US 6,145,975 AGranted

Method of mounting an exchangeable ink container

AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsYasuo Kotaki, Masanori Takenouchi, Hideo Saikawa, Minoru Nozawa, Osamu Sato, Toshihiko Ujita, Masashi Miyagawa, Hisashi Yamamoto, Yuji Hamasaki, Jun Hinami

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

patentgrep

Loading patent…

Abstract

A mounting method of an ink container to an ink jet unit mountable to an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the ink container is mounted while a corner portion of the ink container between a top surface and a rear side is slid in contact with an urging member and while a corner portion of the ink container between a front side and a bottom side is slid toward a front side of the ink jet unit in contact with an inner bottom surface of the ink jet unit.

Claims25

Dependent claims

An ink jet unit for detachably mounting an ink container and detachably mountable to an ink jet recording apparatus, said ink jet unit having a front side, a top side, a rear side, and a bottom side, defined by the orientation of said ink jet unit when it is mounted to said ink jet recording apparatus, and further comprising:

an ink jet head on one of said front side, said top side, said rear side, and said bottom side;
an inwardly projected ink receiving portion on an inner surface of said bottom side, for receiving ink from said ink container;
an opening formed in a part of the top side and a part of the front side, to permit mounting-and-demounting of said ink container relative to said ink jet unit;
a cover provided at least at a corner portion formed where the top side meets the rear side, said cover having urging means for urging said ink jet head;
and
a rib provided on an inner surface of the front side of said ink jet unit and having both a vertical surface and a slanted surface that is inclined relative to the vertical surface.

3 more elements

A method of mounting an ink container to an ink jet unit mountable to an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein said ink container has a top side, a front side, a rear side, and a bottom side and said ink jet unit has a top side, a front side, a rear side, and a bottom side, defined by the orientation of said ink jet unit when it is mounted in said ink jet recording apparatus, and wherein said ink jet unit is provided with an ink jet head, an ink receiving portion provided on an inner bottom surface of the bottom side of said ink jet unit, for receiving ink from said ink container, an opening formed in a part of the top side and a part of the front side of said ink let unit, to permit mounting-and-demounting of said ink container relative to said ink jet unit, and a cover defined by at least a portion of the top side of said ink jet unit that is adjacent to a corner portion between the top side and the rear side of said ink jet unit, the cover having urging means for urging said ink container downwardly, said method comprising the steps of:

inserting said ink container through the opening in said ink let unit;
sliding a corner portion of said ink container that is between the top side and the rear side of said ink container into contact with said urging means;
and
at the same time, sliding a corner portion of said ink container that is between the front side and the bottom side of said ink container toward the front side of said ink jet unit in contact with the inner bottom surface of said ink jet unit.

1 more element

An ink container mountable to an ink jet unit which has a front side, a top side, a rear side, a left side, a right side, and a bottom side, as defined by the orientation of said ink jet unit when mounted in an ink jet recording apparatus, an ink jet head, an ink receiving portion, projected upwardly from an inner surface of the bottom side, for receiving ink from said ink container, an opening formed over a part of the top side and a part of the front side, to permit mounting-and-demounting of said ink container relative to said ink jet unit, a cover defined by at least a portion of the top side of said ink jet unit that is adjacent to a corner portion between the top side and the rear side of said ink jet unit and a rib provided on a front inner surface of the front side of said ink jet unit and having a vertical surface, said ink container having a front side, a top side, a rear side, a left side, a right side, and a bottom side, as defined by the orientation of said ink container when mounted in the ink jet unit, and further comprising:

an air vent in one of the front side, the top side, the bottom side, the left side, the right side, and the rear side, for fluid communication between an inside of said ink container and ambience;
an ink supply port for receiving the ink receiving portion in fluid communication with the ink jet head;
and
wherein said ink supply port is formed in the bottom side of said ink container at a position nearer to the rear side of said ink container than to the front side of said ink container, and
wherein, when said ink container is mounted in said ink jet unit, the front side of said ink container is in contact with the vertical surface of said rib of said ink jet unit.

2 more elements

An ink container mountable to an ink jet unit which has a front side, a top side, a rear side, a left side, a right side, and a bottom side, as defined by the orientation of said ink jet unit when mounted in an ink jet recording apparatus, an ink jet head, an ink receiving portion, projected upwardly from an inner surface of the bottom side for receiving ink from said ink container, an opening formed in a part of the top side and a part of the front side, to permit mounting-and-demounting of said ink container relative to said ink jet unit, a cover defined by at least a portion of the top side of said ink jet unit that is adjacent to a corner portion between the top side and the rear side of said ink jet unit, and a rib provided on a front inner surface of the front side of said ink jet unit and having a vertical surface, said ink container having a front side, a top side, a rear side, a left side, a right side, and a bottom side, as defined by the orientation of said ink container when mounted in the ink jet unit, and further comprising:

an air vent in one of the front side, the top side, the bottom side, the left side, the right side, and the rear side, for fluid communication between an inside of said ink container and ambience;
an ink supply port formed in the bottom side of said ink container, for receiving the ink receiving portion in fluid communication with the ink jet head;
a top side engaging portion, provided on the top side of said ink container adjacent the rear side of said ink container, for contacting the cover of said ink jet unit;
a picking portion for facilitating mounting and demounting of said ink container relative to said ink jet unit;
and
a bottom side engaging portion, adjacent the front side of said ink container, for slidingly contacting an inner bottom surface of the bottom side of said ink jet unit;
wherein at least a portion of the rear side of said ink container that is adjacent the bottom side of said ink container is inclined outwardly.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.