JP2005267993A - Electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To extend operable time by a fuel battery without increasing the size of electronic equipment in the electronic equipment with a fuel cell as a power supply. <P>SOLUTION: A fuel supply tube 81 for supplying a methanol solution to the fuel cell 80 is formed by a tube material having flexibility, and is arranged while it is partially wound around a motor M1. The temperature of the methanol solution of the fuel supply tube 81 is increased by heat generated from the motor M1, thus improving power generation efficiency in the fuel cell 80. The motor M1 is cooled by the methanol solution flowing through the fuel supply tube 81 for suppressing temperature increase. Two effects, namely effect for enhancing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and that for cooling the motor M1, can be obtained simultaneously. By winding the fuel supply tube 81 around the motor M1, effect for enhancing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and that for cooling the motor M1 can be improved further. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device operable with a fuel cell as a power source.

  Examples of lightweight and small electronic devices that can operate using batteries as a power source and are easy to carry even in environments where AC power cannot be received from commercial outlets include notebook personal computers, PDAs (Personal Digital An assistant (personal portable information terminal), a cellular phone, a printer, and the like are known. Conventionally, such an electronic device generally uses a lithium ion battery, but in recent years, a fuel cell using methanol or the like as a fuel has attracted attention as a clean next generation battery that is environmentally friendly. A fuel cell is an energy conversion device that generates electricity by reacting hydrogen and oxygen. Because it uses an electrochemical reaction that is the reverse of water electrolysis, water, electricity, and heat are generated using hydrogen and oxygen as energy sources. It is attracting attention as an environmentally friendly energy because it is highly energy efficient and the only substance emitted is water. In addition, the fuel cell can continue to be used if fuel is replenished. In other words, as well as being carried outdoors, electricity can be generated semipermanently if fuel is continuously replenished.

  Recently, a fuel cell such as a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) using a polymer membrane electrolyte has been attracting attention, and has attracted attention as a power source for mobile devices. This is to generate power by chemically reacting oxygen and aqueous methanol solution through a catalyst and electrolyte. Conventionally, those using polymer membranes are used in the field of power supply because of their low power generation efficiency. However, because the electrolyte of the polymer membrane is from room temperature to around 90 degrees, and it is cooler than the conventional electrolyte (several hundred degrees or more), it can be used as a power source for household power generation and mobile devices. Electronic devices such as notebook personal computers, PDAs, mobile phones, and printers equipped with such fuel cells are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-341146 A

  However, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer has a head driving unit that drives a recording head to eject ink, a main scanning driving unit that reciprocates a carriage mounted with the recording head in the main scanning direction, and recording. It is common to have sub-scanning driving means for transporting recording paper to the head in the sub-scanning direction, and power consumption by a driving force source such as a DC motor for driving these is large. Compared with information processing devices such as PDAs and mobile phones, it consumes more power. Therefore, there arises a problem that the operable time by the fuel cell cannot be made too long. Further, if the fuel tank is enlarged in order to lengthen the operable time by the fuel cell, there arises a problem that the electronic device is increased in size. Such a problem is not particularly limited to a printer, and can be said to be a problem common to electronic devices with high power consumption, for example, an electronic device including a driving force source such as a DC motor.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and the problem is that in an electronic device using a fuel cell as a power source, the operable time by the fuel cell is lengthened without increasing the size of the electronic device. It is in.

  In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention includes a fuel cell, a fuel storage portion filled with fuel of the fuel cell, and a fuel for supplying fuel from the fuel storage portion to the fuel cell. A fuel supply unit configured to supply fuel to the fuel cell through the fuel supply channel; and a heat source that is driven by the power supplied from the fuel cell to generate heat. An electronic apparatus, wherein the fuel cell is disposed in the vicinity of the heat source.

In an electronic device having a driving force source such as a DC motor, heat generation of the driving force source often becomes a problem. When a driving force source is operated continuously for a long time, the temperature of the driving force source rises due to heat generated from the driving force source, and if the temperature exceeds a certain limit temperature, the driving force source may be damaged. . Alternatively, the heat generated by the driving force source disposed inside the electronic device may affect components or electronic circuits that are vulnerable to heat inside the electronic device, causing a failure of the electronic device. Therefore, in general, it is possible to limit the continuous operation time when continuously operating such a driving force source so that the heat generated by the driving force source does not exceed a certain limit temperature, Various heat countermeasures such as attaching a radiator to a driving force source, improving air permeability inside the electronic device, and providing a cooling fan are taken. However, the provision of cooling means for these various driving force sources increases the cost of the electronic device.
On the other hand, a fuel cell equipped with a polymer membrane electrolyte such as a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), which has been attracting attention recently, has higher fuel oxidation activity and higher power generation efficiency when the temperature of the fuel in the electrolyte is higher. .

  Therefore, a heat source is disposed in the vicinity of the fuel cell. A cell is a unit of a minimum unit of a fuel cell composed of a polymer membrane, two electrodes, a fuel electrode and an air electrode, and a fuel cell main body is configured by stacking a plurality of cells. The heat generation of the heat source raises the temperature of the polymer film of the cell, increasing the oxidation activity of the fuel fed to the cell, improving the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell, and cooling the heat source by depriving the cell of heat. Therefore, the temperature rise of the heat source is suppressed. As described above, by using the heat generated from the heat source such as the driving power source of the electronic device to enhance the oxidation activity of the fuel in the fuel cell, there are two effects, that is, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the effect of cooling the heat source. The effect can be obtained at the same time.

Thereby, according to the electronic device shown in the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to increase the oxidation activity of the fuel in the fuel cell using heat generated from a heat source such as a driving force source of the electronic device. In an electronic device using a fuel cell as a power source, there is an effect that the operable time by the fuel cell can be extended without increasing the size of the electronic device.
In addition, since the cooling effect of the heat source can be obtained at the same time, the temperature rise of the heat source can be suppressed without separately providing a cooling means for suppressing the temperature rise of the heat source, thereby reducing the cost of the electronic device. The effect that it can be obtained is also obtained.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the cells of the fuel cell are disposed adjacent to the heat source. Thus, by arranging the heat source of the electronic device adjacent to the fuel cell, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the effect of cooling the heat source can be further enhanced.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic device according to the first aspect or the second aspect, further comprising heat transfer means for transmitting heat generated by the heat source to a cell of the fuel cell. Equipment. Thus, by transferring the heat generated by the heat source of the electronic device to the cells of the fuel cell, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the effect of cooling the heat source can be further enhanced.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fuel cell, a fuel storage portion filled with fuel of the fuel cell, a fuel supply path for supplying fuel from the fuel storage portion to the fuel cell, and the fuel supply An electronic device comprising: fuel supply means for supplying the fuel in the fuel storage portion to the fuel cell via a path; and a heat source that generates heat by being driven by electric power supplied from the fuel cell, A part of the fuel supply path is disposed in the vicinity of the heat source.

  Thus, by disposing a part of the fuel supply path for supplying fuel to the fuel cell in the vicinity of the heat source, the fuel supplied to the fuel cell through the fuel supply path by the heat generated from the heat source. The temperature can be increased. As described above, since the fuel cell has a higher temperature in the electrolyte, the fuel oxidation activity increases and the power generation efficiency is improved. Therefore, by increasing the temperature of the fuel supplied to the fuel cell, the fuel cell It is possible to improve the power generation efficiency. Further, since the heat source is cooled by taking heat away from the fuel flowing through the fuel supply path, an increase in the temperature of the heat source is suppressed. Therefore, the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell is improved by increasing the temperature of the fuel supplied to the fuel cell by using heat generated from a heat source such as a driving power source of the electronic device to increase the oxidation activity of the fuel in the fuel cell. Two effects can be obtained at the same time, the effect of increasing and the effect of cooling the heat source.

Thereby, according to the electronic device shown in the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to increase the oxidation activity of the fuel in the fuel cell using heat generated from a heat source such as a driving force source of the electronic device. In an electronic device using a fuel cell as a power source, there is an effect that the operable time by the fuel cell can be extended without increasing the size of the electronic device.
In addition, since the cooling effect of the heat source can be obtained at the same time, the temperature rise of the heat source can be suppressed without separately providing a cooling means for suppressing the temperature rise of the heat source, thereby reducing the cost of the electronic device. The effect that it can be obtained is also obtained.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic device according to the fourth aspect, wherein a part of the fuel supply path is disposed adjacent to the heat source. Thus, by arranging the heat source of the electronic device adjacent to a part of the fuel supply path, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the effect of cooling the heat source can be further enhanced.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect described above, the fuel supply path is formed of a flexible tube, and the tube is wound around the heat source. This is an electronic device characterized by that. In this way, by forming a fuel supply path for supplying fuel to the fuel cell with a flexible tube and winding it around the heat source, heat transfer from the heat source to the fuel fed to the fuel supply path Efficiency can be improved. Thereby, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the cooling effect of the heat source can be further enhanced.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in any one of the fourth to sixth aspects described above, a heat transfer means for transmitting heat generated by the heat source to the fuel supply path is provided. Electronic equipment. Thus, by transferring the heat generated by the heat source of the electronic device to the fuel supply path, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell and the effect of cooling the heat source can be further enhanced.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to seventh aspects described above, a main scanning drive unit that reciprocates a recording head that ejects ink onto a recording material in a main scanning direction; Recording on the recording material is performed by controlling the sub-scanning driving means for conveying the recording material in the sub-scanning direction by a predetermined conveyance amount, the recording head, the main scanning driving means, and the sub-scanning driving means. An electronic apparatus comprising: a recording control device, wherein the heat source is a driving force source of the main scanning driving unit, a driving force source of the sub-scanning driving unit, or the recording head.
According to the electronic apparatus shown in the eighth aspect of the present invention, a recording device such as an ink jet printer or a facsimile provided with a fuel cell and a means for recording on recording paper, or a scanner, In an electronic apparatus such as a digital multi-function peripheral having a copy function or the like, the function and effect of the invention according to any one of the first to seventh aspects described above can be obtained.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the eighth aspect described above, the fuel supply means supplies the fuel in the fuel storage portion with the driving force of the driving force source of the main scanning driving means or the sub-scanning driving means. An electronic apparatus having a configuration for feeding to the fuel cell.
In this way, driving of the driving force source of the main scanning driving means or the sub-scanning driving means is performed without providing a dedicated driving force source for driving the fuel feeding means for feeding fuel from the fuel storage portion to the fuel cell. By adopting a configuration in which the fuel feeding means is driven using force, the cost of the electronic device including the fuel cell can be reduced.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the eighth aspect or the ninth aspect described above, an ink storage portion filled with ink ejected from the recording head, the fuel storage portion, and the waste fuel of the fuel cell are provided. An electronic apparatus is characterized in that an ink cartridge integrally formed with a recovered waste fuel recovery portion is detachably disposed.

  As described above, the ink cartridge that is detachably attached to the electronic apparatus is integrally formed with the ink containing portion filled with the ink ejected from the recording head and the fuel containing portion filled with the fuel of the fuel cell. Therefore, it is possible to omit a useless space and a mechanism generated by a configuration in which a fuel storage unit separate from the ink cartridge is mounted. As a result, it is possible to increase the amount of fuel that can be mounted on an electronic device without increasing the size of the electronic device, thereby extending the operating time of the fuel cell without increasing the size of the electronic device. The effect that it can be obtained is obtained.

  In addition, an ink cartridge that is detachably attached to an electronic apparatus is integrally formed with an ink storage portion that is filled with ink ejected from a recording head and a fuel storage portion that is filled with fuel of a fuel cell. Therefore, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the electronic device, ink is supplied from the ink storage unit to the recording head, and fuel is supplied from the fuel storage unit to the fuel cell. That is, an electronic device that can operate simply by mounting an ink cartridge in an environment such as outdoors where AC power cannot be received from a commercial outlet becomes possible. This eliminates the need for maintenance such as battery replacement and charging, eliminates the need to carry a spare battery or charger in addition to the spare ink cartridge, and eliminates the risk of running out of battery.

  Furthermore, since it is not necessary to attach a heavy external battery, such as a conventional lithium ion battery, to the electronic device, there is an effect that the electronic device can be made lighter than the conventional one. Furthermore, in recent years, a system has been developed in which used ink cartridges can be collected and reused by manufacturers, etc. in consideration of the environment. By providing the ink cartridge in the ink cartridge, it becomes possible to collect the waste fuel together with the used ink cartridge, and the effect of promoting the collection and reuse of the waste fuel can be obtained.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the tenth aspect described above, the generated water recovery unit recovers water generated when power is generated by the fuel cell using the fuel feeding unit to the waste fuel recovery unit. An electronic device characterized by having a path.

  On the cathode side (air electrode side) of the fuel cell, since water is generated during power generation, it is necessary to provide means for treating the water inside the electronic device without leaking it to the outside. Cost will rise. Therefore, by collecting the water generated on the cathode side to the waste fuel recovery part of the ink cartridge, it becomes possible to omit means for treating the water generated on the cathode side, thereby reducing the cost of electronic equipment. Can be reduced.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the tenth aspect described above, the head surface suction means for sucking the head surface of the recording head, and the waste ink that is stored by absorbing the waste ink sucked by the head surface suction means. An electronic apparatus comprising: an ink absorbing material; and a generated water delivery path for delivering water generated when power is generated by the fuel cell to the waste ink absorbing material.

  As described above, since water is generated during power generation on the cathode side (air electrode side) of the fuel cell, it is necessary to provide means for treating the water inside the electronic equipment without leaking it to the outside. As a result, the cost of the electronic device increases. In general, an electronic apparatus such as an ink jet recording apparatus is provided with means for periodically sucking the head surface of the recording head in order to prevent clogging of a large number of nozzles arranged on the head surface of the recording head. Yes. In addition, the waste ink sucked from the head surface is stored in the electronic device in a state of being absorbed by a waste ink absorbing material composed of an absorbing material such as a sponge for storing the waste ink. . Therefore, water generated on the cathode side of the fuel cell is sent to the waste ink absorbing material and absorbed by the waste ink absorbing material. The water absorbed in the waste ink absorbing material is vaporized and discharged into the atmosphere before being stored in the waste ink absorbing material together with the waste ink. Therefore, the water produced on the cathode side of the fuel cell can be treated without leaking outside. Thus, by sending the water generated on the cathode side of the fuel cell to the waste ink absorbing material, means for processing the water inside the electronic device without leaking to the outside can be realized at low cost.

A thirteenth aspect of the present invention is the ink cartridge according to the tenth aspect described above.
According to the ink cartridge shown in the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the operational effects of the invention described in the tenth aspect described above can be obtained in the electronic apparatus equipped with the ink cartridge.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
First, a schematic configuration of an ink jet recording apparatus (ink jet printer) as an example of an “electronic device” according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof.
In the ink jet recording apparatus 50, the carriage guide shaft 51 serves as a “main scanning drive unit” that scans the recording paper P in the main scanning direction X by ejecting ink onto the recording paper P. A carriage 61 that is pivotally supported and moves in the main scanning direction X is provided. Mounted on the carriage 61 are a recording head 62 and an ink cartridge 611 filled with ink of each color ejected from the recording head 62. A platen 52 that defines the gap between the head surface of the recording head 62 and the recording paper P is provided facing the recording head 62. Further, in the ink jet recording apparatus 50, a conveyance driving roller 53 that conveys the recording paper P in the sub-scanning direction Y is used as “sub-scanning driving means” that causes the recording head 62 to scan the recording paper P in the sub-scanning direction Y. And a conveyance driven roller 54 are provided.

  The conveyance driving roller 53 is rotationally controlled by a rotational driving force such as a stepping motor, and the recording paper P is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction Y by the rotation of the conveyance driving roller 53. A plurality of transport driven rollers 54 are provided and are individually urged by the transport driving roller 53, and the recording paper P is in contact with the recording paper P when the recording paper P is transported by the rotation of the transport driving roller 53. Rotates following the transport of A film having a high frictional resistance is applied to the surface of the transport driving roller 53. The recording paper P pressed against the surface of the transport driving roller 53 by the transport driven roller 54 comes into close contact with the surface of the transport driving roller 53 by the frictional resistance of the surface, and is transported in the sub-scanning direction by the rotation of the transport driving roller 53. The An operation for transporting the recording paper P between the carriage 61 and the platen 52 in the sub-scanning direction Y by a predetermined transport amount, and ink from the recording head 62 to the recording paper P while the recording head 62 is reciprocated once in the main scanning direction X. The recording is performed on the recording paper P by alternately repeating the operation of jetting.

  A paper feed tray 57 is disposed on the upstream side of the transport driving roller 53 in the sub-scanning direction Y. The paper feed tray 57 is configured to feed recording paper P such as plain paper or photo paper, for example, and an ASF (auto sheet feeder) as a paper feeding means for automatically feeding the recording paper P is provided. Is provided. The ASF is an automatic paper feed mechanism having two paper feed rollers 57b provided on the paper feed tray 57 and a separation pad (not shown). One of the two paper feed rollers 57b is disposed on one side of the paper feed tray 57, the other paper feed roller 57b is attached to the recording paper guide 57a, and the recording paper guide 57a is a recording paper. The paper feed tray 57 is slidable in the width direction according to the width of P. When a plurality of recording sheets P placed on the sheet feeding tray 57 are fed due to the rotational driving force of the sheet feeding roller 57b and the frictional resistance of the separation pad, the plurality of recording sheets P are fed at a time. The paper is automatically and accurately fed one by one. Further, a paper detector 63 according to a known technique is disposed between the paper feed roller 57b and the conveyance drive roller 53.

  The paper detector 63 has a lever that is pivotally supported in a state that it is given a self-returning behavior to a standing posture and protrudes into the conveyance path of the recording paper P so as to be able to rotate only in the recording paper conveyance direction. The detector is configured to detect the recording paper P by rotating the lever when the tip of the lever is pressed against the recording paper P. The paper detector 63 detects the start end position and the end position of the recording paper P fed from the paper feed roller 57b, determines the recording area according to the detected position, and executes recording.

On the other hand, a discharge driving roller 55 and a discharge driven roller 56 are provided as means for discharging the recording paper P after execution of recording. The paper discharge driving roller 55 is rotationally controlled by a rotational driving force such as a stepping motor, and the recording paper P after recording is discharged in the sub-scanning direction Y by the rotation of the paper discharge driving roller 55. The paper discharge driven roller 56 is a toothed roller having a plurality of teeth around it and sharply sharpened so that the tip of each tooth makes point contact with the recording surface of the recording paper P. The plurality of paper discharge driven rollers 56 are individually urged by the paper discharge driving roller 55, and come into contact with the recording paper P when the recording paper P is discharged by the rotation of the paper discharge driving roller 55. Rotates following paper discharge. A feed driving motor (not shown) for driving the paper feed roller 57b, the transport driving roller 53, and the paper discharge driving roller 55, and a carriage driving motor (not shown) for driving the carriage 61 in the main scanning direction are provided. The drive control is performed by a recording control unit 100 as a “recording control device”. Similarly, the recording head 62 is driven and controlled by the recording control unit 100 to eject ink onto the surface of the recording paper P.
Ink is supplied to the recording head 62 from an ink cartridge 70 detachably disposed in the ink jet recording apparatus 50. The ink jet recording apparatus 50 includes a fuel cell 80 as a power supply device, and the fuel of the fuel cell 80 is supplied from the ink cartridge 70.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of the ink jet recording apparatus 50 according to the present invention.
The recording control unit 100 includes a system bus SB. The system bus SB includes a ROM 21, a RAM 22, a USB controller 23 as a “connection interface” with the information processing apparatus 200 as a “host device”, and a memory card interface 24. , MPU (microprocessor) 26, I / O 27, and head driver 28 are connected so as to be able to transfer data. The MPU 26 performs various types of arithmetic processing. The ROM 21 stores in advance software programs and data necessary for the arithmetic processing of the MPU 26. The RAM 22 is used as a temporary storage area for software programs, a work area for the MPU 26, and the like. The various motor control units 31 are drive control circuits that drive and control various motors of the ink jet recording apparatus 50.

  Various sensors 32 detect various state information of the ink jet recording apparatus 50 and output them to the I / O 27. The I / O 27 performs output control on the various motor control units 31 based on the calculation processing result in the MPU 26 and inputs input information from the various sensors 32. When an USB host device such as a personal computer is connected as the information processing device 200 as a “host device” equipped with a USB host controller, the USB controller 23 causes the ink jet recording device 50 to function as a USB device. At the time of recording, the image data is color-converted from RGB data to YMC data in the information processing apparatus 200, and then binarized to convert it into binarized YMC data to generate recording data.

  The generated recording data is transmitted from the information processing apparatus 200 to the ink jet recording apparatus 50 as recording control data together with control data for controlling the ink jet recording apparatus 50. The recording control data transmitted from the information processing apparatus 200 is received by the USB controller 23 and then stored in the RAM 22. The recording control data stored in the RAM 22 is separated into control data and recording data by executing command analysis and processing for expanding the compressed data by program processing executed by the MPU 26. . The control data is transferred to the MPU 26, and the developed recording data is transferred to the head driver 28 as “head driving means”.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a first embodiment of an ink supply path to the recording head 62 and a fuel supply path to the fuel cell 80 in the ink jet recording apparatus 50.
The ink cartridge 70 includes a yellow ink container 7Y, a magenta ink container 7M, a cyan ink container 7C, and a black ink container 7K as “ink containers”. The yellow ink filled in the yellow ink container 7Y is filled into the cyan ink container 7C via the ink tube YC, and the magenta ink filled in the magenta ink container 7M is filled into the cyan ink container 7C via the ink tube MC. The cyan ink is supplied to the recording head 62 via the ink tube CC, and the black ink filled in the black ink container 7K is supplied to the recording head 62 via the ink tube KC.

The ink cartridge 70 includes a fuel storage unit 71 filled with an aqueous methanol solution serving as fuel for the fuel cell 80, and a waste fuel recovery unit 72 that recovers the aqueous methanol solution supplied to the fuel cell 80 as "waste fuel". Have. The fuel cell 80 is a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) using a polymer membrane electrolyte, and is a fuel cell in which methanol is directly supplied to the cell CL without being reformed into hydrogen. The cell CL is a unit of the minimum unit of the fuel cell 80 composed of the polymer membrane electrolyte 8E and two electrodes of the fuel electrode (anode 8A) and the air electrode (cathode 8K). In the fuel electrode (anode 8A), methanol reacts with water and is oxidized to generate CO ₂ , H ⁺ , and electrons. H ⁺ reaches the air electrode (cathode 8K) through the electrolyte 8E. At the air electrode (cathode 8K), O ₂ (oxygen) in the air combines with H ⁺ and electrons and is reduced to produce water. In the process, electrons flow through a circuit connected to the anode 8A and the anode 8K, and a current is taken out.

  As described above, the ink cartridge 70 detachably disposed in the inkjet recording apparatus 50 includes the yellow ink storage portion 7Y, the magenta ink storage portion 7M, the cyan ink storage portion 7C, which are filled with the ink ejected from the recording head 62. The black ink storage unit 7K, the fuel storage unit 71 filled with the fuel (methanol aqueous solution) of the fuel cell 80, and the waste fuel recovery unit 72 for recovering the waste fuel are integrally formed. As a result, useless spaces and mechanisms generated by installing a fuel tank or the like separate from the ink cartridge 70 can be omitted, so that the ink jet recording apparatus 50 can be omitted without increasing the size of the ink jet recording apparatus 50. The amount of fuel (methanol aqueous solution) that can be mounted on the device 50 can be increased. Therefore, the operation time of the fuel cell 80 can be extended without increasing the size of the ink jet recording apparatus 50.

  When the ink cartridge 70 is mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus 50, each ink is supplied to the recording head 62 from the yellow ink container 7Y, the magenta ink container 7M, the cyan ink container 7C, and the black ink container 7K. At the same time, an aqueous methanol solution is supplied from the fuel storage portion 71 to the fuel cell 80. In other words, in an environment such as outdoors where AC power cannot be received from a commercial outlet, the ink jet recording apparatus 50 can be operated simply by mounting it. Accordingly, maintenance such as battery replacement and charging is not required, and it is not necessary to carry a spare battery, a charger, etc. in addition to the spare ink cartridge 70, and there is no fear of running out of the battery.

  Furthermore, since there is no need to attach a heavy external battery such as a conventional lithium ion battery to the ink jet recording apparatus 50, the ink jet recording apparatus 50 can be made lighter than the conventional one. Furthermore, in recent years, a system has been developed in which a manufacturer or the like can collect and reuse a used ink cartridge 70 in consideration of the environment. Thus, the waste fuel from which the waste fuel of the fuel cell 80 is recovered is provided. By providing the storage section 72 in the ink cartridge 70, it becomes possible to collect the waste fuel together with the used ink cartridge 70, and the collection and reuse of the waste fuel are promoted.

The aqueous methanol solution in the fuel storage unit 71 is fed to the fuel cell 80 by a fuel feed pump PU1 serving as a “fuel feed unit” via a fuel feed tube 81 serving as a “fuel feed path”. The waste fuel that has been fed to the fuel cell 80 and chemically reacted at the fuel electrode (anode 8A) is recovered to the waste fuel recovery section 72 via a fuel recovery tube 82 as a “fuel recovery path” for recovering the waste fuel. Is done. The waste fuel is an aqueous methanol solution in which the methanol concentration is reduced by a chemical reaction by power generation. On the other hand, in the air electrode (cathode 8K) of the fuel cell 80, oxygen in the air supplied from the air supply path 84 is combined with H ⁺ and electrons to be reduced to generate water, and the generated water (hereinafter, generated) Water) is sent to the fuel recovery tube 82 via the generated water recovery tube 83 as a “generated water recovery path” for recovering the generated water to the waste fuel recovery unit 72 and recovered to the waste fuel recovery unit 72. In this way, by collecting the water generated on the air electrode (cathode 8K) side to the waste fuel recovery unit 72 of the ink cartridge 70, means for treating the water generated on the air electrode (cathode 8K) is omitted. Accordingly, the cost of the ink jet recording apparatus 50 can be reduced.

  Further, the fuel feed pump PU1 operates using the motor M1 as the “driving force source” and the “heat source” as the driving force source. In this embodiment, the motor M1 is a carriage drive motor (not shown) that drives the carriage 62 described above, and serves as both a drive force source for the carriage 62 and a drive force source for the fuel feed pump PU1. However, the structure which combines with the motor for a conveyance drive (not shown) mentioned above may be sufficient. Thus, the cost of the ink jet recording apparatus 50 can be reduced by using the driving force source of the fuel feed pump PU1 also as a driving force source such as a carriage driving motor or a conveyance driving motor. In this embodiment, the fuel feed pump PU1 is disposed in the fuel recovery tube 82. However, the fuel feed pump PU1 may be disposed in the fuel supply tube 81, and may be disposed anywhere as long as the above-described fuel flow path can be configured. It doesn't matter.

  In this embodiment, the motor M1 as the “heat source” is disposed adjacent to a part of the fuel supply tube 81 as the “fuel supply path”. As described above, by disposing a part of the fuel supply tube 81 for supplying the methanol aqueous solution as “fuel” to the fuel cell 80 in the vicinity of the motor M1, the heat generated from the motor M1 is supplied to the fuel cell 80. The temperature of the aqueous methanol solution fed through the fuel supply tube 81 can be raised. As described above, in the fuel cell 80 as a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), the higher the temperature of the aqueous methanol solution in the electrolyte 8E, the higher the oxidation activity of the aqueous methanol solution and the higher the power generation efficiency. The power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 can be improved by increasing the temperature of the supplied aqueous methanol solution. Further, since the motor M1 is cooled by taking heat away from the methanol aqueous solution flowing in the fuel supply tube 81, the temperature rise of the motor M1 is suppressed. As described above, the heat generated from the motor M1 is used to raise the temperature of the aqueous methanol solution supplied to the fuel cell 80 to increase the oxidation activity of the aqueous methanol solution in the fuel cell 80, thereby improving the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80. Two effects can be obtained at the same time, the effect of increasing and the effect of cooling the motor M1.

  Further, the ink jet recording apparatus 50 includes a heat transfer means 811 that transfers heat generated by the motor M1 to the fuel supply tube 81. The heat transfer means 811 is arranged in the vicinity of the motor M1, for example, by arranging a heat reflecting plate or the like, in addition to direct heat transfer by making the motor M1 adjacent to a part of the fuel supply tube 81, Heat is indirectly transferred to the fuel supply tube 81. Thus, by providing the heat transfer means 811 that transfers the heat generated by the motor M1 to the fuel supply tube 81, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and the cooling effect of the motor M1 can be further increased. Note that if the motor M1 is disposed in the vicinity of the fuel supply tube 81, the effect of the present invention can be obtained without being adjacent to each other. By making it adjoin to a part, the effect which improves the electric power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80, and the cooling effect of the motor M1 can be improved more.

  In this manner, in the ink jet recording apparatus 50 using the fuel cell 80 as a power source, the operable time by the fuel cell 80 can be further extended without increasing the size of the ink jet recording apparatus 50.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a second embodiment of the ink supply path to the recording head 62 and the fuel supply path to the fuel cell 80 in the ink jet recording apparatus 50. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the motor M1 in this embodiment.
Since the configuration of the ink cartridge 70, the ink supply path from the ink cartridge 70 to the recording head 62, the configuration of the fuel cell 80, the motor M1, and the fuel feed pump PU1 are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, description thereof is omitted. The motor M1 also serves as a carriage driving motor for driving the carriage 62 as in the first embodiment, and is an endless belt stretched between a driving pulley 65 of the motor M1 and a driven pulley (not shown). The rotational driving force of the motor M1 is transmitted to the carriage 62 via 64 (see FIG. 8). In this embodiment, the fuel supply tube 81 as a “fuel supply path” for supplying the methanol aqueous solution from the fuel storage portion 71 to the fuel cell 80 is formed of a flexible tube material. As shown in FIG. 5, a part thereof is wound around the motor M1. In this way, the fuel supply tube 81 is formed of a flexible tube material and is wound around the motor M1 to be disposed, so that the heat transfer efficiency from the motor M1 to the methanol aqueous solution fed to the fuel supply tube 81 is improved. Can be improved. Thereby, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and the cooling effect of the motor M1 can be further enhanced.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a third embodiment of the ink supply path to the recording head 62 and the fuel supply path to the fuel cell 80 in the ink jet recording apparatus 50.
Since the configuration of the ink cartridge 70, the ink supply path from the ink cartridge 70 to the recording head 62, the configuration of the fuel cell 80, the motor M1, and the fuel feed pump PU1 are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, the motor M1 is disposed at a position adjacent to the cell CL of the fuel cell 80. Thus, by disposing the motor M1 as the “heat source” at a position adjacent to the cell CL of the fuel cell 80, the temperature of the polymer film of the cell CL rises due to the heat generated by the motor M1, and is supplied to the cell CL. The oxidation activity of the sent methanol aqueous solution is increased, the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 is improved, and the motor M1 is cooled by taking heat away from the cell CL, so that the temperature rise of the motor M1 is suppressed. become.

  Therefore, the oxidation activity of the aqueous methanol solution in the fuel cell 80 can be increased by using the heat generated from the motor M1, thereby achieving two effects: the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and the effect of cooling the motor M1. Can be obtained at the same time. If the motor M1 is disposed in the vicinity of the cell CL of the fuel cell 80, the effect of the present invention can be obtained without being adjacent to the cell CL. As shown in the embodiment, the motor M1 is adjacent to the cell CL. By doing so, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and the cooling effect of the motor M1 can be further enhanced.

  Furthermore, the ink jet recording apparatus 50 includes a heat transfer means 811 that transfers heat generated by the motor M1 to the cell CL of the fuel cell 80. For example, the heat transfer means 811 indirectly arranges the heat of the motor M1 in addition to the direct heat transfer by placing the motor M1 adjacent to the cell CL by disposing a heat reflector or the like in the vicinity of the motor M1. Transmit to cell CL. Thus, by providing the heat transfer means 811 for transferring the heat generated by the motor M1 to the cell CL of the fuel cell 80, the effect of increasing the power generation efficiency of the fuel cell 80 and the cooling effect of the motor M1 can be further enhanced. .

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the ink supply path to the recording head 62 and the fuel supply path to the fuel cell 80 in the ink jet recording apparatus 50.
Since the configuration of the ink cartridge 70, the ink supply path from the ink cartridge 70 to the recording head 62, the configuration of the fuel cell 80, the motor M1, and the fuel feed pump PU1 are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, the ink jet recording apparatus 50 periodically sucks the head surface of the recording head 62 in order to prevent clogging of nozzles (not shown) arranged on the head surface of the recording head 62. As a “head surface suction unit”, a sealing member that seals the head surface of the recording head 62 in order to prevent the ink on the head surface of the recording head 62 from drying when ink is not ejected from the recording head 62 A CAP and a head suction pump PU2 that sucks the head surface of the recording head 62 in a state of being sealed by the sealing member CAP are provided. The head suction pump PU2 operates using the motor M2 as a driving force source. When the head suction pump PU2 operates, suction force is generated in the head surface suction path 85, and the head suction pump PU2 is sealed with the sealing member CAP. The head surface of the recording head 62 is sucked. The waste ink sucked from the head surface of the recording head 62 is sent from the head surface suction path 85 to the waste ink absorbing material 86 via the head suction pump PU2, and is absorbed by the waste ink absorbing material 86 in the ink jet recording. It is stored in the device 50.

  In the present embodiment, the generated water generated at the air electrode (cathode 8K) of the fuel cell 80 is sent to the waste ink absorbing material 86 through the generated water recovery tube 83 as a “generated water delivery path” and discarded. The ink is absorbed and collected by the ink absorbing material 86. The water absorbed in the waste ink absorbing material 86 is vaporized and discharged into the atmosphere before being stored in the waste ink absorbing material 86 together with the waste ink. The produced water produced at (cathode 8K) can be treated without leaking to the outside. In this way, by sending the generated water generated at the air electrode (cathode 8K) of the fuel cell 80 to the waste ink absorbent 86, a means for processing the generated water inside the ink jet recording apparatus 50 without leaking to the outside. It can be realized at low cost.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the invention described in the claims, and these are also included in the scope of the present invention. Needless to say.

1 is a plan view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a side view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a block diagram of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention. It is the schematic diagram which showed 1st Example of the fuel supply path | route to a fuel cell. It is the schematic diagram which showed 2nd Example of the fuel supply path | route to a fuel cell. It is the schematic diagram which showed the 3rd Example of the fuel supply path | route to a fuel cell. It is the schematic diagram which showed the 4th Example of the fuel supply path | route to a fuel cell. It is the perspective view which showed the motor vicinity in 2nd Example.

Explanation of symbols

21 ROM, 22 RAM, 23 USB controller, 24 memory card interface, 25 memory card slot, 26 MPU, 27 I / O, 28 head driver, 50 ink jet recording apparatus, 51 carriage guide shaft, 52 platen, 53 transport drive roller , 54 Carriage driven roller, 55 Paper discharge driving roller, 56 Paper discharge driven roller, 57 Paper feed tray, 57b Paper feed roller, 61 Carriage, 62 Recording head, 63 Paper detector, 70 Ink cartridge, 71 Fuel container, 72 Waste fuel recovery unit, 80 fuel cell, 81 fuel supply tube, 82 fuel recovery tube, 83 generated water recovery tube, 84 air supply path, 85 head surface suction path, 86 waste ink absorber, 811 heat transfer means, 8A anode ( Fuel electrode), 8E Quality, 8K cathode (air electrode), 100 recording control unit, 200 information processing device, M1, M2 motor, P recording paper, PU1 fuel feed pump, PU2 head suction pump, SB system bus, X main scanning direction, Y sub Scan direction

Claims (13)

A fuel cell, a fuel storage section filled with fuel of the fuel cell, a fuel supply path for supplying fuel from the fuel storage section to the fuel cell, and the fuel storage section via the fuel supply path An electronic device comprising: fuel supply means for supplying fuel to the fuel cell; and a heat source that generates heat by being driven by electric power supplied from the fuel cell,
An electronic apparatus characterized in that a cell of the fuel cell is disposed in the vicinity of the heat source. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the fuel cell is disposed adjacent to the heat source. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a heat transfer unit that transfers heat generated by the heat source to a cell of the fuel cell. A fuel cell, a fuel storage section filled with fuel of the fuel cell, a fuel supply path for supplying fuel from the fuel storage section to the fuel cell, and the fuel storage section via the fuel supply path An electronic device comprising: fuel supply means for supplying fuel to the fuel cell; and a heat source that generates heat by being driven by electric power supplied from the fuel cell,
An electronic apparatus, wherein a part of the fuel supply path is disposed in the vicinity of the heat source. 5. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein a part of the fuel supply path is disposed adjacent to the heat source. 6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the fuel supply path is formed of a flexible tube, and the tube is wound around the heat source. The electronic apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a heat transfer unit that transfers heat generated by the heat source to the fuel supply path. 8. The main scanning drive means for reciprocating a recording head for ejecting ink onto a recording material in the main scanning direction, and the recording material at a predetermined conveyance amount in the sub scanning direction according to claim 1. A sub-scanning drive unit that transports the recording head, a recording control device that controls the recording head, the main scanning driving unit, and the sub-scanning driving unit to perform recording on a recording material, and the heat source includes the main scanning unit. An electronic apparatus comprising: a driving force source of a scanning driving unit; a driving force source of the sub-scanning driving unit; or the recording head. 9. The fuel supply unit according to claim 8, wherein the fuel supply unit supplies the fuel in the fuel storage portion to the fuel cell with a driving force of a driving force source of the main scanning driving unit or the sub scanning driving unit. Electronic equipment characterized by that. 10. The ink cartridge according to claim 8, wherein an ink storage portion filled with ink ejected from the recording head, the fuel storage portion, and a waste fuel recovery portion for recovering waste fuel of the fuel cell are integrally formed. An electronic device characterized in that is detachably disposed. 11. The electronic apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a generated water recovery path for recovering water generated when power is generated by the fuel cell using the fuel supply means to the waste fuel recovery unit. machine. 11. The power generation by the fuel cell according to claim 10, wherein a head surface suction unit that sucks the head surface of the recording head, a waste ink absorber that absorbs and stores the waste ink sucked by the head surface suction unit, and the fuel cell. And a generated water delivery path for delivering the water produced to the waste ink absorbing material. The ink cartridge according to claim 10.

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