JP4556267B2 - Ink carrier - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an ink carrier used in an ink jet printer.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An ink jet printer is a device that prints on recording paper while an ink cartridge reciprocates in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction of the recording paper and ejects ink. The ink cartridge is fixed to an ink carrier attached to a guide shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the paper feed direction so as to be axially movable. The ink cartridge moves in the guide shaft axial direction together with the ink carrier.
[0003]
When a problem such as running out of ink occurs, it is necessary to replace the ink cartridge. Therefore, the ink cartridge needs to be detachably fixed to the ink carrier. As examples of such a fixing means, those disclosed in JP-A-9-267486 and JP-A-9-323429 have been proposed. In these apparatuses, the ink cartridge is detachably attached to the ink carrier using the elastic deformation of the leaf spring.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the ink carrier disclosed in the above publication, the detachment of the ink cartridge is performed by elastically deforming the leaf spring, so that the detachability is good. However, since the ink cartridge is fixed to the ink carrier by the plate spring alone, it is difficult to adjust the elastic force for urging the ink cartridge. For example, if the elastic force of the leaf spring is large, the detachability of the ink cartridge will be poor, and if the elastic force of the leaf spring is small, the ink cartridge will be easily removed from the ink carrier. It is very difficult to exchange the used leaf spring.
[0005]
An object of the present invention is to facilitate adjustment of an elastic force for fixing an ink cartridge to an ink carrier.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The ink carrier according to claim 1 has a carrier body that is attached to a guide shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the paper feed direction of the recording paper so as to be reciprocally movable and formed by a flat plate-like portion extending in the vertical direction. An ink carrier of an ink jet printer in which an ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting surface formed by the front surface of the carrier body with the ink discharge portion facing downward, and the lower end of the side wall formed on the side edge of the mounting surface A support portion that engages with the lower end surface of the ink cartridge, a plate-like protrusion portion that protrudes from the mounting surface at an interval from the support portion and is elastically deformable in the vertical direction, and a protrusion portion of the protrusion portion. to leave away is formed at the tip engaged with the engagement portion formed on the upper surface of the ink cartridge is the upper part of the ink cartridge from the mounting surface A, and suppresses nails that, from the top of the ink cartridge as an urging unit for fixing sandwiching the ink cartridge to and from the support portion by acting the elastic force of the protrusion downward A hook portion, and a gap is formed between the protruding portion and a wall portion formed by a portion of the upper wall formed on the upper edge of the mounting surface at the upper edge of the hook portion and facing the hook portion. A spring member made of a coil spring for biasing the protrusion downward and adjusting the magnitude of the elastic force by the protrusion is elastically deformed in the gap, A configuration is adopted in which a spring holding portion is provided on the upper surface of the protrusion and the lower surface of the wall so as to prevent the spring member disposed in the gap from falling out of the gap.
[0007]
In such an ink carrier, the elasticity of the ink cartridge acts by appropriately selecting the type of a spring member made of a coil spring for adjusting the magnitude of the elastic force by the protrusion provided on the hook portion on the carrier body. The power can be adjusted easily.
[0008]
Further, since the claw portion formed at the tip of the projection portion engages with the engaging portion formed on the upper surface of the ink cartridge, the upper portion of the ink cartridge is prevented from separating in the direction away from the carrier body. The ink cartridge is difficult to drop off from the ink carrier.
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
First Embodiment [Inkjet Printer]
As shown in FIG. 1, the ink jet printer 1 includes an ink carrier 2 on which an ink cartridge 3 and a carrier cradle 4 are mounted, a guide shaft 9, pulleys 10 and 11, a pulley belt 12, and a rail 13. .
[0010]
As shown in the figure, the recording paper is fed from the paper feed port 14, fed to a position facing the ink discharge portion 32 provided at the lower part of the ink cartridge 3, and discharged from the front surface of the inkjet printer in the direction of the arrow. . The guide shaft 9 extends perpendicular to the paper feeding direction of the recording paper. The pulleys 10 and 11 and the pulley belt 12 are mechanisms for reciprocating the ink carrier 2 described later along the guide shaft 9. The ink carrier 2 is fixed to the pulley belt 12, the pulley 10 is rotated by a driving unit (not shown), and the pulley belt 12 is rotated via the pulley 11, so that the ink carrier 2 is moved along the guide shaft 9. Reciprocate. The rail 13 is provided above the guide shaft 9 in parallel with the guide shaft 9.
[0011]
The ink cartridge 3 is mounted on the front surface of the ink carrier 2 with the ink discharge portion 32 facing downward. The means and method for mounting the ink cartridge 3 on the ink carrier 2 will be described later. A rail hook 7 is integrally formed at the upper part of the rear surface of the ink carrier 2, a fixing part (not shown) to the pulley belt 12 is integrally formed at the center of the rear surface, and a bearing housing 5 is mounted at the lower part of the rear surface. Has been. The rail hook 7 is attached to the rail 13 so as to be movable in the axial direction. A pair of bearings 6 is inserted into the bearing housing 5, and a guide shaft 9 passes through the bearings 6. In this way, the ink carrier 2 is movable in the axial direction of the guide shaft 9.
[0012]
In such an ink jet printer 1, the ink cartridge 3 is scanned along the guide shaft 9 together with the ink carrier 2, and characters or images are printed on the line on the recording paper facing the ink ejection unit 32. When printing for one line is completed, the recording paper is fed by a predetermined amount, and then the character or image of the next line is printed on the recording paper stopped again. By repeating such an operation, printing is performed on the entire recording paper.
[0013]
[Ink carrier]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ink carrier 2 and the carrier cradle 4 adopting an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge 3.
[0014]
The ink carrier 2 is a flat resin molded product extending in the vertical direction. A substantially flat portion of the ink carrier is defined as a carrier body 2a. A bearing housing 5 is provided at a lower portion of the rear surface of the carrier body 2a, and a front surface of the carrier body 2a is a mounting surface 21 on which the ink cartridge 3 is mounted. An upper wall 21a is formed on the upper edge of the mounting surface 21, and side walls 21b and 21c are formed on the side edges. The upper wall 21a and the side walls 21b and 21c are wall portions protruding from other portions. Locking protrusions 25a and 26a are formed on the outer side of the side wall 21b near the upper end and the lower end, respectively. Although not shown, locking projections 25b and 26b are formed near the upper end and the lower end, respectively, outside the side wall 21b. The locking protrusions 25a, 26a, 25b, and 26b are for locking the carrier cradle 4. A flexible printed circuit board (FPC) (not shown) is provided below the mounting surface 21 of the ink carrier 2.
[0015]
Next, the elastic force generator 52 will be described. The elastic force generator 52 is a mechanism that generates an elastic force for fixing the ink cartridge 3 to the ink carrier 2. In this embodiment, the elastic force generator 52 mainly includes a hook portion 22 (biasing portion) and a spring member 30. ing. The hook portion 22 is provided on the upper portion of the mounting surface 21. More specifically, the hook portion 22 is formed at a position spaced apart from the upper wall 21a by a predetermined distance and in the middle of the mounting surface 21 in the lateral direction. The hook portion 22 is integrally formed from the mounting surface 21 and can be elastically deformed in the vertical direction of the ink carrier 2. The hook portion 22 includes a plate-like protrusion 22a protruding from the mounting surface 21 and a claw 22b formed continuously downward from the tip of the protrusion 22a. The height of the protrusion 22a is equal to that of the upper wall 21a and the side walls 21b and 21c. A protrusion-shaped first spring holding part 23 is formed on the upper surface of the protrusion 22a so as to protrude upward. The first spring holding portion 23 is for holding one end of a spring member 30 (described later). The outer surface 22c (surface opposite to the mounting surface 21) of the claw 22b is an inclined surface, and the inner surface 22d is a vertical surface. In the free state, the hook portion 22 extends slightly obliquely downward from the mounting surface 21 as shown in FIG. Further, in the mounting surface 21, holes 71 and 72 are formed in portions corresponding to the top and bottom of the base portion of the hook portion 22, respectively. That is, the base portion of the hook portion 22 is connected to the carrier body 2a only by the left and right ends thereof, so that the hook portion 22 is easily bent.
[0016]
A portion of the upper wall 21 a that faces the hook portion 22 is referred to as a wall portion 51. The wall 51 is located in the middle of the upper wall 21a in the lateral direction. A gap 50 is formed between the wall portion 51 and the hook portion 22. On the lower surface of the wall portion 51, a projecting second spring holding portion 24 protruding downward is provided. The spring member 30 is a coil spring disposed in the gap 50. Here, the spring member 30 extends in the vertical direction, the lower end is in contact with the upper surface of the hook portion 22, and the upper end is in contact with the lower surface of the wall portion 51. The spring member 30 is disposed so as to be compressed in the vertical direction within the gap 50 . A first spring holding part 23 and a second spring holding part 24 are inserted into both ends of the spring member 30, respectively. As a result, both ends of the spring member 30 are difficult to move, and the spring member 30 is unlikely to fall out of the gap 50.
[0017]
Further, in this embodiment, wall portions 28 a and 28 b continuous from the upper wall 21 a are provided on both sides of the hook portion 22 and the gap 50. An upper contact portion 38 and a lower contact portion 39 are formed on the mounting surface 21. Both contact portions 38 and 39 protrude from the mounting surface 21 and extend between the side walls 21b and 21c. Both contact portions 38, 39 are formed lower than the side walls 21b, 21c. The upper contact portion 38 is disposed close to the lower portion of the hook portion 22.
[0018]
Support portions 27a and 27b projecting so as to approach each other are formed on surfaces facing each other at the lower ends of the side walls 21b and 21c of the carrier body 2a. The support portions 27 a and 27 b are formed away from the mounting surface 21. The carrier cradle 4 is a resin molded product, and includes a plate-like cover portion 41 parallel to the mounting surface 21, holding portions 42 a and 42 b that extend downward from both ends of the cover portion 41 and are disposed on the side surfaces of the ink carrier, Plate-shaped side cover parts 43a and 43b formed perpendicularly to the cover part 41 from the holding parts 42a and 42b are provided. Locking holes 44a and 44b for locking the locking protrusions 25a and 25b described above are formed at the upper ends of the holding portions 42a and 42b, and the locking protrusions 26a and 26b described above are formed at the lower ends. Lock holes 45a and 45b (45b not shown) are formed.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 3, the ink cartridge 3 includes a cartridge body 31 and an ink discharge portion 32. The cartridge body 31 is a portion where ink is stored. The ink ejection unit 32 is a part that ejects ink onto the recording paper, and is disposed so as to protrude below the cartridge body 31. An engaging portion 34 is formed on one edge (the edge on the ink carrier 2 side) of the upper surface of the cartridge body 31. The engaging portion 34 extends a predetermined length along the edge. The engaging portion 34 has a substantially triangular cross section, and has an outer side surface 34a inclined in a chamfered shape and an inner side surface 34b extending in the vertical direction. The position of the engaging portion may be further inside than the edge of the upper surface, and the engaging portion may be a recess instead of a protrusion.
[0020]
The width of the ink discharge unit 32 in the lateral direction is shorter than that of the cartridge main body 31. For this reason, the side surfaces 37 a and 37 b of the ink discharge portion 32 are recessed from the side surface of the cartridge body 31, thereby forming lower end surfaces 36 a and 36 b on the cartridge body 31. Locking projections 35a and 35b (35b not shown) are formed at one end of the side surfaces 37a and 37b (end on the mounting surface 21 side). The surfaces of the locking projections 35a and 35b on the opposite side to the ink carrier 2 are constituted by a contact surface 35c and an inclined surface 35d that approaches the ink carrier 2 side from the lower end of the contact surface 35c.
[0021]
Next, the engagement state of each part when the ink cartridge 3 is mounted on the ink carrier 2 will be described. 4 is a perspective view of the ink carrier 2 to which the ink cartridge 3 and the carrier cradle 4 are mounted, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the locked state at the lower part of the ink cartridge 3, and FIG. It is sectional drawing.
[0022]
In FIG. 6, the surface of the ink cartridge 3 on the mounting surface 21 side is in contact with and supported by the contact surface 38 a of the upper contact portion 38 and the contact surface 39 a of the lower contact portion 39. Note that the ink cartridge 3 may be in direct contact with the mounting surface 21 without providing both contact portions. The hook portion 22 is engaged with the engagement portion 34 of the ink cartridge 3. Specifically, the inner side surface 22 d of the claw 22 b is in contact with the inner side surface 34 b of the engaging portion 34. The hook portion 22 is perpendicular to the mounting surface 21 and is elastically deformed upward by the upper portion of the ink cartridge 3. In other words, the hook portion 22 applies an elastic force F <b> 1 downward to the upper portion of the ink cartridge 3, particularly to the edge portion of the mounting surface 21. Further, the spring member 30 applies an elastic force F <b> 2 downward to the hook portion 22. As a result, the sum of the elastic forces F1 and F2 acts on the ink cartridge 3, and the ink cartridge 3 is strongly pressed against the support portions 27a and 27b. That is, the ink cartridge 3 is sandwiched between the hook portion 22 and the support portions 27a and 27b. In this way, the ink cartridge 3 is positioned with respect to the ink carrier 2 in the vertical direction.
[0023]
Further, since the claw 22b of the hook portion 22 engages with the engaging portion 34, specifically, the inner side surface 22d of the claw 22b is in contact with the inner side surface 34b of the engaging portion 34, the upper portion of the ink cartridge 3 is It is difficult to separate in a direction away from the mounting surface 21. Since the ink cartridge 3 needs to be removed from the ink carrier 2 as necessary, the total of the elastic forces F1 and F2 is such that the ink cartridge 3 does not fall off during the operation of the ink jet printer 1 and the user. It must be set so that it can be removed.
[0024]
FIG. 5 shows the engaged state of the lower part of the ink cartridge 3. Lower end surfaces 36a and 36b of the cartridge main body 31 are in contact with upper surfaces of the support portions 27a and 27b. The side surfaces 37a and 37b are in contact with the support portions 27a and 27b from the inner side in the lateral direction. Further, the contact surfaces 35c of the engagement protrusions 35a and 35b are in contact with the side surfaces of the mounting surfaces 21 of the support portions 27a and 27b, and the support portions 27a and 27b are the lower portions of the ink cartridge 3, particularly the edge portions on the mounting surface 21 side. A force F3 is applied upward. Due to the above engagement, the lower part of the ink cartridge 3 is not separated from the mounting surface 21 and cannot be moved in the lateral direction.
[0025]
In the ink carrier 2 described above, a gap 50 in which a spring can be arranged is secured on the side opposite to the upper surface of the hook portion 22, and the spring 50 is used as a member for urging a part of the ink cartridge 3 using the gap 50. The member 30 is added. As a result, the elastic force acting on the ink cartridge can be easily adjusted by appropriately selecting the type of the spring member 30.
[0026]
More specifically, in the case where the elastic force F1 of the hook portion 22 is set to a small value in anticipation of variations, the spring member 30 having a different spring constant is used for each product. In addition, the overall elastic force can be set to an appropriate value. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, when the elastic force of the spring member 30 is not acting on the hook portion 22, the spring member 30 is added to compensate for the lack of the elastic force of the hook portion 22.
[0027]
Hereinafter, mounting of the ink cartridge 3 to the ink carrier 2 will be described with reference to the drawings. When the ink cartridge 3 is mounted on the ink carrier 2, the carrier cradle 4 is first mounted on the ink carrier 2. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the locking holes 44a, 44b and 45a, 45b are locked to the locking projections 25a, 25b and 26a, 26b, respectively. At this time, since the cover portion 41 covers the gap 50 in which the spring member 30 is disposed, the spring member 30 can be prevented from dropping thereafter.
[0028]
Next, the ink cartridge 3 is mounted on the ink carrier 2. First, the locking protrusions 35a and 35b of the ink cartridge 3 are engaged with the support portions 27a and 27b of the ink carrier 2. More specifically, the locking projections 35a and 35b are inserted into the gaps between the support portions 27a and 27b and the mounting surface 21, and in this state, the contact between the locking projections 35a and 35b and the support portions 27a and 27b. The upper part of the ink cartridge 3 is brought closer to the mounting surface 21 with the contact part as the rotation center. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the engaging portion 34 of the ink cartridge 3 comes into contact with the tip of the hook portion 22. When the upper portion of the ink cartridge 3 is further brought closer to the mounting surface 21, the hook portion 22 is elastically deformed as shown in FIG. When the ink cartridge 3 is further pushed into the ink carrier 2, the claw 22b of the hook portion 22 is engaged with the engaging portion 34 of the ink cartridge 3 as shown in FIG. At this time, the side wall of the ink cartridge 3 is in contact with the upper contact portion 38 and the lower contact portion 39.
[0029]
The above engaging operation is performed relatively smoothly because the outer surfaces 34a and 22c, which are inclined surfaces, are in contact with each other. As another effect of the present invention, since the hook portion 22 is a portion formed integrally with the carrier body 2a, the number of parts of the elastic force generating portion 52 is reduced as compared with the conventional case, and the overall cost is reduced. There is .
[0030]
2nd Embodiment Another embodiment is described about the structure for hold | maintaining the spring member 30 on the upper surface of the hook part 22. FIG. In the structure shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, a convex portion 61 is formed on the upper surface of the protrusion 22 a of the hook portion 22 so as to surround the lower end of the spring member 30. The convex portion 61 is a U-shape that is open on the side opposite to the mounting surface 21. Thereby, the lower end of the spring member 30 is difficult to come off from the upper surface of the hook portion 22. Moreover, the same convex part 62 is formed also in the lower surface of the wall part 51, and the upper end of the spring member 30 becomes difficult to move.
[0031]
In the above spring member holding structure, the degree of deformation of the spring member 30 when the spring member 30 is attached to or detached from the gap 50 is reduced as compared with the first embodiment. That is, the spring member 30 can be easily attached and detached.
[0032]
3rd Embodiment Another embodiment is described about the structure for hold | maintaining the spring member 30 on the upper surface of the hook part 22. FIG. In the structure shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, a recess 67 is formed on the upper surface of the protrusion 22 a of the hook portion 22. The recess 67 is open on the side opposite to the mounting surface 21 and has a semicircular shape on the back side. For this reason, the wall surface 69 surrounding the lower end of the spring member 30 is formed. The wall surface 69 makes it difficult for the lower end of the spring member 30 to come off the upper surface of the hook portion 22. Moreover, the same recessed part 68 is formed also in the lower surface of the wall part 51, and the upper end of the spring member 30 becomes difficult to move.
[0033]
In the above spring member holding structure, the degree of deformation of the spring member 30 when the spring member 30 is attached to or detached from the gap 50 is reduced as compared with the first embodiment. That is, the spring member 30 can be easily attached and detached.
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
In the ink carrier according to the present invention, a gap in which the spring can be arranged is secured on the side opposite to the support portion of the urging portion, and the protruding portion is urged downward in the gap to generate an elastic force by the protruding portion. the spring member comprising a coil spring for adjusting the magnitude of is disposed in an elastically deformed state, by appropriately selecting the type of spring can be easily adjusted elastic force acting on the ink cartridge.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ink jet printer employing an ink carrier according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an ink carrier and a carrier cradle according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge employed in an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an ink carrier equipped with an ink cartridge and a carrier cradle.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the lower state of the ink cartridge in a locked state.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the upper state of the ink cartridge in a locked state.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the locking operation of the upper part of the ink cartridge.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing the locking operation of the upper part of the ink cartridge.
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the upper state of the ink cartridge in a locked state.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a locking state of an upper part of an ink cartridge in a second embodiment.
11 is a sectional view taken along line XI-XI in FIG.
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the upper portion of the ink cartridge in a locked state according to the third embodiment.
13 is a sectional view taken along line XIII-XIII in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet printer 2 Ink carrier 3 Ink cartridge 4 Carrier cradle 21a Upper wall 21b, 21c Side wall 22 Hook part 22a Protrusion part 22b Claw 23 First spring holding part 24 Second spring holding part 27a, 27b Support part 34 Engagement part

Claims (1)

A carrier shaft is attached to a guide shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the paper feed direction of the recording paper so as to be reciprocally movable, and has a carrier body formed by a flat plate portion extending in the vertical direction, and is formed by the front surface of the carrier body. An ink carrier of an ink jet printer in which the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting surface with the ink discharge portion facing downward,
A support portion provided at a lower end of a side wall formed at a side edge of the mounting surface and engaged with a lower end surface of the ink cartridge;
A plate-like protrusion that protrudes from the mounting surface with a space from the support portion and is elastically deformable in the vertical direction, and an engagement portion that is formed at the tip of the protrusion and is formed on the upper surface of the ink cartridge. And a claw for preventing the upper part of the ink cartridge from separating in a direction away from the mounting surface , and applying the elastic force of the protrusion downward from the upper part of the ink cartridge A hook portion as an urging portion for sandwiching and fixing the ink cartridge with the portion ,
A gap is formed between the wall portion formed by the portion facing the hook portion of the upper wall formed at the upper edge of the mounting surface at the upper portion of the hook portion and the projection portion, are arranged in a state where the spring member formed of a coil spring for the projections to bias downward to adjust the magnitude of the elastic force of the protruding portion is elastically deformed,
An ink carrier comprising: an upper surface of the projecting portion and a lower surface of the wall portion; and a spring holding portion for preventing the spring member disposed in the gap from dropping from the gap. .

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