EP0553535A1 - Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur - Google Patents

Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0553535A1
EP0553535A1 EP92307270A EP92307270A EP0553535A1 EP 0553535 A1 EP0553535 A1 EP 0553535A1 EP 92307270 A EP92307270 A EP 92307270A EP 92307270 A EP92307270 A EP 92307270A EP 0553535 A1 EP0553535 A1 EP 0553535A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
ink
ink supply
tank cartridge
ink tank
supply port
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP92307270A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0553535B2 (fr
EP0553535B1 (fr
Inventor
Seiji C/O Seiko Epson Corporation Mochizuki
Kazuhisa C/O Seiko Epson Corporation Kawakami
Masahiro C/O Seiko Epson Corporation Nakamura
Keiichi C/O Seiko Epson Corporation Ohshima
Masanori c/o Seiko Epson Corporation Yoshida
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Seiko Epson Corp
Original Assignee
Seiko Epson Corp
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Family has litigation
First worldwide family litigation filed litigation Critical https://patents.darts-ip.com/?family=27455877&utm_source=google_patent&utm_medium=platform_link&utm_campaign=public_patent_search&patent=EP0553535(A1) "Global patent litigation dataset” by Darts-ip is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Priority claimed from JP3222692A external-priority patent/JP3246516B2/ja
Priority claimed from JP5815192A external-priority patent/JP3161478B2/ja
Priority claimed from JP19340292A external-priority patent/JP3171214B2/ja
Priority to EP00200827A priority Critical patent/EP1013444B1/fr
Priority to EP97200694A priority patent/EP0786352B1/fr
Priority to DE9218219U priority patent/DE9218219U1/de
Application filed by Seiko Epson Corp filed Critical Seiko Epson Corp
Priority to EP08000634A priority patent/EP1905599B1/fr
Priority to EP96120032A priority patent/EP0782927B1/fr
Publication of EP0553535A1 publication Critical patent/EP0553535A1/fr
Publication of EP0553535B1 publication Critical patent/EP0553535B1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0553535B2 publication Critical patent/EP0553535B2/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41JTYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01Ink jet
    • B41J2/17Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/17533Storage or packaging of ink cartridges
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41JTYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01Ink jet
    • B41J2/17Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/17513Inner structure
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41JTYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01Ink jet
    • B41J2/17Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/1752Mounting within the printer
    • B41J2/17523Ink connection

Definitions

  • the present invention relates generally to an ink tank cartridge for use in an ink tank cartridge for use in an ink-jet type recording apparatus for ejecting ink droplets onto a recording medium and more particularly to a structure of an ink tank cartridge for use in the ink-jet type recording apparatus.
  • an ink is supplied to a recording head from an ink tank constructed as a cartridge.
  • Employment of the ink cartridge acting as an ink tank has advantages in that no smear is likely to occur due to the leakage of ink while refilling new ink or the like.
  • undesired air bubbles can easily enter the tank which may cause problems, such as ink-failure.
  • Unexamined Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. Hei. 3-92356 discloses an ink-jet recording apparatus in which an ink supply port disposed below an ink tank is constituted by a rubber tap.
  • a metal ink supply needle penetrates through the rubber tap into an ink flow path communicating with ink nozzles of a recording head.
  • the ink supply needle has ink supply holes on a side surface thereof to penetrate easily through the rubber tap, the diameter of which is about 1mm and is constituted by a metal pipe formed of an anti-corrosion material, such as stainless steel and the end of the pipe is extremely sharp. Accordingly, a person must operate the sharp needle very carefully or (s)he may be injured by the tip of the needle.
  • Unexamined Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. Sho. 50-074341 proposes an arrangement in which a packing member having a through hole is previously provided at an end opening of an ink supply port and the through hole of the packing member is sealed by a seal member. According to this arrangement, an ink supply needle having a tip which is not so sharp can be employed.
  • Japanese Patent Application Hei. 2-187364 is directed to one type of recording apparatus by which both an ink tank and a recording head are formed unitarily and both these components are replaced with a new one when ink contained in the ink tank becomes empty, it does not address the other problems or difficulties, such as undesired air flow to the recording head or leakage of ink which may occur when only the ink tank is selectively removed from the head.
  • an object of the present invention is to provide an ink tank cartridge preferably for use in an ink-jet type recording apparatus which does not require any sharp needle and capable of preventing air or gas from entering an ink supply path of the recording apparatus body even when the ink tank is replenished using the ink supply needle and keeping a high air tightness between the ink supply needle and the ink tank.
  • an ink tank cartridge which includes, according to the present invention, a housing removably mounted onto an ink supply needle of the ink-jet type recording apparatus body.
  • the housing is provided with an ink supply port projecting from a bottom surface of the housing both inwardly and outwardly and a porous member for impregnating ink which is positioned inside the housing with abutting against the ink supply port through a filter.
  • the ink tank cartridge is further provided with a packing member resiliently abutting against an outer periphery of the ink supply needle at an end of the ink supply port and an end opening which is sealed with a sealing member through which the ink supply needle penetrates.
  • the tip of the ink supply needle penetrates through the sealing member and passes through the packing member disposed above the sealing member to thereby communicate with ink impregnated within the porous member accommodated in the cartridge housing. Accordingly, the ink supply needle communicates with ink contained inside the tank which is liquid-tightly sealed by the packing member at the outer periphery of the needle, so that the ink is supplied to the recording head whilst keeping a constant negative pressure between the recording head and the tank owing to surface tension of the porous member.
  • Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of an ink-jet type recording apparatus to which an ink tank cartridge according to the present invention is applied.
  • the ink-jet type recording apparatus is provided with a carriage 1 slidably mounted on guide shafts 2 with respect to a longitudinal axis of a platen 3.
  • an ink-jet recording head 4 for ejecting ink droplets in accordance with a print signal and an ink tank cartridge 5 for supplying ink to the recording head.
  • a capping apparatus 6 is disposed outside a printing region which engages with a front surface of the recording head 4 to prevent nozzle openings from drying when printing has stopped.
  • the nozzle openings are sealed by the capping apparatus 6 and forced to eject ink by a negative pressure generated by a vacuum pump 7 immediately after the ink tank cartridge 5 is replaced with a new one or an ink ejection ability is lowered during continuous printing.
  • the ejected ink is introduced to an ink storage tank 9 through a pipe 8 and stored therein.
  • the apparatus further includes a transmission cable 10 for transmitting printing signals to the recording head 4.
  • Fig. 2 is a cross-section of a first embodiment of the ink tank cartridge according to the present invention which is applied to the recording apparatus.
  • the ink tank cartridge is provided with a housing 11 constituting an ink tank cartridge body, which has an opening 12 at the top and an ink supply port 15 formed unitarily therewith at a bottom surface 13 with which a hollow ink supply needle 14 resiliently engages.
  • the housing 11 is tapered in such a manner that the bottom surface 13 is smaller in diameter than the top surface.
  • the housing need not be tapered but a cylindrical shape having a straight wall may be employed.
  • the ink supply port 15 is pipe-like shaped and projects from a bottom surface of the housing 11 both inwardly and outwardly.
  • a mesh filter 17 having a pore size of 20 to 100 ⁇ m is fuse bonded onto an upper opening 16 of the ink supply port 15 projecting towards inside the housing 11.
  • the filter may be formed of a high polymer material or an anti-corrosion metal such as stainless steel.
  • a step portion 18 is formed at an inner central portion of the ink supply port 15.
  • a packing member 19 for resiliently contacting the ink supply needle 14 to the inside of the supply port 15 is disposed inside the ink supply port 15 at a lower side of the step portion 18 for providing a liquid seal.
  • the packing member 19 is formed of a rubber ring, a so called O-ring.
  • a sealing film 20 is fuse bonded onto a lower opening of the ink supply port 15.
  • the film 20 may preferably be formed of a sealing material such as a high polymer film or a high polymer film with metal layer laminated on the film so that the film 20 demonstrates a high sealability while not capable of being torn by an external force such as contact by a finger.
  • a porous member 21 has a width which is a little bit larger than that of the opening 12 of the housing 11 and a height which is a little bit higher than the housing, so that the porous member 21 is compressed within the housing 11. Further, the lower end portion of the porous member 21 facing the filter 17 of the ink supply port 15 is compressed by the ink supply port 15 protruding inside the housing.
  • a lid 22 covers the opening 12 of the housing 11 and includes a plurality of ribs 25 projecting towards the inside of the housing 11 to compress the porous member 21 and keep respective spaces 24 within the ink tank cartridge between the lid 22 and the porous member 21.
  • An electrode 26 is provided in the ink supply port 15 while another electrode 27 is provided in the bottom portion of the housing 11 to detect an ink near-end condition where the ink is almost empty in the tank and there is only ink in the ink supply port 15.
  • an AC voltage Vcc is applied to the electrodes 26, 27 through a resistor R, and the variation in voltage between the electrodes is detected by a differential circuit 30.
  • a comparator 31 compares an output signal of the differential circuit 30 representing a voltage variation ratio with a preset value generated by a preset value supplying circuit 32. If the voltage variation ratio is larger than the preset value, that is, the ink impregnated in the porous member 21 becomes almost empty, an ink near-end signal is output and the ink near-end condition is therefore detected.
  • the hollow ink supply needle 14 cooperating with the ink tank cartridge has a conical end, and a plurality of through holes 36 are formed in a tip end surface 34 of the ink supply needle 14 for communicating the ink contained within the ink supply port 15 with an ink supply path 35 formed inside the needle 14.
  • the ink is filled in the pores of the porous member 21 accommodated within the housing 11 of the ink tank cartridge under low pressure of about 0.2-0.4 atmospheric pressure.
  • the filling of ink under low pressure is very useful as a means for keeping a good printing quality as taught in Unexamined Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. Sho. 60-245560.
  • the ink tank cartridge After filling ink into the porous member 21, the ink tank cartridge is packed up for shipping in a bag formed of a high sealable material such as, for example, a laminate film having aluminum layers.
  • Fig. 5 shows one example of the bag, packing therein the ink tank cartridge according to the present invention.
  • the ink tank cartridge is wrapped by a pair of laminate films 37 formed of aluminum which provide a very high sealability, decompressing air in the bag and then fuse-bonding at flange portions 38 of the films 37.
  • Japanese Patent No. Hei. 3-61592 teaches using 20 Torr as an example of the negative pressure to be applied during the packing of the ink tank cartridge, which pressure is much higher than the pressure under which the ink is filled within the tank.
  • this may cause a problem since the ink tank cartridge is subject to atmospheric pressure because the location for the ink-filling process and that for the packaging process are usually spaced far from each other.
  • air which penetrates into the ink becomes free to produce air bubbles when the larger negative pressure is applied during the packaging process.
  • undesirable ink-leakage may occur and, further, the air bubbles generated in the porous member may obstruct the ink current flowing from the ink tank cartridge to the recording head which would cause an ink-failure during printing.
  • the present inventors found that it is most preferable that the ink tank cartridge is packed under a negative pressure which is only a little bit larger (closer to atmospheric pressure) than the pressure under which the ink is filled within the tank.
  • the deaeration rate of the ink contained within the ink tank cartridge can be controlled by varying the pressure during the packaging process.
  • Table 1 shows the packaging pressure (negative gauge pressure) when the nitrogen density during the packaging process is set to be the saturation value of 13-14 ppm and the nitrogen density impregnating into the ink contained in the ink tank cartridge when the packaging bag is opened.
  • TABLE 1 Low pressure value (atmospheric pressure) Amount of Nitrogen (ppm) 0.5 7.5-9.0 0.35 7.0-8.5 0.2 6.0-7.5
  • Fig. 6 shows a variation of an amount of nitrogen after opening the packaging bag. Since the ink tank cartridge has a space kept by the ribs projecting from the lid, a constant amount of air corresponding to the pressure exists within the bag from immediately after the packaging process. Accordingly, within a short period (point a ), the density of nitrogen within the ink rapidly rises as shown in Fig. 6, and after that, the density is constant because of the high sealability of the bag. The constant period continues for about two years from manufacture.
  • the space maintained in the packaged bag is substantially 15% of the total inside volume of the bag after packing.
  • the deaerated ink is apparently supplied to the recording head, and even if the ink tank cartridge is removed and attached to the ink supply needle and air enters in the ink supply port from the needle, the air is impregnated into the ink and, accordingly, the recording apparatus does not suffer from any problem.
  • the ink-jet type recording apparatus is provided with a vacuum pump for forcedly ejecting ink from ink nozzles by applying a negative pressure to a recording head.
  • a vacuum pump for forcedly ejecting ink from ink nozzles by applying a negative pressure to a recording head.
  • Fig. 7 shows an arrangement of packing the ink tank cartridge in which a cartridge is surrounded by an absorbing member, such as sponge grains 40, and accommodated in a packaging bag 41, and then subjected to a decompression process.
  • an absorbing member such as sponge grains 40
  • the sponge grains 40 form a space inside the packaging bag, the low pressure during the packing process can be continued for a long time even if the ink is filled in the porous member 21 as much as possible, for example, about 95% volume of the porous member accommodated in the ink tank cartridge. Therefore, the print quality and efficiency of the ink-filling can be improved.
  • the packaging bag is opened and the tank cartridge is taken from the bag.
  • the tank cartridge is mounted on a carriage of the recording apparatus in such a manner that the end opening of the ink supply port 15 is positioned just above the ink supply needle 14 and then depressed towards and parallel to the direction of the needle 14.
  • the ink supply needle 14 penetrates the sealing member (film) 20 and reaches the packing member (O-ring) 19. In this condition, the tip of the ink supply needle 14 is kept in a liquid seal with respect to the ink supply port 15 by the packing member (O-ring) 19 while communicating with ink contained within the ink supply port 15.
  • the sealing member 20 deforms to become shaped like the end contour of the needle 14; to large extent because of the resiliency of the sealing member 20.
  • the through holes 36 formed at the tip of the ink supply needle 14 have a diameter below 0.1 to 0.4 mm, the through holes 36 keep a meniscus when the cartridge is exchanged. Accordingly, air is prevented from entering from the ink supply needle 14 to the recording head. Further, since there is a plurality of through holes, the fluid resistance applied to the ink flowing therethrough is very small and, therefore, a sufficient amount of ink for printing can be supplied to the recording head 4.
  • the porous member 21 is resiliently deformed and compressed by the ink supply port 15 projecting inward of the tank housing, the pore size of the porous member at a region in the vicinity of the ink supply port is smaller than that of the other region so that the capillary force is large relative to the other region. Owing to this structure, the ink is concentrated at the compressed portion of the porous member, and further the ink can be supplied to the recording head right up until the last droplet.
  • the sealing member 20 disposed at the ink supply port 15 is exposed.
  • This arrangement of the flange 45 is advantageous in that not merely the sealing member is prevented from being torn but also the flange can be used as a guide member for easily positioning the ink supply needle 14 to the correct point.
  • Figs. 9-I and 9-II are cross-sections showing an ink tank cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
  • the ink tank cartridge of the second embodiment is provided with a housing 50 constituting an ink tank cartridge body having an opening 51 at the top thereof and a pipe-like ink supply port 53 projecting from a bottom surface 52 of the housing 50, which port engages with the ink supply needle 14 disposed on the recording apparatus side.
  • the housing 50 is tapered so that a diameter of the bottom surface is smaller than that of the top surface.
  • the ink supply port 53 is provided with an opening 54 onto which a filter 55 formed of high polymer or anti-corrosion metal is fuse bonded.
  • a step portion 56 is formed at an inner center of the ink supply port 53.
  • a packing member (an O-ring in this embodiment) 57 is fitted at a lower side of the step portion 56 for maintaining a liquid seal by resiliently abutting the port 53 against the ink supply needle 14. Further, a sealing member (film) stopping member (an O-ring in this embodiment) 58 is also fitted at a lower side of the packing member 57.
  • An opening 59 is sealed by a sealing member 60 having a high air-seal formed, for example, of a laminated film through which the ink supply needle easily penetrates.
  • the opening 51 of the housing 50 is sealed by a lid 62 having a communication hole 62 for communicating with the atmosphere.
  • An inner surface of the lid 62 is provided with a plurality of ribs 68 for defining spaces 63 between a porous member 64 and the lid 62.
  • the ink tank cartridge is further provided with electrodes 65a, 65b for detecting an ink near-end condition.
  • the porous member accommodated in the tank housing 50 has two separate layers consisting of upper porous member 64a and lower porous members 64b.
  • the upper porous member 64a is larger in pore size than the lower porous member 64b so that the capillary force is larger at the lower side in the vicinity of the ink supply port 53.
  • the elements of the structure of the cartridge of this arrangement other than the porous member is the same as that shown in Fig. 9-I.
  • the porous member may be divided into more than two layers if applicable as well as the lower layer having a small pore size than the upper layer.
  • ink tank cartridge With the ink tank cartridge described above, deaerated ink is filled within the porous member accommodated in the tank housing under low pressure, and packed in a package bag for stocking while maintaining a negative pressure a little bit higher (closer to the atmosphere) than that during the ink-filling process.
  • the packaging bag is opened to take a new ink tank cartridge out of the bag, and the tank cartridge is mounted on the carriage of the recording apparatus in such a manner that the end opening of the ink supply port 53 is positioned just above the ink supply needle 14 and then depressed towards and parallel to the direction of the needle 14.
  • the ink supply needle 14 penetrates the sealing member (film) 60 and reaches the packing member (O-ring) 57 through the sealing member stopping member 58. This enables the ink supply needle 14 to be kept in a liquid-tight condition with respect to the ink supply port 53 by the packing member (O-ring) 57 while communicating with ink contained within the ink supply port 53.
  • the sealing member 60 When the ink supply needle 14 penetrates the sealing member 60, the sealing member 60 may partially go into the ink supply port 53 with the ink supply needle 14. However, broken pieces 60a of the sealing member 60 is stopped to go further with the needle by the sealing member stopping member 58 as shown in Fig. 10B so that the broken pieces 60a do not reach the packing member 57. Accordingly, even if gaps 66 are formed between the needle 14 and the sealing member stopping member 58, the liquid seal can be maintained owing to the packing member 57 and, therefore, the ink is prevented from leaking out.
  • Various modifications of the packing member 57 and the sealing member stopping member 58 are now described. The remaining elements of the structure, however, remain the same.
  • the sealing member stopping member 58-2 is not an O-ring but an elastic sealing member while the sealing member 57 is an O ring.
  • both the sealing member 58 and the sealing member stopping member 58 are not an O-ring but an elastic sealing member.
  • sealing member 57 and the sealing member stopping member 58 are unitarily formed and provided with a groove between the members.
  • the sealing member 57 is not an O-ring but an elastic sealing member while the sealing member stopping member 58 is an O-ring.
  • Fig. 11 is a cross-section showing part of an ink tank cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
  • a pipe-like ink supply port 71 is formed at the bottom surface 70 of the housing for accommodating a porous member for filling therein ink.
  • a filter 72 is fixed to a top opening of the ink supply port 71 which resiliently abuts to compress the porous member for impregnating ink.
  • a packing member 73 and a seal member stopping member 74 are press fitted in a center inner portion of the ink supply port 71 and secured by a bushing 75.
  • a lower opening 76 is sealed by a sealing member (film) 77.
  • the ink tank cartridge of this embodiment is further provided with a porous member 81 fitted in the ink supply port 71 between an electrode 80 disposed within an ink chamber 79 for detecting an ink near-end condition and the packing member 73.
  • An upper portion of the porous member 78 engages with a step portion 81 formed inside the ink supply port 71 as shown in Fig. 11 to prevent the porous member 81 from moving even when the ink supply needle penetrates therethrough.
  • the reference numeral 95 designates another electrode for detecting the ink near-end condition.
  • Fig. 12 shows an embodiment of the ink supply needle 90 preferably applied to the ink tank cartridge of the present invention.
  • the ink supply needle 90 is provided with a tip 91 having a conical shape and an inclined surface for easily penetrating the sealing member 77, stopping member 77 and packing member 73.
  • a needle body 92 has generally parallel openings 94 communicating with an ink supply path 93.
  • the ink supply needle 90 penetrates the sealing member 77 and passes through the sealing member stopping member 74 and the packing member 73. Since the ink supply needle 90 has no hole at the tip 91, the variation in volume in the ink chamber 79 caused by a piston-effect during the mounting operation of the ink tank cartridge, is received by the tip 91 and the packing member 73. Whereas the variation is not applied to the through hole 93 as shown in Fig. 13A but to the upper side through the porous member 78 of the ink supply port 79. Thus, when the openings 94 pass through the packing member 73 pressure is generated when the cartridge is being mounted and so ink flows into the ink supply path 93 through the openings 94.
  • the undesirable variation in volume due to the piston effect applied to the recording head can be prevented since the ink supply path 93 does not communicate with the ink supply port 71, so that leakage of ink from the nozzle opening of the recording head is effectively avoided.
  • the ink supply needle since it is not necessary to form through holes, the ink supply needle has sufficient mechanical strength and, accordingly, the needle can be formed of a material other than metal such as, for example, a high polymer material.
  • An ink supply needle formed of high polymer material is advantageous in that the manufacturing process can be simplified and further dangers raised because of metal can be avoided.
  • an inner diameter of the through holes 94 can be selected freely yet maintain the meniscus even if an outer diameter of the ink supply needle is designed to be large to thereby control an appropriate flow resistance. Therefore, the ink supply needle can maintain a mechanical strength sufficient for penetrating into the ink tank cartridge if the needle is formed of a high polymer material.
  • the ink supply needle shown in Fig. 13B is so designed that, for example, an outer diameter R of the needle is within a range of 2-4mm and a length L of the ink supply port of the ink tank cartridge side when the ink tank cartridge is mounted onto the needle and the packing member is set to be below 2.5mm.
  • This arrangement is more preferable because the variation in volume when the ink tank cartridge is mounted on the ink supply needle is small and the undesirable piston effect can be minimized.
  • the ink tank cartridge must be replaced when the tank is still full such as for maintenance, ink existing around the tip of the ink supply needle is sucked up into the porous member 78 located in the vicinity of the needle because of capillary action of the porous member filled within the tank cartridge for impregnating the ink.
  • the porous member 78 since the porous member 78 has a capillary force which is substantially the same as that of the porous member filled in the tank cartridge, the ink remains in the ink chamber 79. Accordingly, air is prevented from entering inside the tank cartridge body. Further, if the ink tank cartridge is removed, the electrodes do not output a signal representing the ink near-end condition. As a result, it is ready to start printing again merely by mounting the once removed ink tank cartridge again onto the ink supply needle.
  • the third embodiment describes the needle having parallel through holes.
  • the needle having through holes in the end surface as shown in Fig. 3 may be employed if the piston effect during mounting of the cartridge is small.
  • the ink tank cartridge of the third embodiment utilizes stopping members for preventing the packing member and the sealing member stopping member from falling off.
  • these stopping members may be omitted if the mechanical strength of the sealing member is relatively large.
  • the ink tank cartridge housing is removable with respect to the ink supply needle and is provided with the ink supply port projecting from the bottom surface of the housing both inwardly and outwardly.
  • the porous member for impregnating ink is resiliently accommodated in the housing through the filter secured to the end of the ink supply port.
  • the packing member is disposed at the end opening of the ink supply port for resiliently abutting against the periphery of the ink supply needle and the sealing member for sealing the end opening of the ink supply port, through which the ink supply needle penetrates.
  • the ink tank cartridge of the invention is advantageous in that the ink supply needle does not require a sharp tip, air is prevented from entering the ink supply path of the recording apparatus, and a tight air-seal between the ink supply needle and the ink tank can be maintained.

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  • Ink Jet (AREA)
EP92307270A 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur Expired - Lifetime EP0553535B2 (fr)

Priority Applications (5)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP96120032A EP0782927B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Conteneur de fluide scellable pour cartouche de réservoir d'encre
EP08000634A EP1905599B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP00200827A EP1013444B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
EP97200694A EP0786352B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
DE9218219U DE9218219U1 (de) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Tintentankpatrone und deren behaelter

Applications Claiming Priority (12)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP1283492 1992-01-28
JP12834/92 1992-01-28
JP1283492 1992-01-28
JP32226/92 1992-02-19
JP3222692 1992-02-19
JP3222692A JP3246516B2 (ja) 1992-02-19 1992-02-19 インクジェット記録装置、及びこれに使用するインクタンク
JP5815192 1992-03-16
JP5815192A JP3161478B2 (ja) 1992-03-16 1992-03-16 インクジェット記録装置用インクタンク
JP58151/92 1992-03-16
JP193402/92 1992-06-26
JP19340292 1992-06-26
JP19340292A JP3171214B2 (ja) 1992-01-28 1992-06-26 インクジェット記録装置用インクカ−トリッジ

Related Child Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP96120032A Division EP0782927B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Conteneur de fluide scellable pour cartouche de réservoir d'encre
EP97200694A Division EP0786352B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0553535A1 true EP0553535A1 (fr) 1993-08-04
EP0553535B1 EP0553535B1 (fr) 1998-10-28
EP0553535B2 EP0553535B2 (fr) 2004-04-14

Family

ID=27455877

Family Applications (7)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP08000634A Expired - Lifetime EP1905599B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP03026325A Ceased EP1396344A3 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP00200827A Expired - Lifetime EP1013444B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
EP97200694A Expired - Lifetime EP0786352B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
EP02076904A Expired - Lifetime EP1241012B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP96120032A Expired - Lifetime EP0782927B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Conteneur de fluide scellable pour cartouche de réservoir d'encre
EP92307270A Expired - Lifetime EP0553535B2 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur

Family Applications Before (6)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP08000634A Expired - Lifetime EP1905599B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP03026325A Ceased EP1396344A3 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP00200827A Expired - Lifetime EP1013444B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
EP97200694A Expired - Lifetime EP0786352B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche de réservoir d'encre et son conteneur
EP02076904A Expired - Lifetime EP1241012B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Cartouche d'encre et réservoir correspondant
EP96120032A Expired - Lifetime EP0782927B1 (fr) 1992-01-28 1992-08-07 Conteneur de fluide scellable pour cartouche de réservoir d'encre

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (7) EP1905599B1 (fr)
DE (6) DE69232243T2 (fr)
HK (5) HK1002449A1 (fr)
SG (1) SG46602A1 (fr)

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US7137679B2 (en) 2000-05-18 2006-11-21 Seiko Epson Corporation Ink consumption detecting method, and ink jet recording apparatus
EP1164021A3 (fr) * 2000-06-15 2003-04-02 Seiko Epson Corporation Procédé de chargement de liquide, conteneur de liquide, et procédé de fabrication
EP1164021A2 (fr) * 2000-06-15 2001-12-19 Seiko Epson Corporation Procédé de chargement de liquide, conteneur de liquide, et procédé de fabrication
US7086281B2 (en) 2000-07-28 2006-08-08 Seiko Epson Corporation Detector of liquid consumption condition
US6729184B2 (en) 2000-07-28 2004-05-04 Seiko Epson Corporation Detector of liquid consumption condition
WO2004045855A2 (fr) 2002-11-18 2004-06-03 Dynamic Cassette International Ltd. Cartouche d'encre pour imprimante, son procede d'assemblage et ensemble filtre pour cartouche d'encre
WO2005025875A1 (fr) * 2003-09-10 2005-03-24 Kmp Printtechnik Ag Cartouche d'encre
WO2007015083A2 (fr) * 2005-08-01 2007-02-08 Dynamic Cassette International Ltd. Cartouche d'encre
WO2007015083A3 (fr) * 2005-08-01 2007-05-18 Dynamic Cassette Int Cartouche d'encre
GB2448872A (en) * 2007-04-30 2008-11-05 Hewlett Packard Development Co Print cartridge

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP1241012B1 (fr) 2004-06-16
EP0786352A1 (fr) 1997-07-30
EP1396344A2 (fr) 2004-03-10
EP0553535B2 (fr) 2004-04-14
DE69232243T2 (de) 2002-07-25
HK1046666B (zh) 2005-02-04
EP0553535B1 (fr) 1998-10-28
SG46602A1 (en) 1998-02-20
DE69233371D1 (de) 2004-07-22
EP1905599B1 (fr) 2010-04-28
EP1241012A3 (fr) 2003-01-02
EP1013444B1 (fr) 2003-01-08
DE69232194T2 (de) 2002-07-18
EP0782927A1 (fr) 1997-07-09
EP1241012A2 (fr) 2002-09-18
DE69232194D1 (de) 2001-12-13
DE69227441T3 (de) 2004-09-09
DE69227441T2 (de) 1999-03-18
EP1905599A2 (fr) 2008-04-02
EP1396344A3 (fr) 2004-07-28
DE69232893T2 (de) 2003-11-06
DE69233784D1 (de) 2010-06-10
DE69227441D1 (de) 1998-12-03
DE69233371T2 (de) 2005-06-16
DE69232243D1 (de) 2002-01-10
HK1021810A1 (en) 2000-07-07
HK1002449A1 (en) 1998-08-28
HK1010709A1 (en) 1999-06-25
EP0782927B1 (fr) 2001-11-07
EP1905599A3 (fr) 2009-04-08
DE69232893D1 (de) 2003-02-13
EP1013444A1 (fr) 2000-06-28
HK1046666A1 (en) 2003-01-24
EP0786352B1 (fr) 2001-11-28
HK1025932A1 (en) 2000-12-01

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