Ink Container Mixing Chamber for Uniform Pigment Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Pigmented ink in containers settles over time, leading to uneven ink concentrations, clogging of ejection nozzles, and increased viscosity, which affects the performance of micro-fluid applications like inkjet printing, as the largest particles accumulate and viscosity increases, making fluid ejection difficult.
Innovation Solution
A supply item container with a mixing chamber that restricts ink entry at multiple heights, combining high-concentrated ink from the bottom with less concentrated ink from above, and a rotating latch system that interfaces with imaging devices to ensure uniform ink delivery and prevent particle entrainment, along with fluid and air venting ports for efficient ink usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If pigmented ink is stored in a container over time, then sedimentation occurs causing non-uniform concentration, but mechanical stirring mechanisms increase device complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The container is segmented into multiple compartments: a storage chamber for concentrated pigment suspension and a delivery chamber for diluted ink. This segmentation allows the heavy pigment to remain settled in the storage chamber while fresh diluted ink is continuously supplied to the delivery chamber, eliminating the need for mechanical stirring mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
A carrier fluid acts as an intermediary between the settled pigment in the storage chamber and the ejection system. The carrier fluid continuously flows through the storage chamber, picking up pigment particles and transporting them to the delivery chamber where they are diluted and ejected, preventing direct contact between settled pigment and the ejection nozzles.
2Quantity of substance
If ink is drawn from the bottom of a settled container, then high-concentration ink is delivered initially, but nozzle clogging occurs due to large particle accumulation
Solution Approach 1:
The ejection system is segmented into a delivery chamber that receives diluted ink from the storage chamber. This segmentation ensures that only finely suspended and diluted pigment particles reach the ejection nozzles, while the bulk settled pigment remains in the storage chamber, preventing nozzle clogging while maintaining ink concentration.
Solution Approach 2:
The ink is preliminarily diluted and filtered in the delivery chamber before reaching the ejection nozzles. This preliminary action removes large particles that would cause clogging while maintaining the necessary pigment concentration for quality printing, ensuring nozzle reliability.
3Speed
If pigmented ink settles over time, then viscosity increases making ejection difficult, but continuous agitation increases energy consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The settled pigment is extracted from the storage chamber by a carrier fluid flow and transported to the delivery chamber where it is diluted. This extraction process occurs passively through fluid flow rather than active agitation, reducing energy consumption while maintaining ejection performance.
Solution Approach 2:
A hydraulic system using carrier fluid flow is employed to transport pigment particles from the storage chamber to the delivery chamber. This hydraulic transport mechanism replaces energy-intensive mechanical agitation, reducing energy consumption while maintaining consistent ink delivery and ejection speed.
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 solution ensures uniform ink concentrations over the container's lifetime, reduces clogging, and effectively delivers all ink to the imaging device, minimizing stranding and maintaining fluid flow efficiency without the need for mechanical stirring, while providing a cost-effective and reliable interface with imaging devices.
Implementation Method 1
Sediments in a container settle downward over time leaving rich concentrations near a bottom, while leaner concentrations remain near a top
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2
AI summary
A consumable supply item for an imaging device holds an initial or refillable volume of ink. Users orient a housing to deplete the ink in a direction of gravity toward a bottom of the interior. The imaging device has a rotating latch. The latch mates with a top of the supply item to keep in place the supply item. Fluid exit and air venting ports reside on a side of the housing that gets inserted first into a container slot of the imaging device. A space separates the ports so a biasing member can push against the housing to assist in ejecting the supply item upon users activating the latch. The ports are separated a maximum distance to facilitate the ejection, while the exit port remains near a bottom to minimize stranding ink. Further embodiments note arrangements, distances and consumer features, to name a few.