JPH0415103B2 - - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an ink cartridge for storing ink supplied to a recording device that performs recording by ejecting ink.

Prior Art An inkjet printer uses an ink cassette that is removably attached. An ink bag is housed within the ink cassette, and ink is supplied from the ink bag to the nozzles of the inkjet printer.

Such ink cassettes have the disadvantage that when the remaining amount of ink falls below a predetermined value, ink may suddenly fail to be ejected or problems such as irregular printing may occur, making it difficult to ensure good printing.

In order to solve this problem, a structure has been proposed in which an electrode is provided inside the ink bag and the remaining amount of ink is detected by detecting the presence or absence of conduction of the electrode. When this structure was adopted, a problem arose in that the physical properties of the ink changed because current flowed through the ink.

Purpose The present invention was made to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional ink cartridge, and provides an ink cassette configured to reliably detect the remaining amount of ink without causing any change in the physical properties of the ink. It is intended to.

The present invention has been proposed to achieve the above-mentioned object, and provides an ink cartridge which stores ink to be supplied to a recording means and is configured to be detachably attached to a recording device. includes a flexible ink bag in which ink is stored, a liquid filled around the ink bag, and a detection means for detecting the level of the liquid that changes according to ink consumption. It is characterized by having

In this way, the remaining amount of supplied ink is detected by the level of the liquid filled around the ink bag, which moves according to the consumption of ink in the supplied ink bag (the ink bag collapses). Compared to the case where ink is directly measured, the remaining amount of ink can be detected reliably without adversely affecting the supplied ink. In addition, when detecting the remaining amount of ink electrically, the electrode is not placed directly in front of the supplied ink, but instead it is measured indirectly, so the remaining amount of ink can be stabilized without adversely affecting the supplied ink. can be detected.

Embodiments Hereinafter, details of the present invention will be explained based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 and subsequent figures illustrate one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows an ink bag accommodated in a cassette.

This ink bag 1 is made of an elastic material,
A tube 2 is fitted and fixed to one end of the tube.
A rubber stopper 3, which is an elastic coupling member, is fixed to the outer end of the tube 2.

The ink bag 1 is housed in an ink cassette 4 formed into a flat housing as shown in FIG. The rubber stopper 3 is fitted and fixed to the side wall of the ink cassette 4, and another rubber stopper 5 is fitted and fixed near the rubber stopper 3. The role of this rubber stopper 5 will be described later.

On the other hand, electrodes 6 and 6' are attached to the side wall of the ink cassette 4, separated by a predetermined distance above and below.
One end of each faces into the ink cassette 4, and the other end faces outside the side wall.

On the other hand, after the ink bag 1 is housed in the sealed ink cassette 4, it is filled with a conductive liquid (for example, water) 15. Initially, the filling amount is enough to completely fill the inside of the ink cassette 4.

In FIG. 3, the reference numeral 8 indicates an ink supply tube extending from an ink jet nozzle (not shown), and an ink needle 7 is fitted and fixed to the tip of the tube. This ink needle 7 is inserted into the rubber stopper 3 from the outside, and its tip is fitted into the tube 2 of the ink bag 1, so that the ink inside the ink bag 1 can be taken out through the tube 2 to the supply tube 8 side. can.

Also, the symbol 9 is a needle for opening to the atmosphere.
This needle 9 is formed, for example, in an L-shape, and one end thereof is inserted into the rubber stopper 5 and exposed into the conductive liquid 15 filled in the ink cassette 4, and the other end is opened to the atmosphere. There is.

Further, a terminal indicated by the reference numeral 10 is a terminal for detecting the remaining amount of ink, and is made of an elastic member and has a structure that allows it to come into contact with the electrode 6.

Incidentally, in reality, the ink needle 7 and the atmosphere release needle 9 are held using a support column 11a provided in a part of the main body of the recording apparatus, as shown in FIG. A groove 11c is formed vertically and parallel to each other on the side surface of the support column 11a, and a presser plate 12 is fixed to the outer side of the groove 11c with screws 13. The ink needle 7 and the atmosphere release needle 9 are press-fitted between the holding plate 12 and the groove 11c, as shown in FIG. 4, and held in this position.

Further, as shown in FIG.
b by a screw 13, one end of which contacts the electrodes 6, 6', and the other end of which is connected to the lead wire 14.
It is connected to the.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained.

First, when there is enough ink in the ink bag 1 and the bag is set in the ink cassette 4, the conductive liquid 15 is filled in the ink cassette 4 as shown in FIG. does not occur. When the ink is consumed, air enters the ink cassette 4 through the air release needle 9, and the amount of ink in the ink bag 1 gradually decreases as shown in FIG. Come on,
The ink bag 1 becomes flat, and a gap 16 is created above the inside of the ink cassette 1.

Eventually, the consumption of ink increases,
When inconveniences such as non-ejection of ink occur, that is, when it is time to replace the ink cassette, the distance between the gaps 16 becomes extremely large, as shown in FIG. From the state in which both the electrodes 6 and 6' are immersed, the level of the conductive liquid 15 is located between the upper and lower electrodes 6 and 6' as shown in FIG.

Therefore, in the state shown in FIG.
However, in the state shown in FIG. 8, the electrodes 6 and 6' are in an open state.

A circuit for detecting the remaining amount of ink using the electrodes 6, 6' and the conductive liquid 15 is shown in FIG. One of the electrodes 6, 6' is connected to the base of the transistor TR1, and the other is connected to ground. Those indicated by symbols R1 to R4 are resistors. Also, the emitter of transistor TR1 is the transistor TR2.
is connected to the base of transistor TR2
The collector of is connected to the light emitting diode 17.

Based on the above circuit configuration, if there is enough ink left now, that is, if both the electrodes 6 and 6' are immersed in the conductive liquid 15 as shown in FIG. Since the electrodes 6 and 6' are in a conductive state, the base 18 of the transistor TR1 is at the L level, the transistor TR1 is off, and the base 19 of the transistor TR2, which is connected to the emitter of the transistor TR1, is also at the L level. Therefore, transistor TR2 is turned off,
The light emitting diode 17 is off.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the remaining amount of ink becomes less than a predetermined value and the electrodes 6 and 6' become open, transistor TR1 turns on, and accordingly, transistor TR2 also turns on.
The LED 17 lights up to warn that the ink level is low.

The light emitted from the light emitting diode 17 lets the user know that the amount of ink remaining is low and that it is time to replace the ink cassette.

Incidentally, in the above-described embodiment, the rubber plugs 3 and 5 were formed separately and fitted into the side wall of the ink cassette 4.
As shown in FIG. 0, a structure may be adopted in which both are integrated into a rubber stopper 20, and this rubber stopper 20 is fitted and fixed to the side wall of the ink cassette 4.

If the rubber stopper is configured in this way, the rubber stoppers 3 and 5
Since it is integrated, it is cheaper and easier to install.

Effects As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the remaining amount of supplied ink is filled around the ink bag that is displaced according to the consumption of ink in the supplied ink bag (collapse of the ink bag). By employing a configuration that detects based on the liquid level, the remaining amount of ink can be detected reliably without adversely affecting the supplied ink compared to the case where the supplied ink is directly measured. In addition, an ink bag is housed in a sealed ink cassette, and a conductive liquid is housed in the cassette along with the ink bag, and the inside of the cassette is communicated with the atmosphere through a hollow needle, and the ink bag is separated vertically from the side wall of the cassette. A counter electrode is provided with one side of each electrode facing the conductive liquid and the other side facing the outside of the cassette. When the level of the conductive liquid reaches between the two electrodes, the structure is such that the two electrodes become non-conductive and a warning lamp etc. can be turned on. Since no current flows through the ink, the remaining amount of ink can be reliably detected using electrodes without changing the physical properties of the ink.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The figure explains one embodiment of the present invention.
The figure is a partially cutaway side view of the ink bag, Figure 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the ink cassette, Figure 3 is a perspective view of the ink cassette, and Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the mounting structure of the ink needle and atmosphere release needle. Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the mounting structure of the contact, Figures 6 to 8 are vertical side views showing the relationship between the remaining amount of ink and the level of the conductive liquid, and Figure 9 is the remaining amount detection circuit. Circuit diagram, No. 10
The figure is a perspective view illustrating another structural example of the rubber stopper. 1... Ink bag, 2... Tube, 3, 5...
Rubber stopper, 6, 6'... Electrode, 7... Ink needle, 8
...Ink supply tube, 9...Atmospheric release needle, 1
0...Terminal, 15...Conductive liquid, 16...Gap, 17...Light emitting diode.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An ink cartridge configured to store ink to be supplied to a recording means and to be detachably attached to a recording device, wherein the ink cartridge is a flexible ink cartridge in which ink is stored. an ink bag, a liquid filled around the ink bag, and a detection means for detecting a liquid level of the liquid that changes according to ink consumption;
An ink cartridge comprising: 2. The cartridge is sealed from the atmosphere when not attached to the recording device, and when attached to the recording device, the liquid storage area is communicated with the atmosphere, and the flexible The ink cartridge according to claim 1, wherein ink can be supplied to the recording means from an ink bag. 3. The liquid filled around the ink bag is a conductive liquid, and the detection means is composed of a pair of electrodes facing into the liquid. The ink cartridge according to scope 1.