INK CARTRIDGE REFILLING DEVICE, INK CARTRIDGE REFILLING SYSTEM AND CORRESPONDING INK CARTRIDGE REFILLING METHOD

• US 20130255826A1
• Filed: 06/09/2011
• Published: 10/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhuhai Ninestar Management Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Zhuhai Ninestar Management Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Nie, Bing, Qing, Lei
• Granted Patent: US 9,050,813 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 141/2
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17506 Refilling of the cartridge
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17553 Outer structure

Abstract

The invention relates to an ink cartridge refilling device and an ink cartridge refilling system. The ink cartridge refilling device comprises an ink container, an ink injection channel, an air inlet channel, an aspirator and a cover component, wherein the cover component is provided with a first sealing section for sealing an ink cartridge to be refilled and a second sealing section for sealing the air inlet channel. During the ink refilling, air in a sealed ink cartridge can be sucked to enable ink in the ink container to flow into the sealed ink cartridge, so that negative pressure is formed in the ink container and the ink is conveyed from the ink container to the ink cartridge under the negative pressure, thus the refilling of the ink into the ink cartridge and the replenishing of air into the ink container may not be carried out at the same time.

Claims

1. A negative-pressure ink cartridge refilling device for refilling ink into an ink cartridge to be refilled, comprising

an ink container used for storing ink for refilling;

an ink injection channel communicated with said ink container and used for conveying said ink in said ink container to said ink cartridge to be refilled;

an air inlet channel communicated with said ink container and used for replenishing air into said ink container;

an aspirator used for sucking air in said ink cartridge to be refilled; and

a cover component, wherein

said cover component is provided with a first sealing section for sealing said ink cartridge to be refilled and a second sealing section for sealing said air inlet channel.

2. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1, wherein said ink cartridge refilling device also comprises an ink cartridge positioning mechanism for positioning said ink cartridge to be refilled on said ink cartridge refilling device;

and said ink cartridge positioning mechanism is connected with said cover component through a rotating shaft.

3. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 2, wherein said first sealing section is closer to said rotating shaft compared with said second sealing section.

4. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1, wherein said first sealing section is a first elastic pad which is arranged on said cover component and said second sealing section is a second elastic pad which is arranged on said cover component.

5. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1, wherein said first sealing section consists of a convex section which is convex from said cover component and an elastic sleeve which is engaged with said convex section.

6. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 5, wherein said second sealing section consists of an extended section which is extended from said cover component and a sealing element which is engaged with said extended section.

7. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1, wherein said ink cartridge refilling device is also provided with a delay action component which enables said first sealing section to be still in the state of sealing said ink cartridge to be refilled after said air inlet channel is opened by said second sealing section.

8. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 7, wherein said delay action component is an elastic component which is engaged with said first sealing section.

9. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 4, wherein the deformation of said first elastic pad is larger than that of said second elastic pad.

10. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 6, wherein the deformation of said elastic sleeve is larger than that of said sealing element.

11. The ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1, wherein said cover component is also provided with extended clamp hooks and said positioning mechanism is provided with clamping grooves which are engaged with said extended clamp hooks.

12. A negative-pressure ink cartridge refilling system, comprising an ink cartridge to be refilled and an ink cartridge refilling device according to claim 1.

13. The ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 12, wherein said ink cartridge to be refilled comprises a cavity for storing ink, a sponge arranged inside said cavity for maintaining the negative pressure in said ink cartridge, an ink outlet for introducing ink in an ink storage cavity to the outside of said ink cartridge, an ink inlet for replenishing air into said ink storage cavity and an ink injection opening for injecting ink into said ink storage cavity.

14. The ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 13, wherein said cavity is divided into said ink storage cavity for receiving said ink and a negative-pressure cavity for receiving said sponge.

15. The ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 13, wherein said first sealing section is arranged on said cover component, at a position corresponding to said air inlet of said ink cartridge to be refilled.

16. The ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 15, wherein a through hole is reserved on said cover component, at a position corresponding to said ink injection opening of said ink cartridge to be refilled.

17. The ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 16, wherein a movable mandrel is arranged at said through hole and used for removing said sealing element for sealing said ink injection opening.

18. A refilling method for utilizing an ink cartridge refilling system according to claim 12 for ink cartridge refilling, comprising the following steps of:

sealing said ink cartridge to be refilled and said air inlet channel to form a closed space between said ink cartridge to be refilled and said ink cartridge refilling device;

sucking air in said ink cartridge to be refilled by said aspirator; and

opening said air inlet channel and canceling the sealing of said ink cartridge to be refilled.

19. The refilling method according to claim 18, wherein said refilling method also comprises the following step before the step A:

opening said ink injection opening of said ink cartridge to be refilled, and assembling a rubber plug into said ink injection opening.

20. The refilling method according to claim 18, wherein in the step C, said air inlet channel is opened first, and then the sealing of said ink cartridge to be refilled is canceled.

21. The refilling method according to claim 18, wherein in the step C, said air inlet channel is opened and simultaneously the sealing of said ink cartridge to be refilled is canceled.

22. The refilling method according to claim 19, wherein said refilling method also comprises the following step after the step C is over:

taking off said ink cartridge to be refilled from said ink cartridge refilling device, and sealing said air inlet channel again.