Ink jet printer

Abstract

An ink jet printer including: a sheet support plate having suction holes formed in a sheet support surface thereof; a sheet advance mechanism adapted to advance a sheet step-wise in a sheet advance direction over the sheet support surface; and an imaging system adapted to form an image by depositing liquid ink on the sheet, the ink being allowed to dry-out while the sheet is advanced over the sheet support plate, wherein the suction holes are arranged such that their influence on the ink drying process is essentially uniform over the whole area of the image.

1 . An ink jet printer which comprises: 
 a sheet support plate having suction holes formed in a sheet support surface thereof;    a sheet advance mechanism adapted to advance a sheet step-wise in a sheet advance direction over the sheet support surface; and    an imaging system adapted to form an image by depositing liquid ink on the sheet, the ink being allowed to dry-out while the sheet is advanced over the sheet support plate, the suction holes being arranged such that their influence on the ink drying process is essentially uniform over the whole area of the image, wherein    the suction holes are arranged in a regular slanting pattern of rows and columns, with the columns being inclined relative to the sheet advance direction such that an image portion that has passed over one suction hole will not pass over the next few suction holes of the same column nor over a suction hole of a neighboring column before the ink has dried out to such an extent that it will no longer be affected by the presence of the suction hole.    
   
   
       2 . The ink jet printer of  claim 1 , wherein the smallest distance between two suction holes that are aligned in sheet advance direction is a non-integral multiple of a step width with which the sheet is advanced.  
   
   
       3 . The ink jet printer of  claim 1 , wherein the suction holes are arranged in rows that are perpendicular to the sheet advance direction.  
   
   
       4 . The ink jet printer of  claim 1 , wherein a temperature control system is provided for controlling the temperature of the sheet support plate.  
   
   
       5 . The ink jet printer of  claim 4 , wherein the sheet support plate has internal cavities extending in the plane of said plate in a direction perpendicular to the sheet advance direction, and the temperature control system is adapted to circulate a temperature controlled fluid through said cavities.  
   
   
       6 . The ink jet printer of  claim 1 , wherein said printer is a hot-melt ink jet printer.  
   
   
       7 . A sheet support plate for an ink jet printer which comprises: 
 a sheet support plate having suction holes formed in a sheet support surface thereof;    a sheet advance mechanism adapted to advance a sheet step-wise in a sheet advance direction over the sheet support surface; and    an imaging system adapted to form an image by depositing liquid ink on the sheet, the ink being allowed to dry-out while the sheet is advanced over the sheet support plate, wherein    the suction are arranged such that their influence on the ink drying process is essentially uniform over the whole area of the image.    
   
   
       8 . The sheet support plate of  claim 7 , wherein the suction holes are arranged in a regular pattern of rows and columns, and the columns are inclined relative to the sheet advance direction.  
   
   
       9 . The sheet support plate of  claim 7 , wherein the smallest distance between two suction holes that are aligned in sheet advance direction is a non-integral multiple of a step width with which the sheet is advanced.  
   
   
       10 . The sheet support plate of  claim 7 , wherein the suction holes are arranged in rows that are perpendicular to the sheet advance direction.  
   
   
       11 . The sheet support plate of  claim 7 , wherein a temperature control system is provided for controlling the temperature of the sheet support plate.  
   
   
       12 . The sheet support plate of  claim 11 , wherein wherein the sheet support plate has internal cavities extending in the plane of said plate in a direction perpendicular to the sheet advance direction, and the temperature control system is adapted to circulate a temperature controlled fluid through said cavities.