# US 10,245,839 B2 · Cap for ink tank, ink tank, and ink-jet recording apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,245,839 B2 - Document ID: US10245839B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/455,237 - Filed: 2017-03-10 - Published: 2017-10-05 - Granted: 2019-04-02 - Earliest claimed: 2016-03-30 - Assignees: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Kenjiro Imai; Ryuji Kato - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10245839B2 ## CPC - B41J 2/17523: {Ink connection} - B41J 2/17503: {Ink cartridges} - B41J 2/17506: {Refilling of the cartridge} - B41J 2/17543: {Cartridge presence detection or type identification} - B41J 2/17553: {Outer structure} - B41J: TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS ## Abstract There is provided an ink tank cap configured to open and close an ink inlet port of an ink tank, the ink tank cap including a contacting portion contacting with the ink inlet port, wherein the contacting portion of the ink tank cap is formed of an ethylene-propylene-diene rubber containing silicone. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An ink tank comprising: a tank body having an ink inlet port and configured to accommodate an ink therein; and an ink tank cap configured to open and close the ink inlet port of the ink tank, and having a contacting portion of which contacts with the ink inlet port, and which is formed of an ethylene-propylene-diene rubber containing silicone; a content amount of the silicone in the ethylene-propylene-diene rubber containing the silicone is in a range of 1 part by weight to 15 parts by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the ethylene-propylene-diene rubber; and a material forming the tank body is selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, polyphenylene ether, and a mixed resin of polybutylene terephthalate and an acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene resin. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, further comprising the ink accommodated in the tank body, wherein the ink is a water-based pigment ink containing a pigment, water and a water-soluble organic solvent. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The ink tank according to claim 2, wherein a solid content blending amount (P) of the pigment and a blending amount (O) of the water-soluble organic solvent in an entire amount of the water-based pigment ink satisfies P/O≤0.5. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The ink tank according to claim 2, wherein the pigment is a self-dispersible pigment. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The ink tank according to claim 2, wherein a solid content blending amount (P) of the pigment in an entire amount of the water-based pigment ink is in a range of 1% by weight to 10% by weight. ### Claim 6 (depends on 2) The ink tank according to claim 2, wherein a solid content blending amount (P) of the pigment in an entire amount of the water-based pigment ink is not more than 8% by weight. ### Claim 7 (depends on 2) The ink tank according to claim 2, wherein a material forming the tank body is one selected from the group consisting of: polypropylene, polyethylene, polyphenylene ether, and a mixed resin of polybutylene terephthalate and an acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene resin; and wherein a solid content blending amount (P) of the pigment and a blending amount (O) of the water-soluble organic solvent in an entire amount of the water-based pigment ink satisfies P/O≤0.5. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank cap further has a portion which is formed of a material different from the ethylene-propylene-diene rubber containing the silicone. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein an entirety of the ink tank cap is formed only of the ethylene-propylene-diene rubber containing the silicone. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank cap further has a mark corresponding to a color of the ink accommodated in the ink tank. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank cap further has a holding portion. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the ink tank cap further has a connecting portion configured to be connected to the tank body. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein in a case that the ink tank cap closes the ink inlet port of the ink tank, the ink tank cap is divided into a lower portion located inside an ink storing chamber, of the ink tank, in which an ink is stored, a middle portion located inside the ink inlet port and an upper portion located at an outside of the ink tank, and wherein a cross-sectional area of each of the lower portion and the upper portion, which is parallel to a plane on an outer surface of the ink tank and including the ink inlet port, is greater than that of the middle portion. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) An ink-jet recording apparatus comprising: the ink tank as defined in claim 1; and an ink-jet head configured to jet the ink accommodated in the tank body. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The ink-jet recording apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising the ink accommodated in the tank body.