Incremental printing of symbolic information – Ink jet – Ejector mechanism
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-19
2002-09-24
Barlow, John (Department: 2853)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Ink jet
Ejector mechanism
C347S050000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06454394
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Applications No. 2000-078724, filed Mar. 21, 2000; and No. 2000-145384, filed May 17, 2000, the entire contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an inkjet head used for forming desired images on printing media by ejecting ink drops toward the printing media such as a printing paper supplied to an inkjet printer, and particularly relates to an inkjet head removably supported by a head supporting member such as a carriage of a printer main body of the inkjet printer in order to ease an inspection and a maintenance of the inkjet head.
In a conventional inkjet printer, a head-side connecter is provided on an inkjet head, and an electric-current-supply-side connector is provided on a printer main body of the inkjet printer. The supply-side connector is connected to electric appliances in the inkjet printer. While the inkjet head is attached at a predetermined position on a head supporting member, the head-side connector is removably connected to the electric-current-supply-side connecter. When the inkjet head is removed from the head supporting member, the connection is cancelled.
The electric connection constitution as described above by which the inkjet head can be removably supported at the predetermined position on the head supporting member in the conventional inkjet printer is well-known by, for example, Japanese Patent Application KOKAI publication No. 5-16339. This conventional electric connection constitution is enlarged and schematically shown in
FIG. 15
of the present application.
As shown in
FIG. 15
, the inkjet head supporting structure in the conventional inkjet printer is provided with a carriage
110
as a head supporting member, and the carriage
110
includes an inkjet head supporting base
112
having an inkjet head insertion port
112
a.
Into the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
, an inkjet head
114
is inserted. The inkjet head
114
is provided with an ink ejecting portion
114
a
, a head-side connector
114
b
arranged to oppose the ink ejecting portion
114
a
, and an electric connecting portion
114
c made of a hard board and interposed between the inkjet ejecting portion
114
a
and the head-side connector
114
b.
The ink ejecting portion
114
a
, the head-side connector
114
b
, and the electrical connecting portion
114
c
are fixed at predetermined positions by a supporting cover (supporting body)
114
d.
More specifically, the ink ejecting portion
114
a
is fixed on one end of the supporting cover
114
d
, the head-side connector
114
b
is fixed on the other end of the supporting cover
114
d
, and the electric connecting portion
114
c
is arranged between the above described one end and the above described other end in a space covered by the supporting cover
114
d
. In the space covered by the supporting cover
114
d
, an ink supply pipe
114
e
is further arranged and extends from the ink ejecting portion
114
a
to the other end of the supporting cover
114
d
. On one end of the supporting cover
114
d
, an ink ejecting portion protecting portion
114
f
is further attached to surround the ink ejecting portion
114
a
. The head-side connector
114
b
has a plurality of guide projections
114
g
projecting in a direction opposite to the above described one end of the supporting cover
114
d.
At the end opposing the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
in the inkjet head supporting base
112
, an electric-current-supply-side connector
116
is arranged. The supply-side connector
116
is connected to electric appliances of a printer main body through a circuit cable described later. More specifically, on an end surface
112
b
at a side opposing to an entrance of the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
, a plurality of guide projections
112
c
are provided to project therefrom. The electric-current-supply-side connector
116
has a plurality of insertion holes
116
a
into which the plurality of guide projections
112
c
can be inserted. The diameter of each of the plurality of insertion holes
116
a
is set sufficiently larger than that of each of the plurality of guide projections
112
c
. Therefore, the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
can be movable in directions crossing each of the plurality of guide projections
112
c
within a difference between the diameter of each of the plurality of insertion holes
116
a
and the diameter of each of the plurality of guide projections
112
c.
Around an outer circumferential surface of each of the plurality of guide projections
112
c
is wound a compression coil spring (urging means)
112
d
, so that the coil spring
112
d
is interposed between a projection end of each of the guide projections
112
c
and the end surface of the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
. The compression coil springs
112
d
urge the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
toward the end surface
112
b
of the above described opposite side of the inkjet head supporting base
112
.
In the carriage
110
, a circuit cable
118
is arranged at a position away in the above described opposite direction from the end of the above described opposite side of the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
on the inkjet head supporting base
112
. On the circuit cable
118
, an electric circuit for controlling an operation of the ink ejecting portion
114
a
of the inkjet head
114
and an operation of the carriage
110
is constituted. From the circuit cable
118
, a flexible printed circuit cable
120
extends to the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
, and an extended end of the flexible printed circuit cable
120
is connected to the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
.
In the carriage
110
, an ink tank
122
is further arranged at a position away in the above described opposite direction from the end of the above described opposite side of the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
on the inkjet head supporting base
112
. From the ink tank
122
, an ink leading pipe
122
a
extends through the end of the above described opposite side of the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
into the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
of the inkjet head supporting base
112
.
Into the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
(predetermined position for the inkjet head
114
) of the inkjet head supporting base
112
in the carriage
110
, the inkjet head
114
is inserted through the above described entrance with the head-side connector
114
b
being as a leading end. At this time, the plurality of the guide projections
114
g
of the head-side connector
114
b
are inserted into the plurality of guide holes
116
a
of the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
, and the head-side connector
114
b
can be connected to the electric-current-supply-side connector
116
of the carriage
110
as shown by an arrow A in FIG.
15
. Also, by the above insertion, the extended end of the ink leading pipe
122
a
from the ink tank
122
is inserted into the extended end of the ink supply pipe
114
e
of the inkjet head
114
and connected with it in the water-tight manner.
Insertion of the inkjet head
114
into the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
is stopped when a contact surface T of the ink ejecting portion protecting portion
114
f
of the inkjet head
114
is brought into contact with a positioning surface S surrounding the above described entrance of the inkjet head insertion port
112
a
in the inkjet head supporting base
112
. In this state, the ink ejecting portion protecting portion
114
f
is fixed by a well-known fixing means on the positioning surface S of the inkjet head supporting base
112
. More specifically, a plurality of through holes
114
g
are formed on the ink ejecting portion protecting portion
114
f
, and the above described fixing is performed by inserting a plurality of headed bolts not shown into these through holes
114
g
and screwing them into the positioning surface S.
Komatsu Katsuaki
Nishikawa Takuo
Sakurai Satoshi
Shibano Makoto
Barlow John
Frishauf Holtz Goodman & Chick P.C.
Stephens Juanita
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