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US 7,350,907 B2Granted
Ink-jet recording device and ink supply unit suitable for it
AssigneeSeiko Epson Corporation
InventorHisashi Miyazawa
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Ink maintained at a negative pressure state is supplied to an ink-jet recording head via an ink supply mechanism constructed as a differential pressure valve having a coil spring and a movable membrane normally contacted elastically with a valve seat by the coil spring.
Claims2
A method of supplying an ink to an ink supply unit, comprising the steps of:
- providing the ink supply unit, the ink supply unit having an ink supply portion from which ink is discharged through an ink supply port to a recording head, the ink supply unit having a wall that divides the ink supply portion into an ink storage chamber in atmospheric communication through an air open port and a valve chamber accommodating a differential pressure valve that opens when a pressure on a recording head side is decreased, the differential pressure valve being located in an ink flow path between the ink storage chamber and the ink supply port;
- sealing the air open port to prevent a flow of air through the air open port;
- connecting the ink storage chamber to an ink source;
- and
- applying negative pressure while the air open port is sealed, so that ink is drawn from the ink source to the ink storage chamber through an opening that is not the air open port.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.