JP2000015827A - Ink-jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect stably at all times that the ink runs out in an ink tank by forming an ink chamber between an ink-absorbing body for holding the ink in the ink tank and a filter set to an ink take part of the ink tank. SOLUTION: An ink-jet cartridge 1 is constituted of a recording head 10, an ink tank 11 and a lid 12. The ink tank 11 consists of a case 11a molded of an appropriate synthetic resin material. An ink-absorbing body 13 is filled inside the case 11a, and moreover an ink chamber 15 is formed between the ink-absorbing body 13 and a filter 16 set to an ink take part 14 of the ink tank 11. The lid 12 set at an upper part of the ink tank 11 is provided to prevent the ink in the ink tank 11 from evaporating. An air communication opening is formed to the lid 12 to keep the interior of the ink tank 11 at an atmospheric pressure.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge for jetting flying droplets of ink or the like from an ink discharge port of an ink jet recording head to perform recording on recording paper as a recording medium. Things.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ink jet recording apparatus is mainly connected to a word processor or a personal computer and is generally used as a color printer.

[0003] Many of such ink jet recording apparatuses can detect the presence or absence of ink in some form, and can be roughly classified into two types.

The first type is to visually check the presence or absence of ink. The simplest structure is to make a part of the ink tank raw ink and make a container of the raw ink from a transparent material. By directly looking at this container, the presence or absence of ink can be determined.

[0005] However, since such a method can be understood only when the user looks at the ink container directly with his / her eyes, there is a drawback that if the user forgets to look at the ink container, printing may be performed even though there is no ink.

In the second type, the presence or absence of ink is notified by electric means. A known structure is to insert an electrode into an ink absorber in an ink tank,
The presence or absence of the ink is determined based on the change in the electric resistance of the ink absorber, and an alarm or a display indicating the absence of the ink is performed to stop printing. In this method, if there is no ink, the printer automatically stops, so there is no printing even though there is no ink as in the first type.
Parts are separately added to the ink tank, and the wiring is taken out from the electrodes in the tank. Will be.

Therefore, as a method of solving such a problem, an electric signal is applied to a portion of a substrate that generates energy for ejecting ink in an ink jet recording head, which is in direct contact with the ink. A method is known in which an electric signal is transmitted to an ink tank due to conductivity, and the electric signal is received by an antenna near the ink tank, and the presence or absence of ink is determined based on the magnitude of the signal. This method can mainly check the presence or absence of ink from the ink ejection generating member to the ink tank. According to this method, no new parts are added to the ink tank, and the ink is formed with a simple configuration. The presence or absence can be detected.

[0008]

However, when printing is performed with an ink-jet cartridge using the above-described configuration, the ink that can be used in the ink tank is almost exhausted, and even if the printing becomes blurred, the presence or absence of the ink is determined. The detection means for detection may not operate.

In such a case, it is likely to occur when the surface tension of the ink used is low. The reason is that when the surface tension of the ink is low, even a slight flow of the ink is not easily interrupted, and the ink tends to be connected. is there. For this reason, the ink is not cut off between the ink jet recording head and the ink tank, but is slightly connected to the ink, so that the ink is electrically connected. As a result, the detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the ink determines that there is the ink.

In recent ink jet recording heads, in order to increase the resolution, the number of nozzles is increased by closely disposing the nozzles so as to increase the density of the nozzles of the ink jet recording head. It is conceivable that the ink flow path for supplying the ink has a small cross-sectional area and has a sufficient capillary force to hold the ink, so that the ink is hard to be cut.

In some cases, the surface tension of the ink cannot be increased from the viewpoint of the permeability of the ink into the recording medium, and therefore, it is difficult to take measures against the ink.

Further, the structure of the ink jet recording head will tend to have a higher resolution in the future, and the structure will become more complicated and the ink will not be easily cut off. There is almost no.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve such a problem, and to have a configuration capable of always stably detecting that the ink tank has run out of ink. An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge that can be used with security.

The present inventors have conducted intensive studies to solve the above problems, and as a result, have reached the present invention.

[0015]

Accordingly, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention comprises an ink jet recording head for discharging ink to form an image, and an ink containing ink. In an ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge integrally formed with a tank, an ink chamber is provided between an ink absorber holding ink in the ink tank and a filter provided in an ink take-out portion of the ink tank. It is characterized by.

The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the ink tank has a case in which the ink chamber is provided integrally.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the member forming the ink chamber is a molded member different from the case of the ink tank.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that another ink absorber having a higher ink holding power than the ink absorber is provided above the filter in the ink chamber forming member.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that a member forming the ink chamber has water repellency.

The ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that a water repellent is applied to the surface of the member forming the ink chamber.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention comprises an ink jet cartridge in which a holder provided with an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink to form an image and an ink tank containing ink are separately provided. Ink jet recording apparatus having a first ink holding ink packed in an ink tank.
An ink chamber is provided between the first ink absorber and the second ink absorber provided in the ink outlet of the ink tank.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the second ink absorber is disposed above and below the ink chamber.

The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the member forming the ink chamber has water repellency.

The ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that a water repellent is applied to the surface of the member forming the ink chamber.

Further, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more.

As described above, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention has an ink jet recording head having an ink jet cartridge integrally formed with an ink jet recording head for discharging ink to form an image and an ink tank containing ink. In the apparatus, an ink chamber is provided between an ink absorber holding ink in an ink tank and a filter provided in an ink take-out portion of the ink tank, the ink chamber has a required height, and the ink chamber has a required height. Since the forming member is made of a material that has a certain degree of water repellency or a member coated with a water repellent on the surface, the connection of the ink due to the wetting of the ink is easily broken, and it is always stable that the ink tank has run out of ink. The ink jet printer has a configuration that enables detection by An ink jet recording apparatus is provided with bets cartridge.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0029]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, an outline of an ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. A plurality of inkjet cartridges 1 are mounted, and the inkjet cartridges 1 are moved in a direction indicated by an arrow along a pair of horizontal guide shafts 4 by a conveying means such as an endless drive belt 3 operated by a drive motor (not shown). The mounting carriage 2 is reciprocated.

As will be described in detail later, the ink jet cartridge 1 includes an ink jet recording head 10 (hereinafter, referred to as a recording head) and an ink tank 11.
The recording head 10 and the ink tank 11 that forms an ink tank that stores ink so as to supply ink to the recording head 10 are integrated with each other. An ink tank 11 having a recording head 10 is detachably mounted on a carriage 2 which is a member to be placed.

The carriage 2 is connected to a part of a driving belt 3 for transmitting a driving force of a driving motor (not shown), and slides left and right along two guide shafts 4 arranged in parallel with each other. Mounted freely. Accordingly, a recording signal is given to the recording head 10 while the ink jet cartridge 1 is reciprocated by the driving motor to eject ink, and recording is performed on recording paper as a recording medium disposed below the recording head 10. It is configured.

(Embodiment 1) FIGS. 2 to 7 are views showing a first embodiment of an ink jet cartridge which best illustrates the features of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view of the ink jet cartridge, and FIG. Only a part of the tank is shown in cross section, and FIG. 3 schematically shows the appearance of the ink jet cartridge. 4 to 6 are a front view, a plan view, and a side view of the ink jet cartridge.

First, as shown in FIG. 2, the ink jet cartridge 1 according to the present invention is substantially constituted by a recording head 10, an ink tank 11, and a lid 12,
The ink tank 11 is filled with an ink absorber 13. The ink absorber 13 almost occupies the inside of the ink tank 11, and holds the ink by capillary force. The ink tank 11 includes a case 11a formed by molding a suitable synthetic resin material, and has an ink absorber 13 packed therein, and an ink take-out portion 14 in which an ink chamber 15 is formed is provided at the bottom. . The lid 12 provided on the upper part of the ink tank 11 is
The lid 12 is provided with an air communication port for keeping the inside of the ink tank 11 at atmospheric pressure.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, the ink take-out section 14 is formed of a cylindrical side wall formed at the bottom of the ink tank 11, an ink chamber 15 is formed at the top, and an ink supply path 17 is formed at the center. Is provided through the ink chamber 1
At the bottom of the filter 5, a filter 16 is arranged. The recording head 10 is attached to the bottom surface of the ink jet cartridge 1 via a packing 18 in order to supply ink to the recording head 10 via the ink supply path 17.

As shown in FIG.
In a state where ink is present in the ink cartridge 1, the ink chamber 15 of the ink take-out unit 14 is filled with ink. The ink chamber 15 is surrounded by a side wall of a synthetic resin material formed by molding, and the case 11a of the ink tank 11 is formed.
And are integrally formed. Above the ink chamber 15, there is an ink absorber 13 containing ink, and below the filter, a filter 16 for preventing dust and bubbles from entering the recording head 10 is attached to the bottom of the ink chamber 15 by bonding or welding. Installed. That is, the ink chamber 15 is surrounded and sealed by the formed peripheral side wall, the ink absorber 13 and the filter 16.

An ink supply path 17 having a diameter of about 1 mm for supplying ink to the recording head 10 for discharging ink is formed on the downstream side of the filter 16, that is, below the filter 16. A packing 18 is provided to prevent ink leakage at the joint portion of the recording head 10 and is connected so that the ink flows to the recording head 10 side. Ink tank 11 of recording head 10
In general, the attachment to the mounting is performed by heat welding of a screw or a molding resin or bonding by an adhesive.

Next, the recording head 10 will be described. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the left half showing the internal structure of the recording head 10 for ink jet recording. The recording head 10 has a top plate 20, a substrate 24, an ink discharge port 25, an ink introduction path 27, an ink liquid chamber 28, and a flow channel 29, and the top plate 20 has an ink discharge port 25, an ink liquid chamber 28, An ink flow channel 29 is provided, and a substrate 24 on which a resistive heating element as an electrothermal converter is disposed is provided. Further, a wiring board 22 is adhered to both sides of the top plate 20, and is electrically connected to the board 24 of the resistive heating element. The wiring board 22 transmits an electric signal of the printer main body to the substrate 24 of the resistive heating element, and a detection signal of presence or absence of ink is naturally included in the electric signal.

Accordingly, the ink is transferred from the ink tank 11 of the ink-jet cartridge 1 to the recording head 1 via the ink chamber 15 of the ink take-out section 14 and the ink supply path 17.
After passing through the ink introduction passage 27 of the recording head 10, the ink further enters an ink liquid chamber 28 formed by the top plate 20 of the recording head 10 and the substrate 24 having the resistive heating element. Next, the ink enters the ink flow channel 29 having the resistive heating element from the liquid chamber 28, and causes the film to boil against the ink by the thermal energy of the resistive heating element in the ink flow channel 29, so that the ink discharge port is formed. 25
Ejects ink from the. The ink liquid chamber 28 is formed by the top plate 20 and the substrate 24 having the resistive heating element, and is sealed by a sealant in order to completely seal the space therebetween and to prevent ink leakage. The sealant is also used at the TAB connection between the substrate 24 having the resistive heating element and the wiring board 22 to prevent and protect the ink from adhering.

The top plate 20 is formed by integral molding, and the ink discharge port 25, the ink flow channel 29, the ink liquid chamber 28, and the ink introduction path 27 are processed by molding or laser processing. In particular, the ink discharge ports 25
And the ink flow channel 29 need to be processed with high precision. It is necessary for these integrally formed members to be formed of a material that is hardly affected by moldability and ink. As a specific material, polysulfone or the like is used and can be suitably formed.

The substrate 24 having the resistive heating elements performs recording by causing film boiling due to thermal energy to the ink. The resistive heating elements arranged in a plurality of rows on the Si substrate and the resistive heating elements To supply power to reactive heating element
And the like are formed by a semiconductor film forming technique, and the surface of the substrate 24 which is in direct contact with the ink is provided on the substrate 2.
A film of Ta or the like is formed as an electrical terminal for protection of No. 4 and detection of the presence or absence of ink. In addition, the substrate 24
This is a substrate on which a shift register and a driving transistor are incorporated in order to reduce the number of pads for AB.

The substrate 24 having the resistive heating element
The top plate 2 is driven by the elastic force of the elastic member 23 such as a leaf spring.
It is fixed to 0 with a mechanical biasing force.

That is, by adopting such a configuration, when an electric signal is input to the Ta film in contact with the ink on the substrate 24 during a certain sequence from the printer main body, the electric signal is transmitted to the conductive ink. Then, the electric signal reaches the ink tank 21 via the ink, and the electric signal can be received by an antenna provided at a position near the ink tank 11 of the ink jet cartridge 1. Therefore, when the electric signal is larger than a predetermined threshold, it is determined that ink is present. If there is no ink in the middle of the ink path, the path of the electric signal is cut off there, and the value of the signal received by the antenna becomes small, and becomes smaller than a predetermined threshold value. It can be judged.

However, when the surface tension of the ink is low, or because the ink discharge port 25 and the ink channel groove 29 of the recording head 10 are formed smaller year by year in order to increase the resolution, the capillary force of these portions is generated. Even if the ink holding force is increased and there is no ink to be ejected to the ink ejection port 25, if the ink is retained in the unused ink ejection port 25 or the ink flow channel 29, the recording head 10 In some cases, the ink path from the ink tank 21 to the ink tank 21 is not blocked.

Accordingly, in such a state, although there is ink in the ink path, but there is no ink in the ink ejection port 25, the ink presence / absence detecting means is not operated, so that printing is performed in a faint printing state. I will continue.

Therefore, the first embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 3, the ink chamber 1 is located above the filter 16 in the ink tank 11 of the ink jet cartridge 1.
When the ink which can be supplied to the ink absorber 13 in the ink tank 11 runs out by pressing the ink absorber 13 onto the ink chamber 15 and the printing is continued, the ink chamber 15 And ink absorber 13
Then, instead of the ink, air is drawn in instead of the ink, and the ink in the ink chamber 15 runs out, and the ink path from the recording head 10 to the ink absorber 13 is shut off.

The ink retaining force of the ink absorber 13 in the ink tank 11 is controlled by the filter 16 or the ink discharge port 25.
, Air enters from the ink absorber 13 first, and the ink chamber 15 is surely emptied. Therefore, the ink is cut off, and the presence / absence of the ink in the ink jet cartridge 1 can be reliably detected.

Further, the height of the ink chamber 15 is set to a required height,
For example, if the distance is set to 2 mm or more, when the ink in the ink chamber 15 runs out, the ink will not be connected in the vertical direction along the inner wall of the ink chamber 15, so that the detection of the presence or absence of the ink will be performed more stably and reliably. Will be

FIG. 8 is a side view showing an ink jet cartridge 1a according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The ink jet cartridge 1a includes a recording head 10 and an ink tank 11 similar to the first embodiment. And a lid 12, and the ink absorber 1 is provided in the ink tank 11.
3 is provided, and an ink take-out unit 14a for supplying ink to the recording head 10 is provided. The ink tank 11 includes a case 11a formed by molding from an appropriate synthetic resin material. The ink take-out unit 14a is the case 1
Ink chamber forming member 3 forming ink chamber 15a in 1a
It has 0. The ink chamber forming member 30 is a separate member from the case 11a forming the ink tank 11,
Inside, a second ink absorber 32 having a higher ink holding power than the ink absorber 13 is provided so as to be located above the filter 16a.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are a longitudinal sectional view and a plan view, respectively, showing an ink chamber forming member 30 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIGS.
It is the front view and top view which show.

As shown, the ink chamber forming member 30
Has a substantially cylindrical shape, a part of the outer peripheral surface is cut out in the vertical direction, and a cutout surface 30 a is provided to form a detent for the ink chamber forming member 30. In addition, an ink chamber 15a is provided above the inside of the ink chamber forming member 30, and a cylindrical space 31 is provided below the ink chamber 15a.
Of the ink absorber 32 and the filter 16a
1.

In the first embodiment of the present invention, when the ink has been used up and the ink in the ink chamber 15 has run out, a signal indicating that there is no ink is transmitted. I will. Therefore, in the case where the ink presence / absence detection sequence is set to check the ink absence signal for each page of the printed matter, if the ink presence / absence detecting means is operated during printing of one printed matter, 1
Printing may be blurred in the middle of printing a printed sheet.

Therefore, in the second embodiment of the present invention, in order to prevent the occurrence of such faint printing,
As shown in FIGS. 8 to 12, by installing the second ink absorber 32 on the filter 16a,
Since the ink held in the second ink absorber 32 can be used for printing even after the detection of the absence of ink, the probability that the print is blurred during printing of the printed matter is reduced, and the number of defective prints is reduced. it can. Further, by forming the ink chamber forming member 30 separately from the ink tank 11,
The second ink absorber 32 can be pressed against the filter 16a by the ink chamber forming member 30, and the ink held in the second ink absorber 32 can be reliably passed through the ink supply path 17a via the filter 16a. It can be supplied to the recording head 10.

Further, the ink chamber forming member 30 is made of a material having a certain degree of water repellency, such as a fluororesin or polyacetal, or a member having a surface coated with a water repellent. Accordingly, the connection due to the wetting of the ink is easily broken, and the detection of the presence or absence of the ink is more easily and reliably performed.

If the height of the ink chamber 15a is set to a required height, for example, 2 mm or more, as in the first embodiment, when the ink chamber 15a runs out of ink, the ink chamber 15a The ink does not connect in the up-down direction along the inner wall surface, and the presence / absence of the ink is more stably detected.

In the present embodiment, the ink discharge ports 25 are arranged in two rows, and the ink discharge ports 25 are arranged in each row in order to improve the color, image quality or image fastness of black, cyan, magenta, yellow, and the like. It is also possible to allocate a liquid containing a substance that insolubilizes or condenses the color material therein, or to divide one line to discharge a plurality of liquids. Further, it is needless to say that the ink discharge ports 25 may be two or more rows or one row of ink jet recording heads.

In the present embodiment, the method of detecting the presence or absence of ink is determined by adding a signal to the ink discharge port 25 to determine the presence or absence of ink in the ink path from the ink discharge port 25 to the ink tank 11 by using an antenna near the ink tank 11. The method of receiving a signal and detecting the presence / absence of ink based on the magnitude of the signal has been described. Any of them can be applied. For example, an electrode is projected from the ink discharge port 25 and the ink tank 1
It is also possible to use a method in which an electrode is provided also in 1 and the presence or absence of ink is detected based on the magnitude of electric resistance in the ink path therebetween.

(Embodiment 3) FIGS. 13 to 18 are views showing a third embodiment of the ink jet cartridge of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. The ink jet cartridge 1b includes a recording head 10, a holder 7, an ink tank 11, and a lid 12, and an ink absorber 13 is packed in the ink tank 11, and holds the ink by capillary force. The holder 7, the ink tank 11, and the lid 12 are each formed by molding an appropriate synthetic resin material.
The holder 7 is formed from a holder main body 7b to receive the ink tank 11, is provided with a filter 16b, and is provided with an ink conducting portion 33 formed so as to penetrate the ink supply path 17b. A recording head 20 is attached via a packing 18 by a fixing member such as a screw. Accordingly, the ink conducting portion 33 has a substantially columnar shape, the filter 16b is provided at the upper part, and the ink supply path 17b is formed at the center.

As shown in FIGS. 13 to 18, the ink tank 11 is composed of a case 11b formed by molding from a synthetic resin material, in which the ink absorber 13 is filled and an ink chamber 15b is formed. Have been. Also,
The lid 12 provided on the upper part of the ink tank 11 is provided to prevent the ink in the ink tank 11 from evaporating. Further, an air communication port is formed in the lid 12 to keep the inside of the ink tank 11 at atmospheric pressure. Have been.

The ink take-out portion 14b is formed by a cylindrical wall member, and the second ink absorber 32 is placed and installed in the cylindrical wall member. The chamber forming member 30b is arranged, and the ink chamber 15b is provided. The ink chamber forming member 30b is formed in a ring shape from a plastic material such as a synthetic resin material, and has an ink chamber 15b provided at the center.

As shown in the figure, generally, when there is ink in the ink tank 11, the ink take-out section 14b
Are filled with ink. The ink chamber 15b mainly has a chamber provided by an ink chamber forming member 30b formed by molding.
The second ink absorber 32 is disposed on the second ink absorber 32 provided at the position b.

The holder 7 in which the ink tank 11 is received
A substantially cylindrical ink conducting portion 33 formed with an ink supply passage 17b penetrating therethrough is provided at the bottom thereof. A filter 16b is attached to the ink conducting portion 33 by welding or bonding. On the downstream side of the filter 16b, that is, below, an ink supply path 17b for supplying ink to the recording head 10 for discharging ink is formed in the ink conducting section 33, and the recording head 10 and the ink tank 11 are connected to each other. Are connected to flow.
A packing 18 for preventing ink leakage is provided at a joint portion of the lower surface of the holder 7 with the recording head 10, and the ink is communicated so that the ink flows to the recording head 10 side. The attachment of the recording head 10 to the holder 7 is generally performed by heat welding of a screw or molding resin, adhesion by an adhesive, or the like.

(Embodiment 4) FIGS. 19 and 20 are views showing a fourth embodiment of the ink jet cartridge of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. As shown in FIG. The ink jet cartridge includes a recording head 10, a holder (not shown), an ink tank 11 and a lid 12, and the ink tank 1
1 comprises a case 11c, in which an ink absorber 13 is packed, and holds the ink by capillary force. The ink tank 11, the lid 12, and the holder are each formed by molding from an appropriate synthetic resin material, and the holder is formed to receive the ink tank 11 as shown in FIG. A filter is provided, and an ink conducting section in which an ink supply path is formed is similarly provided. The recording head 10 is attached to the lower surface of the holder by a fixing member such as a screw.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the ink tank 11 comprises a case 11c formed by molding from a synthetic resin material. The ink absorber 13 is filled therein, and the ink take-out portion 14c is provided. Is provided. The ink removing portion 14c includes an annular ink chamber forming member 30c having an ink chamber 15c at the center, and a pair of circular second ink absorbers 32, 32 sandwiching the ink chamber forming member 30c. Have been. The annular ink chamber forming member 30c provided between the pair of ink absorbers 32, 32 of the ink removing portion 14c has an ink chamber 15c at the center.

The ink take-out part 14c is provided with the ink tank material 1
1 is formed by a cylindrical wall member provided at the bottom of the second ink absorber 3.
2 in which the annular ink chamber forming member 30c and another second ink absorber 32 are placed.
Are provided in an overlapping manner. The ink chamber forming member 30c is formed in a ring shape from a plastic material such as a synthetic resin material, and the ink chamber 15c is provided at the center.

As shown in the figure, generally, when there is ink in the ink tank 11, the ink take-out section 14c
The ink chamber 15c of the ink chamber forming member 30c is filled with ink. The ink chamber 15c is formed at the center of the formed ink chamber forming member 30c.
The ink chamber forming member 30c is disposed on the lower second ink absorber 32 provided in the ink take-out section 14c, and another second ink absorber 32 is provided on the ink chamber forming member 30c. The ink chamber forming member 30c is sandwiched between the ink chambers 15c, and the ink passes through the ink chamber 15c via the upper second ink absorber 32, and then passes through the lower second ink absorber 32 to the recording head 10. It is configured to flow.

(Embodiment 5) FIGS. 21 and 22 are views showing a fifth embodiment of the ink jet cartridge of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. As shown in FIG. The ink jet cartridge 1d in the embodiment is similar to the third embodiment,
Recording head 10, holder 7, ink tank 11, lid 1
The ink tank 11 is filled with an ink absorber 13, and the ink is stored in the ink absorber 1.
3 is held in the ink absorber 13 by the capillary force. The holder 7, the ink tank 11 and the lid 12 are each formed by molding a suitable synthetic resin material.
Is formed from the holder body 7d so as to receive the ink tank 11. The holder 7 has a substantially cylindrical ink conducting portion 33 formed at the bottom formed at the center so that the ink supply path 17d passes therethrough, and the recording head 10 is screwed to the lower surface of the holder 7 via the packing 18. And the like.

As shown in the figure, the ink tank 11
The case 11d is made of a synthetic resin material. The case 11d is filled with an ink absorber 13, and an ink take-out portion 14d in which an ink chamber 15d is formed is provided. Further, a lid 12 provided on the upper part of the ink tank 11 prevents evaporation of the ink and
An air communication port is similarly formed in the lid 12 to keep the inside of the container 1 at atmospheric pressure.

The ink take-out portion 14d is formed in a cylindrical shape having a stepped space provided therein, and an ink chamber 15d is formed by the space above the cylindrical shape. Is provided with a filter 16d. The filter 16d is adhered to an upper edge of a peripheral wall forming a lower space by an appropriate adhesive, or is fixed by heat welding or the like. The ink take-out portion 14d is formed integrally with the ink tank 11, and has an O-ring 35 provided therein. And the ink can be reliably supplied to the recording head 10 without leaking.

That is, the ink chamber 15d is surrounded and sealed by the wall member formed with the ink extracting portion 14d, the ink absorber 13, and the filter 16d. A filter 16d in the ink chamber 15d is welded or adhered to a wall member of an ink take-out portion 14d formed integrally with a molding resin forming the ink tank 11, and ink is supplied to the recording head 10 below the wall member. The O-ring 3 is inserted so that the ink conducting portion 33 for supplying is
5 are provided.

Therefore, when the ink tank 11 is mounted on the holder 7, the ink conducting portion 33 of the holder 7 is inserted into the ink take-out portion 14 d of the ink tank 11, and the space between the ink conducting portion 33 and the ink conducting portion 33 is airtight by the O-ring 35. Therefore, the suction pressure at the time of the recovery operation of the recording head 10 can be transmitted to the ink tank 11, and the ink can be hermetically sealed so as to prevent evaporation of the ink, leakage of the ink, and the like.

The ink tank 11 is mounted by pushing the ink tank 11 into the holder 7 to which the recording head 10 is fixed, so that the ink conducting portion 33 having the ink supply path 17 d provided in the holder 7 is connected to the O-ring 3.
In this state, the ink tank 11 is fixed to the holder 7 because the ink tank 11 is inserted into the airtight container 5 to be airtight.

(Embodiment 6) FIG. 23 is a view showing a sixth embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. The recording head is constructed and mounted in the same manner as described in the previous embodiment. .

As shown in FIG. 23, in the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, an ink take-out section 14 provided at the bottom of the ink tank 11 of the ink cartridge is provided.
e above the filter 16e installed in the ink chamber 15e.
Is formed on the ink chamber 15e so that the periphery of the second ink absorber 32 extends over the upper edge of the ink take-out portion 14e, and the ink tank 11 is placed on the second ink absorber 32. The ink absorber 13 packed therein is arranged so as to be pressed. The ink take-out portion 14 e is formed integrally with the ink tank 11, and has an O-ring 35 provided therein. The air-tightness between the ink take-out portion 33 and the ink conducting portion 33 of the holder 7 inserted into the O-ring 35 is provided. Holding the recording head 10 without leaking ink.
Can be supplied.

As described above, since the ink absorber 13 is packed in the ink tank 11 and the second ink absorber 32 is provided above the ink chamber 15e, the ink is supplied to the ink absorber 13 in the ink tank 11. When printing is continued when the ink that can be used up is exhausted, the ink chamber 15e
Then, air is drawn instead of ink through the ink absorber 32, and the ink in the ink chamber 15e is depleted, and the ink path from the recording head 10 to the ink absorber 13 is blocked. The presence or absence of the ink is detected by operating the detecting means.

The ink holding power of the ink absorber 13 in the ink tank 11 is controlled by the filter 16 e and the recording head 10.
Is smaller than the ink discharge port 25, the air starts to enter from the ink absorber 13 first, and the ink chamber 15e is surely emptied. Therefore, the ink is cut off, and the presence or absence of the ink can be reliably detected, and the presence or absence of the ink in the ink cartridge can be reliably known.

(Others) It should be noted that the present invention includes a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for discharging ink, particularly in an ink jet recording system. An excellent effect is obtained in a recording head and a recording apparatus of a type in which the state of ink is changed by the thermal energy. This is because according to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and giving a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs on the heat acting surface of the recording head. Liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis.
This is effective because air bubbles inside can be formed. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (linear liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 59600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is effective even if the configuration is based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit. That is, according to the present invention, recording can be reliably and efficiently performed regardless of the form of the recording head.

Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of a recording medium on which a recording apparatus can record. Such a recording head may have a configuration that satisfies the length by a combination of a plurality of recording heads, or a configuration as one integrally formed recording head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as described above, the recording head fixed to the apparatus main body or the electric connection with the apparatus main body or the ink from the apparatus main body is attached to the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be supplied or a cartridge-type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself is used.

It is preferable to add a recording head ejection recovery unit, a preliminary auxiliary unit, and the like as the configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If these are specifically mentioned, the recording head is heated using capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer, another heating element or a combination thereof. Pre-heating means for performing the pre-heating and pre-discharging means for performing the discharging other than the recording can be used.

The type and number of recording heads to be mounted are, for example, not only those provided for one color ink but also a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. A plurality may be provided. That is, for example, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, but may be any of integrally forming a printing head or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of the recording modes of full color by color mixture.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid. However, an ink which solidifies at room temperature or lower and which softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. In general, the ink jet method generally controls the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Sometimes, the ink may be in a liquid state. In addition, in order to positively prevent temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as energy for changing the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or to prevent evaporation of the ink, the ink is solidified in a standing state and heated. May be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start solidifying when it reaches the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, the ink
JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-7
As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1260, it is also possible to adopt a form in which the sheet is opposed to the electrothermal converter in a state where it is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, the form of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is not limited to those used as image output terminals of information processing equipment such as computers, copying apparatuses combined with readers and the like, and facsimile apparatuses having a transmission / reception function. It may take a form.

[0085]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet cartridge in which an ink jet recording head for discharging ink to form an image and an ink tank for containing ink are integrally formed. In an ink jet recording apparatus, an ink chamber is provided between an ink absorber holding ink in an ink tank and a filter provided in an ink take-out section of the ink tank. Can be detected without increasing the number of parts.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, since the ink tank has a case in which the ink chamber is provided integrally, the ink chamber can be easily formed, and Can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, since the member forming the ink chamber is a molded member different from the case of the ink tank, the ink chamber can be suitably provided.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, another ink absorber having a higher ink holding power than the ink absorber is provided on the filter in the ink chamber forming member. The presence or absence of ink in the body can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the member forming the ink chamber has water repellency, the presence or absence of ink in the ink chamber can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the surface of the member forming the ink chamber is coated with a water repellent, the water repellency of the wall of the ink chamber forming member is improved. Presence or absence can be surely known.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more, when the ink chamber runs out of ink, the ink may be connected vertically in the wall of the mink chamber. This makes it easier to detect the presence or absence of ink.

According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, a holder provided with an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink to form an image and an ink tank for containing ink are separately constituted. In an ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge, an ink chamber is provided between a first ink absorber holding ink filled in an ink tank and a second ink absorber provided in an ink take-out portion of the ink tank. Is provided, an ink chamber can be simply and reliably provided between the first and second ink absorbers by the ink chamber forming member, and the presence or absence of ink can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the ninth aspect of the present invention, since the second ink absorber is disposed above and below the ink chamber, the presence or absence of ink in the ink chamber can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the tenth aspect of the present invention, since the member forming the ink chamber has water repellency, the presence or absence of ink in the ink chamber can be reliably detected.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, since the surface of the member forming the ink chamber is coated with the water repellent, the presence or absence of the ink in the ink chamber can be reliably detected. .

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, since the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more, when the ink chamber runs out of ink, the ink may be connected vertically on the wall of the mink chamber. This makes it easier to detect the presence or absence of ink.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the ink jet cartridge before assembling the ink jet recording head and the ink tank of the first embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view from below showing the appearance of the ink jet cartridge in the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the inkjet cartridge according to the present invention of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a side view in which the left half showing the inside of the ink jet recording head shown in FIG. 3 is sectioned.

FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway side view of an ink jet cartridge according to a second embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

9 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an ink chamber forming member of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the ink chamber forming member of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a front view illustrating an ink absorber of the ink jet cartridge of FIG. 7;

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the ink absorber of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is an exploded side view of the ink jet cartridge of the third embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, with a part thereof broken away.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view from below showing the combination of the ink jet cartridges of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a side view of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

16 is a plan view of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 17 is a front view of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 18 is a side view of the left half showing the inside of the ink jet recording head shown in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a side view in which an ink tank of an ink jet cartridge according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is partially cut away.

20 is an enlarged sectional view showing an ink chamber component of the ink jet cartridge of FIG.

FIG. 21 is a side view of an ink jet cartridge according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention in which the ink cartridge is disassembled and a part of an ink tank is cut away, and a holder and a print head are cross-sectioned.

FIG. 22 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating an ink ejection unit of the inkjet cartridge of FIG. 21.

FIG. 23 is a partially cutaway side view showing an ink jet cartridge according to a sixth embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ink-jet cartridge 2 Carriage 3 Drive belt 4 Guide shaft 10 Recording head 11 Ink tank 12 Cover 13 Ink absorber 14 Ink take-out part 15 Ink chamber 16 Filter 17 Ink supply path 18 Packing 20 Top plate 22 Wiring board 24 Substrate 25 Ink ejection port 27 ink introduction path 28 ink liquid chamber 29 channel groove 30 ink chamber forming member 32 ink absorber 33 ink conduction path

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge in which an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink to form an image and an ink tank containing ink is integrally formed, wherein the ink is held in the ink tank. An ink jet recording apparatus having an ink chamber between an ink absorber to be used and a filter provided in an ink take-out part of an ink tank. 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank has a case in which the ink chamber is provided integrally. 3. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the member forming the ink chamber is a molded member different from a case of the ink tank. 4. The ink absorber according to claim 1, wherein another ink absorber having a higher ink holding power than the ink absorber is provided above the filter in the ink chamber forming member. Ink jet recording device. 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a member forming the ink chamber has water repellency. 6. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a water repellent is applied to a surface of the member forming the ink chamber. 7. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more. 8. An ink jet recording apparatus having an ink jet cartridge in which a holder provided with an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink to form an image and an ink tank containing ink are separately provided. An ink chamber provided between a first ink absorber holding the ink packed therein and a second ink absorber provided in an ink take-out portion of an ink tank. apparatus. 9. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said second ink absorber is arranged above and below said ink chamber. 10. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a member forming the ink chamber has water repellency. 11. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a water repellent is applied to a surface of the member forming the ink chamber. 12. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the height of the ink chamber is 2 mm or more.