Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters 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
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
  • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
  • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
  • B41J2/17513—Inner structure
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters 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
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
  • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
  • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
  • B41J2/17513—Inner structure
  • B41J2002/17516—Inner structure comprising a collapsible ink holder, e.g. a flexible bag
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters 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
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
  • B41J2/18—Ink recirculation systems
  • B41J2/185—Ink-collectors; Ink-catchers
  • B41J2002/1856—Ink-collectors; Ink-catchers waste ink containers

Definitions

• the present invention relates to micro-fluid applications, such as Inkjet printing. It relates paxticuiarly to supply item containers holding fresh fluid, but doubling as a receptacle for waste fluid as the fresh fluid depletes over time. Expandable fluid receptacles facilitate the embodiments.
• a replaceable or (semipermanent ejection head has access to a local or remote supply of fluid (e.g., ink).
• fluid e.g., ink
• the fluid ejects from an ejection zone to a print media in a pattern of pixels corresponding to images being printed.
• waste ink accumulate during times of head maintenance or the like. While such printers have devices to accommodate waste ink, each has its shortcomings.
• Some printers utilize felt or other materials to absorb waste ink and let it evaporate over time.
• Some printers utilize waste cartridges that users put in place, swap, empty, dispose, etc, during times of maintenance to capture waste ink in a specialty container. The former is messy. It also demands copious amounts of absorbent material in high volume printers. The latter is inconvenient and similarly can be messy.
• the above-mentioned and other problems become solved with containers having expandable waste ink receptacles for micro-fluid applications.
• the containers doubly serve as sources of fresh fluid for imaging devices and receptacles for waste fluid spent by the same imaging devices.
• a consumable supply item for an imaging device holds an initial or refillable volume of fresh fluid for use in an imaging device.
• a housing defines an interior having an expandable fluid receptacle to receive waste fluid from the imaging device. As the fresh fluid depletes in the interior over time, the fluid receptacle expands as it accommodates waste fluid. In this way, a single container supplies fresh fluid and retrieves waste fluid from an imaging device. When initially full of fresh fluid, the fluid receptacle is empty in a compressed state. Upon fresh fluid leaving the container for the imaging device, waste fluid is able to enter the receptacle. Upon depletion of fresh fluid, the container is full of waste fluid. The container is ready for disposal or recycling.
• a hydrophobic membrane on the fluid receptacle that is permeable to air to equalize pressure inside the fluid receptacle as the fluid receptacle fills with waste fluid during use.
• the receptacle is a polymer film or other structure that can be compressed initially and expanded later. The film is impermeable to fluid. Plastic films having been folded and elastomers having been deflated or crumpled typify initial states.
• Other films contemplate polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride or polytetrafluoroethylene.
• fluid ports reside on the housing to communicate the interior of the housing to fluid or air sources outside of the housing.
• a first port is a fresh fluid exit port to supply the volume of fresh fluid to an imaging device.
• a second port is an air vent port to vent the interior with air from outside the housing.
• a third port is a waste fluid inlet port to receive waste fluid from the imaging device.
• the ports are any of a variety but contemplate a ball biased shut with a spring.
• Figure 1 A is a diagrammatic view of a container having fresh fluid with an expandable fluid receptacle for waste ink;
• Figure 1 B is a view similar to Figure 1 A with a lower level of fresh fluid and a fluid receptacle partially filled with waste fluid;
• Figure 1C is a diagrammatic view of ports of the container interfacing with an imaging device
• Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view of a hydrophobic membrane on an expandable fluid receptacle in a container;
• Figures 3A and 3B are views showing an expandable fluid receptacle in compressed and expanded states;
• Figures 4A and 4B are views of alternate embodiments similar to Figures 3A and 3B.
• containers have expandable fluid receptacles to receive waste fluid from imaging devices for use in micro-fluid applications.
• a supply item container 10 for use in an imaging device includes a housing 12.
• the housing defines an interior 14 that contains an initial or refillable supply of fresh fluid, e.g. ink 16,
• the fluid is any of a variety, but typifies aqueous inks such as those based on dye or pigmented formulations. It also represents varieties of color, such as cyan, magenta, yellow, black, etc.
• the item is useful in many applications such as inkjet printing, but certainly can be useful with other fluids in medicinal delivery, forming circuit traces, food processing, chemical manufacturing, etc.
• the volume of ink depletes downward toward a bottom surface
• the bottom surface is generally flat, or inclined to funnel ink out of the interior.
• the ink flows to an imaging device by way of a fresh fluid exit port 20,
• An air venting port 22 provides an intake of ambient, recycled or other air to overcome backpressure in the interior 14 that increases during imaging operations.
• the ports are any of a variety but typify cylindrical tubes 24 biased shut with an internal bail 26 and spring 28 ( Figure 1C). They are mated with a septum needle 30 from the imaging device. The needle inserts into the ports to overcome the bias of the spring and the ball slides backward. Upon sufficient insertion, openings in the port and needle 32, 34 are communicated so that a fluidic channel opens between the interior 14 of the housing and the needle.
• the fluidic channel is either air or liquid.
• an expandable fluid receptacle 50 receives waste fluid 52 from outside the housing and expands in size as the volume of fresh fluid 16 depletes in the interior over time.
• the waste ink conies from the imaging device that accumulates during times of head maintenance or the like.
• the waste ink is received by the housing at a waste fluid inlet port 40 connected to the expandable fluid receptacle.
• the waste fluid inlet port is the same as the other ports ( Figure 1C).
• the fluid receptacle 50 includes a hydrophobic membrane 54 that is permeable to air.
• the membrane faces an air cavity 60 in the interior 14 to equalize pressure inside the expandable fluid receptacle as the fluid receptacle fills with the w3 ⁇ 4ste fluid, in turn, the air cavity connects to the air vent port 22 and pressure inside the fluid receptacle is equalized to atmospheric conditions.
• An undersurface 56 of the membrane can adhere to an exterior surface 58 of the fluid receptacle and cover/seal an otherwise open portion of the fluid receptacle 50.
• the membrane can alternatively weld to the receptacle.
• the membrane is as thin as possible but may define a thickness of at least a few mils. Representative membranes contemplate the use of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or other materials. Membranes of this type are sometimes referred to as "breather" vents.
• PTFE polytetrafluoroethylene
• the receptacle itself is a polymer film or other structure that can be compressed initially and expanded later.
• the film is impermeable to fluid.
• the receptacle 50 is plastic film having been folded along fold lines 51 in its initial collapsed state (3A), later expanded with waste ink 52 (3B), in Figures 4A and 4B, the receptacle 50 is an elastomer having been deflated or crumpled in its initial collapsed state (4A), later expanded with waste ink 52 (4B).
• Representative films in either instance contemplate polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene. polyvinyl chloride or polytetrafluoroethylene films.
• a polymer film in a container is used to separate the supply of fresh ink from waste ink.
• the fresh ink occupies nearly all the volume of the container interior leaving little volume for the film which is otherwise empty of waste ink and compressed.
• the container is 75% full of fresh ink, the volume of the interior is now able to accommodate expansion of the polymer film and waste ink up to 25%.
• the container reaching 50% fresh fluid up to 50% of the container is available for expansion of the film and waste ink.
• the expandable fluid receptacle is foil (or partially full as imaging devices do not necessarily create waste ink in an exact proportion to its consumption of fresh ink).
• the container depletes itself of fresh ink, the container and its waste ink can be disposed, recycled, etc.
• the housing is any of a variety of containers for holding fluid, it can typify plastic, glass, metal, etc. it can be recyclable or not. It can contemplate simplicity or complexity. Techniques for production are varied, but blow molding, injection molding, etc. are common considered herein. With blow molding, the housing 12 can be made of unitary construction io define the interior 14. Welding, heat-staking, bonding, dies, etc. are also envisioned. The materials, construction, shipping, storage, use, etc. of the housing can also focus design criteria on items, such as cost, ease of manufacturing, durability, or other. Its shape is nearly infinite.
• the housing is generally elongated from its back end 39 to its port end 41.
• the port end inserts forward into an imaging device as the back end is pushed upon by users.
• the shape also contemplates seals and septums or the like which may find utility in the design at the interface joints between the ports and the imaging device.

Landscapes

• Ink Jet (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=49943407

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (8)

Families Citing this family (3)

Family Cites Families (14)

• 2012
  • 2012-09-26 US US13/626,921 patent/US20140083999A1/en not_active Abandoned
• 2013
  • 2013-09-26 WO PCT/IB2013/002750 patent/WO2014049441A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2013-09-26 AU AU2013322263A patent/AU2013322263A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2013-09-26 EP EP13818788.5A patent/EP2897807A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2013-09-26 BR BR112015006462A patent/BR112015006462A2/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2013-09-26 TW TW102134858A patent/TW201429739A/zh unknown
  • 2013-09-26 JP JP2015532527A patent/JP2015533693A/ja active Pending
  • 2013-09-26 CN CN201380050375.2A patent/CN104768765A/zh active Pending

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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