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US 9,849,675 B2Granted
Protection device for ink-jet printhead
AssigneeSicpa Holding SA
InventorsAlberto Albertin, Silvano Tori
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention relates to a protection device for ink-jet printheads, comprising: a tank confining a cavity adapted to contain a humidifying liquid and having a mouth designed to be associated with at least one nozzle of an ink-jet printhead; a seal disposed around the mouth and suitable to be put sealingly in engagement against the printhead and around the nozzle; a mechanism integrated into the tank, for opening or closing the mouth for selectively bringing the mouth into fluid communication with the cavity.
Claims18
A protection device for ink-jet printheads comprising:
- a tank confining a cavity having an open end;
- a hydrogel composition confined in said cavity and comprising a hydrophilic composition and a humidifying liquid;
- a seal arranged at the open end of the cavity for movement relative to the cavity, the seal having a sealing surface to surround at least one nozzle of an ink-jet printhead and sealingly engage the printhead and having an interior surface defining a mouth;
- a mechanism integrated within the tank to selectively bring said mouth into fluid communication with the cavity;
- and
- a closure member coupled to the tank,
- wherein the mechanism is movable so that, before the seal sealingly engages the printhead, the closure member is in a sealing position against the seal, and, after the seal sealingly engages the printhead, the seal is movable out of the sealing position with the closure member, which brings the mouth into fluid communication with the cavity.
4 more elements
A protection device for ink-jet printheads comprising:
- a tank confining a cavity having an open end;
- a hydrogel composition confined in said cavity and comprising a hydrophilic composition and a humidifying liquid;
- a seal arranged at the open end of the cavity for movement relative to the cavity, the seal having a sealing surface to surround at least one nozzle of an ink-jet printhead and sealingly engage the printhead and having an interior surface defining a mouth;
- and
- a mechanism integrated within the tank to selectively bring said mouth into fluid communication with the cavity, wherein the mechanism comprises a movable element installed on the tank and movable between a closing position of the mouth and an opening position of said mouth;
- and
- a flexible wall connecting the movable element to peripheral edges of the tank.
4 more elements
An ink-jet printer comprising:
- at least one ink-jet printhead having at least one nozzle and at least one protection device that includes a tank confining a cavity having an open end;
- a hydrogel composition confined in said cavity and comprising a hydrophilic composition and a humidifying liquid;
- a seal arranged at the open end of the cavity for movement relative to the cavity, the seal having a sealing surface to surround at least one nozzle of an ink-jet printhead and sealingly engage the printhead and having an interior surface defining a mouth;
- and a mechanism integrated within the tank to selectively bring said mouth into fluid communication with the cavity,
- wherein the mechanism comprises a movable element installed on the tank and movable between a closing position of the mouth and an opening position of said mouth, wherein the protection device is movable between a first position, at which the mouth is spaced apart from the nozzle of the printhead, and a second position at which the mouth is associated with said nozzle, and wherein in the first position the movable element is in the closing position of the mouth and in the second position the movable element is in the opening position of said mouth, and
- wherein the protection device comprises a projecting element and wherein the printhead acts against said projecting element to take it from the first to the second positions.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.