JP2015061748A - Ink container - Google Patents

Abstract

An ink container capable of suppressing the generation of aggregates is provided. An ink container according to the present invention is an ink container attached to an ink jet recording apparatus having a recording head for discharging an ink composition, and the ink container is an ink that can contain the ink composition. And an ink injection port capable of replenishing the ink composition in the ink chamber, wherein the ink chamber is connected to the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber, and the wall defining the ink chamber is A support for supporting, the ink injection port is openable and closable, and when the ink container is filled with an ink composition of 50% of the volume of the ink chamber, the support and the ink composition The area in which the object is in contact is smaller than the area in which the support and the atmosphere are in contact with each other. [Selection] Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink container that is attached to an ink jet recording apparatus and can be replenished with an ink composition.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet recording apparatus that records an image or the like on a recording medium with minute ink droplets ejected from nozzles of a recording head for ink jet recording is known. The ink jet recording apparatus has an ink container (for example, an ink cartridge) for supplying an ink composition to a recording head.

  As such an ink container, in addition to a type in which the ink container itself is replaced (so-called ink cartridge) when the ink composition in the ink container becomes a certain amount or less, the ink container is not replaced. There is known a type (so-called continuous supply type ink container) in which an ink composition is replenished (injected) into a continuous supply type ink container. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an ink jet recording apparatus that supplies ink from a continuous supply type ink tank to an ink jet head via an ink supply tube, and the liquid tank has a structure capable of refilling with ink. ing.

  An ink chamber for containing an ink composition is provided inside a continuous supply type ink tank as described in Patent Document 1. Such an ink chamber may be provided with a support (for example, a rib) in order to maintain the shape of the ink container and to improve the strength and rigidity thereof.

JP2012-148511A

  The continuous supply type ink container as described in Patent Document 1 is a so-called atmospheric open type container in which an ink chamber is opened to the atmosphere. Therefore, in the ink chamber, an interface (gas-liquid interface) between air and ink existing above the ink chamber is generated.

  Here, when the ink in the ink chamber is consumed, the ink attached to the support is dried by coming into contact with the air existing above the ink chamber, so that a thin film is easily formed. The formed thin film is easy to peel off, and the peeled thin film may form an aggregate in the ink. As a result, aggregates may be supplied to the head, which may cause clogging of the head (nozzle).

  In some cases, the ink flow path of the ink container is provided with a filter that captures aggregates and the like. When using an ink cartridge type ink container that is replaced without refilling the ink, even if the aggregate is trapped in the filter, the ink container is blocked before the ink supply is blocked by the trapped aggregate. Often replaced. Therefore, clogging of the filter is rarely a problem. However, continuous supply type ink containers that can be refilled with ink have a longer service life than ink cartridge type ink containers, and problems such as poor ink supply due to agglomerates trapped in the filter become apparent. It tends to be easy.

  On the other hand, the ink inlet of the ink chamber is opened when ink is injected into the ink chamber, but the ink chamber is closed without ink being injected even though the ink inlet is opened. There is. In such a case, the air above the ink chamber is changed from the saturated air that has existed until now to the non-saturated air introduced from the outside. In particular, when the amount of ink consumed in the ink chamber is large and the ratio of air existing above the ink chamber increases, a large amount of air that is not saturated is introduced into the ink chamber. Advances rapidly. In such a case, the ink adhering to the support existing in the ink may volatilize rapidly, and a large amount of aggregates may be generated.

  Some aspects of the present invention are to provide an ink container capable of suppressing the generation of aggregates by solving at least a part of the above-described problems.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following aspects or application examples.

[Application Example 1]
One aspect of the ink container according to the present invention is:
An ink container mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus provided with a recording head for discharging an ink composition,
The ink container has an ink chamber that can contain the ink composition, and an ink inlet that can replenish the ink composition in the ink chamber,
The ink chamber includes a support that is connected to an inner side of a wall defining the ink chamber and supports the wall defining the ink chamber;
The ink injection port can be opened and closed,
In the use state of the ink container, when the ink composition of 50% of the volume of the ink chamber is filled, the area where the support and the ink composition contact is larger than the area where the support and the air contact. It is small.

  According to the ink container of Application Example 1, even when air that is not saturated is introduced into the ink chamber, the generation of aggregates due to the ink adhering to the support existing in the ink can be suppressed. The ejection stability of the ink composition of the ink jet recording apparatus is excellent.

[Application Example 2]
In application example 1,
In the use state of the ink container,
When the ink composition filled in the ink chamber decreases, the ink composition can have a region where the gas-liquid interface becomes narrower.

[Application Example 3]
In application example 1 or application example 2,
In the use state of the ink container,
A plurality of the supports may be provided in a direction intersecting the vertical direction of the ink container.

[Application Example 4]
In any one of Application Examples 1 to 3,
In the use state of the ink container,
The upper surface of the support body has a shape that is convex upward in the vertical direction, and may not have a horizontal plane.

[Application Example 5]
In any one of Application Examples 1 to 4,
The wall partitioning the ink chamber has a first wall portion made of a film and a second wall portion made of a plurality of surfaces made of a material other than the film,
The support includes a first support, and at least one of a second support and a third support,
The first support is connected to the inside of the first wall and the inside of the second wall,
The second support is connected to the first support and the inside of the second wall,
The third support may be connected to the inside of at least two of the plurality of surfaces constituting the second wall portion.

[Application Example 6]
In application example 5,
In the use state of the ink container, the surface that appears when the second support is viewed downward in the vertical direction has a side connected to the second wall portion,
The length of the line segment parallel to the side in the plane may be shorter than the length of the side.

[Application Example 7]
In any one of Application Examples 1 to 6,
In claim 5 or claim 6,
In the use state of the ink container, the surface that appears when the third support is viewed downward in the vertical direction has a side connected to the second wall,
The length of the line segment parallel to the side in the plane may be shorter than the length of the side.

[Application Example 8]
In any one of Application Examples 1 to 7,
The posture of the ink container when the ink container is in use can be the same as the posture of the ink container when the ink container is injected.

[Application Example 9]
In any one of Application Examples 1 to 8,
A support that contacts the ink composition when the ink composition is filled with 50% of the volume of the ink chamber in the posture of the ink container when the ink composition is supplied to the recording head; Can do.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view schematically showing a state in which the recording unit of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention is stored in a recording unit storage case. FIG. 3 is a diagram conceptually illustrating a path from an air opening to an ink outlet in an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a part of the internal structure of an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an external perspective view schematically showing an ink container according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view which shows typically the internal structure in the use condition of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows typically the internal structure in the use condition of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The side view which shows typically the internal structure in the use condition of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a top view schematically showing a part of the internal structure in the usage state of the ink container according to the embodiment of the invention. The figure which shows typically the internal structure in the use condition of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows typically the internal structure in the use condition of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The side view which shows typically the shape of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows typically transition of the liquid level of the ink in the ink chamber of the ink container which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. The embodiment described below describes an example of the present invention. In addition, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and includes various modifications that are implemented within a range that does not change the gist of the present invention.

  One aspect of the ink container according to the present invention is an ink container attached to an ink jet recording apparatus having a recording head for discharging an ink composition, wherein the ink container is an ink chamber capable of containing the ink composition. And an ink injection port capable of replenishing the ink composition in the ink chamber, the ink chamber being connected to an inner side of a wall defining the ink chamber, and supporting a wall defining the ink chamber The ink injection port is openable and closable, and when the ink container is used, when the ink composition is filled with 50% of the volume of the ink chamber, the support and the ink composition The area in which is in contact is smaller than the area in which the support is in contact with the atmosphere.

  Hereinafter, an ink jet recording apparatus in which the ink container according to the present embodiment is mounted will be described as an example with reference to the drawings. Note that the scale may be appropriately changed in order to facilitate understanding of the structure of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment.

1. Inkjet Recording Device FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an inkjet recording device 1. Specifically, FIG. 1A shows a state where the ink container 30 (see FIG. 1B) is accommodated in the container accommodation case 51. FIG. 1 (B) shows a state where the container housing case 51 is removed. In FIG. 1, XYZ axes orthogonal to each other are drawn. The XYZ axes in FIG. 1 correspond to the XYZ axes in the other drawings, and the XYZ axes are attached to the following drawings as necessary. In the present embodiment, the X axis corresponds to the moving direction of the carriage 16, and the Y axis corresponds to the direction in which the plurality of ink containers 30 are arranged in the used state. The Z axis corresponds to the vertical direction (gravity direction).

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing a state in which the recording unit 12 of the inkjet recording apparatus 1 is accommodated in the recording unit accommodation case 10. Specifically, FIG. 2A shows a use state (described later) of the ink jet recording apparatus 1, and FIG. 2B shows an injection state (described later) of the ink jet recording apparatus 1. .

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inkjet recording apparatus 1 includes a recording unit 12 that records an image on a recording medium, and an ink storage unit that supplies ink to a sub tank 20 of the recording unit 12 via an ink supply pipe 24. 50.

1.1. Recording Unit The recording unit 12 was supplied via a recording head 17 that discharges droplets of an ink composition (hereinafter also simply referred to as “ink”) and records an image on a recording medium, and an ink supply tube. A sub tank 20 that temporarily stores ink, a carriage 16 that is mounted with the sub tank 20 and the recording head 17 and can reciprocate in the X-axis direction, a paper feed port 13 that feeds the recording medium, and a recording medium that is discharged And a paper discharge port 14 to be used. The recording unit 12 is accommodated in the recording unit accommodation case 10 as shown in FIG.

  The recording head 17 has a nozzle surface (not shown) provided at a position facing the recording surface of the recording medium, and droplets are formed from a plurality of nozzles (not shown) provided on the nozzle surface. Ink is ejected to adhere to the recording surface of the recording medium.

  There are various ink jet recording methods as will be described below, and any method may be used. For example, when a strong electric field is applied between the nozzle and the acceleration electrode placed in front of the nozzle, droplet-like ink is continuously ejected from the nozzle, and printing information is printed while the ink droplets fly between the deflection electrodes. A method of recording by applying a signal to a polarizing electrode or a method of discharging ink droplets in response to a print information signal without deflecting (electrostatic suction method), applying pressure to the ink liquid with a small pump, and setting the nozzle to a crystal A method of forcibly ejecting ink droplets by mechanically oscillating with a vibrator, etc., and a method for ejecting and recording ink droplets by simultaneously applying pressure and printing information signals to the ink with a piezoelectric element (piezo) System), a system in which ink is heated and foamed with a microelectrode according to a print information signal, and ink droplets are ejected and recorded (thermal jet system).

  The sub tank 20 is connected to the ink container 30 via the ink supply pipe 24, temporarily stores the ink stored in the ink container 30 and supplies the ink to the recording head. In the example of FIG. 1, the sub tank 20 is provided with four sub tanks 20Bk, 20Cn, 20Ma, and 20Yw for each color so as to correspond to the ink stored in the ink container 30. Although it does not specifically limit as a material which comprises the subtank 20, For example, synthetic resins, such as a polystyrene and polyethylene, are mentioned. In the present embodiment, the inkjet recording apparatus 1 having the sub tank 20 will be described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the recording head 17 and the ink container 30 may be directly connected via the ink supply pipe 24 without the sub tank 20.

  The carriage 16 is mounted with the recording head 17 and the sub tank 20 and reciprocates along the X axis by a carriage moving mechanism (not shown) including a motor and a timing belt. With such movement of the carriage 16, the recording head 17 also reciprocates along the X-axis direction, so that recording of an image on the recording medium in the X-axis direction is performed by the recording head 17 as the carriage 16 moves. This is performed by ejecting ink. In this embodiment, a so-called serial head type ink jet recording apparatus will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the ink container according to the present invention can also be applied to a so-called line head type ink jet recording apparatus.

  The paper discharge port 14 is provided on the front surface of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. The paper feed port 13 is provided on the back side of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. A recording medium is set in the paper feed port 13 and a recording operation is executed. Thus, the recording medium is fed from the paper feed port 13 and an image or the like is recorded therein, and then the printing paper is discharged from the paper discharge port 14. The The recording medium can be transported by a paper feeding mechanism (not shown) for feeding paper in the Y-axis direction. As described above, the recording of the image in the Y-axis direction on the recording medium can be performed by ejecting ink from the recording head 17 accompanying the movement of the recording medium by the paper feeding mechanism.

The recording unit 12 includes a control unit (not shown) that controls the overall operation of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. The control unit may include, for example, a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM. The control unit includes an operation of reciprocating the carriage 16, an operation of feeding a recording medium, an operation of ejecting ink from the recording head 17, and an operation of supplying ink from the ink container 30 to the sub tank 20 (recording head 17). Control all operations.

1.2. Ink Storage Unit and Ink Supply Pipe The ink storage unit 50 includes a plurality of ink containers 30 and a container storage case 51 that stores the ink containers 30. The ink storage unit 50 is provided outside the recording unit storage case 10. The container housing case 51 can be removed from the side surface of the recording unit housing case 10 while holding the ink container 30. The container housing case 51 includes an upper case 54 that can be opened and closed.

  When the ink jet recording apparatus 1 is viewed from the front (from the −Y axis direction to the + Y axis direction), the ink storage unit 50 is adjacent to the left side surface of the recording unit storage case 10 (the −X axis of the recording unit storage case 10). (Direction side). As described above, by providing the ink storage unit 50 outside the recording unit storage case 10, there are fewer spatial restrictions than when the ink storage unit 50 is provided inside the storage case 10 together with the recording unit 13. Therefore, it is possible to provide a more continuous supply type ink container 30. The ink container 30 can store a larger amount of ink than the sub tank 20.

  The ink supply pipe 24 is provided for each of the plurality of ink containers 30, and each ink container 30 and each sub tank 20 (recording head 17) are connected, and the ink in each ink container 30 is transferred to each sub tank 20 (recording head). 17) constitutes a part of the ink flow path to be supplied. As the ink supply tube 24, for example, a tube-like flexible member (for example, rubber, elastomer, etc.) can be used. When ink is ejected from the recording head 17 and the ink in the sub tank 20 is consumed, the ink in the ink container 30 is supplied to the sub tank 20 via the ink supply pipe 24. Therefore, the inkjet recording apparatus 1 can continue recording for a long time.

  A filter (not shown) may be provided in the ink supply tube 24. The filter provided in the ink supply pipe 24 captures the aggregate generated in the ink chamber 340 and suppresses the aggregate from flowing into the recording head 17.

  A plurality of ink containers 30 are provided for each ink composition and color. In the example of FIGS. 1 and 2, four ink containers 30 are provided corresponding to the above-described sub tanks 20Bk, 20Cn, 20Ma, and 20Yw. In the present embodiment, four ink containers 30 are provided for each color, but a plurality of ink storage portions may be provided by partitioning the inside of one ink container with a wall. The ink container 30 can be filled with ink. Hereinafter, the configuration of the ink container 30 will be described in detail.

1.2.1. Structure of ink container <Attitude of ink container>
In describing the configuration of the ink container 30 in detail, first, the attitude of the ink container 30 will be described.

The posture of the ink container 30 includes a use state and an injection state. “Used state” refers to the posture of the ink container 30 when ink is supplied to the recording head 17 (sub tank 20). In the case where there are a plurality of postures that can be supplied, and there is a recommended posture for supplying ink in a manual or an explanatory diagram, the posture is in use, and a member for fixing the ink container 30 to the ink jet recording apparatus is provided. In some cases, the attitude of the ink container 30 when in a fixed state is in use. FIG. 2A shows an example of the usage state of the ink container 30. Although not shown in FIG. 2A, the ink injection port 304 faces the side surface of the recording unit housing case 10 when the ink container 30 is in use. That is, the axis of the ink injection port 304 (described later) faces the horizontal direction (specifically, the + X axis direction). At this time, the ink injection port 304 is blocked by a plug member 302 (described later).

  The “injection state” refers to the attitude of the ink container 30 when ink is injected (also referred to as filling or refilling) into the ink container 30 (ink chamber 340). FIG. 2B shows an injection state of the ink container 30. When injecting ink into the ink container 30, the user removes the container housing case 51 from the side surface of the recording unit housing case 10, opens the upper surface case 54, and the ink housing container 30 is injected as shown in FIG. Put it in a state. In the injection state, the axis of the ink injection port 304 faces the vertical direction (specifically, the + Z direction). The air chamber user puts the ink container 30 into the injection state shown in FIG. 2B, and then removes the plug member 302 that has blocked the ink injection port 304 to inject ink. After the ink has been injected, the user closes the ink injection port 304 with the plug member 302. Thereafter, the user attaches the container housing case 51 to the side surface of the recording unit housing case 10 and returns it to the use state of FIG.

<State identification part>
In the use state shown in FIG. 2A, the third side surface 372C of the wall 370 (described later) that partitions the ink chamber 340 in the ink container 30 is visible from the outside. In the use state shown in FIG. 2A, the third side surface 372C is perpendicular to the horizontal installation surface (parallel to the XY plane). On the other hand, in the injection state shown in FIG. 2B, the third side surface 372C is parallel to the installation surface. That is, in the injection state, the third side surface 372C forms the bottom surface of the ink container 30 (ink chamber 340).

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the third side surface 372C is provided with a first state identifying unit LB1 (also referred to as “replenishment start identifying unit LB1”). The first state identification unit LB1 is used to allow the user to identify that the ink container 30 is in the first state in which ink should be replenished in the use state. Specifically, the first state identifying unit LB1 is provided to identify that the ink inside the ink container 30 has been consumed and the ink level inside the ink container 30 has reached the first height. ing. The first state identifying unit LB1 includes a straight line LM1 (also referred to as “first state display line LM1” or “replenishment start display line LM1”) that is horizontal in the use state (parallel to the XY plane). When the ink level reaches the vicinity of the first status display line LM1, the user replenishes ink into the ink container 30 (ink chamber 340).

  In the injection state shown in FIG. 2B, the user opens the upper case 54.

An upper surface 371 (described later) different from the third side surface 372C among the walls 370 (described later) partitioning the ink storage chamber 340 is visible from the outside. The upper surface 371 is a wall perpendicular to the installation surface parallel to the XY plane in the injection state. On the other hand, the upper surface 371 forms the upper surface of the ink chamber 340 in the use state shown in FIG.

The upper surface 371 is provided with a second state identification unit LB2 (also referred to as “replenishment completion identification unit LB2”). The second state identifying unit LB2 is used to allow the user to identify the second state in which the ink has been injected into the ink container 30 in the injection state. Specifically, the second state identification unit LB2 is provided to identify that the ink is replenished inside the ink container 30 and the ink level inside the ink container 30 has reached the second height. ing. The second state identification unit LB2 includes a straight line LM2 (also referred to as “second state display line LM2” or “second state display line LM2”) that is horizontal in the injection state. The user stops the replenishment of ink when the ink liquid level reaches the vicinity of the second state display line LM2.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the case where the posture of the ink container 30 is different between the use state and the injection state is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the posture of the ink container 30 may be the same between the use state and the injection state. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the aggregate resulting from an ink can be suppressed further. That is, when the posture of the ink container 30 is changed between the use state and the injection state, the ink in the ink chamber 340 has not been touched so far (for example, a part of the wall 370 that partitions the ink chamber 340 or a later-described portion). May adhere to a part of the support 380). When the ink adhering to the location contacts the atmosphere and forms a gas-liquid interface, it causes agglomerates. On the other hand, by not changing the posture of the ink container 30 between the use state and the injection state, it is possible to reduce newly adhering ink to a place where the ink has not been in contact so far. It tends to be possible to suppress the occurrence of.

  When the posture of the ink container 30 is the same between the use state and the injection state, the use state and the injection state may be set, for example, with the posture of the ink container 30 shown in FIG. In this case, the ink injection port 304 may be provided at a position where the ink does not leak in the injection state. For example, the ink injection port 304 is opened upward in the vertical direction above the ink container 340 (for example, the upper surface 371 of the wall 370 described later). Providing the ink injection port 304 can prevent ink leakage at the time of injection.

<Distribution path of ink and air>
Next, an ink supply path in the inkjet recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram conceptually showing a path from the atmosphere opening 317 to the ink outlet 306.

  A path (flow path) from the atmosphere opening 317 to the ink outlet 306 is roughly divided into an atmosphere opening path 300 and an ink chamber 340. The air opening flow path 300 includes a first flow path 310, an air chamber 330, and an ink chamber communication path 350 as a second flow path in order from the upstream. In the atmosphere opening channel 300, an air introduction port 352 that is one end opens at the ink chamber 340, and an atmosphere opening port 317 that is the other end opens toward the outside. That is, the atmosphere opening port 317 communicates with the atmosphere. In the use state, a liquid level that is in direct contact with the atmosphere is formed in the ink chamber communication path 350 (specifically, in the vicinity of the air introduction port 352), and air (bubbles) enters the ink in the ink chamber 340 from the air introduction port 352. Is introduced into the ink chamber 340.

  The first flow path 310 has an air inlet 318 (also referred to as “air chamber opening 318”) at one end opened at the air chamber 330 and an air opening 317 at the other end opened to the outside. Thus, the air chamber 330 communicates with the outside. The first flow path 310 includes a communication flow path 320, a gas-liquid separation chamber 312, and a communication flow path 314. One end of the communication channel 320 is connected to the atmosphere opening port 317 and the other end is connected to the gas-liquid separation chamber 312. A part of the communication flow path 320 is a long and narrow flow path, and suppresses evaporation of the moisture of the ink stored in the ink chamber 340 from the atmosphere open flow path 300 to the outside due to diffusion. A sheet member (film member) 316 is disposed so as to block the flow path from upstream to downstream of the gas-liquid separation chamber 312. The sheet member 316 has a property of being permeable to gas and hardly permeable to liquid. For example, Gore-Tex (registered trademark) can be used for the sheet member 316. By arranging the sheet member 316 so as to block the middle of the path (flow path) from the atmosphere introduction port 318 to the atmosphere opening port 317, the ink flowing backward from the ink chamber 340 flows upstream from the sheet member 316. That is restrained. This sheet member 316 functions as a gas-liquid separation membrane.

The communication channel 314 allows the gas-liquid separation chamber 312 and the air chamber 330 to communicate with each other. Here, one end of the communication channel 314 is an air introduction port 318. The air chamber 330 has a larger channel cross-sectional area than the ink chamber communication path 350 and has a predetermined volume. As a result, the ink flowing backward from the ink chamber 340 is stored, and the ink can be prevented from flowing upstream from the air chamber 330.

  In the ink chamber communication path 350, the air chamber side opening 351, which is one end, is opened by the air chamber 330, and the air introduction port 352, which is the other end, is opened by the ink chamber 340, thereby connecting the air chamber 330 and the ink chamber 340. Communicate. In addition, the ink chamber communication path 350 preferably has a flow path cross-sectional area small enough to form a meniscus (liquid level cross-linking).

  The ink chamber 340 stores ink and distributes the ink from the ink outlet 349 of the ink outlet 306 to the sub tank 20 (see FIG. 1) via the ink supply pipe 24.

  Next, the principle of supplying ink from the ink container 30 to the sub tank 20 (recording head 17) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing a part of the internal structure of the inkjet recording apparatus 1. The ink container 30 of the present embodiment supplies ink to the recording unit 12 using the principle of Marriott's bottle.

  In the example of FIG. 4, the ink jet recording apparatus 1 is installed on a horizontal plane sf (XY plane). The ink outlet 306 of the ink container 30 and the ink receiving unit 202 of the sub tank 20 are connected via the ink supply pipe 24.

  In the example of FIG. 4, the sub tank 20 includes an ink storage chamber 204, an ink flow path 208, and a filter 206. An ink supply needle 16 a of the carriage 16 is inserted into the ink flow path 208. The filter 206 captures aggregates that may be mixed in the ink and prevents the aggregates from flowing into the recording head 17. The ink in the ink storage chamber 204 is supplied to the recording head 17 through the ink flow path 208 and the ink supply needle 16 a by suction from the recording head 17. The ink supplied to the recording head 17 is discharged toward the outside (recording medium) through a nozzle (not shown).

  After injecting ink from the ink injection port 304 into the ink chamber 340 in the injection state (see FIG. 2B), when the ink injection port 304 is sealed with the plug member 302 and used, the air in the ink chamber 340 is removed. The ink chamber 340 expands to a negative pressure. Further, the ink in the ink chamber 340 is sucked from the recording head 17 so that the ink chamber 340 is maintained at a negative pressure.

  The air inlet 352 is located below the first state display line LM1 in the usage state. In the example of FIG. 4, the air introduction port 352 is formed on the bottom surface 373 of the ink chamber 340 in the use state among the walls 370 that define the ink chamber 340. In this way, even if the ink in the ink chamber 340 is consumed and the liquid level in the ink chamber 340 is lowered, the liquid level (atmospheric contact liquid level) LA that is in direct contact with the atmosphere is long (the ink level is first). 1) and is maintained at a constant height over a period of time until it reaches the first status display line LM1. Further, the air inlet 352 is disposed at a position lower than the recording head 17 in the use state. Thereby, the water head difference d1 occurs. It should be noted that the water head difference d1 when the atmospheric contact liquid level LA that is a meniscus is formed in the vicinity of the air inlet 352 of the ink chamber communication path 350 in the use state is also referred to as “steady-state water head difference d1”.

As the ink in the ink storage chamber 204 is sucked by the recording head 17, the ink storage chamber 204 becomes a predetermined negative pressure or higher. When the ink storage chamber 204 becomes a predetermined negative pressure or higher, the ink in the ink chamber 340 is supplied to the ink storage chamber 204 through the ink supply pipe 24. That is, the ink storage chamber 204 is automatically replenished with the amount of ink that has flowed out of the recording head 17 from the ink chamber 340. In other words, the suction force (negative pressure) from the printer 12 side is somewhat higher than the water head difference d1 generated by the vertical height difference between the atmospheric contact liquid level LA and the recording head 17 (specifically, the nozzle). As the size increases, ink is supplied from the ink chamber 340 to the ink storage chamber 204.

  When the ink in the ink chamber 340 is consumed, the air in the air chamber 330 is introduced into the ink chamber 340 as bubbles G through the ink chamber communication path 350. As a result, the liquid level (ink liquid level) of the ink chamber 340 is lowered. On the other hand, since the height of the atmospheric contact liquid surface LA that is in direct contact with the atmosphere is maintained constant, the water head difference d1 is maintained constant. That is, the ink can be stably supplied from the ink container 30 to the recording head 17 by the predetermined suction force of the recording head 17.

  As shown in the partial enlarged view of the ink chamber 340 in FIG. 4, an ink thin film is easily formed in the boundary portion A where the ink liquid level LF and the inside of the wall 370 that partitions the ink chamber 340 are in contact with each other. . Since the ink thin film formed at the boundary portion A is easy to dry, it causes agglomerates when peeled off from the wall surface. Similarly, the ink adhering to the support member (described later) easily forms a thin film, and thus easily causes agglomerates.

<Ink container structure>
FIG. 5 is an external perspective view schematically showing an example of the ink container according to the present invention. Specifically, FIG. 5 shows a state before the film members 316 and 322 are attached to the ink container 30.

  In the example of FIG. 5, the ink container 30 has a substantially columnar shape (specifically, a substantially right-angled column shape), but is not limited thereto, and may have any shape. The ink container 30 is mainly made of a plastic plate such as a synthetic resin (polypropylene or the like), a part of which is a flexible member (for example, polyolefin (for example, polyethylene, polypropylene), polyamide, polyester (for example, polyethylene terephthalate), It may be formed of a vinyl-based copolymer (for example, vinyl acetate, vinyl chloride) and a film formed of a material such as a metal or metal oxide (for example, aluminum, alumina) alone or in combination. . Specifically, the ink container 30 of FIG. 5 is formed by bonding a film 34 to one surface of a plastic container molded from a synthetic resin. In addition, at least a part of the ink container 30 is preferably transparent or translucent. Thereby, the state of ink in the ink container 30 (ink water level, etc.) can be confirmed.

  Normally used ink compositions contain a wetting agent such as a surfactant, and therefore, the ink composition tends to have high wettability with respect to members constituting the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber. Therefore, a thin film of the ink composition is likely to be formed inside the wall 370, and the formed thin film may cause agglomerates. In order to suppress the occurrence of such a thin film, it is preferable to use a member that forms the inside of the wall 370 that has high liquid repellency with respect to the ink composition. In particular, when a fluorine compound, silicone resin, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene, polyester, polyvinyl chloride, phenol resin, polyvinyl acetate, poly (meth) acrylic acid ester (for example, poly (meth) methyl acrylate, etc.), etc. are used. It becomes easy to set a static contact angle CA described later to 10 ° or more. These materials can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Among these materials, it is more preferable to use an ink repellent material such as a fluorine compound or a silicone resin from the viewpoint that the above-described static contact angle CA is more easily set to 10 ° or more.

  In the present invention, “poly (meth) acrylate” refers to both polyacrylate and polymethacrylate, and “poly (meth) acrylate” refers to polymethylacrylate and polymethacrylate. It shall refer to both methyl methacrylate.

  Examples of the fluorine compound include an organic compound having a fluorine atom and a fluororesin. As the organic compound having a fluorine atom, fluoroalkylsilane, alkane having a fluoroalkyl group, cambonic acid, alcohol, amine and the like are preferably used. Examples of the fluoroalkylsilane include heptadecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrodecyltrimethoxysilane, heptadecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrotrichlorosilane; having a fluoroalkyl group As alkanes, octafluorocyclobutane, perfluoromethylcyclohexane, perfluoro-n-hexane, perfluoro-n-heptane, tetradecafluoro-2-methylpentane, perfluorododecane, perfluoroeucosan; fluoroalkyl group Examples of the carboxylic acid having perfluorodecanoic acid and perfluorooctanoic acid; and examples of the alcohol having a fluoroalkyl group include 3,3,4,4,5,5,5-heptafluoro-2-pentanol; fluoroalkyl group Amine with It is then, heptadecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydro-decyl amine. Examples of fluororesins include tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer (PFA), tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer (FEP), tetrafluoroethylene-ethylene copolymer (ETFE), and polychlorotrifluoroethylene. Examples include ethylene (PCTFE), chlorotrifluoroethylene-ethylene copolymer (ECTFE), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), and the like.

  Examples of the silicone resin include polymers having a siloxane structural unit substituted with an organic group such as an alkyl group. For example, α, w-bis (3-aminopropyl) polydimethylsiloxane, α, w-bis (3- Polymers having a dimethylsiloxane skeleton such as glycidoxypropyl) polydimethylsiloxane and α, w-bis (vinyl) polydimethylsiloxane can be used.

  A liquid repellent layer may be provided inside the wall 370 that partitions the ink chamber 340. The liquid repellent layer is formed, for example, by applying a liquid repellent (for example, the above-described fluorine compound or silicone resin). In addition, when the liquid repellent layer is provided inside the wall 370, the member which comprises the inside of the wall 370 points out a liquid repellent layer. Commercially available products can be used as the liquid repellent, for example, HC303VP (trade name, manufactured by Asahi Kasei Wacker Silicone Co., Ltd., silicone resin), SF Coat (trade name, manufactured by AGC Seimi Chemical Co., Ltd., fluorine compound), etc. Can be mentioned.

  A fine periodic structure may be provided on the surface of a member constituting the inside of the wall 370 that partitions the ink chamber 340. A fine periodic structure can be formed by the manufacturing method of the resin molding described in Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2012-66417, for example. The fine periodic structure is, for example, a structure in which pyramids (triangular pyramid, quadrangular pyramid, hexagonal pyramid, etc.) are continuously provided and the distance between the apexes of adjacent cones is about 1.0 μm to 100 μm. Say. Thereby, the liquid repellency between the member constituting the inside of the wall 370 and the ink composition can be improved.

  The center line average roughness (Ra) inside the wall 370 is preferably 0.1 μm or more and 10 μm or less. Thereby, the liquid repellency inside the wall 370 is further improved. The reason why the liquid repellency is thus improved is considered to be that a plurality of fine irregularities are formed on the surface of the inner wall. The center line average roughness (Ra) can be measured using, for example, an optical three-dimensional surface roughness meter RSTplus manufactured by WYCO. Specifically, five points are measured in a visual field of 40 × objective lens, 1.0 × intermediate lens, and 111 × 150 μm, and the average value is defined as centerline average roughness (Ra).

A first flow path 310 is formed in the side wall that forms the side surface of the ink container 30 when in use. The first flow path 310 includes an air opening 317, a communication flow path 320, and the film 31.
6. A gas-liquid separation chamber 312 and a communication channel 314 are provided. The gas-liquid separation chamber 312 has a concave shape, and an opening is formed in the concave bottom surface. The gas-liquid separation chamber 312 and the communication channel 314 communicate with each other through the opening on the bottom surface. The end of the communication channel 314 is an air inlet 318 (see FIG. 3). A bank 313 is formed on the entire circumference of the inner wall surrounding the bottom surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber 312. The film member 316 is bonded to the bank 313. Further, the film member 322 is bonded to the ink container 30 so as to cover the flow path formed on the outer surface of the ink container 30 in the first flow path 310. Thereby, the communication flow path 320 is formed, and the ink inside the ink container 30 is prevented from leaking outside. A part of the communication channel 320 is formed along the outer periphery of the gas-liquid separation chamber 312 in order to increase the distance from the atmosphere opening 317 to the gas-liquid separation chamber 312. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the moisture in the ink inside the ink container 30 from evaporating from the air inlet 318 to the outside.

  The air flowing through the first flow path 310 passes through the film member 316 as a gas-liquid separation film adhered to the bank 313 in the middle thereof. Thereby, it can suppress more that the ink accommodated in the ink container 30 leaks outside.

  The ink outlet 306 has a cylindrical shape and has a flow path therein. The ink supply path 24 is connected to the ink outlet 306. In addition, the other end 348 of the ink outlet 306 is open to the outside.

  Next, the internal structure of the ink container will be described with reference to the drawings. 6 and 7 are perspective views schematically showing the internal structure of the ink container 30 in the use state. FIG. 8 is a side view schematically showing the internal structure of the ink container 30 in the use state. More specifically, FIG. 8 is a diagram when the ink container 30 is viewed in the negative direction of the Y axis, and a first side surface 372A (described later) made of a film is located in the front.

  In the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the ink container 30 has a concave shape with one side opened, and the opening is closed by the film 34, thereby forming a plurality of spaces (rooms) partitioned inside. Has been. More specifically, an air chamber 330, an ink chamber 340, and an ink chamber communication path 350 are formed inside the ink container 30. That is, the members (such as the wall and the film 34) constituting the ink container 30 function as a wall 370 that defines the ink chamber 340, a wall 374 that defines the air chamber 330, and a wall 378 that defines the ink chamber communication path 350. . In addition, in FIG. 6, the part to which the film 34 is adhere | attached is hatched.

  The ink chamber 340 communicates with an ink inlet 304 that can be replenished with ink. The ink injection port 304 is closed by the plug member 302 in the use state in order to suppress ink leakage and air mixing into the ink chamber 340.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the ink chamber 340 is partitioned by a wall 370, and when ink is injected into the ink chamber 340, the inside of the wall 370 comes into contact with the ink.

  In the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the wall 370 that partitions the ink chamber 340 includes an upper surface 371, a side surface 372, and a bottom surface 373. Here, the upper surface 371 of the wall 370 refers to a surface that can be confirmed when the ink chamber 340 is viewed upward in the vertical direction from the inside. The side surface 372 of the wall 370 refers to a surface that can be confirmed when the ink chamber 340 is viewed in the horizontal direction from the inside in the state of use. The bottom surface 373 of the wall 370 is a surface that can be confirmed when the ink chamber 340 is viewed vertically downward from the inside in the state of use.

More specifically, in the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the side surface 372 includes a first side surface 372A, a second side surface 372B opposite to the first side surface 372A, and a third side surface 37 connected to the first side surface 372A.
2C and a fourth side surface 372D facing the third side surface 372C.

  Here, the first side surface 372 </ b> A is made of the film 34. The top surface 371, the second side surface 372B, the third side surface 372C, the fourth side surface 372D, and the bottom surface 373 are made of a material other than a film.

  6 and 7, the ink chamber 340 includes a first chamber 340F and a second chamber 340S, and the first container 340F is disposed above the second chamber 340S. The first chamber 340 </ b> F and the second container 340 </ b> S are arranged side by side and communicate with each other through the internal communication port 345. The first chamber 340F has a larger volume than the second chamber 340S and functions as the main chamber of the ink chamber 340.

  The first chamber 340F is provided with an ink inlet 304 and an air inlet 352, and the second chamber 340S is provided with an ink outlet 349 that is one end of the ink outlet 306. In the use state, the ink outlet 349 is located below the air inlet 352. The air introduction port 352 and the internal communication port 345 are provided at different positions on the bottom surface (a part of the bottom surface 373) in the first chamber 340F. The ink outlet 349 is provided on the side surface (a part of the fourth side surface 372D) in the second chamber 340F.

  The ink container 30 may be provided with a filter (not shown) in order to capture agglomerates generated in the ink chamber 340 and foreign matters mixed when ink is injected. The filter can be provided, for example, at the ink outlet 349 or the ink outlet 306 in the ink container 30. The continuous supply type ink container that can be refilled with ink, such as the ink container 30 according to this embodiment, has a gas-liquid interface compared to an ink container (so-called ink cartridge) that is replaced without refilling ink. Ink due to aggregates collected by the filter because the area and the contact area between the inside of the wall and the ink liquid surface are remarkably large and the usage period is very long. There is a tendency that defects such as supply failure are easily manifested. Even in such a case, as described later, the ink container 30 according to the present embodiment has the ink adhering to the boundary portion A where the inside of the wall 370 and the liquid level LF of the ink contact each other or the support 380. As a result, the clogging of the filter provided in the ink container 30 and the filter provided in the ink flow path in the ink jet recording apparatus can be reduced.

  The ink chamber 340 includes a support 380 that is connected to the inside of the wall 370 and supports the wall 370. The support 380 has functions such as improving the strength and rigidity of the wall 370 and improving the adhesion of the film 34 which is a part of the wall 370 (first side 372A). May be.

  For the members constituting the support 380, the materials mentioned for the members constituting the ink container 30 and the inside of the wall 370 can be used. Among the above-described materials, from the viewpoint that the liquid repellency with respect to the ink composition is good, the materials mentioned as the members constituting the inside of the wall 370 can be preferably used. Note that the surface of the support 380 may be provided with a liquid repellent layer or a fine periodic structure as described in the description of the members constituting the inside of the wall 370. When a liquid repellent layer is provided on the surface of the support 380, the members constituting the support 380 indicate the liquid repellent layer.

As ink in the ink chamber 340 is consumed, air accumulates above the ink chamber 340. The air accumulated above the ink chamber 340 is saturated by the liquid medium that gradually volatilizes from the ink. At this time, if the ink injection port 304 is opened and ink is injected into the ink chamber 340, the air accumulated above the ink is replaced with the injected ink. However, since the amount of air newly introduced above the ink chamber 340 is small, it is difficult for the ink in the ink chamber 340 to volatilize rapidly.

  On the other hand, some users may close the ink chamber 340 without injecting ink even though the ink injection port 304 is opened. At this time, when the amount of ink consumed in the ink chamber 340 is large and the ratio of air existing above the ink chamber 340 is large, a large amount of air that is not saturated is introduced into the ink chamber 340. Then, the volatilization of the ink in the ink chamber 340 proceeds rapidly. In particular, when the ink adhering to the support 380 existing in the ink is volatilized rapidly, a large amount of aggregates may be generated.

  In order to solve such a problem, when the ink container 30 is used, when the ink of 50% of the volume of the ink chamber 340 is filled, the area (R1) where the support 380 comes into contact with the ink is determined as the support. It is necessary to make it smaller than the area (R2) where 380 contacts the atmosphere (air) (that is, the relationship of R1 <R2 is satisfied). By doing so, even if the ink chamber 340 is closed without ink being injected from the ink injection port 304, the support 380 present in the ink is small, so that the support present in the ink Even if the adhering ink is volatilized rapidly, the amount of aggregates generated is reduced. Thereby, clogging of the recording head 17 can be suppressed. The ink container 30 satisfying such a relationship will be described below with reference to FIG.

LF _{50 in} FIG. 8 indicates the position of the ink liquid level when ink is filled to 50% of the volume of the ink chamber 340. In the ink container 30 in FIG. 8, the number of supports 380 at the position beyond the LF _50, is also possible to increase than the number of supports 380 that exist LF ₅₀ following positions, relationship of the R1 <R2 Meet. Thereby, even when the volatilization of the ink in the ink chamber 340 rapidly progresses, the generation of aggregates can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the support 380 may include a first support 382, a second support 384, and a third support 386. Further, a plurality of these supports may be provided.

  In the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the first support 382 is connected to the inside of the first side surface 372A (corresponding to the first wall portion in the claims) and the inside of the second side surface 372B. The first support 382 is mainly used to improve the adhesion of the first side surface 372A (film 34) to the ink container 30. The first support 382 may be connected to any position of the top surface 371, the side surface 372, and the bottom surface 372 as long as the adhesion of the first side surface 372A can be improved.

  In the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the second support 384 is connected to the first support 382 and the inside of the second side surface 372B. The second support 384 is mainly used to support the first support 382. The second support 384 may be connected to any position of the top surface 371, the side surface 372, and the bottom surface 373 as long as it can support the first support 382, and connects two or more surfaces. Also good.

  6 and 7, the third support 386 includes a support connected to the inside of the second side 372B and the inside of the third side 372C, the inside of the second side 372B, and the inside of the fourth side 372D. And a support connected to. The third support 386 is mainly used to improve the strength of the portion to which each surface is connected. Note that the third support 386 may be connected to any position of the upper surface 371, the side surface 372, and the bottom surface 373 as long as the strength of the connection portion of each surface can be improved, and two or more surfaces can be connected. it can.

The ink container 340 preferably has a support that comes into contact with ink when the ink container 340 is filled with 50% of the volume of the ink chamber 340 in use. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the support exists at a position exceeding LF ₅₀ (position of the ink liquid level when ink is filled to 50% of the volume of the ink chamber 30) and at a position below LF _50. Then it can be paraphrased. Thus, the strength of the ink container 30 can be improved by the presence of the support body above and below the LF ₅₀ .

  A plurality of supports 380 are preferably provided in a direction intersecting the vertical direction of the ink container 30. That is, in the examples of FIGS. 6 to 8, a plurality of support bodies 380 such as a first support body 382, a second support body 384, and a third support body 386 intersect a direction (X-axis direction) that intersects the vertical direction (Z-axis). ). Thereby, the strength of the ink container 30 can be improved. In particular, when a plurality of first supports 382 are provided in a direction intersecting the vertical direction of the ink container 30 (see FIGS. 10 and 11 described later), the adhesive strength of the first side surface 372A (film 34) is further improved. Therefore, it is preferable.

  When ink in the ink chamber is consumed, the ink accumulates on the support, and aggregates may be generated from the gas-liquid interface of the ink collected on the support. Therefore, it is preferable to use a support having a shape in which ink does not easily accumulate when the ink liquid level passes through the support. Specifically, the upper surface of the support in the use state has a vertically upward convex shape (in other words, a shape curved or bent upward in the vertical direction) and does not have a horizontal surface. As a result, the ink adhering to the support easily flows down. The upper surface of the support means a surface that can be confirmed when the support is viewed downward from the inside of the ink chamber in the use state. Specific examples of the support having such a shape are shown in FIGS.

  The second support 384 reduces the surface area while maintaining the connection area with the wall surface from the viewpoint of reducing the generation of aggregates due to the ink adhering to the support while maintaining the strength of the ink container 30. It is preferable to make it. In other words, the second support 384 has a side connected to the second side surface 372B when the second support 384 is viewed downward in the vertical direction when the ink container 30 is in use. It is preferable to use one having a length of a line segment parallel to the side in the plane shorter than the length of the side. More preferably, the surface that appears when the second support 384 is viewed downward in the vertical direction when the ink container 30 is in use is directly connected to the second side 372B and the first support 382. Use one that has sides to connect. A specific example of the second support having such a shape is shown in FIG.

FIG. 9A is a diagram schematically illustrating the shape of the second support 384 when the ink chamber 340 of FIG. 7 is viewed downward in the Z-axis direction (downward in the vertical direction). As shown in FIG. 9A, a surface 384a (shaded portion) that appears when the second support 384 is viewed downward in the vertical direction has a side L ₁ connected to the second side surface 372B, The length of the line segment (for example, the side L ₀ ) parallel to the side L ₁ in the 384a is shorter than the length of the side L ₁ . More specifically, the surface 384a connects the side L ₁ connected to the second side 372B, the side L ₂ connected to the first support 382, and the second side 372B and the first support 382. It is a triangle composed of the side L ₃ . Thereby, while maintaining the strength of the ink container 30, the contact area between the ink and the ink container 30 can be reduced, and the generation of aggregates due to the ink adhering to the second support 384 can be suppressed.

Similar to the second support 384, the third support 386 maintains the strength of the ink container 30 and reduces the generation of aggregates due to the ink adhering to the support. It is preferable to reduce the surface area while ensuring. That is, the third support 386 has a side where the surface that appears when the third support 386 is viewed downward in the vertical direction in the use state of the ink container 30 is connected to the second side surface 372B. It is preferable to use the one in which the length of the line segment parallel to the side is shorter than the length of the side. More preferably, the surface of the third support 386 that appears when the third support 386 is viewed downward in the vertical direction when the ink container 30 is used constitutes a wall 370 that defines the ink storage chamber 340. The one having an edge that directly connects at least two surfaces is used. A specific example of the third support having such a shape is shown in FIG.

FIG. 9B is a diagram schematically illustrating the shape of the third support 386 when the ink chamber 340 of FIG. 7 is viewed downward in the Z-axis direction (downward in the vertical direction). As shown in FIG. 9 (B), the surface appears when viewed third support 386 in a downward vertical direction 386a (hatched portion) has a side L ₁₀ which is connected to the second side surface 372B, the surface The length of a line segment (for example, the side L ₀₀ ) parallel to the side L ₁₀ in the 386a is shorter than the length of the side L ₁₀ . More specifically, the surface 386a includes the side L ₁₀ connected to the second side 372B, the side L ₂₀ connected to the third side 372C, and the side L connecting the second side 372B and the third side 382C. It is a triangle consisting of ₃₀ . Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the aggregate resulting from the ink adhering to the 3rd support body 386 can be suppressed, maintaining the intensity | strength of the ink container 30. FIG.

  The example of FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 is a specific example of what the shape of the upper surface of the support body in a use condition is convex upward in the perpendicular direction, and does not have a horizontal surface.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing the internal structure of the ink container in the use state. The ink container 30A in FIG. 10 is the same as the ink container 30 in FIG. 8 except that the support 380A provided in the ink chamber 340A is different, and thus description of the common parts is omitted.

  A support 380A in FIG. 10 includes a first support 382A and a third support 386A, and corresponds to the first support 382 and the third support 386 in FIG. 8, respectively. The first support 382A has a cylindrical shape extending in the Y-axis direction. The third support 386A has the same shape as the third support 386 in FIG. 8, but the installation angle is different. That is, the upper surface of the third support 386 in FIG. 8 is parallel to the horizontal plane, whereas the upper surface of the third support 386A in FIG. 10 is disposed to be inclined downward. As described above, since the shape of the upper surface of the support 380A in FIG. 10 is convex upward in the vertical direction and does not have a horizontal surface, the generation of aggregates can be effectively suppressed.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically showing the internal structure of the ink container in a use state. Since the ink container 30B of FIG. 11 is the same as the ink container 30 of FIG. 8 except that the support 380B provided in the ink chamber 340B is different, the description of the common parts is omitted.

  A support 380B in FIG. 11 includes a first support 382B and a third support 386B, and corresponds to the first support 382 and the third support 386 in FIG. 8, respectively. The first support 382B has a triangular prism shape extending in the Y-axis direction. The third support 386B is the same as the third support 386A in FIG. Thus, since the shape of the upper surface of the support body 380B of FIG. 11 is convex upward in the vertical direction and does not have a horizontal plane, the generation of aggregates can be effectively suppressed.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, a plurality of first supports 382A (382B) may be provided from the viewpoint of improving the adhesiveness of the first side surface 372A. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, when the ink container 30 </ b> A is viewed from the side with the first side 372 </ b> A as the front surface in use, one of the first supports 382 </ b> A and another adjacent to the first support 382 </ b> A. The distance D1 from the support is preferably 25% or less of the distance (length) D in the longitudinal direction of the ink container 30. Thereby, the adhesive strength of 1st side 372A (film) may be improved further. The distance D1 indicates the shortest straight distance among straight lines connecting the surface of one support and the surface of another support adjacent thereto.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the ink container 30A is viewed from the side with the first side surface 372A as the front surface in use, the distance D2 between the first support 382A and the side surface 372 of the wall 370 is the ink container. It is preferably 25% or less of the distance (length) D in the longitudinal direction of 30. Thereby, the adhesive strength of the first side surface 372A may be further improved. The distance D2 indicates the shortest straight distance among straight lines connecting the surface of the first support 382A and the surface of the side surface 372.

  The support 380 may have a notch, a hole, or the like from the viewpoint of improving the ink circulation property in the ink chamber 340.

  In the example of FIGS. 6 and 7, the shape of the ink chamber 340 is a substantially columnar shape extending in the vertical direction in the usage state, but is not limited to this shape.

  As described above, the ink inlet may be closed without ink being injected into the ink chamber. In such a case, if the gas-liquid interface of the ink is wide, the volatilization of the ink is likely to proceed more rapidly, and therefore, aggregates due to the ink adhering to the support existing in the ink are more likely to occur. Therefore, by using an ink chamber having a shape in which the gas-liquid interface of the ink is narrowed when the ink filled in the ink chamber is reduced, it is possible to suppress ink from volatilizing rapidly from the ink liquid surface. As a result, it is possible to suppress the generation of aggregates due to the ink adhering to the support existing in the ink. A specific example of such an ink container is shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a side view schematically showing an example of the shape of the ink container. FIG. 12 is a view of the ink container 30C when viewed in the negative direction of the Y-axis, and is the same as the ink container 30 of FIG. 8 except that the shape of the ink chamber 340C is different. . LF ₉₀ in FIG. 12 indicates the position of the ink liquid level LF when ink is filled to 90% of the volume of the ink chamber 340C. In the initial filling of such factory of the ink container, sometimes the ink is filled to LF _90. LF ₅₀ in FIG. 12 indicates the position of the ink liquid level LF when the ink is consumed up to 50% of the volume of the ink chamber.

In FIG. 12, the area of the ink liquid level LF when reaching the height of LF ₅₀ is smaller than the area of the ink liquid level LF when reaching LF ₉₀ . In this case, even if the ink is consumed until the height is equal to or less than the height of the LF ₅₀ and the ink inlet 304 is opened, the ink chamber 340C is closed without being filled with ink. Since the area of the liquid surface LF is small, the volatilization rate of the ink from the ink liquid surface LF becomes slow. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the aggregate resulting from the ink adhering to the support body 380 in ink is suppressed.

  The ink chamber 340 is preferably not provided with an ink absorber (for example, urethane foam or fiber structure) that absorbs or holds ink. The ink absorber may increase the area of the gas-liquid interface between the ink and the outside air, and also tends to retain aggregates generated in the ink chamber 340, thus hindering the smooth flow of the ink and causing poor ink supply. It may cause cause.

  As described above, according to the ink container 30 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress the generation of aggregates due to the ink attached to the support 380. Thereby, since clogging of the recording head 17 (nozzles) is reduced, the ink jet recording apparatus 1 having excellent ejection stability can be obtained.

2. Ink Composition The ink container 30 according to the present embodiment can contain an ink composition. The ink composition according to the present embodiment is designed to satisfy the required characteristics based on the structure and properties of the recording apparatus and the ink container, and is manufactured and sold in association with the specific recording apparatus and the ink container. It may be. In the present invention, the ink composition preferably has a static contact angle of 10 ° or more with respect to a member constituting the inside of the wall 370 of the ink container filled with the ink composition of the present embodiment. This is because it is difficult to form an ink thin film at the boundary portion A described above. Hereinafter, components that can be contained in the ink composition according to the present embodiment (hereinafter also simply referred to as “ink”) will be described.

2.1. Ingredient <Pigment>
The ink according to this embodiment may contain a pigment. The pigment is superior in water resistance, gas resistance, light resistance and the like as compared with the dye.

  As the pigment, any known pigment such as an inorganic pigment or an organic pigment can be used. Examples of the inorganic pigment include, but are not limited to, titanium oxide, iron oxide, calcium carbonate, barium sulfate, aluminum hydroxide, barium yellow, cadmium red, chrome yellow, carbon black, bitumen, and metal powder.

  Examples of organic pigments include, but are not limited to, azo pigments, polycyclic pigments, nitro pigments, nitroso pigments, and aniline black. Among these, at least one of an azo pigment and a polycyclic pigment is preferable. Examples of azo pigments include, but are not limited to, azo lakes, insoluble azo pigments, condensed azo pigments, and chelate azo pigments. Polycyclic pigments include, but are not limited to, for example, phthalocyanine pigments, perylene pigments, perinone pigments, anthraquinone pigments, quinacridone pigments, dioxazine pigments, indigo pigments, thioindigo pigments, isoindolinone pigments, quinophthalone pigments, azomethine pigments And rhodamine B lake pigments.

  The volume-based average particle diameter of the pigment (hereinafter also simply referred to as “average particle diameter of the pigment”) is preferably 30 nm or more and 300 nm or less, and more preferably 50 nm or more and 200 nm or less. When the average particle diameter of the pigment is within the above range, the color developability of the pigment may be improved, or clogging of the filter and the recording head may be reduced.

  The average particle diameter of the pigment can be measured by a particle size distribution measuring apparatus using a laser diffraction scattering method as a measurement principle. As the particle size distribution measuring device, for example, a particle size distribution meter (for example, “Microtrack UPA” manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.) having a dynamic light scattering method as a measurement principle can be used.

  The pigment may be a surface-treated pigment or a pigment using a dispersant or the like from the viewpoint of enhancing dispersibility in the ink. A surface-treated pigment means that a hydrophilic group (carboxyl group, sulfonic acid group, phosphoric acid group, etc.) is directly or indirectly bonded to the pigment surface in an aqueous solvent by physical treatment or chemical treatment. Dispersible (hereinafter also referred to as “self-dispersing pigment”). The pigment using a dispersant is a pigment dispersed with a surfactant or a resin (hereinafter, also referred to as “polymer dispersed pigment”), and any known surfactant or resin is known. It is possible to use substances. In addition, the “polymer dispersed pigment” includes a pigment coated with a resin. The pigment coated with the resin can be obtained by an acid precipitation method, a phase inversion emulsification method, a miniemulsion polymerization method, or the like. Since the resin content in the ink can be reduced, it is preferable to use a self-dispersing pigment.

<Resin>
The ink according to the present embodiment may contain a resin. The resin has functions such as improving the adhesion of the ink attached to the recording medium and improving the dispersibility of the pigment.

  As the resin, any type of resin such as a dissolved state or a particle state such as an emulsion can be used. For example, when the resin is in the form of particles (hereinafter also referred to as “resin particles”), the volume-based average particle diameter of the resin particles (hereinafter also simply referred to as “average particle diameter of resin particles”) is: It is preferably 30 nm or more and 300 nm or less. More preferably, it is 50 nm or more and 200 nm or less. When the average particle diameter of the resin particles is within the above range, the fixability of the ink to the recording medium tends to be improved, and clogging of the filter and the recording head tends to be reduced. The average particle diameter of the resin particles can be measured in the same manner as described in the description of the average particle diameter of the pigment.

  The average particle diameter of the resin particles can be measured by a particle size distribution measuring apparatus using a laser diffraction scattering method as a measurement principle. As the particle size distribution measuring device, for example, a particle size distribution meter (for example, “Microtrack UPA” manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.) having a dynamic light scattering method as a measurement principle can be used.

  As the resin, a resin having a glass transition temperature of 25 ° C. or lower is preferably used, a resin having a glass transition temperature of 10 ° C. or lower is more preferable, and a resin having a glass transition temperature of 0 ° C. or lower is more preferable. When the glass transition temperature of the resin is 25 ° C. or lower, aggregates are hardly generated. Further, even if it occurs, the fluidity of the agglomerate containing the resin and the pigment becomes high, so that the filter and the nozzle are not easily clogged.

  Examples of the resin include acrylic resins, styrene acrylic resins, fluorene resins, urethane resins, polyolefin resins, rosin modified resins, terpene resins, polyester resins, polyamide resins, epoxy resins, vinyl chloride resins. Resin, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene vinyl acetate resin and the like can be used. These resins may be used alone or in combination of two or more. Further, as the resin, an emulsion or a water-soluble resin may be used.

  The resin content in terms of solid content is preferably less than 1 part by weight and more preferably 0.1 parts by weight or more and 0.5 parts by weight or less with respect to 1 part by weight of the pigment contained in the ink. preferable. When the resin content is less than the pigment content, film formation of the resin adhering to the recording medium is less likely to be inhibited by the pigment, and thus the ink adhesion to the recording medium tends to be improved.

  The total content of the resin and the pigment is preferably 20% by mass or less in terms of solid content with respect to the total mass (100% by mass) of the ink. When the total amount is 20% by mass or less, generation of aggregates in the ink can be reduced. The total content of the resin and the pigment is more preferably 2% by mass or more and 15% by mass or less, further preferably 3% by mass or more and 15% by mass or less, and particularly preferably 3% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less. is there.

Furthermore, when the ink container is provided with a filter, the average particle diameter of the pigment is preferably 1/10 or less, more preferably 1/500 or more and 1/20 or less of the filter aperture. More preferably, it is 1/300 or more and 1/30 or less. If the resin is particulate, the average particle size of the pigment and the resin is preferably 1/10 or less, more preferably 1/500 to 1/20, and even more preferably 300. 1/30 to 1/30. By satisfying this relationship, the filter can be trapped with enormous coarse particles that are less likely to be clogged and that have a large effect on ejection.

<Organic solvent>
The ink according to this embodiment contains an organic solvent. Examples of the organic solvent include alkanediols, polyhydric alcohols, glycol ethers, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea, urea derivatives, and the like. Among these, polyhydric alcohols, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea and urea derivatives are organic solvents having a function as a humectant. These may be used individually by 1 type, and may be used in mixture of 2 or more types.

  Examples of alkanediols include 1,2-alkanediols having 4 to 8 carbon atoms (for example, 1,2-butanediol, 1,2-pentanediol, 1,2-hexanediol, 1,2-octanediol, etc.) 2-methyl-1,3-propanediol, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediol and 2-ethyl-1,3-hexanediol. The alkanediols have functions of improving the wettability with respect to the recording medium and suppressing the drying and solidification of the ink on the nozzle surface of the recording head. When the alkanediol is contained, the content thereof can be, for example, 0.1% by mass or more and 20% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the ink. In order to prevent the wettability from being improved too much, it is more preferably 0.5% by mass or more and 5% by mass or less, further preferably 0.5% by mass or more and 3% by mass or less, and particularly preferably 0.5% by mass or less. The mass is 2% by mass or more.

  Among the alkanediols, it is preferable to use 1,2-alkanediols having 5 or 6 carbon atoms. This is because these compounds have a small decrease in the surface tension of the ink, despite improving the permeability and wettability of the ink to the recording medium.

  Examples of glycol ethers include alkylene glycol monoether and alkylene glycol diether.

  Examples of the alkylene glycol monoether include ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, ethylene glycol monoethyl ether, ethylene glycol monoisopropyl ether, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethylene glycol monohexyl ether, ethylene glycol monophenyl ether, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether, diethylene glycol monoethyl. Ether, diethylene glycol monobutyl ether, diethylene glycol monohexyl ether, triethylene glycol monomethyl ether, triethylene glycol monoethyl ether, triethylene glycol monobutyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monomethyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monoethyl ether, B propylene glycol monomethyl ether, propylene glycol monoethyl ether, dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether, dipropylene glycol monoethyl ether and the like.

  Examples of the alkylene glycol diether include ethylene glycol dimethyl ether, ethylene glycol diethyl ether, ethylene glycol dibutyl ether, diethylene glycol dimethyl ether, diethylene glycol diethyl ether, diethylene glycol ethyl methyl ether, diethylene glycol dibutyl ether, triethylene glycol dimethyl ether, triethylene glycol diethyl ether, Triethylene glycol dibutyl ether, triethylene glycol butyl methyl ether, tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether, tetraethylene glycol diethyl ether, tetraethylene glycol dibutyl ether, propylene glycol dimethyl ether, propylene glycol diethyl Ether, dipropylene glycol dimethyl ether, dipropylene glycol diethyl ether, and the like.

  Glycol ethers can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Glycol ethers can be preferably used because they reduce the surface tension of the ink, despite improving the permeability and wettability of the ink to the recording medium. When glycol ethers are contained, the content thereof can be, for example, 0.05% by mass or more and 6% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the ink. Furthermore, the content is preferably 0.2% by mass or more and 4% by mass or less in order to appropriately control wettability in consideration of precipitation of aggregates and the like.

<Humectant>
Examples of polyhydric alcohols (excluding the alkanediols) include ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 1,3-butanediol, 1,3-pentanediol, and 1,4-butanediol. 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, 2,3-butanediol, 3-methyl-1,3-butanediol, 2-methyl-2,4-pentanediol, 3-methyl-1, Examples include 5-pentanediol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, trimethylolpropane, and glycerin. Polyhydric alcohols can be preferably used from the standpoint that clogging and ejection failure can be reduced by suppressing drying and solidification of ink on the nozzle surface of the head. When polyhydric alcohols are contained, the content thereof can be, for example, 5% by mass or more, further 5% by mass or more and 30% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the ink.

  Examples of the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compound include N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone, 2-pyrrolidone, N-butyl-2-pyrrolidone, and 5-methyl. -2-pyrrolidone, hydantoin and the like. Examples of urea or urea derivatives include urea, ethylene urea, tetramethylurea, thiourea and the like. These can be used individually by 1 type or in mixture of 2 or more types. Like polyhydric alcohols, these can be preferably used from the viewpoint of suppressing clogging, ejection failure, and the like by suppressing drying and solidification of ink on the nozzle surface of the head. When it contains these, the content can be 0.5 mass% or more and 10 mass% or less with respect to the total mass of an ink, More preferably, it is 1 mass% or more and 5 mass% or less.

  Examples of the humectant include polyhydric alcohols such as glycerin, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea and urea derivatives. It is preferable to use glycerin and other moisturizers in combination. At this time, it is preferable to select one or more from the group consisting of polyhydric alcohols other than glycerin, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea and urea derivatives as the humectant used in combination with glycerin. Thus, using together glycerin and other moisturizers (one or more moisturizers selected from the group consisting of polyhydric alcohols other than glycerin, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea and urea derivatives). Thus, it is possible to effectively suppress both long-term water evaporation and water evaporation that occurs rapidly on the wall surface of the ink chamber. In this case, more preferable polyhydric alcohols are propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, 1,3-butanediol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, and trimethylolpropane. Among the polyhydric alcohols, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, diethylene glycol, and 1,3-butanediol are preferable from the viewpoint of preventing precipitation. Moreover, as a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compound, 2-pyrrolidone and hydantoin are preferable. Furthermore, as the urea derivative, ethylene urea, tetramethyl urea, and thiourea are preferable. In addition, as a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compound, a pyrrolidone derivative is preferable.

The ink according to this embodiment includes 1,2-alkanediol having 2 to 8 carbon atoms, 2-methyl-1,3-propanediol, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediol, and 2-ethyl-1. , 3-hexanediol, when including at least one selected from glycol ether, from the viewpoint of preventing the precipitation of aggregates, glycerin and other polyhydric alcohols (glycerin among the polyhydric alcohols described above). It is desirable to add a moisturizer using at least one selected from the group consisting of nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, urea, and urea derivatives.

<Water>
The ink according to the present embodiment may contain water. When the ink according to the present embodiment is a water-based ink (ink containing 50% by mass or more of water), water is a component that becomes a main solvent of the ink and is evaporated and scattered by drying. Examples of water include water from which ionic impurities have been removed as much as possible, such as pure water such as ion exchange water, ultrafiltration water, reverse osmosis water, and distilled water, and ultrapure water. Further, when water sterilized by ultraviolet irradiation or addition of hydrogen peroxide is used, generation of mold and bacteria can be prevented when the ink is stored for a long time.

<Surfactant>
The ink according to this embodiment may contain a surfactant. The surfactant has a function of reducing surface tension and improving wettability with a recording medium. Among the surfactants, for example, acetylene glycol surfactants, silicone surfactants, fluorine surfactants, and polyoxyethylene alkyl ether surfactants can be preferably used.

  Although it does not specifically limit as acetylene glycol type surfactant, For example, Surfynol 104,104E, 104H, 104A, 104BC, 104DPM, 104PA, 104PG-50,104S, 420,440,465,485, SE, SE- F, 504, 61, DF37, CT111, CT121, CT131, CT136, TG, GA, DF110D (all are trade names, manufactured by Air Products and Chemicals. Inc.), Olphin B, Y, P, A, STG, SPC , E1004, E1010, PD-001, PD-002W, PD-003, PD-004, EXP. 4001, EXP. 4036, EXP. 4051, AF-103, AF-104, AK-02, SK-14, AE-3 (all trade names, manufactured by Nissin Chemical Industry), acetylenol E00, E00P, E40, E100 (all trade names, river Ken Fine Chemical Co., Ltd.).

  Although it does not specifically limit as a silicone type surfactant, A polysiloxane type compound is mentioned preferably. Although it does not specifically limit as the said polysiloxane type compound, For example, polyether modified organosiloxane is mentioned. Commercially available products of the polyether-modified organosiloxane include, for example, BYK-306, BYK-307, BYK-333, BYK-341, BYK-345, BYK-346, BYK-348 (above trade names, manufactured by BYK). KF-351A, KF-352A, KF-353, KF-354L, KF-355A, KF-615A, KF-945, KF-640, KF-642, KF-643, KF-6020, X-22-4515 , KF-6011, KF-6012, KF-6015, KF-6017 (above trade names, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.).

  As the fluorosurfactant, it is preferable to use a fluorine-modified polymer. Specific examples include the Mega-Fac series (manufactured by DIC), Zonyl series (manufactured by DuPont), and BYK-340 (manufactured by Big Chemie Japan). Is mentioned.

The polyoxyethylene alkyl ether surfactant is not particularly limited and may be appropriately selected depending on the intended purpose. For example, the general formula C _n H _{n + 1} O (C _m H _2m O) _l H ( However, in said general formula, n represents an integer of 5 or more, m and l represents an integer of 1 or more.), in is preferably one selected from the compounds represented, specifically, C ₈ H ₁₇ O _{(C 2 H 4 O) 2} H, C 10 H 21 O (C 2 H 4 O) 4 H, C 12 H 25 O (C 2 H 4 O) 3 H, C 12 H 25 O (C 2 H 4 O) ₇ H, C ₁₂ H ₂₅ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₁₂ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₃ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₅ H, C ₁₃ H
₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₇ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₉ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₁₂ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₂₀ H, C ₁₃ H ₂₇ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₃₀ H, C ₁₄ H ₂₉ O (C ₂ H ₄ O) ₃₀ H, and the like. These may be used alone or in combination of two or more. However, the latter is effective when it is difficult to dissolve in the ink alone. This is advantageous in that the solubility can be improved. As the polyoxyethylene alkyl ether surfactant, commercially available products may be used. Examples of the commercially available products include BT series (Nikko Chemicals), Softanol series (Nippon Shokubai), Dispa. Nord (manufactured by NOF Corporation), and the like.

  Among the above-mentioned surfactants, silicone surfactants, acetylene glycol surfactants, or polyoxyethylene alkyl ether surfactants are preferable, and acetylene glycol is more preferable in consideration of wettability and surface tension reducing ability. Surfactant or polyoxyethylene alkyl ether surfactant.

<Others>
In order to improve the performance of the ink according to the present embodiment, wax particles (for example, polyolefin wax, paraffin wax, etc.), zwitterionic compounds (for example, betaine compounds, amino acids and derivatives thereof), saccharides (for example, Glucose, mannose, fructose, ribose, xylose, arabinose, galactose, aldonic acid, sorbitol, maltose, cellobiose, lactose, sucrose, trehalose, maltotriose, reduced starch saccharified product, etc.), sugar alcohols, hyaluronic acids, ureas, Preservatives and fungicides (for example, sodium benzoate, sodium pentachlorophenol, sodium 2-pyridinethiol-1-oxide, sodium sorbate, sodium dehydroacetate, 1,2-dibenzil Azoline-3-one, etc.), pH adjusters (for example, potassium dihydrogen phosphate, disodium hydrogen phosphate, sodium hydroxide, lithium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, ammonia, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, triisopropanolamine, Potassium carbonate, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, etc.), chelating agents (for example, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and salts thereof (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid dihydrogen disodium salt, etc.) and the like may be contained.

2.2. Physical Properties The ink according to the present embodiment preferably has a surface tension at 20 ° C. of 20 mN / m or more and 50 mN / m from the viewpoint of a balance between recording quality and reliability as an ink composition for inkjet recording, and 25 mN / M to 35 mN / m, more preferably 30 mN / m to 35 mN / m. Further, when the surface tension of the ink is in the above range, the wettability of the ink with respect to the inside of the wall 370 can be reduced while maintaining the wettability of the ink with respect to the recording medium. The surface tension can be measured by wetting a platinum plate with ink under an environment of 20 ° C. using an automatic surface tension meter CBVP-Z (manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd.).

  The viscosity at 20 ° C. of the ink according to this embodiment is preferably 2 mPa · s or more and 15 mPa · s or less, from the viewpoint of the balance between the recording quality and the reliability as the ink composition for inkjet recording. More preferably, it is s or more and 10 mPa · s or less. The viscosity can be measured by using a viscoelasticity tester MCR-300 (manufactured by Pysica) by increasing the Shear Rate to 10 to 1000 in an environment of 20 ° C., and the viscosity value at Shear Rate 200. Can be adopted.

When the ink according to the present embodiment includes calcium ions and magnesium ions, the total concentration of both is preferably 30 ppm or less. By being 30 ppm or less, the aggregation of the pigment and the resin at the boundary portion A described later may be reduced. The above-described ion content is more preferably 15 ppm or less. The ion concentration can be measured using an ICP emission spectroscopic analyzer, and examples of the apparatus include SPS5100 (manufactured by SII Nanotechnology).

3. Characteristics of ink composition with respect to ink container 3.1. Contact angle between ink chamber and ink composition <Static contact angle>
In the ink container 30 described above, the boundary portion where the inside of the wall 370 that defines the ink chamber 340 (that is, the portion that can come into contact with the ink in the ink chamber 340) and the gas-liquid interface on the liquid surface LF of the ink contact. In A, an ink thin film is easily formed. Here, in order for the ink to form an image of good image quality, the ink needs to have a certain wettability, and the wettability is imparted by including the surfactant or some organic solvent as the wetting agent. ing. Since ink having wettability is used in this way, the ink wets the member and forms a thin film. In particular, when the wettability between the member constituting the inside of the wall 370 and the ink composition is high, the ink tends to wet up the inside of the wall 370, so that a concave meniscus is formed.

  Specifically, as shown in the partially enlarged view of FIG. 4, a concave meniscus is formed at the boundary portion A where the inside of the wall 370 and the ink surface LF come into contact. In the concave meniscus portion, since the distance a from the gas-liquid interface of ink to the inside of the wall 370 is short, a thin film is easily formed by drying of the ink. Therefore, the inventor has found that it is difficult to form an ink thin film at the boundary portion A by setting the static contact angle between the member constituting the inside of the wall 370 and the ink composition to 10 ° or more. . Thereby, problems such as clogging of the head and the filter can be reduced.

  The static contact angle CA between the member constituting the inside of the wall 370 and the ink composition is preferably 10 ° or more, more preferably 20 ° or more, and further preferably 30 ° C. or more. It is particularly preferably 30 ° or more and 60 ° or less. When the static contact angle CA is 10 ° or more, the formation of the ink thin film at the boundary portion A tends to be further reduced. In addition, when the static contact angle CA is 60 ° or less, ink wettability with respect to various types of recording media such as paper, plastic, and head nozzles is improved, so that an image with excellent image quality is recorded. be able to. Further, excellent discharge stability can be realized.

<Change in static contact angle with water evaporation>
The inventor has a static contact angle CA of 10 ° or more between the member constituting the inside of the wall 370 and the ink composition, and the wettability of the ink composition before and after evaporation of moisture contained in the ink composition. It has been found that the formation of a thin film of ink at the boundary portion A may be further reduced when it is difficult to change.

  That is, as the moisture contained in the ink composition present in the boundary portion A evaporates, the wetting agent contained in the ink composition present in the boundary portion A (for example, the above-described surfactant, alkanediol, polyvalent The concentration of alcohols, glycol ethers, etc.) increases. Then, the wettability of the ink composition at the boundary portion A (ink composition after water evaporation) is improved as compared with the wettability of the ink composition before water evaporation. At this time, if the wettability of the ink composition after water evaporation is too high compared to the wettability of the ink composition before water evaporation, an ink thin film is easily formed at the boundary portion A, and The amount of aggregates may increase.

Therefore, as a result of intensive studies, the inventors have determined that the static contact angle between the ink composition before moisture evaporation and the members constituting the inside of the wall 370 is CA ₀ , and the ink composition after moisture evaporation and the inside of the wall 370 are It has been found that the formation of an ink thin film in the boundary portion A can be further reduced by satisfying the following conditions (1) and (2) when the static contact angle with the constituent members is CA ₁ .

Condition (1): 10 ° ≦ CA ₀ and 10 ° ≦ CA ₁
Condition (2): 0 ° ≦ CA ₀ −CA ₁ ≦ 5 °

The static contact angle CA ₀ before moisture evaporation is the same as the static contact angle CA in “3.1. Contact angle between ink chamber and ink composition <static contact angle>” described above. Further, the “ink composition after water evaporation” in determining CA ₁ is the ink composition when water is evaporated by 1 mass% with respect to the total mass (100 mass%) of the ink composition before water evaporation. It refers to things.

CA ₀ and CA ₁ more preferably satisfy the following condition (1-1), and more preferably satisfy the condition (1-2). This makes it more difficult to form an ink thin film at the boundary portion A.

Condition (1-1): 20 ° ≦ CA ₀ and 20 ° ≦ CA ₁
Condition (1-2): 30 ° ≦ CA ₀ and 30 ° ≦ CA ₁

  Further, when the amount of change in the static contact angle before and after moisture evaporation is small at the boundary portion A, it is more preferable that the following condition (2-1) is satisfied because an ink thin film is more difficult to be formed.

Condition (2-1): 0 ° ≦ CA ₀ −CA ₁ ≦ 3 °

  The content of the organic solvent contained in the ink composition is 5% by mass or more with respect to the total mass (100% by mass) of the ink composition in consideration of moisture retention, permeability, aggregation prevention and the like. 40 mass% or less is preferable, 5 mass% or more and 30 mass% or less are more preferable, and 10 mass% or more and 30 mass% or less are still more preferable. For the same reason, the content of the organic solvent is preferably more than 1 time and 10 times or less, more preferably 2 times or more and 6 times or less with respect to the total content of the pigment and the resin.

  The static contact angle in the present invention is JIS R 3257 (wetting of the surface of the substrate glass) except that the substrate glass is changed to a member constituting the inner side of the wall (prepared in a flat plate shape) and pure water is changed to the ink composition. Measured according to the sessile drop method. Specifically, it can be performed by a cecil drop method (static drop method) using an automatic contact angle measuring device OCAH200 (product name, manufactured by Data Physics).

<Backward contact angle>
FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically illustrating a state in which the ink level LF is lowered as the ink is supplied to the recording head 17. As shown in FIG. 13, when the ink level is lowered from LF to LF1, the concave meniscus formed in the boundary portion A is lowered to the boundary portion A1. At this time, it is preferable that the ink does not remain on the wall surface existing between the boundary portion A and the boundary portion A1. That is, if the receding contact angle, which will be described later, is large among the dynamic contact angles, the wall surface that appears on the ink surface due to ink consumption in the ink chamber 340 (that is, exists between the boundary portion A and the boundary portion A1 in FIG. 13). Ink does not easily remain on the wall surface. Thereby, since it becomes difficult to form the ink thin film on the wall surface, the generation of precipitates can be reduced.

It Specifically, a member constituting an inner wall 370 (support 380), the receding contact angle CA _R of the ink composition, it is 5 ° or more preferably, 50 ° or less 5 ° or more Is more preferable, and it is more preferable that it is 10 degrees or more and 40 degrees or less. The receding contact angle CA _R 5
When the angle is greater than or equal to °, the ink tends to hardly remain on the wall surface that appears on the liquid surface of the ink due to ink consumption. Further, since the receding contact angle CA _R is 50 ° or less, since the wettability of the ink to various types of recording media such as paper or a plastic is improved, it is possible to record an image of excellent image quality.

  The receding contact angle in the present invention can be measured by the expansion / contraction method. Specifically, the inner side of the wall is configured using an automatic contact angle measuring device OCAH200 (product name, manufactured by Data Physics) or the like. The contact angle is measured when a droplet of the ink composition is deposited on a member (prepared in a flat plate shape) and contracted.

Examples of the method for measuring the receding contact angle include the following methods. Using the automatic contact angle measuring device OCAH200 (product name, manufactured by Data Physics), a flat plate sample prepared at the above-mentioned “<Static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) before water evaporation>” at 20 ° C. An ink droplet of 8.5 μl was deposited on the top, expanded at a speed of 8.5 μl / sec for 5 seconds, and then contacted at a contraction speed of 8.5 μl / sec for 5 seconds (retraction contact angle CAS). taking measurement. The measurement is performed at intervals of 0.1 second between 2.0 and 2.4 seconds after the start of contraction, and the average value of 5 points is set as the receding contact angle.

<Change in surface tension accompanying ink solvent evaporation>
The ink composition of the present invention is preferable from the viewpoint of preventing the precipitation of aggregates when the change in surface tension accompanying the evaporation of the ink solvent satisfies the following conditions. When the amount of evaporation from the initial ink composition is large, there is a high possibility that solvent components other than water are also evaporated, and therefore, it is expressed as “ink solvent component”.

In the following formulas, γ _M0 , γ _M1 , γ _M2 , and γ _M3 are respectively the surface tension before evaporation of the ink solvent and the ink solvent after evaporation of 3.5 mass%, 7 mass%, and 12 mass%, respectively. An ink composition is shown. “Ink composition after evaporation of ink solvent” refers to an ink composition in which a predetermined mass% of the ink solvent evaporates with respect to the total mass (100 mass%) of the ink composition before evaporation of the ink solvent. I mean.

  The ink composition of the present embodiment satisfies two or more of the following conditions (5-1), (5-2), and (5-3), or the following conditions (6-1) to (6). The ink composition satisfying all of 3) is preferable. Moreover, it is preferable to satisfy any of the following conditions (5-1) to (5-3).

Condition (5-1): γ _M0 −γ _M1 > 0 (mN / m)
Condition (5-2): γ _M0 −γ _M2 > 0 (mN / m)
Condition (5-3): γ _M0 −γ _M3 > 0 (mN / m)

Condition (6-1): γ _M0 −γ _M1 > −0.05 (mN / m)
Condition (6-2): γ _M0 −γ _M2 > −0.05 (mN / m)
Condition (6-3): γ _M0 −γ _M3 > −0.05 (mN / m)

  If the ink composition is such that the surface tension does not decrease or the amount of decrease when the ink solvent is volatilized, the ink composition has long-term storage stability. An ink composition that satisfies the following conditions can be obtained by selecting the solvent described in the item <Moisturizing agent> and adjusting the amount of the solvent.

3.2. Contact angle between support and ink composition <Static contact angle>
From the viewpoint similar to the description in “3.1. Contact angle between ink chamber and ink composition <static contact angle>” above, the member constituting the wall 370 (described later) and the ink composition are statically bonded. When the contact angle CA _S is large, a thin film of the ink is less likely to be formed in the wall 370. In Specifically, the member constituting the supporting member 380, the static contact angle CA _S with the ink composition, preferably at 10 ° or more, more preferably 20 ° or more, 30 ° or more More preferably it is. By static contact angle CA _S is 10 ° or more, formation of a thin film of ink at the wall 370 is reduced even when using an ink containing a wetting agent.

<Change in static contact angle with water evaporation>
From the viewpoint similar to the description in “3.1. Contact angle between ink chamber and ink composition <change in static contact angle accompanying water evaporation>”, the member constituting the wall 370, the ink composition, In the case where the static contact angle CA _S0 of the ink composition is 10 ° or more and the wettability of the ink composition before and after evaporation of the water contained in the ink composition is difficult to change, the ink thin film is formed on the wall 370. It tends to be further reduced.

Specifically, the static contact angle between the ink composition before moisture evaporation and the member constituting the wall 370 is CA _S0 , and the ink composition after moisture evaporation is static between the member constituting the inside of the support 380. When the contact angle is CA _S1 , the formation of the ink thin film on the wall 370 can be satisfactorily reduced by satisfying the following conditions (3) and (4).

Condition (3): 10 ° ≦ CA _S0 and 10 ° ≦ CA _S1
Condition (4): 0 ° ≦ CA _S0 −CA _S1 ≦ 5 °

Water evaporation prior to the static contact angle CA _S0 are those described above, "3.2. A support and an ink composition contact angle <static contact angle>" static contact angle CA _S identical to the. In addition, the “ink composition after water evaporation” when calculating CA _S1 is the ink composition when water is evaporated by 1 mass% with respect to the total mass (100 mass%) of the ink composition before water evaporation. It refers to things.

Moreover, it is more preferable that CA _S0 and CA _S1 satisfy the following condition (3-1), and it is more preferable to satisfy the condition (3-2). This makes it more difficult to form an ink thin film on the wall 370.

Condition (3-1): 20 ° ≦ CA _S0 and 20 ° ≦ CA _S1

Condition (3-2): 30 ° ≦ CA _S0 and 30 ° ≦ CA _S1

  In addition, it is more preferable that the following condition (4-1) is satisfied because an ink thin film is less easily formed on the wall 370.

Condition (4-1): 0 ° ≦ CA _S0 −CA _S1 ≦ 3 °

<Backward contact angle>
By the same viewpoint as described in "3.1. Contact angle between the ink chamber and the ink composition <receding contact angle>" above, and the member constituting the walls 370, the receding contact angle CA _RS of the ink composition If it is large, it is difficult to form an ink thin film on the wall 370.

Specifically, the member constituting the walls 370, receding contact angle CA _RS of the ink composition is preferably 5 is ° or more, more preferably 5 ° to 50 °, 10 ° or more More preferably, it is 40 ° or less. When the receding contact angle _CARS is 5 ° or more, the ink tends to hardly remain on the support 380 that appears on the liquid surface of the ink due to consumption of the ink. Further, when the receding contact angle _CARS is 50 ° or less, the ink wettability with respect to various types of recording media such as paper and plastic becomes good, so that an image with excellent image quality can be recorded.

4). First Example Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples and comparative examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these examples.

4.1. Preparation of ink composition Ingredients shown in Table 1 were mixed and stirred and subjected to pressure filtration with a membrane filter having a pore size of 10 μm to obtain inks 1 to 3. In addition, the unit described in Table 1 is mass%. Moreover, about the pigment and resin, the value converted into solid content is shown.

Among the components used in Table 1, components described by abbreviations or trade names are as follows. Carbon black (CI pigment black 7, volume-based average particle size 100 nm, self-dispersing pigment)
Styrene acrylic resin (fixing resin, glass transition temperature Tg-15 ° C., volume-based average particle diameter 80 nm, styrene-acrylate copolymer emulsion)
・ BYK-348 (trade name, manufactured by BYK, silicone surfactant)

  Moreover, the surface tension was measured about the obtained inks 1-3. The surface tension is a value obtained by measuring the surface tension when a platinum plate is wetted with ink in an environment of 20 ° C. using an automatic surface tension meter CBVP-Z (manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd.). . Table 1 shows the values of the surface tension of each ink.

4.2. Production of Ink Container Using the materials shown in Table 2, ink containers 1 to 5 having the same shape as in FIG. 7 were produced by a known method. As for the ink containers 1, 2 to 4, the members inside the walls that define the ink chambers are made of the same material as the ink container. On the other hand, for the ink containers 2 and 5, the member inside the wall defining the ink chamber is made of silicone resin or methyl silicate oligomer. Specifically, the ink containers 2 and 5 were obtained by forming an ink container from polypropylene, and then applying a silicone resin or a methyl silicate oligomer to the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber and drying it.

Details of the materials used in Table 2 are as follows.
・ PFA (tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer)
・ PP (polypropylene)
・ PET (polyethylene terephthalate)
・ Silicone resin (trade name “HC303VP”, manufactured by Asahi Kasei Wacker Silicone Co., Ltd.) ・ Methyl silicate oligomer (hydrophilic material)

4.3. Evaluation test 4.3.1. Liquid repellency <Static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) before water evaporation>
The static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) between the member constituting the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber and the ink before moisture evaporation was measured as follows.

First, a plate-like sample was obtained by cutting out the members constituting the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber from the ink containers 1 to 5 into a plate shape. Then, the static contact angle CA was changed in accordance with the JIS R 3257 (wetting test method for the surface of the substrate glass) except that the substrate glass was changed to this flat sample and the pure water was changed to ink. (CA ₀ ) was measured.

  An automatic contact angle measuring device OCAH200 (product name, manufactured by Data Physics) was used as a measuring device, and measurement was performed by a cecil drop method (static droplet method). The static contact angle is a value obtained by dropping 1 μl of an ink droplet on the sample and measuring the contact angle 1 minute after the dropping (average value of 5 points).

<Static contact angle CA ₁ after water evaporation>
After the ink moisture is evaporated by 1%, the above-mentioned “<static contact angle CA before moisture evaporation CA (CA ₀ )>
In the same manner as above, the static contact angle CA ₁ after water evaporation was measured.

4.3.2. Filter clogging The ink containers 1 to 5 obtained as described above were mounted on an ink jet printer having a configuration similar to that shown in FIG. Next, 500 ml of the above ink 1 was filled in the ink chamber to make the ink container ready for use, and then left for 2 weeks under conditions of a temperature of 40 ° C. and a relative humidity of 20% RH.

  Two weeks later, 500 ml of ink in the ink chamber was ejected from the recording head, and the clogged state of the filter (material SUS, mesh pore diameter 3.5 μm) provided in the ink supply pipe connecting the ink container and the sub tank was confirmed. The clogged state of the filter was evaluated by checking the surface of the filter using a digital microscope VHX-900 (manufactured by Keyence Corporation) and calculating the clogged area (%) with respect to the area of the filter. Since the amount of liquid passing was 3% of the expected usage amount of the ink jet printer, the clogging area was calculated by multiplying the clogging amount by 30 times.

The evaluation criteria are as follows.
S: Filter clogging area is 10% or less A: Filter clogging area is more than 10% and 20% or less B: Filter clogging area is more than 20% and 40% or less C: Filter clogging area is more than 40% 50% or less D: Filter clogging area exceeds 50%

4.4. Evaluation results Table 3 shows the results of the evaluation tests.

As shown in the evaluation results in Table 3, the static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) between the member constituting the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber and the ink 1 before moisture evaporation is 10 ° or more. It was found that clogging of the filter was reduced (see Examples 1 to 4). Thus, it was shown that the generation of aggregates can be reduced by using a combination of ink and a member having a static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) of 10 ° or more.

Further, by satisfying 10 ° ≦ CA ₀ and 10 ° ≦ CA ₁ (condition (1) described above) and satisfying 0 ° ≦ CA ₀ −CA ₁ ≦ 5 ° (condition (2) described above), It was found that clogging of the filter was further reduced (see Examples 1 to 3). In particular, 20 ° ≦ CA ₀ and 20 ° ≦ CA ₁ are satisfied (condition (1-1) described above), and 0 ° ≦ CA ₀ −CA ₁ ≦ 5 ° is satisfied (condition (2) described above). Thus, it was found that clogging of the filter was further reduced (Examples 1 and 2).

On the other hand, as shown in the evaluation results in Table 3, in Comparative Example 1, the wettability between the member constituting the inside of the wall defining the ink chamber and the ink 1 before moisture evaporation is too high, and the static contact angle CA (CA ₀ ) could not be measured. Further, the filter was clogged so much that the ejection stability of the recording head was impaired.

The contact angle reduction (CA ₀ -CA ₁ ) was determined in the same manner as in Example 1 except that ink 2 was used. As a result, the value of the contact angle decrease (CA ₀ -CA ₁ ) obtained using the ink 2 is lower than the value of the contact angle decrease (CA ₀ -CA ₁ ) in Example 1 (that is, 3 Less than °). Furthermore, when an evaluation test of filter clogging was performed using ink 2, the filter clogging was less than that in Example 1. It is considered that the ink 2 has a smaller solid content than the ink 1 and does not contain a resin, so that the aggregation of the pigment due to the resin did not occur.

Except for using ink 3, the clogging of the filter was evaluated in the same manner as in Example 1 described above. As a result, it was found that when ink 3 was used, filter clogging was less likely to occur than when ink 1 was used. Since the ink 3 has a higher surface tension than other inks, it is considered that the ink 3 is less likely to adhere to the wall surface of the ink chamber and hardly causes aggregates.

5. Second Example Each component was mixed and stirred at the blending amounts shown in Table 4 and subjected to pressure filtration with a membrane filter having a pore size of 10 μm to obtain ink A (seven types with different solvent types) and ink B. . In addition, the unit described in Table 4 is mass%. Moreover, about the pigment and resin, the value converted into solid content is shown.

Among the components used in Table 4, the components described by abbreviations or trade names are as follows. Carbon black (CI pigment black 7, volume-based average particle size 100 nm, self-dispersing pigment)
Styrene acrylic resin (fixing resin, Tg-15 ° C., volume-based average particle diameter 80 nm, styrene-acrylate copolymer emulsion).
As the solvent A, the solvents shown in Table 5 were added to prepare ink compositions of Experimental Examples 1 to 7. In the ink composition of Experimental Example 7, glycerin is 13% by mass.

5.1. Measurement of surface tension The surface tension of each ink composition obtained in each experimental example was measured before the solvent evaporation test. Thereafter, the ink composition was allowed to stand for 0.75 hours at 60 ° C. to evaporate 3.5% by mass of the solvent in the ink. Similarly, the mixture was allowed to stand for 1.5 hours to evaporate 7% by mass and for 2.5 hours to evaporate 12% by mass. The surface tension is a value obtained by measuring the surface tension when a platinum plate is wetted with ink in an environment of 20 ° C. using an automatic surface tension meter CBVP-Z (manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd.). . Table 5 shows the surface tension and the change in surface tension of each ink. The change value of the surface tension is calculated based on the initial surface tension.

5.2. Precipitate Evaluation Test After filling the ink chamber of the ink container 2 with 500 ml of the ink composition of Experimental Examples 1 to 8 so that the ink container is in a use state, the temperature is 40 ° C. and the relative humidity is 20%. It was left for 2 weeks under the condition of RH. Two weeks later, 500 ml of ink in the ink chamber was ejected from the recording head, and the clogged state of the filter (material SUS, mesh pore diameter 3.5 μm) provided in the ink supply pipe connecting the ink container and the sub tank was confirmed. The clogged state of the filter was confirmed using a digital microscope VHX-900 (manufactured by Keyence Corporation).

  Based on the result of observing the surface, the ink composition groups of each experimental example were ranked in order of the amount of precipitates generated, and the results are shown in Table 5. In Table 5, the ink with the smallest number of precipitate evaluation is the least generated amount, and the ink with the larger number is the most generated amount.

  From the results shown in Table 5, when the humectant was only glycerin (Experimental Example 7), when the solvent was evaporated, a strong tendency to lower the surface tension was observed, and many precipitates were observed. Moreover, the tendency for the ink to show a tendency for the surface tension to increase when the solvent evaporates tends to decrease the precipitates. In addition, from the results of Experimental Example 8, a solvent exhibiting high wettability (penetration) such as 1,2-hexanediol has a tendency to lower the surface tension in the long term, which is a cause of precipitate generation. I found out.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible. For example, the present invention includes substantially the same configuration (for example, a configuration having the same function, method, and result, or a configuration having the same purpose and effect) as the configuration described in the embodiment. In addition, the invention includes a configuration in which a non-essential part of the configuration described in the embodiment is replaced. In addition, the present invention includes a configuration that achieves the same effect as the configuration described in the embodiment or a configuration that can achieve the same object. In addition, the invention includes a configuration in which a known technique is added to the configuration described in the embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Inkjet recording device, 10 ... Recording unit accommodation case, 12 ... Recording unit, 13 ... Paper feed port, 14 ... Paper discharge port, 16 ... Carriage, 16a ... Ink supply needle, 17 ... Recording head, 20 ... Sub tank, 24 Ink supply pipe, 30 ... Ink container, 34 ... Film, 50 ... Ink storage unit, 51 ... Container storage case, 54 ... Upper case, 202 ... Ink receiving part, 204 ... Ink storage chamber, 206 ... Filter, 208 ... Ink Flow path, 300... Open air channel, 302 .. plug member, 304... Ink inlet, 306 .. ink outlet, 310... First channel, 312 ... gas-liquid separation chamber, 313 ... bank, 314. Road, 316 ... Sheet member (film member), 317 ... Air release port, 318 ... Air introduction port (air chamber opening), 320 ... Communication channel, 322 ... Film Material: 330 ... Air chamber, 340 ... Ink chamber, 345 ... Internal communication port, 348 ... Other end 349 ... Ink outlet, 350 ... Second flow path (ink chamber communication passage), 351 ... Air chamber side opening, 352 ... Air inlet, 370 ... wall, 371 ... upper surface, 372 ... side surface, 372A ... first side surface, 372B ... second side surface, 372C ... third side surface, 372D ... fourth side surface, 373 ... bottom surface, 374 ... wall, 378 ... Wall, 380 ... support, 382 ... first support, 384 ... second support, 386 ... third support

Claims (9)

An ink container mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus provided with a recording head for discharging an ink composition,
The ink container has an ink chamber that can contain the ink composition, and an ink inlet that can replenish the ink composition in the ink chamber,
The ink chamber includes a support that is connected to an inner side of a wall defining the ink chamber and supports the wall defining the ink chamber;
The ink injection port can be opened and closed,
In the use state of the ink container, when the ink composition of 50% of the volume of the ink chamber is filled, the area where the support and the ink composition contact is larger than the area where the support and the air contact. A small ink container. In claim 1,
In the use state of the ink container,
An ink container having a region in which a gas-liquid interface of an ink composition becomes narrow when the ink composition filled in the ink chamber decreases. In claim 1 or claim 2,
In the use state of the ink container,
A plurality of the support bodies are provided in a direction intersecting a vertical direction of the ink container. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 3,
In the use state of the ink container,
The upper surface of the support is an ink container having a vertically upward convex shape and having no horizontal surface. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4,
The wall partitioning the ink chamber has a first wall portion made of a film and a second wall portion made of a plurality of surfaces made of a material other than the film,
The support includes a first support, and at least one of a second support and a third support,
The first support is connected to the inside of the first wall and the inside of the second wall,
The second support is connected to the first support and the inside of the second wall,
The third support body is an ink container that is connected to an inner side of at least two of the plurality of surfaces constituting the second wall portion. In claim 5,
In the use state of the ink container, the surface that appears when the second support is viewed downward in the vertical direction has a side connected to the second wall portion,
The length of a line segment parallel to the side in the plane is shorter than the length of the side. In claim 5 or claim 6,
In the use state of the ink container, the surface that appears when the third support is viewed downward in the vertical direction has a side connected to the second wall,
The length of a line segment parallel to the side in the plane is shorter than the length of the side. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 7,
The ink container has a posture of the ink container in a use state of the ink container that is the same as a posture of the ink container in a filling state of the ink container. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 8,
In a posture of the ink container when supplying the ink composition to the recording head, the ink container has a support that comes into contact with the ink composition when filled with an ink composition of 50% of the volume of the ink chamber. Ink container.

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