JP6217922B2 - Assembly method of sheet member - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for assembling a sheet member, and is particularly useful when applied to a case where a seal member used by being sandwiched between two cases is attached to the case.

  A typical example of a liquid ejecting head that ejects droplets is an ink jet recording head that ejects ink droplets. As the ink jet recording head, for example, a head main body that ejects ink droplets from nozzle openings and a head main body are fixed, and an ink cartridge that stores ink is detachably provided. Has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  The flow path member in Patent Document 1 is formed by stacking a plurality of cases each having a flow path therein, and a seal member is sandwiched between the two cases. The seal member has a plurality of through holes that serve as through channels that communicate between the channels of each case.

  In such a flow path member, it is necessary to attach the seal member to a seal attachment portion which is a predetermined position of one case. Here, the seal member is a flexible member formed of an elastomer, a silicone resin, or the like, and easily deforms.

  Therefore, when assembling a flow path member having a structure in which a plurality of cases are stacked and the seal member is sandwiched between the two cases as described above, the work of mounting the seal member on the seal mounting portion of one case is automated. When thinking, it is necessary to proceed with the mounting operation while properly handling and accurately positioning the seal member, which is an easily deformed mounting object. However, no technology that meets such demand has been proposed yet.

  Such a problem exists not only in a flow path member used for a liquid jet head such as an ink jet recording head but also in a flow path member used in a device other than the liquid jet head. More generally, it also exists when a sheet member including a seal member is mounted at a predetermined position on the base. Further, in the case of a sheet member having a plurality of through-holes such as a seal member which is a kind of flow path member, it becomes more problematic because it is more easily deformed.

JP2013-123830A

  In view of the circumstances as described above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for assembling a sheet member that allows a flexible sheet member to be positioned and mounted with high accuracy and easily at a predetermined position on a base.

An aspect of the present invention that solves the above problem is a method of assembling a sheet member that mounts a sheet member, which is an elastic body having a plurality of through holes, on a sheet mounting portion formed on a base. A first side that is one side of the first side and a second side that is the other side that intersects the first side, a first reference point that regulates a position of the first side, and the second side A first positioning step of positioning the position of the sheet member in a plane including the first side and the second side by making contact with a second reference point that regulates the position of the side; A supporting step of supporting the sheet member positioned in the first positioning step by a supporting means, and a movement of moving the supporting means along the guide member toward the sheet mounting portion while regulating the position of the supporting means. With the process and the movement of the support means, At the end of the moving process, the end of the guide member on the sheet mounting portion side is caused to interfere with a convex portion protruding from the base, and the relative position of the sheet member with respect to the sheet mounting portion is determined as the interference. And a mounting step of mounting the sheet member on the sheet mounting portion by the support means at the position positioned in the second positioning step. There is a method of assembling the members.
According to this aspect, after the sheet member to be assembled is positioned at a predetermined position in a specific plane, the seat mounting unit is configured to regulate the position of the support means in a state where the sheet member is supported by the sheet support member. It is moved toward. Subsequently, the end of the guide member on the sheet mounting portion side is brought into contact with the convex portion protruding from the base to adjust the relative position with respect to the sheet mounting portion, and then the sheet member is mounted on the sheet mounting portion. did. As a result, even if the sheet member is flexible and is a member that is easily deformed by forming a plurality of through holes, it can be accurately positioned at a predetermined position of the sheet mounting portion. Accordingly, the assembly of the sheet member to the base can be performed accurately and easily. As a result, the throughput of the assembly work can be improved.

  Here, the sheet member is preferably a plate-like member and has a rib for reinforcement. This is because the mechanical strength of the sheet member is improved due to the presence of the rib, and the handling of the sheet member is facilitated including the first positioning step and the supporting step. Moreover, it is desirable that the guide member is formed of a frame and is formed so that sides orthogonal to each other serve as the outer shape reference of the sheet member. This is because the X reference and Y reference of the sheet member can be easily secured. Furthermore, it is desirable that the guide member has an end portion on the seat mounting portion side that is a tapered portion that is inclined outward toward the seat mounting portion. This is because the relative positional relationship between the guide member and the seat mounting portion is smoothly adjusted at the end of movement of the guide member in a plane parallel to the surface of the seat mounting portion.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a recording head having an assembly target of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the aspect at the time of mounting | wearing of the sealing member which is an assembly | attachment object. It is a top view which shows the aspect at the time of position adjustment to the XY reference | standard of a sealing member. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of the sealing member after position adjustment, and a seal mounting part. It is explanatory drawing which shows typically the aspect at the time of the assembly | attachment by a guide member.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an ink jet recording head (hereinafter also simply referred to as a recording head) incorporating a sealing member to be assembled according to the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, the head body 10 is provided with a liquid ejecting surface 12 on one side of which a nozzle for ejecting ink droplets as a liquid is opened. Although not specifically shown, the liquid ejection surface 12 of the present embodiment is provided with two rows of nozzle rows in which nozzles are juxtaposed in a direction intersecting the nozzle juxtaposition direction. Here, in this embodiment, the direction in which the nozzles are arranged in parallel in one nozzle row is referred to as a first direction X, and the direction in which the nozzle rows are in contact with each other across the first direction X is the second direction. Called Y.

  Inside the head main body 10 (not shown), there are provided a flow path communicating with the nozzle and the liquid flow path of the flow path member 20, a pressure generating means for causing a pressure change in the ink in the flow path, and the like. . Further, the head body 10 is provided with a wiring member 13 connected to an internal pressure generating means or the like on the surface opposite to the liquid ejection surface 12. Furthermore, an inlet for supplying ink (liquid) to the flow path in the head body 10 on both sides of the wiring member 13 in the second direction Y on the side opposite to the liquid ejection surface 12 of the head body 10. Is provided.

  The head main body 10 has a surface opposite to the liquid ejecting surface 12 fixed to the flow path member 20, and ink held in a liquid holding portion such as an ink cartridge or an ink tank is introduced through the flow path member 20. Supplied from The flow path member 20 includes a plurality of head main bodies 10 arranged in parallel in the second direction Y, which is the arrangement direction of the nozzle rows in the present embodiment. That is, a single recording head 1 has a total of four nozzle rows arranged in parallel in the second direction Y. In the present embodiment, the fixing direction of the flow path member 20 and the head body 10 is referred to as a third direction Z. That is, the fixing direction of the flow path member 20 and the head main body 10 is a stacking direction and a direction orthogonal to the surface direction of the liquid ejecting surface 12 (the in-plane directions of the first direction X and the second direction Y). . This is also the direction in which the ink droplets are ejected.

  The flow path member 20 to which the head body 10 is fixed includes the upstream flow path member 30 to which the liquid holding unit is connected, the downstream flow path member 40 communicating with the upstream flow path member 30, and the upstream flow path member 30 and the downstream flow. A seal member 50 provided between the path member 40 and sealing the connecting portion between the two and a wiring board 60 provided between the upstream flow path member 30 and the downstream flow path member 40; and The upstream flow path member 30, the seal member 50, the wiring substrate 60, and the downstream flow path member 40 are stacked in a third direction Z that is a direction in which ink droplets are ejected.

  The upstream flow path member 30 has a connection portion 34 connected to a liquid holding portion such as an ink tank or an ink cartridge in which ink (liquid) is held on the side opposite to the downstream flow path member 40. In this embodiment, the connection part 34 protruded in the shape of a needle.

  A plurality of head main bodies 10, in the present embodiment, two head main bodies 10 are fixed to the surface of the downstream flow path member 40 opposite to the upstream flow path member 30. Here, as described above, the nozzle group (nozzle row) is formed side by side in the second direction Y in one head main body 10, and the two head main bodies 10 are arranged in the second direction in the recording head 1. Y is provided side by side.

  Between the upstream flow path member 30 and the downstream flow path member 40, a seal member 50 that is a joint that connects (joins) the both is provided. This seal member 50 is a sheet member to be assembled in this embodiment.

  The seal member 50 is made of a flexible material such as an elastomer or silicone that has a liquid resistance to an ink or the like used in the recording head 1 and is elastically deformable (e.g., an elastomer or silicone). Can do. The seal member 50 is provided with a through channel 130 that communicates the upstream channel member 30 and the downstream channel member 40. Further, the seal member 50 of the present embodiment is held in a state in which pressure is applied in the third direction Z between the upstream flow path member 30 and the downstream flow path member 40.

  A wiring board 60 to which the wiring member 13 is connected is provided between the seal member 50 and the downstream flow path member 40. The wiring board 60 is mounted with wiring (not shown), electronic components, and the like, and the wiring (not shown) is connected to connectors 61 provided on both end sides in the second direction Y. The connector 61 is connected to an external wiring (not shown) for supplying a print signal or the like. The channel member 20 is provided with a connector connection port 21 for exposing the connector 61 on both side surfaces in the second direction Y, and the external wiring is the connector 61 exposed by the connector connection port 21. Connected to.

  A cover head 70 that exposes the nozzles and protects the head body 10 is provided on the side of the flow path member 20 on which the head body 10 is provided.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a relationship between an upstream flow path member serving as a base in this embodiment and a seal member being a sheet member. This figure shows the positional relationship between the upstream flow path member 30 and the seal member 50 reversed in the vertical direction with respect to FIG. The upstream flow path member 30 serving as a base is formed with a wall portion 30B that defines a rectangular region serving as a convex portion at the center thereof. As a result, the upstream flow path member 30 is formed with a sheet mounting portion 30A that is a rectangular flat surface defined by the wall portion 30B. An upper flow path 30C communicating with the through flow path 130 of the seal member 50 is formed in the sheet mounting portion 30A. When the seal member 50 is mounted on the sheet mounting section 30A, the upper flow path 30C is a through flow. It communicates with the path 130.

  On the other hand, the seal member 50 is a material (elastic material), for example, an elastomer, in which the seal main body 50A has liquid resistance to the liquid such as ink used in the recording head 1 and is elastically deformable as described above. Or a plate-like member formed of a flexible member such as silicone. Accordingly, since it is easily deformed and becomes a member with poor handling properties as it is, reinforcing ribs 50B and 50C are formed on the sealing member 50 of this embodiment in order to suppress the deformation and improve the handling properties. In addition, a plurality of through channels 130 that communicate with the upper channel 30C are dispersedly formed in the surface of the seal body 50A.

  Next, an assembling method according to this embodiment in which the seal member 50 is incorporated into the upstream flow path member 30 will be described. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an aspect during position adjustment in the first positioning step with respect to the seal member. As shown in the figure, the seal member 50 is positioned at a reference point 100A that is disposed in the X-axis direction and defines the X reference of the seal member 50 on an XY plane that is parallel to the seat mounting portion 30A (see FIG. 2). And the seal member 50 is brought into contact with a reference point 100B which is disposed in the Y-axis direction orthogonal to the X-axis and defines the Y reference of the seal member 50. As a result, the first side 50D along the X axis of the seal member 50 is regulated at the reference point 100A, and the second side 50E along the Y axis is regulated at the reference point 100B to the XY reference position. Arranged.

  Therefore, the positional relationship between the seal member 50 and the seat mounting portion 30A at this time is as shown in FIG. 4 (plan view showing the positional relationship between the seal member 50 and the seat mounting portion 30A after adjusting the XY reference). In both cases, the XY standard is adjusted as prescribed. After the position of the seal member 50 is adjusted to such a state, the seal member 50 is supported by a support means such as a suction jig 101 (see FIG. 5).

  In such a supported state, as shown in FIG. 5 (an explanatory diagram schematically showing the mode of assembly by the guide member), the surface of the sheet mounting portion 30A in a state where the seal member 50 is suction supported by the suction jig 101. The suction jig 101 is moved along the guide member 102 toward the sheet mounting portion 30A while restricting the position of the suction jig 101 in the XY plane that is a plane parallel to the surface.

  At the end of the moving process accompanying the movement of the suction jig 101, the end of the guide member 102 on the sheet mounting portion 30A side is a wall portion 30B that is a convex portion protruding from the upstream flow path member 30 that is a base. The second positioning step of adjusting the relative position of the seal member 50 with respect to the seat mounting portion 30A is performed. More specifically, in this embodiment, the upstream flow path member is obtained by causing the lower end portion on the sheet mounting portion 30A side of the guide member 102 that descends along the Z-axis (vertical axis) direction of the guide member 102 to interfere with the wall portion 30B. 30 is moved along the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction within the XY plane so that the relative positional relationship between the seat mounting portion 30A and the seal member 50 is adjusted to be maintained as predetermined. Thus, the relative positional relationship of the seal member 50 with respect to the seat mounting portion 30A is maintained as specified. Further, the guide member 102 in this embodiment has a tapered portion 102A whose end on the sheet mounting portion side is inclined outward toward the seat mounting portion 30A. Thus, in a state where the tapered portion 102A is in contact with the outer end portion of the wall portion 30B, the guide member 102 is lowered so that the upstream flow path member 30 serving as a base is smoothly moved in the XY plane by the taper effect of the tapered portion 102A. The relative position of the guide member 102 in the XY plane can be adjusted and positioned smoothly. In this embodiment, the upstream flow path member 30 moves in the XY plane with respect to the guide member 102. However, the guide member 102 may move in the XY plane with respect to the guide member 102. In short, it is only necessary that the relative positional relationship between the two can be adjusted by moving one relative to the other.

  Finally, the suction by the suction jig 101 is released at the position positioned as described above, and the seal member 50 is dropped to mount the seal member 50 at a predetermined position of the sheet mounting portion 30A.

  According to such an assembling method, it is possible to easily automate a series of operations, so that the throughput of the assembling operations can be dramatically improved.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the sheet member is the seal member 50 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The seal member 50 is a typical sheet member in the embodiment of the present invention. However, if the seal member 50 is a sheet-like flexible member formed of an elastomer or silicone and is assembled to a base such as a case, There is no limitation. Further, the support member need not be limited to the suction jig 101. It is sufficient if the structure is such that the sheet member such as the seal member 50 can be supported and moved toward the sheet mounting portion 30A. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the portion that interferes with the guide member 102 at the end of the moving process is formed by the wall portion 30B of the seat mounting portion 30A, but this is not a limitation. It is a portion that protrudes from the surface of the base (the upstream flow path member 30 in the embodiment), and may be a portion where the tip of the guide member 102 first contacts in the moving process.

  In the above embodiment, the suction force by the suction jig 101 is released when the guide member 102 and the wall portion 30B which is the convex portion contact each other and the final positioning of the seal member 50 with respect to the sheet mounting portion 30A is completed. Then, the seal member 50 is dropped to be attached to the seat attachment portion 30A, but is not limited thereto. For example, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which the suction force is released in a state where the seal member 50 is inserted into the sheet mounting portion 30 </ b> A while being attracted to the suction jig 101.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording head, 10 Recording head main body, 30 Upstream flow path member, 30A Sheet mounting part, 30B Wall part, 50 Seal member, 50B, 50C Rib, 50D 1st edge | side, 50E 2nd edge | side, 101 Adsorption jig | tool, 102 guide member, 102A taper part

Claims (4)

A sheet member assembly method for mounting a sheet member, which is an elastic body having a plurality of through holes, on a sheet mounting portion formed on a base,
A first reference point that regulates a position of the first side, a first side that is one side of the sheet member and a second side that is the other side intersecting the first side; First positioning for positioning the position of the sheet member in a plane including the first side and the second side by making contact with a second reference point that regulates the position of the second side. Process,
A supporting step of supporting the sheet member positioned in the first positioning step with a supporting means;
A moving step of moving the support means along the guide member toward the seat mounting portion while regulating the position of the support means;
With the movement of the supporting means, at the end of the moving step, the sheet member relative to the sheet mounting portion is caused to interfere with the convex portion protruding from the base at the end of the guide member on the sheet mounting portion side. A second positioning step of adjusting the relative position of the two by the interference;
And a mounting step of mounting the sheet member on the sheet mounting portion by the support means at the position positioned in the second positioning step. In the assembly method of the sheet member according to claim 1,
The method of assembling a sheet member, wherein the sheet member is a plate-like member and has a rib for reinforcement. In the assembling method of the sheet member according to claim 1 or 2,
The method of assembling a sheet member, wherein the guide member is formed of a frame and is formed so that sides orthogonal to each other serve as an outer shape reference of the sheet member. In the assembling method of the sheet member according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The sheet member assembling method is characterized in that the guide member has a taper portion whose end on the sheet mounting portion side is inclined outward toward the seat mounting portion.

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