Incremental printing of symbolic information – Ink jet – Fluid or fluid source handling means
Reexamination Certificate
1997-09-08
2001-07-24
Le, N. (Department: 2861)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Ink jet
Fluid or fluid source handling means
Reexamination Certificate
active
06264314
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an ink cartridge for use with an ink jet recording apparatus that performs a recording operation by jetting a series of ink droplets onto a recording paper through a nozzle.
Various kinds of ink feeding systems for an ink jet recording apparatus of the aforementioned type have been hitherto proposed and put to practical use.
To facilitate understanding of the present invention, a conventional ink cartridge having a flexible ink bag received therein and a mechanism for installing the ink cartridge will briefly be described below with reference to FIG.
7
and FIG.
8
.
The ink cartridge includes an ink bag a, and a tubular ink outlet piece b is integrated with the ink bag a by applying thermal fusion on one of the thermally fused sides (represented by hatched lines), thereby to allow ink in the ink bag a to be conducted to the outside through the ink outlet piece b. To fixedly hold the ink bag a at a predetermined position in a case e, the ink outlet piece b is provided with a pair of flanges c through which holes d are formed. Thus, the ink bag a can be positioned and fixedly received in the case e by fitting a pair of projections f on the front end part of the case e into the holes d. In addition, the ink cartridge includes a cover j which is placed on the opening of the case e. The cover j is integrated with the case e by thermally sealing the peripheral edge of the case e using an ultrasonic welding process.
A holder m having the case e received therein is fixedly mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus (not shown). The holder m includes a pair of frames n on the opposite sides thereof so as to guide slidable insertion of the ink cartridge h composed of the ink bag a and the case e. In addition, the holder m includes a pair of leaf springs p at the innermost end of the frame n. When ribs i on the opposite side walls of the ink cartridge h are engaged with the leaf springs p, the ribs i are fixedly retained by the leaf springs p. At this time, an ink feeding needle g projection from the ink jet recording apparatus is ready to pierce the central part of the ink outlet piece b.
With such construction, the positional relationship between the ink feeding needle g and the opposing pair of frames n, the positional relationship between the leaf springs p and the ribs i and the positional relationship between the case e and the ink outlet piece b are liable to be undesirably disturbed during steps of fitting and assembling. Thus, there is left unsolved a problem that the ink feeding needle g sometimes cannot be correctly located in alignment with the ink outlet piece b.
In addition, if the cover j is removed from the case e, it is difficult as a practical matter to reunite the former with the latter again such as by employing a thermal fusion process. For this reason, the ink cartridge h cannot repeatedly be used. Further, since the ink outlet piece b is secured to the thermally fused surfaces of the ink bag a, there is left unsolved another problem that a certain gap appears between the ink outlet piece b and the thermally fused surfaces.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an ink cartridge for an ink jet recording apparatus wherein an ink outlet piece can be correctly aligned with an ink feeding needle regardless of a slight positional deviation from their preferred positions.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an ink cartridge for an ink jet recording apparatus wherein a case and a cover placed on the opening of the case can repeatedly be used.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge assembly for an ink jet recording apparatus wherein the ink cartridge includes a fitting portion formed on a front plate of a case constituting the ink cartridge, the fitting portion serving to hold and locate an ink outlet piece in an engaged state by engaging the fitting portion with an engaging portion on the ink outlet piece and at least one position determining hole formed on the front plate of the case, the position determining hole serving to properly locate the ink cartridge relative to a cartridge holder by inserting a position determining shaft projecting from the inner end of the cartridge holder through the position determining hole. With such construction, the ink feeding needle can be correctly located in alignment with the ink outlet piece with the front plate of the case serving as a reference.
To assure that the case and the cover can repeatedly be used, engagement holes are formed on the front plate of the case positioned so as to engage with the corresponding corner portions disposed on the front edge of a cover, and engagement portions are formed on the opposite side plates of the case at the rear end of the same positioned so as to engage with the corresponding pawls disposed on the opposite sides of the cover at the rear end of the same, whereby the cover can be repeatedly fitted to the case in a snap fit fashion.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge for an ink jet recording apparatus which also includes an absorbing member, disposed to be stacked with the ink bag in the case, for absorbing exhaust ink within the ink cartridge. There is also provided an exhaust ink take-in piece for supplying the exhaust ink to the inner end of the cartridge holder.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from reading of the following description which has been made in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 9, No. 57 (M-363), Mar. 1985.
Japanese Office Action dated Oct. 5, 1999 with an English translation.
Hanaoka Yukihiro
Isono Masahiro
Kawakami Kazuhisa
Mochizuki Seiji
Nishioka Atsushi
Le N.
Nghiem Michael
Seiko Epson Corporation
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
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