JPH11170557A - Ink cartridge and ink jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an ink cartridge being loaded to an ink cartridge recorder in which the loading/unloading performance of the ink cartridge is enhanced by providing a protrusion for hooking a finger on the cartridge body. SOLUTION: An ink cartridge 7 to be mounted on a carriage unit has a cartridge body 41 containing an ink absorber 42 and the upper opening of a case 43 is closed by an upper cover member 44. A protrusion 81 is formed on the upper cover member 44 of the ink cartridge 7 and a recess 82 corresponding to the protrusion 81 is made. A nonslip part 81a is formed on the inclining face of the protrusion 81 on the recess 82 side. Since a finger can be hooked between the protrusion 81 and the end part of the cartridge body 41 at the time of loading the ink cartridge 7 to the cartridge holder of a carriage unit or unloading the ink cartridge 7 therefrom, loading/unloading of the ink cartridge 7 can be facilitated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink cartridge and an ink jet recording apparatus, and more particularly to an ink cartridge used for an ink jet recording apparatus and the like and an ink jet recording apparatus capable of detachably mounting the ink cartridge.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, as an ink jet recording apparatus used for a printer, a facsimile, a copying apparatus, etc., a recording head and an ink cartridge (also referred to as an ink tank) for supplying ink to the recording head are mounted on a carriage. There is known a serial scan type in which recording is performed while moving in the main scanning direction. As an inkjet recording apparatus, there are three colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C), or four colors obtained by adding black (Bk) to the three colors, and further, light magenta (M) and light 2. Description of the Related Art A color ink jet printing apparatus that prints a color image using six colors of ink including two colors of cyan (C) has been frequently used.

As a conventional ink jet recording apparatus and ink cartridge, for example, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-76098, a supply port of an ink cartridge is fitted to a joint provided on a head, and the surrounding area is changed. An ink cartridge is coupled to a head in a lowered state, and the head is mounted on a carriage. Alternatively, as described in JP-A-3-13661, an ink tank and a head are used as an ink cartridge. Integrally configured, an engaging portion that can be taken with a finger is provided on the upper surface of the ink tank, and the engaging portion of the ink cartridge is taken with a finger and is mounted on a carriage that is open at least on the rear side. It has been known.

[0004]

In a color ink jet recording apparatus of a type in which a plurality of ink cartridges are mounted on a carriage, the width of the ink cartridge itself in the main scanning direction is increased, or the interval between the plurality of ink cartridges is increased. When the size of the ink jet recording apparatus becomes large, the size of the carriage on which the ink cartridge is mounted becomes large, and the size of the ink jet recording apparatus itself cannot be reduced.

[0005] On the other hand, if the ink capacity of the ink cartridge is small, the ink cartridge must be replaced frequently, and the usability deteriorates. Therefore, it is required that a plurality of ink cartridges having a large capacity can be mounted on the carriage at intervals as small as possible, that the operability of attaching and detaching the ink cartridge is good, and that the movement of the carriage does not make the ink cartridge unstable. .

However, in the above-described conventional ink cartridges and ink jet recording apparatuses, since such a viewpoint is lacking, the operability of attaching and detaching the ink cartridge is low, and the ink cartridge is stably mounted on the carriage. Can not do it. In addition, operability is not sufficient when the present invention is applied to a narrow ink cartridge only by providing an engaging portion which can be imaged with a finger on the upper part of the ink tank like the above-mentioned ink cartridge.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and the inventions of claims 1 to 6 improve the detachability of an ink cartridge and enable downsizing of an ink jet recording apparatus. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of easily attaching and detaching an ink cartridge and stably holding the ink cartridge on a carriage.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the ink cartridge according to the first aspect of the present invention has a structure in which a protrusion on which a finger can be hooked is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge body.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ink cartridge of the first aspect, a non-slip portion is formed on the projecting portion of the cartridge body.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the ink cartridge of the first or second aspect, a concave portion is provided on an upper surface of the cartridge body adjacent to the projecting portion.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the ink cartridge according to any one of the first to third aspects, another projection is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge body at a distance from the projection. .

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the ink cartridge according to any one of the first to third aspects, a concave portion or a protruding portion is formed at an upper end of the cartridge body.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, further comprising a cap member which closes an ink supply port of the cartridge body and has a reinforcing standing portion corresponding to a side wall surface. Configuration.

An ink cartridge according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is an ink jet recording apparatus capable of detachably mounting a plurality of ink cartridges, further comprising a cartridge holder for mounting the plurality of ink cartridges with a gap in a main scanning direction. The ink cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 5 can be mounted in the cartridge holder.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a main part of a mechanism part of a serial type ink jet recording apparatus equipped with an ink cartridge to which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a main part of the recording apparatus.

The mechanism of the ink jet recording apparatus is as follows.
The main support guide rod 3 and the sub support guide rod 4 are laid horizontally between the side plates 1 and 2 in a substantially horizontal positional relationship, and the carriage unit 5 is main-scanned by the main support guide rod 3 and the sub support guide rod 4. It is slidably supported in the direction. The carriage unit 5 has four heads 6 that respectively discharge yellow (Y) ink, magenta (M) ink, cyan (C) ink, and black (Bk) ink, and discharge surfaces (nozzle surfaces) 6 a thereof. Four ink cartridges 7 which are mounted downward and are provided on the upper side of the head 6 of the carriage unit 5 are ink supply bodies of respective colors for supplying ink to the four heads 6 respectively.
y, 7m, 7c, and 7k are interchangeably mounted.

The carriage unit 5 is connected to a timing belt 11 stretched between a driving pulley (drive timing pulley) 9 rotated by a main scanning motor 8 and a driven pulley (idler pulley) 10 to perform main scanning. By controlling the drive of the motor 8, the carriage 5, that is, the four heads 6, is moved in the main scanning direction.

Further, sub-frames 13 and 14 are erected on a bottom plate 12 connecting the side plates 1 and 2 and
A transport roller 15 for feeding a sheet 16 in a sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction is rotatably held between the rollers 3 and 14. The sub-scanning motor 17 is provided on the side of the sub-frame 14.
And the rotation of the sub-scanning motor 17 is
5, a gear 18 fixed to the rotation shaft of the sub-scanning motor 17 and a gear 19 fixed to the shaft of the transport roller 15.
And

Further, a reliability maintenance / recovery mechanism (hereinafter, referred to as a “subsystem”) 21 for the head 6 is disposed between the side plate 1 and the subframe 12. The subsystem 21 holds four cap means 22 for capping the ejection surface of each head 6 with a holder 23.
3 is held by a link member 24 so as to be swingable, and the carriage unit 5 abuts on an engaging portion 25 provided on the holder 23 by movement of the carriage unit 5 in the main scanning direction. 23 is lifted up and the ink jet head 6 is
Of the carriage unit 5 is capped.
Moves to the printing area side, so that the carriage unit 5
The cap 23 is moved away from the ejection surface 6a of the ink jet head 6 by lifting down the holder 23 according to the movement of the ink jet head 6.

The cap means 22 is connected to a suction pump 27 via a suction tube 26, forms an air opening port, and communicates with the atmosphere via an air opening tube and an air opening valve. Further, the suction pump 27 discharges the sucked waste liquid to a waste liquid storage tank (not shown) via a drain tube or the like.

Further, on the side of the holder 23, a wiper blade 28, which is a wiping means composed of an elastic member such as a fiber member, a foam member or rubber, for wiping the ejection surface 6a of the ink jet head 6, is provided with a blade arm 29.
The blade arm 29 is pivotally supported so as to be pivotable, and is pivoted by rotation of a cam which is rotated by a driving means (not shown).

Next, details of the carriage unit 5 in the ink jet recording apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. As described above, the carriage unit 5
Heads 6 and ink cartridges 7 (reference numeral “7”)
Has a carriage main body 31 for mounting any one of the symbols “7y, 7m, 7c, 7k”, and the carriage main body 31 is provided with the main support guide rods 3 arranged in parallel as described above. And a supporting guide rod 4 so as to slide and swing. Cylindrical bearing members 32 are mounted on both sides of the carriage main body 31 through which the main support guide rod 3 is inserted in the main scanning direction, and precise positioning is performed by the bearing members 32.

On the carriage main body 31, four heads (head units) 6 are fixed via an adhesive by using two L-shaped brackets 33 as intermediate members at the front and rear, respectively. And a driver board 34 constituting a circuit for driving each head 6, and a cartridge for forming a cover of the driver board 34 and holding a plurality of ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, 7k at intervals. A holder 35 and four cartridge levers 36 for holding the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, 7k are mounted. The driver board 34 is connected with a flat cable 37 connected to a control board of the apparatus main body.

Next, FIG.
The description will be made with reference to the following. Here, FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of the ink cartridge before being loaded into the recording apparatus, FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the ink cartridge with the cap member removed in the state of FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is a front view of the ink cartridge. 6 is a front sectional view of the ink cartridge, FIG. 7 is a plan view of the ink cartridge, and FIG. 8 is a side view of the ink cartridge.

As shown in FIG. 6, the ink cartridge 7 contains an ink absorber 42 in which ink of a required color is absorbed in a cartridge main body 41. The cartridge body 41 is formed by bonding or welding an upper lid member 44 to an upper opening of a case 43 having a wide opening at an upper portion, and is made of, for example, a resin molded product. The ink absorber 42 is made of a porous material such as a urethane foam body, and absorbs ink after being compressed and inserted into the cartridge main body 41.

An ink supply port 45 for supplying ink to the recording head 6 is formed at the bottom of the case 43 of the cartridge body 41, and a seal ring 46 is fitted on the inner peripheral surface of the ink supply port 45. An air opening 47 is formed in the upper lid member 44. A plurality of grooves 48 are formed in an annular shape around the air opening 47 as shown in FIGS. The grooves 48 communicate with each other and communicate with the air opening 47.

In the cartridge main body 41, before the cartridge is loaded, the ink supply port 45 is closed, and the case 43 is pressed by the pressure applied to the wide side wall at the time of handling the cartridge at the time of loading or transportation, or at the time of vacuum packaging. A cap member 50 is attached to prevent the internal ink from leaking due to compression deformation. The cap member 50 includes a cap portion 51 for closing the ink supply port 45 and a wide reinforcing rising portion 52 having substantially the same height as the side wall surface of the case 43.
And an engaging portion 5 of the case 43 for locking to the case 43.
4 are integrally formed with the engaging portion 53 by resin molding. The rising portion 5 of the cap member 50
2, the wide side wall surface of the case 43 has a double structure and is reinforced, so that deformation can be prevented even when a force is applied to the case 43 from the lateral direction.

The upper lid member 4 of the cartridge body 41
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and the like, the atmosphere opening port 47 formed in FIG. 4 is sealed by attaching a film-shaped sealing member 55 having an oxygen permeability of 100 ml / m ² or more to the upper lid member 44. The sealing member 55 is sized to seal the plurality of grooves 48 formed around the opening 47 together with the atmosphere opening port 47.

By sealing the atmosphere opening port 47 with the sealing member 55 having an oxygen permeability of 100 ml / m ² or more, the ink cartridge 7 can be sealed with a packaging member such as an air-impermeable aluminum laminate film. Packaging under reduced pressure makes it possible to use the ink absorber 42
Even when the gas is dissolved in the ink due to the atmosphere in the space A (see FIG. 6) generated between the cartridge body 41 and the cartridge body 41, the air in the ink can be removed through the cartridge member 41 with a high degree of vacuum through the seal member 55. The ink is discharged to the space between the outer packaging member and the ink, and the degree of deaeration of the ink is improved.

In this case, if the oxygen permeability of the seal member 55 is less than 100 ml / m ² , it takes too much time to discharge the air from the ink, so that the oxygen permeability is 100 ml / m 2.
It is preferably at least ² , and if the oxygen permeability is too high, bubbles may be generated from the ink. Therefore, the oxygen permeability is preferably 20,000 ml / m ² or less, more preferably 500 ml / m ² to 500 ml / m ² . 10,000ml
/ M ² .

Next, the relationship between the ink cartridge 7 and the holding member on the carriage 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 is a perspective explanatory view for explaining the arrangement when the four ink cartridges 7 are loaded into the carriage unit 5, FIG. 10 is a schematic sectional view of a cartridge holder 35 of the carriage unit 5, and FIG. It is a schematic plan view.

In this ink jet recording apparatus,
As shown in FIG. 9, the four color ink cartridges 7y, 7
m, 7c, and 7k are arranged and loaded into the cartridge holder 35 of the carriage unit 5. The cap member 50 and the seal member 55 of each ink cartridge 7 described above.
Is attached to the cartridge holder 35 in a detached state.

The cartridge holder 35 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1, each of the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7
c, 7k, respectively, box-shaped loading portions 35y, 35m,
35c and 35k are formed by an outer wall portion and a partition wall 35d. Each partition wall 35d is formed thin so as to make the carriage main body 31 as small as possible. Also, an ink cartridge 7k for black ink
And ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7 for color ink
The width (width in the main scanning direction) is different from c. That is, since the used amount of the black ink in the ink becomes relatively large, the capacity of the ink cartridge 7k is made larger than that of the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, so that each of the loading sections 35y, 35m, 35c, 35k has The width in the main scanning direction also matches the width of the cartridge.

Then, each of the ink cartridges 7y, 7
On one of the narrow outer wall surfaces of the cartridge main body 41 of m, 7c, and 7k, ribs 71, which are convex portions, are formed in the height direction in the number and positions corresponding to the colors of the stored ink.
That is, the ink cartridge 7k for black ink
Is formed with one rib 71, and two ribs 71 are formed on the color ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, so that black ink and color ink are distinguished by the number of ribs 71. In addition, the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, and 7c for color ink
By making the formation position of the book rib 71 different for each color,
Yellow, magenta, and cyan are distinguished. further,
Depending on the presence or absence of the rib 71, the ink cartridges 7y, 7
The front side and the rear side of m, 7c and 7k are distinguished.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, the length L2 of each of the ribs 71 of the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, 7k in the height direction is changed from the tip of the rib 71 to the ink supply port 4.
Longer than the length L1 in the height direction up to 5 (L2> L1)
Has formed.

On the other hand, the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7
In the cartridge holder 35 of the carriage unit 5 for loading the ink cartridges 7c, 7k, the ribs 7 of the corresponding ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c, 7k are provided on the side walls of the loading sections 35y, 35m, 35c, 35K of the ink cartridges of the respective colors.
The recesses 72 into which 1 can be inserted are formed in a predetermined number and positions. The concave portion 72 of the holder 35 is set to a height position where the rib 71 of the ink cartridge 7 fits when the ink cartridge 7 is correctly mounted.

Therefore, the ink cartridges 7y, 7
m, 7c, and 7k can be identified in the front-rear direction by the presence or absence of the rib 71. Since the ink cartridge 7k for black ink is wider than the ink cartridges 7y, 7m and 7c for color ink, it is possible to prevent the ink cartridges 7y, 7m and 7c for color ink from being loaded by mistake. Is done.

The color ink cartridges 7y, 7m, and 7c are different from the black ink ink cartridge 7k in the number and positions of the ribs 71, respectively.
Inadvertent loading of 5k is prevented. Further, the formation positions of the two ribs 71 are different between the ink cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c for the color ink, and the formation positions of the concave portions 72 on the holder 35 side are correspondingly different. Parts 35y, 35
It is possible to prevent the m and 35c from being erroneously loaded with ink cartridges of other colors.

Further, the ink cartridges 7y, 7m,
The length of the rib 71c, 7k is longer than the length L1 in the height direction from the tip of the rib 71 to the ink supply port 45 (L
2> L1), the ink supply port 45 of the ink cartridge 7 is prevented from contacting the ink supply port 73 of the holder 35 even when the ink cartridge is forcibly mounted in the wrong place. Color mixing can be prevented.

Next, a configuration for improving the operability of attaching and detaching the ink cartridge 7 to and from the carriage 5 will be described. 4
On the upper lid member 44 of the color ink cartridges 7k, 7y, 7m, 7c, a protruding portion 81 having an upwardly protruding shape for catching a finger is formed, and a recess corresponding to the protruding portion 81 is formed. A portion 82 is formed. Further, the projecting portion 81 is formed with a step-shaped non-slip portion 81a on the inclined surface on the concave portion 82 side.

With this configuration, the ink cartridge 7 is mounted on the cartridge holder 3 of the carriage unit 5.
When the ink cartridge 7 is mounted on the cartridge holder 35 and the ink cartridge 7 is removed from the cartridge holder 35, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the ink cartridge 7 can be easily attached and detached.

In particular, by arranging a plurality of ink cartridges 7 in the main scanning direction and mounting them at small intervals in a box-shaped cartridge holder as in this ink jet recording apparatus,
When the ink cartridge can be stably mounted and held, the operability is very poor even if the engaging portion for taking a picture with the finger is provided on the upper lid member as in the related art, but it is possible to pinch with the finger in this way. By doing so, the operability is improved.

In this case, the recess 8 corresponds to the projection 81.
2, the fingers are easily hooked, and the stepped anti-slip portion 81 a is formed on the inclined surface of the protruding portion 81, so that the operability of attaching and detaching the ink cartridge 7 is further improved. improves.

In addition to this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, a projecting portion 84, which is another projecting portion, is also formed on the upper lid member 44 along with the projecting portion 81 at intervals. It is also possible to put a finger between the protruding portion 81 and the protruding portion 84 so as to pinch it. Further, as shown in FIG. 14, an upper end of the upper lid member 44 may be formed with a hook portion formed of an R-shaped concave portion 85, or as shown in FIG. By forming a hook portion composed of the portion 86, it becomes easier for a finger to be caught and the operability is improved.

[0045]

As described above, according to the ink cartridge of the first aspect, since the projection portion on which the finger can be hung is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge main body, the detaching operation at the time of replacing the ink cartridge is facilitated. Thus, a small-sized ink jet recording apparatus can be realized.

According to the ink cartridge of the second aspect,
In the ink cartridge according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the anti-slip portion is formed on the projecting portion of the cartridge main body, the detachment operation when replacing the ink cartridge is further facilitated.

According to the ink cartridge of the third aspect,
In the ink cartridge according to the first or second aspect, since the concave portion is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge body adjacent to the protruding portion, the detaching operation at the time of replacing the ink cartridge is further facilitated.

According to the ink cartridge of the fourth aspect,
In the ink cartridge according to any one of the first to third aspects, since another protrusion is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge body at a distance from the protrusion, the detachment operation when replacing the ink cartridge is further facilitated.

According to the ink cartridge of the fifth aspect,
In the ink cartridge according to any one of the first to third aspects, since the concave portion or the protruding portion is formed at the upper end of the cartridge body, the detaching operation at the time of replacing the ink cartridge is further facilitated.

According to the ink cartridge of the sixth aspect,
The ink cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a cap member that closes an ink supply port of the cartridge body and has a rising portion for reinforcement corresponding to a side wall surface. Deformation can be prevented.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus comprising a cartridge holder for mounting a plurality of ink cartridges with a gap in the main scanning direction, and as a plurality of ink cartridges. Since the cartridge can be mounted in the cartridge holder, the recording apparatus can be downsized while the ink cartridge is stably mounted and held.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a main part of a mechanism part of a serial type ink jet recording apparatus equipped with an ink cartridge to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a main part of the recording apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of an ink cartridge before being loaded into a recording apparatus.

FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the ink cartridge with the cap member removed in the state of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 6 is a front sectional view of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating a state where the carriage unit is loaded.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory cross-sectional view illustrating a state where the carriage unit is loaded into the holder.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory plan view of the holder.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an ink cartridge attaching / detaching operation;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating another example of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view illustrating still another example of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating still another example of the ink cartridge.

[Explanation of symbols]

5 carriage, 6 head, 7, 7y, 7m, 7c,
7k: ink cartridge, 35: cartridge holder, 41: cartridge body, 42: ink absorber, 4
3 ... case, 44 ... upper lid member, 45 ... ink supply port, 4
7 ... air opening port, 48 ... groove, 50 ... cap member, 55
... Seal member, 71 ... Rib, 72 ... Recess, 81 ... Protrusion, 82 ... Recess.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An ink cartridge to be mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a protruding portion on which a finger can be hung is provided on an upper surface of the cartridge body. 2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a non-slip portion is formed on the projecting portion of the cartridge body. 3. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a concave portion is provided on an upper surface of the cartridge body adjacent to the projecting portion. 4. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein another protrusion is provided on the upper surface of the cartridge body at a distance from the protrusion. 5. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a recess or a protrusion is formed at an upper end of the cartridge body. 6. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising a cap member that closes an ink supply port of the cartridge main body and has a rising portion for reinforcement corresponding to a side wall surface. And an ink cartridge. 7. An ink jet recording apparatus in which a plurality of ink cartridges can be detachably mounted, further comprising a cartridge holder for mounting the plurality of ink cartridges with a gap in a main scanning direction, wherein the plurality of ink cartridges are provided as the plurality of ink cartridges. Item 6. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the ink cartridge according to any one of Items 1 to 5 can be mounted in the cartridge holder.