Method for increasing printhead reliability

摘要

A maintenance method for an ink jet imaging device comprises ejecting drops from a plurality of ink jets to successively form a plurality of images on the image receiver. Inter-image intervals between the ejection of drops to form one image in the plurality of images and the ejection of drops to form a successive image in the plurality of images are detected. A plurality of drops is ejected from at least a portion of the ink jets in the plurality of ink jets during at least one detected inter-image interval. The plurality of ejected drops having at least one drop ejecting characteristic selected from: a drop mass for the plurality of drops being greater than a standard drop mass; a drop ejecting frequency for the plurality of drops being lower than a standard drop ejecting frequency; and a substantially sequential drop ejecting pattern for the plurality of drops.