JP2023016932A - Supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a supply device which makes a front wall of a tank less likely to be smudged with a liquid flowing out from a supply port of the tank to the outside.

SOLUTION: A multifunction machine 10 includes: ink tanks 100 each having an ink chamber 111, a supply port 112, and a projection part 157; and a holding member 120 which covers a front wall 101 of each ink tank 100. The holding member 120 has: openings 81 each of which exposes a part of the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100; and spaces 194 each of which is provided along an upper side peripheral edge part, forming the upper side of a peripheral edge part of the opening 81, on an inner surface 71 of the front wall 71. The supply port 112 is disposed above the opening 81 of the holding part 120.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

COPYRIGHT: (C)2023,JPO&INPIT

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a supply device provided with a tank capable of replenishing liquid through a supply port.

2. Description of the Related Art A printer is known that has a plurality of tanks that can be replenished with ink, and a recording head that ejects the ink supplied from the tanks from nozzles to record an image on paper (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-100003). When the ink in the tank is consumed, the user can replenish the tank with ink stored in the bottle through a supply port provided in the tank. The front wall of the tank is visible to the user, for example by opening the cover. Alternatively, the user can visually recognize the front wall of the tank from the outside of the printer through the opening of the cover. Since the front wall of the tank is made of a translucent member, the user can see the ink level in the tank through the front wall of the tank.

JP 2016-22725 A

When the user refills the tank with ink, ink can flow out onto the outer surface of the tank. Ink adhering to or flowing from the outer surface of the tank may adhere to the user's hands or the like. Further, when the ink adheres to the outer surface of the front wall of the tank, it becomes difficult to visually recognize the liquid surface of the ink in the tank.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a supply device in which the front wall of the tank is less likely to be stained by the liquid flowing out from the supply port of the tank.

(1) A supply device according to the present invention includes a liquid storage chamber disposed between a front wall and a rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid storage chamber for discharging liquid from the liquid storage chamber. and a cover covering a portion including the front wall of the tank. The cover is provided along an opening that exposes a part of the front wall of the tank, and along an upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side of the opening peripheral edge portion, on an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank at the opening peripheral edge portion. and a first liquid flow path. The supply port is arranged above the opening of the cover.

Liquid entering between the front wall of the tank and the cover flows along the first liquid flow path at the upper peripheral edge. This makes it difficult for the liquid to flow into the front wall of the tank exposed by the opening of the cover.

(2) Preferably, the cover further has a second liquid flow path provided on the inner surface of the opening peripheral edge portion along left and right side peripheral edge portions on the right and left sides of the opening peripheral edge portion.

The liquid that has flowed along the first liquid flow path flows along the second liquid flow path, making it even more difficult for the liquid to flow into the front wall of the tank exposed through the opening of the cover.

(3) Preferably, the first liquid flow path is composed of an inner surface of the opening peripheral edge portion and a first protrusion projecting from the inner surface toward the tank and abutting against a front wall of the tank. there is

(4) Preferably, the cover is provided below the peripheral edge of the opening, and further has a second protrusion that protrudes toward the tank and contacts the front wall of the tank.

By abutting the first protrusion and the second protrusion on the front wall of the tank, the front wall of the tank and the inner surface of the cover can be made parallel.

(5) Preferably, the cover further has a third liquid channel provided along the upper peripheral edge on the outer surface opposite to the inner surface of the opening peripheral edge.

The liquid flowing out to the outer surface of the front wall of the cover flows along the third liquid channel at the upper peripheral edge. This makes it difficult for the liquid to flow into the front wall of the tank exposed by the opening of the cover.

(6) Preferably, the cover further has a fourth liquid flow path provided on the outer surface of the opening peripheral edge along right and left side peripheral edge portions on the right and left sides of the opening peripheral edge portion.

The liquid that has flowed along the third liquid flow path flows along the fourth liquid flow path, making it even more difficult for the liquid to flow into the front wall of the tank exposed through the opening of the cover.

(7) Preferably, the tank further includes a side wall connecting the front wall and the rear wall, and the cover includes a cover side wall covering at least a part of the side wall of the tank and a cover side wall of the cover side wall. and a fifth liquid channel provided on the outer surface and sloping rearwardly and downwardly.

The liquid flowing out to the outer surface of the side wall of the cover flows rearward and downward along the fifth liquid channel. This makes it difficult for the liquid to flow into the front wall of the tank exposed by the opening of the cover.

(8) Preferably, the front wall of the tank exposed through the opening of the cover is provided with a first tank at a position corresponding to the liquid level when the liquid stored in the liquid storage chamber is the first amount. 1 mark and a second mark provided at a position corresponding to the liquid level when the liquid stored in the liquid storage chamber is a second amount smaller than the first amount.

According to the above configuration, it is easy to grasp the timing of replenishing the liquid in the tank and the upper limit amount of liquid that can be stored in the tank.

(9) Preferably, the tank further has a forward and upward inclined wall continuous with the front wall, and the supply port is formed in the inclined wall.

According to the above configuration, the opening of the bottle in which the replenishment liquid is stored can be easily matched with the supply opening.

(10) Preferably, the cover covers the inclined wall and further has an opening exposing the supply port.

According to the above configuration, it is difficult for the liquid that has flowed out from the supply port to flow to the outer surface of the cover.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the liquid supply apparatus which the front wall of a tank is hard to be stained with the liquid which flowed out from the supply port of a tank to the exterior is implement|achieved.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the multifunction device 10, in which (A) shows a state in which the cover 70 is in the closed position, and (B) shows a state in which the cover 70 is in the open position. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the internal structure of the printer section 11. As shown in FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the carriage 23 and the tank set 99. FIG. 4A is a front perspective view of the ink tank 100, and FIG. 4B is a rear perspective view of the ink tank 100. FIG. 5A is a front perspective view of the ink tank 100B, and FIG. 5B is a rear perspective view of the ink tank 100B. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the tank set 99. FIG. 7A is an upper perspective view of the holding member 120, and FIG. 7B is a lower perspective view of the holding member 120. FIG. FIG. 8 is a partial longitudinal sectional view of the housing 14 and the holding member 120. As shown in FIG. 9A is a front perspective view of the connecting member 200, and FIG. 9B is a rear perspective view of the connecting member 200. FIG. FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M held by the holding member 120 assembled to the connecting member 200. As shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the holding member 120 provided with the protrusion 81D. FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view of the holding member 120 provided with the protrusion 81E.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. It should be noted that the embodiment described below is merely an example of the present invention, and it goes without saying that the embodiment of the present invention can be changed as appropriate without changing the gist of the present invention. Further, in the following description, progress from the starting point to the end point of the arrow is expressed as direction, and movement on the line connecting the starting point and the end point of the arrow is expressed as direction. In other words, orientation is a component of direction. Furthermore, the posture in which the multifunction device 10 and the ink tank 100 installed in the multifunction device 10 are installed on a horizontal plane in a usable state (the posture shown in FIG. 1 and may be referred to as the “usage posture”) is used as a reference. A vertical direction 7 is defined, a front-rear direction 8 (an example of a second direction) is defined with the surface on which the opening 13 of the MFP 10 is provided as the front surface, and a left-right direction 9 (first direction) is defined when the MFP 10 is viewed from the front. direction) is defined. In this embodiment, in the usage posture, the up-down direction 7 corresponds to the vertical direction, and the front-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9 correspond to the horizontal direction.

[Overall Configuration of MFP 10]
As shown in FIG. 1, a multi-function device 10 (an example of a feeding device) has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape. The multi-function device 10 has a printer section 11 at its lower portion for recording an image on a sheet of paper 12 (see FIG. 2) using an inkjet recording method. The printer section 11 has a housing 14 with an opening 13 formed in a front wall 14A. As shown in FIG. 2, the inside of the housing 14 includes a feeding section 15, a feeding tray 20, a discharge tray 21, a conveying roller section 54, a recording section 24, a discharge roller section 55, A platen 42, a tank set 99, a holding member 120 (see FIG. 6), and a connecting member 200 (see FIG. 6) are arranged. The MFP 10 has various functions such as a facsimile function and a print function.

[Feed tray 20, discharge tray 21]
As shown in FIG. 1 , the feed tray 20 is inserted into and removed from the multifunction device 10 by the user along the front-rear direction 8 through the opening 13 . The opening 13 is located on the front surface of the multi-function device 10 and at the center in the left-right direction 9 . As shown in FIG. 2, the feed tray 20 can support a plurality of stacked sheets of paper 12 . The discharge tray 21 is arranged above the feed tray 20 and can extend and contract independently of the feed tray 20 regardless of whether the feed tray 20 is inserted or removed. The ejection tray 21 supports the paper 12 ejected from between the recording section 24 and the platen 42 by the ejection roller section 55 .

[Feeding unit 15]
The feeding unit 15 feeds the paper 12 supported by the feeding tray 20 to the transport path 65 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the feeding section 15 includes a feeding roller 25 , a feeding arm 26 and a shaft 27 . The feeding roller 25 is rotatably supported at the tip of the feeding arm 26 . The feeding roller 25 rotates in the direction of conveying the paper 12 in the conveying direction 16 by the reverse rotation of a conveying motor (not shown). Hereinafter, the rotation of the feed roller 25, the transport roller 60, and the discharge roller 62 in the direction of transporting the paper 12 in the transport direction 16 is referred to as "forward rotation". The feeding arm 26 is rotatably supported by a shaft 27 supported by the frame of the printer section 11 . The feed arm 26 is urged to rotate toward the feed tray 20 by its own weight or elastic force of a spring or the like.

[Conveyance path 65]
As shown in FIG. 2, the conveying path 65 refers to a space partially formed inside the printer section 11 by the outer guide member 18 and the inner guide member 19 facing each other at a predetermined interval. The transport path 65 is a path extending rearward from the rear end of the feed tray 20 . The transport path 65 is a path that extends upward at the rear of the printer section 11 , makes a U-turn forward, passes through the space between the recording section 24 and the platen 42 , and reaches the discharge tray 21 . As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transport path 65 between the transport roller portion 54 and the discharge roller portion 55 is provided approximately in the center of the multifunction machine 10 in the left-right direction 9 and extends in the front-rear direction 8. extended. The conveying direction 16 of the paper 12 in the conveying path 65 is indicated by a dashed-dotted arrow in FIG.

[Conveyance roller unit 54]
As shown in FIG. 2 , the conveying roller section 54 is arranged upstream in the conveying direction 16 from the recording section 24 . The transport roller section 54 has a transport roller 60 and a pinch roller 61 facing each other. The transport roller 60 is driven by a transport motor. The pinch roller 61 rotates together with the rotation of the conveying roller 60 . The paper 12 is conveyed in the conveying direction 16 while being nipped between the conveying roller 60 and the pinch roller 61 which are rotated forward by the forward rotation of the conveying motor.

[Discharge roller unit 55]
As shown in FIG. 2 , the discharge roller section 55 is arranged downstream of the recording section 24 in the transport direction 16 . The discharge roller portion 55 has a discharge roller 62 and a spur 63 facing each other. The discharge roller 62 is driven by a conveying motor. The spur 63 rotates with the rotation of the discharge roller 62 . The paper 12 is conveyed in the conveying direction 16 while being nipped between the discharge roller 62 and the spur 63 which are rotated forward by the forward rotation of the conveying motor.

[Recording unit 24]
As shown in FIG. 2 , the recording unit 24 is arranged between the transport roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 in the transport direction 16 . The recording unit 24 is arranged to face the platen 42 in the vertical direction 7 with the transport path 65 interposed therebetween. The recording unit 24 has a carriage 23 and a recording head 39 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the carriage 23 is supported by guide rails 43 and 44 extending in the left-right direction 9 at positions spaced apart in the front-rear direction 8 . The guide rails 43 and 44 are supported by the frame of the printer section 11 . Carriage 23 is connected to a known belt mechanism provided on guide rails 44 . The belt mechanism is driven by a carriage motor (not shown). A carriage 23 connected to a belt mechanism reciprocates along the left-right direction 9 by being driven by a carriage motor. The movement range of the carriage 23 extends to the right and left of the conveying path 65, as indicated by the dashed line in FIG.

An ink tube 32 and a flexible flat cable 33 extend from the carriage 23 .

The ink tube 32 connects the tank set 99 and the recording head 39 .
The ink tube 32 stores ink (liquid ink) stored in four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M (these may be collectively referred to as "ink tanks 100") that constitute the tank set 99. example) is supplied to the recording head 39 . The ink tank 100 is an example of a tank. More specifically, four ink tubes 32B, 32Y, 32C, and 32M through which inks of respective colors (black, magenta, cyan, and yellow) circulate (these are sometimes collectively referred to as "ink tubes 32"). ) extend from the ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M, respectively, and are connected to the carriage 23 in a bundled state.

A flexible flat cable 33 electrically connects a control board on which a control unit (not shown) is mounted and the recording head 39 . A flexible flat cable 33 transmits a control signal output from the control unit to the recording head 39 .

As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage 23 has a recording head 39 mounted thereon. A plurality of nozzles 40 are arranged on the lower surface of the recording head 39 . Tips of the plurality of nozzles 40 are exposed from the bottom surface of the recording head 39 . The recording head 39 ejects ink from nozzles 40 as minute ink droplets. While the carriage 23 is moving, the recording head 39 ejects ink droplets onto the paper 12 supported by the platen 42 . An image is thus recorded on the paper 12 . Also, this consumes the ink stored in the ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M.

[Platen 42]
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , the platen 42 is arranged between the transport roller portion 54 and the discharge roller portion 55 in the transport direction 16 . The platen 42 is arranged to face the recording section 24 in the vertical direction 7 with the transport path 65 interposed therebetween. The platen 42 supports the paper 12 conveyed by the conveying roller section 54 from below.

[Cover 70]
As shown in FIG. 1, an opening 22 is formed in the right portion of the front wall 14A of the housing 14. As shown in FIG.
A cover 70 is attached to the housing 14 so as to cover the opening 22 . The cover 70 is rotatable between a closed position (the position shown in FIG. 1A) that closes the opening 22 and an open position that opens the opening 22 (the position shown in FIG. 1B). be.

A pair of protrusions (not shown) are formed near the lower end of the opening 22 in the housing 14 .
The pair of protrusions face each other in the left-right direction 9 . Of the pair of protrusions, the right protrusion protrudes leftward toward the left protrusion. Of the pair of protrusions, the left protrusion protrudes rightward toward the right protrusion. By inserting the pair of projections of the housing 14 into the holes formed in the cover 70, the cover 70 is rotatable around the rotation axis 70A extending in the left-right direction 9 in the vicinity of the lower end of the housing 14. , supported by the housing 14 .

An opening 97 is formed in the cover 70 . When the cover 70 is in the closed position, parts of the ink tank 100 and the holding member 120 are visible from the outside through the opening 97 .

[Tank set 99]
The tank set 99 stores ink to be supplied to the recording head 39 . As shown in FIG. 6, the tank set 99 includes four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M, a holding member 120, and a connecting member 200. As shown in FIG.

Each ink tank 100 stores ink of a different color. Specifically, black ink is stored in the ink tank 100B, yellow ink is stored in the ink tank 100Y, cyan ink is stored in the ink tank 100C, and magenta ink is stored in the ink tank 100M. However, the number of ink tanks 100 and the color of ink are not limited to the above examples. The configuration of each ink tank 100 will be described later.

The holding member 120 and the connecting member 200 hold the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M in a row along the horizontal direction 9 . The configurations of the holding member 120 and the connecting member 200 will be described later.

The four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M are arranged in a row along the horizontal direction 9. As shown in FIG. Among the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M, the ink tank 100B is arranged on the rightmost side, and the ink tank 100M is arranged on the leftmost side. Note that the arrangement position of the ink tank 100 is not limited to the above. The ink tank 100B is larger in size, particularly in width in the horizontal direction 9, than the other ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M. Note that the size relationship of the ink tank 100 is not limited to the above. The ink tank 100B has a larger allowable storage amount of ink than the other ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M. Note that the magnitude relationship of the allowable storage amount of the ink tank 100 is not limited to the above.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tank set 99 sits inside the housing 14 at the right front portion of the housing 14 . In other words, the tank set 99 is fixed to the multifunction device 10 so that it cannot be easily removed from the multifunction device 10 . It should be noted that "cannot be easily removed" means, for example, that the user cannot easily remove the tank set 99 from the housing 14 of the multifunction device 10 in normal use. This is intended to exclude the case where a repairer removes the tank set 99 from the housing 14 of the multifunction machine 10 for repair. Therefore, it is sufficient if the user cannot easily remove the tank set 99 from the housing 14 of the multifunction device 10 in normal use.

[Ink tank 100]
The configuration of the ink tank 100 will be described in detail below. Since the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M have the same configuration, one of the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M will be referred to as the ink tank 100 and its configuration will be described below. Since the configuration of the ink tank 100B is similar to the configuration of the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M, after the description of the configuration of the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M, the parts different from the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M will be described. The configuration of is described. In this case, even if the configurations of the ink tank 100B and the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M are slightly different, the same symbols are assigned to the configurations having the same functions. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the MFP 10 and the ink tank 100 placed in the MFP 10 are assumed to be used.

As shown in FIG. 4, the ink tank 100 is composed of a housing 140 that forms the outer shape of the ink tank. The housing 140 has a tank body 141 and two films 142 and 143 .

As a whole, the tank body 141 has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape in which the dimension along the left-right direction 9 is short and the dimension along the up-down direction 7 and the front-rear direction 8 is longer than the dimension along the left-right direction 9 . Also, the dimension in the front-rear direction 8 is longer than the dimension in the vertical direction 7 .

The tank main body 141 is made of a translucent resin that allows the ink in the ink chamber 111 to be visible from the outside of the ink tank 100 . The tank main body 141 is made of polypropylene, for example. The tank main body 141 is integrally molded, for example, by injection molding a resin material. The rigidity of the tank body 141 is higher than the rigidity of the films 142 and 143 .

Note that the tank body 141 may be made of a material other than resin. Further, the tank main body 141 may have a structure in which a plurality of members are combined.

The tank body 141 has a front wall 101 , a left wall 103 , an upper wall 104 , a lower wall 105 , a rear wall 110 and an inner wall 107 .

The front wall 101 is composed of an upright wall 102 and an inclined wall 106 . The vertical wall 102 extends in the vertical direction 7 and the horizontal direction 9 . The inclined wall 106 is a wall that connects the upper end of the standing wall 102 and the front end of the upper wall 104 . The inclined wall 106 is inclined with respect to the vertical direction 7 and the front-rear direction 8 .

The front surface 102A of the standing wall 102 and the front surface 106A of the inclined wall 106 of each ink tank 100, that is, the front surface of the tank main body 141 of each ink tank 100, are connected to each other through the opening 97 of the cover 70 and the opening 22 of the housing 14. 10 is exposed to the outside. That is, the front surface of the tank main body 141 of each ink tank 100 faces the outside of the housing 14 . That is, each ink tank 100 is arranged inside the housing 14 so that the front surface of the tank main body 141 of each ink tank 100 can be accessed from the outside of the housing 14 through the opening 22 and the opening 97 . With such a configuration, the front surface of the tank main body 141 of each ink tank 100 can be viewed from the front of the multifunction machine 10, and the user can check the remaining amount of ink stored in each ink tank 100. be.

The left wall 103 is a wall extending rearward from the left end of the front wall 101 . The upper end of left wall 103 is connected to the front portion of upper wall 104 . A lower end of the left wall 103 is connected to a front portion of the lower wall 105 . In other words, the left wall 103 is a wall that connects the left end of the front wall 101 , the front left end of the upper wall 104 , and the front left end of the lower wall 105 . That is, the left wall 103 is provided only on the front portion of the tank body 141 and is not provided on the rear portion of the tank body 141 .

The upper wall 104 extends rearward from the upper end of the front wall 101 (the rear end of the inclined wall 106). A front portion of the upper wall 104 is connected to the upper end of the left wall 103 .

The lower wall 105 is a wall extending rearward from the lower end of the front wall 101 . The lower wall 105 is spaced downward from the upper wall 104 . As mentioned above, the front portion of bottom wall 105 is connected to the bottom edge of left wall 103 .

A plurality of inner walls 107 are arranged in a space surrounded by the front wall 101 , left wall 103 , upper wall 104 , lower wall 105 and rear wall 110 .

As shown in FIG. 4A, the right surface of the tank body 141 is open. A film 142 is welded to the right surfaces of the front wall 101 , lower wall 105 , rear wall 110 , upper wall 104 and inner wall 107 to seal the right surface of the tank body 141 .

As shown in FIG. 4B, the rear portion of the left side of the tank body 141 is open. A film 143 is welded to the left surfaces of the lower wall 105 , the rear wall 110 , the upper wall 104 and the inner wall 107 to seal the left surface of the tank body 141 .

The front surface of the tank body 141 (the front surface 102A of the standing wall 102 and the front surface 106A of the inclined wall 106) is connected by the front end of the right surface of the tank body 141 and the front end of the left surface of the tank body 141. The rear surface of the tank main body 141 (rear surface 110A of the rear wall 110) is connected by the rear end of the right surface of the tank main body 141 and the rear end of the left surface of the tank main body 141. As shown in FIG. A rear surface 110A of the tank body 141 is separated from the front surface 102A in the front-rear direction 8 . The rear surface 110A is an example of a third surface. The right surface of the tank body 141 and the left surface of the tank body 141 face each other in the left-right direction 9 .

As shown in FIG. 4A, the front surface 102A of the standing wall 102 of the front wall 101 includes first lines 146 (an example of first marks) and second lines 147 (an example of second marks).

The first line 146 extends in the left-right direction 9 . The position of the first line 146 in the vertical direction 7 corresponds to the maximum amount of ink allowed to be stored (an example of the first amount) of ink stored in the ink chamber 111 when the MFP 10 is in the use posture. level with the liquid surface. That is, the first line 146 is provided at a position corresponding to the liquid surface when the amount of ink stored in the ink chamber 111 is at its maximum. The position of the first line 146 in the vertical direction 7 is not limited to the same height as the liquid surface of the ink when the maximum amount of ink is stored in the ink chamber 111 .

The second line 147 extends in the left-right direction 9 . The second line 147 is positioned below the first line 146 . Specifically, the position of the second line 147 in the vertical direction 7 corresponds to the liquid level of the ink when the amount of ink smaller than the maximum amount is stored in the ink chamber 111 when the MFP 10 is in the use posture. are the same height. In the present embodiment, the position of the second line 147 in the vertical direction 7 is such that the ink chamber 111 stores the minimum amount of ink (an example of the second amount) required to be refilled when the ink tank 100 is in the use posture. It is the same height as the liquid surface of the ink when the ink is applied. That is, the second line 147 is provided at a position corresponding to the liquid surface when the amount of ink stored in the ink chamber 111 is the minimum.

[Ink chamber 111]
As shown in FIG. 4, the housing 140 has an ink chamber 111 (an example of a liquid storage chamber) inside. The ink chamber 111 is an internal space of the ink tank 100 and stores ink. The ink chamber 111 is partitioned by a front wall 101 , a left wall 103 , an upper wall 104 , a lower wall 105 , a rear wall 110 , an inner wall 107 , films 142 and 143 . In other words, the ink chamber 111 is partitioned by the right surface of the tank body 141 composed of the film 142 and the left surface of the tank body 141 composed of the left wall 103 and the film 143 . The ink chamber 111 is divided into a plurality of sections by the inner wall 107 .

In this embodiment, the right surface of the ink chamber 111 is defined by the left surface of the film 142 . That is, the entire right surface of the ink chamber 111 is composed of the film 142 . The left surface of the ink chamber 111 is defined by the right surface of the film 143 and the right surface of the left wall 103 . That is, a part of the left surface of the ink chamber 111 is composed of the film 143 .

The right surface of the ink chamber 111 may be partitioned by the film 142 and a wall. In other words, part of the right surface of the ink chamber 111 may be made of the film 142 . Also, the left surface of the ink chamber 111 may be partitioned only by the film 143 . In other words, the entire left surface of the ink chamber 111 may be composed of the film 143 .

When the MFP 10 is in the use posture, in other words, when the upper wall 104 constitutes the upper portion of the ink tank 100 and the lower wall 105 constitutes the lower portion of the ink tank 100, the maximum amount ( When the first amount of ink (example) is stored, the ink surface is at the same height as the first line 146 .

When the MFP 10 is in the use posture, in other words, when the upper wall 104 constitutes the upper portion of the ink tank 100 and the lower wall 105 constitutes the lower portion of the ink tank 100, the ink chamber 111 needs to be replenished with the minimum amount of ink. When the amount of ink (an example of the second amount) is stored, the ink surface is at the same height as the second line 147 .

As shown in FIG. 4, the upper wall 104 is formed with a protrusion 108, protrusions 131 and 132, and a protrusion 136. As shown in FIG. Further, the lower wall 105 is formed with a convex portion 109 , a convex portion 133 , a convex portion 134 and a convex portion 135 .

[Ink outflow path 114]
As shown in FIG. 4B, the housing 140 has the ink outflow path 114 . The ink outflow path 114 is a communication path through which the ink stored in the ink chamber 111 flows out of the ink tank 100 .

One end of the ink outflow path 114 communicates with the ink chamber 111 through openings 149 and 150 (see FIG. 10) formed at the boundary between the lower wall 105 and the rear wall 110 . The other end of the ink outflow path 114 communicates with a projecting portion 157 (an example of a liquid supply portion) through an opening 156 formed in the rear wall 110 . Opening 156 is located above openings 149 and 150 .

The protruding portion 157 protrudes rearward, that is, outward from the ink tank 100 from a portion surrounding the opening 156 of the rear surface 110A of the rear wall 110 . Here, the rear surface 110A of the rear wall 110 faces the inside of the housing 14 when the tank set 99 is placed inside the housing 14 of the multifunction device 10 . That is, the protruding portion 157 protrudes toward the inside of the housing 14 . The protrusion 157 is hollow. The front end of the internal space of the projecting portion 157 communicates with the ink outflow path 114 through an opening 156 . The rear end of the internal space of the projecting portion 157 communicates with the outside of the ink tank 100 through an opening 158 .

As shown in FIG. 10 , a sealing member 160 is provided at the projecting end of the projecting portion 157 . The seal member 160 is an elastic disk-shaped member such as rubber. The sealing member 160 is in liquid-tight contact with the protruding end of the protrusion. A through hole is formed in the center of the seal member 160 . The ink needle 223 of the connecting member 200 is inserted into the through hole of the sealing member 160 . The ink needle 223 is directly or indirectly connected to the ink tube 32 . As a result, the ink that has entered the internal space of the projecting portion 157 through the opening 156 from the ink outflow path 114 flows out to the ink tube 32 through the ink needle 223 .

As described above, the ink stored in the ink chamber 111 communicates with the nozzles 40 of the recording head 39 via the ink outflow path 114 , the internal space of the projecting portion 157 , the ink needle 223 and the ink tube 32 .

[Atmospheric communication passage 170]
As shown in FIG. 4, the housing 140 has an air communication passage 170. As shown in FIG. The atmosphere communication path 170 is a communication path for communicating the ink chamber 111 and the outside of the ink tank 100 . In other words, the atmosphere communication path 170 is a communication path for opening the ink chamber 111 to the atmosphere.

One end of the air communication passage 170 communicates with the ink chamber 111 through openings 144 and 145 . The other end of the atmosphere communicating path 170 communicates with an atmosphere opening port 187 formed in the upper wall 104 .

A semi-permeable membrane 183 is attached between one end and the other end of the atmospheric communication passage 170 so as to block the atmospheric communication passage 170 . The semipermeable membrane 183 is a porous membrane having minute pores that block passage of ink and allow passage of gas. For example, the semipermeable membrane 183 is polytetrafluoroethylene, polychlorotrifluoroethylene, tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer, tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer, tetrafluoroethylene-ethylene copolymer. Made of fluororesin such as As a result, the ink stored in the ink chamber 111 is blocked by the semipermeable membrane 183 and cannot flow out of the ink tank 100 through the air release port 187 . On the other hand, air can freely move between the inside of the ink chamber 111 and the outside of the ink tank 100 .

As shown in FIG. 4B, a labyrinth 179 is formed between the position where the semipermeable membrane 183 is attached and the air release port 187 in the air communication path 170 . The labyrinth 179 is a communication path extending along the front-rear direction 8 while repeating U-turns in the up-down direction 7 by arranging a plurality of partition walls 186 extending in the up-down direction 7 side by side in the front-rear direction 8 .

[Supply port 112]
A supply port 112 for injecting ink into the ink chamber 111 is formed in the inclined wall 106 of the ink tank 100 . The supply port 112 penetrates the inclined wall 106 in the thickness direction and communicates the ink chamber 111 with the outside of the ink tank 100 .

The inclined wall 106 and the supply port 112 are exposed to the outside of the MFP 10 through the opening 22 by positioning the cover 70 in the open position. The attitude (injection attitude) of the ink tank 100 when ink is injected into the ink chamber 111 through the supply port 112 is the use attitude. That is, ink is injected into the ink chamber 111 through the supply port 112 when the ink tank 100 is in the use posture.

[Ink tank 100B]
The configuration of the ink tank 100B will be described below with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the ink tank 100B is longer in the horizontal direction 9 than the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M (see FIG. 4).

Ink tank 100B will be described below with respect to portions different from ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M. Parts of the ink tank 100B having the same configuration as those of the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIG. 4, and the description thereof is omitted. Also, the difference between the configuration of the predetermined portion of the ink tank 100B and the configuration of the portion corresponding to the predetermined portion of the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M is that the configuration of the predetermined portion of the ink tank 100B is located in the horizontal direction 9. In the case of only the length, the portions of the ink tank 100B corresponding to the predetermined portions are given the same reference numerals as in FIG. 4, and the description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 5, the ink tank 100B does not have the left wall 103 (see FIG. 4B) that the ink tanks 100Y, 100C, and 100M have, and has a right wall 159 (an example of the side wall). I have. The right wall 159 is a wall extending rearward from the right end of the front wall 101 . The upper end of right wall 159 is connected to the front portion of upper wall 104 . A lower end of the right wall 159 is connected to the front portion of the lower wall 105 . In other words, the right wall 159 is a wall that connects the right end of the front wall 101 , the front right end of the upper wall 104 , and the front right end of the lower wall 105 . That is, the right wall 159 is provided only in the front portion of the tank body 141 and is not provided in the rear portion of the tank body 141 .

[Holding member 120]
As shown in FIG. 6, the holding member 120 (an example of the cover) holds the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M in a row along the left-right direction 9 from the front in the front-rear direction 8. to hold.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the holding member 120 includes a front wall 71, a right wall 72, a left wall 73, an upper wall 74 and a lower wall 75. As shown in FIGS.

The front wall 71 is composed of an upright wall 76 and an inclined wall 77 . The standing wall 76 extends in the vertical direction 7 and the horizontal direction 9 . The inclined wall 77 is a wall that connects the upper end of the standing wall 76 and the front end of the upper wall 74 . The inclined wall 77 is inclined with respect to the vertical direction 7 and the front-rear direction 8 .

The right wall 72 is a wall extending rearward from the right end of the front wall 71 . The left wall 73 is a wall extending rearward from the left end of the front wall 71 . The upper wall 74 is a wall extending rearward from the upper end of the front wall 71 (specifically, the upper end of the inclined wall 77). The right end of the upper wall 74 is connected to the upper end of the right wall 72 . The left end of the upper wall 74 is connected to the upper end of the left wall 73 . The lower wall 75 is a wall extending rearward from the lower end of the front wall 71 . The right end of the bottom wall 75 is connected to the bottom end of the right wall 72 . The left end of the bottom wall 75 is connected to the bottom end of the left wall 73 .

The lower wall 75 is formed with a cylindrical protrusion 78 extending downward. The protrusions 78 are formed at the right end and the left end of the lower wall 75, respectively. As shown in FIG. 8, the projection 78 is inserted into a hole 162 formed in a bottom plate 161 of the housing 14 of the printer section 11. As shown in FIG.

A cylindrical projection 84 extending upward is formed on the upper wall 74 . The convex portion 84 is formed near the center of the upper wall 74 in the left-right direction 9 . As shown in FIG. 8, the projection 84 is inserted into a hole 164 formed in a middle plate 163 of the housing 14 of the printer section 11. As shown in FIG. In this manner, the holding member 120 is fixed to and supported by the housing 14 while holding the ink tank 100 .

An absorbent 165 is provided between the holding member 120 and the bottom plate 161 . The absorbent material 165 is made of foamed polyurethane, felt, or the like, which can absorb and retain liquid such as ink.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the front wall 71 , right wall 72 , left wall 73 , upper wall 74 and lower wall 75 form an internal space 127 of the holding member 120 . As shown in FIG. 6, four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M are inserted into the internal space 127 from behind. As a result, the front portions of the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M occupy the internal space 127. As shown in FIG.

A plurality of openings 79 are formed in the rear portion of the upper wall 74, as shown in FIG. 7B. As shown in FIG. 7(A), a plurality of openings 80 and openings 69 are formed in the rear portion of the lower wall 75 . The protrusion 108 of the ink tank 100 engages with the opening 79 . The protrusion 109 of the ink tank 100 engages with the opening 80 . The protrusions 131 and 132 of the ink tank 100 abut the surface 74A of the upper wall 74 on the inner space 127 side, and the protrusions 134 and 135 abut on the inner space 127 side surface 75A of the lower wall 75 . By these engagements, the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M are aligned in a row along the left-right direction 9 and positioned with respect to the holding member 120. As shown in FIG.

When the holding member 120 holds the ink tank 100, the front wall 71 covers the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100, the top wall 74 covers the front part of the top wall 104 of the ink tank 100, and The bottom wall 75 covers the front portion of the bottom wall 105 of the ink tank 100 .

In a state in which the holding member 120 holds the ink tanks 100, the right wall 72 covers the front portion (right wall 159) of the right surface of the ink tank 100B, which is the rightmost of the four ink tanks 100. The wall 73 covers the left front portion (left wall 103) of the leftmost ink tank 100M of the four ink tanks 100. As shown in FIG. That is, of the plurality of ink tanks 100 held by the holding member 120, the ink tanks 100B and 100M positioned at the left and right ends thereof have the right and left surfaces positioned outward in the left-right direction 9 (the right surface of the ink tank 100B). , and the left side of the ink tank 100M).

As described above, the holding member 120 covers the front portion of the ink tank 100 while holding the ink tank 100 .

As shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of openings 81 are formed in the standing wall 76 of the front wall 71 of the holding member 120 . Each opening 81 is spaced apart in the left-right direction 9 . Each opening 81 corresponds to four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M. That is, in this embodiment, four openings 81 are formed. In this embodiment, each opening 81 has a rectangular shape, but may have a shape other than a rectangular shape.

In a state where the holding member 120 holds each ink tank 100 , the standing wall 102 of the front wall 101 of each ink tank 100 can be exposed to the outside of the holding member 120 through the opening 81 . Specifically, the front surface 102A of the standing wall 102 and the first line 146 and the second line 147 formed on the front surface 102A can be exposed. In addition, when the holding member 120 holds each ink tank 100 and the cover 70 is in the closed position, the upright wall 102 of each ink tank 100 passes through the opening 81 of the holding member 120 and the opening 97 of the cover 70 to the printer. It can be exposed to the outside of the portion 11 .

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the upper peripheral edge and the lower peripheral edge of each opening 81 are provided with convex portions 81A (first convex portions) protruding toward the internal space 127 of the holding member 120. As shown in FIGS. ) and a convex portion 81B (an example of a second convex portion) are respectively formed. In a state where the holding member 120 holds each ink tank 100 , the upright wall 102 of the front wall 101 of each ink tank 100 abuts on the protrusions 81 A and 81 B on the periphery of the opening 81 . As a result, the front position of each ink tank 100 with respect to the holding member 120 is determined.

As shown in FIG. 8, a space 194 between the inner surface 71A of the front wall 71 and the convex portion 81A at the upper peripheral edge of the opening 81 defines an ink flow path (first liquid) through which ink flows along the left-right direction 9. An example of a flow path).

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the outer surface 71B of the front wall 71 of the holding member 120 extends from the upper peripheral edge, the lower peripheral edge, the right peripheral edge, and the left peripheral edge of the peripheral edge of each opening 81. A protrusion 81C protruding outward is formed. The convex portion 81C is a continuous convex line surrounding the periphery of the opening 81 . A space 195 between the outer surface 71B of the front wall 71 and the portion of the convex portion 81C extending along the left-right direction 9 is an ink channel (an example of a third liquid channel) through which ink flows along the left-right direction 9. is. A space 196 between the outer surface 71B of the front wall 71 and the portion of the convex portion 81C extending along the vertical direction 7 serves as an ink channel (an example of a fourth liquid channel) through which ink flows along the vertical direction 7. is.

As shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of openings 82 are formed in the inclined wall 77 of the front wall 71 of the holding member 120 . Each opening 82 is spaced apart in the left-right direction 9 . Each opening 82 corresponds to four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C and 100M. That is, in this embodiment, four openings 82 are formed. In this embodiment, each opening 82 has a circular shape, but may have a shape other than a circular shape.

In a state where the holding member 120 holds each ink tank 100 , the supply port 112 of each ink tank 100 can be exposed to the outside of the holding member 120 through the opening 82 . Therefore, the supply port 112 of each ink tank 100 is positioned above the opening 81 of the holding member 120 .

As shown in FIG. 7A, the front portion of the upper wall 74 of the holding member 120 is formed with a cap attachment portion 155 to which a cap 113, which will be described later, is attached.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7A, the cap attachment portion 155 is partitioned by ribs 151 and 152 extending in the left-right direction 9 and a plurality of ribs 153 extending in the front-rear direction 8. . Rib 152 is formed behind rib 151 . A plurality of gaps 154 are formed in the rib 151 . Each gap 154 is formed behind each opening 82 . The position of each gap 154 in the left-right direction 9 is the same as the position of each opening 82 in the left-right direction 9 . Each rib 153 connects the rib 151 and the rib 152 . Each rib 153 is formed outside each gap 154 in the left-right direction 9 .

Note that the configuration of the cap attachment portion 155 is not limited to the configuration including the ribs 151, 152, and 153 described above as long as the configuration allows the cap 113 to be attached thereto.

[Connecting member 200]
As shown in FIG. 6, the connecting member 200 holds the four ink tanks 100B, 100Y, 100C, and 100M in a row along the left-right direction 9 from behind in the front-rear direction 8. . The connecting member 200 has a supporting body 201 and a connecting portion 202 . As shown in FIG. 9, the connecting member 200 is configured by combining the connecting portion 202 from the rear of the supporting body 201 . In this embodiment, the supporting body 201 and the connecting part 202 are configured as separate members, but the supporting body 201 and the connecting part 202 may be integrally formed.

The support body 201 is fixed to and supported by the housing 14 . The connecting portion 202 has a connecting plate 221 , a guide tube 222 , an ink needle 223 , an ink flow path 224 and a joint 225 .

The guide tube 222 has a cylindrical shape protruding forward from the connecting plate 221 . The guide tube 222 can accommodate the projecting portion 157 of the ink tank 100 in its internal space. The guide tube 222 positions the ink needle 223 and the through hole of the seal member 160 by accommodating the projecting portion 157 when the ink needle 223 is inserted into the through hole of the seal member 160 .

An ink needle 223 coaxial with the guide cylinder 222 is arranged in the inner space of the guide cylinder 222 . The ink needle 223 is a tube projecting forward from the connecting plate 221 . By inserting the ink needle 223 into the through hole of the seal member 160 of the ink tank 100 , the front end of the ink needle 223 enters the ink outflow path 114 . As a result, the internal space of the ink needle 223 and the ink outflow path 114 communicate with each other. The rear end of the ink needle 223 is open to the rear surface of the connecting plate 221 .

An ink flow path 224 is formed on the rear surface of the connecting plate 221 . The ink channel 224 is configured as an independent channel corresponding to each ink needle 223 . An ink flow path 224 is formed by sealing the opening surface (rear surface) of the groove formed on the rear surface of the connecting plate 221 with a film (not shown). Each ink channel 224 is continuous with the opening at the rear end of each ink needle 223 . Also, each ink channel 224 is connected to each joint 225 formed on the upper portion of the connecting plate 221 . An ink tube 32 is connected to each joint 225 . The connecting portion 202 constitutes an ink flow path communicating from the ink outflow path 114 of the ink tank 100 to the ink tube 32 .

[Cap 113]
As shown in FIG. 6, the ink tank 100 includes caps 113B, 113Y, 113C, and 113M (these are sometimes collectively referred to as "cap 113"). The ink tank 100 has four caps 113B, 113Y, 113C and 113M corresponding to the four supply ports 112B, 112Y, 112C and 112M of the ink tank 100. As shown in FIG.

Each cap 113 is molded from an elastically deformable material such as rubber or elastomer. Each cap 113 has a cap portion 115 , an elastic deformation portion 116 and a mounting portion 117 . Note that the configuration of each cap 113 is not limited to the configuration described below.

The cap portion 115 has an outer shape in which a convex portion 115B protrudes from the center of a generally disc-shaped disc portion 115A.

The elastically deformable portion 116 is belt-shaped. One end of the elastic deformation portion 116 is connected to the cap portion 115 . The other end of elastic deformation portion 116 is connected to attachment portion 117 . The elastically deformable portion 116 extends substantially straight as shown in FIG. 6 when no force is applied from the outside. A convex portion 116A is formed at one end of the elastic deformation portion 116 . The convex portion 116A protrudes opposite to the cap portion 115 with the elastic deformation portion 116 interposed therebetween.

The mounting portion 117 has an outer shape in which a convex portion 117B protrudes from a substantially rectangular parallelepiped rectangular portion 117A. The boundary between the rectangular portion 117A and the convex portion 117B is constricted. The convex portion 117B has a shape corresponding to the shape of the cap attachment portion 155 (regions defined by the ribs 151, 152, and 153). That is, the convex portion 117B can be fitted with the cap attachment portion 155. As shown in FIG. In addition, the boundary between the rectangular portion 117A and the convex portion 117B enters the gap 154 when the convex portion 117B and the cap mounting portion 155 are fitted together. That is, the cap 113 is attached to the holding member 120 by fitting the convex portion 117B and the cap attaching portion 155 together.

The cap 113 attached to the holding member 120 is movable between the sealing position shown in FIG. 1B and the separated position shown in FIG. The cap 113 in the sealing position seals the supply port 112 in a liquid-tight manner. The supply port 112 is opened when the cap 113 is positioned at the separated position. As a result, ink can be injected into the ink chamber 111 through the supply port 112 .

For example, when ink is injected from the supply port 112 into the ink chamber 111 , the ink may flow from the supply port 112 to the outer surface of the inclined wall 106 of the ink tank 100 . The ink flowing on the outer surface of the inclined wall 106 flows between the standing wall 102 of the ink tank 100 and the inner surface 71A of the front wall 71 of the holding member 120 due to gravity or the like. Since the upper peripheral edge of the opening 81 of the holding member 120 is provided with the convex portion 81A, the ink that has flowed in flows in the left-right direction 9 along the space 194 at the upper peripheral edge of the opening 81 . The ink that has flowed to the left and right ends of the convex portion 81A flows downward due to gravity through portions of the inner surface 71A of the front wall 71 where the openings 81 are not provided, and flows out below the holding member 120 through the openings 69 and 80 and the like. The ink that has flowed downward from the holding member 12 is absorbed and held by the absorbing material 165 .

Also, if ink adheres to the outer surface of the standing wall 102 of the holding member 120, the ink will flow downward due to gravity or the like. Since the protrusion 81C is provided on the periphery of the opening 81, the ink flows in the lateral direction 9 and downward along the spaces 195 and 196 around the periphery of the opening 81 on the outer surface of the standing wall 102. FIG. The ink flowing down the holding member 12 is absorbed and held by the absorbing material 165 .

[Action and effect of the present embodiment]
According to this embodiment, for example, when the user injects ink into the supply port 112 of the ink tank 100, even if the ink leaks from the supply port 112, the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 and the holding member 120 do not move. , flows in the left-right direction 9 along the space 194 at the upper peripheral edge of the opening 81 . This makes it difficult for ink to flow into the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 exposed by the opening 81 of the holding member 120 . In particular, since the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 is provided with the first line 146 and the second line 147, the first line 146 and the second line 147 are not smeared with ink, and the ink in the ink tank 100 is kept clean. It is easy to grasp the timing to refill the ink and the upper limit of the ink that can be stored in the ink tank.

In addition, the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 and the front wall 71 of the holding member 120 are separated from each other by the protrusions 81A and 81B contacting the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 at the periphery of the opening 81 of the holding member 120. 71 A of inner surfaces can be made parallel.

Further, since the outer surface 71B of the opening 81 of the holding member 120 is provided with the convex portion 81C, the ink that has flowed out to the outer surface 71B of the holding member 120 flows along the convex portion 81C. This makes it difficult for ink to flow into the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 exposed by the opening 81 of the holding member 120 .

Further, since the supply port 112 is provided on the inclined wall 106 of the ink tank 100 , the mouth of a bottle containing replenishment ink can be easily aligned with the supply port 112 .

Further, since the holding member 120 covers the inclined wall 106 of the ink tank 100 and has the opening 82 that exposes the supply port 112, the ink flowing out from the supply port 112 is less likely to flow to the outer surface 71B of the holding member 120. .

[Modification]
In the above-described embodiment, the upper peripheral edge and the lower peripheral edge of the opening 81 of the holding member 120 are formed with the convex portions 81A and 81B, but as shown in FIG. Protrusions 81D may also be formed on the right and left peripheral edges of the opening 81 . A space 197 between the convex portion 81D and the inner surface 71A of the front wall 71 forms an ink channel (an example of a second liquid channel) extending along the vertical direction 7 . As a result, the ink that has flowed in the horizontal direction 9 along the space 194 flows in the vertical direction 7 along the space 197 , so that the ink flows onto the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 exposed through the opening 81 of the holding member 120 . It becomes more difficult to flow.

Further, as shown in FIG. 12, a convex portion 81E extending obliquely rearward and downward may be formed in the lower portion of the outer surface 72A of the right wall 72 (an example of the side wall of the cover) of the holding member 120 . A space 198 between the convex portion 81E and the outer surface 72A of the right wall 72 forms an ink channel (an example of a fifth liquid channel) extending rearward and downward. As a result, the ink flowing onto the outer surface 72A of the holding member 120 flows rearward and downward along the space 198 . The ink flowing down the holding member 12 is absorbed and held by the absorbing material 165 . This makes it difficult for ink to flow into the front wall 101 of the ink tank 100 exposed by the opening 81 of the holding member 120 .

In addition, in the above-described embodiments and modifications, the spaces 194 to 198 formed between the projections 81A to 81E and the inner surface 71A, the outer surface 71B, or the outer surface 72A form ink flow paths. , instead of the projections 81A to 81E, the ink flow path may be configured by grooves formed on the inner surface 71A, the outer surface 71B, or the outer surface 72A.

Further, in the above embodiments, the ink is described as an example of the liquid, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, instead of ink, a pretreatment liquid is ejected onto the recording paper prior to ink during printing, or water is sprayed near the nozzles 40 of the recording head 39 to prevent the nozzles 40 of the recording head 39 from drying. may be an example of a liquid.

10 MFP (supply device)
72 Right wall (cover side wall)
81... Opening 81A... Convex portion (first convex portion)
81B... Convex portion (second convex portion)
82... Opening 100... Ink tank (tank)
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 101 Front wall 106 Inclined wall 110 Rear wall 111 Ink chamber (liquid storage chamber)
112 Supply port 120 Holding member (cover)
146 ... 1st line (1st mark)
147 Second line (second mark)
157... Protruding part (liquid supply part)
159 Right wall (side wall)
194... Space (first liquid channel)
195... Space (third liquid channel)
196... Space (fourth liquid channel)
197... Space (second liquid channel)
198... Space (fifth liquid channel)

Claims (13)

A tank having a liquid storage chamber disposed between a front wall and a rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid supply section for discharging liquid from the liquid storage chamber, a plurality of tanks arranged side by side along the left-right direction;
a cap that seals the supply port of each of the plurality of tanks;
a cover covering a portion including the front wall of the tank;
The cover includes a plurality of openings formed at intervals in the left-right direction and exposing a part of the front wall of the tank, an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank, and the plurality of openings. a first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side of the peripheral edge portion of the opening;
The supply port is arranged above the first protrusion,
Each of the plurality of openings exposes a portion of the front wall of each of the plurality of tanks,
The cap is held in an upwardly extending state in a state separated from the supply port,
The supply device, wherein the first protrusion protrudes from the inner surface toward the tank and abuts a front wall of the tank. 2. The supply device according to claim 1, wherein the cover further has a first liquid flow path defined by the inner surface and the first protrusion. A tank having a liquid storage chamber disposed between a front wall and a rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid supply section for discharging liquid from the liquid storage chamber, a plurality of tanks arranged side by side along the left-right direction;
a cap that seals the supply port of each of the plurality of tanks;
a cover that covers a part including the front wall of the tank,
The cover includes a plurality of openings formed at intervals in the left-right direction and exposing a part of the front wall of the tank, an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank, and the plurality of openings. A first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side among the peripheral edge portions of the openings, and a first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the lower peripheral edge portion that is the lower side among the peripheral edge portions of the plurality of openings. and a second convex portion provided,
The supply port is arranged above the first protrusion,
Each of the plurality of openings exposes a portion of the front wall of each of the plurality of tanks,
The cap is held in an upwardly extending state in a state separated from the supply port,
The supply device, wherein the second protrusion protrudes from the inner surface toward the tank and contacts a front wall of the tank. a tank having a liquid storage chamber disposed between the front wall and the rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid supply section for discharging the liquid from the liquid storage chamber;
a cover covering a portion including the front wall of the tank;
The cover includes a plurality of openings formed at intervals in the left-right direction and exposing a part of the front wall of the tank, an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank, and the plurality of openings. a first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side of the peripheral edge portion of the opening;
The supply port is arranged above the first protrusion,
The supply device, wherein the cover further includes a fourth projection provided on the outer surface opposite to the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge. 5. The supply device according to claim 4, wherein the cover further has a third liquid flow path defined by the outer surface and the fourth protrusion. 6. The feeding device according to claim 4, wherein the cover further has fifth protrusions provided on the outer surface along right and left side peripheral edge portions of the plurality of openings. 7. The supply device according to claim 6, wherein the cover further has a fourth liquid flow path defined by the outer surface and the fifth projection. a tank having a liquid storage chamber disposed between the front wall and the rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid supply section for discharging the liquid from the liquid storage chamber;
a cover covering a portion including the front wall of the tank;
The cover includes a plurality of openings formed at intervals in the left-right direction and exposing a part of the front wall of the tank, an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank, and the plurality of openings. a first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side of the peripheral edge portion of the opening;
The supply port is arranged above the first protrusion,
The tank further has a side wall connecting the front wall and the rear wall,
The supply device, wherein the cover further includes a cover side wall that covers at least a portion of the side wall of the tank, and a fifth liquid flow path that is provided on the outer surface of the cover side wall and slopes backward and downward. a tank having a liquid storage chamber disposed between the front wall and the rear wall, a supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid supply section for discharging the liquid from the liquid storage chamber;
a cover covering a portion including the front wall of the tank;
The cover includes a plurality of openings formed at intervals in the left-right direction and exposing a part of the front wall of the tank, an inner surface facing the front wall of the tank, and the plurality of openings. a first convex portion provided on the inner surface along the upper peripheral edge portion that is the upper side of the peripheral edge portion of the opening;
The supply port is arranged above the first protrusion,
the tank further having a forward and upwardly sloping wall continuous with the front wall;
The supply port is formed in the inclined wall,
The cover covers the inclined wall and further has an opening for exposing the supply port. 10. The supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein a plurality of the first convex portions are provided on the inner surface at intervals in the left-right direction along the upper peripheral edge portions of the plurality of openings. 11. The supply according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the cover further has third projections provided on the inner surface along right and left side peripheral edge portions of the plurality of openings. Device. 12. The supply device according to claim 11, wherein the cover further has a second liquid flow path defined by the inner surface and the third projection. The front wall of the tank exposed through the opening of the cover is provided with a first mark provided at a position corresponding to the liquid level when the liquid stored in the liquid storage chamber is at a first amount; and a second mark provided at a position corresponding to the liquid level when the amount of liquid stored in the storage chamber is a second amount smaller than the first amount. The supply device according to .

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