JP2005343053A - Ink cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To protect a tubular ink outlet of an inside container, protruding from a bottom part of an outside container. <P>SOLUTION: This ink cartridge 1 is equipped with the inside container 2 for holding ink, an outside container 3 for housing the inside container 2, and a cap 23 which is attached to the tubular ink outlet 13 protruding from the bottom part of the outside container 3. An undersurface of the bottom part of the outside container 3 is equipped with a reinforcing rib 41 which is engaged with the outer periphery of the cap 23 attached to the ink outlet 13 protruding from an ink outlet 33 of the outside container 3, so as to protect it. The reinforcing rib 41 is equipped with a part 42 for inhibiting the turning of the cap in a cap loosening direction, which inhibits the cap 23 from becoming loose. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink cartridge used in an ink jet recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer that performs recording by directly ejecting ink from an ejection nozzle provided in a recording head onto a recording medium such as recording paper.

  An ink jet recording apparatus typified by a printer performs recording by supplying ink to a recording head provided with a large number of ejection nozzles mounted on a carriage and ejecting the ink directly onto a recording medium such as recording paper. . The ink is supplied to the recording head by an ink storage container (hereinafter referred to as an ink cartridge) generally called a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the recording head. As the ink cartridge, a hard type and a soft type are known.

  As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the hard type ink cartridge 101 includes a main body portion 102 and a lid portion formed of a relatively hard synthetic resin such as an acrylic butyrene styrene (ABS) resin or a polycarbonate (PC) resin. 103. A supply needle insertion port 104 for supplying ink to the carriage of the ink jet recording apparatus is formed on the bottom surface of the main body 102. In addition, an ink inlet 105 for filling ink is formed in the lid 103.

  A projection 106 is formed on the bottom surface of the lid 103, the projection 106 is press-fitted into the opening 107 of the main body 102, the opening 107 is closed with the lid 103, and its peripheral portion is covered. The body portion 102 is sealed with a lid portion 103 by welding with an ultrasonic welding machine. Then, after ink is injected from the ink injection port 105, the ink injection port 105 is sealed with a sealing body 108.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12, the soft type ink cartridge 201 is formed by providing a substantially cylindrical ink injection port 203 on the upper portion of a bag body 202 formed of a soft material such as vinyl filling the ink. ing. After injecting ink from the ink injection port 203, a stopper 204 formed of an elastic material such as rubber is pressed into the ink injection port 203 and a cap 205 is attached to the outer periphery of the ink injection port 203. It has become. The ink injection port 203 also serves as a supply needle insertion port. When supplying ink to the carriage of the inkjet recording apparatus, the ink injection port 203 is inserted into the bag via the hole 206 provided at the top of the cap 205 and the stopper 204. A carriage ink supply needle is inserted into the body 202.

  By the way, the hard type ink cartridge 101 is formed of a relatively hard synthetic resin such as ABS resin or PC resin and has a fixed shape, so that it is convenient to handle and can be easily attached to and detached from the carriage of the ink jet recording apparatus. On the other hand, when the lid portion 103 is welded to the main body portion 102 with an ultrasonic welding machine, resin wear powder is inevitably generated, and a part of the wear powder falls off into the main body portion 102, and the ink is removed. If foreign matter such as resin wear powder is mixed in the nozzle, so-called clogging may occur in the nozzle of the ink jet recording apparatus, and smooth printing may not be possible. Such a concern can be solved by ultrasonically welding the main body 102 and the lid 103 and then injecting ink after cleaning the inside. However, there is a disadvantage that the productivity is low and the cost is high. is there.

  On the other hand, the soft type ink cartridge 201 uses a bag body 202 formed of a soft material such as vinyl that is filled with ink, and has substantially the same configuration as a conventional infusion pack or the like used for medical purposes. In addition, there is an advantage that foreign matters can be prevented from being mixed, but on the other hand, it is difficult to handle due to its flexible structure, and it is difficult to attach to and remove from the carriage of the ink jet recording apparatus.

Therefore, in order to solve the drawbacks of the hard type ink cartridge 101 and the soft type ink cartridge 201, an inner container and an outer container are provided, and the inner container is formed of a flexible bag container. Ink cartridges have been developed. (For example, Patent Document 1)
The ink cartridge has at least an inner container and an outer container, and the inner container is a flexible bag container having at least an impregnating filler, an air communication port, and a discharge port facing the filler. The outer container has a connecting portion for connecting the discharge port of the inner container to the liquid supply target, and has openings on at least two surfaces, the inner container contains the liquid, and is contained in the outer container. It is characterized by being.

According to the above configuration, even if the inner container of the ink cartridge is a flexible bag container, the outer container that houses the ink container can move together with the carriage of the ink-jet printer and the like, so that it does not interfere with others. In addition to satisfying requirements such as the shape of the connection part for connecting the discharge port in a stable state when attaching to and detaching from the carriage, etc., the liquid contained in the inner container is connected from the discharge port to the connection part of the outer container Through this, it is possible to replenish while oozing from the filler.
JP-A-11-240169 (paragraph 0009, paragraph 0010, etc.)

Incidentally, the ink cartridge disclosed in Patent Document 1 has the following problems.
(1) Since the inner container is composed of a flexible bag container, the shape of the bag container is changed when the ink flows inside, which makes it difficult to hold and is inconvenient to handle. For example, when the inner container is inserted into the outer container, it is easier to insert the inner container having the same shape as the inner container storage portion of the outer container. Further, it is difficult to position and fix the inside of the outer container so that the bag container containing the liquid called ink does not swing.
(2) After using the liquid (ink) in the bag container, it is possible to refill the liquid (ink) by inserting a siridine needle into the bag container from the opening of the outer container. Must be closed with a special adhesive tape.
(3) Because of the double structure of the outer container and the bag container as the inner container, the amount of synthetic resin to be used is increased, the material cost is increased, and the weight is increased. In addition, the manufacturing process of the bag container in which the filler is accommodated facing the discharge port inside the bag container becomes complicated and the cost is increased.

  In order to solve the conventional problems, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the ink cartridge 301 includes an inner container 302 that stores ink and an outer container 303 that stores the inner container 302. The inner container 302 is formed by blow molding of a synthetic resin, an ink injection port 304 is provided on the upper surface side, and a cylindrical ink discharge port 306 closed with an elastic stopper 305 is provided on the bottom surface side. The outer container 303 is formed into a sleeve shape by injection molding of synthetic resin, the inner container 302 is stored in the inner container storage portion 307 of the outer container 303, and the cylindrical ink discharge provided in the inner container 302 is stored. A cap 310 is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port 306 by causing the outlet 306 to protrude outward from a hole 309 provided in the bottom surface 308 of the outer container 303. Are also being developed that was. The top surface of the cap 310 is provided with a hole 311 for exposing a part of the elastic plug 305. Further, the ink injection port 304 is closed with a plug 312 and a cap 313. An atmospheric valve mounting hole 314 is provided at the end of the inner container 302 opposite to the ink injection port 304 on the upper surface side. An atmospheric valve 315 and a cap 316 are attached to the atmospheric valve mounting hole 314.

  By the way, in the ink cartridge 301, the cylindrical ink discharge port 306 of the inner container 302 protrudes outside from a hole 309 provided in the bottom surface of the outer container 303, so that it contacts other objects. There is a concern that the cap 313 may be broken even when the cap 313 is attached. In order to prevent the cylindrical ink discharge port 306 from being damaged, it is conceivable to increase its thickness and increase the mechanical strength, but such a configuration complicates the molding of the inner container 302. And increase the cost of the product. Further, when the wall thickness is increased, so-called warpage, sink marks, and the like are generated, and the dimensional accuracy is deteriorated. Furthermore, there is a problem that the cap is removed and the ink spills out.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and provide an ink cartridge capable of effectively protecting the ink discharge port without increasing the thickness of the cylindrical ink discharge port. .

  The present invention relates to an inner container which is formed by blow molding of a synthetic resin, has an ink injection port on the upper surface side, and has a cylindrical ink discharge port closed with an elastic stopper on the bottom surface side, It is formed into a sleeve shape having an inner container storage portion for storing the inner container by resin injection molding, and a bottom portion is provided with a hole portion that projects the cylindrical ink discharge port of the inner container to the outside. An ink cartridge comprising: an outer container; and a cap attached to a cylindrical ink discharge port protruding to the outside of the outer container through the hole to close the ink discharge port. In addition, a reinforcing rib is provided to surround the tip of the cap attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port protruding from the ink discharge port of the outer container. In particular, the reinforcing rib is formed of a plurality of arcuate walls. Further, a screw groove is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the cap and is screwed onto the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port protruding from the ink discharge port of the outer container. The reinforcing rib is provided with a cap loosening direction rotation preventing portion that prevents rotation of the cap screwed to the outer peripheral surface of the ink discharge port in the loosening direction.

  Further, instead of screwing the cap onto the ink discharge port, an ink discharge port engaging portion is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cap, and when the cap is inserted into the ink discharge port, the ink discharge port engaging portion is formed in the cylindrical shape. The engagement portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ink discharge port is configured to be engaged. Further, a cap engaging portion is provided on an inner peripheral surface of the reinforcing rib, and the cap engaging portion is provided on an engaged portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cap when the cap is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port. It was configured to engage.

  When a cap is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port protruding from the cylindrical ink discharge port of the outer container, the cylindrical ink discharge port of the outer container is protected by surrounding the tip of the cap with a reinforcing rib. . In particular, since the reinforcing ribs are formed on a plurality of arcuate walls, the reinforcing ribs can have appropriate elasticity. Further, since the screw groove is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cap, the cap can be screwed onto the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port. The cap is prevented from rotating in the loosening direction by the cap loosening direction rotation preventing portion provided on the reinforcing rib, so that the cap once attached is prevented from being easily removed.

  In addition, since the ink discharge port engaging portion is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cap in place of the screw groove, the troublesome screwing work as in the case of the screw groove becomes unnecessary, and the cap is formed in the cylindrical shape. By press-fitting into the ink discharge port, the ink discharge port engaging portion engages with the engaged portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port, and the cap is removed from the ink discharge port of the outer container. Prevent falling out. Further, since the cap engaging portion is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the reinforcing rib, the cap engaging portion is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cap when the cap is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port. Engaging with the part, the cap prevents the cap from coming out of the reinforcing rib.

  1 to 6 show a first embodiment. 1 is a perspective view of a state before the inner container is stored in the outer container, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the state after the inner container is stored in the outer container, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the inverted state, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of the reinforcing rib, FIG. 6 is a side view with the cap attached, FIG. 7 is an AA sectional view of FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is a BB sectional view of FIG. FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the ink cartridge 1 includes an inner container 2 that stores ink and an outer container 3 that stores the inner container 2.

  The inner container 2 is formed in a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape by blow molding of synthetic resin, and an ink injection port 11 is integrally formed at one end portion on the upper surface side, and at the other end portion on the upper surface side, An atmospheric valve attachment port 12 is integrally formed, and an ink discharge port 13 is integrally formed at the center on the bottom side. The bottom surface 14 of the inner container 2 is formed as an inclined surface that is inclined downward toward the ink discharge port 13 so that the ink in the inner container 2 can be discharged from the ink discharge port 13 without being left behind. It has become.

  The ink injection port 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a male screw 15 is integrally formed on the outer peripheral surface. The ink injection port 11 is sealed by screwing the first cap 17 after press-fitting the stopper 16.

  The atmospheric valve mounting port 12 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the second cap 19 is mounted after the atmospheric valve 18 is press-fitted. The air valve 18 is configured to allow the air to flow but prevent the ink in the inner container 2 from leaking to the outside. The second cap 19 is provided with an air hole 20.

  The ink discharge port 13 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a male screw 21 is integrally formed on the outer peripheral surface of the tip portion. After the ink discharge port 13 is closed with a plug 22 made of elastic rubber or plastic, a third cap 23 is screwed. A cutout portion 24 is formed on the top surface of the third cap 23 to expose the plug 22 having elasticity. The inner container 2 is formed by blow molding a synthetic resin such as polypropylene (PP).

  The outer container 3 is formed in a flat sleeve shape into which the inner container 2 is inserted, and a hole portion for projecting the ink discharge port 13 of the stored inner container 2 to the outside at the bottom 32 of the inner container storage part 31. 33 is provided. The outer container 3 is provided with a viewing window portion 35 penetrating into the inner container storage portion 31 on the long side wall 34.

  The outer container 3 includes a storage guide portion 37 for a cartridge storage portion of a printer (not shown) on the side wall 36 on the short side. The outer container 3 includes a positioning pin 38 for positioning at the bottom of the inner container storage portion 31 when the printer is stored in the cartridge storage portion. The positioning pin 38 has a detection function for discriminating the type of ink.

  The inner container 2 is stored in the inner container storage portion 31 of the outer container 3. Then, the cylindrical ink discharge port 13 of the inner container 2 projects from the hole 33 provided in the bottom 32 of the outer container 3.

  The cap 13 has a screw groove 39 on its inner peripheral surface and is screwed onto the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13 of the inner container 2 protruding from the hole 33 of the outer container 3.

  The outer container 3 includes a reinforcing rib 41 that surrounds the outer periphery of the distal end portion of the third cap 23 screwed into the ink discharge port 33 on the lower surface (outer surface) of the bottom portion 2.

  The reinforcing ribs 41 are formed of arcuate walls, and a pair of the reinforcing ribs 41 are disposed so as to sandwich the tip of the third cap 23 screwed into the ink discharge port 33. The reinforcing rib 41 includes a cap loosening direction rotation prevention portion 42 that prevents reverse rotation of the third cap 23 screwed to the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cap loosening direction rotation preventing portion 42 is formed in a substantially triangular shape on the inner surface side of the cylindrical reinforcing rib 41. The cap loosening direction rotation preventing portion 42 is provided on the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical reinforcing rib 41 from the upstream base end portion 42a to the downstream base end portion 42b in the winding direction A of the third cap 23. The cap positive rotation permissible surface 42c that gradually protrudes and gradually toward the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical reinforcing rib 41 from the downstream base end portion 42b to the tip end portion 42d on the downstream side in the winding direction A of the cap 23. And a cap reversal prevention surface 42e protruding to the rear. Then, when the third cap 23 is screwed onto the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13 and the third cap 23 is rotated in the winding direction, the cap normal rotation permission surface 42c causes the The generally triangular cap loosening direction rotation preventing portion 42 is displaced in a direction away from the outer peripheral surface of the third cap 23, so that the third cap 23 rotates smoothly. When the third cap 23 is completely wound around the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13, the third cap 23 is provided on the third cap 23 as shown in FIGS. 6 to 8. The notch 43 comes to the position of the cap reverse rotation preventing surface 42c, and the cap reverse rotation preventing surface 42c is engaged with the notch 43, so that the third cap 23 rotates backward, that is, the third cap 23 is loosened. Rotation in the direction is prevented. The outer container 3 is formed by injection molding a synthetic resin such as ABS or PC.

  FIG. 9 shows another embodiment. In this embodiment, the third cap 23 includes an ink discharge port engaging portion 51 on the inner peripheral surface instead of the thread groove. On the other hand, the cylindrical ink discharge port 13 includes an engaged portion 52 with which the ink discharge port engaging portion 51 engages with an outer peripheral surface. The ink discharge port engaging portion 51 is formed by providing an annular recess on the inner peripheral surface of the third cap 23. The engaged portion 52 is formed by providing an annular convex portion on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13. When the third cap 23 is inserted into the cylindrical ink discharge port 13, the tube is inserted into an annular recess as the ink discharge port engaging portion 51 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13. An annular convex portion as the engaged portion 52 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13 is fitted to prevent the third cap 23 from dropping from the cylindrical ink discharge port 13. .

  Furthermore, the reinforcing rib 41 includes a cap engaging portion 61 on the inner peripheral surface. The cap engaging portion 61 is formed by providing an annular recess on the inner peripheral surface of the reinforcing rib 41. Further, an engaged portion 62 with which the cap engaging portion 61 is engaged is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13. The engaged portion 62 is formed by providing an annular convex portion on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port 13. Then, when the third cap 23 is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port 13, the cylindrical cap is formed in an annular recess as a cap engaging portion 61 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the reinforcing rib 41. An annular convex portion as the engaged portion 62 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ink discharge port 13 is fitted to prevent the third cap 23 from coming out of the reinforcing rib 41. Other configurations are the same as those in the basic embodiment, and thus redundant description is omitted. In the above embodiment, the case where the ink discharge port engaging portion 51 and the cap engaging portion 61 are constituted by annular concave portions and the engaged portions 52 and 62 are constituted by annular convex portions is shown. On the contrary, the ink discharge port engaging portion 51 and the cap engaging portion 61 may be formed of an annular convex portion, and the engaged portions 52 and 62 may be formed of an annular concave portion. In the above embodiment, the case where one ink discharge port 13 is provided in the inner container 2 is shown, but a plurality of ink discharge ports 13 may be provided.

The perspective view of the state before accommodating the inner side container of a 1st Example in an outer side container. The perspective view of the state after accommodating the inner side container of a 1st Example in an outer side container. The perspective view of the state turned over. The disassembled perspective view of the principal part. The expansion perspective view of a reinforcement rib. The side view of the state which attached the cap. AA sectional drawing of FIG. BB sectional drawing of FIG. Sectional drawing of another Example. The perspective view of a prior art example. The perspective view of a prior art example. The perspective view of another prior art example. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of an ink cartridge that is currently being developed. The perspective view of the principal part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ink cartridge, 2 ... Inner container, 3 ... Outer container, 11 ... Ink inlet, 13 ... Cylindrical ink outlet, 23 ... 3rd cap, 31 ... Inner container accommodating part, 32 ... Inner container accommodating part , 33... Hole portion for projecting the ink discharge port to the outside, 39... Screw groove, 41 .. reinforcing rib, 42... Cap preventing rotation prevention portion, 51. 61 ... Cap engaging part, 62 ... Engaged part.

Claims (6)

An inner container that is formed by a synthetic resin blow molding, includes an ink injection port on the upper surface side, and a cylindrical ink discharge port on the bottom surface side;
It is formed into a sleeve shape having an inner container housing portion for housing the inner container by synthetic resin injection molding, and has a hole portion that projects the cylindrical ink discharge port of the inner container to the outside on the bottom surface side. An outer container,
A cap attached to a cylindrical ink discharge port protruding to the outside of the outer container through the hole and closing the ink discharge port;
The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer container includes a reinforcing rib on a bottom surface surrounding a cap attached to a cylindrical ink discharge port protruding from the ink discharge port of the outer container. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing rib is formed of a plurality of arc-shaped walls. 2. The cap according to claim 1, wherein the cap has a thread groove on an inner peripheral surface and is screwed onto an outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port protruding from the ink discharge port of the outer container. The ink cartridge described. The said reinforcing rib is provided with the cap loosening direction rotation prevention part which blocks | prevents the rotation to the loosening direction of the cap screwed together by the outer peripheral surface of the said cylindrical ink discharge port. Ink cartridge. The cap includes an ink discharge port engaging portion on an inner peripheral surface, and the ink discharge port engaging portion is provided on an outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical ink discharge port when attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port. The ink cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the ink cartridge is engaged with a joint portion. The reinforcing rib has a cap engaging portion on an inner peripheral surface, and the cap engaging portion engages with an engaged portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cap when the cap is attached to the cylindrical ink discharge port. The ink cartridge according to claim 5.

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