JPH0665493B2 - Inkjet recording device - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a recording apparatus such as an inkjet recording apparatus in which a recording apparatus main body and a recording liquid storage chamber are connectable and separable, and more particularly to a recording liquid bleeding preventing unit.

(Prior Art) Inkjet recording apparatuses have recently been attracting attention due to their advantages such as direct recording and low noise, but they have the drawback of smearing the equipment due to bleeding because they use liquid ink. Therefore, various measures have been taken to prevent the ink from seeping out in the ink supply path. Especially when replacing the ink cassette, regarding ink bleeding at the joint between the recording head and the ink tank, it is necessary to always apply the bleeding prevention means to the ink supply system while leaving the cassette unplugged. Since it is an open system, it is difficult to implement due to the operability at the time of cassette replacement. Therefore, conventionally, various means have been proposed, but all of them have the drawbacks that the mechanism is complicated, the reliability is low, or the cost is high.

(Object) An object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus having a simple structure and high reliability, which is provided with a bleeding preventing unit for the recording liquid, excluding the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional recording apparatus.

(Summary of the Invention) As a result of intensive studies for achieving the above-mentioned object, the present inventor has found that the opening / closing timing of the opening / closing means for achieving or preventing the ink supply state and the timing of attaching / detaching the needle from the ink cassette. It has been found that it is possible to prevent the ink from leaking from the needle by adjusting the and.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned findings, and in an inkjet device that detachably holds an ink cassette, a joint portion including a needle that receives ink from the ink cassette, and an ink supply to the joint portion by an elastic member. An opening / closing unit that is urged in the direction to close the path and is moved in a direction in which the casing of the ink cassette is brought into contact with the casing of the ink cassette to open the urged state when the ink cassette is inserted; The opening / closing means is arranged in this order with respect to the insertion direction of the ink cassette, and the opening / closing means contacts the casing of the ink cassette after the ink cassette is mounted on the needle, and the elastic member. The ink supply path is opened by moving against the bias due to It is released the contact between the casing of the ink cassette before removal operation is completed and said substantially closing the ink supply path.

By satisfying the above relationship, the opening / closing means of the ink supply path is not opened until the ink cassette is attached to the needle, and the ink supply path is opened / closed before the ink cassette is removed from the needle. The means will be closed, and ink leakage will not occur during the ink cassette attaching / detaching operation.

(Explanation by Embodiments) Means taken in the present invention in order to achieve the above-mentioned object will be described below by way of embodiments shown in the drawings. In this specification, the recording device includes a so-called inkjet recording device as well as a recording device using a recording liquid having a high viscosity.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an ink jet recording apparatus which is an example of a recording apparatus according to the present invention, in which 1 is a recording medium (hereinafter referred to as recording paper) and 2 is a platen for feeding the recording paper 1. It is driven by a drive source such as the illustrated pulse motor. An inkjet head unit 3 is an example of a recording head unit, and includes a head portion 3a and a sub tank 3b, and a recording liquid 3c (hereinafter also referred to as ink) is stored in the sub tank 3b. Reference numeral 4 is a tube, 5 is a joint portion described later, 6 is a needle, 7 is an ink cassette which is an example of a recording liquid storage chamber, and is movable in the direction of the arrow, the head unit 3, the tube 4, the joint portion 5
It is possible to connect to and disconnect from the main body of the recording device including.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed structure of the joint portion 5 and the ink cassette 7, and 8 is a tube having sufficient elasticity and is made of, for example, silicone rubber. Reference numeral 9 is a tube, and 10 is a support portion fixed to the apparatus body. Reference numeral 11 denotes a lever fitted to the shaft 12, which has claw portions 11a and 11b, and is pressed downward in the drawing by a spring 13. Reference numeral 14 is an ink passage in the needle 6, 15 is a connecting portion formed of an elastic body such as silicon rubber, 16 is a main body of the ink cassette 7, 17 is a tube, 18 is an ink tank, for example, a laminated film. It is made of a flexible material such as aluminum formed by vapor deposition, and is located several cm below the head 3a. Therefore, since the ink tank 18 is flexible and is at atmospheric pressure, the tip of the head 3a is kept at a slight negative pressure, and ink leakage from the tip of the head is prevented. The head 3 is driven by a mechanical force such as driving by a piezoelectric element.
When the ink is ejected from a, the ink tank 18 is deformed in accordance with the decrease in the ink, and always supplies an appropriate amount of ink to the head 3a.

Next, the operation of the recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described. If the ink tank 18 is emptied now, even if there is ink in the sub tank 3b, the tube 8 or the like, it becomes impossible to eject the ink from the head 3a. Therefore, in order to replace the ink cassette 7, when the cassette 7 is moved in the direction of the arrow X in FIG. ₂ , the claw portion 11a is disengaged from the cassette 7 in a state where it is moved by _{2 in the} drawing. In response to this, the lever 11 is rotated counterclockwise about the shaft 12 by the spring 13, the tip of the claw portion 11b pushes the tube 8 as shown by an arrow P, and the tube 8 contacts the claw portion 11b. And the ink supply path is sealed. At this time, the ink in the tube 8 moves to the ink passage 14 of the needle 6 by a small amount, but the length _{1 of the} needle 6 is set to ₁ > ₂ , and the connection between the ink tank 18 and the needle 6 is still maintained. Therefore, the ink does not flow back into the ink tank 18 to contaminate the device. The ink also flows in the opposite direction,
A known cap device or the like for the head 3a can sufficiently prevent ink leakage due to the flow in the opposite direction.
Even if the cassette 7 is moved further and the needle 6 is released from the main body of the apparatus, the ink leakage through the tube 8 does not occur because the tube 8 is still sealed by the claw portion 11b. On the other hand, since the elastic body such as rubber forming the coupling portion 15 is immediately restored, the ink does not leak from the ink cassette 7. That is, when the cassette 7 is separated, the recording liquid supply path for connecting the recording head and the recording liquid storage chamber is closed immediately before the separation.

Next, when a new cassette 7 is inserted into the apparatus main body in the direction opposite to the arrow X, the chamfered portion 7a of the cassette 7 causes the lever 1 to move.
1 rotates clockwise against the spring 13, and the tube 8 is opened. Then, the needle 6 penetrates through the elastic body such as rubber that constitutes the coupling portion 15, and the tube 17 in the ink cassette 7
Connected with. Therefore, when the recording liquid storage chamber is connected, the recording liquid supply passage is opened.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the opening / closing device is constituted by the lever 11 and the tube 8. However, the opening / closing device according to the present invention has a structure in which the valve mechanism is opened / closed in accordance with the movement of the recording liquid storage chamber. Can also be embodied by.

As described in detail above, according to this embodiment, the opening / closing device provided in the recording liquid supply path to connect the recording head and the recording liquid storage chamber and the opening / closing device in the state where the recording liquid storage chamber is connected are opened and closed. Since it is equipped with a means for opening the device and closing it immediately before separation of the recording liquid storage chamber, it provides a highly reliable means for preventing bleeding of the recording liquid with a simple structure, and further improves operability for the user. It is possible to reduce the size and cost of the device as compared with the conventional device without damaging the device.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the present invention is configured so that the opening / closing timing of the opening / closing means for supplying ink and the timing of attaching / detaching the needle to / from the ink cassette are set appropriately in association with the mounting operation of the ink cassette. Therefore, it is possible to provide an ink jet recording apparatus that does not cause ink leakage even when the ink cassette is attached or detached. In addition, it is possible to reliably prevent ink from leaking, so that the inside of the device is not polluted, and various leaked ink does not damage various electric control members, etc., and a highly reliable inkjet recording device is provided. You can

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a recording apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing details of a joint section and an ink cassette in the apparatus of FIG. In the figure, 3 is an ink jet head unit which is a recording head unit, 3a is its head part, 3b is its sub tank part, 4 is a tube, 5 is a joint part, 6 is a needle, 7 is an ink cassette which is a recording liquid storage chamber, 8 Is an elastic tube, 11 is a lever, 11a and 11b are claws, 1
Reference numeral 2 is a shaft, 13 is a spring, 15 is a connecting portion made of an elastic body, 17 is a tube, and 18 is an ink tank.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet device that detachably holds an ink cassette, wherein a joint portion having a needle for receiving ink from the ink cassette and an elastic member are urged in a direction to close an ink supply path of the joint portion. And an opening / closing means that is moved in a direction of opening the biased state by coming into contact with the housing of the ink cassette when the ink cassette is inserted, and the joint portion and the opening / closing means include the insertion of the ink cassette. The opening / closing means are arranged in this order with respect to the direction, and come into contact with the casing of the ink cassette after the ink cassette is attached to the needle and move against the bias by the elastic member. By doing so, the ink supply path is opened, and the ink cartridge is removed before the operation of removing the needle of the ink cassette is completed. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized substantially closing the contact state is canceled by the ink supply path between Tsu bets housing.