US 12,257,833 B2
Liquid discharge apparatus, head drive controller, and liquid discharge method
Satomi Araki, Kanagawa (JP)
Assigned to Ricoh Company, Ltd., Tokyo (JP)
Filed by Satomi Araki, Kanagawa (JP)
Filed on Aug. 9, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/884,426.
Claims priority of application No. 2021-148896 (JP), filed on Sep. 13, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0079595 A1, Mar. 16, 2023
Int. Cl. B41J 2/045 (2006.01)
CPC B41J 2/04573 (2013.01) [B41J 2/04541 (2013.01); B41J 2/0458 (2013.01); B41J 2/04581 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A liquid discharge apparatus comprising:
a liquid discharge head configured to discharge a liquid from a nozzle, the liquid discharge head comprising:
a liquid chamber communicating with the nozzle;
a pressure generator configured to deform the liquid chamber to apply pressure to the liquid in the liquid chamber; and
circuitry configured to apply a drive signal to the pressure generator to drive the pressure generator, the drive signal including at least one drive pulse,
wherein the drive pulse includes:
an expansion element to expand the liquid chamber to a first volume;
a holding element to hold the first volume of the liquid chamber expanded by the expansion element for a predetermined time; and
a contraction element to contract the liquid chamber from the first volume held by the holding element to a second volume, and
the circuitry is configured to change a time from a start of the expansion element to an end of the holding element based on viscosity of the liquid or a head temperature that is a temperature in a vicinity of the liquid discharge head, wherein
the circuitry is configured to change the time from the start of the expansion element to the end of the holding element to be longer than one half of a natural period of the liquid chamber in response to the head temperature being higher than a predetermined temperature.