Liquid Ejecting Apparatus Spill Catching Recess Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Liquid ejecting apparatuses with mobile ink tanks risk soiling surrounding areas when ink spills from the ink receiving port, as the ink can scatter and land on the tank, carriage, and surrounding surfaces during movement.
Innovation Solution
A liquid ejecting apparatus design featuring a housing with a recessed area to collect spilled liquid, guided by grooves and openings, and an absorption member to absorb the liquid, reducing the risk of leakage and soiling. The housing is configured to cover the liquid tank and includes a nonplanar part for identifying the correct resupply receptacle, and the components are positioned to minimize spillage onto the connector and circuit board.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a mobile liquid tank is mounted in a carriage for liquid ejecting apparatus, then the apparatus can be compact and efficient, but spilled liquid from the liquid resupply unit can scatter and soil the surrounding area
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful spilled liquid into a beneficial contained element by providing a recess in the housing that specifically receives and contains the spilled liquid. The recess transforms the potential harm of spilling into a controlled containment scenario where the liquid is captured and can be safely absorbed or disposed of without soiling the surrounding area.
Solution Approach 2:
The recess acts as an intermediary structure between the liquid resupply unit and the external environment. It mediates the interaction by providing a buffer zone that captures spilled liquid before it can reach and soil the surrounding areas, effectively isolating the spillage issue from the external environment.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the housing covers the liquid tank completely, then spillage is contained, but access to the liquid resupply unit becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented into different functional zones: a covering part that protects the liquid tank and a recess that provides controlled access for spill containment. This segmentation allows the housing to simultaneously provide protection and access by dividing the structure into regions with different functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing applies different structural qualities to different locations: the covering part provides full enclosure for protection, while the recess provides localized access points. This local differentiation of structural quality allows the housing to fulfill multiple functions - protection and access - within a single integrated structure.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the recess is made larger to catch more spilled liquid, then spill containment improves, but the outer dimension of the housing increases
Solution Approach 1:
The recess is nested within the housing structure rather than being an external addition. This nesting approach allows the spill containment feature to be integrated into the existing housing volume, providing spill containment capacity without significantly increasing the overall outer dimensions of the housing.
Solution Approach 2:
The recess utilizes the vertical dimension (depth) of the housing to provide spill containment capacity. By extending the recess in the depth direction rather than increasing the horizontal footprint, the design achieves effective spill containment while maintaining compact overall dimensions.
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 effectively reduces the risk of surrounding areas being soiled by spilled liquid, minimizes leakage, and ensures efficient resupply by guiding and absorbing the liquid within the housing, thus maintaining cleanliness and operational integrity.
Implementation Method 1
an absorption member to absorb the liquid
Implementation Method 2
a groove, the groove being provided oriented toward the recess or the opening to guide the spilled liquid to the opening
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a liquid ejecting apparatus that can reduce situations where surrounding areas are soiled by spilled liquid.The liquid ejecting apparatus includes: a liquid tank 47, the liquid tank 47 being mounted in a carriage 20 configured to move back and forth in the X axis direction, and the liquid tank 47 including a liquid resupply unit 23 configured to accept resupply of a liquid from the exterior; and a housing 48 configured to cover the liquid tank 47. The housing 48 includes: an upper wall 49 that covers the liquid tank 47 from the upper side; and a first recess part 61 and a second recess part 62, which are provided in the upper wall 49 to receive a spilled liquid that has spilled to the exterior of the liquid resupply unit 23, and which are recessed downward.