Printing apparatus and cleaner unit for cleaning inkjet head and ink conveyer tube
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsAkiko Niimi, Kazuyuki Kondo
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A cleaner unit to clean an inkjet head, ejecting ink onto a recording medium, and an ink conveyer tube, conveying the ink to the inkjet head, of an inkjet printer in cleaning liquid, is provided. The cleaner unit includes an air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube, which conveys air-liquid two-phased cleaner, and a cleaner spout, which is connected to an upstream-side end of the ink conveyer tube and to a downstream-side end of the air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube with respect to a fluid flow, and through which the air-liquid two-phased cleaner is supplied to the ink conveyer tube.
Claims19
A cleaner unit for an inkjet head and an ink conveyer tube to convey ink to the inkjet head, comprising:
- an air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube, which conveys air-liquid two-phased cleaner;
- a cleaner spout, which is connected to an upstream-side end of the ink conveyer tube and to a downstream-side end of the air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube with respect to a fluid flow, and through which the air-liquid two-phased cleaner is supplied to the ink conveyer tube, and
- an air-liquid two-phased cleaner generator, which is configured to blend air in the cleaner liquid and generate the air-liquid two-phased cleaner, the air-liquid two-phased cleaner generator comprising:
- a cleaner conveyer tube, which is configured to convey the cleaner liquid therethrough;
- an air blending piece, which is arranged to be connected with the cleaner conveyer tube and blends air in the cleaner liquid conveyed in the cleaner conveyer tube, the air blending piece being formed to have a shape of T in a plane view and including a first straight tube and a second straight tube, the second straight tube being arranged to be perpendicular to a lengthwise direction of the first straight tube and extending from an approximate center of the first straight tube;
- and
- an air supplying tube, which is connected to the air blending piece at one end and exposed to the air at the other end, the air supplying tube being tapered at the one end connected to the air blending piece, the tapered one end being in a midst position between the approximate center of the first straight tube and one end of the first straight tube.
An inkjet printing apparatus, comprising:
- an inkjet head, which is configured to eject ink to form an image on a recording medium;
- an ink conveyer tube, which is configured to connect an ink supplying unit with the inkjet head and convey the ink to the inkjet head;
- and
- a cleaner unit to clean the inkjet head and the ink conveyer tube in cleaning liquid,
- wherein the cleaner unit includes:
- an air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube, which conveys air-liquid two-phased cleaner;
- and
- a cleaner spout, which is connected to an upstream-side end of the ink conveyer tube and to a downstream-side end of the air-liquid two-phased cleaner conveyer tube with respect to a fluid flow, and through which the air-liquid two-phased cleaner is supplied to the ink conveyer tube;
- an air-liquid two-phased cleaner generator, which is configured to blend air in the cleaner liquid and generate the air-liquid two-phased cleaner, the air-liquid two-phased cleaner generator comprising:
- a cleaner conveyer tube, which is configured to convey the cleaner liquid therethrough;
- an air blending piece, which is arranged to be connected with the cleaner conveyer tube and blends air in the cleaner liquid conveyed in the cleaner conveyer tube, the air blending piece being formed to have a shape of T in a plane view and including a first straight tube and a second straight tube, the second straight tube being arranged to be perpendicular to a lengthwise direction of the first straight tube and extending from an approximate center of the first straight tube;
- and
- an air supplying tube, which is connected to the air blending piece at one end and exposed to the air at the other end, the air supplying tube being tapered at the one end connected to the air blending piece, the tapered one end being in a midst position between the approximate center of the first straight tube and one end of the first straight tube.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.