Bumpy Elastomeric Seal for Inkjet Printer Fluid Interconnections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Inkjet printer fluid interconnections face issues with reliable sealing due to excessive water vapor leakage, as existing rubber seals fail to maintain a consistent seal across varying manufacturing tolerances, leading to reduced movement and resealing efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A bumpy surface elastomeric seal design that fits closely on a molded plastic boss, allowing for free movement and reliable sealing by distributing normal forces through a series of bumps, reducing friction and maintaining sealing efficiency across dimensional variations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a rubber seal is fitted around the tower to seal the fluid interconnection, then sealing reliability is improved, but the seal's ability to rebound and reseal is reduced due to excessive friction on the tower surface
Solution Approach 1:
The seal surface is modified locally by adding bumps at specific locations rather than changing the entire surface. This creates zones of high friction (at bump contact points) for sealing and zones of low friction (between bumps) for movement, resolving the contradiction between sealing reliability and rebound ability
Solution Approach 2:
The continuous seal surface is segmented into multiple discrete bump structures. This segmentation reduces the total contact area between seal and tower, lowering overall friction while maintaining localized sealing points, thus improving rebound ability without sacrificing sealing reliability
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the seal fits closely to the tower to prevent water vapor leakage, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but the seal's movement is impeded by increased friction force
Solution Approach 1:
The bump structures create localized high-friction zones that provide effective sealing against water vapor leakage, while the spaces between bumps maintain low overall friction, allowing the seal to move freely on the tower
Solution Approach 2:
By segmenting the seal surface into discrete bumps, the total contact area is reduced, which lowers the overall friction force while maintaining adequate sealing at the bump contact points, thus preventing water vapor leakage without impeding movement
3Ease of manufacture
If dimensional variation within manufacturing tolerance occurs, then production flexibility is improved, but the normal force between seal and tower varies by a factor of three, impeding seal movement
Solution Approach 1:
The bump structures concentrate the sealing function at specific localized points, making the overall seal performance less sensitive to dimensional variations in the tower. The normal force variation is distributed across multiple bumps rather than concentrated, reducing the impact of manufacturing tolerances
Solution Approach 2:
Segmenting the seal into multiple bumps distributes the contact points, so that dimensional variations in any single location do not cause extreme variations in normal force. This segmentation reduces the factor of three variation to a more manageable range, allowing free seal movement
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The bumpy surface seal design enhances the seal's ability to rebound and reseal effectively, minimizing the impact of manufacturing tolerances and ensuring consistent ink flow, while maintaining a low-cost, reliable fluid interconnection.
Implementation Method 1
the seal rebounds back along the tower toward the original, uncompressed position
Implementation Method 2
distributing normal forces through a series of bumps, reducing friction
Data Source
AI summary
In one embodiment, a seal includes a body of resilient material having a generally cylindrical opening therein. A first, smaller diameter part of the opening is defined by a cylindrical inner surface having a plurality of bumps protruding therefrom, and a second, larger diameter part of the opening is defined by an inwardly bulging sidewall. In another embodiment, an assembly includes: a boss protruding from a boss base; an elastomeric seal comprising a collar and a flexible collar base supporting the collar on the boss base, the collar having an opening therein closely receiving the boss and the collar base configured to flex when compressed along the longitudinal axis and rebound back toward an original position when uncompressed; and a plurality of elastomeric bumps on the collar and/or on the boss, the bumps protruding into the opening such that the collar is supported laterally around the boss on the bumps.