Liquid storage container

Abstract

To provide a liquid storage container which does not lack rigidity while reducing a used amount of plastic which may be disposed.SOLUTION: A liquid storage container attached to a liquid discharge device has a housing, and a pouch bag which is detachably accommodated inside the housing, and to which a spout member is connected. The housing has a rigidity higher than that of the pouch bag, and in attitude when attaching liquid storage container to the liquid discharge device, a length of the spout member along a gravity direction is a half or less of a length of the pouch bag along the gravity direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a liquid storage container. [Background technology]

[0002] Some liquid ejection devices such as inkjet printers are equipped with a removable liquid storage container that stores liquid such as ink, and supply the liquid from the liquid storage container to a liquid ejection head. Patent Document 1 describes a replaceable ink cartridge as a liquid storage container. Such an ink cartridge stores ink, and supplies the ink to the inkjet head after being installed in the inkjet printer. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2005-11931 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] A liquid container such as that shown in Patent Document 1 is generally mostly made of molded plastic, and is often discarded when the contained liquid is used up. In the case of an ink cartridge, after all the ink has been supplied to the inkjet printer, it is replaced with a new ink cartridge. Then, the used ink cartridge may be collected and reused, but on the other hand, it may be discarded without being collected.

[0005] Recently, as the impact of plastic waste on marine life has been pointed out, there is a demand to reduce the amount of plastic waste as much as possible. On the other hand, a certain degree of rigidity is required for a liquid storage container that stores a liquid such as ink in order to prevent leakage of the liquid or to be properly attached to a liquid ejection device, but reducing the amount of plastic used tends to reduce the rigidity.

[0006] That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid storage container that does not lack rigidity while reducing the amount of plastic used that may be discarded. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The above-mentioned problems are solved by the present invention. That is, the present invention relates to a liquid ejection device having a plurality of liquid storage containers. Set of And, Each of the liquid storage containers is The device has a housing and a pouch bag detachably housed in the housing and connected to a spout member. ,before the housing has a higher rigidity than the pouch bag, and in a posture when the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid discharge device, a length of the spout member along a gravity direction is half or less of a length of the pouch bag along a gravity direction; a Y direction is a mounting direction of the liquid storage container to the liquid ejection device, a Z direction is a gravity direction in the posture when the liquid storage container is mounted to the liquid ejection device, and an X direction is a short-side direction of the liquid storage container that is perpendicular to the Y direction and the Z direction, the pouch bag is configured to be inserted in the Z direction with both side surfaces of the pouch bag facing the X direction with respect to the housing, the plurality of liquid storage containers is before The shape of the housing is different. At least one set of the liquid containers A liquid storage container characterized by: Set of It is. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a liquid storage container that does not lack rigidity while reducing the amount of plastic used that may be discarded. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a liquid ejection device. [Diagram 3] 4A and 4B are diagrams showing the configuration of a pouch bag of a liquid storage container. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a housing of a liquid storage container. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a housing and a pouch bag of a liquid storage container. [Figure 6] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing how a liquid storage container is attached to a mounting portion. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a housing and a spout member of a liquid storage container. [Figure 8] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing how a liquid storage container is attached to a mounting portion. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the mounting portion and a liquid storage container. [Figure 10] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing how a liquid storage container is attached to a mounting portion. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a liquid storage container in the present invention. The liquid storage container 2 is mainly composed of a housing 6 and a pouch bag 5. The pouch bag 5 is adapted to be stored inside the housing 6, and in Fig. 1, is adapted to be covered with a lid member 7. The pouch bag 5 is mainly composed of a liquid storage section 3, and stores liquid therein. A spout member 4 having a joint section 13 is connected and attached to the liquid storage section 3 of the pouch bag 5.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a liquid storage container 2 and a liquid ejection device 1 to which the liquid storage container 2 is attached. The liquid ejection device 1 has an attachment portion 11 for attaching the liquid storage container 2. The liquid storage container 2 is attached by inserting it into this attachment portion 11. After attachment, liquid is supplied from a joint portion 13 of the liquid storage container 2 to a liquid ejection head (not shown) of the liquid ejection device. The attachment portion 11 is divided into individual rooms, and multiple liquid storage containers 2 corresponding to each room can be attached. When the liquid contained in the liquid storage container 2 becomes empty (reduced) due to consumption of liquid, the liquid storage container 2 can be removed from the attachment portion 11.

[0013] Here, as described above, the liquid storage container 2 is configured such that the pouch bag 5 is accommodated inside the housing 6. The reason for this configuration will be explained. The pouch bag 5 is formed of a film. Examples of the film include a metal film and a plastic film. Even if the film is made of plastic, the pouch bag is very thin and the amount of plastic used is very small. That is, the use of the pouch bag can contribute to reducing the amount of plastic used (waste). However, when the pouch bag 5 containing the ink is attached to the liquid ejection device 1, it is difficult to stably attach the pouch bag because the pouch bag has low rigidity and is soft. Therefore, a highly rigid housing 6 is used, and the pouch bag 5 is accommodated in the housing 6. The thickness of the pouch bag 5 is preferably 0.1 mm or more and 1.0 mm or less. The thickness of the housing 6 is preferably 5.0 mm or more and 50.0 mm or less.

[0014] More specifically, the pouch bag 5 is in a state where it can be attached to and detached from the housing 6. The spout member 4 is attached to the pouch bag 5, and the spout member 4 is attached by fitting it into a receiving portion of the housing 6. Then, the pouch bag is covered with the lid member 7, and in this state, the housing 6 is attached to the liquid discharger 1. When removing the pouch bag 5, the opposite process is performed: the housing 6 is pulled out from the liquid discharger 1, the lid member 7 is removed, and the pouch bag 5 is taken out of the housing 6. If the pouch bag 5 is empty, a new pouch bag containing liquid is prepared, and the new pouch bag is attached to the housing 6 from which the pouch bag was taken out. Thereafter, as described above, the pouch bag is covered with the lid member 7 as necessary.

[0015] That is, in the present invention, a housing 6 made of, for example, plastic with high rigidity is used, and this housing 6 is continuously used while replacing the pouch bag 5 inside. Even if the housing 6 is made of plastic, this housing 6 is basically continuously used, so the amount of plastic waste can be reduced. On the other hand, since the pouch bag 5 is not made of plastic, even if this part is replaced with a new one, the amount of plastic waste does not increase significantly. In other words, it can be said that the amount of plastic used is small. On the other hand, since the housing 6, which has sufficient rigidity, is used for mounting and dismounting on the liquid discharger 1, stable mounting and dismounting can be performed.

[0016] A more specific configuration of the liquid storage container 2 will be described. The spout member 4 is attached to the pouch bag 5. The spout member 4 is made of a resin material such as polypropylene or polyethylene, and is connected (welded) to the liquid storage section 3 of the pouch bag 5 by thermal welding. It is preferable that the spout member 4 is as small as possible in terms of reducing the amount of plastic used. Here, the gravity direction (height direction) in the posture when the liquid storage container 2 is attached to the liquid discharge device is defined as the Z direction. And the direction perpendicular to this is defined as the Y direction. In FIG. 1, the Y direction is the attachment direction to the liquid discharge device (and the longitudinal direction of the liquid storage container). And the direction perpendicular to the Y direction and the Z direction (the short side direction, width direction of the liquid storage container) is defined as the X direction. At this time, the length of the spout member 4 is set to half or less of the length of the pouch bag in the Z direction. It is also preferable that the spout member 4 is as small as possible in the Y direction, and the length of the spout member 4 is set to half or less of the length of the pouch bag in the Y direction.

[0017] The spout member 4 is preferably disposed downward in the direction of gravity from the viewpoint of the dischargeability of the liquid in the pouch bag 5. Specifically, when the length of the pouch bag in the Z direction is A, the length of the pouch bag 5 from the lower side in the direction of gravity is A / 2 It is preferable that the center of the spout member 4 in the Z direction is located at a position lower than this.

[0018] The pouch bag 5 is mostly composed of the liquid storage section 3. The film-like liquid storage section 3 itself can be called a pouch bag. The liquid storage section 3 is composed of, for example, a metal film or a plastic film, or a combination of these. The liquid storage section 3 is preferably provided with gas barrier properties and light blocking properties for the stored liquid. The liquid storage section 3 may be composed of a single layer, or may be formed in multiple layers. An example of a metal film is an aluminum film. In addition, when heat-welding to the spout member 4, it is preferable that the welded part of the liquid storage section 3 is formed of a resin. For example, the outer layer is an aluminum film, the inner layer is a resin film, and the inner layer is heat-welded to the spout member 4. The liquid storage section 3 may be in the shape of a three-sided bag formed by welding the outer periphery of a film into a bag shape, or a standing pouch with a gusset (gusset) on the bag. The film forming the liquid storage portion 3 may be a transparent or semi-transparent film through which the inside can be seen, in order to visually check the color and remaining amount of the stored liquid.

[0019] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the liquid storage section 3 of the pouch bag 5. The pouch bag 5 in Fig. 3 is configured by welding the outer periphery of the liquid storage section 3 at welding parts 12 to form a bag. Among these welding parts 12, the welding part 12 on the lower side in the direction of gravity is configured so that the upper side is inclined downward in the direction of gravity from the side opposite to the side where the spout member 4 is provided, toward the side where the spout member 4 is provided. With such a configuration, it becomes easier to guide the stored liquid to the spout member 4, and the efficiency of using the liquid can be improved.

[0020] Next, the housing 6 will be described. The housing 6 is made of a material with high rigidity. It is necessary to form the housing 6 from a material with at least higher rigidity than the pouch bag 5. As described above, since the housing 6 is used repeatedly, it may be made from a plastic using polypropylene or polyethylene, or may be made from a metal or carbon resin. By using a housing 6 with high rigidity, it becomes easier to mount it on the liquid discharge device 1. FIG. 10 shows an enlarged view of a part of the mounting part 11 when the liquid container is mounted on the mounting part 11 of the liquid discharge device. The mounting part 11 is provided with a supply port 14, and mounting is performed so that the joint part 13 of the spout member 4 is connected to the supply port 14. At this time, if the liquid container is composed of only a pouch bag, it is difficult to apply a sufficient force to connect the joint part 13 and the supply port 14 due to the low rigidity. As a result, it may be difficult to supply the liquid well. Therefore, by using a housing 6 with high rigidity capable of withstanding the load, the joint portion 13 of the spout member 4 joined to the pouch bag inside the housing 6 can be satisfactorily connected to the supply port 14.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 1, the housing 6 can be in a hexahedral box shape in which the pouch bag is housed (inserted) inside and the portion housing the pouch bag is covered with a cover member 7 to house the pouch bag inside. However, the housing 6 may have a shape other than this. For example, the housing 6 may be in a 5-sided box shape in which one insertion portion of the pouch bag is left open and is not covered with a cover member. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 4, the housing 6 may be in a tetrahedral frame shape (a shape with two sides open). Note that FIG. 4 shows two frame-shaped housings, each of which is fitted with a different pouch bag. Both sides of the pouch bag fitted to the frame-shaped housing are open and exposed. Also, as shown in FIG. 5, the housing 6 may be in a shape in which the upper part in the gravity direction is open and the pouch bag is fitted from this part.

[0022] When multiple liquid storage containers are mounted on a liquid ejection device, housings with different shapes may be used for the liquid storage containers. It is not necessary to make all the housings different in shape, but at least one set of housings is different in shape. In this case, it is preferable to provide a structure corresponding to the liquid storage container in the region of the mounting part 11 that houses each liquid storage container. FIG. 6 shows an example in which a protrusion structure 8 is provided on the mounting part 11. The protrusion structure 8 has a different shape (arrangement) for each position where the four liquid storage containers are mounted. The housing 6 is formed with a groove structure 15 corresponding to the protrusion structure 8. By adopting such a form, when the liquid storage container is mounted at the correct position, the shapes of both, that is, the protrusion structure 8 and the groove structure 15, fit together, making it possible to mount the liquid storage container. When an attempt is made to mount the liquid storage container at an incorrect position, the protrusion structure 8 and the groove structure 15 do not fit together, and it is possible to suppress erroneous mounting. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between the spout member 4 and the housing 6. The shape of the housing 6, particularly the shape of the groove structure 15, is different between FIG. 7(a) and FIG. 7(b). 7(a) and 7(b), the structure of the spout member 4 corresponding to these housings 6 is also different. In the example of Fig. 7, the structure of the spout member 4 corresponds to the structure of the housing 6, and when the structure of the spout member 4 matches the structure of the housing 6, the spout member and the pouch bag can be attached to the housing 6, and insertion mistakes can be prevented.

[0023] When housings of different shapes are used for the liquid storage containers, a groove structure 15 of a different shape may be provided below the housing 6 for each housing, and a corresponding protrusion structure 8 may be provided on the mounting portion 11, as shown in FIG. 8.

[0024] On the other hand, in consideration of the productivity of the housing, when a plurality of liquid storage containers are mounted on the liquid ejection device, a common housing having the same shape may be used between the liquid storage containers. In this case, a mechanism for preventing erroneous mounting may be provided in the spout member. Even if there is a slight difference between the housings due to manufacturing errors, they are considered to have the same shape. FIG. 9 shows the shape of the mounting part 11 and the liquid storage container 2. The spout member 4 of the liquid storage container 2 is provided with a convex structure 10. The housings 6 are common to the liquid storage containers 2 and have the same shape, but the convex structures 10 are different. In FIG. 9, the number (and size) of the convex structures are different. On the mounting part 11 side, a concave structure 16 is provided around the supply port 14. When the liquid storage container is mounted in the correct position (for example, when a liquid storage container containing cyan ink is mounted on the mounting part for cyan), the concave structure 16 and the convex structure 10 match and can be mounted as is. On the other hand, if the liquid container is attached to the wrong position (for example, if a liquid container containing magenta ink is attached to a cyan attachment section), it will not match and cannot be attached.

[0025] Regarding the fitting shape of the concave structure and the convex structure, there are no limitations on which side of the concave-convex structure is convex and which side is concave, or where they are arranged, and an appropriate configuration can be adopted according to the shapes of the liquid ejection device 1, liquid storage container 2, spout member 4, etc.

[0026] In either embodiment, the fitting shape of the mounting part and the liquid storage container is intended to prevent liquid from an erroneously mounted liquid storage container from entering and mixing with the liquid ejection device. To achieve this, it is preferable to prevent the liquid storage container 2 from being inserted into the mounting part 11 before the joint part 13 of the liquid storage container 2 comes into contact with the supply port 14 of the mounting part 11. Therefore, in the case of the fitting shape of the liquid ejection device 1 and the spout member 4, it is preferable to have a shape in which the spout member 4 protrudes in the mounting direction (Y direction) beyond the joint part 13 as shown in FIG.

[0027] If the liquid ejection device 1 is operated and liquid is ejected in a state where the liquid storage container 2 is not properly attached to the attachment portion 11, air may flow into the flow path in the liquid ejection device, making it impossible to eject the liquid accurately thereafter. In addition, in order to return the liquid ejection device to its original state once it has been in such a state, a large amount of liquid may be discharged to remove the air in the flow path, resulting in a large consumption of liquid. In response to this, a method of incorporating a substrate into the housing 6 or the spout member 4 is useful in order to confirm that the housing 6 has been securely attached to the liquid ejection device 1. When the liquid storage container 2 has been securely attached to the attachment portion 11 of the liquid ejection device 1, the substrate incorporated into the spout member 4 is made to be conductive with the electrodes on the liquid ejection device 1 side. If the liquid ejection device 1 is made capable of ejecting the liquid after confirming this conductivity, the above-mentioned problem can be solved.

[0028] Regarding the mounting of the liquid storage container to the liquid discharge device, in the examples shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 6, mounting is performed along the Y direction shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 5. For this reason, in the liquid storage container, it is preferable to make the displacement of the spout member 4 in the Y direction relative to the housing 6 as small as possible. From this point of view, it is preferable to insert the pouch bag 5 into the housing 6 along the X direction or Z direction. For example, in the configuration of Fig. 5, the pouch bag 5 is inserted into the housing 6 along the Z direction and mounted. In addition, it is also preferable to configure the pouch bag 5 so that it is fixed in the Y direction and does not move when mounted in the housing 6.

[0029] The spout member 4 is preferably disposed below in the direction of gravity as described above, but may be disposed at the bottom of the pouch bag 5 below in the direction of gravity. In this case, the liquid container is inserted into the liquid discharge device along the Z direction. Therefore, it is preferable to minimize the deviation of the spout member 4 in the Z direction relative to the housing 6. For example, it is preferable to insert the pouch bag 5 into the housing 6 along the X direction or Y direction. In addition, it is also preferable to configure the pouch bag 5 so that it is fixed in the Z direction and does not move when the pouch bag 5 is attached to the housing 6. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1 Liquid discharge device 2 Liquid storage container 3 Liquid storage section 4 Spout parts 5 Pouch Bag 6. Chassis

Claims

1. A set of a plurality of liquid storage containers to be mounted on a mounting portion of a liquid ejection device, Each of the liquid storage containers is The device has a housing and a pouch bag detachably housed in the housing and connected to a spout member, The housing has a higher rigidity than the pouch bag, a length of the spout member along a direction of gravity is equal to or less than half of a length of the pouch bag along a direction of gravity in a posture when the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid discharge device; a Y direction is a mounting direction of the liquid storage container to the liquid ejection device, a Z direction is a gravity direction in the posture when the liquid storage container is mounted to the liquid ejection device, and an X direction is a short-side direction of the liquid storage container that is perpendicular to the Y direction and the Z direction, the pouch bag is configured to be inserted in the Z direction with both side surfaces of the pouch bag facing the X direction with respect to the housing, The set of liquid containers, wherein the plurality of liquid containers includes at least one pair of liquid containers whose casings have different shapes.

2. A set of liquid storage containers as described in claim 1, wherein the shape of the housing differs among the multiple liquid storage containers in accordance with the structure of the mounting portion of the liquid ejection device, and the liquid storage container can be mounted to the mounting portion when the structure of the mounting portion matches the shape of the housing.

3. A set of a plurality of liquid storage containers to be mounted on a mounting portion of a liquid ejection device, Each of the liquid storage containers is The device has a housing and a pouch bag detachably housed in the housing and connected to a spout member, The housing has a higher rigidity than the pouch bag, a length of the spout member along a direction of gravity is equal to or less than half of a length of the pouch bag along a direction of gravity in a posture when the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid discharge device; a Y direction is a mounting direction of the liquid storage container to the liquid ejection device, a Z direction is a gravity direction in the posture when the liquid storage container is mounted to the liquid ejection device, and an X direction is a short-side direction of the liquid storage container that is perpendicular to the Y direction and the Z direction, the pouch bag is configured to be inserted in the Z direction with both side surfaces of the pouch bag facing the X direction with respect to the housing, The set of liquid storage containers, wherein the plurality of liquid storage containers includes at least one pair of liquid storage containers in which the spout members have different shapes.

4. A set of liquid storage containers as described in claim 3, wherein the shape of the spout member in the liquid storage container differs among the multiple liquid storage containers in accordance with the structure of the mounting portion of the liquid ejection device, and the liquid storage container can be mounted on the mounting portion when the structure of the mounting portion and the shape of the spout member match.

5. A set of liquid storage containers as described in claim 3 or 4, wherein the pouch bag in the liquid storage container includes a joint portion connected to the liquid ejection device to supply liquid, and in the Y direction, the joint portion protrudes further than the spout member.

6. A set of liquid storage containers described in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the pouch bag in the liquid storage container is formed of a metal film.

7. A set of liquid storage containers as described in claim 6, wherein the metal film in the liquid storage container is an aluminum film.

8. A set of liquid storage containers described in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the pouch bag and the spout member in the liquid storage container are connected by thermal welding.

9. A set of liquid storage containers described in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the housings of the liquid storage containers are formed of plastic.

10. A set of liquid storage containers described in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the housing in the liquid storage container has a hexahedral box-like shape with the portion that contains the pouch bag covered with a lid member.

11. A set of liquid storage containers as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein, in a position when the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid ejection device, when the length of the pouch bag along the direction of gravity is A, the center of the spout member in the direction of gravity is positioned at a position lower than A / 2 from below the pouch bag in the direction of gravity.

12. A set of liquid storage containers described in any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the liquid storage container is configured so that the spout member is fitted into the housing in the Z direction.

13. A set of liquid ejection containers described in any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the casing of the liquid storage container has a shape that is open upward in the direction of gravity when the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid ejection device.

14. A set of liquid ejection containers described in any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the pouch bag in the liquid storage container has a welded portion welded along its outer periphery, and in the position in which the liquid storage container is attached to the liquid ejection device, the welded portion located below in the direction of gravity has an upper edge that inclines downward in the direction of gravity from the side opposite to the side on which the spout member is provided, toward the side on which the spout member is provided.

15. A plurality of the mounting portions; A set of a plurality of liquid storage containers according to claim 1 attached to the attachment portion; A liquid ejection device comprising:

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