JP7164455B2 - container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to containers containing liquids.

2. Description of the Related Art It is known to use a sensor to detect the height of a liquid level in a container that holds liquid (see Patent Document 1).

Further, the presence or absence of liquid in the container is determined by whether or not the sensor detects that the liquid level in the container has fallen to the lower limit when the liquid is discharged.

JP 2012-153004 A

However, due to sensor detection error, even if it is detected that the liquid level has fallen to the lower limit and it is determined that there is no liquid in the container, the actual liquid level is lower than the lower limit. A lot of liquid may remain in the container. As a result, a large amount of the liquid remained in the container and wasted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a container capable of reducing wasted liquid.

In order to achieve the above object, the container of the present invention comprises a liquid containing portion for containing a liquid, a groove formed in the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion, and an opening in the groove portion for discharging the liquid from the liquid containing portion. and a detection unit that detects whether or not the liquid level in the groove is less than the lower limit height, and the detection unit detects whether the upper limit position of the liquid level detection range is the same as the groove. is installed so as to be located at a position lower than the upper end position of the

According to the container of the present invention, waste liquid can be reduced.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printing apparatus provided with a tank according to an embodiment; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tank; FIG. It is an exploded perspective view of a tank. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 2; 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 2; FIG. It is a top view of a tank main body. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the flow of ink in the tank during the stirring operation;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent reference numerals are given to the same or equivalent parts and components throughout each drawing.

The embodiments shown below are examples of devices and the like for embodying the technical idea of this invention. are not specific to the following: The technical idea of this invention can be modified in various ways within the scope of claims.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printing apparatus provided with a tank (corresponding to a container) according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the tank. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the tank. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the tank body. In the following description, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 1 is the front-rear direction, and the surface direction of the paper surface is the front. Further, the up, down, left, and right directions of the paper surface in FIG. 1 are defined as up, down, left, and right directions. Here, the vertical direction shown in FIG. 1 is the vertical direction.

As shown in FIG. 1, the printing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment includes a printing section 2, an ink supply section 3, and a control section 4. As shown in FIG.

The printing unit 2 has an inkjet head (not shown), and prints an image by ejecting ink onto paper from the inkjet head.

The ink supply unit 3 agitates the ink and supplies the ink to the printing unit 2 . The ink supply section 3 includes an ink cartridge 11 and a stirring section 12 .

Here, the ink used for printing by the printing apparatus 1 is a pigment ink, and if left unattended, the pigment particles may settle. For example, the ink used for printing by the printer 1 is MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Reader) ink containing metal particles that are magnetic substances. Sedimentation of pigment particles in the ink causes problems such as ejection failure in the inkjet head and variations in density of the ejected ink. Since there is a possibility that the pigment particles of the ink have sedimented in the ink cartridge 11, the printing apparatus 1 stirs the ink in the agitator 12 so as to eliminate the sedimentation of the pigment particles. to

The stirring unit 12 acquires ink from the ink cartridge 11 and stirs the acquired ink. Further, the stirring section 12 supplies the stirred ink to the printing section 2 . The agitating section 12 includes a tank 21, an atmosphere opening pipe 22, an air filter 23, an ink transfer pipe 24, an ink outflow pipe 25, an ink transfer valve 26, an agitating valve 27, a pump 28, and an ink supply pipe. 29 and an ink supply valve 30 .

The tank 21 accommodates the ink obtained from the ink cartridge 11 for stirring. Details of the tank 21 will be described later.

The atmosphere release pipe 22 forms an air flow path for opening the tank 21 to the atmosphere. The atmosphere release pipe 22 has one end connected to the tank 21 and the other end communicated with the atmosphere via the air filter 23 . The air filter 23 prevents dust and the like in the air from entering the open-air tube 22 .

The ink transfer pipe 24 connects the ink cartridge 11 and the tank 21 . The ink transfer pipe 24 constitutes a transfer route Rt, which is a route for transferring ink from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 .

The ink outflow pipe 25 connects the tank 21 and the ink transfer pipe 24 .

The ink outflow pipe 25 and the portion of the ink transfer pipe 24 closer to the tank 21 than the point where the ink outflow pipe 25 is connected constitute a stirring route Rs. The stirring route Rs is a route outside the tank 21 for circulating and stirring the ink in the tank 21 .

The ink transfer valve 26 opens and closes the ink flow path within the ink transfer pipe 24 . The ink transfer valve 26 is arranged at a portion of the ink transfer pipe 24 closer to the ink cartridge 11 than the point where the ink discharge pipe 25 is connected.

The stirring valve 27 opens and closes the ink flow path in the ink outflow pipe 25 .

The ink transfer valve 26 and the agitation valve 27 switch between the transfer route Rt and the agitation route Rs to open. Specifically, by opening the ink transfer valve 26 and closing the agitation valve 27, the transfer route Rt is opened and the agitation route Rs is closed. Further, by closing the ink transfer valve 26 and opening the stirring valve 27, the stirring route Rs is opened and the transfer route Rt is closed.

The pump 28 agitates the ink in the tank 21 by sending the ink out of the tank 21 and returning it to the tank 21 via the agitation path Rs. Pump 28 is also used to transfer ink from ink cartridge 11 to tank 21 . The pump 28 is arranged at a common portion of the transfer route Rt and the stirring route Rs. Specifically, the pump 28 is arranged at a portion closer to the tank 21 than the point where the ink outlet pipe 25 of the ink transfer pipe 24 is connected.

The ink supply pipe 29 connects the tank 21 and the printing section 2 .

The ink supply valve 30 opens and closes the ink flow path in the ink supply pipe 29 . When the ink supply valve 30 is opened, ink is supplied from the tank 21 to the printing section 2 .

The control section 4 controls the operation of each section of the printing apparatus 1 . The control unit 4 includes a CPU, RAM, ROM, hard disk, and the like.

Next, details of the tank 21 will be described.

The tank 21 includes a tank body 41 , a lid 42 and a sensor 43 .

The tank main body 41 accommodates ink transferred from the ink cartridge 11 . The tank main body 41 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.

The tank main body 41 has an ink storage portion 51 (corresponding to a liquid storage portion). The ink containing portion 51 is a portion that contains ink (corresponding to liquid). The ink containing portion 51 is formed by digging from the upper surface 41a of the tank body 41, and has a peripheral wall 51a and a bottom surface 51b.

A peripheral wall 51a of the ink containing portion 51 is formed in a substantially oval shape elongated in the horizontal direction in a plan view. That is, the peripheral wall 51 a has curved portions at the left and right ends of the ink containing portion 51 . This makes it easier for the ink to flow from the inlet 53a side (right side) described later to the outlet port 59a side (left side) described later, thereby improving the ink stirring efficiency.

A bottom surface 51b of the ink containing portion 51 is inclined downward to the left. That is, the bottom surface 51b is inclined so as to become lower from the inlet 53a side (right side) toward the outlet port 59a side (left side). This makes it easier for the ink to flow from the inflow port 53a side to the outflow port 59a side, thereby improving the ink agitation efficiency.

A groove 51c elongated in the front-rear direction is formed at the left end of the bottom surface 51b. The groove portion 51c is a portion where ink remains until the end when the remaining amount of ink in the ink containing portion 51 is low. The groove portion 51c is formed by digging the bottom surface 51b. An outflow port 59a and a later-described supply port 60a are opened in the groove portion 51c.

The bottom surface 51b is formed with a protrusion 51d protruding upward adjacent to the upstream side (right side) of the groove 51c in the ink flow direction from the inlet 53a to the outlet 59a. The projecting portion 51d has an inclined surface 51e that becomes higher toward the left side. The projecting portion 51d guides the flow of ink diagonally upward to the left by means of the inclined surface 51e.

A through hole 51f is formed in the bottom surface 51b so as to pass through the protrusion 51d in the left-right direction. The through hole 51f constitutes a channel for flowing ink from the right side of the projection 51d to the groove 51c. The through hole 51f is for preventing ink from accumulating in the depression at the boundary between the protrusion 51d and the portion on the right side of the protrusion 51d.

An ink inflow port 52 is provided on the right side of the tank body 41 . The ink inflow port 52 is for connecting the ink transfer pipe 24 to the tank main body 41 . An ink inflow hole 53 is formed in the ink inflow port 52 .

One end of the ink inflow hole 53 opens to the ink inflow port 52 , and the other end opens to the ink containing portion 51 . As a result, the ink inflow hole 53 communicates with the ink containing portion 51 , and ink flows into the ink containing portion 51 through the ink inflow hole 53 from the ink transfer pipe 24 . The opening of the ink inflow hole 53 in the ink containing portion 51 serves as an inflow port 53 a through which ink flows into the ink containing portion 51 . The inflow port 53a opens into a recessed portion formed by digging the bottom surface 51b at the right end of the ink containing portion 51. As shown in FIG.

An ink outlet port 56 , an ink supply port 57 , and an atmosphere release port 58 are provided on the left side of the tank body 41 .

The ink outflow port 56 is for connecting the ink outflow pipe 25 to the tank main body 41 . An ink outflow hole 59 is formed in the ink outflow port 56 .

One end of the ink outflow hole 59 is open to the ink outflow port 56 , and the other end is open to the ink containing portion 51 . As a result, the ink outflow hole 59 communicates with the ink containing portion 51 , and the ink flows out from the ink containing portion 51 to the ink outflow pipe 25 through the ink outflow hole 59 . The opening of the ink outlet hole 59 in the ink accommodating portion 51 serves as an outlet port 59 a through which ink flows out from the ink accommodating portion 51 to the ink outlet pipe 25 . The outflow port 59a opens into the groove portion 51c on the rear side of the center of the ink containing portion 51 in the front-rear direction.

The ink supply port 57 is for connecting the ink supply pipe 29 to the tank body 41 . An ink supply hole 60 is formed in the ink supply port 57 .

One end of the ink supply hole 60 opens to the ink supply port 57 , and the other end opens to the ink containing portion 51 . As a result, the ink supply hole 60 communicates with the ink containing portion 51 , and ink flows out from the ink containing portion 51 to the ink supply pipe 29 through the ink supply hole 60 . The opening of the ink supply hole 60 in the ink containing portion 51 serves as a supply port (equivalent to a discharge port) 60a for discharging ink from the ink containing portion 51 in order to supply the ink to the printing portion 2 via the ink supply pipe 29. It's becoming The supply port 60a opens into the groove portion 51c on the front side of the center of the ink containing portion 51 in the front-rear direction.

The atmosphere release port 58 is for connecting the atmosphere release pipe 22 to the tank body 41 . An atmosphere communication hole 61 is formed in the atmosphere release port 58 . The atmosphere communication hole 61 communicates the internal space (the ink containing portion 51) of the tank main body 41 covered with the lid 42 with the atmosphere, thereby opening the tank 21 to the atmosphere. One end of the air communication hole 61 opens to the air release port 58 , and the other end opens to the upper surface 41 a of the tank body 41 .

A seal groove 66 is formed in the tank body 41 . The seal groove 66 is formed so as to surround the ink containing portion 51 . The seal groove 66 is a groove for installing the seal member 67 . The seal member 67 is a member that prevents the ink in the ink containing portion 51 from leaking from the tank 21 .

The lid 42 covers the upper side of the tank body 41 . The lid 42 is placed on the top surface 41 a of the tank body 41 .

The sensor 43 detects whether the liquid level in the groove 51c is below a predetermined lower limit height. The sensor 43 is used to determine whether or not the ink in the ink containing portion 51 has run out. The sensor 43 outputs a signal indicating "ON" when the liquid level in the groove 51c is equal to or higher than the lower limit height, and outputs "OFF" when the liquid level in the groove 51c is less than the lower limit height. output a signal indicating

Here, the sensor 43 has a detection error of the liquid level height. As shown in FIG. 5, the sensor 43 is installed so that the upper limit position of the detection error range centered on the detection center position is located at a position lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. That is, the upper limit position of the detection range, which is the range from the lower limit position to the upper limit position of the detection error range of the sensor 43, is arranged at a position lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. Here, the upper end position of the groove portion 51c is the lower end position of the left opening of the through hole 51f.

Next, operations of the printer 1 will be described.

When printing, the control section 4 causes the inkjet head of the printing section 2 to eject ink onto the paper. As a result, the ink is consumed and the control unit 4 opens the ink supply valve 30 when the ink needs to be supplied to the printing unit 2 . When the ink supply valve 30 is opened, the ink in the ink container 51 is discharged from the supply port 60 a and supplied to the printing section 2 through the ink supply pipe 29 . When the required amount of ink is supplied, the controller 4 closes the ink supply valve 30 .

As the ink is supplied to the printing unit 2, the amount of ink in the ink containing unit 51 is reduced, and the liquid surface of the ink is lowered. Then, when the sensor 43 is turned off, the controller 4 determines that the ink in the ink container 51 has run out, and closes the ink supply valve 30 . Here, as described above, the sensor 43 is arranged so that the upper limit position of the detection error range is lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. Therefore, even if there is a detection error, the sensor 43 is turned off after the liquid level has fallen to a position lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c.

When the sensor 43 is turned off and it is determined that the ink has run out, the controller 4 transfers the ink from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 .

Specifically, the controller 4 opens the ink transfer valve 26 and closes the stirring valve 27 . As a result, the transfer route Rt is opened and the stirring route Rs is closed. Here, a new ink cartridge 11 is installed in the printer 1 .

Next, the controller 4 starts driving the pump 28 . As a result, the ink is transferred from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 via the transfer path Rt.

When all the ink in the ink cartridge 11 has been transferred to the tank 21 , the controller 4 closes the ink transfer valve 26 and opens the agitation valve 27 . As a result, the stirring route Rs is opened and the transfer route Rt is closed. The ink is circulated along the stirring route Rs, and the ink in the tank 21 is stirred.

After a specified time has elapsed since the start of stirring of the ink in the tank 21 , the controller 4 stops the pump 28 and closes the stirring valve 27 . As a result, the stirring operation of the ink by the stirring section 12 ends. It should be noted that printing can be continued with the ink stored in the printing unit 2 even during the transfer from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 and during the stirring operation.

The stirring operation in the stirring unit 12 is performed periodically, for example, at predetermined time intervals to prevent sedimentation of the pigment particles of the ink in the tank 21 other than immediately after the transfer from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 described above. will be

During the stirring operation described above, the ink that has flowed into the ink containing portion 51 from the inflow port 53a flows leftward in the ink containing portion 51 and flows out from the outflow port 59a. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the ink that has reached the protrusion 51d is guided by the inclined surface 51e so as to flow diagonally upward to the left. As a result, the ink flows into the upper portion of the left side (on the outflow port 59a side) of the ink containing portion 51, where the ink tends to stay, and the stay is reduced.

Here, the flow of ink due to suction of ink from the outflow port 59a in the left side portion of the ink containing portion 51 is strong in the lower portion of the ink containing portion 51 but weak in the upper portion. For this reason, ink tends to stagnate in the upper region of the left portion of the ink containing portion 51 .

As described above, in the printing apparatus 1, the sensor 43 is installed such that the upper limit position of the detection range is positioned lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. As a result, even if there is a detection error, the sensor 43 is prevented from turning off while the liquid level is higher than the upper end position of the groove 51c.

Here, unlike the present embodiment, when the upper limit position of the detection range of the sensor 43 is higher than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c, the sensor is detected while the liquid level is higher than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. 43 may be turned off. In this case, it is determined that there is no ink when ink remains outside the groove 51c.

When it is determined that the ink in the ink containing portion 51 has run out, ink is replenished from the new ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 as described above. However, when the use of the printing apparatus 1 is terminated as it is, the ink is not replenished from the ink cartridge 11 to the tank 21 . In this case, the residual ink in the tank 21 is not used and is wasted. Therefore, it is desirable that the residual ink is as small as possible when it is determined that there is no ink.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, even if there is a detection error, the sensor 43 is turned off after the liquid level is lowered to a position lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c. Therefore, it is possible to avoid determining that there is no ink when ink remains outside the groove 51c. As a result, the amount of residual ink can be kept small, and the amount of wasted ink can be reduced.

Further, in the tank 21, the bottom surface 51b is formed with a projecting portion 51d protruding upward adjacent to the upstream side of the groove portion 51c. As a result, during the stirring operation, the ink flowing from the inflow port 53a to the outflow port 59a is guided by the protrusion 51d to flow obliquely upward to the left. As a result, ink stagnation can be reduced, and stirring efficiency can be improved.

In the above embodiment, the supply port 60a for discharging the ink from the ink containing portion 51 and the outlet 59a for discharging the ink from the ink containing portion 51 during the stirring operation are separately provided. A configuration in which the opening is also used may be used.

Further, the sensor 43 may be provided with a member for communicating a signal for detecting the liquid level, and the upper end position of this member may be lower than the upper end position of the groove portion 51c.

Also, the protrusion 51d may be omitted. Also, the through hole 51f may be omitted.

Also, in the above-described embodiment, the tank for stirring the ink has been described, but the present invention can also be applied to other containers such as ink cartridges.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the case of stirring the ink causing sedimentation of the pigment particles has been described. There may be.

Moreover, the present invention can also be applied to a container containing liquid other than ink.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the gist of the present invention. Also, various inventions can be formed by appropriate combinations of the plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiments.

[Appendix]
This application discloses the following inventions.

(Appendix 1)
a liquid storage unit that stores liquid;
a groove formed in the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion;
a discharge port that opens in the groove and discharges the liquid from the liquid containing portion;
A detection unit that detects whether the liquid level in the groove is less than the lower limit height,
The container, wherein the detection unit is installed such that an upper limit position of a detection range of the liquid level is located at a position lower than an upper end position of the groove.

(Appendix 2)
an outlet that opens in the groove and allows the liquid to flow out from the liquid storage section to the path in order to circulate the ink in the liquid storage section through an external path;
an inflow port for inflowing the liquid from the path to the liquid storage unit,
The container according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion has a projection formed adjacent to an upstream side of the groove in a liquid flow direction from the inlet to the outlet.

1 printing device 2 printing unit 3 ink supply unit 4 control unit 11 ink cartridge 12 stirring unit 21 tank 22 atmosphere release pipe 23 air filter 24 ink transfer pipe 25 ink outflow pipe 26 ink transfer valve 27 stirring valve 28 pump 29 ink supply pipe 30 Ink supply valve 41 Tank main body 42 Lid 43 Sensor 51 Ink container 51a Peripheral wall 51b Bottom surface 51c Groove 51d Projection 53 Ink inflow hole 53a Inflow port 59 Ink outflow hole 59a Outflow port 60 Ink supply hole 60a Supply port

Claims (2)

a liquid storage unit that stores liquid;
a groove formed in the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion;
a discharge port that opens in the groove and discharges the liquid from the liquid containing portion;
A detection unit that detects whether the liquid level in the groove is less than the lower limit height,
The detection unit has a detection error of the liquid level height, and is installed so that the upper limit position of the range of the detection error is located at a position lower than the upper end position of the groove. container. a liquid storage unit that stores liquid;
a groove formed in the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion;
a discharge port that opens in the groove and discharges the liquid from the liquid containing portion;
a detection unit that detects whether the liquid level in the groove is less than the lower limit height;
an outlet that opens in the groove and allows the liquid to flow out from the liquid storage section to the path in order to circulate the ink in the liquid storage section through an external path;
an inflow port for inflowing the liquid from the path to the liquid storage part,
The detection unit is installed so that the upper limit position of the detection range of the liquid level is located at a position lower than the upper end position of the groove,
A container according to claim 1, wherein the bottom surface of the liquid containing portion has a protrusion formed adjacent to an upstream side of the groove portion in a flow direction of the liquid from the inflow port to the outflow port.

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