Liquid ejection device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11117387-B2
Application number	US-202016787734-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 11, 2020
Priority date	Feb 12, 2019
Publication date	Sep 14, 2021
Grant date	Sep 14, 2021

Abstract

A circulation head includes an upstream port and a downstream port that are in communication with a pressure chamber, and includes three ink tanks (first to third tanks). Each of the ink tanks (the first to third tanks) includes an ink inlet/outlet port that is in communication with the upstream port and the downstream port, and an opening/closing valve that independently opens and closes the ink inlet/outlet port of each of the ink tanks (the first to third tanks) with respect to the upstream port and the downstream port.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A liquid ejection device that includes a circulation head including an upstream port and a downstream port that are in communication with a pressure chamber and a plurality of ink tanks, and that causes ink to pass through the circulation head via the upstream port and the downstream port to cause the ink to flow from one of the ink tanks to another one of the ink tanks, the liquid ejection device comprising:
at least three of the ink tanks, each of the ink tanks including an ink inlet/outlet port in communication with the upstream port and the downstream port,
an opening/closing valve that independently opens and closes the ink inlet/outlet port of each of the ink tanks to the upstream port and the downstream port,
a pressure regulation control unit configured to regulate, for each of the ink tanks, a pressure in each of the ink tanks; and
an opening/closing valve control unit configured to control, for each of the ink tanks, opening and closing of each of the opening/closing valves, wherein
the pressure regulation control unit controls the pressure in each of the ink tanks so as to cause one of the ink tanks to be an ink tank serving as a supply source and another one of the ink tanks to be an ink tank serving as a supply destination, and
the opening/closing valve control unit controls the opening and closing of each of the opening/closing valves so as to cause the ink to be supplied from the ink tank serving as the supply source to the circulation head and the ink to be supplied from the circulation head to the ink tank serving as the supply destination.

2. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
when opening the opening/closing valve of one of the ink tanks, the opening/closing valve control unit causes the opening/closing valve to go through a state of being open simultaneously to a plurality of the ink tanks.

3. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
when opening and closing each of the opening/closing valves, the opening/closing valve control unit causes a time required to open each opening/closing valve to be longer than a time required to close each opening/closing valve.

4. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
the number of the ink tanks is three.

5. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
the number of the ink tanks is four.

6. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
the ink tank includes, in an upper part of an interior thereof, a dish-shaped ink storage unit that is open upward,
the ink inlet/outlet port is open at a position below an upper end of the ink storage unit, and
a pumping mechanism is provided that pumps the ink into the ink storage unit in the ink tank.

7. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 , wherein
a supply source intermediate tank is provided between the ink tank and the upstream port,
a supply destination intermediate tank is provided between the ink tank and the downstream port,
the supply source intermediate tank and the supply destination intermediate tank each include an intermediate ink inlet/outlet port that is in communication with the upstream port and the downstream port,
a dish-shaped ink storage unit that is open upward is provided in an upper part of an interior of each of the supply source intermediate tank and the supply destination intermediate tank,
the intermediate ink inlet/outlet port is open at a position below an upper end of the ink storage unit,
a pumping mechanism is provided that pumps the ink into the ink storage unit in the supply source intermediate tank, and
an upper end of the ink storage unit in the supply source intermediate tank is arranged to be higher than an upper end of the ink storage unit in the supply destination intermediate tank, by a predetermined height.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Zhang Junhua

Classifications

• B41J2/18 Primary

  Ink recirculation systems · CPC title

• B41J2/17566

  Ink level or ink residue control · CPC title

• B41J2/17596 Primary

  Ink pumps, ink valves · CPC title