JP3361339B2 - Ink tank and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink tank, and more particularly to an ink tank in a recording apparatus and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ink tank having a structure in which a foam material is filled in the tank and the ink is absorbed by the foam material is known (Japanese Patent Publication No. 54-318).
No. 98). However, although this ink tank is sometimes used in a stationary state, it is also often used in a dynamic state, and it is necessary to prepare for sudden vibrations and shocks. It must be prevented from entering the ink.

Therefore, a foam material typified by urethane foam is inserted into the tank to prevent these phenomena. This foam material is a foam that is normally inserted into the tank evenly, for example, by compression, and the ink tank is originally provided with a dense foam at the ink discharge port. The area is relatively low density
Is preferably arranged.

In view of this point, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 17334/1992
No. 3 proposes an ink tank whose compression density is changed. The outline of the present invention is to stack a plurality of foam materials having different densities and insert the foam materials into a tank.
Alternatively, there is disclosed a method of cutting a foam material into a different shape and compressing it to make the density different, and further a method of making the shape of the tank different shape to compress the foam material to make the density different.

[0005]

However, in the first method, it is necessary to prepare several kinds of foam materials first, and then to stack the foam materials in the tank while compressing them. Inserting presents a very difficult task to perform. Further, in the second method, cutting the foam material into an atypical shape causes waste of material, and further, compressing the atypical foam material is a very difficult operation. Further, in the third example, it cannot be said to be a very preferable state because the tank itself has a different shape.

The present invention has been made in view of the above prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an ink tank having a simple structure and arranging a high-density foam only in a necessary portion. There is.

[0007]

The present invention adopts the following configuration. That is, the first aspect of the present invention is an ink tank in a recording apparatus, in which a protrusion is formed from the inner wall of the tank toward the ink discharge port, and the foam material inserted in the tank is compressed by the protrusion to discharge the ink. The present invention relates to an ink tank in which a high density portion is formed at an outlet portion so that ink is sequentially consumed from a low density portion to a high density portion.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the foam material is inserted into the tank main body having the ink discharge port formed at the bottom, and then the cover is covered with a lid body having a projection toward the ink discharge port. By partially compressing the foam material and sealing both while maintaining such a state, a high density portion is formed in the ink discharge port portion, and ink is sequentially consumed from a low density portion to a high density portion. The present invention relates to an ink tank manufacturing method for manufacturing such an ink tank.

In the present invention, the foam material is preferably urethane foam or melamine foam.
Although there is a method of obtaining a three-dimensional network without a melamine foam that is initially produced as a Punsel or a urethane foam by special blending, it is generally found in the urethane foam where a cell film is formed. Is desired to be a so-called three-dimensional network body with the cell film removed. For removal of the cell film, a method of immersing the foam in an acid or alkaline solution or a method of removing the cell film by an explosion method is used. Particularly in the explosive method, a method is generally used in which oxygen gas and hydrogen gas are permeated into the form cell and ignited.

[0010]

Since the present invention employs the above construction, the foam material in the ink tank can be easily compressed and the density can be increased only at a desired portion. The manufacturing process has been extremely simplified.

[0011]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples. FIG. 1 is a central sectional view of a first ink tank of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view thereof. In the figure, reference numeral 1
Is a plastic ink tank main body, and 2 is a lid made of the same plastic. The lid 2 is provided with an air port 3 so that the tank internal pressure becomes the same as the atmosphere, and the main body 1 is provided with an ink discharge port 4 at the bottom portion on the side farther from the air port 3. A protrusion 5 is provided upright on the lid 2 toward the ink discharge port 4.

As the foam material, a three-dimensional reticulated urethane foam 6 having a cell film treated by the explosion method is used,
The tank is closed with the lid 2 while being inserted into the tank main body 1. However, the inserted urethane foam 6
Are partially compressed by the projections 5, and as shown in the figure, only the vicinity of the ink discharge port 4 is the high density portion A. Therefore, the ink in the ink tank is sequentially consumed from the low density portion B of the foam 6 to the high density portion A, and the ink remaining amount in the ink tank is remarkably small.

The protrusion 5 is a fork near the ink discharge port 4.
The purpose is to increase the density of the foam 6, but the density of the foam 6 in the tank can be continuously changed. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of protrusions 5 having different heights are set up. Alternatively, a triangular protrusion 5 may be formed on the lid 2 as shown in FIG. Of course, as shown in FIG.
It goes without saying that a triangular projection 5 formed on the entire lid 2 is also applicable. Although not described in detail, the protrusion 5 may be provided upright on the main body 1 side of the tank. In this case, the ink discharge port 4 may be provided in the lid 2.

[0014]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to change the density of only the necessary portion of the foam material inserted into the ink tank. The difficult technology of inserting into the tank while compressing is no longer necessary, and the industrial advantage is extremely large.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a central sectional view of an ink tank of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view thereof.

FIG. 3 is a central cross-sectional view of a lid in which another protrusion is provided upright.

FIG. 4 is a central cross-sectional view of a lid in which another protrusion is provided upright.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view in which another protrusion is formed on the entire surface of the lid.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Ink tank 2 ... Lid, 3 ... Air vent, 4 ... Ink outlet, 5 ... 6 ... Urethane foam, A: High density area, B: Area with low density.

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── --- Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Hajime Hajime 1 Kashio-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi Bridgestone Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Isao Kimishima 360-3 Akiba-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama (56) References Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-136861 (JP, A) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-187364 (JP, A) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-173343 (JP, A) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-248848 (JP, A) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-144755 (JP , A) (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 2/175

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. In an ink tank of a recording apparatus, a protrusion is formed from an inner wall of the tank toward an ink discharge port, and a foam material inserted in the tank is compressed by the protrusion to have a high density at the ink discharge port portion. The ink tank is characterized in that ink is sequentially consumed from a low density area to a high density area by forming areas. 2. A foam material is inserted into a tank main body having an ink discharge port formed at the bottom, and then a lid body having a projection toward the ink discharge port is used to cover the foam material. By compressing and sealing both of them while maintaining such a state, a high density portion is formed in the ink discharge port portion, and an ink tank in which ink is sequentially consumed from a low density portion to a high density portion is formed. A method of manufacturing an ink tank, which is characterized by manufacturing.