1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a technique for ejecting liquid such as ink or the like onto a medium.
2. Related Art
In a liquid ejecting apparatus, such as an ink jet printer, in which a plurality of constituent members are bonded to one another to form a flow path, a liquid ejecting head that ejects liquid circulating in the flow path from nozzles has been proposed. A plurality of elastic bodies, such as coil springs, for example, are installed between the constituent members of the liquid ejecting head. In a liquid ejecting head in JP-A-2010-228148, for example, the constituent members have between them multiple arrangements where an elastic body is installed between a flexible member (a diaphragm) and a recess on a constituent member facing the flexible member. To install the plurality of elastic bodies at the same time in this configuration, a constituent member should be stacked on the flexible member in such a manner that a protruding portion on the flexible member is inserted into the inner side of one end of each elastic body to support the elastic body and that the outer side of the other end of each elastic body is inserted into the recess.
When the plurality of elastic bodies are installed at the same time in the configuration in JP-A-2010-228148, however, there is a possibility of causing a faulty installation. The elastic body supported by the protruding portion on the flexible member may be at an angle, for example. The larger the angle is, the more likely the constituent member that is stacked is to be caught by an edge of the recess, thereby causing a faulty installation. Moreover, in the configuration in JP-A-2010-228148, when the flexible member is flexibly bent, the protruding portion on the flexible member enters the recess of the constituent member together with the elastic body. This means that there is also a problem that the flexible member is likely to cling to the constituent member.
An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it facilitates installation of an elastic body while preventing clinging of a flexible member.
A liquid ejecting apparatus according to an aspect of the invention includes a first member on which a plurality of flexible members are arranged, a second member having a facing surface facing each flexible member of the plurality of flexible members, an elastic body interposed between the flexible member and the facing surface, a first support portion that supports one end of the elastic body, a second support portion that supports the other end of the elastic body, and a protruding portion that is disposed on either the flexible member or the facing surface. The second member is stacked on the first member. The first support portion is disposed on the flexible member. The second support portion, which is disposed on the facing surface, has a recess into which the other end of the elastic body is inserted. A side surface of the recess has a tapered portion formed therein to guide the other end of the elastic body toward a bottom surface of the recess. The protruding portion becomes interposed between the flexible member and the facing surface around the periphery of the recess when the flexible member is flexibly bent toward the facing surface. According to the above configuration, the tapered portion is formed on the side surface of the recess of the second support portion to guide the other end of the elastic body toward the bottom surface of the recess. Thus, even when shifted in position, the other end of the elastic body is guided along the tapered portion toward the bottom surface, thereby enabling the elastic body to be installed normally. In addition, the protruding portion that is disposed so as to become interposed between the flexible member and the facing surface around the periphery of the recess can prevent the flexible member from clinging to the facing surface when the flexible member is flexibly bent toward the facing surface. As a result, the apparatus can facilitate installation of the elastic body while preventing clinging of the flexible member.
It is preferable that the protruding portion have a width across an opening edge of the recess from an inner side to an outer side of the opening edge with the center of the width of the protruding portion being outside the opening edge of the recess. According to the above configuration, the protruding portion is less likely to incline inwardly from the opening edge when the protruding portion abuts against the periphery of the recess. It is thus less likely that the protruding portion will enter the recess.
It is preferable that the protruding portion be disposed so as to protrude from the flexible member and abut against the periphery of the recess when the flexible member is flexibly bent toward the facing surface. According to the above configuration, it is possible to prevent the flexible member from clinging to the facing surface.
It is preferable that the protruding portion be disposed on the first support portion to support the one end of the elastic body. According to the above configuration, it is possible to support the one end of the elastic body by use of the protruding portion; a separate structure does not need to be provided on the first support portion in order to support the one end of the elastic body.
It is preferable that the protruding portion be placed outside the first support portion and be brought into abutment with the outside of the opening edge of the recess. According to the above configuration, the protruding portion is brought into abutment with the outside of the opening edge of the recess; it is thus possible to prevent the flexible member from clinging to the facing surface.
The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein like numbers reference like elements.
The controller 20 comprehensively controls individual components of the liquid ejecting apparatus 10. The transport mechanism 22 transports the medium 12 in a Y direction under the control of the controller 20. The liquid ejecting head 30 includes a liquid ejecting section 32. The liquid ejecting section 32 ejects ink from each of nozzles N onto the medium 12 under the control of the controller 20. The liquid ejecting section 32 contains a plurality of sets of pressure chambers and piezoelectric elements (not illustrated) corresponding to different nozzles N. Ink in the pressure chambers is ejected from each nozzle N by supplying a drive signal to vibrate the piezoelectric elements thereby causing the pressure in the pressure chambers to change.
The liquid ejecting head 30 is mounted on the carriage 26. The controller 20 causes the carriage 26 to reciprocate in an X direction intersecting the Y direction. In parallel with the transport of the medium 12 performed by the transport mechanism 22 and the repeated reciprocating motion of the carriage 26, the liquid ejecting section 32 ejects ink onto the medium 12, thereby causing a desired image to be created on a surface of the medium 12.
A buffer chamber 40 is formed at a midpoint of each liquid flow path P. The buffer chambers 40 in this embodiment serve as tank chambers that communicate with or shut off the liquid flow paths P. The features of the buffer chamber 40 are not just limited to this, however; the buffer chamber 40 may have a feature that enables the flow rate of ink that circulates in the liquid flow path P to be adjusted. The second member 36 has recessed portions 362 formed therein, which are constituent parts of the buffer chambers 40; these recessed portions are arranged in the X direction of the second member 36. Each recessed portion 362 opens on the first member 34 side; the opening of the recessed portion 362 is closed by stacking the first member 34 on the second member 36. A space is formed between the first member 34 and the second member 36; this space, which is enclosed by the recessed portion 362 and the first member 34, functions as the buffer chamber 40.
A flexible member 42, which is capable of deforming to the positive-Z-direction side and the negative-Z-direction side, is installed in each buffer chamber 40. The flexible member 42 is, for example, a diaphragm, composed of a resin material, a rubber material, or another material. The flexible members 42 are arranged in the X direction of the first member 34, facing the corresponding recessed portion 362; the flexible members 42 are held between the first member 34 and the second member 36 which is stacked on the first member 34. Thus, each flexible member 42 faces the bottom surface of the corresponding recessed portion 362. The bottom surface of the recessed portion 362 serves as a facing surface 363 of the flexible member 42. An elastic body 50 is interposed between each flexible member 42 and the facing surface 363. The elastic body 50 in the first embodiment is formed as a coil spring; it urges the flexible member 42 toward the positive-Z-direction side (in a direction in which the flexible member 42 moves away from the facing surface 363). The elastic body 50 is not limited to a coil spring, however.
A first support portion 422 is formed on the flexible member 42 to support one end 52 of the elastic body (an end on the positive-Z-direction side). On the other hand, a second support portion 364 is formed on the facing surface 363 to support the other end 54 of the elastic body (an end on the negative-Z-direction side). The second support portion 364 in this embodiment has a recess 365 formed on the facing surface 363. The recess 365, which has a side surface 366 and a bottom surface 368, opens on the facing surface 363. The other end 54 of the elastic body 50 is inserted into the recess 365 from an opening on the facing surface 363 side and abuts against the bottom surface 368, thus supporting the elastic body 50 at a predetermined fixed position. The above-described inlet 43 has penetrated through the bottom surface 368; the other end 54 of the elastic body 50 abuts against the periphery of the inlet 43.
A tapered portion (inclined surface) F, which inclines with an increasing diameter toward the facing surface 363 side, is formed on the side surface 366 of the recess 365. In this embodiment, the tapered portion F is formed entirely on the side surface 366 of the recess 365; however, it may be formed on part of the side surface 366 of the recess 365. Since, in this embodiment, the tapered portion F is formed entirely on the side surface 366, it is possible to guide the other end 54 of the elastic body 50 toward the bottom surface 368 of the recess 365 when the elastic body 50 is inserted into the recess 365 even in the case where its position is shifted during installation of the elastic body 50.
A protruding portion 424 that protrudes from the flexible member 42 toward the facing surface 363 side is formed on the first support portion 422. The protruding portion 424 in this embodiment stands up so as to surround the outer periphery of the one end 52 of the elastic body 50; the one end 52 of the elastic body 50 is inserted into and supported by an inner side of the protruding portion 424. The protruding portion 424 becomes interposed between the flexible member 42 and the facing surface 363 around the periphery of the recess 365 when the flexible member 42 is flexibly bent toward the facing surface 363 as illustrated by the dashed line in
In
The gas chamber Sb communicates with the gas flow path Q, which communicates with the pressure adjusting section 28. In the first embodiment, the pressure adjusting section 28, which has a function that increases or decreases atmospheric pressure in the gas chamber Sb, typically includes a pneumatic pump. The pressure adjusting section 28 changes the atmospheric pressure in the gas chamber Sb to flexibly bend the flexible member 42; this change can cause the flexible member 42 to be deformed to a communicative position at the positive-Z-direction side (a position indicated by the solid line) or to a blockage position at the negative-Z-direction side (a position indicated by the dashed line). When the flexible member 42 is displaced at the blockage position at the negative-Z-direction side, the protruding portion 424 abuts against the facing surface 363 and blocks the opening of the recess 365; this operation shuts off the liquid flow path P and can stop supply of ink to the liquid ejecting section 32. On the other hand, when the flexible member 42 is displaced at the communicative position at the positive-Z-direction side, the protruding portion 424 moves away from the facing surface 363 and the recess 365 opens; this operation enables the liquid flow path P to communicate and ink to be supplied to the liquid ejecting section 32. As illustrated in
Next, an operation in the first embodiment in which a plurality of elastic bodies 50 are installed by stacking the first member 34 and the second member 36 will be described with reference to a first comparative example.
In the first embodiment in
On the other hand, in the first comparative example in
Especially when a plurality of elastic bodies 50 are installed at the same time, even in the state in which the one end 52 of the elastic body 50 is supported by the first support portion 422, the orientation of the other end 54 may vary, so, in the comparative example not having the tapered portion F, a faulty installation is likely to occur. In contrast, in the first embodiment, even when the other ends 54 of the elastic bodies 50 vary somewhat in orientation, the above-described tapered portion F enables easy installation of all the elastic bodies 50 normally. This operation can facilitate installation of the elastic bodies when the plurality of elastic bodies 50 are installed at the same time.
Next, an operation of the buffer chamber 40 in the first embodiment will be described with reference to a second comparative example.
The protruding portion 424 that abuts against the periphery of the recess 365 is formed on the first support portion 422 in the first embodiment in
On the other hand, the first support portion 422 in the second comparative example in
As detailed above, in the liquid ejecting head 30 according to the first embodiment, the tapered portion F that guides the other end 54 of the elastic body 50 toward the bottom surface 368 of the recess 365 is formed on the side surface 366 of the recess 365 on the second support portion 364. Thus, even when shifted in position, the other end 54 of the elastic body 50 is guided along the tapered portion F toward the bottom surface 368, thereby enabling the elastic body 50 to be installed normally. In addition, the protruding portion 424 is disposed so as to become interposed between the flexible member 42 and the facing surface 363 around the periphery of the recess 365 when the flexible member 42 is flexibly bent toward the facing surface 363. This disposition can prevent the flexible member 42 from clinging to the facing surface 363 when the flexible member 42 is flexibly bent toward the facing surface 363. As a result, the apparatus according to the first embodiment can facilitate installation of the elastic body 50 while preventing clinging of the flexible member 42. Moreover, in the first embodiment, providing the protruding portion 424 on the first support portion 422 can support the one end 52 of the elastic body 50 on the inside of the protruding portion 424. In this configuration, a separate structure does not need to be provided on the first support portion 422 in order to support the one end 52 of the elastic body 50.
A second embodiment of the invention will now be described. In embodiments described below, like elements having the same operation and function as those in the first embodiment may be denoted by like numbers used in the descriptions in the first embodiment; each detailed explanation will be omitted as appropriate.
According to the configuration in
A third embodiment of the invention will now be described.
According to the configuration in
A fourth embodiment of the invention will now be described.
The above-described embodiments can be modified in various ways. Specific modified examples will be described below. Any two or more of the following examples can be merged as appropriate unless they are inconsistent with each other.
(1) In the above-described embodiments, the invention is applied to the exemplary configuration in which the elastic bodies 50 are installed in the plurality of buffer chambers 40 formed by stacking the first member 34 and the second member 36, but the invention is not limited to this configuration. The invention can be applied to a variety of chambers and apparatuses, into which the elastic bodies 50 are installed, which are formed by stacking the first member 34 and the second member 36. An example other than the buffer chamber 40 includes a valve apparatus or the like in which an elastic body that urges a valve body, for example, is provided.
(2) In the above-described embodiments, a serial head that repeatedly reciprocates, in the X direction, the carriage 26 on which a plurality of liquid ejecting heads 30 are mounted is used as an example, but the invention is also applicable to a line head in which the liquid ejecting head 30 is arranged entirely across the width of the medium 12. The method by which the liquid ejecting head 30 ejects ink is not limited to the above-described method (a piezo method) that uses piezoelectric elements. For example, the invention can also be applied to a liquid ejecting head in accordance with the method (a thermal method) that uses heating elements to change the pressure in a pressure chamber by generating air bubbles in the chamber with the application of heat.
(3) The exemplary printing apparatus in the above embodiments can be used for various kinds of devices such as a facsimile apparatus, a copier, and the like in addition to an apparatus specific to printing. Note that the use of the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the embodiments of the invention is not limited to printing. For example, a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a colorant solution can be used as a manufacturing apparatus that forms color filters for a liquid crystal display. Alternatively, a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a conductive material solution may be used as a manufacturing apparatus that forms wiring patterns and electrodes on a wiring board.
The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2016-054947, filed Mar. 18, 2016 is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2016-054947 | Mar 2016 | JP | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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9421782 | Okuno | Aug 2016 | B2 |
9511597 | Tsukahara | Dec 2016 | B2 |
9555641 | Miyamoto | Jan 2017 | B2 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2007-232194 | Sep 2007 | JP |
2010-228148 | Oct 2010 | JP |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20170266967 A1 | Sep 2017 | US |