CN219927286U - Ink box - Google Patents

Abstract

An ink cartridge for detachably mounting in a mounting portion of an image forming apparatus in a mounting direction, comprising a chip having a plurality of terminals including contact portions that contact pins of the mounting portion; two straight lines perpendicular to the plane of the chip are defined as a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2 respectively, a third imaginary line C3 parallel to the ink box mounting direction is defined, and a fourth imaginary line C4 perpendicular to the third imaginary line C3 and located on the plane of the chip is defined; the first imaginary line C1 intersects the fourth imaginary line C4; the included angle between the first imaginary line C1 and the third imaginary line C3 is alpha, and the length T1 of a projection line obtained by projecting at least one terminal onto the third imaginary line C3 along the fourth imaginary line C4 is larger than the length D1 obtained by projecting the terminal onto the first imaginary line C1 along the second imaginary line C2.

Description

Ink box

Technical Field

The present utility model relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to an ink cartridge.

Background

Certain types of printing consumables exist, such as ink cartridges of specific types are required to be installed in a mounting portion of an image forming apparatus (e.g., a printer) in a linear insertion manner, and in particular, the ink cartridges are inserted into corresponding mounting positions in the mounting portion in a plumb direction, and the mounting mode is required to ensure a fixed connection between the whole ink cartridges and the printer, and a stable engagement between a chip thereon and a contact pin on the printer side.

In the ink cartridge of the prior art, a chip is provided on the front surface thereof, and when the ink cartridge is mounted to a mounting portion of an image forming apparatus (e.g., a printer), a terminal on the chip is brought into contact with a contact pin in the mounting portion, and when the ink cartridge is not mounted in place or has a deviation in position, the terminal cannot accommodate such deviation, resulting in unstable contact between the terminal and the contact pin, and further unstable electrical connection between the chip and the image forming apparatus, which affects printing quality.

Disclosure of Invention

According to an aspect of the present utility model, there is provided an ink cartridge for being detachably mounted in a mounting portion of an image forming apparatus in a mounting direction,

comprising a chip having a plurality of terminals including contact portions that contact pins of the mounting portion;

two straight lines perpendicular to the plane of the chip are defined as a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2 respectively, a third imaginary line C3 parallel to the ink box mounting direction is defined, and a fourth imaginary line C4 perpendicular to the third imaginary line C3 and located on the plane of the chip is defined; the first imaginary line C1 intersects the fourth imaginary line C4;

the included angle between the first imaginary line C1 and the third imaginary line C3 is alpha, and the length T1 of a projection line obtained by projecting at least one terminal onto the third imaginary line C3 along the fourth imaginary line C4 is larger than the length D1 obtained by projecting the terminal onto the first imaginary line C1 along the second imaginary line C2.

Compared with the prior art, the utility model prolongs the contact length of the terminal and the contact pin on the third imaginary line C3 (namely the mounting direction Z), so that when the ink box is not mounted in place or has deviation in position, the terminal can also adapt to the deviation to a greater extent, and a larger contact length is provided for the contact pin, thereby ensuring that the terminal and the contact pin have stable and good contact, further ensuring that stable electric connection is formed between the chip and the image forming device, and improving the printing quality.

In some embodiments, the projection line length T2 of at least one of the terminals projected onto the fourth imaginary line C4 along the third imaginary line C3 is greater than the projection line length D2 of the terminal projected onto the second imaginary line C2 along the first imaginary line C1.

In some embodiments, at least one terminal of the chip has a first side and a second side perpendicular to each other, the first side of the terminal being parallel to a first imaginary line C1, the second side of the terminal being parallel to a second imaginary line C2, the projection of the terminal along a fourth imaginary line C4 onto a third imaginary line C3 having a projection line length T1 that is greater than the length D1 of the first side of the terminal.

In some embodiments, at least one terminal of the chip is rectangular, a first side of the terminal is a first rectangular side, a second side of the terminal is a second rectangular side, the first rectangular side of the terminal is parallel to a first imaginary line C1, the second rectangular side of the terminal is parallel to a second imaginary line C2, and a projection line length T1 of the terminal projected onto a third imaginary line C3 along a fourth imaginary line C4 is greater than a length D1 of the first rectangular side of the terminal.

In some embodiments, the projected line length T1 of the at least one rectangular terminal projected onto the third imaginary line C3 along the fourth imaginary line C4 is equal to the diagonal length E of the terminal.

In some embodiments, the contact portions of at least two of the terminals partially overlap when projected onto a fourth imaginary line C4 along a third imaginary line C3.

In some embodiments, the upper edge of the chip is inclined with respect to a fourth imaginary line C4.

In some embodiments, the chip has first and second sides perpendicular to each other, which are parallel to the first and second imaginary lines C1 and C2, respectively.

In some embodiments, the chip is rectangular, the first side of the chip is a first rectangular side, the second side of the chip is a second rectangular side, and the first and second rectangular sides of the chip are parallel to the first and second imaginary lines C1 and C2, respectively.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an ink cartridge and a mounting portion according to a first embodiment of the present utility model;

fig. 2 is a structural view of a stylus portion according to a first embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an ink cartridge according to a first embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing a partial structure of a chip mounted on an ink cartridge according to a first embodiment of the present utility model;

fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an ink cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present utility model.

FIG. 6 is a front view of an ink cartridge and stylus portion of a third embodiment of the utility model;

FIG. 7 is a right side view of an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 8 is a right side view of the ink cartridge and stylus of the third embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a chip according to a third embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a variant embodiment of a chip according to the third embodiment of the present utility model;

FIG. 11 is another schematic diagram of a chip according to a third embodiment of the utility model;

fig. 12 is a front view of an ink cartridge and a stylus portion according to a fourth embodiment of the present utility model.

Detailed Description

The utility model is described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the present utility model, unless explicitly specified and limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "secured," and the like are to be construed broadly and include, for example, either fixedly attached, detachably attached, or integrally formed; may be mechanically connected, may be electrically connected or may be in communication with each other; either directly or indirectly, through intermediaries, or both, may be in communication with each other or in interaction with each other, unless expressly defined otherwise. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present utility model can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art according to the specific circumstances.

Example 1

The image forming apparatus of the present utility model includes a main assembly and an ink cartridge 10, wherein, referring to fig. 1, the main assembly includes a mounting portion 90, and the ink cartridge 10 is detachably mounted in the mounting portion 90 to be replaced at any time.

The mounting portion 90 has a stylus portion 91, an ink supply portion 92, an opening 95, and a bottom wall 90a.

As shown in fig. 1, a three-dimensional rectangular coordinate system, that is, an XYZ-axis coordinate system is set, and the three-dimensional rectangular coordinate system of the ink cartridge 10 coincides with the three-dimensional rectangular coordinate system of the mounting portion 90. When the direction in which the ink cartridge 10 is mounted on the mounting portion 90 is the-Z axis direction, the direction in which the ink cartridge 10 is detached from the mounting portion 90 is the +z axis direction, the opening 95 is located in the +z axis direction, and the bottom wall 90a is located in the-Z axis direction. In general, the printer is placed on a desk or a printing desk, the Z direction coincides with the gravity direction, the opening 95 of the mounting portion 90 is located above the gravity direction, and the bottom wall 90a is located below the gravity direction, thereby facilitating the user to mount or dismount the ink cartridge 10. Further, the mounting portion 90 may carry a plurality of or one ink cartridge 10 having a plurality of or one mounting position, and four ink cartridges may store four different colors of ink therein, such as black, yellow, blue, and red.

In this embodiment, the mounting portion 90 is a substantially rectangular or square member having an opening 95, and the inner side wall and the bottom wall 90a of the mounting portion 90 constitute a mounting position. The stylus portion 91 is mounted on the first side wall 90c of the mounting portion 90, the mounting positions are sequentially aligned in the Y-axis direction, and the four mounting positions are sequentially aligned in the Y-axis direction. The direction perpendicular to both the Y axis and the Z axis is the X axis direction, wherein the direction from the inside of the mounting portion 90 toward the stylus portion 91 is the +x axis direction. The +x axis is perpendicular to the first side wall 90c, and the +y axis direction is on the left side when the +z axis is above on the YZ plane as viewed in the +x axis direction (i.e., the direction from the stylus portion 91 toward the ink cartridge 10).

The ink cartridge 10 includes a chip 20, a handle 30, an ink outlet 40, and a cartridge body 50.

In the present specification, two straight lines orthogonal to a plane on which the chip is defined are a first virtual line C1 and a second virtual line C2, respectively (see fig. 4, 9, and 11). When the chip has a first side and a second side perpendicular to each other (other sides of the chip may be other shapes, without limitation), the first side and the second side are parallel to a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2, respectively. When the chip is rectangular, the first side is a first rectangular side, the second side is a second rectangular side, and the first rectangular side and the second rectangular side are parallel to a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2, respectively. In addition, a third virtual line C3 (see fig. 4, 9, and 11) parallel to the ink cartridge mounting direction Z is defined, and a fourth virtual line C4 (see fig. 11) perpendicular to the third virtual line C3 and lying on the plane on which the chip lies is defined, the fourth virtual line C4 being parallel to the Y axis.

The main body of the chip 20 is a substrate, a memory, a terminal and an electronic component are arranged on the substrate, a printed circuit is arranged in the substrate, the printed circuit is used for conducting the terminal and the electronic component with the memory, the memory is used for storing information such as factory information, ink volume information, ink box type information, ink color and the like, the electronic component and the memory are matched to complete the operation of an internal program of the chip together, so that the chip can complete corresponding work and realize corresponding functions.

When the ink cartridge 10 is used, it is necessary to replace the ink cartridge with a new one. Fig. 1 is a schematic view of an ink cartridge 10 to be mounted to a mounting portion 90. The ink cartridge 10 is mounted into the mounting portion 90 from the opening 95 in the mounting direction-Z. The ink is stored in the cartridge 50, and reaches the ink supply portion 92 through the ink outlet 40, so that the ink supply portion 92 can supply ink to the print head, and the ink can be used to perform printing. The chip 20 has thereon a terminal group that can be in contact electrical connection with the contact pins 91a of the contact pin portion 91 for mutual transmission of electrical signals. The handle 30 is used to fix the ink cartridge 10 to the mounting portion 90, preventing the ink cartridge 10 from being detached from the mounting portion 90.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of a stylus portion 91, where the stylus portion 91 generally includes a base 902 and a plurality of styli 901 mounted on the base 902, the number and distribution of the styli 901 corresponds to the number and distribution of terminals on a chip, the styli 901 are sheet-shaped metal sheets, and can perform a conductive function and are not easily worn, the styli 901 include a first portion and a second portion 9012 protruding from the base 902, the first portion and the second portion 9012 are located on opposite sides of the base 902, the first portion is connected to a main circuit of the printer through a circuit inside the mounting portion, the second portion 9012 is connected to the chip, and the first portion and the second portion 9012 can be elastically deformed and easily restored to the original state after being deformed.

Referring to fig. 3, the case 50 of the ink cartridge 10 of the present embodiment is enclosed by a plurality of sides to form a substantially cubic shape, the case 50 has a front surface 107 and a rear surface that are disposed opposite to each other, a receiving portion 108 is disposed on the front surface 107, the chip 20 is obliquely fixed in the receiving portion 108 by means of matching a recess and a protrusion, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the positioning protrusion on the receiving portion 108 and the recess on the chip 20 may be disposed at any other position, so long as the chip 20 can be obliquely fixed, and besides the fixing by means of matching the recess and the protrusion, the chip 20 may be connected to the ink cartridge 10 by other positioning means, such as a clamping means.

In this embodiment, the chip 20 has a rectangular structure, and in other embodiments, the chip may take other shapes. In this specification, the rectangle refers to a quadrangle whose inner angles are right angles, and four right angles may be provided with rounded corners or chamfers, and also falls within the scope of "rectangle" referred to in this specification, wherein the rectangle includes a square (equal length and width) and a rectangle (unequal length and width). Further, referring to fig. 4, the chip 20 of the present embodiment has a rounded square structure, and the chip 20 is disposed obliquely with respect to the case 50, i.e. four edges of the chip 20 intersect with the ink cartridge mounting direction Z. Specifically, the chip 20 rotates around the X-axis on the Z-Y plane, so as to form an included angle with the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge, the chip 20 forms an included angle b with the mounting direction Z based on the central axis of the chip 20, b is 15 ° in fig. 4, and of course, the included angle b may alternatively be any angle between 10 ° and 20 °. Since the chip 20 is inclined to the mounting direction Z, the upper edge 20a of the chip 20 (i.e., the edge located in the +z direction) is inclined with respect to the Y direction, and when ink leaks, the ink drops flow onto the front surface 107 of the case 50 and fall on the upper edge 20a of the chip 20, and due to the inclination of the upper edge 20a, the ink drops flow out along the inclined direction of the upper edge 20a, rather than flowing down to the surface of the chip 20 along the gravity direction, so as to pollute the terminals, thereby reducing the occurrence of short-circuit problems between the terminals and further causing the chip to be damaged and unusable. In other embodiments, to achieve the above effect, the upper edge 20a of the chip 20 may be inclined in other manners, for example, the chip 20 is not necessarily inclined as a whole, but only the upper edge 20a of the chip 20 is set to be inclined, and then the chip 20 is not rectangular.

The substrate of the chip 20 is provided with a plurality of terminals 201-205, each terminal is rectangular and has a substantially rectangular structure, contact positions of the terminals and the contact pins form contact parts, wherein the contact parts of the terminals 201 and 204 are on the same straight line n1, the contact parts of the terminals 202, 203 and 205 are on the same straight line n2, and the contact parts of the first terminal 201 and the second terminal 202 are projected on the straight line n3 along the mounting direction Z and are partially overlapped; the contact portions of the fourth terminal 204 and the third terminal 203 are also projected on the straight line n3 in the mounting direction Z, and have partial coincidence; the straight lines n1, n2, n3 are all parallel to the Y axis.

In addition, the central axis direction of the plurality of terminals 201-205 (i.e., the length direction of the terminal 5 in the present embodiment) is parallel to the central axis direction of the chip 20, so when the chip 20 rotates around the X-axis on the Z-Y plane to form an inclined arrangement, each terminal is inclined along with the chip 20, and in any one of the terminals 201-205, the inclination angle of the terminal is an angle α between the line where the mounting direction Z is the reference line and the length direction of the terminal, and the inclination angle may be 10 ° -20 °, that is, the angle α in fig. 4 is 10 ° -20 °, and the inclination angle of the terminals 201-205 may be the same or different, or the terminals may be arranged in parallel along the mounting direction Z, so long as it is required that at least two contact portions of the terminals have partial overlapping when projected to the Y-axis along the mounting direction Z; the arrangement manner of the plurality of terminals 201-205 in this embodiment is as follows: the first terminal 201, the second terminal 202, the third terminal 203, the fourth terminal 204 and the fifth terminal 205 are arranged at intervals and have an inclination angle alpha of 10 degrees; the contact portions of the terminal 201 and the terminal 202 are partially overlapped when projected to the Y axis in the mounting direction Z, the terminal 201 is adjacent to the terminal 202, and the contact portions thereof are partially overlapped when projected to the Y axis in the mounting direction Z, the terminal 203 is adjacent to the terminal 204, and the contact portions thereof are partially overlapped when projected to the Y axis in the mounting direction Z. The arrangement mode of the projection parts of the contact parts is overlapped, so that the arrangement mode of the terminals is more compact, and the chip can be miniaturized.

The first terminal 201 has a first contact portion that contacts the stylus portion 91 of the printer, the first terminal 201 being for transmitting or receiving a data signal, and also for detecting a short circuit of the first terminal 201 with at least one of the second terminal 202, the third terminal 203, and the fourth terminal 204; the second terminal 202 is a clock terminal, and the second terminal 202 is for receiving a clock signal and has a second contact portion that contacts the stylus portion 91 of the printer; the third terminal 203 is a power supply terminal through which the third terminal 203 is for receiving a power supply potential different from a ground potential and supplies power for the operation of a memory (not shown in the figure), and has a third contact portion that contacts the stylus portion 91 of the printer; the fourth terminal 204 is a reset terminal, the fourth terminal 204 is used for resetting data in a wafer, the fourth terminal 204 is provided with a fourth contact part which is contacted with a contact pin of the printer, the fifth terminal 205 is a grounding terminal, the fifth terminal 205 is used for receiving a grounding potential, and the fifth terminal 205 is provided with a fifth contact part which is connected with the contact pin of the printer; the first terminal 201, the second terminal 202, the third terminal 203, the fourth terminal 204, and the fifth terminal 205 are connected to the plurality of contact pins 901 on the contact pin portion 91 in a fitting manner.

Since the chip 20 is obliquely placed on the receiving portion 108, when ink leaks, the ink drops flow out along the inclined upper edge 20a of the chip 20 when the ink leaks onto the front surface 107, and in addition, when the chip 20 is integrally inclined, the inclined side edges (i.e., edges in the +y or-Y directions) of the chip also contribute to the ink drops flowing out, the plurality of terminals 201-205 on the chip 20 are not polluted, even if the ink drops flow onto the chip 20, the distance between the terminals is increased due to the inclined placement of the plurality of terminals on the chip 20, and the surface tension of the terminals is increased, the ink drops flow out along the inclined direction of the terminals, so that the ink drops cannot flow onto other terminals, and the safety of the whole chip is increased, and because of the inclined arrangement of the terminals, the contact length between the terminals and the contact pins in the Z direction (i.e., the mounting direction) and the Y direction is prolonged compared with the prior art, so that when the ink boxes are not mounted in place or have deviation, the terminals can also adapt to the deviation to the degree, the deviation is greater, the contact length is larger, the contact stability is ensured, and the stable contact quality between the contact pins and the chip is ensured, and the printing device is stably formed.

Example two

Referring to fig. 5, the ink cartridge 10 according to the present embodiment is substantially identical to that of embodiment 1, and the corresponding structures are denoted by the same reference numerals, except that the chip 20 has a rectangular square structure and the inclination angles of the chip 20 and the terminals are different; as shown in fig. 5, the ink cartridge 10 includes a cartridge body 50, the cartridge body 50 is surrounded by a plurality of side surfaces to form a substantially cubic shape, the cartridge body 50 has a front surface 107 and a rear surface which are opposite to each other, a receiving portion 108 is provided on the front surface 107, a chip 20 is fixed in the receiving portion 108 by means of clamping and locking by a convex portion and a concave portion, the chip 20 is a square chip, the inclination direction of the chip is 15 ° with respect to the mounting direction (i.e., angle b is 15 °), the chip 20 is mounted on the receiving portion 108 in an inclined manner, a plurality of terminals 201-205 are provided on a substrate 101 of the chip 20, each terminal has a contact portion, the contact portions of at least two terminals overlap with each other along a projection portion of the mounting direction, the inclination angles of the plurality of terminals are kept identical to the inclination angles of the chip 20, and are also 15 ° (i.e., angle a is 15 °), or the terminals can be arranged in parallel to each other along the mounting direction Z, a first terminal 201 and a fourth terminal 204 are provided on the substrate 101 along the inclination direction, a second row parallel to the first row is provided with a second terminal 202, a third terminal 203 and a fifth terminal 205 are provided on the substrate 101, and a third terminal 205 are connected to the fourth terminal 205, and the fourth terminal 205 and the fourth terminal 203 are not coincident with the fourth terminal 203 and the fifth terminal 203 are connected to the fifth terminal 201 and the third terminal 204 along the projection portion and the third terminal 204 are connected to the fourth terminal and the fourth terminal 204.

As another alternative, the chip 20 may be designed in any shape such as a circle, an ellipse, a polygon, or the like, as long as it is satisfied that the projected portions of the contact portions of the above-described at least two terminals in the mounting direction overlap, and that all the terminals can be brought into stable contact with the contact pins 901 of the printer.

According to the ink cartridge 10 of this embodiment, by placing the chip 20 on the receiving portion 108 in an inclined manner, ink droplets can flow along the inclined edge of the chip 20, terminals on the chip 20 are not polluted, even if ink droplets flow onto the chip 20, the distance between the terminals is increased because the terminals on the chip 20 are also in an inclined manner, and the ink droplets can hardly flow onto other terminals due to the surface tension of the terminals, so that the safety of the whole chip 20 is increased, and the contact length between the terminals and the contact pins in the Z direction (i.e. the mounting direction) and the Y direction is prolonged compared with the prior art due to the inclined arrangement of the terminals, so that when the ink cartridge is not mounted in place or has a deviation in position, the terminals can also adapt to the deviation to a greater extent, so that a larger contact length is provided for the contact pins, thereby ensuring stable and good contact between the terminals and the image forming device, and further ensuring stable electrical connection between the chip and the image forming device, and improving the printing quality.

Example III

The image forming apparatus of the present utility model includes a main assembly and an ink cartridge 10, wherein, referring to fig. 1, the main assembly includes a mounting portion 90, and the ink cartridge 10 is detachably mounted in the mounting portion 90 to be replaced at any time.

Referring to fig. 1 and 6-11, the ink cartridge 10 includes a cartridge body, a chip holder, a chip 20, a handle 30, and an ink outlet 40. The ink outlet 40 is located at the bottom surface of the cartridge body so that the ink in the cartridge body can reach the ink supply portion of the mounting portion 90 through the ink outlet 40, and the ink is supplied to the print head through the ink supply portion, so that the ink can be used to perform printing. The handle 30 is located on the front surface of the case and above the chip 20, and the handle 30 is used to fix the ink cartridge 10 to the mounting portion 90, preventing the ink cartridge 10 from being detached from the mounting portion 90.

Referring to fig. 6 to 8, the mounting portion 90 has a contact pin portion 91 provided on an inner wall thereof, the contact pin portion 91 has a contact pin 91a provided thereon, the front surface of the ink cartridge 10 has a chip 20 provided thereon with terminals 5 for contact with the contact pin 91a, and in fig. 2 and 4, the body of the mounting portion 90 is omitted, wherein fig. 2 shows only the contact pin portion 91 having the contact pin 91a mounted thereon, and fig. 4 shows only the contact pin 91a. When the ink cartridge 10 is mounted in the mounting portion 90 in the mounting direction, the front surface of the ink cartridge 10 opposes the inner wall of the mounting portion 90 where the contact pins 91a are located, so that the terminals 5 on the chip 20 abut against the contact pins 91a, contact is made therebetween, and further the chip 20 is electrically connected to the image forming apparatus.

In the present embodiment, the XYZ rectangular coordinate system is established with the mounting direction of the ink cartridge 10 as the Z axis (the cartridge loading direction is-Z, and the removal direction is +z), with the direction of the ink cartridge 10 toward the mounting portion 90 provided with the stylus portion 91 as the X axis, and the remaining directions as the Y axis. In the present embodiment, the mounting direction of the ink cartridge 10 is a vertical direction, which is mounted downward in the gravity direction into the mounting portion 90, i.e., the Z-axis is a vertical direction in the present embodiment. In this embodiment, the front surface of the ink cartridge 10 (the side surface in the +x direction in the ink cartridge) on which the chip 20 is mounted is also arranged in the vertical direction, i.e., in the direction parallel to the Z-Y plane.

The chip 20 is provided with a plurality of terminals 5.

Referring to fig. 9, in the present embodiment, at least one terminal of the chip forms an angle α with the third imaginary line C3, such that a projection line length T1 of the terminal projected onto the third imaginary line C3 along the direction of the fourth imaginary line C4 is greater than a projection line length D1 of the terminal projected onto the first imaginary line C1 along the direction of the second imaginary line C2, and referring to fig. 11, a projection line length T2 of the terminal projected onto the fourth imaginary line C4 along the direction of the third imaginary line C3 is greater than a projection line length D2 of the terminal projected onto the second imaginary line C2 along the direction of the first imaginary line C1. In some embodiments, all terminals on the chip conform to the features described above.

In this embodiment, at least one of the terminals 5 has a first side and a second side perpendicular to each other, and other side lines of the terminal may have other shapes, without limitation, and the first side and the second side are parallel to the first imaginary line C1 and the second imaginary line C2, respectively. The projected line length T1 of the terminal projected onto the third virtual line C3 along the fourth virtual line C4 is longer than the length D1 of the first side of the terminal.

When the terminal is rectangular, the first side is a first rectangular side, the second side is a second rectangular side, when the terminal 5 is rectangular, the lengths of the first rectangular side and the second rectangular side are different, and when the terminal 5 is square, the lengths of the first rectangular side and the second rectangular side are equal. The terminal in this embodiment is specifically rectangular, and its first rectangular side is a long side and its second rectangular side is a short side.

In the prior art, the arrangement direction of the rectangular terminals 5 is identical to the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10, that is, the included angle therebetween is 0, and the projection line length T1 of the terminals 5 projected in the Y direction on the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10 is equal to the length D1 of the first rectangular side of the terminals 5. In this embodiment, referring to fig. 9, by rotating at least one rectangular terminal 5 on the Z-Y plane about the X-axis so as to form an angle α with the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge, so that the projection line length T1 of the at least one rectangular terminal 5 in the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10 is longer than the length D1 of the rectangular long side of the terminal 5, when the ink cartridge 10 is mounted in the mounting portion 90 along the mounting direction Z, the contact length of the terminal 5 with the contact pin 91a in the Z-direction (i.e., the mounting direction) is prolonged relative to the prior art, so that when the ink cartridge 10 is not mounted in place or has a deviation in position, particularly when the deviation in the Z-direction exists, the terminal 5 can also accommodate the deviation to a greater extent, providing a greater contact length for the contact pin 91a, thereby ensuring a stable and good contact between the terminal 5 and the contact pin 91a, and further ensuring a stable electrical connection between the chip 20 and the image forming device, and improving the printing quality.

Preferably, the rectangular terminal 5 is rotated about the X-axis on the Z-Y plane so as to form an angle α with the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge, and so that the diagonal line of the terminal 5 is parallel to the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10, i.e., the projection line length T1 of the terminal 5 in the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10 is equal to the diagonal line length E of the terminal 5. In this case, the maximum contact length of the terminal 5 with the contact pin 91a in the Z direction (i.e., the mounting direction) is obtained, which is equal to E, so that the terminal 5 can be adapted to the mounting deviation to the maximum extent, ensuring stable and good contact of the terminal 5 with the contact pin 91a. The included angle α is in the range of 13 degrees to 23 degrees, preferably 16 degrees to 20 degrees, and further, in this embodiment, 18 degrees.

In addition, referring to fig. 11, when the rectangular terminal 5 rotates on the Z-Y plane around the X axis, the contact width of the contact pin 91a with the terminal 5 in the Y direction can also be increased, i.e., the projection line length T2 of the rectangular terminal in the Y direction is longer than the length of the rectangular short side D2 of the terminal, so that when the mounting position of the ink cartridge 10 is deviated in the Y direction, the terminal 5 can also accommodate such deviation, providing a larger contact width for the contact pin 91a, thereby ensuring stable and good contact of the terminal 5 with the contact pin 91a.

In some embodiments, each terminal need not rotate about the X axis in the Z-Y plane, but only at least one terminal need rotate about the X axis in the Z-Y plane. Fig. 6 shows a scheme in which a part of the terminals are rotated and a part of the terminals are not rotated. In this embodiment, preferably, all terminals on the chip 20 rotate about the X axis in the Z-Y plane. Further preferably, the diagonal lines of all the terminals are parallel to the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10, i.e., the projection line length T1 of all the terminals in the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10 is equal to the diagonal line length E of the terminals, the terminals and the contact pins 91a have an optimal contact effect against mounting deviation.

In some embodiments, the substrate itself of the chip 20 need not be provided rotatably, as long as the terminals 5 provided on the chip 20 are rotated. In this embodiment, the substrate of the chip 20 is rotatably disposed, so that the terminal 5 on the chip 20 rotates along with it, that is, the central axis direction of the terminal 5 (i.e., the length direction of the terminal 5 in this embodiment) is always parallel to the central axis direction of the chip 20, that is, the angle α between the terminal 5 and the mounting direction Z is equal to the angle b between the chip 20 and the mounting direction Z (i.e., the angle b indicated in fig. 4 in the first embodiment).

The specific arrangement of the chip terminals 5 of the present embodiment is as follows: referring to fig. 9, a third imaginary line C3 is a line parallel to the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10, a C1 line is a first imaginary line extending in one direction of the substrate of the chip 20, i.e., in the direction of the rectangular long side of the terminal 5, and a C2 line is a second imaginary line extending in the other direction of the substrate of the chip 20, i.e., in the direction of the rectangular short side of the terminal 5, the C1 line and the C2 line are perpendicular to each other, and the C1 line and the third imaginary line C3 have an angle α. When the contact portions of all the terminals 5 and the corresponding contact pins 91a are projected onto the second virtual line C2 along the first virtual line C1, there are at least two terminal projection positions overlapping, in this embodiment, the projection positions of the terminal b and the terminal C overlap, and the projection positions of the terminal a, the terminal d, and the terminal e do not overlap. When the first virtual line C1 is set to have one area as the first area Q1 and the other area as the second area Q2, the contact portion between the terminal d and the contact pin falls on the boundary between the first area Q1 and the second area Q2, that is, at least a part of the contact portion between the terminal d and the contact pin falls on the second area Q2.

Example IV

The present embodiment is substantially the same as the third embodiment except that the arrangement direction of the chip 20 is the same as that of the first embodiment in that the chip 20 is arranged on the ink cartridge 10 in parallel with respect to the Z-Y plane, and that the chip 20 is arranged on the ink cartridge 10 in an inclined manner with respect to the Z-Y plane. In the third embodiment, the chip 20 is arranged such that the direction of application of force to the contact pins 91a is the mounting direction perpendicular to the inner wall of the mounting portion 90, i.e., the X direction, whereas in the present embodiment, the chip 20 is arranged such that the direction of application of force to the contact pins 91a has an oblique component that facilitates better contact of the contact pins 91a with the terminals 5 of the chip 20.

In this embodiment, referring to fig. 12, the chip 20 is disposed on the ink cartridge 10 in such a way that the top end protrudes in the +x direction, that is, the chip rotates around the Y axis, so that the top end of the chip protrudes in the +x direction, and forms an included angle β with the +z direction, and the included angle β is an acute angle. The chip 20 at this time has an oblique component in the-Z direction to the force applied to the contact pins 91a, so that the contact pins 91a can be slightly pressed downward, so that the contact pins 91a can be pressed upward against the chip 20 by the opposite elastic force, and can be better contacted with the terminals 5 of the chip 20, so that the electric contact is more stable, and meanwhile, when the ink cartridge 10 is mounted downward in the mounting part 90, the chip 20 cannot interfere with the contact pins 91a, and therefore the mounting process cannot be affected.

In other embodiments, the chip 20 may also rotate around the Y-axis, such that the bottom end of the chip protrudes in the +x direction, thereby forming an angle β with the +z direction, and the angle β is an acute angle. The included angle β is in the range of 1 degree to 6 degrees, preferably 2 degrees to 4 degrees, and further, in this embodiment, 2 degrees.

The ink cartridge 10 of this embodiment, by setting at least one terminal 5 as a rectangle and rotating the rectangular terminal 5 around the X axis on the Z-Y plane, an included angle α is formed between the rectangular terminal 5 and the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge, so that the projection line length T of the rectangular terminal 5 in the mounting direction Z of the ink cartridge 10 is longer than the length D of the rectangular long side of the terminal 5, thereby prolonging the contact length of the terminal 5 and the contact pin 91a in the mounting direction Z when the ink cartridge 10 is mounted in the mounting portion 90 along the mounting direction Z, compared with the prior art, so that when the ink cartridge 10 is not mounted in place or has a deviation in position, the terminal 5 can also adapt to the deviation to a greater extent, and provide a greater contact length for the contact pin 91a, thereby ensuring stable and good contact between the terminal 5 and the contact pin 91a, further ensuring stable electrical connection between the chip 20 and the image forming device, and improving the printing quality.

What has been described above is merely some embodiments of the present utility model. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that several modifications and improvements can be made to the above-described embodiments, or the above-described embodiments can be freely combined, including the technical features of the different embodiments described above, without departing from the inventive concept of the present utility model.

Claims (9)

1. An ink cartridge for being detachably mounted in a mounting portion of an image forming apparatus in a mounting direction, characterized in that:

comprising a chip having a plurality of terminals including contact portions that contact pins of the mounting portion;

two straight lines perpendicular to the plane of the chip are defined as a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2 respectively, a third imaginary line C3 parallel to the ink box mounting direction is defined, and a fourth imaginary line C4 perpendicular to the third imaginary line C3 and located on the plane of the chip is defined; the first imaginary line C1 intersects the fourth imaginary line C4;

the included angle between the first imaginary line C1 and the third imaginary line C3 is alpha, and the length T1 of a projection line obtained by projecting at least one terminal onto the third imaginary line C3 along the fourth imaginary line C4 is larger than the length D1 obtained by projecting the terminal onto the first imaginary line C1 along the second imaginary line C2.

2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein: the projection line length T2 of at least one of the terminals projected onto the fourth virtual line C4 along the third virtual line C3 is greater than the length D2 of the terminal projected onto the second virtual line C2 along the first virtual line C1.

3. The ink cartridge according to claim 2, wherein: at least one terminal of the chip has a first side and a second side perpendicular to each other, the first side of the terminal is parallel to a first imaginary line C1, the second side of the terminal is parallel to a second imaginary line C2, and a projection line length T1 of the terminal projected onto a third imaginary line C3 along a fourth imaginary line C4 is greater than a length D1 of the first side of the terminal.

4. An ink cartridge according to claim 3, wherein: at least one terminal of the chip is rectangular, a first side of the terminal is a first rectangular side, a second side of the terminal is a second rectangular side, the first rectangular side of the terminal is parallel to a first imaginary line C1, the second rectangular side of the terminal is parallel to a second imaginary line C2, and the length T1 of a projection line obtained by projecting the terminal onto a third imaginary line C3 along a fourth imaginary line C4 is greater than the length D1 of the first rectangular side of the terminal.

5. The ink cartridge as in claim 4, wherein: the projection line length T1 of the at least one rectangular terminal projected onto the third imaginary line C3 along the fourth imaginary line C4 is equal to the diagonal length E of the terminal.

6. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein: the contact portions of at least two of the terminals partially overlap when projected onto the fourth virtual line C4 along the third virtual line C3.

7. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein: the upper edge of the chip is inclined with respect to a fourth imaginary line C4.

8. The ink cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: the chip has first and second sides perpendicular to each other, which are parallel to the first and second imaginary lines C1 and C2, respectively.

9. The ink cartridge as in claim 8, wherein: the chip is rectangular, the first side of the chip is a first rectangular side, the second side of the chip is a second rectangular side, and the first rectangular side and the second rectangular side of the chip are respectively parallel to a first imaginary line C1 and a second imaginary line C2.