JP2016077345A - Tablet printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tablet printing device which can significantly improve handleability at the time of performing the cleaning operation of a recording head or the replenishment operation to an ink tank.SOLUTION: A tablet printing device 10 comprises: conveyance means 16 which conveys a tablet T; a printing unit 32 in which an ink tank 68 storing ink and a recording head 34 discharging droplets of the ink supplied from the ink tank 68 are integrally provided; and fixing support means 50 which fixedly supports the printing unit 32 under the physical relationship in which a nozzle 77 faces the conveyance means 16. The printing unit 32 is configured to be attachable/detachable to/from the fixing support means 50.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a tablet printing apparatus that includes a recording head that discharges ink droplets from a nozzle and performs printing on a tablet using the recording head.

  Recently, in order to display identification information on the surface of a tablet, a tablet printing apparatus for printing on the tablet has been developed. For example, there has been proposed an apparatus that ejects ink droplets with a recording head while transporting a tablet using a transport unit such as a transport belt (see Patent Document 1).

International Publication No. 2009/025371 Pamphlet

  By the way, in this type of tablet printing apparatus, when the recording head is cleaned, after the entire operation of the apparatus is temporarily stopped, the cleaning operation is performed with the recording head mounted. In this case, the ink supplied from the ink tank leaks, and this ink may cause a problem that the conveying means is soiled. Alternatively, even when the ink tank is refilled with ink, the inconveniences described above may occur in the same manner.

  In addition, it is necessary to interrupt the tablet printing process until the cleaning operation of the recording head or the ink replenishment operation is completed, which has been one of the causes of reducing the tablet production efficiency. In other words, the tablet printing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 has sufficient room for improvement in terms of maintenance and production efficiency.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and can improve the handleability when performing a print head cleaning operation or an ink tank replenishment operation, and regardless of the occurrence of these operations. An object of the present invention is to provide a tablet printing apparatus capable of significantly improving production efficiency.

  The tablet printing apparatus according to the present invention is an apparatus that includes a recording head that discharges ink droplets from a nozzle, and that prints on the tablet using the recording head, and that transports the tablet and the ink And a printing unit in which the recording head that discharges the droplets of the ink supplied from the ink tank is integrally provided, and a positional relationship in which the nozzle faces the transport unit, A fixing support unit configured to fix and support the printing unit, and the printing unit is configured to be detachable from the fixing support unit.

  As described above, since the printing unit in which the ink tank and the recording head are integrally provided is configured to be detachable from the fixed support means, it can be handled without separating the ink tank and the recording head. Ink can be prevented from adhering to the conveying means during attachment or removal. Thereby, it is possible to improve the handleability when performing the cleaning operation of the recording head or the replenishment operation to the ink tank. In addition, since the tablet printing process can be resumed quickly by replacing the spare printing unit, the production efficiency can be greatly improved regardless of the occurrence of these operations. Further, since the distance (supply path) between the recording head and the ink tank is shortened, there is an advantage that the ink piping can be saved. Furthermore, since the ink used for tablet printing is expensive, the production cost can be reduced by reducing the amount of waste liquid.

  The fixing support means includes a base portion, a rod-like portion fixed to the base portion and extending on one axis, and a first locking portion provided on the base portion, and the printing unit includes A hooking portion having a hook-like portion that can be hooked on the rod-like portion, and a second locking portion that can be engaged with the first locking portion or can be disengaged from the first locking portion. An attachment / detachment mechanism that includes the hooking portion hooked on the rod-like portion, and rotating the printing unit about the one axis to turn the second locking portion into the first locking portion. It is preferable that the engagement is possible or the engagement with the first locking portion can be released. The second locking portion can be positioned only by hooking the hook portion on the rod-like portion, and the attaching / detaching operation of the printing unit becomes extremely easy.

  Further, it is preferable that the first locking portion is disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit is fixedly supported. The closer to the position of the first locking portion (that is, the engagement position), the more stable and support is possible, and the printing accuracy by the recording head can be maintained.

  Further, it is preferable that the fixing support means further includes a buffer member disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit is fixedly supported. In particular, when the second locking portion is engaged with the first locking portion, an impact may be transmitted to the printing unit side. Thus, by providing a buffer member at a position corresponding to the recording head, the impact transmitted to the recording head can be reduced. This protects the recording head, which is a precision component.

  In addition, it is preferable that the printing unit further includes a housing that houses at least the recording head, and the ink tank is detachable from the housing. Thus, after the ink tank is separated from the recording head, the ink tank cleaning operation or the ink replenishment operation can be performed individually.

  According to the tablet printing apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to improve the handleability when performing the cleaning operation of the recording head or the replenishment operation to the ink tank, and it is possible to significantly improve the production efficiency regardless of the occurrence of these operations. . Further, since the distance (supply path) between the recording head and the ink tank is shortened, there is an advantage that the ink piping can be saved. Furthermore, since the ink used for tablet printing is expensive, the production cost can be reduced by reducing the amount of waste liquid.

It is a whole block diagram of the tablet printer concerning this embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view of the printing unit shown in FIG. It is a schematic side view which shows the 1st attachment state of the printing unit shown in FIG. It is a schematic side view which shows the 2nd attachment state of the printing unit shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the tablet printing apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[Overall Configuration of Tablet Printing Apparatus 10]
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a tablet printing apparatus 10 according to this embodiment. The tablet printing apparatus 10 is an apparatus for performing monochrome or color printing on the tablet T by employing an inkjet recording method.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet printing apparatus 10 includes a housing 12, a supply unit 14 provided inside the housing 12 and supplying a tablet T, and a tablet T supplied by the supply unit 14 in a predetermined direction ( (Hereinafter referred to as the “transport direction”), a transport means 16 for transporting in the transport direction, a printing means 18 for performing printing by discharging ink droplets onto the tablets T transported by the transport means 16, and a downstream side in the transport direction. The inspection means 20 is basically provided.

  The housing 12 is a rectangular box-shaped member for accommodating various devices, and an upper space (illustrated by a broken line) partitioned by an intermediate plate 12a, a side plate 12b, and a top plate 12c is formed. A circular opening 12d is formed on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the top plate 12c.

  The supply means 14 is provided in the upper space of the housing 12 and below the opening 12d. The supply means 14 includes a supply hopper 22 that temporarily stores tablets T, a vibration feeder 24 that is disposed below the supply hopper 22 and has a discharge port, and a rectifying turn that is disposed below the discharge port of the vibration feeder 24. A table 26 is included.

  The vibration feeder 24 causes the tablet T supplied from the supply hopper 22 to vibrate and feeds it to the rectifying turntable 26. The rectifying turntable 26 aligns the tablets T dropped from the vibration feeder 24 in a line along a peripheral wall (not shown) and transfers the tablets T to the conveying means 16.

  The belt conveying system conveying means 16 includes an endless conveying belt 28 and a plurality of pulleys 30 wound around the conveying belt 28. The transport means 16 is not limited to the belt transport system, and for example, a drum transport system that transports the tablets T while rotating a substantially cylindrical transport drum may be employed.

  The printing unit 18 includes at least one (in this example, one) printing unit 32 that is fixedly arranged at a position vertically above the conveyance belt 28. The printing unit 32 includes a recording head 34 (FIG. 2) that discharges ink droplets toward the tablet T, and a drive circuit board 36 (shown in FIG. 2) for driving and controlling the recording head 34.

  Various methods may be adopted as a droplet discharge mechanism by the recording head 34. As an example, a method of ejecting ink droplets by deformation of an actuator constituted by a piezo element (piezoelectric element) or the like may be applied. Alternatively, a method may be applied in which bubbles are generated by heating ink through a heating element such as a heater, and droplets are ejected with the pressure.

  The inspection means 20 includes a printing unit inspection unit 38 and a quality determination unit 40 provided adjacent to the printing unit inspection unit 38. The printing unit inspection unit 38 is means for detecting identification information printed on the surface of the printed tablet T. The quality determination unit 40 is a means for determining the quality of printing of the tablet T. As a result, when the predetermined pattern is not correctly printed on the tablet T, it is collected as a defective product by a different route from other good product groups.

[Configuration of Printing Unit 32]
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the printing unit 32 shown in FIG. Here, prior to the description of the printing unit 32, the configuration of the fixing support means 50 drawn on the left side of the figure will be described.

  The fixed support means 50 fixedly supports the printing unit 32 under the positional relationship in which the nozzles 77 of the recording head 34 face the transport means 16 (FIG. 1). The fixed support means 50 includes a rectangular flat base portion 52, protruding portions 54 that protrude in the Y direction at the edge portion of the base portion 52 on the arrow Z1 side, and both side surfaces of the protruding portion 54 (in the arrow Y direction). ) Two mounting bars 56, 56 (rod-shaped portion) fixed to the two sides, two latches 58, 58 (first locking portion) fixed to both corners on the arrow Z 2 side of the base portion 52, and two The positioning pins 60 (first locking portions) provided between the latches 58 and 58 are configured.

  Each mounting bar 56 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and an annular groove 62 is formed in the center thereof. The two attachment bars 56, 56 are arranged on one axis along the arrow Y direction. Each latch 58 can be engaged with a lock shaft 90 to be described later, and is provided with a release lever 64 for releasing the engaged state (lock).

  The positioning pin 60 protruding to the arrow X1 side can be engaged with a pin hole 91 described later. Two buffer members 65, 65 made of an elastic body such as rubber or a foamable plastic are disposed on both sides of the positioning pin 60 in the Y direction.

  Next, the configuration of the printing unit 32 will be described. The printing unit 32 mainly includes a head unit 66 including a recording head 34 and a drive circuit board 36, and an ink tank 68 for storing ink.

  The head unit 66 has a housing 70 that houses the recording head 34 and the drive circuit board 36. The casing 70 includes a first casing 72 that accommodates the recording head 34, a second casing 74 that accommodates the drive circuit board 36, a top surface (the arrow Z1 side) of the first casing 72, and a bottom surface ( And a connecting portion 76 for connecting the arrow Z2 side).

  The first casing 72 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The first casing 72 has a large opening on the arrow Z2 side. The recording head 34 is fixed to the first casing 72, and a tip portion 78 including a plurality of nozzles 77 is exposed to the outside. A supply port 80 for supplying ink to the recording head 34 is provided on the side surface of the first casing 72 on the arrow Y2 side.

  The second casing 74 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. A power connector 82 for supplying power to the drive circuit board 36 is provided on the side surface of the second casing 74 on the arrow Y2 side.

  A hollow connecting portion 76 having a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape allows the inside of the first casing 72 to communicate with the inside of the second casing 74. The drive circuit board 36 and the recording head 34 are electrically connected by inserting an electric cable (not shown) into the connecting portion 76.

  Incidentally, an attachment / detachment mechanism 84 for making the attachment / detachment with respect to the fixed support means 50 is provided on the back side (the arrow X2 side) of the housing 70. The attachment / detachment mechanism 84 includes a substantially flat base 86 fixed to the housing 70, two hook plates 88 and 88 (hook parts) fixed to the arrow Z1 side on both sides of the base 86, and a base. Two lock shafts 90 and 90 (second locking portions) provided on both side edges (in the arrow Y direction) of the base 86 and a pin hole 91 (first pin) provided between the two lock shafts 90 and 90, respectively. 2 locking portions).

  Each hook plate 88 has a flat plate shape and has a right triangle shape with rounded corners in plan view. Each hooking plate 88 is formed with one substantially circular notch (hereinafter referred to as a bowl-shaped portion 92) at the corner on the arrow X2 side. The mounting bars 56, 56 and the hooking plates 88, 88 are arranged under a positional relationship that allows simultaneous engagement at two locations between the recessed groove 62 and the hook-shaped portion 92.

  Each lock shaft 90 has a cylindrical shape and extends in the arrow Y direction. The pin hole 91 is formed in a columnar shape and extends in the arrow X direction. The latches 58, 58 and the lock shafts 90, 90, the positioning pins 60, and the pin holes 91 are arranged in a positional relationship that allows simultaneous engagement at three locations.

  In addition, on the main surface of the base 86 on the arrow X1 side, around the both side surfaces (in the arrow Y direction) of the first casing 72, two gripping portions 94, 94 are fixed. A generally rectangular flat plate-shaped receiving seat 96 is disposed immediately above each gripping portion 94. Due to the presence of the second casing 74, the connecting portion 76, and the receiving seat 96, a space portion 100 having a size capable of inserting the ink tank 68 from the front side (arrow X <b> 1 side) of the head unit 66 is formed.

  The ink tank 68 mainly includes an ink storage portion 104 that opens on the opposite side of the bottom surface 102 that has a substantially rectangular shape, and a lid portion 106 that can be fitted to the opening side of the ink storage portion 104.

  A discharge port 108 for discharging ink to the outside is provided on the bottom surface 102 of the ink storage unit 104. By attaching one end side of the tube 110 to the discharge port 108 and the other end side of the tube 110 to the supply port 80, the ink stored in the ink tank 68 can be supplied to the recording head 34. Two receiving metal fittings 112 and 112 are fixed to the side surface of the ink containing portion 104 on the arrow X1 side.

  A bulging portion 116 that bulges outward is formed at one corner of the lid surface 114 of the lid portion 106. The bulging portion 116 is provided with an air discharge port 118 through which air remaining in the ink containing portion 104 is extracted and a screwing hole 121 into which the ultrasonic sensor 120 can be screwed. The ultrasonic sensor 120 is a sensor for detecting the remaining amount of ink in the ink storage unit 104.

  A replenishment port 122 for replenishing ink is further provided on the lid surface 114 and around the bulging portion 116. In addition, two stoppers 124 and 124 are fixed to the side surface of the lid portion 106 on the arrow X1 side in a positional relationship corresponding to the two stoppers 112 and 112.

[Removal operation of printing unit 32]
2 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing a first attachment state of the printing unit 32, and FIG. 4 is a schematic side view showing a second attachment state of the printing unit 32.

<1. Removal action>
As shown in FIG. 3, when the user holds the grip portions 94, 94 with both hands and tilts each release lever 64 in a predetermined direction using a finger, the lock by each latch 58 is released. Then, when the user pulls the portion on the arrow Z2 side of the printing unit 32 toward the front side, the positioning pin 60 is separated from the pin hole 91 and the latch 58 is separated from the lock shaft 90. Here, since the engagement state between the mounting bar 56 and the hooking plate 88 is maintained, the rotation operation along the direction of the arrow θ about the one axis formed by the mounting bars 56 and 56 is performed. pay attention to.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when the user pulls the printing unit 32 along the arrow P1 side, the two engagement states between the attachment bar 56 and the hooking plate 88 are simultaneously released. As a result, the printing unit 32 is removed from the fixed support means 50.

<2. Cleaning / Replenishment>
Next, the user mounts the removed printing unit 32 on a transport device (not shown), and then transports the print unit 32 toward the head cleaning device (not shown) by operating the transport device. Then, the user sets the printing unit 32 mounted on the transport device at a predetermined position of the head cleaning device. Thereby, the cleaning operation of the recording head 34 is performed.

  Further, the user can efficiently perform the cleaning work by removing the ink tank 68 from the printing unit 32 and disassembling it. Returning to FIG. 2, specifically, the fixing state between the head unit 66 and the ink tank 68 is released by loosening a fixing screw (not shown). Thereafter, the ink tank 68 is removed from the housing 70 by sliding the ink tank 68 to the arrow X1 side.

  Thereafter, the user removes the ultrasonic sensor 120 from the lid 106, removes the tube 110 from the ink container 104, opens the fasteners 124, 124, and removes the lid 106 from the ink container 104. As a result, the inner walls of the ink containing portion 104 and the lid portion 106 can be easily accessed, and the ink tank 68 can be easily cleaned. Further, the ink tank 68 can be assembled according to a procedure reverse to the above-described procedure.

  In the example of FIG. 2, the printing unit 32 further includes a housing 70 that houses at least the recording head 34, and the ink tank 68 is detachable from the housing 70. Thus, after the ink tank 68 is separated from the recording head 34, the ink tank 68 can be individually cleaned or refilled with ink.

  Note that the above-described transport device or head cleaning device (both not shown) is provided with a mechanism similar to the fixing support means 50 in FIG. 2, so that the printing unit 32 is used while using the attachment / detachment mechanism 84 (FIG. 2) as it is. Can be handled. Thereby, the compatibility and convenience of handling in the printing unit 32 are improved.

<3. Installation operation>
Next, the user holds the grips 94 and 94 of the printing unit 32 with both hands, and the printing unit 32 is in a state where the height direction of the printing unit 32 is inclined with respect to the main surface (the arrow Z direction) of the base unit 52. 32 is pressed along the arrow P2 side. That is, the catch plates 88 and 88 of the printing unit 32 are hooked and engaged with the mounting bars 56 and 56 of the fixed support means 50.

  Then, when the user pushes the part on the arrow Z2 side of the printing unit 32 to the back side, the positioning pin 60 is guided to the position of the pin hole 91 and the latch 58 is guided to the position of the lock shaft 90. Here, since the engagement state between the mounting bar 56 and the hooking plate 88 is maintained, the rotation operation along the direction of the arrow θ about the one axis formed by the mounting bars 56 and 56 is performed. pay attention to.

  Then, by pressing the printing unit 32, the positioning pin 60 is engaged with the pin hole 91, the lock shaft 90 is engaged with the latch 58, and the lock by each latch 58 is activated. As a result, the printing unit 32 is attached to the fixed support means 50.

  In the example of FIGS. 3 and 4, the latch 58 and the positioning pin 60 are disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head 34 or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit 32 is fixedly supported. The closer to the position of the latch 58 and the positioning pin 60 (that is, the engagement position), the more stable and support is possible, and the printing accuracy by the recording head 34 can be maintained.

  Further, the fixing support means 50 further includes a buffer member 65 disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head 34 or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit 32 is fixedly supported. In particular, when the lock shaft 90 is engaged with the latch 58, an impact may be transmitted to the printing unit 32 side. Thus, by providing the buffer member 65 at a position corresponding to the recording head 34, the impact transmitted to the recording head 34 can be reduced. This protects the recording head 34, which is a precision component.

<4. Outside setup>
Further, by providing the ink tank 68 and the recording head 34 integrally, an off-line preparatory work (so-called external setup) can be executed. Specifically, the user can quickly resume the printing process of the tablet T by preparing a preliminary printing unit 32 in advance and immediately replacing the printing unit 32 with a cleaning operation or the like. It becomes. On the other hand, the collected printing unit 32 is put on standby as a new spare after performing a cleaning operation or the like according to the above-described procedure. In this way, by preparing the plurality of printing units 32 and performing the external setup, the time for stopping the printing process (production) of the tablet T is greatly shortened.

[Effects of tablet printing apparatus 10]
As described above, the tablet printing apparatus 10 includes the recording head 34 that ejects ink droplets from the nozzles 77 and performs printing on the tablet T using the recording head 34. The tablet printing apparatus 10 includes a transport unit 16 that transports the tablets T, an ink tank 68 that stores ink, and a printing unit 32 that is integrally provided with a recording head 34 that ejects droplets of supplied ink. , A fixing support means 50 for fixing and supporting the printing unit 32 under the positional relationship where the nozzle 77 faces the transport means 16, and the printing unit 32 is configured to be detachable from the fixing support means 50.

  With this configuration, the ink tank 68 and the recording head 34 can be handled without being separated, and ink does not adhere to the transporting unit 16 during attachment or removal. Thereby, it is possible to improve handling when performing the cleaning operation of the recording head 34 or the replenishment operation to the ink tank 68. Moreover, since the printing process of the tablet T can be restarted quickly by exchanging with the spare printing unit 32, the production efficiency can be remarkably improved regardless of the occurrence of these operations. Further, since the distance (supply path) between the recording head 34 and the ink tank 68 is shortened, there is an advantage that the space for the tube 110 can be saved. Furthermore, since the ink used for printing the tablet T is expensive, it also leads to a reduction in production cost by reducing the amount of waste liquid.

  The fixing support means 50 includes a base portion 52, a mounting bar 56 (bar-shaped portion) fixed to the base portion 52 and extending on one axis, and a first locking portion (latch 58) provided on the base portion 52. , 58 or positioning pins 60). The printing unit 32 includes a hook plate 88 (hook part) having a hook-like part 92 that can be hooked on the mounting bar 56, and a second locking part (lock shaft 90) that can be engaged with or released from the latch 58. , 90 or a pin hole 91). Then, the second locking portion can be engaged with the first locking portion by rotating the printing unit 32 around one axis while the hooking plate 88 is hooked on the mounting bar 56, or the engagement thereof. It may be possible to cancel the combination. The first locking portion can be positioned simply by hooking the hooking plate 88 on the mounting bar 56, and the attaching / detaching operation of the printing unit 32 becomes extremely easy.

[Supplement]
In addition, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, Of course, it can change freely in the range which does not deviate from the main point of this invention.

  For example, in this embodiment, two mounting bars 56 and two hooking plates 88 are provided, but the number of rod-shaped parts and hooking parts is not limited to this. Specifically, the number may be one or three or more. Similarly, the total number of the first locking portions and the second locking portions is not limited to three, but may be one, two, or four or more.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, although the form of the attachment / detachment mechanism 84 is shown by FIG. 2, it is not restricted to this. That is, it is needless to say that any form can be adopted as long as the printing unit 32 is detachable from the fixed support means 50. When the printing unit 18 includes a plurality of printing units 32, it is only necessary to provide as many attachment / detachment mechanisms as the number of the printing units 32.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, although the tablet printing apparatus 10 for monochromatic printing which prints with one color ink is illustrated, it is not restricted to this. Specifically, the present invention can also be applied to a tablet printing apparatus for multicolor printing that can print with two or more colors of ink.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Tablet printer 16 ... Conveyance means 32 ... Printing unit 34 ... Recording head 50 ... Fixed support means 52 ... Base part 56 ... Mounting bar (bar-shaped part) 58 ... Latch (1st latching part)
60. Positioning pin (first locking portion) 65 Buffer member 66 Head unit 68 Ink tank 70 Case 72 First casing 74 Second casing 76 Connecting portion 77 Nozzle 84 Detachment mechanism 88 Hook plate (hook part) 90 ... Lock shaft (second locking part)
91 ... Pin hole (second locking part) 96 ... Receiving seat 104 ... Ink storage part 106 ... Lid part

Claims (5)

A tablet printing apparatus comprising a recording head for discharging ink droplets from a nozzle, and printing on a tablet using the recording head,
Conveying means for conveying the tablets;
A printing unit integrally provided with an ink tank for storing the ink, and the recording head for discharging the droplets of the ink supplied from the ink tank;
A fixing support means for fixing and supporting the printing unit under a positional relationship in which the nozzle faces the conveying means;
The tablet printing apparatus, wherein the printing unit is configured to be detachable from the fixed support means. The fixing support means includes
A base portion, a rod-like portion fixed to the base portion and extending on one axis, and a first locking portion provided on the base portion,
The printing unit includes:
A hook portion having a hook-like portion that can be hooked on the rod-like portion, and a second locking portion that can be engaged with the first locking portion or can be released from the engagement with the first locking portion. Further equipped with a detachable mechanism,
The second locking part can be engaged with the first locking part by rotating the printing unit around the one axis while the hooking part is hooked on the rod-shaped part, or The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein engagement with the first locking portion can be released.   The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first locking portion is disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit is fixedly supported.   The tablet according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the fixing support means further includes a buffer member disposed at a position corresponding to the recording head or a peripheral position in a state where the printing unit is fixedly supported. Printing device. The printing unit further includes a housing that houses at least the recording head,
The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank is detachable from the housing.

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