JP4229198B2 - Liquid cartridge - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid cartridge that stores liquid in a state in which a negative pressure is maintained and supplies liquid from a supply unit to a liquid ejecting head while maintaining a constant negative pressure via a differential pressure unit.

The ink cartridge that supplies ink while maintaining the pressure of the ink supply port at a negative pressure that does not cause ink leakage using a differential pressure valve is sealed and circulated in a reduced pressure state in the packaging bag. In this case, the pressure from the ink supply port to the ink storage chamber is maintained at a pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure.
As a result, when new ink is supplied from the cartridge to the ink jet head, which is a liquid ejecting head, bubbles that have entered the ink jet head and the ink supply needle when the cartridge is attached / detached are easily dissolved by the degassed ink supplied from the cartridge. There is an advantage that the droplet ejection characteristics can be maintained regardless of the intrusion of bubbles.
On the other hand, when the ink supply port of the cartridge is connected to the ink supply needle, the negative pressure of the cartridge acts on the ink jet head as it is, so that the meniscus of the nozzle opening of the ink jet head is drawn and the ink droplet ejection characteristics are reduced. May have a negative impact.
For this reason, such an ink cartridge employs a structure in which the ink storage chamber is opened to the atmosphere before the ink supply needle communicating with the liquid ejecting head communicates with the ink supply port, as can be seen in Patent Document 1. ing.

European Patent Publication No. 1199179

However, according to the above configuration, there are restrictions on the structure for opening the atmosphere release valve of the holder and the position of the atmosphere release valve of the cartridge, which complicates the structure of the holder and the structure of the liquid cartridge. There's a problem.
The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for a special holder structure such as opening the air release valve immediately before the ink supply needle, and to store the ink in the liquid cartridge. To provide a liquid cartridge in which the negative pressure of the liquid cartridge is prevented from affecting the liquid ejecting head regardless of the negative pressure of the chamber.

In order to achieve such a problem, one aspect of the present invention is a liquid cartridge that supplies liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus by being attached to the liquid ejecting apparatus, and has an opening on one side surface, and A casing having a liquid supply unit that supplies a liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus, and a liquid storage chamber for storing the liquid together with the casing are formed by covering the opening of the casing, and the atmospheric pressure and the liquid A flexible film that can be elastically deformed by a differential pressure with respect to the storage chamber, and an atmosphere opening portion that is opened by an external operation to open the liquid storage chamber to the atmosphere.

Further, according to the present invention, the liquid storage chamber includes an atmosphere-side storage chamber that communicates with the atmosphere, and a supply-side storage chamber that communicates with the atmosphere-side storage chamber, and the film includes the atmosphere-side storage chamber and The supply-side accommodation chamber is covered.

The present invention includes a passage provided on the surface of the casing and having one end opened to the atmosphere, and a chamber provided in the middle of the passage and deeper than the depth of the passage.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that a lid for preventing the film from expanding outward is provided outside the film.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid cartridge for supplying a liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus when the liquid ejecting apparatus is attached to the liquid ejecting apparatus. A supply unit that supplies the liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus; an ink injection port that is provided on a bottom surface of the liquid cartridge and that injects ink into the liquid storage unit; an atmosphere-side passage that communicates with the atmosphere; A communication hole that communicates the side passage with the liquid storage portion, an atmospheric valve that opens and closes the communication hole, and a biasing portion that biases the atmospheric valve so as to seal the communication hole, The communication hole is provided in a recess provided in a bottom surface of the liquid cartridge, the ink injection port and the recess are sealed by the same film, and the liquid cartridge is mounted on the liquid ejecting apparatus. Absence, while the atmosphere valve which is biased by the biasing portion to seal the communication hole, when the liquid cartridge is mounted on the liquid ejecting apparatus, provided in the liquid ejecting apparatus member Is characterized in that the atmospheric valve is opened by elastically deforming the film and coming into contact with the atmospheric valve from above the film .

The urging portion includes a coil spring .

  FIG. 1 shows an example of a liquid cartridge suitable for supplying a liquid to a liquid ejecting head of a liquid ejecting apparatus, using an ink cartridge 100 for an ink jet recording apparatus as seen from an obliquely upper side. It is a front perspective view.

  The liquid ejecting head in the liquid ejecting apparatus referred to in the present invention is not only an ink jet head of an ink jet recording apparatus, but also a colorant liquid ejecting head of a color filter manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a color filter of a liquid crystal display, or an organic EL display. Electrode material (conductive paste) liquid ejecting head for forming electrodes such as FED (surface emitting display), bio-organic liquid ejecting head of biochip manufacturing apparatus for producing biochip, and sample liquid ejecting head as precision pipette Etc.

  2 and 3 are rear perspective views of the ink cartridge 100 of FIG. 1 as viewed obliquely from below, and FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state before the film 110 is attached to the surface of the ink cartridge 100. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state where a film 110 is attached to the ink cartridge 100. FIGS. 4 and 5 are exploded perspective views showing members constituting the ink cartridge.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the ink cartridge 100 includes a bottomed substantially casing-shaped cartridge main body 120 having an opening 122, a film 130 that covers substantially the entire surface of the opening 122, and a lid that covers the outside of the film 130. 140. The inside of the ink cartridge main body 120 is partitioned by ribs and walls as will be described later, and almost the entire surface of the opening 122 of the ink cartridge main body 120 is sealed with a film 130 so that the inside is sealed. The outside of the film 130 is fixed so as to be covered with the lid 140 in an unsealed state.

  The cartridge main body 120 includes an ink flow path section including an ink storage area and an ink flow path, and an ink communication path 230 that communicates the ink storage area with the atmosphere, and an atmospheric communication section including an atmospheric valve storage chamber and an atmospheric flow path 210. ing.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are views for explaining the inside of the cartridge main body 120, and FIG. 7 is a view showing a state in which the opening of the cartridge main body 120 is sealed with a film 130 (area shown by a hatched portion).
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the ink containing area is largely divided into an upper part and a lower part by a wall 272 extending in the horizontal direction, and an atmosphere side containing chamber 270 that can communicate with the atmosphere through a communication hole 242 is provided at the lower part. In addition, a supply-side storage chamber 290 including two first supply-side storage chambers 292 and a second supply-side storage chamber 294 that are blocked from the atmosphere is formed in the upper part. The supply-side storage chamber 290 is divided into two by an oblique wall 271 having a communication portion 276 in the vicinity (lower region) of the wall 272, and a first supply-side storage chamber 292 and a second supply-side storage chamber are formed. Yes. In addition, a flow path portion 296 is formed so as to be surrounded by the second supply side accommodation chamber 294. The flow path portion 296 is connected to the second supply-side storage chamber 294 via a lower communication portion 278, and includes an ink provided with a differential pressure valve having a membrane valve to be described later via passages 298, 300 and a through hole 918. It is connected to the supply control means 150.
The downstream side of the ink supply control means 150 is formed at a communication hole 910 communicating with the ink supply control means 150, a flow path 321 communicating with the communication hole 910, and one end of the flow path 321, and formed toward the surface side. The formed through hole 323, the channel 304 having one end communicating with the through hole 323, and the ink supply unit 160 communicating with the channel 304 are formed.

  The atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 and the first supply-side storage chamber 292 are communicated with each other by a communication passage 295 extending vertically, and the ink in the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 is supplied to the first in accordance with the consumption of ink from the ink supply unit 160. The ink is sucked into the supply-side storage chamber 292 and then flows into the ink supply control means 150 through the second supply-side storage chamber 294, the flow path portion 296, and the like.

On the other hand, the atmospheric valve portion 250 has a hollow portion 232 that is an atmospheric valve accommodating chamber in which the atmospheric valve 254 is accommodated, and the wall surface below the hollow portion 232 has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the shaft portion 264 of the atmospheric valve 254. Has a communication hole 239 that also serves as a communication channel, and the shaft portion 264 of the atmospheric valve 254 is constantly urged toward the bottom surface of the cartridge by a spring 255 and is slidably inserted. When not attached to the apparatus main body, the communication hole 239 is sealed by the atmospheric valve 254.
As shown in FIG. 7, the hatched area is sealed with a film 130, thereby connecting the ink storage chamber 111 including the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 and the supply-side storage chamber 290, the atmosphere valve portion 250, and them. An ink flow path and an air flow path are formed.

The atmosphere-side passage 210, which communicates with the atmosphere with the communication hole 239 described above as a boundary, is formed on the bottom surface of the opening 212, the meandering passage 214, the filter housing chamber 216, the communication hole 218, the communication portion 222, and the communication portion 222. The communication hole 253 and the communication part 224 are configured.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, one passage 214 meandering in a labyrinth formed on the front side of the cartridge main body 120 is opened to the atmosphere with one end being an opening 212 and the other end is ink-repellent. And a filter housing chamber 216 that houses a filter 215 (FIGS. 4 and 5) having functions of air permeability. The filter housing chamber 216 communicates with a communication hole 218 that penetrates from the front side to the back side of the cartridge body 120. The communication hole 218 is connected to the communication part 224 via a communication part 222 on the back side of the cartridge main body 120 and a communication hole 253 formed in the bottom of the room that defines the communication part 222. In the middle of the passage 214, a chamber 930 made of a recess is provided. With this chamber 930, the fluid resistance of the passage 214 can be lowered as compared with the state where the chamber 930 is not formed, and the decompression of the liquid cartridge can be quickly released when the liquid cartridge is used for the first time. Further, even when ink leaks into the passage 214 when the filter 215 is not sufficiently fixed to the filter storage chamber 216, the ink can be trapped by the chamber 930 and leakage to the outside can be prevented.

As shown in FIG. 2, the communication portion 224 is formed as a concave portion 257 on the bottom surface of the cartridge body 120, exposes the shaft portion 264 that is an operating rod of the atmospheric valve 254, and the hollow portion 232 that accommodates the atmospheric valve 254. A communication hole 239 capable of communicating with the communication portion 222 and a communication hole 253 communicating with the communication portion 222 are formed in the recess portion 257, and the outer surface of the recess portion 257 is sealed with the first ink injection port 161 and the second ink injection port 162. It is formed by sealing with a film 132 to be stopped.
As the film 132, a film that can be elastically deformed by the pressing force of the operation member 202 (FIG. 13) provided in the holder 200 is selected.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the ink-side passage 230 that communicates with the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 with the communication hole 239 described above as a boundary includes a hollow portion 232, a communication hole 234 a, a communication chamber 234 b, a communication portion 234 c, and a communication chamber. 234d, the communication part 236, the communication chamber 237, the communication hole 238, the communication groove 240, and the communication hole 242 are formed.
Specifically, a through hole 234a is formed in the upper wall of the hollow portion 232, and the communication chamber 234b and a communication portion 234c formed by a cutout in the upper wall of the communication chamber 234b through the through hole 234a. A communication chamber 234d communicating with the communication portion 234c, a communication portion 236 formed by a notch in the upper wall of the communication chamber 234d, and an air passage communicating with the communication chamber 237 formed with a communication hole 238 below are formed in this order. ing.
In FIG. 6, the bold arrows in the member regions indicated by reference numerals 232, 234b, 234, 237, and 222 in FIG. Is shown.
The communication hole 238 penetrating from the back side to the front side of the cartridge main body 120 is connected to the communication groove 240 communicating with the communication hole 238, and communicates with the communication groove 240 and through the communication hole 242 penetrating from the front side to the back side of the cartridge main body 120. It communicates with the storage chamber 270.
The atmosphere-side accommodation chamber 270, the supply-side accommodation chamber 290, the atmosphere valve portion 250, the atmosphere-side passage 210, and the ink-side passage 230 are attached to the walls partitioning the films 130 and 110 by a method such as heat welding. By doing so, it becomes a region isolated from the atmosphere.
As shown in FIG. 9B, the film 130 has a three-layer structure including an innermost layer 950, a strength layer 952, and a permeation prevention layer 954, and includes an atmosphere-side accommodation chamber 270, a supply-side accommodation chamber 290, an atmosphere valve. It is configured to be elastically deformed to some extent by the differential pressure between the pressure of the portion 250 and the atmosphere side passage 210 and the atmospheric pressure.

  The innermost layer 950 is disposed so as to be in contact with the ink containing region, and is preferably formed of the same material as that constituting the cartridge body 120, for example, polypropylene. By making the material of the innermost layer 950 the same as that of the cartridge main body 120, the film 130 can be securely bonded to the opening of the cartridge main body 120 by thermal welding.

The strength layer 952 is formed as an intermediate layer, has a higher strength than the innermost layer 950, and is formed for the purpose of reinforcing the innermost layer 950. The permeation preventive layer 954 prevents ink vapor and air from penetrating, and for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or the like may be used.
Also, as shown in FIG. 10, the outer surface of the film 130 attached to the opening of the cartridge body 120 is in a state of being in close contact so that the volume of the space 135 between the film 130 is as small as possible. The lid 140 is fitted and configured to prevent the film 130 from expanding unnecessarily when it is accommodated in a decompression bag 101 to be described later, and to prevent damage due to collision of protrusions or the like.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the ink supply unit 160 of the cartridge main body 120 is fitted around the supply valve 13 that slides and opens by being pressed by the ink supply needle of the holder, and around the ink supply needle. And a sealing member 12 made of an elastic material such as an elastomer having an insertion port 26 and a biasing portion 14 made of a coil spring that biases the supply valve 13 toward the sealing member 12. These members are assembled by loading the urging unit 14, then fitting the seal member 12 into the supply unit 160, and finally pushing the supply valve 10 through the insertion port 26. Thereby, it is possible to assemble only by loading work without requiring a spring pressing process at the time of assembly.

As typically shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the ink cartridge 100 is provided with a positioning block 190 for restricting the position of the holder at a predetermined position on one side surface. A circuit board 170 which is a memory device in which an electrode 171 is formed on the back surface and a semiconductor memory element is mounted on the back surface is provided. The storage element of the circuit board 170 stores identification information such as the type of ink cartridge, information on the color of ink held by the ink cartridge, and information such as the existing amount of ink.
Further, a convex portion 192 that engages with a lever 204 of the holder 200 to be described later and presses the ink supply portion 160 toward the holder can be provided on the upper portion of the positioning block 190 as shown in FIGS.
On the other hand, on the other side surface facing the positioning block 190, an engaging member 180 formed of a lever that engages with the engaging portion 205 of the holder 200 by the protrusion 181 is integrally formed in accordance with the injection molding of the cartridge main body 120. Has been.

FIG. 10 (a) shows an embodiment of the ink supply control means 150 described above. The partition wall 970, the membrane valve 900, the main body side communication chamber 912, the supply side communication chambers 906 and 908, and the deformation regulation. It is constituted by a portion 980 and a coil spring 907 and is fixed to the cartridge main body 120 by a pressing member 151.
The partition wall 970 is positioned between the ink storage chamber 111 and the ink supply unit 160, and is formed to communicate with the ink supply unit 160 and a main body side communication chamber 912 formed on the side communicating with the ink storage chamber 111. The communication hole 918 is divided into the supply side communication chambers 906 and 908, and the communication hole 918 communicating with the main body side communication chamber 912 is formed at the periphery, and the communication hole 910 sealed by the membrane valve 900 is located at the center. ing. In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the main body side communication chamber 912 can also accommodate a filter 310 for ink filtration, thereby preventing foreign matters mixed in the ink and preventing the downstream movement thereof. Thus, the sealing function of the membrane valve 900 can be ensured, and the recording head can be prevented from being clogged.

  The protrusion 904 functioning as the deformation restricting portion 980 is lower in height than the protrusion 913 of the membrane valve 900, and the gap Δg (so that the protrusion 913 of the membrane valve 900 can reliably seal the communication hole 910. 10 (b)) is selected to such an extent that it can be formed.

  The membrane valve 900 is formed in a circular shape by an elastically deformable material such as an elastomer, and a convex portion 913 that abuts the communication hole 910 to seal the central portion is formed at the center, and the spring mounting convex portion on the back surface The ink supply unit 160 is biased toward the communication hole 910 by a spring 907 loaded in 902 with a pressure that can maintain a constant negative pressure. Thus, since the force of the spring 907 acts on the convex portion 902 that makes the front and back of the sealing convex portion 913, the deformation of the peripheral portion is prevented as much as possible to keep the membrane valve flat. It is possible to prevent the flow path resistance from increasing.

  In the ink cartridge 100 configured in this manner, a connector is loaded into the ink supply unit 160, the supply valve 13 is pushed in to open, and the inside of the cartridge is exhausted. Since the membrane valve 900 is displaced against the spring 907 by this exhaust, the pressure in the supply-side accommodation chambers 292 and 294 is reduced. When ink is injected from the first ink injection port 162 in this state, ink can be sucked and filled into the supply-side storage chambers 292 and 294 and the flow path. When ink is injected from the second ink injection port 161, the ink flows into the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270. When the ink filling is completed, the seal 604 is attached to the ink supply unit 160. Further, by sticking the seal 132 to the first ink inlet 162 and the second ink inlet 161 under reduced pressure, the inside of the cartridge can be sealed in a state lower than the atmospheric pressure.

Next, when the cartridge is housed in the decompression bag 101 and the opening of the bag is sealed while decompressing at a pressure lower than the pressure inside the cartridge, the package is packed in a decompressed state as shown in FIG.
In this state, since the ink containing chamber 111 is blocked from communication with the outside by the atmospheric valve 254, the film 130 that seals the opening of the cartridge main body 120 expands. Since the film 130 is present, the film 130 is restricted by the lid 140, so that the amount of outward expansion can be minimized.

  Since the film 130 is in a slightly expanded state as described above, the negative pressure of the decompression bag 101 acts on the entire ink in the storage chamber 111 via the film 130, and the deaeration of the ink proceeds. In this state, the air is placed on the distribution route, and the air in the ink storage chamber gradually leaks from the case constituting the ink cartridge into the space between the decompression bag and the cartridge, and the pressure in the ink storage chamber is maintained below atmospheric pressure. The ink can be stored in a degassed state until use.

When the ink cartridge is taken out from the decompression bag 101 during use, atmospheric pressure acts on the film 130 of the ink cartridge. Therefore, the film 130 is moved toward the atmosphere side storage chamber 270 by the differential pressure with the atmosphere side storage chamber 270. The degree of negative pressure in the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 is reduced by elastic deformation.
The degree of the negative pressure in the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 is reduced by the elastic deformation of the film 130, and the negative pressure in the ink cartridge when the ink cartridge is mounted on the holder 200 as shown in FIG. The pull-in of the meniscus formed in the nozzle opening of the liquid ejecting head can be reduced.
In particular, in this embodiment, since all regions constituting the ink storage chamber are sealed with the film 130, the negative pressure can be released (pressure) more quickly than when only a part of the ink storage chamber is sealed with the film 130. Rise).

The following is effective when the above-mentioned film 130 is not used, when sufficient negative pressure cannot be released (pressure increase) due to restrictions in the selection of the film 130, or when the negative pressure is more reliably released. It is description about a structure.
When the ink cartridge is mounted in the holder 200 as shown in FIG. 13 and loaded by rotating the loading lever 204 as shown in FIG. 14, the ink supply needle 201 enters the ink supply unit 160, and then The atmospheric valve 254 is opened by the operation member 202 on the bottom surface.
At the moment when the ink supply needle 201 enters and the ink supply unit 160 is connected to the ink supply needle 201, the back surface of the membrane valve 900 communicates with the atmosphere via the liquid ejecting head 203 that communicates with the ink supply needle 201. At this time, since the pressure on the ink storage chamber side is low, atmospheric pressure acts on the ink supply unit 160 side of the membrane valve 900, and the membrane valve 900 tends to elastically deform toward the partition wall 970, but is formed in the partition wall 970. It comes into contact with the deformation restricting portion 980 and stops at a predetermined position.

  Of course, this deformation amount is suppressed by the deformation restricting portion 980, in this embodiment, by the projection 904 of the partition wall 970, and the gap Δg is very small as compared with the case where the deformation restricting portion 980 does not exist. The meniscus 203 at the nozzle opening 203 is slightly pulled, but stops at a position where it does not affect the formation of the droplets.

  Although it is conceivable that the peripheral portion of the membrane valve 900 is brought into contact with the partition wall 970 by a slight displacement of the membrane valve 900 by reducing the height of the convex portion 913 for sealing the membrane valve 900. The gap between the valve and the membrane valve is reduced to increase the ink flow path resistance, leading to a decrease in the ink supply capability, and it is necessary to manage the dimensions of the convex portion 913 with high accuracy, resulting in high costs. is there.

  When the mounting of the cartridge 100 is completed in this way and the ink is consumed by the liquid ejecting head 203, the pressure on the ink supply unit 160 side of the ink supply control means 150 is reduced to a predetermined value or less. As a result, the membrane valve 900 constituting the ink supply control means 150 receives the negative pressure of the ink supply unit 160 over a wide area on the back surface thereof (although the negative pressure of the supply unit 160 acts via the communication hole 910). Since the opening area of the communication hole 910 is extremely small compared to the area of the back surface of the membrane valve 900, the displacement is not hindered).

  When the negative pressure acting on the back surface of the membrane valve 900, that is, the surface communicating with the supply unit 160, overcomes the spring 907, the membrane valve 900 moves away from the partition wall 970, so that the ink in the flow path unit 296 is communicated with the communication hole of the partition wall 970 The ink flows into the membrane valve 900 from 918 and flows into the ink supply unit 160 from the communication hole 910 of the partition wall 970 through the communication unit 304. Since the vicinity of the communication hole 918 is opened by a notch, the protrusion 904 flows into the supply unit 160 without receiving an increase in flow path resistance.

The atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 sucks the air in the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 to the first supply-side storage chamber 292 via the communication path 295 while drawing the atmosphere through the communication hole 242, and then connects the communication portion 276 to the second supply side. The storage chamber 294 is replenished with ink.
When a predetermined amount of ink flows into the supply unit 160 in this way and the differential pressure acting on the membrane valve 900 becomes smaller than the pressure of the spring 907, the membrane valve 900 is pushed back to the partition wall side, and the flow path is cut off.
Hereinafter, by repeating such a process, it is possible to supply ink to the liquid ejecting head while maintaining the pressure of the supply unit 160 at a predetermined negative pressure.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the cartridge 100 is loaded while being moved in the direction parallel to the ink supply needle 201 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. In the case of loading by rotating as a fulcrum, before the supply unit 160 engages with the ink supply needle 201, the atmospheric valve 254 is brought into contact with the operation member 202 to open the ink storage chamber 111 to the atmosphere. Is possible.
Specifically, when the ink cartridge 100 is mounted, the atmosphere flows into the atmosphere-side storage chamber 270 from the atmosphere-side passage 210 through the ink-side passage 230 due to the opening of the atmosphere valve portion 250, and the decompressed state in the ink cartridge 100 is reached. Is released. When the ink supply needle of the ink jet recording apparatus enters the ink supply unit 160 in this state, the pressure reduction state in the ink cartridge 100 has already been relaxed, and therefore the pressure on the ink storage chamber side with the membrane valve as a boundary is greater. The pressure becomes higher than the pressure on the ink supply port side, so that the ink of the recording liquid ejecting head is not drawn into the ink cartridge 100, and the inconvenience of drawing air from the nozzle opening of the recording liquid ejecting head can be reliably prevented.
Even with this type of device, it is effective when the air release is delayed from the insertion of the ink supply needle into the ink supply port due to a mounting error such as inserting the cartridge in a direction parallel to the ink supply needle. It is.

  In the above-described embodiment, the deformation restricting portion is formed in a substantially annular shape having a cutout portion. However, the partition wall 970 that faces the peripheral portion 905 of the membrane valve 900 so as not to impair the valve closing function. The same effect can be obtained even if a plurality of the surfaces are dispersed.

  FIGS. 17 and 18 each show another embodiment of the deformation restricting portion 980 in the structure of the membrane valve 900, which is closer to the peripheral side than the convex portion 913 of the membrane valve 900 that seals the communication hole 910. Even if the substantially annular ridge 914 in which the region facing the communication hole 918 of the partition wall 970 is cut out, the same effect is obtained. Note that the height hl of the ridge 914 is set lower than the height h2 of the projection 913 of the membrane valve 900, and the membrane valve 900 is closed as shown in FIG. In addition, a gap Δg can be formed between the partition wall 970 and the valve closing function.

  Also in this embodiment, since the ink supply needle 201 enters and the ink supply unit 160 is connected to the ink supply needle 201, it communicates with the atmosphere via the liquid ejecting head 203 that communicates with the ink supply needle 201. The valve 900 is subjected to the action of atmospheric pressure on the ink supply unit 160 side and the negative pressure of the atmosphere-side accommodation chamber 270 on the other surface, and the membrane valve 900 is operated as shown in FIGS. 19 (a) and 19 (b). Attempts to elastically deform toward the partition wall 970 side, but the projection 914 of the membrane valve 900 comes into contact with the partition wall 970 and stops at a predetermined position. Accordingly, since the amount of deformation is extremely small, the meniscus of the nozzle opening of the liquid ejecting head 203 is slightly pulled, but stops at a position where it does not affect the formation of droplets.

  In the above-described embodiment, the deformation restricting portion is formed as a substantially annular shape having a cutout portion. However, a plurality of protrusions are dispersed in the partition wall 970 so as to impair the valve closing function of the membrane valve 900. However, the same effect is achieved.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the ink having the differential pressure valve structure in which the communication hole 910 is formed in the central portion of the partition wall 970 and the membrane valve 900 is moved according to the pressure on the ink supply unit side to open and close the communication hole 910. Although the cartridge has been described, as shown in FIG. 20 (a), one communication hole 918 ′ is formed in a region other than the central region of the partition wall 970, a convex portion 990 is formed in the central portion, and the center of the membrane valve 900 is formed. A communication hole 992 that elastically contacts the convex part 990 is formed, and the communication hole 992 of the membrane valve 900 is normally brought into contact with the convex part 990 by the coil spring 907 to seal the communication hole 992, thereby reducing the pressure of the ink supply part. At that time, the membrane valve 900 is separated from the convex portion 990 against the elastic force of the coil spring 907 as shown in FIG. 900 communication holes 992 It is applied to the supply control unit form for supplying ink to achieve the same effect.

  That is, on the surface of the partition wall 970 facing the membrane valve 900, as shown in FIG. 21 (a), a protrusion 904 ′ having a notch in the vicinity of the communication hole 918 ′ is provided outside the protrusion 990. Further, as shown in FIG. 21 (b), the surface of the membrane valve 900 that faces the partition wall 970 surrounds the communication hole 992, and has a notch in the region facing the communication hole 918 ′ of the partition wall 970. When 'is formed, the deformation of the membrane valve 900 to the excessive partition wall side can be restricted by the protrusions 904 ′ and the protrusions 914 ′.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the ink cartridge provided with the atmospheric valve is described as an example as a mechanism of the atmosphere opening portion for communicating the ink containing chamber with the atmosphere by engagement of the ink cartridge with the recording device. The ink cartridge and the recording apparatus may be applied to an ink cartridge having a structure in which a hole is opened in a part of a passage communicating with the atmosphere side of the ink storage chamber so that the ink storage chamber communicates with the atmosphere. The effect equivalent to the effect mentioned above is produced.

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the ink cartridge as viewed obliquely from above. FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the ink cartridge as viewed obliquely from below. FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the ink cartridge as viewed obliquely from below. FIG. 4 is an assembled perspective view as seen from one surface of the ink cartridge. FIG. 5 is an assembled perspective view as viewed from the other surface of the ink cartridge. It is a top view which shows the structure seen from the opening side of the cartridge main body in the state which removed the film for sealing. FIG. 6 is a plan view seen from the opening side of the cartridge body. It is a top view which shows the structure seen from the surface side of the cartridge main body by the upper body which removed the membrane valve pressing member and the film. FIGS. 1A and 1B are a cross-sectional view showing a cross section in the vicinity of the supply member of the ink cartridge and a cross-sectional view showing an example of a film for sealing the opening. FIGS. 1A and 1B are a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the supply control unit, and a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the deformation regulating unit in an enlarged manner. It is a perspective view which shows one Example of a deformation | transformation control part by the structure of a partition. FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a state where the ink cartridge is accommodated in a decompression bag. It is a figure which shows the state which loaded the ink cartridge in the holder. It is a figure which shows the state which mounted | wore the ink cartridge with the holder. FIGS. 1A and 1B are a sectional view showing the shape of the membrane valve at the moment when the ink cartridge is mounted on the holder, and an enlarged sectional view showing the deformation restricting portion. It is a figure which shows the other mounting method of an ink cartridge. FIGS. 1A and 1B are a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the supply control unit, and a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the deformation regulating unit in an enlarged manner. It is a perspective view which shows one Example of a deformation | transformation control part by the structure of a membrane valve. FIGS. 1A and 1B are a sectional view showing the shape of the membrane valve at the moment when the ink cartridge is mounted on the holder, and an enlarged sectional view showing the deformation restricting portion. FIGS. 1A and 1B are cross-sectional views showing a supply control unit to which the present invention can be applied in a non-ink supply state and an ink supply state, respectively. FIGS. (A) and (B) are examples of a deformation regulating unit applied to the supply control unit shown in FIG. 20, respectively, the structure of the surface of the membrane valve facing the partition, and the partition facing the membrane valve. It is a perspective view shown with the structure of this surface.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Ink cartridge, 111 ... Ink storage chamber, 120 ... Cartridge main body, 110, 130, 132 ... Film, 140 ... Cover, 150 ... Ink supply control means, 160 ... Ink supply part, 170 ... Storage means, 180 ... Engagement 210, atmosphere side passage, 212 ... opening, 214 ... passage, 216 ... filter housing chamber, 218, 224 ... communication hole, 230 ... ink side passage, 232 ... hollow portion, 236, 240, 274, 276, 278 ... Communicating part, 238, 242 ... communicating hole, 250 ... atmospheric valve part, 270 ... atmospheric side accommodating chamber, 272 ... wall, 290 ... supply side accommodating chamber, 292 ... first supply side accommodating chamber, 294 ... second supply side accommodating Chamber, 296 ... Channel portion, 298, 300 ... Passage, 302, 304 ... Communication portion, 900 ... Membrane valve, 902 ... Center portion, 904 ... Projection, 905 ... Peripheral portion, 90 , 908 ... supply side communicating chamber, 912 ... main body-side communication chamber, 914 ... ridge, 970 ... partition wall, 980 ... deformation restricting portion.

Claims (2)

A liquid cartridge that supplies liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus when mounted on the liquid ejecting apparatus,
A liquid container for containing a liquid;
A supply unit for supplying the liquid stored in the liquid storage unit to the liquid ejecting apparatus;
An ink injection port provided on the bottom surface of the liquid cartridge, for injecting ink into the liquid container;
An atmosphere-side passage communicating with the atmosphere;
A communication hole for communicating the atmosphere side passage and the liquid container;
An atmospheric valve for opening and closing the communication hole;
A biasing portion that biases the atmospheric valve so as to seal the communication hole;
Have
The communication hole is provided in a recess provided in the bottom surface of the liquid cartridge,
The ink inlet and the recess are sealed by the same film;
When the liquid cartridge is not attached to the liquid ejecting apparatus, the atmospheric valve urged by the urging portion seals the communication hole, while the liquid cartridge is attached to the liquid ejecting apparatus. When the member provided in the liquid ejecting apparatus elastically deforms the film and contacts the atmospheric valve from above the film, the atmospheric valve is opened.
A liquid cartridge characterized by that.   The liquid cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the urging portion includes a coil spring.

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