JP2012071439A - Liquid container and liquid jet device - Google Patents

Abstract

In an ink cartridge in which a valve is provided in a supply hole, it is possible to avoid air bubbles from being mixed in the ink cartridge when loaded into a liquid ejecting apparatus.
A supply valve 26 of a liquid storage container is provided with a sealing valve 71 that is pushed from the outside of the liquid storage container to open, and a porous member 72 is provided so as to close a gap generated by the opening of the sealing valve. Prepare it. In this way, when the sealing valve is closed, the liquid property is prevented from deteriorating due to evaporation of moisture from the liquid in the liquid storage chamber. Further, when the sealing valve is opened, the porous member can prevent the liquid from flowing out from the liquid storage chamber, so that it is possible to prevent the surroundings from being contaminated by the liquid flowing out from the supply hole. is there. Further, since the porous member is provided in the gap generated by opening the sealing valve, the air trapped in the supply hole does not enter the liquid storage chamber side and bubbles are not mixed into the liquid storage chamber.
[Selection] Figure 5

Description

The present invention relates to a liquid container that is loaded in a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects liquid from an ejecting nozzle and stores the liquid therein.

A liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a liquid such as ink from an ejection nozzle, such as a so-called inkjet printer, is equipped with a dedicated container such as an ink cartridge that contains the liquid therein as a liquid supply source. The dedicated container is exchangeably loaded into the liquid ejecting apparatus. When the liquid in the dedicated container is exhausted, it can be replaced with a new dedicated container.

Ink cartridges may be prepared in different types depending on the type of print medium. When changing the type of print medium, the ink cartridge can be removed with the ink remaining. The ink cartridge is replaced with a new one.
The ink cartridge thus removed is stored until the next use. However, when the water in the ink evaporates during storage, the viscosity of the ink increases and the properties deteriorate. Therefore, a valve is provided inside the supply hole for supplying ink from the ink cartridge to the outside. When the ink cartridge is loaded in the liquid ejecting apparatus, the valve in the supply hole is opened, and when the ink cartridge is removed, the valve is closed. Thus, a technique for suppressing the evaporation of moisture from the ink during storage of the ink cartridge has been proposed (Patent Document 1).

JP 2008-273114 A

However, in the conventional technology described above, when the ink cartridge is loaded in the liquid ejecting apparatus,
There has been a problem that air bubbles are mixed in the ink cartridge. That is, the valve in the supply hole is pushed up by the supply needle provided on the liquid ejecting apparatus side to open, and the ink that has flowed out of the ink cartridge at the moment when the valve is opened may contaminate the surroundings. I'm in trouble
It is necessary to seal the opening of the supply hole. However, in a state where the opening is sealed, air trapped in the supply hole enters the ink cartridge when the valve is opened, and bubbles are mixed into the ink cartridge. As a result, for example, bubbles in the ink cartridge may flow into the passage on the liquid ejecting apparatus side, and the bubbles may block the passage so that ink cannot be supplied successfully.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art,
An object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of avoiding air bubbles from being mixed into an ink cartridge when the ink is provided in a supply hole with a valve in a liquid ejecting apparatus.

In order to solve at least a part of the problems described above, the liquid container of the present invention employs the following configuration. That is,
A liquid storage container having a liquid storage chamber for storing a liquid,
A supply hole for supplying the liquid in the liquid storage chamber to the outside;
A sealing valve provided in the supply hole and opened by being pushed from the outside of the liquid container;
And a porous member that sucks the liquid flowing out of the liquid storage chamber and holds it inside. The porous member is provided so as to close a gap generated by opening the sealing valve.

In such a liquid container of the present invention, the liquid flowing out of the liquid storage chamber is held in the porous member by opening the sealing valve. In addition, as an aspect in which the porous member holds the liquid,
It is good also as continuing holding | maintaining a liquid, and good also as holding a liquid temporarily. Also, providing a porous member "so as to close the gap generated by opening the sealing valve" means that the position of the gap generated by opening the sealing valve and the position where the porous member is provided are strictly The porous member may be provided at a position upstream or downstream of the gap generated when the valve is opened from the liquid storage chamber.

By doing so, the liquid storage chamber is sealed when the sealing valve is closed, so that it is possible to prevent moisture from evaporating from the liquid in the liquid storage chamber and deteriorating the properties of the liquid. In addition, when the sealing valve is opened, it is possible to prevent the liquid from flowing out from the liquid storage chamber to the outside (or delay the time to flow out) by the porous member. Accordingly, if the supply hole is sealed before the liquid flows out from the porous member in accordance with the operation of loading the liquid container into the liquid ejecting apparatus, the surroundings are contaminated with the liquid flowing out from the supply hole. It is possible to prevent this. Of course, when the supply hole is sealed, some air is trapped in the supply hole. However, since the porous member is provided in the gap generated by opening the sealing valve so as to close the gap, the air confined in the supply hole enters the liquid storage chamber and bubbles are formed in the liquid storage chamber. Will not be mixed. Therefore, when supplying the liquid to the liquid ejecting apparatus, it is possible to avoid the adverse effects such as the bubbles in the liquid container flowing into the passage on the liquid ejecting apparatus side, and the liquid cannot be supplied successfully by closing the path. It becomes.

In the liquid container of the present invention described above, a lid member that can move from the outside of the supply hole to the back side of the supply hole, and a sealing spring that presses the lid member against the seal portion in the supply hole are used. It is good also as comprising a sealing valve.

If it carries out like this, a sealing valve can be comprised easily. In addition, the supply hole can be reliably sealed by pressing the lid member against the seal portion using the spring force of the sealing spring.

In the liquid container of the present invention described above, the porous member is crushed by the sealing valve when the sealing valve is closed, and the porous member is restored to its original shape when the sealing valve is opened. It may be.

By doing so, the porous member is crushed while the sealing valve is closed, so that the liquid can be pushed out from the inside of the porous member. Therefore, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the porous member is clogged by the liquid in the porous member which is dried and thickened or solidified.

Further, in the liquid ejecting apparatus loaded with the liquid container of the present invention described above, when the liquid container is loaded, the sealing needle is pushed from the outside of the supply hole by the supply needle to open the valve. Thus, the liquid flowing out of the liquid storage chamber may be taken into the liquid ejecting apparatus side from the liquid passage in the supply needle. In this way, just by loading the liquid container into the liquid ejecting apparatus,
The liquid in the liquid storage chamber can be quickly supplied to the liquid ejecting apparatus.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus loaded with the liquid container of the present invention described above, a porous filter member that comes into contact with the porous member of the liquid container when the liquid container is loaded into the liquid ejecting apparatus, It may be provided on the supply needle of the liquid ejecting apparatus.

When the porous member and the filter member come into contact with each other, the liquid in the porous member and the liquid in the supply needle are combined by surface tension in a state where the liquid exists in the porous member and in the supply needle (
Liquid surface contact). As a result, the liquid in the liquid container and the liquid in the supply needle of the liquid ejecting apparatus are in communication with each other through a portion where the liquid level is in contact. For this reason, even if it does not perform the operation | work which removes the air which exists between a porous member and a supply needle | hook, it becomes possible to supply to the liquid ejecting apparatus in a liquid storage container.

Further, in the liquid ejecting apparatus loaded with the liquid container of the present invention described above, the filter member is supported by using the support member from the opposite side (the back side of the filter member) to the surface where the filter member contacts the sealing valve. It is good to keep it.

In this way, even if the filter member is pressed against the sealing valve when the sealing valve is pushed in with the supply needle, it is possible to prevent the filter member from being damaged due to dent or the like.

It is explanatory drawing which showed the rough structure of the liquid-jet apparatus of a present Example. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state where an ink cartridge is loaded into a carriage case. It is explanatory drawing which showed the sealing mechanism of the conventional ink supply hole. It is an exploded view of the sealing mechanism mounted in the ink supply hole of the present embodiment. It is an enlarged view of the internal structure of the ink supply hole of a present Example. It is explanatory drawing which showed a mode that the air in an ink supply hole was attracted | sucked. It is explanatory drawing which showed the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole of a 1st modification. It is explanatory drawing which showed the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole of a 2nd modification. It is explanatory drawing which showed the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole of a 3rd modification. It is explanatory drawing which showed the ink supply needle | hook of 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which showed a mode that the ink was supplied from the ink cartridge via the ink supply needle | hook of 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which showed the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole of the modification of 2nd Example.

Hereinafter, in order to clarify the contents of the present invention described above, examples will be described in the following order.
A. Device configuration:
B. Ink supply hole sealing mechanism of this embodiment:
C. Modification of the first embodiment:
C-1. First Modification C-2. Second Modification C-3. Third Modification D. Modification Second embodiment:
E. Modification of the second embodiment

A. Device configuration :
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a rough configuration of a liquid ejecting apparatus according to the present embodiment, using a so-called ink jet printer as an example. As shown, inkjet printer 1
0 is a carriage 2 that forms ink dots on the print medium 2 while reciprocating in the main scanning direction.
0, a drive mechanism 30 for reciprocating the carriage 20, a platen roller 40 for feeding the print medium 2, and a maintenance mechanism 50 for performing maintenance so that printing can be normally performed. The carriage 20 is provided with an ink cartridge 24 that contains ink, a carriage case 22 in which the ink cartridge 24 is mounted, an ejection head 23 that ejects ink, and the like. A plurality of ejection nozzles are provided on the bottom surface side (the side facing the print medium 2) of the ejection head 23, and the ink in the ink cartridge 24 is guided to the ejection head 23 and directed from the ejection nozzle toward the print medium 2. Thus, it is possible to eject ink.

In the illustrated inkjet printer 10, a color image is printed using four types of inks of cyan (hereinafter C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K). Corresponding to this, the ejection head 23 is provided with ejection nozzles for each ink color. Each of the ejection nozzles is supplied with ink from a corresponding color ink cartridge 24 through a passage.

The drive mechanism 30 for reciprocating the carriage 20 includes a timing belt 32 having a plurality of tooth shapes formed therein, a drive motor 34 for driving the timing belt 32, and the like. A part of the timing belt 32 is fixed to the ejection head 23. When the timing belt 32 is driven, the carriage 20 is reciprocated in the main scanning direction while being guided by a guide rail 36 extended in the main scanning direction. Is possible. In addition, the platen roller 40 that feeds the print medium 2 is driven by a drive motor or a gear mechanism (not shown), and can feed the print medium 2 by a predetermined amount in the sub-scanning direction.

The maintenance mechanism 50 is provided in an area called a home position outside the printing area, and includes a cap 52, a negative pressure pump 54 provided at a position below the cap 52, and the like. In the maintenance mechanism 50, a maintenance operation for normally ejecting ink from the ejection head 23 is performed. That is, the cap 52 can be moved in the vertical direction by a lifting mechanism (not shown). When the cap 52 is pressed against the bottom surface of the carriage case 22 with the carriage case 22 moved to the home position, a closed space is formed so as to cover the ejection head 23, and the ink in the ejection head 23 is dried. Can be prevented. In addition, a negative pressure pump 54 is connected to the cap 52 via a negative pressure tube (not shown). By operating the negative pressure pump 54 with the cap 52 pressed against the bottom surface side of the carriage case 22, It is also possible to suck out the ink in the ejection head 23. For this reason, even when drying progresses in the ejection head 23 and the viscosity of the ink increases, it is possible to suck out such ink and maintain the ink in the ejection head 23 at an appropriate viscosity. It is.

A control unit 60 that controls the overall operation of the inkjet printer 10 is mounted on the back surface of the inkjet printer 10. Operations such as reciprocating movement of the carriage 20, operation of feeding the printing medium 2, operation of ejecting ink from the ejection nozzle, and various maintenance operations performed by the maintenance mechanism 50 are all controlled by the control unit 60. Has been.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the ink cartridge 24 is loaded into the carriage case 22. As shown in the figure, the ink cartridge 24 is provided with an ink supply hole 26 for supplying ink to the outside from the bottom surface of the ink cartridge 24 downward. Further, the carriage case 22 is provided with a recess 25 in which the ink cartridge 24 can be loaded from above the carriage case 22, and the bottom surface of the recess 25 is provided for each position where the four ink cartridges 24 are loaded. An ink supply needle 27 for taking ink from the ink cartridge 24 is provided upright. Therefore, the ink cartridge 24
Is pushed into the bottom surface of the recess 25 and loaded into the carriage case 22, the ink supply hole 26 is
The ink supply needle 27 is inserted into the ink cartridge 24 so that the ink in the ink cartridge 24 can be taken into the carriage case 22. The carriage case 22 has a built-in ink passage (not shown), and ink taken from the ink supply needle 27 is supplied to the ejection head 23 through the ink passage.

Further, as will be described in detail later, the ink cartridge 24 of this embodiment has an ink supply hole 2.
6 is provided with a sealing mechanism for sealing the ink supply hole 26 in the ink supply hole 26 for the purpose of suppressing evaporation of moisture in the ink. This sealing mechanism will be described below. However, as a premise of the description, a sealing mechanism for an ink supply hole provided in a conventional ink cartridge will be described.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a conventional ink supply hole sealing mechanism. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the longitudinal section of the ink supply hole is taken in a state where the ink cartridge is set up with the ink supply hole directed vertically downward (the state of FIG. 2 described above).

As shown in FIG. 3A, the ink supply hole of the conventional ink cartridge is provided with a rubber seal member along the inner wall near the opening of the ink supply hole. When the ink supply needle is not inserted into the ink supply hole (when the ink cartridge is removed from the carriage case), the sealing valve is moved to the seal member by the spring provided on the back side of the ink supply hole. It becomes a pressed state. Therefore, in this state, the opening of the ink supply hole is sealed, so that moisture does not evaporate from the ink in the ink cartridge 24.

When the ink cartridge is loaded into the carriage case from the state shown in FIG. 3A, the sealing valve is pushed up at the tip of the ink supply needle in accordance with the operation. When the sealing valve and the sealing member are thus separated and the sealing valve is opened, the ink in the ink cartridge flows out.

At this time, the periphery of the ink supply needle is sealed before the sealing valve 71 is opened so as not to contaminate the surrounding area with the outflowed ink. That is, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the ink supply needle is inserted into the ink supply hole, the periphery of the ink supply needle is hermetically sealed by the protruding portion protruding from the seal member of the ink supply hole to the inside of the ink supply hole. Is done. Thereafter, when the ink supply needle is further pushed, the tip of the ink supply needle comes into contact with the sealing valve, and the sealing valve is opened. For this reason, the ink that has flowed out of the ink cartridge when the valve is opened is received by the protruding portion of the seal member, so that the ink does not leak downstream from the protruding portion of the seal member.

However, in the conventional configuration described above, as shown in FIG. 3B, air is confined in the space in the ink supply hole sealed by the sealing valve, the seal member, and the ink supply needle. The air thus trapped in the ink supply hole enters the ink cartridge through the gap between the seal valve and the seal member when the ink supply needle is inserted deeper and the seal valve is opened. If the air mixed in the ink cartridge becomes a bubble and flows into the passage on the ejection head side, the air bubbles may block the passage so that ink cannot be supplied well. Therefore, the ink cartridge of the present embodiment employs the following ink supply hole sealing mechanism.

B. Ink supply hole sealing mechanism of this embodiment:
FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the sealing mechanism mounted in the ink supply hole of this embodiment. As shown in the drawing, the sealing mechanism in the ink supply hole 26 of this embodiment is sealed in a sealing valve 71 that seals the opening of the ink supply hole 26 and a seal part in the ink supply hole 26 described later. A sealing spring 70 for pressing the stop valve 71 and a sponge member 72 provided between the opening of the ink supply hole 26 and the sealing valve 71 are included. The sponge member 72 is formed in a substantially columnar shape, and a central portion of the column is hollowed out so that a protruding portion protruding downward from the sealing valve 71 (in the direction of the opening of the ink supply hole 26) can be penetrated. .

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the internal structure of the ink supply hole 26 of this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5A, the inner wall of the ink supply hole 26 is formed in a two-step staircase shape near the opening. And the seal part 73 by which the sheet | seat made from rubber was laid is provided in the upper stage of the stairs,
The lower portion is provided with a seating portion 74 on which the above-described sponge member 72 is seated.

In a state where the ink cartridge 24 is not loaded in the carriage case 22, FIG.
As shown in a), the sealing valve 71 is pressed against the seal portion 73 by the sealing spring 70 provided on the inner wall 75 on the back side of the ink supply hole 26. In this state, the opening of the ink supply hole 26 is sealed to prevent moisture from evaporating from the ink in the ink cartridge 24. In the state shown in FIG. 5A, the sponge member 72 has a seal portion 73 and a seating portion 7.
4 and is compressed. The reason why the sponge member 72 is compressed in this way will be described later.

When the ink supply needle 27 is inserted into the ink supply hole 26 from the state shown in FIG. 5A, the protrusion of the sealing valve 71 is formed at the tip of the ink supply needle 27 as shown in FIG. Is pushed up, the sealing valve 71 and the seal portion 73 are separated from each other, and the sealing valve 71 is opened. At this time, the ink in the ink cartridge 24 flows out from the gap formed between the sealing valve 71 and the seal portion 73, and the sponge member is at a position on the way toward the opening of the ink supply hole 26. 72 is provided. Therefore, the outflowed ink is absorbed by the sponge member 72 and is held in the sponge member 72. Thereby, even if the sealing valve 71 is opened, the ink does not leak to the downstream side (opening side of the ink supply hole 26).

When the ink supply needle 27 is inserted further into the ink supply hole 26 from the state shown in FIG. 5B, the sealing valve 71 is pushed up to the back side of the ink supply hole 26 and is compressed accordingly. The sponge member 72 returns to its original size while sucking ink from the ink cartridge 24. When the operation of loading the ink cartridge 24 into the carriage case 22 is completed, a rubber seal provided on the bottom surface of the ink supply hole 26 and the bottom surface of the carriage case 22 as shown in FIG. The surface 29 comes into contact. As a result, the periphery of the ink supply needle 27 is sealed, and even if the ink flows out from the ink cartridge 24, the ink does not leak out.

Of course, as the periphery of the ink supply needle 27 is sealed, air may be trapped in a sealed space in the ink supply hole 26 (hereinafter referred to as a sealed space). However, even if the air is trapped, since the sponge member 72 is interposed between the sealed space and the inside of the ink cartridge 24, the sponge member 72 serves as a barrier, and the air in the sealed space becomes the ink cartridge. 24 does not enter. Accordingly, after that, the air confined in the ink supply hole 26 is extracted as described below, and a printable state is obtained.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing how air trapped in the ink supply hole 26 is extracted when the ink cartridge 24 is loaded. When the air in the sealed space of the ink supply hole 26 is extracted, the carriage case 22 is moved to the home position described above (see FIG. 1).
The negative pressure pump 54 is operated with the cap 52 pressed against the bottom surface side of the carriage case 22. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6A, air is sucked out from the sealed space in the ink supply hole 26 through the internal passage 28 of the ink supply needle 27. When the negative pressure in the sealed space increases in this way, the ink held by the sponge member 72 is sucked out and the ink supply hole 26 is discharged.
Ink is filled in the sealed space.

When the negative pressure pump 54 is further operated, the air in the sealed space in the ink supply hole 26 is replaced with the ink from the sponge member 72 as shown in FIG. 6B. Then, the ink in the sealed space is sucked into the ink supply needle 27, and the internal passage 28 and the carriage case 2.
When guided to the ejection head 23 via an ink passage (not shown) in the ejection head 2, the ejection head 2
3, the ink can be ejected.

According to the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the present embodiment as described above, by providing the sponge member 72 in the ink supply hole 26, it is possible to prevent the ink from flowing out when the sealing valve 71 is opened. In addition, the air confined in the sealed space in the ink supply hole 26 can be prevented from entering the ink cartridge 24. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the above-described adverse effects in the ink cartridge having the conventional ink supply hole sealing mechanism. Similarly to the conventional sealing mechanism, since the sealing valve 71 is closed when the ink cartridge 24 is detached from the carriage case 22 (see FIG. 5A), the ink cartridge 24
It is possible to suppress water from evaporating from the ink inside. As a result, even when the ink cartridge is replaced due to, for example, changing the type of the printing medium, in the ink cartridge 24 of this embodiment, the opening of the ink supply hole 26 is sealed by the sealing valve 71. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the evaporation of moisture from the ink and prevent the ink properties from deteriorating.

Further, as described above, in the sealing mechanism of the present embodiment, the sponge member 72 is crushed by the sealing valve 71 and the seating portion 74 when the ink cartridge 24 is detached from the carriage case 22. This is due to the following reasons. That is, in the sealing mechanism of this embodiment, as described above, the sponge member 72 is provided on the opening side of the position where the ink supply hole 26 is sealed by the sealing valve 71 (position of the seal portion 73). For this reason (see FIG. 5), the sponge member 72 is exposed to the outside air from the ink supply hole 26 even when the sealing valve 71 is closed. Accordingly, if the sponge member 72 continues to hold ink in this state, the ink in the sponge member 72 is dried and the sponge member 72 is clogged. As a result, the force of the sponge member 72 holding the ink may be reduced, and it may not be possible to prevent the ink from leaking from the ink supply hole 26. Further, when the sponge member 72 is clogged, the ink cannot be sucked out from the sponge member 72, and as a result, the supply of ink to the ejection head 23 is hindered.

On the other hand, in the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of this embodiment, the ink cartridge 24
Since the sponge member 72 is crushed in a state where it is removed from the carriage case 22,
The sponge member 72 is not exposed to the outside air for a long time with the ink held inside.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ink from being dried and clogged in the sponge member 72. Of course, when the sponge member 72 is crushed, the ink held by the sponge member 72 tends to flow out of the sponge member 72. However, in the sponge member 72 of this embodiment, the force (meniscus pressure resistance) for holding ink on the bottom surface side of the sponge member 72 is set to be larger than the pressure in the ink cartridge 24. For this reason, when the sponge member 72 is crushed by the sealing valve 71, the ink flowing out from the sponge member 72 in the process does not flow out from the bottom surface side of the sponge member 72, but again the ink cartridge 24.
Return to the inside. Therefore, when the sealing valve 71 is closed (when the ink cartridge 24 is removed), the ink held by the sponge member 72 does not leak from the ink supply hole 26.

C. Modified example:
In the embodiment described above (hereinafter referred to as the first embodiment), several modifications can be considered. Hereinafter, these modified examples will be briefly described. In the modification described below,
Components similar to those in the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as in this embodiment, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

C-1. First modification:
In the first embodiment described above, the periphery of the ink supply needle is the seal surface 2 after the sealing valve 71 is opened.
It was explained that it will be nine. However, the sealing valve 71 may be opened after the periphery of the ink supply needle 27 is sealed.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the first modification. The sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 shown in FIG. 7A is a sponge member 72 that surrounds the outer edge of the sealing valve 71 with respect to the conventional sealing mechanism (see FIG. 3) described above. Is provided. According to such a configuration, when the ink supply needle 27 is inserted into the ink supply hole 26, the air in the ink supply hole 26 sealed by the sealing valve 71, the seal member 80, and the ink supply needle 27 is air. Is trapped. However, as shown in FIG. 7B, even when the sealing valve 71 is opened, the sponge member 72 is provided in the gap portion between the sealing valve 71 and the ink supply hole 26. The air confined in the ink supply hole 26 is blocked by the sponge member 72 so as not to enter the ink cartridge 24.

Even if the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the first modification as described above is used, the same advantageous effect as that of the sealing mechanism of the first embodiment described above can be obtained. Further, since only the sponge member 72 is added without changing the components of the conventional sealing mechanism, the sealing mechanism can be configured easily. Further, since the periphery of the ink supply needle 27 is sealed with the seal member 80, as described above, when the ink held by the sponge member 72 is sucked out (see FIG. 6).
Ink does not adhere to the base portion of the ink supply needle 27. Accordingly, it is possible to more reliably prevent the surroundings from being stained with ink when the ink cartridge 24 is loaded. In addition, since the sponge member 72 is accommodated behind the position where the ink supply hole 26 is sealed by the seal valve 71 and the seal member 80, the sponge valve 72 is closed while the seal valve 71 is closed. The member 72 is not exposed to the outside air. Therefore, as in the embodiment described above, the sponge member 72
Since it is not necessary to crush the sponge member 72 for the purpose of preventing clogging, it is possible to prevent the sponge member 72 from being deteriorated by being crushed.

C-2. Second modification:
In the first embodiment and the first modification described above, it has been described that the sponge member 72 is simply placed on the seating portion 74 of the ink supply hole 26. Here, the sponge member 72 may be fixed to the seating portion 74 as follows.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the second modification. The ink supply hole 26 sealing mechanism shown in FIG. 8 is different from the sealing mechanism of the above-described embodiment (see FIG. 5).
A pile-shaped fixing member 76 is built in the sponge member 72, and the bottom surface side of the sponge member 72 is hit against the seating portion 74 by the fixing member 76. According to such a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26, the bottom surface side of the sponge member 72 can be securely fixed to the seating portion 74. Therefore, when the sealing valve 71 is pushed up, the back side of the sealing valve 71 (sponge member 7
It is possible to prevent the sponge member 72 moistened with ink from sticking to the second side) and floating together with the sealing valve 71. Accordingly, it is possible to avoid a situation in which ink flows out from the gap formed by the sponge member 72 floating and the ink leaks out from the ink supply hole 26.

C-3. Third modification:
In the first embodiment, the first modification, and the second modification described above, the seal portion 73 for sealing the opening of the ink supply hole 26 by pressing the sealing valve 71 (see FIGS. 5 and 8). Or it demonstrated that the sealing member 80 (refer FIG. 7) was provided. However, the seal part 73 or the seal member 80 can be omitted as follows.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the third modification. In the sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 shown in FIG. 8, the sealing portion 73 of the sealing mechanism (see FIG. 5) of the above-described embodiment is omitted. Further, when the sealing valve 71 is not pushed up by the ink supply needle 27, the sponge member 72 is sufficiently crushed by the pressing force from the sealing valve 71. In this state, since the fibers in the sponge member 72 become dense, the sponge member 72 itself functions as a member that seals the opening of the ink supply hole 26, and thus the seal portion 73 or the seal member 80 described above needs to be provided. There is no.

Further, the seating portion 74 of the sponge member 72 is provided with a pressing portion 77 formed by partially raising the seating portion 74 upward. At the position of the pressing portion 77, the sponge member 72 is particularly strong. It is crushed. In other words, even if the pressing force from the sealing valve 71 is not set so large, the sponge member 72 can be sufficiently crushed at the position of the pressing portion 77. Therefore, it is possible to suppress deterioration of the sponge member 72 by reducing the load applied to the sponge member 72.

D. Second embodiment:
In the first embodiment and the modification of the first embodiment described above, it has been described that after the ink cartridge 24 is loaded in the carriage case 22, the air in the sealed space generated in the ink supply hole 26 is extracted. (See FIG. 6). Here, the ink supply needle 2 as shown below
If 7 is adopted, the above-described work of extracting the air in the sealed space can be omitted.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing the ink supply needle 27 of the second embodiment. The ink supply needle 27 shown in FIG. 10 is provided with a dome-shaped filter member 90 formed using fine stainless steel fibers at the tip of the needle. This filter member 90 is composed of the filter member 9
By supporting from the back side of the filter member 90 by the rib 94 erected from the base portion of the ink supply needle 27 to which 0 is attached, a certain degree of strength is applied to the force from the outside of the filter member 90. Yes. A resin protective plate 92 is provided on the ceiling of the dome of the filter member 90.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which ink is supplied from the ink cartridge 24 via the ink supply needle 27 of the second embodiment. The ink supply hole 26 of the ink cartridge 24 into which the ink supply needle 27 is inserted is the ink supply hole 26 of the first embodiment described above.
The description will be made assuming that it is the same as (see FIG. 5).

When the ink supply needle 27 of the second embodiment is inserted into the ink supply hole 26, the protrusion of the sealing valve 71 is pushed up at the ceiling portion of the filter member 90 (that is, the portion where the protective plate 92 is provided) to open the valve. To do. Therefore, the filter member 90 and the protruding portion of the sealing valve 71 are not in direct contact with each other, and the filter member 90 is prevented from being damaged by being pressed by the protruding portion. Further, the protrusion of the sealing valve 71 of the second embodiment is formed slightly shorter than the protrusions of the first embodiment and the modification described above. Accordingly, when the ink supply needle 27 is further inserted into the ink supply hole 26, the filter member 90 reaches the height of the sponge member 72 in the ink supply hole 26 as shown in FIG. The surface and the sponge member 72 are in close contact with each other.

At this time, if ink remains in the ink supply needle 27, the ink in the ink supply needle 27 and the ink in the sponge member 72 are coupled via the filter member 90 (liquid level contact).
To do. Accordingly, the ink in the sponge member 72 and the ink in the ink supply needle 27 communicate with each other through a portion where the liquid level is in contact. As a result, when ink is consumed on the ejection head 23 side, the consumed ink is taken into the ink supply needle 27 from the sponge member 72.

Further, as described above, the filter member 90 is formed using thin stainless steel fibers, and the gap between the fibers is very close. It is larger than the force (capillary force of the sponge member 72) that tries to hold the inside. Therefore, there is no ink in the ink supply needle 27 (for example,
Even when the ink cartridge 24 is loaded into the ink jet printer 10 for the first time, the ink is sucked into the filter member 90 from the portion in close contact with the sponge member 72, and the sucked ink enters the internal passage 28 of the ink supply needle 27. Inflow. The ink that has flowed into the internal passage 28 in this manner is supplied to the ejection head 23 through an ink passage (not shown) in the carriage case 22 so that the ink can be ejected.

If the ink supply needle 27 of the second embodiment is used, the ink is directly sucked out from the sponge member 72. Therefore, even if the air is confined in the sealed space in the ink supply hole 26, it is confined. There is no risk of sucking in the air from the ink supply needle 27. Therefore, it is possible to save the trouble of extracting the air trapped in the sealed space.

E. Modification of the second embodiment:
In the second embodiment described above, it has been described that when the sealing valve 71 is opened, the protruding portion of the sealing valve 71 is pushed up by the protective plate 92 provided on the ceiling portion of the filter member 90. However, in order to push up the protrusion of the sealing valve 71, the following configuration may be used.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view showing a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the second modified example. In the ink supply hole 26 sealing mechanism shown in FIG. 12, a magnet 98 is provided at the lower end of the protruding portion of the sealing valve 71 of the sealing mechanism shown in FIG. Further, the filter member 9 of the ink supply needle 27 is used.
A magnet 96 is provided on the zero ceiling portion instead of the protective plate 92 made of resin. The magnet 98 and the magnet 96 are provided so as to repel each other when approaching. In such a sealing mechanism of the ink supply hole 26 of the second modified example, when the sealing valve 71 is pushed up by the ink supply needle 27, the sealing valve is in a state where a gap is formed between the magnet 98 and the magnet 96. Pushed up. Therefore, each time the ink cartridge 24 is loaded into the carriage case 22, no object hits the protruding portion of the sealing valve 71, so that deterioration of the protruding portion can be suppressed.

Although various embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to all the above embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment and modification, the sponge member provided in the ink supply hole is
It has been explained that the sucked ink is kept inside so as not to flow out of the sponge member. However, the sponge member may be one that can at least temporarily hold ink.

As described above, when the ink cartridge is loaded in the carriage case, the periphery of the ink supply needle is sealed by the bottom surface of the ink supply hole and the seal surface provided in the concave portion of the carriage case. Therefore, if the sponge member can hold the ink inside at least for a very short time from when the sealing valve is opened until the ink cartridge is completely loaded, the ink flows out from the ink supply hole. Can be sufficiently prevented. Also,
If the ink holding force of the sponge member is small, the ink can be sucked into the ink supply needle more quickly.

10 ... inkjet printer, 20 ... carriage,
22 ... Carriage case, 23 ... Ejecting head, 24 ... Ink cartridge,
25 ... Recess, 26 ... Ink supply hole, 27 ... Ink supply needle,
28 ... Internal passage, 29 ... Sealing surface, 30 ... Drive mechanism,
32 ... Timing belt 34 ... Drive motor 36 ... Guide rail
40 ... Platen roller, 50 ... Maintenance mechanism, 52 ... Cap,
54 ... negative pressure pump, 60 ... control unit, 70 ... sealing spring,
71 ... sealing valve, 72 ... sponge member, 73 ... seal part,
74 ... Seating part, 75 ... Inner wall, 76 ... Fixing member,
77 ... Pressing part, 80 ... Seal member, 90 ... Filter member,
92 ... Protective plate, 94 ... Rib, 96 ... Magnet,
98 ... Magnet

Claims (6)

A liquid storage container having a liquid storage chamber for storing a liquid,
A supply hole for supplying the liquid in the liquid storage chamber to the outside;
A sealing valve provided in the supply hole and opened by being pushed from the outside of the liquid container;
And a porous member provided so as to close a gap generated by opening the sealing valve, and sucking and holding the liquid flowing out of the liquid storage chamber. The liquid container according to claim 1,
The sealing valve is
A lid member movably provided from the outside of the supply hole to the back side of the supply hole;
A liquid storage container comprising: a sealing spring that presses the lid member from the back side of the supply hole to a seal portion provided in the supply hole. The porous member is a member that is crushed by the sealing valve in a state where the sealing valve is closed, and is restored to its original shape when the sealing valve is opened. 2. The liquid container according to 2. A liquid ejecting apparatus loaded with the liquid container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
When the liquid container is loaded into the liquid ejecting apparatus, a supply needle that pushes and opens the sealing valve from the outside of the supply hole;
A liquid ejecting apparatus, comprising: a liquid passage provided inside the supply needle for taking in the liquid that has flowed out of the liquid storage chamber when the sealing valve is opened into the liquid ejecting apparatus. 5. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the supply needle includes a porous filter member that comes into contact with the porous member in a state where the liquid container is loaded in the liquid ejecting apparatus. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the supply needle includes a support member that supports the filter member from a side opposite to a surface where the filter member contacts the sealing valve.

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