Incremental printing of symbolic information – Ink jet – Fluid or fluid source handling means
Reexamination Certificate
1995-06-07
2001-08-21
Barlow, John (Department: 2853)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Ink jet
Fluid or fluid source handling means
Reexamination Certificate
active
06276785
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to an ink-supplied printer head being supplied with ink from an ink supply tank and more particularly to an ink supply tank which allows for the continuous supply of ink to the printer head while avoiding adverse effects from temperature, atmospheric changes or vibrations. The present invention allows for a larger volume of ink in the ink supply tank and allows for a greater percentage of the ink in the tank to be transferred to the printer head. Also, the present invention comprises a tank with transparent sides so the user is able to easily determine the remaining quantity of ink, and also means for dampening of the unwanted movement of ink within the ink supply tank.
This invention also relates to an ink cartridge for an ink jet printer in which an ink jet recording head, and an ink cartridge are mounted on a movable carriage, and in particular an ink jet cartridge in which upon depletion of the ink from the old cartridge, is replaced with a new ink cartridge.
Ink supply systems for a wire dot matrix printer are known in which no ink ribbon is used, but ink is supplied from an ink tank to the distal ends of the wire and transferred from the wires directly to a sheet of print paper. Portions of these ink supply systems, including the supply tanks thereof, are also adaptable to be used in ink jet type printers.
In the prior art, improved ink storage and delivery was achieved by providing a porous member in an ink tank that essentially filled the tank and carried essentially the entire supply of ink. It was found that while this construction offered substantial improvement over the prior art, the use of the full porous member limited the quantity of ink which would be stored in an ink tank of a given size, increasing the frequency of ink tank replacement.
A prior art ink jet printer in which an ink containing unit and an ink jet recording head are mounted on a carriage is disclosed in European Patent Publication No. 581,531. In the disclosed printer, in order to prevent printing failures caused by variation of the ink level or air bubbles due to movement of the ink cartridge, which is caused by the movement of the carriage, the ink container is divided into two regions. A first region of the container adjacent the recording head houses ink impregnated in a porous member, and a second region contains liquid ink without a porous member. This structure enables the ink to be conducted to the recording head via the porous member so that the problems arising from movement of the ink in the cartridge are prevented from occurring to a certain extent.
The porous member is held in fluid communication with the recording head by a projecting member which is inserted through a hole formed in the side portion of the container. However, such a structure cannot be applied to a recording head in which air bubbles must be stopped from entering a pressurized chamber, such as that for an ink jet printer in which a piezoelectric vibrator is used as an actuator for ink ejection.
Accordingly, a ink jet printer which solves the above-mentioned problems is derived.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Generally speaking, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided an ink-supplied printer head. Ink is supplied to the printer head by an ink supply system, including an ink tank having an ink supply port and a pair of side walls. An ink absorbing member which occupies less than the total volume of the ink tank is contained therein adjacent the ink supply port.
More specifically an ink cartridge is formed of a ink chamber for storing ink and a foam chamber for receiving a porous member for absorbing ink. A partition separates the ink chamber from the foam chamber and has a hole therein so that the foam chamber is in fluid communication with the ink chamber. The ink cartridge is also formed with an ink supply port in the bottom wall of the foam chamber. The ink supply port can include an ink receiving and transmitting member which extends into the tank and locally compresses the ink absorbing member.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved ink cartridge for an ink jet printer.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a high-quality and highly reliable ink-supplied printer head of a simple construction which is capable of supplying a stable and appropriate quantity of ink from an ink tank to the printer head.
Still other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown by way of illustrative example and not in a limiting sense.
The invention accordingly comprises the several steps and relation of one or more of such steps with respect to each of the others, and the apparatus embodying features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts which are adopted to effect such steps, all as exemplified in the following detailed disclosure, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.
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Kobayashi Takao
Koike Hisashi
Miyazawa Yoshinori
Mochizuki Seiji
Shinada Satoshi
Barlow John
Seiko Epson Corporation
Stephens Juanita
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP
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