JPS58163666A - Liquid feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable the reliable maintenance of a liquid surface level in a liquid tank, by installing a ventilating tube extending from the inside of a liquid supply tank to a given position in the liquid tank connected to the lower part thereof. CONSTITUTION:A liquid supply tank 2 is mounted to a liquid tank 1, and a position of a ventilating tube 3 is adjusted so that the tip of the ventilating tube 3 is positioned in a required liquid surface level in the liquid tank 1. In that case, if a space is formed between the tip of the ventilating tube 3 and a liquid surface 11 in the liquid tank 1, air at the inside of the liquid tank 1 passes through the tip of the ventilating tube 3 to enter a space 5 in the liquid supply tank 2 through aperture 4, and a difference in pressure is produced between the inside of the liquid tank 1 and the inside of the liquid supply tank 2. This causes supplying of liquid in the liquid supply tank 2 to the liquid tank 1 after passing through a narrow gap btween a vent hole 6 and the ventilating tube 3.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a liquid supply device having a replenishment tank for replenishing a liquid tank with liquid.

In various devices, in order to maintain the pressure of the liquid supplied to the device at a predetermined pressure, the liquid level position of the liquid tank is set at a predetermined position Kt.
In many cases, it is required to adjust the illumination. In particular, in devices such as inkjet printing devices in which adjustment of ink hydraulic pressure affects printing results, it is necessary to satisfy this requirement with high precision. Therefore, conventionally, a replenishment tank is generally provided and the liquid level in the liquid tank is adjusted by supplying the liquid from the replenishment tank to the liquid tank.

In order to satisfy this requirement, complicated and expensive equipment such as a liquid level position detector and a replenishment liquid supply control device are required, and the space required increases.

In addition, there are cases where it is necessary to change the liquid level in the liquid tank depending on changes in the characteristics of the liquid or the environment such as the manufacturing process. in many cases.

However, in such a conventional liquid tank, there is a problem that dirt easily enters through the above-mentioned vent hole, mixes with the liquid, and deteriorates the liquid. Particularly in the case of an ink-shared printing device, this can cause knots in the ink nozzles and ink supply pipes, resulting in serious problems.

In view of the above points, we have developed a liquid supply device that accurately maintains a predetermined liquid level position by providing a ventilation means that reaches a predetermined position within the liquid tank within the replenishment tank. The purpose is to provide.

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to one drawing.

FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of the liquid supply device of the present invention, in which a liquid tank such as a /tX ink tank is used.

ko is a bottle-shaped liquid replenishment tank placed on top of the liquid tank l, J is a ventilation pipe installed in the replenishment tank so that it can slide freely along the axis of the tank, d is a ventilation pipe Ja) side It is a ventilation hole provided in the tank, and a space where the Fc inside the replenishment tank is lost! It opens at a position fIL near . Reference numeral 6 designates a narrow-mouthed body replenishment port protruding from the center of the bottom of the replenishment tank 1, which is inserted into a hole opened in the ceiling of the liquid tank 1 so that it can be attached and removed. Reference numeral 7 denotes legs protruding at multiple intervals along the outer edge of the bottom of the replenishment tank, which sit on the upper surface K11i of the liquid tank l to keep the replenishment tank at a predetermined stationary position tt. liquid tank l
There is a vent opening in the ceiling, and there are 20 supply tanks.
Provided in a position covered by 7. d is a liquid supply pipe connected to the liquid ink 1, and lσ is a liquid ejecting head provided at the tip ms of the liquid supply pipe 9, for example, 9 to the ink.

The ventilation pipe J is a relatively long, straight, hollow pipe with an open bottom end and a sealed top end, and extends through the ceiling St of the replenishment tank 1 to open the replenishment port 4 at a distance of 9. Reaches the liquid tantalum housing @//. Also, the outer diameter of 1 ventilation pipe J is made slightly smaller than the inner diameter of supply port 6.

An annular ring formed between the vent 4 and the vent pipe J is used to allow liquid to travel along the outer periphery of the vent pipe J and replenish into the liquid tank. Install the ceiling sliding hole/2 tightly and replenish the tank! St of J, make it airtight. In addition, it is preferable to engrave a dimension for positioning IIK on the outer circumference of the ventilation pipe J, or to make a space between the ventilation pipe J and the ceiling sliding hole 127 through other airtight S material pipes. Furthermore, it is also preferable to provide a member such as a member for locking one ventilation pipe Jt at an arbitrary position and a guide member for sliding the ventilation pipe J along the axis.

Next, the operation of the 111I device of the present invention will be explained.

First, a liquid replenishment tank is attached to the liquid tank l, and the position of the vent pipe J is adjusted so that the tip of the vent pipe J is located at a desired liquid level position in the liquid tank l. Part 11. If there is a barrier K11l between the tip of the vent pipe J and the liquid @//, the air in the liquid tank L passes through the tip of the vent pipe J,
The liquid in the replenishment tank enters the space JK of the replenishment tank through the opening hole, and a differential pressure is generated between the liquid tank L and the replenishment tank, so the liquid in the replenishment tank enters the gap between the vent 06 and the ventilation pipe J. The liquid is replenished into the liquid tank l through a barrier.

When the liquid level // rises due to liquid replenishment and reaches the tip of the vent pipe J, the liquid @ // closes the tip of the vent pipe J, blocking the flow of air between the liquid tank l and the replenishing tank WtS
As a result, the liquid pressures in both tanks 1 and 1 are balanced, and leakage of liquid from the replenishment tank is stopped. In other words, w
The annular gap between the supply port ≦ and the vent pipe J is set to be small enough to prevent air from entering due to internal tension, so that the gap between the liquid @ // and the tip of the vent pipe J is 1. 1. When touching 5 as shown in the figure. Just as if a narrow neck bottle containing liquid were turned upside down and the mouth of the bottle was submerged in the liquid, the leakage of liquid from the replenishment tank would cease.

The liquid in the housing tank l is drained to the outside by the housing supply pipe D, and the liquid level in the w body tank l is lowered, and liquid is replenished from the replenishment tank in the same manner as described above. Therefore, the surface t11 inside the housing tank l is kept at a predetermined position limited by the position of the ventilation pipe J! It is.

The liquid garden position can be adjusted accurately without using a sophisticated detector or control device. In particular, the liquid replenishment port 4 and the Harukate 1j
Since Jt- is provided, air is quickly introduced into the replenishment tank 3//J, and leakage of the replenishment liquid becomes smooth.

In addition, the vent t of the housing tank l is connected to the leg γ of the supply tank 2.
IS one leg with an opening on the inside? By ZhoulPl! This prevents foreign matter from entering the liquid and
It can prevent body deterioration and pipe clogging.

Note that the arrows indicated by aa indicate air flow tubes, and the arrows indicated by II number s
Air enters and exits from between 70 and 70 degrees.

Yet again. Since the vent pipe 3 is made movable so that the position of the t11 plane/l can be adjusted, it is possible to respond to environmental changes such as the characteristics of the liquid and the temperature If with an extremely simple structure. In this case, it is also preferable to provide a driving means that responds to changes in the environment of the first ventilation pipe JKllI.

Figure 1 i1 shows another example of the structure of the liquid supply device of the present invention, in which a male thread is threaded on the outer periphery of the replenishment port 6 of the replenishment tank 1, and a female thread uK of the opening of the liquid tank l is threaded so that it can be freely attached and detached. match. 2J is a cover made of an elastic member such as rubber, or a bellows, which is directly protruded from the bottom of 1lIiB7 of the replenishment tank. Ventilation pipe 3
The upper part (m) is fixed to the inside of the ceiling of the replenishment tank and does not protrude from the replenishment tank. The rest of the configuration is similar to the device shown in FIG. 1 described above, so a detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

Next, the operation of the device shown in the second figure will be explained.The replenishment tank is screwed into the liquid tank to a desired position. At this time, the ventilation pipe 3 and the replenishment tank J are fixed and move together, so the position of the tip of the ventilation pipe J changes in proportion to the screwing amount of the replenishment tank J. Therefore, the position of the liquid @// can be easily adjusted and the position of the liquid yi1n can be accurately held, similar to the apparatus shown in the first figure. especially.

In this embodiment, since the trachea 3 is not provided protruding from the upper end of the replenishment tank, I! l5rt can be completely airtight. Note that it is also preferable to provide a viewing window on the side 11 of the liquid tank 1 for checking the position of the tip of the ventilation pipe 3.

As explained above, according to the one-shot f14, a ventilation means that reaches a predetermined position TFC in the liquid tank is provided in the replenishment tank, and a gap is formed between the ventilation means and the liquid replenishment port. It is possible to provide an inexpensive liquid supply device that can maintain a positive liquid level position.

*G@Simple WiL Ming No. 1111 JI Engineering A cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of the device of the present invention, IIJII is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the configuration of the device of the present invention.

/-・Liquid tank, Co.・Replenishment tank.

J-Vent pipe, S-Vent hole.

! - Blank space, 1-・Liquid supply port.

Te...Legs 1-Vent, 9-Liquid supply pipe, 10-Liquid ejection head.

l/...liquid level, /2...ceiling sliding hole, 1...male thread, 22-...female thread.

B...Cover.

Patent applicant: Canon Co., Ltd.

Claims (1)

[Claims] A liquid supply device having a liquid tank and a replenishment tank for replenishing liquid to the liquid tank, comprising: a ventilation means disposed within the replenishment tank and reaching a predetermined position within the liquid tank; The replenishment tank is characterized by comprising a replenishment/replenishment port provided in the replenishment tank with a gap formed therebetween, and a ventilation hole that opens to the ventilation means in the replenishment tank and communicates with the inside of the liquid tank. Liquid supply device.