JP2000127432A - Liquid container, cartridge including it, recorder employing the cartridge, and liquid jer recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect presence of residual liquid accurately and inexpensively by making a liquid container flat in the same direction as the extending direction of a substantially rectangular prism. SOLUTION: An ink tank 7 is made flat in the same direction as the extending direction of a rectangular prism 180 wherein the flat face intersects the scanning direction of a carriage 2 and the extending direction of the rectangular prism 180 intersects the reciprocating direction of the carriage 2. When the carriage 2 moves on a guide shaft 3 in the scanning direction (arrow E), prisms 180Y, 180M, 180C, 180LM, 180LC, 180Bk in the ink tank pass immediately above an optical unit 14 and presence of ink in each tank is detected.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid container, a cartridge including the liquid container, a recording apparatus using the cartridge, and a liquid discharge recording apparatus. A liquid container for supplying ink to the recording head,
The present invention also relates to a cartridge including the liquid container, a recording apparatus using the cartridge, and a liquid discharge recording apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a device for detecting the remaining amount of ink in an ink tank containing ink, a device which employs a method in which an electrode is provided in an ink tank and the electric conductivity between the electrodes is measured, and a device for recording is used. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a method employing a method of optically detecting ink droplets ejected by a head. In general, the method using electrodes complicates the structure of the ink tank itself, and therefore, usually, means for optically detecting the remaining amount of ink is often used.

In particular, in the case of an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink contained in an ink tank from a recording head, generally, a recording head that discharges ink onto a recording medium and an ink that is supplied to the recording head are used. An ink tank to be housed, a conveying unit for conveying the recording medium,
A control unit for controlling a recording operation of the recording head, a reciprocating movement operation of the recording head, and the like. Further, in such an apparatus, when the remaining amount of ink in the ink tank falls below a predetermined amount during the printing operation, the supply of ink to the print head becomes insufficient, and there is a possibility that ejection failure may occur.
There is known an apparatus for detecting the remaining amount of ink in an ink tank or the presence or absence of ink.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-112907 discloses an example of a recording apparatus provided with such a device for detecting the remaining amount of ink, the ink in an ink tank having a negative pressure generating member such as an absorber or a foam material. In order to detect the remaining amount, the detection light is passed through a part of the transparent ink tank wall surface,
An ink jet recording apparatus using a method of detecting a change in light reflectance at the boundary between the wall surface and the negative pressure generating member is disclosed.

[0005] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-218321 discloses that
An ink tank having an optical ink detection unit formed by a light transmitting member formed of the same material as the ink tank and having an interface with ink at a predetermined angle with respect to a detection optical path is disclosed.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-174877 discloses a sensing system for detecting the presence of an ink tank and the level of ink in the ink tank.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-29989 discloses an ink jet recording apparatus capable of detecting the presence / absence of ink and the presence / absence of an ink tank by a single photosensor having a common light emitting element and light receiving element. are doing.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-89090 discloses a negative pressure generating member housing chamber which houses a negative pressure generating member and has a liquid supply port and an air communication portion, and a negative pressure generating member housing chamber. A device for detecting the presence or absence of a liquid stored in a liquid storage container having a communication portion that communicates with the liquid storage chamber and having a liquid storage chamber that forms a substantially closed space is disclosed.

Here, a conventional ink presence / absence detection mechanism using a light transmitting prism will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 22 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between a light transmission type prism provided on the bottom surface of the ink tank, a light emitting element for irradiating the prism with light, and a light receiving element for receiving the light.

[0010] As shown in FIG.
Is provided in a mold integral with the bottom surface 1061 of the ink tank, and light from the light emitting element 1062 located below the outside of the ink tank enters the prism 1060.

The incident light is emitted from the light emitting element 106 when the ink is sufficiently filled in the ink tank.
The light exiting from No. 2 follows a path from an optical path to an optical path ′, is absorbed in the ink, and does not return to the light receiving element 1063.
On the other hand, when the ink in the ink tank is consumed and the ink is exhausted, as shown in FIG. 22, the light emitted from the light emitting element 1062 is reflected by the oblique side of the prism 1060, and passes through the optical path → optical path → optical path. Light receiving element 1063
Come back to.

As described above, the presence or absence of ink is detected based on whether or not the light emitted from the light emitting element 1062 returns to the light receiving element 1063. Note that the light-emitting element 106
2. The light receiving element 1063 is provided on the recording apparatus main body side.

The ink presence / absence detection mechanism described above is a reasonable method for detecting the level of ink in the ink tank or the presence / absence of ink at low cost.

[0014]

However, the above conventional example has the following problems.

(1) In order to improve the detection accuracy of the ink presence / absence detection mechanism by accurately obtaining the positional relationship between the prism in the ink tank and the optical unit having the light emitting element and the light receiving element, the head of the ink tank is required. Required mounting of each part and unit, such as mounting accuracy to the holder or carriage, mounting accuracy of the print head to the carriage, mounting accuracy of the carriage to the printing apparatus main body, mounting accuracy of the optical unit to the printing apparatus main body, etc. Since extremely high precision is required, it is necessary to increase the machining precision of the parts themselves, and it is necessary to make the production and assembly line perform higher precision assembly, thereby increasing the production cost.

(2) In order to print a higher quality image and / or to perform color printing, two print heads for discharging different types of ink in one printing apparatus are used. In the case where the recording heads are displaced in the transport direction, ink is supplied to each of these recording heads.
The positions of the two ink tanks are inevitably provided at different positions. In order to detect the presence or absence of ink in the misaligned ink tank, two optical units are required.
Since it must be provided in the main body of the recording apparatus, the production cost also increases.

(3) When one kind of ink tank is to be commonly used on a plurality of different types of recording apparatuses, the position of the prism in the ink tank is fixed.
The positions of the light emitting element and the light receiving element provided on the recording device side are uniquely determined, which greatly limits the degree of freedom in designing the recording device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional example, and is an inexpensive and accurate liquid storage container capable of accurately detecting the presence or absence of remaining liquid, a cartridge including the liquid storage container, and a liquid storage container. It is an object to provide a recording apparatus using a cartridge and a liquid ejection recording apparatus.

[0019]

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid container according to the present invention has the following configuration.

That is, a liquid storage portion capable of directly storing a liquid, a liquid supply port capable of supplying the liquid stored in the liquid storage portion to the outside, a surface forming an outer wall surface of the liquid storage portion, Having a plurality of reflecting surfaces different from the surface and forming an interface with the liquid so as to have a predetermined angle with respect to an optical path of light emitted from a light source at a predetermined external position, A liquid container having a substantially polygonal prism formed by a light transmissive member, wherein the liquid container has a flat shape, and a direction in which a column formed by the prism extends and a surface forming the flat shape. Are in the same direction.

Here, it is preferable that the prism is molded integrally with the liquid container.

In this case, the prism may be divided into a plurality of pieces in the prism direction of the prism and formed. Alternatively, the center of the prism may be formed from the outside to the inside of the liquid container. The liquid container may be integrally molded with the liquid container so as to provide a space that is concave toward the liquid container.

Preferably, the cross section of the prism perpendicular to the prism direction is in the shape of an isosceles triangle, and the length of the prism in the prism direction is preferably longer than the length of the base of the isosceles triangle. .

Further, it is preferable that a liquid holding member accommodating portion accommodating the liquid holding member is provided, and the accommodating portion and the liquid holding member accommodating portion are connected to each other by a communication passage.

The liquid may be ink, or the liquid may be used to improve the fixability and water resistance of the image recorded on the recording medium with the ink or to improve the quality of the image. The processing liquid ejected to the medium may be used.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cartridge including the liquid storage container having the above-described configuration, wherein a recording head for discharging the liquid stored in the liquid storage container and a plurality of the liquid storage containers are provided. And a holder for holding the cartridge.

The liquid container is preferably separable from the holder.

This recording head is an ink jet recording head for performing recording by discharging ink. The recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink, and generates thermal energy to be applied to the ink. It is desirable to have a thermal energy converter.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium using the cartridge having the above-described configuration, wherein the prism irradiates light and receives reflected light from the prism. Optical means for detecting, based on reflected light received by the optical means, detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of liquid stored in the ink tank, and the recording based on a detection result obtained by the detecting means. And a control unit for controlling a printing operation by the head.

Further, the apparatus has a scanning means for reciprocatingly mounting the plurality of cartridges thereon, and a transport means for transporting the recording medium. Of the plurality of cartridges, a first cartridge and a The second cartridge is mounted on the scanning unit so as to be shifted from each other with respect to the direction of conveyance of the recording medium by the conveying unit, and the first and second cartridges are moved by the scanning unit, and the liquid container mounted on the first cartridge is moved. 2nd prism
It is preferable that the prism of the liquid container mounted on the cartridge is also irradiated with light from the optical means.

Here, it is desirable that the amount of displacement between the first cartridge and the second cartridge is smaller than the length of the prism in the prism direction. In addition, it is desirable that the light emitting element that emits light and the light receiving element that receives light constituting the optical unit are arranged along the scanning direction of the scanning unit.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, a recording head for performing recording by discharging a liquid, a liquid storage container for storing a liquid to be discharged from the recording head, and the recording head and the liquid storage container mounted thereon Scanning means reciprocating;
An optical unit provided near the scanning unit and including a light emitting unit that irradiates the liquid container with light and a light receiving unit that receives reflected light of the light, and light received by the optical unit,
Detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the liquid stored in the liquid storage container based on the reflected light of the light applied to the liquid storage container, wherein the liquid storage container comprises: A plurality of reflections, wherein a surface forming an outer wall surface of the portion and a surface different from the surface and forming an interface with the liquid have a predetermined angle with respect to an optical path of light emitted from the light emitting portion. And a substantially polygonal prism formed by a light transmissive member, and the scanning unit is arranged such that a direction in which the prism formed by the prism extends with respect to a reciprocating direction of the scanning unit. A liquid discharge recording apparatus is provided, wherein the liquid storage containers are mounted so as to intersect.

With the above arrangement, according to the present invention, the prism having the shape of a triangular prism provided at the bottom of the container of the liquid container is elongated in the direction of the prism, that is, in the direction of conveying the recording medium of the recording apparatus. When recording is performed by attaching a cartridge having a recording head equipped with the liquid storage container to a recording device, even if there is an error in the attachment, the prism irradiates the light emitted from the optical means of the recording device. Capture accurately.

Further, when a plurality of cartridges each having a recording head having the liquid container mounted thereon are mounted on a recording apparatus, the first cartridge and the second cartridge are attached by a triangular prism. In this case, the light emitted from the optical unit of the recording device is applied to the prism provided in the liquid container mounted on the first cartridge. It also reaches the prism provided on the liquid container mounted on the cartridge.

[0035]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a recording apparatus having a recording head for performing recording according to an ink jet system, which is a typical embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the recording head 1 is connected to an ink tank 7 for supplying ink to the recording head 1 and integrally forms an ink cartridge 20. In this embodiment, the ink cartridge 20 has a configuration in which the recording head 1 and the ink tank 7 can be separated as described later, but an ink cartridge in which the recording head and the ink tank are integrated may be used. .

On the bottom of the ink tank 7, an optical prism for detecting the remaining amount of ink is provided.
This configuration will be described later in detail.

Further, this recording head is provided with 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 head recording system. By using a method in which the state of the ink is changed by the heat energy, high density and high definition of the recording are achieved.

In FIG. 1, a recording head 1 is mounted on a carriage 2 in a posture for ejecting ink downward in the figure, and ejects ink droplets while moving the carriage 2 along a guide shaft 3 to form recording paper. An image is formed on a recording medium (not shown) as described above. The carriage 2 is moved left and right (reciprocated) via the timing belt 5 by the rotation of the carriage motor 4. An engagement claw 6 is provided on the carriage 2 and is engaged with an engagement hole 7 a of the ink tank, so that the ink tank 7 is fixed to the carriage 2.

When printing for one scan of the print head is completed, the printing operation is interrupted, the printing medium positioned on the platen 8 is conveyed by a predetermined amount by driving the feed motor 9, and then the carriage 2 is guided again. While moving along the axis 3, image formation for the next one scan is performed.

On the right side of the apparatus main body, a recovery device 10 for performing a recovery operation for maintaining a good ink discharge state of the recording head 1 is disposed. The recovery device 10 includes a cap 11 for capping the recording head 1, A wiper 12 for wiping the ink ejection surface of the recording head 1 and a suction pump (not shown) for sucking ink from the ink ejection nozzles of the recording head 1 are provided.

The driving force of the feed motor 9 for conveying the recording medium is transmitted to the automatic paper feeder (ASF) 13 in addition to the original recording medium conveying mechanism.

Further, on the lateral side of the recovery device 10, an infrared ray L
An optical unit 14 including an ED (light emitting element) 15 and a phototransistor (light receiving element) 16 for detecting the remaining amount of ink is provided. The light emitting element 15 and the light receiving element 16 are mounted so as to be arranged along the moving direction of the carriage 2 (the direction of arrow E). When the ink cartridge 20 is mounted on the carriage 2 and moves rightward from the position shown in FIG. 1, the ink cartridge 20 comes to be located on the optical unit 14.
Then, the presence or absence of remaining ink can be detected by the optical unit 14 from the bottom surface of the ink tank 7 (details will be described later).

Next, a control configuration for executing the recording control of the above-described apparatus will be described.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control circuit of the printing apparatus.

In FIG. 2 showing a control circuit, 1700 is an interface for inputting a recording signal, and 1701 is an MP
U and 1702 denote a ROM for storing a control program executed by the MPU 1701, and 1703 a DRAM for storing various data (the print signal and print data supplied to the print head 1). A gate array (G.1704) controls supply of print data to the print head 1.
A. ), The interface 1700, the MPU 170
1. Data transfer control between the RAMs 1703 is also performed. 17
Reference numeral 05 denotes a head driver for driving the recording head 1;
Reference numerals 06 and 1707 denote motor drivers for driving the feed motor 9 and the carriage motor 4, respectively.

The operation of the above-described control configuration will be described. When a print signal is input to the interface 1700, the print signal is converted into print print data between the gate array 1704 and the MPU 1701. Then, the motor drivers 1706 and 1707 are driven, and the printhead 1 is driven according to the print data sent to the head driver 1705 to perform printing.

Reference numeral 1710 denotes an LCD 1711 for displaying various messages relating to the recording operation and the state of the recording apparatus, and LEDs of various colors for notifying the recording operation and the state of the recording apparatus.
The display unit includes a lamp 1712.

The operation of the remaining ink amount detecting section 25 for detecting the presence or absence of remaining ink in the ink tank 7 integrated with the recording head 1 is controlled by the MPU 1701. The details of the remaining ink amount detection unit 25 will be described later.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the ink remaining amount detecting section 25.

In the configuration shown in FIG.
Based on a control signal from the PU 1701, the controller 32 outputs a pulse signal having a predetermined duty (DUTY) ratio (%) to the LED drive circuit 30, and the light emitting element 15 configuring the optical unit 14 according to the duty ratio. To irradiate the bottom of the ink tank 7 with infrared light.

The infrared light is reflected by an optical prism (hereinafter, referred to as a prism) 180 at the bottom of the ink tank 7 and returns to the light receiving element 16 constituting the optical unit 14. The light receiving element 16 as a phototransistor converts the received light into an electric signal and outputs the electric signal to a low-pass filter (LPF) 31. The low-pass filter (LPF) 31 cuts high-frequency noise out of the electric signals input from the light receiving element 16 and sends only the low-frequency signal to the controller 32. The controller 32 A / D converts the signal of the low-pass filter (LPF) 31 and converts the signal into a digital signal. Then, the converted value is MPU17
01.

As shown in FIG. 3B, the light emitting element 15 is an LED that emits infrared light 29, and the light receiving element 16 receives the infrared light 29, and responds to the intensity of the received light. A phototransistor that outputs an electric signal. These LEDs and phototransistors are arranged along the moving direction of the carriage 2 as shown in FIG.

Next, an outline of the configuration of an ink tank to which the present invention can be suitably applied will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a head holder 200 provided with the ink tank 7 and the recording head 1. In this figure, (A) shows a state where the ink tank 7 is separated from the head holder 200, and (B) shows a state where the ink tank 7 is attached to the head holder 200.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of the ink tank 7. As shown in FIG.

First, the ink tank 7 in this embodiment has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and its upper wall 7U has
An atmosphere communication port 120 which is a hole communicating with the inside of the ink tank is provided.

An ink supply cylinder 140 having an ink supply port is formed on the lower wall 7B of the ink tank 7 so as to protrude in a cylindrical shape. In the physical distribution process, the air communication port 120 is made of a film or the like.
Are closed by a cap as an ink supply port sealing member.

Reference numeral 160 denotes a lever member which is integrally formed on the outside of the ink tank 7 so as to be elastically deformable, and has a locking projection formed at an intermediate portion thereof.

Reference numeral 200 denotes a printhead-integrated head holder on which the above-described ink tank 7 is mounted. In this embodiment, for example, inks of cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) are used. Tank 7 (7C, 7M, 7
Y). At the lower part of the head holder 200, a recording head 1 for ejecting each color ink is provided integrally. A window is provided at the bottom of the head holder 200 so that an ink presence / absence detection unit described later can detect presence / absence of remaining ink in cooperation with the optical unit 14 and the remaining ink detection unit 25.

The recording head 1 has a plurality of ejection ports formed downward. (Hereinafter, the surface on which the discharge ports are formed is referred to as a discharge port formation surface.) Then, the ink holder 7 is moved from the state shown in FIG.
Then, the ink supply cylinder 140 is engaged with an ink supply cylinder receiving portion (not shown) provided on the recording head 1, and the ink passage cylinder of the recording head 1 is pushed into the ink supply cylinder 140. . Then, the locking projection 160A of the lever member 160 engages with a projection (not shown) formed at a predetermined position of the head holder 200, and the proper mounting state shown in FIG. 4B is obtained. The head-integrated head holder 200 with the ink tank 7 mounted thereon is further mounted on the carriage 2 of the recording apparatus, for example, as shown in FIG. In such a state, a predetermined head difference (H) is formed between the bottom of the ink tank 7 and the ejection port forming surface of the head.

Next, the internal structure of the ink tank 7 will be described with reference to FIG. The ink tank 7 of this embodiment communicates with the atmosphere through the atmosphere communication port 120 at the upper portion, communicates with the ink supply port 140A at the lower portion, and contains therein a liquid holding member 320 serving as a negative pressure generating member. The holding member accommodating chamber 340 and a substantially sealed ink accommodating chamber 360 for accommodating liquid ink are separated by a partition wall 380. And the liquid holding member storage chamber 3
The ink storage chamber 360 is communicated with the ink storage chamber 360 only through a communication path 400 formed in the partition wall 380 near the bottom of the ink tank 7.

A plurality of ribs 420 are integrally formed in the upper wall 7U of the ink tank 7 forming the liquid holding member storage chamber 340 so as to protrude inside, and are stored in the liquid holding member storage chamber 340 in a compressed state. The liquid holding member 320 to be contacted. Thus, the upper wall 7U and the liquid holding member 320
An air buffer chamber 440 is formed between the upper surface and the upper surface.
The liquid holding member 320 is formed of a heat-compressed urethane foam, and generates a predetermined capillary force as described later.
It is housed in the liquid holding member housing chamber 340 in a compressed state. The liquid holding member 32 for generating the predetermined capillary force
The absolute value of the pore size of 0 differs depending on the type of ink used, the size of the ink tank 7, the ejection port forming surface of the recording head 1 (head difference H), and the like.

A cylindrical pressure contact body 460 is disposed in the ink supply tube 140 forming the ink supply port 140A. The press contact body 460 is formed of, for example, a felt of polypropylene, and is not easily deformed by an external force. The pressing body 460 is held in a state where it is pushed into the liquid holding member 320 so as to locally compress the liquid holding member 320 in the state shown in FIG. . For this purpose, a flange is formed at the end of the ink supply cylinder 140 to be in contact with the periphery of the pressure contact body 460.

In the ink tank having such a configuration, the recording head 1 (not shown) uses the liquid holding member 320.
Is consumed, the ink is supplied from the ink storage chamber 360 to the liquid holding member 320 of the liquid holding member storage chamber 340 through the communication path 400 of the partition wall 380. At this time, the pressure in the ink storage chamber 360 is reduced, but air passing from the air communication port 120 through the liquid holding member storage chamber 340 passes through the communication path 400 of the partition wall 380.
, The pressure in the ink storage chamber 360 is reduced. Therefore, even if the ink is consumed by the recording head 1, the ink is filled in the liquid holding member 320 in accordance with the consumed amount, the liquid holding member 320 holds a fixed amount of the ink, and makes the negative pressure on the recording head 1 substantially constant. The ink supply to the recording head 1 is stabilized. Thereafter, when the ink in the ink storage chamber 360 is consumed, the ink in the liquid holding member 320 is consumed.

Therefore, a prism 180 which is a part of the remaining ink amount detection mechanism is provided in the ink storage chamber 360 of such an ink tank, and the user is notified that the ink in the ink storage chamber 360 has been consumed and the tank is replaced. This makes it possible to use the recording apparatus without worrying about running out of ink.

Now, the head holder 2 having the above configuration will be described.
4 has a longitudinal direction as shown in FIG.
Is mounted on the carriage 2 such that its short side direction is the direction of the arrow E shown in FIG. 1 (the moving direction of the carriage) in the direction of the arrow F shown in FIG. As is clear from this figure, the ink tank of this embodiment has a flat shape, and is to be attached to the head holder 200 such that the flat surface intersects the scanning direction of the carriage 2. become.

Next, the characteristic configuration of the prism for detecting the remaining amount of ink using the recording apparatus and the ink tank having the above configuration will be described in detail.

FIG. 6 shows the ink tank 7 as indicated by a line A- in FIG.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A ′ and the bottom of the ink tank is viewed from above, FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the prism 180 taken along the line BB ′ shown in FIG. 6, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line CC ′ shown in FIG. 6.

Therefore, as can be seen from these sectional views, if the prism 180 is cut along the line BB 'shown in FIG. 6 and the cross section is viewed, the prism 180 has a rectangular cross section. When viewed along the line CC ′ shown in FIG. 6 and viewing the cross section, the prism 180 has the shape of a right-angled isosceles triangle. 7 and 8, the bottom surface is formed integrally with the bottom surface of the ink tank by molding. The inclined surface of the prism 180 is mirror-finished to reflect light incident from the light emitting element 15 well.

As can be seen from FIGS. 7 and 8, the length of the line of intersection of the prism 180 with the bottom surface 7B of the ink tank, that is, the length corresponding to the base of the isosceles triangle is a, and the length of the depth of the prism 180 is Is assumed to be b.

FIG. 9 shows the prism 180 along the line C- shown in FIG.
Prism sectional view cut along C ′ and optical unit 1
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a positional relationship with the position No. 4;

Accordingly, when the carriage 2 moves in the scanning direction (arrow E) on the guide shaft 3, the optical unit 14 of the ink tank 7 is located immediately below the prism 180 as shown in FIG. Since the ink tank 7 moves in the carriage moving direction, the ink tanks 7C, 7M, and 7Y having the configuration shown in FIG. The positional relationship shown in FIG.

In such a positional relationship, if the ink in the ink tank is depleted, the light emitted from the light emitting element 15 is reflected by the slope of the prism 180 and returns to the light receiving element 16. The MPU 1701 inputs the detection signal at the time, and determines the presence or absence of ink.

FIGS. 10 to 11 are sectional views of the prism 180 taken along the line BB 'shown in FIG. 6, and a diagram showing the positional relationship between the light emitting elements 15 of the optical unit 14. As shown in FIGS.

As can be seen from FIGS. 10 to 11, in the ink tank of this embodiment, the extending direction of the prism formed by the prism 180 and the direction of the flat surface of the ink tank are the same. As shown in FIG. 4, since the flat surface intersects the scanning direction of the carriage 2, the extending direction of the prism formed by the prism 180 intersects the reciprocating direction of the carriage 2. I have. Therefore, since the prism 180 has a length “b” in the recording medium conveyance direction (arrow F), even if the ink tank 7 provided with the prism 180 is attached to the head holder 200 with a certain degree of error, Head holder 20
Even if 0 is attached to the carriage 2 with a certain error, if the attachment error is within the length “b” of the prism 180 in the longitudinal direction, the light emitting element 1 of the optical unit 14
The light emitted from 5 is captured by the prism 180 and the reflected light can be returned to the light receiving element 16.

In this embodiment, as the size of the prism 180, the length (a) of the base of the isosceles triangle obtained from the cross section along the line CC ′ of the prism 180 is a = 6.4 mm,
The length (b) of the long side of the rectangle obtained from the line BB ′ of the prism 180 is set to b = 7.0 mm.

Now, the carriage 2 may be configured to mount two head holders as shown in FIG. In this case, these two head holders are mounted with their mounting positions shifted slightly in the recording medium conveyance direction (arrow F in FIG. 1).

FIG. 12 is a view showing a state where two head holders 200 and 210 are mounted on the carriage 2 as viewed from above the carriage. In FIG. 12, the head holders 200 and 210 have the same configuration, and the ink tanks (7C, 7M, 7Y, 7
LC, 7LM, and 7Bk) are shown as cross-sectional views as shown in FIG. 6 so that the position of the prism becomes clearer. The prism provided in each ink tank has a configuration as shown in FIGS.

In FIG. 12, the head holder 20
0 and the head holder 210 are mounted at positions shifted from each other by about 4 mm in the recording paper transport direction (arrow F). The reason why the head holder 200 and the head holder 210 are shifted is that the ink tanks 7C and 7
6 accommodated in M, 7Y, 7LC, 7LM, and 7Bk, respectively.
Color inks (C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow), LC (light cyan), LM (light magenta), Bk
(Black)) are simultaneously ejected onto the recording medium and the color mixture of the ink on the recording medium is caused by the three inks (C, M, Y).
This is because the position of the recording head is shifted with respect to the recording medium in order to prevent the ejection timing on the recording medium between the color and the three colors of ink (LC, LM, and Bk) from being shifted.

Accordingly, the ink tanks 7C, 7M, 7Y on each head holder and the ink tanks 7
LC, 7LM, and 7Bk are misaligned in the two groups.

However, as shown in FIG. 12, the carriage 2 moves on the guide shaft 3 in the scanning direction (arrow E).
When moving to any of the head holders, each of the head holders is provided with a prism (180Y, 180M, 1M) provided in each ink tank.
80C, 180LM, 180LC, 180Bk) pass right above the optical unit 14 to detect the presence or absence of ink in each ink tank.

For example, when the ink tank 7Y comes directly above the optical unit 14, the prism 180Y is cut along the line B2-B2 'and the cut surface is viewed. The relationship is as shown in FIG. 10, and the ink tank 7LM
Is right above the optical unit 14, the line B3-B
When the prism 180LM is cut along 3 'and the cut surface is viewed, the prism 180LM of the ink tank 7LM is viewed.
The relationship between and the optical unit is as shown in FIG. When either the ink tank 7Y or the ink tank 7LM comes directly above the optical unit 14, the line C2-C
When the prism 180Y or 180LM is cut along the line 2 'or the line C3-C3' and the cut surface is viewed, the relationship between the prism 180Y or 180LM and the optical unit is as shown in FIG.

Therefore, when the carriage 2 moves in the scanning direction (arrow E) along the guide shaft 3, the ink tanks 7C, 7M, and 7Y move the optical unit 14 right below the prism as shown in FIG. On the other hand, in the ink tanks 7LC, 7LM, and 7Bk, the optical unit 14 is located on the lower left side of the prism as shown in FIG. Then, all the ink tanks 7C, 7M, 7Y, 7LC,
7LM and 7Bk have a positional relationship as shown in FIG. 9 when passing near the position directly above the optical unit 14.

Therefore, if the ink in the ink tank is exhausted, the light emitted from the light emitting element 15 is reflected by the slope of the prism and returns to the light receiving element 16, so that the MPU 1701 detects the light at this time. The signal is read to determine the presence or absence of ink.

As described above, in this embodiment, the length (b) of the prism in the transport direction of the recording medium (the direction of arrow F) is “7.0 (mm)”, and this value is:
Since the shift amount in the transport direction (arrow F) between the head holder 200 and the head holder 210 is set to be longer than 4 mm, the prisms of the ink tanks respectively mounted on the two head holders using one optical unit 14 Reflected light from the object can be detected.

Therefore, according to the above-described embodiment, the prism used for detecting the remaining amount of ink is formed so as to have a sufficiently long length in the recording medium transport direction. Even if there is an error in the mounting of the ink tank to the head holder or the mounting of the head holder to the carriage, or if there is a manufacturing error in each part, the light irradiated from the optical unit is Therefore, even if the working accuracy, assembling accuracy, and mounting accuracy of the above components are not so high, the remaining ink amount can be accurately detected.

As a result, it is not necessary to increase the precision required for each component, so that it is possible to reduce the component cost while accurately detecting the remaining ink amount.

When two head holders each having an ink tank having the above-mentioned prism are mounted on the carriage at a small distance from each other, the distance is made shorter than the length of the prism in the recording medium transport direction. An optical unit that irradiates light to each of the ink tanks mounted on the two head holders for detecting the remaining amount of ink can be shared.

Thus, the cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

Further, the above effect can be achieved only by forming the prism used for detecting the remaining amount of ink so as to be sufficiently long in the recording medium conveying direction. Extremely simple,
Therefore, high reliability can be ensured.

In the above-described embodiment, the prism used for detecting the remaining amount of ink is formed so as to have a sufficiently long length in the recording medium transport direction. Therefore, it is necessary to pay sufficient attention to the selection of the material forming the prism and to manufacture the mold with sufficient accuracy.

Therefore, in order to increase the degree of freedom in selecting the material of the prism and to reduce the precision of the mold, that is, to further reduce the production cost, a modification of this embodiment is described. The prism may be formed so as to be divided in the recording medium transport direction.

[First Modification (FIGS. 13 to 14)] FIG.
FIG. 9 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure of an ink tank 7 according to a first modification. As can be seen from this figure, the prism is formed by being divided into two parts, a prism 180a and a prism 180b.

FIG. 14 shows the ink tank 7 shown in FIG.
Six ink tanks 7C, 7M, 7 having the same configuration as
FIG. 4 is a view seen from above a carriage to show a positional relationship between Y, 7LC, 7LM, and 7Bk and an optical unit 14;

[Second Modification (FIGS. 15 and 16)] FIG.
FIG. 9 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of an ink tank 7 according to a second modification. As can be seen from this figure, the prisms are prisms 180a, 180b and 180c.
And molded into three parts.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of the ink tank 7 shown in FIG. 15 taken along the line AA 'and the bottom of the ink tank 7 viewed from above.

As described above, the prism may be formed by dividing it into two or three in the longitudinal direction of the tank. As shown in FIG. 14, even if the head holder on which the ink tank having such a configuration is mounted is displaced with respect to the carriage with respect to the transport direction of the recording medium, one optical unit 14 detects the presence or absence of ink. I can do it.

Needless to say, other than such a modified example, the prism provided on the bottom surface of the ink tank may be divided into four or more.

[Third Modification (FIGS. 17 and 18)]
In the above-described embodiment and the first and second modified examples, the thickness of the prism forming portion is partially increased when viewed from the entire ink tank. With such a partially thick part,
The slope portion of the prism is not formed linearly, and the slope portion is partially recessed, which may lower the reflection efficiency of light emitted from the optical unit 14.

Therefore, in this modified example, FIGS.
As shown in (1), by partially changing the shape of the bottom surface of the prism and providing the concave portion 181, a thick portion is prevented from being formed partially in the prism molding portion, and the slope of the prism in the integral molding of the prism is more improved. Light reflection efficiency is improved by being formed linearly.

FIG. 17 is a sectional view of the prism 180 taken along a line BB 'shown in FIG. 6, and FIG. 18 is a sectional view of the prism 180 taken along a line CC' shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing.

[Fourth Modification (FIGS. 19 to 21)] In the embodiments and the modifications described above, the light emitting element 15 and the light receiving element 16 of the optical unit 14 are arranged so as to be arranged in the carriage moving direction. Alternatively, the arrangement may be rotated by 90 ° so that the light emitting element 15 and the light receiving element 16 are arranged in a line in the transport direction of the recording medium.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a recording apparatus of a recording apparatus according to this modification. As shown in FIG. 19, the light emitting element 15 and the light receiving element 16 of the optical unit 14 are arranged so as to be arranged along the recording medium transport direction (arrow F).

When the light emitting element and the light receiving element are arranged as described above, the mounting error of the ink tank to the head holder and the mounting error of the head holder to the carriage are absorbed, or the head holder has two head holders. The two prisms are formed on the bottom surface of each ink tank at different positions in the recording medium transport direction so that the remaining amount of ink can be detected by one optical unit even when the prism is mounted on the carriage. The prisms are formed by being rotated by 90 ° with respect to the positions of the above-described embodiments and modified examples.

FIG. 20 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of ink tank 7 'according to this modification. As can be seen from FIG. 20, the two prisms 180a ', 180b' are formed offset from each other, and the prisms 180a ', 180b'
The cross section of the isosceles triangle is visible.

FIG. 21 shows six ink tanks 7C 'and 7M' having the same structure as the ink tank 7 'shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a view of a carriage to which these ink tanks are attached as viewed from above, in order to show the positional relationship between 7Y ′, 7LC ′, 7LM ′, and 7Bk ′ and the optical unit 14.

Then, as shown in FIG. 21, in the ink tanks 7C ', 7M', and 7Y ', the optical unit 14 is located right above the prism 180a', and the ink tank 7L '
In C ', 7LM', and 7Bk ', the optical unit 14 is located right above the prism 180b'.

As described above, the presence or absence of ink in the ink tank can be detected even when the mounting angle between the light emitting element and the light receiving element of the optical unit is shifted by 90 degrees.

In the above embodiments, the description has been made assuming that the droplets ejected from the recording head are ink, and that the liquid stored in the ink tank is ink. It is not limited. For example, an ink tank may contain a processing liquid discharged to a recording medium in order to improve the fixability and water resistance of the recorded image or to improve the image quality.

Further, since the recording apparatus described in the above embodiments can perform high-density and high-speed recording operation, the output means of the information processing system, for example, a copying machine,
Facsimile, electronic typewriter, word processor,
Printer as output terminal, such as workstation
Alternatively, it can be used as a handy or portable printer provided in a personal computer, an optical disk device, a video device, and the like. In this case, the recording device takes a form corresponding to the functions, usage patterns, and the like unique to these devices.

The present invention can be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), but can be applied to a single device (for example, a copying machine, a facsimile machine). Etc.).

[0113]

As described above, according to the present invention, the prism having the shape of a triangular prism provided at the bottom of the container of the liquid container is elongated in the prism direction, that is, in the direction of transport of the recording medium of the recording apparatus. Therefore, when a cartridge having a recording head equipped with the liquid container is attached to a recording device and recording is performed, the prism accurately captures light emitted from the optical unit of the recording device. In addition, even if there is an error in the attachment, there is an effect that the remaining ink amount can be accurately detected.

Therefore, it is possible to use the parts and members having only the assembly accuracy and the manufacturing accuracy that cause the mounting error in the remaining ink amount detection. As a result, the accurate remaining ink amount detection can be performed at low cost. be able to.

Further, when a plurality of cartridges each having a recording head having the liquid container mounted thereon are mounted on a recording apparatus, the first cartridge and the second cartridge are attached by a triangular prism. In this case, the light emitted from the optical unit of the recording device is applied to the prism provided in the liquid container mounted on the first cartridge. Since the light reaches the prism provided in the liquid storage container mounted on the cartridge, there is an effect that the remaining amount of ink in the two cartridges can be detected using one optical unit.

As a result, the optical means necessary for detecting the remaining amount of ink can be shared, and accurate detection of the remaining amount of ink can be performed at lower cost.

[0117]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a fence of a recording apparatus having a recording head that performs recording according to an ink-jet method, which is a typical embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control circuit of the printing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of an ink remaining amount detection unit 25.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a head holder 200 including the ink tank 7 and the recording head 1.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of the ink tank 7.

6 is a cross-sectional view of the ink tank 7 taken along the line AA 'shown in FIG. 5, and the bottom of the ink tank viewed from above.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the prism 180 taken along a line BB ′ shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the prism 180 taken along a line CC ′ shown in FIG.

9 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship between the optical unit 14 and a cross-sectional view of the prism 180, taken along a line CC ′ shown in FIG.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the prism 180 taken along the line BB ′ shown in FIG. 6 and a diagram showing a positional relationship between the light emitting element 15 of the optical unit 14;

11 is a sectional view of the prism 180 taken along a line BB 'shown in FIG. 6, and a diagram showing a positional relationship between the light emitting elements 15 of the optical unit 14. FIG.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a state in which two head holders 200 and 210 are attached to the carriage 2 as viewed from above the carriage.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure of an ink tank 7 according to a first modification.

14 shows six ink tanks 7C, 7M, 7Y, 7LC, and 6 having the same configuration as the ink tank 7 shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a view from above the carriage to show the positional relationship between 7LM, 7Bk and the optical unit 14;

FIG. 15 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure of an ink tank 7 according to a second modification.

16 is a cross-sectional view of the ink tank 7 shown in FIG. 15 taken along a line AA ′, and a bottom portion of the ink tank 7 viewed from above.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view of the prism 180 taken along the line BB ′ shown in FIG.

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view of the prism 180 taken along the line CC ′ shown in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a recording device of a recording device according to a fourth modification.

FIG. 20 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of an ink tank 7 'according to a fourth modification.

21 shows six ink tanks 7C ', 7M', 7Y ', and 7L having the same configuration as the ink tank 7' shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a view of a carriage on which these ink tanks are mounted as viewed from above, in order to show a positional relationship between C ′, 7LM ′, and 7Bk ′ and an optical unit 14.

FIG. 22 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between a conventional light transmission type prism provided on the bottom surface of an ink tank, a light emitting element for irradiating the prism with light, and a light receiving element for receiving the light.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording head 2 Carriage 3 Guide shaft 4 Carriage motor 5 Timing belt 6 Engagement claw 7, 7C, 7M, 7Y, 7LC, 7LM, 7Bk Ink tank 8 Platen 9 Feed motor 10 Recovery device 11 Cap 12 Wiper 13 ASF 14 Optical unit Reference Signs List 15 light emitting element 16 light receiving element 17 chassis 20 ink cartridge 30 LED drive circuit 31 low pass filter (LPF) 32 controller 120 atmosphere communication port 140 ink supply cylinder 140A ink supply ports 180, 180a, 180a ', 180b, 180
b ', 180c Prism 181 Prism recess 200, 210 Head holder 320 Absorber 340 Negative pressure generating member storage chamber 360 Liquid storage chamber 380 Partition wall 400 Communication port 420 Rib 440 Air buffer chamber 460 Pressure contact body 1060 Prism 1061 Tank bottom 1062 Light emitting element 1063 Light receiving element

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroshi Koshikawa 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in Canon Inc. (reference) 2C056 EA24 EA29 EB20 EB52 FA03 FA10 HA07 KC01 KC11 KC16 KC22 KD06

Claims (18)

[Claims] A liquid storage portion capable of directly storing a liquid; a liquid supply port capable of supplying a liquid stored in the liquid storage portion to the outside; a surface forming an outer wall surface of the liquid storage portion; Having a plurality of reflecting surfaces different from the surface and forming an interface with the liquid so as to have a predetermined angle with respect to an optical path of light emitted from a light source at a predetermined external position, A liquid container having a substantially polygonal prism formed by a light transmissive member, wherein the liquid container has a flat shape, and a surface that forms the flat shape and a direction in which a column formed by the prism extends. And the liquid container in the same direction. 2. The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the prism is molded integrally with the liquid container. 3. The liquid container according to claim 2, wherein the prism is divided into a plurality of pieces in a prism direction of the prism and is formed. 4. The liquid container is molded integrally with a center of the prism such that a space that is concave from the outside to the inside of the liquid container is provided at a central portion of the prism. Item 3. A liquid container according to Item 2. 5. The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein a cross section of the prism perpendicular to the prism direction has an isosceles triangle shape. 6. The liquid container according to claim 5, wherein a length of the prism in a prism direction is longer than a length of a base of the isosceles triangle. 7. The liquid storage device according to claim 1, further comprising a liquid holding member housing portion housing a liquid holding member, wherein the housing portion and the liquid holding member housing portion are connected to each other by a communication path. The liquid storage container according to the above. 8. The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the liquid is ink. 9. The processing liquid discharged to the recording medium in order to improve fixability and water resistance of an image recorded on the recording medium with ink, and to enhance the quality of the image. The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein: 10. A cartridge including the liquid storage container according to claim 1, wherein a recording head that discharges the liquid stored in the liquid storage container, and a plurality of the liquid storage containers are held. And a holder for performing the operation. 11. The cartridge according to claim 10, wherein the liquid container is separable from the holder. 12. The cartridge according to claim 10, wherein the recording head is an inkjet recording head that performs recording by discharging ink. 13. The ink jet recording head according to claim 12, further comprising a thermal energy converter for generating thermal energy to be applied to the ink in order to discharge the ink using thermal energy. A cartridge according to claim 1. 14. A recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium using the cartridge according to claim 10, wherein the prism irradiates light and reflects light reflected from the prism. Optical means for receiving light, detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a liquid contained in the ink tank based on reflected light received by the optical means, based on a detection result obtained by the detecting means, A control unit for controlling a recording operation by the recording head. 15. A scanning device for reciprocatingly mounting a plurality of cartridges thereon, and a transporting device for transporting the recording medium, wherein the first cartridge and the second cartridge are among the plurality of cartridges. The cartridge is mounted on the scanning unit so as to be shifted from each other with respect to the transport direction of the recording medium by the transporting unit, and the liquid mounted on the first cartridge is moved by the movement of the first and second cartridges by the scanning unit. 15. The recording apparatus according to claim 14, wherein both the prism of the storage container and the prism of the liquid storage container mounted on the second cartridge are irradiated with light from the optical unit. 16. The recording apparatus according to claim 15, wherein an amount of deviation between the first cartridge and the second cartridge is smaller than a length of the prism in a prism direction. 17. The optical unit includes a light emitting element that emits light and a light receiving element that receives light, wherein the light emitting element and the light receiving element are arranged along a scanning direction of the scanning unit. The recording apparatus according to claim 15, wherein: 18. A recording head that performs recording by discharging a liquid, a liquid storage container that stores a liquid that is discharged from the recording head, and a scanning unit that reciprocates by mounting the recording head and the liquid storage container. An optical unit provided in the vicinity of the scanning unit, the light unit irradiating light to the liquid container, and a light receiving unit receiving reflected light of the light; and the liquid container received by the optical unit. A liquid ejection recording device comprising: a detection unit configured to detect presence or absence of a liquid stored in the liquid storage container based on reflected light of light applied to the container. A surface constituting a wall surface and a plurality of reflection surfaces different from the surface and forming an interface with a liquid having a predetermined angle with respect to an optical path of light emitted from the light emitting unit. Have, light A substantially polygonal prism formed by a transmissive member; and the scanning means includes: A liquid ejection recording apparatus comprising a container.