Cyclone Gas-Liquid Separation for Ink Clogging in Printers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing printing apparatuses face inefficiencies in gas-liquid separation due to filter clogging, which increases operator burden and reduces separation efficiency, especially when using light curable inks that can dry and adhere to separation components.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a gas-liquid separation cyclone that uses centrifugal separation instead of filters, combined with a downstream filter for additional separation and a notification system based on pressure changes, reduces the need for frequent filter replacements and maintains separation efficiency by preventing ink from being discharged during gas-liquid separation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a filter is used for gas-liquid separation, then liquid can be captured from the gas, but the filter becomes clogged and requires frequent replacement, increasing operator burden
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the filter-based mechanical separation system with a cyclone separator that uses centrifugal force generated by rotating gas flow. This substitution eliminates the need for filter media, thereby preventing clogging and removing the requirement for filter replacement, directly reducing operator burden while maintaining separation efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the separation mechanism from static filtration to dynamic centrifugal separation. By inducing rotational motion in the gas flow within the cyclone separator, the system utilizes centrifugal force to separate liquid droplets from gas, fundamentally altering the separation parameter from pore-size-based filtration to inertia-based centrifugal separation
2Quantity of substance
If a filter is used for gas-liquid separation, then liquid can be captured, but the filter clogging decreases separation efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The cyclone separator replaces the filter system, using centrifugal force to separate liquid from gas. This mechanical substitution prevents the clogging problem inherent in filter systems, ensuring that separation efficiency is maintained consistently over time without degradation from accumulated liquid on filter media
Solution Approach 2:
The cyclone separator design allows liquid to be continuously discharged from the bottom of the separator without requiring the liquid to pass through a filter medium. The separated liquid collects in a reservoir and can be periodically removed, preventing the clogging issue that would otherwise reduce separation efficiency
3Manufacturing precision
If light curable liquid is used for printing, then printing quality is improved, but the liquid can dry and adhere to separation components, reducing separation efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
By replacing the filter system with a cyclone separator, the patent eliminates the surface where light curable liquid could dry and adhere. The cyclone separator uses centrifugal force to separate liquid in flight, without requiring the liquid to contact a filter surface, thereby preventing the adhesion and drying issues that would compromise separation efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the light curable liquid from the gas stream using centrifugal force before it can reach and adhere to any separation components. The cyclone separator design ensures that separated liquid is collected and removed from the system, preventing it from drying and curing on separation surfaces
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
This approach reduces operator burden by eliminating filter replacement needs and maintains effective gas-liquid separation efficiency by using centrifugal separation and a controlled filter replacement schedule, ensuring minimal ink capture and preventing clogging.
Implementation Method 1
a gas-liquid separation cyclone that swirls the gas flow so that the liquid is centrifugally separated from a gas which moves along the gas flow
Implementation Method 2
The light curable liquid is cured by light irradiation, not by drying
Data Source
AI summary
A printing apparatus which performs printing by ejecting liquid onto a printing medium includes a gas flow generating section that generates a gas flow to collect and exhaust liquid not used for printing, and a gas-liquid separation cyclone that swirls the gas flow so that the liquid is centrifugally separated from a gas which moves along the gas flow, wherein the gas flow generating section exhausts the gas along the gas flow after the liquid is separated from the gas by the gas-liquid separation cyclone.