JP2000280492A - Manufacture of negative pressure-generating member, negative pressure-generating member using the same, ink tank, and ink feed member - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To produce a negative pressure-generating member which is simple to manufacture, is superior in productivity and can realize stable supply of ink. SOLUTION: A sliver 43 of two kinds of thermoplastic synthetic fibers of different melting points is produced, which is passed through a pipe-shaped member 71 to align a fiber orientation. The sliver is preheated in a clean oven 44 to a temperature not lower than a lowest melting point and not higher than a highest melting point of the synthetic resins, and then heated again in a hot-air oven 74 to a temperature not lower than the lowest melting point and not higher than the highest melting point of the synthetic resins. The sliver is passed at a constant velocity through a nozzle 46 having a desired throttling diameter, and cut to a desired length.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for producing a negative pressure generating member for generating and maintaining a liquid such as ink by generating a negative pressure, and a negative pressure produced by the method. The present invention relates to a generating member, an ink tank and an ink supply member, and more specifically, a method for producing a negative pressure generating member made of thermoplastic synthetic fiber which can be suitably used in the field of ink jet recording, and a negative pressure generating member produced by the producing method. And an ink tank and an ink supply member.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in the field of ink jet recording, an ink tank having a mechanism for generating a negative pressure in order to stably hold ink and prevent ink leakage from a discharge section such as a nozzle provided in a recording means is known. Are known.

As one of the easiest methods for generating a negative pressure, there is a method utilizing a capillary force of a porous body or the like. In this method, the ink tank is housed inside the ink tank for the purpose of storing the ink, preferably a porous body such as a sponge housed in a compressed state, and air is taken into the ink housing section to smoothly supply the ink during printing. And a possible air communication port.

In such a configuration, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-7988
As disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2000-214, there is known an apparatus using an ink absorber made of fibers instead of a porous body. In the case where the ink tank is configured to be detachable from the ejection unit, an ink supply member formed of a fiber bundle, for example, as disclosed in JP-A-7-81083 is provided at the ink supply port to the ejection unit of the ink tank. It is known.

[0005] As a method of manufacturing such a negative pressure generating member made of fibers such as an ink supply member and an ink absorber, there are the following methods.
A method of simply inserting a fiber into a housing and a method of punching a laminated felt are known.

[0006]

However, of the above-described manufacturing methods, in the method of simply inserting fibers into the housing, the fibers are converged in a bundle due to the filling of ink, and the ink cannot be retained. In the method of punching the laminated felt, there is a possibility that stable ink supply may be hindered, for example, the ink may run out between the laminated felts.

On the other hand, the present applicant has disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-183236.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. HEI 9-26139 proposes a method in which a fiber mass is inserted into a desired mold, followed by compression thermoforming. This method is particularly effective when the ink absorber has a complicated shape.

[0008] However, by inserting the fiber mass into the mold,
It is difficult to mass-produce the ink in a short time because it is manufactured one by one. Particularly, in a simple shape (for example, a cylindrical shape) such as an ink supply member, a stable ink supply is not hindered as a negative pressure generating member. In addition, there has been a demand for a manufacturing method with even higher production efficiency.

As a method of forming a negative pressure generating member such as an ink supply member by a fiber bundle, as shown in FIG. 14, long fibers oriented in almost one direction are bundled, and the fibers are bound with a resinous binder (binder). There is a method of curing from the outer peripheral portion of the bundle (disclosed in JP-A-7-81080). Also,
As shown in FIG. 15, there is a method of laminating a plurality of sheet-shaped fiber bundles (webs), then physically entangled the fibers by a needle punch method or the like to form a laminated felt sheet, and punching out this.

In the case of the method using a binder, the binder impregnated region is impregnated between the fibers, so that the capillary force is extremely high or the ink does not pass at all. is there. As described above, since the portion impregnated with the binder does not absorb the ink, the ink storage efficiency deteriorates. Therefore, in order to secure the ink flow necessary for the ink supply member, the ink flow direction A is considered in consideration of the non-absorbing portion (the binder-impregnated region portion) 301 of the surface layer.
It is necessary to increase the cross-sectional area of the plane perpendicular to the plane. And
Accordingly, the size of the ink supply member is increased. In addition, even when used as an absorber incorporated in the ink tank,
In order to obtain a sufficient ink absorption amount, it is necessary to increase the volume in consideration of the non-absorptive portion (binder-impregnated region portion) 301 of the surface layer portion, so that the ink absorber also becomes large. Eventually, the size of the ink tank and the entire inkjet recording apparatus may be increased.

[0011] Central region 302 without binder impregnation.
The fibers are not fixed to each other. That is,
The shape is maintained only by the pressing force between the fibers.
Therefore, when used as an ink supply member, FIG.
When pressed by an ink supply pipe 303 for supplying ink to an inkjet head (not shown) as shown in
The fibers in the central region 302 that are not fixed with the binder may slip, causing deformation as shown in FIG. Furthermore, when a large-sized member is formed, the portion 302 not fixed by the binder becomes large, and the shape cannot be maintained only by the pressing force of the fibers, and some fibers may fall off. Therefore, the size of the ink absorber formed by this method is limited. As mentioned above,
A non-absorbing portion (a portion impregnated with a binder) 301 exists;
In addition, since there is a limit in increasing the size, it is difficult to absorb a large amount of ink. Also, if you want to reduce the ink holding power,
It is necessary to reduce the fiber density. However, if the fiber density is low, the pressing force between the fibers becomes small, and it becomes difficult to maintain the shape. Thus, it is difficult to adjust the ink holding force.

Further, a portion 3 where the fibers are not fixed to each other
02, when used as an ink supply member, a sufficient repulsive force against the head side supply pipe 303 cannot be obtained. As a result, poor adhesion with the head side supply pipe 303 occurs, and ink may not be supplied to the inkjet head, which may cause a printing failure. As a measure against this,
Utilizing the repulsive force of an ink absorber (not shown) provided above the ink supply member 300, the close contact between the head side supply pipe 303 and the ink supply member 300 is ensured. For that purpose, it was necessary to sufficiently insert the head side supply pipe 303 into the ink tank. That is, a space necessary for fully inserting the head side supply pipe 303 shown in FIG. 14 is required. Such a configuration generally requires an insertion space having a length of about 2 to 4 mm. As a result, since the head-side supply pipe 303 becomes longer, the amount of ink suction at the time of a recovery operation performed to supply ink from the ink tank to the ink jet head at the time of ink tank replacement or the like increases. This leads to an increase in the size of the waste ink absorber provided in the printer, which in turn leads to an increase in the size of the ink jet recording apparatus.

[0013] In order to fix the fibers together without using a binder, it is conceivable to use heat bonding fibers. When the fibers enter, the ink absorbency (capillary force) is lost, so that the fibers at the center are not held together by thermal bonding but are held together only by the pressing force of the fibers. Therefore, the configuration is substantially the same as the case where the above-mentioned binder is used, and the same problem exists.

On the other hand, according to the method of punching a laminated felt sheet as shown in FIG. 15, since the shape is maintained by entanglement of the fibers, a network of fibers which are physically entangled when subjected to a local force. May open and a desired ink holding power may not be obtained. In order to avoid this, the ink supply member needs to have a certain thickness. As a result, a dead space is generated in the ink tank, and the ink may seep into the dead space to cause ink leakage, or the ink tank may be increased in size.

In the case of manufacturing by such a method, it is generally difficult to form an extremely thick sheet because the number of stacked sheets is limited. Therefore, when used as an absorber in an ink tank, a plurality of laminated felt sheets (ink absorbers) formed by punching are stacked to obtain an absorber having a desired height according to the size of the ink tank. ing. However, in this case, there are problems such as an increase in the number of parts, an increase in the number of working steps and an increase in manufacturing cost, and a decrease in the reliability of ink distribution between the laminated felt sheets.

Further, when this negative pressure generating member is used as an ink supply member connecting the ink tank and the head,
Since the fiber direction B is substantially orthogonal to the ink flow direction A, the flow resistance at the time of ink supply is increased. In order to ensure a sufficient amount of ink supply, the ink supply member 305 needs to have a large area. As the ink supply member 305 increases in size, the ink tank increases in size. As the size of the ink supply member 305 increases, the cross-sectional area of the head-side supply pipe 303 that contacts the ink supply member also increases.
As in the above example, the amount of ink suction during a recovery operation performed to supply ink from the ink tank to the inkjet head when the ink tank is replaced or the like increases, and the waste ink absorption provided in the inkjet recording apparatus is increased. The size of the body increases, which in turn leads to an increase in the size of the ink jet recording apparatus.

Further, when the ink supply member 305 having a round shape as shown in FIG. 15 is formed by this method, many portions are cut off when punching out from a sheet, resulting in poor material efficiency and an increase in manufacturing cost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, to provide a manufacturing method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member which is simple in manufacturing process, has excellent productivity, and can realize stable ink supply, and a method for manufacturing the same. A negative pressure generating member to be manufactured;
An object of the present invention is to provide an ink tank and an ink supply member.

[0019]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member having two types of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points from each other. A sliver manufacturing process, a preheating step of heating the sliver to a temperature not lower than the lowest melting point of the synthetic fibers and not higher than the highest melting point, and the sliver after the preheating step is not lower than the lowest melting point of the synthetic fibers and the most. While heating to a temperature below the high melting point,
A fiber bundle forming step of forming a fiber bundle by passing the nozzle at a constant speed through a nozzle having a desired diameter and kept at about room temperature.

Alternatively, in a method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member having two types of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points from each other, a sliver manufacturing step of manufacturing a fiber sliver, and inserting the sliver through a pipe-like member,
Synthesizing the sliver after the pre-shaping process to adjust the outer shape of the sliver, the pre-heating process to heat the sliver after the pre-shaping process to a temperature between the lowest melting point and the highest melting point of the synthetic fibers, and Heating the fiber to a temperature equal to or higher than the lowest melting point and equal to or lower than the highest melting point of the fibers, and passing the fiber through a nozzle having a desired throttle diameter at a constant speed to form a fiber bundle. And

According to these manufacturing methods, since a fiber bundle can be continuously formed using a sliver, it is possible to easily manufacture a negative pressure generating member capable of generating an optimum negative pressure particularly in the field of ink jet recording. .

Since the intersections between the fibers of the sliver can be fused in the preheating step, the sliver is prevented from being deformed in the tensile direction in the fiber bundle forming step. Then, after heating, by passing through a nozzle held at about room temperature, that is, a nozzle held at a temperature sufficiently lower than the heating temperature, the surface of the intersection between the fibers of the fiber bundle having a desired cross-sectional shape Can be reliably fused from the intersection located in the region close to. For this reason,
It is possible to obtain a negative pressure generating member that can reliably maintain a desired shape and generate a uniform and stable negative pressure.

Further, by cutting the formed fiber bundle into a desired length, a tubular or prismatic negative pressure generating member can be easily and continuously formed, and the manufacturing process is simplified. It is excellent in productivity and can provide negative pressure generating members such as ink absorbers and ink supply members at low cost.

The pipe-shaped member has an inlet having a diameter larger than a desired throttle diameter, an outlet having the same diameter as the inlet, and a through-hole communicating the inlet and the outlet. Is preferred. In this case, since the sliver slides while the outer peripheral portion abuts at least two locations of the inlet and the outlet of the pipe-shaped member, the fiber of the surface portion of the sliver is oriented twice by one insertion. Since the inside of the sliver is not affected so much, there is a difference in the uniformity of the fiber direction between the sliver surface layer portion and the inside. Also, as the diameter is reduced, the fiber density of the surface layer of the sliver becomes denser than the fiber density inside.

The preheating step is a step of passing the sliver through the high-temperature atmosphere at a constant speed, and the sliver is preferably heated in the fiber bundle forming step by blowing hot air on the sliver. If the configuration is such that hot air is blown in the preheating step, the fibers are not yet bundled at the time when they are inserted into the pipe-shaped member, so that the fibers may be disturbed by the wind, and the fiber distribution may be biased in the sliver. On the other hand, in the fiber bundle forming step, if the sliver is allowed to pass through the high-temperature atmosphere at a low speed, the fibers in the surface layer may be melted, or the apparatus may be enlarged due to heating to the center of the sliver. Therefore, in the preheating step, the sliver is heated by exposing it to a high-temperature atmosphere instead of blowing hot air, and in the fiber bundle forming step, the sliver is sufficiently heated in a short time by using the hot air. The above problem can be solved.

Further, the ink tank of the present invention comprises a hollow tank main body, and a negative fiber contained in the tank main body formed of a fiber bundle such that the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction. A pressure-generating member, wherein the negative-pressure-generating member is different in at least one of the fiber direction uniformity and the fiber density between the surface layer portion and the interior surrounded by the surface layer portion, and the fibers are mutually separated. By the fact that the fusion bonding point is present over the entire area of the negative pressure generating member, the strength of the negative pressure generating member against external force applied in a direction substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction is increased, or By including fibers located in a direction in which the longitudinal direction intersects with the main fiber direction, joints where the fibers are fused to each other are present over the entire area of the negative pressure generating member.

Further, the ink supply member of the present invention is composed of a fiber bundle, and is disposed such that a main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially parallel to the ink supply direction, and includes a surface layer portion and an interior surrounded by the surface layer portion. And at least one of the fiber direction uniformity and the fiber density is different, and since the bonding points where the fibers are fused to each other are present over the entire area, the fibers are substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction. By increasing the strength against external forces applied in different directions, or by including fibers located in a direction where the longitudinal direction intersects the main fiber direction, the joining points where the fibers are fused to each other are It exists throughout.

Alternatively, the ink supply member of the present invention comprises a fiber bundle, and is disposed such that the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially orthogonal to the ink supply direction, and includes a surface layer portion and an inside surrounded by the surface layer portion. At least one of the fiber direction uniformity and the fiber density is different, and the bonding points where the fibers are fused to each other are present over the entire area, so that the fibers are substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction. By increasing the strength against external force applied in the direction, or by including fibers positioned in a direction in which the longitudinal direction intersects the main fiber direction, the joining points where the fibers are fused to each other are formed over the entire area. It exists.

When the fiber bundle is made of crimped short fibers, it is easy to adopt a configuration in which the joining points where the fibers are fused to each other are present over the entire area.

[0030]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIGS. 1 to 8 are explanatory views for explaining an example of a manufacturing method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, two different melting points are used.
After cutting a kind (two or more kinds) of thermoplastic synthetic fiber tow, the cut tow is blown and passed through a carding machine 41. Then, the complicatedly entangled fibers are loosened, the fiber directions are almost uniform, and a sheet-like web 1 with a stable basis weight is obtained.
043. The sliver 43, which is a short fiber aggregate, is manufactured by bundling this with the roller 42.
01). In the present embodiment, the webs 1043 are bundled by the rollers 42. However, this is not limited to the rollers. For example, the sliver 43 can be easily obtained by passing the webs through a ring-shaped member. In this embodiment,
A sliver 43 was manufactured by preparing a core-sheath fiber tow having a sheath 1a of polyethylene fiber having a melting point of about 132 ° C. and a core 1b of polypropylene fiber having a melting point of about 180 ° C. as shown in FIG. . In the present embodiment, the sliver 43 passed through the carding machine 41 is wound into a can having a diameter of about 70 cm in a coil shape, and a desired number of slivers are bundled. here,
The number of slivers to be bundled differs depending on the type of the fiber member to be manufactured. In the case of manufacturing the ink absorber, the number is eight and the number of the ink supply member is about three. As shown in FIG.
The bundled sliver is about 90mm inside diameter and about 25mm long
(S102). Ring 70
Has a stroke of about 2 in the direction intersecting the fiber feeding direction.
It reciprocates at a frequency of about 0 to 40 mm and a frequency of about 2 Hz to stabilize the thickness of the bundled sliver 1044.

The core-sheath fiber is not limited to the concentric shape as shown in FIG. 3A, but the core material 1b may be deviated in the sheath material 1a as shown in FIG. 3B. . Also,
Instead of the core-sheath fiber shown in FIG. 3, a blended fiber obtained by mixing a polyethylene fiber and a polypropylene fiber may be used. The material of the synthetic fiber is not limited to the above-mentioned polyethylene and polypropylene, but may be another material. If two kinds of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points are used, other materials may be mixed. Good. The sliver 43 manufactured in this manner is continuously inserted into the pipe-shaped member 71 having a length of about 300 mm without cutting. As shown in FIG. 5, this pipe-shaped member 71 has an inlet port 71a and an outlet port 71b having an inner diameter of about 60 mm at both ends.
And the inner diameter of the through hole 71c that connects the two is about 90 mm
It is. When passing through this pipe-shaped member 71, the surface layer of the fiber has a narrowed area of about 60 mm in diameter (introduction port 71a).
And two passes through the outlet 71b), so that the direction of the fibers of the surface layer of the bundled sliver 1044 is more uniform in the moving direction of the bundled sliver 1044 than before the passage. The bundled sliver 1044 is
Since the fibers are formed to pass through the carding machine 41, the fiber directions are aligned to some extent in one direction. However, when passing through the pipe-shaped member 71, the moving direction and the main direction of the fibers match, so that Fiber directions are aligned. In particular, the surface portion of the bundled sliver 1044 is more uniform than the inside. The passage of the pipe-shaped member 71 has a function of stabilizing the thickness of the bundled slivers 1044 and stabilizing the amount of fibers supplied to a downstream preheating step described later.

In this embodiment, the pipe-shaped member 71 is used.
Is cooled by a cooling water pipe 72, and is cooled by the cooling water pipe 72 even if the heat in the preheating step described later is transmitted through the bundled sliver 1044. The sliver 1044 is not melted. Further, by providing the cooling water pipe 72 in this way, there is an advantage that desired performance can be exerted even in the vicinity of a clean oven 44 for a preheating step described later.

Next, a preheating step is performed by passing the bundled sliver 1044 having passed through the pipe-shaped member 71 in this way through a clean oven 44 as a heating device (S104). Here, the clean oven 44 according to the present embodiment includes a portion (upstream opening) for receiving the supply of the bundled sliver 1044 and a portion (downstream opening) for leading the fibers to a reheating step (fiber bundle forming step) described later. The temperature inside the clean oven 44 is higher than the melting point of the material having the lowest melting point and lower than the melting point of the material having the highest melting point among the thermoplastic synthetic fibers constituting the sliver 43 described above. It has become. In the present embodiment, heating in the clean oven 44 is performed by keeping the inside of the clean oven 44 at 150 to 155 ° C. and moving the sliver 1044 bundled by the transport belt 47 provided on the downstream opening side at a predetermined speed. I do. In the case of the present embodiment, 10 mm / se
c. In the case of the ink supply member, the moving speed is about 15 mm / sec., and the length of the bundled sliver 1044 in the clean oven 44 in the moving direction is about 700 mm.
Therefore, heating is performed for about 60 seconds. In this embodiment, the sliver having a diameter of about 60 mm at the upstream opening has a diameter of about 50 mm at the downstream outlet.

In the preheating step, the bundled slivers 1044 move in the high-temperature closed space, and the surface of the bundled slivers 1044 is moved to the clean oven 44.
, But the heat is not sufficiently transmitted to the center. Therefore, the bundled sliver 10
While the fluff on the surface of 44 is suppressed and the contact points between the fibers in the surface layer are heat-fused, the fibers inside are not melted and the contact points between the fibers are not joined and are maintained in a freely detachable state. ing. In this embodiment, the polyethylene fiber is melted and plays a role as an adhesive, and the intersection (contact point) of the core polypropylene fiber is substantially fixed in the bundled fiber of the sliver 1044 surface layer. As a result, the slivers 1044 bundled in the fiber bundle forming step are prevented from being deformed in the pulling direction.

Thereafter, the bundled slivers 1044 to which at least the intersections between the fibers of the surface layer are fused are passed through the hot blast furnace 74 to be reheated (S105). The hot blast stove 74 of this embodiment is provided continuously at the downstream opening of the clean oven 44 described above. This hot blast stove 74
Has a cylindrical shape with a length of about 600 mm and an inner diameter of about 80 mm in the moving direction of the bundled sliver 1044, and hot air is blown from a large number of hot air holes provided in the side wall of the tube in a direction intersecting the moving direction of the fiber. It sprays. From the viewpoint of fusing the intersections between the fibers, the heating temperature in the reheating step is also higher than the melting point of the material having the lowest melting point and the material having the highest melting point among the thermoplastic synthetic fibers constituting the bundled sliver 1044. It is desirable that the temperature is lower than the melting point. In this embodiment, hot air of about 140 to 145 ° C. is blown. As a result, the thickness of the fiber bundle at the downstream end of the hot blast stove 74 is about 40 mm in diameter.

In this reheating step, the intersections between the fibers of the sliver surface layer are already fused, so that even if hot air is blown, the fibers are not unevenly fused. In addition, although the sliver surface layer is fused at the intersections between the fibers, it is not sealed, and because air and ink can pass through, heat transfer to the inside by blowing hot air Done effectively. As a result, the intersections between the fibers inside the sliver can be fused. Thereafter, the sliver 1044 becomes the fiber bundle 48 by passing through the nozzle 46 by the transport belt 47 provided on the downstream side (S106). Here, in this embodiment, since the nozzle 46 is provided in a region about 10 mm away from the hot blast stove 74, its temperature is about 90 to 100 ° C., which is lower than the heating temperature. . In this way, by passing through the nozzle 46 provided adjacent to the hot blast stove 74, a desired cross-sectional shape is obtained, and in this state, the intersections between the fibers of the fiber bundle are reliably fused. Here, the sliver 10 that has passed through the hot stove 74
The inner diameter of the nozzle 46 is smaller than that of the nozzle 44 (for example,
m) Therefore, when passing through the nozzle 46, the surface layer of the sliver 1044 is rubbed in the nozzle 46, so that the fibers of the surface layer are more aligned in the direction of movement of the fiber bundle than before the passage. Become like As described above, in the present embodiment, the fiber direction of the surface layer portion is previously aligned by the pipe-shaped member 71 before the preheating step, and then the fiber direction of the surface layer portion is also passed through the nozzle 46 that forms the final shape. All the processes have an effect of aligning the fiber direction more in the surface layer portion than in the inside of the fiber bundle.

The fiber bundle 4 formed through the nozzle 46
8 is then left in the air and completely cooled down to its center, and then cut to a desired length by the cutter 49 (S107), so that it does not lose its shape. In this manner, a desired negative pressure generating member (ink supply member, ink absorber, etc.) 50 can be manufactured.

The cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle after passing through the nozzle 46 is slightly larger than the cross-sectional shape of the nozzle 46. However, when the passing speed of the sliver 1044 through the nozzle 46 is high, the cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle is smaller than when the sliver 1044 is low. Also fiber bundle 4
8 tends to be larger. Further, even when the same nozzle is passed at the same speed, the cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle 48 increases as the number of passes increases.
It approaches the cross-sectional shape. Therefore, if necessary, the step of cooling and reheating to pass through the nozzle may be repeated a plurality of times. In particular, when the diameter of the sliver is larger than the diameter of the desired fiber bundle, as shown in FIG. 6, the nozzles 80a, 80b, 80c
It is desirable to sequentially reduce the cross-sectional shape of each in the order of 80a, 80b, and 80c. In FIG. 6, a heating device for reheating is omitted. As described above, the main part of the present embodiment has been described, but according to the above-described manufacturing method,
By cutting the formed fiber bundle 48 to a desired length,
A cylindrical or prismatic negative pressure generating member 50 as shown in FIG.
Can be easily formed, the production is simple, and the productivity is excellent. Therefore, the negative pressure generating member 50 such as the ink absorber and the ink supply member can be provided at low cost. Note that, depending on the manufacturing apparatus (particularly, the heating apparatus), the slivers may not be all processed in a continuous state, but may be cut in units of several meters, and then the preheating step and the subsequent steps may be performed. This makes it possible to perform each step separately.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to the present invention. FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to the present invention.

In FIG. 8, after cutting two (or more) kinds of thermoplastic synthetic fiber tows having different melting points from each other, the cut tow is blown and passed through a carding machine 41.
Then, the fibers intricately entangled are loosened, and are processed into a sheet-like web having a substantially uniform fiber direction and a stable basis weight. The sliver 43, which is a short fiber aggregate, is manufactured by bundling this with the roller 42 (S201).

In this embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, a polyethylene fiber having a melting point of about 132.degree. C. as shown in FIG. A sliver was prepared by preparing a core-sheath fiber tow of 1b. The raw material may be supplied to a carding machine after using a short fiber mass instead of the tow and passing through a fiber opening step. Also,
In order to obtain the required amount of sliver, slivers obtained from a plurality of carding machines may be bundled in the required amount.

The core-sheath fiber is not limited to the concentric shape as shown in FIG. 3A, but the core material 1b may be deviated in the sheath material 1a as shown in FIG. 3B. . Also,
Instead of the core-sheath fiber shown in FIG. 3, a blended fiber obtained by mixing a polyethylene fiber and a polypropylene fiber may be used. The material of the synthetic fiber is not limited to the above-mentioned polyethylene and polypropylene, but may be another material. If two kinds of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points are used, other materials may be mixed. Good. Preheating is performed by passing the sliver 43 manufactured as described above through the heating device 44 (S202). The preheating temperature of the heating device is preferably higher than the melting point of the material having the lowest melting point and lower than the melting point of the material having the highest melting point among the thermoplastic synthetic fibers constituting the sliver. After performing the preheating treatment as described above, the sliver is left to cool in the air (S203). This reduces fuzz on the sliver surface,
The intersection (contact point) of the fibers in the surface layer portion of the sliver can be thermally fused. In this embodiment, the polyethylene fibers are melted and serve as an adhesive, and the intersections of the core polypropylene fibers are substantially fixed. As a result, the sliver is prevented from being deformed in the pulling direction in the fiber bundle forming step. Note that the cooling step is not essential, and the reheating step described later may be continuously performed depending on the heating temperature at the time of preheating.

In this preheating step, if hot air is blown onto the sliver, the sliver may be unevenly fused depending on the strength of the wind, and a negative pressure generating member having a uniform fiber density may not be obtained. In the present embodiment, heating was performed by keeping the inside of the heating device at 155 ° C. and moving the sliver at a predetermined speed by the transport belt 47 in the heating device.

Thereafter, the sliver to which at least the intersections between the fibers of the surface layer are fused is passed through a heating device 45 different from the above-mentioned heating device and reheated (S20).
4). The heating temperature in this reheating step is also higher than the melting point of the material with the lowest melting point and the melting point of the material with the highest melting point among the thermoplastic synthetic fibers constituting the sliver from the viewpoint of fusing the intersections between the fibers. Lower temperatures are desirable. In this reheating step, when passing through a nozzle described later, in order to fuse also the intersections between the fibers inside the sliver, the sliver is held at a constant speed in a space maintained at a predetermined temperature like a preheating device. When heating is performed by moving the sliver, it is desirable to increase the time required for the sliver to pass through the heating space. In the reheating state, since the intersections between the fibers of the sliver surface layer are fused, the inside of the sliver can be heated in a short time by blowing hot air instead of lengthening the heating time. In this embodiment, reheating is performed by blowing hot air of about 140 ° C.

The sliver that has been reheated is fed to the conveyor belt 4.
7, a fiber bundle 48 is formed by passing through a nozzle 46 maintained at a temperature of about normal temperature (25 ° C.) (S20).
5). Here, by maintaining the temperature of the nozzle sufficiently lower than the heating temperature of the heating devices 44 and 45 (about 150 ° C.), the intersection between the fibers of the fiber bundle having the desired cross-sectional shape after passing through the nozzle is obtained. Among them, it is possible to reliably perform fusion from an intersection located in a region near the surface. As a result, it is possible to obtain a negative pressure generating member capable of reliably maintaining a desired shape and generating a uniform and stable negative pressure.

The reason why the temperature of the nozzle is controlled is as follows.
This is because the temperature of the nozzle that is always in contact with the heated sliver may increase, and the moldability may deteriorate. In this embodiment, the temperature of the nozzle is reduced to approximately room temperature (2
(5 ° C. ± 10 ° C.). This adjustment temperature may be sufficiently lower than the lowest melting point of the fiber material used. The fiber bundle 48 formed after passing through the nozzle is then left in the atmosphere to be completely cooled to its center, and cut to a desired length by the cutter 49 (S206), causing a shape loss or the like. Without the ink supply member 50
And the like can be manufactured. The cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle after passing through the nozzle is larger than the cross-sectional shape of the nozzle.However, when the passing speed of the fiber bundle through the nozzle is high, the cross-sectional area of the fiber bundle is larger than the cross-sectional shape of the nozzle. Tends to be larger. Even when the same nozzle is passed at the same speed, the cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle becomes closer to the nozzle cross-sectional shape as the number of passes increases. Therefore, if necessary, the step of cooling and reheating to pass through the nozzle may be repeated a plurality of times. In particular, when the diameter of the sliver is larger than the diameter of the fiber bundle to be obtained, as shown in FIG. 3, when passing through a plurality of nozzles, the cross-sectional shapes of the nozzles 80a, 80b, 80c are sequentially reduced. It is desirable. In FIG. 3,
A heating device for reheating is omitted.

The main part of the present invention has been described above.
According to the above-described manufacturing method, by cutting the formed fiber bundle into a desired length, it is possible to easily form a cylindrical or prismatic negative pressure generating member, and the manufacturing process is simplified. Excellent productivity. Therefore, negative pressure generating members such as ink absorbers and ink supply members can be provided at low cost.
In addition, after cutting the sliver manufactured in S201 by several meters depending on the manufacturing device (especially the heating device),
Steps following the preheating shown in S202 may be performed. By doing so, each step can be separated, so that a common heating device can be used for the preheating step and the reheating step, for example.

In the above-described embodiment, since a sliver is used instead of a tow, in the step of forming a fiber bundle by passing through the above-described nozzle, a negative pressure generation capable of generating an optimum negative pressure for an ink jet recording apparatus. A fiber bundle serving as a member can be easily manufactured. According to the study of the present inventors, a sliver having a fiber diameter of 10 μm to 50 μm is prepared, and the fiber density is set to 0.0
With ^{5g / cm 3 ~0.40g / cm 3} , confirm that the ink tank comprising an ink absorber using the negative pressure generating member which is produced, it is possible to generate a number 10MmAq. Negative pressure level did it.

FIGS. 10A and 10B show an example of the ink supply member 50 and the ink absorber 60 manufactured by the above-described manufacturing method. In the present embodiment, since the olefin-based material is used as the fiber material of the ink absorber 60 and the ink supply member 50, it is excellent in chemical resistance, and there is a possibility that the ink used may cause elution during storage. And the ink can be kept in a stable state for a long time. In addition, in both the ink absorber 60 and the ink supply member 50, the surface layers 50a and 60a
Although the capillary force was slightly higher than that at the center, no region where the fiber density was locally high in the fiber direction was found.

FIG. 10C is a sectional view of an ink tank provided with the ink supply member and the ink absorber shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B. In FIG. 10C, the casing 10 has an atmosphere communication port 11 for communicating the inside of the casing with the atmosphere, and an ink supply port 12 for supplying a liquid (ink) contained in the casing to the outside. Are provided, and the ink absorber 60 is housed therein. An ink supply member 50 having a higher capillary force than the ink absorber 60 is provided between the ink supply port and the ink absorber.

The fiber direction of the negative pressure generating member inserted into the ink tank and the ink supply direction are not limited to the present embodiment, and the fiber direction and the ink supply direction do not have to coincide with each other. In the ink tank, since the fiber directions of the ink absorber and the ink supply member are aligned with the ink supply direction of the ink tank, there is a variation in products such as an unnecessary fiber density bias that hinders stable ink supply. Is less.

In the above-described ink tank, the casing 10, the ink absorber 60, and the ink supply member 50 are all formed of an olefin-based material. It is easier to use.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 11 shows another embodiment in which the negative pressure generating member of the present invention comprising a fiber bundle as described above is housed in an ink tank.

The ink tank includes a tank main body 81 having an ink supply port 82 for supplying ink (including a liquid such as a processing liquid) to the outside such as a recording head for performing recording by discharging a liquid from a discharge port. There is provided a negative pressure generating member (ink absorber) 83 made of a blend fiber of polypropylene and polyethylene, which is housed in the tank body 81. The tank main body 81 has an air communication port 85 for communicating the negative pressure generating member 83 housed therein and the outside air. An ink supply member 86 is attached to the ink supply port 82.

The ink absorber 83 of this embodiment will be described in more detail. The negative pressure generating member 83 of the present embodiment includes:
It is made of a blend fiber of polypropylene and polyethylene, and the length of each fiber constituting the ink absorber 83 of this embodiment is about 60 mm. As shown in FIG. 3, the cross-sectional shape of the fiber is substantially concentric and formed by using polyethylene having a relatively low melting point as the sheath 1a and polypropylene having a relatively high melting point as the core 1b. The ink absorber 83 of this embodiment heats the fiber mass made of such short fibers after aligning the fiber direction with a carding machine (the heating temperature is higher than the melting point of polyethylene having a relatively low melting point, The temperature is preferably lower than the melting point of polypropylene having a relatively high melting point), and is manufactured by cutting into a desired length.

As shown in FIG. 11 (c), each fiber is continuously arranged mainly in a longitudinal direction (F1) prepared by a carding machine and in a direction (F) orthogonal to the longitudinal direction (F1).
The structure 2) has a structure in which a part of the contact points (intersection points) between the fibers is fused by heating to have a connection. For this reason, the ink absorber 83 is hardly broken even if it is pulled in the direction F1 in the figure, but is easily separated as compared with the case in the direction F1 because the connection between the fibers is broken when pulled in the direction F2 in the figure. .

The crimped short fibers as shown in FIG. 11 (c) are heated in a state where the fiber directions are aligned to some extent, so that the state becomes as shown in FIG. 11 (d). Here, in the region α where a plurality of short fibers are overlapped in the fiber direction in FIG. 11C, the intersections are fused as shown in FIG. 11D, and as a result, the direction F1 shown in FIG. Is difficult to cut. Further, by using crimped short fibers, the end regions (β, γ shown in FIG. 11C) of the short fibers are three-dimensionally separated from other short fibers as shown in FIG. 11D. It fuses (β) or remains as an end (γ).
In addition, since not all fibers are aligned in the same direction, the short fibers that are in contact with the other short fibers at an angle so as to intersect with the other short fibers (ε shown in FIG. 11C) ) Are directly fused after heating (FIG. 11D).
Ε). In this way, fibers having higher strength in the F2 direction than in the conventional one-way fiber bundle are formed.

In a negative pressure generating member composed of a unidirectional fiber bundle,
Although the capillary force is generated by the gap between the fibers, the main fiber direction (F1) exists in the ink absorber 83 of the present embodiment because the main fiber direction (F1) exists in this manner.
And the fiber direction (F2) perpendicular thereto, the flowability of the ink and the manner of holding the ink in a stationary state differ.

In this embodiment, such an ink absorber 8
3 are arranged such that the main fiber direction (F1) is substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction. Therefore, the gas-liquid interface in the negative pressure generating member is substantially parallel to the main fiber direction F1, and even when a change due to an environmental change occurs, the gas-liquid interface is substantially horizontal (substantially in the vertical direction). , The gas-liquid interface returns to its original position when the environmental fluctuations subside. The variation in the vertical direction of the gas-liquid interface L does not increase according to the number of cycles of the environmental change unlike the related art.

By determining the main fiber direction of the ink absorber 83 in this way, it is possible to suppress the variation of the gas-liquid interface with respect to the direction of gravity.

Here, if the fiber arrangement direction is slightly inclined from the vertical direction, the above effect can be obtained even if it is theoretically slight, but in practice, it is approximately ± 3 with respect to the horizontal plane.
When it was in the range of 0 degrees, a clear effect was confirmed. Therefore, the expression “substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction” or “substantially horizontal” includes the above-described inclination in this specification.

When the ink is consumed, the interface between the ink and the gas decreases stably in a substantially horizontal direction. Therefore, when a plurality of tanks of the same type are mounted, the position of the supply port is set within the bottom surface. The tank does not need to be common, and can be arranged freely. For example, even if one is arranged at the center of the bottom as shown in FIG. 11E and the other is arranged at the corner of the bottom as shown in FIG. Is suppressed.

According to the present invention, a relatively thick negative pressure generating member can be formed as compared with the case where a laminated felt sheet is used, so that the ink absorber for the ink tank can be constituted by one member. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an increase in the number of components and the number of steps, keep production costs low, and secure reliability of ink distribution.

(Fourth Embodiment) FIG. 12 shows an ink supply member of the present invention for connecting an ink tank and a recording head.

In this embodiment, an ink tank similar to that of the third embodiment, that is, a tank main body having an ink supply port, a negative pressure generating member housed in the tank main body, and a tank main body are provided. The present invention relates to an ink supply member 90 attached to an ink supply port of an ink tank having an air communication port.

In this embodiment, the ink supply member 90
However, it is composed of the same fiber bundle as in each of the above embodiments, and the main fiber direction B is arranged so as to coincide with the flow direction A during ink supply (vertical direction in FIG. 12). The fiber bundle is made of crimped short fibers of about 60 mm, which are blended fibers of polypropylene and polyethylene, like the absorber (negative pressure generating member) in the ink tank of the third embodiment. Then, after aligning the fiber direction of the short fibers, heating (heating temperature is
(It is desirable that the melting point be higher than the melting point of polyethylene having a relatively low melting point and lower than the melting point of polypropylene having a relatively high melting point).

The ink supply member 90 of this embodiment is made of short fibers which are crimped and have a certain degree of directionality, and each of the fibers is continuously arranged in the longitudinal direction mainly adjusted by a carding machine. In addition, in a direction orthogonal to the direction, a part of intersections between the fibers is fused by heating, so that the fibers are connected to each other. That is, the fibers are surely fused at the respective contact points (intersection points) by heating, and a columnar member having substantially the same cross-sectional shape continuously can be formed.

As described above, the ink supply member 90 of the present invention
Is made of short fibers that are crimped and have a certain degree of directionality, so that the fibers are entangled three-dimensionally, and only the contact points (intersections) of the fibers are bonded during heating. In this case, the ink holding layer can be formed uniformly, and the entire ink supply member 90 can be used as an ink supply path.

Also, since the fiber directions are aligned to some extent in one direction, the main fiber direction B is made to coincide with the ink flow direction A so that the ink supply member 9 having a low flow resistance can be obtained.
0 is obtained. According to the present invention, since the flow resistance is small and the ink supply efficiency is good, a sufficient ink supply amount can be secured even with a small ink supply member 90 having a small sectional area in the flow direction. Therefore, the diameter of the head-side supply pipe 91 pressed against the ink supply member 90 can be reduced. Further, since the fibers are securely fixed at each contact point (intersection), the amount of deformation of the ink supply member 90 due to the insertion of the head side supply pipe 91 is small as in the related art, and the fibers are fixed in the ink flow direction A. Since the strength is higher than in the vertical direction, the head side supply pipe 9
Even if the contact amount of 1 is reduced, a sufficient repulsive force can be secured.
In the present embodiment, reliable ink supply performance could be obtained with an insertion margin of about 0.5 to 1.5 mm. Therefore, the length of the head-side supply pipe 91 can be reduced. As described above, since the diameter of the head-side supply pipe 91 can be reduced and shortened, the amount of ink suction at the time of a recovery operation performed to supply ink from the ink tank to the recording head portion when replacing the ink tank can be reduced. In addition, the size of the waste ink absorber provided in the inkjet recording apparatus can be reduced, and the size of the inkjet recording apparatus can be reduced.

Further, in this embodiment, since the fibers are securely fixed at the contact points (intersection points), the formed fiber skeleton is hardly collapsed even if a local force is applied. Even if the ink supply member 90 is not thickened as described above, a desired ink holding force can be secured. As a result, the dead space in the ink tank can be reduced, so that downsizing of the ink tank and improvement in reliability against ink leakage can be achieved.

As described above, according to the present invention, the size of the ink tank and the ink jet recording apparatus can be reduced.

In addition, since a columnar member having an arbitrary cross-sectional shape can be continuously formed according to the nozzle shape, the material yield can be improved to nearly 100%, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

(Fifth Embodiment) The present embodiment is different from the fourth embodiment in the relationship between the arrangement of the ink supply members and the main fiber direction. Therefore, only the difference will be described, and the description of the same configuration as the fourth embodiment will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 13, in this embodiment, the ink supply member 95 is made of the same fiber bundle as in each of the above embodiments, and the main fiber direction B is substantially the same as the flow direction A during ink supply. Are arranged so as to be orthogonal to. The fiber direction is aligned to one direction to some extent, and by making the main fiber direction B substantially orthogonal to the ink flow direction A, the strength of the ink supply member 95 when pressed against a head side supply pipe (not shown) is reduced. Since it is strong, it is hard to be deformed as compared with the embodiment of the fourth embodiment. Further, when the ink in the ink absorber of the ink tank (not shown) is consumed and the gas-liquid interface is located in the ink absorbing member, the gas-liquid interface is mainly in the fiber direction B.
It is almost horizontal along. The gas-liquid interface moves stably without being affected by environmental fluctuations or the like in the vertical direction and moves stably. Therefore, it is effective to keep the ink remaining small and to use the ink sufficiently.

[0077]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the fiber bundle is formed using the sliver, it is possible to easily manufacture a negative pressure generating member capable of generating a negative pressure optimal for the field of ink jet recording.

Since the intersections between the fibers of the sliver can be fused in the preheating step, the sliver is prevented from being deformed in the tensile direction in the fiber bundle forming step. Then, after heating, by passing through a nozzle held at about room temperature, that is, a nozzle held at a temperature sufficiently lower than the heating temperature, the surface of the intersection between the fibers of the fiber bundle having a desired cross-sectional shape Can be reliably fused from the intersection located in the region close to. For this reason,
Ensure the desired shape is maintained, uniform in the fiber direction,
A negative pressure generating member that can generate a stable negative pressure can be obtained.

Further, by cutting the formed fiber bundle to a desired length, it is possible to easily form a cylindrical or prismatic negative pressure generating member, thereby simplifying the manufacturing process and improving productivity. It is excellent and can provide a negative pressure generating member such as an ink absorber and an ink supply member at low cost.

Before the preheating step, the sliver passes through the pipe-shaped member, and the pipe-shaped member has an inlet having a diameter larger than a desired throttle diameter and an outlet having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the inlet. When the sliver has a through-hole communicating the inlet and the outlet, the sliver slides while the outer peripheral portions abut at least two places of the inlet and the outlet of the pipe-shaped member. Twice the fibers of the surface of the sliver are oriented. Since the inside of the sliver is not affected so much, there is a difference in the uniformity of the fiber direction between the sliver surface layer portion and the inside. Also, as the diameter is reduced,
The fiber density of the surface layer of the sliver becomes denser than the fiber density inside.

The preheating step is a step of passing the sliver through the high-temperature atmosphere at a low speed, and the sliver is preferably heated in the fiber bundle forming step by blowing hot air on the sliver. If the configuration is such that hot air is blown in the preheating step, the fibers are not yet bundled at the time when they are inserted into the pipe-shaped member, so that the fibers may be disturbed by the wind, and the fiber distribution may be biased in the sliver. On the other hand, in the fiber bundle forming step, if the sliver is caused to pass through the high-temperature atmosphere at a low speed, the fibers in the surface layer may be melted. Therefore, in the preheating step,
It is possible to solve the above problem by heating the sliver by exposing it to a high-temperature atmosphere instead of blowing hot air and heating the sliver sufficiently in a short time using hot air in the fiber bundle forming step. it can.

When the fiber bundle is made of crimped short fibers, it is easy to adopt a configuration in which the joining points where the fibers are fused to each other are present over the entire area.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a sliver manufacturing process of an example of a manufacturing method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining steps after a ring passing step in an example of a method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to the present invention.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are cross-sectional views each showing an example of a configuration of a fiber used in the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the negative pressure generating member shown in FIGS.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the pipe-shaped member of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view for explaining a modification of the method of manufacturing the negative pressure generating member of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another modified example of the manufacturing method for manufacturing the negative pressure generating member of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of the manufacturing method for manufacturing the negative pressure generating member of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the negative pressure generating member shown in FIG.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are schematic perspective views showing an example of an ink supply member and an ink absorber manufactured by the method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member of the present invention, respectively, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an ink tank including an ink supply member and an ink absorber manufactured by the method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member of FIG.

11A is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the ink tank of the present invention, FIG. 11B is an enlarged view of the fiber, FIG. 11C is a further enlarged view of the fiber before heating, and FIG. FIG. 4E is a further enlarged view of the later fiber, (e) is a bottom view of an example of the ink tank, and (f) is a bottom view of another example of the ink tank.

12A is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the ink supply member of the present invention, FIG. 12B is a cross-sectional view thereof, FIG. 12C is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the ink supply pipe is pressed, and FIG. () Is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink supply pipe is detached after the ink supply pipe is pressed.

FIG. 13 is a schematic perspective view showing another example of the ink supply member of the present invention.

14A is a schematic perspective view of an example of a conventional ink supply member, FIG. 14B is a cross-sectional view thereof, FIG. 14C is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the ink supply pipe is pressed, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the ink supply pipe is separated after the ink supply pipe is pressed.

15A is a schematic perspective view of another example of a conventional ink supply member, FIG. 15B is a cross-sectional view thereof, FIG. 15C is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the ink supply pipe is pressed, and FIG. () Is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink supply pipe is detached after the ink supply pipe is pressed.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1a, 1b Fiber 10 Case 11 Air communication port 12 Ink supply port 20 Ink tank 41 Carding machine 43 Sliver 44 Heating device (clean oven) 45 Heating device 46 Nozzle 48 Fiber bundle 49 Cutter 50 Ink supply member (negative pressure generating member) 60) Ink absorber (negative pressure generating member) 50a, 60a Surface layer 70 Ring 71 Pipe-shaped member 71a Inlet 71b Outlet 71c Through hole 72 Cooling water pipe 74 Hot blast stove 80a, 80b, 80c, 80d, 80e Nozzle 81 Tank body Part 82 Ink supply port 83 Ink absorber (negative pressure generating member) 85 Atmospheric communication hole 86 Ink supply member 90 Ink supply member (negative pressure generation member) 91 Head side supply pipe 95 Ink supply member (negative pressure generation member) A Ink Flow direction B Main fiber direction

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Isamu Yoneda 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Satoshi Kudo 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 2C056 EA26 KC12 KC16 KC22 KC30 4L036 MA04 MA39 PA17 UA25

Claims (20)

[Claims] 1. A method of manufacturing a negative pressure generating member having two types of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points from each other, comprising: a sliver manufacturing step of manufacturing a sliver of the fiber; A preheating step of heating to a temperature not lower than the low melting point and not higher than the highest melting point, and heating the sliver after the preheating step to a temperature not lower than the lowest melting point and not higher than the highest melting point of the synthetic fibers; A fiber bundle forming step of forming a fiber bundle by passing through a nozzle having a constricted diameter at a constant speed. 2. A method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member having two types of thermoplastic synthetic fibers having different melting points from each other, comprising: a sliver manufacturing step of manufacturing a sliver of the fiber; and inserting the sliver through a pipe-shaped member. A pre-shaping step of adjusting the outer shape of the sliver; a pre-heating step of heating the sliver after the pre-shaping step to a temperature equal to or higher than the lowest melting point and equal to or lower than the highest melting point of the synthetic fibers; A fiber bundle forming step of heating the subsequent sliver to a temperature not lower than the lowest melting point and not higher than the highest melting point of the synthetic fibers and passing the sliver through a nozzle having a desired throttle diameter at a constant speed to form a fiber bundle. A method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member, comprising: 3. An inlet having a diameter larger than the desired throttle diameter, an outlet having a diameter substantially equal to the inlet, and a communication between the inlet and the outlet. The method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 2, further comprising: 4. The preheating step is a step of passing the sliver through a high-temperature atmosphere at a constant speed, and the heating of the sliver in the fiber bundle forming step is performed by:
The method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 1, wherein the method is performed by blowing hot air on the sliver. 5. In the fiber bundle forming step, after cooling the fiber bundle that has passed through the nozzle, heating the fiber bundle again and passing the fiber bundle through the nozzle maintained at about room temperature at a constant speed a plurality of times. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the steps are repeated.
The method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to any one of the above. 6. The method for producing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 5, wherein in the fiber bundle forming step, an inner diameter of a nozzle to be passed is gradually reduced. 7. A sliver having a fiber diameter of 10 μm to 50 μm is prepared in the sliver manufacturing step, and a fiber density is set to 0.05 in the fiber bundle forming step.
claim, characterized in that the ^{g / cm 3 ~0.40g / cm 3} 1
7. The method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to any one of claims 6 to 6. 8. A negative pressure generating member manufactured by the method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 1, wherein an olefin resin is used as the synthetic fiber. Negative pressure generating member. 9. The negative pressure generating member manufactured by the method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 1 is hollow so that a main fiber direction of a fiber bundle is substantially horizontal. An ink tank characterized by being incorporated in a tank body of the above. 10. A hollow tank main body, comprising a fiber bundle, and a negative pressure generating member built in the tank main body such that a main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially horizontal and vertical, The negative pressure generating member has a surface layer portion and at least one of a fiber direction uniformity and a fiber density different in the interior surrounded by the surface layer portion, and the bonding point where the fibers are fused to each other is the aforesaid. An ink tank, wherein the negative pressure generating member is provided over the entire area of the negative pressure generating member, whereby the strength of the negative pressure generating member against external force applied in a direction substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction is increased. 11. A vacuum tank comprising: a hollow tank main body; and a negative pressure generating member which is formed of a fiber bundle and is built in the tank main body such that a main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially horizontal. In the pressure generating member, at least one of the fiber direction uniformity and the fiber density is different between the surface layer portion and the inside surrounded by the surface layer portion, and the longitudinal direction is located in the direction intersecting the main fiber direction. By including fibers that
An ink tank, wherein a bonding point where fibers are fused to each other exists over the entire area of the negative pressure generating member. 12. The ink tank according to claim 9, wherein the fiber bundle is formed of crimped short fibers. 13. The negative pressure generating member manufactured by the method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to claim 1, wherein a main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially in the ink supply direction. An ink supply member, which is arranged to be parallel. 14. A fiber bundle, wherein the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is arranged so as to be substantially parallel to the ink supply direction, and the fiber direction is uniform in the surface layer portion and the inside surrounded by the surface layer portion. At least one of the properties and fiber density is different,
An ink supply member, wherein the strength of an external force applied in a direction substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction is increased by the fact that the bonding points where the fibers are fused to each other exist over the entire area. . 15. A fiber bundle, wherein the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is arranged so as to be substantially parallel to the ink supply direction, and the fiber direction is uniform between the surface layer portion and the interior surrounded by the surface layer portion. At least one of the properties and fiber density is different,
An ink supply member comprising a fiber whose longitudinal direction is located in a direction intersecting the main fiber direction, so that a joint point where the fibers are fused to each other exists over the entire area. 16. The ink supply member according to claim 13, wherein the fiber bundle is formed of crimped short fibers. 17. The negative pressure generating member manufactured by the method for manufacturing a negative pressure generating member according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially in the ink supply direction. An ink supply member, which is arranged to be orthogonal to the ink supply member. 18. A uniformity of the fiber direction in the surface layer portion and the interior surrounded by the surface layer portion, wherein the fiber direction is set so that the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially orthogonal to the ink supply direction. And at least one of the fiber density is different,
An ink supply member, wherein the strength of an external force applied in a direction substantially perpendicular to the main fiber direction is increased by the fact that the bonding points where the fibers are fused to each other exist over the entire area. . 19. A uniformity of the fiber direction in the surface layer portion and the interior surrounded by the surface layer portion, wherein the fiber direction is set so that the main fiber direction of the fiber bundle is substantially orthogonal to the ink supply direction. And at least one of the fiber density is different,
An ink supply member comprising a fiber whose longitudinal direction is located in a direction intersecting the main fiber direction, so that a joint point where the fibers are fused to each other exists over the entire area. 20. The ink supply member according to claim 17, wherein the fiber bundle is formed of crimped short fibers.