JP2014159174A - Liquid supply device, liquid jet device, and liquid supply method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid supply device capable of inhibiting accumulation of air bubbles in a pump chamber provided in the middle of a liquid supply passage, and to provide a liquid jet device including the liquid supply device and a liquid supply method.SOLUTION: An ink supply device 14 of a printer 11 includes: ink passages 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d which supply an ink from an ink cartridge 13 to a recording head unit 12; and a pump 43. The ink supply device 14 includes: a diaphragm 37 which forms a part of a wall surface of a pump chamber and displaces so that the volumetric capacity of the pump chamber increases and decreases; a coil spring 42 which biases the diaphragm 37 in a direction that the volumetric capacity of the pump chamber decreases; and a negative pressure generation device 47 which displaces the diaphragm 37 in a direction that the volumetric capacity of the pump chamber increases against a biasing force of the coil spring 42 when being driven. When the driving of the negative pressure generation device 47 is stopped, the pump chamber is maintained in a pressurized state by the biasing force of the coil spring 42.

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid supply apparatus, a liquid ejection apparatus, and a liquid supply method.

  2. Description of the Related Art Inkjet printers (hereinafter referred to as “printers”) are widely known as liquid ejecting apparatuses that eject liquid onto a target. This printer prints on a recording medium as a target by ejecting ink (liquid) supplied to the recording head (liquid ejecting means) from nozzles formed on the recording head. In such a printer, recently, as described in Patent Document 1, for example, in the middle of an ink flow path (liquid supply flow path) that connects between an ink cartridge (liquid supply source) and a recording head, There has been proposed a printer provided with a pump that is pump-driven to pressurize and supply ink from the ink cartridge side to the recording head side.

  That is, in the printer of Patent Document 1, a pump chamber of a pump is provided in the middle of the ink flow path, and an ink introduction port for introducing ink from the ink cartridge side and a recording head side are provided in the pump chamber. An ink outlet for leading out ink is provided. In addition, a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber is constituted by a diaphragm, and a spring that biases the diaphragm in a direction of increasing the volume of the pump chamber is provided in the pump chamber.

  Then, an actuator provided outside the pump chamber presses the diaphragm against the biasing force of the spring and displaces the pump chamber in a direction to reduce the volume of the pump chamber, so that the ink in the pump chamber moves from the ink outlet to the recording head side. It comes to be supplied. When the pressure applied by the actuator is released, the diaphragm is displaced in the direction of increasing the volume of the pump chamber by the biasing force of the spring, and ink is introduced from the ink cartridge into the pump chamber through the ink introduction port.

JP-A-9-164698

  By the way, due to the structure of such a printer, for example, when the ink cartridge is replaced, air may enter the ink flow path and stay as bubbles in the pump chamber provided in the ink flow path. It was. If air bubbles stay in the pump chamber, the air bubbles may grow even larger due to the air that flows in with the ink or the air that passes through the wall surface. If such bubbles exist in the pump chamber, the bubbles absorb pressure fluctuations accompanying the displacement of the diaphragm, and there is a concern that the ink supply to the recording head may be reduced. Further, if the grown bubbles flow to the recording head side, there is a problem that dot dropout occurs and print quality is deteriorated.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid supply apparatus capable of suppressing the retention of bubbles in a pump chamber provided in the middle of the liquid supply flow path, and the like. Another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus provided with a liquid supply apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, a liquid supply apparatus of the present invention includes a liquid supply channel that supplies liquid from an upstream side that is a liquid supply source side toward a downstream side where the liquid is consumed, and the liquid supply channel. In a liquid supply apparatus comprising a pump provided with a pump chamber in the middle thereof, a displacement member that constitutes a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber and is displaced so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber, and the displacement member A biasing member that biases the pump chamber in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber decreases, and a displacement mechanism that displaces the displacement member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber increases against the biasing force of the biasing member during driving. And a negative pressure chamber provided outside the pump chamber so that the displacement member forms a partition wall with the pump chamber, and an air release mechanism for opening the negative pressure chamber to the atmosphere, The mechanism generates negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber during driving. A negative pressure generating device that drives the negative pressure generating device to displace the displacement member to the negative pressure chamber side by the negative pressure generated in the negative pressure chamber and to supply liquid from the upstream side to the pump chamber. In addition, when the driving of the negative pressure generator is stopped, the negative pressure chamber is opened to the atmosphere by the atmospheric release mechanism so that the urging force of the urging member is applied to the displacement member to pressurize the pump chamber. The pump chamber is held in a pressurized state by the urging force of the urging member when the displacement mechanism is stopped.

According to this configuration, after the displacement mechanism is driven to allow the liquid to flow into the pump chamber from the upstream side which is the liquid supply source side, the drive of the displacement mechanism is stopped and the urging force of the urging member is applied to the displacement member. By doing so, the pump chamber can be brought into a pressurized state. Accordingly, the discharge pressure for discharging the liquid from the pump chamber is obtained, and the force for pushing out the mixed bubbles works, so that the retention of bubbles in the pump chamber can be suppressed. In addition, if bubbles remain in the pump chamber, there is a risk that the bubbles will grow greatly due to the air flowing from the upstream side, etc. It can flow. For example, even if the pump chamber is made of a material with low gas permeability, it is difficult to completely prevent air permeation, but the pump chamber is always kept pressurized except when the displacement mechanism is driven. By doing so, it can suppress that air permeate | transmits a wall surface and enters into a pump chamber. Further, when the pump chamber is formed of a gas-permeable plastic or the like, the air mixed in the pump chamber can be permeated with a pressurizing force and discharged out of the liquid supply channel. That is, the urging force of the urging member can maintain the pump chamber in a pressurized state even while the power of the liquid supply device is turned off. The mixed bubbles can be eliminated without flowing downstream.
Further, by driving the negative pressure generating device to generate a negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber, the displacement member can be displaced to the negative pressure chamber side, and the liquid can flow into the pump chamber from the upstream side. In addition, when the negative pressure generator is stopped, the negative pressure chamber is opened to the atmosphere by the atmospheric release mechanism, so that the urging force of the urging member can be applied to the displacement member to bring the pump chamber into a pressurized state. Here, for example, in the case of reducing the volume of the pump chamber by pressing the urging member with an actuator, the pump chamber cannot be held in a pressurized state when driving of the actuator is stopped. Further, when the pump chamber is brought into a pressurized state by the pressurizing force of the pressurized air, the pressurizing air may leak after the driving of the pressurizing device is stopped, but the pressurizing force may be weakened. By urging the member, the pressurized state can be maintained without weakening the applied pressure. That is, after driving the negative pressure generating device to generate negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber, the driving of the displacement mechanism is stopped by stopping the driving of the negative pressure generating device and opening the negative pressure chamber to the atmosphere by the atmospheric release mechanism. Sometimes the pump chamber can be held in a pressurized state.

  In the liquid supply device according to the aspect of the invention, the first forming member that forms the liquid supply flow path and the pump chamber and the second forming member that forms the negative pressure chamber sandwich the displacement member. It has a laminated structure.

  According to this configuration, the first forming member that forms the liquid supply flow path and the pump chamber and the second forming member that forms the negative pressure chamber form a laminated structure in such a manner as to sandwich the displacement member. Therefore, the liquid supply device can be made compact and space-saving, and the assembling work is facilitated.

  The liquid supply apparatus of the present invention is provided at a position on the upstream side of the pump chamber in the liquid supply flow path, and a first one-way valve that allows passage of liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side; A second one-way valve provided at a position downstream of the pump chamber in the liquid supply flow path and allowing passage of liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side; and the second one-way valve in the liquid supply flow path. An opening / closing valve is provided at a position downstream of the one-way valve and is always in a closed state, and is opened when the downstream side is reduced to a predetermined pressure or less due to consumption of liquid.

  According to this configuration, since the first one-way valve that allows the passage of the liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side is provided at a position on the upstream side of the pump chamber in the liquid supply flow path, Even if it is kept in a pressurized state, it is possible to prevent the liquid from flowing backward to the upstream side. In addition, since a second one-way valve that allows passage of liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side is provided at a position downstream of the pump chamber, the displacement mechanism is driven to enter the pump chamber from the upstream side. When the liquid is allowed to flow in, the liquid is prevented from flowing backward from the downstream side to the pump chamber side. In addition, the valve is always closed at a position downstream of the second one-way valve in the liquid supply flow path, and the valve is opened when the pressure on the downstream side is reduced to a predetermined pressure or less due to liquid consumption. An on-off valve is provided. Therefore, even if the pump chamber is maintained in a pressurized state, no liquid is supplied when the on-off valve is in the closed state. Then, when the pressure on the downstream side is reduced to a predetermined pressure or less due to the consumption of liquid, the on-off valve is opened, so that the liquid can be supplied according to the liquid consumption on the downstream side.

In the liquid supply apparatus of the present invention, the urging member is a spring member provided outside the pump chamber.
According to this configuration, since the spring member as the urging member is provided outside the pump chamber such as the negative pressure chamber, the displacement member can be urged without contacting the liquid. Accordingly, it is possible to avoid an unnecessary chemical change caused by the spring member coming into contact with the liquid. Further, when the spring member is in the pump chamber, bubbles may be trapped in the spring member and may not be easily discharged by cleaning or the like, but the spring member is provided outside the pump chamber. In addition, the retention of bubbles in the pump chamber can be suppressed.

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes a liquid ejecting unit that ejects a liquid and the liquid supply device that supplies the liquid to the liquid ejecting unit.
According to this structure, the same effect as the said liquid supply apparatus can be acquired.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the liquid supply method of the present invention, a pump chamber is provided in the middle of a liquid supply flow path for supplying liquid from an upstream side which is a liquid supply source side toward a downstream side where the liquid is consumed. A liquid supply method in a liquid supply apparatus including a pump that is configured to be displaceable so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber as a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber, A displacement member urged in a direction in which the volume decreases is driven by a displacement mechanism so that the displacement member forms a partition wall with the pump chamber so that a negative pressure is generated in a negative pressure chamber provided outside the pump chamber. Generating a pressure against the urging force of the urging member to displace the pump chamber in a direction in which the volume increases, and opening the negative pressure chamber to the atmosphere when the driving of the displacement mechanism is stopped. The displacement member is And a step of the pump chamber and the pressurized state by the action of the biasing force of the member.

  According to this structure, the same effect as the said liquid supply apparatus can be acquired.

1 is a schematic diagram of an ink jet printer according to an embodiment. FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the ink supply device during (a) suction driving and (b) ejection driving. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an ink supply system in a state where an ink cartridge is mounted. The perspective view of an ink supply system. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of an ink supply system. The top view of a cover. The perspective view which shows the back surface of a cover. The bottom view of a cover. The perspective view which shows a diaphragm formation member and a coil spring. The top view of a diaphragm formation member. The perspective view which shows the back surface of a diaphragm formation member. The bottom view of a diaphragm formation member. The perspective view which shows the surface (upper surface) of a flow-path formation board. The top view of a flow-path formation board. The bottom view of a flow-path formation board. The disassembled perspective view which shows a flow-path formation board and a film. The partial bottom view for demonstrating the ink flow path of a flow-path formation board. The partial bottom view for demonstrating the air flow path of a flow-path formation board. The disassembled perspective view which shows a saucer and a protection plate. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an ink supply system in a state where an ink cartridge is mounted.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is embodied in an ink jet printer (hereinafter referred to as “printer”) which is a kind of liquid ejecting apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1, a printer 11 according to this embodiment includes a recording head unit 12 as a liquid ejecting unit that ejects ink (liquid) to a target (for example, a recording medium such as paper) (not shown), The recording head unit 12 includes an ink supply device 14 as a liquid supply device that supplies ink stored in an ink cartridge 13 as a liquid supply source. In the ink supply device 14, an upstream end is connected to the ink cartridge 13 and a downstream end is connected to the recording head unit 12, and an upstream side that becomes the ink cartridge 13 side to a downstream side that becomes the recording head unit 12 side. A part of the ink flow path 15 for supplying ink toward the side is provided.

  The printer 11 of this embodiment is an ink jet serial printer or a line printer, and is a so-called off-carriage type in which an ink cartridge 13 is mounted on the printer main body side. As shown in FIG. 1, the recording head unit 12 connected through the ink supply device 14 and the ink supply tube 15 e has a head unit main body 56 and a recording head 57. For example, in the case of a serial printer, the head unit main body 56 is driven by a carriage that is reciprocated in the main scanning direction (left and right in FIG. 1) while being guided by a guide mechanism (both not shown) by the power of an electric motor (carriage motor). Composed. On the other hand, in the case of a line printer, the head unit main body 56 is fixed in a state extending in the width direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction, and the recording head 57 has a predetermined nozzle pitch with a predetermined nozzle pitch over a maximum paper width. It is configured to be arranged at the nozzle pitch. Of course, in the case of a serial printer, the ink supply device 14 may be employed in a so-called on-carriage type in which the ink cartridge is mounted on the carriage.

  Note that the printer 11 of this embodiment is provided with a plurality of ink supply devices 14 corresponding to the number of colors (types) of ink used in the printer 11. However, since the configurations are the same, FIG. 1 shows one ink supply device 14 that supplies ink of any one color together with the recording head unit 12 and one ink cartridge 13. In the following, a case where one ink supply device 14 shown in FIG. 1 supplies ink drawn from the ink cartridge 13 toward the recording head unit 12 will be described as an example. In addition, the ink supply device 14 in FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the configuration of the flow paths and valves in order to explain the principle of the ink supply mechanism, and includes a preferred form including the layout of the flow paths and valves. Will be described later with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the recording head 57, a plurality (six in this embodiment) of nozzles 16 corresponding to the number of ink supply devices 14 are opened in a nozzle forming surface 12a facing a platen (not shown). Is formed. The ink supplied from each ink supply device 14 to the ink flow path 12d in the recording head unit 12 through the ink flow path 15 passes through the valve unit 17 and the defoaming device 58 provided on the ink flow path 12d. Are supplied to the nozzle 16. That is, the valve unit 17 is provided with a pressure chamber 17a for temporarily storing ink flowing in from the ink flow path 15 so as to communicate with the nozzle 16, and ink is ejected from the nozzle 16 into the pressure chamber 17a. In addition, an amount of ink corresponding to the amount of ink consumed by the ink ejection appropriately flows from the ink flow path 15 based on the opening / closing operation of the flow path valve 17d as the open / close valve. The configurations of the valve unit 17 and the defoaming device 58 will be described later. Note that a plurality of six nozzles 16 are arranged at a constant nozzle pitch in the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. The direction of the nozzle row (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in FIG. 1) coincides with the paper conveyance direction in the serial printer, and coincides with the paper width direction in the line printer.

  Further, the printer 11 is provided with a maintenance unit 18 for cleaning the recording head 57 in order to eliminate clogging of the nozzles 16 of the recording head 57. The maintenance unit 18 includes a cap 19 that can come into contact with the nozzle forming surface 12 a of the recording head 57 so as to surround the nozzle 16, a suction pump 20 that is driven when sucking ink from the cap 19, and the suction pump 20. There is provided a waste liquid tank 21 in which ink sucked from the cap 19 as the pump 20 is driven is discharged as waste ink. During cleaning, the suction pump 20 is driven with the cap 19 moved from the state shown in FIG. 1 and in contact with the nozzle forming surface 12 a of the recording head 57 to generate a negative pressure in the internal space of the cap 19. As a result, the thickened ink or the ink mixed with bubbles is sucked and discharged from the recording head 57 toward the waste liquid tank 21. The maintenance unit 18 is arranged at a position corresponding to the home position where the recording head unit 12 is located during non-printing in a serial printer, and is arranged directly below the recording head 57 in a line printer.

  On the other hand, the ink cartridge 13 includes a substantially box-shaped case 22 whose inside is an ink chamber 22a for containing ink. From the lower wall of the case 22, a cylindrical portion 23 communicating with the inside of the ink chamber 22 a is formed to project downward, and an ink supply port 24 through which ink can be led out is formed at the tip of the cylindrical portion 23. When the ink cartridge 13 is connected to the ink supply device 14, an ink supply needle 25 protruding from the ink supply device 14 to form the upstream end of the ink flow path 15 with respect to the ink supply port 24 is provided. It is supposed to be inserted. An air communication hole 26 is formed in the upper wall of the case 22 so as to pass through the ink chamber 22a containing the ink to the atmosphere. The ink communication surface accommodates the ink level in the ink chamber 22a. Atmospheric pressure is applied.

Next, the configuration of the ink supply device 14 will be described in detail.
As shown in FIG. 1, the ink supply device 14 includes a first flow path forming member 27 as a gas-permeable plastic first forming member serving as a base, and the first flow path forming member 27. As a displacement member comprising a second flow path forming member 28 as a second forming member made of plastic, which is assembled in a laminated state, and a rubber plate or the like sandwiched between both flow path forming members 27 and 28 at the time of assembly. The flexible member 29 is provided. A film 120 is welded to the surface (back surface) opposite to the flexible member 29 of the first flow path forming member 27. Further, a protective plate 130 and a tray 140 are laminated on the lower surface of the film 120. Here, in a plurality of locations (three locations in the present embodiment) on the upper surface of the first flow path forming member 27, concave portions 30, 31, and 32 having a circular shape in plan view are formed. That is, in FIG. 1, the concave portions 30 to 32 are formed side by side in the order of the concave portion 30, the concave portion 31, and the concave portion 32 from the right side to the left side.

  On the other hand, a plurality of locations (three locations in the present embodiment) on the lower surface of the second flow path forming member 28 stacked on the first flow path forming member 27 are formed on the upper surface of the first flow path forming member 27. Further, concave portions 33, 34, and 35 having a circular shape in plan view are formed opposite to the concave portions 30, 31, and 32 in the vertical direction. That is, in FIG. 1, the concave portions 33 to 35 are formed side by side in the order of the concave portion 33, the concave portion 34, and the concave portion 35 from the right side to the left side. At the bottom of the recess 35 formed on the leftmost side in FIG. 1 in the second flow path forming member 28, an air communication hole 35a communicating with the air is formed.

  The flexible member 29 has a plurality of locations (three locations in the present embodiment) in the flexible member 29 between the first flow path forming member 27 and the second flow path forming member 28. The recesses 30 to 32 of the path forming member 27 and the recesses 33 to 35 of the second flow path forming member 28 are sandwiched so as to be vertically partitioned. As a result, a portion of the flexible member 29 interposed between the recess 30 of the first flow path forming member 27 and the recess 33 of the second flow path forming member 28 is elastically deformed between the recesses 30 and 33. Thus, the suction side valve element 36 that can be displaced functions.

  Similarly, a portion of the flexible member 29 interposed between the concave portion 31 of the first flow path forming member 27 and the concave portion 34 of the second flow path forming member 28 is elastically deformed between the concave portions 31 and 34. Thus, it functions as a displaceable diaphragm 37. Similarly, a portion of the flexible member 29 interposed between the recess 32 of the first flow path forming member 27 and the recess 35 of the second flow path forming member 28 is elastically deformed between the recesses 32 and 35. By doing so, it functions as a discharge-side valve body 38 that can be displaced.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the first flow path forming member 27 and the second flow path forming member 28 are provided with an ink supply needle 25 and a first flow path that protrude from the upper surface of the second flow path forming member 28. A first flow path 15 a communicating with the concave portion 30 of the forming member 27 is formed so as to constitute a part of the ink flow path 15 in the ink supply device 14. Similarly, the first flow path forming member 27, the second flow path forming member 28, and the flexible member 29 include a recess 33 of the second flow path forming member 28 and a recess 31 of the first flow path forming member 27. A second flow path 15 b that communicates with each other is formed so as to constitute a part of the ink flow path 15 in the ink supply device 14. Similarly, the first flow path forming member 27 includes a third flow path 15 c that communicates between the concave portion 31 and the concave portion 32 of the first flow path forming member 27. It is formed to constitute a part.

  Further, the first flow path forming member 27, the second flow path forming member 28, and the flexible member 29 are provided between the concave portion 32 of the first flow path forming member 27 and the upper surface side of the second flow path forming member 28. Is formed so as to constitute part of the ink flow path 15 in the ink supply device 14. The ink discharge port 64 that is the flow path opening end that opens to the upper surface of the flexible member 29 in the fourth flow path 15 d is connected to the end of the ink supply device 14 via the pipe connector 59. It is connected to one end (upstream end) of an ink supply tube 15e constituting a part of the ink flow path 15. The other end (downstream end) of the ink supply tube 15e is connected to the valve unit 17 on the recording head unit 12 side. In the present embodiment, a liquid supply flow path is configured by the first to fourth flow paths 15a to 15d.

  As shown in FIG. 1, each flow path 15 a, 15 b, 15 c, 15 d is formed by a path that passes through the back surface side of the first flow path forming member 27. Therefore, the first flow path forming member 27 communicates with the through holes 90a and 30b constituting the first flow path 15a and the grooves communicating with both, and the through holes 90b and 31a constituting the second flow path 15b. A groove, a groove communicating with the through holes 31b and 32b constituting the third flow path 15c, and a groove communicating with the through holes 32c and 91a constituting the fourth flow path 15d are formed, respectively. A part of the flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d is surrounded and formed by the film 120 and the grooves welded to the back surface of the flow path forming member 27.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, in the ink supply device 14, the portion that becomes the suction side valve body 36 of the flexible member 29 is provided with a through hole 36 a at the center and disposed in the upper concave portion 33. The coil spring 40 is biased toward the inner bottom surface of the lower recess 30 by the biasing force of the coil spring 40. In the present embodiment, the recesses 30, 33, the suction side valve body 36 and the coil spring 40 serve as a first one-way valve provided in the middle of the ink channel 15 so that the ink channel 15 can be opened and closed. The suction side valve 41 is configured. The suction side valve 41 has a valve chamber 41a communicating with the downstream end opening of the first flow path 15a and a valve chamber 41b communicating with the upstream end opening of the second flow path 15b. The valve chamber 41 a is an annular space region formed by surrounding the suction side valve body 36 and the recess 30 in a closed state in which the central portion of the suction side valve body 36 is in contact with the valve seat 30 a at the center of the bottom surface of the recess 30. Formed as. For this reason, in the process of opening and closing the suction side valve 41, the ink pressure of each valve chamber 41a, 41b acts on the suction side valve body 36 in an area sufficiently larger than the opening area of each flow path 15a, 15b. The suction side valve 41 can be opened and closed with high sensitivity even with a comparatively small differential pressure between 41a and 41b. That is, it is possible to open and close the suction side valve 41 with high sensitivity while adopting the suction side valve 41 having a structure in which the suction side valve body 36 is biased in the valve closing direction by the coil spring 40.

  Similarly, the portion of the ink supply device 14 that becomes the diaphragm 37 of the flexible member 29 is formed in the lower recess 31 by the biasing force of the coil spring 42 as the biasing member disposed in the upper recess 34. It is biased toward the bottom. In this embodiment, a pulsating pump 43 is constituted by the recesses 31 and 34, the diaphragm 37, and the coil spring 42, and a volume-variable space region surrounded by the diaphragm 37 and the lower recess 31 is formed. The pump 43 functions as a pump chamber 43a.

  That is, the diaphragm 37 made of the flexible member 29 constitutes a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber 43a and is displaced so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber 43a. A coil spring 42 as a spring member provided outside the pump chamber 43a urges the diaphragm 37 in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber 43a decreases.

  Similarly, in the ink supply device 14, the portion that becomes the discharge-side valve body 38 of the flexible member 29 is the inner bottom surface of the lower recess 32 by the urging force of the coil spring 44 disposed in the upper recess 35. It is energized towards. In the present embodiment, the recesses 32, 35, the discharge-side valve body 38, and the coil spring 44 are provided so that the ink flow path 15 can be opened and closed downstream of the pump 43 in the ink flow path 15. A discharge side valve 45 as a one-way valve is configured. The discharge side valve 45 has a valve chamber 45a communicating with the downstream end opening of the third flow path 15c and a valve chamber 45b opened to the atmosphere through the atmosphere communication hole 35a. The valve chamber 45a is an annular space region that is formed by surrounding the discharge side valve body 38 in a closed state in which the central portion of the discharge side valve body 38 is in contact with the valve seat 32a at the center of the bottom surface of the concave portion 32 and the concave portion 32. Formed as. For this reason, in the process of opening and closing the discharge side valve 45, the ink pressure in the valve chamber 45a acts on the discharge side valve body 38 in an area sufficiently larger than the opening area of the third flow path 15c, and the valve chamber 45a is relatively small. The discharge side valve 45 can be opened and closed with high sensitivity even when the ink pressure changes. That is, it is possible to open and close the discharge side valve 45 with high sensitivity while adopting the discharge side valve 45 having a structure in which the discharge side valve body 38 is biased in the valve closing direction by the coil spring 44.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a negative pressure generating device 47 and an air release mechanism 48 including a suction pump are provided in the concave portion 34 of the second flow path forming member 28 through a bifurcated air flow path 46. It is connected. The negative pressure generator 47 is driven by a driving force transmitted via a one-way clutch (not shown) when a drive motor 49 capable of rotating in the forward and reverse directions is driven in a forward direction to generate a negative pressure. Similarly, a negative pressure can be generated also in the recess 34 of the second flow path forming member 28 connected in this manner. In the present embodiment, the air flow path 46, the negative pressure generator 47, and the drive motor 49 constitute a displacement mechanism.

  The variable volume space region surrounded by the concave portion 34 of the second flow path forming member 28 and the diaphragm 37 functions as a negative pressure chamber 43 b that becomes a negative pressure state when the negative pressure generating device 47 is driven. It has become. That is, the pump 43 can include the first flow path forming member 27 that forms the first to fourth flow paths 15a to 15d and the pump chamber 43a, and the second flow path forming member 28 that forms the negative pressure chamber 43b. A laminated structure is formed in such a manner as to sandwich the flexible member 29. Further, the negative pressure chamber 43b is provided outside the pump chamber 43a so that the diaphragm 37 forms a partition wall with the pump chamber 43a.

  On the other hand, the air release mechanism 48 accommodates an air release valve 53 in which a seal member 52 is attached to the air release hole 50 side in a box 51 in which the air release hole 50 is formed. The coil spring 54 is biased in the valve closing direction for sealing the atmosphere opening hole 50 by the biasing force of the coil spring 54. When the drive motor 49 is driven in reverse, the atmosphere release mechanism 48 operates the cam mechanism 55 that operates based on the driving force transmitted through a one-way clutch (not shown), and the cam mechanism 55 operates to release the atmosphere. The valve 53 is configured to be displaced in the valve opening direction against the urging force of the coil spring 54. That is, when the negative pressure chamber 43b connected through the air flow path 46 is in a negative pressure state, the atmospheric release mechanism 48 opens the negative pressure chamber 53 by opening the atmospheric release valve 53. The inside of 43b is open | released to air | atmosphere and a negative pressure state is canceled.

  Each of the negative pressure generator 47, the atmospheric release mechanism 48, and the drive motor 49 for driving them is provided and shared by the plurality of ink supply devices 14. That is, the air flow path piping 46 a that constitutes the air flow path 46 that connects the negative pressure generating device 47, the atmosphere release mechanism 48, and the ink supply device 14 is connected to the air flow path 46 b formed in the ink supply device 14. It is connected. The air flow path 46 b branches in the middle, and the tip of each branch flow path is connected to the negative pressure chamber 43 b of the pump 43 of each ink supply device 14. With this configuration, it is possible to drive each color ink supply device 14 by providing only one negative pressure generating device 47, atmospheric release mechanism 48, and drive motor 49 for the plurality of ink supply devices 14. It is possible to reduce the size. The air flow path 46 b connected to the negative pressure chamber 43 b of each pump 43 opens to the upper surface of the flexible member 29 through the back surface of the first flow path forming member 27 to form a negative pressure outlet 65. doing. The negative pressure outlet 65 is connected to one end (upstream end) of the air supply tube 46 c through a pipe connector 59. The other end (downstream end) of the air supply tube 46 c is connected to the recording head unit 12, and negative pressure can be introduced into the defoaming device 58.

  Here, the configurations and functions of the valve unit 17 and the defoaming device 58 built in the recording head unit 12 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the recording head unit 12 is provided with an atmospheric chamber 12c communicating with the atmosphere through an atmospheric communication hole 12b. The valve unit 17 has a pressure chamber 17a for temporarily storing ink flowing into the ink flow path 12d in the recording head unit 12, a partition wall portion 17b separating the pressure chamber 17a and the atmospheric chamber 12c, and a spring 17c in the valve closing direction. And a flow path valve 17d that is biased to abut against the partition wall portion 17b. The partition wall portion 17b is made of a film (or sheet) made of a flexible material (for example, synthetic resin or rubber). For example, the cantilever metal piece (for example, a piece of comb-shaped metal piece) that can be displaced together with the film. (Not shown) is arranged at the contact point of the flow path valve 17d. An ink storage chamber 12e for temporarily storing ink is provided in the middle of the ink flow path 12d from the pressure chamber 17a to the nozzle 16.

  When ink is ejected from the nozzle 16 and the ink is consumed, the pressure in the pressure chamber 17a is reduced by reducing the amount of ink, and the partition wall portion 17b is pressurized based on the pressure difference between the reduced pressure chamber 17a and the atmospheric chamber 12c. The flow path valve 17d moves to the valve opening position against the urging force of the spring 17c by bending and deforming toward the chamber 17a, and ink flows into the pressure chamber 17a. When ink flows into the pressure chamber 17a and the chamber pressure rises, the urging force of the spring 17c is overcome and the flow path valve 17d moves to the closed position again.

  As described above, the ink flows appropriately from the ink supply tube 15e into the recording head unit 12 by opening and closing the flow path valve 17d of the valve unit 17 as the ink is consumed. That is, the flow path valve 17d is always in a closed state, and is configured to be in an open state when the downstream side is depressurized to a predetermined pressure or less due to ink consumption.

  On the other hand, the defoaming device 58 is attached to the decompression chamber 58a communicating with the air supply tube 46c through the negative pressure channel 12f in the recording head unit 12, the partition wall portion 58b separating the decompression chamber 58a and the atmosphere chamber 12c, and the spring 58c. A flow path valve 58d that is energized and contacts the partition wall portion 58b, and a negative pressure chamber 58e that communicates with the decompression chamber 58a when the flow path valve 58d is opened. The two partition walls 17b and 58b are made of a common film (or sheet), and also in the partition wall 58b, a cantilever metal piece (not shown) that can be displaced together with the film at the contact point of the flow path valve 58d. (Omitted).

  The negative pressure chamber 58e and the ink storage chamber 12e are separated by a partition wall portion 58f made of a synthetic resin material having gas permeability. When negative pressure is introduced into the decompression chamber 58a through the air supply tube 46c and the negative pressure flow path 12f during the suction drive of the pump 43, the partition wall portion 58b is moved to the decompression chamber 58a side based on the differential pressure between the decompression chamber 58a and the atmospheric chamber 12c. The negative pressure in the decompression chamber 58a is introduced into the negative pressure chamber 58e as the flow path valve 58d moves to the valve opening position against the urging force of the spring 58c due to bending deformation. On the other hand, when the pump 43 is driven to discharge, the decompression chamber 58a is opened to the atmosphere through the air supply tube 46c and the negative pressure flow path 12f, but at this time, the flow path valve 58d is maintained in the closed position by the biasing force of the spring 58c. Therefore, the negative pressure chamber 58e is maintained in a negative pressure state. That is, after the printer 11 is started, after the pump 43 is driven at least once, the negative pressure chamber 58e is maintained in a negative pressure state of a certain level or more, and bubbles or dissolved in the ink stored in the ink storage chamber 12e. Air passes through the partition wall 58f and is collected to the negative pressure chamber 58e, whereby the defoaming device 58 defoams the ink.

  Therefore, the operation of the printer 11 configured as described above will be described below with particular attention paid to the operation of the ink supply device 14. FIG. 2A shows a cross section of the ink supply device during the suction drive, and FIG. 2B shows a cross section of the ink supply device during the discharge drive.

  First, as a premise, the state shown in FIG. 1 is immediately after replacement of the old and new ink cartridges, and the suction side valve body 36 of the suction side valve 41, the diaphragm 37 of the pump 43, and the discharge side valve body of the discharge side valve 45. 38 is assumed to be pressed against the inner bottom surface of each of the lower concave portions 30, 31, 32 by the urging force of the coil springs 40, 42, 44. The atmosphere release mechanism 48 is in a closed state in which the atmosphere release valve 53 seals the atmosphere release hole 50.

  When the ink supply device 14 supplies ink from the ink cartridge 13 side to the recording head unit 12 side from the state shown in FIG. 1, first, in order to drive the pump 43, the drive motor 49 is positive. It is driven by rolling. Then, the negative pressure generating device 47 generates a negative pressure, and the negative pressure chamber 43b of the ink supply device 14 connected to the negative pressure generating device 47 via the air flow path 46 is in a negative pressure state. Therefore, the diaphragm 37 of the pump 43 is elastically deformed (displaced) toward the negative pressure chamber 43b against the urging force of the coil spring 42, and the volume of the negative pressure chamber 43b is reduced (see FIG. 2A). Then, as the volume of the negative pressure chamber 43 b decreases, the volume of the pump chamber 43 a partitioned from the negative pressure chamber 43 b via the diaphragm 37 increases.

  That is, when the negative pressure generating device 47 is driven, the pump 43 performs the suction driving by displacing the diaphragm 37 in the direction in which the volume of the pump chamber 43a increases. Specifically, the diaphragm 37 is displaced from the bottom dead center position shown in FIG. 1 to the top dead center position shown in FIG. Therefore, the inside of the pump chamber 43a is in a negative pressure state, the negative pressure acts on the valve chamber 41b on the upper side of the suction side valve 41 via the second flow path 15b, and the ink pressure of the lower valve chamber 41a is reduced. Based on the pressure difference, the suction side valve body 36 is elastically deformed (displaced) upward (that is, in the valve opening direction) against the urging force of the coil spring 40. As a result, the first flow path 15a and the second flow path 15b are in communication with each other through the through-hole 36a of the suction side valve body 36, and ink from the ink cartridge 13 passes through the first flow path 15a, the valve chamber 41a, and the through-hole 36a. The air is sucked into the pump chamber 43a through the hole 36a, the valve chamber 41b, and the second flow path 15b.

  On the other hand, during the suction drive of the pump 43, the negative pressure in the pump chamber 43a acts on the downstream side of the ink flow path 15 from the pump chamber 43a, that is, the third flow path 15c via the third flow path 15c. However, the valve chamber 45a on the lower side of the discharge side valve 45 communicating with the downstream side of the third flow path 15c is in a state in which the discharge side valve body 38 is urged in the valve closing direction by the coil spring 44. The state shifts to the valve open state unless a predetermined positive pressure (for example, a pressure of 13 kPa or more) is applied to the discharge side valve body 38 by the discharge drive of the pump 43 from the upstream side of the third flow path 15c. It is set not to. Therefore, in this case, since the negative pressure acts on the discharge side valve body 38 of the discharge side valve 45, the valve closed state is maintained.

  Next, in the state shown in FIG. 2A, the drive motor 49 is driven in reverse. Then, the air release valve 53 is opened against the urging force of the coil spring 54 by the operation of the cam mechanism 55 of the air release mechanism 48, and the negative pressure chamber 43b in the negative pressure state is opened to the atmosphere. Therefore, the diaphragm 37 of the pump 43 is elastically deformed (displaced) downward (ie, on the inner bottom surface side of the pump chamber 43a) by the urging force of the coil spring 42, and the volume of the negative pressure chamber 43b is increased (FIG. 2B). reference). Then, as the volume of the negative pressure chamber 43b increases, the volume of the pump chamber 43a of the pump 43 partitioned from the negative pressure chamber 43b via the diaphragm 37 is decreased.

  That is, when the drive of the negative pressure generator 47 is stopped, the atmosphere release mechanism 48 opens the inside of the negative pressure chamber 43b to the atmosphere so that the urging force of the coil spring 42 acts on the diaphragm 37, so that the pump 43 causes the diaphragm 37 to move to the pump chamber. Displacement is performed in the direction in which the volume of 43a is decreased to drive the ejection. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2B, the diaphragm 37 is displaced from the top dead center position to the bottom dead center position, and the ink sucked into the pump chamber 43a is discharged to a predetermined pressure (for example, And a pressure of about 30 kPa). Therefore, the ink is discharged from the pump chamber 43a, and the discharge pressure acts on the valve chamber 41b above the suction side valve 41 via the second flow path 15b on the upstream side of the pump chamber 43a. The body 36 is elastically deformed (displaced) downward (that is, in the valve closing direction) in cooperation with the urging force of the coil spring 40. As a result, the first flow path 15a and the second flow path 15b are disconnected from each other by the valve closing operation of the suction side valve body 36, and ink is sucked from the ink cartridge 13 to the pump chamber 43a via the suction side valve 41. In addition to being stopped, the ink discharged from the pump chamber 43 a along with the discharge driving of the pump 43 is restricted from flowing back to the ink cartridge 13 via the suction side valve 41.

  On the other hand, when the pump 43 is driven to discharge, the pressure of the ink discharged from the pump chamber 43a (for example, a pressure of about 30 kPa) also acts on the downstream side of the ink flow path 15 via the third flow path 15c. Therefore, the discharge side valve body 38 in which the discharge pressure of the pump 43 is closed is opened, and the third flow path 15c and the fourth flow path 15d are connected via the lower valve chamber 45a of the discharge side valve 45. Communicate. As a result, ink is supplied from the pump chamber 43a to the valve unit 17 in a pressurized state via the third flow path 15c, the valve chamber 45a, the fourth flow path 15d, and the ink supply tube 15e. Incidentally, when the ink flows into the valve chamber 45a of the discharge side valve 45 due to the discharge drive of the pump 43, the biasing force of the coil spring 44 in the discharge side valve 45 is caused by the discharge pressure of the ink. For example, it is set to about 13 kPa so that 38 can be elastically deformed upward.

  Thereafter, the discharge pressure of the ink that is pressurized by the diaphragm 37 and discharged from the pump chamber 43a is the flow passage area (pump chamber) on the downstream side including the valve chamber 41b of the suction side valve 41 in the ink flow passage 15. 43a and the valve chamber 45a of the discharge side valve 45). Thereafter, when ink is ejected from the recording head 57 toward the target (not shown), an amount of ink corresponding to the amount of ink consumed as the ink is ejected is opened along with the opening of the valve unit 17. It is supplied from the inside to the recording head unit 12 side. For this reason, along with the ink consumption on the downstream side (recording head unit 12 side), the ink amount corresponding to the consumption amount is biased in the direction in which the volume of the pump chamber 43a is reduced by the biasing force of the coil spring 42. Based on the pressing force of the diaphragm 37, the pressure is supplied to the recording head unit 12 side (downstream side).

  As a result, the volume in the pump chamber 43a and the volume of the valve chamber 45a of the discharge side valve 45 are gradually reduced. Finally, the diaphragm 37 is displaced to near the bottom dead center position, and the discharge side valve body 38 is moved to the fourth flow path. It will be displaced to near the valve closing position that closes 15d. Incidentally, in this embodiment, the discharge pressure of the ink that is pressed by the diaphragm 37 and is discharged from the pump chamber 43a at this time is about 13 kPa.

  Then, the drive motor 49 is driven to rotate forward again, and in the atmosphere release mechanism 48, the atmosphere release valve 53 is displaced to the valve closing position that closes the atmosphere release hole 50, and the negative pressure generator 47 generates negative pressure to generate negative pressure. The pressure chamber 43 b is in a negative pressure state, and the diaphragm 37 is elastically deformed (displaced) toward the negative pressure chamber 43 b against the urging force of the coil spring 42. That is, the pump 43 starts suction driving again. As a result, the diaphragm 37 is displaced to the top dead center position so as to increase the volume of the pump chamber 43a, and the inside of the pump chamber 43a is in a negative pressure state. It is elastically deformed (displaced). Accordingly, the first flow path 15a and the second flow path 15b are in communication with each other through the through hole 36a of the suction side valve body 36, and the ink is again sucked from the ink cartridge 13 into the pump chamber 43a. Thereafter, the discharge drive of the pump 43 similar to the above is executed, and the ink is pressurized and supplied from the pump chamber 43a to the recording head unit 12 via the ink flow path area on the downstream side.

  In this embodiment, when the printing is finished, the drive motor 49 is driven to rotate forward to drive the pump 43 by suction, and then the drive motor 49 is driven to rotate backward to release the negative pressure chamber 43b to the atmosphere. Keep it. That is, in order to suppress the retention of bubbles in the pump chamber 43a, the pump chamber 43a is in a pressurized state by applying the biasing force of the coil spring 42 to the diaphragm 37 even while the printer 11 is turned off. To be retained.

Next, an example of an ink supply system in which the plurality of ink supply devices 14 configured as described above are unitized will be described with reference to FIGS.
3 is a perspective view of an ink supply system in which a plurality of ink cartridges are mounted, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink supply system in a state in which no ink cartridge is mounted. In the following description, the direction parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink supply needles 25 is defined as the X direction, the direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction is defined as the Y direction, and the upward direction orthogonal to the XY plane and the protruding direction of the ink supply needles 25. Is the Z direction.

  An ink supply system 61 shown in FIG. 3 is disposed at a predetermined location in the printer 11 and functions as a cartridge holder to which the ink cartridge 13 is mounted. The ink supply system 61 has a substantially square plate-like laminate structure, and a plurality of (six in this example) ink supply needles 25 (see FIG. 4) are arranged in a line in the X direction on the upper surface thereof. In this state, it projects vertically (Z direction) from the upper surface. A plurality (six in this example) of ink cartridges 13 are arranged on the upper side of the ink supply system 61 by inserting each ink supply needle 25 into the ink supply port 24 (see FIG. 1) of each cylindrical portion 23. It is mounted in a state in which neighbors in the X direction are arranged in a row that is substantially adjacent.

  In the ink supply system 61 of this example, there are six ink supply devices 14 that can individually supply six colors of ink such as cyan, magenta, yellow, light cyan, light yellow, and black accommodated in six ink cartridges 13. Takes a unitized structure. That is, the ink supply system 61 includes six pumps 43, six suction side valves 41 (first one-way valves), and six discharge side valves 45 (second one-way valves) that constitute the six ink supply devices 14. ) On the same plane, it is possible to adopt a laminated structure in which a plurality of plate-like constituent members are laminated. In addition, at least one of the plurality of constituent members is a single (common) flow path forming member, and other constituent members (not necessarily single, for example, ink supply) on the single flow path forming member The ink supply system 61 can be made into one part (one unit) by stacking the components (which may be constituent members for each apparatus). However, in this embodiment, as will be described later, all of the plurality of constituent members stacked to constitute the ink supply system 61 are each configured as a single constituent member common to the six ink supply devices 14. ing. In addition, the number of the ink supply devices 14 formed as one unit as the ink supply system 61 is not limited to six, but may be appropriately changed to, for example, other plural numbers within a range of 2 to 10, or more than ten. It is not always necessary to match the number of colors (number of ink cartridges) of the printer 11. For example, a configuration in which a plurality of ink supply systems are mounted on one printer 11, such as mounting two ink supply systems in which the three ink supply devices 14 are unitized in the printer 11, can be employed.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the ink supply system 61 includes a square plate-shaped main body 62 having a plurality of pumps 43, suction side valves 41, and discharge side valves 45 according to the number of colors (for example, six). And a plate-like pipe connecting portion 63 extending horizontally from one end side portion of the main body 62.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the main body 62 has six ink supply needles 25 that protrude vertically from the upper surface (Z direction) and are arranged in a line in the X direction, and two in the X direction. Six pumps 43 arranged in a row, six suction valves 41 arranged in one row along the X direction, and six discharge valves 45 arranged in one row along the X direction And built-in.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, six ink outlets 64 and one negative pressure outlet 65 are opened on the upper surface of the pipe connecting portion 63. The six ink discharge ports 64 serve as discharge ports for supplying the ink sucked from the ink cartridges 13 by the pumps 43 to the outside with a predetermined discharge pressure. One negative pressure outlet 65 uses the negative pressure introduced into the ink supply system 61 from the negative pressure generating device 47 (see FIG. 1) in order to drive the pulsating pump 43 by suction for other purposes (in this example, It becomes a lead-out port for lead-out for the defoaming device 58).

  One end of a flexible piping board configured by bundling six ink supply tubes 15e and one air supply tube 46c (both see FIG. 1) connected to the recording head unit 12 on the flexible board at the pipe connection portion 63. A pipe connector 59 (see FIG. 1) fixed to the section is connected. Each ink discharged from each ink discharge port 64 is pressurized and supplied to each valve unit 17 in the recording head unit 12 through each ink supply tube 15e, and is led out from the negative pressure outlet 65 when the pump 43 is driven for suction. The negative pressure is supplied to the defoaming device 58 in the recording head unit 12 through the air supply tube 46c (see FIG. 1). In the ink supply system 61 of this example, a connecting pipe portion 106 (see FIG. 16) connected to the air passage pipe 46a (see FIG. 1) is provided on the back surface, and the ink supply system 61 The air flow path 46 b formed inside passes through the passage from the pipe portion 106 to the negative pressure outlet 65 through the negative pressure chamber 43 b of each pump 43.

  The ink supply system 61 has a laminated structure in which six members 70, 80, 90, 120, 130, and 140 are laminated. The upper five members 70, 80, 90, 120, and 130 constituting the ink supply system 61 are fastened with a predetermined fastening force by a plurality of (in this example, 19) screws 66 passing in the stacking direction from the upper side. By doing so, it is fixed at a plurality of locations while being pressurized in the stacking direction. And on the lower side of the laminated body in which the five members 70, 80, 90, 120, 130 are fixed by a plurality of screws 66, the tray 140 has two screws 67 in the laminating direction from the lower side. It is fixed to the lowest layer by fastening through.

  Hereinafter, a detailed configuration of the ink supply system 61 will be described. FIG. 5 shows an exploded perspective view of the ink supply system 61. As shown in FIG. 5, the ink supply system 61 includes, in order from the top, a cover 70 serving as a square plate-like second forming member corresponding to the second flow path forming member 28 and a flexible member 29. A diaphragm forming member 80 as a flexible member, a flow path forming plate 90 as a first forming member corresponding to the first flow path forming member 27, a film 120, a protective plate 130, and a tray 140 are configured. The film 120 is welded to the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90 in advance before assembly. At the time of assembly, corresponding coil springs 40, 42, and 44 are set on the upper side of the suction side valve body 36, the diaphragm 37, and the discharge side valve body 38 that are integrally formed with the diaphragm forming member 80, respectively. Then, the upper five square plate-like members 70, 80, 90, 120, 130 are tightened in a predetermined direction in the vertical direction (stacking direction) in FIG. 5 using a plurality (19 in this example) of screws 66. Fasten with force. By this fastening, the cover 70, the diaphragm forming member 80, the flow path forming plate 90, the film 120, and the protection plate in a state where the coil springs 40, 42, 44 are accommodated in a compressed state between the cover 70 and the diaphragm forming member 80. A laminated body in which 130 is fixed in a laminated structure is assembled. And the saucer 140 is arrange | positioned to the bottom face side of the laminated body to which each member 70,80,90,120,130 is fixed, and the two screws 67 are fastened from the lower side, and the saucer 140 is fixed to the lowest layer. Thus, the ink supply system 61 shown in FIG. 4 is assembled.

  Here, the cover 70, the flow path forming plate 90, and the tray 140 are each made of plastic, and are formed into a predetermined rectangular plate shape by, for example, die molding (such as injection molding) using a synthetic resin material. The diaphragm forming member 80 is made of an elastomer or rubber, and is formed into a predetermined rectangular plate shape by, for example, die molding (injection molding or the like). The film 120 is made of a laminate film having a synthetic resin material that can be welded to the synthetic resin material of the flow path forming plate 90 as a surface layer, and is cut into a substantially rectangular predetermined shape. The protection plate 130 is made of metal, and is punched into a predetermined shape of a square plate shape with a plurality of holes 130a, 130b, and 132.

  The cover 70, the diaphragm forming member 80, and the flow path forming plate 90 are stacked with the coil springs 40, 42, 44 accommodated therebetween, so that the pump 43, the suction side valve 41, and the discharge side valve 45 are flush with each other. It is a structural member for forming in the state arrange | positioned 6 each on top. Of these, the cover 70 also serves as a substrate on which the ink supply needle 25 is provided.

  A plurality of grooves 101-105 (see FIG. 1 and FIG. 2) for forming the first to fourth channels 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d and the air channel 46b (see FIGS. 1 and 2) on the back surface of the channel forming plate 90. 15, see FIG. 16). By welding the film 120 to the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, the flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d connecting the ink supply needle 25, the suction side valve 41, the pump 43, and the discharge side valve 45, respectively. The air flow path 46b is formed on the back side of the flow path forming plate 90.

  The reason why the coil springs 40 and 44 are used for the suction side valve 41 and the discharge side valve 45 is to ensure that the check valve (one-way valve) is closed. For example, if the discharge side valve 45 is not completely closed and ink leaks, the amount of ink transported varies in the ink flow path for each color. Further, if the suction side valve 41 is incompletely closed and ink leaks, for example, the ink that flows backward when the ink cartridge 13 is removed leaks from the ink supply needle 25 wastefully. When ink is consumed in this way, there is a difference in ink consumption for each color. Therefore, the check valve of the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 needs to have a structure that does not leak as much as possible. In this embodiment, in addition to the diaphragm valve body 36 and the valve body 38, a coil spring for biasing is used. 40 and 44 are also provided. Of course, when such a configuration is adopted, it is necessary to widen the diaphragm area of the valve bodies 36 and 38 so that the valve springs 36 and 38 can be opened against the urging force of the coil springs 40 and 44. Is required.

  In the present embodiment, a check valve structure that requires such a large arrangement area is purposely adopted from the viewpoint of ensuring reliability, but space saving is realized by other devices. For example, substantially all of the pump 43 and valves 41 and 45 are disposed within the projection range of all the ink cartridges 13 attached to the ink supply system 61, and the ink supply system 61 is configured to have a plane size substantially equal to the projected area. .

  In the ink supply system 61 of this embodiment, six relatively large-diameter pumps 43 are arranged in two rows so as to be substantially in contact with each other, and a relatively small-diameter about half of the pump 43 is arranged in the adjacent area. By arranging the six suction side valves 41 and the discharge side valves 45 in a row so as to be in close contact with each other, the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45 are arranged closely in a predetermined square area. Yes. The ink supply needles 25 are arranged using gaps formed between the rows of pumps 43. By adopting such a layout, the ink supply system 61 can be configured to have a small planar size as well as a thickness. However, when such a close layout is adopted, the ink supply needle 25 and the suction side valve 41, the suction side valve 41 and the pump 43, and the pump 43 and the discharge side valve 45 are positioned relatively apart from each other. The channel lengths of the first to fourth channels 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d and the air channel 46b are relatively long. Therefore, by arranging the first to fourth flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d and the air flow path 46b on the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, a dense layout (that is, a planar size) of the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45 is achieved. The longer flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d, and 46b can be efficiently laid out without sacrificing (miniaturization).

Next, the configuration of each member constituting the ink supply system 61 will be described.
6 is a plan view showing the front side of the cover, FIG. 7 is a perspective view seen from the back side of the cover, and FIG. 8 is a bottom view showing the back side of the cover.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the cover 70 includes a square plate-like substrate portion 71 on which a plurality of ink supply needles 25 protrude from the upper surface (surface). Six pump housing parts 72 bulging upward (in the Z direction) in a substantially frustoconical shape in an area of about 2/3 of the upper surface of the substrate part 71, which is closer to the position where the ink supply needles 25 are arranged, It is formed in a two-row arrangement in which three pieces are arranged at regular intervals in the X direction.

  The six ink supply needles 25 are arranged at a constant pitch in the X direction (slightly wider than the width of the ink cartridge 13 in the X direction) in a gap region corresponding to the space between the two rows of pump housing portions 72. Has been. At this time, the six ink supply needles 25 are located on both sides of a line segment connecting the center points of the three sets of pump housing portions 72 that are paired in the Y direction in a plan view of FIG. ing.

  Around each ink supply needle 25, a through hole 68 that penetrates the cover 70 in the vertical direction is formed. If ink leaks around the ink supply needle 25 when the ink cartridge 13 is attached to or detached from the ink supply needle 25 of the ink supply system 61, the leaked ink passes through the through hole 68 and is on the surface side of the cover 70. It is designed to be discharged from the back side. In the present embodiment, two through holes 68 are formed for each ink supply needle 25.

  Further, in the remaining one third of the upper surface of the substrate portion 71, there are six suction valve housing portions 73 that swell in a substantially truncated cone shape having a smaller diameter than the pump housing portion 72, and substantially the same diameter as this. The six discharge valve housing parts 74 that swell in a substantially truncated cone shape are formed in a state of being arranged in a row substantially adjacent to each other in the X direction. The six suction valve housing portions 73 are arranged in a row adjacent to the pump housing portion 72 in the second row from the top in FIG. 6, and the six discharge valve housing portions 74 are adjacent to the row of the suction valve housing portions 73. Is arranged. Further, the six suction valve housing portions 73 and the six discharge valve housing portions 74 are located substantially adjacent to each other in the Y direction.

  In addition, an extended portion 71a having a predetermined height is formed on the surface of the cover 70 so as to surround the periphery of the cover 70 over the entire circumference. Further, a plurality of (19) boss portions 75 having screw insertion holes 75a are projected from each position where the screw 66 is fastened in the substrate portion 71. Further, a plurality of (two) boss portions 76 having screw insertion holes 76 a are provided projectingly at each position where the screw 67 is fastened in the substrate portion 71. A plurality of the boss portions 75 are provided at substantially equal intervals along the inner periphery of the boss portion 75 at a position on the inner side of the extension portion 71a, and are substantially equal in the X direction at positions corresponding to the rows of the housing portions 72 to 74. A plurality are provided at intervals. A pair of boss portions 76 are provided at positions on both sides of the second row of pump housing portions 72 in the X direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, six concave portions 34 constituting the negative pressure chambers 43 b are formed in the back surface of the cover 70 at respective positions corresponding to the pump housing portions 72. In addition, on the back surface of the cover 70, six recesses 33 are provided at each position corresponding to each suction valve housing portion 73, and six recesses 35 are provided at each position corresponding to each discharge valve housing portion 74. It is recessed. Each of the recesses 33, 34, and 35 is formed on an inner peripheral surface that is recessed in a substantially truncated cone shape, and each of the recesses 33 and 35 has a small diameter that is approximately half the diameter of the recess 34.

  In addition, a cylindrical convex portion 34a is provided at the bottom of the concave portion 34, and the upper end portion of the coil spring 42 (see FIGS. 1 and 9) is externally inserted. Further, the bottom inner diameters of the recesses 33 and 35 are formed slightly wider than the outer diameters of the coil springs 40 and 44, and the upper ends of the coil springs 40 and 44 that are in contact with the bottoms can be positioned almost at the center of the recesses 33 and 35. It is like that. A small-diameter air communication hole 35 a is formed at the center of the bottom surface of the recess 35. Due to the presence of the atmospheric communication hole 35a, the discharge side valve 45 functions as a choke valve that closes when ink is forcibly sucked from the nozzle 16 during cleaning of the recording head 57 and increases the negative pressure in the downstream area. To do.

Further, on the back surface of the cover 70, six through holes 25 a communicating with the ink supply needles 25 are formed at a constant pitch in the X direction at positions corresponding to the ink supply needles 25.
In addition, a groove 77 is formed on the back surface of the cover 70 to communicate the two concave portions 34 adjacent in the Y direction. This groove 77 is for forming a part of an air flow path 46b for introducing a negative pressure into the two recesses 34 (that is, the negative pressure chamber 43b) located on both sides in the longitudinal direction. Further, a groove 33 a is formed on the back surface of the cover 70 so as to extend from each recess 33 toward the outside in the radial direction by a predetermined distance. The groove 33a forms a part of the second flow path 15b for supplying the ink in the suction side valve 41 to the pump chamber 43a.

  Further, on the back surface of the cover 70, a substantially eight-shaped seal portion extending in a belt shape having a substantially constant width along the periphery of two concave portions 34 adjacent to each other in the Y direction and a groove 77 communicating with the two concave portions 34. 78a is formed. Further, a seal portion 78b extending in a belt shape having a substantially constant width along the periphery of the recess 33 and the groove 33a, and a seal portion 78c extending in a belt shape having a substantially constant width along the periphery of the recess 35 are formed. In addition, an annular seal portion 78d surrounding an oblong region is formed on the left side of the concave portion 34 located at the leftmost position in the first row in FIG. 8 so as to be connected to the seal portion 78a. Further, an annular seal portion 78e having a constant width is also formed around the through hole 25a. Each of the seal portions 78a to 78e is protruded from the bottom surface of the cover 70 at a height in the range of several tens to several hundreds of micrometers. A pair of positioning pins 79 protrude from the back surface of the cover 70 at positions on both sides sandwiching the first row of recesses 34 in the X direction. These pins 79 are used for positioning the cover 70 with respect to the flow path forming plate 90.

Next, the configuration of the diaphragm forming member 80 will be described.
9 is a perspective view of the diaphragm forming member as viewed from the top surface side, FIG. 10 is a plan view of the diaphragm forming member, FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the diaphragm forming member as viewed from the back surface side, and FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the diaphragm forming member. is there.

  A diaphragm forming member 80 shown in FIGS. 9 to 12 is made of rubber or elastomer having rubber elasticity, and has a sheet main body 81 having a substantially rectangular shape that is substantially the same size as the cover 70 in a plan view, and one end portion of the sheet main body 81. It has a substantially square-shaped extending portion 82 that extends from (the lower left end portion in FIG. 10) and constitutes a seal portion of the pipe connecting portion 63. The seat body 81 includes six disk-shaped diaphragms 37 disposed at positions corresponding to the respective concave portions 34 on the cover 70 side, and six suction side valve bodies 36 disposed at positions corresponding to the respective concave portions 33. The six discharge side valve bodies 38 arranged at positions corresponding to the respective recesses 35 are respectively formed. The diaphragm 37 is formed to have a large diameter corresponding to the recess 34, and the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 are formed to have a small diameter approximately half that of the diaphragm 37 corresponding to the recesses 33 and 35.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the diaphragm 37 has a flat columnar convex portion 37 a at the center of the upper surface, and the convex portion 37 a has one end portion (lower end portion) of the coil spring 42 extrapolated. Used for the positioning.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, in the gap forming region between the two diaphragms 37 in the diaphragm forming member 80, each position corresponding to the through hole 25 a of the ink supply needle 25 on the cover 70 side is provided. Six through holes 81a are formed. Further, there are three through holes 81b at positions between the through holes 81a in the X direction and corresponding to the lines connecting the center points of the three sets of diaphragms 37 arranged in the Y direction. Is formed. These three through holes 81b together with the groove 77 on the cover 70 side constitute a part of the air flow path 46b for introducing negative pressure into the negative pressure chamber 43b.

  In the diaphragm forming member 80, six through holes 81 c are formed in the vicinity of the suction side valve bodies 36. These through holes 81c constitute a part of the second flow path 15b that communicates the suction side valve 41 and the pump 43, and grooves 33a formed on the back surface of the cover 70 (see FIGS. 7 and 8). It is designed to communicate with the tip.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a cylindrical portion 36 b having a through hole 36 a (see FIG. 1) projects from the central portion of the suction side valve body 36. The cylindrical portion 36b is used for positioning the lower end portion of a coil spring 40 that urges the suction side valve body 36 downward. Further, a bottomed cylindrical portion 38 a protrudes from the central portion of the discharge side valve body 38. The cylindrical portion 38a is used for positioning the lower end portion of the coil spring 44 that urges the discharge side valve body 38 downward.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, on the surface (upper surface) of the diaphragm forming member 80, a seal portion 83a for sealing the periphery of the two diaphragms 37 arranged in the Y direction and the through hole 81b, and each suction side valve A seal portion 84a for sealing the periphery of the body 36 and the through hole 81c and a seal portion 85a for sealing the periphery of each discharge side valve body 38 are formed. Further, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the back surface (lower surface) of the diaphragm forming member 80 is also provided with a seal portion 83b that seals the periphery of the two diaphragms 37 arranged in the Y direction and the through hole 81b, and each suction. A seal portion 84b that seals the periphery of the side valve body 36 and the through hole 81c and a seal portion 85b that seals the periphery of each discharge-side valve body 38 are formed.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, annular seal portions 86 a and 86 b are formed around the through hole 81 a on the upper surface and the lower surface of the diaphragm forming member 80, respectively. Further, on the upper and lower surfaces of the diaphragm forming member 80, seal portions 87a and 87b are formed at positions corresponding to the seal portion 78d on the cover 70 side. Each of the seal portions 83a to 87a and 83b to 87b is formed in a convex line having a height of, for example, about several tens to several hundreds μm from the bottom surface, and is thinner than the corresponding seal portion on the cover 70 side, and on the cover 70 side. The corresponding seal portions are provided so as to correspond to substantially the center position in the width direction. Further, the seal portions 83a to 87a on the front surface side of the diaphragm forming member 80 and the seal portions 83b to 87b on the back surface side thereof are formed in a shape that is plane-symmetric.

  Further, on the front and back surfaces of the diaphragm forming member 80, convex seal portions 88 extending substantially perpendicularly from these surfaces are formed along the peripheral edge of the sheet body 81. A cutout 88 a is formed at one place in the circumferential direction of the seal portion 88. The peripheral portion between the cover 70 and the diaphragm forming member 80 and the peripheral portion between the diaphragm forming member 80 and the flow path forming plate 90 are sealed by the seal portion 88 so that liquid leakage does not occur in a portion excluding the notch 88a. Is done. Ink leaking from the seal of the ink flow path is accumulated in the gap between the cover 70 and the diaphragm forming member 80 or in the gap between the diaphragm forming member 80 and the flow path forming plate 90. The accumulated waste ink is removed from the notch 88a. It flows down to the outside.

  In addition, the extending portion 82 of the diaphragm forming member 80 is formed with six through holes 82 a serving as the ink discharge ports 64 and one through hole 82 b serving as the negative pressure outlet 65. The diaphragm forming member 80 is formed with a plurality of screw insertion holes 89a and recesses 89b for inserting the screws 66 and 67, respectively. A plurality of pin holes 89c are formed around the diaphragm 37 in the first row.

  Next, the configuration of the flow path forming plate 90 will be described. 13 is a perspective view seen from the upper surface side of the flow path forming plate, FIG. 14 is a plan view showing the upper surface of the flow path forming plate, FIG. 15 is a bottom view showing the back surface (bottom surface) of the flow path forming plate, and FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a flow-path formation board and a film. In addition, in FIG. 15, the code | symbol of the flow path corresponding to a groove | channel is also attached | subjected.

  The flow path forming plate 90 shown in FIGS. 13 to 16 has an extended portion 91 formed at a position corresponding to the extended portion 82 of the diaphragm forming member 80, and has substantially the same square plate shape as the diaphragm forming member 80 in plan view. Have.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, six recesses 31 are formed in the upper surface of the flow path forming plate 90 at positions corresponding to the respective diaphragms 37, and the six recesses 30 are respectively provided on the suction side valve bodies 36. And six recesses 32 are provided at positions corresponding to the respective discharge side valve bodies 38. Further, a through hole 90 a is formed in the flow path forming plate 90 at a position corresponding to the ink supply needle 25. The six through-holes 90a are positioned in a line at a constant pitch in the X direction in the gap region between the two rows of recesses 31. The through hole 90a constitutes a part of the first flow path 15a, and the ink supplied from the ink supply needle 25 is sent to the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 through the through hole 90a.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a through hole 30 b is formed at an eccentric position on the outer side of the valve seat 30 a protruding from the central portion of the recess 30. The through hole 30b constitutes a part of the first flow path 15a (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and inflow of ink flowing from the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 into the suction side valve 41 (valve chamber 41a). It becomes a road. A through hole 90 b is formed at a position near the outside of each recess 30. The through-hole 90b constitutes a part of the second flow path 15b (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and the outflow path of the ink flowing out from the valve chamber 41b of the suction side valve 41 to the back side of the flow path forming plate 90. It becomes.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a pair of through holes 31 a and 31 b are formed in the recess 31 constituting the pump chamber 43 a. One through hole 31a constitutes a part of the second flow path 15b (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and serves as an inflow path for ink sucked into the pump chamber 43a. On the other hand, the other through-hole 31b constitutes a part of the third flow path 15c (see FIGS. 1 and 2) and serves as an outflow path for ink discharged from the pump chamber 43a. In addition, a through hole 32b is formed in the recess 32 at a position on the outer peripheral side of the disc-shaped valve seat 32a located at the center of the bottom surface, and a through hole 32c is formed in the center of the valve seat 32a. . The through hole 32 b constitutes a part of the third flow path 15 c (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and serves as an inflow path for the ink discharged from the pump 43 into the discharge side valve 45. On the other hand, the through hole 32c constitutes a part of the fourth flow path 15d (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and serves as an outflow path for ink flowing out from the ejection side valve 45.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the extending portion 91 is formed with six through holes 91a (ink discharge holes) and one negative pressure outlet hole 91b. The six through holes 91a become a part of the fourth flow path 15d (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and the one negative pressure outlet hole 91b becomes a part of the air flow path 46b (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Become.

  Further, in the upper right end portion of the flow path forming plate 90 in FIG. 14, a pair of through holes 90e and 90f and a groove 90g that communicates the through holes 90e and 90f are provided at positions near the right side of the first row of recessed portions 31. Is formed. These through holes 90e and 90f and the groove 90g become a part of an air flow path 46b (see FIG. 1) for introducing a negative pressure into the negative pressure chamber 43b.

  Further, in the gap region between the rows of the two recesses 31, there are three at each position corresponding to almost the midpoint of the line segment connecting the center points of the three sets of the recesses 31 that form a set in the Y direction. Each through hole 92 is formed. The through hole 92 constitutes a part of the air flow path 46 b and serves as a negative pressure introduction path. The introduced negative pressure passes through the through hole 81 b of the diaphragm forming member 80 and enters the groove 77 on the back surface of the cover 70. Thus, it is introduced into the two negative pressure chambers 43b located on both sides in the Y direction via the groove 77.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, around the recesses 30, 31, 32, there are seal portions 93 a extending in a strip shape in a shape that is substantially plane-symmetric with the seal portions 78 a, 78 b, 78 c, 78 d, 78 e of the cover 70. 93b, 93c, 93d, and 93e are provided with a width of 0.5 to 2 mm, for example, with a height of about several tens to several hundreds of μm. The seal portions 93 a, 93 b, 93 c, 93 d, and 93 e are positioned corresponding to the seal portions 83 b, 84 b, 85 b, 86 b, and 87 b on the back surface side of the diaphragm forming member 80. When the ink supply system 61 is assembled, the rubber-elastic seal portion of the diaphragm forming member 80 is sandwiched and pressed between the seal portion of the cover 70 and the seal portion of the flow path forming plate 90 to form a recess. The sealing performance of 30, 31, 32 is ensured.

  Further, boss portions 94 and 95 having screw insertion holes 94a and 95a project from the fastening portions of the screws 66 and 67 in the flow path forming plate 90. Further, a cylindrical pin 96 having an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the pin hole 89c is projected from a position corresponding to the pin hole 89c of the diaphragm forming member 80 on the flow path forming plate 90. Also. Positioning holes 97 having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the pins 79 are provided at positions corresponding to the pins 79 of the cover 70 in the flow path forming plate 90.

  A plurality of (19 in this example) boss portions 94 are inserted into the screw insertion holes 89a of the diaphragm forming member 80, and the pins 96 are inserted into the pin holes 89c. On the other hand, the suction side valve body 36, the diaphragm 37, and the discharge side valve body 38 are positioned so as to be opposed to the recesses 30, 31, and 32, respectively. Then, by inserting the pin 79 on the cover 70 side into the positioning hole 97, the cover 70 is positioned with respect to the flow path forming plate 90 and the diaphragm forming member 80 positioned on the flow path forming plate 90.

  Here, the projecting height of the boss portions 94 and 95 is set such that the upper end surface of the boss portions 94 and 95 abuts against the back surface of the cover 70 when the screw 66 is fastened, so It is set as specified in the value. That is, when the screw 66 is fastened, the diaphragm forming member 80 is interposed between the seal portions 93a, 93b, 93c, 93d, 93e of the flow path forming plate 90 and the seal portions 78a, 78b, 78c, 78d, 78e of the cover 70. The seals are ensured by sandwiching and pressing the seal portions 83a, 83b, 84a, 84b, 85a, 85b, 86a, 86b, 87a, 87b. At this time, even if the screw 66 is tightened excessively, the seal portions 83a, 83b, 84a, 84b, 85a, 85b, etc. of the diaphragm forming member 80 are excessively crushed so that excessive crushing deformation does not occur. The boss portions 94 and 95 define the crushing amount of the seal portion. That is, the protrusion height of the boss portions 94 and 95 is such that the boss portions 94 and 95 abut against the back surface of the cover 70 even when the screw 66 is fastened with an excessive fastening force. By restricting the interval between the seal portions so as not to be less than a predetermined value, the seal portions 83a, 83b, 84a, 84b, 85a, 85b and the like are set to values that do not cause excessive crushing deformation. The protruding heights of the boss portions 94 and 95 are determined by the sealing portions 83a, 83b, and 84a of the diaphragm forming member 80 until the end surfaces of the boss portions 94 and 95 come into contact with the back surface of the cover 70 in the fastening process of the screw 66. , 84b, 85a, 85b, etc. are set so as to be compressed with an appropriate amount of deformation that can ensure an appropriate sealing property.

  Further, a notch 98 is formed at a position corresponding to the notch 88 a of the diaphragm forming member 80 in the flow path forming plate 90. The notch 98 has a slope on the bottom surface side with a predetermined angle projecting outward as it goes downward.

  Next, the configuration on the back surface (bottom surface) side of the flow path forming plate 90 will be described. As shown in FIG. 15, on the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, the partition wall 100 that forms the side walls of the flow paths 15 a to 15 d and 46 b (see FIGS. 1 and 2) extends along a predetermined flow path. Is formed. The partition wall 100 is closed in a bag path shape for each of the flow paths 15a to 15d and 46b, and a plurality of grooves (hereinafter referred to as a groove width) having an interval (interval between adjacently extending portions) inside the partition wall 100. , “First to fifth grooves 101 to 105”). In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 16, the film 120 is welded to the flow path forming surface (bottom surface) of the flow path forming plate 90 so as to be surrounded by the first to fifth grooves 101 to 105 and the film 120. The space area thus formed becomes the flow paths 111 to 115 passing through the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90. At this time, the four types of first to fourth grooves 101 to 104 become first to fourth ink flow paths 111 to 114, respectively, and are provided individually for the six ink supply devices 14. The other type of fifth groove 105 serves as an air flow path 115, and is provided by a path that passes through the vicinity of the negative pressure chambers 43 b of the six ink supply devices 14.

  Further, one negative pressure introducing pipe portion 106 projects vertically from the back surface at one corner portion of the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90. One end of an air flow path pipe 46 a connected to the negative pressure generator 47 is connected to the pipe portion 106, and this pipe portion 106 serves as a negative pressure introduction port to the ink supply system 61. The air flow path groove 105 extends through a path from the pipe portion 106 to the negative pressure outlet hole 91b through the three through holes 92.

  In addition, a pair of pins 107 for positioning the protection plate 130 with respect to the flow path forming plate 90 are provided projectingly at the upper left and right end positions in FIG. Further, an extended portion 108 having substantially the same height as that of the partition wall 100 is formed on the back surface periphery of the flow path forming plate 90 over substantially the entire circumference.

  As shown in FIG. 16, the film 120 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape having substantially the same outer peripheral shape as the flow path forming plate 90, and is welded to each end face (upper end face in FIG. 16) of the partition wall 100 and the extension part 108. It is like that. The film 120 is made of a laminate film in which a metal foil such as an aluminum foil is sandwiched between resin layers, for example, and the weldability with the flow path forming plate 90 is ensured by the resin layer (thermoplastic resin) on the surface. The film 120 includes an extending portion 121 corresponding to the extending portion 91 on the flow path forming plate 90 side, and concave portions 120a and 120b for avoiding the pipe portion 106 and the pin 107 on the flow path forming plate 90 side, respectively. Have.

  FIG. 17 is a partial bottom view showing a portion related to the ink flow path on the back surface of the flow path forming plate. FIG. 18 is a partial bottom view mainly showing the air flow path portion on the back surface of the flow path forming plate. In FIGS. 17 and 18, portions other than the flow paths (grooves) (such as bosses) are omitted. In FIG. 17, portions corresponding to the two ink supply devices 14 are shown. Here, in FIG. 17 and FIG. 18, the reference numerals of the flow paths corresponding to the grooves are attached as in FIG. 15, and in the following description, the grooves 101 are regarded as the flow paths after film welding as necessary. I will explain.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 17, the first to fourth grooves 101 to 104 for the ink flow path are surrounded and formed between the film 120 welded to the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, The first ink flow path 111, the second ink flow path 112, the third ink flow path 113, and the fourth ink flow path 114 are formed.

  The six sets of ink flow paths 111 to 114 constituting the six ink supply devices 14 include the ink supply needle 25, the pump 43 with the ink supply device 14 in the first row and the ink supply device 14 in the second row. Because the positional relationship among the pump 43, the suction side valve 41, and the discharge side valve 45 is slightly different, the flow path and the like are slightly different for each ink supply device 14. However, the ink flow paths 111 to 114 of each set have basically the same structure except that the paths are slightly different. Therefore, in FIG. 17, each ink flow path will be described by paying attention to the two ink supply devices 14 located on the side opposite to the pipe connection portion 63 (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

  In FIG. 17, the upper concave portion 31 among the two concave portions 31 arranged vertically and the left concave portions 30 and 32 among the concave portions 30 and 32 arranged side by side correspond to one ink supply device 14. The recess 31 and the recesses 30 and 32 on the right side correspond to the other one ink supply device 14.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the first ink flow path 111 (first groove 101) is a flow that communicates the through hole 90a corresponding to the ink supply needle 25 and the through hole 30b of the suction side valve 41 (recess 30). Road. Therefore, when the pump 43 is driven to suck, the ink that has flowed from the ink supply needle 25 through the through hole 90a to the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 flows to the through hole 30b through the first ink flow path 111 and penetrates. It flows into the suction side valve 41 from the hole 30b.

  The second ink flow path 112 is a flow path that connects the through hole 90b in the vicinity of the suction side valve 41 (recessed part 30) and the through hole 31a of the pump 43 (recessed part 31). Therefore, when the pump 43 is driven for suction, the ink flowing out from the through hole 90b to the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 through the suction side valve 41 opened by the ink pressure (negative pressure) by the suction drive is the second It flows to the through hole 31a through the ink flow path 112, and flows into the pump chamber 43a from the through hole 31a.

  Further, the third ink flow path 113 is a flow path that communicates the through hole 31b of the pump 43 (the concave portion 31 side) and the through hole 32b of the discharge side valve 45 (the concave portion 32). Therefore, when the pump 43 is driven to discharge, the ink discharged from the pump chamber 43a and flowing out from the through hole 31b to the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 flows to the through hole 32b through the third ink flow path 113 and penetrates therethrough. It flows into the discharge side valve 45 from the hole 32b.

  The fourth ink flow path 114 is a flow path that communicates the through hole 32 c of the discharge side valve 45 (recessed portion 32) and the through hole 91 a of the extending portion 91. Therefore, when the pump 43 is driven to discharge, the ink that has flowed from the through hole 32c to the back surface side of the flow path forming plate 90 through the discharge side valve 45 opened by the ink pressure pressurized by the discharge driving is the fourth. It flows to the through hole 91a through the ink flow path 114, and flows out from the ink discharge port 64 of the pipe connection part 63 through the through hole 91a.

  Next, the air flow path into which the negative pressure is introduced will be described. As shown in FIG. 18, the negative pressure introduced from the negative pressure introducing pipe portion 106 is introduced into the air flow path 115 on the back surface side through the groove 90g and the through hole 90f on the front surface side of the flow path forming plate 90. Is done. The air flow path 115 extends from the through hole 90f to the negative pressure outlet hole 91b while sequentially passing through a position corresponding to the back surface of the pump chamber 43a (recess 31) of the pump 43 in the first row. And the air flow path 115 has three air flow paths 115a each branched at a position corresponding to the back surface of each pump chamber 43a (recess 31) and extending downward in FIG. The flow paths 115a communicate with the corresponding three through holes 92, respectively. Therefore, the negative pressure introduced into the air flow path 115 through the pipe portion 106 of the ink supply system 61 during the suction drive of the pump 43 passes through the air flow path 115a branched in the middle from the through hole 92 to the flow path forming plate. 90 to the surface side. Then, the negative pressure derived from the through hole 92 passes through the through hole 81 b of the diaphragm forming member 80 to reach the longitudinal center portion of the groove 77 on the back surface of the cover 70, and along the groove 77 on both sides in the longitudinal direction. Are introduced into the two negative pressure chambers 43b.

  FIG. 19 is an exploded perspective view showing the protective plate and the tray. A protective plate 130 shown in FIG. 19 is made of, for example, a metal plate having substantially the same outer peripheral shape as the film 120. The protection plate 130 has an extension part 131 corresponding to the pipe connection part 63 and a plurality of screw holes 130 a and 130 b at the fastening positions of the screws 66 and 67. Further, a hole 132 for inserting the tube portion 106 is formed at a position corresponding to the tube portion 106 on the flow path forming plate 90 side of the protection plate 130.

  In addition, the receiving tray 140 has an extended portion 141 corresponding to the pipe connecting portion 63 with substantially the same outer peripheral shape as the protective plate 130. An extending portion 142 having a predetermined height from the bottom surface is formed on the peripheral edge of the tray 140 over substantially the entire circumference. A drainage path 143 (drain portion) extending outward is provided at a position corresponding to the notch 88a of the diaphragm forming member 80 in the extension portion 142 of the tray 140. The drainage path 143 has a flow path surface 143a having a predetermined width formed on a slope that becomes lower toward the outside so that the waste ink accumulated in the tray can be discharged to the outside, and an extending portion 142 extends outward along both sides of the flow path surface 143a. And a pair of guides 143b that bend and extend. The waste ink flows on the flow path surface 143a while the flow direction of the discharged waste ink is guided by the guide 143b. In the receiving tray 140, a cylindrical portion 144 for projecting the negative pressure introducing tube portion 106 is provided at a position corresponding to the hole 132 of the protection plate 130. Further, at the position corresponding to the screw hole 130 a of the protection plate 130 in the tray 140, it is avoided that the tip portion of the screw 66 screwed into the screw hole 130 a protruding to the back side of the protection plate 130 interferes with the tray 140. A plurality of possible circular recesses 140a are formed. In addition, a screw insertion hole 140 b for inserting the screw 67 is formed in the tray 140 at a position corresponding to the screw hole 130 b of the protection plate 130.

  The members 70, 80, 90, 120, 130 configured as described above are laminated after the film 120 is pre-welded to the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, and screws 66 inserted through the insertion holes are fastened to a predetermined degree. By tightening with force, a laminate composed of the members 70, 80, 90, 120, and 130 is assembled in a state in which the sealability between the members 70, 80, and 90 is ensured. Further, the receiving plate 140 is arranged in a laminated state in a state where the negative pressure introducing tube portion 106 is inserted into the cylindrical portion 144 on the bottom surface side of the laminated body, and the two screws 67 are inserted into the screw insertion holes and the lower side The ink supply system 61 is assembled by fastening from above.

  At this time, in a state where the members 70, 80, 90, 120, and 130 are stacked before screw fastening, the boss portions 94 and 95 and the pin 96 of the flow path forming plate 90 are connected to the screw insertion holes 89 a and the diaphragm forming member 80. By being inserted through the pin holes 89 c, the diaphragm forming member 80 faces the flow path forming plate 90, and the suction side valve body 36, the diaphragm 37, and the discharge side valve body 38 face the recesses 30, 31, and 32, respectively. Positioned to the state. Further, the cover 70 has the pins 79 inserted into the positioning holes 97, so that the suction side valve body 36, the diaphragm 37, and the discharge side valve body 38 are formed in the recesses 33, 34, and 35 with respect to the flow path forming plate 90, respectively. Positioned to face each other.

  When the screws 66 are fastened to the stacked members 70, 80, 90, 120, 130, the boss portions 94, 95 on the flow path forming plate 90 side come into contact with the back surface of the cover 70, so A predetermined distance is secured between the path forming plate 90 and the path forming plate 90. At this time, the height of the boss portions 94 and 95 is such that the diaphragm is sandwiched between the seal portions 78a, 78b, 78c, 78d and 78e and the seal portions 93a, 93b, 93c, 93d and 93e when the screw 66 is fastened. The seal portions 83a to 87a and 83b to 87b of the member 80 are set to values that are pressed by a force sufficient to secure the seal and are not excessively crushed. Therefore, even if the screw 66 is further tightened after the screw 66 is fastened and the boss portions 94 and 95 are brought into contact with the back surface of the cover 70, the seal portions 83a to 87a and 83b to 87b of the diaphragm forming member 80 are pushed further. Since crushing is restricted, the seal portions 83a to 87a and 83b to 87b are crushed by an appropriate amount, and excessive crushing is avoided.

  For example, when the screw 66 is excessively tightened, the seal portions 84a, 84b, 85a, 85b surrounding the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 in the diaphragm forming member 80 are excessively crushed. If there is, the crushed rubber is pushed out to the inside of the valve chamber, and the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 are deformed so as to be loosened. As a result, variation in the opening / closing timing of the valve body due to the presence or absence of looseness of the valve body due to variation in the tightening force of the screw 66 occurs.

  In this case, for example, the opening / closing timing of the suction side valve element is shifted, and a situation occurs in which the suction side valve 41 that should be closed by opening the negative pressure chamber 43b to the atmosphere is not completely closed. If the ink cartridge 13 is removed under such circumstances, the pressurized ink in the ink supply system may flow backward and the ink may leak from the ink supply needle 25. However, in the configuration of the present embodiment, since the seal portions 84a and 84b of the diaphragm forming member 80 are not excessively crushed, variation in the opening / closing timing of the suction side valve body 36 is unlikely to occur, and the negative pressure chamber 43b When the atmosphere is released, the suction side valve 41 is securely closed. As a result, when the user removes the ink cartridge 13, the pressurized ink in the ink supply system 61 flows backward due to excessive crushing of the seal portions 84 a and 84 b and the ink leaks from the ink supply needle 25. Can be avoided as much as possible.

  In addition, when ink discharge occurs due to incomplete closing of the discharge side valve 45, variation in the ink feed amount occurs between the ink flow paths for each ink color. However, in the configuration of the present embodiment, since the seal portions 85a and 85b of the diaphragm forming member 80 are not excessively crushed, variation in the opening / closing timing of the discharge-side valve body 38 is unlikely to occur, and the suction drive of the pump 43 is performed. Sometimes the discharge side valve 45 is reliably closed. As a result, the discharge side valve 45 is surely closed and no ink leakage occurs, so that variations in the ink feed amount are unlikely to occur between the ink flow paths for each ink color.

  In addition, even if it is possible to avoid excessive crushing of the seal portion, if the valve closing biasing force of the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 is weak, the ink is supplied via the suction side valve 41 and the discharge side valve 45. Leakage occurs, causing ink leakage from the ink supply needle 25 when the ink cartridge 13 is attached and detached, and variations in the ink feed amount between the ink flow paths. Therefore, although the suction side valve 41 and the discharge side valve 45 are enlarged, the coil springs 40 for urging the suction side valve body 36 and the discharge side valve body 38 in the valve closing direction in order to ensure the closing of the valve. A check valve structure provided with 44 (biasing means) was used.

  Even if the suction side valve 41 and the discharge side valve 45 are enlarged, the six pumps 43 constituting the six ink supply devices 14, the six suction side valves 41 and the six discharges are provided in the main body 62 of the ink supply system 61. By arranging the side valves 45 relatively densely on the same plane, the ink supply system 61 is compactly configured. In this case, the relatively large-diameter pumps 43 are arranged in two rows, six ink supply needles 25 are arranged in one row at equal intervals in the gap region between the rows, and six in the region adjacent to the pump row. The suction side valve 41 and the six discharge side valves 45 were arranged in one row substantially adjacent to each other along a direction parallel to the pump row.

  In this layout, although the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45 can be arranged closely, the positions of the ink supply needle 25, the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45 are relatively separated, and the ink flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d becomes relatively long. However, in this embodiment, a plurality of grooves 101 to 104 are provided on the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90, and the film 120 is welded to the back surface, so that the ink flow surrounded by the grooves 101 to 104 and the film 120 is formed. The passages 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d are disposed on the back surface of the flow path forming plate 90 opposite to the surface (front surface) on the side where the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45 are formed. Therefore, the ink flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d can be incorporated into the same component without sacrificing the relatively dense layout of the pump 43 and the valves 41 and 45.

  FIG. 20 is a plan view of an ink supply system 61 in which six ink cartridges 13 are mounted. As shown in FIG. 20, the projected area of the six ink cartridges 13 (the smallest rectangular area including the six ink cartridges 13 in the plan view of FIG. 20) is projected onto the upper surface of the ink supply system 61 in the stacking direction. When the range is referred to as a “cartridge projection range”, the six pumps 43 are laid out with respect to each position of the six ink supply needles 25 so that the respective centers are within the cartridge projection range. Further, the six suction side valves 41 arranged in one row are laid out with respect to the six ink supply needles 25 so that the respective centers are all within the cartridge projection range. Further, the six discharge side valves 45 arranged in one row are also laid out with respect to the six ink supply needles 25 so that the respective centers are all within the cartridge projection range. That is, in this embodiment, all the centers of the six pumps 43, the six suction side valves 41, and the six discharge side valves 45 are within the cartridge projection range determined from the positions of the six ink supply needles 25. Is laid out.

  Then, the six ink supply needles 25, the six pumps 43, and the six valves 43, 45 are arranged on the outer peripheral edge of the relatively densely arranged outer periphery, and screw fastening bosses 75, 76 and an extension part. The main body 62 is constructed in a relatively compact size having 71a. The cartridge projection range is accommodated on the upper surface of the compact main body 62. For this reason, it is possible to keep a relatively small installation space that is necessary to secure the ink supply system 61 (cartridge holder) and the six ink cartridges 13 in the printer 11. As a result, the printer 11 itself can be made compact.

  In addition, since the protective plate 130 made of a metal plate is disposed on the lower side of the film 120, the distribution of the force with which the plastic flow path forming plate 90 is particularly strongly pressed at the tightening position of the screw 66 when the screw 66 is tightened. It is possible to avoid deformation in a wavy shape. Therefore, even in the tightened state of the screw 66, the flatness of the flow path forming plate 90 is ensured. For example, the sealing performance is deteriorated due to the wavy deformation of the flow path forming plate, and the opening / closing timing variation of the valve body is generated. Etc. can be avoided.

  Further, waste ink leaking to the periphery of the ink supply needle 25 on the upper surface of the cover 70 when the ink cartridge 13 is attached or detached flows through the through hole 68 onto the diaphragm forming member 80 located on the back surface side of the cover 70. The waste ink accumulated on the upper surface of the diaphragm forming member 80 flows out through the notch 88a, flows downward along the notch 98 on the side wall of the flow path forming plate 90, and is discharged from the tray 140. The liquid falls to the liquid path 143 and is further discharged to the outside along the drainage path 143 and is collected in the waste liquid tank 21, for example. Also, even if ink leaks from the seal portion between the cover 70 and the diaphragm forming member 80 and between the diaphragm forming member 80 and the flow path forming plate 90, the leaked ink is notched 88a. The liquid flows down to the outside, and is similarly collected through the drainage path 143 to the waste liquid tank 21, for example. Therefore, the inside of the printer 11 can be prevented from being contaminated by waste ink leaking from the ink supply system 61.

As described above in detail, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) After driving the negative pressure generating device 47 to cause ink to flow into the pump chamber 43a from the upstream side on the ink cartridge 13 side, the driving of the negative pressure generating device 47 is stopped and the biasing force of the coil spring 42 By acting on the diaphragm 37, the pump chamber 43a can be brought into a pressurized state. Accordingly, a discharge pressure for discharging the ink from the pump chamber 43a is obtained, and a force for pushing out the mixed bubbles works, so that the bubbles can be prevented from staying in the pump chamber 43a. In addition, if bubbles remain in the pump chamber 43a, there is a risk that the bubbles will grow greatly due to air or the like flowing from the upstream side. Can be shed.

  (2) The first flow path forming member 27 that forms the pump chamber 43a is made of a gas-permeable plastic, but it is a coil spring except when the negative pressure generator 47 is driven, that is, when the pump 43 is driven by suction. The inside of the pump chamber 43a can be always kept in a pressurized state by the urging force of 42. Therefore, air can be prevented from passing through the wall surface and entering the pump chamber 43a, and the air mixed in the pump chamber 43a can be discharged out of the ink flow path.

  (3) When printing is completed, the drive motor 49 is driven forward to drive the pump 43 by suction, and then the drive motor 49 is driven to rotate backward to open the negative pressure chamber 43b to the atmosphere. The urging force of the coil spring 42 can keep the pump chamber 43a in a pressurized state even while the printer 11 is turned off. Therefore, it is possible to ensure a sufficient time for discharging the air and eliminate the bubbles mixed in the pump chamber 43a without flowing downstream.

  (4) Since the suction side valve 41 that allows the ink to pass from the upstream side to the downstream side is provided at a position upstream of the pump chamber 43a in the ink flow path 15, the inside of the pump chamber 43a is pressurized. Even if the ink is kept in the state, the ink is prevented from flowing back to the upstream side. Further, since a discharge side valve 45 that allows ink to pass from the upstream side to the downstream side is provided at a position downstream of the pump chamber 43a, the negative pressure generator 47 is driven to pump from the upstream side. When the ink is allowed to flow into the chamber 43a, the ink is prevented from flowing backward from the downstream side to the pump chamber 43a side.

  (5) At the position downstream of the discharge side valve 45 in the ink flow path 15, the valve is always closed, and the valve is opened when the downstream side is depressurized below a predetermined pressure due to ink consumption. A flow path valve 17d is provided. Therefore, even if the inside of the pump chamber 43a is maintained in a pressurized state, ink is not supplied to the downstream side (recording head 12 side) when the flow path valve 17d is in the closed state. When the pressure on the downstream side is reduced to a predetermined pressure or less due to ink consumption, the flow path valve 17d is opened, so that ink can be supplied according to the ink consumption on the downstream side.

  (6) The negative pressure generator 47 is driven to generate a negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber 43b, thereby displacing the diaphragm 37 to the negative pressure chamber 43b side, and causing ink to flow into the pump chamber 43a from the upstream side. Can do. Further, when the operation of the negative pressure generator 47 is stopped, the atmosphere release mechanism 48 releases the inside of the negative pressure chamber 43b to the atmosphere, so that the urging force of the coil spring 42 is applied to the diaphragm 37 to bring the pump chamber 43a into a pressurized state. be able to.

  Here, for example, when the volume of the pump chamber 43a is reduced by pressing the coil spring 42 with an actuator, the pump chamber 43a cannot be held in a pressurized state when the driving of the actuator is stopped. Further, when the pump chamber 43a is brought into a pressurized state by the pressurizing force of the pressurized air, the pressurizing air may leak after the driving of the pressurizing device is stopped. By energizing the diaphragm 37, a pressurized state can be maintained without weakening the applied pressure. That is, after the negative pressure generating device 47 is driven to generate a negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber 43b, the negative pressure generating device 47 is stopped driving and the negative pressure chamber 43b is opened to the atmosphere by the atmospheric release mechanism 48. Thus, the pump chamber 43a can be maintained in a pressurized state even when the driving of the negative pressure generator 47 is stopped.

  (7) The first flow path forming member 27 that forms the ink flow paths 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d and the pump chamber 43a, and the second flow path forming member 28 that forms the negative pressure chamber 43b are flexible members. Since the laminated structure is formed in such a manner that 29 is sandwiched, the ink supply device 14 and the printer 11 can be made compact and space-saving, and the assembling work is facilitated.

  (8) Since the coil spring 42 is provided in the negative pressure chamber 43b, the diaphragm 37 can be urged without contacting the ink. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the coil spring 42 from coming into contact with the ink and causing an unnecessary chemical change. Further, when the coil spring 42 is in the pump chamber 43a, air bubbles may be trapped in the coil spring 42 and may not be easily discharged by cleaning or the like, but the coil spring 42 is outside the pump chamber 43a. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the retention of bubbles in the pump chamber 43a.

The above embodiment may be changed to another embodiment as described below.
The first flow path forming member 27 and the flow path forming plate 90 may be made of a material having low gas permeability, such as polypropylene (PP). Also in this case, by holding the inside of the pump chamber 43a in a pressurized state, it is possible to suppress air from passing through the wall surface and entering the pump chamber 43a.

  The displacement member may have another configuration as long as it can be displaced so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber 43a. For example, the volume in the pump chamber 43a may be changed by a piston that can reciprocate in the pump chamber 43a.

  -The negative pressure chamber 43b is opened to the atmosphere at once, and the urging force of the coil spring 42 is applied to the diaphragm 37. For example, the pressure is adjusted by gradually releasing the atmosphere. Also good.

  The biasing member is not limited to the coil spring 42. For example, a biasing force may be obtained by attaching a rubber member as a biasing member to a film member as a flexible member and integrating them.

-You may arrange | position in the pump chamber 43a by making the coil spring 42 into a tension spring.
The ink supply device 14 is not limited to the ink supply system 61 in which the first flow path forming member 27, the second flow path forming member 28, and the flexible member 29 are assembled in a stacked state. It may be configured to be connected to a tube or the like as a liquid supply channel.

  The diaphragm forming member 80 does not have to be a single member shared among all the ink supply devices 14 in the printer 11. For example, the diaphragm forming member may be a plurality of parts in one ink supply system 61.

  A configuration in which an ink supply device including a pump, a first one-way valve (a one-way valve for suction), and a second one-way valve (a one-way valve for discharge) is mounted on a recording head unit can also be employed. That is, the ink supply system 61 of the above embodiment is mounted on the carriage. Even in such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the piping work and make the ink supply device thin by adopting the ink supply system 61 having a laminated structure.

  In the above embodiment, an ink jet printer and an ink cartridge are employed, but a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects or ejects liquid other than ink and a liquid container that contains the liquid are employed. May be. The present invention can be used for various liquid ejecting apparatuses including a liquid ejecting head that ejects a minute amount of liquid droplets. In addition, a droplet means the state of the liquid discharged from the said liquid ejecting apparatus, and shall also include what pulls a tail in granular shape, tear shape, and thread shape. The liquid here may be any material that can be ejected by the liquid ejecting apparatus. For example, it may be in a state in which the substance is in a liquid phase, such as a liquid with high or low viscosity, sol, gel water, other inorganic solvents, organic solvents, solutions, liquid resins, liquid metals (metal melts ) And a liquid as one state of a substance, as well as a material in which particles of a functional material made of a solid such as a pigment or metal particles are dissolved, dispersed or mixed in a solvent. Further, representative examples of the liquid include ink and liquid crystal as described in the above embodiment. Here, the ink includes general water-based inks and oil-based inks, and various liquid compositions such as gel inks and hot melt inks. As a specific example of the liquid ejecting apparatus, for example, a liquid containing a material such as an electrode material or a coloring material used for manufacturing a liquid crystal display, an EL (electroluminescence) display, a surface emitting display, a color filter, or the like in a dispersed or dissolved state. It may be a liquid ejecting apparatus for ejecting, a liquid ejecting apparatus for ejecting a bio-organic material used for biochip manufacturing, a liquid ejecting apparatus for ejecting a liquid as a sample used as a precision pipette, a textile printing apparatus, a microdispenser, or the like. In addition, transparent resin liquids such as UV curable resin to form liquid injection devices that pinpoint lubricant oil onto precision machines such as watches and cameras, and micro hemispherical lenses (optical lenses) used in optical communication elements. A liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a liquid onto the substrate or a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects an etching solution such as an acid or an alkali to etch the substrate may be employed. The present invention can be applied to any one of these types of liquid ejecting apparatuses and liquid containers.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Printer as liquid ejecting device, 12 ... Recording head unit as liquid ejecting means, 13 ... Ink cartridge as liquid supply source, 14 ... Ink supplying device as liquid supplying device, 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d ... Liquid Ink flow path constituting supply flow path, 17d: flow path valve as on-off valve, 27: first flow path forming member as first forming member, 28: second flow path forming as second forming member 29, a flexible member as a displacement member, 41 ... a suction side valve as a first one-way valve, 42 ... a coil spring as a biasing member and a spring member, 43 ... a pump, 43a ... a pump chamber, 43b DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Negative pressure chamber, 45 ... Discharge side valve as second one-way valve, 47 ... Negative pressure generating device constituting displacement mechanism, 48 ... Atmospheric release mechanism, 70 ... Cover as second forming member 80 ... diaphragm forming member serving as a flexible member, 90 ... flow path forming plate as a first forming member.

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes a liquid supply channel that supplies liquid from an upstream side that is a liquid supply source side toward a downstream side where the liquid is consumed, and the liquid supply channel. In a liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a pump provided with a pump chamber in the middle thereof, a displacement member that constitutes a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber, and the displacement member A displacement mechanism for displacing the pump chamber, and an upstream flow that allows liquid to flow into the pump chamber side by displacing the displacement member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber increases. And a through hole connecting the upper surface of the upstream flow path and the lower surface of the pump chamber, the through hole extending in the vertical direction.

According to this arrangement, when the Ru liquid to flow into the pump chamber from the drive displacement mechanism upstream of the liquid supply source side, a through hole for connecting the upper and lower surfaces of the pump chamber on the upstream side flow path is vertical Since it extends in the direction, retention of bubbles can be suppressed.

The liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention is provided at a position on the downstream side of the pump chamber, and receives the liquid flowing out from the pump chamber by displacing the displacement member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber decreases. It further has a channel, and a discharge port which is a channel opening end in the downstream channel is provided above the downstream channel.

According to this configuration, when the liquid is discharged from the pump chamber by driving the displacement mechanism, the discharge port that is the flow channel opening end is located above the downstream flow channel provided at the position downstream of the pump chamber. Since it is provided, it is possible to suppress the retention of bubbles that have flowed into the downstream flow path.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the upstream-side flow path and the downstream-side flow path are formed by surrounding an opening provided in the same direction with a sealing member.

According to this configuration , the upstream channel and the downstream channel can be incorporated in the same component without sacrificing a relatively dense layout .

In the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, a one-way valve provided between the pump chamber and the downstream flow path and allowing the liquid to pass from the pump chamber to the downstream flow path is provided.
According to this configuration, since the one-way valve that allows the passage of the liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side is provided at a position downstream of the pump chamber, the displacement mechanism is driven to start the pump chamber from the upstream side. When the liquid is allowed to flow into the liquid, it is suppressed that the liquid flows backward from the downstream side to the pump chamber side.

In order to achieve the above object, in the liquid ejecting apparatus of the invention, the liquid supply source is disposed at a position higher than the pump chamber in the vertical direction with the liquid supply source attached.
According to this configuration, an installation space that needs to be secured for arranging the liquid supply device and the liquid supply source in the liquid ejecting apparatus can be kept relatively small .

Claims (6)

A liquid supply comprising a liquid supply channel for supplying liquid from an upstream side serving as a liquid supply source toward a downstream side where the liquid is consumed, and a pump provided with a pump chamber in the middle of the liquid supply channel In the device
A displacement member that constitutes a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber and is displaced so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber;
A biasing member that biases the displacement member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber decreases;
A displacement mechanism that displaces the displacement member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber increases against the biasing force of the biasing member during driving;
A negative pressure chamber provided outside the pump chamber so that the displacement member forms a partition wall with the pump chamber;
An atmospheric release mechanism for releasing the negative pressure chamber to the atmosphere;
The displacement mechanism includes a negative pressure generating device that generates a negative pressure in the negative pressure chamber during driving,
The negative pressure generated by driving the negative pressure generating device and displacing the displacement member to the negative pressure chamber side by allowing the liquid to flow into the pump chamber from the upstream side, and generating the negative pressure When the driving of the apparatus is stopped, the negative pressure chamber is opened to the atmosphere by the atmospheric release mechanism, so that the urging force of the urging member is applied to the displacement member to bring the pump chamber into a pressurized state,
The liquid supply apparatus, wherein the pump chamber is held in a pressurized state by the urging force of the urging member when driving of the displacement mechanism is stopped.   The first forming member that forms the liquid supply flow path and the pump chamber and the second forming member that forms the negative pressure chamber have a laminated structure in such a manner as to sandwich the displacement member. The liquid supply device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid supply device is a liquid supply device. A first one-way valve which is provided at a position upstream of the pump chamber in the liquid supply flow path and allows passage of liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side;
A second one-way valve that is provided at a position downstream of the pump chamber in the liquid supply flow path and allows the passage of liquid from the upstream side to the downstream side;
Provided at a position on the downstream side of the second one-way valve in the liquid supply flow path, and is always in a closed state, and is opened when the downstream side is reduced to a predetermined pressure or less due to liquid consumption. The liquid supply device according to claim 1, further comprising: an on-off valve that becomes   The liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the biasing member is a spring member provided outside the pump chamber.   A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising: a liquid ejecting unit that ejects a liquid; and the liquid supply device according to claim 1 that supplies the liquid to the liquid ejecting unit. A liquid supply method in a liquid supply apparatus including a pump provided with a pump chamber in the middle of a liquid supply flow path for supplying a liquid from an upstream side serving as a liquid supply source side toward a downstream side where the liquid is consumed. ,
As a part of the wall surface of the pump chamber, the displacement member is configured to be displaceable so as to increase or decrease the volume of the pump chamber, and a displacement member urged by the urging member in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber decreases is provided with a displacement mechanism. By driving and generating a negative pressure in a negative pressure chamber provided outside the pump chamber so that the displacement member forms a partition wall with the pump chamber, the biasing force of the biasing member is resisted. Displacing in a direction in which the volume of the pump chamber increases;
A step of opening the negative pressure chamber to the atmosphere when driving of the displacement mechanism is stopped, thereby applying a biasing force of the biasing member to the displacement member to bring the pump chamber into a pressurized state. A liquid supply method in the liquid supply apparatus.

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