Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha

Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

Riso Technologies Corporation

Kazuhiro Hara

Kazuhiko Ohtsu

Taiki Goto

Yoshiaki Kaneko

Hiroyuki Ishikawa

Yasushi Kuribayashi

Tetsuya Sato

Hiroshi Murata

Masashi Hiroki

Satoshi Kaiho

Kenichiro Shishikura

Shinichiro Hida

Takeru Murofushi

A liquid supply device includes a first conduit, a second conduit, one or more pumps, a heater, a filter, and a bypass conduit. The first conduit is connected to an upstream side of a liquid discharge head. The second conduit is connected to a downstream side of the liquid discharge head. The liquid is supplied through the first conduit to the liquid discharge head and recovered from the liquid discharge head through the second conduit. The heater is provided along the first conduit. The filter is provided in the first conduit on a downstream side of the heater. The bypass conduit is connected between a portion of the first conduit upstream with respect to the filter and a portion of the second conduit.

Liquid supply device and liquid discharge device

According to an embodiment, a piezoelectric pump includes a pressure chamber and a buffer chamber. The buffer chamber is provided for at least one of an inlet of the pressure chamber in which liquid flows or an outlet of the pressure chamber from which the liquid is discharged. The buffer chamber includes a wall portion that forms a gas chamber that retains gas from the liquid.

Piezoelectric pump and liquid ejection device

According to one embodiment, a fluid circulation apparatus includes a first tank to store fluid to be supplied to a fluid ejection head, a circulation path including a first flow path portion to provide fluid from the first tank to a supply port of the fluid ejection head, and a second flow path portion to return fluid from a collection port of the fluid ejection head to the first tank, a bypass flow path to connect the supply port to the collection port outside of the fluid ejection head, and a pressure sensor configured to measure pressure of the bypass flow path.

Fluid circulation apparatus and fluid ejection apparatus

According to one embodiment, a fluid circulation apparatus includes a first tank to store fluid to be supplied to a fluid ejection head, a circulation path including a first flow path portion to provide fluid from the first tank to a supply port of the fluid ejection head, and a second flow path portion to return fluid from a collection port of the fluid ejection head to the first tank, a bypass flow path that connects the supply port to the collection port outside of the fluid ejection head, and a buffer tank in the bypass flow path.

A liquid circulation device comprises a booster pump that draws liquid from a liquid replenishing tank to supply it to a liquid discharge head; a pressure reducing pump that collects the liquid from the liquid discharge head to supply it to the liquid replenishing tank; a buffer tank connected between the liquid discharge head and the booster pump and between the liquid discharge head and the pressure reducing pump, and into which the liquid flows; a pressure sensor that detects pressure in the buffer tank; and a processor that controls driving voltages of the booster pump and the pressure reducing pump based on a nozzle surface pressure of the liquid discharge head calculated based on pressure data detected by the pressure sensor, and determines whether the liquid is deficient based on the nozzle surface pressure, the driving voltages of the booster pump and the pressure reducing pump.

Liquid circulation device and liquid discharge device

In accordance with an embodiment, a liquid circulation device comprises a plurality of piezoelectric pumps configured to circulate liquid in a replenishing tank to a liquid discharge head through an operation of a piezoelectric actuator thereof; a DC power supply; a switching circuit configured to switch an output of the DC power supply to supply a driving voltage to the piezoelectric actuator of the piezoelectric pump; and a control circuit configured to control the driving voltage by controlling a switching timing of the switching circuit.

A liquid circulator includes an upstream tank having a first pressure sensor, an intermediate tank, a downstream tank having a second pressure sensor, a circulation route for circulating liquid through an liquid ejecting head, the downstream tank, the intermediate tank, and the upstream tank, a first pump on the circulation route between the intermediate tank and the upstream tank, a second pump on the circulation route between the downstream tank and the intermediate tank, a first drive circuit configured to apply a first driving pulse to the first pump, a second drive circuit configured to apply a second driving pulse to the second pump, a controlling unit configured to calculate a pressure fluctuation value of the circulation route based on pressure values measured by the first and second pressure sensors, and adjust a phase difference between the first and second driving pulses as to minimize the pressure fluctuation value.

Circulator and liquid ejector

A liquid circulation device includes a circulation path through which a liquid circulates through a liquid ejection head, a first pump in the circulation path on a first side of the liquid ejection head, a second pump in the circulation path on a second side of the liquid ejection head, an adjustment tank in the circulation path between the first pump and the second pump, an upstream tank in the circulation path between the liquid ejection head and the first pump, a downstream tank in the circulation path between the liquid ejection head and the second pump, a first pressure sensor configured to detect a pressure in the upstream tank, a second pressure sensor configured to detect a pressure in the downstream tank, and a controller configured to control the first and second pumps based on detected pressures in the upstream and downstream tanks.

Liquid circulation device, liquid ejection apparatus, and liquid ejection method

An ink circulation device for an ink jet head includes a first ink storage unit that stores ink to be supplied to an ink jet head, a second ink storage unit that stores ink to be returned from the ink jet head, a pump that operates according to an electric signal to transport the ink from the second ink storage unit to the first ink storage unit, a filter between the pump and the first ink storage unit, a first pressure sensor configured to detect an internal pressure of the first ink storage unit, a second pressure sensor configured to detect an internal pressure between the pump and the filter, and a drive circuit configured to generate the electric signal according to a pressure difference between the internal pressure detected by the second pressure sensor and the internal pressure detected by the first pressure sensor.

Ink circulation device for ink jet head

In accordance with an embodiment, an ink circulation device comprises an ink supply section, an ink return section, an ink circulation pump, a filter and a bypass section. The filter partitions an upstream side ink flow path arranged between an ejection section of the ink circulation pump and the ink supply section into a first flow path communicating with the ejection section of the ink circulation pump and a second flow path communicating with the ink supply section. The bypass section is arranged at the upper part of a vertical direction with respect to the filter, directly communicates the first flow path with a downstream side ink flow path arranged between the ink return section and a suction section of the ink circulation pump. An inkjet recording device of the present embodiment comprises the foregoing ink circulation device.

Ink circulation device and inkjet recording device

In accordance with an embodiment, a liquid circulation module comprises a liquid ejection head for ejecting liquid, a storage section connected with the liquid ejection head to store the liquid, a circulation section configured to circulate the liquid in a predetermined circulation path passing through the liquid ejection head and the storage section, a pressure detection section configured to detect pressure in the storage section, a pressure adjusting section configured to adjust pressure in the storage section, and a module controller configured to control a circulation operation of the circulation section and a pressure adjusting operation of the pressure adjusting section independently from a host controller arranged separately from the liquid circulation module and when communicating with the host controller.

Liquid circulation module and liquid ejection apparatus

According to one embodiment, an ink circulation device includes a first tank which stores ink to be supplied to an ink jet head, a second tank which stores the ink returned from the ink jet head, and a circulation pump which circulates the ink stored in the second tank to the first tank. In addition, the ink circulation device according to the embodiment further includes a heating device which is in contact with and heats a bottom surface of the first tank, a bottom surface of the second tank, and a bottom surface of the circulation pump.

Ink circulation device and ink jet recording apparatus

In accordance with an embodiment, an ink circulation device comprises a pressure chamber including at least two flow holes through which ink flows; a piezoelectric vibration plate constituting a part of a wall of the pressure chamber and to be driven to increase or decrease an inner volume of the pressure chamber; a valve for opening and closing at least one of the two flow holes; a heater affixed on the piezoelectric vibration plate; and a connection section connecting the pressure chamber to an inkjet head.

Growing community of inventors

Numazu Shizuoka, Japan

Kazuhiro Hara