Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Minoru Ameyama

Hiromichi Komai

Osamu Naruse

Syuzo Matsumoto

Hiroshi Yamazaki

Yasuo Katano

Kyuhachiro Iwasaki

Koichiro Jinnai

Takuro Isayama

Tomoaki Nakano

Michio Umezawa

Shuzo Matsumoto

Tositaka Hirata

Kenichi Ichikawa

Tsutomu Sato

Nekka Matsuura

Toshiharu Murai

Satoru Tomita

Akihisa Itabashi

Yutaka Ebi

Takanori Yano

Naoya Morohoshi

Katsuhiro Aoki

Katsuichi Ohta

Yasuyuki Shinkai

Toshio Inada

Masami Kadonaga

Sadao Kakeno

Kouji Izumi

Tomoyuki Yamaguchi

Toshitaka Hirata

A plurality of types of engine units which have nonvolatile storage units and which have different performances, respectively, can be attached to an image formation apparatus main body in a replaceable manner. A control unit which controls the performance of an overall apparatus based on information stored in the storage units provided in the engine units, respectively, which are attached to the image formation apparatus main body, is provided in the image formation apparatus main body. Therefore, even if the image formation apparatus main body is common, the performance of the overall apparatus related to recording speed or resolution can be changed only by replacing the engine units different in performance. It is also possible to easily deal with various types of apparatuses.

Image formation unit including stored performance information

An ink jet head used for pulsed droplet ink jet printer uses a grooved piezo-electric element. The piezo-electric element includes a plurality of grooves, diaphrams and actuators. The actuator and two grooves at both sides of the actuator, filled with stuffing material, covers a corresponding one of passages. Therefore, even if the stuffing material moves when the actuator is energized, an interference problem does not occur. Consequently, the flexure force of each actuator can transmit to the corresponding passage to jet ink in the passage via a nozzle.

Ink jet head

A liquid jet recording head includes a flow path member having a plurality of flow paths, each of the plurality of flow paths having an opening surface which opens on the flow path member, an piezo-electric member having a plurality of grooves and piezo-electric elements, each of the piezo-electric elements being formed between adjacent two grooves of the plurality of grooves, the piezo-electric member being connected to the flow path member so that each of the piezo-electric elements is faced to the opening of one of the plurality of flow paths, an elasticity member being filled in each of the plurality of grooves formed on the piezo-electric member, a liquid guide mechanism guiding, to each of the plurality of flow paths, liquid which is supplied by an external liquid supplying mechanism, and jet orifices, each of the jet orifices being provided to an end portion of one of the plurality of flow paths.

Liquid jet recording head

An ink jet record apparatus for driving a drop-on-demand ink jet head with a piezoelectric element in a printing apparatus. The ink jet record apparatus includes a first drive part for driving and operating the ink jet head in a first operation mode, a second drive part for driving and operating the ink jet head in a second operation mode, a selection part for changing an operation of the ink jet head from the first operation mode to the second operation mode or vice versa, and a control part for supplying a drive signal to the selection part in accordance with input image information, thus allowing a size of ink dots on paper to be adjusted through selection of either the first operation mode or the second operation mode.

Ink jet record apparatus

An ink receptacle for an on-demand type ink jet printer in which an ink reservoir for storing ink which is to be ejected from an ink jet head is mounted on a carriage. A relatively thick flat housing which is made of non-flexible resin and open at one surface and a single flexible film are bonded together, the film covering the open side of the housing. The housing and the film cooperate to define a relatively large first ink chamber having an opening which is open to the outside and a relatively small second ink chamber also having an opening which is open to the outside. That part of the film which covers the first chamber is deformable to vary the volume of the first chamber corresponding to an amount of ink remaining in the chamber.

Ink receptacle for ink jet printer

An ink level detector for use with an ink jet printer includes two electrodes for sensing changes in ink level inside an ink reservoir due to consumption. Fresh ink is supplied to the reservoir from an ink cartridge which is mounted in an upper wall of the reservoir. At least one of the two electrodes is positioned adjacent to a location where the cartridge is mounted to the upper wall of the reservoir.

Liquid level detector for ink jet printer

An ink jet printing apparatus capable of removing bubbles introduced into ink which is routed from an ink supply cartridge to a plurality of nozzles. A head holder adapted to support a head, which has the nozzles, is formed with an ink supply path for delivering ink from the ink supply cartridge to the nozzles. The ink supply path branches into an upwardly extending passageway and a downwardly extending passageway. The ink is supplied to the nozzles by way of the downward passageway. A check valve is positioned in the upward passageway for trapping bubbles entrained by the ink. The bubbles trapped by the check valve are discharged by a suction pump.

Ink jet printing apparatus

An ink jet printing apparatus is disclosed in which part of ink droplets ejected from a nozzle of an ink ejection head and unused for printing purpose is caught by a gutter and returned to an ink supply source through an ink circulation path to be reused. The ink is partly shunted for disposal while fresh ink is supplied to the ink supply source in proportion to the amount of ink disposal, thereby maintaining the ink viscosity always at a proper value. For the disposal of the ink, a three-way solenoid operated valve is opened periodically for a predetermined period of time or, alternatively, ink droplets ejected from the nozzle are deflected to be caught by a gutter which is independent of the first gutter for routing to disposal means. The amount of disposal is determined by a pressure of ink fed to the nozzle and/or a temperature of ink in the neighborhood of the nozzle.

Ink jet waste and replenish ink system

A disposable container for collecting waste liquid is disclosed. A casing has therein an absorption member for absorbing waste liquid toward the interior of the casing, and a liquid holding member held in contact with the absorption member to retain the waste liquid absorbed by the absorption member. The receptacle is applicable to an ink jet recording apparatus for collecting waste ink. A fresh ink container may be combined with the waste ink receptacle in an integral cartridge configuration to be mounted in an ink jet recorder.

Receptacle for waste ink collection in ink jet recording apparatus

An ink supply system of an ink jet recording apparatus of the charge control type including a supply pump for feeding ink under pressure to a recording head, an accumulator for equalizing the pressure of the ink, and valve means for controlling the feeding of the ink under pressure to the recording head. The supply pump, the accumulator and the valve means are located in a piping for supplying the ink in the ink tank to the recording head in the indicated order as seen from the ink tank side. A delivery pump is located in a piping for returning ink to the ink tank from a catcher for recovering the ink ejected through the recording head but not contributing to recording of information with ink drops. The ink supply system further includes conduits and change-over valves mounted between the ink tank, supply pump and delivery pump in such a manner that the ink supply system can be switched between a condition in which the ink in the ink tank can be fed under pressure to the recording head by the supply pump and a condition in which the ink in the ink tank can be filled in the supply pump through the recovery pump.

Ink supply system of ink jet recording apparatus

A charge deflection type ink jet printing apparatus adjusts, in detecting and controlling a deflection of charged ink droplets, the size (height or width) of characters with utmost accuracy by varying the number of guard droplets. In combination with the adjustment by the variation in the number of guard drops, the direction of ejection of an ink jet head and/or the position of a deflection detecting electrode may be adjusted.

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Yokohama, Japan

Minoru Ameyama