Print cartridge with friction driven media feed shaft

• US 20060250480A1
• Filed: 05/09/2005
• Published: 11/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Memjet Technology Ltd. (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, King, Tobin Allen, Tow, Gregory Michael
• Granted Patent: US 7,824,031 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/109
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 29/393 Devices for controlling or analysing the entire machine ; Controlling or analysing mechanical parameters involving printing of test patterns
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras

Abstract

A print cartridge for an inkjet printer with a media drive assembly, the cartridge comprising: a drive shaft for feeding a media substrate past a printhead, the drive shaft positoned such that it engages the media drive assembly upon installation of the cartridge; wherein during use, the drive assembly transfer torque to the drive shaft by contact friction.

Claims

1. A print cartridge for an inkjet printer with a media drive assembly, the cartridge comprising:

a drive shaft for feeding a media substrate past a printhead, the drive shaft positoned such that it engages the media drive assembly upon installation of the cartridge;

wherein during use,

the drive assembly transfer torque to the drive shaft by contact friction.

2. A cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the drive shaft has a drive wheel mounted to it for the frictional engagement with the drive assembly.

3. A cartridge according to claim 2 wherein the rim of the drive wheel is formed from an elastomeric material.

4. A cartridge according to claim 3 wherein the drive assembly has an idler roller to provide the frictional contact with the drive wheel.

5. A cartridge according to claim 4 wherein the drive assembly has an electric motor to drive the idler roller.

6. A cartridge according to claim 4 wherein the drive assembly has a piezo electric resonating linear drive to drive the idler roller.

7. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the printhead has an array of ink ejection nozzles and at least one ink reservoir for supplying ink to the printhead for ejection by the nozzles, each of the at least one ink reservoirs including at least one absorbent structure for inducing a negative hydrostatic pressure in the ink at the nozzles, and a capping mechanism for capping the printhead when not in use.

8. A print cartridge according to claim 1 further comprising:

(a) a capping mechanism with a capper moveable between a capping position in which the capper is urged into a capping relationship with the printhead, and an uncapped position in which the printhead is able to print onto the print media, wherein in the uncapped position the capper is displaced away from the printhead; and

, (b) a force transfer mechanism connected to the capper and configured such that a force provided by an edge of the media as it moves relative to the feed path is transferred to the capper by the force transfer mechanism, thereby to at least commence movement of the capper from the capped position to the uncapped position prior to the media reaching the capper.

9. A print cartridge according to claim 1 further comprising:

(a) a capping mechanism with a capper moveable between a capping position in which the capper is urged into a capping relationship with the printhead, and an uncapped position in which the printhead is able to print onto the print media, wherein in the uncapped position the capper is displaced away from the printhead; and

(b) a locking mechanism configured to hold the capper in the uncapped position until after a trailing edge of the media is clear of the printhead.

10. A print cartridge according to claim 1 further comprising:

(a) a capping mechanism with a capper moveable between a capping position in which the capper is urged into a capping relationship with the printhead, and an uncapped position in which the printhead is able to print onto the print media;

wherein,

(b) the capper assembly is held in the uncapped position by the media such that it moves to the capped position upon disengagement with the media.

11. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the media substrate is a sheet that, during use, disengages from the drive shaft before completion of its printing such that the trailing edge of the sheet projects past the printhead by momentum to complete its printing.

12. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the printer has a print engine controller with a light emitting beacon, and the printhead comprises:

an array of nozzles for ejecting ink;

print data circuitry for providing the nozzles with print data; and

,

a photosensor for optically receiving the print data from the beacon.

13. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the printer is incorporated into a mobile telecommunications device.

14. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the cartridge incorporates the printhead;

and,

the printer comprises;

a print engine controller for operatively controlling the printhead; and

, a position sensor for providing the print engine controller with a signal indicative of the position of the media substrate relative to the printhead;

such that,

the print engine controller differentiates the signal to derive the speed of the media substrate relative to the printhead and adjusts the operation of the printhead in response to variations in the speed.

15. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the cartridge incorporates the printhead;

and,

the printer comprises;

a print engine controller for operatively controlling the printhead;

wherein during use,

the print engine controller senses the number of complete and partial rotations of the drive shaft and adjusts the operation of the printhead in response to variations in the angular velocity of the drive shaft.

16. A print cartridge according to claim 1 further comprising at least one ink reservoir for supplying ink to the printhead, the at least one ink reservoir comprising:

a housing defining an ink storage volume;

one or more baffles dividing the ink storage volume into sections, each of the sections having at least one ink outlet for sealed connection to the printhead; and

,

at least one conduit establishing fluid communication between the ink outlets of adjacent sections.

17. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the media substrate is a sheet with coded data on at least part of its surface;

and the printer further comprises a print engine controller for operatively controlling the printhead; and

,

a sensor for reading the coded data and generating a signal indicative of at least one dimension of the sheet, and transmitting the signal to the print engine controller;

such that,

the print engine controller uses the signal to initiate the printing when the sheet is at a predetermined position relative to the printhead.

18. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the media substrate has coded data on at least part of its surface;

and,

the printer further comprising a print engine controller for operatively controlling the printhead; and

,

a dual sensing facility for reading the coded data before, as well as after, it has past the printhead.

19. A print cartridge according to claim 1 wherein the drive shaft has a media engagement surface for feeding a media substrate along a feed path;

and,

the cartridge further comprises a media guide adjacent the drive shaft for biasing the media substrate against the media engagement surface.