Ink cartridge and ink cartridge holder

• US 6,832,830 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2003
• Issued: 12/21/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Seino, Takeo, Fujioka, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, THINH H
• Application Number:
  US10/391,274
• Publication Number:
  US 20030222940A1
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• Field of Search: 347/59, 347/85, 347/86, 347/87, 347/50, 347/58
• US Class Current: 347/86
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17503 Ink cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1752 Mounting within the printer
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17523 Ink connection
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17526 Electrical contacts to the cartridge
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17546 electronically
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17553 Outer structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17566 Ink level or ink residue control
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 29/13 Cases or covers

Abstract

An ink cartridge and an ink cartridge holder for maintaining the relative position between the information reading section of the ink cartridge holder and the information storing unit of the ink cartridge, which should be aligned accurately, even if the ink cartridge has instability to the ink cartridge holder due to the variation in each products. The ink cartridge which supplies ink to a recording apparatus includes: a substantially rectangular parallelepiped ink cartridge main body holding the ink; a connection electrode section provided on a part of a first side of the ink cartridge main body and including a connection terminal; an ink supply unit provided in a front surface which intersects the first wall; and a positioning section guiding a positioning member of the recording apparatus to the vicinity of the connection electrode on the front surface so that the positioning member opposes to the connection electrode section in the direction parallel with the connection electrode section.

Claims

1. An ink cartridge for supplying ink to a recording apparatus, comprising:

an ink cartridge main body for containing ink therein and comprising a first wall, and a front wall which intersects said first wall;

a connection electrode section provided on a part of said first wall of said ink cartridge main body and including at least one connection electrode electrically connected to a memory element;

an ink supply section provided in said front wall; and

a positioning section for guiding said ink cartridge along a positioning member of the recording apparatus, said positioning section guiding the positioning member of the recording apparatus to face said connection electrode section in a direction substantially in parallel to said connection electrode section,

wherein said connection electrode section and said positioning section are aligned in a direction substantially perpendicular to said first wall of said ink cartridge main body.

2. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection electrode section is located in a recessed portion of said first wall.

7. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one exposed, outwardly-protruding projection disposed on a second wall which intersects said first wall of said ink cartridge main body.

8. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 7, wherein, viewed in a direction perpendicular to the second wall, the projection overlaps a portion of at least one of the connection electrode section and the positioning section.

9. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a grip section formed at an end of the ink cartridge opposite to the front wall.

10. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 7, wherein the grip section includes a concave portion.

3. An ink cartridge for supplying ink to a recording apparatus, comprising:

an ink cartridge main body far containing ink therein and comprising a first wall, and a front wall which intersects said first wall;

a connection electrode section provided on a part of said first wall of said ink cartridge main body and including at least one connection electrode electrically connected to a memory element;

an ink supply section provided in said front wall; and

a positioning section for guiding said ink cartridge along a positioning member of the recording apparatus, said positioning section guiding the positioning member of the recording apparatus to face said connection electrode section in a direction substantially in parallel to said connection electrode section, wherein, viewed in a direction perpendicular to the first wail, a center axis of said positioning section lies within a width of said connection electrode section.

4. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 3, wherein the center axis of said positioning section, intersecting the front wall perpendicular to the cartridge insertion direction, is substantially aligned with a centerline of said connection electrode section extending in the direction parallel to the first wall and intersecting the front wall perpendicular to the cartridge insertion direction.

5. An ink cartridge for supplying ink to a recording apparatus, comprising:

an ink cartridge main body for containing ink therein and comprising a first wall, a front wall which intersects said first wall, and a sub-positioning section formed on said front wall, a center axis of said sub-positioning section extending in a direction parallel to a ink cartridge inserting direction, and said sub-positioning section being substantially elliptical a major axis of which extends in the direction perpendicular to the cartridge insertion direction;

a connection electrode section provided on a part of said first wall of said ink cartridge main body and including at least one connection electrode electrically connected to a memory element;

an ink supply section provided in said front wall; and

a positioning section for guiding said ink cartridge along a positioning member of the recording apparatus, said positioning section guiding the positioning member of the recording apparatus to face said connection electrode section in a direction substantially in parallel to said connection electrode section.

6. The ink cartridge as claimed in claim 5, wherein a distance between the front surface and a top surface of said positioning section is longer than a distance between the front surface and a top surface of said sub-positioning section.

11. An ink cartridge holder that receives an ink cartridge, where the ink cartridge is detachably mounted, where the ink cartridge has a connection electrode section of an information storing section located on a part of a first wall, and has an ink supply section located on a front wall which intersects the first wall, the ink cartridge holder comprising:

a holder main body including an opening face through which the ink cartridge is inserted, the front surface first, said holder main body holding the ink cartridge;

an information reading section including a connection electrode section within said holder main body, the information reading section being provided at a position corresponding to the connection electrode section of the information storing section of the ink cartridge so that, when the ink cartridge is mounted, the connection electrode section of the information reading section is in electrical contact with the connection electrode section of the ink cartridge; and

a positioning member extending from said holder main body toward said opening face, and positioned in the vicinity of said information reading section in a direction parallel with the first wall and the front wall of the ink cartridge so that, viewed in a direction perpendicular to a plane in which the first wall of the ink cartridge lies, when the ink cartridge is mounted, at least a portion of the positioning member overlaps at least a portion of the information reading section of the ink cartridge.

12. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 11, wherein said positioning member comprises:

a positioning member main body including a tapered end, said positioning member main body being dimensioned and disposed so that when the ink cartridge is held by the bolder main body, the positioning member main body is received by the ink cartridge; and

an abutting section including an abutment surface which abuts the ink cartridge when the ink cartridge is held by the holder main body.

13. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 12, wherein the abutting section has a larger cross-sectional area than a cross-sectional area of said positioning member main body.

14. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 12, wherein, viewed in a direction perpendicular to the first wall of a mounted ink cartridge, a center axis of said positioning member main body lies within the width of said connection electrode section of said information reading section.

15. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 14, wherein the center axis of said positioning member main body extending in a same direction as said positioning member is substantially aligned with a centerline in the widthwise direction of said connection electrode section of said information reading section extending in the direction parallel to the first wall and intersecting the front wall of the ink cartridge.

16. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a sub-positioning member extending from said holder main body toward said opening face, said sub-positioning section and said positioning member both lying in a plane which is substantially parallel to the first wall, wherein the distance between said connection electrode section of said information reading section and said sub-positioning member is longer than the distance between said connection electrode section and said positioning member in a direction parallel to the first wall and the front wall of the ink cartridge.

17. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 16, wherein a center axis of the positioning member is parallel to a center axis of the sub-positioning member.

18. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 16, wherein said sub-positioning member comprises:

a sub-positioning member main body with a tapered end, said sub-positioning member main body being dimensioned and disposed so that when the ink cartridge is held by the holder main body, the sub-positioning member main body is received by the ink cartridge; and

an abutting section with larger cross-sectional area than said sub-positioning member main body including an abutment surface, wherein a distance between said opening face and said abutment surface of said abutting section of said sub-positioning member is greater than a distance between said opening face and said abutment surface of said abutting section of said positioning member.

19. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 11, wherein said holder main body is dimensioned so that there is at least a clearance at least in the direction parallel to the first wall and the front wall of the ink cartridge during the mounting of the ink cartridge.

20. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a urging section selectively pressing against the second wall which intersects the first wall and the front wall of the ink cartridge.

21. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 20, wherein the urging section has a first position in which the ink cartridge can be inserted into and removed from the holder main body, and a second position in which the ink cartridge is restrained in the holder main body.

22. The ink cartridge holder as claimed in claim 11, wherein said portion of the positioning member overlaps said portion of the information reading section of the ink cartridge in a direction substantially perpendicular to the first wall of the mounted ink cartridge.