Seiko Epson Corporation

Eiko Yanagida

Takao Kobayashi

Hisashi Miyazawa

Munehide Kanaya

Kazuo Koshino

Yoshinori Miyazawa

Kiyofumi Usui

Satoshi Shinada

Seiji Mochizuki

Takashi Suzuki

Nobuhisa Nomoto

Shoichi Hiraide

Hitoshi Igarashi

Katsumi Yamada

Kazuhisa Kawakami

Toshifumi Sakai

Katsutomo Tsukahara

Naoki Naito

Yoshiharu Mizuno

Masumi Yoshino

Fumio Tokutomo

Yasuhiro Taguchi

An ink container includes a storage section configured to store an ink, a supply tube configured to supply the ink stored in the storage section to a printer, a sealing member disposed in the supply tube, and a holding member configured to hold the sealing member. The holding member is detachably attached to the supply tube and has an indication that indicates that a refilling operation was performed.

Ink container

A printing device includes a printing unit that performs printing on a medium using liquid. A liquid container includes a liquid containing chamber, which is capable of containing the liquid supplied to the printing unit, and a liquid inlet, which allows the liquid containing chamber to be filled with the liquid. A shell accommodates the printing unit and a portion of the liquid container. The liquid container includes a projecting portion that projects out of the shell. A protection member covers the projecting portion. The protection member projects out of the shell in a direction that is the same as a direction in which the liquid container projects out of the shell.

Printing device

A liquid ejection system of this invention includes a mechanism unit that can change the relative position of a medium relative to a liquid ejection head capable of ejecting a liquid, and a liquid storage container having a liquid storage portion capable of storing the liquid that is to be supplied to the liquid ejection head. A liquid injection portion that enables injection of the liquid into the liquid storage portion is provided in the liquid storage container. In an orientation in which the liquid injection portion faces a direction upward relative to the horizontal direction, in a plan view of the mechanism unit from vertically above, at least a portion of the liquid storage container excluding the liquid injection portion is overlapped with the region of the mechanism unit.

Liquid ejection system

A printing apparatus includes a printing unit that performs printing onto a medium using liquid; a liquid housing body that includes a liquid pouring inlet that can pour the liquid into the liquid housing chamber; and a casing in which the printing unit and the liquid housing body are housed. The casing including a cover member that can displace the position thereof between an opening position which exposes the liquid pouring inlet to an outside and a closing position which does not expose the liquid pouring inlet to the outside, and the cover member can support an ink bottle in which liquid is stored in a state where the liquid can be poured from the ink bottle to the liquid pouring inlet of the liquid housing body in a case where the cover member is in the opening position.

Printing apparatus

A liquid supply apparatus includes: a plurality of liquid containers, each including a liquid container part that is capable of storing a liquid, and a liquid supply part that is in communication with the inside of the liquid container part and is capable of supplying the liquid in the liquid container part to a recording head of a liquid ejection recording apparatus; and a casing that detachably houses therein the plurality of liquid containers and that is supported by the liquid ejection recording apparatus. At least two of the plurality of liquid containers are arranged along a top-to-bottom direction within the casing.

Liquid supply apparatus

A consumable purchase assist program is built in a computer () to which a print apparatus () is connected, and contains at least a purchase source information acquisition step for acquiring via a network (), purchase source information containing dealer information of a consumable required for the print apparatus to print or selling condition information, a type information acquisition step for acquiring consumable type information from the print apparatus, and a consumable information display step for displaying the contents of the purchase source information and the type information on a screen of the computer.

Print apparatus consumable purchase system and program used with the system

An ink cartridge including: an ink chamber for retaining liquid ink; a foam chamber maintained in fluid communication with the ink chamber through a communication hole. An ink supply port for supplying ink from a porous body accommodated in the foam chamber to a recording head is provided. The portion of the foam body confronting the ink supply port is compressed by the ink supply port. The ratio between the amount of ink initially charged in the ink chamber and that of ink absorbed in the porous body is in the range from 1:1 to 1:3. When a cartridge uses more than one color of ink for printing in color, a plurality of foam and ink cartridges are used. The cartridge is filled under reduced pressure while the interior of the cartridge is further evacuated before filling with ink.

Ink cartridge for ink jet printer and method of charging ink into said cartridge

An ink tank cartridge for an ink-jet type recording apparatus being removably mountable onto an ink supply needle of said ink jet type recording apparatus is provided. The ink tank cartridge comprises a first chamber for storing ink and a second chamber for storing a porous member. A partition wall separates the first chamber from the second chamber. A lid is attached to the top of the cartridge and at least a portion of the lid corresponding to at least one of the chambers may be opened to allow for replenishment of ink in the ink tank cartridge. Alternatively, the lid may be permanently fixed to the top on the ink tank cartridge, and an ink replenishment hole may be formed in the lid to allow for replenishment with an ink injection device. The ink tank may also be replenished by placing a self contained ink replenishment pack into said ink tank cartridge.

Ink jet recording apparatus and method for replenishing ink in the tank cartridge

An ink cartridge for an ink-jet recording apparatus, comprises: a tank housing containing ink, the ink being visible from an outside; and indications, marked along a depth direction of the tank housing, for displaying the number and size of record sheets which can be subjected to printing, corresponding to a quantity of remaining ink. Alternately, at least an ink consumption state and enablement or disablement of printing are displayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT) screen.

Ink cartridge for an ink-jet recording apparatus, and a system for detecting and displaying an ink consumption state of an ink cartridge

An ink cartridge and an ink cartridge identifying apparatus are provided which reliably allow only standard, proper ink cartridges to be loaded. An ink cartridge to be loaded into a printer is provided which has a predetermined projected and recessed pattern portion formed on an outer surface thereof and which has a first electrode portion arranged on the projected and recessed pattern portion. The first electrode portion is positioned to be selectively engageable with a second electrode portion, which is arranged on a pattern matching portion which is fixed to a press rod arranged on the printer main body. First and second electrode portions are arranged on the projected and recessed pattern portion and the pattern matching portion to be selectively engageable, and an identification signal is generated when matching first and second electrode portions are engaged. The projected and recessed pattern portion and the pattern matching portion may be shaped into characters/symbols, graphics, or the like.

Growing community of inventors

Shiojiri, Japan

Eiko Yanagida