JP2010260202A - Ink cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the following problem: leakage of ink from an ink cartridge or an apparatus body side is not sufficiently prevented when the ink cartridge is detached from the apparatus body. <P>SOLUTION: The ink cartridge includes: a flexible ink bag 76a for storing the ink; a bag member 76b which hermetically stores the ink bag 76a therein and forms a pressurization space (air layer 76c) to which a fluid is supplied between the bag member 76b and the ink bag 76a; an ink output port 82 through which the ink is supplied from the ink bag 76a to the apparatus body; and an ink flow path opening/closing valve 91A for opening/closing between the ink output port 82 and the ink bag 76a. The ink flow path opening/closing valve 91A comprises an elastic ink tube 85, an air tube deformation part 88, a pressurization plate 89 and a pressurization spring 90, and the air supplied from a pressurization pump 78 to the air layer 76c opens/closes between the ink output port 82 and the ink bag 76a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink cartridge and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus provided with a recording head for ejecting liquid droplets and an ink cartridge that is detachably attached to the image forming apparatus.

  As an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile machine, a copying apparatus, a plotter, and a complex machine of these, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus is known as an image forming apparatus of a liquid discharge recording method using a recording head for discharging ink droplets. .

  An image forming apparatus of a liquid discharge recording system means a sheet on which ink droplets are transported from a recording head (not limited to paper, including OHP, etc., and can be attached to ink droplets and other liquids). And recording medium or recording medium, recording paper, recording paper, etc.) to form an image (recording, printing, printing, and printing are also used synonymously). A serial type image forming apparatus that forms an image by discharging droplets while the recording head moves in the main scanning direction, and a line type head that forms images by discharging droplets without moving the recording head. There is a line type image forming apparatus to be used.

  In the present application, the “image forming apparatus” of the liquid ejection type means an apparatus that ejects liquid droplets onto a medium such as paper, thread, fiber, fabric, leather, metal, plastic, glass, wood, ceramics, etc. "Image formation" is not only the application of images with meanings such as characters and figures to the medium, but also the addition of images with no meaning such as patterns to the medium (simply applying droplets to the medium) It also means landing, that is, a liquid ejection device. “Ink” is not limited to ink, but is used as a general term for all liquids capable of image formation, such as recording liquid, fixing processing liquid, and liquid. DNA samples, resists, pattern materials, resins and the like are also included.

  Such an image forming apparatus (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “inkjet recording apparatus”) is diversified as the speed increases, and is widely used not only for home use but also for business use. There is also an increasing demand for image formation. In business applications, in order to print in large quantities, the ink storage capacity of the ink cartridge is increased to reduce the cartridge replacement frequency.

  Therefore, instead of directly mounting the ink cartridge on the print head, an ink cartridge (also referred to as a main tank or main cartridge) is detachably provided on the main body of the image forming apparatus, and the recording is mounted on a carriage or the like with a tube or the like. A method of supplying ink in communication with the head (tube supply method) is often used.

  In this tube supply method, ink consumed from the recording head in association with image formation is supplied from the ink cartridge to the recording head through the tube. For example, when a thin tube having high flexibility is used, the tube is used as the ink. Since the fluid resistance when the ink flows is large, the supply may not be in time for ink discharge, resulting in ejection failure. In particular, in a large apparatus that prints on a wide recording medium, the tube inevitably becomes long and the fluid resistance of the tube increases. Also, when printing at high speed or ejecting highly viscous ink, fluid resistance increases, and insufficient ink supply to the recording head becomes a problem.

  Therefore, for example, while holding the ink in the ink cartridge in a pressurized state, a differential pressure valve is provided on the upstream side of the ink supply of the head so that the ink is supplied when the negative pressure in the sub tank is greater than a predetermined pressure. (See Patent Document 1).

  In this configuration, the above-mentioned problem of insufficient refill is solved, but since the ink is pressurized, a positive residual pressure tends to remain in the ink supply path, and when the ink cartridge is removed. In addition, there is a risk that ink may leak from the ink cartridge or the apparatus main body side at the connection portion.

  For this reason, there is a type in which an open / close valve that adjusts the air pressure to pressurize ink is driven by an electromagnetic plunger to depressurize the air flow path (see Patent Document 2). As another technique, a part of an ink supply path of an ink cartridge that pressurizes and feeds ink by air pressurization is a volume changing unit made of a flexible film, and air pressurization is performed from the outside. By doing so, there is one in which the volume changing means absorbs the ink residual pressure when removing the cartridge to prevent ink leakage (see Patent Document 3).

Japanese Patent No. 3606282 Japanese Patent No. 3775650 JP 2008-23010 A

  However, since the configurations described in Patent Documents 2 and 3 described above all only release the air pressure, the ink when the ink cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body and the ink from the apparatus main body side. There is a problem that leakage is not sufficiently prevented.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to reliably prevent ink leakage with a simple configuration when an ink cartridge is removed from an apparatus main body.

In order to solve the above problems, an ink cartridge according to the present invention includes:
An ink cartridge that is detachably attached to the image forming apparatus main body,
A flexible ink containing means for containing ink;
A pressurizing space forming unit that stores the ink containing unit in a sealed state and forms a pressurizing space to which a fluid is supplied between the ink containing unit;
An ink discharge port for supplying the ink from the ink containing means to the image forming apparatus main body;
Opening and closing means for opening and closing between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means,
The ink cartridge is characterized in that the opening / closing means opens and closes between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means by supplying a fluid to the pressurized space.

  Here, the opening / closing means may be configured to communicate the ink discharge port and the ink containing means when pressurizing the ink containing means.

  The pressurized space may be configured to be supplied with fluid from the main body of the image forming apparatus.

The opening / closing means can be deformed through a deformable portion provided in at least a part of an ink flow path connecting between the ink containing means and the ink discharge port, and through which a fluid supplied to the pressurizing space passes. A pressurized fluid channel including a portion, and a pressure member biased in a direction to crush each of the deformable portions of the ink channel and the pressurized fluid channel,
The deformable portion of the pressurized fluid channel is deformed by the fluid supplied to the pressurized space, whereby the deformable portion of the ink channel is deformed and the ink channel is opened.

  Further, the opening / closing means may be configured such that when the fluid is not supplied, the ink flow path is closed and the pressurized fluid flow path is in communication.

  Moreover, it can be set as the structure provided with the detection means which detects the opening / closing state of the said opening / closing means.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes:
A recording head for discharging droplets;
An ink cartridge including flexible ink containing means for containing ink to be supplied to the recording head;
Pressurizing means for pressurizing the ink containing means of the ink cartridge;
A liquid feeding pipe for feeding the ink of the ink cartridge to the recording head;
Opening and closing means for opening and closing the liquid feeding pipe,
The opening / closing means is driven by the pressurizing means.

  Here, the opening / closing means may be configured to open the liquid feeding pipe when the pressurizing means pressurizes the ink containing means of the ink cartridge.

  The pressurizing means may be configured to pressurize the ink containing means of the ink cartridge with a fluid.

The opening / closing means includes a deformable part provided in at least a part of the liquid feeding pipe, a pressurized fluid passage including a deformable part through which the fluid passes, the liquid feeding pipe, and the pressurizing part. A pressure member that is biased in a direction to crush each of the deformable portions of the fluid flow path and closes the liquid feeding pipe,
The deformable portion of the pressurized fluid flow path is deformed by the pressurizing means, whereby the deformable portion of the liquid feeding tube is deformed and the liquid feeding tube is opened.

  The opening / closing means may be configured such that when the ink containing means of the ink cartridge is not pressurized by the pressurizing means, the liquid supply pipe is in a closed state and the pressurized fluid flow path is in a communicating state. it can.

  Moreover, it can be set as the structure provided with the detection means which detects the opening / closing state of the said opening / closing means.

  According to the ink cartridge of the present invention, the flexible ink containing means for containing the ink, and the pressurization in which the ink containing means is housed in a sealed state and fluid is supplied between the ink containing means. A pressure space forming means for forming a space; an ink discharge port for supplying ink from the ink storage means to the image forming apparatus main body; and an opening / closing means for opening and closing between the ink discharge port and the ink storage means. Since the means is configured to open and close between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means by supplying fluid to the pressurized space, it is possible to reliably prevent ink leakage when the ink cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body. can do.

  According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the recording head for ejecting droplets, the ink cartridge including the flexible ink storing means for storing the ink to be supplied to the recording head, and the ink storing means of the ink cartridge are provided. A pressurizing unit that pressurizes, a liquid feeding tube that feeds the ink of the ink cartridge to the recording head, and an opening and closing unit that opens and closes the liquid feeding tube. The opening and closing unit is driven by the pressurizing unit. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent ink leakage when the ink cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body with a simple configuration.

1 is a schematic front explanatory view showing an ink jet recording apparatus as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic plane explanatory drawing similarly. It is a schematic side surface explanatory drawing similarly. FIG. 2 is an enlarged explanatory view of a main part for explaining a recording head of the same apparatus. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional explanatory view of a sub tank of an ink supply system (ink supply system) of the apparatus. FIG. 6 is a schematic side cross-sectional explanatory view taken along the line AA of FIG. 5 that also serves to explain the operation of the sub tank. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an ink supply system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of a cartridge holder. FIG. 3 is a schematic front view of an ink cartridge. FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view of FIG. 9. FIG. 10 is a schematic side sectional explanatory view taken along line BB in FIG. 9. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view for explaining the operation of the ink cartridge. It is a side cross-sectional schematic explanatory drawing which follows the CC line of FIG. It is a typical explanatory view explaining the whole composition of the ink supply system concerning a 2nd embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic front explanatory view of an ink cartridge. FIG. 16 is a schematic plan view of FIG. 15. FIG. 17 is a schematic side sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 16 for explaining the operation of the opening / closing means of the ink cartridge. It is a typical explanatory view explaining the whole composition of the ink supply system concerning a 3rd embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic side sectional view for explaining the operation of the opening / closing means of the ink cartridge. It is a typical explanatory view explaining the whole composition of the ink supply system concerning a 4th embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional explanatory diagram for explaining an operation of an opening / closing means for opening / closing a liquid feeding pipe between an ink cartridge and a recording apparatus main body. It is a typical explanatory view explaining the whole composition of the ink supply system concerning a 5th embodiment of the present invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. An ink jet recording apparatus as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a schematic front view of the recording apparatus, FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view, and FIG. 3 is a schematic side view.
The ink jet recording apparatus includes a guide rod 2 that is a guide member horizontally mounted on the left and right side plates 1L and 1R provided upright on the main body frame 1, and a guide rail attached to a rear frame 1B that is horizontally mounted on the main body frame 1. 3, the carriage 4 is slidably held in the main scanning direction (guide rod longitudinal direction), and the carriage 4 is moved and scanned in the longitudinal direction (main scanning direction) of the guide rod 2 by a main scanning motor and a timing belt (not shown). To do.

  For example, one or a plurality (four in this example) of recording heads 10 ejecting ink droplets of each color of black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) are disposed on the carriage 4. The recording head 10 is mounted with a plurality of ink ejection openings (nozzles) arranged in a direction crossing the main scanning direction, and the ink droplet ejection direction is directed downward.

  Here, the recording head 10 is composed of a heating element substrate 12 and a liquid chamber forming member 13 as shown in FIG. 4, and the common flow path 17 and the liquid chamber (individual flow paths) are formed from the flow path formed in the head base member 19. ) The ink sequentially supplied to 16 is ejected as droplets. This recording head 10 is of a thermal type that obtains a discharge pressure by boiling the ink film by driving the heat generating element 14, and the direction of ink flow to the discharge energy acting part (heat generating part) in the liquid chamber 16 and the nozzles. This is a side shooter type configuration in which the opening center axis of 15 is a right angle.

  As the recording head, there are various methods such as a method in which the diaphragm is deformed by using a piezoelectric element, and the diaphragm is deformed by an electrostatic force to obtain a discharge pressure. The present invention can be applied to such an image forming apparatus.

  On the other hand, below the carriage 4, a sheet 20 on which an image is formed by the recording head 10 is conveyed in a direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction (sub-scanning direction). As shown in FIG. 3, the paper 20 is sandwiched between a transport roller 21 and a pressing roller 22, transported to an image forming area (printing unit) by the recording head 10, sent onto a printing guide member 23, and discharged. A pair of rollers 24 feeds in the paper discharge direction.

  At this time, the scanning of the carriage 4 in the main scanning direction and the ink ejection from the recording head 10 are synchronized at an appropriate timing based on the image data, and an image for one band is formed on the paper 20. After image formation for one band is completed, a predetermined amount of paper 20 is fed in the sub-scanning direction, and the same recording operation as described above is performed. These operations are repeated to form an image for one page.

  On the other hand, a sub tank (buffer tank, head tank) 30 in which an ink chamber for temporarily storing ink to be ejected is formed is integrally connected to the upper portion of the recording head 10. Here, “integral” includes that the recording head 10 and the sub-tank 30 are connected by a tube, a pipe, and the like, both of which are mounted on the carriage 4 together.

  The sub tank 30 is an ink cartridge (main tank) which is a liquid tank according to the present invention and contains ink of each color which is detachably attached to a cartridge holder 77 provided on one end side in the main scanning direction on the apparatus main body side. Ink of each color is supplied from the liquid supply tube 71 that forms part of the ink supply path from 76.

  A maintenance / recovery mechanism 51 that performs maintenance / recovery of the recording head 10 is disposed on the other end side in the main scanning direction of the apparatus main body. The maintenance / recovery mechanism 51 includes a cap 52 for capping the nozzle surface of the recording head 10, a suction pump 53 for sucking the inside of the cap 52, a discharge path 54 for discharging the waste liquid of ink sucked by the suction pump 53, and the like. The waste liquid discharged from the discharge path 54 is discharged to a waste liquid tank 56 disposed on the main body frame 1 side.

Next, an example of the sub tank 30 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 is a schematic front cross-sectional explanatory view of the sub tank, and FIG. 6 is a schematic side cross-sectional explanatory view taken along the line AA of FIG. Moreover, in order to assist understanding, description of components is abbreviate | omitted suitably or it is partially made into sectional drawing.
As shown in FIG. 6, the sub tank 30 includes two chambers, an ink chamber 106 and a pressurizing chamber 102. Inside the ink chamber 106, a filter 109 is provided in the vicinity of the connection portion with the head 10, and the ink that has been filtered to remove foreign matters is supplied to the recording head 10.

  A film member 107 is provided at the opening of the tank case 101 of the sub tank 30 to form the ink chamber 106. The film member 107 is urged in the direction of expanding the volume of the sub tank 30 by a biasing means 108 such as a spring. Has been. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 6A, the film member 107 has a form that bulges outward from the sub tank 30.

  A pressure chamber case portion 101 a that forms the pressure chamber 102 is integrally provided on the opposite side of the tank case 101 from the film member 107, and the communication path 111 is provided between the ink chamber 106 and the pressure chamber 102. Is formed, and a negative pressure interlocking valve 105 as a supply valve for opening and closing the communication path 111 is provided. The negative pressure interlocking valve 105 includes a valve body portion 105a that is movably inserted into the communication passage 111, and an urging means 105b such as a spring that urges the valve body portion 105a in a direction to close the communication passage 111. The end of the valve body 105a on the ink chamber 106 side is disposed close to the film member 107. The negative pressure interlocking valve 105 normally maintains a non-communication state in which the communication path 111 is closed as shown in FIG. 6A, but as shown in FIG. 6B, the inside of the ink chamber 106 is maintained. When the ink is consumed and the film member 107 is displaced to the inside of the ink chamber 106, the valve body portion 105a moves to open the communication passage 111, and the ink chamber 106 and the pressurizing chamber 102 are communicated.

  An ink supply port 110 is provided in the pressurizing chamber 102 of the sub tank 30. The ink supply port 110 is connected to the connection member 113 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 and communicates with the liquid supply tube 71.

Next, an ink supply system according to the first embodiment of the present invention in this image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the ink supply system. Here, for the sake of easy understanding, the shape and arrangement of the members are described in a deformed manner for the sake of easy understanding.
The ink cartridge 76 stores an ink bag 76a, which is an ink storage unit that stores ink, and the ink bag 76a in a sealed state, and forms a pressurized space (air layer 76c) between the ink bag 76a. A bag member 76b, which is a space forming means, a case member 76d, a spout (holding member) 81, and the like. Air, which is a fluid, is fed into the pressurizing space between the ink bag 76a and the bag member 76b by the pressurizing pump 78, and the ink bag 76a is pressurized by the pressure of the pressurizing space (air layer 76c), and the ink. The ink in the bag 76 a is sent to the liquid supply tube 71.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ink cartridge 76 is mounted on the cartridge holder 77 and set in the recording apparatus main body.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 8, the cartridge holder 77 is provided with an ink port 75 and air ports 74a and 74b on the ink cartridge mounting surface side. When the ink cartridge 76 is mounted in the cartridge holder 77 of the recording apparatus main body, the ink bag 76 a and the liquid supply tube (ink supply tube) 71 of the ink cartridge 76 are connected via the ink port 75 as shown in FIG. Communicate. The air layer 76c of the ink cartridge 76 communicates with the air supply tube 79 through the air port 74a. A pressure pump 78 is connected to the air supply tube 79, and the ink bag 76 a can be pressurized by taking air into and out of the air layer 76 c of the ink cartridge 76. The air layer 76c of the ink cartridge 76 communicates with the atmosphere release valve 80 through the air port 74b. The term “ink supply tube 71” is used as a term that does not distinguish between the ink supply tubes 76Y, 76M, 76C, and 76K of the respective colors.

  Since the ink bag 76 a of the ink cartridge 76 communicates with the pressurizing chamber 102 of the sub tank 30 via the ink supply tube 71 and the connecting member 113, the ink in the pressurizing chamber 102 is driven by driving the pressurizing pump 78. The pressure can be controlled.

  Next, details of the ink cartridge 76 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 is a schematic front view of the ink cartridge, FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view of FIG. 9, and FIG. 11 is a schematic side sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. Note that hatching indicating a cross section is omitted for easy illustration.

  The ink bag 76a of the ink cartridge 76 and the bag member 76b hermetically containing the ink bag 76a are connected and fixed to a spout 81 fixed to the case member 76d. The ink bag 76a communicates with the ink discharge port 82 via an ink elastic tube (deformable portion) 85 made of a flexible deformable member serving as an ink flow path.

  The air layer 76 c between the bag member 76 b and the ink bag 76 a communicates with the first air port 83 via the air suction pipe 86 and also connects to the second air port 84 via the air discharge pipe 87. Communicate.

  When the ink cartridge 76 is set in the cartridge holder 77 and connected to the apparatus main body, the first air port 83 communicates with the pressure pump 78 via the air supply tube 79 as shown in FIG. It will be in the state. Therefore, by driving the pressurizing pump 78, air can be sent into the pressurizing space (air layer 76c) between the bag member 76b and the ink bag 76a. On the other hand, the second air port 84 communicates with the atmosphere via an atmosphere release valve 80 as shown in FIG. Therefore, by performing the opening / closing operation of the air release valve 80, the inside of the bag member 76b (pressurized space: air layer 76c) can be sealed or opened to the atmosphere.

  Further, in the middle of the air suction pipe 86, two air pipe deforming portions (deformable portions) 88 made of a deformable member having flexibility are provided at positions where the ink elastic tube 85 is sandwiched. A pressure plate 89 is movably provided above the ink elastic tube 85 and the air tube deforming portion 88. The pressure plate 89 is pressed by a pressure spring 90 made of a compression spring, and the ink elastic tube 85 and the air tube. It is biased in the direction of crushing the deforming portion 88. The ink flow path opening / closing valve 91A as an opening / closing means for opening / closing the ink flow path between the ink bag 76a and the ink discharge port 82 by the ink elastic tube 85, the air tube deforming portion 88, the pressure plate 89 and the pressure spring 90. Is configured.

The operation of the ink cartridge 76 will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 is a schematic plan view for explaining the operation of the ink cartridge, and FIG. 13 is a schematic side sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG.
First, when the image forming apparatus is stopped, it is assumed that the pressurizing pump 78 is stopped and the air release valve 80 is open. In this state, all air paths (air paths) reaching the atmosphere release valve 80, the air layer 76c, and the pressurizing pump 78 are at atmospheric pressure. Accordingly, the ink elastic tube 85 of the ink flow path opening / closing valve 91A is pressed and crushed by the pressure plate 89 biased by the pressure spring 90, and as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the ink bag 76a and the ink discharge are discharged. The ink flow path between the port 82 is closed.

  Thus, even when there is a residual pressure in the ink bag 76a of the ink cartridge 76 when the image forming apparatus is stopped, it is possible to prevent a problem that ink is gradually sent to the recording head 10 side. Further, it is possible to reliably prevent ink from leaking when the ink cartridge 76 is removed from the cartridge holder 77.

  In known ink cartridges, the ink discharge port of the ink cartridge is formed by a seal member such as rubber, and a hollow needle is provided in the receiving portion of the cartridge on the printer side, and the ink path is made conductive by perforating the seal member. There is a method like this. Also in this method, when the cartridge is removed, the hole pierced by the elasticity of the seal member is closed, and ink leakage can be prevented. However, in this conventional system, there is a problem that if the ink cartridge is attached to and detached from the apparatus body a plurality of times, the sealing performance is deteriorated and ink leakage is likely to occur. In addition, it is essential to use an expensive small-diameter hollow needle to pierce the seal member, and there is a problem that the apparatus cost increases.

  On the other hand, in the configuration of the embodiment according to the present invention described above, since the sealing method is not accompanied by destruction, there is no deterioration in the sealing performance even when the ink cartridge is attached and detached multiple times, and the expensive hollow There is no need to use a needle, and a low-cost recording apparatus can be realized.

Next, a case where recording is performed with the ink cartridge 76 mounted on the recording apparatus main body will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 9 to 11 described above.
When the recording apparatus receives the print command, the atmosphere release valve 80 shown in FIG. 7 is closed, and then the pressurizing pump 78 is driven to send air to the air supply tube 79. This air enters the bag member 76b via the air suction pipe 86 in the ink cartridge 76 shown in FIG. 11, and the air pressure in the air layer 76c increases with the passage of time. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the air tube deforming portion 88 expands against the urging force of the pressure spring 90 and pushes up the pressure plate 89 that has clogged and closed the ink elastic tube 85. In this state, the inside of the ink bag 76a communicates with the pressurizing chamber 102 of the sub tank 30. When ink is ejected from the recording head 10, the pressurized ink can be supplied to the sub tank 30 at high speed. .

  Thus, in the ink cartridge of the present invention, when the recording operation is not performed by the opening / closing means (valve mechanism) that opens and closes the ink flow path of the ink cartridge using the pressurizing means for supplying ink from the ink cartridge. Ink leakage can be reliably prevented.

  Thus, the flexible ink containing means for containing the ink and the pressurization for forming a pressurized space in which the ink containing means is housed in a sealed state and fluid is supplied between the ink containing means. A space forming unit; an ink discharge port that supplies ink from the ink storage unit to the image forming apparatus main body; and an opening / closing unit that opens and closes between the ink discharge port and the ink storage unit. In addition, it is possible to reliably prevent ink leakage when the ink cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body with a simple configuration by opening and closing between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means by supplying fluid to The opening / closing operation of the opening / closing means can be performed by the pressurizing means for supplying the ink, and the configuration is simplified.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 is a schematic explanatory view for explaining the overall configuration of the ink supply system according to the embodiment, FIG. 15 is a schematic front explanatory view of the ink cartridge, FIG. 16 is a schematic plan view of FIG. 15, and FIG. FIG. 17 is a schematic side sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. 16 for explaining the operation of the opening / closing means of the ink cartridge.

  Here, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the air pipe deforming portion 88 of the ink cartridge 76 constituting the ink flow path opening / closing valve 91 </ b> B serving as the opening / closing means has a bellows structure that can be easily expanded and contracted.

  First, FIG. 17A shows a state in which the air pipe deforming portion 88 is extended by the air pressurization and the pressure plate 89 is raised. In this state, the shape of the ink elastic tube 85 recovers from the collapsed state due to its own elasticity, and the ink elastic tube 85 is opened so that the ink in the ink bag 76a can be discharged (supplied) to the liquid supply tube 71.

  In this ink supply state, the air release valve 80 is closed in FIG. 14 and air is sent into the air supply tube 79 by the pressurizing pump 78. That is, as described in the above embodiment, when the air is sent to the ink cartridge 76 by the pressurizing pump 78, the air pipe deforming portion 88 extends to communicate between the ink cartridge 76 and the liquid supply tube 71 ( In addition, the ink in the ink bag 76a is pressurized. At this time, high viscosity ink can be supplied to the recording head 10 at high speed in combination with the function of the negative pressure interlocking valve 105 in the sub tank 30 as described in the above embodiment.

  When the ink supply is unnecessary, the pressurizing pump 78 is stopped and the air release valve 80 is opened. As a result, the pressurized state of the entire path from the air supply tube 79 to the air layer 76c of the bag member 76b of the ink cartridge 76 is eliminated and the atmospheric pressure is reached. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 17B, the pressure plate 89 is lowered by the action of the pressure spring 90, the ink elastic tube 85 is crushed, and the ink flow path is blocked.

  As a result, even if a residual pressure remains inside due to the state of the ink bag 76a of the ink cartridge 76, the residual pressure causes the ink to gradually leak to the liquid supply tube side, so that the ink oozes from the recording head 10. Can be completely prevented. In addition, when the ink cartridge 76 is removed, ink leakage from the ink cartridge 76 can be prevented.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 17B, the air tube deforming portion 88 is not crushed when the ink elastic tube 85 is completely crushed. Therefore, in the above-described embodiment, two air ports (83, 84) are separately required for taking air into and out of the ink cartridge 76 as shown in FIG. 9, but in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. In addition, since the air can be taken in and out only by the first air port 83, the number of connection points with the cartridge holder 77 is half, and the configuration is simplified.

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 18 is a schematic explanatory view for explaining the overall configuration of the ink supply system according to the embodiment, and FIG. 19 is a schematic side sectional view for explaining the operation of the opening / closing means of the ink cartridge.

  The ink supply system of the present embodiment has the same configuration except for the ink supply system of the first embodiment described above and the ink flow path opening / closing valve 92 which is an opening / closing means built in the ink cartridge 76. Therefore, the configuration and operation of the ink flow path opening / closing valve 92 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the ink cartridge 76 of the present embodiment, an ink flow path groove 93 is provided in the spout 81, and the upper part thereof is covered with an elastic member 94 that can be elastically deformed, so that the ink bag 76a and the ink discharge port 82 are deformed. An ink flow path including a possible portion is formed. A first electrode 95 is provided on the upper surface of the elastic member 94. Further, a second electrode 96 that serves as a pressing member that presses the elastic member 94 and is fixed to the pressure plate 89 is disposed above the first electrode 95. The pressure plate 89 is urged downward by a tension spring as a pressure spring 90 provided on both sides. A stopper 100 is disposed above the pressure plate 89.

  When the recording apparatus equipped with this ink supply system is not in operation, the atmosphere release valve 80 in FIG. 18 is open as in the above embodiments, and the entire air path in the ink cartridge 76 is Not pressurized. At this time, as shown in FIG. 19B, the ink flow path opening / closing valve 92 lowers the second electrode 96 by the action of the pressure spring 90, and deforms the elastic member 94 to the ink flow path groove 93 side. The ink flow path is closed. This prevents ink in the ink bag 76a from leaking out of the ink cartridge.

  On the other hand, when printing is performed with the recording apparatus in an operating state, the air release valve 80 in FIG. 18 is closed and the pressurizing pump 78 is driven to supply air to the air layer 76c of the ink cartridge 76 via the air supply tube 79. Send it in. As a result, the air pipe deforming portion 88 of the ink flow path opening / closing valve 92 expands in volume as shown in FIG. 19A and lifts the pressure plate 89 to the position of the stopper 100 against the urging force of the pressure spring 90. . As a result, the pressure applied to the elastic member 94 by the second electrode 96 is released, the shape is restored by the restoring force of the elastic member 94, the ink flow path is opened, and ink can be pumped from the ink cartridge 76 to the liquid supply tube 71. It becomes like this.

  In the present embodiment, the first electrode 95 is provided on the second electrode 96 that moves up and down in the air pressurization state and the elastic member 94 that forms the ink flow path. These two electrodes 95 and 96 are in contact and conductive as shown in FIG. 19B in a state where no air pressure is applied, that is, in a state where the ink flow path is closed. Further, even when air pressure is applied, the second electrode 96 is in a state where the elastic member 94 is restored in shape by the stopper 100 and an ink flow path is formed, as shown in FIG. 95. Therefore, when the ink cartridge 76 is in a normal state, both electrodes are conductive regardless of the air pressurization state.

  On the other hand, when there is no ink in the ink bag 76a of the ink cartridge 76, even if air pressure is applied as shown in FIG. 19C, the ink is not discharged from the ink bag 76a, so the elastic member 94 is crushed. As a result, the first electrode 95 and the second electrode 96 become non-conductive, so that it is possible to detect that the ink cartridge 76 is empty (ink end or ink near end).

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 20 is a schematic explanatory view for explaining the overall configuration of the ink supply system according to the embodiment, and FIG. 21 is used for explaining the operation of the opening / closing means for opening and closing the liquid feeding pipe between the ink cartridge and the recording apparatus main body. It is typical sectional explanatory drawing.

  The ink supply system of this embodiment is obtained by adding an ink feeding valve 97 as an opening / closing means between the liquid supply tube 71 and the ink cartridge 76 in the ink supply system of the first embodiment described above.

  The ink feeding valve 97 opens and closes a feeding pipe (deformable portion) 72 made of a flexible member provided between the ink cartridge 76 and the liquid supply tube 71 by driving a pressure pump 78. is there. That is, as shown in FIG. 21, the ink feeding valve 97 is configured by a hinge mechanism 98 in which a pressure plate 89 rotates around a fulcrum 99, and a deformable feeding pipe 72 and an air pipe deforming portion 88. Is sandwiched by the hinge mechanism 98, and the air pipe deforming portion 88 is disposed on the side farther from the fulcrum 99. In the portion sandwiched by the hinge mechanism 98, the liquid feeding pipe 72 is made of an elastic member such as silicon rubber, and the air pipe deforming portion 88 is made of a flexible material such as a rubber tube or a film material such as PET. Can also be modified.

  Further, the pressure plate 89 is constantly pressurized by a pressure spring 90. In a state where the pressure plate 86 is pressurized (a state where no air is supplied from the pressure pump 78), the air pipe deforming portion 88 is crushed as shown in FIG. 72 also collapses and the ink supply flow path is closed. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 21A, when the air pipe deforming portion 88 is inflated (when air is supplied from the pressure pump 78), the air pipe deforming portion 88 is inflated and sent. Since the pressure plate 89 crushing the liquid pipe 72 is pushed up against the urging force of the pressure spring 90, the shape is recovered by the elasticity of the member forming the liquid feed pipe 72 in order to release the pressure, The ink supply channel is opened.

  Here, when the recording apparatus equipped with this ink supply system is not in operation, the atmosphere release valve 80 in FIG. 20 is open, and the ink cartridge 76 and the atmosphere release valve 80 from the pressure pump 78 are opened. The entire air path leading to is not pressurized. At this time, as shown in FIG. 21B, the ink feeding valve 97 is in a state in which the feeding pipe 72 is closed by the action of the pressurizing spring 90, and at the same time, the ink in the ink cartridge 76 as described above. The flow path opening / closing valve 91 is also closed. Thereby, even when there is a residual pressure in the ink bag 76a of the ink cartridge 76, it is possible to prevent the ink from being gradually sent to the recording head 10 side.

  Further, when the ink cartridge 76 is removed from the recording apparatus, the ink (supply) flow path is closed on both the ink cartridge 76 side and the recording apparatus main body side, so that ink leaks from both. There is nothing.

  On the other hand, when the recording apparatus is in an operating state and printing is performed, the atmosphere release valve 80 in FIG. 20 is closed, and the pressure pump 78 is driven to send air into the air layer 76 c of the ink cartridge 76 through the air supply tube 79. As a result, the air pipe deforming portion 88 of the ink feeding valve 97 and the ink flow path opening / closing valve 91 undergoes volume expansion and lifts the pressure plate 89 against the pressure spring 90 (see FIGS. 21A and 10). As a result, both the ink flow paths 85 and the ink feeding pipe 72 are opened, and ink pressure feeding from the ink cartridge 76 to the liquid supply tube 71 can be performed.

  Also in this embodiment, since the first electrode 95 and the second electrode 96 are provided on the two plates opened and closed by the hinge mechanism 98, the deformation state of the air pipe deformation portion 88 can be detected. Therefore, when the air is fed by driving the pressurizing pump 78, the two electrodes 95 and 96 are separated from each other as shown in FIG. It can be detected. If the pressure pump 78 is driven but is in a conductive state, the pump 78 has failed or an air leak has occurred somewhere in the air path, and the printing operation can be stopped. .

  On the other hand, if the first electrode 95 and the second electrode 96 are in a non-conductive state even though the atmosphere release valve 80 is open, a malfunction such as a failure of the atmosphere release valve 80 itself or a blockage of the air path. Can be detected.

  Thus, a recording head that discharges droplets, an ink cartridge that includes a flexible ink storage unit that stores ink to be supplied to the recording head, and a pressurizing unit that pressurizes the ink storage unit of the ink cartridge; An ink cartridge is provided with a liquid feeding pipe for feeding the ink of the ink cartridge to the recording head, and an opening / closing means for opening / closing the liquid feeding pipe, and the opening / closing means is driven by the pressurizing means. Ink can be surely prevented from leaking with a simple configuration when removed from the printer, and the opening / closing operation of the opening / closing device can be performed by the pressurizing device, thereby simplifying the configuration.

  In the above description, for simplification of description, the case where the ink of one ink cartridge 76 is supplied to the corresponding recording head 10 has been described. However, the present invention applies a plurality of types of ink to the corresponding recording head. The present invention can be applied to a recording apparatus that supplies and records. In this case, the ink supply stem in each of the above-described embodiments may be provided for each ink type. However, as shown in FIG. 22, the ink pressurizing pump 78 and the atmosphere release valve 80 are commonly used. This can simplify the pressurization system.

Therefore, a fifth embodiment of the present invention that uses a pump and an air release valve in common will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 22 is a schematic explanatory view illustrating the overall configuration of the ink supply system according to the embodiment.
Here, a configuration example of an ink supply system in the case where ink cartridges (76M, 76Y) containing two colors of ink are supplied to corresponding recording heads (10M, 10Y) is shown. In the present embodiment, each ink cartridge 76 has the same configuration as the ink flow path opening / closing valve 91B described in FIGS. 14 to 16, and the cartridge holder 77 has the apparatus described in FIGS. An ink feeding valve 97 is provided as an opening / closing means for opening and closing the ink supply path on the main body side.

  Here, each air pipe deforming portion 88 inside the ink flow path opening / closing valve 91B and the ink liquid supply valve 97 is configured not to close the air flow path when not pressurized, and from the pressure pump 78 as shown in FIG. An air path reaching the ink cartridge 76 is formed. As a result, even when two colors of ink are supplied with a single pressurizing pump 78 and atmospheric release valve 80, it is possible to reliably prevent ink leakage as in the system described above.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the ink flow path opening / closing valve and the ink feeding valve can be operated simply by using the drive source for pressurizing the ink of the ink cartridge, and the ink can be supplied at high speed during printing. In addition, ink leakage can be reliably prevented when not driven.

4 Carriage 10 Recording head 30 Sub tank 71 Liquid supply tube 72 Liquid supply tube 76 Ink cartridge 76a Ink bag 76b Bag member 76c Air layer (pressurized space)
77 Cartridge holder 78 Pressure pump 79 Air supply tube 81 Spout 82 Ink discharge port 85 Ink elastic tube 88 Air deformation tube 89 Pressure plate 90 Pressure spring 91A, 91B, 92 Ink flow path opening / closing valve (opening / closing means)
97 Ink open / close valve (open / close means)

Claims (12)

An ink cartridge that is detachably attached to the image forming apparatus main body,
A flexible ink containing means for containing ink;
A pressurizing space forming unit that stores the ink containing unit in a sealed state and forms a pressurizing space to which a fluid is supplied between the ink containing unit;
An ink discharge port for supplying the ink from the ink containing means to the image forming apparatus main body;
Opening and closing means for opening and closing between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means,
The ink cartridge is characterized in that the opening / closing means opens and closes between the ink discharge port and the ink containing means by supplying a fluid to the pressurized space.   2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the opening / closing means causes the ink discharge port to communicate with the ink containing means when the pressurizing means pressurizes the ink containing means.   The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a fluid is supplied to the pressurizing space from a main body of the image forming apparatus. The opening / closing means includes a deformable portion provided in at least a part of an ink flow path connecting between the ink containing means and the ink discharge port, and a deformable portion through which a fluid supplied to the pressurizing space passes. A pressurized fluid channel including: a pressure member biased in a direction of crushing each of the deformable portions of the ink channel and the pressurized fluid channel;
The deformable portion of the pressurized fluid channel is deformed by the fluid supplied to the pressurized space, whereby the deformable portion of the ink channel is deformed and the ink channel is opened. The ink cartridge according to claim 3.   5. The ink cartridge according to claim 4, wherein when the fluid is not supplied, the opening / closing means is in a closed state and the pressurized fluid channel is in a communicating state.   The ink cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising a detection unit that detects an open / closed state of the open / close unit. A recording head for discharging droplets;
An ink cartridge including flexible ink containing means for containing ink to be supplied to the recording head;
Pressurizing means for pressurizing the ink containing means of the ink cartridge;
A liquid feeding pipe for feeding the ink of the ink cartridge to the recording head;
Opening and closing means for opening and closing the liquid feeding pipe,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the opening / closing means is driven by the pressurizing means.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the opening / closing unit opens the liquid feeding pipe when the pressurizing unit pressurizes the ink containing unit of the ink cartridge.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the pressurizing unit pressurizes the ink containing unit of the ink cartridge with a fluid. The opening / closing means includes a deformable part provided in at least a part of the liquid feeding pipe, a pressurized fluid passage including a deformable part through which the fluid passes, the liquid feeding pipe, and the pressurized fluid flow. A pressure member that is biased in a direction to crush each of the deformable portions of the path and closes the liquid feeding pipe,
The deformable portion of the pressurized fluid flow path is deformed by the pressurizing means, whereby the deformable portion of the liquid feeding tube is deformed and the liquid feeding tube is opened. The image forming apparatus described.   The opening / closing means is characterized in that when the ink containing means of the ink cartridge is not pressurized by the pressurizing means, the liquid supply pipe is in a closed state and the pressurized fluid flow path is in a communicating state. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising a detecting unit that detects an open / closed state of the opening / closing unit.

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