JP2006102965A - Ink cartridge and printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink cartridge which can make a porous elastic body compact and can also reduce remaining ink in the cartridge, and to provide a printer. <P>SOLUTION: The ink cartridge 7 is equipped with a cartridge body 71 which forms an ink storage chamber, the porous elastic body stored and held in the ink storage chamber, an ink supply port 39 set at a bottom part of the ink storage chamber so as to supply an ink liquid stored in the ink storage chamber in a state while soaked in the porous elastic body to a printing head of the printer, and an elastic body holding rib which is set projecting at an inner face of a front wall 73 of the cartridge body 71 and holds the porous elastic body in a compressed state. A recess 83 is formed in the front wall 73 of the cartridge body 71 where the elastic body holding rib is set projecting. The recess 83 projects the inner face of the front wall 73 to the ink storage chamber inward so that a projection height of the elastic body holding rib to the inner face of the front wall 73 becomes low. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

The present invention relates to an ink cartridge that is stored in an ink storage chamber in a state where a porous elastic body is impregnated with an ink liquid, and a printer in which the ink cartridge is mounted on a carriage.

FIG. 9 shows a conventional example of a carriage mounted on an ink jet printer and an ink cartridge mounted on the carriage.
The carriage 1 shown in FIG. 9 has color ink on the upper surface of a carriage body 11 that is driven to reciprocate by a carriage drive mechanism (not shown) in a direction (arrow A direction in the figure) orthogonal to the conveyance direction of printing paper in the printer. A first cartridge mounting portion 13 for accommodating the cartridge;
And a second cartridge mounting portion 15 for storing a black ink cartridge. In the lower part of the carriage body 11, printing is performed such that the ink liquid supplied from the ink cartridges mounted on the first and second cartridge mounting portions 13 and 15 is ejected onto the printing paper as ink droplets having a predetermined particle diameter. A head 21 is mounted.

The ink cartridge 3 shown in FIG. 9 is a color ink cartridge that independently contains ink liquids of three colors of cyan, magenta, and yellow for color printing.
As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the ink cartridge 3 is divided into a cartridge main body 35 that defines three ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33 that are open at the top, and the ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33, respectively. A porous elastic body (foam) 37 to be stored and held, and ink liquid stored in each of the ink storage chambers 31, 32 and 33 in a state of being impregnated in the porous elastic body 37 is supplied to the print head 21 of the ink jet printer. Therefore, each ink storage chamber 31, 32, 3
3 and an inner surface of the front wall 41 of the cartridge main body 35 that partitions and forms the ink storage chambers 31, 32, 33, and the porous elastic body 37.
An elastic body holding rib 43 that holds the ink in a predetermined compression state, a cover member 47 that is bonded to the upper surface of the cartridge main body 35 so as to cover the open portions of the upper portions of the ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33,
And is mounted on the first cartridge mounting portion 13 of the carriage body 11 in order to supply the ink liquid to the print head 21.

The front wall 41 of the cartridge body 35 is a side wall erected substantially perpendicular to the bottom wall of the cartridge body 35. The elastic body holding rib 43 projecting from the inner surface of the front wall 41 is shown in FIG.
0, the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 is pressed so that the porous elastic body 37
Is maintained in a compressed state at a predetermined compression rate, and at the same time, a space necessary for preventing pressure fluctuation during negative suction of ink liquid between the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 and the inner surface of the front wall 41. 42 is secured.

As shown in FIG. 10, an information recording device 51 is provided on the outer surface of the front wall 41 of the cartridge body 35.
Is attached.
The information recording device 51 includes a memory element that can read and write data such as the remaining ink amount of each ink storage chamber 31, 32, and 33 and the date of manufacture of the cartridge, and a plurality of information elements for inputting and outputting information to the memory element. The connection terminal 51a is attached to the outer surface of the front wall 41 so that the connection terminal 51a is exposed to the outer surface of the cartridge body 35.

Corresponding to the mounting position of the information recording device 51 on the ink cartridge 3, the connection terminal 51 is connected to the first cartridge mounting portion 13 of the carriage body 11 on which the ink cartridge 3 is mounted.
A carriage-side connection terminal 53 for conducting connection with a is provided.
As shown in FIG. 9, the carriage-side connection terminal 53 is provided on the inner surface of the front partition wall 13 a that defines the first cartridge mounting portion 13.
The carriage-side connection terminal 53 is connected to a control circuit in the printer. When the carriage-side connection terminal 53 and the connection terminal 51a are electrically connected, the control circuit in the printer connects to the information recording device 51 on the ink cartridge 3. Can read and write information.

In order to accurately connect the plurality of connection terminals 51a of the information recording apparatus 51 to the carriage side connection terminal 53, it is necessary to improve the positioning accuracy of the ink cartridge 3 with respect to the first cartridge mounting portion 13 of the carriage body 11. .
Therefore, in order to improve the positioning accuracy of the cartridge body 35 with respect to the carriage body 11, an error for preventing the ink cartridge 3 from being inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 13 in the wrong direction in the carriage body 11. The position of the connection terminal 51a on the ink cartridge 3 is aligned with the carriage-side connection terminal 53 on the carriage body 11 side with respect to the insertion prevention groove 54 and the ink cartridge 3 inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 13 in an appropriate orientation. A positioning groove 55 is provided.

In the carriage body 11, the erroneous insertion preventing groove 54 is formed at the upper end of the side partition wall 13b that defines the first cartridge mounting portion 13, and the positioning groove 55 is the upper end of the front partition wall 13a. It is formed in the part.
On the other hand, the ink cartridge 3 is provided with an erroneous insertion preventing rib 57 that fits into the erroneous insertion preventing groove 54 on one side wall 38 of the cartridge main body 35 and before the information recording apparatus 51 is installed. On the outer surface of the wall 41, positioning ribs 58 that fit into the positioning grooves 55 are projected.

That is, the ink cartridge 3 cannot be inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 13 unless the rib 57 for misinsertion is inserted into the misinsertion prevention groove 54 of the carriage body 11 and is inserted in an appropriate orientation. The leading end of the positioning rib 58 is positioned in the positioning groove 55.
The plurality of connection terminals 51a are accurately connected to the carriage-side connection terminal 53 by adjusting the position so as to be in close contact with the positioning surface 55b formed on one side of the positioning groove 55 by the taper surface 55a prepared in the above. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2004-1430 A

By the way, the external dimensions of the ink cartridge 3 depend on the connection between the connection terminal 51a and the carriage-side connection terminal 53 and the positional alignment between the ink supply port 39 and the ink supply path on the print head 21 side. For example, even when the size of the porous elastic body 37 is made compact, it is necessary to prevent the outer dimensions of the main part from being changed. .
For example, if the outer dimensions of the main part of the ink cartridge are changed in order to reduce the ink containing chambers 31, 32, 33 in accordance with the downsizing of the porous elastic body 37, the ink cartridge 3
In addition to a molding die for manufacturing the carriage body 11, a molding die for the carriage body 11 must be newly recreated, resulting in a large development cost.

Therefore, conventionally, when the porous elastic body 37 is downsized, the ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33 are used.
By extending the protruding length of the elastic body holding rib 43 protruding inward, the ink containing chambers 31, 32,
The accommodation space for the porous elastic body 37 in the inside 33 is reduced to maintain the outer dimensions of the ink cartridge itself.
However, in such a correspondence, the space 42 between the inner surface of the front wall 41 from which the elastic body holding rib 43 protrudes and the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 is expanded beyond a necessary volume, There is a possibility that the pressure fluctuation at the time of sucking the negative pressure of the ink liquid cannot be properly prevented, or the residual ink is increased when the cartridge is replaced.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to provide an ink cartridge and a printer capable of reducing the size of a porous elastic body and reducing the residual ink in the cartridge.

The object of the present invention is to be accommodated in the ink containing chamber in a state where the cartridge main body forming the ink containing chamber, the porous elastic body accommodated and held in the ink containing chamber, and the porous elastic body are impregnated. An ink supply port provided at the bottom of the ink storage chamber for supplying the ink liquid stored in the ink storage chamber to the print head of the printer, and an inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge body. And an elastic body holding rib that protrudes and holds the porous elastic body in a compressed state, wherein the side wall of the cartridge body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes is provided on the side surface of the cartridge body. An ink cart comprising a recess for projecting the inner surface of the side wall into the ink containing chamber so that the projecting height of the elastic body holding rib with respect to the inner surface of the wall is lowered. Tsu is achieved by di.

According to the ink cartridge having the above-described configuration, the inner surface of the side wall is protruded into the ink containing chamber by the concave portion provided on the side wall of the cartridge main body protruding with the elastic body holding rib. The protrusion height of the elastic body holding rib can be reduced.
Therefore, even when the porous elastic body is downsized, the inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes, and one end surface of the porous elastic body pressed by the elastic body holding rib The space formed between the two is kept to the minimum necessary, and fluctuations in pressure during suction of negative pressure of the ink liquid can be prevented, and residual ink when the cartridge is replaced can be reduced.

On the other hand, the recess for projecting the inner surface of the side wall toward the inside of the ink containing chamber only needs to be in a range where the elastic body holding rib is projected, and other portions can be kept in the conventional outer dimensions, and the printer side The external dimensions of the main part of the ink cartridge involved in the mounting of the ink cartridge to the carriage can be maintained at the conventional dimensions.
Therefore, it is possible to change only the molding die for the cartridge body when changing the molding die due to the compact porous elastic body, and the carriage molding die can be used as it is. In addition, development costs due to changes in molds can be suppressed.

In the ink cartridge having the above-described configuration, it is formed between the inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes and one end surface of the porous elastic body pressed by the elastic body holding rib. The side wall of the cartridge main body is inclined and rises with respect to the bottom wall of the cartridge main body so that the space to be formed gradually expands upward from the bottom wall side of the cartridge main body. Is desirable.
According to the above configuration, since the residual ink in the space is attracted to the porous elastic body side by the inclined inner surface of the side wall, the amount of ink remaining in the space can be further reduced.

Another object of the present invention is a printer in which the ink cartridge having the above-described configuration is mounted on a carriage on which a print head is mounted, and the carriage of the carriage that faces the concave portion provided on the side wall of the cartridge body. The printer is characterized in that the main body is provided with a guide projection that slides into contact with the outer surface of the recess when the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage.

According to the printer having the above configuration, the concave portion provided on the side wall of the cartridge body with the elastic body holding rib projecting functions as an insertion guide when the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage, so the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage. The operability at the time of performing can be improved.

According to the ink cartridge of the present invention, even when the porous elastic body is downsized, the inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge main body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes and the elastic body holding rib are pressed. The space formed between the one end surface of the porous elastic body is kept to the minimum necessary, and it is possible to prevent pressure fluctuations during negative suction of the ink liquid and to reduce residual ink when the cartridge is replaced.
Further, the change of the molding die or the like can be limited only to the molding die for the cartridge body, and the development cost can be suppressed.

Further, according to the printer of the present invention, it is possible to improve the operability when the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage.
Therefore, the porous elastic body can be made compact and the residual ink in the cartridge can be reduced, so that an ink cartridge and a printer with good operability can be provided.

Hereinafter, an ink cartridge and a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention and a carriage of a printer in which the ink cartridge is mounted. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1 as viewed obliquely from the front, FIG. 4 is a front view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a top view of the cartridge body shown in FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the ink cartridge 7 according to this embodiment is mounted on a carriage 6 that is mounted on an inkjet printer.
The carriage 6 of the present embodiment has a color ink cartridge on the upper surface of a carriage body 61 that is driven to reciprocate by a carriage drive mechanism (not shown) in a direction (arrow A direction in the figure) perpendicular to the conveyance direction of printing paper in the printer. A first cartridge mounting portion 63 for storing
And a second cartridge mounting portion 65 for storing a black ink cartridge. Also, in the lower part of the carriage body 61, printing is performed in which the ink liquid supplied from the respective ink cartridges mounted in the first and second cartridge mounting portions 63 and 65 is ejected onto the printing paper as ink droplets having a predetermined particle size. A head 21 is mounted.

The ink cartridge 7 shown in FIGS. 1 to 6 is a color ink cartridge that independently contains ink liquids of three colors of cyan, magenta, and yellow for color printing.
Like the conventional ink cartridge 3 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the ink cartridge 7 of this embodiment includes a cartridge main body 71 that partitions and forms three ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33 that are open at the top, A porous elastic body (foam) 37 accommodated and held in each of the ink storage chambers 31, 32 and 33, and each ink storage chamber 3 in a state of being impregnated in the porous elastic body 37.
Ink supply ports 39 provided at the bottoms of the ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33 for supplying the ink liquid stored in 1, 32 and 33 to the print head 21 of the ink jet printer, and the ink storage chambers 31. , 32, 33 to define the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71.
The cartridge main body 71 so as to cover the elastic body holding rib 75 that protrudes from the inner surface 73a of the ink and holds the porous elastic body 37 in a predetermined compressed state, and the open portions of the upper portions of the ink storage chambers 31, 32, 33. And a cover member 47 that is bonded to the upper surface of the carriage body 61. The cover member 47 is attached to the first cartridge attachment portion 63 of the carriage main body 61 in order to supply ink liquid to the print head 21.

Further, the cartridge main body of the black ink cartridge which is mounted on the second cartridge mounting portion 65 of the carriage main body 61 and independently stores the black ink liquid for monochrome printing, stores the ink in which the porous elastic body 37 is loaded. Since the configuration is substantially the same as the cartridge main body 71 of the color ink cartridge except that the number of equipments in the chamber is single, the cartridge main body 71 of the color ink cartridge will be described below, and the cartridge main body of the black ink cartridge will be described in detail. Description is omitted.

The front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 in the present embodiment is a side wall that stands up with respect to the bottom wall of the cartridge main body 71. As shown in FIG. 6, the elastic body holding rib 75 protruding from the inner surface 73a of the front wall 73 presses the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 so that the porous elastic body 37 is held in a predetermined state. While maintaining the compressed state at the compression rate, a space 77 necessary for preventing pressure fluctuation at the time of negative suction of the ink liquid is provided between the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 and the inner surface 73a of the front wall 73. Secured.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the protrusion height T of the elastic body holding rib 75 with respect to the inner surface 73 a of the front wall 73 is lowered on the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 according to the present embodiment. The range L on the lower side of the inner surface 73a on which the elastic body holding rib 75 is protruded is defined as the ink containing chamber 31,
A recess 83 formed by projecting inwardly is provided.
Furthermore, in the case of the present embodiment, the inner surface 73a of the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 from which the elastic body holding rib 75 is projected and the one end surface 37a of the porous elastic body 37 held by the elastic body holding rib 75 are provided. The front wall 73 in the recess 83 is at an angle with respect to the perpendicular to the bottom wall of the cartridge main body 71 so that the space 77 formed therebetween gradually expands upward from the bottom wall side of the cartridge main body 71. It stands up at an angle of θ.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a recording device attachment portion 81 to which the information recording device 51 is attached is provided on the outer surface of the front wall 73 of the cartridge body 71. The recording apparatus mounting portion 81 has a relatively raised shape due to the concave portions 83 formed on both sides, but is equivalent to the outer surface of the front wall 41 in the conventional ink cartridge main body 35 shown in FIG. Position.

The information recording device 51 includes a memory element that can read and write data such as the remaining amount of ink in each of the ink storage chambers 31, 32, and 33 and the date of manufacture of the cartridge, and a plurality of information elements for inputting / outputting information to / from the memory element. The connection terminal 51a is attached to the front surface of the recording device attachment portion 81 of the front wall 73 so that the connection terminal 51a is exposed to the outer surface of the cartridge body 71.

As shown in FIG. 1, the first cartridge mounting portion 63 of the carriage body 61 on which the ink cartridge 7 is mounted corresponding to the mounting position of the information recording device 51 on the ink cartridge 7.
Is equipped with a carriage-side connection terminal 53 that is electrically connected to the connection terminal 51a.
As shown in FIG. 1, the carriage side connection terminal 53 is provided on the inner surface of the front partition wall 63 a that defines the first cartridge mounting portion 63.
The carriage side connection terminal 53 is connected to a control circuit in the printer, and the carriage side connection terminal 53 and the connection terminal 51a are electrically connected to each other so that the control circuit in the printer can connect to the information recording device 51 on the ink cartridge 7. Can read and write information.

In order to accurately connect the plurality of connection terminals 51 a of the information recording apparatus 51 to the carriage side connection terminal 53, it is necessary to improve the positioning accuracy of the ink cartridge 7 with respect to the first cartridge mounting portion 63 of the carriage body 61. .
Therefore, in order to improve the positioning accuracy of the cartridge main body 71 to the carriage main body 61, an error for preventing the ink cartridge 7 from being inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 63 in the wrong direction in the carriage main body 61. The position of the connection terminal 51a on the ink cartridge 7 is aligned with the carriage-side connection terminal 53 on the carriage body 61 side with respect to the insertion prevention groove 54 and the ink cartridge 7 inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 63 in an appropriate orientation. And positioning grooves 85 are provided.

In the carriage body 61, the erroneous insertion preventing groove 54 is formed at the upper end of the side partition 63b that defines the first cartridge mounting portion 63, and the positioning groove 85 is the upper end of the front partition 63a. It is formed in the part.
On the other hand, the ink cartridge 7 is provided with an erroneous insertion preventing rib 57 that fits into the erroneous insertion preventing groove 54 on one side wall 78 of the cartridge body 71 and before the information recording apparatus 51 is installed. On the outer surface of the wall 73, a positioning projection 87 that fits into the positioning groove 85 is provided.

That is, the ink cartridge 7 cannot be inserted into the first cartridge mounting portion 63 unless the erroneous insertion prevention rib 57 is inserted into the erroneous insertion prevention groove 54 of the carriage body 61, and is inserted in an appropriate direction. The leading end of the positioning projection 87 is aligned with the positioning groove 85.
The plurality of connection terminals 51a are accurately connected to the carriage-side connection terminal 53 by adjusting the position so as to be in close contact with the positioning surface 85b formed on one side of the positioning groove 85 by the taper surface 85a prepared in FIG. It will be in the state.

In the case of this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, the positioning protrusion 87 includes a plate-like portion 87a, 87b as a pair of ribs facing each other with a space left and right, and the plate-like portion 87a, 8
7b has a bag structure including a tip connecting wall 87c for connecting the tip portions of each other and a connecting wall 87d for connecting the lower edges of the left and right plate-like portions 87a and 87b to each other, and the rigidity and strength are enhanced. Yes.
In other words, in order to improve the rigidity and strength of a thin plate-like rib such as the positioning rib 58 in the conventional ink cartridge 3 shown in FIG. It becomes difficult to maintain dimensional accuracy due to molding distortion such as the above.
Therefore, the positioning protrusion 87 of the present embodiment has a bag structure in which the inside is hollowed by meat theft communicating with the ink storage chamber 33 when the cartridge main body 71 is integrally formed,
The rigidity strength can be improved and the dimensional accuracy can be maintained.

The positioning projection 87 has a pair of left and right plate-like portions 87a and 8 that face each other with the hollow portion interposed therebetween.
7b functions as a pair of ribs that fit into the positioning groove 85 of the carriage 6, and the outer surface of the plate-like portion 87a that is one of the ribs is set as a positioning surface that is in close contact with the positioning surface 85b of the positioning groove 85 Has been.

Note that the positioning projection 87 of the present embodiment has a bag structure in order to improve the rigidity and strength, but may have a different structure as long as the necessary rigidity and strength can be obtained.
For example, the connecting wall 87d that connects the lower edges of the plate-like portions 87a and 87b is omitted, and a partition wall is provided between the ink containing chamber 33, and instead of meat stealing communicating with the ink containing chamber 33, It is also possible to adopt a structure in which a meat theft that communicates with the outside of the cartridge is provided.

Further, the carriage 6 according to the ink jet printer of the present embodiment has the recess 83 when the ink cartridge 7 is attached to the carriage 6 on the carriage body 61 facing the recess 83 provided on the front wall 73 of the cartridge body 71. A pair of guide protrusions 89, 89 are provided for sliding and contacting the outer surface 83a of the guide member.
That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the pair of guide projections 89, 89 of the present embodiment has both side surfaces of the recording apparatus mounting portion 81 formed in a shape protruding from the outer surface 83a of the concave portion 83 formed on both sides. The entire recording apparatus mounting portion 81 is disposed between the pair of guide protrusions 89.
, 89 are configured as engaging protrusions.

According to the ink cartridge 7 of the present embodiment described above, the inner surface 7 of the front wall 73 is formed by the recess 83 provided on the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 from which the elastic body holding rib 75 protrudes.
3a is protruded inward of the ink storage chambers 31, 32, 33, so that the inner surface 73 of the front wall 73 is provided.
The protrusion height T of the elastic body holding rib 75 with respect to a can be lowered by the amount by which the inner surface 73a protrudes inward.

Therefore, even when the porous elastic body 37 is made compact, the inner surface 73a of the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 on which the elastic body holding rib 75 is projected and the porous elastic body pressed by the elastic body holding rib 75 are used. The space 77 formed between the one end surface 37a of the ink 37 is kept to the minimum necessary, and it is possible to prevent pressure fluctuations during negative suction of the ink liquid and to reduce residual ink when the cartridge is replaced.

On the other hand, the concave portion 8 for projecting the inner surface 73a of the front wall 73 into the ink containing chambers 31, 32, 33 inward.
3 may be only the range where the elastic body holding rib 75 is protruded, and the other recording device mounting portion 8.
1 and the upper side of the inner surface 73a can be kept in the same outer dimensions as the conventional ink cartridge 3 as shown in FIG.
The external dimensions of the main part of the ink cartridge 7 involved in the mounting to the cartridge mounting part 63 can be maintained at the conventional dimensions.
Therefore, the change of the molding die accompanying the downsizing of the porous elastic body 37 is limited only to the molding die for the cartridge main body 71, and the conventional molding die for the carriage 6 may be used as it is. This is possible and can be changed with a minimum, so that development costs caused by changing the mold can be suppressed.

Furthermore, in the ink cartridge 7 of the present embodiment, the front wall 73 rises at an angle θ with respect to the perpendicular to the bottom wall of the cartridge body 71, and the inner surface 73 a of the front wall 73 and one end surface of the porous elastic body 37. Since the space 77 formed between the cartridge body 37a and the bottom wall of the cartridge body 71 gradually expands upward, the residual ink in the space 77 is
The space 77 is attracted to the porous elastic body 37 side by the inclined inner surface 73a of the front wall 73.
The amount of ink remaining in the ink can be further reduced.

Further, in the ink jet printer in which the ink cartridge 7 is mounted on the carriage 6, the recording apparatus mounting portion 81 formed by the concave portion 83 provided on the front wall 73 of the cartridge main body 71 is provided on the carriage main body 61 that faces the carriage main body 61. Since it is configured as an engaging protrusion that fits between the pair of protruding protrusions 89 and 89, the operability when the ink cartridge 7 is mounted on the carriage 6 can be improved.

The configurations of the ink storage chamber, the cartridge body, the porous elastic body, the ink supply port, the elastic body holding rib, the concave portion, the guide protrusion, and the like in the ink cartridge and the printer of the present invention are as follows.
Of course, the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various forms can be adopted based on the spirit of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention and a carriage of a printer to which the ink cartridge is mounted. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from obliquely below the rear thereof. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from diagonally below the front thereof. FIG. 2 is a front view of the ink cartridge illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a top view of the cartridge body shown in FIG. 1. It is sectional drawing which follows the BB line of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part for explaining an insertion guide state when the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1 is mounted on a carriage body. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part for explaining a positioning portion between the ink cartridge and the carriage body shown in FIG. 1. It is a perspective view which shows the carriage and ink cartridge of the conventional inkjet printer. FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 9.

Explanation of symbols

6 ... carriage, 7 ... ink cartridge, 21 ... print head, 39 ... ink supply port,
47 ... Cover member, 51 ... Information recording device, 53 ... Carriage side connection terminal, 54 ... Incorrect insertion preventing groove, 57 ... Incorrect insertion preventing rib, 61 ... Carriage body, 63 ... First cartridge mounting portion, 63a ... Front Partial partition wall, 63b ... Side partition wall, 65 ... Second cartridge mounting portion, 71 ... Cartridge body, 73 ... Front wall (side wall), 73a ... Inner surface, 77 ... Space, 78 ... Side wall, 81 ...
Recording device mounting portion, 83 ... concave portion, 85 ... positioning groove, 85a ... tapered surface, 85b ... positioning surface, 87 ... positioning projection, 87a, 87b ... plate-like portion, 87c ... connecting wall, 89 ... guide projection

Claims (3)

A cartridge main body forming an ink storage chamber, a porous elastic body accommodated and held in the ink storage chamber, an ink liquid stored in the ink storage chamber in a state of being impregnated in the porous elastic body, and the ink An ink supply port provided at the bottom of the ink storage chamber for supplying the ink liquid stored in the storage chamber to a print head of a printer; and the porous material protruding from the inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge body. An ink cartridge comprising: an elastic body holding rib that holds the elastic body in a compressed state;
On the side wall of the cartridge body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes, the inner surface of the side wall faces the inside of the ink containing chamber so that the protruding height of the elastic body holding rib with respect to the inner surface of the side wall is low. An ink cartridge, characterized by being provided with a recessed portion to be projected. A space formed between the inner surface of the side wall of the cartridge body on which the elastic body holding rib protrudes and one end surface of the porous elastic body pressed by the elastic body holding rib is formed in the cartridge body. The side wall of the cartridge main body is inclined and rises with respect to the bottom wall of the cartridge main body so as to gradually expand upward from the bottom wall side. Ink cartridge. The ink cartridge according to claim 1 or 2 is a printer mounted on a carriage having a print head mounted thereon,
The carriage main body of the carriage facing the concave portion provided on the side wall of the cartridge main body is provided with a guide protrusion that slides into and guides the outer surface of the concave portion when the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage. A printer characterized by that.

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