CN1868751A - Ink cartridge for ink-jet printer - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an ink cartridge for an inkjet printer. After the ink cartridge is supplied with the air pressure generated by the air pressure pump, the ink is supplied to the print head through the effect of the air pressure. The ink bag formed by the flexible material forms a pressure chamber with the air pressure generated by the air booster pump between the outer part of the ink cartridge and the above-mentioned ink bag. The pressurized air inlet for the generated pressurized air is equipped with an ink drawing part capable of drawing ink out of the ink bag on the above-mentioned ink bag. When the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, the above-mentioned pressurized air inlet is opened, so that The pressure chamber communicates with the atmosphere, and the ink outlet is closed. The assembly and disassembly of the ink cartridge is very convenient, and the reuse of the ink cartridge and its components is easy, which is beneficial to resource saving.

Description

Ink cartridges for inkjet printers

The present invention is a divisional application of the No. 200410080160.8 invention patent application filed on January 15, 2001 with the title of "ink cartridge for inkjet printer".

technical field

The present invention relates to an ink cartridge used in an inkjet printer to supply ink to a print head, and an inkjet printer using the ink cartridge.

Background technique

Inkjet printers are now widely used for various printing including color printing because they print with less noise and form high-density fine ink droplets.

Inkjet printers generally have an inkjet printing head that is mounted on a carriage and moves in the width direction of the recording paper, and a paper feeding device that moves the recording paper vertically relative to the moving direction of the printing head. Ink drops are ejected to record on recording paper.

If a print head capable of ejecting various ink droplets such as black, yellow, cyan, and deep red is mounted on the carriage, not only black and white printing can be performed, but also full-color printing can be performed by changing the ejection ratio of each color ink. .

On the other hand, in such printers for office or business use, in order to adapt to the needs of a large number of prints, a large number of ink cartridges must be configured, so there is a need to place the ink cartridges on the ink cartridge holder that is located on one side of the device body printer.

A sub-ink is provided on the carriage on which the print head is mounted, and various inks are supplied from each of the above-mentioned ink tanks to each of the sub-inks through ink supply tubes, and then supplied from each of the sub-tanks to each of the print heads.

However, there is now a great demand for printers with a long scanning distance of the carriage and the ability to print on larger paper. In such printers, in order to increase the throughput, the number of nozzles of the print head is increasing.

In addition, in order to increase the throughput, it is necessary to have a printer capable of sequentially supplying ink from the ink cartridge to each sub-tank mounted on the carriage during printing, and then stably supply ink from each sub-tank to each print head.

In such a printer, since the scanning distance of the carriage is large, the extension distance of each ink supply tube must be increased. And because as mentioned above, the nozzle of printing head has become more, so the consumption of ink increases, and the ink dynamic pressure (pressure loss) in each ink supply tube that connects ink box and sub-ink box increases, and the ink replenishment amount that produces to sub-ink box Insufficient technical issues.

One of the solutions to the above-mentioned technical problems is, for example, to apply air pressure to the side of the ink tank, and the ink flow from the ink tank to the sub-tank is forcibly generated by the air pressure, thereby sufficiently supplying the ink to the sub-tank.

Fig. 36 is a sectional view showing the structure of a conventional ink cartridge used in this type of ink jet printer. In FIG. 36, reference numeral 81 designates a case constituting the outer shape of the ink cartridge, and the case 81 is integrally formed of synthetic resin by blow molding (hollow molding) in the shape of a so-called jar.

A cylindrical cap member 84 is embedded in the opening 82 through a ring 83 , and the cap member 84 and the ring 83 make the inside of the casing 81 airtight and form a pressure chamber 85 inside the casing 81 .

In the central portion of the above-mentioned cylindrical cap member 84, an ink lead-out portion 86 composed of a ball valve is formed, and the ink in the ink bag 87, which is placed in the housing 81 and encapsulated with ink, is formed of a flexible material, can pass through The above-mentioned ink drawing portion 86 is drawn to the outside.

An air inlet 89 is formed in a part of the cap member 84 . A rubber plug 88 is installed in the air inlet 89, and a through hole 88a that is closed when the printer is not filled with the ink cartridge is opened in the center of the rubber plug 88. As shown in FIG.

According to such a structure, when the ink cartridge is filling the printer, the hollow needle provided on the printer and not shown in the figure can pass through the through hole 88a of the above-mentioned rubber plug 88, and the pressurized air can be introduced into the above-mentioned pressure chamber through the hollow needle. 85.

In this way, pressurized air is introduced into the above-mentioned pressure chamber 85 through the hollow needle, and the ink sealed in the ink bag 87 is subjected to pressure and drawn out to the outside through the ink drawing part 86 .

However, the ink cartridge having the above-mentioned conventional structure has the following problems that should be solved.

The first problem is that, in the ink cartridge with the above-mentioned existing structure, the shell that constitutes its outer shell is integrally formed by blow molding, so its structure is shown in Figure 36. Valve 86 and air introduction valve 88 are on cylindrical plug 84 .

The plug body 84 is pressed into the opening 82 of the case 81 via the ring 83 in a state where the ink bag 87 that has not yet contained ink is inserted into the case 81 . Then, ink is poured into the ink bag 87 from the outside through the above-mentioned ink supply tube 86, and a commercial ink cartridge is produced.

Like this, in the ink cartridge with existing structure, because the shell that constitutes its outline is integrally formed by blow molding, it is difficult to pack the ink bag of ink in advance in the shell, and it must be supplied to the shell in a later process. The ink bag is filled with ink.

Since the inside of the casing is subject to certain pressure when the printer is working, the casing must be able to withstand the pressure without deformation. Therefore, in order to ensure the strength of the casing, it is preferable that the casing is formed in the shape of a cylindrical so-called jar as shown in FIG. 36, for example.

However, such a shape has the problem of occupying too much volume, which makes the layout design of this type of printer in which ink cartridges of various colors must be arranged side by side troublesome.

On the other hand, in order to ensure the strength of the case, it is conceivable to increase the wall thickness of the case, but this would increase the amount of synthetic resin constituting the case, making it difficult to save resources.

In addition, in order to reduce the amount of synthetic resin used, it is conceivable to form ribs integrally with a part of the case, but it is generally difficult to form ribs inside, for example, the case when blow molding is used as described above.

The second problem is that when the ink cartridge with the above-mentioned conventional structure is installed in the printer for ink replenishment and then removed from the printer, the through-hole 88a formed on the above-mentioned rubber plug 88 is directly blocked due to its elasticity, so the pressure Pressurized air remains in chamber 85 .

In this way, the pressurized air remaining in the pressure chamber 85 always pressurizes the ink bag 87 .

Therefore, inadvertently or intentionally, for example, when the above-mentioned ball constituting the ink drawing-out portion 86 is pressed with the tip of a writing tool, the ink in the ink bag 87 will be ejected and the surrounding area will be soiled.

Even if the above operations are not performed, a small amount of ink may leak from the ink drawing portion 86 .

Therefore, in order to prevent such problems, when the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, a hollow needle such as an injection needle must be inserted into the through hole 88a of the above-mentioned rubber plug 88 to actively make the pressure chamber 85 Air pressure open.

However, the above-mentioned pressure-opening operation will be troublesome for the user, and it is difficult to put it into practical use.

In addition, under the storage state when the ink cartridge with the above-mentioned conventional structure is not installed in the printer, the ambient temperature of the storage place changes, especially when the ambient temperature rises, the air pressure in the pressure chamber 85 will also rise, and the same will happen. A problem arises that a small amount of ink leaks from the ink drawing portion 86 .

On the other hand, for an ink cartridge that introduces pressurized air into the casing to send ink out, it is a matter of course that its structure must allow the casing to maintain an airtight state during long-term use, especially considering the ease of assembly, disassembly, and reuse. Convenience matters, which are now in high demand.

In addition, an inkjet printer using an ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure, as well known, uses black ink when it is mainly used for printing text data, and uses yellow, red, and cyan ink when it is mainly used for color printing. Purple and other colored inks.

The inks of each color, as explained above, are packaged in ink bags formed of a flexible material, and the ink bags are provided in the form of being housed in an ink container casing forming the outer shell. The shape of each ink cartridge is roughly the same, and the amount of ink packed in each bag is also roughly the same.

However, when most of the printed matter printed by the printer is, for example, text data, the amount and frequency of use of color inks are low, and therefore, the period of time until the ink is used up for each color ink cartridge is considerably longer than that of the black ink cartridge.

Therefore, before each color ink cartridge is used up, the ink cartridge must be replaced with a new one due to the expiry of the service life.

Conversely, in a usage state where a lot of color images are printed, the amount and frequency of use of black ink are low, and therefore, the black ink cartridge takes a considerably longer period of time to run out of ink than the color ink cartridge. Likewise, it may happen that the life of the black ink cartridge has expired although ink remains in it.

Therefore, not only is the running cost too high for the user, but also the burden of waste disposal is increased because a large amount of ink remains in the discarded ink cartridge.

In order to reduce running costs and waste disposal burdens, it may be considered to provide ink cartridges with less ink contained in the cartridge, in which case an adjustment device may be used to reduce the amount of ink contained in the cartridge.

Because the ink cartridge is to be contained on the holder of the printer, the external shape of the ink cartridge housing where the ink bag is placed has nothing to do with the amount of ink, and must be the same shape. This results in a larger gap between the cartridge housing and the ink bag in a cartridge containing less ink.

In this way, for example, when the ink cartridge is subjected to vibration during transportation, the ink bag will move in the ink cartridge casing, especially in the case of relatively strong impact, which may cause the problem of damage to the ink bag.

It is also conceivable to make the size of the ink cartridge case the same, and only change the size and shape of the case according to the amount of ink packaged. However, if this method is used, the molds for manufacturing the case must be prepared separately, which will lead to the problem of increased production costs. .

In printers where pressurized air is used to force the ink out of the ink cartridge, and a large number and a small number of ink bags can be selectively used as described above, especially in the case of a small number of ink cartridges, it is necessary to introduce A lot of pressurized air will do.

Thus, for example, when the printer is turned on and started to operate, it takes a long time to enter a printable state, which causes a problem that the throughput decreases.

Contents of the invention

The present invention has been developed in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. The first object of the present invention is to provide a method that can further simplify the assembly process of the ink cartridge case including the ink bag, and can easily disassemble the used ink cartridge case for reuse. Thus saving resources on cartridges.

A second object of the present invention is to provide an ink cartridge for supplying ink by air pressure, which can prevent ink discharge and leakage caused by the above-mentioned residual air pressure or environmental changes.

A third object of the present invention is to provide an ink cartridge which can stably ensure an airtight state in the casing and which is easy to assemble and disassemble.

A fourth object of the present invention is to provide an ink cartridge capable of effectively preventing damage to the ink bag due to collision, which may occur particularly in an ink cartridge containing a small amount of ink.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a printer which uses pressurized air to force ink out of ink cartridges which does not reduce throughput even when using a small number of ink cartridges.

In addition, the present invention also provides an inkjet printer suitable for using the above-mentioned ink cartridge.

In order to achieve the above object, the first embodiment of the ink cartridge for printers of the present invention is an ink cartridge used for a printer. After this ink cartridge is added with the air pressure generated by the air booster pump, the ink is provided to the printer through the effect of the above air pressure. Head, the above-mentioned ink cartridge is equipped with internally encapsulated ink and an ink bag formed of flexible material, and the outer shell part of the ink cartridge is at least joined by the first outer shell part and the second outer shell part, and they are in an airtight state The air pressure generated by the above-mentioned air booster pump is added to the pressure chamber formed by the above-mentioned outer shell member and the above-mentioned ink bag.

In this case, it is preferable that the first outer shell member and the second outer shell member are bonded to each other by vibration welding in an airtight state.

When adopting this vibration welding, it is preferable that on the periphery of the lower casing as the above-mentioned first outer shell member, a substantially uniform continuous welded surface along the entire periphery is formed, and on the upper shell as the above-mentioned second outer shell member, The peripheral edge of the housing forms a series of guide vibrators that are friction-welded in contact with the above-mentioned continuous welded surface of the peripheral edge of the lower housing.

Preferably, a leading edge portion is further integrally formed on the peripheral edge of the lower casing as the first outer shell member along the outer periphery of the continuous welded surface.

In addition, it is preferable that ribs for preventing deformation due to air pressure are formed in advance on the surface of the first outer frame member and/or the second outer frame member on which the pressure chamber is formed.

The ink cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention may also have a structure in which the above-mentioned first outer frame member and second outer frame member are bonded to each other by heat welding so as to be in an airtight state.

In this case, it is preferable that on the periphery of the lower case as the first outer shell member, a substantially uniform continuous welded surface along the entire periphery is formed, and the thermally welded film as the second outer shell member It is thermally welded to the above-mentioned continuous welded surface of the periphery of the lower casing.

In addition, in this case, it is preferable that the thermally welded film as the above-mentioned second outer cover member has a reinforcing member covered from the outside.

Preferably, an engaging portion capable of attaching and detaching the peripheral edge of the lower case as the first outer shell member is integrally formed on the peripheral edge of the reinforcing member.

In this case, it is preferable to form in advance ribs for preventing deformation due to air pressure on the surface of the first outer frame member on which the pressure chamber is formed.

In addition, it is also possible to form a continuous adhering surface along the entire periphery on the periphery of the lower case as the first outer shell member, and to form a continuous contact surface with the periphery of the lower case on the periphery of the cover as the second outer shell member. The above-mentioned continuous to-be-closed surface is closely bonded. On the above-mentioned cover body, a fastening part that can be installed and detached from the periphery of the lower shell is integrally formed. Through the function of the above-mentioned fastening part, the shell and the cover body keep airtight with each other.

According to the ink cartridge of the first embodiment of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the outer frame member is formed by joining at least the first outer frame member and the second outer frame member, and they are in an airtight state between each other, and the air pressure generated by the air booster pump Add to the pressure chamber formed by the outer part and the ink bag.

The above-mentioned first outer shell member and second outer shell member may be bonded to each other by vibration welding in an airtight state.

The first outer shell member and the second outer shell member may be joined to each other by heat welding so as to be in an airtight state.

In addition, the contact surface formed on the second outer shell member and the continuous adhered surface formed on the first outer shell member can be brought into close contact with each other to maintain an airtight state.

In the case of using, for example, the lower casing as the above-mentioned first outer frame member and the cover body as the second outer frame member, the ink bag pre-packaged with ink is installed in the lower outer casing, and in this state, the above method is used to install it. As the lid of the upper casing, make it airtight, and then it can be made into a commercial ink cartridge.

Therefore, the process of assembling the cartridge case including the ink bag can be made simpler, and the productivity of this product can be improved.

Since the outer shell of the ink cartridge is formed by joining the first outer shell member and the second outer outer member in an airtight state, it is easy to disassemble and reuse the exhausted ink cartridge, and resources can be saved.

In order to achieve the above object, the ink cartridge of the second embodiment of the present invention is an ink cartridge that supplies ink to the print head through the effect of the air pressure generated by the air pressure pump after being added. The above ink cartridge is equipped with an internal Encapsulate the ink, the ink bag that is formed by flexible material, form the pressure chamber that adds the air pressure that is produced by the air pressurizing pump between the outline part of ink cartridge and above-mentioned ink bag, form on the outline part of ink cartridge and introduce by The pressurized air inlet port for the pressurized air generated by the air pressurized pump is equipped with an ink lead-out part that can draw ink out of the ink bag on the above-mentioned ink bag. When the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, the pressurized air guide The inlet is opened so that the pressure chamber communicates with the atmosphere, and the ink drawing part is closed.

In this case, it is preferable that the above-mentioned pressurized air introduction port is formed integrally with the exterior member of the ink cartridge, and constituted by a cylindrical body forming an air passage communicating with the above-mentioned pressure chamber.

The ink lead-out part installed on the above-mentioned ink bag preferably has a valve member that is in contact with the connecting part of the printer, retreats in the axial direction, and is in an open state when it is installed on the printer. The valve member advances axially and remains closed.

In this case, in a preferred embodiment, the ink drawing-out portion is provided with a spring member that biases the valve member toward an axially advanced state.

The above-mentioned ink drawing-out portion is preferably drawn out from the above-mentioned outer shell member through the opening formed on the ink cartridge outer shell member, and a ring is provided between the above-mentioned opening and the ink drawing-out portion, and there is also a function of pressing the above-mentioned ring to make the opening A snap-fit part that seals against the ink outlet.

According to the ink cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, when mounted on the printer, the pressurized air generated by the air pressurizing pump is introduced into the pressure chamber through the pressurized air inlet, and the ink cartridge packaged in the ink bag The ink is subjected to the action of the pressurized air, and the ink is supplied to the printer through the ink drawing part.

On the other hand, when the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, the pressurized air inlet formed by, for example, a cylindrical body formed on the outer shell of the ink cartridge is opened, and the above-mentioned pressure chamber directly communicates with the atmosphere. In this way, the pressure on the ink bag accommodated inside is released immediately.

This prevents the ink from being discharged or leaked through the ink lead-out portion provided on the ink bag.

Since the pressure chamber is always open to the atmosphere even when the ink cartridge is not installed in the printer, it is not affected by changes in the ambient temperature at all.

The ink cartridge of the third embodiment of the present invention is a kind of ink bag that is formed by a flexible material, internally encapsulating ink, and the ink cartridge case that accommodates the ink bag and forms an airtight state, and is mounted on the printer. The lower pressurized air can be introduced into the printer ink cartridge in the above-mentioned casing. The above-mentioned ink cartridge casing is composed of a first casing and a second casing. Engaged by the snap fit of the claw parts formed on the housing.

In a preferred embodiment, the ink bag is placed in the above-mentioned first case, and the opening edge of the case is closed with a film member to form an airtight state, and the above-mentioned second case is a cover that prevents the film member from bulging due to pressurized air.

In this case, it is preferable that when the first housing and the second housing are engaged on the above-mentioned claw member, the tapered surface and the buckle that go over the above-mentioned flange portion formed on the first housing and engage with the flange portion are preferably formed. Combined ladder department.

It is preferable that the second housing is composed of a flat portion functioning as a cover and a bent portion vertically intersecting with the flat portion formed integrally, and the claw member is formed inside the bent portion.

In this case, it is preferable to form a plurality of independent claw parts at certain intervals along the inside of the above-mentioned bent part, and at the positions corresponding to the several independent claw parts on the plane part of the second shell, along the above-mentioned curved part, The folding parts respectively form narrow and long holes.

In a preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure, the edge of the opening of the first casing is sealed by thermal welding of the film member.

According to the ink cartridge according to the third embodiment of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the ink bag formed of a flexible material and enclosing ink therein is closed by the film member in a state placed in the first case.

By joining the second case to the first case containing the ink bag, the second case functions as a cover that suppresses the film member from bulging due to pressurized air.

In this way, the airtight state of the ink cartridge can be ensured by the film member, and the film member can be effectively suppressed from bulging by the pressurized air by the second case serving as the cover.

On the other hand, when the first case and the second case are engaged, the flange portion formed on the edge of the opening of the first case is engaged with the claw member formed on the second case, and the two are engaged with each other to constitute the ink cartridge. outline.

In this way, the assembly and disassembly operations of the ink cartridge are easy, which is beneficial to improving the reusability of each component.

Since the claw part formed on the second shell is formed in the inside of the bent part perpendicular to the plane part that acts as a cover, and also forms a tapered surface and a buckle step that crosses the above-mentioned flange part formed on the first shell. Part, the first outer shell and the second outer shell are joined by them, so the joining of the two is easy, which is conducive to making the assembling operation of the ink cartridge more convenient.

Since narrow and long holes are respectively formed along the above-mentioned bent portions on the flat surface of the second housing at positions corresponding to the respective independent hook members, the flexibility of the above-mentioned bent portions where the respective hook members are arranged can be improved. . In this way, the flexibility of the bent portion can effectively function as a retreat when the tapered surface of the hook member passes over the flange portion of the first outer shell.

In this way, it is possible to effectively avoid unreasonable stresses such as whitening or cracking of the formed part of the claw member when the two casings formed of synthetic resin are joined.

According to the ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure, after it is mounted on the printer and pressurized air is introduced into the casing, the above-mentioned flat part of the second casing will be deformed outward to a certain extent through the film member, and at the bend perpendicular to the above-mentioned flat part The claw parts formed on the back of the folded part are deformed by the flat part and fall further inward.

Therefore, the claw member bites into the above-mentioned flange part of the second housing more deeply, and the coupled state of both can be maintained more firmly.

The ink cartridge according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention is an ink cartridge for printers composed of an ink bag formed of a flexible material and internally sealed with ink, and an ink cartridge case constituting an outer shell for accommodating the ink bag. The ink bag pressing part placed together in the ink cartridge shell adjusts the amount of ink encapsulated in the ink bag through the volume of the pressing part.

In a preferred embodiment, the above-mentioned ink bag is roughly in the shape of a rectangular four-sided closed bag, and the ink bag pressing part placed in the ink cartridge casing together with the ink bag is a frame shape with a window in the center, and the frame-shaped pressing part The components press the four sides of the ink bag respectively.

In this case, the surface of the pressing member facing the four sides of the ink bag is preferably an inclined surface that becomes thinner toward the window-shaped opening formed in the center.

The above-mentioned inclined surfaces are preferably several curved surfaces, and the above-mentioned pressing parts are preferably made of elastic materials.

On the other hand, the ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure preferably has an airtight case, and when the case is mounted on the printer, the ink bag is pressurized by introducing pressurized air into the case.

In this case, the above-mentioned ink cartridge casing is preferably composed of a first casing and a second casing, the ink bag and the pressing member are placed in the above-mentioned first casing, and the opening edge of the casing is closed with a film member to form an air pocket. At the same time, the above-mentioned second casing acts as a cover to suppress the swelling of the film member when it receives pressurized air.

In addition, it is preferable to form a flange portion formed on the second housing over the edge of the opening of the first housing when the first housing and the second housing are joined together, a tapered surface that engages with the flange portion, and a buckle. Claw part of the stepped part.

According to the ink cartridge of the fourth embodiment of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the ink bag formed of a flexible material and internally encapsulated ink is placed in the first housing together with the pressing member of the ink bag, and is pressed by pressing. The volume of the part adjusts the amount of ink enclosed in the ink pouch.

In other words, it is necessary to prepare several pressing parts with different volumes, select the pressing parts according to the amount of ink packaged in the ink bag, and install them in the ink cartridge shell so that the ink bag does not have a large gap in the shell, almost as much as The shell is full.

Like this, although the encapsulation quantity of ink is more or less, all can effectively prevent ink bag from moving freely in the ink cartridge casing, so just can avoid above-mentioned being bumped when ink cartridge is transported, and ink bag moves freely in the ink cartridge casing And lead to the problem of damage to the ink bag.

In this case, by using the pressing member having a window-shaped opening formed in the central portion, the bag-shaped ink bag encapsulating ink can be held by the pressing member at the peripheral portion other than the central portion.

Therefore, the pressing part can be reasonably placed in the casing along the outer shape of the ink bag, which is beneficial to better retain the ink bag when it is bumped, for example.

If the ink cartridge that introduces pressurized air into the ink cartridge housing adopts the above-mentioned structure, since the volume of the pressing member placed is selected according to the amount of ink packaged in the ink bag, the volume of the pressurized air introduced into the ink cartridge housing can be The quantity is determined within a certain range.

In this way, even if a small-capacity ink cartridge is used, the long-time standby state after the printer is powered on can be avoided, which is conducive to improving the processing capacity.

Finally, the inkjet printer of the present invention, which is detachably mounted with the ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure, has a printing head mounted on a carriage to reciprocate in the width direction of the recording paper, and a printing head mounted on the carriage together with the printing head. The sub-tank on the shelf receives ink supply from the ink tank through the ink supply channel and supplies ink to the print head. Ink is supplied from the ink tank to the sub-tank by the air pressure applied to the ink tank.

In this case, the ink supply path from the ink tank to the sub-tank is preferably constituted by a flexible ink supply tube.

In a preferred embodiment, an ink replenishment valve is provided in the ink replenishment passage between the above-mentioned ink cartridge and the sub-ink, and the above-mentioned ink replenishment valve is opened and closed according to a control signal generated by an ink amount detecting device that detects the amount of ink in the sub-ink. .

On the ink cartridge holder that detachably loads the above-mentioned ink cartridge, it is preferable to have an annular seal that is connected to the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder that forms the air passage communicating with the pressure chamber of the ink cartridge in a state where the ink cartridge is mounted. part.

On the other hand, in a preferred embodiment, the ink cartridge holder that detachably mounts the above-mentioned ink cartridge has an open state that contacts the ink lead-out portion of the ink cartridge in the state where the ink cartridge is installed, and retracts axially. The on-off valve of the above-mentioned on-off valve moves forward axially in the state where the ink cartridge is not installed in the ink cartridge holder, and keeps the closed state.

In this case, it is preferable that the on-off valve has a hollow needle forming an ink introduction hole, and is slidably disposed on the outer periphery of the hollow needle, and is elastically pressed by an elastic member in a state where the ink cartridge holder is not mounted on the ink cartridge. And move to the ring-shaped sliding member that blocks the ink introduction hole formed by the above-mentioned hollow needle.

The above-mentioned inkjet printer equipped with an ink cartridge according to the present invention can carry out necessary and sufficient ink replenishment to the sub-ink cartridge loaded on the carriage through the action of pressurized air.

In this way, even in a printer that supplies ink from the ink tank to the sub-tank through the flexible ink supply tube, continuous printing can be performed without being affected by the dynamic pressure of the ink supply tube.

Since the ink cartridge holder of the printer is provided with a switch valve that advances axially and remains closed when the ink cartridge holder is not loaded with an ink cartridge, it can effectively prevent ink cartridges from being discharged when the ink cartridge holder is not loaded with an ink cartridge. Backflow and leakage from the sub-tank to prevent ink contamination.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is a plan view showing an example of an ink jet printer capable of using the ink cartridge of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an ink supply system from an ink cartridge to a print head of the printer shown in Fig. 1 .

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lower casing constituting the outer shell of the ink cartridge of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of an upper casing constituting the outer shell of the ink cartridge of the present invention.

5(A) and 5(B) are enlarged views of the corners of the housings shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 .

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing joining of an upper case and a lower case by vibration welding.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view viewed from the line A-A of Fig. 6 in the direction of the arrow.

8(A) and 8(B) are partially enlarged schematic diagrams showing the vibration welding of the upper shell and the lower shell.

Fig. 9(A) and Fig. 9(B) are partially enlarged schematic diagrams showing the time when the heat-welded film is welded on the opening of the lower case.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view showing that the sealing surface formed on the cover body and the surface to be bonded formed on the lower casing are tightly bonded to each other to maintain an airtight state.

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the state where the ink cartridge is detached from the ink cartridge holder of the printer.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing the state where the ink cartridge is mounted on the ink cartridge holder of the printer.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view showing the external structure of the ink cartridge of the present invention.

Fig. 14 is an enlarged sectional view of the ink cartridge viewed from the line B-B in Fig. 13 in the direction of the arrow.

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of the structure of an ink bag placed in the ink cartridge shown in Fig. 13 .

Fig. 16 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a state where an ink bag is sealed in a lower case by a film member.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of the corners of the upper case viewed inwardly.

Fig. 18 is a perspective view of the corner of the upper case seen from above.

Fig. 19 is a perspective view of the entire ink cartridge viewed from the side of the upper case.

Fig. 20 is a cross-sectional view showing one side end of the ink cartridge and a connecting mechanism provided on the ink cartridge holder.

Fig. 21 is a perspective view showing a connection mechanism provided on the cartridge holder.

22(A) and 22(B) are cross-sectional views showing the structures of the ink outlet plug on the ink cartridge side and the ink outlet tube on the ink cartridge holder side.

Fig. 23 is an enlarged perspective view showing the mounted state of the circuit board mounted on the ink cartridge side.

24(A) and 24(B) are enlarged perspective views showing the external configuration of the circuit board shown in FIG. 23 .

Fig. 25 is a perspective view showing the external structure of the pressing member placed in the ink cartridge together with the ink bag.

26(A), FIG. 26(B) and FIG. 26(C) are a front view and a cross-sectional view of the pressing member shown in FIG. 25 .

Fig. 27 is a sectional view of an ink cartridge showing a state in which an ink bag enclosing a small amount of ink is placed in a casing together with a pressing member.

Fig. 28 is an exploded perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge of the present invention.

Fig. 29 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure along line E-E in Fig. 28 .

Fig. 30 is a cross-sectional view showing another preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge of the present invention with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge.

Fig. 31 is a cross-sectional view showing still another preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge of the present invention with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge.

Fig. 32 shows an exploded perspective view of another preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge of the present invention.

Fig. 33 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure along line F-F in Fig. 32 .

Fig. 34 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the ink cartridge according to the present invention with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge.

Fig. 35 is a cross-sectional view showing still another embodiment of the ink cartridge according to the present invention with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge.

Fig. 36 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional ink cartridge.

Detailed ways

Next, ink cartridges according to embodiments of the present invention and ink jet printers using the ink cartridges will be described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. First, FIG. 1 shows an example of an ink jet printer that can use the ink cartridge of each embodiment of the present invention in plan view.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a carriage, and the carriage 1 is guided by the scanning guide member 4 through the toothed belt 3 driven by the carriage motor 2, and in the longitudinal direction of the paper feeding member 5, that is, in the width direction of the recording paper, That is, reciprocating movement in the main scanning direction.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, on the surface of the carriage 1 facing the paper feeding member 5, an ink jet type print head 6 which will be described later is mounted. On the carriage 1 are mounted sub-tanks 7a to 7d for supplying ink to the above-mentioned printing head.

In this embodiment, there are 4 auxiliary ink tanks 7a-7d, which are respectively corresponding to inks, and different inks can be temporarily stored inside them.

The respective inks of black, yellow, cyan and deep red pass through flexible ink supply tubes 10, 10, ... from the ink cartridges mounted on the ink cartridge holder 8 on the main body of the device, i.e. the main ink cartridges 9a～ 9d, supply to each sub-tank 7a-7d.

On the other hand, at the non-printing position (original position) on the moving route of the above-mentioned carriage 1, a cap device 11 capable of closing the nozzle formation surface of the print head is provided, and on the top of the cap device 11, a cap device 11 capable of closing is installed. A cap member 11a made of a flexible material such as rubber on the nozzle forming surface of the above-mentioned print head.

When the carriage 1 is moved to the original position, the nozzle forming surface of the print head can be closed by the cap member 11a.

The function of the cap member 11a is to close the nozzle formation surface of the print head when the printer is not in operation, and to function as a cover to prevent the nozzle openings from drying out. Although not shown in the figure, the cap member 11a is connected to one end of the pipe of the suction pump (tube pump), and the negative pressure generated by the suction pump acts on the print head to suck the ink from the print head for cleaning.

A cleaning member 12 made of elastic material such as rubber is provided at the printing part adjacent to the capping device 11, which can wipe and clean the nozzle formation surface of the print head when necessary.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an ink supply system mounted on the printer shown in FIG. 1. The ink supply system will be described below with reference to FIG. 1 in which corresponding components are denoted by the same symbols.

In Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, symbol 21 represents the air pressurizing pump that constitutes pressurizing device, the air supply pressure regulating valve 22 through this air pressurizing pump 21 pressurization, then supply each main ink cartridge 9a respectively by pressure detector 23 ~ 9d (represented by 9 in FIG. 2 , sometimes also described by 9 alone below).

The function of the above-mentioned pressure regulating valve 22 is to release the pressure when the air pressure pressurized by the air booster pump 21 reaches above a certain range, so that the air pressure of each main ink cartridge 9a-9d is maintained within a certain range.

The function of the pressure detector 23 is to detect the pressure of the air pressurized by the air pressure pump 21 and to control the driving of the air pressure pump 21 .

That is to say, when it is detected that the air pressure pressurized by the air booster pump 21 reaches a certain pressure, the driving of the air booster pump 21 is stopped accordingly, and when the pressure detector 23 detects that the air pressure is below a certain pressure, Control is performed to drive the air pressure pump 21, and this is repeated so that the air pressure of each of the above-mentioned main ink tanks 9a-9d is maintained within a certain range.

The detailed structure of above-mentioned main ink tank 9 will be described later, and its general structure is as shown in Figure 2, and its outer profile forms airtight state, and the ink bag 24 that the flexible material that encapsulates ink, flexible material is formed is adorned in its inside.

The space formed by the main ink tank 9 and the ink bag 24 constitutes a pressure chamber 25 , and pressurized air is supplied into the pressure chamber 25 through the above-mentioned pressure detector 23 .

With such a structure, each ink bag 24 placed in each main ink tank 9a-9d is pressurized by the pressurized air, and a constant pressure ink flow is generated from each main ink tank 9a-9d to each sub-ink tank 7a-7d.

The pressurized ink in the above-mentioned main ink tanks 9a-9d is supplied to the sub-ink tanks 7a-7d mounted on the carriage 1 through the ink supply valves 26, 26... and the ink supply pipes 10, 10... In Fig. 2, 7 is represented as a representative, and sometimes 7 is also represented as a representative for description below).

As shown in FIG. 2 , a float member 31 is provided inside the sub-tank 7 , and a permanent magnet 32 is attached to a part of the float member 31 . Electromagnetic conversion elements 33a, 33b represented by Hall elements are mounted on the base 34 and connected to the side wall of the auxiliary ink tank 7 .

Such a structure constitutes an ink amount detection device in which the electromagnetic conversion elements 33a, 33b generate electric power output according to the magnetic flux of the permanent magnet 32 provided on the float member 31 and the floating position of the float member.

In this way, for example, when the amount of ink in the sub-tank 7 is small, the position of the float member 31 contained in the sub-tank moves in the direction of gravity, and the position of the permanent magnet 32 also moves in the direction of gravity.

Therefore, the power output of the Hall elements 33a, 33b caused by the movement of the permanent magnets can be sensed and detected as the amount of ink in the sub-tank 7, and the above-mentioned ink supply valve 26 is opened according to the power output of the Hall elements 33a, 33b. . In this way, the pressurized ink in the main ink tank 9 can be sent to the sub-ink tanks 7 with reduced ink volume respectively.

When the amount of ink in the sub-tank 7 reaches a certain level, the ink supply valve 26 is closed based on the power output from the Hall elements 33a and 33b.

Through such repetition, ink is intermittently replenished from the main ink tank to the sub ink tanks, and a substantially constant amount of ink is always stored in each sub ink tank.

Ink is supplied to the print head 6 from each sub-ink cartridge 7 through the valve 35 and the pipe 36 connected thereto. The formed nozzle opening 6a ejects.

Reference numeral 11 in FIG. 2 denotes the above-mentioned capping device, and a tube connected to the capping device 11 is connected to an aspirating pump (tube pump) not shown in the figure.

Next, the ink cartridge of the present invention will be described sequentially starting from the ink cartridge of the first embodiment.

3 to 5(A) and 5(B) show an example of an ink cartridge (main ink cartridge) according to the first embodiment of the present invention used in the ink jet printer.

First, what Fig. 3 has shown is the whole structure of the lower casing as the first outer shell constituting member constituting the outer shell of the main ink tank. The lower casing 41 is in the shape of a flat box with an open top, and the ink bag 24 encapsulating ink is housed therein.

On the peripheral edge of the lower case, a substantially one-sided continuous welded surface 42 is formed along the entire peripheral edge. In addition, a leading edge portion 43 is integrally formed along the outer periphery of the continuous welded surface 42 on the peripheral edge of the lower case.

FIG. 5(A) and FIG. 5(B) show enlarged corners shown by B in FIG. 3 .

As will be described later, when the upper case, which is the second outer shell component, is vibrated and welded to the lower case shown in FIG. This leading edge portion 43 is formed to prevent it from being scattered.

On the lower bottom surface of the lower casing 41 , that is, the surface forming the pressure chamber 25 , there is formed a well-shaped reinforcing rib 44 to prevent the lower casing from being deformed by air pressure.

The reinforcing rib 44 is integrally formed with the lower shell when the lower shell is formed by blow molding, for example. It can play the role of suppressing the bending in the direction perpendicular to the surface caused by the internal air pressure.

In other words, since the well-shaped ribs 44 are formed as described above, the strength in the direction perpendicular to the face can be strengthened, so this is also advantageous in reducing the amount of synthetic resin used to form the lower case.

In this case, although the above-mentioned reinforcing rib 44 is formed on the outside of the casing, the same reinforcing effect can be achieved, but if the well-shaped reinforcing rib 44 shown in FIG. 3 is formed on the outside of the casing, the trade name or identification mark of the ink cartridge will It is difficult to stick the label, so the reinforcing rib 44 is preferably formed on the lower bottom surface of the lower shell as shown in FIG. 3 .

As shown in Figure 3, a pair of guide holes 45 are formed at the end of the lower casing 41 in the longitudinal direction. A pair of guide pins fit together to play a positioning role.

What Fig. 4 has shown is the whole structure of the upper case constituting the outline of the main ink tank. The upper case 51 has a flat shape with a hollow box at its center, and serves as a cover for the lower case 41 .

On the peripheral edge of the upper case, a series of guide vibrators (welding elements) 52 for friction welding in contact with the continuous welded surface 42 formed on the peripheral edge of the lower case 41 are formed. 5(A) and 5(B) show enlarged corners shown in A of FIG. 4 .

Under the zenith of the upper casing 51, that is, on the surface where the pressure chamber 25 is formed, like the lower casing, well-shaped ribs 53 are formed to prevent deformation due to air pressure.

The ribs 53 are integrally formed with the upper shell 51 when forming the upper shell 51 by, for example, blow molding, and are joined to the lower shell in an airtight state to form a pressure chamber inside. The effect of bending perpendicular to the surface due to air pressure.

In this way, the reason why the reinforcing rib 53 is formed under the zenith of the upper case 51 is because, as described above, it is considered that it is not difficult to stick labels such as trade names or identification marks on the surface of the ink cartridge.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the joining of the lower case 41 and the upper case 51 by vibration welding. Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view viewed from the line A-A of Fig. 6 in the direction of the arrow. In FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the same parts as those already described are denoted by the same symbols.

When vibration welding is performed, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the ink bag 24 prepackaged with ink is placed in the lower case 41 from above. The ink drawing part 55 which closes the ink bag 24 and constitutes the ink drawing port is drawn out of the lower case through the opening part 46 formed in the side end part of the lower case 41 .

In this state, put the ring 56 on the opening 46, press the ring-shaped fastening member 57 from the outside of the lower case 41, and install the ink lead-out part 55 of the ink bag 24 into the opening of the lower case 41. 46 on.

Like this, because the ink lead-out portion 55 of ink bag 24 is installed under the state that the circular ring that is contained in opening portion 46 is compressed by ring-shaped fastening member 57, therefore the opening portion 46 that forms on the above-mentioned lower casing 41 and The space between the ink drawing-out parts 55 of the ink pack is airtight.

In this way, after the ink pack 24 is placed in the lower case 41, the upper case 51 is joined to the lower case 41 to perform vibration welding. Reference numeral 47 in FIG. 7 denotes an air inlet for supplying the air pressure generated by the above-mentioned air pressure pump.

FIG. 8(A) and FIG. 8(B) are partial enlarged schematic diagrams showing the state when the upper case 51 and the lower case 41 are vibrated and welded. As shown in FIG. 8(A) and FIG. 8(B), the peripheral portion of the lower case 41 is supported upwardly from below by a fixed vibration welding jig 61 . The peripheral portion of the upper case 51 is pressed from above to below by a movable vibration welding jig 62 .

The movable vibration welding jig 62 is driven by an actuator not shown in the figure, and as shown in FIG. 8(A), a load is applied in the direction of gravity, and vibration occurs in the horizontal direction at the same time.

Due to such an operation, the guide vibrator 52 formed on the upper case 51 slides while applying a load to the welded surface 42 of the lower case 41 .

In this way, the guide vibrator 52 formed on the upper case 51 and a part of the welded surface 42 of the lower case 41 are respectively melted by the frictional heat generated between them.

Under the state of applying the load, the horizontal vibration of the movable vibrating welding jig 62 is stopped, and the lower casing 41 and the upper casing 51 are bonded into an airtight state as shown in FIG. 8(B).

As mentioned above, along the outer periphery of the welded surface 42 of the lower casing 41, a leading edge 43 is also formed. Due to the presence of the leading edge 43, when performing the above-mentioned vibration welding, even if the guide vibrator formed on the upper casing 52 is broken by vibration, also can reduce the flexibility of its scattering.

The outer shell of the ink cartridge having such a structure can be airtightly bonded by fusion of resins, and can be used in the above-mentioned inkjet printer that pressurizes the air pressure into the main ink cartridge as the ink cartridge.

The above description is an example in which the upper casing as the second outer shell constituent member and the lower shell as the first outer shell constituent member are made airtight to each other by the vibration welding method. method, the thermal welding method described below can also be used.

9(A) and 9(B) are schematic diagrams showing the welding of the heat-welded film 64 as the second outer frame component to the lower case 41 as the first outer frame component.

In this case, the lower case adopts the same structure as that already explained in FIG. 3 .

When thermally welding the lower case with a film-like member, the ink bag 24 prepackaged with ink is placed in the lower case 41 from above as in the case of vibration welding shown in FIGS.

Next, the ink lead-out portion 55 mounted on the ink bag 24 is led out of the lower casing through the opening 46 formed at the side end of the lower casing 41, and the ring 56 is closed by an annular fastening component ring 57 at the same time, The ink drawing-out portion 55 of the ink bag 24 is mounted on the above-mentioned opening portion 46 of the lower case 41 .

On the other hand, on the peripheral edge of the lower case 41 , as shown in FIG. 9(A) , a part thereof is formed with a continuous welded surface 42 that is substantially uniform along the entire peripheral edge. The thermally welded film 64 is thermally welded to the continuous welded surface 42 formed by the periphery of the lower case.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 9(A), the peripheral portion of the lower case 41 is supported by a fixed jig 66 .

Cover the continuous welded surface 42 of the lower casing periphery with the heat-welded film 64, and in this state, the electric heating plate 67 falls from the continuous welded surface 42 formed by the lower casing 41 periphery, and heat-welded The film 64 is pressed against the surface 42 to be welded.

In this way, the thermally welded film 64 is welded to the peripheral portion of the lower case 41, and the thermally bonded film 64 is bonded to the peripheral portion of the lower case 41 in an airtight state.

The pressure chamber 25 in an airtight state can be formed in the lower housing 41 by bonding the heat-welded film 64 to the upper opening of the lower housing 41 .

But, because the property of above-mentioned thermal fusion film 64 is relatively soft, when being contained on the above-mentioned printer in this state, thermal fusion film 64 is subjected to the air pressure effect of air pressure pump and expands, and lower housing 41 and thermal fusion film The air pressure in the pressure chamber 25 that 64 constitutes is unstable, and there is such technical problem.

FIG. 9(B) shows a structure for solving such a technical problem. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9(B), the heat-welded film 64 has a reinforcing member 71 covered from the top, and a peripheral edge that can be attached and detached from the lower case 41 is integrally formed on the peripheral edge of the reinforcing member 71. The fastening part 71a.

According to such a structure, when air pressure is applied to the pressure chamber 25 constituted by the lower case 41 and the thermally welded film 64, and the thermally welded film 64 expands, the thermally welded film 64 is in contact with the surface of the reinforcing member 71 and cannot expand.

The ink cartridge having such a structure can also form a pressure chamber between the lower case and the thermally welded film, and can be used in the above-mentioned inkjet printer that pressurizes the air pressure into the main ink cartridge as the ink cartridge.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view showing another embodiment constituting the ink cartridge.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 10, the sealing surface formed on the cover body constituting the second housing component and the continuous adhered surface formed on the lower housing constituting the first housing component are closely bonded together, so that Keep airtight between the two.

That is, as shown in the cross-sectional state of the end portion in FIG. 10 , a protruding circular arc-shaped contacted surface 73 is formed along the entire periphery of the lower housing 41 constituting the first housing component.

Further, on the periphery of the cover body 75 constituting the second housing component, there is formed a concave arc-shaped contact surface 76 which is in close contact with the continuous contact-to-be surface 73 formed on the lower housing 41 .

On the cover body 75 is integrally formed a fastening portion 77 which can be mounted on and detached from the peripheral edge of the lower casing. Through the action of the fastening portion 77, the lower casing 41 and the cover body 75 are in an airtight state.

The ink cartridge having such a structure can also form a pressure chamber between the lower case and the thermally welded film, and can be used in the above-mentioned inkjet printer that pressurizes the air pressure into the main ink cartridge as the ink cartridge.

The structure shown in Fig. 10 is also the same as each of the above-mentioned embodiments. In the lower case 41, which is the first housing component, an ink bag that has previously encapsulated ink is put into it, and in this state, the second housing component, that is, The cover body 75 is mounted on the top of the upper and lower casings 41 .

As mentioned above, according to the ink cartridge of the first embodiment of the present invention, since the ink bag is housed inside, the outer shell member is at least formed by joining the first casing component and the second casing component in an airtight state. In the case where the ink bag in which the ink is sealed in advance is placed, a commercial ink cartridge formed by bonding the first and second housing components can be formed.

Since the ink cartridge is formed by joining the first casing component and the second casing component in an airtight state, it is very convenient to disassemble and reuse the exhausted ink cartridge, which is beneficial to resource saving.

Next, an ink cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The ink cartridge of the second embodiment is characterized in that when it is removed from the printer, the pressurized air inlet formed on the ink cartridge is opened, and the pressure chamber formed between the outer shell of the ink cartridge and the ink bag is directly connected to the atmosphere.

As mentioned above, the opening 58 is formed at the front end of the lower case 41 where the ink lead-out portion 55 is installed, and when the ink cartridge is mounted on the ink cartridge holder 8, as shown in FIGS. An ink receiving connection part on the side of the cartridge holder 8 which will be described later is relatively inserted into the opening 58, and the ink drawing part 55 on the ink cartridge side can be connected to the ink receiving connection part on the side of the ink cartridge holder 8.

On the above-mentioned ink lead-out portion 55 of the ink cartridge, there is provided a valve member 59 that is in contact with the connection portion of the ink cartridge holder to be described later, retreats in the axial direction, and is in an open state. The valve member 59 is pushed by the spring member 60 to pivotally To advance and retreat.

Pushed by the spring member 60, the valve member 59, which can advance and retreat in the axial direction, is blocked by the annular seal member 61 having a through hole 61a formed in the center, and as a result, the ink outlet portion 55 is closed as shown in FIG.

The pressurized air inlet 47 formed in the lower case 41 constituting the outer shell of the ink cartridge is constituted by a cylindrical body forming an air passage communicating with the pressure chamber 25, protruding from the front end of the ink cartridge, and integrally formed.

In the front end portion of the lower casing 41 forming the pressurized air inlet 47, an opening 94 is formed. When the ink cartridge is mounted on the ink cartridge holder 8, as shown in FIG. The described pressurized air supply part enters this opening part 94 relatively, and the sealing member provided on the pressurized air supply part is in close contact with the periphery of the pressurized air introduction port 47 .

On the other hand, an ink receiving connection portion 71 protruding from the center portion thereof is formed on the side of the ink cartridge holder 8 .

On the connecting portion 71, there is provided an on-off valve 72 that is in contact with the ink drawing-out portion 55 on the side of the ink cartridge, retracts in the axial direction, and is opened when the ink cartridge is installed. The on-off valve 72 advances in the axial direction and remains closed when the ink cartridge is not installed.

Specifically, on the switch valve 72, there is a hollow needle 73 that forms the ink introduction hole 73a, and the hollow needle 73 is slidably arranged on the outer periphery of the hollow needle 73, and is supported by the elastic member 74 in the state where the ink cartridge is not installed. The ring-shaped sliding member 75 moves to block the ink introduction hole 73a formed by the hollow needle 73 by elastic force.

In this way, in the state where the ink cartridge is not mounted as shown in FIG. 11, the ring-shaped sliding member 75 is moved forward by the elastic force of the spring member 74, and the ink introduction hole 73a formed on the hollow needle 73 is blocked to be in a closed state.

In the state where the ink cartridge is installed as shown in FIG. Open state into which ink can be introduced.

At this time, on the ink cartridge side, the front end of the above-mentioned hollow needle 73 on the side of the ink cartridge holder is in contact with the valve member 59 through the through hole 61a formed on the sealing member 61, and the valve member 59 is moved back in the axial direction, and the ink cartridge side is moved back. The ink drawing part 55 is opened.

Thus, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 12, the ink can be supplied from the ink cartridge to the ink cartridge holder side.

At the same time, the pressurized air introduction port 47 constituting the pressurized air introduction port of the ink cartridge is also inserted into the annular seal member 78 of the pressurized air supply part 77 provided on the ink cartridge holder side.

Thus, the sealing member 78 is closely attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pressurized air introduction port 47, and the pressurized air can be introduced into the pressure chamber 25 on the side of the ink cartridge as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 12 .

According to the above structure, when the ink cartridge is removed from the ink cartridge holder, the pressurized air inlet 47 communicated with the pressure chamber 25 on the ink cartridge side, as shown in FIG. The sealing member 78 of the supply part is released to seal.

Thus, the pressure chamber 25 of the ink cartridge is immediately opened to the atmosphere through the air passage of the pressurized air introduction port 47 . Therefore, the pressure applied to the ink bag 24 is released immediately.

Since the above-mentioned ink drawing-out portion 55 provided on the ink cartridge is also closed, it is possible to prevent the ink from leaking due to the influence of gravity.

At the same time, since the ink receiving connection portion 71 on the side of the ink tank is also closed, the reverse flow of ink from the sub-tank can be prevented.

As can be seen from the above description, with the ink cartridge of the second embodiment of the present invention, when the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, the pressurized air inlet of the ink cartridge is opened, and the ink cartridge formed between the outer shell member and the ink bag The pressure chamber is directly open to the atmosphere. Therefore, the pressure applied to the ink bag is immediately released, so that the ink in the ink bag can be prevented from being discharged or leaked unintentionally.

This is also the case in printers that can hold the above-mentioned ink cartridges. Since the on-off valve that advances axially and remains closed when the ink cartridge holder is not installed in the state of the ink cartridge is provided, it can solve the problem of ink backflow from the sub-ink cartridge and pollution caused by ink. The problem.

Next, an ink cartridge according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. 13 to 15 show an example of an ink cartridge (main ink cartridge) 100 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 13 is a perspective view showing the overall structure of the main ink tank. Fig. 14 is an enlarged sectional view of the main ink tank viewed from the line B-B in Fig. 13 in the direction of the arrow. FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the structure of the ink bag 124 placed in the housing shown in FIG. 13 .

First, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 , the housing is composed of an upper housing 141 as a second housing and a lower housing 142 as a first housing.

The lower case 142 is in the shape of a flat box with an open upper surface, and the ink bag 124 (see FIG. 15 ) encapsulating ink can be placed therein.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 14, in order to press down the four sides of the ink bag 124 placed in the lower case 142, a square middle cover 143 made of, for example, foamed styrene and having a window-shaped opening in the center is inserted. In addition, as will be described later, the film member 144 is thermally welded to the flange portion 142a formed on the edge of the opening end of the lower case 142 to seal the lower case 142 in an airtight state, as shown by the thick black line.

The flat box-shaped upper case 141 is covered from above.

The function of the above-mentioned upper case 141 is to serve as a cover body that suppresses the above-mentioned film member 144 from being bulged out by the pressurized air. constitute.

Wedge-shaped claw parts 141a are formed at regular intervals along the inside of the above-mentioned bent part 141c. The edge portion 142a is snapped together so that the two are combined into one body.

According to such a structure, when the pressurized air is introduced into the lower case 142 closed by the film member 144, since the position of the film member 144 is close to the inside of the upper case 141, it is possible to prevent the film member 144 from being blown outward by the pressurized air. out.

Fig. 15 shows the structure of the ink bag 124 placed in the casing formed by the above method.

The ink bag 124 has used two rectangular flexible materials, such as polyethylene film, and in order to improve its gas barrier property, one deck such as aluminum foil has been pressed on its surface. An ink drawing-out part 150 constituting an ink drawing-out port is provided substantially in the center of the end in the longitudinal direction.

The ink bag 124 is first formed into a bag shape by thermally welding the side end portion on which the above-mentioned ink drawing-out portion 150 is housed and the three sides of the two side end portions in the longitudinal direction perpendicular to it. Reference numeral 124b denotes the thermally welded portion on the above-mentioned three sides.

The remaining side of the bag-shaped ink bag 124 is used as an opening, and the ink is introduced into the ink bag 124. Finally, the remaining side is thermally welded together, and the ink is sealed in the ink bag. Reference numeral 124c denotes the heat-welded portion on the remaining side.

Fig. 16 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink bag 124 is sealed in the lower case 142 by a film member. First, the lower case 142 is placed on the fixing jig 161 using the flange portion 142a formed at the edge of the opening end of the lower case.

The above-mentioned ink bag 124 is placed in the lower case 142, and the quadrangular middle cover 143, which is used to press the four sides of the ink bag 124 and has a window-shaped opening in the center, is inserted into the lower case 142.

In this state, the film member 144 is covered on the above-mentioned flange portion 142a formed at the edge of the opening of the lower case 142. As shown in FIG.

Next, the heating head 162 having the same shape as the planar shape of the above-mentioned flange portion 142a of the lower case 142 is lowered to heat the film member 144 on the covered flange portion 142a. In this way, the film member 144 is thermally welded along the above-mentioned flange portion 142a of the lower case 142, and the lower case 142 is sealed by the film member 144 in an airtight state.

17 and 18 show a part of the structure of the upper case 141 joined to the lower case 142 closed by the film member 144, especially the hook member 141a and its periphery formed at intervals along the inside of the above-mentioned bent portion 141c of the upper case 141. A zoomed-in view of the structure.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the corner of the upper housing 141 viewed inwardly. FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the corner of the upper case 141 viewed from above.

As shown in Figure 17, on the claw member 141a, a tapered surface 141d whose thickness becomes thicker from the lower end portion of the bent portion 141c to the flat portion 141b that acts as a cover is formed, and the flat portion of the tapered surface 141d is The end portion on one side of 141b is formed with a buckling stepped portion 141e.

Narrow and long holes 141f along the bent portion 141c also shown in FIG.

Thus, when the upper case 141 covers the lower case 142, the tapered surfaces 141d of the hook members 141a contact and slide against the sides of the flange portion 142a formed on the edge of the opening of the lower case 142.

By pressing the upper case 141 against the lower case 142 , each claw member 141 a rides over the above-mentioned flange portion 142 a formed on the lower case 142 . In this way, the flange portion 142a on the lower housing 142 fits into the engaging stepped portion 141e on the claw member 141a, and the two housings are in a joined state.

In this case, since narrow and long holes 141f along the bent portion 141c are respectively formed on the above-mentioned planar portion 141b of the upper housing 141 corresponding to the installation position of each claw member 141a, the installation can be improved. The flexibility of the above-mentioned bent portion 141c of each hook member.

In this way, the flexibility of the bent portion can effectively function as a retreat when the tapered surface 141d of the hook member 141a passes over the flange portion 142a of the lower housing 142 .

In this way, unreasonable stresses such as whitening or cracking of the forming part of the claw member 141a can be effectively avoided when the two casings formed of synthetic resin are joined.

Fig. 19 is a perspective view of the entire main ink tank 100 as an ink tank formed by the above-described method viewed from the side of the upper casing.

In this embodiment, five narrow holes 141f are formed at both ends along the length direction of the housing. Similarly, the claw members 141a are arranged corresponding to the narrow holes 141f at substantially the same intervals. Two narrow and long holes 141f are formed at both ends along the short side direction of the housing. Similarly, the setting of the claw members 141a is also corresponding to the narrow and long holes 141f.

According to the main ink cartridge 100 as an ink cartridge having the above-mentioned structure, as shown in FIG.

The pair of opening holes 151 are arranged at two positions along the lengthwise direction of the above-mentioned side of the housing at a certain interval, and they can be integrally formed with the lower housing 142 when forming the lower housing 142 by blow molding, for example.

The ink drawing-out portion 150 constituting the ink drawing-out port of the ink bag is installed in a substantially middle portion of the positioning opening holes 151 provided at the above-mentioned two positions. A pressurized air inlet 152 and a circuit board 153 , which will be described in detail later, are respectively provided on both sides of the positioning opening 151 provided at the above two locations.

The pressurized air inlet 152 is hollow and formed integrally with the molding of the lower case 142 , and the pressurized air can be introduced into the lower case 142 closed by the film member 144 through the inlet.

What Fig. 20 represented is the sectional state of one side end portion of the whole main ink cartridge 100 as ink cartridge formed by the above-mentioned method, represents the assembling state of main ink cartridge 100 and the connection mechanism 155 that is arranged on the ink cartridge holder 8 of printer.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing the connection mechanism 155 provided on the ink cartridge holder 8 .

As shown in Figures 20 and 21, a pair of cylindrical positioning pins 156 are arranged on one side of the ink cartridge holder 8, and a pair of above-mentioned positioning openings 151 formed on the main ink cartridge 100 surround each positioning pin 156 when assembled. .

Like this, because the positioning opening hole 151 of the ink cartridge is arranged on two positions in the longitudinal direction of the above-mentioned one side of the casing, therefore, by being contained in the base end portions of the two positioning pins 156 provided on the printer, the main ink cartridge as the ink cartridge can be 100 three-dimensional positioning.

By installing the main ink cartridge 100 on the above-mentioned positioning pins 156, the hollow ink drawing tube 157 clamped at the approximate center of the pair of positioning pins 156 is inserted into the above-mentioned ink drawing-out part 150 mounted on the ink bag, so that the ink can be drawn from the ink cartridge. elicited state.

After the main ink tank 100 is attached, the pressurized air inlet 152 is connected to the pressurized air outlet 158 provided on the side of the holder 8, and the main ink tank 100 can be introduced with pressurized air.

A terminal mechanism 159 having a plurality of contact pieces is connected to a circuit board 153 provided on one side of the main ink tank 100, and is in a state of enabling data transmission with a semiconductor memory which will be described later provided on the circuit board 153.

When the main ink tank 100 is mounted on the ink tank holder 8, as shown in FIG. 20, the above-mentioned circuit board 153 provided on the main ink tank 100 is vertically mounted from the upper position in the direction of gravity.

Fig. 22 (A) and Fig. 22 (B) show that by putting on the main ink cartridge 100, the hollow ink drawing pipe 157 set on one side of the holder is inserted into the above-mentioned ink drawing part 150 installed on the ink bag, and the ink can be drawn from the ink cartridge. A cross-sectional view of the derived state.

What Fig. 22 (A) showed is the state before both are connected, what Fig. 22 (B) has shown is the state after both are connected.

An annular rubber packing 150a is fitted in the outlet portion of the above-mentioned ink drawing-out portion 150 of the ink bag. On the other hand, a movable body 150 b movable in the axial direction is placed inside the ink drawing portion 150 .

The movable body 150b can be pushed by the elastic force of the spring member 150c to close the circular central portion of the rubber gasket 150a. The hollow ink drawing tube 157 provided on the side of the holder 8 is formed with an opening 157a on the side surface near the front end.

In this way, when the main ink cartridge 100 shown in FIG. 22(A) is not installed on the printer, the elastic force of the disk-shaped spring member 150c makes the movable body 150b press the annular central part of the rubber gasket 150a Closed, so the ink drawing part 150 is in a closed state, which can prevent the ink from leaking out of the ink bag.

In the state where the main ink cartridge 100 shown in FIG. 22(B) is mounted on the printer, the front end of the ink outlet tube 157 overcomes the elastic force of the above-mentioned spring member 150c and presses the movable body 150b to the inside, so an arrow is formed. Ink channels are shown where ink can be drawn out.

In this case, the inner diameter portion of the annular ring of the rubber packing 150a is in close contact with the outer shape of the ink drawing tube 157, so that ink can be prevented from leaking from this portion.

What Fig. 23 has shown is to be arranged on the installed state of above-mentioned circuit board 153 on one side of the ink cartridge, what Fig. 24 (A) and Fig. 24 (B) have shown is the outward appearance structure of circuit board 153. FIG. 24(A) is a perspective view showing the circuit board 153 seen from the front, and FIG. 24(B) is a perspective view showing the circuit board 153 seen from the back.

As shown in FIG. 23, the circuit board 153 is mounted on the corner of the lower shell 142 of the ink cartridge, and is mounted on the inner bottom of the vertical intersecting open sides. Its open side enables the circuit board 153 to be connected with the terminal mechanism 159 arranged on one side of the above-mentioned ink cartridge holder 8, and the other open side is mainly used for mounting the circuit board 153 on the ink cartridge.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 24(A) and FIG. 24(B), a through hole 153a and a notch 153b for mounting the lower case 142 are formed on the circuit board 153 . On the lower case 142, as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 24(A), heat-welding protrusions 142c and 142d inserted into the above-mentioned through-hole 153a and notch 153b are formed.

When the substantially rectangular circuit board 153 is attached to the upper and lower case 142, as shown in FIG. 23, the circuit board 153 is fitted into the recess 142b for positioning the circuit board.

The tops of the heat welding protrusions 142c and 142d shown in dotted lines in Fig. 24 (A) are connected to the electric heating plate not shown in the figure, so that they are heat welded, and the circuit board 153 can be placed as shown in Fig. 23 Show ground is contained on the lower shell 142.

Like this, in order to load the upper and lower casings 142 of the circuit board 153, the above-mentioned electric heating plate can be used as a clamp, and the front end of the above-mentioned electric heating plate can be inserted from the open side above the circuit board 153.

As shown in FIG. 24 (A), on the front surface of the circuit board 153, electrode contacts 153c are formed as connection terminals that can connect current with the above-mentioned terminal mechanism 159 of the holder 8 when the ink cartridge holder is installed.

A circular inspection electrode contact 153d is also formed on the same surface.

These electrode contacts 153c, 153d are connected with the semiconductor storage device 154 that can read and write data set in the inside of the circuit board 153, under the state that the main ink cartridge 100 is contained in the ink cartridge holder of printer, transmit about the encapsulation in the main ink cartridge For example, data such as ink type, ink balance, serial number, and expiration date.

According to the ink cartridge of the 3rd embodiment of the present invention, the 1st casing and the 2nd casing form airtight state, and the ink bag is placed inside, and the 1st casing and the 2nd casing are formed by the claw part and the 1st casing formed on the 2nd casing. The flanges formed on the edge of the opening of the shell are snapped and engaged, so the assembly and disassembly of the ink cartridge are easy, and it is beneficial to improve the reusability of each component.

Since the above-mentioned planar portion of the second housing corresponds to the installation position of the claw member, a narrow and long hole along the bent portion is formed, so the flexibility of the above-mentioned bent portion where the claw member is arranged can be improved, and at the same time Unreasonable stress, such as whitening or cracking of the forming part of the claw part, can be effectively avoided when the two shells are joined.

Next, an ink cartridge according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The ink cartridge of the fourth embodiment is characterized in that it has an ink bag pressing member placed in the ink cartridge together with the ink bag, and the amount of ink sealed in the ink bag can be adjusted by the volume of the pressing member.

As a preferred embodiment, the outline structure of the ink cartridge, the structure of the ink cartridge, etc. can adopt various structures that have been described and shown in FIGS. 13 to 24(A) and 24(B).

What Fig. 25 and Fig. 26 (A), Fig. 26 (B) and Fig. 26 (C) show is the structure of above-mentioned pressing member 143, and Fig. 25 is the perspective view that shows whole pressing member. Fig. 26(A) is a front view of the pressing member, Fig. 26(B) is a sectional view viewed from the C-C line of Fig. 26(A) to the direction of the arrow, and Fig. 26(C) is a sectional view from Fig. 26(A) D-D A cross-sectional view looking in the direction of the arrow.

As shown in Fig. 25 and Fig. 26(A), Fig. 26(B) and Fig. 26(C), the pressing part 143 is frame-shaped, and a window-shaped opening 143a is formed in the central part, which can press a rectangular, four-sided closed The four sides of the above-mentioned ink bag 124.

26 (B) and FIG. 26 (C) cross-sectional view can be seen, the pressure member 143 and the four sides of the ink bag facing the surface is the window-shaped opening 143a formed in the central portion of the thinner inclined surface 143b.

The above-mentioned inclined surface 143b shown in FIG. 14 is a plurality of curved surfaces, so that it can be reasonably abutted against the shape of the periphery of the ink bag 124 that seals the ink and bulges out in the center.

In the case that the ink bag 124 enclosing a large amount of ink is contained in the lower casing 142, as shown in FIG. 14, a pressing member 143 with a smaller volume can be used.

In the case that the ink bag 124 encapsulating a small amount of ink is contained in the lower casing 142, as shown in FIG. 27, a larger pressing member 143 can be used.

The opening area of the window-shaped opening 143a formed in the center of the pressing member 143 used for the main ink tank 100 shown in FIG. 27 is smaller than that shown in FIG. 14 . Likewise, it also forms an inclined surface 143b that becomes thinner toward the window-shaped opening 143a.

According to such a structure, the ink bag 124 enclosing a small amount of ink is pressed by the pressing member 143 on four sides near the center.

According to such a structure, although the ink packaged in the ink bag is less, the free movement of the ink bag in the ink cartridge can be effectively prevented, and the problem of damage to the ink bag caused by collision during the transportation of the ink cartridge can be avoided.

As can be seen from the above description, according to the ink cartridge of the fourth embodiment of the present invention, since there is an ink bag pressing member placed in the ink cartridge together with the ink bag, the amount of ink packaged in the ink bag can pass through the pressing member. Therefore, if you prepare a variety of pressing parts with different volumes, select the pressing parts according to the amount of ink packaged in the ink bag, and install them in the ink cartridge shell, so that the ink bag does not have a large gap in the shell. .

In this way, the possibility of damage to the ink bag caused by collision during transportation can be greatly reduced.

On the other hand, in the case of the ink cartridge for introducing pressurized air into the ink cartridge according to the present invention, since the ink cartridge houses a pressing member whose volume is selected according to the amount of ink packaged in the ink bag, it is introduced into the ink cartridge. The amount of pressurized air can be determined within a certain range.

In this way, even if a small amount of ink cartridges are used, there is no need to introduce a large amount of pressurized air into the ink cartridges, which can avoid, for example, the long-time standby state after the printer is powered on, and is conducive to improving the throughput.

Finally, an ink cartridge that is applicable to the ink cartridges of the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention, can well avoid the rupture of the ink bag caused by the vibration or drop of the ink cartridge, and can easily reuse the outer casing and the ink bag. Preferred embodiments are described.

The feature of this preferred embodiment is that, on the inside of the hard shell constituting the outer shell of the ink cartridge, a concave portion corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of a pillow-shaped ink bag filled with ink and ribs capable of clamping the peripheral portion of the ink bag are formed. .

It is preferable to form some of the above-mentioned ribs in the horizontal and vertical directions of the hard shell, to form protrusions and recesses at the positions clamping the peripheral part of the ink bag, to form through holes in the peripheral part of the above-mentioned ink bag, and to form depressions on the above-mentioned ribs. Convex parts of through holes, etc.

As another preferred embodiment, the inner side of the above-mentioned hard shell can be formed in a shape consistent with the cross-sectional shape of the ink bag filled with ink and capable of clamping the peripheral portion of the above-mentioned ink bag. Furthermore, it is possible to form protrusions and recesses at portions sandwiching the peripheral portion of the ink pack, form through holes in the peripheral portion, and form protrusions to fit into the through holes on the case, and the like.

Hereinafter, these preferred embodiments will be described more specifically with reference to the drawings. Fig. 28 is an exploded view showing a preferred embodiment of the ink cartridge. For example, the ink bag 201 is formed with a rectangular film with good material layers such as metal and other air-tight properties on the surface of the polymer film, and its peripheral edges 201a, 201b, 201c, 201d It is formed by thermal welding, and the supply port 201e is formed on one side 201a.

The hard casing for placing the ink bag 201 is composed of a box-shaped casing main body (lower casing) 202 and a cover body (upper casing) 203, and short ribs 204, 204, 204, 204' are formed on their opposite faces. , 204', 204' and long ribs 205, 205, 205', 205' divide the long sides 201b, 201d and short sides 201a, 201c of the ink bag into several equal parts.

These ribs 204, 204', 205, 205' respectively form recesses 204a, 204a', 205a, 205a' in shape corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of a pillow-shaped ink bag filled with ink, and are connected to the peripheral edges 201a, 201b, The height of the opposite ends 204b, 204b', 205b, 205b' of 201c, 201d is set to be able to clamp the height h of the peripheral edge 201a, 201b, 201c, 201d of the ink bag when the cover body 203 is fixed on the housing main body 202 , h'.

Reference numeral 206 in FIG. 28 denotes a concave portion forming a window for leading the ink supply port 201e to the outside.

In this example, the ink bag 201 filled with a predetermined amount of ink is placed in the case main body 202, the ink supply port 201e is located in the concave portion 206, and after the cover body 203 is fixed, the ink bag 201 is filled with ink on both sides. Compressively supported by the recesses 204a, 204a', 205a, 205a' of the ribs 204, 204', 205, 205', and the peripheral edges 201a, 201b, 201c, 201d are supported by the opposing ribs 204 and 204' and 205 and 205' 'The ends 204b and 204b' and 205b and 205b' are clamped.

In this state, even if it is subjected to vibration and impact, since the shape of the ink bag 201 is determined by the recesses 204a, 204a', 205a, 205a', no large deformation will occur.

In addition, since the peripheral edges 201a, 201b, 201c, and 201d are clamped by the casing main body 202 and the cover body 203, the ink bag will not move in the casing due to ink shaking, and will not be subject to greater impact or pressure. damaged.

When the ink is used up and is recycled by the manufacturer, as long as the cover 203 is taken off, the ink bag 201 will be released from the clamping of the housing body 202 and the cover 203, so it is very convenient to take it out.

Clean the ink bag that has been taken out, and replace the consumables such as the seal of the ink supply port, and then refill the ink.

In this way, the ink bag filled with ink is put into the casing main body 202 as described above, and the cover body 203 is covered, so that it can be reused.

According to this example, since the ink bag does not need to be peeled off from the casing, the ink bag can be taken out without damaging the ink bag, and the ink bag can be reliably recycled.

Fig. 29 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure along line E-E in Fig. 28 . Ribs 204, 204' formed on the housing main body 202 and the cover body 203 form recesses 204a, 204a' along the cross-sectional shape of the pillow-shaped ink bag 201 filled with ink 207. The peripheral edge portions 201b, 201d of the ink bag are sandwiched by opposing end portions 204b, 204b'.

With the ribs 204, 204' having the above-mentioned shape, the ink bag 201 formed of a flexible film is restrained and hardly deformed, and the film does not bend at an acute angle.

Fig. 30 is a sectional view showing another example of the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge. On the lower case 202 and the cover body 203, ribs 204, 204' along the shape of the ink bag 201 are formed as in the example of FIG. , a concave portion 208' is formed on the opposite end portion 204b'. The above-mentioned convex portion 208 and concave portion 208' are formed at several places on the peripheral edge of the ink bag.

The ink bag 201 is put into the case main body 202, and the cover body 203 is put on and fixed from above, and the peripheral portion 201b of the ink bag is sandwiched by the convex portion 208 and the concave portion 208' in a curved state.

Since several parts of the peripheral portion of the ink bag are clamped by the above-mentioned method, the ink bag can be firmly fixed in the casing. In this example, as long as the cover body 203 is taken off, the ink bag 201 can be easily taken out. Like the example in FIG. 28 , the recycling of the ink cartridge is very convenient.

Fig. 31 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of this preferred embodiment with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge. A through hole 209 is formed in the peripheral portion 201 b of the ink pack 201 . On the case main body 202 and the cover body 203, like the embodiment in FIG. 28, ribs 204, 204' along the shape of the ink bag 201 are formed, and a convex portion 210 inserted into the through hole 209 is formed on the end portion 204b, facing it. A hole 210' is formed in the facing end 204'. The above-mentioned through holes 209, protrusions 210, and holes 210' are formed in several places on the peripheral edge of the ink bag.

Put the ink bag 201 in the housing main body 202 so that the protrusion 210 is positioned so that it can sink into the through hole 209 , cover and fix the cover body 203 from above, the ink bag 201 is positioned and fixed by the through hole 209 and the protrusion 210 . In this example, as long as the cover body 203 is taken off, the ink bag 201 can be easily taken out. Like the example in FIG. 28 , the recycling of the ink cartridge is very convenient.

FIG. 32 is a diagram showing another example of the disassembled state of the ink cartridge, and the structure of the ink bag 201 is the same as that of FIG. 28. FIG.

The hard casing for placing the ink bag 201 is composed of a box-shaped casing body 202 and a cover body 203. Inside the casing body 202 and the cover body 203, the shape is consistent with the cross-sectional shape of the pillow-shaped ink bag filled with ink. The protrusions 204, 205, 204', 205'.

The heights of the ends 204b, 204b', 205b, and 205b' facing the peripheral edges 201a, 201b, 201c, and 201d of the ink bag 201 are set so as to hold the peripheral edge of the ink bag when the cover body 203 is fixed to the case main body 202. Height h, h' of 201a, 201b, 201c, 201d.

Recesses 206, 206' are formed at portions sandwiching the ink supply port 201e. Ribs 204c, 204c' for improving rigidity are formed on the surfaces where the convex portions 204, 204' contact the ink bag 201. As shown in FIG.

In this example, the ink bag 201 filled with a predetermined amount of ink is placed in the case main body 202 so that the ink supply port 201e is located in the concave portion 206, and after the cover 203 is fixed, the ink bag 201 is filled with ink on both sides. Uncompressed by the housing inside 202a, 203a and the protrusions 204, 205, 204', 205' supported, and the peripheral edge 201a, 201b, 201c, 201d is supported by the opposite end 204b, 204b', 205b and 205b' support.

In this state, even if it is subjected to vibration and impact, the ink bag 201 will not be greatly deformed because its shape is determined by the inside of the casing 202a, 203a and the convex parts 204, 205, 204', 205'.

Since the peripheral edges 201a, 201b, 201c, and 201d are clamped by the ends 204b, 204b', 205b, and 205b', the ink bag will not move in the casing due to ink shaking, and will not be subject to greater impact or pressure. Will not break.

Fig. 33 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure along line F-F in Fig. 32 . The cross-sectional shape of the case main body 202 and the cover body 203 forms protrusions 204, 204' along the cross-sectional shape of the pillow-shaped ink bag 201 filled with ink 207 . The peripheral edge portions 201b, 201d of the ink bag are sandwiched by opposing end portions 204b, 204b'.

Since the cross-sectional shape of the shell body 202 and the cover body 203 is along the cross-sectional shape of the ink bag 201, the ink bag 201 formed by the flexible film is restricted and difficult to deform, and the film does not bend at an acute angle.

Fig. 34 is a sectional view showing another example of the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge. The cross-sectional shape of the case main body 202 and the cover body 203 forms protrusions 204, 204' along the cross-sectional shape of the pillow-shaped ink bag 201 filled with ink 207 . A convex portion 208 is formed at an end portion 204b of the peripheral edge portion 201b that sandwiches the ink bag, and a concave portion 208' is formed at an opposite end portion 204b'. The above-mentioned convex portion 208 and concave portion 208' are formed at several places on the peripheral edge of the ink bag.

The ink bag 201 is put into the case main body 202, and the cover body 203 is put on and fixed from above, and the peripheral portion 201b of the ink bag is sandwiched by the convex portion 208 and the concave portion 208' in a curved state. Since several parts of the peripheral portion of the ink bag are clamped by the above-mentioned method, the ink bag can be firmly fixed in the casing.

In this example, as long as the cover body 203 is taken off, the ink bag 201 can be easily taken out. Like the example in FIG. 28 , the recycling of the ink cartridge is very convenient.

Fig. 35 is a cross-sectional view showing still another embodiment of the ink cartridge according to the present invention with the holding structure of the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge. A through hole 209 is formed in the peripheral portion 201 b of the ink pack 201 . The cross-sectional shapes of the lower casing 202 and the cover body 203 form protrusions 204, 204' along the cross-sectional shape of the pillow-shaped ink bag 201 filled with ink 207. Further, a convex portion 210 to be inserted into the through hole 209 is formed on the end portion 204b, and a hole 210' is formed on the opposite end portion 204'. The above-mentioned through holes 209, protrusions 210, and holes 210' are formed in several places on the peripheral edge of the ink bag.

Put the ink bag 201 in the housing main body 202 so that the protrusion 210 is positioned so that it can sink into the through hole 209 , cover and fix the cover body 203 from above, the ink bag 201 is positioned and fixed by the through hole 209 and the protrusion 210 .

In this example, as long as the cover body 203 is taken off, the ink bag 201 can be easily taken out. Like the example in FIG. 28 , the recycling of the ink cartridge is very convenient.

As mentioned above, in the case of using the ink cartridge structure of each preferred embodiment, since the deformation of the ink bag due to vibration and collision of the ink cartridge is restricted in all directions, damage and rupture of the ink cartridge can be prevented.

Since the positioning of the ink bag is realized by the shape of the casing, the problem of uneven quality caused by assembly accuracy can be reduced.

Since there is no need for an adhesive to fix the ink bag, the number of parts can be reduced and assembly efficiency can be improved, thereby reducing production costs. Since it can be easily disassembled, the ink cartridge can be recycled reliably.

Claims (5)

1. An ink cartridge for an inkjet printer, after the ink cartridge is added with the air pressure produced by the air booster pump, the ink is provided to the print head by the effect of the air pressure, and it is characterized in that the ink cartridge is equipped with internal packaging ink 1. An ink bag formed of a flexible material. A pressure chamber with an air pressure generated by an air booster pump is formed between the outer outline part of the ink cartridge and the above ink bag. The pressurized air inlet port for the pressurized air generated by the pressure pump is equipped with an ink lead-out part that can draw ink out of the ink bag on the ink bag. When the ink cartridge is removed from the printer, the above-mentioned pressurized air inlet port is opened. , the above-mentioned pressure chamber is communicated with the atmosphere, and the above-mentioned ink drawing part is in a closed state. 2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the pressurized air inlet is formed integrally with the outer shell of the ink cartridge, and is constituted by a cylindrical body forming an air passage communicating with the pressure chamber. 3. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, characterized in that the ink lead-out part installed on the ink bag has the following characteristics: when it is installed on the printer, it is in contact with the connecting part of the printer, retreats in the axial direction, and is in an open state The valve part of the above-mentioned valve part is advanced axially and remains closed when it is removed from the printer. 4. The ink cartridge according to claim 3, wherein said ink drawing-out portion is provided with a spring member for biasing said valve member toward an axially advanced state. 5. The ink cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the above-mentioned ink lead-out portion is led out from the above-mentioned outer shell member through an opening formed on the ink cartridge outer shell member, and is connected to the ink cartridge at the above-mentioned opening. An annular ring is provided between the lead-out parts, and an engaging part is provided to press the ring to seal between the opening and the ink lead-out parts.

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