JPH106525A - Ink cartridge package and ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To deal with waste ink, the apparatus has been increased in size and complicated in configuration. SOLUTION: In an ink cartridge package 1, an ink processing member 3 for absorbing and processing waste ink is fixedly provided in a lower portion of a case 2, and an ink cartridge (ink storage) storing ink on the ink processing member 3 is provided. Body) 4 is removably stored.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an ink cartridge package and an ink jet recording apparatus, and more particularly to an ink cartridge package having a waste ink processing function and an ink jet recording apparatus which can use this package.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ink jet recording apparatus has almost no vibration and noise during recording, and is particularly easy to colorize.
In addition to a printer that outputs data from a digital processing device such as a computer, it is also used for facsimile machines, copiers, and the like. An ink jet head used in such an ink jet recording apparatus records an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink droplets from nozzles by driving actuator elements such as a piezoelectric element and a heating resistor in accordance with a recording signal. It is what you do.

In such an ink jet recording apparatus, an ink jet head (recording head) is used.
In order to maintain the normal ink ejection state of the ink and to eliminate the clogging of the ejection port and recover to the normal ejection state, a head reliability maintenance and recovery mechanism is provided. Ink is sucked from the ejection port by the negative pressure of the pump.

In this case, since it is necessary to process the sucked ink (waste ink), a waste ink processing member is provided. For example, a waste ink storage unit for storing waste ink is provided in an ink jet recording apparatus main body as described in JP-A-4-2500069, or recording is performed as described in JP-A-4-135865. The waste ink processing member is detachably stored at the bottom of the apparatus main body.

[0005]

However, the provision of a waste ink processing member capable of absorbing waste ink during the product life as in the former case increases the capacity of the waste ink processing member and increases the size of the apparatus body. I do. Further, when the waste ink processing member is detachable from the apparatus main body as in the latter case, it is necessary to notify a user or a service person that the waste ink cannot be completely processed, and the configuration of the apparatus becomes complicated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide an ink cartridge package and an ink jet recording apparatus which can treat waste ink without increasing the size of the apparatus and complicating the configuration. And

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge package containing an ink cartridge containing ink used in an ink jet recording apparatus.
An ink processing member for processing waste ink is provided therein, and the ink cartridge is housed so that the ink cartridge can be taken out.

[0008] The ink cartridge package according to claim 2 is
The ink cartridge package according to claim 1, wherein the ink cartridge is integrated with a recording head.

The ink cartridge package according to claim 3 is
In the ink cartridge package according to claim 1 or 2, the ink cartridge package is configured so that it can be exchangeably mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus main body.

The ink cartridge package according to claim 4 is
The ink cartridge package according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an ink cartridge containing black ink is stored.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink cartridge package,
In the ink cartridge package according to any one of the first to third aspects, an ink cartridge containing color ink is stored.

The ink cartridge package according to claim 6 is
In the ink cartridge package according to the fifth aspect, the ink cartridge containing the color inks is an integrated ink cartridge in which the ink cartridges containing the respective color inks are integrated.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head onto a recording medium, wherein an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided and the ink is stored. The ink cartridge package body capable of taking out and storing the ink cartridge thus obtained is configured to be interchangeably mountable.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, wherein an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. An ink cartridge package capable of accommodating an ink cartridge containing black ink can be detachably mounted.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. An ink cartridge package capable of taking out an ink cartridge containing color ink is detachably mounted.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
In an ink jet recording apparatus that records a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium,
Along with disposing an ink processing member for processing waste ink,
An ink cartridge package capable of taking out an integrated ink cartridge in which ink cartridges accommodating the respective color inks are integrated is detachably mounted.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an ink cartridge package to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ink cartridge package, FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of the ink jet recording apparatus, and FIG. FIG.

The ink cartridge package 1 includes a case 2
An ink processing member 3 for absorbing waste ink is fixed and provided on the inner and lower sides, and an ink cartridge (ink storage body) 4 containing ink is stored on the ink processing member 3 in a removable manner. The opening is sealed with a seal member 5, and the ink cartridge 4 can be taken out by peeling off the seal member 5. The inside of the ink cartridge package 1 is kept at atmospheric pressure or lower to maintain the degree of deaeration of the ink, to prevent bubbles from being generated in the ink when the ink cartridge 4 is used, and to prevent ejection failure due to the generated bubbles. I can do it.

On the other hand, a mounting opening 12 through which the ink cartridge package 1 can be attached and detached is provided at the bottom of the apparatus main body 11 of the ink jet recording apparatus. In the mechanism section, a carriage 15 is slidably held in a main scanning direction on a guide rod 14 laid horizontally on the main frame 13.
And an ink cartridge 4 taken out of the ink cartridge package 1 for supplying ink to the recording head 16 is detachably mounted. The carriage 15 is connected to a timing belt 19 stretched between pulleys 17 and 18 rotated by a main scanning motor (not shown).

A sub-frame 20 fixed to the main frame 13 rotatably holds a platen 22 for transporting a sheet 21, and a sub-scanning motor 24 for rotating the platen 22 and a platen 22 for rotating the sub-scanning motor 24. A gear train 25 for transmitting to the gear train 22 is provided.

Further, on the side of the sub-frame 20, a reliability maintenance / recovery mechanism 26 of the recording head 16 is arranged. The reliability maintenance / recovery mechanism 26 includes a cap member 27 for capping the nozzle surface of the recording head 16 and a pump 28 for sucking ink from the nozzle holes of the recording head 16 with the cap member 27 capped. ing. The pump 2 is located below the pump 28.
In order to absorb the waste ink discharged from the ink cartridge 8, the ink cartridge package 1 mounted inside from the mounting port 12 is disposed.

With the above construction, the seal member 5 of the ink cartridge package 1 is peeled off, the ink cartridge 4 is taken out, the ink cartridge 4 is mounted on the carriage 15, and the ink cartridge 4 is taken out. Ink cartridge package 1 in case 2
Then, the ink is inserted into the apparatus main body 11 through the mounting port 12 as it is, and is set at a position where the waste ink discharged from the pump 28 of the reliability maintenance / recovery mechanism 26 can be received by the ink processing member 3 and mounted.

As a result, the ink contained in the ink cartridge 4 is supplied to the recording head 16, so that the carriage 15 is scanned in the main scanning direction and the recording head 16 is recorded while scanning the paper 21 in the sub-scanning direction. By driving according to the signal, a required image can be recorded on the paper 21. And the reliability maintenance and recovery mechanism 2
Waste ink generated when the ink is sucked from the recording head 16 by driving the pump 28 of No. 6 is absorbed by the ink processing member 3 in the ink cartridge package 1.

When the ink in the ink cartridge 4 has been used up, the used ink cartridge 4 is taken out and replaced with a new ink cartridge 4.
In this case, if the ink cartridge 4 contained in the ink cartridge package 1 is used, the new ink cartridge 4 is taken out from the new ink cartridge package 1 in the same manner as before, and the ink cartridge after the ink cartridge is taken out. The package 1 can be replaced with the ink cartridge package 1 that has been used in the recording apparatus main body 11, and the ink processing member 3 can be replaced with a new ink processing member.

Therefore, the ink cartridge package 1
The ink processing member 3 needs only to have a capacity capable of processing the amount of waste ink generated when the ink stored in the ink cartridge 4 is used, and a small capacity of the ink processing member 3 is sufficient.

As described above, the ink cartridge package 1
Has a built-in ink processing member 3 for processing waste ink and has an ink cartridge 4 removably housed therein, so that when the ink stored in the ink cartridge 4 is used up and replaced, the ink processing member 3 is also replaced. It is possible to replace the ink cartridge, and it is not necessary to detect that the ink processing member 3 is full of waste ink and to display the fact to a user or the like. Since the capacity of the ink processing member 3 that can process waste ink generated when the used ink is used is sufficient, the size of the recording apparatus does not increase.

In the ink jet recording apparatus, the ink cartridge package 1 storing the ink processing member 3 capable of removably storing the ink cartridge 4 as described above can be detachably attached and detached. Since it is not necessary to provide a function of detecting that the ink processing member 3 of the ink cartridge package 1 has become unprocessable and displaying the fact to a user or the like without increasing the size of the ink cartridge package 1, the configuration is also reduced. It's easy.

Although the ink cartridge and the recording head are described here as separate recording apparatuses, the present invention is also applicable to a recording apparatus using a so-called disposable recording head in which the recording head and the ink tank of the ink cartridge are integrated. be able to.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge package for explaining another embodiment of the present invention. An ink jet recording apparatus to which the ink cartridge package of this embodiment is applied includes a plurality of independent ink jet heads for ejecting black, yellow, magenta, and cyan inks as recording heads, or a plurality of nozzle rows for ejecting each color ink. A color image is recorded using an ink jet head provided with the above.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, four independent ink cartridges are used: an ink cartridge 31 for black ink, an ink cartridge 32 for yellow ink, an ink cartridge 33 for magenta ink, and an ink cartridge 34 for cyan ink. Therefore, these ink cartridges 31 to 34
Of the above, the present invention is applied to an ink cartridge package containing a black ink cartridge 31 having a larger capacity than other colors, and an ink cartridge package provided with the ink processing member described in the above embodiment is provided. The ink cartridge for black ink 31 is removably stored.

In the ink jet recording apparatus using the ink cartridges for each color as described above, the number of the ink processing members can be reduced by disposing the ink processing members in the ink cartridge package containing at least one of the ink cartridges. Can be reduced.

In particular, since the frequency of use of black ink is high, the capacity of the ink cartridge is generally larger than that of other colors. Therefore, the ink cartridge for black ink is taken out to the ink cartridge package in which the ink processing member is disposed. By storing as much as possible, it is possible to use an ink processing member having a larger capacity than when combining an ink cartridge of another color with an ink processing member.

In this case, on the side of the color ink jet recording apparatus, the ink cartridge package provided with the ink processing member after the ink cartridge is taken out can be detachably mounted as in the previous embodiment. .

In the above-described color ink jet recording apparatus, as shown in FIG. 5, a color ink which is an integrated ink cartridge in which a black ink cartridge 31 and yellow, magenta and cyan ink cartridges are integrated. Ink cartridge 35
When the color ink cartridge 35 is used, the present invention is applied to the color ink cartridge 35, and the color ink cartridge 35 can be removably stored in the ink cartridge package provided with the ink processing member.

In this way, the number of ink processing members can be reduced, and the color ink cartridge having a larger capacity than the black ink cartridge and the ink processing member can be combined to form the black ink ink cartridge. It is possible to use an ink processing member having a larger capacity than in the case of combining.

[0036]

As described above, according to the ink cartridge package of the first aspect, there is provided an ink cartridge package in which an ink cartridge containing ink used for an ink jet recording apparatus is packed, and waste ink is contained therein. Since the ink processing member to be processed is provided and the ink cartridge is housed so that the ink cartridge can be taken out, the waste ink can be processed without increasing the size of the ink jet recording apparatus main body and without complicating the configuration. it can.

According to the ink cartridge package of the second aspect, in the ink cartridge package of the first aspect, since the ink cartridge is integrated with the recording head, an ink jet recording apparatus using a disposable recording head. Can be performed without increasing the size of the apparatus body and complicating the configuration.

According to the ink cartridge package of the third aspect, in the ink cartridge package of the first or second aspect, since the ink cartridge package is configured to be interchangeably mountable to the ink jet recording apparatus main body, the ink jet recording apparatus main body is large. The waste ink can be treated without making the structure complicated.

According to the ink cartridge package of the fourth aspect, in the ink cartridge package of any one of the first to third aspects, the ink cartridge containing the black ink is stored. The number of members does not increase, the cost can be reduced, and a large-capacity ink processing member can be provided.

According to the ink cartridge package according to the fifth aspect, in the ink cartridge package according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ink cartridge containing the color ink is stored. Waste ink can be treated without increasing the size of the apparatus body and without complicating the configuration.

According to the ink cartridge package of the sixth aspect, in the ink cartridge package of the fifth aspect, an ink cartridge containing color inks is integrated with an ink cartridge containing each color ink. Therefore, the number of ink processing members does not increase, the cost can be reduced, and an ink processing member having a large capacity can be provided.

According to an ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, in an ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head onto a recording medium, an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. The ink cartridge package containing the ink cartridges that can be taken out can be exchanged and installed, so that the waste ink can be processed without increasing the size of the apparatus body and without complicating the configuration. Can be.

According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, in an ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. In addition, since the ink cartridge package that can store the ink cartridge containing the black ink can be detachably mounted, the number of ink processing members does not increase and the cost can be reduced. In addition, an ink processing member having a large capacity can be provided.

According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the ninth aspect, in the ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. At the same time, the ink cartridge package that can accommodate the ink cartridges accommodating the color inks can be exchangeably mounted, so that the number of ink processing members does not increase and the cost can be reduced. .

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, in an ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided. At the same time, the ink cartridge package containing the ink cartridges accommodating the respective color inks is integrated so that the ink cartridge package that can be housed is removably mounted, so that the number of ink processing members can be increased. Therefore, the cost can be reduced, and an ink processing member having a large capacity can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an ink cartridge package to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ink cartridge package.

FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of the inkjet recording apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of a mechanism of the inkjet recording apparatus.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining still another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ink cartridge package, 2 ... Case, 3 ... Ink processing member, 4 ... Ink cartridge, 5 ... Seal member, 11 ... Device main body, 12 ... Mounting port, 15 ... Carriage, 16 ... Recording head, 26 ... Reliability Maintenance and recovery mechanism, 2
8 pump, 31 ink cartridge for black ink, 32 ink cartridge for yellow ink, 33
... an ink cartridge for magenta ink, 34 ... an ink cartridge for cyan ink, 35 ... an ink cartridge for color ink.

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. An ink cartridge package containing an ink cartridge containing ink used for an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided in the package, and the ink cartridge is provided with An ink cartridge package characterized by being housed so as to be removable. 2. The ink cartridge package according to claim 1, wherein the ink cartridge is integrated with a recording head. 3. The ink cartridge package according to claim 1, wherein the package is replaceable with the ink jet recording apparatus main body. 4. The ink cartridge package according to claim 1, wherein the package contains an ink cartridge containing black ink. 5. The ink cartridge package according to claim 1, wherein the package contains an ink cartridge containing color ink. 6. The ink cartridge package according to claim 5, wherein the ink cartridge containing the color inks is an integrated ink cartridge integrating the ink cartridges containing the respective color inks. Cartridge packaging. 7. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head onto a recording medium, wherein an ink processing member for treating waste ink is provided, and an ink cartridge containing the ink can be taken out. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized in that a packable ink cartridge package can be exchangeably mounted. 8. An ink cartridge in which an ink processing member for processing waste ink is provided and a black ink is stored in an ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized in that an ink cartridge package capable of being taken out and stored can be exchangeably mounted. 9. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, comprising an ink processing member for treating waste ink, and an ink cartridge containing color ink. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized in that an ink cartridge package capable of being taken out and stored can be exchangeably mounted. 10. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording a color image by ejecting ink droplets of each color from a recording head onto a recording medium, comprising an ink processing member for treating waste ink, and an ink containing each color ink. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized in that an ink cartridge package capable of taking out an integrated ink cartridge in which a cartridge is integrated can be exchangeably mounted.