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US 12,600,139 B2Granted
Wash valve
AssigneeDomino UK Limited
InventorsRichard Thomas Calhoun Bridges, Justin Chase, Antonio Jesús Martín Arrabal, Stuart Mark Walkington
Life of this patent
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AssigneeDomino UK Limited
InventorsRichard Thomas Calhoun Bridges, Justin Chase, Antonio Jesús Martín Arrabal, Stuart Mark Walkington
Estimating the term…
A continuous inkjet printer 2 has a drop generator 16, an ink source 7, an ink feed line 17 delivering ink from the ink source 7 to the drop generator 16, a solvent source 8, a solvent feed line 35 delivering solvent from the solvent source 8 to the drop generator 16, a flush valve 37 controlling a flow of solvent through the solvent feed line 35, a source of negative pressure 24, a wash valve 40 connecting the ink feed line 17 to the source of negative pressure 24, and a controller controlling the valves 37, 40, the solvent feed line 35 and the ink feed line 17 forming a junction where ink and solvent meet at an interface, and the controller, when shutting down the printer 2, controls the wash valve 40 and flush valve 37 to draw solvent into the ink feed line 17 from the solvent feed line 35 to draw the interface along the ink feed line 17 away from the drop generator 16.
A continuous inkjet (CIJ) printer that has a drop generator, an ink source, an ink feed line configured to deliver ink from the ink source to the drop generator, a solvent source, a solvent feed line configured to deliver solvent from the solvent source to the drop generator, a flush valve operable to control a flow of solvent through the solvent feed line, a source of negative pressure, a wash valve operable to connect the ink feed line to the source of negative pressure, and a controller operable to control the valves, the solvent feed line and the ink feed line forming a junction such that, in use of the printer, ink and solvent meet at an interface, wherein the controller is operable, when carrying out a shutdown sequence of the printer, to control the wash valve and flush valve to cause solvent to be drawn into the ink feed line from the solvent feed line to draw the interface along the ink feed line away from the drop generator.
A continuous inkjet (CIJ) printer that has a drop generator, an ink source, an ink feed line configured to deliver ink from the ink source to the drop generator, an ink feed valve operable to control a flow of ink through the ink feed line, a negative pressure source, a bleed line configured to deliver ink and/or solvent from the drop generator to the negative pressure source, and a wash valve operable to connect the ink feed line and the bleed line, wherein the wash valve is connected to the ink feed line between the ink feed valve and the drop generator.
A method of controlling the operation of a continuous inkjet (CIJ) printer that has a drop generator, an ink source, an ink feed line configured to deliver ink from the ink source to the drop generator, a solvent source, a solvent feed line configured to deliver solvent from the solvent source to the drop generator, a flush valve operable to control a flow of solvent through the solvent feed line, a source of negative pressure, and a wash valve operable to connect the ink feed line to the source of negative pressure, the solvent feed line and the ink feed line forming a junction such that, in use of the printer, ink and solvent meet at an interface, the method comprising, when carrying out a shutdown sequence of the printer, opening the wash valve and flush valve to cause solvent to be drawn into the ink feed line from the solvent feed line to draw the interface along the ink feed line away from the drop generator.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.