Unified Holder for Roll and Ink Replacement in Printers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users of image recording apparatuses, such as inkjet printers, face difficulties in identifying and replacing components like the roll body, ink cartridges, and waste ink storage due to different locations and operating directions of covers, leading to confusion, especially for unaccustomed users.
Innovation Solution
The image recording apparatus is designed with a holder that can be drawn from the housing, supporting a sheet roll and liquid containers, including ink tanks and a waste tank, with a conveyance mechanism and print head, featuring a unified replacement process for consumables by pulling out the holder, which simplifies the replacement of the roll body, ink tanks, and waste tank.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If multiple external covers are provided for replacing different components (roll body, ink cartridge, waste ink storage), then each component can be accessed independently, but users face difficulty in identifying the appropriate cover to open, increasing operational complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple components (roll body, ink cartridge, waste ink storage) into a single integrated holder assembly. By merging these components into one replaceable unit, the system reduces the number of separate covers needed from multiple to just one, directly resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The holder serves multiple functions: it supports the roll body, accommodates the ink cartridge, and contains the waste ink storage. This multi-functional design allows a single cover to provide access to all components, eliminating the need for multiple specialized covers and simplifying the user interface
2Device complexity
If components are arranged in the inner space of the housing with different cover locations, then all components can be housed together, but the unified access point is lost, requiring users to navigate multiple openings
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a nested structure where the ink cartridge and waste ink storage are positioned within or alongside the roll body holder. This nesting arrangement allows all components to be accessed through a single external cover while maintaining their individual functional integrity and spatial organization
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided an image recording apparatus which is provided with a housing, a holder configured to be drawable from the housing, a supporting member supported by the holder and configured to support a sheet roll, a liquid container supported by the holder and configured to hold liquid, a conveyance mechanism arranged in an inner space of the housing and configured to convey a sheet unwound from the sheet roll, and a print head arranged in the inner space of the housing and configured to record an image on the sheet conveyed by the conveyance mechanism. The liquid container is configured to include at least one of tanks configured to hold liquid to be provided to the print head and a waste tank configured to pool liquid discharged from the print head.