Patent Application
20060256172
1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device which loads an ink cartridge into a main body of a recording apparatus by sliding the ink cartridge, to a recording apparatus having such an attachment/detachment device, and to a liquid ejection apparatus having such an attachment/detachment device.
Such a liquid ejection apparatus includes not only a recording apparatus, such as an ink jet recording apparatus, a copier, or a facsimile machine, that ejects ink from a recording head serving as a liquid ejection head to record images on a recording material, but also an apparatus which ejects a liquid corresponding to an intended purpose, instead of ink, from a liquid ejection head, which corresponds to the recording head, onto an ejected liquid target material, which corresponds to the recording material, to attach liquid to the ejected liquid target material. In addition to the recording head, the liquid ejection head can be a color material ejection head used for manufacturing a color filter for a liquid crystal display, an electrode material (conductive paste) ejection head used for forming an electrode for an organic EL display or a surface emitting display (FED), a bio-organic ejection head used for manufacturing a bio-chip, or a sample ejection head which ejects a sample as a precision pipette.
2. Description of the Related Art
A description will now be given for an ink jet printer as an example of an ink jet recording apparatus or a liquid ejection apparatus. A comparatively large pressing force is required to load an ink cartridge into an ink jet printer. When separate ink cartridges are provided for individual colors, the pressing force of about 4.9 to 6.9 N is sufficient. However, since a single package type ink cartridge with ink cartridges for a plurality of colors integrally formed includes a plurality of needles are provided, for example, in case of six colors, seven needles (for six colors and a waste ink tank) are provided, a very large pressing force of 34.3 to 48.3 N is required. Such a large pressing force can be exerted so long as the ink cartridge is loaded vertically. However, when the ink cartridge is loaded by sliding the ink cartridge in a horizontal direction, an unnatural force is also imposed on the ink jet printer. Accordingly, the application of a large pressing force is practically impossible.
Disclosed in JP-A-11-157094 is an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device that uses leverage principle to obtain a large pressing force. According to this device, the rotation of a cartridge attachment/detachment lever is transmitted to a link plate to enable unlocking of a link lever and loading of an ink cartridge into a holder. However, the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device does not include a cartridge holding unit which holds the ink cartridge when the ink cartridge is inserted, and thus the erroneous insertion of the ink cartridge does not occur from the start. A recording apparatus having a cartridge holding unit according to the related art will now be shown, and the problems in the related art will be described.
Here, ‘insertion of ink cartridge’ means that the ink cartridge is inserted into the recording apparatus from the outside and held by the cartridge holding unit. Further, ‘erroneous insertion of ink cartridge’ means that the ink cartridge is inserted but is not normally held by the cartridge holding unit.
FIGS. 21 to 25B show a recording apparatus having a cartridge holding unit and an ink cartridge erroneous insertion preventing unit in the related art.
As shown in
An insertion opening 580 into which an ink cartridge 511 is inserted is provided in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device 500. When a lever arm 563 is located at a position shown in
As shown in
Accordingly, in the related art, as shown in
Specifically, as shown in
In addition to the shape of the guide groove 554, the relative positions of the slope portion 504 of the guide groove 554 and the erroneous insertion preventing protrusion 502 are important. That is, when the lever arm 563 is located at the set position, and when the ink cartridge 511 is inserted, as shown in
Therefore, when the ink cartridge 511 is inserted in a proper state where the lever arm 563 is located at the reset position, as shown in
With this configuration, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device 500 of the related art, the erroneous insertion of the ink cartridge 511 due to the positional difference of the lever arm 563 rarely occurs. Further, since a size of a slider holder 537 does not need to be accurately set and a complex attitude keeping structure does not need to be used so as not to cause the inclination of the ink cartridge 511, with only a cam groove 554 having a comparatively simple structure, the erroneous insertion of the ink cartridge 511 can be prevented.
However, in the ink cartridge erroneous insertion preventing unit 501 of the related art, when a user inserts the ink cartridge 511 by a predetermined distance in a state where the insertion of the ink cartridge 511 is not enabled, the ink cartridge 511 are brought into contact with the specific members (502, 536, and 548) of the ink cartridge erroneous insertion preventing unit 501, and the ink cartridge 511 cannot be inserted beyond that. Therefore, the ink cartridge 511 (506) and the specific members (502, 536, and 548) are brought into contact with each other in the recording apparatus, and thus the user cannot visually check why the ink cartridge 511 cannot be inserted beyond that. For this reason, the user tries to insert the ink cartridge 511 with all the strength, and the mechanisms in the recording apparatus may be damaged.
The invention has been finalized in consideration of the above-described problems, and it is an object of the invention to provide an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device which prevents an insertion action of an ink cartridge by a user in a state where the insertion of the ink cartridge is not enabled, a recording apparatus having such an attachment/detachment device, and a liquid ejection apparatus having such an attachment/detachment device.
According to a first aspect of the invention, an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device provided with an insertion opening into which an ink cartridge is inserted, and adapted to load the ink cartridge into a recording apparatus, the device comprising:
a cartridge holding unit, holding the ink cartridge inserted from the insertion opening in the recording apparatus;
a lever arm, movable from a reset position at which the lever arm is positioned when a loading of an ink cartridge is enabled to a set position at which the lever arm is positioned when the loading of the ink cartridge is completed;
a power transmitting and converting mechanism, converting a rotation of the lever arm into a movement required for loading the ink cartridge held by the cartridge holding unit; and
an ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit, preventing an insertion action of the ink cartridge when the lever arm is not at the reset position.
According to the first aspect of the invention, the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device includes the ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit. Therefore, when the lever arm is located at the set position at which the lever arm is supposed to be when loading of the ink cartridge is completed or when the lever arm is located at the position other than the reset position at which loading of the ink cartridge is enabled, the insertion action of the ink cartridge by the user can be prevented. That is, the erroneous insertion action itself can be prevented, and thus the mechanisms in the recording apparatus are not damaged by the erroneous insertion action.
According to a second aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the first aspect, the ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit may include a blocking member, adapted such that the blocking member blocks an approach path of the ink cartridge to the insertion opening from an outside of the recording apparatus when the lever arm is not at the reset position, and that the blocking member is retracted from the approach path to permit the ink cartridge to be inserted when the lever arm is at the reset position.
According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the first aspect, the ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit includes the blocking member that blocks the approach path when the lever arm is located at the set position or when the lever arm is located at the position other than the reset position and is retracted from the approach path when the lever arm is located at the reset position. Therefore, since the approach path is blocked by the blocking member when the lever arm is located at the set position or when the lever arm is located at the position other than the reset position, the user cannot insert the ink cartridge into the insertion opening. At this time, since the approach path is blocked by the blocking member, there is little possibility that the user tries to insert the ink cartridge. That is, the user visually checks whether or not the approach path is blocked by the blocking member and judges whether or not to insert the ink cartridge.
The blocking member blocks the insertion opening from the outside of the main body of the recording apparatus. That is, since the blocking member blocks the insertion opening from the outside, not the inside, it is possible for the user to easily perform the visual check.
According to a third aspect, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the second aspect, wherein the lever arm may be provided with a lever knob at one end side thereof, and the blocking member may be a protrusion provided at a side of the lever knob of the lever arm.
According to the third aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the second aspect, the blocking member is the protrusion that is formed at one end side of the lever arm. Therefore, the approach path can be blocked by a simple configuration.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the third aspect, the protrusion may be provided with a guide face guiding the ink cartridge to the insertion opening when the lever arm is positioned at the reset position.
According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the third aspect, the guide face is provided in the protrusion. Further, when the lever arm is located at the reset position, the guide face guides the ink cartridge to the insertion opening. Therefore, when inserting the ink cartridge, the ink cartridge can be easily inserted into the insertion opening.
According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the third or fourth aspect, the lever arm may rotate in a longitudinal direction of the insertion opening, and the protrusion may extend in a lateral direction (perpendicular to the longitudinal direction) of the insertion opening.
According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the third or fourth aspect, the lever arm rotates in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening, and the protrusion extends in the lateral direction of the insertion opening. For example, when the lever arm is located at the set position, the protrusion can be provided so as to be located at the center of the insertion opening. Therefore, even though the protrusion is provided comparatively short, the erroneous insertion of the ink cartridge and the erroneous insertion action can be reliably prevented by locating the protrusion at the center of the insertion opening.
According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the fifth aspect, the protrusion may block half or more of the insertion opening in the lateral direction of the insertion opening.
According to the sixth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the fifth aspect, the protrusion blocks half or more of the insertion opening in the lateral direction of the insertion opening. Therefore, when the lever arm is located at the position other than the reset position at which loading of the ink cartridge is enabled, the insertion action of the ink cartridge, that is, the erroneous insertion action can be reliably prevented. Further, the user can visually understand the erroneous insertion action, and thus the erroneous insertion action can be prevented.
According to a seventh aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the fifth or sixth aspect, when the lever arm is located at the set position, the protrusion may be located at a center of the insertion opening in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening.
According to the seventh aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in the fifth or sixth aspect, when the lever arm is located at the set position, the protrusion is located at the center of the insertion opening in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening. Therefore, when the lever arm is located at the set position, the insertion action of the ink cartridge, that is, the erroneous insertion action can be reliably prevented. Further, the user can visually understand the erroneous insertion action, and thus the erroneous insertion action can be prevented.
According to an eighth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the fifth to seventh aspects, a rotation fulcrum of the lever arm may be provided at a position offset the center of the insertion opening in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening.
According to the eighth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in any one of the fifth to seventh aspects, the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm is provided at the position offset the center of the insertion opening in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening. Therefore, during the rotation of the lever arm, a moving direction of the protrusion can be inverted in the insertion/discharge direction of the ink cartridge.
For example, when the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm is provided at the center in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening, the locus of the protrusion is changed from a close state to the insertion opening to a farthest state along the discharge direction at the center opposing the rotation fulcrum when moving from the set position to the reset position. The moving direction is inverted in the insertion/discharge direction, and the locus of the protrusion becomes the close state again. That is, when the lever arm rotates from the set position to the reset position, the protrusion may press the discharged ink cartridge in the insertion direction opposite to the discharge direction. According to this aspect, the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm is provided at the position offset with respect to the center of the insertion opening in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening. Therefore, the moving direction of the protrusion when the lever arm rotates from the set position to the reset position can be gradually apart from the insertion opening to the discharge direction along the insertion/discharge direction. As a result, there is no case where the protrusion pushes back the ink cartridge in the insertion direction, and thus the ink cartridge can be reliably discharged.
According to a ninth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the fifth to eighth aspects, before the ink cartridge is held by the cartridge holding unit and before the insertion of the ink cartridge or under the insertion of the ink cartridge, the protrusion of the lever arm may be restricted by a side face of the ink cartridge in an insertion direction of the ink cartridge, such that rotation of the lever arm from the reset position to the set position is restricted.
According to the ninth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in any one of the fifth to eighth aspects, before the ink cartridge is held by the cartridge holding unit and before the insertion of the ink cartridge or under the insertion of the ink cartridge, the protrusion of the lever arm is restricted by the side face of the ink cartridge in the insertion direction of the ink cartridge, such that rotation of the lever arm from the reset position to the set position is restricted. That is, in a state where the insertion of the ink cartridge is not completed, the lever arm cannot rotate from the reset position to the set position. Therefore, an operation for loading the ink cartridge in a state where the ink cartridge is not held by the cartridge holding unit, that is, an erroneous operation by the user can be prevented.
According to a tenth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the fifth to ninth aspects, when the lever arm is located at a position other than the set position, the protrusion may be brought into contact with a lid member, which openably rotates to cover the insertion opening, so as to obstruct closing of the lid member.
According to the tenth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in any one of the fifth to ninth aspects, when the lever arm is located at the position other than the set position, the protrusion is brought into contact with the lid member, which openably rotates to cover the insertion opening, so as to obstruct closing of the lid member. That is, a state where the lever arm does not rotate to the set position is a state where loading of the ink cartridge is not completed. In this state, the lid member cannot completely close the insertion opening. As a result, abnormality can be notified to the user. For example, a limit switch may be provided in the vicinity of the insertion opening, and, when the lid member is not completely closed, the main body of the recording apparatus may not be operated. In this case, a warning can be given to the user.
According to an eleventh aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, a first engagement portion may be provided in the lever arm, and a second engagement portion may be provided in a base of the attachment/detachment device so as to be engaged with the first engagement portion. Further, when the lever arm is located at the set position or the reset position, the first engagement portion may be engaged with the second engagement portion.
According to the eleventh aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in any one of the first to tenth aspects, when the lever arm is located at the set position or the reset position, the first engagement portion is engaged with the second engagement portion. Therefore, when the lever arm is operated, a click feeling can be generated, and the user can easily recognize the set position or the reset position. As a result, it is possible to reduce a possibility that the lever arm stops at an intermediate position between the set position and the reset position.
Further, when the lever arm is located at the set position or the reset position, with the engagement of the first engagement portion and the second engagement portion, it is possible to hold the position of the lever arm such that the lever arm does not rotate as long as the user does not operate the lever arm. That is, the position of the lever arm can be stabilized to the set position or the reset position.
According to a twelfth aspect of the invention, in the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, a circular rib may be provided in the lever arm or the base of the attachment/detachment device in the vicinity of the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm, with the rotation fulcrum as a center.
According to the twelfth aspect of the invention, in addition to the same advantages as those in any one of the first to eleventh aspects, the circular rib is provided in the lever arm or the base of the attachment/detachment device in the vicinity of the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm, with the rotation fulcrum as a center. Therefore, the circular rib can reduce friction between an arm main body of the lever arm and the base of the attachment/detachment device, and the user can smoothly rotate the lever arm. Further, since friction between the arm main body and the base of the attachment/detachment device is reduced, stains due to dusts caused by friction can be reduced.
According to an thirteenth aspect of the invention, a recording apparatus includes the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to any one of the first to twelfth aspects, which loads an ink cartridge into a main body of the recording apparatus by sliding the ink cartridge.
According to the thirteenth aspect of the invention, the recording apparatus includes the attachment/detachment device according to any one of the first to twelfth aspects. Therefore, in the recording apparatus, the same advantages as those in any one of the first to twelfth aspects can be obtained.
According to a fourteenth aspect of the invention, a liquid ejection apparatus includes a liquid cartridge attachment/detachment device which loads a liquid cartridge into a main body of the liquid ejection apparatus by sliding the liquid cartridge, an insertion opening into which the liquid cartridge is inserted, a cartridge holding unit which holds the liquid cartridge upon insertion of the liquid cartridge through the insertion opening by a first predetermined stroke, a power transmitting and converting mechanism that converts rotation of a lever arm into movement of a second predetermined stroke required for loading the liquid cartridge held by the cartridge holding unit, and a liquid cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit that prevents an insertion action of the liquid cartridge by a user when the lever arm is located a set position at which the lever arm is supposed to be when loading of the liquid cartridge is completed or when the lever arm is located at a position other than a reset position at which loading of the liquid cartridge is enabled.
A description will now be given for an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the invention and a recording apparatus which is an example of a liquid ejection apparatus having the attachment/detachment device. First, the outline of the overall configuration will be described with reference to the drawings by way of an ink jet printer which is used as the best mode for carrying out the recording apparatus.
In an ink jet printer 100, a carriage 10 is supported by a carriage guide shaft 12 to reciprocate in a main scanning direction (a direction perpendicular to the paper in
A platen 28 is provided under and opposite to the recording head 13 to define a gap PG between the head face of the recording head 13 and the sheet P. Recording onto the sheet P or the like is performed by alternately and repetitively performing an operation for conveying the sheet P or the like between the carriage 10 and the platen 28 by a predetermined distance in a sub-scanning direction (a transverse direction in
The configuration of the ink jet printer 100 will be further described based on a conveyance path of the sheet P. First, a feed tray 5, which is an example of a target material stacking portion for stacking the sheets P, is provided uppermost stream in a conveyance direction. An edge guide 15 is provided in the feed tray 5 to be brought into contact with side end faces of the sheets P and to smoothly guide the sheet P in the sub-scanning direction. As a rotational shaft 17 of a feed roller 14 rotates, a hopper 16 is lifted at a predetermined timing, and pushes up the sheet P on the feed tray S toward the feed roller 14.
A device including the feed tray 5, the feed roller 14, and the hopper 16 is an automatic sheet feeder 2. As the feed roller 14 rotates, a predetermined unit number of sheets P are sequentially picked up beginning from the uppermost sheet P by force exerted of a separation pad which is an example of a separation portion provided near the feed roller 14. The picked-up sheets P are conveyed downstream in the conveyance direction.
A recording material detector (not shown) (hereinafter, referred to simply as ‘detection lever’), which is an example of a target material detection unit for detecting that the sheet P passes, is provided downstream the feed roller 14. Further, a conveyance roller 19, which includes a conveyance driving roller 19a and a conveyance driven roller 19b, is provided downstream the detection lever. Of these elements, the conveyance driven roller 19b is supported downstream a roller holder 18 for a conveyance driven roller. The roller holder 18 is provided to rotate on a rotational shaft (not shown) and is rotatably biased by a helical torsion coil spring (not shown), such that the conveyance driven roller 19b is constantly pressed into contact with the conveyance driving roller 19a to form a nip.
The sheet P, which is sandwiched and conveyed by the conveyance roller 19, is guided to a recording position 26 under the recording head 13, and desired recording is performed for substantially the entire recording face of the sheet P as the carriage 10 and the sheet P are moved in the above-described manner. The gap PG, which is defined between the recording head 13 and the platen 28 provided under and opposite to the recording head 13, is an extremely important element for accurate recording, and is adjusted as needed in accordance with the thickness of the sheet P.
A discharge roller 20, which is an example of a target material discharge unit and includes a discharge driving roller 20a and a discharge toothed roller 20b, is provided downstream the recording head 13. The sheet P discharged by the discharge roller 20 is placed on a placing face 51 of a discharge stacker 50, which is an example of a target material accepting portion located downstream.
The discharge toothed roller 20b has a plurality of teeth along its outer edge, and is rotatably supported by a roller holder (not shown) for a discharge toothed roller. An auxiliary toothed roller 22 is provided upstream the discharge toothed roller 20b, and the sheet P is pushed slightly downward by the auxiliary toothed roller 22. The axis of the conveyance driven roller 19b is slightly downstream from that of the conveyance driving roller 19a. In addition, the axis of the discharge toothed roller 20b is slightly upstream from that of the discharge driving roller 20a.
With this configuration, between the conveyance roller 19 and the discharge roller 20, the sheet P is slightly bent and convex downwardly, that is, is set in a so-called ‘reverse warped’ state. Further, the sheet P located opposite to the recording head 13 is pressed against the platen 28 to prevent the lift of the sheet P, and proper recording is performed. Moreover, the auxiliary toothed roller 22 has a plurality of teeth, like the discharge toothed roller 20b, and is supported by a roller holder (not shown) for an auxiliary toothed roller.
The ink jet printer 100 according to this example is a printer that uses the single package type ink cartridge 11 with a plurality of color ink cartridges integrally formed, and that horizontally slides the ink cartridge 11 from a lower portion of the feed tray 5 at the back of the main body 3 of the recording apparatus to load the ink cartridge 11 therein.
A description will now be given for an ink cartridge attachment/detachment device according to the invention which is applied to the ink jet printer 100.
Moreover, the cartridge holding unit and the eccentric cam portion on the left side of
The ink cartridge attachment/detachment device 1 of the invention has a pair of left and right cartridge holding units 30 that hold the ink cartridge 11 upon insertion of the ink cartridge 11 by a first predetermine stroke, and a power transmitting and converting mechanism 32 that ensures pressing force required for loading the ink cartridge 11 by using rotation of a lever arm 163 and leverage principle, and converts the rotation of the lever arm 163 into movement of a second predetermined stroke S required for loading the ink cartridge 11 held by the cartridge holding units 30. The power transmitting and converting mechanism 32 includes an eccentric cam portion 172, serving as a first cam portion, for moving the cartridge holding unit 30 by the second predetermined stroke S.
Of these elements, each of the cartridge holding units 30 has an unlocking mechanism 33 which is provided as one of feature components of the invention, and which permits extraction of the ink cartridge 11 from the main body 3 of the recording apparatus only by the rotation of the lever arm 163. The unlocking mechanism 33 includes an unlocking pin 34 that is moved together with the ink cartridge 11 as the lever arm 163 rotates, and an elastic unlocking piece 35 that: unlocks the ink cartridge 11 by differentiating travel loci of the unlocking pin 34 for the insertion direction and the extraction direction of the ink cartridge 11. The detailed configuration of the unlocking mechanism 33 will be described below, together with other components of the cartridge holding unit 30.
As shown in
The lock slider 36 is moved inside the slider holder 37 such that the lock slider 36 slides on and along the inner walls of the upper and lower plates of the slider holder 37, while being guided by a guide rib 38 formed on the inner wall of the slider holder 37. The lock slider 36 is formed with an engagement groove 39 that engages with the guide rib 38 therein. An extraction spring 42, such as a tension coil spring, is suspended between engagement hooks 40 and 41 that are respectively formed on the lock slider 36 and the slider holder 37.
A bearing portion 44 is provided on the lock slider 36 to rotatably support an engagement pawl 43. The bearing portion 44 has a hole that receives a rotational shaft portion 45 disposed at the base end of the engagement pawl 43. Further, attached to the rotational shaft portion 45 is a lock spring 46, such as a helical torsion coil spring, for biasing the engagement pawl 43 toward the upper plate inner wall of the slider holder 37.
The engagement pawl 43 is a member having a hook-shaped pawl formed at a front end thereof. The unlocking pin 34, which is a part of the unlocking mechanism 33, is disposed on the outer face of the pawl in parallel. The lock slider 36 is formed with the guide concave portion 47 extending in a direction perpendicular to a load direction of the ink cartridge 11. And then, a slide lock piece 48 engages with the guide concave portion 47.
The slide lock piece 48 is a flat plate member, the front end of which is cut in a crest shape according to the shape of the guide concave portion 47 with which the slide lock piece 48 engages. The slide lock piece 48 has a guide protrusion 53 on the end face thereof opposing the lower plate of the slider holder 37. The guide protrusion 53 engages with a guide groove 54 formed in the lower plate of the slider holder 37. As the guide protrusion 53 moves in the load direction of the ink cartridge 11 along the shape of the guide groove 54, the slide lock piece 48 also slides in a direction perpendicular to the load direction of the ink cartridge 11.
That is, as shown in
The guide protrusion 53 engaging with the guide groove 54 having this shape takes an outermost position when the guide protrusion 53 is located at the start end where the ink cartridge 11 is inserted. The guide protrusion 53 takes the innermost position when the guide protrusion 53 is located at the terminal end of the slope portion 55, whereby the slide lock piece 48 slides to enter into an engagement concave portion 57 in
The slider holder 37 is a box-shaped member that has a space for housing the lock slider 36 therein. The slider holder 37 is anchored to a movable frame 58 having a portal cross section as an example, and can slide together with the movable frame 58. A hook-shaped engagement rib 59 is formed on the inner wall of the upper plate of the slider holder 37, and engages with the engagement pawl 43 that is rotatably attached to the lock slider 36. With this structure, the lock slider 36 and the slider holder 37 are combined integrally.
The outer face of the slider holder 37 is open. After the lock slider 36 and the extraction spring 42 are housed, a subframe 60 is used to externally block the open area. Moreover, the subframe 60 is a part of a fixed frame 61, and is attached to a main frame 62 of the fixed frame 61 by screws.
A flow path member 4 is attached to a rear end face of the subframe 60 to be connected to the ink cartridge 11. The flow path member 4 includes needles 4a to be inserted into needle insertion openings of the ink cartridge 11, an ink supply path, and a contact point for detecting the residual amount of ink. The elastic unlocking pin 35, which is a part of the unlocking mechanism 33, is attached to the subframe 60. The unlocking piece 35 is a member such as a leaf spring member, and has an elastic tongue piece 63 that extends obliquely upward. The elastic deformation of the elastic tongue piece 63 is used to differentiate the travel loci of the unlocking pin 34 for the load direction and the extraction direction of the ink cartridge 11 (see
That is, as the elastic tongue piece 63 is bent downward, the unlocking pin 34 can move in the load direction of the ink cartridge 11, while the height of the unlocking pin 34 is maintained. In contrast, when the unlocking pin 34 moves in the extraction direction of the ink cartridge 11, the elastic tongue piece 63 is not bent upward due to an inclination direction of the elastic tongue piece 63. In this case, the unlocking pin 34 moves downward and the travel locus of the unlocking pin 34 changes. Therefore, the engagement pawl 43 integrally formed with the unlocking pin 34 pivots downward, and is disengaged from the engagement rib 59.
Further, a knob 163a is provided at one end of the lever arm 163, that is, an arm main body 163b. A first pinion 162 having a fan shape, which is an example of a transmission member in the power transmitting and converting mechanism 32, is provided at the other end of the arm main body 163b and is attached to rotate about a first rotation pin 164 serving as a fulcrum. A ratio of a distance between the fulcrum and an operation point of the lever arm 163 to a pitch circle radius of the first pinion 162 is used substantially as a leverage ratio. As the distance between the fulcrum and the operation point can be comparatively increased by using the lever arm 163, a large leverage ratio is obtained.
A rack, pinion and cam mechanism can be used as an example of the power transmitting and converting mechanism 32. In this embodiment, the power transmitting and converting mechanism 32 includes the first pinion 162 that rotates together with the lever arm 163, a slide bar 166 that has a first rack 161 meshing with the first pinion 162 and second racks 167 to transmit the movement of the first rack 161 downstream along a transmission path, second pinions 168 that mesh with the second racks 167, a geared cam unit 175 that has gears 171 meshing with the second pinions 168 and an eccentric cam portion 172 to transmit the rotation of the gears 171 downstream along the transmission path, and a first wall portion 173 that is provided close to the cartridge holding unit to be brought into contact with the eccentric cam portion 172 when the ink cartridge 11 moves in a push-in direction.
In this embodiment, the slider bar 166 has the first rack 161 located on a side opposing the first pinion 162, and the second racks 167a and 167b located on sides opposing the second pinions 168a and 168b. In addition, the slide bar 78 is guided by the first pinion 162 and the second pinion 168a on the first pinion 168a side, and is guided by guide ribs 165 of the main frame and the second pinion 168b on the second pinion 168b side, to thereby reciprocate in a widthwise direction of the main body 3 of the recording apparatus.
Like the first pinion 162, the second pinions 168a and 168b are formed of fan-shaped gears, and rotate in the same direction about second rotation pins 169a and 169b serving as fulcrums to transmit power to the gears 171a and 171b, respectively. The gears 171 (171a and 171b) rotate about a third rotation pin 170 serving as a fulcrum together with the eccentric cam portion 172 integrally formed with the gears 171. The eccentric cam portion 172 is brought into contact with the first wall portion 173 and the second wall 174 provided in the slider holder 37 of the cartridge holding unit 30 to thereby move the slider holder 37.
A description will now be given for the operation states of the ink cartridge attachment/detachment device 1 having the above-described configuration.
(1) Before Insertion (see
Before the ink cartridge 11 is inserted into the main body 3 of the recording apparatus, as shown in
(2) Start Insertion (see
When the ink cartridge 11 is manually inserted from the opening in the rear face of the main body 3 of the recording apparatus, the contact faces 7 at the front ends of the pressing ribs 6, which are formed on both side faces of the ink cartridge 11, are brought into contact with the end faces of parts where the guide concave portions 47 are formed, and gradually push the lock sliders 36 forward against biasing force of the extraction springs 42. Accordingly, the guide protrusions 53 move forward in the main body 3 along the slop portions 55 and the parallel portions 56 of the guide grooves 54. As the guide protrusions 53 move forward, the slide lock pieces 48 gradually move inwardly and then protrude.
(3) Completion of Insertion (see
When the ink cartridge 11 is fully pushed in, that is, a first predetermined stroke, upon generation of clicking sound, the engagement pawls 43 move over the rear faces of the engagement ribs 59 and engage with the engagement ribs 59. In this state, the lock sliders 36 are combined integrally with the slider holders 37, and the guide protrusions 53 reach the terminal ends of the parallel portions 56 of the guide grooves 54. The slide lock pieces 48 completely protrude inwardly, and enter into the engagement concave portions 57 that are formed in both side faces of the ink cartridge 11. In this manner, the ink cartridge 11 is locked and held by the lock sliders 36.
(4) Loading (see
As shown in
Moreover, in this state, as shown in
(5) Completion of Loading (see
When the lever arm 163 pivots to the rightmost position as shown in
Moreover, in this state, as shown in
(6) Removing (see
When the lever arm 163 pivots from the rightmost position to the left as shown in
At this time, even when the lever arm 163 rotates at a uniform speed, the speed of the slider holder 37 to be moved by the rotation of the eccentric cam portion 172 is differentiated for the load and extraction of the ink cartridge 11. That is, the speed is constant when the ink cartridge 11 is loaded, while the speed is not constant when the ink cartridge 11 is extracted. A description will now be given for the operation when the ink cartridge 11 is extracted.
First, when the eccentric cam portion 172 rotates in the clockwise direction from the position shown in
v=Aωcosωt (where A is an integer and ω is an angular frequency)
That is, when the eccentric cam portion 172 rotates from the position shown in
That is, when the speed of the slider holder 37 is Max, and the needles 4a are pulled out from the ink cartridge 11, the time of the stuck state of the needles 4a halfway can be shortened. As a result, when the ink cartridge 11 is extracted, ink leakage due to the stuck state of the needles 4a halfway can be reduced.
Moreover, in this embodiment, a line portion 172d, which connects the angular portion 172c and the rotation fulcrum, is not brought into contact with the first wall portion 173 and the second wall portion 174. However, a swelled portion of a small arc shape may be brought into contact with the second wall portion 174. With the line portion 172d of a small arc shape, a speed and timing for pulling the needles 4a out from the ink cartridge 11 can be changed.
Here, the position of the lever arm shown in
As shown in
Meanwhile, when the lever arm 163 is located at a set position shown in
Here, when the lever arm 163 is located at a position other than the reset position, that is, between the reset position arid the set position, the lever protrusion 163c can oppose a part of the insertion opening 180 so as to block the approach path A. Therefore, like the case where the lever arm 163 is located at the set position, at this time, the insertion of the ink cartridge 11 can also be prevented.
As shown in
The attachment/detachment device 1 of the ink cartridge 11 of this embodiment is the attachment/detachment device 1 of the ink cartridge 11 which loads the ink cartridge 11 into the main body 3 of the recording apparatus by sliding the ink cartridge 11. The attachment/detachment device 1 of the ink cartridge 11 includes the insertion opening 180 into which the ink cartridge 11 is inserted, the cartridge holding unit 30 that holds the ink cartridge 11 upon insertion of the ink cartridge 11 into the insertion opening 180 by the first predetermined stroke, the power transmitting and converting mechanism 32 that converts the rotation of the lever arm 163 into the movement of the second predetermined stroke S required for loading the ink cartridge 11 held by the cartridge holding unit 30, and the ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit 181 that prevents an insertion action of the ink cartridge 11 by a user when the lever arm 163 is located at the set position at which the lever arm 163 is supposed to be when loading of the ink cartridge 11 is completed or when the lever arm 163 is located at the position other than the reset position at which loading of the ink cartridge 11 is enabled.
As a result, when the lever arm 163 is located at the set position at which the lever arm 163 is supposed to be when loading of the ink cartridge 11 is completed or when the lever arm 163 is located at the position other than the reset position at which loading of the ink cartridge 11 is enabled, the insertion of the ink cartridge 11 by the user can be prevented. That is, since the erroneous insertion action itself can be prevented, the mechanisms in the recording apparatus are prevented from being damaged due to the erroneous insertion action.
The ink cartridge erroneous insertion action preventing unit 181 of this embodiment has the blocking member 182 that blocks the approach path A of the ink cartridge 11 to the insertion opening 180 upon the insertion of the ink cartridge 11 from the outside of the main body 3 of the recording apparatus. The blocking member 182 blocks the approach path A when the lever arm 163 is located at the set position or when the lever arm 163 is located at the position other then the reset position, and is retracted from the approach path A when the lever arm 163 is located at the reset position.
As a result, when the lever arm 163 is located at the set position or when the lever arm 163 is located at the position other than the reset position, the approach path A is blocked by the blocking member 182, and thus the user cannot insert the ink cartridge 11 into the insertion opening 180. At this time, since the approach path A is blocked by the blocking member 182, there is little possibility that the user tries to insert the ink cartridge 11. That is, the user visually checks whether the approach path A is blocked by the blocking member 182 and then judges whether or not to insert the ink cartridge The blocking member 182 blocks the insertion opening 180 from the outside of the main body 3 of the recording apparatus. That is, since the blocking member blocks the insertion opening 180 from the outside, not the inside, it is possible for the user to easily perform the visual check.
The blocking member 182 of this embodiment is the lever protrusion 163c which is a protrusion formed in the lever knob provided at one end of the lever arm 163.
As a result, the approach path A can be blocked by a simple configuration.
In this embodiment, the lever arm 163 rotates in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening 180, and the lever protrusion 163c extends in the lateral direction of the insertion opening 180.
As a result, for example, when the lever arm 163 is located at the set position, the lever protrusion 163c can be located at the center of the insertion opening 180. Therefore, even though the lever protrusion 163c is provided comparatively short, the erroneous insertion of the ink cartridge 11 and the erroneous insertion action itself can be reliably prevented by locating the lever protrusion 163 at the center of the insertion opening 180.
The structures shown in the drawings are different from that in the above-described embodiment, but an insertion method, a loading method and a discharge method of an ink cartridge 211, and an operation method of the set position and the reset position of a lever arm 363 are the same as those in the above-described embodiment.
First, a description will be given for the structure. An attachment/detachment device 201 of the ink cartridge 211 includes a power transmitting and converting mechanism 230, a cartridge holding unit 210, and an unlocking mechanism 220. Of these elements, the power transmitting and converting mechanism 230 has a lever arm 363, a first gear 231 that is provided in the lever arm 363, a second gear 232 that power-transmittably comes into contact with the first gear 231, a third gear 233 that is provided integrally with the second gear 232, a fourth gear 234 that power-transmittably comes into contact with the third gear 233, an eccentric cam 235 that is provided integrally with the fourth gear 234, and a slider portion 240 that serves as a cam follower to be brought into contact with the eccentric cam 235. A first slider opening 246 is provided in the slider portion 240. The eccentric cam 235 is brought or pressed into contact with a first face 246a or a second face 246b of the first slider opening 246, and the slider portion 240 can move in the load/discharge direction.
The cartridge holding unit 210 includes the slider portion 240 having a latch plate 250 with two pawls 251 in the attachment/detachment device, and two concave portions 211a which are engaged with the pawls 251 in the ink cartridge. The latch plate 250 is provided such that the pawls pivot relative to the slider portion 240 with a position where a latch plate engagement portion 254 opposite to the pawl 251 and a slider engagement portion 245 in the slider portion are engaged with each other. At this time, the latch plate 250 is disposed on the top face of the slider portion 240, and the two pawls 251 of the latch plate 250 are provided to protrude downward through two slider openings 247 of the slider portion 240.
The unlocking mechanism 220 has a slope portion 253 that is formed in the latch plate 250, and cancel arms 260a and 260b that are provided on both sides of the latch plate 250 in the load direction and are brought into contact with the slope portion 253 only when discharging the ink cartridge 211, to thereby push the latch plate 250 upward.
The detailed description of the structure will be given, together with the description of the operation of the attachment/detachment device 201.
In this embodiment, the slider portion 240 and the latch plate 250 are formed of metal plates in order that the position of the latch plate 250 is accurately, so-called rigidly, positioned.
Subsequently, the operation will be described according to the states of the insertion, loading, and discharge of the ink cartridge 211.
(1) Insertion
As shown in
If the ink cartridge 211 is pushed and inserted by the first predetermined stroke against biasing force of the discharge lever 385, the front end of the ink cartridge 211 is brought into contact with the pawls 251 protruding downward from a second slider opening 247 of the latch plate 250. Then, the front end of the ink cartridge 211 pushes the pawls 251 upward, and the two pawls 251 and the two concave portions 211a in the ink cartridge 211 are engaged with each other. That is, the slider portion 240 integrally holds the ink cartridge 211 through the latch plate 250. This state is an insertion completion state of the ink cartridge 211.
(2) Loading
Next, the ink cartridge 211 is loaded.
If the lever arm 363 rotates from the reset position shown in
If the slider portion 240 moves in the load direction, the ink cartridge 211 held by the pawls 251 of the latch plate 250 integrally moves. At this time, the engagement of the slider engagement portion 245 and the latch plate engagement portion 254 is loosened, and a slider protruding portion 242, which is provided in the slider portion and is engaged with a latch plate slit 255, presses the face of the latch plate slit 255 in the load direction. The pressing force is transmitted to the ink cartridge 211 through the pawls 251, and the ink cartridge 211 is moved in the load direction. The reason for this configuration is that, when a pivot fulcrum of the latch plate 250 is temporarily provided, large pressing force required for loading the ink cartridge 211 is centered on the fulcrum, and the fulcrum is deformed, which causes a problem in ensuring accuracy of the pressing force and distance when the ink cartridge 11 is pushed in. According to this embodiment of the invention, the fulcrum is not provided, and thus the pressing force and distance can be reliably ensured.
When the slider portion 240 moves in the load direction, a shoulder portion 252 provided in the slider portion 240 rotates the cancel arms 260a and 260b against biasing force of a cancel arm spring 261 with a shaft 262c inserted into a slit 241c and a shaft 262a inserted into the guide slit 241a as fulcrums. Then, if the shoulder portion 252 passes, the cancel arms 260a and 260b return to the original states by the biasing force of the cancel arm spring 261. The cancel arms 260a and 260b are members which work on the latch plate 250 when the ink cartridge 211 is discharged, and the description thereof will be given below.
If the lever arm 363 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction and is operated to the set position, loading of the ink cartridge 211 is completed (loading completion state), as shown in
(3) Discharge
When discharging, the lever arm 363 is rotated from the set position shown in
If the lever arm 363 is rotated in the clockwise direction, power of the lever arm 363 is transmitted to the eccentric cam 235, as described above. Then, the eccentric cam 235 is brought and pressed into contact with the second face 246b of the first slider opening 246 and moves the slider portion 240 in the discharge direction. At this time, an abutting portion 243 provided in the slider portion 240 is brought and pressed into contact with the front end of the ink cartridge 211 and moves the ink cartridge 211 in the discharge direction, together with the slider portion 240. If the slider portion 240 is moved in the discharge direction, the slope portion 253 provided in the latch plate 250 gradually runs onto the cancel arms 260a and 260b. Then, the latch plate 250 pivots upward with a position where the slider engagement portion 245 and the latch plate engagement portion 254 are engaged with each other. Therefore, the engagement of the pawls 251 in the latch plate and the concave portions 211a in the ink cartridge 211 is released. At this time, since the ink supply needles are pulled out of the ink cartridge 211, the ink cartridge 211 is discharged from the insertion opening 271 by the biasing force of the above-described discharge lever 385.
Subsequently, if the lever arm 363 is rotated in the clockwise direction further, the slope portion 253 runs over the cancel arms 260a and 260b, and thus the pawls 251 pivot downward again. Then, as shown in
A rotation fulcrum of the lever arm 363 is provided at a position offset with respect to the center of the insertion opening 271 in the longitudinal direction of the insertion opening 271. Therefore, the lever protrusion 363c can be provided such that the moving direction of the lever protrusion 363c during the rotation of the lever arm 363 from the set position to the reset position is gradually apart from the insertion opening 271 in the discharge direction of the ink cartridge 211. That is, when discharging the ink cartridge 211, the lever protrusion 363c can be provided such that the moving direction of the lever protrusion 363c is not inverted along the insertion/discharge direction of the ink cartridge 211. As a result, when the ink cartridge 211 is discharged, there is little possibility that the lever protrusion 363c pushes back the ink cartridge 211, which moves in the discharge direction, in the insertion direction opposite to the discharge direction.
Here, the degree of ‘inclination’ of the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm 363 may be set not to cause the moving direction of the lever protrusion 363c to be inverted along the insertion/discharge direction and the ink cartridge 211 to be pushed back and then held by the cartridge holding unit 210. That is, if the lever protrusion 363c slightly pushes back the ink cartridge 211, it does not matter.
FIGS. 30A and 30EB are enlarged views of the lever fulcrum.
As shown in
One positioning protrusion 367, which serves as a first engagement portion, is provided in the lever arm. Two holes 370, which serve as second engagement portions to be engaged with the positioning protrusion 367, are provided in the attachment/detachment device main body. The positions of the positioning protrusion 367 and the holes 370 are provided such that the user can obtain an operation feeling (click feeling) of ‘click, click’ with the engagement of the positioning protrusion 367 and the holes 370 when the lever arm 363 is being located at the set position and the reset position. Therefore, when the user operates the lever arm 363, the user can rotate the lever arm 363 to the set position and the reset position, without stopping at the intermediate position halfway.
With the engagement of the positioning protrusion 367 and the holes 370, the position of the lever arm 363 can be stabilized at the set position and the reset position.
As shown in
If the front end of the positioning protrusion 367 is rounded, in a state where the positioning protrusion 367 is located in the vicinity of the hole, that is, in a state immediately before the positioning protrusion 367 is engaged with the hole 370, with the engagement of the positioning protrusion 367 and the hole 370, the lever arm 363 can be rotated to the accurate set position and reset position by biasing force of the U spring washer 365.
With the positioning protrusion 367 and the U spring washer 365, there is a possibility that the axial direction of the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm 363 is inclined relative to the axial direction of the lever strut 364. That is, if the lever arm 363 is rotated, an arm main body 363b considerably rubs against the base 387 of the attachment/detachment device main body (201). At worst, they may be scraped off and dusts may occur. For this reason, a circular rib 368 is provided in the lever arm 363 outside the positioning protrusion 367 with the lever strut 364 as a center. The height of the circular rib 368 is set to be lower than the positioning protrusion 367 so as not to obstruct the engagement of the positioning protrusion 367 and the holes 370. With the circular rib 368, the lever arm 363 and the base 387 can be brought into contact with each other at a position close to the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm 363, and the occurrence of large friction between the arm main body 363b and the base 387 at a position distant from the rotation fulcrum can be prevented. That is, the circular rib 368 restricts the rotation fulcrum of the lever arm to be inclined relative to the lever strut 364. The friction amount can be made small by reducing a rotation radius at a contact place. Therefore, an occurrence possibility of dusts described above can be markedly reduced.
In this embodiment, the first engagement portion is the positioning protrusion 367 and the second engagement portion is the holes 370, but the positioning protrusion 367 and the holes 370 may be configured inversely.
Further, although the circular rib 368 is provided in the lever arm (363), the circular rib 368 may be provided in the base 387 of the attachment/detachment device.
As shown in
As shown in
Meanwhile, as shown in
Although the blocking member is the lever protrusion in this embodiment, the blocking member is not limited to the protrusion.
The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but various modifications, which still fall within the scope of the invention, can be made within the scope of the invention read on the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| P2005-138299 | May 2005 | JP | national |
| P2005-362163 | Dec 2005 | JP | national |
