The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
The following embodiments are illustrated with reference to the accompanied drawings, so as to illustrate the specific embodiments for implementing the present invention. The direction terms mentioned in the present invention such as “up”, “down”, “front”, “back”, “left” and “right” only refer to the directions in the accompanied drawings. Therefore, the direction terms are used for illustrating and not for limiting the present invention.
The body 210 has three ink chambers 212a to 212c and three ink delivery ports 216a to 216c. The ink delivery ports 216a to 216c are respectively located at a bottom 250 of the body 210, and the ink chambers 212a to 212c respectively fluidly communicate with the ink delivery ports 216a to 216c.
The channel module 220 has a chip bonding area R, three flow channels 222a to 222c, and three ink supply ports 224a to 224c. The ink supply ports 224a to 224c are located in the chip bonding area R, and the flow channels 222a to 222c respectively fluidly communicate ink delivery ports 216a to 216c with the ink supply ports 224a to 224c.
The engaging parts 230a to 230d are arranged on the body 210, for example, in the form of the four blocks or protrusions (the blocks and protrusions referred to as blocks in the present invention), and the engaging parts 240a to 240d are arranged on the channel module 220, for example, in the form of the four indentations or grooves or notches (the indentations or grooves or notches referred to as “indentations” in the present invention) as shown in
Compared with the blocks 118a and 118b of the conventional ink cartridge 100 and the corresponding indentations 128a and 128b which can only restrict the channel module 120 from moving along the positive x-axis, negative x-axis, and negative y-axis relatively to the body 110, the engaging parts 230a to 230d and the engaging parts 240a to 240d of the first embodiment can restrict the channel module 220 from moving along the positive x-axis, negative x-axis, positive y-axis, and negative y-axis relatively to the body 210, and can also restrict the channel module 220 from rotating about the z-axis (orthogonal to the x-axis and y-axis) relatively to the body 210. In other words, not only a deviation of the channel module 220in x-axis and y-axis directions but also the rotation deviation about the z-axis (orthogonal to the x-axis and y-axis) can be prevented, when the channel module 220 is assembled on the body 210, by the engagement or cooperation of the engaging parts 230a to 230d and the engaging parts 240a to 240d.
Since the engaging parts 230a to 230d and the engaging parts 240a to 240d are used for locating the relative position between the channel module 220 and the body 210, the accuracy of orientation of the channel module 220 with respect to the body 210 can be improved. Therefore, when the channel module 220 is attached to the body 210, for example, by means of ultrasonic welding, the welding quality and yield can be enhanced because of the engagement of the engaging parts 230a to 230d and the engaging parts 240a to 240d. However, the method of fixing the channel module 220 onto the body 210 in the present embodiment is not limited to the ultrasonic welding, other methods such as laser welding, or bonding by adhesive can also be used to fix the channel module 220 onto the body 210. The arrangement of engaging parts in the present invention can assist to locate the channel module 220 onto the body 210. Moreover, by respectively measuring the distance between the engaging parts 230a to 230d and the distance between the engaging parts 240a to 240d, the inspector or manufacturer can easily inspect whether the channel module 220 or body 210 is manufactured within an allowable tolerance before fixing the channel module 220 onto the body 210, thereby ensuring that the channel module 220 can be correctly fitted and located on the body 210.
The engaging parts 230a to 230d are blocks, and the engaging parts 240a to 240d are indentations. However, in the embodiments which are not shown, one or all of the engaging parts 230a to 230d is/are indentation(s), and the corresponding one or all of the engaging parts 240a to 240d is/are block(s). Moreover, in one embodiment, when the engaging parts 230a to 230b are blocks and are arranged at two corners on one side of the surface of the bottom 250 (as shown for example in
The ink cartridge having three ink chambers is taken as an example. However, it is known that it is not intended to limit the number of the ink chambers of the ink cartridge of the present invention, and persons skilled in the art can determine the number of the ink chambers, for example, two ink chambers or more than four ink chambers according to the spirit of the present invention.
The body 310 has three ink chambers 312a to 312c and three ink delivery ports 316a to 316c. The ink delivery ports 316a to 316c are located at a bottom 350 of the body 310, and the ink chambers 312a to 312c respectively fluidly communicate with the ink delivery ports 316a to 316c.
The channel module 320 is attached to the bottom 350 of the body 310. The channel module 320 has a chip bonding area R, three flow channels 322a to 322c, and three ink supply ports 324a to 324c. The ink supply ports 324a to 324c are located in the chip bonding area R, and the flow channels 322a to 322c respectively fluidly communicate ink delivery ports 316a to 316c with the ink supply ports 324a to 324c.
The channel module 320 has a base 320a attached to the body 310, an uplift portion 320b protruding from the base 320a. The chip bonding area R is formed on the uplift portion 320b. The base 320a has a base surface B. The uplift portion 320b has a side surface S connecting the base surface B and the chip bonding area R, and the angle A between the side surface S and the base surface B is between 90 degrees and 135 degrees.
A section of the flow channel 322a substantially parallel to the abovementioned two-dimension plane extends from the chip bonding area R to an area outside the chip bonding area R. Moreover, the ink supply ports 324a to 324c are arranged in sequence. In one embodiment, the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 322a is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink supply ports 324a to 324c in the y-axis direction shown in
In one embodiment, the ink chambers 312a to 312c are arranged in sequence, and the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 322a is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction (y-axis direction) of the ink chambers 312a to 312c. In other embodiments, the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 322a is not required to be substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink chambers 312a to 312c. In other words, the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 322a can be designed similar to that of a section of the flow channel 322b substantially parallel to the abovementioned two-dimension plane. Moreover, the ink chambers 312a to 312c are arranged in sequence, and the ink supply ports 324a to 324c are arranged in sequence, and the arrangement direction of the ink chambers 312a to 312c is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink supply ports 324a to 324c (y-axis direction).
The ink chambers 312a to 312c can be arranged along different directions by horizontally extending one, some, or all of the flow channels. Therefore, compared with the ink chambers 212a to 212c in
The body 410 has three ink chambers 412a to 412c and three ink delivery ports 416a to 416c. The ink delivery ports 416a to 416c are respectively located at a bottom 450 of the body 410, and the ink chambers 412a to 412c respectively fluidly communicate with the ink delivery ports 416a to 416c.
The channel module 420 includes a chip bonding area R, three flow channels 422a to 422c, and three ink supply ports 424a to 424c. The ink supply ports 424a to 424c are located in the chip bonding area R, and the flow channels 422a to 422c respectively fluidly communicate ink delivery ports 416a to 416c with the ink supply ports 424a to 424c.
The channel module 420 further has a base 420a attached to the body 410 and an uplift portion 420b protruding from the base 420a. The chip bonding area R is formed on the uplift portion 420b. The base 420a has a base surface B. The uplift portion 420b has a side surface S connecting the base surface B and the chip bonding area R, and the angle A between the side surface S and the base surface B is between 90 degrees and 135 degrees.
The engaging parts 430a to 430d may be arranged on the body 410 in the form of four blocks as shown in
In one embodiment, the engaging parts 430a to 430d are respectively arranged at the four corners on the surface of the bottom 450, as shown in
Since the engaging part 430a to 430d and the engaging parts 440a to 440d are used for locating the relative position between the channel module 420 and the body 410, the accuracy of orientation of the channel module 420 with respect to the body 410 can be improved. Therefore, when the channel module 420 is attached to the body 410, for example, by means of ultrasonic welding, the welding quality and yield can be enhanced. However, the engaging method of fixing the channel module 420 onto the body 410 in the present embodiment is not limited to the ultrasonic welding, other methods such as laser welding, or bonding by adhesive can also be used to fix the channel module 420 onto the body 410. The arrangement of engaging parts in the present invention can assist to locate the channel module 420 onto the body 410.
The engaging parts 430a to 430d are blocks, and the engaging parts 440a to 440d are indentations. However, in the embodiments which are not shown, one or all of the engaging parts 430a to 430d is/are indentation(s), and the corresponding one or all of the engaging parts 440a to 440d is/are block(s). Moreover, in one embodiment, when the engaging parts 430a to 430d are blocks and arranged at two corners on one side of the surface of the bottom 450 (as shown for example in
The section of the flow channel 422a substantially parallel to the abovementioned two-dimension plane extends from the chip bonding area R to an area outside the chip bonding area R. Moreover, the ink supply ports 424a to 424c are arranged in sequence, and the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 422a is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink supply ports 424a to 424c, i.e., in y-axis direction in
The ink chambers 412a to 412c are arranged in sequence, and the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 422a is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink chambers 412a to 412c (y-axis direction). Moreover, the ink supply ports 424a to 424c are arranged in sequence, and the arrangement direction of the ink chambers 412a to 412c is substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink supply ports 424a to 424c (y-axis direction). In other embodiments, the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 422a is not substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the ink chambers 412a to 412c. In other words, the extending direction of the section of the flow channel 422a is designed similar to that of a section of the flow channel 422b substantially parallel to the abovementioned two-dimension plane.
The ink chambers 412a to 412c can be arranged along different directions by horizontally extending one, some, or all of the flow channels. Therefore, compared with the ink chambers 212a to 212c in
It can be known from the embodiments in
In view of the above, the ink cartridge of the present invention uses the engagement to ensure the accuracy and liability of the location between the body and the channel module. On the other hand, in the present invention, the horizontal section of some flow channels extend from the chip bonding area to an area outside the chip bonding area, thereby improving the flexibility in arrangement of the ink chambers.
The foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form or to exemplary embodiments disclosed. Accordingly, the foregoing description should be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in this art. The embodiments are chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its best mode practical application, thereby to enable persons skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use or implementation contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents in which all terms are meant in their broadest reasonable sense unless otherwise indicated. It should be appreciated that variations may be made in the embodiments described by persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. Moreover, the abstract and the title are used to facilitate searching the patent document, but not used for limiting the claimed scope of the present invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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95117816 | May 2006 | TW | national |