HK1087071B

HK1087071B - Ink cartridge

Info

Publication number: HK1087071B
Application number: HK06107371.8A
Authority: HK
Inventors: 高木淳宏; 佐佐木丰纪; 服部信吾; 神户智弘
Original assignee: 兄弟工业株式会社
Priority date: 2004-02-09
Filing date: 2005-02-09
Publication date: 2009-03-27

Description

ink box

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an ink cartridge that can be mounted on an inkjet recording apparatus.

Background

An ink jet recording apparatus configured such that an ink container (referred to as an "ink cartridge") can be attached to and detached from a holder (mounting portion) is disclosed in japanese unexamined patent application No. h 9-85963. A protruding portion that opens an opening of the ink cartridge is formed at the mounting portion, and a through hole is provided at the protruding portion so that ink can flow out from a valve of the ink cartridge. When the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting portion, the protruding portion opens the valve, and ink in the ink cartridge flows through the opening.

Disclosure of Invention

However, when the ink cartridge is mounted and the opening of the ink cartridge is opened by the protruding portion, the opening must be accurately positioned with respect to the protruding portion in order to connect the ink cartridge. In addition, if the shape of the protruding portion is not accurately manufactured, the ink cartridge may not be smoothly mounted, and/or the ink may leak or evaporate.

In particular, with the ink cartridge in the above-mentioned japanese laid-open patent application No. h9-85963, which is provided with the ink supply opening and the air guide opening, the ink supply opening and the flow passage on the mounting portion side must be sealed and accurately manufactured so that the ink does not leak. In addition, the two projecting portions must correspond exactly to the ink supply opening and the air guide opening. Therefore, the ink cartridge must be manufactured with high accuracy.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, among others, and to provide an ink cartridge that can be mounted in an ink jet recording apparatus, whereby the ink cartridge can be easily mounted in the ink jet recording apparatus, and the manufacturing of the ink cartridge is made simple.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an ink cartridge includes: an ink chamber; a communication chamber capable of communicating with the ink chamber and an outside of the ink cartridge; a valve provided in the communication chamber, the valve being movable from a first position blocking communication between the ink chamber and an outside of the ink cartridge to a second position allowing the communication; and an operating member that extends from the communication chamber to an outside of the ink cartridge and is capable of moving the valve from the first position to the second position.

According to an aspect of the present invention, when the ink cartridge is mounted in the mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus, the operating member is capable of moving the valve from the first position to the second position by contacting the mounting portion.

According to one aspect of the invention, the valve and the operating member may be formed as one piece.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the ink cartridge may further include: a valve seat adjacent the valve; and a pressing device that presses the valve seat. An opening may be formed at a substantial center of the valve seat so as to expose a bottom of the valve. The valve seat may contact the valve outside of the opening. The operating member may extend from the valve through the opening.

According to an aspect of the invention, the urging means may extend from the valve seat and surround the valve, and the urging means may be integrally formed with the valve seat so as to urge the valve toward the valve seat on a first side of the valve opposite the valve seat.

According to one aspect of the invention, the operator may be located on a second side of the valve opposite the first side.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the ink cartridge may further include a sealing member surrounding the operation member.

According to an aspect of the present invention, one end of the operating member may be between an outer end of the communication chamber and an outer end of the seal member.

According to one aspect of the invention, the seal may extend from and be integrally formed with the valve seat on a side opposite the valve.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the ink cartridge may further include a seal member surrounding the operation member, wherein when the ink cartridge is mounted in the mounting portion of the inkjet recording apparatus, the seal member contacts the mounting portion and forms a passage from the flow passage in the mounting portion to the ink chamber.

According to one aspect of the invention, the valve seat, the biasing means and the seal may be integrally formed from a rubber-like material.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an ink cartridge includes: an ink chamber; an air communication chamber capable of communicating with the ink chamber and an outside of the ink cartridge; a first valve system disposed in the air communication chamber; an ink communication chamber capable of communicating with the ink chamber and an outside of the ink cartridge; and a second valve system disposed within the ink communication chamber. At least one of the first valve system or the second valve system includes a valve seat, a valve movable relative to the valve seat, and an operating member extending to an outside of at least one of the air communication chamber or the ink communication chamber and capable of moving the valve from a first position where the valve contacts the valve seat to a second position where the valve is spaced apart from the valve seat.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the air communication chamber and the ink communication chamber may be formed at one side of the ink cartridge.

According to one aspect of the invention, the first valve system may include a valve seat, a valve and an operator, and the second valve system may include a valve seat and a valve. When the ink cartridge is mounted in the mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus, the operating member of the first valve system can move the valve of the first valve system from the first position to the second position by contacting the mounting portion, and the valve of the second valve system can move from the first position to the second position by being pushed by the extraction pipe provided in the mounting portion.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a valve system may include: a valve; an operating member; a valve seat having an opening at a substantially central portion thereof; and urging means that urges the valve in the first direction so that the valve contacts the valve seat. The operating member projects through an opening in the valve seat. The valve is between the valve seat and the biasing device. The valve separates from the valve seat when the operating member pushes the valve in a second direction opposite the first direction.

According to one aspect of the invention, the valve system may further include a seal around the periphery of the opening and the operating member.

According to one aspect of the invention, one end of the operator may be between the valve and the outboard end of the seal.

According to an aspect of the present invention, an inkjet recording apparatus may include a mounting portion capable of receiving one of the ink cartridges described above. The mounting portion includes a flow passage through which air is guided to the ink cartridge.

According to an aspect of the present invention, an inkjet recording apparatus may include an inkjet head and a mounting portion capable of receiving one of the ink cartridges described above. The mounting portion includes an extraction tube through which ink is supplied to the ink-jet head.

According to an aspect of the present invention, it is not necessary to provide a projection for opening the opening of the valve member at the mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus. There is an effect that it becomes easy to position the ink cartridge and the mounting portion when the ink cartridge is mounted to the mounting portion.

According to an aspect of the present invention, when the ink cartridge is detached from the ink jet recording apparatus, the urging means causes the valve member to contact the valve seat and prevents the ink from leaving or evaporating through the opening. Also, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus, the valve can be opened by uniformly lifting the valve by the operating member and separating the valve from the valve seat.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a complicated operation procedure is not required to install the pressing means for pressing the valve member in the area where the valve member is positioned. There is an effect of reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.

According to one aspect of the invention, ink is prevented from exiting or evaporating through the opening.

According to one aspect of the invention, at least one of the first and second valve systems comprises a valve seat and a valve movable relative to the valve seat. The valve has an operating member protruding outside the ink cartridge and is configured such that: when the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting portion, the operating member contacts the mounting portion so that the valve is separated from the valve seat. When the mounting portion is provided with the operating members that project in correspondence with the first and second valve systems, the operating members must be sealed to prevent ink leakage and manufactured so as to accurately maintain the mutual positional relationship between the two projecting operating members and the mutual positional relationship between the ink communication chamber and the air communication chamber. However, there is an effect that the ink cartridge can be easily mounted on the mounting portion and also can be easily manufactured without requiring high accuracy in positional relationship.

According to an aspect of the present invention, it is possible to open both valve systems by simply moving the ink cartridge in the direction of the mounting portion, thereby providing better operability.

Drawings

Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure and an exemplary inkjet recording apparatus according to the present disclosure with the ink cartridge mounted thereon;

fig. 2A and 2B are cross-sectional views illustrating the structure of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure: fig. 2A shows the ink cartridge before the ink cartridge is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus; fig. 2B shows the ink cartridge after the ink cartridge is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus;

fig. 3A-3E depict an exemplary valve element according to the present disclosure: FIG. 3A is a plan view; FIG. 3B is a side view; FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I of FIG. 3A; FIG. 3D is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 3A; fig. 3E is a bottom view;

4A-4C depict an exemplary valve element according to the present disclosure: fig. 4A is a plan view; FIG. 4B is a side view; fig. 4C is a bottom view;

fig. 5A and 5B depict an exemplary mounting portion according to the present disclosure: FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. 5B; fig. 5B is a bottom view;

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict the exemplary mounting portion of FIG. 5B; FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 5B; FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along line V-V of FIG. 5B;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an exemplary check valve according to the present disclosure;

8A-8C depict an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure; FIG. 8A is a front view; FIG. 8B is a side view; fig. 8C is a bottom view;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge of FIGS. 8A-8C;

fig. 10 is a sectional view showing the structure of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure before the ink cartridge is loaded into an inkjet recording apparatus;

11A and 11B are cross-sectional views of an exemplary ink extraction tube and an exemplary valve element according to the present disclosure: FIG. 11A shows the ink extraction tube before it enters the guide channel; FIG. 11B shows the ink extraction tube contacting the valve member and urging the valve member toward the ink chamber;

FIG. 12 is an angled perspective view of an exemplary valve member according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an inside lower portion of an exemplary cartridge body according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of section VI of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of section VII of FIG. 13;

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of section VIII of FIG. 13;

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view of section IX of FIG. 13;

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of an inside lower portion of an exemplary cartridge body according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of an inside lower portion of an exemplary cartridge body according to the present disclosure;

fig. 20A and 20B are cross-sectional views of fig. 19: FIG. 20A is a cross-sectional view taken along section X; FIG. 20B is a cross-sectional view of section XI;

fig. 21 is a sectional view showing the structure of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure before the ink cartridge is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus;

FIG. 22 is a bottom view of an exemplary body case according to the present disclosure;

fig. 23A and 23B are cross-sectional views of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure in a state where the valve element is removed from the valve seat portion: fig. 23A shows the ink cartridge properly mounted in the mounting portion; fig. 23B shows the ink cartridge incorrectly mounted in the mounting portion;

fig. 24 is a sectional view showing the structure of an exemplary ink cartridge according to the present disclosure before the ink cartridge is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus;

fig. 25A and 25B depict an enlarged front end portion of an exemplary air guide according to the present disclosure: FIG. 25A is a cross-sectional view; FIG. 25B is a top view;

fig. 26A and 26B depict an enlarged front end portion of an exemplary air guide according to the present disclosure: FIG. 26A is a cross-sectional view; fig. 26B is a plan view.

Detailed Description

One embodiment of the present disclosure is described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary ink cartridge 1 according to the present disclosure and an exemplary inkjet recording apparatus 2 according to the present disclosure on which the ink cartridge 1 is mounted.

The ink cartridge 1 is formed so that the ink cartridge 1 can be detached from the ink jet recording apparatus 2, and the ink jet recording apparatus 2 is provided with a recording head 7 that discharges ink. The ink cartridge 1 stores ink to be supplied to the recording head 7.

The ink cartridge 1 is equipped with a hollow box-shaped main body case 1a and a top 1b sealing the top surface of the main body case 1 a. Ink to be supplied to the recording head 7 is stored in an ink chamber 16 (see fig. 2A and 2B) formed inside the main body tank 1 a. In addition, a plurality of ink cartridges, in which cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks are charged respectively, can be mounted in the inkjet recording apparatus 2. Thereby making color printing possible.

The inkjet recording apparatus 2 is provided with: a mounting portion 3 to which the ink cartridge 1 is mounted; a tank 5, the tank 5 storing ink to be supplied from the ink cartridge 1 through the ink supply tube 4; a recording head 7, the recording head 7 ejecting the ink stored in the tank 5 onto the recording paper 6; a carriage 8 in which the container 5 and the recording head 7 are mounted, and which carriage 8 is movable in two linear directions; a carriage shaft 9, the carriage shaft 9 being a guide by which the carriage 8 moves in the two linear directions; a transport mechanism 10, the transport mechanism 10 transporting the recording paper 6; and a cleaning device 11.

The mounting portion 3 is composed of a base portion 3a and guide portions 3b provided on both sides of the base portion 3 a. An ink suction pipe 12 protruding in the hollow is arranged on the base portion 3a to suck ink stored in the ink cartridge 1, and an air supply opening 91 that guides outside air to the ink cartridge 1.

One end of the ink suction tube 12 communicates with the ink flow passage 94 and communicates with the container 5 through the ink supply tube 4. The air supply flow passage 92 and the air inlet 93 communicate with the air supply opening 91 (see fig. 5A and 5B).

The ink cartridge 1 is mounted from a direction (arrow X direction) perpendicular to the mounting portion 3. At this time, the ink suction pipe 12 opens a valve system 23, which will be described later, provided inside the ink cartridge 1, and communicates with the inside of the ink chamber 16. In addition, the air supply opening 91 communicates with the interior of the ink chamber 16.

A plurality of nozzle openings are provided on a surface of the recording head 7 opposite to the recording paper 6. The ink stored in the container 5 is ejected from these nozzle holes toward the recording paper 6 by driving an actuator composed of a piezoelectric element. For the actual recording operation, recording is performed on the recording paper 6 as the carriage 8 mounted with the recording head 7 moves back and forth.

In addition, the recording head 7 is located above the mounting portion 3. Thus, ink in the nozzle hole is given negative pressure (back pressure) due to a head difference between the ink cartridge 1 mounted in the mounting portion 3 and the nozzle hole.

The cleaning device 11 is disposed outside the recording area such that the cleaning device 11 faces the recording head 7. The cleaning device 11 is provided with: a cleaning cap 11a, the cleaning cap 11a covering the recording head 7 formed with the nozzle holes; a waste ink tube 11b, the waste ink tube 11b communicating with the purge cap 11 a; the pump 11c, the pump 11c sucks the ink from the nozzle holes into the waste ink tube 11 b.

When the cleaning process is performed, the carriage 8 is moved to the cleaning process performing position, and the surface of the recording head 7 on which the nozzle holes are formed is covered with the cleaning cap 11 a. The pump 11c is driven in this state, and sucks the defective ink containing bubbles accumulated in the recording head 7. The sucked-out defective ink is stored in an undepicted waste ink container through the waste ink tube 11 b. The recording operation and the cleaning process are controlled by a CPU (central processing unit) (not shown) installed in the inkjet recording apparatus 2.

Next, the structure of the ink cartridge mounted in the inkjet recording apparatus 2, in particular, a of fig. 1, is explained with reference to fig. 2A and 2B. Fig. 2A and 2B are sectional views showing the structure of the ink cartridge 1 according to the present disclosure: fig. 2A shows the ink cartridge 1 before the ink cartridge 1 is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus 2; fig. 2B shows the ink cartridge 1 after the ink cartridge 1 is loaded into the inkjet recording apparatus 2.

The ink cartridge 1 includes: a main body case 1a having an ink chamber 16; a top 1b covering the open upper surface of the main body case 1 a; a cap 1f covering the bottom wall 1e of the main body case 1 a. Two exposure holes 1fa, 1fb are formed in the cap 1f, and the two exposure holes 1fa, 1fb expose valve systems 23, 24 described later on the mounting portion 3 side. The ink cartridge 1 is formed with a top 1b and a cap 1f welded to the main body case 1 a. The materials of the main body case 1a, the top 1b, and the cap 1f may be resin materials.

An ink supply opening 21 is formed in the bottom wall 1e, and this ink supply opening 21 opens outward to supply ink inside the ink chamber 16 outward. The ink supply opening 21 directly communicates with a communication chamber 30 provided inside a cylindrical wall 21a, which cylindrical wall 21a is formed integrally with and projects from the lower first surface of the bottom wall 1 e. In addition, an air guide opening 26 is formed in the bottom wall 1e, and the air guide opening 26 is used to guide air into the ink chamber 16. The air introducing opening 26 directly communicates with a communicating chamber 50 provided inside a cylindrical wall 26a, which cylindrical wall 26a is formed integrally with and projects from the lower surface of the bottom wall 1 e. When the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the ink suction tube 12 is inserted into the communicating chamber 30.

The check valve 60 is located in the ink supply opening 21 and faces the ink supply opening 21. The check valve 60 is constructed by integrally forming an umbrella-shaped elastic film portion 60b and a shaft portion 60c with a resin material, the umbrella-shaped elastic film portion 60b facing the lower surface of the ink supply opening 21, the shaft portion 60c holding the film portion 60b at one end. The shaft portion 60c is inserted into the shaft hole 1n in the bottom wall 1e in a manner slidable in the up-down direction. Under normal conditions, the projecting portion 60a is in contact with the top surface of the bottom wall 1e, and at the contact position thereof, the film portion 60b is spaced from the ink supply opening 21 to allow the flow of ink from the ink chamber 16 to the valve element 32. When ink flows from the ink suction pipe 12 to the ink chamber 16, the flow is prevented by lifting the film portion 60b and sealing the ink supply opening 21.

A cylindrical member 25 surrounding the air introducing opening 26 is provided on the bottom wall 1e and projects inside the ink chamber 16. The cylindrical member 25 is projected so that the supply of air from the outside is directed to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 through the flow path inside the cylindrical member 25. The opening position in the upper portion of the air guide opening 26 is higher than the ink surface.

Valve systems 23, 24 as examples of seals are fixed to the communication chamber 30 on the ink supply side and the communication chamber 50 on the air introducing side, respectively.

The valve system 23 is equipped with a support member 46 integrally made of a rubber elastic member and a valve member 32 constructed of a resin material. The support member 46 has a substantially cylindrical outer shape, and the support member 46 is configured by integrally forming a valve seat portion 46a and an urging portion 46b, the urging portion 46b being closer to the ink chamber 16 with respect to the valve seat portion 46a, and the outer wall 33 being located on the opposite side of the valve seat portion 46a from the urging portion 46 b. The urging portion 46b urges the valve element 32 in a direction toward the valve seat portion 46a, and causes the valve element 32 to be accommodated in a space between the valve seat portion 46a and the urging portion 46 b.

The outer wall 33 has a connecting portion 33a projecting radially outward. The communication chamber 30 has a stepped surface 44, and the stepped surface 44 has a diameter increased to the outside to accommodate the connection portion 33 a. A protrusion 43 is formed on a surface of the connection portion 33a facing the stepped surface 44. The cap 1f is fixed to the main body case 1a by pressing the projection 43 onto the stepped surface 44 and positioning the connecting portion 33a between the stepped surface 44 and the cap 1f while deforming the projection 43. Thereby preventing ink from flowing out from the space formed between the outer wall 33 of the valve system 23 and the inner wall of the communication chamber 30.

In the valve seat portion 46a, an opening 41 is formed through the center of the valve seat portion 46a in the axial direction. In addition, a guide passage 40 into which the ink suction tube 12 is inserted is formed on the outer wall 33 in such a manner that the guide passage 40 communicates with the opening 41.

The inner diameter of the guide passage 40 is smaller than the outer diameter of the ink suction tube 12, and thus the outer wall 33 is in close contact with the ink suction tube 12. The opening 41 is formed larger than the inner diameter of the guide passage 40 and smaller than the outer diameter of the ink suction tube 12. An end of the guide passage 40 on the side where the ink suction tube 12 is inserted is formed in a tapered shape widening outward.

The urging portion 46b is formed by the side wall portion 36 and the urging portion 37 connected to the side wall portion 36, and projects inward so as to contact the side of the valve member 32 opposite to the ink chamber 16, and the side wall portion 36 is cylindrically erected from the valve seat portion 46a to the ink chamber 16 around the circumference of the opening 37 a. The push portion 37 has an opening 37a in the center of the push portion 37.

The pushing portion 46b pushes the valve member 32 in a direction to bring the valve member 32 into contact with the valve seat portion 46a by the elastic force of the side wall portion 36 and the pushing portion 37, and normally connects the valve member 32 with the valve seat portion 46 a. In addition, by inserting the ink suction tube 12 into the guide passage 40 to push the valve member 32 toward the ink chamber 16, the side wall portion 36 is elongated, and the pushing portion 37 is inclined, thereby allowing a gap to be formed so that ink can flow between the valve member 32 and the valve seat portion 46 a.

Figures 3A-3B show details of the valve member 32. The valve element 32 is provided with a bottom portion 57 and a valve side wall portion 56 extending perpendicularly from the outer circumference of the bottom portion 57. A communication passage 58 is continuously formed through the bottom portion 57 and the valve side wall portion 56.

The bottom portion 57 has a projecting piece 39 at a position inside the communication passage 58 and outside the opening 41, the projecting piece 39 projecting toward the valve seat portion 46a and being formed in a ring shape on an end surface facing the valve seat portion 46 a. In a state when the valve element 32 is accommodated in the support 46, the valve side wall portion 56 closely contacts and presses the pushing portion 37 of the pushing portion 46 b. By pressing the protrusion piece 39 downward, the protrusion piece 39 elastically deforms the valve seat portion 46a and closely contacts the upper surface of the valve seat portion 46 a.

The valve system 24 on the air-guiding side is similar to the valve system 23, and is equipped with a support member 46 integrally made of a rubber elastic member and a valve member 65 constructed of a ribbed material.

The support 46 has a valve seat portion 46a, a pushing portion 46b, and a sealing portion 63. The valve seat portion 46a and the urging portion 46b have the same function as the valve system 23.

The opening 41 is formed at a substantially central position of the valve seat portion 46 a. A cylindrical seal portion 63 surrounds the opening 41 and is integrally formed at a lower portion of the valve seat portion 46 a.

As shown in fig. 4A to 4C, the valve member 65 has a cylindrical portion 66 at the top thereof, an operating member 67 at the lower portion thereof, and a valve portion 68 at a substantially central portion thereof. Similar to the valve element 32 shown in fig. 3A to 3E, the valve portion 68 is provided with a bottom portion 57 and a valve side wall portion 56 extending perpendicularly from the outer circumference of the bottom portion 57, and the communication passage 58 is formed continuously through the bottom portion 57 and the valve side wall portion 56. The functions of these portions are the same as those of the valve member 32. And thus their description will be omitted.

The cylindrical portion 66 has a cylindrical shape rising from the bottom portion 57. When the ink cartridge 1 is properly mounted in the mounting portion 3, the cylindrical portion 66 is provided to have a space between the top end of the cylindrical portion 66 and the inner surface of the cylindrical member 25, and communication between the ink chamber 16 and the opening 41 of the valve seat portion 46a is ensured even in the case where the valve element 65 is pushed upward from the valve seat portion 46 a.

The operating member 67 is a projecting portion that extends vertically downward from the bottom portion 57, and is formed with a circular outer shape 67a and a concave surface 67b that extends in the radial and axial directions. The operating member 67 extends downward through the opening 41 of the support member 46 and has a lower end located slightly above the lower end of the sealing portion 63. The recess 67b enables a larger cross-sectional area of the air passage between the opening 41 and the recess 67 b.

Fig. 5A-6B show details of the mounting portion 3. On the air supply side, the recess 3d is located on the base portion 3a of the mounting portion 3 at a position facing the valve system 24. The recess 3d has a side for the sealing portion 63 to engage when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted. On the bottom of the recess 3d, an air supply opening 91 is formed through the wall of the configuration base portion 3a at a position inside the seal portion 63 not facing the lower end of the operation piece 67. The air supply opening 91 may be formed in a slit shape having a width smaller than the outer diameter of the operation member 67 and a length longer than the outer diameter, or may be formed with a plurality of slits that are radially gathered.

A groove-shaped air supply flow passage 92 is formed on the lower surface of the wall of the construction base 3 a. One end of the air supply flow passage 92 is connected to the air supply opening 91 as its cross-sectional area increases, and the other end is connected to an air inlet 93 formed through a wall of the construction base 3a in the up-down direction. A part of the air supply flow path 92 is formed with a plurality of curved surfaces along the lower surface of the wall to suppress the flow of air and prevent the evaporation of components and moisture in the ink when connected to the air guide opening 26 of the ink cartridge 1.

The air inlet 93 is open on the upper surface of the base portion 3a, but has a space away from the bottom surface of the mounted ink cartridge 1, by which air is supplied to the ink cartridge 1 through the air supply flow passage 92 and the air supply opening 91. The upper surface of the air inlet 93 may be covered with a porous elastic body 3c described later to allow ventilation with the outside air.

On the ink suction side, the ink suction tube 12 is integrally formed protrudingly on the upper surface of the wall configuring the base portion 3a, and the ink flow path 94 is formed on the lower surface. The end 94a of the ink flow path 94 is connected to the lower end of the ink flow path 94 formed through the ink suction tube 12 in the up-down direction, while the end 94b opens upward to a portion of the upper surface of the base portion 3a extending outside the guide portion 3b and is connected to the ink supply tube 4 on the upper surface.

A communication opening 81a for opening the ink flow path 94 to the outside is formed on the tip end of the ink suction tube 12. Communication between the ink flow passage 94 and the ink chamber 16 is ensured through the connection opening 81a in such a manner that the tip contacts the valve member 32. A porous elastic body 3c such as a sponge is provided around the ink suction tube 12 on the top surface of the base 3 a. The porous elastic body 3c absorbs ink that may leak from the valve system 23.

The mounting portions 3 are provided for a plurality of ink cartridges at a plurality of positions. Each wall constituting the base portion 3a and the guide portion 3b extends integrally in the direction in which the ink cartridge is arranged. The above-described ink suction tube 12, ink flow channel 94, guide portion 3b, air supply opening 91, and air supply flow channel 92 are provided for each mounting position. As shown in fig. 5B, the end 94a, 94B of each ink flow path 94 connected to each corresponding ink supply tube 4 is positioned laterally at an extension portion of the base portion 3 a.

In addition, the above-described ink flow path 94 and air supply flow path 92 are formed by covering the open lower surfaces of those grooves with a cover member such as a resin film 95. The film 95 is fixed by welding to the lower end faces of the ribs 94c, 92c respectively forming the circumference of the ink flow passage 94 and the air supply flow passage 92. The ink flow channel 94 and the air supply flow channel 92 having the same mounting position are covered together by a single film 95.

Next, the mounting of the ink cartridge 1 at the mounting portion 3 of the inkjet recording apparatus 2 will be described with reference to fig. 2A and 2B. Fig. 2A shows a state in which the ink cartridge 1 is not mounted in the mounting portion 3 of the inkjet recording apparatus 2. In this state, both the valve element 32 on the ink supply side and the valve element 65 on the air introducing side are pressed against the valve seat portion 46a by the elastic force of the urging portion 46b of the support member 46, and thus each valve system 23, 24 is not opened.

As shown in fig. 2B, when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted, on the ink supply side, the valve system 23 is opened by the front end of the ink suction tube 12 that pushes the valve element 32 and the side wall portion 36 of the support member 46 that extends for separating the valve element 32 from the valve seat portion 46 a. Therefore, the ink flow passage extends to the ink suction tube 12 through the ink chamber 16, the ink supply opening 21, the opening 37a of the valve system 23, the communication passage 58, and the space between the valve member 32 and the valve seat portion 46 a. Thereby supplying ink to the recording head 7.

On the other hand, on the air supply side, the front end of the operation member 67 contacts the bottom of the recess 3d, which causes the valve member 65 to be lifted. As the side wall portion 36 of the support 46 is elongated, the valve portion 68 of the valve member 65 is separated from the valve seat portion 46 a. Thereby opening the valve system 24.

Meanwhile, the seal portion 63 is in close contact with the recess 3d, which enables communication between the air guide opening 26 of the ink cartridge 1 and the air supply opening 91 of the mounting portion 3 in a state where the communication is blocked from the outside. An air flow path to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 is thus formed through the air inlet 93, the air supply flow path 92, and the air supply opening 91 of the mounting portion 3, the opening 41, the space between the valve element 65 and the valve seat portion 46a of the valve system 24, the communication passage 58, the air guide opening 26, and the flow path inside the cylindrical member 25.

In this embodiment, the position of the valve system 23 is adjusted due to the engagement of the ink suction tube 12 with the guide channel 40. However, the operation member 67 may contact any portion of the bottom of the recess 3d unless the air supply opening 91 is blocked. Therefore, the ink cartridge 1 can be manufactured with a moderate dimensional tolerance with respect to the respective positional relationships between the ink supply opening 21 and the air introducing opening 26, the valve systems 23 and 24, the suction pipe 12 of the mounting portion 3, and the air supply opening 91. In addition, the operation of the user to mount the ink cartridge 1 in the mounting portion becomes easy.

It will be appreciated that various improvements may be made. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the valve system 24 on the air supply side is provided with the operation member 67 protruding outside the ink cartridge, and the ink suction tube 12 of the mounting portion 3 protrudes on the ink suction side. However, the valve system 23 may be provided with the operation member protruding outside the ink cartridge 1 on the ink-extracting side.

In addition, in this embodiment, a valve system is used to seal the ink supply opening 21 and the air introducing opening 26. However, the opening on the side where the valve system is not used may be sealed with rubber, and a needle-shaped ink suction tube may protrude from the mounting portion.

As shown in fig. 2A, the operating member 67 is positioned such that its lower end is located slightly above the lowermost end of the seal portion 63. The valve member 65 closely contacts the valve seat portion 46 a. Similarly, on the ink supply side, the valve element 32 closely contacts the valve seat portion 46a through the urging portion 46 b. As shown in fig. 2B, on the ink supply side, when the ink cartridge 1 has been mounted, the front end of the ink suction tube 12 pushes the valve member 32 upward, thereby opening the valve system 23.

On the air-guiding side, the front end of the operation member 67 contacts the bottom of the recess 3d, and the valve seat portion 46a of the support member 46 relatively moves downward, thereby opening the valve system 24.

The ink cartridge 1 is packaged in a depressurized state. The ink chamber 16 is also depressurized. When the valve system 24 on the air introducing side and the valve system 23 on the ink supplying side are opened substantially simultaneously, the flow of ink from the ink suction tube 12 to the ink chamber 16 occurs. However, the check valve 60 prevents the backflow of the residual ink in the flow path between the ink suction pipe 12 and the recording head 7. Also, air can flow quickly from the air supply opening 91 to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 through the cylindrical member 25. Therefore, even if ink enters the cylindrical member 25 due to the dropping of the ink cartridge 1 in the package during transportation, the ink is brought back into the ink chamber 16 with the flow of air. The above-described rapid ink flow from the ink suction tube 12 to the ink chamber 16 occurs assuming that the ink cartridge 1 is tilted during the mounting of the ink cartridge 1 to the mounting portion 3 and assuming that the valve element 32 on the ink supply side opens earlier than the valve element 65 on the air introducing side. However, the check valve 60 rises due to the flow so that the film portion 60b closes the ink supply opening 21, thus preventing the flow. Advantageously, by appropriately setting the lengths of the operation member 67 of the ink suction tube 12 and the valve member 65, the valve system 24 on the air introducing side is opened earlier than the valve system 23 on the ink supplying side to prevent rapid ink reverse flow from the ink suction tube 12.

In a normal state, the film portion 60b of the check valve 60 falls down at a position away from the ink supply opening 21 due to its gravity. Ink from the ink chamber 16 is supplied to the recording head 7 through the ink supply opening 21, the communication passage 58 of the valve member 32, and the ink suction tube 12, air is supplied from the air supply opening 91 to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 through the cylindrical member 25 as the ink from the ink chamber 16 flows. At this time, the cylindrical portion 66 of the valve member 65 on the air introducing side is positioned at a space from the inside of the cylindrical member 25 so as to secure the air flow passage.

In addition, during the recording operation, the ink in the ink supply tube 4 moves with the movement of the carriage 8 due to inertia, and the pressure in the tube 4 changes. However, since the check valve 60 opens the ink supply opening 21 in the normal state as described above, it is possible to allow a slight flow of ink between the ink suction pipe 12 and the ink chamber 16 due to a pressure change. Thereby, the pressure variation in the recording head 7 can be reduced, making it possible to stably discharge ink.

It should be understood that various modifications can be made, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the check valve 60 is made in an umbrella shape formed by an umbrella portion and a shaft portion. However, a structure in which one side of the rectangular membrane is fixed and the other side is allowed to open and close may be adopted as the check valve.

Also, the air guide passage of the mounting portion may protrude in a hollow cylindrical shape similar to the ink suction tube 12, and the valve system 24 on the air communication side may have the same structure as the valve system 23 on the ink supply side. Further, the suction tube 12 may have a shape not protruding from the mounting portion, and the valve system 23 on the ink supply side may have the same structure as the valve system 24 on the air communication side.

In addition, instead of the valve systems 23, 24, rubber stoppers may be engaged with the communicating chambers 30, 50, and hollow needle-shaped ink suction tubes and air guide tubes protruding from the mounting portions may be inserted through the rubber stoppers.

The check valve 60 is further explained next with reference to fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the check valve 60. The check valve 60 is integrally formed of an elastic resin material, and has an umbrella-shaped film portion 60b facing the ink supply opening 21 and a shaft portion 60c connected to the film portion 60 b. A protruding portion 60a is formed at the shaft portion 60 c. The shaft portion 60c is slidably inserted into a shaft hole 1n formed adjacent to the ink supply opening 21. Under normal conditions, the projection portion 60a falls vertically by the gravity of the check valve 60 itself into engagement with the top surface of the bottom wall 1e, with the film portion 60b leaving a space with the ink supply opening 21. Therefore, in a normal state, the ink in the ink chamber 16 can flow from the ink supply opening 21 to the communication chamber 30. On the other hand, when the flow from the communication chamber 30 to the ink chamber 16 occurs, the film portion 60b is lifted together with the shaft portion 60c, and the film portion 60b closely covers the ink supply opening 21 and prevents the reverse flow.

Next, the ink cartridge 1 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail.

As shown in fig. 8A to 10, the ink cartridge 1 is equipped with: a main body case 1 a; a valve system 23; a valve system 24; a shielding mechanism 22, the shielding mechanism 22 blocking light emitted from the light emitting portion of the sensor 14 to detect the amount of residual ink; and a cap 1f, the cap 1f covering the lower end portion of the main body case 1 a.

The main body case 1a is formed of a synthetic resin having permeability. As shown in fig. 10, a bottom wall 1e extends horizontally in the main body case 1a, and the bottom wall 1e divides the internal space of the main body case 1a into an ink chamber 16 on the upper side and two communicating chambers 30, 50 on the lower side. Four ink supply openings 70a-70d (see fig. 13) are provided on the bottom surface of the ink chamber 16, and the four ink supply openings 70a-70d are used to supply the ink in the ink chamber 16 to the inkjet recording apparatus 2 through the valve system 23. The internal structure of the ink chamber 16 that guides ink into the four ink supply openings 70a-70d will be described later.

As shown in fig. 10, a protruding portion 34 that protrudes slightly to the outside is formed at a substantially central position of the side wall portion of the main body case 1a in the height direction thereof. A light blocking plate 59 of the later-described shielding mechanism 22 is located in a space inside the protruding portion 34. In addition, in a state when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted in the mounting portion 3, the protruding portion 34 is sandwiched between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the sensor 14 provided at the mounting portion 3. Further, the top portion 1b is welded to the top end portion of the main body case 1 a. Thus, the top 1b seals the ink chamber 16 inside the main body tank.

An injection hole 17 for injecting ink into the ink chamber 16 of the empty ink cartridge 1 is formed between the two communication chambers 30, 50. In the injection hole 17, an elastomer plug 18 is press-fitted. Further, the deep end of the injection hole 17 is connected to the ink chamber 16 in the main body tank 1 a. An injection needle (not shown) is inserted into the injection hole 17 through the stopper 18 to inject ink into the ink chamber 16 through the injection needle.

A cylindrical portion 38 for communicating with the ink chamber 16 and the communication chamber 30 is integrally formed at a portion of the bottom wall 1 e. At the lower end of the cylindrical portion 38, a thin film portion 42 is provided, the thin film portion 42 closing a communication passage formed in the cylindrical portion 38. On the other hand, two cylindrical portions 47 and 48 for communicating with the ink chamber 16 and the communication chamber 50 are integrally formed at a portion of the bottom wall 1 e. A film portion 49 is provided at the lower end of the cylindrical portion 48, and the film portion 49 closes the communication passage formed in the cylindrical portions 47, 48. In addition, a cylindrical member 25 extending to the upper end of the ink chamber 16 is provided on the upper side of the cylindrical portion 47.

As shown in fig. 10 to 11B, the valve system 23 is provided with a support member 46 and the valve element 32 accommodated in the support member 46, and the support member 46 is formed substantially in a cylindrical shape from an elastomer and has elasticity. The support 46 is configured by integrally forming the pressing portion 46b, the valve seat portion 46a, and the connecting portion 33a, which are positioned in order from the upper side (the ink chamber 16 side) of the support 46.

The lower surface of the valve element 32 is made to contact the upper surface (end surface on the ink chamber 16 side) of the valve seat portion 46a, and an opening 41 extending in the up-down direction is formed at a part of the valve seat portion 46a on the central axis side. A guide passage 40 communicating with the opening 41 and extending downward is formed in the connecting portion 33a, and the guide passage 40 is formed in a tapered shape with a widened lower portion diameter. An annular groove 40a is formed around the guide passage 40. So that the wall portion forming the guide passage 40 is easily elastically deformed in the direction in which the diameter of the guide passage 40 increases. Therefore, when the ink suction tube 12 is inserted into the guide passage 40, the tightness of the guide passage 40 and the ink suction tube 12 is increased, and leakage of ink is significantly prevented. In addition, since the wall portion is deformed in the direction in which the diameter of the guide passage 40 increases, even if the ink suction tube 12 is inserted into the guide passage 40 in an inclined state or an offset state, the ink suction tube 12 is accurately inserted into the guide passage 40.

The urging portion 46b has a cylindrical side wall portion 36 rising from the circumferential side of the valve seat portion 46a toward the ink chamber 16 side and an urging portion 37 integrally urged in a radially inward direction from an upper end of the side wall portion 36. The lower surface of the push portion 37 contacts the valve member 32. The valve member 32 is pushed down by the elastic force of the side wall portion 36 and the push portion 37. In addition, an opening 37a is formed inside the pushing part 37, so that the side wall part 36 and the pushing part 37, which are integrally formed, can be easily elastically deformed.

As shown in fig. 11A to 12, the valve element 32 has: a bottom portion 57 contacting the valve seat portion 46 a; a cylindrical valve side wall portion 56 extending from a circumferential side portion of the bottom portion 57; and a piercing portion 52 that projects from a central portion of the bottom portion 57 toward the ink chamber 16 side farther than the valve side wall portion 56.

A projecting piece 39 projecting toward the valve seat portion 46a side is formed on the lower surface of the bottom portion 57. When the urging portion 46b urges the valve element 32 to the valve seat portion 46a side and when the protrusion piece 39 is in close contact with the upper surface of the valve seat portion 46a, the valve element 32 closes the opening 41 of the valve seat portion 46a, thereby closing the ink supply flow passage. Further, at portions of the bottom portion 57 outside the circumference of the protrusion piece 39 and inside the circumference of the valve side wall portion 56, a plurality of communication passages 53 are formed at positions equidistant in the circumferential direction, and these communication passages 53 connect spaces above and below the valve member 32.

As shown in fig. 11A to 12, the piercing portion 52 is constituted by four plate members 52a, 52b, 52c and 52d which are gathered in a cross shape in plan view and are provided upward at a substantially central portion of the bottom portion 57. In addition, grooves 54 extending in the up-down direction are formed between the four plate members 52a to 52d, respectively. Also, the puncturing part 52 protrudes upward through the opening 37a inside the pushing part 46 b. As shown in fig. 10, the front end of the piercing portion 52 is positioned slightly below the film portion 49.

When the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the ink extraction tube 12 is inserted into the guide passage 40. Then, the leading end of the ink suction tube 12 raises the valve member 32 against the urging force of the urging portion 46 b. The valve element 32 moves upward while deforming the pushing portion 46b, so that the protrusion piece 39 of the valve element 32 is separated from the valve seat portion 46 a. At this time, as shown in fig. 10 and 11B, since the front end of the piercing portion 52 of the valve element 32, which has moved upward, pierces the film portion 42, the ink in the ink chamber 16 flows into the communication chamber 30, so that the ink is supplied from the ink suction tube 12 to the ink jet recording head 7 side through the communication passage 53 of the valve element 32.

The valve system 24 is equipped with a support member 46 and a valve element 32 accommodated in the support member 46, and has the same structure as the valve system 23. In other words, the urging portion 46b, which is closely connected to the valve seat portion 46a of the support 46, urges the valve element 32 downward so as to close the opening 41. In addition, when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the air guide pipe 13 is inserted into the guide passage 40 formed at the support member 46, and the valve member 32 is moved upward, similarly to the valve system 23, so that the film portion 49 of the cylindrical portion 48 is pierced by the piercing portion 52. Then, the outside air flows from the air guide pipe 13 into the communication chamber 50 through the communication passage 53 of the valve element 32, thereby introducing the air into the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 through the guide passage 40, the opening 41 and the inner passage of the cylindrical member 25.

As shown in fig. 10, the shielding mechanism 22 is provided in a space at the lower portion of the ink chamber 16. The shielding mechanism 22 is provided with: a light-blocking panel 59, the light-blocking panel 59 not transmitting light; a hollow float 61; a link 62, the link 62 connecting the light-blocking panel 59 and the float 61; and a support stand 64 provided on the upper side of the bottom wall 1e, the support stand 64 pivotally supporting the link 62. The light blocking plate 59 and the float 61 are respectively provided at the ends of the connecting piece 62. The link 62 is arranged in such a way as to pivot in a vertical plane perpendicular to the bottom wall 1e about the pivot point of the support table 64.

The light blocking plate 59 is a thin plate member parallel to the vertical plane and having a predetermined area. When the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the sensor 14 provided at the mounting portion 3 are located at the same height as the projecting portion 34 formed on the side wall portion of the main body case 1 a. When the light-blocking plate 59 is located in the space inside the protruding portion 34, the light-blocking plate 59 is made to block the light from the light-emitting portion of the sensor 14 from transmitting through the wall portion of the main body tank 1a and the ink inside the ink chamber 16. The float 61 is a cylindrical member filled with air inside. So that the specific gravity of the entire float is smaller than that of the ink in the ink chamber 16.

Therefore, when the amount of residual ink in the ink chamber 16 is large and when the entire float 61 provided at one end of the link 62 is positioned in the ink, the float 61 floats up due to buoyancy, so that the light blocking plate 59 provided at the other end blocks the light from the light emitting portion (the position shown by the solid line in fig. 10). However, when the amount of residual ink in the ink chamber 16 becomes low and a part of the float 61 is exposed from the surface of the ink, the buoyancy applied to the float 61 is reduced, so that the float 61 is lowered. Then, the light-blocking plate 59 is moved over the protruding portion 34, and moved to a position (position shown by the chain line in fig. 10) where the light-blocking plate 59 does not block the light from the light-emitting portion. Therefore, the light from the light emitting portion is transmitted through the protruding portion 34 along the straight light path, and is received by the light receiving portion. As a result, the sensor 14 detects a state where the amount of ink remaining in the ink chamber 16 is low.

As shown in fig. 8A to 10, the cap member 1f is fixed to the main body case 1a by ultrasonic adhesion or the like with a substance covering the lower end of the main body case 1 a. Two sealing portions 63 protruding downward are formed at positions on the bottom of the cap 1f corresponding to the valve system 23 and the valve system 24, respectively. These seal portions 63 are such that: when the ink cartridge 1 is placed on a desk, ink around the inlet of the ink suction tube 12 or the air guide tube 13 hardly adheres to the surface of the desk.

The internal structure of the ink chamber 16 for guiding the ink in the ink chamber 16 to the ink supply openings 70a-70d is described next.

As shown in fig. 13, a deep portion 72a slightly lower than the periphery is formed on the upper surface of the bottom wall 1e forming the bottom surface of the ink chamber 16. In addition, the plate member 71 is provided at a substantially central position of the deep portion 72a in plan view. Four ink supply openings 70a to 70d for supplying the ink in the ink chamber 16 to the ink jet recording apparatus 2 through the valve system 23 are formed in the plate 71. Of these four ink supply openings 70a to 70d, the ink supply opening 70a is circular in plan view and is located substantially at the central portion of the plate member 71, and three ink supply openings 70b, 70c, and 70d having an oblong shape in plan view are arranged side by side in the circumferential direction around the circular ink supply opening 70 a. The ink chamber 16 and the communication chamber 30 communicate through these four ink supply openings 70a-70d to allow the ink discharged from the ink supply openings 70a-70d to be supplied to the inkjet recording apparatus 2 through the valve system 23.

Since the four ink supply openings 70a to 70d are formed on the plate 71 provided at the deep portion 72a, the four ink supply openings 70a to 70d are located at positions slightly higher than the deep portion 72 a. Therefore, even if dust or the like generated when the main body case 1a is formed remains in the ink chamber 16, such dust or the like remains in the deep portion 72a and hardly flows out from the ink supply openings 70a to 70d positioned higher than the deep portion 72 a. Filters for filtering ink discharged from the ink supply openings 70a-70d are omitted.

Three projecting portions 75 (ink guide portions) are formed on the bottom surface of the ink chamber 16, respectively, the three projecting portions 75 projecting from the bottom surface 72 and extending from the three side surfaces 73, 74 of the ink chamber 16 to the vicinities of the ink supply openings 70a to 70 d. These projections 75 are arranged so that they point from three directions around the ink supply openings 70a-70d toward the ink supply openings 70a-70 d. Therefore, even if the amount of ink remaining in the ink chamber 16 becomes low, the ink near the side surfaces 73, 74 of the ink chamber 16 is guided to the ink supply openings 70a-70d by the three projecting portions 75. Also, the ends of the projecting portions 75 opposite the ink supply openings 70a-70d are connected to the side surfaces 73, 74. Therefore, when there is almost no ink in the ink chamber 16, the ink can be accurately guided to the ink supply openings 70a to 70d even from the edge 77 between the bottom surface 72 and the side surfaces 73, 74, where ink easily remains.

Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the cross-section VI in fig. 13. Fig. 15 is a cross-sectional view of cross-section VII in fig. 13. Fig. 16 is a cross-sectional view of cross-section VIII of fig. 13. Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional view of the cross-section IX of fig. 13. As shown in fig. 14-16, the radius of curvature R1, R2 of the edge 76 between each projection 75 and the bottom surface 72 is smaller than the radius of curvature R1 of the edge 77 between the side surfaces 73, 74 and the bottom surface 72. In other words, the greater curvature at edge 76 in the vicinity of ink supply openings 70a-70d causes the edge to have a sharp shape. In addition, as shown in fig. 14 and 16, at the edge 76 between the projecting portion 75 and the bottom surface 72, the radius of curvature r2 at a position 76b (position of cross section VIII) near the ink supply openings 70a-70d is smaller than the radius of curvature r1 at a position 76a (position of cross section VI) away from the ink supply openings 70a-70 d. In other words, the curvature of the edge 76 between the protruding portion 75 and the bottom surface 72 becomes greater as it approaches the ink supply openings 70a-70d, which causes the edge to have a sharp shape. Therefore, the capillary force applied to the ink by the edges near ink supply openings 70a-70d becomes greater than the capillary force applied by the edges at positions away from ink supply openings 70a-70 d. Therefore, as the amount of ink remaining in ink chamber 16 becomes lower, the ink on bottom surface 72 is accurately directed to ink supply openings 70a-70 d. Thereby preventing ink from being drawn to a position away from ink-supply openings 70a-70d so that ink separates at that position and remains there.

Further, as shown in fig. 15 and 17, the edge 77 extending horizontally between the side surfaces 73, 74 and the bottom surface 72 is made smaller in radius of curvature R1 than the radius of curvature R2 of the edge 78 extending upward and downward between the two side surfaces 73, 74. Thus, the curvature of edge 77 near ink supply openings 70a-70d is greater than the curvature of edge 78 away from ink supply openings 70a-70 d. In addition, the upwardly and downwardly extending edge 78, the horizontally extending edge 77, and the edge 76 between the bottom surface 72 and each of the projecting portions 75 are connected, and the radii of curvature of these three edges 76-78 become smaller (the curvature becomes larger) as they approach the ink supply openings 70a-70d (R1 < R1 < R2). Thus, as the ink surface within ink chamber 16 decreases as ink is consumed, edges 76-78 of varying curvature accurately direct ink toward ink supply openings 70a-70d from a position higher than ink supply openings 70a-70 d.

So that the edge between the two surfaces forming the ink chamber 16, the edge 77 between the side surfaces 73, 74 and the bottom surface 72, and the edge 78 between the two side surfaces 73, 74 have no change in curvature within one edge 77, 78. In this way, these curvatures are changed for each combination of two surfaces. By changing the curvature of the edge between the two surfaces for each combination of the two surfaces, a structure in which the curvature of the edge becomes larger as it approaches the ink supply openings 70a to 70d can be easily realized. In addition, as shown in fig. 15 and 17, tangential planes 77A, 77B and tangential planes 78A, 78B of the two surfaces at the connecting portions at the edges 77, 78 between the two surfaces are made parallel to the two surfaces, respectively. Therefore, the edges 77, 78 having a predetermined curvature can be easily formed between the two surfaces.

According to the ink cartridge explained above, the curvature of the edges 76-78, which are portions forming the ink chambers 16, is made larger as approaching the ink supply openings 70a-70 d. Thus, these edges have a gentle to sharp curvature as they approach ink supply openings 70a-70d, so that the capillary force applied to the ink increases at the edges near ink supply openings 70a-70 d. Thereby preventing ink from being drawn to the ink supply openings 70a-70d to be separated at the ink supply openings 70a-70 d.

Next, various changes incorporated into the above-described embodiments will be explained. However, for elements having the same structure as those in the above-described embodiment, the same reference numerals are used, and thus their description is omitted.

1) The shape of the projecting portion of the ink guide portion is not limited to the shape in the above-described embodiment, but may be appropriately changed. For example, as shown in fig. 18, a projecting portion 85 extending from the side surfaces 83, 84 of the ink chamber 81 toward the ink supply opening 80 may extend to the ink supply opening 80. In this case, the ink on the bottom surface 82 of the ink chamber 81 is accurately guided to the ink supply opening 80 by the projecting portion 85. In addition, the number of projecting portions and the shape of the ink chamber may also be changed as appropriate.

2) The ink guide portion that guides the ink to the ink supply opening is not limited to the protruding portion in the above-described embodiment. For example, as shown in fig. 19, the ink guide portion may be constituted by a groove 89 formed on a bottom surface 88 of the ink chamber 87. Here, fig. 20A is a sectional view of a cross section X in fig. 19, and fig. 20B is a sectional view of a cross section XI in fig. 19. The edge 90 between the bottom surface 89a and the side surface 89b of the groove 89 is made such that: the curvature at a position 90B (fig. 20B) near the ink supply opening 86 is made larger than the curvature at a position 90A (fig. 20A) away from the ink supply opening 86, so that the edge 90 is made into a sharp shape. Therefore, the ink on the bottom surface 88 is more accurately guided to the ink supply opening 86 through the groove 89.

3) In addition to the edge between the surfaces forming the ink chamber and the edge between the ink guide portions, the edge forming the internal shape of the ink chamber, such as the projecting portion and the bottom surface, may be configured so that the curvature becomes larger toward the ink supply opening. For example, the edges may be formed by providing other projections or slots to increase the curvature of the edges closer to the ink supply opening.

Next, the structure of the ink cartridge 1 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail. Fig. 21 is a sectional view of the ink cartridge 1, and fig. 22 is a bottom view of the main body case 1 a.

The ink cartridge 1 has an ink chamber 16 therein, and the ink chamber 16 forms a space for storing ink. The ink cartridge 1 is constituted by a main body case 1a having a bottom wall 1e and side walls 1c forming an ink chamber 16, a top 1b covering an open top surface of the main body case 1a, and a cap 1f covering the bottom wall 1e of the main body case 1 a. Two exposing holes 1fa, 1fb are formed at the cap 1f, and the two exposing holes 1fa, 1fb expose valve systems 23, 24 described later to the mounting portion 3. The ink cartridge 1 is formed by adhering the top 1b and the cap member 1f to the main body case 1 a. The top 1b, the main body case 1a, and the cap 1f are made of a resin material.

A plate-shaped cap projecting portion 1d projecting to the side of the main body case 1a is formed on one end (right side in fig. 21) of the cap 1f, and an insertion portion 1g into which the cap projecting portion 1d is inserted is formed on the main body case 1 a. Therefore, since this structure provides positioning for the mounting of the main body case 1a and the cap 1f, erroneous mounting can be prevented, and the generation of defective products can be reduced.

A plurality of ink supply openings 21 are formed in the bottom wall 1 e. The plurality of ink supply openings 21 directly communicate with a communication chamber 30 for supplying ink in the ink chamber 16. The communication chamber 30 is integrally formed inside the cylindrical wall 30a, and is formed to protrude from the lower surface of the bottom wall 1e (the side of the ink chamber 16). In addition, an air guide opening 26 is formed in the bottom wall 1 e. The air guide opening 26 directly communicates with the communication chamber 50 to guide air into the ink chamber 16. The communication chamber 50 is integrally formed inside the cylindrical wall 50a, and is formed to protrude from the lower surface of the bottom wall 1e (the side of the ink chamber 16). When the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the ink suction pipe 12 and the air guide pipe 13 are inserted into the communication chamber 30 and the communication chamber 50, respectively.

A valve system 23 is provided in the communication chamber 30 to block communication between the inside and the outside of the ink cartridge 1. A valve system 24 is provided in the communication chamber 50 to block communication between the inside and the outside of the ink cartridge 1. Details of the valve systems 23, 24 will be described later.

The plurality of ink supply openings 21 allow communication between the communication chamber 30 and the ink chamber 16. The plurality of ink supply openings 21 are formed by three rectangular circles, each rectangular circle being arranged to substantially form a triangle (see fig. 22). And a shaft hole 1n is formed at the center position of the ink supply opening 21. A check valve 60 formed in a substantially umbrella shape is inserted through the shaft hole 1 n. The check valve 60 is made of an elastic resin material having elasticity.

As shown in fig. 21, the check valve 60 faces the lower surface of the ink supply opening 21, and is constituted by an elastic umbrella-shaped film portion 60b and a shaft portion 60c extending from substantially the center position of the film portion 60b to the ink chamber 16 through the shaft hole 1 n. The shaft portion 60c has a substantially spherical projecting portion 60a having a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the shaft hole 1n, and the shaft portion 60c is supported by the shaft hole 1n in a manner slidable in the up-down direction between the film portion 60b and the projecting portion 60 a.

On the bottom wall 1e, a hollow cylindrical member 25 in a hollow cylindrical shape is formed integrally with the bottom wall 1e, and extends from the bottom wall 1e in a direction toward the open top surface of the main body case 1a (hereinafter referred to as "first direction"). An upper end opening 25a of the hollow cylindrical member 25 opens above the ink surface in the ink chamber 16. The hollow cylindrical member 25 is formed in a tapered shape in which both the outer shape and the inner diameter of the internal flow passage 25b are gradually narrowed toward the upper side (the direction away from the stopper 100 described later). A connecting portion 25c of the hollow cylindrical portion 25 connected to the bottom wall 1e is formed in a shape expanding from the hollow cylindrical member 25 toward the bottom wall 1 e. In addition, the cylindrical wall 50a of the communication chamber 50 is formed in a cylindrical shape integrally with the hollow cylindrical member 25 from the lower end of the connecting portion 25c across the bottom wall 1 e. Thereby smoothly connecting the communication chamber 50 and the internal flow passage 25b of the hollow cylindrical member 25 through the air introduction opening 26 and the tapered inner surface of the connecting portion 25 c. In other words, one end of the hollow cylindrical member 25 communicates with the air guide opening 26, and the other end communicates with the ink chamber 16. Thus, the inner flow passage 25b forms a flow passage for guiding air.

The opening 25a is inclined with respect to the first direction and inclined in a direction from the central axis of the ink cartridge 1 toward the side wall 1c and toward the bottom wall 1e side. Therefore, the opening 25a has an oval substantially planar surface and has an area larger than the cross-sectional area of the internal flow passage 25b perpendicular to the first direction.

The valve systems 23, 24 provided at the communication chambers 30, 50 are explained below.

The valve system 23 is equipped with a support member 46 integrally made of a rubber elastic member and a valve member 32 made of a resin material, and is configured to be able to contact and separate from a valve seat portion 46 a. The support 46 has a substantially cylindrical outer shape, and constitutes the support 46 by integrally forming a valve seat portion 46a at a substantially middle portion in the central axis direction thereof, an urging portion 46b on the side closer to the ink chamber 16 than the valve seat portion 46a, a cylindrical portion 45 extending from the valve seat portion 46a to the side opposite to the urging portion 46b, and a circumferential portion 45a extending in parallel with the circumference of the cylindrical portion 45 at an interval. The pushing portion 46b pushes the valve member 32 in a direction in which the valve member 32 contacts the valve seat portion 46a, so that the valve member 32 is accommodated in the pushing portion 46 b.

The circumferential portion 45a has a radially protruding connecting portion 33 a. The communication chamber 30 has a stepped surface 44 in which a diameter is increased to the outside to accommodate the connection portion 33 a. Further, a projection 43 formed to protrude in a ring shape is formed on a surface of the connection portion 33a contacting the stepped surface 44. The main body tank 1a and the cap 1f are adhered in a state where the connecting portion 33a is pressed and tightly held between the stepped surface 44 and the cap 1f, thereby preventing ink from leaking between the main body tank 1a and the valve system 23.

The valve seat portion 46a has an opening 41 formed through the central axis direction at the center thereof. The cylindrical portion 45 has a guide passage 40, the ink suction tube 12 is inserted into the guide passage 40 when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, and the guide passage 40 is integrally connected to the valve seat portion 46a in such a manner that the guide passage 40 communicates with the opening 41. The inner diameter of the guide channel 40 is formed to be smaller than the outer diameter of the suction tube 12 so as to tightly connect the circumferential wall 45 with the inserted suction tube 12. The opening 41 is formed larger than the inner diameter of the guide passage 40 and the outer diameter of the ink suction tube 12. The opening 41 is formed larger than the inner diameter of the guide passage 40 and the outer diameter of the ink suction tube 12. The end of the guide passage 40 into which the ink suction tube 12 is inserted is formed in a tapered shape that expands outward.

The annular groove 69 separates the cylindrical portion 45 from the circumferential portion 45a, and enables the cylindrical portion 45 to be deformed relative to the circumferential portion 45a on a plane in which the circumferential portion 45a is perpendicular to the direction of the central axis of the guide passage 40. Therefore, the diameter of the cylindrical portion 45 becomes easily enlarged as the ink suction tube 12 is inserted into the guide passage 40, and the tightness of the guide passage 40 and the ink suction tube 12 is increased, thereby preventing ink leakage. Also, even if the ink suction tube 12 is inclined or offset with respect to the guide passage 40, the ink suction tube 12 can be inserted into the guide passage 40 by the deformation of the cylindrical portion 45.

The urging portion 46b is formed by the side wall portion 36, the urging portion 37, and the opening 37a at the center of the urging portion 37, the side wall portion 36 is erected upward from the circumference of the valve seat portion 46a on the ink chamber 16 side, and the urging portion 37 is connected to the side wall portion and the urging portion so as to contact the valve member 32 on the ink chamber 16 side. The urging portion 46b urges the valve element 32 by the elastic forces of the side wall portion 36 and the urging portion 37 in the direction of contact with the valve element 32 against the valve seat portion 46 a. In a normal state, the valve element 32 is connected to the valve seat portion 46 a. And the valve member 32 is pushed upward due to the insertion of the ink suction tube 12 into the guide passage 40. Accordingly, the side wall portion 36 is elongated and inclines the urging portion 37 to form a space for the flowing ink between the valve element 32 and the valve seat portion 46 a.

The valve member 32 is provided with a bottom portion 57 and a valve side wall portion 51 extending cylindrically, the bottom portion 57 being in contact with the valve seat portion 46a of the support member 46, the valve side wall portion 51 being closer to the ink chamber 16 than the circumference of the bottom portion 57. The bottom portion 57 has a projecting piece 39 annularly projecting to the valve seat portion 46a side at a more inner side than a communication passage 58 described later and a more outer side than the opening 41. In a state where the valve element 32 is accommodated in the support member 46, the lower surface of the pushing portion 37 of the pushing portion 46b presses the valve side wall portion 51, and the valve seat portion 46a is elastically deformed by the pressure, so that the protrusion member 39 is closely attached to the upper surface of the valve seat portion 46 a. Therefore, the ink leakage through the opening 41 and the guide passage 40 is prevented from occurring while the valve element 32 is accommodated in the support member 46.

A plurality of communication passages 58 are formed at intervals in the circumferential direction from a position outside the projecting member 39 of the bottom portion 57 to the valve side wall portion 51, and these communication passages 58 allow communication between the ink chamber 16 side and the valve seat portion 46a side of the valve member 32.

The valve system 24 has a structure similar to that of the valve system 23. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for the same components, and thus their description is omitted. In the valve system 24, the valve member 79 is provided with a bottom portion 96, a valve side wall portion 97, a valve member protrusion 98, and a communication passage 99, which are in the same shape as those of the valve member 32. In addition, a stopper 100 is further provided at a substantially central portion of the upper surface of the bottom portion 96, the stopper 100 projecting more toward the ink chamber 16 side than the valve side wall portion 97. The blocking member 100 has an outer diameter smaller than an inner diameter of the opening 37a of the pressing portion 37 and passes through the opening 37a with a space from the opening 37 a. Also, with the stopper 100, the outer diameter D1 at the upper end 100a opposite to the bottom 96 of the valve member 79 is formed slightly smaller than the inner diameter D2 on the lower end side of the internal flow passage 25b of the hollow cylindrical portion 25, and larger than the inner diameter D3 at the upper side of the internal flow passage 25b (see fig. 23A). The inner flow passage 25b is formed to be slightly tapered from an inner diameter D2 at a lower end to an inner diameter D3 at an upper portion. Thus, when the upper end 100a of the barrier 100 is engaged, the upper end 100a frictionally engages the interior side of the internal flow passage 25b and is in an "engaged" state. This state is released by the elastic force of the pressing valve member 79 of the pressing portion 46 b. The upper end 100a of the barrier 100 substantially tightly closes the internal flow passage 25b and blocks the flow of air. The upper end 100a of the barrier 100 is formed in a tapered shape in which the outer diameter decreases in the direction of the inner flow passage 25 b.

When the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the ink suction pipe 12 and the air guide pipe 13 are inserted into the corresponding guide passages 40 while enlarging the diameter of the cylindrical portion 45, and contact the corresponding valve members 32, 79 at the bottoms 57, 96. Thereafter, when the ink cartridge 1 is further pushed, each of the valve elements 32, 79 is pressed in the direction toward the ink chamber 16 and is separated from the valve seat portion 46 a. Thereby forming a guide passage for guiding air to the inside of the ink cartridge and a supply passage for supplying ink to the outside of the ink cartridge 1. Since the ink cartridge 1 is in a depressurized state at the time of packaging, a flow from the suction tube 12 and the guide tube 13 to the ink chamber 16 is simultaneously generated. However, the check valve 60 prevents the reverse flow of the residual ink in the flow path between the ink suction pipe 12 and the recording head 7, and thus the air rapidly flows from the air guide pipe 13 to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16 through the hollow cylindrical member 25. Thus, even if ink enters the hollow cylindrical member 25 of the communicating chamber 50 due to the ink cartridge 1 falling during transportation, the ink returns into the ink chamber 16. At this time, since the communication chamber 50 is smoothly connected with the internal flow passage 25b of the hollow cylindrical member 25 through the tapered inner surface of the connecting portion 25c, the ink flows quickly.

If the valve element 32 on the ink supply side is opened earlier than the valve element 79 on the air introducing side when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, rapid ink reverse flow from the ink suction pipe 12 to the ink chamber 16 occurs. However, the check valve 60 closes the ink supply opening 21 due to the flow, thus preventing the flow. Preferably, by appropriately setting the lengths of the ink suction tube 12 and the air guide tube 13, the valve system 24 on the air guide side can be opened accurately earlier than the valve system 23 on the ink supply side, thereby preventing rapid ink backflow from the ink suction tube 12.

In a normal situation, the film portion 60b of the check valve 60 falls to a position away from the ink supply opening 21 due to its gravity. As ink flows from the ink chamber 16, air is supplied from the air guide pipe 13 to the upper portion of the ink chamber 16.

The operation of the valve system 24 is explained below with reference to fig. 23A and 23B. Fig. 23A shows a state where the ink cartridge 1 is properly mounted on the mounting portion 3. The air guide pipe 13 pushes the valve member 79 upward, thereby forming a guide passage for guiding air as described above. At this time, the distance (amount of movement) by which the valve member 79 is separated from the valve seat portion 46a is substantially constant. In addition, the valve member 79 is positioned such that a predetermined space exists between the front end 100a of the stopper 100 and the internal flow passage 25b, so as to ensure a passage for air.

In the case shown in fig. 23B, the valve member 79 is accidentally pushed by the stick member a and moved by a distance larger than the distance that the valve member 79 moves when the ink cartridge 1 is properly mounted (the state shown in fig. 23A). In this state, the front end 100a of the stopper 100 of the valve member 79 enters the internal flow passage 25b and closes the flow passage of the internal flow passage 25b, so that the stopper 100 is held in the internal flow passage 25b in the above-described frictionally coupled state.

As explained above, in the above ink cartridge 1, when the valve member 79 is accidentally moved by a distance larger than the distance moved when the ink cartridge 1 is properly mounted, the stopper 100 closes the internal flow passage 25 b. Therefore, even if the communication chamber 50 is opened, air pressure does not act on the ink, thereby suppressing the possibility of ink leakage from the communication chamber 50 to a minimum.

In addition, if the valve member 79 is pushed farther than the predetermined distance as described above, the amount of extension of the pressing portion 46B of the support member 46 is larger than when the ink cartridge 1 is properly mounted (see fig. 23B). Therefore, the pushing portion 46b may be damaged, or the valve member 79 may be ejected from the inside of the pushing portion 46 b. However, since the internal flow passage 25b limits the amount of movement of the stopper 100, damage to the pushing portion 46b or ejection of the valve member 79 from the inside of the pushing portion 46b can be accurately prevented.

Also, the inner flow passage 25b is formed in a tapered shape in which its inner diameter becomes narrower toward the upper side of the ink cartridge. The front end 100a of the barrier 100 is also formed in a tapered shape in which the outer radial inner flow passage 25b thereof is narrowed. Therefore, even if the inclination occurs in the direction in which the valve member 79 is pushed, the stopper 100 is accurately inserted into the internal flow passage 25 b.

Next, the structure of the ink cartridge 1 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail. Fig. 24 is a sectional view of the ink cartridge 1. For the same components as those in the foregoing embodiments, the same reference numerals are used, and thus their explanations are omitted.

Unlike the embodiment of fig. 21, the support 46 is not provided with an annular groove between the cylindrical portion 45 and the circumferential portion 45 a. However, each of the other components has similar functions to those of the embodiment of fig. 21 in which the valve member 32 and the ink extraction tube 12 are incorporated. And thus their detailed explanation is omitted.

In this embodiment, the seal portion 101 is formed annularly around the opening 40 at a position closer to the mounting portion 3 side than the circumferential wall 45a side. The valve member 79 is further provided with a substantially shaft-shaped operating member 102 extending to the mounting portion 3 side through the opening 40 formed in the bottom portion 96.

The mounting portion 3 is similar to the embodiment of fig. 2A in that it is constituted by a base portion 3a and guide portions 3b upstanding from both sides of the base portion 3a, and is provided with an ink suction tube 12 projecting therefrom. A concave portion 103 is formed at a part of the base portion 3a connected to the ink suction tube 12. A porous member 104 capable of absorbing ink and having flexibility is provided inside the concave portion 103. So that the size of the porous member 104 is larger than the size of the exposure hole 1fa of the cap member 1 f. In addition, instead of the air guide pipe 13, an air guide passage 105 communicating with the atmosphere is formed. In the circumferential portion thereof, the concave portion 106 is made larger in size than the exposure hole 1fb of the cap 1 f.

Similar to the embodiment of fig. 2A, when the ink cartridge 1 is mounted on the mounting portion 3, the ink suction tube 12 enters the guide passage 40 while expanding the cylindrical portion 45, and pushes the valve member 32 of the valve system 23 upward toward the ink chamber 16 to form an ink supply passage. When the mounting of the ink cartridge 1 on the mounting portion 3 is completed, the protruding portion surrounding the exposure hole 1fa contacts the porous member 104. Therefore, even if ink leaks from the valve system 23 or ink adhering inside the ink suction tube 12 drips when, for example, the ink cartridge 1 is repeatedly attached and detached, the ink can be absorbed by the porous member 104. Therefore, the possibility of contamination with ink can be kept to a minimum.

In addition, on the air introducing side, the seal portion 101 closely contacts the concave portion 106 of the base portion 3a by contact and elastic deformation. Thereby sealing the inside of the sealing portion 101 from the outside. At this time, the operation member 102 contacts the bottom of the concave portion 106 at a position offset from the air guide passage 105. As the mounting of the ink cartridge 1 proceeds further, the valve member 79 is pushed toward the ink chamber 16 to form an air guide passage similar to the embodiment of fig. 2A.

In the ink cartridge 1 according to this embodiment, the structure of the blocking member 100 is the same shape as that of the ink cartridge 1 in the embodiment of fig. 21, and effects similar to those in the first embodiment can be provided.

It will be appreciated that various improvements may be made. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the blocking member 100 and the valve member 79 are respectively integrally formed. However, the valve member and the blocking member may be separate bodies, or may have a structure connecting them or connecting their operations.

In addition, a hollow cylindrical member 25 rises from the bottom wall 1e in the first direction, and is formed integrally with the bottom wall 1 e. An upper end opening 25a of the hollow cylindrical member 25 opens above the ink surface in the ink chamber 16, and an opposite end of the internal flow passage 25b is connected to the communication chamber 50.

A contact portion 25c between the hollow cylindrical member 25 and the bottom wall 1e is formed in a shape expanding from the hollow cylindrical member 25 toward the bottom wall 1 e. The contact portion between the hollow cylindrical member 25 and the communication chamber 50 is smoothly formed without any stepped surface.

The upper end opening 25a is inclined with respect to the first direction and inclined in a direction from the central axis of the ink cartridge 1 toward the side wall 1c and toward the bottom wall 1 e. Therefore, since the upper-end opening 25a has a substantially elliptical planar surface, the area of the upper-end opening 25a is larger than the cross-sectional area of the internal flow passage 25b in the direction perpendicular to the first direction.

On the circumferential wall 27 of the hollow cylindrical member 25, the topmost end face 25d is a substantially planar surface, which is substantially parallel to the bottom wall 1 e. The end surface of the circumferential wall 27 other than the topmost end surface 25d is formed as a slope along the circumference of the upper end opening 25 a.

The diameter of the upper end opening 25a in the direction of the slope as a major axis is about 1mm, and preferably 2mm or more. This is because: since the surface tension of the ink used in this embodiment is 30mN/m to 45mN/m at 25 ℃, even if the ink adheres to the upper end opening 25a, a meniscus is hardly generated, and even if it is generated, it is easily broken with the introduction of air.

The inner diameter of the inner flow passage 25b is preferably about 0.8mm or more. This is because: if the inner diameter of the inner flow passage 25b is less than 0.8mm, the ink may form a meniscus in a direction to close the inner flow passage 25 b. If the inner diameter of the inner flow passage 25b is about 0.8mm or more, a meniscus is hardly formed and, if formed, is easily broken with the introduction of air. Also, even if the ink adheres along the inner surface of the internal flow passage 25b, a flow passage having a sufficient cross-sectional area for the introduction of air is ensured without significantly increasing the resistance.

Since the above-described hollow cylindrical member 25 is formed integrally with the main body case 1a whose top surface is open, the main body case 1a can be easily produced by tool molding, thereby reducing the production cost. In addition, an assembly process can be omitted, thereby improving operation efficiency. Also, it is possible to prevent an adverse effect that air is incorrectly introduced due to the flow of ink from the connecting portion 25c in the internal flow passage 25 b.

When the ink cartridge 1 is tilted or dropped, the ink may adhere to the open end of the hollow cylindrical member 25, or the ink may enter the inside thereof, before the ink cartridge 1 is mounted to the inkjet recording apparatus 2 by a user after production. Since the air rapidly flows into the ink cartridge 1 in the depressurized state as described above, most of the ink in the hollow cylindrical member 25 returns to the ink chamber 16. However, if the ink remains in the hollow cylindrical member 25 at this time, or if the user removes the ink cartridge 1 from the mounting portion 3 and tilts or drops the ink cartridge 1 thereafter, the internal flow passage of the hollow cylindrical member 25 may be blocked. Therefore, the possibility that the ink forms a meniscus in the upper end opening 25a can be reduced. Moreover, even if a meniscus is formed, the meniscus can be easily broken with the introduction of air. In addition, the inner diameter of the inner flow channel 25b has a size in which a meniscus is not formed in a direction blocking the inner flow channel 25 b. Therefore, the introduction of air is correctly performed without causing fluctuation, and the ink supply to the recording head 7 can be smoothly achieved, thereby allowing the discharge of ink to be maintained uniform.

A next modified example of the upper end opening 25A of the hollow cylindrical member 25 is explained with reference to fig. 25A to 26B.

As shown in fig. 25A and 25B, the upper end portion of the hollow cylindrical member 25 may be formed in a stepped shape. The upper end opening 25a may be formed of semicircular flat surfaces 25aa, 25ac and a rectangular flat surface 25ab, and has a non-circular circumference, the semicircular flat surfaces 25aa, 25ac being substantially parallel to the bottom wall and at different heights, and the rectangular flat surface 25ab being substantially perpendicular to the bottom wall 1 e.

As shown in fig. 26A and 26B, the upper end opening 25a of the air guide 25 may be formed with a slope with respect to the first direction, and the protruding portion 244a may protrude from one side of the front end opening 25a in the first direction. Therefore, the front end opening 25a is formed in a substantially elliptical shape, and a circumference is constituted by a flat surface 245a as the upper end of the protruding portion 244a, a flat surface 245b including most of the front end opening 25a, and a vertical flat surface 241a connecting the flat surfaces 245a, 245 b.

In the modified example described above, the inner diameter of the internal flow passage 25b of the air guide 25 is made 0.8mm or more. The air guide 25 is formed such that: not only does the area of the opening 25a be larger than the cross-sectional area of the internal flow passage in the direction perpendicular to the first direction, but also the surfaces forming the circumference of the opening are formed by three mutually different planes. Therefore, the possibility of the ink in the upper end opening 25a forming a meniscus can be reduced, so that effects similar to those in the above-described embodiment can be provided.

It is to be understood that various embodiments are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the opening of the hollow cylindrical member 25 may be formed by two planes diagonally intersecting at different angles with respect to the first direction, or may be formed in a non-circular shape such as a partially cut-off circle.

In addition, a hollow cylindrical member 25 is formed on the bottom wall 1e, and this hollow cylindrical member 25 is formed integrally with the bottom wall 1e and rises in the first direction from the bottom wall 1e toward the open top surface of the main body case 1 a. The front end opening 25a of the air guide opens above the ink surface in the ink chamber 16. The outer shape of the hollow cylindrical member 25 and the internal flow passage 25b are formed in a tapered shape gradually narrowing in diameter toward the upper side. The connecting portion of the hollow cylindrical member 25 with the bottom wall 1e is formed in a shape expanding from the top of the hollow cylindrical member 25 toward the bottom wall 1 e. Further, the cylindrical wall 50a of the communication chamber 50 is formed in a cylindrical shape integrally with the hollow cylindrical member 25 in order from the lower end of the connecting portion 25c and across the bottom wall 1 e. So that the internal flow passage 25b communicating the chamber 50 and the hollow cylindrical member 25 is smoothly and continuously formed by the tapered inner surface of the connecting portion 25 c. In addition, by the connecting portion 25c, the strength of the connecting point of the hollow cylindrical member 25 with the bottom wall 1e is increased, so that the hollow cylindrical member 25 can be prevented from being deformed at the time of molding or due to the influence of environmental changes.

As described above, the main body case 1a of the above ink cartridge 1 has a shape in which the top surface is open. The hollow cylindrical member 25 is formed integrally with the bottom wall 1e and has a shape expanding from the front end opening 25a toward the bottom wall 1 e. Therefore, the main body case 1a can be easily manufactured by tool molding, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Also, since the hollow cylindrical member 25 is integrally formed with the main body case 1a, an assembling process can be omitted, thereby improving the operation efficiency. In addition, it is possible to prevent an adverse effect that air is incorrectly introduced due to the ink entering the internal flow passage 25b of the hollow cylindrical member 25 from the connecting portion 25c between the hollow cylindrical member 25 and the main body casing 1 a.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, it is not necessary to provide a protrusion for opening an opening of a valve member at a mounting portion of an inkjet recording apparatus. There is an effect that it becomes easy to position the ink cartridge and the mounting portion when mounting the ink cartridge to the mounting portion.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, when the ink cartridge is detached from the inkjet recording apparatus, the pushing portion causes the valve member to contact the valve seat portion and prevents the ink from leaving or evaporating through the opening. Further, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus, the valve can be opened by uniformly lifting the valve member by the operating member and separating the valve member from the valve seat portion.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a complicated operation procedure is not required to install the pressing device that presses the valve member in the area where the valve member is positioned. There is an effect of reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, ink is prevented from exiting or evaporating through the opening.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting portion, the ink supply opening and the air guide opening can be opened, so that air can be introduced into the ink cartridge while ink is supplied to the recording apparatus. In addition, at least one of the first and second valve systems includes a valve seat portion and a valve member movable relative to the valve seat portion. The valve member has an operation member protruding outside the ink cartridge and is configured such that: when the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting portion, the operating member contacts the mounting portion so that the valve member is separated from the valve seat portion. When the mounting portion is provided with the operating members projecting in correspondence with the first and second valve systems, the operating members must be sealed to prevent ink leakage and manufactured so as to accurately maintain the mutual positional relationship between the two projecting operating members and the mutual positional relationship between the ink supply opening and the air guide opening. However, there is an effect that the ink cartridge can be easily mounted on the mounting portion and also can be easily manufactured without requiring high accuracy in positional relationship.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to open both valve systems by simply moving the ink cartridge in the direction of the mounting portion, thereby providing better operability.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the mounting portion, it is necessary to accurately position the second valve system at the position of the hollow member provided in the mounting portion. However, it is not necessary to accurately position the position of the first valve system, so that there are effects that the ink cartridge can be easily manufactured and the mounting of the ink cartridge to the mounting portion becomes easy.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, there are the following effects: the valve is uniformly lifted by operating the operating member, and is opened by separating the valve portion and the valve seat portion.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, there is an effect of preventing fluid flowing to the valve system from leaking to the outside or evaporating.

According to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, there are the following effects: the ink cartridge can be easily manufactured without requiring high accuracy in the mutual positional relationship between the ink supply opening and the air introducing opening of the ink cartridge or the mutual positional relationship between the suction portion and the air supply portion of the mounting portion, so that the mounting of the ink cartridge on the mounting portion can be easily achieved.

In the inkjet recording apparatus in japanese laid-open patent application No. h9-85963, which is configured to allow mounting and dismounting of an ink tank (hereinafter referred to as an ink cartridge), a holder for holding the ink cartridge is provided with two chambers. Each chamber is filled with a porous material and forms an extension extending upwardly from an upper end. One end of one porous material is connected to the air introducing opening, and the lower surface of the other porous material is connected to the ink supply opening.

The ink cartridge is provided at the bottom with a through hole allowing each protruding portion to be inserted. From these projections extend membrane valves that can open the valve. By mounting the ink cartridge to the holder, the two chambers communicate with the interior of the ink cartridge.

However, in the package, the inside of the ink cartridge is usually in a negative pressure state. When the ink cartridge is mounted, if the valve for the ink supply opening is opened before the valve for the air guide opening, the ink stored on the recording apparatus side flows backward into the ink cartridge. The ink in the ink cartridge is maintained in a degassed state, and if the ink that has been discharged is brought back, the state cannot be maintained. Further, as the ink is sucked toward the ink cartridge, a meniscus of the ink formed inside the nozzles of the recording head is broken. And thus there is a problem that good quality ink cannot be discharged.

The disclosed embodiments of the present invention have been made in view of the above problems, and provide an ink cartridge capable of preventing a reverse flow of ink to the ink cartridge when the ink cartridge is mounted and the ink is maintained under normal conditions and excellent discharge of the ink to a recording head is maintained.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure has an ink chamber for storing ink and is attached to a recording apparatus main body in an attachable and detachable manner, and is in a pressure-reduced state before attachment. The ink cartridge includes: an air guide opening formed to communicate with the ink chamber and opened to guide air into an inside of the ink chamber; a first sealing device that seals the air guide opening before the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body; an ink supply opening formed to communicate with the ink chamber and opened to supply ink inside the ink chamber to the outside; a second sealing means that seals the ink supply opening before the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body; and a check valve disposed between the second sealing means and the ink chamber, the check valve blocking a flow of ink from outside the ink supply opening to inside the ink chamber.

In an ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air introducing opening and the ink supply opening are formed side by side on one side of the ink chamber, and the first and second sealing means are opened as the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the check valve opens the ink supply in a normal state and blocks the flow in the direction thereof only when the flow from the outside of the ink supply opening to the ink chamber occurs.

In an ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air guide opening is formed inside a first cylindrical wall formed outward from one side of the ink chamber. An ink supply opening is formed inside a second cylindrical wall formed outward from one side of the ink chamber. A first sealing means is provided inside the first cylindrical wall to cover the air introducing opening, and a second sealing means is provided inside the second cylindrical wall to cover the ink supply opening.

In an ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the check valve is constituted by a shaft portion and a diaphragm portion. The umbrella portion is positioned to face the ink supply opening, and a space is formed between the ink supply opening and the umbrella portion to allow ink to flow out from the ink supply opening. When a flow from the outside of the ink supply opening to the ink chamber occurs, the umbrella portion closely contacts and blocks the ink supply opening.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the first sealing means and the second sealing means are valve means including a valve seat portion and a valve element movable relative to the valve seat portion. The valve member is moved away from the valve seat portion with the ink cartridge mounted to the recording apparatus main body to open the valve.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a check valve that prevents ink from flowing into an ink chamber from outside an ink supply opening is provided between a sealing device of a side for supplying ink and the ink chamber. Therefore, when the sealing means of the side for guiding air and the sealing means of the side for supplying ink are opened while the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body, the ink is prevented from flowing backward from the ink supply opening to the ink chamber in a depressurized state. In addition, the degassed state of the ink is prevented from being degraded due to the ink on the recording apparatus side mixing into the degassed ink in the ink cartridge. Also, the ink meniscus inside the nozzles of the recording head is prevented from being damaged, thereby reducing defective ink discharge from the recording head. This has the effect of maintaining excellent recording quality.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air introducing opening and the ink supply opening are formed side by side at one side of the ink chamber, and the first and second sealing means are opened as the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body. Therefore, since the two sealing means can be opened by mounting the ink cartridge from one direction, mounting of the ink cartridge to the recording apparatus main body becomes easy. In addition, even if one of the two sealing means is first opened due to the inclination of the ink cartridge at the time of mounting or the like, there is an effect of preventing the ink from flowing backward as described above.

According to the ink cartridge of one exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the check valve opens the ink supply in a normal state and blocks the flow in the direction thereof only when the flow from the outside of the ink supply opening to the ink chamber occurs. There is an effect of allowing a small amount of reverse flow, thereby preventing a significant change in pressure on the recording head side. In other words, with a structure in which the valve is closed in a normal state and is opened only when ink is supplied, when the pressure on the recording side changes and increases due to movement of the ink cartridge or the like, there is no place for the ink to escape, and the pressure on the recording side increases, which prevents normal discharge of the ink. Therefore, by opening the valve in a normal state, less reverse flow to the ink chamber is allowed, thereby preventing this phenomenon.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air guide opening is formed inside a first cylindrical wall formed outward from one side of the ink chamber. An ink supply opening is formed inside a second cylindrical wall formed outward from one side of the ink chamber. A first sealing means is provided inside the first cylindrical wall to cover the air introducing opening, and a second sealing means is provided inside the second cylindrical wall to cover the ink supply opening. Therefore, the air to be introduced and the ink to be supplied are completely separated, so that there is an effect of not mixing the air into the ink to be supplied.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the check valve is constituted by a shaft portion and a diaphragm portion. The umbrella portion is positioned to face the ink supply opening, and a space is formed between the ink supply opening and the umbrella portion to allow ink to flow out from the ink supply opening. When a flow from the outside of the ink supply opening to the ink chamber occurs, the umbrella closely contacts and blocks the ink supply opening. Therefore, the following effects are achieved: the check valve can be simply formed at a low cost; preventing the pressure at the recording head side from fluctuating as described above; and can accurately prevent the reverse flow when the fluctuation occurs.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the first sealing means and the second sealing means are valve means including a valve seat portion and a valve element movable relative to the valve seat portion, and the valve element is moved away from the valve seat portion to open the valve as the ink cartridge is mounted to the recording apparatus main body. Therefore, the following effects are achieved: the sealing device can be formed with a simple structure; the mounting of the ink cartridge to the main body of the recording apparatus becomes easy.

An ink cartridge has an ink chamber filled with ink. When the ink cartridge is mounted in a recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer, ink is supplied from the ink chamber to the recording apparatus. Depending on conditions such as the internal composition of the ink chamber and the viscosity of the ink, the ink partially remains inside the ink chamber. Therefore, as an ink cartridge capable of preventing such ink from remaining, for example, an ink cartridge provided with a groove for discharging ink around a prism for detecting the amount of remaining ink is proposed in japanese laid-open patent application No. 2000-71471. In such an ink cartridge, misdetection of ink when there is only a small amount of ink in the ink chamber can be prevented by discharging ink around the prism using these grooves so that ink hardly remains on the surface of the prism.

However, in the above ink cartridge, if the curvature of the grooves for discharging ink formed in the ink chambers is constant, the magnitude of the capillary force applied to the ink by these grooves becomes approximately the same at a position close to the ink supply portion for supplying the ink to the recording apparatus and a position far from the ink supply portion. Therefore, when the amount of ink remaining in the ink chamber becomes low, the ink is separately sucked to a position away from the ink supply portion, so that the ink remains in the ink chamber. Thus, the ink in the ink chamber cannot be fully used.

The disclosed embodiments of the present invention provide an ink cartridge that can more accurately prevent ink from remaining in an ink chamber.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge including an ink chamber and an ink supply opening for supplying ink in the ink chamber to a recording apparatus, wherein a curvature of at least a part of a plurality of edges forming an inner shape of the ink chamber is made larger as approaching the ink supply opening.

In the ink cartridge, ink in the ink cartridge is supplied from an ink supply opening to a recording apparatus. The curvature of at least a part of a plurality of edges forming the internal shape of the ink chamber (for example, an edge between surfaces forming the ink chamber and an edge at a portion formed in a projecting or recessed shape in the ink chamber) becomes larger as approaching the ink supply opening. In other words, the shape of these edges changes from a blended shape to a sharp shape as they approach the ink supply opening. Therefore, the capillary force applied to the ink by these edges becomes larger at a position close to the ink supply opening. Thus, a portion of the edge of the curvature change directs ink toward the ink supply opening. As a result, since it is possible to prevent a situation in which ink remains at a position away from the ink supply opening where the capillary force applied to the ink by the edge is relatively small and separates, it is possible to fully use the ink within the ink chamber.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which the at least a portion of the plurality of edges continues from an edge at a position higher than the ink supply opening to an edge at the ink supply opening. Therefore, even when the ink surface is lowered as ink is consumed, those edges that continue from a position higher than the ink supply opening to the ink supply opening and have a larger curvature as they approach the ink supply opening guide ink accurately to the ink supply opening. Therefore, ink is prevented from remaining in the vicinity of the side surface of the ink chamber away from the ink supply opening.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which the at least a portion of the plurality of edges is formed between predetermined two surfaces among surfaces forming the ink chamber, and a curvature of the edges is different at each connection of the predetermined two surfaces. With the structure in which the curvature of the edge between the two surfaces forming the ink chamber is different at each junction of the two surfaces, a structure in which the curvature of the edge becomes larger as it approaches the ink supply opening can be easily achieved.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which tangent planes at a connection portion of the predetermined two surfaces are parallel to the predetermined two surfaces, respectively. Therefore, an edge having a predetermined curvature can be easily formed between the two surfaces.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure includes: an ink cartridge main body forming an ink chamber; an ink supply opening formed on a bottom surface of the ink chamber and for supplying ink to the recording apparatus; and an ink guide portion provided on a bottom surface of the ink chamber and extending from a side surface of the ink chamber toward the ink supply opening. The curvature of the edge between the ink guide portion and the bottom surface is larger than the curvature of the edge between the side surface and the bottom surface of the ink chamber.

In this ink cartridge, ink in an ink chamber formed as an ink cartridge main body is supplied from an ink supply opening to a recording apparatus through an ink guide portion extending from a side surface of the ink chamber to the ink supply opening. So that the curvature of the edge between the ink guide portion and the bottom surface of the ink chamber is larger than the curvature of the edge between the side surface and the bottom surface of the ink chamber. In other words, the capillary force applied to the ink at the edge between the ink guide portion near the ink supply opening and the bottom surface of the ink chamber is larger than the capillary force at a position near the side surface of the ink chamber remote from the ink supply opening. Therefore, since it is possible to prevent a situation in which ink remains at a position away from the ink supply opening where the capillary force applied to the ink by the edge is relatively small and separates, it is possible to fully use the ink in the ink chamber.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which a curvature of an edge between an ink guide portion and a bottom surface becomes larger as approaching an ink supply opening. Therefore, even at the edge between the ink guide portion and the bottom surface of the ink chamber, the capillary force applied to the ink becomes larger as approaching the ink supply opening. Thereby accurately preventing ink from remaining at a position away from the ink supply opening.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which an ink guide portion extends to an ink supply opening. Therefore, the ink on the bottom surface of the ink chamber is accurately guided to the ink supply opening by the ink guide portion.

The ink guide portion may be a protruding portion protruding from the bottom surface (eighth invention) or a groove formed on the bottom surface (ninth invention).

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is an ink cartridge in which a plurality of ink guide portions are provided to gather from the periphery of an ink supply opening to the ink supply opening. Since the plurality of ink guide portions are provided to gather from the periphery of the ink supply opening, the ink on the bottom surface of the ink chamber is further accurately guided to the ink supply opening.

An ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the disclosure is an ink cartridge in which an edge of the ink guide portion opposite to the ink supply portion continues to a side surface of the ink chamber. Therefore, the ink near the side surface of the ink chamber can be accurately guided to the ink supply opening by the ink guide portion.

In japanese laid-open patent application No. h09-85963, there is an ink tank (hereinafter referred to as "ink cartridge") that stores ink inside and is provided with an opening on the bottom. An elastic membrane valve is arranged at the opening of the ink box. The ink cartridge is configured to be freely attachable to and detachable from the holder. With this holder, a projecting portion for opening the valve is formed at a position facing the opening. A through hole for flowing out the ink in the ink cartridge to the outside is provided at the projecting portion. When the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the holder, the protruding portion of the holder pushes and opens the valve in an upward direction, and the ink in the ink cartridge flows to the outside through the through-hole and the opening.

However, the ink cartridge described above has the following structure: normally, the valve blocks communication between the inside and outside of the ink cartridge, and when the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the holder, the valve is allowed to communicate by the projecting portion pushing the valve upward. However, if the valve is accidentally pushed upward before the ink cartridge is mounted on the holder, there is a problem that ink leaks through the opening.

The disclosed embodiments of the present invention have been made in view of the above problems, and provide an ink cartridge that suppresses ink leakage to a minimum even if the ink cartridge is mishandled before being mounted to a holder.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is attached to a recording apparatus main body in an attachable and detachable manner, and is equipped with a storage chamber that stores ink. The ink cartridge includes: a communication opening formed in a cylindrical wall formed at one side of the storage chamber and communicating with an outside of the ink cartridge; a flow passage, one end of which is communicated with the communicating opening and the other end of which is communicated with the storage chamber; a valve device having a valve seat portion provided in the communication opening and a valve element configured to be capable of being connected and separated with respect to the valve seat portion, the valve device sealing communication between the inside and the outside of the storage chamber when the valve element contacts the valve seat portion, and allowing communication between the inside and the outside of the storage chamber when the valve element is separated from the valve seat portion by a predetermined distance once the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the recording apparatus main body; and a blocking member blocking communication between the inside and the outside of the storage chamber by closing the flow passage when the valve member moves beyond the predetermined distance.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the flow path is formed inside a hollow cylindrical member formed upright from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the ink cartridge. The blocking member is formed to protrude toward the flow path side and to protrude in a substantially cylindrical shape having an outer diameter substantially equal to an inner diameter of the lower passage. When the valve member moves beyond the predetermined distance, at least the front end of the stopper is fitted in the inside of the flow passage by close contact.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure, the blocking means is held in a state of close contact and fitting.

In an ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the valve member and the stopper are integrally formed of a resin material.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure, the flow passage is an air guide passage for guiding air into the ink cartridge.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure is attached to a recording apparatus main body in an attachable and detachable manner, and is equipped with a storage chamber that stores ink. The ink cartridge includes: a communication opening formed at one side of the ink cartridge to be open to an outside; a flow passage that communicates the communication opening with the storage chamber; a blocking member arranged to be movable in a direction approaching the flow path with the ink cartridge properly mounted to the recording apparatus, the blocking member being positioned to have a space from the flow path when properly mounted, and to close the flow path when moved beyond the amount of movement for proper mounting.

The ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure further includes a sealing device positioned further outside than the blocking member in the communication opening, wherein the sealing device opens when properly installed.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the sealing means is formed by a valve seat portion and a valve member capable of contacting and separating with respect to the valve seat portion, and the blocking member is connected to the valve member.

The ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure further includes an ink supply opening that is formed at one side of the ink cartridge and is open to the outside, and supplies the ink in the storage chamber to the recording apparatus main body. The communication opening is an air guide opening for guiding air into the storage chamber.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure, a front end of the stopper is configured such that the outer radial flow passage becomes smaller.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the flow path is configured such that an inner diameter thereof becomes smaller from an end surface that is a stopper side in a direction away from the stopper.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, when the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the recording apparatus main body, the valve member is separated from the valve seat portion by the predetermined distance so that the ink storage chamber can communicate with the outside. In addition, the blocking member closes the flow passage when the valve member is accidentally moved beyond the predetermined distance. Therefore, the possibility of ink leakage to the outside is suppressed to a minimum.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the flow path is formed inside a hollow cylindrical member formed upright from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the ink cartridge. The blocking member is formed to protrude toward the flow path side and to protrude in a substantially cylindrical shape having an outer diameter substantially equal to an inner diameter of the lower passage. When the valve member moves beyond the predetermined distance, at least the front end of the stopper is fitted in the inside of the flow passage by close contact. There is an effect of accurately suppressing ink leakage.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the blocking means is held in a state of close contact and fitting. There is an effect of preventing the ink from continuously leaking.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, since the valve member and the stopper are integrally formed of the resin material, there is an effect of reducing the number of parts and thus reducing the manufacturing cost.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the flow path is an air guide passage for guiding air into the ink cartridge. Therefore, when the valve member moves beyond the predetermined distance, the stopper blocks the air guide passage, and even if the ink supply opening is opened at this time, air pressure is not applied to the inside of the ink cartridge. And thus has the effect of suppressing ink leakage.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a communication opening is formed at one side of the ink cartridge to be open to an outside, and communicates with a storage chamber through a flow path. The blocking member is disposed in the communication opening in such a manner as to be movable in a direction approaching the flow passage with the ink cartridge properly mounted to the recording apparatus. The blocking member is positioned to have a space from the flow path when the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the recording apparatus main body, and closes the flow path when accidentally moved more than a predetermined amount. Therefore, the possibility of ink leakage to the outside is suppressed to a minimum.

The ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure further includes a sealing device positioned further outside than the blocking member in the communication opening, the sealing device being opened when properly mounted. Therefore, when the ink cartridge is not mounted to the recording apparatus main body, the sealing device accurately seals the communication between the inside and the outside of the ink cartridge. In addition, when the ink cartridge is properly mounted to the recording apparatus main body, a flow path to the outside is accurately formed.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the sealing means is formed by the valve seat portion and the valve member capable of contacting and separating with respect to the valve seat portion, and the blocking member is connected to the valve member. Therefore, compared to the case where the stopper and the valve member are separate units, it is not necessary to form a complicated structure in the ink cartridge to arrange the stopper and the valve member. There is an effect that the structure of the ink cartridge can be simplified.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, further includes an ink supply opening that is formed at one side of the ink cartridge and is open to an outside, and supplies ink in the storage chamber to the recording apparatus main body. The communication opening is an air guide opening for guiding air into the storage chamber. Therefore, when the blocking member moves more than a predetermined amount of movement, the flow path for guiding the air is blocked, and even if the ink supply opening is opened at this time, air pressure electricity is not applied to the inside of the ink cartridge. And thus has the effect of suppressing ink leakage.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, since the front end of the blocking member is configured such that the outer radial flow passage becomes small, the front end of the blocking member can be easily inserted into the flow passage. There is an effect of facilitating an accurate blocking operation.

According to the ink cartridge of one exemplary aspect of the disclosure, since the flow path is configured such that the inner diameter thereof becomes smaller from the end surface on the side of the stopper in the direction away from the stopper, the stopper can be easily inserted into the flow path. There is an effect of facilitating an accurate blocking operation.

In japanese pending patent application No. h06-64182, there is an ink cartridge equipped with: an air duct (hereinafter, referred to as "air guide") for guiding air to the inside of the main tank of the ink cartridge; a film barrier adhered to an upper end of the air guide; and a cooperating member disposed inside the air guide. To introduce air into the ink cartridge, an air introduction needle is inserted through a rubber member provided on a bottom wall of the ink cartridge. The guide channel for air is formed by pushing the co-acting member to pierce the membrane puncturing member, and passes through the narrow hole formed by the co-acting member. The narrow hole of the cooperating member extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the bottom wall of the ink cartridge and is formed in a substantially straight line form from the front end opening to the rubber member.

The air guide of the ink cartridge guides air of an amount corresponding to the amount of ink supplied from the ink cartridge to the recording head into the ink cartridge to maintain the pressure of the ink to be supplied to the recording head constant. Therefore, it is preferable that the air guide is not closed by, for example, ink entering therein. However, it is inevitable that: the ink cartridge may be inclined or fall down after production or before the user mounts the ink cartridge to the recording apparatus body after the user has detached the ink cartridge from the recording apparatus body. There is therefore a possibility that ink adheres at the open end of the air guide or that ink enters the inside of the air guide.

The ink normally closes the air guide by forming a meniscus at the open end of the air guide on the reservoir side, or by forming a meniscus inside the guide channel when the guide channel inside the air guide is narrow. If ink is supplied in this case, the following steps are repeated: the pressure in the reservoir chamber sealed by the meniscus decreases; air breaks the meniscus and flows into the reservoir; the meniscus formed by the residual ink reduces the pressure; the air breaks the meniscus and flows into the reservoir. In other words, the ink supply pressure of the recording head fluctuates, so that the ink is unevenly discharged from the recording head. And thus there is a possibility that the problem of recording quality is reduced.

The disclosed embodiments of the present invention have been made in view of the above problems, and provide an ink cartridge that prevents ink supply pressure fluctuation of a recording head by properly introducing air into the ink cartridge, and maintains uniform ink discharge from the recording head.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is provided with a storage chamber that stores ink, and includes: an air guide opening formed on a bottom wall as a bottom of the storage chamber, the air guide opening guiding air into the storage chamber; an ink supply opening that supplies ink in the storage chamber to the outside; and an air guide in a hollow cylindrical shape rising from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber, a lower end of an inner flow passage of the air guide communicating with the air guide opening, and an upper end of the air guide being open at the upper portion of the storage chamber. The air guide is configured such that at least a portion of the upper end opening is formed diagonally with respect to the first direction, whereby the area of the upper end opening is larger than the cross-sectional area of the internal flow passage in a direction perpendicular to the first direction.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is provided with a storage chamber that stores ink, and includes: an air guide opening formed on a bottom wall as a bottom of the storage chamber, the air guide opening guiding air into the storage chamber; an ink supply opening that supplies ink in the storage chamber to the outside; and an air guide in a hollow cylindrical shape rising from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber, a lower end of an inner flow passage of the air guide communicating with the air guide opening, and an upper end of the air guide being open at the upper portion of the storage chamber. The upper end openings of the air guides are formed on two or more planes different from each other.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure is provided with a storage chamber that stores ink, and includes: an air guide opening formed on a bottom wall as a bottom of the storage chamber, the air guide opening guiding air into the storage chamber; an ink supply opening that supplies ink in the storage chamber to the outside; and an air guide in a hollow cylindrical shape rising from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber, a lower end of an inner flow passage of the air guide communicating with the air guide opening, and an upper end of the air guide being open at the upper portion of the storage chamber. The upper end opening of the air guide is formed in a non-circular shape.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure is provided with a storage chamber that stores ink, and includes: an air guide opening formed on a bottom wall as a bottom of the storage chamber, the air guide opening guiding air into the storage chamber; an ink supply opening that supplies ink in the storage chamber to the outside; and an air guide in a hollow cylindrical shape rising from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber, a lower end of an inner flow passage of the air guide communicating with the air guide opening, and an upper end of the air guide being open at the upper portion of the storage chamber. The inner diameter of the inner flow passage of the air guide is formed in such a size that the ink does not form a meniscus in a direction blocking the inner flow passage.

In an ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, an inner diameter of an internal flow passage of an air guide is equal to or greater than about 0.8 mm.

The ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure further includes: a sidewall extending in a first direction from a circumference of the bottom wall and serving as a periphery of the storage chamber; a main box structure formed of a bottom wall and side walls, a top surface of the main box being open; and a cover member covering the opened top surface of the main body case. The air guide is integrally formed with the bottom wall.

According to the ink cartridge of one exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the air guide opening is formed on the bottom wall as the bottom of the storage chamber, and guides the air into the storage chamber. The lower end of the inner flow passage of the air guide communicates with the air guide opening. The air guide rises from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber and has an opening opened at the upper portion of the storage chamber. The air guide is configured such that at least a portion of the upper end opening is formed diagonally with respect to the first direction, whereby the area of the upper end opening is larger than the cross-sectional area of the internal flow passage in a direction perpendicular to the first direction. The upper end opening may also be formed by two or more planes which are mutually different from each other. The upper end opening may also be formed in a non-circular shape. Therefore, even if ink adheres to the opening, a meniscus is hardly formed, and even if a meniscus is formed, the meniscus is easily broken by the introduction of air. Therefore, since the fluctuation of the air guide occurring when the meniscus is formed at the opening can be suppressed, there are the following effects: fluctuation in ink supply to the recording head is reduced, and ink discharge from the recording head can be uniformly maintained.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, an air guide opening is formed on a bottom wall as a bottom of a storage chamber and guides air into the storage chamber. The lower end of the inner flow passage of the air guide communicates with the air guide opening. The air guide rises from the bottom wall toward an upper portion of the storage chamber and has an opening opened at the upper portion of the storage chamber. Since the inner diameter of the inner flow passage of the air guide is formed to such a size that the ink does not form a meniscus in the direction blocking the inner flow passage, even if the ink remains in the inner flow passage, the inner flow passage is not blocked by the ink film, i.e., the meniscus. In addition, the ink is correctly introduced into the storage chamber. The effect of uniform ink discharge from the recording head is maintained as described above.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, this effect can be easily achieved by setting the inner diameter of the internal flow passage of the air guide to about 0.8mm or more.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the main tank is constituted by a bottom wall and a side wall such that a top surface is open. In addition, the air guide is integrally formed with the bottom wall. Therefore, since the main body case integrally formed with the air guide can be easily formed by tool molding, the production cost can be reduced, and the ink flow from the connection port and the bottom wall of the air guide to the internal flow passage can be prevented. Thereby having the effect of correctly directing air into the reservoir.

There is known in japanese pending patent application No.6-64182 an ink cartridge equipped with: an air pipe (hereinafter referred to as "air guide") for guiding air to the inside of the main tank of the ink cartridge. The ink cartridge has a rubber member on the bottom through which an ink supply needle and an air guide needle are inserted. Above the rubber member, an air guide is installed by being adhered to the main tank. In addition, the upper end of the air guide is formed with a flat surface portion having a diameter larger than the outer diameter of the air guide to adhere a film barrier for preventing the flow inlet. A co-acting member is arranged inside the air conductor to pierce the membrane barrier. To guide air to the inside of the ink cartridge, an air guide needle is inserted through the rubber member and pushes the cooperating member upward so that the cooperating member pierces the film blocking member to allow air to be guided to the inside of the ink cartridge.

However, since the main body case and the air guide are constructed as separate bodies in the above ink cartridge, a process of assembling the air guide to the main body case is required, so that the operation efficiency is lowered, resulting in an increase in the manufacturing cost. Further, since there is a possibility that air enters the internal flow passage of the air guide from the connection point between the ink cartridge and the air guide, there is a problem that the air is not guided properly.

In addition, for manufacturing an ink cartridge in which a main body case and an air guide are integrated for improving operation efficiency, since an upper end of the air guide is formed with a flat surface having a diameter larger than an outer diameter of the air guide, there are problems in that: the production using the tool molding becomes complicated, and the manufacturing cost increases.

The disclosed embodiments of the present invention have been made in view of the above problems, and provide an ink cartridge capable of reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge and also allowing air to be properly introduced into the ink cartridge.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure has a reservoir storing ink, and includes: a main body case having a bottom wall and a side wall forming a storage chamber, a top surface of the main body case being open; an air guide opening formed on a bottom wall of the main body case for guiding air into the storage chamber; an ink supply opening formed on the main body case for supplying ink in the storage chamber to the outside; and a hollow cylindrical air guide whose internal flow passage communicates with the air guide opening, the hollow cylindrical air guide being integrally formed with the main body case and rising from a bottom wall of the main body case toward the open upper surface in the first direction, an upper end of the air guide being open above an ink surface in the storage chamber.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, a connecting portion of the air guide and the bottom wall is formed in a shape expanding from the air guide to the bottom wall.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air guide opening is formed in a first cylindrical wall that protrudes from and is integrally formed with a lower surface of the bottom wall. The ink supply opening is formed in a second cylindrical wall that projects from and is formed integrally with the lower surface of the bottom wall, and the air introduction opening and the ink supply opening are sealed by sealing means provided in the first cylindrical wall and the second cylindrical wall.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the wood disclosure, the first cylindrical wall and the air guide are integrally formed in a continuous cylindrical shape passing through the bottom wall.

In the ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the sealing device is a valve device equipped with a valve seat portion and a valve member movable relative to the valve seat portion, and the valve device is moved in a direction such that the valve member is away from the valve seat portion as the ink cartridge is mounted to the inkjet recording apparatus.

An ink cartridge according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure has a reservoir storing ink, and is constituted by a main body tank having a bottom wall and a side wall forming a storage chamber, a top surface of the main body tank being open, and a cover member covering the open top surface of the main tank. An air guide opening is formed on a bottom wall of the main body case for guiding air into the storage chamber. In addition, an internal flow passage of a hollow cylindrical air guide, which is formed integrally with the main body case and rises from a bottom wall of the main body case toward the open upper surface in the first direction, is communicated with the air guide opening, and an upper end of the air guide is open above an ink surface in the storage chamber. The internal flow passage of the air guide communicates with the air guide opening so that air can be guided into the storage chamber through the air guide opening and the air guide. In this way, since the upper surface of the main body is opened and since the air guide is integrally formed to rise from the bottom wall to the opened surface, the main body and the air guide can be resin-molded easily by a tool work or the like. Accordingly, since the number of parts is reduced, and since the assembly of the main body case and the air guide is not required, the operation efficiency is improved, and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

Also, since the main body case and the air guide are integrally formed, ink is prevented from flowing into the internal flow passage of the air guide from the connecting portion between the main body case and the air guide. Thus having the effect of correctly directing air into the reservoir.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, since the connecting portion of the air guide and the bottom wall is formed in a shape expanding from the air guide to the bottom wall, there are effects of: increased strength at the connection points; and can prevent the air guide from being deformed at the time of molding or due to the influence of environmental changes thereafter.

According to an ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the air introduction opening is formed in a first cylindrical wall that protrudes from and is integrally formed with a lower surface of the bottom wall, the ink supply opening is formed in a second cylindrical wall that protrudes from and is integrally formed with a lower surface of the bottom wall, and the air introduction opening and the ink supply opening are sealed by sealing means provided in the first cylindrical wall and the second cylindrical wall. Therefore, if the first cylindrical wall and the second cylindrical wall are integrally molded to the main body case by a tool work or the like, the inside of the ink cartridge can be in a sealed state by disposing the sealing means at the first cylindrical wall and the second cylindrical wall. This has the effect of further improving the operating efficiency of the apparatus.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the first cylindrical wall and the air guide are integrally formed in a continuous cylindrical shape passing through the bottom wall. Therefore, even if ink flows into the internal flow passage of the air guide during transportation of the ink cartridge, when the air guide opening is opened by mounting of the ink cartridge, the ink within the internal flow passage can smoothly flow into the storage chamber. Therefore, since the ink in the internal flow passage of the air guide is prevented from blocking the guidance of the air, there is an effect of correctly guiding the air.

According to the ink cartridge of an exemplary aspect of the disclosure, the sealing means is a valve means provided with a valve seat portion and a valve member movable relative to the valve seat portion, and the valve means is moved in a direction such that the valve member is moved away from the valve seat portion as the ink cartridge is mounted to the ink jet recording apparatus. Therefore, the following effects are achieved: the occurrence of ink leakage is prevented when the ink cartridge is not mounted to the ink jet recording apparatus, and the air guide passage and the ink supply passage are accurately formed by the valve member of the valve device to be moved in a direction away from the valve seat portion when the ink cartridge is mounted to the ink jet recording apparatus.

While the present disclosure has been described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments and examples outlined above, various alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/or substantial equivalents, whether known or that may be presently unforeseen, may become apparent to those having at least ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments of the disclosure as set forth above are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the disclosure is intended to embrace all known or later-developed alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/or substantial equivalents.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The ink cartridge of the present invention is widely used for home and office use. ,

Claims

1. An ink cartridge, comprising:

a tank;

an ink chamber provided in the tank;

a communication chamber provided in the tank and capable of communicating with an ink chamber and an outside of the tank;

a valve provided in the communication chamber, the valve being movable from a first position blocking communication between the ink chamber and the outside of the tank to a second position allowing the communication;

an operating member that extends from the communication chamber to an outside of the tank and is capable of moving the valve from the first position to the second position;

a valve seat adjacent the valve; and

a biasing device extending from the valve seat, surrounding the valve, and biasing the valve toward the valve seat, wherein:

an opening is formed at substantially the center of the valve seat, so that the bottom of the valve is exposed,

a valve seat contacts the valve outside the opening;

the operating member extends from the valve through the opening;

urging means are integrally formed with the valve seat for urging the valve toward the valve seat on a first side of the valve opposite the valve seat,

when the ink cartridge is mounted in a mounting portion of an ink jet recording apparatus, the operating member is capable of moving the valve from the first position to the second position by contacting the mounting portion.

2. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the valve and the operating member are formed as an integral component.

3. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the operating member is located on a second side of the valve opposite the first side.

4. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising: a seal surrounding the operating member.

5. The ink cartridge according to claim 4, wherein one end of the operating member is between an outside end of the communication chamber and an outside end of the seal member.

6. The ink cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the sealing member extends from the valve seat at a side opposite to the valve and is integrally formed with the valve seat.

7. The ink cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising a seal member surrounding the operating member, wherein when the ink cartridge is mounted in a mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus, the seal member contacts the mounting portion and forms a passage leading from the flow passage in the mounting portion to the ink chamber.

8. The ink cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the valve seat, the urging means, and the seal are integrally formed of a rubber-like material.

9. An ink cartridge, comprising:

a tank;

an ink chamber provided in the tank;

an air communication chamber provided in the tank and capable of communicating with an ink chamber and an outside of the tank;

a first valve system disposed in the air communication chamber;

an ink communication chamber provided in the tank and capable of communicating with the ink chamber and an outside of the tank; and

a second valve system disposed within the ink communication chamber,

wherein at least one of the first valve system or the second valve system comprises: a valve seat, a valve movable relative to the valve seat, and an operating member,

the operating member extending from the valve to an exterior of the tank and being capable of moving the valve from a first position in which the valve is in contact with the valve seat to a second position in which the valve is spaced from the valve seat,

when the ink cartridge is mounted in a mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus, the operating member is capable of moving the valve from the first position to the second position by contacting the mounting portion.

10. The ink cartridge according to claim 9, wherein the valve and the operating member are formed as an integral component.

11. The ink cartridge according to claim 9, wherein the air communicating chamber and the ink communicating chamber are formed at one side of the ink cartridge.

12. The ink cartridge according to claim 9, wherein:

the first valve system includes a valve seat, a valve and an operating member, and the second valve system includes a valve seat and a valve, and

when the ink cartridge is mounted in the mounting portion of the ink jet recording apparatus, the operating member of the first valve system is capable of moving the valves of the first valve system from the first position to the second position by contacting the mounting portion, and the valves of the second valve system are capable of moving the valves of the second valve system from the first position to the second position by pushing the valves of the second valve system by an extraction pipe provided in the mounting portion.

13. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a mounting portion capable of receiving the ink cartridge as claimed in claim 10, the mounting portion including a flow passage through which air is guided to the ink cartridge.

14. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising:

an ink jet head; and

a mounting portion capable of receiving the ink cartridge according to claim 10, the mounting portion including an extraction tube through which the ink is supplied to the ink-jet head.