Hewlett-packard Company

Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Norman Pawlowski, Jr

Bruce Cowger

John A Barinaga, Jr

Melissa D Boyd

An ink supply for an ink-jet printer is provided with a main reservoir, which is typically maintained at ambient pressure. The main reservoir is coupled to a variable volume chamber via a one-way valve which allows the flow of ink from the reservoir to the chamber and prevents the flow of ink from the chamber to the reservoir. The chamber is coupled to a fluid outlet which is normally closed to prevent the flow of ink. However, when the ink supply is installed in a printer, the fluid outlet establishes a fluid connection between the chamber and the printer. The chamber is part of a pump provided with the ink supply that can be actuated to supply ink from the reservoir to the printer.

Ink supply for an ink-jet printer

The present invention relates to free-ink type ink-jet pens. A dual-chambered housing forms ink accumulators which provide a local supply of ink for a printhead mechanism. The accumulators are fluidically coupled to an off-board ink reservoir by a valve mechanism. A pressure regulator mechanism is incorporated into a chamber for maintaining a predetermined gage set point back-pressure within the pen and for regulating the flow of ink from the reservoir by controlling the valve mechanism. A near linear force by biasing the regulator mechanism so as to balance it against a force exerted thereon by the ambient atmosphere via a vent when the valve mechanism is opened due to a force exerted by a differential between ambient atmospheric pressure and the bias force. The mechanism is insensitive to the rate of flow of ink through the valve.

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Corvallis, OR, United States of America

Norman Pawlowski, Jr