Print cartridge latching system
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorGene D Jones
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An ink jet printer including a print carriage and a latching assembly for latching print cartridges in the print carriage. The print cartridge includes a latch feature on a top wall of the cartridge body, and the latching assembly includes a latch arm hingeably attached to a cartridge receiving chute of the print carriage, a clamp structure supported by the latch arm for applying a first clamp force and a second clamp force to the cartridge latch feature generally along respective orthogonal axes and independently of each other.
Claims21
A print carriage comprising:
- a chute for receiving a print cartridge and having carriage Y-axis datums and Z-axis datums;
- a latch arm hingeably attached to said chute;
- a pivoting clamp supported by said latch arm and slidable relative thereto for pushing the print cartridge generally along a Y-axis that is orthogonal to the Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said Y-axis datums.
A print carriage comprising:
- a chute for receiving a print cartridge having a latch feature that includes a top surface and a front surface adjacent the top surface;
- carriage Y-axis datums and Z-axis datums located in said chute;
- a latch arm hingeably attached to said chute for rotation about a latch arm hinge axis;
- a pivoting clamp hingeably supported by said latch arm for rotation about a pivoting clamp pivot axis, said pivoting clamp pushing on the top surface of the latch feature of the print cartridge generally along a Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said carriage Z-axis datums;
- and
- a sliding clamp slidably supported by said pivoting clamp for translation orthogonally to said pivoting clamp hinge and slidable relative to said pivoting clamp, said sliding clamp pushing the front surface of the latch feature of the print cartridge generally along a Y-axis that is orthogonal to the Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said Y-axis datums.
A print carriage comprising:
- a chute for receiving a print cartridge and having carriage Y-axis datums and Z-axis datums;
- a resilient pad disposed at a rear portion of said chute engageable by a rear portion of the print cartridge;
- a latch arm hingeably attached to said chute;
- a pivoting clamp supported by said latch arm for pushing the print cartridge generally along a Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said carriage Z-axis datums;
- and
- a sliding clamp supported by said latch arm and slidable relative thereto for pushing the print cartridge against said resilient pad and generally along a Y-axis that is orthogonal to the Z-axis so that the print cartridge rotates about an X-axis that is orthogonal to said Z-axis and said Y-axis, and contacts said Y-axis datums.
A print carriage comprising:
- a chute for receiving a print cartridge and having carriage Y-axis datums and Z-axis datums;
- a latch arm hingeably attached to said chute;
- clamping means for applying a first force to the print cartridge generally along a Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said carriage Z-axis datums, and for applying a second force to the print cartridge generally along a Y-axis that is orthogonal to the Z-axis so that the print cartridge contacts said Y-axis datums;
- and
- wherein the first force and the second force are applied substantially independently of each other.
A method of latching a print cartridge having a latching feature in a print carriage, comprising:
- moving a print cartridge into a print carriage;
- applying a first clamping force to a first surface of the latching feature along a first direction;
- applying a second clamping force to a second surface of the latching feature along a second direction that is generally orthogonal to the first direction;
- and wherein applying a first clamping force comprises pushing a pivoting clamp against the first surface, and wherein applying a second clamping force comprises pushing a sliding clamp against the second surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.