CN219133598U

CN219133598U - Ink cartridge

Info

Publication number: CN219133598U
Application number: CN202222572705.3U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 赵升魁; 林东明
Original assignee: Zhuhai Yizhiyin Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Zhuhai Yizhiyin Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2022-09-27
Filing date: 2022-09-27
Publication date: 2023-06-06
Anticipated expiration: 2032-09-27
Also published as: WO2024067671A1

Abstract

The utility model provides an ink cartridge detachably mounted in an image forming apparatus provided with a light emitting member, the ink cartridge including a housing forming an ink chamber, an ink outlet portion protruding forward from the housing, and a detected mechanism provided above the ink chamber; the ink cartridge is mounted to the image forming apparatus forward in the front-rear direction, and is taken out from the image forming apparatus rearward; the detection mechanism is positioned behind the ink outlet part along the front-back direction; the detected mechanism comprises a first detected piece and a second detected piece which are arranged along the front-back direction, and the first detected piece is positioned in front of the second detected piece; in the process of taking out the ink cartridge from the image forming apparatus, a light transmitting portion is formed between the first detected member and the second detected member, and light emitted from the light emitting member passes through the light transmitting portion in a right-and-left direction intersecting with the front-and-rear direction, in which the structure of the detecting mechanism is simplified, and accordingly, the assembly efficiency of the ink cartridge can be improved.

Description

Ink cartridge

Technical Field

The present utility model relates to the field of inkjet imaging, and more particularly, to an ink cartridge detachably mountable to an inkjet imaging apparatus.

Background

The ink cartridge is a container capable of supplying ink to an image forming apparatus, and for detecting the remaining amount of ink in the ink cartridge, EP3112162B1 discloses a detecting mechanism in which a detecting lever 59 rotatable with a change in the amount of ink is provided in an ink chamber 36, one end of the detecting lever 59 is provided with a light shielding portion 68 capable of shielding light, the other end is provided with a float 63 having a density higher than that of ink, a detecting portion 62 made of a transparent material is in fluid communication with the ink chamber 36, the light shielding portion 68 is located in the detecting portion 62, the position of the float 63 is changed with a decrease in the amount of ink, and the position of the light shielding portion 68 is further changed, and the unchanged is detected by the image forming apparatus, and then the remaining amount of ink is judged.

However, the detection portion 62 in this structure needs to be in fluid communication with the ink chamber 36, which places a high demand on the seal between the detection portion 62 and the cartridge case, and for this reason, there has been disclosed an ink cartridge having a detection mechanism as described in chinese patent CN202121737687.9, the detection mechanism being disposed outside the cartridge case and the detection mechanism not being in fluid communication with the ink chamber, which reduces the demand on the seal of the ink cartridge, but the structure still becomes too complicated to facilitate the rapid assembly of the ink cartridge.

Disclosure of Invention

Therefore, the utility model provides the ink box, which adopts the following technical scheme, so that the structure of the ink box is simplified, and the assembly efficiency of the ink box is further improved.

An ink cartridge detachably mounted in an image forming apparatus provided with a light emitting member, the ink cartridge including a housing forming an ink chamber, an ink outlet portion protruding forward from the housing, and a detected mechanism provided above the ink chamber; the ink cartridge is mounted to the image forming apparatus forward in the front-rear direction, and is taken out from the image forming apparatus rearward; the detected mechanism is positioned behind the ink outlet part along the front-back direction; the detected mechanism comprises a first detected piece and a second detected piece which are arranged along the front-back direction, and the first detected piece is positioned in front of the second detected piece; in the process of taking out the ink box from the imaging equipment, a light transmission part is formed between the first detected piece and the second detected piece, and the light emitted by the light emitting piece passes through the light transmission part along the left-right direction intersecting with the front-back direction; the structure of the detected mechanism is simplified, and accordingly, the assembly efficiency of the ink cartridge can be improved.

In some embodiments, the ink cartridge further includes a chip provided with a contact portion that is in electrical contact with a stylus in the image forming apparatus when the ink cartridge is mounted to the image forming apparatus, and an ink remaining amount in the ink chamber is detected by the electrical contact of the contact portion with the stylus.

In some embodiments, the detected mechanism is located behind the contact portion in the front-to-rear direction.

As one implementation mode, the first detected piece and the second detected piece are fixedly connected with the shell, and the first detected piece and the second detected piece are arranged at intervals along the front-back direction.

As another implementation, the first detected member includes a movable block movable between a first position and a second position relative to the housing; in the first position, the movable block and the second detected piece are close to each other along the front-back direction, and the light emitted by the light emitting piece cannot pass through the space between the first detected piece and the second detected piece along the left-right direction intersecting with the front-back direction; in the second position, the movable block and the second detected member are away from each other in the front-rear direction, and the light emitted from the light emitting member can pass through between the first detected member and the second detected member in the left-right direction intersecting the front-rear direction.

Preferably, the first detected member further comprises a reset member abutting against the movable block, and the reset member is used for forcedly pushing the movable block from the second position to the first position.

The movable block is arranged to slide in the front-rear direction relative to the shell, and preferably, the first detected piece further comprises a friction piece coated on the outer surface of the movable block.

The movable block may be further configured to be rotatable about an axis intersecting with an up-down direction intersecting with both the front-back direction and the left-right direction, and the first detected member preferably further includes a friction member wrapped around an outer surface of the movable block.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a first embodiment of the present utility model.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present utility model as viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

Fig. 3 (a) is a view showing a level change obtained by a control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100.

Fig. 3 (b) is a view showing a level change obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100.

Fig. 4 (a) is a view showing that the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 causes the level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to change during the removal of the ink cartridge 100.

Fig. 4 (b) is a view showing a level change obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by the light emitted from the first light emitting member 92 during the removal of the ink cartridge 100.

Fig. 5 is a partially exploded perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present utility model.

Fig. 6A is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present utility model, as viewed from left to right in the left-right direction, after being mounted to an image forming apparatus.

Fig. 6B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present utility model, when in one state of the take-out process, viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

Fig. 7 is a partially exploded perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model.

Fig. 8A is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model in a predetermined position to be mounted to an image forming apparatus.

Fig. 8B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the third embodiment of the present utility model when it is mounted to a predetermined position of an image forming apparatus, as viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

Fig. 9A is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model in a state of being taken out.

Fig. 9B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the third embodiment of the present utility model, when in one state of the take-out process, viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present utility model are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Example one

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a first embodiment of the present utility model; fig. 2 is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present utility model viewed from left to right in the left-right direction; fig. 3 (a) is a view showing a level change obtained by a control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100; fig. 3 (b) is a view showing a level change obtained by a control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100; fig. 4 (a) is a view showing a change in level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 during the removal of the ink cartridge 100; fig. 4 (b) is a view showing a level change obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus by the light emitted from the first light emitting member 92 during the removal of the ink cartridge 100.

For clarity of the following description, the ink cartridge 100 is first defined as follows: the direction parallel to the direction in which ink flows out of the ink cartridge is defined as the front-rear direction, the direction intersecting the front-rear direction is the left-right direction and the up-down direction, wherein the direction in which ink flows out is the front and the opposite is the rear, and the front-rear direction, the up-down direction and the left-right direction are preferably perpendicular to each other; the ink cartridge 100 is mounted in the front direction and is taken out in the rear direction, with the width direction of the ink cartridge 100 being the left-right direction and the height direction being the up-down direction, with the ink cartridge 100 being in the mounted posture.

The ink cartridge 100 includes a housing 1 forming an ink chamber 10, an ink outlet portion 2 formed protruding forward from the housing 1, the ink being stored in the ink chamber 10, the ink outlet portion 2 for supplying the ink to the image forming apparatus, and a detected mechanism 4 located above the ink chamber 10, the detected mechanism 4 for cooperating with a light detecting member 91/92 provided in the image forming apparatus to at least effect detection of the removal of the ink cartridge 100.

Further, the ink cartridge 100 further includes a chip 3, and as shown, the chip 3 includes a substrate 31, a storage part (not shown) provided on the substrate 31, which stores various parameter information of the type, manufacturer, etc. of the ink cartridge 100, and a contact part 32 electrically connected to the storage part, the contact part 32 being for electrically contacting a contact pin in the image forming apparatus, thereby establishing a communication connection between the ink cartridge 100 and the image forming apparatus. In the present utility model, the contact portion 32 is located in front of the ink cartridge 100 in the front-rear direction, specifically, the contact portion 32 is located near the front end of the housing 1, the contact portion 32 is located in front of the detected mechanism 4, and accordingly, the contact pin in the image forming apparatus is also located at the front end of the cartridge accommodating portion for accommodating the ink cartridge in the image forming apparatus, so that the risk of contact of the ink cartridge 100 with the contact pin except for the contact portion 32 during mounting and removing of the ink cartridge 100 can be reduced, and thus, the risk of damage to the contact pin can be reduced.

The front end of the ink outlet portion 2 forms the ink outlet 21, the ink is discharged from the ink outlet 21, the ink outlet 21 is located in front of the detected mechanism 4 and the contact portion 32 in the front-rear direction, and the risk of the ink leaking from the ink outlet 21 adhering to the contact portion 32 and the detected mechanism 4 is reduced; further, the contact portion 32 and the mechanism to be detected 4 are located above the ink chamber 10 in the up-down direction, and the ink outlet 21 is located near the lower side of the ink chamber 10, so that the ink leaking from the ink outlet 21 can be effectively prevented from adhering to the contact portion 32 and the mechanism to be detected 4.

(detected mechanism)

The detected mechanism 4 includes a first detected piece 4a and a second detected piece 4b arranged in the front-rear direction, and during the taking out of the ink cartridge 100, the detected mechanism 4 cooperates with the light emitting piece 91/92 provided in the image forming apparatus to detect the taking out action of the ink cartridge 100, the detected mechanism 4 is provided above the housing 1/ink chamber 10, and the detected mechanism 4 is not in fluid communication with the ink chamber 10, and thus the integrity of the housing 1 is improved, the risk of ink leakage is reduced, and at the same time, the difficulty of assembling the ink cartridge 100 is reduced, for example, the detected mechanism 4 is integrally formed with the housing 1, so that the step of combining the detected mechanism 4 with the housing 1 during the assembling of the ink cartridge 100 can be dispensed with.

In some embodiments, the ink balance detection is achieved through a communication connection between the chip 3 and the imaging device, i.e. the chip 3 may also be used to detect the ink balance, for example, a program is set in the chip 3: when the imaging device outputs one imaging medium, the chip 3 automatically reduces 1 in the service life information of the ink box stored in the imaging device, and when the service life information of the ink box is reduced to a threshold value, the chip drives the imaging device to give an alarm to a user, so that the detection work of the ink residue is not required to be executed by the detection mechanism 4, the structure of the detected mechanism 4 can be simplified, correspondingly, the structure of the ink box 100 is also simplified, and the assembly efficiency of the ink box 100 is improved.

As shown in fig. 2, a first light emitting member 91 and a second light emitting member 92 are provided in the middle of the image forming apparatus along the front-rear square, the first light emitting member 91 being located in front of the second light emitting member 92, and the image forming apparatus detects the ink cartridge 100 by detecting whether light emitted from the first light emitting member 91/the second light emitting member 92 is blocked or not, or the length of time the light is blocked, the number of times it is blocked, or the like during the mounting and the removal of the ink cartridge 100.

Specifically, the first detected member 4a is used to detect the mounting process of the ink cartridge 100, for example, whether the ink cartridge 100 is mounted, the type of the ink cartridge 100, the color of the ink contained in the ink cartridge 100, and the like are detected by the first detected member 4a, and the detected mechanism 4 is used to detect the removal process of the ink cartridge 100, for example, whether the ink cartridge 100 has been completely removed, and the like are detected by the detected mechanism 4.

In the present embodiment, the first detected member 4a and the second detected member 4b are provided above the housing 1/ink chamber 10, and preferably, the first detected member 4a and the second detected member 4b are each integrally formed with the housing 1, at least one of the left and right surfaces thereof is provided to be opaque, and at least one of the left and right surfaces thereof is provided to be opaque, in the second detected member 4b, that is, when the first detected member 4a is opposed to the first light emitting member 91 and the second detected member 4b is opposed to the second light emitting member 92, both the light emitted from the first light emitting member 91 and the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 are shielded in the left and right directions, and at this time, the imaging apparatus cannot detect the light emitted from the first light emitting member 91 and the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92; more preferably, all of the first inspected member 4a and all of the second inspected member 4b are provided to be opaque, and thus, the production process of the ink cartridge 100 can be simplified.

Further, in the front-rear direction, the detected mechanism 4 further includes a light transmitting portion 4c provided between the first detected piece 4a and the second detected piece 4b, and the light emitted from the light emitting pieces 91/92 may pass through the light transmitting portion 4c in the left-right direction, for example, the light transmitting portion 4c is made of a light transmissive material, or the light transmitting portion 4c is provided at a position where no member is provided, and an opening penetrating in the left-right direction is formed. In the present embodiment, the first and

second members

4a and 4b are fixedly connected to the housing 1, and thus the light transmitting portion 4c between the first and

second members

4a and 4b is also fixed with respect to the housing 1.

(installation of ink cartridge)

In this embodiment, the detection mechanism 4 causes the light emitted from the light emitting element 91/92 to switch between a state in which it can be detected by the image forming apparatus and a state in which it cannot be detected by the image forming apparatus during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100, the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus will obtain a high level Y when the image forming apparatus can receive the light emitted from the light emitting element 91/92, the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus will obtain a low level N when the image forming apparatus cannot receive the light emitted from the light emitting element 91/92, fig. 3 (a) shows that the light emitted from the second light emitting element 92 causes the level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to change during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100, and fig. 3 (b) shows that the light emitted from the second light emitting element 92 causes the level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to change during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100.

In the process of installing the ink cartridge 100 forward in the front-rear direction, before the first detected piece 4a and the second light emitting piece 92 are opposite in the left-right direction, the light emitted by the second light emitting piece 92 is not blocked, and the imaging device can receive the light emitted by the second light emitting piece 92, corresponding to the t1 period of fig. 3 (a); as the ink cartridge 100 continues to be mounted, the first detected member 4a is opposed to the second light emitting member 92 in the left-right direction, and at this time, the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 is blocked by the first detected member 4a, and the imaging device will not receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the t2 period of fig. 3 (a); subsequently, the ink cartridge 100 continues to be mounted, and when the first detected piece 4a and the second light emitting piece 92 are no longer opposed in the left-right direction, the light emitted by the second light emitting piece 92 is received by the image forming apparatus through the light transmitting portion 4c, corresponding to the period t3 of fig. 3 (a); subsequently, the ink cartridge continues to be mounted, and when the second detected member 4b is opposed to the second light emitting member 92 in the left-right direction, the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 is blocked again, and at this time, the imaging device does not receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the t4 period of fig. 3 (a).

For the first light emitting element 91, during the mounting of the ink cartridge 100, before the first detected element 4a is opposed to the first light emitting element 91 in the left-right direction, the light emitted by the first light emitting element 92 is not blocked, and the imaging device can receive the light emitted by the first light emitting element 91, corresponding to the t5 period of fig. 3 (b); with the mounting of the ink cartridge 100, the first detected piece 4a is opposed to the first light emitting piece 91 in the left-right direction, and the light emitted by the first light emitting piece 91 is blocked by the first detected piece 4a from being received by the image forming apparatus, corresponding to the t6 period of fig. 3 (b).

In practical use, when the first detected member 4a and the second detected member 4b are integrally connected, the mounting of the ink cartridge 100 can still be detected, and at this time, the mounting process of the ink cartridge 100 will correspond to the t1 period and the t2 period of fig. 3 (a) and the t1 period and the t2 period of fig. 3 (b), and the levels corresponding to the t3 period and the t4 period of fig. 3 (a) are indicated by broken lines, that is, even if the levels obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus include only the t1 period and the t2 period of fig. 3 (a) and the t5 period and the t6 period of fig. 3 (b), the image forming apparatus still considers that the ink cartridge 100 has been properly mounted.

In some embodiments, for example, by changing the dimension of the first detected member 4a in the front-rear direction, or providing at least one through hole in the first detected member 4a, parameters such as the number of times the light passes through the first detected member 4a, the duration of each pass, etc. of the ink cartridge 100 will change during the installation process, and these changing parameters may correspond to different ink cartridge models.

(removal of ink cartridge)

Like fig. 3, fig. 4 (a) shows that the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92 causes the level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to change during the taking out of the ink cartridge 100, and fig. 4 (b) shows that the light emitted from the first light emitting member 92 causes the level obtained by the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to change during the taking out of the ink cartridge 100.

In the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100 backward in the front-rear direction, at the initial stage of the taking-out operation, the first light emitting member 91 is opposed to the first detected member 4a in the left-right direction, and at this time, the image forming apparatus cannot receive the light emitted from the first light emitting member 91, corresponding to the period t11 in fig. 4 (b); as the ink cartridge 100 moves rearward, the first detected member 4a is not opposed to the first light emitting member 91, and the image forming apparatus can receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the period t12 in fig. 4 (b).

For the second light emitting element 92, at the initial stage of the ink cartridge 100 being taken out, the second light emitting element 92 is opposed to the second detected element 4b in the left-right direction, and the imaging device cannot receive the light emitted from the second light emitting element 92, corresponding to the period t7 in fig. 4 (a); as the ink cartridge 100 continues to move rearward, the second light emitting member 92 opposes the light transmitting portion 4c, and the image forming apparatus is able to receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the period t8 in fig. 4 (a); as the ink cartridge 100 continues to move rearward, the second light emitting member 92 opposes the first detected member 4a, and the image forming apparatus cannot receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the period t9 in fig. 4 (a); as the ink cartridge 100 continues to move rearward, the second light emitting member 92 is no longer opposed to the first detected member 4a, and the image forming apparatus can receive the light emitted from the second light emitting member 92, corresponding to the period t10 in fig. 4 (a).

In the present embodiment, the light transmitting portion 4c is provided between the first detected piece 4a and the second detected piece 4b in the front-rear direction, so that the first detected piece 4a and the second detected piece 4b can be separated, and in the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100, the light emitted by the first light emitting piece 91 causes the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus to obtain a level change different from the level change obtained by the light emitted by the second light emitting piece 92, so that the image forming apparatus can accurately learn the taking-out operation of the ink cartridge 100; in contrast, when the first detected member 4a and the second detected member 4b are integrally connected with no light transmitting portion 4c therebetween, the first light emitting member 91 emits light such that the level of the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus is changed as shown in fig. 4 (b), that is, the image forming apparatus cannot receive light first and then receives light, and the second light emitting member 92 emits light such that the level of the control mechanism of the image forming apparatus is changed as shown in fig. 4 (b), in which case the image forming apparatus cannot determine whether the ink cartridge 100 has been taken out.

In summary, in the present embodiment, the first detected member 4a may be regarded as being used for detecting the installation of the ink cartridge 100, including whether the ink cartridge 100 has been installed, whether the type of the installed ink cartridge 100 is correct, etc., the second detected member 4b, the first detected member and the light transmitting portion 4c (i.e., the entire detecting mechanism 4) may be regarded as being used for detecting the removal of the ink cartridge 100 to determine whether the ink cartridge 100 is removed from the image forming apparatus, the remaining amount of ink is detected by the communication between the chip 3 and the image forming apparatus, and the structure of the detecting mechanism 4 may be greatly simplified, thereby improving the assembly efficiency of the ink cartridge 100.

Example two

Fig. 5 is a partially exploded perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present utility model; fig. 6A is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present utility model, as viewed from left to right in the left-right direction, after being mounted to an image forming apparatus; fig. 6B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present utility model, when in one state of the take-out process, viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

On the basis of the inventive concept of the first embodiment, the present embodiment makes the following changes to the structure of the first detected piece 4a, and the second detected piece 4b is still fixedly connected with the housing 1.

The first detected member 4a is provided so that at least a part thereof is movable with respect to the housing 1, and as shown in the drawing, the first detected member 4a includes a movable block (slider) 41 slidable in the front-rear direction with respect to the housing 1, and in a state where the ink cartridge 100 is mounted to a predetermined position of the image forming apparatus, the first detected member 4 a/slider 41 is in a first position where it is close to the second detected member 4b with no gap therebetween, that is, in the left-right direction, light cannot pass between the first detected member 4 a/slider 41 and the second detected member 4 b.

During the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100, the outer surface of the first detected piece 4 a/slider 41 rubs against the inner wall of the image forming apparatus, and the first detected piece 4 a/slider 41 moves forward in the front-rear direction to be at a second position away from the second detected piece 4B, at this time, a light transmitting portion 4c is formed between the first detected piece 4 a/slider 41 and the second detected piece 4B in the front-rear direction, that is, in the left-right direction, light can pass through the light transmitting portion 4c, or light can pass through between the first detected piece 4 a/slider 41 and the second detected piece 4B.

When the ink cartridge 100 is mounted again, the first detected member 4 a/the slider 41 is returned again to a state of being close to the second detected member 4b by the frictional force of the slider 41 and the inner wall of the image forming apparatus, that is, the slider 41 is returned from the second position to the first position.

Preferably, the outer surface of the slider 41 is coated with a friction member 42, and during the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100, the friction member 42 is used to increase the friction force between the first detected member 4a and the inner wall of the imaging device, so as to ensure that a light-transmitting portion 4c can be formed between the first detected member 4 a/the slider 41 and the second detected member 4 b; it is possible to dispense with the friction element 42, and the sliding of the slide 41 can also be achieved by providing the outer surface of the slide 41 with a roughened surface.

More preferably, the first detected member 4a further includes a return member (not shown) abutting against the slider 41, the return member being elastically deformed when the slider 41 reaches the second position from the first position, and the return member releasing the elastic force when the ink cartridge 100 is taken out, the slider 41 returning to the first position from the second position.

Therefore, in the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100, the detecting mechanism 4 having the structure of the present embodiment can also make the image forming apparatus accurately know that the ink cartridge 100 is taken out, and at the same time, the ink remaining amount detection is still completed by the communication connection of the chip 3 and the image forming apparatus, the structure of the detecting mechanism 4 can be simplified, and accordingly, the assembly efficiency of the ink cartridge 100 can be improved.

Example III

Fig. 7 is a partially exploded perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model; fig. 8A is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model in a predetermined position to be mounted to an image forming apparatus; fig. 8B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the third embodiment of the present utility model as viewed from left to right in the left-right direction when it is mounted to a predetermined position of an image forming apparatus;

fig. 9A is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model in a state of being taken out; fig. 9B is a side view of the ink cartridge according to the third embodiment of the present utility model, when in one state of the take-out process, viewed from left to right in the left-right direction.

The present embodiment continues to make the following changes to the structure of the first detected member 4a, and the second detected member 4b is still fixedly connected with the housing 1.

As shown in fig. 7, the first detected piece 4a in the present embodiment includes a movable block 41 and a restoring piece 43, the restoring piece 43 being for forcing the movable block 41 from the second position back to the first position, the movable block 41 in the present embodiment being provided rotatably about an axis a intersecting the up-down direction, the movable block 41 having a front end 41a located at the front and a rear end 41b located at the rear in the front-rear direction.

In a state where the ink cartridge 100 is mounted to the predetermined position of the image forming apparatus, the movable block 41 is in the first position where it is close to the second detected member 4b in the front-rear direction without a gap therebetween, and light cannot pass through between the first detected member 4 a/the movable block 41 and the second detected member 4b in the left-right direction. To make the movable block 41 be in the first position, the axis a may be disposed near the front end 41a, so that the movable block 41 may automatically rotate to the first position, and may be disposed near the rear end 41b, and under the elastic force of the resetting member 43, the movable block 41 may be forced to push to the first position, and the axis a may be disposed in the middle of the movable block 41 in the front-rear direction, at this time, the weights of the movable block 41 in the front-rear direction of the axis a are balanced with each other, and the movable block 41 may automatically arrive at the first position or be forced to push to the first position by the resetting member.

During the process of taking out the ink cartridge 100, the movable block 41 rubs against the inner wall of the image forming apparatus to rotate in the direction indicated by r (forward) about the rotation axis a, the reset member 42 is elastically deformed, and as shown in fig. 9A and 9B, a light transmitting portion 4c is formed between the rear end 41B of the movable block 41 and the second detected member 4B, at which time the first detected member 4 a/the movable block 41 is in the second position.

Also, the outside of the movable block 41 may still be covered with the friction member 42, and during the removal of the ink cartridge 100, the friction member 42 rubs against the inner wall of the image forming apparatus, so that the movable block 41 moves from the first position to the second position; alternatively, the friction member 42 may be omitted, in which case the outer surface of the movable block 41 is provided with a roughened surface, and movement of the movable block 41 from the first position to the second position is still enabled.

When the ink cartridge 100 is taken out from the image forming apparatus, the return member 42 releases the elastic force, and the movable block 41 returns from the second position to the first position.

It is to be understood that, on the basis of the above embodiment, the detection mechanism 4 and the housing 1 may be provided as fixedly connected as in the first embodiment, or may be provided as fixedly connected as in the second embodiment and the third embodiment, or may be provided that the detection mechanism 4 as a whole is movable with respect to the housing 1, but as long as the detection mechanism 4 is capable of realizing detection of the ink cartridge 100 during the removal of the ink cartridge 100, the structure of the ink cartridge 100 may be simplified based on the inventive concept, and further, the assembly efficiency of the ink cartridge 100 may be improved.

Claims

1. An ink cartridge detachably mounted in an image forming apparatus provided with a light emitting member, the ink cartridge including a housing forming an ink chamber, an ink outlet portion protruding forward from the housing, and a detected mechanism provided above the ink chamber;

the ink cartridge is mounted to the image forming apparatus forward in the front-rear direction, and is taken out from the image forming apparatus rearward;

the detection mechanism is positioned behind the ink outlet part along the front-back direction;

it is characterized in that the method comprises the steps of,

the detected mechanism comprises a first detected piece and a second detected piece which are arranged along the front-back direction, and the first detected piece is positioned in front of the second detected piece;

in the process of taking out the ink cartridge from the image forming apparatus, a light transmitting portion is formed between the first detected member and the second detected member, and light emitted from the light emitting member passes through the light transmitting portion in a right-left direction intersecting with the front-rear direction.

2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising a chip provided with a contact portion, wherein when the ink cartridge is mounted to the image forming apparatus, the contact portion is in electrical contact with a stylus in the image forming apparatus, and an ink remaining amount in the ink chamber is detected by the electrical contact of the contact portion with the stylus.

3. The ink cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the detected mechanism is located behind the contact portion in the front-rear direction.

4. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the first detected member and the second detected member are fixedly connected to the housing, and the first detected member and the second detected member are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction.

5. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the first detected member includes a movable block movable between a first position and a second position with respect to the housing;

in the first position, the movable block and the second detected piece are close to each other along the front-back direction, and the light emitted by the light emitting piece cannot pass through the space between the first detected piece and the second detected piece along the left-right direction intersecting with the front-back direction;

in the second position, the movable block and the second detected member are away from each other in the front-rear direction, and the light emitted from the light emitting member can pass through between the first detected member and the second detected member in the left-right direction intersecting the front-rear direction.

6. The ink cartridge as in claim 5, wherein the first detected member further comprises a reset member abutting the movable block for urging the movable block from the second position toward the first position.

7. The ink cartridge as in claim 6, wherein the movable block is provided to slide in a front-rear direction with respect to the housing.

8. The ink cartridge of claim 7, wherein the first member to be detected further comprises a friction member wrapped around an outer surface of the movable block.

9. The ink cartridge according to claim 6, wherein the movable block is provided so as to be rotatable about an axis intersecting an up-down direction intersecting both the front-rear direction and the left-right direction.

10. The ink cartridge of claim 9, wherein the first member to be detected further comprises a friction member wrapped around an outer surface of the movable block.