JP2002267052A - Fluid transfer tube, and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fluid transfer tube in which a plurality of single tubes are integrated with each other in an arranged manner without using any arranging parts, etc., and the arranged tubes can be smoothly moved and bent without impairing the movement of a movable member to be coupled therewith. SOLUTION: In the tube having a plurality of fluid transfer passages 6 parallel to each other for transferring the fluid with at least one end coupled with a movable part, single core tubes 2 with the melting point of an inner layer 3 of the tubes lower than the melting point of an outer layer 4 of the tubes are arranged flat parallel to each other in one row, and adjacent parts of the single core tubes 2 are integrally heat-bonded by heat-bonding materials 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fluid transfer tube used for transferring ink in an ink jet printer and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A commercial color ink jet printer consumes a large amount of ink, so that an ink tank cannot be arranged in a print head portion, and ink is supplied using a fluid transfer tube. I have. The fluid transfer tube for ink transfer used for this is
It is composed of fluid transfer tubes (hereinafter, referred to as single core tubes) prepared for the required number of ink colors, and is connected between the print head and the ink tank.

[0003] The single core tube is a long tube continuously molded from a flexible material such as rubber or synthetic resin material.
It is used after being cut to a predetermined length. The single-core tube disposed in the printer is moved and bent in accordance with the movement of the print head, but each single-core tube receives a driving load independently. For this reason, the movement of each single-core tube is irregular, and the adjacent single-core tubes may be rubbed with each other or generate unnecessary vibration. This contributes to shortening the service life.

In addition, a plurality of single-core tubes must be provided as movable portions of the print head so as not to impair the drive of the print head within a limited space.
However, when each single-core tube moves irregularly, the smooth movement of the print head is hindered, and the driving load increases. Further, each of the plurality of independent single-core tubes needs to be disposed so as not to be bent or caught. For this reason, countermeasures such as aligning and integrating a plurality of single-core tubes are taken. However, alignment components and the like for this purpose are required, and many assembling steps are required.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and a plurality of single-core tubes for fluid transfer are aligned and integrated without using alignment components and the like.
An object of the present invention is to provide a fluid transfer tube that smoothly moves and bends without impairing the movement of a movable member to be coupled, and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A fluid transfer tube according to the present invention is a tube provided with a plurality of fluid transfer paths in parallel and having at least one end coupled to a movable portion for transferring a fluid, wherein the tube is parallel. A plurality of single-core tubes arranged in a line in a flat shape are fused and integrated at adjacent portions by heat fusion.

Another fluid transfer tube according to the present invention is a tube provided with a plurality of fluid transfer passages in parallel, at least one end of which is connected to a movable portion to transfer a fluid, wherein the tube is a flat tube. Are heat-sealed linearly at predetermined intervals in the lateral direction along the axial direction, and are divided into a plurality of fluid transfer paths.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a flattened tube obtained by fusing and integrating a plurality of single-core tubes in a horizontal row (hereinafter, referred to as a multi-core flat tube). In the figure, 1 is a multi-core flat tube, 2 is a single-core tube, 3 is a tube inner layer, 4 is a tube outer layer, 5 is a fusion part, and 6 is a fluid transfer path. The multi-core flat tube 1 is formed by fusing and integrating a large number of single-core tubes 2 with each other to form a flat shape.
The number of single core tubes 2 is not particularly limited.

When the multi-core flat tube 1 is used for transferring ink of a printer, one end is connected to an ink tank and the other end is connected to a print head. The arrangement pitch of the single-core tubes 2 of the multi-core flat tube 1 is substantially equal to the outer diameter of the single-core tubes 2. If a different arrangement or pitch is required for the connection to the ink tank and the print head, the connection end can be cut off at the fusion portion 5 or can be changed to an arbitrary pitch using a separation tube.

The single-core tube 2 shown in FIG.
The tube inner layer 3 and the tube outer layer 4 can be formed by two-layer simultaneous extrusion molding. Also, after extruding the tube inner layer 3,
The outer tube layer may be formed. As the tube material, the melting point of the outer tube layer 4 is
Combined to be lower than the melting point of As a specific example, the inner tube 3 is made of ethylene vinyl alcohol (EV).
OH) and the tube outer layer 4 is made of polyethylene (P
E). The tube inner layer 3 is formed of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and the tube outer layer 4 is formed of low-density polyethylene (LDPE).

The single-core tubes 2 formed of two layers are arranged in a row so as to be in close contact with each other, the single-core tubes 2 are heated and softened, and the adjacent tube outer layers 4 are fused and integrated with each other. Since the melting point of the tube inner layer 3 is higher than the melting point of the tube outer layer 4, even if the tube inner layer 3 is heated to a temperature at which the tube outer layer 4 is fused, the tube inner layer 3 softens and melts, causing the internal fluid transfer path 6 to disappear. Never.

FIG. 2 shows a specific example of the method of fusion bonding. FIG. 2A is a perspective view showing the fusion method, and FIG.
Is a cross-sectional view of the fused portion, and FIG. 2C is a partially enlarged sectional view of the fused portion. The plurality of single core tubes 2 are arranged in a horizontal row, and are heated and pressed by a pair of heat forming rolls 10.
On the outer peripheral surface of the heat forming roll 10, a large number of arc-shaped concave grooves 11 substantially equal to or slightly larger than the outer diameter of the single core tube 2 are provided at a pitch substantially equal to the outer diameter of the single core tube.
The ridge 12 of the concave groove 11 is formed so that the tube outer layers 4 are in contact with each other when the single core tubes 2 are closely arranged in parallel.

A heating heater 13 is provided in the heat forming roll 10, and is heated to a temperature at which the heat forming and the tube outer layer 4 are heat-sealed to each other. The plurality of single-core tubes 2 are sandwiched by a pair of vertically arranged heat forming rolls 10 so as to be slightly compressed, and transferred by rotation of the heat forming rolls. Due to the holding of the heat forming roll 10, the diameter of the single core tube 2 in the vertical direction is reduced, the diameter in the horizontal direction is increased, and the adjacent tubes are pressed against each other so as to be in close contact with each other. The tube outer layers 4 softened by heating are fused and integrated with each other by the above-mentioned heating and pressing.

In the multi-core flat tube 1 according to the above-described embodiment, a tube that can also be used as a single-core tube can be integrated by fusion simply by passing the tube through a heat forming roll 10. Therefore, there is no need for an alignment component for aligning a plurality of single-core tubes as in the related art,
Also, the work for that can be eliminated.

When the above-mentioned multi-core flat tube 1 is used for transferring ink to the printer, the plurality of single-core tubes 2 are integrally moved and bent in response to the movement of the print head. It is. Thereby, the individual irregular movement of the single-core tube 2 is limited, the load is not concentrated on a specific single-core tube, and the sliding and bending life as a whole can be extended. Further, the load applied to each single-core tube 2 is also uniformly dispersed, so that the print head can be driven smoothly.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the present invention.
3A shows a large-diameter circular tube, FIG. 3B shows a flat tube obtained by crushing the circular tube of FIG. 3B, and FIGS. 3C and 3D FIG. 4 shows a view of forming a multi-core flat tube from the flat tube of FIG. 3 (B).

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a large-diameter circular tube is formed in advance, converted into a flat tube, and then divided into a plurality of small-diameter tubes to form a multi-core flat tube. is there. The large-diameter circular tube 20a shown in FIG. 3A is formed of two layers, a tube inner layer 21 and a tube outer layer 22, and the tube inner layer 21 and the tube outer layer 22 can be formed by two-layer simultaneous extrusion molding. Further, the tube outer layer 22 may be formed after the tube inner layer 21 is extruded.

As the tube material, contrary to the embodiment of FIG. 1, the tube outer layer 22 is combined so that the melting point of the tube outer layer 22 is higher than the melting point of the tube inner layer 21. As a specific example, the tube outer layer 22 is formed of ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH), and the tube inner layer 21 is formed of polyethylene (PE). The tube outer layer 22 is formed of high-density polyethylene (HDPE),
1 is made of low density polyethylene (LDPE).

In FIG. 3B, the circular tube 20a of FIG. 3A is crushed, for example, in the vertical direction to form a flat tube 20b. The flat tube 20b may be in a state of being plastically deformed by heat treatment, or may be kept in an elastically deformed state until the next processing is performed. In FIG. 3 (C) or FIG. 3 (D), the flat surface of the flat tube 20b is partially crushed by using a pair of upper and lower heat forming rolls 25 or 26 while pressing the inside to heat the tube inner layer 21. By fusing, a fusing partition 23 is formed and divided into a plurality of fluid transfer paths 24.

The heat forming roll 25 shown in FIG.
The heating pressing piece 25a presses only a predetermined position of the flat tube 20b along the tube axis direction. Flat tube 20
As for b, a predetermined position is plastically deformed by the heating and the pressing force by the heating and pressing piece 25a, and the tube inner layer 21 having a low melting point comes into contact at the pressing position and is fused by heating. A fusion partition 23 is formed by heat fusion, and the multi-core flat tube 2 provided with a plurality of fluid transfer paths 24 partitioned by the fusion partition 23.
0c can be obtained.

FIG. 3D presses the flat tube 20b with a pair of heat forming rolls 26 provided on the outer surface thereof with semicircular concave grooves 26a and ridges 26b substantially similar to FIG. The flat tube 20b is entirely plastically deformed including the outer peripheral surface of the tube by the semicircular concave groove 26a and the ridge 26b of the heat forming roll 26, and the inner tube layer 21 is
The contact is made at the pressing position of b and heat-sealed. A fusion partition 23 is formed by heat fusion in the same manner as in FIG. 3C, and a multi-core flat tube 20d having a plurality of fluid transfer paths 24 partitioned by the fusion partition 23 can be obtained.

In the case of FIG. 3, the inner diameter and the outer diameter of the original circular tube 20a are determined by the number and the sectional area of the fluid transfer paths 24. Since the tube outer layer 22 and the tube inner layer 21 are formed by integral molding as compared with the case of FIG. 2, the structure is strong and the sliding bending life can be extended. However, although the shape and cross-sectional area of the fluid transfer passage 24 tend to vary, it is effective for use in a device that does not require high accuracy.

[0023]

As is apparent from the above description, when a plurality of fluid transfer tubes are required as in the case of ink transfer of a color printer or the like, the fluid transfer tubes are arranged in advance as a multi-core flat tube. Since it can be incorporated, the workability of disposing the fluid transfer tube can be improved. In addition, the movement of the fluid transfer tube can be made regular, local loads can be distributed over the entire tube, the driving of the movable portion can be made smooth, and the sliding and bending life can be extended.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a fluid transfer tube according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a method of manufacturing a fluid transfer tube according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a fluid transfer tube and a method of manufacturing the same according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 20c, 20d: Multi-core flat tube, 2: Single-core tube, 3, 21: Tube inner layer, 4, 22: Tube outer layer, 5: Fusion part, 23: Fusion partition, 6, 24: Fluid transfer path , 10, 25, 26 ... hot forming rolls 11, 12
6a: concave groove, 12, 26b: ridge line portion.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A tube for transferring a fluid having a plurality of fluid transfer passages in parallel, at least one end of which is connected to a movable portion, wherein the plurality of single-core tubes are arranged in a flat line in parallel. A fluid transfer tube which is integrated by fusion at an adjacent portion by heat fusion. 2. The fluid transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the single core tube has two layers, a tube inner layer and a tube outer layer, and the melting point of the tube inner layer is higher than the melting point of the tube outer layer. tube. 3. A tube provided with a plurality of fluid transfer passages in parallel, at least one end of which is connected to a movable portion to transfer a fluid, wherein the flat tubes are arranged at predetermined intervals in a lateral direction in an axial direction. A fluid transfer tube, which is heat-sealed linearly along and is partitioned into a plurality of fluid transfer paths. 4. The fluid transfer device according to claim 3, wherein the flat tube has two layers, a tube inner layer and a tube outer layer, and a melting point of the tube inner layer is lower than a melting point of the tube outer layer. tube. 5. The fluid transfer tube according to claim 1, wherein one end of the fluid transfer tube is connected to a print head of a color printer, and the other end is connected to an ink tank. Fluid transfer tube. 6. A method for manufacturing a tube having a plurality of fluid transfer passages in parallel and having at least one end coupled to a movable portion for transferring a fluid, wherein a plurality of single cores are provided between a pair of heat forming rolls. A method for manufacturing a tube for fluid transfer, comprising: arranging tubes in a flat line in parallel, and fusing and integrating adjacent single-core tubes by heat fusion. 7. A method for producing a tube having a plurality of fluid transfer paths in parallel, at least one end of which is connected to a movable portion to transfer a fluid, wherein a flat tube is provided between a pair of heat forming rolls. A method for manufacturing a tube for fluid transfer, comprising: arranging a plurality of fluid transfer paths by arranging the flat tubes along the axial direction at predetermined intervals in the lateral direction of the flat tubes and linearly fusing them.