Liquid discharge device

Abstract

To provide a liquid discharge device in which a top surface of a device body is formed to be low and flat.SOLUTION: A liquid discharge device includes: a liquid discharge unit that discharges liquid to record an image on a medium; and a liquid supply unit that supplies the liquid to the liquid discharge device. The liquid discharge unit includes a cut-out in the main body, and a portion of the liquid supply unit is accommodated in the cut-out. A top surface of the liquid discharge unit body is formed to be flat. Furthermore, a window section, through which the medium is visible when the image is recorded on the medium, is provided on the top surface of the liquid discharge unit body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a liquid ejection device. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a liquid supplying device that supplies liquid to a liquid ejection head provided in a liquid ejection device. The liquid supplying device includes a connection aid that is attached to a mounting portion of a liquid ejection unit mounting mechanism provided in a device body of the liquid ejection device (one example of a liquid ejection device), and is disposed at the bottom of the liquid ejection device body. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-24178 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a conventional liquid ejection device, the liquid supply device is disposed at the bottom of the liquid ejection device, which requires the height of the main body of the liquid ejection device to be increased. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A liquid ejection device that solves the above problem includes a liquid ejection unit that ejects liquid to record an image on a medium, and a liquid supply that supplies liquid to the liquid ejection unit, the liquid ejection unit having a cutout portion in its main body, and a part of the liquid supply unit is housed in the cutout portion, which makes it possible to reduce the height of the liquid ejection device.

[0006] The liquid ejection device that solves the above problem has a flat top surface of the liquid ejection unit main body. As a result, in addition to the main body of the liquid ejection device being low, the flat top surface makes it possible to carry out work with printed materials spread out on the top surface.

[0007] The liquid ejection device that solves the above problem has a window on the top surface of the liquid ejection unit main body through which the medium can be viewed when an image is recorded on the medium. This not only makes it possible for the main body of the liquid ejection device to be low, but also makes it easy to view the printed matter being printed through the window on the top surface.

[0008] A liquid ejection device that solves the above problem may have the right side of the liquid supply device and the right side of the liquid ejection device on the same plane, or the right side of the liquid supply device and the right side of the liquid ejection device may not be on the same plane. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front, plan, right side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device in a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] 2 is a rear, bottom, left side perspective view of the liquid ejector of FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a rear view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a plan view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a right side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a left side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a front, plan, right-side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] 10 is a rear, bottom, left side perspective view of the liquid ejector of FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a rear view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a plan view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a bottom view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a left side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 16] 16 is a right side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a front, top, right side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a left side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a front, top, right side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 21] FIG. 21 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a left side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Diagram 23] FIG. 23 is a front, plan, right side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the fifth embodiment. [Figure 24] FIG. 24 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 25] FIG. 25 is a left side view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is a front, plan, right side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the sixth embodiment. [Figure 27] FIG. 27 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. [Figure 28] FIG. 28 is a front, plan, right-side perspective view showing a liquid ejection device according to the seventh embodiment. [Figure 29] FIG. 29 is a front view of the liquid ejection device of FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] 1. First embodiment An embodiment of a liquid ejection device will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figs. 1 to 8, the liquid ejection device 10 of this embodiment is a serial scan type (serial printing type) printer. The liquid ejection device 10 is, for example, a large format printer. The liquid ejection device 10 is an inkjet printer that ejects liquid droplets (for example, ink) according to image data included in print data supplied from an external host computer, thereby forming a group of dots on a medium such as paper or fabric, thereby printing an image (including characters, figures, etc.).

[0011] In this embodiment, the directions parallel to three mutually orthogonal axes XYZ in the liquid ejection device 10 are defined as the width direction X, depth direction Y, and vertical direction Z, respectively. The width direction X is a direction that indicates the width of the liquid ejection device 10 when viewed from the front. The depth direction Y is a direction parallel to the depth of the liquid ejection device 10 when viewed from the front. The depth direction Y is a direction perpendicular to the width direction X and the vertical direction Z. The depth direction Y is also the front-rear direction of the liquid ejection device 10, and is therefore also referred to as the front-rear direction Y.

[0012] First, a schematic configuration of a liquid ejection device 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid ejection device 10 includes a device main body 11 and a liquid supply device 19. The device main body 11 may include, for example, a housing 12 and a support stand 13 that supports the housing 12. The housing 12 has a substantially rectangular shape that is long in one direction (for example, the X direction). A plurality of support stands 13 (for example, two) may be provided so as to support the housing 12 at a plurality of positions. The support stand 13 may have legs 13A at its lower portion. The legs 13A may be provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction Y. The legs 13A may have casters 13B on their lower sides.

[0013] The device main body 11 has a feed unit 14 at the bottom of the housing 12. A roll body 15 (not shown) in which a medium such as a long piece of paper or fabric (not shown) is wound into a cylindrical shape is loaded into the feed unit 14. The feed unit 14 feeds the medium from the roll body 15. The fed medium is transported in a transport direction Y1 indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1 by a transport unit (not shown) in the housing 12. Note that the transport direction Y1 changes depending on the position of the medium on the transport path. The transport direction Y1 shown in FIG. 1 indicates the transport direction of the medium at a recording position where recording is performed on the medium. The device main body 11 records characters or images on the medium at the recording position in the housing 12.

[0014] 1, the housing 12 has an outlet 16 through which the recorded medium is discharged on a front surface 12A, which is an end surface on the downstream side in the transport direction Y1. The recorded medium may be cut to a predetermined length by a cutter (not shown), for example, and then discharged from the outlet 16. The discharged medium M may be stored in a medium receiving unit (not shown). Note that the recorded medium M may be wound into a roll without being cut.

[0015] The housing 12 has a plurality of surfaces. The housing 12 has a front surface 12A, a top surface 12B, a first side surface 12C, a second side surface 12D, a rear surface 12E, and a bottom surface 12F. The front surface 12A faces in the direction opposite to the Y direction. In one example, the front surface 12A faces in the same direction as the operation panel 18 when in an upright position. The front surface 12A is the surface facing a user who operates the liquid ejection device 10. The rear surface 12E is the surface opposite the front surface 12A. The first side surface 12C is the surface facing in the -X direction. The second side surface 12D is the surface facing in the +X direction. The bottom surface 12F is the surface opposite the top surface 12B.

[0016] The housing 12 has a window 17 on the top surface 12B near the front surface 12A. The window 17 is made of a light-transmitting material along the longitudinal direction of the discharge port 16, and it is possible to check the state of the medium being discharged from the discharge port 16 being transported through the window 17. The window 17 and the front surface 12A may be transparent or light-transmitting.

[0017] The housing 12 also includes an operation panel 18. The operation panel 18 may be provided, for example, at one end of the top surface 12B of the housing 12. The liquid ejection device 10 may include a display unit 18A as an example of a notification unit. The liquid ejection device 10 may include the display unit 18A in the device body 11. The device body 11 may include the display unit 18A at one end in the longitudinal direction. The device body 11 may include the display unit 18A at one end on the side to which the liquid supply device 19 is connected (for example, the right side).

[0018] The display unit 18A may be provided on the operation panel 18. Menus, messages, and the like are displayed on the display unit 18A. The messages are used to notify the user of information related to the liquid ejection device 10. The operation panel 18 may have an input operation function that allows an input operation to give instructions to the liquid ejection device 10. The display unit 18A may be a touch panel. The operation panel 18 may have operation buttons formed of mechanical switches or the like. The user issues various instructions, including recording instructions, to the liquid ejection device 10 by operating the operation panel 18. The device main body 11 is capable of receiving various instructions, including recording instructions, transmitted from a host device (not shown) that is communicatively connected.

[0019] The liquid ejection device 10 includes a feed unit 14 and an internal control unit that controls the transport unit and the liquid ejection unit (both are not shown). The control unit may control the liquid ejection device 10 based on print data received from a host device or a recording instruction given by operating an operation panel 18.

[0020] 1 includes a liquid supply device 19 that can be connected to a device body 11. The liquid supply device 19 has a plurality of storage trays 19C. The plurality of storage trays 19C detachably store liquid supply sources (not shown). The liquid supply device 19 is a device that supplies liquid in the liquid supply source to the device body 11.

[0021] The liquid supply device 19 may include a display unit 18A as an example of a notification unit. That is, the liquid supply device 19 may have the display unit 18A by sharing the display unit 18A included in the device body 11 to which the liquid supply device 19 is connected with the device body 11. The device body 11 and the liquid supply device 19 may be connected so as to be able to communicate with each other. A control unit on the device body 11 side may control the controlled elements on the liquid supply device 19 side. Also, the liquid supply device 19 may have an individual control unit (not shown), and the control units may communicate with each other. The liquid supply device 19 may also have an individual display unit (not shown) at a predetermined position of the housing 19B.

[0022] A plurality of storage trays 19C are removably inserted into the front surface of the housing 19B. The housing 19B has a plurality of insertion openings 19D on the front surface. The plurality of storage trays 19C are inserted into the plurality of insertion openings 19D, respectively. A liquid supply source is accommodated in the storage tray 19C. The liquid supply source is, for example, a liquid pack that contains a liquid, but may also be a liquid cartridge or a liquid tank. When the liquid is ink, the liquid supply source is an ink pack, but may also be an ink cartridge or an ink tank, etc. The liquid supply sources accommodated in each storage tray 19C contain different types of liquid. Each liquid supply source may contain, for example, ink of a different color as the liquid.

[0023] A waste liquid storage section 19E may be disposed in the lower portion of the supply unit main body 19A. The waste liquid storage section 19E may be, for example, a waste liquid tray configured to be detachable from the housing 19B. The waste liquid storage section 19E stores liquid that has leaked from the upper surface and inside of the housing 19B as waste liquid.

[0024] The supply unit body 19A is fixed via fixing members such as screws or bolts so that a part of the supply unit body 19A is accommodated in a notch K formed in the lower right side surface of the device body 11.

[0025] Next, the effects of the liquid ejection device 10 of this embodiment will be described. The liquid ejection device 10 has a cutout portion K in the housing 12, and a part of the supply unit main body 19A of the liquid supply device 19 is housed in the cutout portion K. This makes it possible to lower the height of the top surface of the liquid ejection device 10.

[0026] Furthermore, the top surface 12B of the housing 12 of the liquid ejection device 10 is formed flat. As a result, in addition to the main body of the liquid ejection device 10 being low, the top surface 12B is flat, so that work can be performed with a printed material spread out on the top surface 12B.

[0027] Furthermore, the liquid ejection device 10 has a window 17 through which the printed matter being printed can be seen on the top surface 12B of the housing 12. This, combined with the fact that the main body of the liquid ejection device 10 is low, makes it easy to see the printed matter being printed through the window on the top surface 12B.

[0028] Furthermore, the right side surface of the liquid ejection device 10 and the right side surface of the liquid supply device 19 are flush with each other. This allows the liquid ejection device 10 as a whole to have a neat and tidy design.

[0029] 2. Second embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 20 according to this embodiment will be described. 9 to 16, a schematic configuration of the liquid ejection device 20 will be described. The liquid ejection device 20 includes a device body 21 and a liquid supply device 29. The device body 21 may include, for example, a housing 22 and a support stand 23 that supports the housing 22. The housing 22 has a generally rectangular shape that is long in one direction (for example, the X direction). A plurality of support stands 23 (for example, two) may be provided so as to support the housing 22 at a plurality of positions. The support stand 23 may have legs 23A at its lower part. The legs 23A may be provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction Y. The legs 23A may have casters 23B on their lower sides.

[0030] The device main body 21 has a feed unit 24 at the bottom of the housing 22. A roll body 25 (not shown) in which a medium such as a long piece of paper or fabric (not shown) is wound into a cylindrical shape is loaded into the feed unit 24. The feed unit 24 feeds the medium from the roll body 25. The fed medium is transported in a transport direction Y1 indicated by an arrow in FIG. 9 by a transport unit (not shown) in the housing 22. Note that the transport direction Y1 changes depending on the position of the medium on the transport path. The transport direction Y1 shown in FIG. 9 indicates the transport direction of the medium at a recording position where recording is performed on the medium. The device main body 21 records characters or images on the medium at the recording position in the housing 22.

[0031] 9, the housing 22 has an outlet 26 through which the recorded medium is discharged on the front surface 22A, which is the end surface on the downstream side in the transport direction Y1. The recorded medium may be cut to a predetermined length by a cutter (not shown), for example, and then discharged from the outlet 26. The discharged medium M may be stored in a medium receiving unit (not shown). Note that the recorded medium M may be wound up as a roll without being cut.

[0032] The housing 22 has a plurality of surfaces. The housing 22 has a front surface 22A, a top surface 22B, a first side surface 22C, a second side surface 22D, a rear surface 22E, and a bottom surface 22F. The front surface 22A faces in the direction opposite to the Y direction. In one example, the front surface 22A faces in the same direction as the operation panel 28 when in an upright position. The front surface 22A is the surface facing a user who operates the liquid ejection device 20. The rear surface 22E is the surface opposite the front surface 22A. The first side surface 22C is the surface facing in the -X direction. The second side surface 22D is the surface facing in the +X direction. The bottom surface 22F is the surface opposite the top surface 22B.

[0033] The housing 22 also includes an operation panel 28. The operation panel 28 may be provided, for example, at one end of the top surface 22B of the housing 22. The liquid ejection device 20 may include a display unit 28A as an example of a notification unit. The liquid ejection device 20 may include the display unit 28A in the device body 21. The device body 21 may include the display unit 28A at one end in the longitudinal direction. The device body 21 may include the display unit 28A at one end on the side to which the liquid supply device 29 is connected (for example, the right side).

[0034] The display unit 28A may be provided on the operation panel 28. Menus, messages, and the like are displayed on the display unit 28A. The messages are used to notify the user of information related to the liquid ejection device 20. The operation panel 28 may have an input operation function that enables an input operation for giving instructions to the liquid ejection device 20. The display unit 28A may be a touch panel. The operation panel 28 may have operation buttons formed of mechanical switches or the like. The user issues various instructions, including a recording instruction, to the liquid ejection device 20 by operating the operation panel 28. Note that the device main body 21 is capable of receiving various instructions, including a recording instruction, transmitted from a host device (not shown) that is communicatively connected.

[0035] The liquid ejection device 20 includes a feed unit 24 and an internal control unit that controls the transport unit and the liquid ejection unit (both are not shown). The control unit may control the liquid ejection device 20 based on print data received from a host device or a recording instruction given by operating an operation panel 28.

[0036] 9 includes a liquid supply device 29 that can be connected to the device body 21. The liquid supply device 29 has a plurality of storage trays 29C. The plurality of storage trays 29C detachably store liquid supply sources (not shown). The liquid supply device 29 is a device that supplies liquid in the liquid supply source to the device body 21.

[0037] The liquid supply device 29 may include a display unit 28A as an example of a notification unit. That is, the liquid supply device 29 may have the display unit 28A by sharing the display unit 28A included in the device body 21 to which the liquid supply device 29 is connected with the device body 21. The device body 21 and the liquid supply device 29 may be connected so as to be able to communicate with each other. A control unit on the device body 21 side may control the controlled elements on the liquid supply device 29 side. Also, the liquid supply device 29 may have an individual control unit (not shown), and the control units may communicate with each other. The liquid supply device 29 may also have an individual display unit (not shown) at a predetermined position of the housing 29B.

[0038] A plurality of storage trays 29C are removably inserted into the front surface of the housing 29B. The housing 29B has a plurality of insertion openings 29D on the front surface. The plurality of storage trays 29C are inserted into the plurality of insertion openings 29D, respectively. A liquid supply source is accommodated in the storage tray 29C. The liquid supply source is, for example, a liquid pack that contains liquid, but may also be a liquid cartridge or a liquid tank. When the liquid is ink, the liquid supply source is an ink pack, but may also be an ink cartridge or an ink tank, etc. The liquid supply sources accommodated in each storage tray 29C contain different types of liquid. Each liquid supply source may contain, for example, ink of a different color as the liquid.

[0039] A waste liquid storage section 29E may be disposed at the bottom of the supply unit main body 29A. The waste liquid storage section 29E may be, for example, a waste liquid tray configured to be detachable from the housing 29B. The waste liquid storage section 29E stores liquid that has leaked from the upper surface and inside of the housing 29B as waste liquid.

[0040] The supply unit body 29A is fixed via fixing members such as screws or bolts so that a part of the supply unit body 29A is accommodated in a notch K formed in the lower right side surface of the device body 21.

[0041] Next, the effects of the liquid ejection device 20 of this embodiment will be described. The liquid ejection device 20 has a cutout portion K in the housing 22, and a part of the supply unit main body 29A of the liquid supply device 29 is housed in the cutout portion K. This makes it possible to lower the height of the top surface of the liquid ejection device 20.

[0042] Furthermore, the top surface 22B of the housing 22 of the liquid ejection device 20 is formed flat. As a result, in addition to the main body of the liquid ejection device 20 being low, the top surface 22B is flat, so that work can be performed with a printed material spread out on the top surface 22B.

[0043] Furthermore, the liquid ejection device 20 has a window 27 through which the printed matter being printed can be seen on the top surface 22B of the housing 22. This, combined with the fact that the main body of the liquid ejection device 20 is low, makes it easy to see the printed matter being printed through the window on the top surface 22B.

[0044] Although the right side of the liquid ejection device 20 and the right side of the liquid supply 29 are not on the same plane, the width of the housing 22 is compact, giving the impression that the entire liquid ejection device 20 is compact.

[0045] 3. Third embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 30 according to this embodiment will be described. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

[0046] As shown in Figs. 17 to 19, in the liquid discharger 30 according to this embodiment, the housing 32 is formed so as to extend on the second side surface 32D up to the bottom side on which the casters 13 are provided.

[0047] With this configuration, in addition to the effects shown in the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 18, the housing 32 and liquid supply device 19 form a gate-shaped configuration, resulting in a neat design with good balance on the left and right sides.

[0048] 4. Fourth embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 40 according to this embodiment will be described. Note that the same components as those in the second embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

[0049] As shown in Figures 20 to 22, in the liquid ejection device 40 of this embodiment, the cutout portion K formed in the housing 42 is formed deeper in the +X direction than the housing 22 of the second embodiment, so that the supply unit main body 19A of the liquid supply device 19 fits snugly into the lower part of the housing 42. As a result, the right side surface of the liquid ejection device 40 and the right side surface of the liquid supply device 19 are formed on the same plane.

[0050] With this configuration, in addition to the effects shown in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 24, the liquid ejection device 40 as a whole has a neat and tidy design.

[0051] 5. Fifth embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 50 according to this embodiment will be described. Note that the same components as those in the second embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

[0052] As shown in Figures 23 to 25, in the liquid ejection device 50 of this embodiment, the cutout portion K formed in the housing 52 is formed deeper in the +X direction than the housing 22 of the second embodiment, so that the supply unit main body 19A of the liquid supply device 19 fits snugly into the lower part of the housing 42, and as a result, the right side surface of the liquid ejection device 50 and the right side surface of the liquid supply device 19 are formed on the same plane.

[0053] Moreover, the liquid discharger 50 is formed such that the housing 52 extends on the second side surface 52D up to the bottom side on which the casters 13 are provided.

[0054] With this configuration, in addition to the effects shown in the second embodiment, as shown in Fig. 24, the housing 52 and the liquid supply device 19 form a gate shape, resulting in a neat and tidy design with a unified left and right side. The liquid ejection device 50 as a whole has a neat and tidy design.

[0055] 6. Sixth embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 60 according to this embodiment will be described. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

[0056] As shown in Figs. 26 and 27, a liquid ejection device 60 according to this embodiment has a housing 62 formed with no thickness on the outer surface.

[0057] With this configuration, in addition to the effects shown in the first embodiment, it is possible to configure a flatter top surface.

[0058] 7. Seventh embodiment Next, the configuration of the liquid ejection device 70 according to this embodiment will be described. Note that the same components as those in the second embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

[0059] As shown in Figs. 28 and 29, a liquid discharger 70 according to this embodiment has an outlet 76 of a housing 72 with an edge formed at a substantially right angle.

[0060] This configuration provides a neater exhaust port shape in addition to the advantageous effects shown in the second embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0061] 10,20,30,40,50,60,70...Liquid discharge device, 11,21...Device main body, 12,22,32,42...Casing, 12A,22A...Front, 12B,22B...Top surface, 12C,22C...No. 1 side, 12D,22D...2nd side, 12E,22E...rear, 12F,22F...bottom, 13,23...support stand, 13A,23A...leg, 13B,23B...caster, 14,24...feeding part , 15, 25...roll body (not shown), 16, 26...discharge port, 17, 27...window portion, 18, 28...operation panel, 18A, 28A...display portion, 19...liquid supply device, 19A, 29A...supply unit main body, 19B, 29B...housing, 19C, 29C...insertion port, 19D, 29D...storage tray, 19E, 29E...waste liquid storage portion, X...width direction, Y...depth direction (front-rear direction), Y1...transport direction, Z...vertical direction

Claims

1. A liquid ejection device including a liquid ejection unit that ejects liquid to record an image on a medium, and a liquid supply that supplies liquid to the liquid ejection unit, The liquid ejection unit has a notch in a main body, and a part of a liquid supply unit is housed in the notch.

2. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein a top surface of the liquid ejection portion main body is formed flat.

3. 2. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1, further comprising a window on a top surface of the liquid ejection portion body, through which the medium can be viewed when an image is recorded on the medium.

4. 2. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1, wherein a side surface of the liquid ejection body and a side surface of the liquid ejection body are on the same plane.

Images