Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

Fujifilm Corporation

Junichi Yoshida

Jun Takagi

Katsuyuki Fujii

Kazuyuki Oda

Ichiro Tomikawa

Katsuhide Ogawa

Yoshihiko Fujimura

Mitsuhide Soga

Seiichi Inoue

Fumihiko Ogasawara

Jun Yamanobe

Manabu Katsumura

Harumi Tamura

Koji Suenaga

Shigeo Kawachi

Mituhide Soga

Takehiko Noda

A liquid application apparatus includes a rotatable coating cylinder having a circumferential surface onto which an application liquid is supplied; a base member which is conveyed continuously while making contact with the rotatable coating cylinder; a blade which scrapes off excess liquid of the application liquid in such a manner that a prescribed amount of the application liquid remains on the rotatable coating cylinder, before the rotatable coating cylinder transfers, onto the base member, the application liquid; a blade holding body which holds the blade, which is supported on a supporting shaft and is rotatable in a rotation direction; and a plurality of biasing devices which are disposed in an axial direction of the rotatable coating cylinder and bias the blade holding body in the rotation direction of the blade holding body in such a manner that the blade makes contact with the circumferential surface of the rotatable coating cylinder.

Liquid application apparatus, liquid application method, inkjet recording apparatus and inkjet recording method

A method forms a resin film on a substrate by depositing droplets of resin liquid by an inkjet method. The method includes: a first resin liquid arrangement step of arranging a plurality of droplets of a first resin liquid separately from each other on a substrate in such a manner that the droplets do not make contact with each other; a first resin liquid curing step of curing at least a surface of each of the droplets of the first resin liquid arranged on the substrate; a second resin liquid arrangement step of arranging a plurality of droplets of a second resin liquid at substantially central positions between the droplets of the first resin liquid on the substrate, after the at least the surface of each of the droplets of the first resin liquid is cured; and a second resin liquid curing step of curing the droplets of the second resin liquid arranged on the substrate.

Resin film forming method, resin film forming apparatus, and electronic circuit board manufacturing method

An ink-jet recording apparatus includes a recording head mounted on a carriage for ejecting ink onto a recording medium, the carriage being moved in a main scanning direction with respect to the recording medium to be transported in a sub-scanning direction, sub tanks mounted on the carriage for supplying the ink to the recording head, a main tank installed outside of the carriage for supplying the ink to the sub tanks via a tube, flat and thin ink bags corresponding to one ink color contained in the main tank, a connecting member for connecting the ink bags to the tube, and a common channel for allowing the ink bags to communicate with each other.

Ink-jet recording apparatus and ink storing device

A recording apparatus having a print head for printing characters on a medium and an ink tank for holding ink to be supplied to the print head. The ink tank includes an ink chamber having an ink holding member and an ink supplying port. A first meniscus forming member is located in the ink supplying port so as to be in communication with the ink holding member. The print head includes an ink introducing port for receiving ink from the ink tank and a second meniscus forming member located in the ink introducing port. When the ink tank is attached to the print head, the ink introducing port is coupled with the ink supplying port. An ink passing member is located in the portion where the ink introducing port is coupled with the ink supplying port. The ends of the ink passing member are in contact with the first meniscus forming member and the second meniscus forming member. The ink passing member is subject to only minor changes in volume upon contact with ink.

Recording apparatus, printer, and an ink tank therein

In an ink tank, there are provided a main ink chamber containing a capillary vessel member, and an intermediate ink chamber. When the ink is consumed, the ink held by capillary force of a capillary vessel member is supplied via a communication port from a joint port. The same amount of air as the amount of the consumed ink is conducted from the atmospheric communication port into the main ink chamber. The conducted air is supplied via a groove formed in a lid to an upper surface of the capillary vessel member. As a result, the air is entered into the capillary vessel member under better condition. In a plane portion of the lid, the ink is in contact with only the capillary vessel member, and the ink remaining this portion is reduced. Thus, the ink using efficiency is increased.

Ink tank and recording apparatus

An elastic jointing member 22 with an umbrella-like portion with an opening and a flat part is provided in a jointing portion between a recording head 21 and an ink tank 1. When the ink tank 1 is attached to the recording head 21, the umbrella-like portion of the elastic jointing member 22 is pressed against the ink tank and elastically deformed inward. As a result, an ink passage is formed which is airtightly sealed. In the process of pressing the umbrella-like portion against the ink tank, the umbrella-like portion comes in contact with the flat part, to thereby prevent air from staying in the ink passage. Protrusions or grooves may be provided between the umbrella-like portion and the flat part. With the protrusions or the groove, the umbrella-like portion is not glued to the flat part.

Ink jet recording unit

An ink printer designed to make users free from any danger when an inktank is replaced and to prevent ink from leaking out when the inktank is detached. The joint part of an inktank is pressed against the ink guide of a print head to couple the inktank and the print head together, so that ink is supplied from the inktank to the print head. The joint part is supplied with a porous material. When the inktank is attached, the porous material is compressed and contained in the joint part. When the inktank is detached from the print head, the volume of the porous material increases thereby raising its porosity. The ink remaining in the joint part is absorbed by the porous material whose porosity has been raised, so that ink is prevented from flowing out in the vicinity of the joint part when the inktank is removed.

Ink printer and ink tank with ink spill prevention

A main ink chamber for housing a capillary member and an intermediate ink chamber are provided, between which a first meniscus formation member is disposed. An ink guide member is in contact with the bottom face of the first meniscus formation member for supplying ink to the first meniscus formation member. The ink guide member is held by ink guide member retainers extending toward the ink guide member from a wall of a communication hole and is kept in contact with the first meniscus formation member. A larger number of the ink guide member retainers are placed on a side of the communication hole closer to a joint port than are placed on a side of the communication hole closer to the intermediate ink chamber. The placement of the ink guide member retainers guides bubbles entering the communication hole through the first meniscus formation member to the intermediate ink chamber to prevent bubbles entering the joint port and reaching the print head.

Ink supply unit

In an ink tank, a main ink chamber is contiguous to a sub ink chamber containing an absorption member, and an air communication hole is formed on the top of the sub ink chamber. The absorption member holds ink pressure constant by capillary attraction of the absorption member. First, ink in the sub ink chamber is consumed with consumption of ink. When ink is consumed in a predetermined amount, air passes through the absorption member and a meniscus forming portion to form bubbles, which then move to the main ink chamber. Ink pressure is held constant by surface tension of the meniscus forming portion. Even if ink remains in a small amount, the ink leading portion makes the meniscus forming portion wet for holding ink pressure.

Ink supply device

In an ink tank, there are provided a main ink chamber containing a capillary vessel member, and an intermediate ink chamber. When the ink is consumed, the ink held by capillary force of a capillary vessel member is supplied via a communication port from a joint port. The same amount of air as the amount of the consumed ink is conducted from the atmospheric communication port into the main ink chamber. The conducted ink is supplied via a groove formed in a lid to an upper surface of the capillary vessel member. As a result, the air is entered into the capillary vessel member under better condition. In a plane portion of the lid, the ink is in contact with only the capillary vessel member, and the ink remaining this portion is reduced. Thus, the ink using efficiency is increased.

An ink supply passage 16 has a large cross-sectional area and ink tanks 6 are connected to the top of the ink supply passage 16. An ink supply passage 17 is a flow passage shaped like a semicylinder and has a cross-sectional area equal to or smaller than the cross-sectional area of the ink supply passage 16. Even if bubbles are mixed into the ink supply passage 17, they adhere to the upper portion of the flow passage 17 and do not flow into lower corners, so that a flow passage can be provided and the ink flow is not hindered. Since an ink supply passage 19 connected to a head chip 4 has a small diameter, bubbles mixed into the ink supply passage 19 can be removed by maintenance for sucking ink forcibly. Bubbles mixed upstream are not transported to the ink supply passage 19 because of the flow rate difference caused by the cross-sectional area difference.

Ink jet printer and ink jet recording unit

A main ink chamber with a through-hole contains a capillary member. An intermediate ink chamber is provided on the side wall of the main ink chamber. A path communicatively interconnects the main ink chamber and the intermediate ink chamber. A second meniscus forming member is disposed in a joint port, to thereby prevent ink leakage. In a print mode, ink flows from the main ink chamber to the joint port, through a meniscus forming member that is disposed in the through-hole. Air bubbles mingled into the ink move along the slanting upper wall of the path by their buoyant force, and are accumulatively stored in the upper part of the intermediate ink chamber. When ink is reduced to zero in the main ink chamber, air bubbles are introduced into the intermediate ink chamber through the meniscus forming member. As a result, the liquid level of the intermediate ink chamber is quickly reduced, thereby indicating a state that ink is used up.

Method and device for supplying ink to a print head

Considering the differential pressure .DELTA.P between pressures applied to both faces of a meniscus formation member, the differential pressure .DELTA.P becomes the maximum when an ink supply unit is left standing with the meniscus formation member placed upward. At this time, water head PH of ink attempting to fall due to gravity is applied to the inner face of the meniscus formation member in the same direction as negative pressure PR of a capillary member. Thus, the differential pressure .DELTA.P becomes .DELTA.P=PR+PH. The bubble point pressure PB of the meniscus formation member is set greater than the maximum value of the differential pressure, .DELTA.P=PR+PH, whereby air does not enter an ink tank through the meniscus formation member.

Ink supply unit and recorder

An ink supply device for use in an ink jet printer comprising a main ink chamber in communication through a communication hole with a sub-ink chamber containing an ink absorbing member therein. A meniscus film forming member covering the communication hole and communicating the main ink chamber with the sub-ink chamber; the member having a first surface facing the interior of the main ink chamber and an opposite second surface. An ink guide member extending into a lower portion of the main chamber and also being in contact with the first surface of the film forming member, wherein as ink in the main ink chamber is consumed a differential pressure between the first and second surfaces of the film forming member causes a gradual expansion of a liquid meniscus film into an air bubble on the film forming member to maintain a constant negative pressure in the main ink chamber.

Growing community of inventors

Ebina, Japan

Junichi Yoshida