JP2007168117A - Inkjet recording head - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet recording head which can carry out stable printing by maintaining ink storage negative pressure of an ink container of the inkjet recording head where the detachable ink container is mounted. <P>SOLUTION: The inkjet recording head has an ink outlet of the ink container, an ink inlet of the inkjet recording head, and a seal member which is positioned holding a space in the periphery of the ink inlet of the inkjet recording head and seals connection between the ink outlet of the ink container and the ink inlet of the inkjet recording head from the atmosphere in a state with the ink container mounted on the inkjet recording head. In mounting the ink container onto the inkjet recording head, the seal member is contracted, whereby a volume of the space in the periphery of the ink outlet to the seal member is curtailed. The inkjet recording head includes both a communication path which makes the space in the periphery of the ink inlet to the seal member communicate with the outside of the inkjet recording head, and a valve structure located in the halfway of the communication path. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording head.

  The communication part that connects the conventional detachable ink container and the ink jet recording head prevents the evaporation of ink components, prevents the communication state from being released by the entry of outside air, and prevents non-ejection due to running out of ink during use, etc. For this purpose, a seal member using rubber is used to ensure the sealing of the communication structure (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  Hereinafter, a conventional seal member will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a cross section in a state where an ink container H1900 is mounted on a conventional ink jet recording head H1500. The ink jet recording head H1500 performs recording by ejecting ink from a lower ejection port H1100 in the drawing. In the state where the ink container H1900 is attached to the ink jet recording head H1900 as shown in FIG. 10, the ink outlet H1700 of the ink container H1900 is in communication with the ink inlet H1501 of the ink jet recording head H1500. The ink is introduced into the inkjet recording head H1500.

  At this time, there is a sealing member H1800 around the ink introduction port H1501 of the ink jet recording head H1500, and the communication portion between the ink outlet port H1700 of the ink container H1900 and the ink introduction port H1501 of the ink jet recording head H1500 is secured. is doing. The seal member H1800 is usually made of an elastic member such as rubber. When the ink container H1900 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H1500, the ink outlet H1700 is compressed by the seal member H1800. Since the seal member H1800 is an elastic member such as rubber, the seal member H1800 is elastically deformed even when the ink outlet port H1700 and the ink inlet port H1501 are in contact with the seal member H1800 and there are irregularities such as waviness. Thus, the sealing property is secured by following the irregularities such as undulations.

A perspective view of the sealing member H1800 is shown in FIGS. An upper surface H1810 of the seal member H1800 is a seal surface with the ink outlet H1700 of the ink container H1900, and a bottom surface H1820 is a seal surface with the ink outlet H1501 of the ink jet recording head H1500.
JP2001-58670

  However, in the above conventional example, when the ink container H1900 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H1500, the seal member H1800 is compressed, so that the volume of the seal member space H1801 inside the seal member H1800 is reduced. At this time, since the seal member space H1801 is sealed from the atmosphere by the upper surface H1810 and the lower surface H1820 of the seal member H1800, the pressure in the seal member space H1801 is increased.

  Here, when the ink storage and the negative pressure maintaining structure of the ink container H1900 is a system using a spring bag, the pressure in the seal member space H1801 is compressed and the pressure is increased from the ink outlet H1700 of the ink container H1900. The state air will flow in.

  As a result, it can be considered that the negative pressure of the ink container H1900 is released by repeating the attachment and detachment of the ink container several times, and the ink leaks from the ink container H1900. Further, even when ink is ejected from the inkjet recording head H1500, a stable ejection state cannot be maintained.

  Accordingly, an object of the invention according to the present application is to provide an ink jet recording head and an ink container that can maintain stable ink storage negative pressure in an ink container of an ink jet recording head to which a detachable ink container is attached and perform stable printing. Is to provide.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to the present application
An ink container that is detachable from the ink jet recording head is provided.
A movable portion in which at least a part of an ink storage portion for storing ink in the ink container can be displaced or deformed, and a biasing force for biasing the movable portion in a direction to increase the volume of the storage space of the ink storage portion. An ink jet recording head using an ink container having an ink storage portion that maintains a negative pressure by a biasing means,
An ink outlet of the ink container;
An ink inlet of the inkjet recording head;
The ink outlet port of the ink container and the ink inlet of the ink jet recording head are positioned with a space around the ink inlet port of the ink jet recording head and the ink container is mounted on the ink jet recording head. A sealing member for sealing the connection with the mouth from the atmosphere,
When the ink container is mounted on the ink jet recording head, the seal member is compressed, and the volume of the space with the seal member around the ink outlet is reduced.
It has a communication passage communicating with the space around the ink introduction port and the outside of the ink jet recording head, and a valve structure located in the middle of the communication passage.

  The valve structure is characterized in that communication is defined in one direction.

  The valve structure is characterized in that it opens when a predetermined pressure is exceeded.

As explained above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide an ink jet recording head and an ink container that can maintain stable ink storage negative pressure in an ink container of an ink jet recording head to which a detachable ink container is attached and perform stable printing.

  Next, details of the present invention will be described in accordance with the description of the embodiments.

  2, 3, 4, and 5 are perspective views showing an ink jet recording apparatus, an ink jet recording head, and an ink container suitable for the present invention.

  The ink jet recording apparatus M100 in FIG. 2 includes a carriage M110 on which an ink jet recording head is mounted. Printing is performed by reciprocating the carriage M110 in the direction of arrow A2 while transporting recording paper (not shown) in the direction of arrow A1. .

  3 and 4 show the ink jet recording head H001 with the ink container T100 attached. In this figure, five ink containers T100 are mounted on the ink jet recording head H100, but the number of mounted ink containers T100 is not limited. Below the ink jet recording head H100, there is an ejection port H110 for ejecting and printing ink.

  FIG. 5 shows a state where the ink container T100 is removed from the ink jet recording head H100. At the bottom of the ink container T100, there is an ink outlet (not shown) for leading ink to the ink jet recording head H100. The ink jet recording head H100 is connected to an ink outlet (not shown) of the ink container T100, An ink introduction port H120 for introducing ink and a seal member H130 around it are provided. When the ink container T100 is mounted, an ink outlet (not shown) and the ink inlet H120 of the ink jet recording head H100 are connected to form a communication path through which ink communicates. At that time, the seal member H130 is present in a compressed state in order to ensure the sealing performance at the connection portion between the ink outlet port (not shown) of the ink container T100 and the ink inlet port H120 of the ink jet recording head H100. .

  The state of the connecting portion between the ink outlet (not shown) of the ink container T100 and the ink inlet H120 of the ink jet recording head H100 will be described with reference to the schematic cross-sectional view shown in FIG.

  FIG. 6 shows a state where the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100. The ink container T100 has an ink storage portion T110 that stores the ink I100 therein, and supplies ink from the ink outlet T120 to the ink jet recording head H100. The ink storage portion T110 at this time is in the form of a sealed spring bag, a part of which is made of a plastic member H111, and a biasing member H112 such as a coil spring biases the plastic member in the direction of spreading. Thus, the urging force of the urging member H112 generates a negative pressure that holds the ink in the ink storage portion. Note that portions other than the ink storage portion T110 of the ink container T100 are always at atmospheric pressure by the atmosphere communication port T113 communicating with the atmosphere. The ink jet recording head H100 has an ink introduction port H120 connected to the ink outlet port T120 of the ink container T100, and communicates ink to the ejection port H110 that ejects ink for image formation. At this time, at the connecting portion between the ink outlet H120 of the ink container T100 and the ink inlet H120 of the ink jet recording head H100, ink leakage, ink evaporation, and destruction of the ink communication state due to introduction of outside air are prevented. In order to do this, it is necessary to have a sealed structure. Therefore, a cylindrical seal member H130 is provided around the ink inlet H120 of the ink jet recording head H100, and the seal surface H121 of the ink jet recording head H100 and the seal surface T121 of the ink container T100 are sealed. . The seal member H130 is formed of an elastic material such as rubber, and the ink container T100 is attached to the ink jet recording head H100 in a compressed state as compared with the ink container T100 not attached. When the seal surface T121 of the ink container T100 and the seal surface H121 of the ink jet recording head H100 have irregularities such as undulations, the sealing member H130 follows the undulations to ensure a sealed state.

  However, when the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100, the seal member H130 is compressed, so that the volume of the inner space of the seal member H130 is reduced and the pressure is increased.

  Here, the ink storage portion T110 of the ink container T100 has a negative pressure inside due to the spring bag, and the compressed air in the inner space of the seal member H130 is compressed from the ink outlet T120 and the pressure is increased. Will flow in.

  Details of this operation will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing the operation when the conventional ink container is attached to and detached from the ink jet recording head, and shows only a part of the ink container and the ink jet recording head.

  FIG. 8A shows a state immediately before mounting the ink container T100.

  The ink container T100 includes an ink storage portion T110 that generates a negative pressure by an urging member (not shown) such as a spring, and an ink outlet T120 that guides ink to the ink jet recording head H100. The ink outlet T120 is in contact with the meniscus holding member T122 that holds ink with a predetermined meniscus force and the ink inlet H120 of the inkjet recording head H100 so that external air is not drawn by the negative pressure of the ink storage portion T110. It is comprised with the buffer member T123 used as a buffer at the time of doing. The buffer member T123 is made of, for example, a porous chamber body and has a holding force for holding ink.

  The ink jet recording head H100 includes an ink introduction port H120 for introducing ink, a dust collecting filter H121 provided at a tip of the ink introduction port H120 that contacts the buffer member T123 of the ink container T100, and a seal member H130. It is shown. The seal member H130 is made larger in size than the ink inlet H120. For example, the manufacturing tolerance of each part, the locus when the ink container is mounted, and the ink container having a large ink outlet port size are also used. This is in consideration of being able to cope. As a result, a space H131 is created between the seal member H130 and the ink inlet H120.

  FIG. 8B shows a state where the ink container T100 is attached to the ink jet recording head H100 with this configuration.

  When the ink container T100 is mounted, the seal member H130 is compressed, the volume of the seal member space H131 is reduced, and the internal air is pressurized.

  As a result, the high-pressure air in the seal member space H131 passes through the buffer member T123 and the meniscus holding member T122 of the ink container T100 and enters the ink storage portion T110 (A3 in FIG. 8C). G001 in FIG. 8C schematically shows bubbles that have entered the ink storage portion T110.

  Next, the operation of removing the ink container T100 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  When the ink container T100 is removed from the ink jet recording head H100, the seal member H130 returns to its original shape as the ink container T100 rises, so the seal member space H131 has a larger volume, and the internal air is Depressurized. As a result, ink is drawn out from the ink storage portion T110 of the ink container T100 and oozes out into the buffer member T123 (A4 in FIG. 8D). At this time, the bubble G001 that has entered the ink storage portion T110 does not bleed together with the ink because it has accumulated in the upper portion of the ink storage portion T110 due to the specific gravity.

  Thereafter, when the ink container T100 is completely removed and separated from the seal member H130, the outside air is drawn in by the negative pressure of the ink storage portion T110, and at the same time, the ink that has oozed into the buffer member T123 is also removed Be drawn into T110. However, since there is the meniscus holding member T122, air does not enter the ink storage portion T110.

  If this operation ((a) to (e) in FIG. 8) is repeated several times, a large amount of bubbles G001 accumulate in the ink storage portion H110, and the negative pressure acting by the biasing member (not shown) It will be released.

  In contrast, an embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 shows a state immediately before the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100.

  The ink container T100 includes an ink storage portion T110 in the form of a spring bag (not shown), a meniscus holding member T122, and a buffer member T123, as in the conventional ink container described with reference to FIG.

  The ink jet recording head H100 has an ejection port H110, an ink introduction port H120 communicating with the ejection port H110, a dust collecting filter H121 at the tip of the ink introduction port H120, and a seal member H130. The periphery of the ink introduction port H120 is a seal. There is a space H131 between the member H130.

  Further, the atmosphere release valve structure H140, which is a feature of the present invention, is configured to communicate with the seal member space H131. The atmosphere release valve structure H140 includes an atmosphere communication path H141 connected to the seal member space H131, a ball valve H142 that defines the communication direction as one direction, and a biasing member H143 that biases the ball valve H142, It consists of

  When the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100 from the state shown in FIG. 7, the state shown in FIG. 1 is obtained. Details of the attaching / detaching operation during this time will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 9A shows the same state as that immediately before mounting the ink container T100 of FIG. 7 on the ink jet recording head H100.

  When the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100, the state shown in FIG. At this time, the seal member H130 is compressed, and the air in the seal member space H131 that was at atmospheric pressure is pressurized.

  In the conventional example, the pressurized air in the seal member space H131 enters the ink storage portion H110 of the ink container T100, but in this configuration, pressure is applied in the direction of the arrow A6 shown in FIG. The ball valve H142 is moved against the urging force of the urging member H143 that urges the ball valve H142 of the atmosphere release valve structure H140. As a result, the pressurized air in the seal member space H131 is released into the direction of the arrow A7, that is, into the atmosphere via the atmosphere communication path H141. After the discharge, the air in the seal member space H131 is depressurized. Therefore, when the pressure returns below the biasing force of the biasing member H143, the ball valve H142 returns and the atmosphere release valve structure H140 is closed.

  Next, the operation when removing the ink container T100 will be described.

  When the ink container T100 is removed from the ink jet recording head H100, the seal member H130 is restored to its original shape, so that the state shown in FIG. At this time, the air in the seal member space H131 is decompressed because the volume increases. Since the opening direction of the atmosphere release valve structure H140 is defined in the direction from the seal member space H131 to the outside, there is no cancellation of decompression due to the entry of outside air from here. As a result, ink is drawn out from the ink storage portion T110 of the ink container T100 and oozes into the buffer member T123 (A8 in FIG. 9D).

  Thereafter, when the ink container T100 is completely removed from the ink jet recording head H100, the state shown in FIG. 9E is obtained, and the outside air enters the buffer member T123, and the ink that has oozed out is returned to the ink storage portion H110.

  The relationship between the pressures during this time is as follows.

Atmospheric pressure: P0 / Ink storage section H110 negative pressure: P1 (negative pressure) / meniscus holding member H122 holding force: P2 / compression seal member space H131 internal pressure: P3 / atmospheric release valve structure H140 release pressure: P4
P1 <P0 <P4 <P2 <P3
As a result, in the removal operation of the ink container T100, the negative pressure in the ink storage portion H110 does not fluctuate, and problems such as ink leakage do not occur.

The attachment / detachment operation of the ink container T100 described in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 does not include the suction recovery operation and the printing operation in the ink jet recording head H100 mounted with the ink container T100.
Even when the suction recovery operation and the printing operation are performed in a state where the ink container T100 is mounted on the ink jet recording head H100 ((c) in FIG. 8, (c) in FIG. 9), from (c) in FIG. d) Between (c) and (d) in FIG. 9, the step of ink communicating with the ink storage portion T110 of the ink container T100 and the dust collection filter H121 of the ink jet recording head H100 through the buffer member T123. Yes, in FIG. 8 (e) and FIG. 9 (e), only the ink that has been communicated in the buffer member T123 is returned to the ink storage portion by the introduction of the outside air, and there is a great difference in other operations. There is no.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a part of a state where an ink container is mounted on an ink jet recording head. It is the perspective view which showed the inkjet recording device. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording head with an ink container mounted. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording head with an ink container mounted from the discharge port side. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording head with an ink container removed. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an ink jet recording head with an ink container mounted. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a part of a state immediately before the ink container is mounted on the ink jet recording head. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation of mounting an ink container on a conventional inkjet recording head. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation of mounting an ink container on the ink jet recording head according to the present invention. It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram showing an ink jet recording head in a state in which a conventional ink container is mounted. It is the perspective view which showed the sealing member used for the connection part of the inkjet recording head and ink container of a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

M100 inkjet recording device
M110 carriage
H001 Inkjet recording head with ink container mounted
H100 inkjet recording head
H110 Discharge port
H120 Ink inlet
H121 Dust collection filter
H130 Seal member
H131 Sealing member space
H140 Atmospheric release valve structure
H141 Air communication passage
H142 Ball valve
H143 Biasing member
T100 ink container
T110 ink storage
T120 Ink outlet
T121 Ink container seal surface
T122 Meniscus holding member
T123 cushioning member
A1 arrow
A2 arrow
A3 arrow
A4 arrow
A5 arrow
A6 arrow
A7 arrow
A8 arrow
A9 arrow
H1100 Discharge port
H1500 inkjet recording head
H1501 Ink inlet
H1700 Ink outlet
H1800 seal material
H1801 Seal member space
H1900 ink container

Claims (3)

An ink container that is detachable from the ink jet recording head is provided.
A movable portion in which at least a part of an ink storage portion for storing ink in the ink container can be displaced or deformed, and a biasing force for biasing the movable portion in a direction to increase the volume of the storage space of the ink storage portion. An ink jet recording head using an ink container having an ink storage portion that maintains a negative pressure by a biasing means,
An ink outlet of the ink container;
An ink inlet of the inkjet recording head;
The ink outlet port of the ink container and the ink inlet of the ink jet recording head are positioned with a space around the ink inlet port of the ink jet recording head and the ink container is mounted on the ink jet recording head. A sealing member for sealing the connection with the mouth from the atmosphere,
When the ink container is mounted on the ink jet recording head, the seal member is compressed, and the volume of the space with the seal member around the ink outlet is reduced.
An ink jet recording head, comprising: a communication passage that communicates a space between the seal member around the ink inlet and the outside of the ink jet recording head; and a valve structure that is positioned in the middle of the communication passage.   2. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the valve structure defines communication in one direction.   2. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the valve structure opens when a predetermined pressure is exceeded.

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