Seiko Epson Corporation

Nhk Spring Co., Ltd.

Daido Kogyo Co., Ltd.

Takao Kobayashi

Satoshi Shinada

Hisashi Miyazawa

Minoru Usui

Seiji Mochizuki

Fujio Akahane

Hisashi Koike

Makoto Matsuzaki

Takahiro Naka

Yoshinori Miyazawa

Kazuo Koshino

Munehide Kanaya

Eiko Yanagida

Takeo Seino

Kazuhiko Hara

Satoshi Fujioka

Kazumichi Shimada

Yukiharu Suda

Kouichi Toba

Tanehira Amano

Hitoshi Matsumoto

Noriaki Okazawa

Masahiro Kanai

Takashi Suzuki

Hideki Oikawa

Norihiko Kurashima

Yasuhiro Ogura

Yasushi Akatsuka

Shoichi Hiraide

Yasuko Hirano

Kiyofumi Usui

Kazuhito Hiraoka

Takahiro Ito

Ikuomi Takahashi

Takahiro Katakura

Shuji Takahashi

Tatsuya Seshimo

Yoshio Yamada

Takayuki Iijima

Nobuo Watanabe

Masahide Matsuyama

Yuichi Nakamura

Michiya Masuda

Hideaki Seki

Morio Sato

Kazunori Ito

Taeko Nishimura

Tadatoshi Honzawa

Masahiko Fukazawa

Shinichi Yanagisawa

Kiyoshi Kitahara

Takashi Hara

Seiichi Takada

Masakazu Sato

Kazuo Yamada

Makoto Saito

Hitoshi Igarashi

Katsuhiro Okubo

Masahiro Isono

Masanori Yoshida

Yoshio Miyazawa

Kohji Watanabe

Takashi Morimoto

Kazuo Ishii

Shigemasa Takahashi

Kenjiro Kawanabe

Takayuki Iljima

Yoshiyuki Takahashi

Minori Usui

Makato Matsuzaki

Yoshie Kumagai

Toshihiro Tamura

Satoshi Shindada

Fukio Akahane

A tensioner includes a movable section, a fixed section, a flat spiral spring, and a back-up spring. The movable section receives load from an entrained transmission body through a tension member. The fixed section supports the movable section so as to be capable of displacing. The flat spiral spring biases the movable section so as to resist the tension member. The flat spiral spring unwinds in a state in which there is a small inter-plate friction force in cases in which there is a large biasing force applied to the tension member to counter load acting from the tension member. The flat spiral spring winds-up in a state in which there is a large inter-plate friction force in cases in which there is a small biasing force applied to the tension member to counter load acting from the tension member. The back-up spring limits wind-up of the flat spiral spring.

Tensioner

A tensioner includes a power spring, and a backup member being in contact with the power spring and supporting the power spring by acting an urging force in a direction opposite to a radial shift of the power spring in a direction in which the power spring is wound. The power spring is unwound in a condition in which an inter-plate frictional force of the power spring is small in a case where an urging force acting from a power spring to a tension member is greater than a load acting from the tensioner arm to the power spring and the power spring is wound in a condition in which the inter-plate frictional force of the power spring is large in a case where the urging force acting from the power spring to the tension member is smaller than the load acting from the tension member to the power spring.

A load-applying device is provided that includes a spiral spring that is formed from a thin strip that is wound multiple times in a spiral shape; a movable body; and a fixing member. The spiral spring is disposed between the movable body and the fixing member, in a manner capable of performing a diameter reduction operation and a diameter expansion operation, and an outer-circumference part of the spiral spring contacting the movable body and the fixing member directly, or indirectly.

Load application device

A connector includes: a first terminal that is electrically conductive and includes a first contact portion being plate shaped and including a first teeth portion with one of surfaces thereof forming a plurality of continuous concavo-convex shapes, and a first base portion joined to the first contact portion and connected to one of connection targets; and a second terminal that is electrically conductive and includes a second contact portion including a second teeth portion with one of surfaces thereof forming a plurality of continuous concavo-convex shapes, the second teeth portion being engageable with the first teeth portion, and a second base portion that is joined to the second contact portion and connected to the other one of the connection targets, wherein the first terminal and the second terminal are electrically connected to each other by engagement between the first teeth portion and the second teeth portion.

Connector

A contact terminal interposed between two contact targets so as to provide electrical conduction between the two contact targets includes: a first conductive member including a salient portion composed of a plurality of inclined surfaces, and a first contact portion that is provided at an end different from the salient portion and contacts an electrode of one of the contact targets; and a second conductive member including a second contact portion that has a curved shape and contacts an electrode of another one of the contact targets, a plurality of elastic portions each of which extends in a band shape along the curved shape from the second contact portion and is elastically deformable, and sliding contact portions each of which is provided at a leading end of one of the elastic portions and slidably contacts a corresponding one of the inclined surfaces.

Contact terminal interposed between two contact targets

A tensioner having a simplified structure, using engaging teeth having increased strength and reduced backlash, constructed from a reduced number of parts, reduced in cost, and having increased design freedom. A tensioner comprises: a tubular member () having engaging teeth () formed thereon; one or more engaging elements () having formed thereon engaging teeth () engaging with the engaging teeth (); and a shaft member () provided inside the tubular member () and having an engaging-element receiving section () or an engaging-element supporting section which receives the engaging elements () of the tubular member (). Either the tubular member () or the shaft member () functions as an advancing member which is moved by urging force in an advancing and retracting manner. The tensioner is provided with a ratchet mechanism which, when the engaging elements () move in a diameter reducing direction and move over the engaging teeth of the tubular member (), allows the advancing member to advance forward, and when the engaging elements () move in a diameter expanding direction and engage with the engaging teeth of the tubular member (), prevents the advancing member to retract.

A tensioner has a cylindrical member having multiple locking teeth, one or multiple locking pieces having locking teeth to be engaged with the locking teeth, and a locking piece receiving part to receive the aforementioned locking pieces. A shaft member is disposed inside the cylindrical member, and either the cylindrical member or the shaft member constitutes a thrust member that can be driven forward and backward by a biasing force. A ratchet mechanism allows the thrust member to move forward by the locking pieces riding over the locking teeth of the cylindrical member as they move in a reduced-diameter direction and constrains retraction of the thrust member by the locking pieces engaging with the locking teeth of the cylindrical member as they move in an increased-diameter direction. The locking teeth are all thread-like teeth having a lead angle.

Provided is a hinge that can be manufactured easily in a short time. The hinge rotatably connects a first member and a second member, and is provided with two brackets that are rotatable against each other and mounted to the first member and the second member, respectively, and a friction-torque-generating member that generates friction torque by directly or indirectly pressing the two brackets against each other. A first of the two brackets is configured from an integral structure that includes a shaft part that passes through the second bracket and supports the rotation, and a mounting part that is mounted to the first member or the second member, with the shaft part and the mounting part being produced from a plate material.

Hinge and bracket for hinge

An ink jet type printing apparatus in which an ink supply needle is located near one side in a direction perpendicular to the reciprocated directions of a carriage, a circuit board is mounted on a wall of an ink cartridge in the vicinity of the side on which an ink supply port is formed and plural contacts for connecting to external control means are formed on the exposed surface of the circuit board.

Ink-jet printing apparatus and ink cartridge therefor

An ink cartridge for an ink jet printer having a housing having at least one wall. The ink cartridge further has at least two ink chambers for containing different ink accommodated in the housing. Ink supply ports are formed in one wall of the housing within each of the ink chambers. Each of the ink supply ports has an inner opening and an outer opening. The distance from the inner opening of a first ink supply port to that of a second ink supply port adjacent to the first ink supply port is different from a second distance from the outer opening of the first ink supply opening to that of the second ink supply port.

Ink cartridge for ink-jet printing apparatus

An ink cartridge for detachable mounting in an insertion direction on an ink jet printing apparatus having an ink supply needle communicating with a print head, includes a bottom wall, plural side walls, an ink supply port in the bottom wall to engage the ink supply needle as the ink cartridge moves in an insertion direction, a circuit board formed on a side wall adjacent to the bottom wall, and electrodes on the circuit board, each electrode having at least one contact region, the contact regions being divided into groups respectively arranged at intervals in the insertion direction. Part of one contact region located in a center of one of the groups of contact regions is disposed on the ink supply port's central line, and a semiconductor storage device is located on the circuit board and is in electrical communication with at least some contact regions.

Growing community of inventors

Nagano, Japan

Takao Kobayashi