular, the end of the rail 240 will be described by taking the side plate 91 side as an example.
As shown in (a) and (b), a substantially U-shaped concave portion 91b cut from one edge of the side plate 91 to the inside.
The rail 240 is restricted in its lengthwise direction by a concave portion formed on the peripheral surface of the end of the rail 240. The end of the rail 240 is connected to a rail fixing plate 241 arranged outside the side plate 91.
Thereby, the movement in the length direction and the circumferential direction of the rail 240 is reliably restricted.

Next, the internal structure of the encoder fixing holder 229 and the fixing structure of the end of the linear scale 220 will be described.

[0008] The encoder fixing holder 229 is
And has a space inside. This space is roughly composed of a first space in which the linear encoder spring 220a is arranged, and a second space in which the linear encoder edge 220b is narrower than the first space. The linear encoder edge 220 b is a cylindrical member slightly larger in diameter than the end of the linear scale 220, and is caulked and fixed to the end of the linear scale 220. The linear encoder spring 220a is mounted coaxially with the linear scale 220 between the linear encoder edge 220b and the outer surface of the side plate 91. The linear encoder edge 220b is
9 is fitted in the narrow second space. Note that the encoder fixing holder 229 is positioned by the embossment 232 of the side plate 91 and is fixed to the side plate 91 by screws 231. Although the encoder edge 220b is fitted to the other encoder fixing holder 230, a spring similar to the above-described linear encoder spring 220a is not provided.

In the conventional linear encoder supporting device having the above-described configuration, the linear scale 220 is moved in the K direction by the linear encoder spring 220a (see FIG. 10B).
The bending of the linear scale 220 is canceled by the tension.

[0010]

However, in the above-described conventional linear encoder support device, the rail 2
In determining the relative position between the linear scale 220 and the linear scale 220, the tolerance of the fitting between the encoder edge 220b provided at the end of the linear scale 220 and the encoder fixing holder 229 or 230 and the encoder fixing holder 229, 230 The dimensional tolerance as a part must be taken into account, and a dimensional error has occurred.

In particular, the rail 240 and the linear scale 22
0 must be accurate, and if the error increases, the encoder head 210 and the linear encoder 2
20, the sliding resistance increases, and the encoder head 21
Therefore, the encoder head 210 is broken by a short scan of the carriage 200.

Accordingly, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and a linear encoder support device capable of detecting the position of a reciprocating moving body such as a carriage with high accuracy with a simple configuration, and an image recording device incorporating the linear encoder support device. It is an object to provide a device.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention relates to a linear encoder support device, comprising: a linearly arranged rail; a reciprocating body supported reciprocally on the rail; And a linear encoder including a linear scale and an encoder head that reads memory information of the linear scale disposed in parallel with each other. Both ends of the linear scale of the linear encoder and both ends of the rail are fixed by the same fixing means. It is characterized by having done.

Here, the rail may be supported by both walls of a housing having a pair of walls parallel to each other while maintaining a predetermined distance.

The fixing means may be for fixing the rail coaxially, and the fixing means may be for fitting and fixing the rail.

[0016] The encoder head of the linear encoder may be mounted on the reciprocating body.

[0017] The encoder head of the linear encoder may be fixed to the vicinity of the rail on the reciprocating body, and this rail may be a rail serving as a travel reference for the reciprocating movement of the reciprocating body. Good.

Further, the present invention relates to an image recording apparatus,
Including the linear encoder support device, the reciprocating body is a carriage on which recording means is detachably mounted,
The encoder head is fixed to the carriage.

[0019] The recording means may include a heat energy generator for applying heat energy to the ink as energy sufficient to discharge the ink, and the heat energy generator causes film boiling in the ink. An electrothermal converter may be used.

In the invention having such a configuration, the end of the linear scale and the end of the rail are collectively fixed by the same fixing means, so that the relative positional relationship between the linear scale and the rail, that is, the rail is mounted on the rail. Since the relative positional relationship between the carriage and the linear scale depends only on the accuracy of the fixing means, a remarkable accuracy can be obtained as compared with the conventional linear encoder support device in which the linear scale and the rail are fixed by separate parts. .

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of an image recording apparatus incorporating a first embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a state where an upper cover (upper cover) of the image recording apparatus is removed.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 10 denotes an image recording apparatus. The image recording device 10 includes a pair of legs 80.
A main unit 90 supported by the above and accommodating a recording unit described later, an operation panel 20 for operating a recording unit and the like provided on a part of the front surface of the main unit 90, and a main unit 90 An upper cover 40 that can be opened and closed to perform maintenance or the like of the recording unit housed therein;
0, and a manual insertion slot 50 for manually inserting recording paper into the recording section,
0, a roll unit 60 for mounting roll paper, and a stack of recording paper supplied from one of the manual insertion slot 50 and the roll unit 60 and discharged after being recorded by the recording unit. Stacker 70
It is schematically composed of The stacker 70 is sandwiched between the pair of legs 80, and is provided to hang down below the main body 90. In addition, various ink tanks 30 provided for recording on the recording unit in the main body 90 are exchangeably accommodated below the operation panel 20.

Next, the recording section of the image recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the recording unit includes a transport roller 110 for transporting the recording paper 100 in the direction of arrow B.
And a driven roller 120 driven by the transport roller 110
A discharge roller (not shown) for discharging the recording paper 100 conveyed by these two rollers after recording, a discharge spur unit 160 provided at a position facing the discharge roller, It has a transport system that is roughly composed of a paper feed motor 130 that drives the transport roller 110 and a paper discharge roller, and a platen 150 that supports the recording paper 100 being transported.

The recording section includes a rail 240 extending in the direction of arrow A (main scanning direction) orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 100 (direction of arrow B; sub-scanning direction);
And a carriage 200 supported by the rail 240 and capable of mounting a recording head described below guided by the rail 240 and the roller rail 250. The carriage 200 is moved in the main scanning direction. Timing belt 270 for reciprocating movement
And a carriage moving system (not shown) for driving the timing belt 270.

In this embodiment, the carriage 200 includes
A Y head 200a for discharging yellow ink, an M head 200b for discharging magenta ink, a C head 200c for discharging cyan ink, and a K head 200d for discharging black ink are detachably mounted.
Each of these heads and the above-described ink tank are connected by a tube (not shown).

One end of the moving range of the carriage 200 (FIG. 2)
(At the right end), a recovery unit 300 is provided. The recovery unit 300 has a surface including a discharge port of each head mounted on the carriage 200 (hereinafter, a discharge port surface).
And a suction pump communicating with the cap, and the suction pump is used to make the closed space between the discharge port surface of each head and the cap a negative pressure so that the discharge port of each head and the Clogging of the liquid flow path communicating with the liquid can be eliminated.

At the other end (the left end in FIG. 2) of the moving range of the carriage 200, there is provided a preliminary ejection box 140 for receiving ink preliminary ejected from each head mounted on the carriage 200.

The carriage 200 is guided in the main scanning direction by the rails 240 and the roller rails 250 as described above. Of these, the rails 240 serve as a reference for the carriage 200 to move, and the roller rails 250 move relative to the rails 240 of the carriage 200. It is configured to regulate rotation.

Next, a recording operation in the image recording apparatus having the above configuration will be described. The recording paper 100 is transported by a transport roller 110 and a driven roller 120 to a predetermined recording start position. After the start of recording, the carriage 200
Is moved in the main scanning direction (the direction of the arrow A) by the timing belt 270 and the carriage motor, thereby ejecting ink from each mounted head onto the recording paper 100 to perform predetermined image recording. When the carriage 200 returns to the scanning start position, it is fed by, for example, one line in the sub-scanning direction (the direction of arrow B) by the transport roller 110 and the driven roller 120. Then, the next line is recorded while moving the carriage 200 in the main scanning direction.
By repeating the operation in the main scanning direction and the operation in the sub-scanning direction as described above, the recording of one sheet on the recording paper 100 can be completed. After the recording is completed, the sheet is discharged to the stacker 70 by a sheet discharging roller (not shown) and a sheet discharging spur unit 160.

The transport roller 110 has a pressure roller (not shown) attached to a plurality of driven holders 122.
The recording paper 100 is transported in the sub-scanning direction by the paper feed motor 130 via the transport roller gear 110a while the driven roller 120 pressurizes the recording paper 100 via the driven roller 120.

When the carriage 200 scans, the encoder head 2 mounted on the carriage 200
10 moves while detecting the position of the linear scale 220. Printing control is performed by a carriage substrate 201 mounted on the carriage 200.
Reference numeral 01 is connected to a main board (not shown) by a cable (not shown) in the caterpillar 260. Caterpillar 26
0, each head 200a-2
A tube (not shown) for supplying ink to 00d is also incorporated. The pump in the recovery unit 300 also supplies ink, and performs suction / recovery operations when ink is not ejected or ink drops in each head.

A linear encoder support device is incorporated in such an image recording apparatus. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of an image recording apparatus provided with the first embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention, and FIGS. 4A and 4B show a support fixing portion of the linear encoder. It is an enlarged view, wherein (a) is a side view, and (b) is a cross-sectional view along line DD in (a). Note that, among the components of the linear encoder support device shown in FIG. 3 and the like, the same components as those of the conventional linear encoder support device shown in FIG. 9 and the like are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. I do.

The feature of this embodiment is that the linear scale 22
0 and the end of the rail 240 supporting the carriage 200 as a reciprocating body are fixed by encoder supports 221 and 223 as the same fixing means.

The encoder support 22 according to the present embodiment
Reference numeral 1 denotes an end portion of the linear scale 220, a linear encoder edge 220b attached to the end portion, an accommodation groove 221a accommodating a linear encoder spring 220a for urging the linear scale 220 in the longitudinal direction, and the carriage 200. And a through hole 221b for accommodating the end of the rail 240.

As described above, the linear scale 22 is accommodated in the accommodation groove 221a of the encoder support base 221.
In this state, an encoder mounting plate 222 is attached to the outer edge of the accommodation groove 221a, and the linear scale 220 is fixed to the encoder support base 221 with screws 226.

The through hole 2 of the encoder support base 221
The end of the rail 240 housed in the rail 21b is fixed to the encoder support 2 by an encoder support pin 225 and a screw 227.
21.

The other encoder support 223 has a housing groove 221a and a through hole 221b, like the encoder support 221 described above. However, the linear encoder spring 220a is not wound around the linear encoder edge 220b of the linear scale 220 housed in the encoder support base 223, and the linear encoder edge 220b is connected to the housing groove 221a of the encoder support base 223 and the encoder mounting plate. 222 directly.

In this embodiment, the encoder support 22
The mounting position of the rail 240 at 1, 223 is directly below the mounting position of the linear scale 220, and both are vertically separated.

FIG. 5 is a partially sectional front view for explaining the encoder head in the above-described linear encoder support device shown in FIGS. 3, 4 (a) and 4 (b).

As shown in FIG. 5, the linear scale 220 is tensioned in the direction M by a linear encoder spring 220a.
Twenty deflections are negated. Therefore, the linearity of the linear scale 220 is always maintained.

The encoder supports 221 and 223 are
Both are arranged in a state shifted in the direction of arrow J (horizontal direction) in the figure with respect to the encoder head 210. The reason for shifting is that the encoder head sensor 211 in the encoder head 210 is slid while being pressed against the linear scale 220. For example, when a magnetized sensor is used, the gap between the head sensor surface and the linear scale 220 needs to be maintained at 5 to 30 μm. Memory information given at intervals (for example, every 400 dpi) can be accurately read. For this reason, the encoder heads 221 and 223 are shifted in the direction of arrow J with respect to the encoder head 210 as described above, so that the encoder head 2
It is intended to maintain a small distance between the head surface of No. 10 and the linear scale 220.

However, if the shift amount in the J direction is too large, the contact pressure between the encoder head sensor unit 211 and the linear scale 220 becomes large, and the encoder head sensor unit 211 is broken due to wear. Thus, the encoder head 210 and the linear scale 220
Relative position is important, and accurate positioning is always required.

According to the configuration of the present embodiment, the relative position between the rail 240 and the linear scale 220 can be accurately determined from the above-described background, so that the linear scale 220 is mounted on the carriage 200 slidably supported by the rail 240. The relative positional relationship between the encoder head 210 and the linear scale 220 thus obtained can be accurately detected.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a second embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

The feature of this embodiment is that, unlike the first embodiment, the linear scale 220 and the rail 240 are fixed to the encoder support bases 221 and 223 while being spaced apart in the horizontal direction. Linear scale 220 is rail 2
It occupies a position closer to the carriage 200 side than 40, and has through holes 91a, 92a in both wall portions 91, 92 of the housing.
Penetrates through.

In the present embodiment, in addition to the excellent effect that the linear scale 220 and the rail 240 can be positioned at a high position similarly to the previous embodiment, the linear scale 220
Since the arrangement position is lower than that of the previous embodiment and is accommodated in the apparatus, an effect that the linear scale 220 is less likely to be damaged from the outside can be exhibited.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a fourth embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

The feature of this embodiment is that the linear scale 220 and the rail 240 are horizontally separated from each other and fixed to the encoder support bases 221 and 223, as in the second embodiment. It is located at a position distant from the 200 side. On the side of the carriage 200, it is necessary to exchange various heads which are removably mounted on the carriage 200.
Since the linear scale 220 is disposed at a position distant from the side, there is little danger that the user during the replacement work may come into contact with the linear scale 220, and an excellent effect of safety is achieved.

(Embodiment 4) FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing a linear encoder supporting apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

In the present embodiment, the relative positional relationship between the linear scale 220 and the rail 240 is the same as in the first embodiment, but is characterized in that the encoder cover 228 is mounted on the entire linear scale 220.

The encoder cover 228 not only protects the linear scale 220 from contact with the user, but also reliably prevents dust and the like from adhering. In particular, in the case of a magnetized linear encoder, if the magnetized part at the tip of the driver of the user who is working touches the linear scale, there is a problem that the memory information may be demagnetized. Also, the linear scale can be reliably protected by the encoder cover 228.

(Others) It should be noted that the present invention has a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for discharging ink, particularly in an ink jet recording system. An excellent effect is obtained in a recording head and a recording apparatus of a type in which the state of ink is changed by the thermal energy. This is because according to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and giving a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs on the heat acting surface of the recording head. Liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis.
This is effective because air bubbles inside can be formed. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination configuration (a linear liquid flow path or a right-angled liquid flow path) of a discharge port, a liquid path, and an electrothermal converter as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications. U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 59600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is effective even if the configuration is based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit. That is, according to the present invention, recording can be reliably and efficiently performed regardless of the form of the recording head.

Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of a recording medium on which a recording apparatus can record. Such a recording head may have a configuration that satisfies the length by a combination of a plurality of recording heads, or a configuration as one integrally formed recording head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as described above, the recording head fixed to the apparatus main body or the electric connection with the apparatus main body and the ink from the apparatus main body are attached to the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be supplied or a cartridge-type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself is used.

It is preferable to add ejection recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like as the configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If these are specifically mentioned, the recording head is heated using capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer, another heating element or a combination thereof. Pre-heating means for performing the pre-heating and pre-discharging means for performing the discharging other than the recording can be used.

The type and number of recording heads to be mounted are not limited to those provided only for one color ink, for example, and for a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. A plurality may be provided. That is, for example, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, but may be any of integrally forming a printing head or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of the recording modes of full color by color mixture.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid. However, an ink which solidifies at room temperature or lower and which softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. In general, the ink jet method generally controls the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Sometimes, the ink may be in a liquid state. In addition, in order to positively prevent temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as energy for changing the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or to prevent evaporation of the ink, the ink is solidified in a standing state and heated. May be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start solidifying when it reaches the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, the ink
JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-7
As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1260, it is also possible to adopt a form in which the sheet is opposed to the electrothermal converter in a state where it is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, the form of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is not only used as an image output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as a computer, but also for a copying apparatus combined with a reader or the like, and a facsimile apparatus having a transmission / reception function. It may take a form.

[0063]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By fixing the end of the linear scale and the end of the rail collectively with the same fixing means, the relative positional relationship between the linear scale and the rail, that is, the relative positional relationship between the carriage mounted on the rail and the linear scale Depends only on the accuracy of the fixing means, so that a remarkable accuracy can be obtained as compared with a conventional linear encoder supporting device in which the linear scale and the rail are fixed by separate parts.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of an image recording apparatus incorporating a first embodiment of a linear encoder support device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a state where an upper cover of the image recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is removed.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of an image recording apparatus provided with the first embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are enlarged views of a supporting and fixing portion of the linear encoder, FIG. 4A is a side view, and FIG. 4B is along a line DD in FIG. It is sectional drawing.

FIG. 5 is a front view, partly in section, for explaining an encoder head in the linear encoder support device shown in FIGS. 3, 4 (a) and 4 (b).

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a second embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a fourth embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing a fifth embodiment of the linear encoder support device of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of an image recording apparatus provided with a conventional linear encoder support device.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are enlarged views of a supporting and fixing portion of the linear encoder, wherein FIG. 10A is a side view, and FIG. 10B is a sectional view taken along line EE of FIG. It is sectional drawing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image recording apparatus 20 Operation panel 30 Ink tank 40 Upper cover 50 Manual insertion slot 60 Roll unit 70 Stacker 80 Leg part 90 Body part 91, 92 Housing side plates 91a, 92a Through hole 100 Recording paper 110 Transport roller 110a Transport roller gear 120 Follower Roller 122 Follower holder 130 Paper feed motor 140 Preliminary discharge box 150 Platen 160 Discharge spur unit 200 Carriage (reciprocating body) 200a Y head 200b M head 200c C head 200d K head 210 Encoder head (linear encoder) 211 Encoder head sensor ( Encoder head) 220 Linear scale (linear encoder) 220a Linear encoder spring 220b Linear encoder edge 221 and 223 Der support (fixing means) 221a Housing groove (fixing means) 221b Through hole (fixing means) 222, 224 Mounting plate 229, 230 Encoder fixing holder 229a Fixed holder spring 231 Screw 240 Rail 241 Rail fixing plate 250 Roller rail 251 Carriage roller 260 Caterpillar 270 Timing belt 300 Recovery unit

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A linear rail, a reciprocating body supported reciprocally on the rail, a linear scale parallel to the rail, and an encoder for reading memory information of the linear scale. A linear encoder including a head, wherein both ends of a linear scale of the linear encoder and both ends of the rail are fixed by the same fixing means. 2. The linear encoder support according to claim 1, wherein said rail is maintained at a predetermined distance and is supported by both walls of a housing having a pair of mutually parallel walls. apparatus. 3. The fixing means according to claim 1, wherein the fixing means fixes the rail coaxially.
4. The linear encoder support device according to 1. 4. The linear encoder supporting device according to claim 3, wherein said fixing means fits and fixes said rail. 5. The linear encoder supporting device according to claim 1, wherein the encoder head of the linear encoder is mounted on the reciprocating moving body. 6. The linear encoder support device according to claim 5, wherein the encoder head of the linear encoder is fixed near the rail on the reciprocating body. 7. The linear encoder support device according to claim 1, wherein the rail is a rail serving as a running reference for the reciprocating motion of the reciprocating moving body. 8. The linear encoder support device according to claim 1, wherein the reciprocating body is a carriage on which a recording unit is detachably mounted, and the encoder head is mounted on the carriage. An image recording device, being fixed. 9. The recording device according to claim 8, wherein the recording unit includes a thermal energy generator that applies thermal energy to the ink as energy sufficient to discharge the ink.
The image recording apparatus as described in the above. 10. The image recording apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the thermal energy generator is an electrothermal converter that causes film boiling of the ink.