Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6431697
-
Patent Number
6,431,697
-
Date Filed
Monday, January 31, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, August 13, 200222 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 347 86
- 347 87
- 347 49
- 347 214
- 400 207
- 400 208
- 222 165
- 222 325
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A replaceable ink container includes an ink container chassis for containing a quantity of ink and a latch separate from and attachable to the ink container chassis for securing the replaceable ink container to a receiving station of an inkjet printing system. The chassis further includes a receptacle for receiving the latch to attach the latch to the chassis. The container is assembled by inserting the latch into the receptacle.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to ink containers for providing ink to inkjet printers. More specifically, the present invention relates to ink containers configured for insertion and removal from a receiving station within an inkjet printer.
Inkjet printers frequently make use of an inkjet printhead mounted within a carriage that is moved relative to a print media, such as paper. As the printhead is moved relative to the print media, a control system activates the printhead to deposit or eject ink droplets onto the print media to form images and text. Ink is provided to the printhead by a supply of ink that is either integral with the printhead, as in the case of a disposable print cartridge, or by a supply of ink that is replaceable separate from the printhead.
One type of previously used printing system makes use of the ink supply that is carried with the carriage. This ink supply has been formed integral with the printhead, whereupon the entire printhead and ink supply are replaced when ink is exhausted. Alternatively, the ink supply can be carried with the carriage and be separately replaceable from the printhead. For the case where the ink supply is separately replaceable, the ink supply is replaced when exhausted. The printhead is then replaced at the end of printhead life. Regardless of where the ink supply is located within the printing system, it is critical that the ink supply provides a reliable supply of ink to the inkjet printhead.
There is an ever present need for inkjet printing systems that make use of replaceable ink containers that are easy to install and remove. The installation of the ink container should produce reliable fluidic connection to the printer. These ink containers should be relatively easy to manufacture, thereby tending to reduce the ink supply cost. Reduction of the ink supply cost tends to reduce the per page printing costs of the printing system. In addition, these ink containers should be compact and configured to be inserted into the inkjet printing system to maintain a relatively small overall height of the printing system allowing a low profile printing system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One aspect of the present invention is a replaceable ink container for providing ink to an inkjet printing system. The inkjet printing system has a receiving station for receiving the replaceable ink container. The replaceable ink container includes an ink container chassis for containing a quantity of ink. Also included is a latch separate from the ink container chassis that is attachable to the chassis for securing the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
Another aspect of the present invention is where the receiving station includes a receiving station engagement feature. The latch further includes a complementary latch engagement feature wherein insertion of the replaceable ink container into the receiving station engages the receiving station engagement feature with the complementary latch engagement feature to secure the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is where the receptacle further includes a receptacle engagement feature. The latch is configured to further include a complementary latch engagement feature wherein the insertion of the latch into the receptacle engages the receptacle engagement feature with the latch engagement feature to secure the latch to the ink container chassis.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is one exemplary embodiment of an ink jet printing system of the present invention shown with a cover opened to show a plurality of replaceable ink containers of the present invention.
FIG. 2
is a greatly enlarged perspective view of a portion of a scanning carriage showing the replaceable ink containers of the present invention positioned in a receiving station that provides fluid communication between the replaceable ink containers and one or more printhead.
FIG. 3
is a side plan view of a portion of the scanning carriage showing guiding and latching features associated with each of the replaceable ink container and the receiving station for securing the replaceable ink container, thereby allowing fluid communication with the printhead.
FIG. 4
is a receiving station shown in isolation for receiving one or more replaceable ink containers of the present invention.
FIGS. 5
a,
5
b,
5
c,
and
5
d
are isometric views of a three-color replaceable ink container of the present invention shown in isolation.
FIG. 6
is a perspective view of a single color replaceable ink container of the present invention.
FIGS. 7
a,
7
b,
and
7
c
depict the method of the present invention for inserting the replaceable ink container into the supply station.
FIGS. 8
a
and
8
b
depict the passage of the replaceable ink container over an upstanding fluid inlet on the receiving station viewed from a side view and an end view, respectively.
FIGS. 9
a,
9
b,
and
9
c
depict a method of the present invention for removing the replaceable ink container from the receiving station.
FIG. 10
is a perspective view of a trailing end of the replaceable ink container of the present invention having a separable latch portion for securing the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
FIG. 11
is a greatly enlarged perspective view of the trailing end of the replaceable ink container having a separable latch portion as shown in
FIG. 10
with the latch portion shown removed.
FIG. 12
is a greatly enlarged perspective view of the latch portion of
FIG. 10
shown in isolation.
FIG. 13
is a greatly enlarged bottom view of the replaceable ink container showing a receptacle for receiving the separate latch portion shown in FIG.
12
.
FIG. 14
is a perspective view of the trailing end of the replaceable ink container shown with the separate latch portion partially inserted into the receptacle.
FIG. 15
is a cross sectional view of the replaceable ink container shown secured to the receiving station by a separable latch that is secured to the replaceable ink container.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
FIG. 1
is a perspective view of one exemplary embodiment of a printing system
10
shown with its cover open, that includes at least one replaceable ink container
12
that is installed in a receiving station
14
. With the replaceable ink container
12
properly installed into the receiving portion
14
, ink is provided from the replaceable ink container
12
to at least one inkjet printhead
16
. The inkjet printhead
16
is responsive to activation signals from a printer portion
18
to deposit ink on print media. As ink is ejected from the printhead
16
, the printhead
16
is replenished with ink from the ink container
12
. In one preferred embodiment the replaceable ink container
12
, receiving station
14
, and inkjet printhead
16
are each part of a scanning carriage that is moved relative to a print media
22
to accomplish printing. The printer portion
18
includes a media tray
24
for receiving the print media
22
. As the print media
22
is stepped through a print zone, the scanning carriage
20
moves the printhead
16
relative to the print media
22
. The printer portion
18
selectively activates the printhead
16
to deposit ink on print media
22
to thereby accomplish printing.
The scanning carriage
20
is moved through the print zone on a scanning mechanism which includes a slide rod
26
on which the scanning carriage
20
slides as the scanning carriage
20
moves through a scan axis. A positioning means (not shown) is used for precisely positioning the scanning carriage
20
. In addition, a paper advance mechanism (not shown) is used to step the print media
22
through the print zone as the scanning carriage
20
is moved along the scan axis. Electrical signals are provided to the scanning carriage
20
for selectively activating the printhead
16
by means of an electrical link such as a ribbon cable
28
.
An important aspect of the present invention is the method and apparatus for securing the ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
such that the ink container
12
forms proper fluidic and electrical interconnect with the printer portion
18
. In the preferred embodiment the latch mechanism is separately attached to the ink container to provide an easily manufacturable ink container
12
having a latch feature. It is essential that the ink container
12
is secured to the receiving station such that both proper fluidic and electrical connection be established between the ink container
12
and the printer portion
18
. The fluidic interconnection allows a supply of ink within the replaceable ink container
12
to be fluidically coupled to the printhead
16
for providing a source of ink to the printhead
16
. The electrical interconnection allows information to be passed between the replaceable ink container
12
and the printer portion
18
. Information passed between the replaceable ink container
12
and the printer portion
18
can include information related to the compatibility of replaceable ink container with printer portion
18
and operation status information such as ink level information, to name a few.
Before discussing the specific detail of the method and apparatus of the present invention for forming the ink container having a separate latch portion, as will be discussed with respect to
FIGS. 10 through 14
, it will be helpful to first discuss the general function of the ink container
12
and receiving station
14
, as will be discussed with respect to
FIGS. 2 through 9
. These general functional features depict those features which allow the replaceable ink container
12
to be inserted into the receiving station
14
in such a manner that reliable electrical and fluidic connection is established between the replaceable ink container
12
and the receiving station
14
.
FIG. 2
is a perspective view of a portion of the scanning carriage
20
showing a pair of replaceable ink containers
12
properly installed in the receiving station
14
. An inkjet printhead
16
is in fluid communication with the receiving station
14
. In the preferred embodiment, the inkjet printing system
10
shown in
FIG. 1
includes a tri-color ink container containing three separate ink colors and a second ink container containing a single ink color. In this preferred embodiment, the tri-color ink container contains cyan, magenta, and yellow inks, and the single color ink container contains black ink for accomplishing four-color printing. The replaceable ink containers
12
can be partitioned differently to contain fewer than three ink colors or more than three ink colors if more are required. For example, in the case of high fidelity printing, frequently six or more colors are used to accomplish printing.
The scanning carriage portion
20
shown in
FIG. 2
is shown fluidically coupled to a single printhead
16
for simplicity. In the preferred embodiment, four inkjet printheads
16
are each fluidically coupled to the receiving station
14
. In this preferred embodiment, each of the four printheads are fluidically coupled to each of the four colored inks contained in the replaceable ink containers. Thus, the cyan, magenta, yellow and black printheads
16
are each coupled to their corresponding cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink supplies, respectively. Other configurations which make use of fewer printheads than four are also possible. For example, the printhead
16
can be configured to print more than one ink color by properly partitioning the printhead
16
to allow a first ink color to be provided to a first group of ink nozzles and a second ink color to be provided to a second group of ink nozzles, with the second group of ink nozzles different from the first group. In this manner, a single printhead
16
can be used to print more than one ink color allowing fewer than four printheads
16
to accomplish four-color printing. The fluidic path between each of the replaceable ink containers
12
and the printhead
16
will be discussed in more detail with respect to FIG.
3
.
Each of the replaceable ink containers
12
include a latch
30
for securing the replaceable ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
. The latch
30
will be discussed in more detail with respect to
FIGS. 10-14
. The receiving station
14
in the preferred embodiment includes a set of keys
32
that interact with corresponding keying features (not shown) on the replaceable ink container
12
. The keying features on the replaceable ink container
12
interact with the keys
32
on the receiving station
14
to ensure that the replaceable ink container
12
is compatible with the receiving station
14
.
FIG. 3
is a side plan view of the scanning carriage portion
20
shown in FIG.
2
. The scanning carriage portion
20
includes the ink container
12
shown properly installed into the receiving station
14
, thereby establishing fluid communication between the replaceable ink container
12
and the printhead
16
.
The replaceable ink container
12
includes a reservoir portion
34
for containing one or more quantities of ink. In the preferred embodiment, the tri-color replaceable ink container
12
has three separate ink containment reservoirs, each containing ink of a different color. In this preferred embodiment, the monochrome replaceable ink container
12
is a single ink reservoir
34
for containing ink of a single color.
In the preferred embodiment, the reservoir
34
has a capillary storage member (not shown) disposed therein. The capillary storage member is a porous member having sufficient capillarity to retain ink to prevent ink leakage from the reservoir
34
during insertion and removal of the ink container
12
from the printing system
10
. This capillary force must be sufficiently great to prevent ink leakage from the ink reservoir
34
over a wide variety of environmental conditions such as temperature and pressure changes. In addition, the capillarity of the capillary member is sufficient to retain ink within the ink reservoir
34
for all orientations of the ink reservoir as well as a reasonable amount of shock and vibration the ink container may experience during normal handling. The preferred capillary storage member is a network of heat bonded polymer fibers described in US Patent Application entitled “Ink Reservoir for an Inkjet Printer” attorney docket 10991407 filed on Oct. 29, 1999, Ser. No. 09/430,400, assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein by reference.
Once the ink container
12
is properly installed into the receiving station
14
, the ink container
12
is fluidically coupled to the printhead
16
by way of fluid interconnect
36
. Upon activation of the printhead
16
, ink is ejected from the ejection portion
38
producing a negative gauge pressure, sometimes referred to as backpressure, within the printhead
16
. This negative gauge pressure within the printhead
16
is sufficient to overcome the capillary retaining force within the capillary member disposed within the ink reservoir
34
. Ink is drawn by this backpressure from the replaceable ink container
12
to the printhead
16
. In this manner, the printhead
16
is replenished with ink provided by the replaceable ink container
12
.
The fluid interconnect
36
is preferably an upstanding ink pipe that extends upwardly into the ink container
12
and downwardly to the inkjet printhead
16
. The fluid interconnect
36
is shown greatly simplified in FIG.
3
. In the preferred embodiment, the fluid interconnect
36
is a manifold that allows for offset in the positioning of the printheads
16
along the scan axis, thereby allowing the printhead
16
to be placed offset from the corresponding replaceable ink container
12
. In the preferred embodiment, the fluid interconnect
36
extends into the reservoir
34
to compress the capillary member, thereby forming a region of increased capillarity adjacent the fluid interconnect
36
. This region of increased capillarity tends to draw ink toward the fluid interconnect
36
, thereby allowing ink to flow through the fluid interconnect
36
to the printhead
16
. As will be discussed, it is crucial that the ink container
12
be properly positioned within the receiving station
14
such that proper compression of the capillary member is accomplished when the ink container
12
is inserted into the receiving station. Proper compression of the capillary member is necessary to establish a reliable flow of ink from the ink container
12
to the printhead
16
.
The replaceable ink container
12
further includes a guide feature
40
, an engagement feature
42
, a handle
44
and a latch feature
30
that allow the ink container
12
to be inserted into the receiving station
14
to achieve reliable fluid interconnection with the printhead
16
as well as form reliable electrical interconnection between the replaceable ink container
12
and the scanning carriage
20
as will be discussed with respect to
FIGS. 7
a
-
7
c
and
8
a
-
8
b.
The receiving station
14
includes a guide rail
46
, an engagement feature
48
and a latch engagement feature
50
. The guide rail
46
cooperates with the guide rail engagement feature
40
and the replaceable ink container
12
to guide the ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
. Once the replaceable ink container
12
is fully inserted into the receiving station
14
, the engagement feature
42
associated with the replaceable ink container engages the engagement feature
48
associated with the receiving station
14
, securing a front end or a leading end of the replaceable ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
. The ink container
12
is then pressed downward to compress a spring biasing member
52
associated with the receiving station
14
until a latch engagement feature
50
associated with the receiving station
14
engages a hook feature
54
associated with the latch member
30
to secure a back end or trailing end of the ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
. It is the cooperation of the features on the ink container
12
with the features associated with the receiving station
14
that allow proper insertion and functional interfacing between the replaceable ink container
12
and the receiving station
14
. The receiving station
14
will now be discussed in more detail with respect to FIG.
4
.
FIG. 4
is a front perspective view of the ink receiving station
14
shown in isolation. The receiving station
14
shown in
FIG. 4
includes a monochrome bay
56
for receiving an ink container
12
containing a single ink color and a tri-color bay
58
for receiving an ink container having three separate ink colors contained therein. In this preferred embodiment, the monochrome bay
56
receives a replaceable ink container
12
containing black ink, and the tri-color bay receives a replaceable ink container containing cyan, magenta, and yellow inks, each partitioned into a separate reservoir within the ink container
12
. The receiving station
14
as well as the replaceable ink container
12
can have other arrangements of bays
56
and
58
for receiving ink containers containing different numbers of distinct inks contained therein. In addition, the number of receiving bays
56
and
58
for the receiving station
14
can be fewer or greater than two. For example, a receiving station
14
can have four separate bays for receiving four separate monochrome ink containers
12
with each ink container containing a separate ink color to accomplish four-color printing.
Each bay
56
and
58
of the receiving station
14
includes an aperture
60
for receiving the upright fluid interconnect
36
that extends therethrough. The fluid interconnect
36
is a fluid inlet for ink to exit a corresponding fluid outlet associated with the ink container
12
. An electrical interconnect
62
is also included in each receiving bay
56
and
58
. The electrical interconnect
62
includes a plurality of electrical contacts
64
. In the preferred embodiment, the electrical contacts are an arrangement of four spring-loaded electrical contacts with proper installation of the replaceable ink container
12
into the corresponding bay of the receiving station
14
. Proper engagement with each of the electrical connectors
62
and fluid interconnects
36
must be established in a reliable manner.
The guide rails
46
disposed on either side of the fluid interconnects within each bay
56
and
58
engage the corresponding guide feature
40
on either side of the ink container
12
to guide the ink container into the receiving station. When the ink container
12
is fully inserted into the receiving station
14
, the engagement features
48
disposed on a back wall
66
of the receiving station
14
engage the corresponding engagement features
42
shown in
FIG. 3
on the ink container
12
. The engagement features
48
are disposed on either side of the electrical interconnect
62
. A biasing means
52
such as a leaf spring is disposed within the receiving station
14
. The leaf spring
52
provides a biasing force which tends to urge the ink container
12
upward from a bottom surface
68
of the receiving station
14
. The leaf spring aids in the latching of the ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
as well as aiding the removal of the ink container
12
from the receiving station as will be discussed with respect to
FIGS. 8 and 9
.
FIGS. 5
a,
5
b,
5
c,
and
5
d
show front plan, side plan, back plan, and bottom plan views, respectively, of the replaceable ink container
12
of the present invention. As shown in
FIG. 5
a,
the replaceable ink container
12
includes a pair of outwardly projecting guide rail engagement features
40
. In the preferred embodiment, each of these guide rail engagement features extend outwardly in a direction orthogonal to upright side
70
of the replaceable ink container
12
. The engagement features
42
extend outwardly from a front surface or leading edge
72
of the ink container
12
. The engagement features
42
are disposed on either side of an electrical interface
74
and are disposed toward a bottom surface
76
of the replaceable ink container
12
. The electrical interface
74
includes a plurality of electrical contacts
78
, with each of the electrical contacts
78
electrically connected to an electrical storage device
80
.
Opposite the leading end
72
is a trailing end
82
shown in
FIG. 5
c.
The trailing end
82
of the replaceable ink container
12
includes the latch feature
30
having an engagement hook
54
. The latch feature
30
is formed of a resilient material which allows the latch feature to extend outwardly from the trailing end thereby extending the engagement feature outwardly toward the corresponding engagement feature associated with the receiving station
14
. As will be discussed as the latch member
30
is compressed inwardly toward the trailing end
82
, the latch member exerts a biasing force outwardly in order to ensure the engagement feature
54
remains in engagement with the corresponding engagement feature
50
associated with the receiving station
14
to secure the ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
.
The replaceable ink container
12
also includes keys
84
disposed on the trailing end of the replaceable ink container
12
. The keys are preferably disposed on either side of the latch
30
toward the bottom surface
76
of the replaceable ink container
12
. The keys
84
, together with keying features
32
on the receiving station
14
, interact to ensure the ink container
12
is inserted in the correct bay
56
and
58
in the receiving station
14
. In addition, the keys
84
and the keying features
32
ensure that the replaceable ink container
12
contains ink that is compatible both in color and in chemistry or computability with the corresponding receiving bay
56
and
58
within the receiving station
14
.
Also included in the ink container
12
is the handle portion
44
disposed on a top surface
86
at the trailing edge
82
of the replaceable ink container
12
. The handle
44
allows the ink container
12
to be grasped at the trailing edge
82
while inserted into the appropriate bay of the receiving station
14
.
Finally, the ink container
12
includes apertures
88
disposed on the bottom surface
76
of the replaceable ink container
12
. The apertures
88
allow the fluid interconnect
36
to extend through the reservoir
34
to engage the capillary member disposed therein. In the case of the tri-color replaceable ink container
12
, there are three fluid outlets
88
, with each fluid outlet corresponding to a different ink color. In the case of the tri-color chamber, each of three fluid interconnects
36
extend into each of the fluid outlets
88
to provide fluid communication between each ink chamber and the corresponding print head for that ink color.
FIG. 6
is a perspective view of a monochrome ink container positioned for insertion into the monochrome bay
56
in the receiving station
14
shown in FIG.
4
. The monochrome ink container shown in
FIG. 6
is similar to the tri-color ink container shown in
FIGS. 5
a
through
5
d
except that only a single fluid outlet
88
is provided in the bottom surface
76
. The monochrome replaceable ink container
12
contains a single ink color and therefore receives only a single corresponding fluid interconnect
36
for providing ink from the ink container
12
to the corresponding printhead.
FIGS. 7
a,
7
b,
and
7
c
is a sequence of figures to illustrate the technique of the present invention for inserting the replaceable ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
to form reliable electrical and fluidic connections with the receiving station
14
.
FIG. 7
a
shows the ink container
12
partially inserted into the receiving station
14
. In the preferred embodiment, the ink container
12
is inserted into the receiving station
14
by grasping the handle portion
44
and inserting the ink container into the receiving station with the leading edge or leading face
72
first. As the leading edge
72
enters the receiving station
14
the outwardly extending guide members
40
on the ink container engage each of the pair of guide rails
46
. The guide rails
46
guide the ink container
12
in a horizontal or linear motion toward the back wall
66
of the receiving station
14
. The guide rails
46
then guide the replaceable ink container in both a horizontal direction toward the back wall
66
and a vertical direction toward the bottom surface of the receiving station
14
such that the engagement feature
42
on the ink container
12
is received by a corresponding engagement feature
48
on the back wall
66
of the receiving station
14
as shown in
FIG. 7
b.
The insertion of the ink container
12
requires only an insertion force to urge the ink container linearly along the guide rail
46
. The gravitational force acting on the ink container
12
tends to cause the ink container to follow the guide rails
46
as the guide rails extend in a downward direction to allow engagement of engagement features
42
and
48
. The guide rail engagement features
40
are preferably gently rounded surfaces to slide freely along the guide rails
46
.
FIG. 7
b
shows the ink container
12
inserted into the receiving station
14
such that the engagement feature
42
is in engagement with the engagement feature
48
associated with the receiving station
14
. A downward force is applied to the ink container
12
as represented by arrows
90
to compress the leaf spring
52
and to urge the trailing end
82
of the ink container
12
downwardly toward the bottom surface
68
of the receiving station
14
. The keys
84
must properly correspond to the keying feature
32
on the receiving station
14
. If the keys
84
on the ink container
12
do not correspond to the keying features
32
, the keying system will prevent further insertion of the ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
. This keying system made up of keys
84
and the keying features
32
prevent ink containers that are not compatible with the receiving station
14
from further insertion into the receiving station
14
. Further insertion of the ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
could result in contact of the fluid interconnect
36
with the capillary member within the ink container
12
, thereby contaminating the fluid interconnect
36
with incompatible ink. Incompatible ink mixing in the fluid interconnect
36
can result in precipitation which can damage the printhead
16
. In addition to inks of incompatible chemistries, the ink container can have an incompatible color which can result in color mixing, thereby reducing the output print quality.
The keys
84
on the ink container
12
and the keying features
32
on the receiving station
14
allow for the complete insertion of the proper ink container
12
into the proper receiving station
14
. The downward force applied to the trailing end
82
of the ink container
12
causes the ink container
12
to pivot about a pivot axis compressing the leaf spring
52
, thereby moving the trailing edge
82
of the ink container
12
toward the bottom surface
68
of the receiving station
14
. As the ink container
12
is urged downward into the receiving station
14
, the resilient latch
30
is compressed slightly inward toward the trailing edge
82
of the ink container
12
. Once the ink container
12
is urged downward sufficiently far, the engagement feature
54
on the latch
30
engages with a corresponding engagement feature
50
on the receiving station
14
to secure the ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
as shown in
FIG. 7
c.
With the ink container
12
properly secured in the receiving station
14
as shown in
FIG. 7
c
the fluid interconnect
36
extends into the reservoir
34
to compress the capillary member, thereby forming a region of increased capillarity adjacent the fluid interconnect
36
. This region of increased capillarity tends to draw ink toward the fluid interconnect
36
, thereby allowing ink to flow through the fluid interconnect
36
to the printhead
16
. In the preferred embodiment, the ink container
12
when inserted into the receiving station
14
is oriented in a gravitational frame of reference so that a gravitational force acts on ink within the ink container
12
tending to draw ink toward the bottom surface
76
of the ink container
12
. Thus ink within the ink container
12
is drawn to the bottom surface
76
where this ink is drawn toward the fluid interconnect
36
by capillary attraction thereby tending to reduce or minimize stranding of ink within the ink container
12
.
FIGS. 8
a
and
8
b
illustrate a position in the insertion process described with respect to
FIGS. 7
a,
7
b
and
7
c
wherein the leading edge
72
of the ink container
12
is positioned over the fluid interconnect
36
.
FIG. 8
a
depicts a side view with
FIG. 8
b
showing an end view. It can be seen from
FIGS. 8
a
and
8
b
that the guide feature
40
must be positioned on the ink container
12
low enough toward the bottom surface
76
of the ink container
12
such that the leading edge
72
of the ink container does not collide the fluid interconnect
36
during insertion. Another constraint on the positioning of the guide member
40
is that the guide member
40
must be positioned sufficiently close to the top surface
86
of the ink container
12
to insure that the engagement feature
42
properly engages with the corresponding engagement feature
48
on the receiving station
14
.
In addition, the outwardly extending guide members
40
on the ink container must extend outward sufficiently far to engage the guide rails
46
. However, the outwardly extending guide members
40
should not extend too far outward such that the guide members
40
engage the upright sides in the receiving station
14
, producing interference which produces friction and binding which resists insertion of the ink container
12
into the receiving station
14
.
FIGS. 9
a,
9
b,
and
9
c
illustrate the technique for removing the ink container
12
from the receiving station
14
. The technique for removing the ink container
12
begins with the release of the engagement feature
54
from the corresponding engagement feature
50
on the receiving station
14
by urging the latch
30
toward the trailing surface
82
. Once the trailing edge of the ink container
12
is released, the spring
52
urges the trailing edge of the ink container upward as shown in
FIG. 9
b.
The ink container
12
can be grasped by handle
44
to retrieve the ink container
12
in a direction opposite the insertion direction. As the ink container
12
is withdrawn from the receiving station
14
, the guide member
40
follows the guide rails
46
to lift the ink container, thereby preventing interference between the fluid interconnect
36
and the fluid outlet on the bottom surface of the ink container
12
.
FIG. 10
is a perspective view of the trailing end
82
of the replaceable ink container
12
showing one preferred embodiment of the latch portion
30
that is separable from the replaceable ink container
12
. The use of a separate latch portion
30
that is attached to the replaceable ink container
12
has several advantages over the use of an ink container
12
having the latch portion molded integrally with the ink container. Some of these advantages of the two-piece ink container
12
of the present invention includes the ability to separately optimize materials for forming the ink container and the materials for forming the latch portion
30
. For example, the ink containment reservoir
34
should be formed of a material that provides excellent vapor barrier properties for preventing the diffusion of air through the reservoir
34
. The diffusion of air into the reservoir
34
can result in various problems that affect the reliability of the printing system. Air diffusion into the reservoir
34
, if sufficient, causes problems such as air accumulation in the printhead as well as occlusion of fluid conduits, each of which can affect reliability as well as print quality. In contrast, the latch feature
30
should be formed from a material which exhibits proper resiliency characteristics for the latch operation. In addition, the latch portion
30
should be formed of a material which is well-suited for forming the latch features. The use of a two piece reservoir
34
and latch portion
30
allows for the optimization of each of these characteristics. Thus, the reservoir
34
is formed of a first material, and the latch portion
30
is formed of a second material different from the first material.
A second benefit to the technique of the present invention for forming the latch portion
30
separately from the reservoir portion
34
removes a constraint on the mold required for forming the reservoir
34
. In the case where the latch portion
30
is integral with the reservoir
34
such as a living hinge that is formed between the latch
30
and the reservoir
34
requires special constraints on the mold design. By allowing the reservoir
34
to be formed separately from the latch
30
frees a constraint on the mold, thereby allowing other features to be formed in the reservoir
34
such as a lip or flange around the top of the ink container for attaching a lid portion. In this case, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to design a mold to form both an integral latch
30
in addition to a lip portion or flange for attaching the lid portion of the ink container
12
.
A third benefit to the technique of the present invention for forming the latch portion
30
separately from the reservoir portion
34
is to allow the use of different color resins for latch portion
30
and reservoir portion
34
. A different color for the latch portion
30
can be indicative of a user-configured or user-displaced portion of the ink container
12
. In one embodiment, the reservoir portion
34
is molded from black plastic, and the latch portion
30
is molded from gray or green plastic to indicate to the user that the latch portion
30
needs to be displaced or bent by the user in order to remove ink container
12
from printer portion
18
.
In the preferred embodiment, the reservoir
34
of the ink container
12
includes a receptacle
92
for receiving the latch portion
30
. The receptacle
92
is positioned between the keying features
84
toward a bottom portion of the trailing edge
82
.
FIG. 11
shows a greatly enlarged view of the bottom portion of the trailing edge shown broken away with the latch portion
30
removed. The receptacle
92
is configured to receive the latch portion
30
and secure the latch portion
30
to the reservoir or chassis
34
. The receptacle
92
forms a pocket for receiving the latch portion
30
. An engagement portion
94
is formed on the reservoir
34
to engage the latch portion
30
preventing or resisting removal of the latch
30
from the receptacle
92
.
FIG. 12
shows the latch portion
30
greatly enlarged and in isolation. The latch portion
30
includes a mounting portion
96
and a handle portion
98
opposite the mounting portion
96
. The engagement feature
54
is disposed between the mounting portion
96
and the handle portion
98
for engaging the corresponding engagement feature
50
associated with the receiving station as discussed previously. In the preferred embodiment, the mounting portion
96
has a pair of sides
100
that are tapered from a bottom end
102
toward a top end
104
. In addition, the pair of sides
100
are also tapered in a second direction from a back side
106
toward a front side
108
. The tapering on the pair of sides
100
is configured to correspond to complementary tapers on the receptacle
92
as will be discussed with respect to FIG.
13
.
FIG. 13
shows a bottom view of the trailing edge of the ink reservoir
34
showing the receptacle
92
for receiving the latch portion
30
. The receptacle
92
includes a pair of slots
110
that are configured to receiving the mounting portion
96
of the latch feature
30
. The pair of tapered sides
100
on the mounting portion
96
has a complementary taper to the taper on the tapered sides
110
.
FIG. 14
shows the method of the present invention for inserting the handle portion
30
into the receptacle
92
such that the mounting portion
96
is secured to the ink reservoir or chassis
34
. The mounting portion
96
is inserted into the receptacle
92
from the bottom of the ink container
12
and inserted upward in a direction parallel to the surface of the trailing end
82
.
FIG. 15
shows the ink container
12
properly secured to the receiving station
14
. The ink container
12
is secured to the receiving station by the latch
30
. The latch
30
is secured on one end to the ink container
12
by the receptacle
92
that secures the latch
30
to the trailing end
82
of the ink container. The engagement portion
94
engages a complementary engagement portion
112
on the latch portion
30
for securing the latch portion once the latch portion is fully inserted into the receptacle
92
. The latch portion
30
includes the engagement portion
54
that engages a corresponding engagement portion
50
on the receiving station
14
for securing the replaceable ink container
12
to the receiving station
14
.
The latch portion
30
is formed so that the mounting portion
96
is positioned against the trailing surface
82
while the handle portion
98
is spaced from the trailing surface
82
so that the engagement portion
54
engages the corresponding engagement portion
50
. It is important that the latch portion
30
be formed of a material which is resilient that allows the latch portion
30
to resiliently bend toward the trailing edge
82
during insertion and to spring away from the trailing edge
82
to engage the corresponding latch feature
50
in the receiving station
14
. Similarly, the latch
30
must also be sufficiently resilient so that when a force is placed on the handle portion
98
to urge the handle portion toward the trailing edge
82
, the engagement portion
54
becomes disengaged from the corresponding engagement portion
50
to release the ink container
12
from the receiving station
14
.
The method and apparatus of the present invention allows the latch portion to be formed separately from the ink reservoir portion
34
to optimize material properties of each of the ink reservoir
34
and the latch
30
. In addition, forming the latch portion
30
separately from the reservoir portion
34
, allows the replaceable ink container
12
to be formed either in a simpler molding process than if the latch were formed integral with the reservoir
34
, thereby either reducing the cost of the replaceable ink container or allowing other features to be molded into the replaceable ink reservoir
34
that could be formed if the latch were to be formed integral with the replaceable ink container
12
.
Claims
- 1. A replaceable ink container for providing ink to an inkjet printing system, the inkjet printing system having a receiving station for receiving the replaceable ink container, the replaceable ink container comprising:an ink container chassis for containing a quantity of ink, the ink container chassis including a latch mounting receptacle; and a latch separate from the ink container chassis, the latch including a central portion, a latch mounting portion at a first end of the central portion, and a handle portion at a second end of the central portion and opposite the latch mounting portion, the latch mounting portion of the latch being receivable by the latch mounting receptacle of the ink container chassis for attaching the latch to the chassis, the latch cooperates with the receiving station for securing the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
- 2. The replaceable ink container of claim 1 wherein the latch mounting receptacle further includes a receptacle engagement feature and wherein the latch mounting portion includes a complementary latch engagement feature, wherein insertion of the latch into the receptacle engages the receptacle engagement feature with the complementary latch engagement feature to secure the latch to the ink container chassis.
- 3. The replaceable ink container of claim 1 wherein the central portion of the latch includes a complementary latch engagement feature such that upon insertion of the replaceable ink container into the receiving station, the complementary latch engagement feature engages with a receiving station engagement feature to secure the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
- 4. The replaceable ink container of claim 1 wherein the latch and chassis are configured with the latch mounting portion engaging the latch mounting receptacle of the chassis to resiliently bias the handle portion away from the chassis so that the handle portion can be urged toward the chassis to release the replaceable ink container from the receiving station.
- 5. A replaceable ink container for providing ink to an inkjet printing system, the inkjet printing system having a receiving station for receiving the replaceable ink container, the replaceable ink container including:a reservoir for containing a quantity of ink, the reservoir having at least one wall that is continuous so as to be free from any through openings, the at least one wall having an outer surface that defines a receptacle; and a latch for securing the ink container to the receiving station, the latch including a central portion, a latch mounting portion at a first end of the central portion, and a handle portion at a second end of the central portion and opposite the latch mounting portion, the latch mounting portion configured to be received within the receptacle to secure the latch to the reservoir.
- 6. The replaceable ink container of claim 5 wherein the receptacle is a raised feature on the outer surface having a pair of slots defined therein configured to receive the latch mounting portion as the latch is inserted into the receptacle parallel to the outer surface.
- 7. The replaceable ink container of claim 5 wherein the latch mounting portion defines a complementary shaped recess, and wherein the outer surface of the reservoir has an outwardly extending engagement feature that is configured to engage the complementary shaped recess in the latch mounting portion of the latch to secure the latch to the reservoir.
- 8. The replaceable ink container of claim 5 wherein the central portion of the latch includes a complementary latch engagement feature such that upon insertion of the replaceable ink container into the receiving station, the complementary latch engagement feature engages with a receiving station engagement feature to secure the replaceable ink container to the receiving station.
- 9. The replaceable ink container of claim 5 wherein the latch is configured to be pivotally movable relative to the reservoir when the latch mounting portion is properly received within the receptacle.
- 10. A method for assembling a replaceable ink container comprising the steps of:providing a replaceable ink container chassis having at least one wall that is continuous so as to be free from any through openings, the at least one wall having an outer surface that defines a receptacle; providing and a separate latch portion, the separate latch portion including a central region, a latch mounting region at a first end of the central region, and a handle region at a second end of the central region and opposite the latch mounting region; and inserting the latch mounting region of the separate latch portion into the receptacle on the replaceable ink container chassis to secure the separate latch portion to the replaceable ink container chassis.
- 11. The method for assembling a replaceable ink container of claim 10 further including the step of:filling the replaceable ink container with ink.
- 12. The method for assembling a replaceable ink container of claim 11 wherein before the step of providing a replaceable ink container chassis the method further includes the step of:forming the replaceable ink container chassis to have the at least one wall with the outer surface that defines the receptacle, the receptacle configured to receive the latch mounting region of the separate latch portion.
- 13. A replaceable ink container for providing ink to an inkjet printing system, the inkjet printing system having a receiving station for receiving the replaceable ink container, the receiving station having an engagement device for securing the replaceable ink container to the receiving station, the replaceable ink container including:a reservoir for containing a quantity of ink, the reservoir having an outer surface having at least one wall that is continuous so as to be free from any through openings, the at least one wall defining a receptacle; and a latch separate from the reservoir, the latch including a central portion, a latch mounting portion at a first end of the central portion, and a handle portion at a second end of the central portion and opposite the latch mounting portion, the latch mounting portion of the latch configured to be received within the receptacle to secure the latch to the reservoir, the latch including an engagement portion configured to engage the engagement device on the receiving station, wherein the latch when secured to the reservoir has a latched position where the engagement portion engages the engagement device to secure the replaceable ink container to the receiving station and an unlatched position.
US Referenced Citations (16)
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
0822084 |
Feb 1998 |
EP |
403108557 |
May 1991 |
JP |