JP2014061675A - Cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cartridge capable of preventing air from flowing into a storage part where an ink is stored from a supply port even if a space defined by the cartridge and a cap is compressed when the supply port is closed by the cap.SOLUTION: A cartridge includes: a case 57 which houses a storage part for storing a liquid therein; a supply port 55 which is provided at the case 57 and supplies the liquid stored in the storage part to an exterior device; a cover 141 which covers the supply port 55 from the outer side of the case 57; a communication hole 111 which is provided at a region of the case 57, with which the cover 141 overlaps, and allows a space defined by the cover 141 and the case 57 to communicate with the exterior of the case 57; and a seal member 143 which is provided at the case 57 side of the cover 141 and covers the supply port 55 and the communication hole 111. A groove 157 which ranges from a first chamber 167 to a second chamber 169, from among a region enclosed by the supply port 55 and the seal member 143, is provided in the seal member 143.

Description

  The present invention relates to a cartridge and the like.

  As a cartridge that stores a liquid that is a liquid substance having fluidity, for example, a cartridge for supplying ink, which is an example of a liquid, to an inkjet printer is known. Conventionally, such a cartridge is known in which a supply port for supplying ink contained in the cartridge to an ink jet printer is protected by a cap (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-112915

  However, when the supply port is closed with the cap, the space defined by the cartridge and the cap is compressed, and there is a possibility that air (atmosphere) flows from the supply port into the storage portion for storing ink in the cartridge. When air flows into the housing portion from the supply port, the air that flows in is dissolved in the ink or mixed into the ink as bubbles. Air dissolved in the ink or bubbles mixed in the ink may cause a decrease in ink discharge performance in the recording head.

  The air dissolved in the ink may appear as bubbles in the ink supply path or the recording head. In addition, air bubbles mixed in the ink may reach the recording head. If air bubbles are mixed in the ink in the recording head, the ink ejection performance may deteriorate due to the air bubbles. Examples of the drop in ejection performance include a case where the amount of ink droplets is out of a specified range, ink droplets are not ejected, or the ink droplet traveling direction is deviated.

  Such a decrease in ejection performance is caused by ink mixed with air. From the viewpoint of inducing a decrease in ejection performance, the ink mixed with air can be regarded as having deteriorated quality. Thus, the conventional cartridge has a problem that it is difficult to maintain the quality of the liquid.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

  [Application Example 1] A case that encloses a storage unit that stores a liquid, a supply port that is provided in the case and supplies the liquid stored in the storage unit to an external device, and the supply port is located outside the case A lid that closes the supply port, and a communication port that communicates the space defined by the lid and the case with the outside of the case. A seal member provided on the case side and covering the supply port and the communication port, and the seal member is provided with a groove extending from a region overlapping the supply port to a region overlapping the communication port. The cartridge characterized by the above.

  In the cartridge of this application example, a communication port is provided in a region where a lid that closes the supply port overlaps the case. For this reason, the lid closes the supply port and the communication port. A seal member that covers the supply port and the communication port is provided on the case side of the lid. And the groove | channel from the area | region which overlaps with a supply port to the area | region which overlaps with a communicating port is provided in the sealing member. Even when the space defined by the case and the cap is compressed when the supply port is closed with a lid, the air sandwiched between the supply port and the seal member is passed through the groove provided in the seal member from the communication port. Can escape to the outside of the case. Thereby, it is easy to avoid that air | atmosphere flows into a accommodating part from a supply port. For this reason, since it is easy to avoid air | atmosphere mixing in the liquid in an accommodating part, it is easy to maintain the quality of the liquid.

  Application Example 2 In the above cartridge, the depth of the groove is shallower than half the thickness of the seal member.

  According to this application example, since the depth of the groove is shallower than half of the thickness of the seal member, the thickness of the seal member at the groove portion can be maintained at half or more of the thickness at other portions. Thereby, it is easy to suppress the liquid from evaporating from the groove portion.

  Application Example 3 In the above cartridge, the width of the groove in the crossing direction, which is a direction crossing the extending direction of the groove, in plan view is half of the width dimension of the seal member in the crossing direction. A cartridge characterized by the following:

  According to this application example, since the groove width is less than or equal to half of the width dimension of the seal member in the intersecting direction, the dimension obtained by subtracting the groove width from the width dimension of the seal member can be made larger than the groove width. Thereby, it is easy to suppress the liquid from evaporating from the groove portion.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a liquid ejection system in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is an external perspective view illustrating a configuration of a cartridge in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a configuration of a cartridge in the present embodiment. The figure explaining the structure in the cartridge in this embodiment. The bottom view which shows the cartridge in this embodiment. The figure which shows typically the inside of the cartridge in this embodiment. The figure which shows typically the inside of the cartridge in this embodiment. The figure which shows typically the inside of the cartridge in this embodiment. The perspective view which shows the cap in this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view when a cap is attached to the cartridge according to the present embodiment.

  The embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings, taking a liquid ejection system as an example. In addition, in each drawing, in order to make each structure the size which can be recognized, the structure and the scale of a member may differ.

[Configuration of liquid injection system]
As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid ejecting system 1 includes a printer 5 and a cartridge 7 that is an example of a liquid storage container that stores ink as a liquid. In FIG. 1, XYZ axes, which are coordinate axes orthogonal to each other, are attached. The XYZ axes are also attached to the drawings shown thereafter as necessary. In FIG. 1, the printer 5 is disposed on a horizontal plane defined by the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. The Z-axis direction is a direction orthogonal to a horizontal plane, and the negative Z-axis direction is the vertically downward direction.

  The printer 5 has a sub-scan feed mechanism, a main scan feed mechanism, and a head drive mechanism. The sub-scan feed mechanism transports the printing paper P in the sub-scan direction using a paper feed roller 11 powered by a paper feed motor (not shown). The main scanning feed mechanism uses the power of the carriage motor 13 to reciprocate the carriage 17 connected to the drive belt 15 in the main scanning direction. The main scanning direction of the printer 5 is the Y-axis direction, and the sub-scanning direction is the X-axis direction. The head drive mechanism drives the print head 19 provided in the carriage 17 to execute ejection of ink as liquid and dot formation. The printer 5 further includes a control unit 21 for controlling each mechanism described above. The print head 19 is connected to the control unit 21 via the flexible cable 23.

  The carriage 17 includes a holder 25 and a print head 19. The holder 25 is configured so that a plurality of cartridges 7 can be mounted, and is disposed on the upper side of the print head 19. In this embodiment, four types of cartridges 7 of black, yellow, magenta, and cyan are mounted on the holder 25 one by one. Each of the four cartridges 7 is configured to be detachable from the holder 25. The type of cartridge 7 is not limited to the above four types, and any other type can be adopted. Further, the number of cartridges 7 that can be mounted on the holder 25 is not limited to four, and any number of one or more can be adopted. The print head 19 functions as a liquid ejecting unit that ejects ink by ejecting ink.

[Appearance structure of cartridge]
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the cartridge 7 includes a first wall 41, a second wall 43, a third wall 45, a fourth wall 47, a fifth wall 49, and a sixth wall 51. Each surface of the first wall 41 to the sixth wall 51 constitutes an outer wall of the cartridge 7. Further, the respective back surfaces of the first wall 41 to the sixth wall 51 constitute an inner wall of the cartridge 7. The first wall 41 and the second wall 43 oppose each other. The third wall 45 and the fourth wall 47 oppose each other. The fifth wall 49 and the sixth wall 51 oppose each other. Among these outer walls, the surfaces of the fifth wall 49 and the sixth wall 51 are the largest outer walls having the largest area. In the present embodiment, the direction perpendicular to the fifth wall 49 or the sixth wall 51 that is the largest outer wall is the Y-axis direction.

  The fifth wall 49 communicates the outside with the inside of the cartridge 7, and is formed with an air communication hole 53 for taking in air from the outside of the cartridge 7 to the inside of the cartridge 7. The second wall 43 is provided with a supply port 55 for supplying the ink stored in the liquid storage portion inside the cartridge 7 to the printer 5. When the cartridge 7 is attached to the printer 5, the supply port 55 is connected to a supply pipe (not shown) provided in the printer 5. Ink is supplied to the printer 5 from a supply port 55 of the cartridge 7 through a supply pipe. The ink supplied to the supply pipe of the printer 5 is supplied to the print head 19 through a tube (not shown).

  In the present embodiment, a cap 56 is attached to the cartridge 7. The cap 56 is put on the supply port 55 when the cartridge 7 is not used. The supply port 55 can be blocked by the cap 56. By closing the supply port 55 with the cap 56, it is possible to suppress the leakage of ink from the supply port 55 and the evaporation of the liquid component of the ink from the supply port 55. Note that the operator removes the cap 56 from the supply port 55 before attaching the cartridge 7 to the printer 5 when attaching the cartridge 7 to the printer 5. That is, the cartridge 7 is attached to the printer 5 with the cap 56 removed from the supply port 55.

[Detailed configuration of cartridge]
As shown in FIG. 3, the cartridge 7 includes a case 57 and a lid member 59. The case 57 and the lid member 59 constitute the outer wall of the cartridge 7. The cartridge 7 includes a valve unit 61, a coil spring 63, a pressure receiving plate 65, and a sheet member (film member) 67. The case 57 and the lid member 59 are each formed of a synthetic resin such as nylon or polypropylene, for example. The sheet member 67 is formed of a synthetic resin (for example, nylon or polypropylene) and has flexibility.

  The case 57 has an inner wall 71, and a concave shape is formed by the inner wall 71. One side surface of the case 57 is open. A sheet member 67 is joined to the case 57 so as to cover an opening on one side surface of the case 57. Thereby, the liquid storage part 73 for storing ink is formed. That is, the liquid storage portion 73 is formed by the inner wall 71 that partitions the internal space of the cartridge 7 and the flexible sheet member 67. And thereby, the volume of the liquid storage part 73 can be changed. The sheet member 67 is joined to the case 57 in a state where the sheet member 67 is stretched in advance along the concave shape of the inner wall 71 so as to easily follow the change in the volume of the liquid storage portion 73. A vent hole 75 is formed in the sheet member 67.

  In the state of the cartridge 7, the vent hole 75 is closed by the valve unit 61. Since the air communication hole 53 is provided in the lid member 59, the space between the sheet member 67 and the lid member 59 communicates with the outside of the cartridge 7. For this reason, air is interposed in the space between the sheet member 67 and the lid member 59. When the ink in the liquid container 73 is reduced, the valve unit 61 is opened and the vent hole 75 is opened. For this reason, the air outside the cartridge 7 can flow to the liquid storage portion 73 through the air communication hole 53 and the vent hole 75. And when air | atmosphere flows into the liquid storage part 73 and the pressure fall of the liquid storage part 73 is reduced, the valve unit 61 will be in a closed state. As a result, the vent hole 75 is closed by the valve unit 61. With such an operation, the pressure of the liquid storage unit 73 is maintained in an appropriate pressure range suitable for supplying ink to the print head 19.

  The coil spring 63 is wound in a truncated cone shape as shown in a simplified manner in FIG. The coil spring 63 is disposed in the liquid storage portion 73. The coil spring 63 is provided between the pressure receiving plate 65 and the inner wall 77 corresponding to the back surface of the sixth wall 51 of the cartridge 7 in the inner wall 71 of the case 57. The pressure receiving plate 65 is provided on the sheet member 67 side of the coil spring 63 and is disposed in the liquid storage portion 73. The lower bottom portion of the coil spring 63 is in contact with an inner wall 77 formed by the back surface of the sixth wall 51. The upper bottom portion of the coil spring 63 is in contact with the surface of the pressure receiving plate 65 opposite to the surface on the sheet member 67 side. Further, the upper bottom portion of the coil spring 63 abuts on the substantially central portion of the pressure receiving plate 65. The pressure receiving plate 65 is made of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene or a metal such as stainless steel.

  The coil spring 63 urges the pressure receiving plate 65 toward the sheet member 67 side. In other words, the coil spring 63 biases the pressure receiving plate 65 in the negative Y-axis direction. That is, the coil spring 63 biases the pressure receiving plate 65 in a direction in which the volume of the liquid storage portion 73 is enlarged. The coil spring 63 expands and contracts (moves) along a direction Ad (FIG. 3) that is a direction along the Y-axis direction.

  The lid member 59 is provided on the opposite side of the sheet member 67 from the pressure receiving plate 65 side. The lid member 59 is attached to the case 57 so as to cover the sheet member 67. Thereby, the sheet member 67 is protected from the outside.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the supply port 55 opens outward from the second wall 43. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a meniscus forming member 79 such as a foam or a filter is disposed in a flow path through which ink flows from the liquid container 73 in the supply port 55 to the outside. The meniscus forming member 79 is formed of, for example, a synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate. In a state where the cartridge 7 is mounted on the printer 5, the meniscus forming member 79 comes into contact with a supply pipe provided on the printer 5 and distributes ink to the printer 5 side.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the cartridge 7 includes a prism 81. The prism 81 protrudes into the liquid storage part 73 and functions as a liquid detection part for detecting whether or not ink is optically present. The prism 81 is a light transmissive member made of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene. The member constituting the prism 81 may not be transparent as long as it has an appropriate light transmittance. Whether ink is present in the liquid container 73 is detected, for example, as follows. The printer 5 is provided with an optical sensor including a light emitting element and a light receiving element. Light is emitted from the light emitting element toward the prism 81. When ink is present around the prism 81, the light passes through the prism 81 and travels into the liquid container 73. On the other hand, when the ink is not present around the prism 81, the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the two reflecting surfaces of the prism 81 and reaches the light receiving element. Based on whether the light has reached the light receiving element, the printer 5 determines whether ink is present in the liquid storage unit 73. The presence or absence of ink is determined by the control unit 21.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the cartridge 7 has a communication hole 111. The communication hole 111 is provided in the supply port 55 as shown in FIGS. The communication hole 111 is provided outside the region of the meniscus forming member 79 in the supply port 55. A partition wall 113 is provided between the region of the meniscus forming member 79 and the communication hole 111. The partition wall 113 extends in the Y-axis direction, and divides the inside of the supply port 55 in the X-axis direction. The partition 113 is provided over the supply port 55 in the Y-axis direction. The partition 113 partitions the area of the meniscus forming member 79 and the communication hole 111. The communication hole 111 communicates between the case 57 and the lid member 59 outside the region passing through the case 57 and overlapping the sheet member 67. As shown in FIG. 4, the communication hole 111 communicates with the communication chamber 115. The communication chamber 115 is provided outside the liquid storage portion 73 in the case 57.

  The ink flow and the atmospheric flow in the cartridge 7 will be described. In the cartridge 7, the ink 117 is stored in a liquid storage portion 73 partitioned by a case 57 and a sheet member 67 as shown in FIG. 6. The valve unit 61 (FIG. 4) is provided in the liquid storage unit 73. The valve unit 61 includes a cover valve 121, a lever valve 123, and a spring member 125 shown in FIG.

  The cover valve 121 is provided with an air inlet 131. The air introduction port 131 passes through the cover valve 121. The air introduction port 131 functions as a communication path that connects the inside and the outside of the liquid storage portion 73 in the cartridge 7. The lever valve 123 is provided on the opposite side of the cover valve 121 from the lid member 59 side. The lever valve 123 includes a valve portion 133 and a lever portion 135. The valve part 133 overlaps with the air inlet 131 of the cover valve 121. The lever part 135 extends from the valve part 133 into a region between the pressure receiving plate 65 and the inner wall 77. The spring member 125 is provided on the side opposite to the cover valve 121 side of the lever valve 123. The spring member 125 urges the valve portion 133 of the lever valve 123 toward the cover valve 121 side. As a result, the air inlet 131 of the cover valve 121 is closed by the valve portion 133. In the following, the state where the air introduction port 131 is blocked by the valve portion 133 is expressed as the valve unit 61 being closed.

  As the ink 117 in the liquid container 73 is consumed, the pressure receiving plate 65 is displaced toward the inner wall 77 as shown in FIG. When the pressure receiving plate 65 is displaced toward the inner wall 77 side, the pressure receiving plate 65 pushes the lever portion 135 toward the inner wall 77 side. As a result, the posture of the valve portion 133 changes, and a gap is generated between the valve portion 133 and the cover valve 121. Thereby, the air introduction port 131 and the liquid storage part 73 communicate with each other. In the following, the state in which the air inlet 131 and the liquid storage portion 73 communicate with each other due to the generation of a gap between the valve portion 133 and the cover valve 121 is expressed as the valve unit 61 being in the open state. When the valve unit 61 is in the open state, the air outside the liquid storage portion 73 flows into the liquid storage portion 73 through the air introduction port 131.

  When the air flows into the liquid storage portion 73 through the air introduction port 131, the pressure receiving plate 65 is displaced toward the lid member 59 as shown in FIG. That is, when the atmosphere flows into the liquid storage portion 73 through the air introduction port 131, the volume of the liquid storage portion 73 increases as compared to the state shown in FIG. Thereby, the negative pressure in the liquid container 73 is reduced (approaches atmospheric pressure). When a certain amount of air is introduced into the liquid storage portion 73, the pressure receiving plate 65 is separated from the lever portion 135. Thereby, the valve part 133 closes the atmosphere introduction port 131. That is, the valve unit 61 is closed. As described above, when the negative pressure in the liquid storage unit 73 increases with the consumption of the ink 117 in the liquid storage unit 73, the lever valve 123 is temporarily opened to appropriately set the pressure in the liquid storage unit 73. It is possible to maintain the pressure range within a wide range.

  The communication hole 111 communicates with the communication chamber 115 from the supply port 55 through the second wall 43 of the case 57. That is, the inside of the supply port 55 and the communication chamber 115 communicate with each other through the communication hole 111. The communication chamber 115 communicates with the atmosphere communication hole 53 through a gap between the lid member 59 and the sheet member 67. For this reason, the inside of the supply port 55 passes through the inside of the case 57 to the outside of the case 57. Thereby, when the inside of the supply port 55 is sealed from the outside of the supply port 55, the difference between the pressure in the supply port 55 and the pressure outside the case 57 (atmospheric pressure) can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, when the cartridge 7 is attached to the printer 5, the supply port 55 is sealed in the holder 25. Then, in a state where the supply port 55 is sealed, the meniscus forming member 79 in the supply port 55 contacts the supply pipe on the printer 5 side. As a result, the ink 117 can be prevented from leaking out of the supply port 55. When the supply port 55 is sealed when the cartridge 7 is attached to the printer 5, the pressure in the supply port 55 may increase. At this time, the air in the supply port 55 may flow into the liquid storage portion 73 through the meniscus forming member 79 due to an increase in pressure in the supply port 55. When the air flows into the liquid storage unit 73, it is conceivable that the air that has flowed in forms bubbles and reaches the print head 19 of the printer 5. When bubbles are mixed in the print head 19, the ejection performance of the ink 117 may be deteriorated by the bubbles.

  In contrast, in the present embodiment, the inside of the supply port 55 communicates with the outside of the case 57 via the communication hole 111, the communication chamber 115, and the atmosphere communication hole 53. For this reason, when the supply port 55 is sealed when the cartridge 7 is attached to the printer 5, even if the pressure in the supply port 55 increases, the air in the supply port 55 is allowed to pass through the communication hole 111, the communication chamber 115, and It can escape to the outside of the case 57 through the atmosphere communication hole 53. Thereby, the difference between the pressure in the supply port 55 and the pressure outside the case 57 (atmospheric pressure) can be reduced.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the cap 56 includes a cover 141 and a seal member 143. The cover 141 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin such as nylon or polypropylene. The cover 141 is provided with a recess 145, a locking claw 147, a locking claw 149, and a detachable lever 151. The concave portion 145 is provided in a direction that becomes concave toward the Z-axis negative direction. The recess 145 is surrounded by the partition wall 153a, the partition wall 153b, the partition wall 154a, and the partition wall 154b. The partition wall 153a and the partition wall 153b are opposed to each other with a gap therebetween in the Y-axis direction. The partition wall 154a and the partition wall 154b are opposed to each other with a gap therebetween in the X-axis direction.

  The seal member 143 is accommodated in the recess 145. The locking claw 147 is provided on the partition wall 154b side of the partition wall 154a. A gap is provided between the locking claw 147 and the partition wall 154b. A seal member 143 is accommodated between the locking claw 147 and the partition wall 154b. Therefore, the locking claw 147 is provided between the partition wall 154a and the seal member 143. The locking claw 149 is provided on the side opposite to the seal member 143 side of the partition wall 154b. That is, the locking claw 149 is provided outside the region in the recess 145 in plan view. The locking claw 147 and the locking claw 149 are opposed to each other across the seal member 143 and the partition wall 154b in plan view.

The seal member 143 has a groove 157. Details of the groove 157 will be described later. The detachable lever 151 is provided on the side opposite to the seal member 143 side of the partition wall 154b. The detachable lever 151 extends in a direction away from the partition wall 154b toward the outside of the recess 145 and in the positive Z-axis direction. The locking claw 149 is provided on the attachment / detachment lever 151.
As shown in FIG. 2, the cap 56 locks the locking claw 147 to the locked portion 161 of the cartridge 7, and locks the locking claw 149 to the locked portion 163 of the cartridge 7. 7 is attached.

  In a state where the cap 56 is attached to the cartridge 7, the supply port 55 is covered from the outside by a cover 141 of the cap 56 as shown in FIG. 10. When the cap 56 is attached to the cartridge 7, the locking claw 149 is removed from the locked portion 163 by bending the detachable lever 151 to the opposite side of the cartridge 7 (Z-axis negative direction). be able to. Thereby, the cap 56 can be removed from the cartridge 7.

  When the cap 56 is attached to the cartridge 7, the seal member 143 faces the supply port 55. The seal member 143 is made of an elastic material such as rubber or elastomer, for example. In this embodiment, the seal member 143 seals the supply port 55 in a state where the seal member 143 is pressed by the supply port 55. In a state in which the seal member 143 seals the supply port 55, the portion of the seal member 143 with which the supply port 55 contacts is recessed. Thereby, in the state which the sealing member 143 sealed the supply port 55, the airtightness of the supply port 55 is improved.

  The groove 157 provided in the seal member 143 is provided on the cartridge 7 side of the seal member 143 as shown in FIG. The groove 157 is provided in a direction that is concave toward the opposite side (Z-axis negative direction) of the seal member 143 to the cartridge 7 side. The groove 157 extends in the X-axis direction. The groove 157 is provided in a region overlapping with the partition wall 113. The bottom of the groove 157 is at a position lower in the Z-axis negative direction than the position of the tip of the partition wall 113. That is, the depth of the groove 157 is set to a depth that is not blocked by the partition wall 113. The groove 157 extends in a direction crossing the partition wall 113 and is provided from the meniscus forming member 79 side of the partition wall 113 to the communication hole 111 side. For this reason, in the region surrounded by the supply port 55 and the seal member 143, the first chamber 167, which is the region closer to the meniscus forming member 79 than the partition wall 113, and the region closer to the communication hole 111 than the partition wall 113 are included. A certain second chamber 169 communicates with each other through a groove 157.

  By the way, when the cap 56 is attached to the supply port 55 to seal the supply port 55, the pressure in the supply port 55 may increase. At this time, the air in the supply port 55 may flow into the liquid storage portion 73 through the meniscus forming member 79 due to an increase in pressure in the supply port 55. When the air flows into the liquid storage unit 73, it is conceivable that the air that has flowed in forms bubbles and reaches the print head 19 of the printer 5. When bubbles are mixed in the print head 19, the ejection performance of the ink 117 may be deteriorated by the bubbles. Examples of the drop in ejection performance include a case where the amount of ink droplets is out of a specified range, ink droplets are not ejected, or the ink droplet traveling direction is deviated. Such a decrease in ejection performance is caused by the ink 117 mixed with the atmosphere. From the viewpoint of inducing a decrease in ejection performance, the quality of the ink 117 mixed with air can be regarded as degraded.

  In contrast, in this embodiment, the seal member 143 is provided with a groove 157. For this reason, when the supply port 55 is sealed when the cap 56 is attached to the cartridge 7, even if the pressure in the first chamber 167 increases, the atmosphere in the first chamber 167 is changed to the groove 157 and the second chamber 169. It is possible to escape to the outside of the case 57 through the communication hole 111, the communication chamber 115, and the atmosphere communication hole 53. Thereby, the difference between the pressure in the first chamber 167 and the pressure outside the case 57 (atmospheric pressure) can be reduced. Thereby, it is easy to avoid the air in the supply port 55 from flowing into the liquid storage portion 73 through the meniscus forming member 79. For this reason, since it is easy to avoid the atmosphere from being mixed into the ink 117 in the liquid container 73, the quality of the ink 117 is easily maintained.

In the present embodiment, the liquid container 73 corresponds to the container, the cover 141 corresponds to the lid, and the communication hole 111 corresponds to the communication port.
In the present embodiment, the depth of the groove 157 is shallower than half the thickness of the seal member 143. Since the depth of the groove 157 is shallower than half of the thickness of the seal member 143, the thickness of the seal member 143 at the site of the groove 157 can be maintained at half or more of the thickness at the other site. Thereby, it is possible to easily suppress the liquid component of the ink 117 from evaporating from the groove 157.

  In the present embodiment, the width of the groove 157 in the intersecting direction (Y-axis direction), which is a direction intersecting the extending direction of the groove 157 (X-axis direction), in plan view is the width of the seal member 143 in the intersecting direction. Less than half of the width dimension. Since the width of the groove 157 is less than or equal to half the width dimension of the seal member 143 in the intersecting direction, the dimension obtained by subtracting the width of the groove 157 from the width dimension of the seal member 143 can be made larger than the width of the groove 157. Thereby, it is possible to easily suppress the liquid component of the ink 117 from evaporating from the groove 157.

The present invention can be applied not only to an ink jet printer and its ink cartridge, but also to an arbitrary printing apparatus that ejects liquid other than ink and its cartridge. For example, the present invention can be applied to the following various printing apparatuses and cartridges thereof.
(1) An image recording apparatus such as a facsimile apparatus. (2) A printing apparatus that ejects a color material used for manufacturing a color filter for an image display device such as a liquid crystal display. (3) A printing apparatus that ejects an electrode material used for electrode formation such as an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display and a surface emission display (FED). (4) A printing apparatus that ejects a liquid containing a bioorganic material used for biochip manufacture. (5) Sample printing device as a precision pipette. (6) Lubricating oil printing device. (7) Resin liquid printing apparatus. (8) A printing device that injects lubricating oil pinpoint onto precision machines such as watches and cameras. (9) A printing apparatus that injects a transparent resin liquid such as an ultraviolet curable resin liquid onto a substrate in order to form a micro hemispherical lens (optical lens) used for an optical communication element or the like. (10) A printing apparatus that ejects an acidic or alkaline etchant to etch a substrate or the like. (11) A printing apparatus including a liquid ejecting head that ejects another arbitrary minute amount of liquid droplets.

  The term “droplet” refers to the state of the liquid ejected from the printing apparatus, and includes liquid droplets that are granular, tear-like, or thread-like. The “liquid” may be any material that can be ejected by the printing apparatus. For example, the “liquid” may be a material in a state in which the substance is in a liquid phase, such as a material in a liquid state having high or low viscosity, and sol, gel water, other inorganic solvents, organic solvents, solutions, Liquid materials such as liquid resins and liquid metals (metal melts) are also included in the “liquid”. Further, “liquid” includes not only a liquid as one state of a substance but also a liquid obtained by dissolving, dispersing or mixing particles of a functional material made of a solid such as a pigment or metal particles in a solvent. The “liquid” as described above can also be expressed as a “liquid material”. As a typical example of the liquid or liquid material, the ink or the liquid crystal described in the above embodiment can be given. Here, the ink includes various liquid compositions such as general water-based ink and oil-based ink, gel ink, and hot-melt ink.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Liquid injection system, 5 ... Printer, 7 ... Cartridge, 41 ... 1st wall, 43 ... 2nd wall, 45 ... 3rd wall, 47 ... 4th wall, 49 ... 5th wall, 51 ... 6th wall, 53 ... Air communication hole, 55 ... Supply port, 56 ... Cap, 57 ... Case, 59 ... Cover member, 73 ... Liquid container, 111 ... Communication hole, 113 ... Bulk partition, 115 ... Communication chamber, 117 ... Ink, 141 ... Cover, 143 ... Seal member, 145 ... Recess, 147 ... Locking claw, 149 ... Locking claw, 151 ... Detachable lever, 153a, 153b ... Partition, 154a, 154b ... Partition, 157 ... Groove, 161 ... Locked part 163: Locked portion, 167: First chamber, 169: Second chamber.

Claims (3)

A case that encloses an accommodating portion for accommodating a liquid;
A supply port provided in the case and configured to supply the liquid stored in the storage unit to an external device;
A lid for closing the supply port from the outside of the case;
In the case, a communication port that is provided in a region where the lid that closes the supply port overlaps, and that communicates a space defined by the lid and the case with the outside of the case;
A seal member provided on the case side of the lid and covering the supply port and the communication port;
The seal member is provided with a groove extending from a region overlapping the supply port to a region overlapping the communication port.
A cartridge characterized by that. The depth of the groove is shallower than half the thickness of the seal member;
The cartridge according to claim 1. In plan view, the width of the groove in the intersecting direction, which is a direction intersecting the extending direction of the groove, is less than or equal to half the width dimension of the seal member in the intersecting direction.
The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge is a cartridge.