JPH0768770A - Ink jet ink tank and ink jet recording apparatus using the ink tank - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] An inkjet ink tank that can store a large amount of ink and supply it smoothly to a recording head. [Structure] Ribs 9 provided in the inner wall of the first storage portion 4 storing a porous body that absorbs and holds ink in the direction of the ink supply port 2 from the vicinity of the partition wall 5 to smoothly exchange ink by gas-liquid exchange. Supply to the ink supply port 2.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet cartridge having an ink effective for a particular ink jet cartridge, a method for producing the ink jet cartridge, and an ink jet head and a printer using the ink cartridge. The present invention relates to an invention applicable to a recording device such as a copying machine and a facsimile, a communication device, an office device, a composite device, a printer, etc., which uses an inkjet technology.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet ink cartridge is integrated with an ink jet head, and when the ink in the cartridge cannot be ejected,
Often discarded with the head. Even if improvements are made, the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge in this state is relatively large because it is governed by the ink holding capacity of the sponge, which is the negative pressure generator that is stored almost entirely in the cartridge. It was dead.

An ink container of this type is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-6.
No. 3242 can be mentioned. That is, it is a cartridge of one inkjet recording head in which a foam material is arranged in an ink container and which is provided with a plurality of ink ejection orifices. In this ink container, since ink is stored in a porous medium such as polyurethane foam, which is a foam material, a negative pressure is generated by the capillary force of the foam and the ink is retained (prevention of ink leakage from the ink container). However, since only one foam is required to fill almost the entire ink storage chamber, the ink filling amount is limited, and the ink filling amount is limited to almost the entire ink storage chamber. However, there is a problem that the amount of ink left unused in the foam is increased and the efficiency of ink use is poor.

To solve this problem, there is a publication that discloses a cartridge that employs a configuration in which the ink cartridge holds substantially only ink. That is, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-522, an ink jet in which a small amount of a porous member is arranged between a primary ink storage section located above and holding a large amount of ink and an ink jet recording head located below. An ink cartridge integrated with a recording head is disclosed. According to the present invention, the use efficiency of ink can be improved by disposing the porous member only in the ink flow path without incorporating it in the ink storage unit. Further, by providing a secondary ink storage part as a space capable of holding ink on the side of the porous member, the primary ink storage due to the expansion of the air in the primary ink storage part due to the temperature rise (pressure drop) It is said that the negative pressure on the recording head at the time of recording can be kept substantially constant by collecting the ink flowing out from the section.

However, according to the invention of this publication, in the non-recording time, the porous member is soaked with the ink from the primary ink storage portion which is located above and holds a large amount of the ink so much that the ink is too much. Therefore, the generation of negative pressure in the porous member itself is almost eliminated.
Therefore, there is a problem that the ink leaks from the orifice of the inkjet recording head with a slight impact.
Not suitable for practical use. In addition, the adoption of the exchangeable ink cartridge type in which the ink container is attached to the ink recording head has a problem that it cannot be put to practical use because the state of the porous member causes ink leakage.

On the other hand, there is also known an ink cartridge in which ink is enclosed in a bag and a spring structure is added to make the negative pressure of the bag constant, but it is not only expensive but also expensive. Maintaining the performance of the spring configuration and achieving mass production has been difficult.

In any case, no inexpensive (non-contact recording print type) ink cartridge has been provided in the field of ink jet printing which is at a reasonable technical level in the field of ink jet printing.

[0008]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION As an ink container suitable for the technical field of ink jet printing, the inventors of the present invention are able to satisfactorily supply ink that is suitable for the amount of ink ejected from a recording head during recording. It was possible to do so, and the two-sidedness that there is no inconvenience such as ink leakage from the ejection port when not recording was examined. As a result, as a basic configuration, the negative pressure generating member is accommodated, and the first storage chamber provided with an atmosphere communication portion for obtaining communication with the atmosphere and the first storage chamber communicates with the first storage chamber, but is in a substantially sealed state. Therefore, the structure having the second storage chamber for directly storing the ink to be supplied to the first storage chamber has become an important prerequisite for the characteristics of the inkjet.

On the other hand, the present inventors have studied the contact recording technique different from the technical field of the present invention,
We decided to reexamine the technical peculiarities of the inkjet printing field. Generally, a recording instrument pen that contacts a recording medium to perform recording supplies ink to a recording core that has both ink absorbability and retention, and therefore the recording core itself is exposed to the atmosphere. On the premise that this is the case, an ink impregnated body that is supersaturated with ink is essential in the area that directly contacts the recording core. That is, the contact recording technology is fundamentally different from the technical contents in the inkjet field.

As a result of investigation, it was found that Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 16385/1982.
I found the publication. This publication discloses a recording instrument pen which is premised on the use of a recording core (a porous ink-absorbent core) for contacting with a recording medium to perform recording. It was only the ink overflow.

This publication discloses a first contact for contacting a lower recording core.
The liquid absorbent material and a second liquid absorbent material that slightly absorbs the ink on the upper air communication port side but is less likely to contain the ink than the first liquid absorbent material are provided, and the recording core is projected downward at the center. This is an invention in which a chamber and a hermetically sealed ink containing chamber for supplying ink to both sides of the chamber are essential components. According to this configuration, the air in the hermetically sealed ink storage chamber expands due to the rise in ambient temperature, the ink in the hermetically sealed ink storage chamber reaches the first liquid absorbing material, and the ink that cannot be held by the first liquid absorbing material is reached. By absorbing the second liquid absorbing material, it is possible to prevent the ink from overflowing and falling from the recording core. Further, in this publication, when one of the two hermetically sealed ink storage chambers contains only air, a groove having a constant width is provided to allow the expansion of the air to escape to the atmosphere communication port side. It is also disclosed to provide from the lowermost end to the uppermost end of a side surface different from the partition wall with the chamber.

The inventors of the present invention focused on applying only this tank configuration to a non-contact recording ink jet head having few technical similarities. A new phenomenon of ink overflow was confirmed. Moreover, the first liquid absorbent, which is an ink impregnated body in a region in direct contact with the recording core, is supersaturated with ink, and therefore does not need to generate a negative pressure, and therefore has a commonality with inkjet technology. I was able to confirm that I could not see it. This new phenomenon has not been recognized in the field of recording instrument pens, and there has been no technical suggestion for stabilizing negative pressure in this field.

It has also been confirmed that the groove of a certain width disclosed in the above publication has a function of promoting the discharge of ink together with the air, so that the overflow of ink from the atmosphere communication port is further promoted. Furthermore, the ink consumption from the ink storage chambers on both sides is not equal, and if the ink in one ink storage chamber is exhausted first, inkjet recording will not be possible even though a large amount of ink remains in the other ink storage chamber. I got it. This was a result of wasting the ink in the ink storage chamber, which was fundamentally contrary to the purpose of the inkjet technology. This was because a large amount of air had entered the first liquid absorbent material, and as a result, ink could not be supplied.

The applicant of the present invention has previously applied for an epoch-making ink jet cartridge which solves such a background problem. This accommodates the negative pressure generating member and has a first storage chamber having an atmosphere communicating portion for communicating with the atmosphere, and communicates with the first storage chamber, but the first storage is substantially sealed. It is an invention to provide a structure capable of effectively functioning as an ink jet to a cartridge having a precondition that has a second storage chamber for directly storing ink to be supplied to the chamber. According to this structure, since the tank structure is such that the negative pressure is substantially constant from the beginning of use to the end of use of the ink cartridge, the replaceable ink cartridge and inkjet that can also support high-speed recording. It is also possible to provide a head and a printer.

On the other hand, in general, the ink cartridge is
In order to reduce the running cost and from the viewpoint of resource saving, it is desired to re-inject the ink after it is used.

As a result of studying the re-injection of the above-mentioned ink in the above-mentioned invented ink-jet cartridge, the present inventors have found a preferable ink-injection form by the technique unique to the present ink-jet cartridge.

The present invention was not expected from a conventional technical point of view, and by analyzing this, ink is re-injected into a used ink cartridge while maintaining the function of the ink cartridge. The present invention has been recognized for the first time by the present inventors as being able to provide conditions that enable the above.

[0018]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the background art described above, a main object of the present invention is to generate a negative pressure, which is formed when ink in the ink chamber of the novel ink cartridge is supplied to the negative pressure generating member. A replaceable ink cartridge capable of further stabilizing the smooth and stable interface between the ink and the outside air which is the gas in the member, and preferably a negative pressure therebetween, and an inkjet using the same To provide the head.

Another object of the present invention is to generate a negative pressure inside the ink cartridge at the time of non-recording such as an initial state before use or a standby state during use, and the fluctuation of the negative pressure against impact or environmental change. Even more, it is an object of the present invention to provide an ink refilling method and a replaceable inkjet cartridge that can minimize the negative pressure fluctuation.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an ink filling method and an ink jet cartridge in which the ink remaining in the ink cartridge can be substantially eliminated and the amount of ink remaining in the negative pressure generating member can be reduced infinitely. Especially.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a filling ink and an ink jet cartridge which are cheaper under the conditions of distribution and manufacture of the exchangeable ink cartridge alone and which increase the ink leakage prevention function. Especially.

Here, an ink jet cartridge which is premised on using a negative pressure generating member which is not in an ink supersaturated state, such as the negative pressure generating member applied to the ink jet cartridge of the present invention, is known. There is no known configuration in which an ink storage chamber that is substantially sealed is adjacent to this.

Furthermore, the present invention is effective when the first storage chamber in which the negative pressure generating member is stored is horizontally long, and has the effect of increasing the volume of ink. Therefore, first, some of the features of the cartridge configuration to which the present invention is applied will be described below.

[0024]

[Means and Actions for Solving the Problems] As a technical point of view that the conventional state of the art is wiped out regardless of the storage state or the use state, a region near the atmosphere communicating portion of the negative pressure generating member has By setting the area where ink is not held, there is an advantage that the ink in the ink cartridge can be prevented from leaking from the atmosphere communicating portion against changes in environmental conditions. In particular, when the seal member seals the atmosphere communicating portion, it also has the effect of preventing the seal member from peeling off.
In addition, in the usage state, this area can efficiently supply the amount of air into the cartridge as needed, and also has an effect of suppressing the negative pressure change in the inkjet cartridge. It is preferable that the region in the vicinity of the atmosphere communicating portion is not wetted by the ink at all, because the permeation speed of the ink itself can be further reduced, but it may be a region in which the ink is removed after being previously wetted with the ink. .

Further, the present invention is based on the above-mentioned preconditions.
By providing an ink supply opening or a compression (or compressible) region of the negative pressure generator by a supply pipe on the side facing the partition wall forming the minute communication portion,
The ink in the second storage chamber can secure a stable and substantial ink supply passage inside the negative pressure generator, and the ink supply opening is located above the minute communicating portion with respect to the lower surface of the ink cartridge so as to further stabilize the ink supply passage. It can be mentioned that it is located at. The "supply pipe" referred to in the present invention
Includes not only an insertion tube peculiar to an ink jet, but also a valve structure attached to a cartridge to compressively deform a negative pressure generator and a connecting member. The action of this arrangement relation is a direction in which the substantial ink movement direction can be made constant, all the ink in the second storage chamber can be consumed, and even after this consumption, the air in the second storage chamber is under reduced pressure. By interposing the atmosphere so as to move from the partition wall side to the opposing opening side, the ink in the negative pressure generating body can be consumed and the residual ink can be reduced as a result.

In particular, with respect to the above-described precondition, a region which is not compressed by the supply pipe of the negative pressure generator from the partition wall forming the minute communication portion toward the side facing the wall,
By having the regions compressed by the supply pipe of the negative pressure generator in this order, the above-mentioned one-direction ink supply path can be formed in the uncompressed region, and the same effect can be obtained. With this, the ink remaining amount can be further reduced.

Therefore, the more preferable preparatory constitution invention of the present invention can satisfy the above-mentioned three constitutions, but of course, the above constitutions alone or a combination of any two constitutions can obtain excellent effects. You can understand that

On the other hand, in the ink jet cartridge of the premise of the present invention, the operator's finger is touched, but normally, inconvenience is unlikely to occur, but if a strong pressure is applied, a storage chamber for storing only ink is large. Depends on the size, but it is easily deformed. Therefore, as a structure for solving the problem caused by the external pressure, it is preferable to provide a partition plate having a larger gap than the partition wall forming the minute communication portion in the ink-only chamber. From the viewpoint of deformation, when these cartridges are made of resin, the wall thickness Ti of the ink containing chamber is 0.8 mm (point G in FIG. 20).
As described above, it is preferable that the wall thickness Ts of the storage chamber that stores the sponge or the like as the negative pressure generating member is 1.3 mm (point J in FIG. 20) or more. Further, it was found that it is more preferable that the wall thickness Ts is in the range of 1.2 times or more and 3 times or less of the wall thickness Ti.

As the ink jet printer of the premise of the present invention, when the cartridge of the present invention is mounted, ink is discharged from the cartridge automatically or instructed by a suction means by a suction means through a head. Since the ink state in the negative pressure generating body can be corrected before printing by executing the above, the original function of the cartridge can be used without being affected by the state of leaving the cartridge.

The height of the minute communication portion to the partition wall in the above-mentioned premise is larger than the average pore diameter of the negative pressure generating member (preferably the average pore diameter near the minute communication portion) (practically 0.1 mm or more). 5 mm or less is suitable. If more stabilization is expected, it is preferably 3 mm or less. or,
The ratio of the volume of the storage chamber of the negative pressure generating member to the volume of the storage chamber of only ink may be in the range of 1: 1 or more and 1: 3 or less as a practically optimum range.

[0031]

Embodiments of the present invention have been described above. Next, description will be given of an embodiment of an ink cartridge which can obtain the effect extremely stably by using the present invention.

As described above, the volume ratio between the negative pressure generating member storage chamber and the ink only storage chamber is preferably in the range of 1: 1 or more and 1: 3 or less, but the usable amount of ink is increased. For this reason, the maximum ratio is 1: 3, and it is difficult to increase the capacity of the ink beyond this. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the size of the ink cartridge. It is desirable that the ink cartridge having the first storage chamber and the second storage chamber be extended from the partition wall partitioning at the center thereof in the direction of the surface having the opening portion facing the partition wall to enlarge the first storage chamber.
Similarly, the second storage chamber may have a shape that extends from the partition wall in the direction of the surface facing the partition wall and expands. This makes it possible to increase the capacity of the ink cartridge, but in this case,
If the premise of the present embodiment is left as it is, there is a strong possibility that the ink flow path in the first storage chamber will be cut off midway. Therefore, in the inner wall of the first storage chamber, which is perpendicular to the surface having the opening and is one or both of the side surfaces when the carriage is mounted, it is horizontal from the partition wall to the opening in a region above the upper end of the opening. By providing a rib extending in the direction, the negative pressure generating member is surely shown to have stable ink advancing property, and the gas-liquid interface between the gas air and the liquid ink is blocked in the negative pressure generating member. The interface can be made stable for a long period of time without any change, and the gas-liquid exchange can be stably performed, and the effect of stably forming the ink flow path in the negative pressure generating member can be obtained. .

The effects and characteristics of other configurations of the present invention will be shown in the following embodiments.

FIGS. 1 to 6 show the surface of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion which faces the partition wall 5 which forms the minute communicating portion 8 with the bottom surface of the cartridge, in addition to the prerequisite structure of the ink cartridge used in the present invention. This is an example of a configuration in which an opening for ink supply is provided in the.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view in which a part of the ink cartridge is cut away, and FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ink cartridge body 1 used in the present invention is located at a position where the opening 2 for connecting with the ink jet recording head is displaced toward the gap portion 8 as a minute communication portion. The ink cartridge bottom portion 1 is provided adjacent to the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 accommodating the negative pressure generating member 3 and the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion via the partition wall 5.
1 and an ink containing portion 6 that contains only the ink communicating with each other.

With this structure, the atmosphere is supplied from the opening 2. However, it is important that the ink in the ink containing section 6 is supplied only through the communicating section 8 as compared with the structure of the atmosphere communicating section. That is, the ink is reliably supplied to the opening 2 side along the ink cartridge bottom 11. As the ink is supplied, the atmosphere is replaced with the ink in the ink container 6 and is replenished.

Here, the state in which the negative pressure generating member in the region near the opening of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 which can be compressed and deformed by the supply pipe is compressed and deformed by the supply pipe will be described. In FIG. 3, a joint member 7 as a supply pipe for supplying ink to an ink jet recording head is inserted into a replaceable ink cartridge used in the present invention, and the ink jet recording apparatus is brought into a operable state by being pressed against a negative pressure generating member. It is a schematic cross-sectional view when it becomes. A filter may be installed at the end of the joint member to remove dust inside the ink cartridge.

When the ink jet recording apparatus is operated, ink is ejected from the orifice of the ink jet recording head and an ink suction force is generated in the replaceable ink cartridge. The suction force of the ink 9 causes the gap 8 between the end of the partition wall and the bottom 11 of the ink cartridge from the ink containing portion 6 to be sucked.
Through the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4, the negative pressure generating member 3, the negative pressure generating member 3 is drawn into the joint member 7, and the ink is supplied to the inkjet recording head. As a result, the pressure inside the ink container 6 that is closed except for the gap 8 is reduced, and a pressure difference is generated between the ink container 6 and the negative pressure generating member container 4. The pressure difference continues to increase as recording continues, but since the negative pressure generating member portion is open to the atmosphere by the gap 12 between the joint member portion and the joint opening portion, air passes through the negative pressure generating member. The ink container 4 enters through the gap 8 between the partition wall end 8 and the ink cartridge bottom 11. At this point, the ink containing portion 6 and the negative pressure generating member containing portion 4
The pressure difference between and is eliminated. This operation is repeated during inkjet recording, and a certain negative pressure is obtained in the ink cartridge. Further, almost all of the ink in the ink containing portion can be used except the ink attached to the wall surface in the ink containing portion, so that the ink use efficiency is improved.

At the time of non-recording, a capillary force of the negative pressure generating member itself (or a meniscus force at the ink-negative pressure generating member interface) is generated, and in particular, when the ink of the ink in the ink containing portion starts to be consumed. The ink holding state in the negative pressure generating member storage portion is substantially constant, and the gas collected in the ink storage portion is in a substantially negative pressure state, so that the pressure balance in the cartridge is extremely stable, and ink jet recording Prevents ink from leaking from the head.

Therefore, if the negative pressure generating member is selected according to the ink jet recording head to be jointed and the ratio between the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion and the ink accommodating portion is designed, the configuration shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 19 (A) and 19 (B), the ink of each color (for example, four colors of black, yellow, magenta, and cyan) is used in order to make the exchangeable ink cartridge of the present invention compatible with a color ink jet recording apparatus. Can be housed in individual replaceable ink cartridges and used. Further, as shown in FIG. 19 (A), individual ink cartridges may be integrated into a replaceable ink cartridge, or as shown in FIG. 19 (B), a replaceable ink cartridge for frequently used black ink. It may be a replaceable ink cartridge in which the other color ink integrated cartridge is separated. These combinations are arbitrary according to the inkjet device.

In the exchangeable ink cartridge of the present invention, in order to control the negative pressure in the ink jet recording head, not only the negative pressure generating member 3 but also the shape, size and partition of the partition wall end 8 are selected. The shape and size of the gap 8 between the wall end portion 8 and the ink cartridge bottom portion 11, the volume ratio of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 and the ink accommodating portion 6, the insertion amount of the joint member 7 into the exchangeable ink cartridge,
It is more preferable to optimize the shape and size, the shape and size of the filter 12, the roughness of the eyes, the surface tension of the ink and the like according to the conditions of use.

As the negative pressure generating member to be used, a conventionally known member can be used as long as it has the ability to hold the ink itself against the own weight of liquid (ink) and a slight vibration. For example, a cotton-like material in which fibers are meshed or a porous material having communication holes can be used. A sponge such as polyurethane foam is preferable because it is easy to adjust the ink holding power and the generation of negative pressure. In particular, in the case of foam, it is preferable because it can be adjusted so as to have a desired porosity during foam production. When the foam is subjected to a heat compression treatment to further adjust the porosity, decomposition products due to heating may be generated, which may change the physical properties of the ink and adversely affect the recording quality. Become. Further, in order to manufacture a replaceable ink cartridge compatible with various ink jet recording devices, a foam having a corresponding porosity is required, but a specific number of cells not subjected to thermal compression (the number of holes per inch). It is preferable to cut a foam material having a size of 1 to a desired size and insert it into the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion by compression to adjust the porosity and the capillary force.

In the above-described example, the joint member 7 and the joint opening 2 are provided with a gap to take in the atmosphere from the outside of the ink cartridge. Any structure and shape may be used.
When the negative pressure generating member is a porous member such as a sponge, the porous member is prevented from escaping from the bottom of the ink cartridge when the joint member is inserted, as shown in FIGS. In order to maintain and secure the pressure contact surface between the filter portion and the negative pressure generating member, the end portion of the joint member 7 preferably has an arbitrary angle (taper) with respect to the joint member insertion direction. When the insertion amount of the joint member is too large, the tapered portion at the tip may cause cracks in the negative pressure generating member. Therefore, a surface structure as shown in FIG. 3C may be used.

It is also conceivable that the outer wall of the joint member is provided with irregularities for introducing the atmosphere so as to serve as an intake port for the atmosphere, but the shape of the opening 2 is also a groove (see FIG. 5) as shown in FIG.
(A)) desired shape, that is, FIG. 5 (b) is rectangular,
It is possible to select a triangular shape as shown in FIG. The shape of the opening 2 is preferably such that a gap is provided such that the joint member and the opening are not sealed, or the opening 2 is close to the outer periphery of the joint member at the lower portion of the opening (on the bottom side of the ink cartridge) and is opened at the upper portion of the opening. It has a shape like.

As described above, the exchangeable ink cartridge used in the present invention can serve both as the joint opening portion and the portion for taking in the atmosphere, and can have a simpler structure. The amount of the joint member 7 to be inserted into the exchangeable ink cartridge does not cause ink leakage at the time of insertion in consideration of the shape of the joint member, the negative pressure generating member, the shape of the ink cartridge, etc. It is preferable to set the compression region of the negative pressure generating member so as not to cause the above.

In contrast to the above embodiments, providing a communication hole for communicating with the atmosphere in addition to the joint opening on the side of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion means that the negative pressure generating member region of the present invention which does not hold ink is formed. It is also effective for adopting the configuration provided in the vicinity of the atmosphere communicating portion, and is a suitable means for improving the reliability against environmental changes in the inkjet recording apparatus described later.

The shape and size of the gap 8 between the end of the partition wall and the bottom of the ink cartridge are arbitrary, but if the gap 8 is too narrow, the meniscus force with the ink will be strong and ink leakage from the joint opening will be suppressed. However, it is necessary to supply ink to the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion, and ink may run out during use. Also, if it is too wide, the opposite phenomenon may occur, so the height of the minute communication part to the partition wall is larger than the average hole diameter of the negative pressure generating member (preferably the average hole diameter in the vicinity of the minute communication part). (Practically 0.1 mm or more) 5 mm or less is suitable. If more stabilization is expected, it is preferably 3 mm or less. FIG. 7 shows an example of the shape of the gap 8. FIG. 7A shows
It was used in the previous example and is the most stable construction for the present invention, with a constant height and across the full width of the cartridge. 7 (b) and 7 (c), the communicating portion is formed and meanders only in a part of the entire width of the cartridge. This configuration is effective when the volume of the entire cartridge is large, but is low in normal printers. FIG. 7D has a plurality of tunnel-shaped communication portions, and the ink easily moves to the inner surface of the cartridge, so that gas introduction for gas-ink exchange can be concentrated.
7 (e) and 7 (f), in addition to the configuration of FIG. 7 (a), a recess is formed in the partition wall on the ink storage chamber side in the vertical direction. Therefore, the gas that has reached the lower end of the partition wall is effectively introduced into the ink storage chamber relatively in the recess, and the gas recovery efficiency can be improved.

It is a more preferable condition that the gap 8 is also determined in consideration of the position of the joint opening. Explaining with reference to FIGS. 10A and 10B,
In (a), the end of the partition wall is lower than the lower end of the joint opening, and the ink held in the negative pressure generating member is below the lower end of the joint opening. Yes preferred. On the other hand, in (b), the end of the partition wall is higher than the lower end of the joint opening, and the ink held in the negative pressure generating member is above the lower end of the joint opening, so ink leakage is suppressed. Less effective and not preferable. Therefore, there is an advantage that the effect of the present invention can be further stabilized by designing the size of the gap 8 such that the position of the end of the partition wall is the same as or lower than the lower end of the joint opening. Although it depends on the shape and size of the replacement ink cartridge, it can be put to practical use by selecting the height of the gap 8 from the maximum range of heights of 0.1 mm or more and 20 mm or less, and more preferably 0.5 to 5 mm. It is a degree.
Further, the shape of the partition wall end may be any shape as long as the position with the joint opening is taken into consideration, but if it is shown as an example, the description is omitted, but FIGS. ).

Furthermore, the boundary between the end of the partition wall 5 and the negative pressure generating member 3 may have various structural relationships. FIG. 9 shows this. 9 (a) to 9 (d)
Since the negative pressure generating member is not compressed by the end of the partition wall and the density of the negative pressure generating member is not locally increased, the ink flow and the air flow become relatively quick, and high-speed recording and It is preferable for color recording. On the other hand, in FIGS. 9E and 9F, the negative pressure generating member 3 is compressed by the end of the partition wall, and the density of the member increases, which causes resistance to the flow of ink and the flow of air, but a slight amount. With respect to environmental changes, it is possible to suppress troubles such as ink leakage.
Therefore, these selections may be designed in consideration of the type of inkjet recording device and the environmental conditions used.

The volume ratio of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 and the ink accommodating portion 6 must be determined in consideration of the type of ink jet recording apparatus and the environmental conditions used. Also,
The relationship with the negative pressure generating member used is also important. In order to improve the use efficiency of ink, it is preferable to increase the volume of the ink containing portion, and at that time, a negative pressure generating member having a high negative pressure generating force (a compression rate of a sponge is high) is used. Will be effective. Therefore, if it is noted that the negative pressure generation force of the negative pressure generation member is increased as the volume ratio of the ink storage portion is increased, the volume of the storage chamber of the negative pressure generation member and the volume of the storage chamber of only ink are A ratio in the range of 1: 1 or more and 1: 3 or less can be mentioned as an optimum range for practical use.

The shape, size, and roughness of the filter 11 can be arbitrarily set according to the type of the ink jet recording apparatus. However, in order to prevent dust from entering from the ink cartridge and not clog the nozzle of the recording head, the orifice of It is preferable to make the surface roughness smaller than the diameter.

The initial amount of ink to be filled in the exchangeable ink cartridge used in the present invention is arbitrary within the ink cartridge internal volume. However, in order to maintain the negative pressure immediately after opening the exchangeable ink cartridge, the ink is stored in the ink containing portion. May be filled up to the volume limit, but it is preferable that the ink filling amount in the negative pressure generating member is set to be equal to or less than the limit of the ink holding force of the negative pressure generating member. Here, the ink holding force refers to the ability of the negative pressure generating member to hold the ink by itself when the negative pressure generating member is impregnated with the ink.

In an ink cartridge having a closed ink containing portion, the external environment changes (temperature rise or atmospheric pressure drop) when loaded in the ink jet recording apparatus.
On the other hand, due to the air expansion of the ink container (there is also the expansion of the ink), the ink remaining in the ink container may be pushed out of the ink cartridge, and ink may leak. However, in the replaceable ink cartridge used in the present invention, the air expansion volume (including a small amount of ink expansion) of the closed system ink accommodating portion is predicted in accordance with the worst-case environmental condition, and the ink accompanying it is predicted. It is preferable that the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion is provided in advance with the amount of ink movement from the accommodating portion. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 10 (c) and 10 (d), it is necessary to provide an atmosphere communication hole on the side of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion other than the joint opening so that the negative pressure is generated from the ink chamber due to the expansion of the air in the ink accommodating chamber. The ink that has moved into the member can be guided to the atmosphere communication side, which is very effective. The installation position of the atmosphere communication hole is not particularly specified as long as it is above the joint opening on the side of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion, but separates the flow of ink in the negative pressure generating member from the joint opening when the environment changes. for,
It is preferably located far from the joint opening. Further, the number, shape, size, etc. of the atmosphere communication holes can be arbitrarily set in consideration of ink evaporation.

In the distribution of the ink cartridge alone, it is preferable to seal the joint opening and / or the air communication hole with a sealing material or the like to prepare for evaporation of ink and air expansion in the ink cartridge. As a sealing material,
In the packaging field, it is preferable to use a single layer barrier called a barrier material and a composite of several layers of plastic film, and a composite barrier material in which these are combined with a reinforcing material such as paper and cloth, or an aluminum foil. . It is more preferable to use a material similar to the material of the ink cartridge main body as an adhesive layer of the barrier material, and improve the hermeticity by welding with a heat or the like.

Further, in order to suppress the evaporation of ink from the ink cartridge or the inflow of air from the outside atmosphere, after the ink cartridge is inserted, the air in the packaging material is degassed and then sealed. It is effective if taken. The packaging material is preferably selected from the barrier materials in the same manner as the above sealing material in consideration of gas permeability and liquid permeability.

By selecting the packaging form as described above, the physical distribution of the ink cartridge alone becomes extremely reliable without ink leakage.

The material of the ink cartridge body may be any material conventionally used for molded articles, but it should be selected from materials that do not affect the ink jet ink or members that have been treated so as not to affect the ink jet ink. is there. It is also necessary to consider the productivity of the ink cartridge. For example, the ink cartridge body shown in FIGS. 1 and 11 is divided into an ink cartridge bottom 11 portion and an upper portion thereof, which are integrally molded with a resin material, and after the negative pressure generating member is inserted, the ink cartridge bottom 11 portion is inserted. The ink cartridge body can be manufactured by welding the upper part of the ink cartridge. If the resin material is selected to be transparent or semi-transparent, the ink in the ink containing portion can be visually recognized from the outside of the ink cartridge, so that the replacement time of the ink cartridge can be visually determined. Further, in order to facilitate the welding of the sealing material and the like, it is preferable to provide a convex portion as shown in the figure. Further, it is also preferable in terms of design to give the outer surface of the ink cartridge body a texture.

Both the pressurizing method and the depressurizing method can be used for the initial filling of the ink. It should be noted that it is preferable to provide the ink filling port 21 in any one of the tank bodies for filling the ink because it does not stain the other ink cartridge openings. The ink filling port 21 after filling the ink is preferably plugged with a plastic or metal material.

The configuration and shape of the exchangeable ink cartridge can be variously modified without departing from the scope of the present invention.

As described above, the replaceable ink cartridge of the present invention maintains high reliability even in the case of a single physical distribution, has a simple structure, and is capable of detecting the remaining amount of ink and has a high ink use efficiency. It becomes a cartridge.

Also, a suitable negative pressure is maintained from the beginning of use to the end of use during recording and non-recording to support high-speed recording, and the ink exchange recording type does not leak even under the use environment conditions of the ink jet recording apparatus. It becomes an ink cartridge.

Furthermore, the replaceable ink cartridge is easy to handle, does not leak when attached to or detached from the ink jet recording apparatus, and does not malfunction when mounted in the ink jet recording apparatus.

In order to increase the capacity of the replaceable ink cartridge as described above, it is the most efficient from the viewpoint of manufacturing compatibility that the entire cartridge is of the horizontally long type as described above. Has been done.

FIG. 38 is a perspective view of this large capacity type laterally long ink cartridge.

In this case, since the ink flow path may be interrupted in the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4, the gas-liquid exchange promoting rib 9 is provided. This is provided on one side or both sides of the inner wall of the side surface of the cartridge, and it is effective to provide it on the area A above the upper end of the opening 2.
The most practical effect is that the horizontal length of the rib 9 is 70% or more and 100% or less of the distance from the partition wall 5 to the surface having the opening 2, and the height of the rib is 0.5 m.
m or more and 3.0 mm or less, and the width of the rib is 0.5 mm or more and 3.
The best value is 0 mm or less. The number of ribs is 3-4
Only about this number is required, but it is also effective to provide thin ribs in a slit shape.

Furthermore, the installation of ribs 9 as shown in FIG. 39 is also effective.

In this case also, it is provided in the area A above the upper end of the opening 2. The same applies to the case of FIG. 38, but the reason for providing such a rib 9 in the area A is that when a gas-liquid exchange promoting rib is provided at the opening 2, the supply portion of the head attached thereto is There is a concern that only the air will be sucked in without sucking the ink and the ink will run out.

As a method of installing the ribs which can further obtain the effect, there is a method as shown in FIG. Similarly to FIG. 38, horizontal ribs are provided in the area A, and ribs 9'perpendicular thereto are provided in the area below the opening 2. in this case,
The ribs 9 and 9'are of the same height. The advantage of this type is that even if the same negative pressure generating member as used in the current cartridge without ribs is used, the compression rate is kept uniform, gas-liquid exchange is performed stably, and only air is sucked from the opening. Will disappear.

Although there is a problem of the compression rate of the negative pressure generating member, there is also a method of making the compression rate uniform in the ink cartridge of FIG. 41 is a view on arrow B of FIG. 38.
41A is a cross-sectional view of the ink cartridge as viewed in the direction of arrow B, FIG.
b is a negative pressure generating member viewed from the same direction. Similar to the height x of the rib, the portion of the negative pressure generating member that comes into contact with the rib is
This can be dealt with by cutting only x.

Further, another method of installing these ribs for promoting gas-liquid exchange will be described.

FIG. 42 shows a large-capacity type of the ink cartridge described so far, and is a perspective view of FIG. 38 viewed from the direction of C. Here, the area A above the upper end of the opening 2 in the negative pressure generating member storage portion 4
Further, the rib 9 is provided toward the compression portion region B of the negative pressure generating member near the opening as shown in the drawing.

At this time, it is most effective to provide the ribs 9 so as not to come into contact with the compression region B, and the ribs 9 should not touch the regions B when the ribs 9 are installed in this form. Further, when the ribs 9'are also provided in the area A and below, the ribs 9
On the other hand, it is desirable that the height of the rib is low. Further, it is better that the surface area is smaller than that of the rib 9. Further, the shape of the rib 9'may be a wavy shape or a dot shape. By providing the ribs 9 ', the compression rate of the negative pressure generating member can be made uniform, which is very effective in terms of process or performance.

FIG. 11 shows a method of manufacturing an ink tank as a cartridge of the present invention, which is provided with a partition plate 61 described later and a wall portion which forms two storage chamber recesses with a partition wall 5 interposed therebetween. After inserting the absorber 3 as a negative pressure generating member into the recessed portion on the side of the opening 2 with respect to the main body (diagonal section: diagonally downward left), the bottom member 11 as a lid member is inserted.
It shows a configuration integrated processing in. FIG. 11 is a partially cutaway schematic view showing a state in which the recording head HD is mounted on the ink tank 1. The ink tank is configured by covering a container divided into two chambers by the partition wall 5 with a flat bottom member 11 that forms the bottom of the ink tank. In this way, the same minute communication passage 8 as the tip of the partition wall 5 of the container can be formed with a simple structure of covering the lid. It should be noted that the atmosphere communicating portion 10 is located in an upper portion on the same surface as the surface on which the opening 2 is provided.

On the other hand, the head is mounted by inserting the joint portion 7 as a supply pipe into the opening of the ink tank, and the joint portion 7 has an oblique structure in which the upper portion in the drawing is forward from the lower portion. . Further, the ink flow path inside the joint has a horn structure that opens upward. With such a structure, the ink from the absorber can be satisfactorily introduced to the head side.

The ink jet recording apparatus is provided with a heating element 72 as a means for generating thermal energy as energy used to eject ink from the ejection port 71 of the nozzle 73, and the state change of ink is caused by the thermal energy. In the recording apparatus having the recording head HD of the type that causes
Higher recording density and higher definition can be achieved especially for color recording.

As described above, the replaceable ink cartridge of the present invention maintains high reliability even in the case of a single physical distribution, and is a replaceable ink cartridge having a simple structure and capable of detecting the remaining amount of ink and having a high ink use efficiency. Becomes

In addition, a suitable negative pressure is maintained from the beginning of use to the end of use during recording and non-recording to support high-speed recording, and the ink-jet recording apparatus is an exchangeable type that does not leak ink even under operating environment conditions. It becomes an ink cartridge.

Furthermore, the replaceable ink cartridge is easy to handle, does not leak when attached to or detached from the ink jet recording apparatus, and is a replaceable ink cartridge which does not have a mounting error operation in the ink jet recording apparatus.

Supplementally, a method of manufacturing an ink cartridge will be described. It has a negative pressure generating member storage chamber containing the absorber described above and a communication portion 8 as a minute communication portion.
When the ink storage chamber having a substantially closed structure in the sense that the ink is first discharged by exchanging the gas and the liquid is integrally formed, the ink is filled from the opening 13 on the ink storage chamber side of the lid member 11. As a result, when the ink storage chamber is filled with the ink, the negative pressure generating member 4 itself is also supplied with the ink from the minute communication portion, and the ink is supplied in a considerable range.

Here, the negative pressure generating member near the atmosphere communicating portion is made to exist as a region where ink is not applied and ink is not retained. Thereafter, the opening 13 is sealed by the ball 14, and the opening 2 and the atmosphere communicating portion are the same seal member S.
Sealed (may be different).

FIG. 12 shows a pre-use ink jet cartridge in this state. In this figure, it is assumed that the ink storage chamber 6 is filled with ink.

FIG. 12 shows the ink jet cartridge 1 in the hermetically sealed state and also shows a schematic view of a printer using the ink jet cartridge 1. In this ink jet cartridge 1, a negative pressure generating body region 3A located in the vicinity of the atmosphere communicating portion 10 is provided in an upper corner portion of the cartridge as a region that does not hold ink. The negative pressure generator region 3B located below the region 3A is a compressible region that is compressed and deformed by inserting an ink supply pipe (not shown). The negative pressure generators other than these regions 3A and 3B hold the filled ink without other external influences. Of course, the region 3B is a region facing the opening 2 for mounting the ink supply pipe, which is provided on the same surface below the atmosphere communicating portion 10. The opening 2 is located above the minute communication portion 8 and has all of the above-described characteristic configurations of the present invention.

The cartridge 1 of FIG. 12 can be used by removing the seal member S described above, but since the area 3A does not hold ink, there is no vibration or pressure change when the seal is removed. However, it does not leak ink.

In the present embodiment, regardless of the storage state or the use state of the ink cartridge, as a technical point of view that the conventional technical level is wiped out, the area near the atmosphere communicating portion of the negative pressure generating member is an area not holding ink. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the ink in the ink cartridge from leaking from the atmosphere communicating portion in response to changes in environmental conditions. In particular, when the seal member seals the atmosphere communicating portion, it also has the effect of preventing the seal member from peeling off. Also, when in use,
In this region, the atmosphere can efficiently supply the required amount to the inside of the cartridge, and also has the effect of suppressing the negative pressure change in the inkjet cartridge. It is preferable that the region in the vicinity of the atmosphere communicating portion is not wetted by the ink at all, because the permeation speed of the ink itself can be further reduced, but it may be a region in which the ink is removed after being previously wetted with the ink. .

Further, in the present embodiment, an ink supply opening or an ink supply opening is provided on the side facing the partition wall forming the minute communication portion.
By configuring the compression (or compressible) region of the negative pressure generator by the supply pipe to exist, a stable and substantial ink supply path for the ink in the second storage chamber can be secured in the negative pressure generator. As a more stable configuration, the ink supply opening may be located above the minute communication portion with respect to the lower surface of the ink cartridge. The effect of this arrangement relationship is that the direction of movement of the ink can be substantially constant, all the ink in the second storage chamber can be consumed, and after this consumption, the air in the second storage chamber moves to the facing opening side. By interposing, the ink in the negative pressure generator can be consumed as a result, and the residual ink can be reduced.

In particular, a region which is not compressed by the supply pipe of the negative pressure generator and a region which is compressed by the supply pipe of the negative pressure generator are disposed from the partition wall forming the minute communication portion toward the side facing the wall. In this order, the above-mentioned one-direction ink supply path can be formed in the non-compressed region, and the same effect can be obtained, and the remaining ink amount can be further reduced by the ink securing capacity of the compressed region.

The ink jet printer of the present embodiment automatically or manually discharges ink from the inside of the cartridge by suction or ejection by the suction means via the head in response to mounting of the cartridge 1. It has a head recovery means HR. As a result, the ink state in the negative pressure generating body can be corrected before printing, so that the original function of the cartridge can be utilized without being affected by the state in which the cartridge is left.

In FIG. 12, the tank 1 mounted on the ink jet head HB held by the scanning type carriage CR is the same as the cartridge 1 shown in FIG. In the tank 1 mounted on the carriage, the ink supply pipe of the head passes through the opening 2 and compresses and deforms the compressible region 3B of the negative pressure generating member 3. In this example, the negative pressure generating member 3 is deformed toward the minute communication portion 8 side. At this time, the mounting signal LP is sent to the printer control means CC by the tank attachment / detachment detection means (not shown because it is substituted by a known mechanical or electrical detection means).
Entered in. In response to this, the head recovery means HR operates before the start of recording to discharge the ink in the tank 1 and improve the state of the ink in the tank.

In FIG. 13A, the inner surface of the ink storage chamber of the ink jet cartridge of FIG. 12 is changed so that the space 22 is convex upward by the amount of the capacity. The inner surface 20 is a curved surface that rises as it moves away from the minute communication port 8. The structure of the inner surface 20 supplies minute residual droplets due to the surface tension of the ink to the negative pressure generating member 3 side, and the upwardly projecting portion 21 serves as a holding portion for the operator to prevent the tank from being deformed during the operation. To do. Figure 1
3 (B) shows an obliquely arranged partition wall 51 for making the ink storage chamber large and the negative pressure generating unit 3 storage chamber side small for an equivalent capacity tank.

FIG. 13C shows the above manufacturing method.
This is an example in which a lid member 11 that forms a gap 8 with respect to the partition wall 5 is inserted and fixed between the side plates 101 and 100 of the cartridge body. SE indicates the end of the lid member 11. In the case of FIG. 13C, the distance SP of the gap 8 is not constant if the adhesive fixation has a variation. for that reason,
It is also preferable to dispose the spacers 110 in contact with the end portions SE of the partition wall on both sides as shown in FIG. 13 (D). The spacer 110 may be provided on the lid member 11. Further, the convex portion 30 located within the distance SP of the gap 8 may be provided on the lid member to enhance the collectability of air into the ink containing portion.

14 (A) and 14 (B) respectively show the possible state inclination range of the printing or ink supply state of the embodiment of the present invention, and 40 in the figure indicates the horizontal plane. A more preferable state for the present invention is that the minute communication portion is located on the lower side, and ideally it is parallel to the horizontal surface 40 on the lower surface of the cartridge. However, in practice, in the case of a two-chamber configuration as in this example, (A),
The angle θ as shown in the diagram (B) is within the range of 0 ≦ θ ≦ 15 degrees without any inconvenience in use. When mounted on a scanning type carriage and moved, the range of 0 ≦ θ ≦ 5 degrees is preferable.

The negative pressure generating member of the above-described embodiment of the present invention may be composed of a plurality of members. However, if an interface (inter-member interface) between them occurs, the movement of the atmosphere occurs there, which is likely to cause inconvenience. In some cases, the negative pressure generating member is more preferably a single porous chamber body.

Further, the ink containing chamber can be included as a chamber for substantially containing ink as long as it contains a larger amount of ink than the negative pressure generating member containing chamber.

Here, the partition plate 61 in the ink containing chamber disclosed in the previous embodiment will be described.
Ink leaks from the orifice of the inkjet recording head due to deformation of the outer wall surface of the cartridge due to the load when the user holds it by hand or the environmental conditions during distribution, or the pressure inside the cartridge that is provided in part of the cartridge. A description will be given of an embodiment capable of solving the problem that ink leaks from the atmosphere communication port that makes the same as the atmosphere.

The following example is made to solve the technical problems in the above various ink tank tank configurations, and ink leakage may occur due to external force during handling or transportation, and environmental changes such as temperature and atmospheric pressure. It is an ink cartridge for ink jet recording which has high ink use efficiency.

FIG. 15 (A) is a perspective sectional view of an embodiment in which the side wall surface is omitted, FIG. 5 (B) is a lateral sectional view of the same embodiment, and FIG. 16 is an ink supply operation of the same embodiment. Explanatory drawing, Figure 1
7 is a sectional view for explaining the distortion of the side wall when a load is applied to the side wall of the embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 15 (A) and 15 (B), the ink cartridge body 1 has an opening 2 for connecting with an ink jet recording head, and an atmosphere communicating portion 10 provided above the opening 2 for taking in the atmosphere. And a negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 accommodating the negative pressure generating member 3 that absorbs and holds the recording ink, and an ink accommodating portion that adjoins the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 via the rib 5 and accommodates the ink. It consists of 6. The ink containing portion 6 and the negative pressure generating member containing portion 4 communicate with each other through a gap portion 8 provided between the rib 5 and the bottom surface. In the ink containing portion 6, a partition plate 61 is provided below the gap 8 and above. The side walls are connected to both sides leaving behind.

In FIG. 16A, the joint member 7 for supplying the ink to the ink jet recording head is inserted into the opening 2 of the ink cartridge body 1 of the embodiment and pressed against the negative pressure generating member 3, and the ink jet recording apparatus is operated. It is a schematic cross section which shows the state which became operational. A filter may be installed at the end opening of the joint member 7 to remove dust in the ink cartridge.

When the ink jet recording apparatus operates, ink is ejected from the orifice of the ink jet recording head, and ink suction force is generated in the ink tank. Ink 9
Due to this suction force, the ink is passed from the ink storage portion 6 through the gap portion 8 between the end of the rib 5 and the ink cartridge bottom portion 11 to the negative pressure generating member storage portion 4, and through the negative pressure generating member 3 into the joint member 7. It is drawn in and supplied to the inkjet recording head. As a result, the pressure inside the ink container 6 that is closed except for the gap 8 is reduced, and the ink container 6 is closed.
And a pressure difference is generated between the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4. When the recording is continued, the pressure difference continues to rise, but since the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 is open to the atmosphere through the atmosphere communicating hole 10, the air is a negative pressure generating member as shown in FIG. 16B. The ink container 6 enters through the gap 8 between the rib 5 and the ink cartridge bottom 11 through the ink container 3. At this point, the pressure difference between the ink containing portion 6 and the negative pressure generating member containing portion 4 is eliminated. This operation is repeated during inkjet recording, and a certain negative pressure is obtained in the ink cartridge. In addition, since the ink in the ink containing portion 6 can be used almost all except the ink attached to the wall surface in the ink containing portion 6, the ink use efficiency is improved (FIG. 16C).

At the time of non-recording, the capillary force of the negative pressure generating member 3 itself (or the meniscus force at the ink-negative pressure generating member interface) and the like are exerted to prevent ink from leaking from the ink jet recording head.

From the above function, the cross section of FIG. 18 is shown as another embodiment depending on the selection of the negative pressure generating member 3 and the volume ratio of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 and the ink accommodating portion 6 according to the ink jet recording head to be jointed. As shown in the drawing, the ink containing portion 6 may be provided with a plurality of partition plates 61.

A structure effective as a measure for improving the strength of the side wall will be described below.

It is important for the ink cartridge to have a structure that withstands external force during hand-linking, changes in the environment during distribution, and improves the efficiency of ink use.

In the embodiment, the side walls 12a, 12b, 12c of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 and the ink accommodating portion 6 are configured to have the same displacement amount with respect to the external force.

For example, although the cartridge material is usually plastic mold, as shown in FIGS. 15B and 17, the thickness of the side wall surface 12a of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 is set to the side wall surface of the ink accommodating portion 6. The partition plates (ribs) 61 are arranged between the inner surfaces of both side walls at positions such that they are thicker than the thicknesses of 12b and 12c, and the volume of the ink containing portion 6 is equally divided. The amount of wall surface deformation Δt6 for an equivalent load per area is reduced, and
The side wall surfaces 12b and 12c on both sides of the same are changed. Further, by making the deformation amount Δt4 of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 substantially equal, the purpose of preventing ink leakage due to deformation on the wall surface is achieved.

In the ink cartridge of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 15B and 17, the material is polypropylene (P
P), outer diameter dimension is length 48m / m x height 35m x thickness 1
In the case of 1 m / m, the heat of the side wall surface 12a of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 is 1.5 mm, the heat of the side wall surfaces 12b and 12c of the ink accommodating portion 6 is 1 mm, and the ink is approximately at the center of the length of 48 m / m. By arranging the rib 61 of the accommodating portion 6 at a position of about 10 mm from each wall surface, it was possible to obtain a structure in which a margin more than twice the load (about 2 kg) during handling was secured. At the same time, it has become possible to obtain sufficient strength against changes in atmospheric pressure and temperature during distribution.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the number of the ribs 61 of the ink containing portion 6 is one in consideration of the size of the tank, but the number of ribs 61 is not limited to one, and it is adjusted to the size of the ink cartridge as shown in FIG. It is possible to deal with this by changing the number and position of the ribs and the thickness of the wall surface, for example, by providing the ribs 61 at two locations.

FIG. 20 shows the relationship between the wall thickness of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4, the thickness of each wall surface investigated to determine the wall thickness of the ink accommodating portion 6, and the ink leakage in the handling and physical distribution environment. Is data indicating.

Increasing the thickness of each wall increases the strength against ink leakage, but in order to satisfy the objective of downsizing and high ink use efficiency, the wall should be thinned as much as possible. It is necessary to increase the internal volume, and based on the data shown in FIG. 20, the side wall thickness of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 is 1.5 mm and the side wall thickness of the ink accommodating portion 6 is 1.0 mm.

According to the size of the ink cartridge, the above dimensions can be determined with reference to FIG. 20, and the outer wall thickness of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 4 is 1.2 to 3 times the outer wall thickness of the ink accommodating portion 6. It is preferable to configure within the range.

As described above, the present invention has been able to provide a reasonable and effective cartridge as an ink jet ink cartridge in the field of ink jet printing from the idea of reversal which has not been heretofore known. Of course, the advantage of enabling miniaturization of the color printer itself, which requires a plurality of color inks, is remarkable. Further, the ink cartridge can be replaced for a long period of time, and the operability is excellent.

In FIG. 33, the replacement ink tank and the recording head are sufficiently coupled to each other and then the replacement ink tank is urged so that the carriage and the recording head can be reliably positioned with a simple structure. Since the replacement ink tank is easily connected to the outside of the main body and then attached to the carriage, the replacement operation can be facilitated. Also, since the electrical connection between the carriage (recording device main body) and the recording head is made at the same time, the operability when exchanging the recording head and the replacement ink tank is good, but the electrical connection is a separate connector. A connection method or the like may be used to increase the degree of freedom in the configuration for ensuring the positioning of the recording head and the connection with the replacement ink tank.

Here, the arrangement and operation of the recording head in the ink jet recording apparatus in FIG. 33 will be described.
In FIG. 33, the recording medium P is horizontally guided using the plantain roller 5000, and is pressed against the plantain 5000 by the paper pressing plate 5002 in the carriage movement direction. The carriage HC is supported by a lead screw 5005, which operates as a drive source when the carriage moving pin is fitted in the spiral groove 5004 and rotates by itself, and a slider 5003 which is arranged in parallel with the lead screw, and is supported by the plan. It reciprocates back and forth along the recording surface of the recording medium P guided on the ten-roller 5000. The lead screw 5005 is rotationally driven and controlled in association with forward and reverse rotation of the drive motor via a drive transmission gear.

The image recording signal is sent to the recording head in synchronism with the movement of the carriage carrying the recording head, and ink droplets are ejected at a predetermined position for recording.

The ink tank and the ink according to the present invention are particularly effective in a vertical printing posture as shown in FIG. In the vertical printing posture, the recording medium P is arranged to face the lower surface of the recording head 2010 to perform recording scanning, and the recording medium P is fed in substantially the same plane without being wound around the platen roller 5000. Since printing and discharging can be performed, it is possible to print on thick and highly rigid recording media such as postcards and OHP paper. The recording head 201 facing the recording medium P in the vertical print orientation
Since the replacement ink tank 2001 is arranged above the 0 discharge unit, the ink internal pressure in the discharge unit is set to a slight positive pressure, preferably a slight negative pressure while supporting the head pressure of the ink corresponding to that amount. It is necessary to maintain and stabilize the meniscus of the ink in the ejection portion.

The recording apparatus shown in FIG. 33 can be applied to each of the embodiments described below.

FIG. 21 is a vertical sectional view of an ink jet ink cartridge main body according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 22 is a horizontal sectional view thereof, and FIG. 23 is a sectional view showing the surface of a rib.

In the ink jet ink cartridge main body 1001, an air introducing groove 1031 and a negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032 are formed in a part of a rib 1005 which is a partition wall between the ink containing portion 1006 and the negative pressure generating member containing portion 1004. I am doing it.

The atmosphere introducing groove 1031 is formed on the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 1004 side from the intermediate portion of the rib 1005 to the end portion of the rib 1005, that is, the gap portion 1008 with the ink cartridge bottom portion 1011. And rib 100
Negative pressure generating member 1 in contact with the vicinity of the air introduction groove 1031 of No. 5
A negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032 having a sculpted shape is formed between the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032 and the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032.

Since the negative pressure generating member 1003 is in contact with the inner surface of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 1004, even if the negative pressure generating member 1003 is unevenly inserted, for example, as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 22, the contact (compression) force of the negative pressure generating member 1003 is partially relieved. Therefore, when ink starts to be consumed from the head, the ink impregnated in the negative pressure generating member 1003 is consumed and reaches the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032. If the ink continues to be consumed after that, the atmosphere easily breaks the ink meniscus from the portion where the contact force of the negative pressure generating member 1003 is relieved by the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032, and the atmosphere is quickly introduced into the atmosphere introducing groove 1031. Is introduced to facilitate the control of negative pressure.

In this embodiment, it is desirable to use an elastic porous body as the negative pressure generating member 1003.

At the time of non-recording, the capillary force of the negative pressure generating member 1003 itself (or the meniscus force at the ink-negative pressure generating member sea surface) is exerted to prevent ink from leaking from the ink jet recording head.

As a comparative example, an example of an ink cartridge having no negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber is shown in FIGS.

Even in the structure of the ink cartridge of the comparative example shown in the figure, it operates without any problem in an ideal state based on the above-mentioned operation principle. Needless to say, the operation is more stable than when there is no air introduction groove.

However, more stable control is required in order to realize more stable operation industrially or when a resin porous body having a communicating hole is used as the negative pressure generating member.

As shown in the enlarged sectional view of FIG. 32, the negative pressure generating member 1003 is brought into contact with the rib 1005 so that the atmosphere introducing groove 1 is formed.
It will be in a state of cutting into 031. As a result, the pressure contact force (compressive force) of the negative pressure generating member 1003 is not relaxed at the contact portion A, and the atmosphere breaks the ink meniscus in that portion and is less likely to enter the atmosphere introduction groove 1031. As a result, even if the ink is continuously consumed, gas-liquid exchange is not performed, and the air introduction groove 1
There is a concern that the effect of 031 cannot be exhibited, and the ink of the ink absorbing unit 1006 is not used and becomes inoperable.

Unlike the comparative example, the example has a structure which exhibits excellent effects as described above.

FIG. 24 shows a rib 1005 prepared for another embodiment.
FIG. 25 is a vertical sectional view showing two types of sectional shapes different from each other.
FIG. 6 is an enlarged transverse sectional view showing a sectional shape of a rib.

As shown in the figure, the shapes of the atmosphere introducing groove 1031 and the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 1032 are different from those of the eighth embodiment.

That is, the stepped portion of the rib 1005 that abuts the negative pressure generating member 1003 is chamfered so that the effect of pressure contact / compression relaxation can be more exerted.

Air is taken into the ink impregnated in the negative pressure generating member 1003 in the vicinity of the rib 1005 on the side of the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 1004 that has been chamfered R. Then, the taken-in air is used as the ink container 10
Move to 06. With the movement of the air, the ink in the ink containing section 1006 is supplied to the negative pressure generating member containing section 1004. A region where air is taken into the ink with which the negative pressure generating member 1003 is impregnated becomes a gas-liquid exchange region.

In order to perform the above-mentioned gas-liquid exchange more smoothly, the negative pressure generating member 10 with respect to the negative pressure generating member accommodating portion 1004 is located below the gas-liquid exchange region above the gas-liquid exchange region.
It is preferable to relax the contact force of 03. This is because the air can move more smoothly from the gas phase to the ink phase in the capillaries of the negative pressure generating member 1003 in which the contact force is relaxed.

A rib 1 as shown in FIGS. 26 to 28, for example.
It is also possible to exert the effect effectively by forming the partial negative pressure generating member adjustment chamber 1032 in the central portion of 005 (the end portion of the air introduction groove).

Incidentally, the negative pressure generating member adjusting chamber 103 of the embodiment.
Negative pressure generating member 100 in order to have the same function as
It is also possible to change the shape of No. 3 to correspond, and any shape and size may be used as long as the above requirements are satisfied.

As described above, according to the present invention, the ink in the ink containing portion and the atmosphere can be stably and promptly exchanged with the gas during the ink supply, and as a result, the ink in the ink supplying portion can be exchanged. It became possible to control the internal pressure with stability, good ejection stability in the recording head, and high-speed printing.

Further, it is possible to provide an ink tank in which ink leakage does not occur even when the pressure inside the ink tank changes due to changes in the external environment.

Another ink tank 2001 of this embodiment is
The inner surface is partitioned into two ink chambers (a, b) and communicated at the bottom, and the ink chamber a of the ink supply unit is packed with an ink absorber 2002 with adjusted capillary force with almost no gap and an atmosphere communicating unit 2003 is provided. It is an ink chamber system that is used in combination with the body.

The state of the ink in FIG. 15 is the ink chambers a and b.
In this state, the ink that can be supplied to the ink chamber a and about half the ink of the ink chamber b have been consumed from the initial state in which the ink is sufficiently filled. In FIG. 15, the ink in the compressed ink absorber is maintained at a height at which the hydraulic head pressure from the ejection portion of the recording head, the reduced pressure in the ink chamber b, and the capillary force in the compressed ink absorber are balanced. When ink is supplied from the ink supply unit, the ink amount in the ink chamber a does not decrease, and the ink chamber b
Ink is consumed. That is, the ink distribution in the ink chamber a does not change and the ink is consumed from the ink chamber b in an amount commensurate with the ink supply while maintaining the equilibrium of the internal pressure. Introduced from the department.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 15, the ink and the atmosphere are exchanged at the lower end portion of the ink chamber wall, and the meniscus formed on the compressed ink absorber of the ink chamber a is partially moved from the portion close to the ink chamber b. The air is introduced into the ink chamber b so that the pressure of the ink chamber b is broken and the pressure of the ink chamber b is balanced with the meniscus holding force of the compressed ink absorber. Referring to FIG. 2, the principle of ink supply and ink internal pressure generation in the divided ink chamber system combined with the absorber of the present invention will be further described. The compressed ink absorber near the ink chamber wall consumed a predetermined amount of ink in the ink chamber a. In the state, since it communicates with the atmosphere communicating portion, a meniscus is formed with respect to the atmospheric pressure. That is, the internal pressure of the ink in the ink supply unit is maintained by the compressed ink absorber near the ink chamber wall which is compressed and adjusted to a predetermined capillary force. The closed space above the ink chamber b before the ink flows out is balanced with the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber near the ink chamber wall and the head pressure of the ink remaining in the ink chamber b to form the compressed ink absorber. The pressure is reduced so as to hold the meniscus. When ink is supplied from this state to the recording head via the ink supply unit, the ink chamber b
The ink flows out from the ink chamber b, and the ink chamber b in which the ink is consumed is further decompressed by that amount. At that time, the meniscus formed on the compressed ink absorber at the lower end of the ink chamber wall is partially broken, and the pressure of the ink chamber b that is excessively reduced is compressed and the meniscus holding force of the compressed ink absorber and the ink Atmosphere is introduced into the consuming ink chamber so as to balance with the head pressure of the ink itself in the chamber b. That is, the internal pressure of the ink supply unit is maintained at a predetermined value by the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber near the lower end of the ink chamber wall.

FIG. 34 illustrates the function of the compression absorber as a buffer absorber. In the ink chamber b2006 from the state of FIG. 10 due to pressure reduction of the atmospheric pressure or temperature rise.
It shows a state in which the ink in the ink chamber b2006 flows out toward the ink chamber a2004 due to the expansion of the air inside. In this embodiment, the ink flowing out to the ink chamber a2004 is held by the compression absorber 2003. Regarding the relationship between the ink absorption amount of the compression absorber and the ink chamber, from the viewpoint of preventing the leakage of the ink when the pressure is reduced or the temperature is changed, the ink outflow amount from the ink chamber b2006 under the worst condition and the ink amount The maximum ink absorption amount of the ink chamber a2004 is determined in consideration of the amount of ink held in the ink chamber a2004 when the ink is supplied from the chamber b2006,
It suffices to provide the ink chamber a with a capacity for accommodating at least that much compression absorber.

On the contrary, when the atmospheric pressure rises, the ink chamber b2
Since the difference between the air originally decompressed by the ink head pressure above 006 and the increased atmospheric pressure becomes too large, the ink or the atmosphere is drawn into the ink chamber b2006 to return to the predetermined pressure difference. In the same manner as when the ink is supplied from the ink chamber b2006, the meniscus of the compressed ink absorber 2003 near the lower end of the ink chamber wall 2005 is broken, and air is mainly introduced into the ink chamber b2006 to achieve pressure balance. In addition, the internal pressure of the ink in the ink supply section hardly changes, and there is almost no effect on the recording characteristics. In the above example, when the atmospheric pressure returns to the original value, the ink chamber b200 is replaced by the amount of air introduced into the ink chamber b2006.
6 flows into the ink chamber a2004, the amount of ink in the ink chamber a2004 temporarily increases and the gas-liquid interface rises as in the above-described example. Although the inner pressure is slightly positive, the effect on the ejection characteristics of the recording head is small and there is no problem in actual use. The above problem occurs, for example, when the recording apparatus used under reduced pressure in the highland is moved to the lowland of standard atmospheric pressure for use. In that case, however, the ink chamber b2006
In addition, air is introduced into the ink, and when the ink is moved to a highland again and used again, the internal pressure of the ink in the ink supply part slightly rises. Furthermore, it is not possible to use it in a state significantly higher than the standard atmospheric pressure. Since it is unlikely to be considered, it does not pose a big problem in practical use as described above.

Further, from the initial use of the ink tank to the time immediately before replacement, the compressed ink absorber 2003 in the ink chamber a2004.
Since the ink in the ink chamber a2004 is reliably held by the ink chamber, and the ink chamber b2006 is closed, the ink does not leak from the openings (atmosphere communicating portion and ink supply portion), and the handleability is excellent.

Next, the necessary conditions for the configuration of the compressed ink absorber and the ink chamber in the divided ink chamber system with absorber combination of this embodiment will be described in detail.

First, regarding the configuration of the ink chamber, regarding the relationship between the ink absorption capacity of the compressed ink absorber 2003 and the volume of the ink chamber, from the viewpoint of preventing the leakage of the ink during the pressure reduction or the temperature change described above, Ink chamber b20
Ink leakage amount and ink chamber b2 under worst conditions from 06
The maximum ink absorption capacity of the ink chamber a2004 is determined in consideration of the amount of ink to be retained in the ink chamber a2004 when the ink is supplied from 006, and at least that amount of compressed ink is determined in consideration of the ink absorption rate of the compressed ink absorber 2003. The ink chamber a20 has a capacity sufficient to accommodate the absorber 2003.
04 should have it.

Next, the size of the communication part between the ink chambers formed at the lower end of the ink chamber wall 2005 is such that the ink in the ink chamber b2006 whose upper part is closed cannot form a meniscus at the communication part. The above is the first condition, and characteristics such as ink viscosity are considered according to the maximum ink supply speed from the ink supply unit (ink supply speed at the time of suction in the recording apparatus main body or solid printing). It suffices to provide an opening for smooth gas-liquid exchange. However, as described above, when the ink upper surface of the residual ink in the ink chamber b2006 is lower than the lower end portion of the ink chamber wall 2005, the internal pressure of the ink in the ink supply portion temporarily changes in the positive direction. It may be set so as to reduce the influence on the ink ejection characteristics of the recording head.

As described in the explanation of the operation of the ink tank,
In the present divided ink chamber system combined with the absorber, since the compressed ink absorber 2003 near the ink chamber wall holds the ink internal pressure in the ink supply portion, in order to maintain the desired internal pressure when the ink is supplied from the ink chamber b2006. Is the ink chamber wall 2
It is necessary to adjust the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber 2003 near the lower end portion of 005. That is, the ink chamber wall 2005
For the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber 2003 near the lower end, the compression rate or the initial pore size may be set so that the internal pressure of the ink required for recording can be generated. For example, the ink internal pressure required in the ink supply unit is minus h (mma
q), it suffices that the compressed ink absorber 2003 near the lower end of the ink chamber wall 2005 has a capillary force capable of pulling up the ink hmm, and if the configuration of the compressed ink absorber 2003 is simplified, the density of the ink is ρ. Assuming that the surface tension of the ink is γ, the contact angle between the ink absorber and the ink is θ, and the gravitational acceleration is g, the pore radius P1 of the compressed ink absorber 2003 may be P1 = 2γ cos θ / ρgh.

While the ink is being supplied from the ink chamber b2006, when the gas-liquid interface of the ink in the ink chamber a2004 is the ink supply part and is lower than the upper end of the ink supply part, the atmosphere is supplied to the recording head side. Therefore, the gas-liquid interface near the ink supply unit must be maintained at a position higher than at least the upper end of the ink supply unit. That is, the compressed ink absorber 2003 above the ink supply unit has a gas-liquid interface setting position (imm) higher than the ink tank lower surface to the ink supply unit upper end in addition to hmm corresponding to the ink internal pressure required in the ink supply unit. Height of (h +
i) Capillary force for pulling up the ink to a height of mm may be given. It can be considered that the structure of the compressed ink absorber is simplified in the same manner as described above, and the pore portion radius P2 of the compressed ink absorber in the upper part of the ink supply unit may be P2 = 2γ cos θ / ρg (h + i). In the above formula, the height (imm) of the gas-liquid interface directly above the ink supply unit may be higher than the upper end of the ink supply unit, and in the compressed ink absorber 2003 further inside the ink chamber a 2004, it faces the ink chamber wall. Whether the ink pull-up force (capillary force) is gradually reduced (if the same absorber is used, the pore radius P3 is gradually increased) so that the gas-liquid interface is set to be gradually lower (FIG. 35). It is sufficient to reduce the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber 2003 only in the vicinity of the ink chamber wall 2005 (FIG. 36) and connect it to the capillary force at the lower end of the ink chamber wall 2005 (P1 for the same absorber).

When the stable ink supply from the ink chamber b2006 is performed, the compressed ink absorber 20 in the portion below the gas-liquid interface in the compressed ink absorber 2003.
The capillary force of 03 may be adjusted in any way as long as no special external force such as a shock, an inclination, or a rapid temperature change acts on the ink tank, but such an external force or ink in the ink chamber b2006 In order to supply the residual ink in the ink chamber a2004 even after all the ink is consumed, the capillary force is gradually increased toward the ink supply portion (capillary force at the lower end of the ink chamber wall 2005 (pore radius P1)). The radius of the pore portion P4) is set so that the capillary force of the ink supply portion is maximized (pore radius P5) (FIG. 37). That is, the adjustment of the capillary force may be at least (lower end of ink chamber wall) <(immediately above the ink supply unit), and more preferably (lower end of ink chamber wall) <(lower middle portion of ink chamber) <(ink It suffices that the upper part of the chamber middle) <(immediately above the ink supply part) <(ink supply part).

When the same compressed ink absorber 2003 is used for simplification, the pore radius should be at least P1> P2, and more preferably P1> (P3, P4)> (P2 P5) is sufficient. The relationship between P3 and P4, P2 and P5 may be P3> P4 or P2> P5, or P3 = P4 and P2 = P5, depending on the compression ratio distribution setting.

35 to 37 show preferable compression ratio distributions in this embodiment as an example for realizing the above relationship by adjusting the compression ratio in the same compressed ink absorber 2003. A ₃₅₁ , A ₃₆₁ , and A ₃₇₁ indicate a gas-liquid interface, and an arrow A
_Reference numerals ₃₅₂ , A ₃₆₂ , and A ₃₇₂ indicate that the compression ratio of the compressed ink absorber changes from the smaller one to the larger one.

As Comparative Example 3, when the capillary force of the compressed ink absorber 2003 on the ink supply section side is not made stronger than that in the vicinity of the ink chamber wall, when the ink is consumed from the ink chamber a2004 to some extent, the ink chamber wall The gas-liquid interface A ₃₈₁ is formed near the lower end of the 2005
4 and the ink chamber b2006 are located on the vapor phase side. In this case, the ink in the ink chamber b2006 cannot be supplied, the atmosphere A ₃₈₂ introduced from the atmosphere communication unit 2013 is directly supplied from the ink supply unit to the recording head, and the ink tank becomes unusable at that time.

The present invention is particularly effective in an ink jet recording head recording apparatus for recording by forming flying liquids by utilizing thermal energy among the ink jet recording apparatuses.

Regarding its typical structure and principle, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740.
What is done using the basic principles disclosed in 796 is preferred. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
Applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the sheet or flow path in which is stored, corresponding to the recorded information and causing a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling. Causes the electrothermal converter to generate heat energy, which causes film boiling on the heat-acting surface of the recording head, and as a result, bubbles in the liquid (ink) that correspond one-to-one to this drive signal can be formed. It is valid. Liquid (ink) flows through the ejection openings due to the growth and contraction of these bubbles.
To form at least one drop. If this drive signal is in the form of a pulse, the growth of bubbles will be immediately and properly,
Since contraction is performed, ejection of liquid (ink) with excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable.

As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further excellent recording can be performed by adopting the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,24 of the invention relating to the rate of temperature rise of the heat acting surface.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the discharge port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, A configuration using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 or US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which discloses a configuration in which the heat acting portion is arranged in the bending region, may be used.

In addition, JP-A-59-123670 discloses a structure in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of the electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and a pressure wave of thermal energy is absorbed. It is also possible to adopt a configuration based on Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-138461, which discloses a configuration in which the opening corresponds to the ejection portion.

Further, as a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium which can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length can be increased by combining a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification. Either of the structure satisfying the requirement or the structure as one recording head integrally formed may be used.

In addition, by being attached to the apparatus main body, it can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and can be supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by a replaceable chip type recording head or the recording head itself. Alternatively, a cartridge type recording head provided with an ink tank may be used.

It is preferable to add recovery means, preliminary auxiliary means, etc. to the recording head because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. Specific examples thereof include capping means, pressurizing or suctioning means for the recording head, preheating means by an electrothermal converter or a heating element other than this, or a combination thereof, and an ejection different from recording. It is effective to perform the preliminary ejection mode for performing stable recording.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a plurality of combinations may be used. Alternatively, the device may be provided with at least one of full colors by color mixing.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid, but it is an ink that solidifies at room temperature or lower and that softens at room temperature, or is a liquid, or the above-mentioned liquid. In the inkjet method, the temperature of the ink itself is generally adjusted within a range of 30 ° C. or higher and 70 ° C. or lower to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within a stable ejection range. It may be in a liquid form.

In addition, the temperature rise due to thermal energy is positively prevented by using it as the energy for changing the state of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink is solidified in the left state for the purpose of preventing evaporation of the ink. Whether or not ink is used, the ink is liquefied by applying heat energy in any case according to the recording signal, such as those ejected as liquid ink or those which have already started to solidify when reaching the recording medium, The use of an ink having a property of being liquefied only by heat energy is also applicable to the present invention. In such a case, the ink is disclosed in JP-A-54-5684.
No. 7 or JP-A-60-71260, a mode in which the porous sheet is opposed to the electrothermal converter in the state of being held as a liquid or solid in the recess or through hole of the porous sheet. May be In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, as a form of the recording apparatus according to the present invention, the recording apparatus according to the present invention is integrally or separately provided as an image output terminal of an information processing device such as a word processor or a computer, and is combined with a reader or the like. It may be in the form of a copying machine or a facsimile machine having a transmission / reception function.

[0166]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By providing a rib on the inner wall of the side surface of the cartridge in the large capacity type of the cartridge of the pre-requisite configuration, the ink flow path is not interrupted in the negative pressure generating member storage chamber,
It becomes possible to perform stable gas-liquid exchange, and it is possible to efficiently use a large volume of ink until the end.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a partially cutaway ink container of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG.

3 (a), (b), and (c) are explanatory views of a combination example of the cartridge and the supply pipe of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a comparative example for explaining more preferable conditions of the present invention.

5A, 5B, and 5C are explanatory views of an ink supply unit of the present invention.

6A, 6B, and 6C are explanatory views for explaining the positional relationship between the ink supply unit and the minute communication unit.

7 (a) to 7 (f) are each a structural explanatory view of a minute communication portion.

FIGS. 8A to 8H are shape explanatory views of end portions of the partition wall on the minute communication portion side.

9 (a) to 9 (f) are explanatory views of end portions of the absorber near the partition wall.

10 (a) to 10 (d) are explanatory diagrams of states inside the absorber with respect to environmental changes.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram for explaining the manufacturing method of the present invention and an inkjet head.

FIG. 12 is a schematic explanatory diagram of an example inkjet cartridge and an inkjet printer using the same.

13A to 13D are diagrams illustrating a modified example of a main part of the embodiment.

14A and 14B are cross-sectional views for explaining a tiltable range of a usage state of the ink cartridge of the embodiment.

15 (A) and 15 (B) are shape explanatory views of the optimum embodiment.

16A to 16C are explanatory diagrams sequentially showing changes in the print state of the embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a pressure state on the outer wall of the example cartridge.

FIG. 18 is a sectional view of a modified example of the example cartridge.

19 (A) and (B) are perspective views showing a color tank configuration of a cartridge embodying the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a graph showing the correlation between the wall thickness of the example and ink leakage due to external pressure deformation.

FIG. 21 is a vertical sectional view of an ink jet ink cartridge main body according to still another embodiment.

22 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the inkjet ink cartridge main body of FIG. 21. FIG.

23 is a sectional view of the ink cartridge body showing the rib surface of FIG. 21. FIG.

FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view of an ink cartridge body showing a rib surface of another embodiment.

FIG. 25 is an enlarged transverse sectional view showing a sectional shape of a rib of another embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a replaceable inkjet ink cartridge body of another embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a replaceable inkjet ink cartridge body of another embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional view of an ink cartridge body showing a rib surface of another embodiment.

FIG. 29 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an inkjet ink cartridge main body of a comparative example.

FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional view of an inkjet ink cartridge main body of a comparative example.

FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional view of an ink cartridge body showing a rib surface of a comparative example.

FIG. 32 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional shape of a rib of a comparative example.

FIG. 33 is an explanatory diagram of a vertical print orientation.

FIG. 34 is an explanatory diagram of a leaked ink buffer function of the compressed ink absorber of the ink chamber a.

FIG. 35 is an example of a compressibility distribution of a compressed ink absorber according to another embodiment.

36 is an example in which the compression ratio distribution of the compressed ink absorber of the embodiment of FIG. 35 is different.

FIG. 37 is an example in which the compression distribution of the compressed ink absorber of the embodiment of FIG. 35 is different.

FIG. 38 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of the example.

FIG. 39 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the configuration of another embodiment.

FIG. 40 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the configuration of another embodiment.

FIG. 41 is a sectional view of an example.

FIG. 42 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Ink Cartridge Main Body 2 Ink Supply Port 4 First Storage Section (Negative Pressure Generating Member Storage Chamber) 5 Partition Wall 6 Second Storage Section 8 Micro Communication Section 9 Rib

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (72) Inventor Riki Abe 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Hiroyuki Ishinaga 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Kya Non non corporation

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A first accommodating portion for accommodating a continuous porous body and having an atmosphere communicating portion for obtaining communication with the atmosphere,
Ink that directly communicates with the first storage chamber via only a minute communication portion provided at a position distant from the atmosphere communication portion, but is in a substantially sealed state and directly stores ink to be supplied to the first storage chamber. And an inner surface of the inkjet ink tank, wherein a minute communication portion of the inkjet ink tank includes a partition wall that separates the first storage chamber and the second storage chamber from each other. And an opening for ink supply that allows the insertion of the supply pipe of the inkjet head is formed on the surface of the first storage chamber facing the partition wall. Inside the storage chamber, which is perpendicular to the surface having the opening and is on one or both inner walls of the side surface when the carriage is mounted, in a region above the upper end of the opening, from near the partition wall to the front. Inkjet ink tank, characterized in that it comprises at least one rib extending in the horizontal direction toward the opening. 2. The rib is located in a region above an upper end of the opening of the inner wall of the side surface, and is provided obliquely from near the upper portion of the partition wall toward the opening. The inkjet ink tank according to claim 1. 3. The ink tank for inkjet according to claim 1, wherein the length of the rib is 70% or more and 100% or less of the distance from the partition wall to the opening. 4. The height of the rib is 0.5 mm or more and 3.0.
mm or less and the width of the rib is 0.5 mm or more and 3.0 m
The ink tank for inkjet according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the ink tank has a thickness of m or less. 5. In addition to the rib according to claim 1, at least one rib is provided in a region on the same plane as the inner wall of the side surface below the opening so as to be perpendicular to the rib. The ink tank for inkjet according to claim 1, which is characterized in that. 6. The ink tank is provided such that the ribs are in a vertical relationship on the inner wall of the side surface with the upper end of the opening as a boundary, and the ribs have the same height. The ink tank for inkjet according to claim 1. 7. The rib according to claim 1, wherein the rib is provided in a broken line shape in a region above the upper end of the opening of the inner wall of the side surface. The inkjet ink tank described. 8. The shape of the continuous porous body housed in the first housing chamber has a trapezoidal shape in which a surface having the opening and a surface abutting the partition surface have a lower bottom larger than an upper bottom. The inkjet ink tank according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: 9. In the trapezoidal surface of the continuous porous body, the upper bottom is 1 mm or more and 6 m more than the lower bottom.
9. The ink tank for inkjet according to claim 8, wherein the ink tank is shortened in a range of m or less.