KR20010039995A - Ink cartridge, manufacturing method thereof, and ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is intended to simplify the manufacturing method of the ink cartridge, wherein the ink cartridge can prevent the deaeration of the ink from being impaired. The ink cartridge is provided with an ink chamber filled with a foam member, an ink supply port, a decompression port, a pair of leads through which an atmospheric communication port is formed, and a sealing member for blocking and sealing the atmospheric communication port. An elastic element is inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reducing port. The sealing member is made of a material that is impermeable to both gas and water vapor.

Description

Ink cartridge, manufacturing method thereof, and ink jet recording apparatus {INK CARTRIDGE, MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF, AND INK JET RECORDING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to an ink cartridge for accommodating ink for ink jet recording capable of preventing degassing damage of ink, an ink cartridge manufacturing method having a simple manufacturing method, and an ink jet recording apparatus using the ink cartridge. will be.

In the ink jet recording apparatus, each of the plurality of ink chambers arranged in the ink head of the ink jet recording apparatus is subjected to a positive pressure in response to the received electrical signal. As a result, droplets of ink contained in each ink chamber are ejected from the nozzle onto the recording medium to form an information image, and the nozzle is in communication with each of the ink chambers.

As a method of applying a positive pressure to the ink chamber, there is a method of using the operation of the piezoelectric element to change the volume of the ink chamber itself, a method of using a heating element that heats ink to generate vapor bubbles in the ink chamber, and the like. .

In such an ink recording method, air flowing into an ink passage such as an ink chamber of a print head reduces the ink ejection pressure to an insufficient level, which causes ink ejection failure and ink dropping, thereby impairing the reliability of the ink jet recording apparatus. do.

In particular, in the ink jet recording apparatus, when a used ink cartridge is replaced with a new one, a relatively large amount of air flows inside the ink passage of the print head. For this reason, a relatively long time period is required while consuming a relatively large amount of ink until the print quality of the ink jet recording apparatus is stabilized. In order to remove the air flowing inside the ink passage of the print head, the conventional method used degassed ink. By using such degassed ink, it is possible to reabsorb any air bubbles remaining in the print head, thereby improving the reliability of the ink jet recording apparatus.

Currently, an ink cartridge having an ink supply port for supplying ink to the ink cartridge and an atmospheric communication port for preventing any negative pressure from being generated inside the ink cartridge when the ink is consumed during the ink jet recording operation are used. In addition, a method of reducing the pressure inside the ink cartridge is also used to prevent the degassing characteristics of the ink.

However, in the pressure reduction process of such an ink cartridge, the higher the pressure reduction, the greater the leakage of ink through the ink supply port and the atmospheric communication port of the ink cartridge. In particular, this phenomenon is remarkable when the ink cartridge is subjected to mechanical shock and / or vibration at ambient temperature.

For this reason, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. Hei 7-132611, an airtight container capable of holding an ink cartridge under negative pressure by using a sealing film which does not pass water but allows gas to pass through to seal the ink supply port and the atmospheric communication port. A method for packaging an ink cartridge within is proposed.

However, the conventional method of packaging an ink cartridge in an airtight container has the following problems.

First, the conventional method is complicated because the method includes an ink supply step to be performed under negative pressure, a sealing step to be performed at 1 atmosphere, and a re-degassing step to be performed under negative pressure. As is clear from the foregoing description, the conventional method requires a re-degassing step. The reason is that although the ink supply step is performed under negative pressure, the sealing step should be carried out at 1 atmosphere. In addition, the conventional method allows the method to carry out a re-degassing step for the purpose of a sealing membrane which does not pass water but can pass gas.

Second, the conventional method cannot prevent damage to the degassing properties of the ink. This is because the degassing properties of the ink are impaired when the ink comes into contact with the atmosphere in the sealing step of the conventional method. In general, it is difficult to degas the ink sufficiently using only negative pressure. It is also possible to degas the ink to a predetermined degassing level using a hollow fiber membrane or the like. In addition, damage to the degassing properties of the ink can be prevented by packaging the ink cartridge under negative pressure. In this case, however, once the degassing properties of the ink are impaired, it is difficult to recover the degassing properties of the ink from such damage.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide an ink cartridge for accommodating ink for ink jet recording, which is capable of preventing damage to degassing properties of the ink, an ink cartridge manufacturing method having a simple manufacturing method, and the ink cartridge. It is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus to be used.

1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge of the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge shown in Fig. 1, showing the manufacturing method of the ink cartridge.

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge of the second embodiment of the present invention, showing the manufacturing method of the ink cartridge.

<Description of the code | symbol about the principal part of drawing>

1: ink cartridge body

3: decompression port

4: ink supply port

5: standby communication port

6: elastic element

7a, 7b: sealing member

8: foam member

9a, 9b: filter

12a, 12b: lead

22: atmospheric communication valve

30: decompression chamber

33: gas removal processing unit

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink chamber filled with a foam member, a lid provided with an ink supply port, a pressure reducing port and an atmospheric communication port, and an atmospheric communication port made of a material impermeable to both gas and water vapor. An ink cartridge is provided that includes a sealing member for blocking and sealing a seal, and an elastic element inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reducing port.

In the first aspect, a preferred mode is that one port is shared between the decompression port and the ink supply port.

In addition, a preferred mode is that the sealing member is made of a peelable material.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a first step of mounting a lid provided with an ink supply port, a decompression port, and an atmospheric communication port on a body of an ink cartridge, wherein an elastic element is inserted into each of the ink supply port and the decompression port. A second step of inserting the ink supply needle into the ink supply port to penetrate the elastic element, a third step of inserting the pressure sensitive needle into the pressure reducing port to penetrate the elastic element, and a body of the ink cartridge in the pressure reduction chamber. And a fifth step of generating a vacuum in the ink chamber of the main body of the ink cartridge through the decompression needle inserted into the decompression port, and a degassing ink in the ink tank not degassed through the degassing processing unit. Step 6, the seventh step of supplying the thus degassed ink through the ink supply port using the ink supply needle, and the degassed ink is And after the pressure reducing needle and the ink supply needle are removed from the pressure reducing port and the ink supply port, respectively, the ink cartridge manufacturing method comprising the eighth step of closing the respective of the pressure reducing port and the ink supply port due to its elasticity. Is provided.

In the second aspect, the preferred mode includes a ninth step in which the first step and the second step use a sealing member made of a material impermeable to both gas and water vapor to block seal the atmospheric communication port. will be.

In addition, a preferred mode is that the seventh step includes a tenth step of generating a vacuum of 160 torr or less in the decompression chamber.

Moreover, the preferred mode includes an eleventh step in which the second and third steps form the same pressure port as the ink supply port so that the decompression port also acts as the ink supply port, and the fifth and seventh steps are the main body of the ink cartridge. And the twelfth step of supplying the degassed ink after the ink chamber of the pressure is reduced through the ink supply needle.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge, wherein the ink cartridge comprises: a first step of mounting a lead provided with an ink supply port, a decompression port, and an atmospheric communication port on a body of the ink cartridge-the ink supply An elastic element is inserted into each of the port and the pressure reducing port, a second step of inserting the ink supply needle into the ink supply port to penetrate the elastic element, and a third step of inserting the pressure reducing needle into the pressure reducing port to penetrate the elastic element; A fourth step of mounting the main body of the ink cartridge in the decompression chamber, a fifth step of generating a vacuum in the ink chamber of the main body of the ink cartridge through the decompression needle inserted in the decompression port, and an ink tank through the degassing processing unit. A sixth step of degassing the ink in the ink, and supplying the degassed ink through the ink supply port using the ink supply needle Step 7 and, after the degassed ink is supplied, the pressure reducing needle and the ink supply needle are removed from the pressure reducing port and the ink supply port, respectively, so that the elastic element blocks each of the pressure reducing port and the ink supply port due to its elasticity. An ink jet recording apparatus manufactured by a method comprising the steps is provided.

The above and other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First embodiment

Figure 1 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge of the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows an exploded perspective view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge shown in FIG. 1 showing a method of manufacturing the ink cartridge.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the foam member 8 is made of a porous material such as polyurethane foam or the like and mounted in the ink chamber 2. The ink chamber 2 is provided inside the ink cartridge body 1 of the ink cartridge in an insertion manner. Moreover, the ink chamber 2 is closed with a pair of leads 12a and 12b. These leads 12a, 12b are provided with a decompression port 3, an ink supply port 4, and an atmospheric communication port 5.

The elastic element 6 is made of butyl rubber or the like, and is pressed into the ink supply port 4 and the pressure reduction port 3, respectively. The elastic element 6 is fixed by leads 12a, 12b. The required properties of the elastic element 6 are ink resistance and sufficient elasticity. That is, the elastic element 6 requires sufficient elasticity, not to mention the need for ink resistance. The need for sufficient elasticity will be explained in detail below. In addition, the use of the decompression port 3 can be omitted. The manufacturing method of the ink cartridge in which the pressure reduction port 3 is omitted will be described later.

On the other hand, the atmospheric communication port 5 is sealed by the peelable sealing member 7a. This sealing member 7a may be made of a material such as an aluminum sheet that is impermeable to gas and water vapor. The ink cartridge 1 is provided with a print head 15. The print head 15 is provided with an ink supply portion 11 on the side of the connection portion. The upper portion of the ink supply portion 11 is provided with a filter 9a for filtering ink.

When mounting the ink cartridge body 1 on the print head 15, the ink cartridge body 1 is fitted to the connecting portion 13 in an insertion manner. The connection part 13 is provided with a filter 9b. This filter 9b is provided to the print head casing 14.

When the ink cartridge body 1 is mounted on the print head 15 in an inserting manner, a packing member 10 made of an elastic material such as rubber, for hermetically connecting the ink cartridge body 1 with the connecting portion 13. Is interposed between the ink cartridge body 1 and the connecting portion 13. In order to seal the connecting side of the print head 15, a sealing member 7b is provided in the lower portion of the packing member 10. This sealing member 7b may be made of a material that is impermeable to gas and water vapor as in the case of the sealing member 7a.

At this time, since the ink chamber 2 is under negative pressure as a whole, the interior of the ink cartridge body 1 communicates with the atmospheric communication port 5 before the ink cartridge body 1 is mounted on the print head 15. It is necessary to open the sealing member 7a. The reason why the sealing member 7a is opened in advance will be described later.

At this time, ink is also supplied from the ink cartridge body 1 to the print head 15 under the influence of negative pressure. This negative pressure is generated by the suction pump 21 and applied to the inside of the cap 20 through the tube 23 with the cap 20 in hermetic connection with the nozzle plate (not shown) of the print head 15. All. On the other hand, the ink contained in the cap 20 is discharged from the cap 20 by the use of suction force applied to the inside of the cap 20 through the atmospheric communication valve 22 and the tube 23.

Ink (not shown) is filled in the print head 15 under the influence of the suction force. Then, in operation, in response to electrical signals generated from the flexible printed circuit (FPC, not shown) and transmitted through the interface board 16, a plurality of ink chambers (with positive pressure) disposed in the print head 15 ( (Not shown), ink droplets are ejected from nozzles (not shown) in communication with each of the ink compartments (not shown), whereby an information image is formed on the recording medium (not shown). .

In this regard, when the print head 15 is operated to consume ink in the printing operation, compensation for ink loss cannot be added in the form of air when the standby communication port 5 is not yet open. For this reason, the ink chamber 2 containing the ink supply part 11 receives a large negative pressure. On the other hand, ink supplied into the ink chamber 2 is also supplied into the nozzle (not shown) of the print head 15 because of the capillary phenomenon, and ink is discharged (not shown) at the tip of the nozzle (not shown). It remains stable internally because it forms a meniscus on the surface.

However, due to the presence of the large negative pressure described above, the meniscus of the ink is pulled deep into the nozzle (not shown) of the print head 15. If the magnitude of the large negative pressure exceeds a predetermined limit (i.e., the surface tension of the ink in the meniscus), the meniscus of the ink is broken and it is impossible to discharge any ink droplets from the tip of the nozzle (not shown). .

In addition, when an ink cartridge is used to replace a new one or receive a cleaning operation, the cap 20 is hermetically connected to a nozzle plate (not shown) of the print head 15 having the inside of the cap 20 which is negatively pressured. This is generated by the suction pump 21 and applied to the interior of the cap 20 via a tube 23 extending from the pump 21 to the cap 20. However, with the air communication port 5 of the ink cartridge body 1 not yet open, the negative pressure is maintained inside the ink chamber 2 after a sufficient amount of ink is drawn into the print head 15. As a result, ink contained in the print head 15 (not shown) is drawn back into the ink chamber 2 under the influence of this negative pressure inside the ink chamber 2, which is the ink print head in the ink jet recording operation. It becomes difficult to supply ink to (15). As a result, it is necessary to open the standby communication port 5 before the ink recording operation is performed using the ink cartridge of the first embodiment of the present invention.

Now, a manufacturing method of the ink cartridge having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the lids 12a and 12b are provided with a decompression port 3, an ink supply port 4, an atmospheric communication port 5, and the like, and include a packing member 10, a filter 9a, a foam member 8, and the like. Is mounted on the ink cartridge body 1 already provided. Then, in this situation, ink is supplied to the ink cartridge body 1.

At this time, the atmospheric communication port 5 is kept sealed by the sealing member 7a. Further, when ink is supplied to the ink cartridge, the ink cartridge body 1 is mounted in the pressure reduction chamber 30, in which case the ink supply needle 32 and the pressure reduction needle 31 are ink as shown in FIG. Ink supply of the ink cartridge body 1 in such a manner that the ink supply needle 32 and the pressure sensitive needle 31 penetrate the elastic element 6 inserted into each of the supply port 4 and the pressure reduction port 3. It is inserted into the port 4 and the decompression port 3, respectively.

The ink chamber 2 is then erased by drawing air out of the ink chamber 2 through the pressure reducing port 3. Thereafter, the ink 35 contained in the ink tank 36 and still not degassed is degassed through the gas removal processing unit 33 in which a hollow fiber film or the like is used for degassing the ink 35. The degassed ink is supplied to the ink chamber 2 through the ink supply port 4.

At this time, preferably, the decompression chamber 30 is erased at a negative pressure of 160 torr or less. After the ink is supplied, the pressure reducing needle 31 and the ink supply needle 32 are retracted. As a result, the decompression port 3 and the ink supply port 4 are automatically sealed by the elastic element 6 by its elasticity.

As a result, even after the decompression chamber 30 is in communication with the atmosphere, the ink chamber 2 can be maintained under the influence of negative pressure. This ensures that the deaeration of the ink is not damaged in the ink chamber 2. Therefore, any degassing step for the ink is no longer required in this embodiment. In addition, in the method for supplying ink, since the connection area between the ink supply needle 32 and the ink supply port 4 is hermetically sealed, it is possible to supply a large amount of ink to the ink chamber 2. It is possible to prevent any ink leakage from occurring in the connection area.

Even after the ink has been supplied into the ink chamber 2, the degree of negative pressure or vacuum in the ink chamber 2 becomes quite large, the elastic element 6 is inserted into the respective ink supply port 4 and the decompression port 3, and Since the sealing member 7a is made of a material which is impermeable to gas and water vapor, it is possible to prevent any ink leakage from occurring even when the ink chamber 2 is subjected to mechanical shock and / or fluctuations at ambient temperature. .

The deaeration property of the ink used in the second embodiment will be described with reference to the measurement result of the deaeration property, in which case the deaeration property of the ink indicates the amount of air dissolved in the ink. Table 1 below shows measurement results of oxygen levels dissolved in the ink (hereinafter referred to as DO values).

In Table 1 below, the comparative measurement results show that each of the decompression port 3 and the ink supply port 4 of the comparative example of the ink cartridge did not have the elastic element 6 and was impermeable to gas but not vapor. A comparative example of an ink cartridge which was obtained under conditions that were sealed with a non-permeable sealing member, and thus prepared the ink was packaged under degassed negative pressure and its DO value was measured and listed in Table 1 below.

Table 1

Here, the vacuum degree of the decompression chamber of this embodiment was approximately 160 torr, the vacuum degree of the decompression chamber of the comparative example was 160 torr, and the vacuum degree of the ambient pressure at which the ink cartridge was packaged in each example and the comparative example was 100 torr. Immediately after the end of the ink supply operation, the time interval between the communication with the atmosphere of the ink cartridge and the packaging of the ink cartridge under negative pressure was 5 minutes, and the number of specimens of each example and the comparative example was 5, The ambient temperature was 25 ° C., and the ambient pressure at the time of measurement was 1 atm.

Moreover, the DO value of the ink not yet degassed was in the range of 7.5 to 8.5 mg / L at an ambient temperature of 25 ° C. under an ambient pressure of 1 atmosphere.

Table 1 shows the following. The degassing state of the ink was maintained for a considerable time in the examples and the comparative examples. The initial level of deaeration of the ink in this example was at least twice that of the ink in the comparative example. This difference in the initial level of deaeration between the Example and the Comparative Example arises from the difference in the ambient conditions of the ink after the end of the ink supply operation between the present Example and the Comparative Example, and the pattern after the end of the ink supply operation. The ink in the example was prevented from communicating with the atmosphere, while the ink in the comparative example after the end of the ink supply operation was allowed to communicate with the atmosphere. Therefore, judging from the measurement results in Table 1, it can be seen that the degassed ink is damaged when the air in the air tries to dissolve in the degassed ink when it comes into contact with the atmosphere.

Moreover, although the comparative example of the ink cartridge is packaged under negative pressure to maintain the degassability of the ink, such packaging performed under negative pressure does not substantially affect the improvement of the degassability of the ink. In other words, it is difficult to degas the ink using only negative pressure. In general, the degassing operation of the ink is performed by using a hollow fiber membrane. If the deaeration of the ink is impaired, it is difficult to improve the damaged deaeration of the ink using only negative pressure.

Each of this embodiment of the ink cartridge and the comparative example was mounted on the print head 15, and used in the ink jet recording operation after performing the ink suction operation of the replaced new ink cartridge, whereby an information image was formed on the recording medium. These images were evaluated for dot omission and the measurement results are shown in Table 2 below.

TABLE 2

Here, the number of each specimen of the present example and the comparative example was eight, the measurement results or values shown in Table 2 are shown as a whole.

Judging from Table 2, the dot dropout rate is very fast in the image formed using this embodiment, and the ratio is substantially equal to 1/100 of the dot dropout rate of the image formed using the comparative example. The reason why the dot dropout rate of the image formed using this embodiment is so fast is as follows. As the degree of degassing of the ink increases, more air dissolves in the degassed ink, thereby reabsorbing any bubbles present in the print head 15. In other words, the measurement results or values shown in Table 2 reflect the difference in the degassability of the ink between the examples and comparative examples shown in Table 1.

As described above, in the first embodiment of the ink cartridge, the ink chamber 2 is filled with the foam member 8, and the lids 12a and 12b have the ink supply port 4, the pressure reducing port 3, and the atmosphere. The communication port 5 is provided. A sealing member 7a is provided for sealing the atmospheric communication port 5, an elastic element 6 is inserted into each of the ink supply port 4 and the pressure reducing port 3, and the sealing member 7a is a gas. And a material that does not penetrate water vapor.

Furthermore, during the ink supply operation, the ink supply needle 32 and the pressure reduction needle 31 are inserted into the ink supply port 4 and the pressure reduction port 3, respectively, so that the ink chamber 2 is connected through the pressure reduction port 3. It is evacuated to draw air out of the ink chamber 2. Under the above circumstances, the gas discharged ink is supplied to the ink chamber 2 through the ink supply port 4.

After the ink supply operation is completed, the pressure reduction needle 31 and the ink supply needle 32 are retracted such that each of the pressure reduction port 3 and the ink supply port 4 is automatically sealed with the elastic element 6 under elastic influence. .

As a result, even after the decompression chamber 30 communicates with the atmosphere, it is possible to maintain the ink chamber in a negative pressure state, so that the deaeration of the ink is not impaired. For this reason, it is not necessary to perform the degassing operation of the ink after the ink supply operation is completed. This eliminates the need to perform the packing operation of the ink cartridge under negative pressure, which can simplify the ink cartridge in the manufacturing step.

In addition, since the ink supply needle 32 is completely sealed, no ink leakage occurs during the ink supply operation, so that a large amount of ink is supplied to the ink chamber 2.

In addition, since the elastic element 6 is inserted into each of the ink supply port 4 and the decompression port 3, and the sealing member 7 is made of a material impermeable to gas and water vapor, the ink cartridge of this embodiment is It is possible to prevent ink leakage in the cartridge of this embodiment even when subjected to mechanical shock or change at ambient temperature.

Also, in the ink cartridge of this embodiment, since the degassed ink is prevented from communicating with the atmosphere after the ink supply operation is completed, there is no risk of degassed ink components being damaged during manufacture of the ink cartridge. In addition, since the sealing member 7a is made of a material which is impermeable to both gas and water vapor, there is no risk of damaging the degassed components of the ink even if the ink is stored for a long time.

As described above, the ink cartridge of this embodiment can prevent air from entering the ink cartridge when the ink cartridge is mounted on the print head 15, thereby preventing any ink ejection mistake in the ink jet recording operation.

By using the ink cartridge of the embodiment produced in the above-described manufacturing method, the ink jet recording apparatus is stabilized at the ink ejection pressure generated in the print head 15, and a small ink jet recording apparatus is free of any dot rubbing and ink ejection mistakes. Can be manufactured.

Second embodiment

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink cartridge of the second embodiment of the present invention, showing the manufacturing method thereof.

In the second embodiment, the decompression port 3 shown in Figs. 1 to 3 is omitted. As a result, the ink chamber 2 is exhausted via the ink supply port 4 without passing through the decompression port 3.

That is, as shown in Fig. 4, the ink cartridge body 1 is provided with a packing member 10, a filter 9a, a foam member 8, and other components. The leads 12a and 12b are provided with an elastic element 6 inserted into each of the ink supply port 4 and the atmospheric communication port 5. These leads 12a and 12b are mounted on the ink cartridge body 1. In this state, ink is supplied to the ink cartridge body 1.

At this time, the atmospheric communication port 5 is sealed with the sealing member 7a. When ink is supplied, the ink cartridge body 1 is mounted in the decompression chamber 30, where the ink supply needle 32 penetrates the elastic element 6 inserted into the ink supply port 4.

Next, as shown in Fig. 4, the pressure reducing valve 37 is opened with the ink supply valve 38 closed, so that the ink chamber 2 opens the ink supply port 4 from the ink chamber 2; Draw air through the vacuum. Thereafter, the ink 35 contained in the ink tank 36 and still not degassed is degassed through the gas removal processing unit 33 in which a hollow fiber membrane or the like is used to remove the gas of the ink 35. The degassed ink is then supplied to the ink chamber 2 through the ink supply port 4.

It is preferable that the vacuum degree in the pressure reduction chamber 30 is 160 torr or less. After completion of the ink supply step, when the ink supply needle 32 is retracted, the ink supply port 4 is automatically closed due to its elasticity to the elastic element 6.

As a result, even after the decompression chamber 30 is in communication with the atmosphere, it is possible to maintain the negative pressure state of the ink chamber 2 which prevents the degassability of the ink from being damaged. Due to the above, the re-degassing step of the ink in the second embodiment is not required. In the ink supply step, the ink supply needle 32 is completely sealed, so there is no risk of ink leakage in the ink supply step, which causes a large amount of ink to be supplied to the ink chamber 2 of the ink cartridge.

The vacuum degree of the ink chamber 2 after completion of the ink supply step is quite large, but the sealing member 7a is made of a material in which the elastic element 6 is inserted into the ink supply port 4 and gas and water vapor cannot pass through. Therefore, there is no risk of ink leakage even when a mechanical shock and / or a change in the ambient temperature acts on the ink cartridge.

As described above, in the second embodiment of the ink cartridge, in addition to the effects obtained in the first embodiment of the ink cartridge, the following effects are obtained. That is, firstly, the decompression port 3 shown in Figs. 1 to 3 can be removed in the second embodiment and the ink supply port 4 can function instead of the decompression port 3, whereby the second embodiment Can eliminate the need for the formation of the decompression port 3 and eliminate the elastic element 6 inserted into the decompression port 3, and the removal of the decompression port 3 causes the decompression needle 31 in the ink supply operation. ) Need not be inserted into the decompression port 3, making the manufacturing steps of the second embodiment of the ink cartridge simpler.

That is, the ink jet recording apparatus supporting the ink cartridge, the manufacturing method thereof, and the ink cartridge having the above-described configuration in each of the embodiments has the following individual effects. That is, in the ink cartridge of the present invention provided with an ink chamber filled with a foam member, an ink supply port, a lead in which an atmospheric communication port is formed, and a sealing member for sealing the atmospheric communication port, the elastic element is each of the ink supply port and the pressure reducing port. The sealing member is inserted into a material which is impermeable to gas and water vapor. As a result, the present invention can simplify the manufacturing method of the ink cartridge and can prevent the degassed ink from being damaged due to its characteristics.

It is apparent that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Finally, this application claims the treaty priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. Hei 11-283762, filed October 5, 1999, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

According to the ink cartridge of the present invention having the above-described configuration, the manufacturing method thereof, and the ink jet recording apparatus, an ink cartridge for accommodating ink for ink jet recording capable of preventing damage to the degassing characteristics of the ink, and a manufacturing method This simple ink cartridge manufacturing method and an ink jet recording apparatus using the ink cartridge can be provided.

Claims (9)

An ink chamber filled with a foam member, A lid provided with an ink supply port, a decompression port, and a standby communication port; A sealing member made of a material which is impermeable to both gas and water vapor, and for blocking and sealing the air communication port; And an elastic element inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reducing port. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein one port is shared between the decompression port and the ink supply port. An ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein said sealing member is made of a peelable material. A first step of mounting on the body of the ink cartridge a lid provided with an ink supply port and a pressure reduction port and an atmospheric communication port, wherein an elastic element is inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reduction port; Inserting the ink supply needle into the ink supply port to penetrate the elastic element; Inserting the pressure reducing needle into the pressure reducing port to penetrate the elastic element; A fourth step of mounting the body of the ink cartridge in the pressure reduction chamber, A fifth step of generating a vacuum in the ink chamber of the body of the ink cartridge through the pressure reducing needle inserted into the pressure reducing port; A sixth step of degassing the ink in the ink tank which is not degassed through the degassing processing section; A seventh step of supplying the degassed ink through an ink supply port using an ink supply needle, And after the degassed ink has been supplied, an eighth step of removing the depressurizing needle and the ink supply needle from the depressurizing port and the ink supply port, respectively, so that the elastic element blocks each of the depressurizing port and the ink supply port due to its elasticity. An ink cartridge manufacturing method, characterized in that. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first and second steps comprise a ninth step of blocking sealing the atmospheric communication port using a sealing member made of a material impermeable to both gas and water vapor. Ink cartridge manufacturing method. The method of claim 4, wherein the seventh step includes a tenth step of generating a vacuum of 160 torr or less in the decompression chamber. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the second and third steps include an eleventh step of forming the decompression port as the same port as the ink supply port so as to act also as the ink supply port, and the fifth and seventh steps include ink. And a twelfth step of supplying the degassed ink after the ink chamber of the main body of the cartridge is depressurized through the ink supply needle. An ink cartridge is provided, the ink cartridge, An ink chamber filled with a foam member, A lid provided with an ink supply port, a decompression port, and a standby communication port; A sealing member made of a material which is impermeable to both gas and water vapor, and for blocking and sealing the air communication port; An elastic element inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reducing port; Ink jet recording apparatus comprising a. An ink cartridge is provided, the ink cartridge, A first step of mounting on the body of the ink cartridge a lid provided with an ink supply port and a pressure reduction port and an atmospheric communication port, wherein an elastic element is inserted into each of the ink supply port and the pressure reduction port; Inserting the ink supply needle into the ink supply port to penetrate the elastic element; Inserting the pressure reducing needle into the pressure reducing port to penetrate the elastic element; A fourth step of mounting the body of the ink cartridge in the pressure reduction chamber, A fifth step of generating a vacuum in the ink chamber of the body of the ink cartridge through the pressure reducing needle inserted into the pressure reducing port; A sixth step of degassing the ink in the ink tank through the degassing processing unit; A seventh step of supplying the degassed ink through an ink supply port using an ink supply needle, After the degassed ink has been supplied, the eighth step of removing the depressurizing needle and the ink supply needle from the decompression port and the ink supply port, respectively, causes the elastic element to block each of the decompression port and the ink supply port due to its elasticity. An ink jet recording apparatus manufactured by the method comprising.