EP1234679A2 - Dual inkjet pen carriage system - Google Patents
Dual inkjet pen carriage system Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP1234679A2 EP1234679A2 EP02077163A EP02077163A EP1234679A2 EP 1234679 A2 EP1234679 A2 EP 1234679A2 EP 02077163 A EP02077163 A EP 02077163A EP 02077163 A EP02077163 A EP 02077163A EP 1234679 A2 EP1234679 A2 EP 1234679A2
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- pen
- carriage
- pens
- datum
- datums
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
- B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
- B41J2/01—Ink jet
- B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
- B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
- B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
- B41J2/17553—Outer structure
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
- B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
- B41J2/01—Ink jet
- B41J2/135—Nozzles
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
- B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
- B41J2/01—Ink jet
- B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
- B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
- B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
- B41J2/1752—Mounting within the printer
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
- B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
- B41J2/01—Ink jet
- B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
- B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
- B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
- B41J2/17543—Cartridge presence detection or type identification
- B41J2/1755—Cartridge presence detection or type identification mechanically
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J25/00—Actions or mechanisms not otherwise provided for
- B41J25/304—Bodily-movable mechanisms for print heads or carriages movable towards or from paper surface
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J25/00—Actions or mechanisms not otherwise provided for
- B41J25/34—Bodily-changeable print heads or carriages
Definitions
- This invention relates generally to an inkjet printing mechanism, and more particularly to a dual inkjet pen carriage system that accurately aligns two pens for scanning across a printzone of the mechanism to print high quality images.
- Inkjet printing mechanisms use pens which shoot drops of liquid colorant, referred to generally herein as "ink,” onto a page.
- Each pen has a printhead formed with very small nozzles through which the ink drops are fired.
- the printhead is propelled back and forth across the page, shooting drops of ink in a desired pattern as it moves.
- the particular ink ejection mechanism within the printhead may take on a variety of different forms known to those skilled in the art, such as those using piezo-electric or thermal printhead technology. For instance, two earlier thermal ink ejection mechanisms are shown in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,278,584 and 4,683,481, both assigned to the present assignee, Hewlett-Packard Company.
- a barrier layer containing ink channels and vaporization chambers is located between a nozzle orifice plate and a substrate layer.
- This substrate layer typically contains linear arrays of heater elements, such as resistors, which are energized to heat ink within the vaporization chambers.
- resistors Upon heating, an ink droplet is ejected from a nozzle associated with the energized resistor.
- a "service station” mechanism is mounted within the printer chassis so the printhead can be moved over the station for maintenance.
- the service stations usually include a capping system which humidically seals the printhead nozzles from contaminants and drying.
- Some caps are also designed to facilitate priming, such as by being connected to a pumping unit that draws a vacuum on the printhead.
- clogs in the printhead are periodically cleared by firing a number of drops of ink through each of the nozzles in a process known as "spitting,” with the waste ink being collected in a "spittoon" reservoir portion of the service station.
- spiketting uncapping, or occasionally during printing, most service stations have an elastomeric wiper that wipes the printhead surface to remove ink residue, as well as any paper dust or other debris that has collected on the printhead.
- pigment based black inks have been developed. These pigment based inks have a higher solid content than the earlier dye based inks. Both types of ink dry quickly, which allows inkjet printing mechanisms to use plain paper.
- current printer designs employ a black pen, and a single tri-color pen, or a black pen in combination with four monochrome color pens.
- One earlier printer employs four discrete pens that carry black, cyan, magenta and yellow inks.
- the carriage structure for aligning these four pens has six datums that match associated datums on each pen.
- the datums required to control the pen registration are in the following three orthogonal directions:
- This earlier four-pen carriage located the pens against the X datums using an X-biasing spring and a flexure member with an insert molded cam that applied the necessary force against the clamping surface of the pen to seat it securely against the X, Y, and Z datums.
- the X-biasing springs used in this earlier four-pen design required costly secondary manufacturing operations, including heat treating and plating, to obtain the desired performance levels.
- This earlier carriage used the electrical interconnect mechanism, which communicates the firing signals from the carriage to the pens, to supply the force necessary to seat the pens securely against one of the Y axis datums.
- a dual pen carriage system for scanning a pair of inkjet pens across a printzone of an inkjet printing mechanism.
- the carriage system has a carriage body with a main wall configured to be sandwiched between the pair of pens.
- the main wall has two opposing side surfaces each defining at least one datum.
- the carriage system also has a bias mechanism supported by the body to push each pen into contact with the main wall datums.
- the main wall side surfaces each define at least two datums which may be either a convexly curved surface or a substantially flat surface.
- the main wall side surfaces each define three datums.
- Each pen has a printhead portion for selectively ejecting ink, and a side wall with three registration datums extending therefrom for contacting the main wall datums when installed in the carriage body.
- a first datum is located adjacent the printhead portion
- a second datum is located laterally from the first datum
- a third datum is located in an upright direction from the first datum.
- An overall goal of the present invention is to provide an inkjet printing mechanism which uses a pair inkjet pens to provide a high quality hardcopy output.
- Another goal of the present invention is to provide a dual inkjet pen carriage system for pens made of moulded parts, without sacrificing print quality, to provide an economical inkjet printing mechanism.
- a further goal of the present invention is to provide a method of accurately aligning a pair of inkjet pens in a printing mechanism.
- FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of an inkjet printing mechanism, here shown as an inkjet printer 20, constructed in accordance with the present invention, which may be used for printing for business reports, correspondence, desktop publishing, and the like, in an industrial, office, home or other environment.
- inkjet printing mechanisms are commercially available.
- some of the printing mechanisms that may embody the present invention include plotters, portable printing units, copiers, cameras, video printers, and facsimile machines, to name a few.
- the concepts of the present invention are illustrated in the environment of an inkjet printer 20.
- the typical inkjet printer 20 includes a chassis 22 surrounded by a housing, casing or enclosure 24, typically of a plastic material. Sheets of print media are fed through a print zone 25 by a print media handling system 26.
- the print media may be any type of suitable sheet material, such as paper, card-stock, transparencies, mylar, and the like, but for convenience, the illustrated embodiment is described using paper as the print medium.
- the print media handling system 26 has a feed tray 28 for storing sheets of paper before printing.
- a series of conventional paper drive rollers (not shown), driven by a stepper motor 30 and drive gear assembly 32, may be used to move the print media from tray 28 under a paper guide member 34 into the print zone 25, as shown for sheet 35, for printing.
- the motor 30 drives the printed sheet 35 onto a pair of retractable output drying wing members 36.
- the wings 36 momentarily hold the newly printed sheet above any previously printed sheets still drying in an output tray portion 38 before retracting to the sides to drop the newly printed sheet into the output tray 38.
- the media handling system 26 may include a series of adjustment mechanisms for accommodating different sizes of print media, including letter, legal, A-4, envelopes, etc., such as a sliding length adjustment lever 40, a sliding width adjustment lever 42, and a sliding envelope feed plate 44.
- the printer 20 also has a printer controller, illustrated schematically as a microprocessor 45, that receives instructions from a host device, typically a computer, such as a personal computer (not shown).
- the printer controller 45 may also operate in response to user inputs provided through a key pad 46 located on the exterior of the casing 24.
- a monitor coupled to the computer host may be used to display visual information to an operator, such as the printer status or a particular program being run on the host computer.
- personal computers, their input devices, such as a keyboard and/or a mouse device, and monitors are all well known to those skilled in the art.
- a carriage guide rod 48 is supported by the chassis 22 to slideably support a dual inkjet pen carriage system 50 constructed in accordance with the present invention for travel back and forth across the print zone 25.
- the carriage 50 is also propelled along guide rod 48 into a servicing region, as indicated generally by arrow 52, located within the interior of the housing 24.
- the carriage 50 has a pair of bearings 54 which slideably support the carriage as it travels along the guide rod 48.
- the carriage also has a roller member 55 which rolls along a lateral surface of the chassis 22.
- the roller 55 in combination with the pair of bearings 54 provides a three-point carriage support system.
- bearings 54 are V-groove type bearings, such as those disclosed in U.S. Patent No.
- a carriage DC motor 56 is coupled by a drive gear 57 to drive an endless belt 58.
- the motor 56 operates in response to control signals received from the controller 45.
- the belt 58 may be secured in a conventional manner to the carriage 50 to incrementally advance the carriage along guide rod 48 in response to rotation of motor 56.
- the media sheet 35 receives ink from an inkjet cartridge, such as a black ink cartridge 60 and/or a color ink cartridge 62.
- the cartridges 60 and 62 are often called "pens" by those in the art.
- the illustrated color pen 62 is a tri-color pen, although in some embodiments, a pair of discrete monochrome pens may be used. While the color pen 62 may contain a pigment based ink, for the purposes of illustration, pen 62 is described as containing three dye based ink colors, such as cyan, yellow and magenta.
- the black ink pen 60 is illustrated herein as containing a pigment based ink. It is apparent that other types of inks may also be used in pens 60, 62, such as paraffin based inks, as well as hybrid or composite inks having both dye and pigment characteristics.
- the illustrated pens 60, 62 each include reservoirs for storing a supply of ink therein.
- the pens 60, 62 have printheads 64, 66 respectively, each of which have an orifice plate with a plurality of nozzles formed therethrough in a manner well known to those skilled in the art.
- the illustrated printheads 64, 66 are thermal inkjet printheads, although other types of printheads may be used, such as piezoelectric printheads.
- the printheads 64, 66 typically include a plurality of resistors which are associated with the nozzles.
- a bubble of gas is formed ejecting a droplet of ink from the nozzle and onto a sheet of paper in the print zone 25 under the nozzle.
- the printhead resistors are selectively energized in response to firing command control signals delivered by a multi-conductor strip 68 from the controller 45 to the printhead carriage 50.
- the carriage 50 includes a latch mechanism, illustrated as two clamping levers, latch members or lids 70 and 72, which are pivotally attached by a hinge 74 to a body portion 75 of the carriage.
- the carriage body 75 preferably also defines a thin alignment web or main wall 76, which may be between 1.0-6.0 mm (millimeters) thick, but more preferably is on the order of a nominal 3.5 mm thick.
- the main wall 76 divides an interior portion of the body 75 into a black pen chamber 80, and a color pen chamber 82.
- FIGS. 3 and 4 show respective back and front views of the pens 60, 62 from the bottom, whereas FIG. 2 shows a front top view of the pens.
- the black pen 60 has a hollow body 84 which forms a reservoir for storing a supply of ink, which is selectively ejected through nozzles within the printhead 64.
- the pen body 84 includes an outer perimeter member 85, within which are seated an outboard side wall 86 and an inboard side wall 88.
- An insertion handle or gripping surface 90 is conveniently located between a front wall 92 and an upper wall 94 for use in installing and removing pen 60 from carriage 50.
- a bottom wall 95 extends between the front wall 92 and a nose portion 96 which houses the printhead 64.
- a rear wall 98 extends downwardly from the upper wall 94 to form a portion of nose 96.
- the rear wall 98 supports a conventional flex tab circuit 100 having a plurality of electrical interconnect pads (omitted for clarity), which may be constructed as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,907,018, assigned to the present assignee, Hewlett-Packard Company.
- the flex tab circuit 100 may be conveniently extended to make electrical contact with the printhead 64.
- the handle 90, the perimeter walls 92, 94, 96, 95 and 98, as well as a printhead mounting wall 102 which receives printhead 64 are all molded as a single unitary part 85. This is particularly advantageous because a group of pen locating datums may also be defined by this single pen perimeter member 85.
- the outer perimeter member 85 defines a plurality of X, Y, Z coordinate axes locating members or datums.
- an X, Y, Z coordinate axis system 103 is shown in FIGS. 1-8, with the X axis pointing in the scan direction parallel to the scanning axis of the carriage 50 defined by guide rod 48.
- the Y axis is parallel to the paper advance path through the printer 20.
- the Z points in an upright direction and is used as a reference for pen-to-paper spacing, which is one critical component to providing high quality hard copy images.
- the perimeter member 85 is preferably contoured during molding to define three X-axis direction positioning lands or datums, specifically: an X1 datum 104 located near the pen nose 96, an X2 datum 106 located along the bottom wall 95 near front wall 92, and an X3 datum 108 located at the upper back corner.
- the perimeter member 85 defines a Z datum 110, located along the bottom wall 95.
- a Y 1 datum 112 is offset from the nose portion 96 and extends downwardly from the bottom wall 95
- a Y2 datum 114 projects from the rear wall 98. While in the illustrated embodiment the X datums 104, 106, 108 are all located along the same side wall 88, it is apparent that for some implementations, the outer perimeter member 85 may also define similarly located datums next to the outboard wall 86.
- the outer perimeter member 85 also defines a latching land 115, which is sculpted by molding member 85 to include a contour having a sloped cam surface.
- the latching land 115 is useful in securely seating pen 60 within carriage 50, as described further below.
- the latching land 115 lies adjacent a buttress member 116, which advantageously is used to provide a support surface for the X3 datum 108.
- the sloped cam surface 115 slopes upwardly (positive Z direction) when traversing in a negative Y direction away from the perimeter member 85.
- the cam surface 115 also slopes downwardly (negative Z direction) when traversing in a positive X direction from the side where it joins the buttress member 116.
- the latching land cam structure 115 is located along an upper rear corner or shoulder 118 of the perimeter member 85, and below the upper wall 90.
- the shoulder surface 118 is particularly useful for installing and extracting the pen 60 from carriage 50, as described further below.
- the illustrated color pen 62 includes an outer perimeter member 120, which in the illustrated embodiment is sandwiched between an inboard side wall 122, and an outboard side wall 124, which together define a hollow pen body 125.
- the hollow pen body 125 preferably defines or houses three reservoirs for storing a supply of three colors of ink (e.g. cyan, magenta, and yellow), which is selectively ejected through nozzles within the printhead 66.
- the pen 62 has an insertion handle or gripping surface 126 conveniently located between front and upper walls 128, 130, respectively. The handle 126 is useful for installing and removing the pen 62 from carriage 50.
- a bottom wall 132 joins the front wall 128 with a nose portion 134 which houses the printhead 66.
- a rear wall 136 extends downwardly from the upper wall 130 to form a portion of nose 134.
- a conventional flex tab circuit 138 such as described above for flex tab circuit 100 may have a plurality of electrical interconnect pads (omitted for clarity) which are supported by the rear wall 136 to make electrical contact with the printhead 66.
- the handle 126, the perimeter walls 128, 130, 132, 134 and 136, as well as a printhead mounting wall 138 which receives printhead 66 are all molded as a single unitary part 120. This is particularly advantageous because a group of pen locating datums may also be defined by this single pen perimeter member 120.
- the outer perimeter member 120 defines a plurality of X, Y, Z coordinate axes locating members or datums.
- the perimeter member 120 is preferably contoured during molding to define three X-axis direction positioning lands or datums, specifically: an X1 datum 140 located near the pen nose 134, an X2 datum 142 located along the bottom wall 95 near front wall 92, and an X3 datum 144 located at the upper back corner.
- the perimeter member 120 defines a Z datum 145, located along the bottom wall 132. Two datums are used to orient the pen 62 with respect to the Y axis.
- a Y1 datum 146 is offset from an angular portion of the bottom wall 132 to extend downwardly from the bottom wall 132.
- a Y2 datum 148 projects from the rear wall 98. While in the illustrated embodiment the X datums 140, 142, 144 are all located along the same side wall 122, it is apparent that for some implementations, the outer perimeter member 120 may also define similarly located datums adjacent the outboard wall 124.
- the illustrated pen 62 includes three datums for pen registration in the scanning axis (X) direction, specifically, an X1 datum 150, an X2 datum 152, and an X3 datum 154, all opposite their respective X1, X2 and X3 datums 140, 142 and 144.
- a latching land 155 contoured to have a sloped cam surface, is joined to the outer perimeter member 120, for instance by bonding with adhesives, using ultra-sonic welding techniques, or other comparable methods known to those skilled in the art.
- the latching land 155 is useful in securely seating pen 62 within the carriage 50, as described further below.
- the sloped cam surface 155 slopes upwardly (positive Z direction) when traversing in a negative Y direction away from the perimeter member 120.
- the cam surface 155 also slopes downwardly (negative Z direction) when traversing in a negative X direction toward side wall 124.
- the latching land 155 lies adjacent a rounded shoulder surface 156 (see FIG. 2) formed along the top surface 130 of the perimeter member 120.
- the rounded shoulder 156 is useful in guiding the latch member 72 downwardly over the pen 62, as described further below.
- the latching land cam structure 155 is located along an upper rear comer or shoulder 158 of the perimeter member 120, and below the upper wall 130.
- the shoulder surface 158 is particularly useful for installing and extracting the pen 62 from carriage 50, as described further below.
- pen 62 having Y and Z datums located substantially central to the pen body 125, and symmetrical X datums located along each side of the pen, it is apparent that pen 62 may be oriented in other implementations against an alignment wall beside the side wall 124.
- the latching land 155 is also symmetrically formed with a second sloped surface which joins the cam surface 155, which is of interest here. It is apparent that pen 60 may also be symmetrically designed for use in other implementations.
- the carriage 50 includes a group of X, Y and Z datums or locator lands for both the black and color pens 60, 62.
- the pens 60, 62 are pushed toward the main wall by biasing members.
- the pen 60 is biased toward the main wall 76 by a spring-loaded flexure member 170
- the color caatridge 62 is biased toward wall 76 by spring-loaded flexure member 172.
- each flexure member 170, 172 has a hooked portion that may be secured over an upper surface of the respective side walls 174, 176 of the carriage body 75.
- the members 170, 172 are biased outwardly from the respective walls 174, 176 by coil springs 178.
- the spring members 170, 172 force the respective pens 60, 80 toward X axis locating datums located along main wall 76.
- the X1 datum 104 is forced against an X1 datum 180
- the X2 datum 106 is forced against an X2 carriage datum 182.
- the X1 and X2 datums 180, 182 are shown as sculpted lands which are molded as an integral portion of main wall 76.
- the wall 76 defines a slot which surrounds an alignment pin 184, which serves as an X3 carriage datum to contact the black pen X3 datum 108.
- the X3 datum 184 may also be a molded sculpted land, such as shown for the X1 and X2 datums 180, 182; however, for ease of manufacturability, the X3 alignment pin 184 is preferred.
- the X1 datum is a separate pin, shown as an X1 datum pin 180' (shown only in FIGS. 5 and 6), which is located closest to the printhead of all the X datums.
- the X1 datum pin 180' and the X3 datum pin 184 are of a steel, which may be manufactured with close dimensional tolerances on the order of 0.0025 millimeters (+/- 0.0001 inches) in diametrical error. These tolerances are easily and economically attained with steel, although other materials may prove suitable in some implementations.
- the X1 datum pin 180' and the X3 datum pin 184 are insert molded into a rear wall 185 of the carriage body 75, to extend into slots defined by the main wall 76.
- the X1 molded datum 180 will be referred to, although it is apparent that the X1 datum pin 180' may be substituted for the X1 land 180 in any given implementation.
- the main wall 76 has an X1 datum 186 and an X2 datum 188, which are shown as being integrally molded within wall 76.
- the X1 color carriage datum is preferably a steel pin 180' (shown only in FIGS. 5 and 6), but for convenience in the following description, only the X1 molded datum 186 will be referred to, although it is apparent that the X1 datum pin 180' may be substituted for the X1 land 186 in any given implementation.
- the color pen X1 datum 140 engages the X1 carriage datum 186, and the X2 pen datum 142 engages the X2 color carriage datum 188.
- the portion of the X3 steel pin 184 extending into the color pen chamber 82 serves as an X3 alignment datum for the color pen 62.
- the X3 color pen datum 144 engages the X3 alignment pen datum 184. In this manner, all of the X1, X2 and X3 datums in each pen chamber 80, 82 are uniformly formed during the molding process of manufacturing the carriage body 75 to assure repeatability for successive carriage bodies.
- the carriage system 50 includes a Y-Z reference rod 190, which is preferably integrally molded within pockets 191, 192 defined by the carriage walls 174, 176, respectively.
- the rod 190 has a longitudinal axis 193 which is substantially parallel with a bore axis 194 through the carriage bearings 54.
- the Y1 datum 112 and the Z datum 110 rest at 90° angles along the Y-Z reference rod 190, as shown in FIG. 8.
- the Y1 datum 146 and the Z datum 145 on the color pen 62 also engage the Y-Z rod 190 as it extends through the interior of carriage chamber 82.
- a second Y2 carriage datum is provided by the rear carriage wall 185, along a Y2 datum region 196 for the black pen 60, and a Y2 datum region 198 for the color pen 62.
- the Y2 datum region 196 is intersected by the Y2 pen datum 114 for the black pen 60, while region 198 is intersected by the Y2 pen datum 148 for the color pen 62.
- the back wall surface 198 within chamber 82 provides a Y2 datum surface for the color pen 62, which is aligned with Y2 color pen datum 148.
- the latching mechanism comprises the clamping levers 70, 72, which serve as a main body of the mechanism.
- the latching mechanism also has biased engagement members, such as spring loaded cam surfaces 200, 202 located along the lever undersides.
- the cam surface 202 on the black lever 70 engages the sloped cam surface 115 on pen 60, whereas, the cam surface 202 on the color lever 72 engages the sloped cam surface 155 of pen 62.
- the cam surfaces 200, 202 are preferably integrally molded to project from engagement members, such as spring board members 203, 204 respectively.
- Biasing members such as coil springs 205 bias the spring boards 203, 204 away from the respective levers 70, 72.
- the illustrated levers, 70, 72 may each define a spring pocket 206 therein for receiving springs 205, with the exterior of the spring pocket extending above the upper surface of each lever 70, 72.
- the spring boards 203, 204 are seated within the respective levers 70, 72 for travel toward the levers when the springs 205 are compressed during closing of the levers.
- the levers 70, 72 are pivoted at hinge 74 over the pens.
- a controlled force is applied by cams 200, 202 in selected directions to the respective latching lands 115, 155, which pushes each pen 60, 62 into contact with the carriage X, Y and Z datums.
- the relative slants of the latch cam surfaces 200, 202, and the pen latching lands 115, 155 are configured to force the pens 60, 62 toward the X datums along the main wall 76, the X datums along the rear wall 185, and the Y-Z datums established by the reference rod 190.
- the levers 70, 72, the spring boards 203, 204, and the relative positioning of the springs 205 with respect to the hinge 74 are preferably arranged to function as an over-center clamping mechanism. In this manner, when closing the levers 70, 72 over the pens 60, 62 during the last centimeter or so of travel, the compression springs 205 actually begin to expand. This over-centering action advantageously clamps the pens in carriage 50 and keeps the levers in a closed position.
- Each lever 70, 72 may include a helpful pen removal guide cam, such as cams 207, 208, respectively, preferably along the outboard edge of each lever.
- the guide cams 207, 208 push the pen shoulders 118, 158 away from the spring boards 203, 204, respectively, when extracting the pens 60, 62 from the carriage system 50.
- the action provided by the lever guide cams 207, 208 advantageously prevents jamming of the pens in the carriage 50 when removal is required.
- a theta-Z ( ⁇ -Z) angular alignment or registration mechanism 210 moves a lower portion of the main wall 76 with respect to the carriage body side walls 174, 176.
- the main wall 76 is spring biased away from the color chamber side wall 176 by a biasing member, such as a coil spring 212.
- the main wall 76 has a rotational registration member, which in the illustrated embodiment is formed by terminating the lower portion of wall 76, opposite spring 212, with an angled alignment foot 214.
- the foot 214 has a vertical wall which extends at an angle toward the positive X direction moving in a negative Y direction toward the back of the carriage 50 (see FIG.
- the angled surface of foot 214 may be engaged at various points along its length by an adjustment member, such as a rotatable threaded member, for instance screw 215.
- the registration screw 215 extends through and threadably engages a threaded passageway defined by a threaded boss portion 216 located along the lower surface of the carriage body 75.
- Rotating the angular registration screw 215 further into engagement with the foot 214 pushes the black and color X2 datums 182, 188 toward the color pen chamber 82.
- Rotation of the registration screw 215 out of the boss 216 allows the main wall 76 and X2 datums 182, 188 to move toward the black pen chamber 80 under the biasing force provided by the spring member 212.
- This theta-Z angular adjustment is typically performed at initial assembly, or during field service or maintenance.
- the theta-Z adjustment system 210 may be activated by extending a probe (not shown) through a hole 218 formed within the carriage body side wall 174. Such a probe then intersects the black pen X2 datum 182 to measure the X axis offset of wall 76 with respect to the black X1 datum 180.
- the screw 215 may then be rotated until a desired theta-Z adjustment has been made, as measured by the probe.
- the theta-Z angular alignment of each pen chamber 80, 82 is adjusted simultaneously.
- the alignment of the nozzle columns of both the black and color printheads 64, 66 is trued with respect to the paper advance Y axis, which eliminates saw-tooth errors in the printed image.
- the carriage body 75 also includes a pen nose guide portion 220, which may be configured as a generally T-shaped member 220 extending from the underside of the main wall 76.
- This T-shaped guide 220 advantageously positions the pens 60, 62 toward the carriage rear wall 185.
- the guide 220 pushes the pen noses 96, 134 rearwardly so the Y1 datums 112, 146 land behind the Y-Z reference rod 190, rather than on top of the rod.
- the front-facing surface of the carriage rear wall 185 preferably has a series of spring-loaded interconnect pins (omitted for clarity from the figures) for delivering firing commands to the conductor pads of the pen flex-tab circuits 100, 138.
- the carriage interconnect pins may be located in the regions indicated by arrows 222 and 224, respectively. Suitable types of interconnect pin arrangements are shown in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,706,097 and 5,295,839, assigned to the present assignee, Hewlett-Packard Company.
- the rear-facing surface of the carriage rear wall 185 may provide a convenient mounting location for several different components.
- the flexible conductor 68 delivering the firing commands to the pens may be connected to an electronics decoding board mounted to the back surface of the rear wall 185.
- the carriage drive belt 58 may be attached in a conventional manner to the rear of wall 185.
- the drive belt 58 is attached to the carriage rear wall 185 as close as possible to the carriage bearings 54.
- an encoder strip 225 extends along the length of the print zone 25 and over the service station area 52.
- a conventional optical encoder reader (not shown) may also be mounted on the back surface of the carriage rear wall 185 to read positional information provided by the encoder strip 225.
- the optical encoder reader is located as close as possible to the nozzle plates of the printheads 64, 66. The manner of attaching the belt 58 to the carriage, as well as the manner providing positional feedback information via the encoder strip reader, may be accomplished in a variety of different ways known to those skilled in the art.
- the carriage 62 receive firing commands from the printer controller 45 via the flex circuit conductors 68.
- the carriage returns the pens 60, 62 to the service station area 52 for servicing, maintenance, and capping (sealing) during periods of printer inactivity.
- the pens 60, 62 are easily removed from the carriage 50 by raising the clamping levers 70, 72 and lifting the pens by handles 90, 126 from the carriage.
- the lever guides 207, 208 push the pens away from the levers to avoid jamming during pen removal.
- the controller 45 moves the carriage to a location along the print zone 25, for instance as shown in FIG. 1, where the pens may be easily replaced.
- the terms "alignment,” “registration,” “datum” and “reference” are all substantially synonymous. However, to aid in clarity, generally only one of these adjectives has been used in connection with a single carriage component.
- the Y-Z reference rod 190 could also be referred to as an "alignment rod,” a “datum rod,” or a “registration rod.”
- the chambers 80, 82 are illustrated as being enclosures, it is apparent that portions of the body, such as the side walls 174, 176, may be omitted and other types of biasing members may be used to force the pens 60, 62 into engagement with the main wall 76.
- Such a four pen carriage system may be constructed by doubling the carriage 50, for example, by constructing a substantial mirror image of the carriage 50, and making side walls 176 either joined, or more preferably, as a single unitary wall.
- the positioning of the printheads 64, 66 must be precise, relative to each other, and to the entire printing system, as well as being repeatable. That is, when an empty pen is replaced by an operator, the alignment of the new full pen must be the same as the empty pen.
- the positioning of the pens 60, 62 is one of the primary variables that controls the registration of the ink droplets on the print medium.
- the carriage 50 positions the pens through a strategic selection of datums that reference the pens to the carriage, and the carriage to the printer.
- the X axis positioning of pens 60, 62 is provided by orienting the pens so the X datums face each other.
- the black pen X datums 104, 106, 108 face the color pen X datums 140, 142, 144, with the main wall 76 and the X3 alignment pin 184 sandwiched therebetween.
- the thickness of wall 76 may be more easily controlled than in earlier designs, such as the DeskJet® 1200, where the datums were all located to one side of the pen and effected by varying tolerances in pen thicknesses.
- the X1 datums 104, 140 (pens) and 182, 188 (carriage) are believed to be the most influential in affecting accurate drop placement, since these datums are closest to the nozzles of printheads 64, 66.
- the Y axis positioning of pens 60, 62 is preferably accomplished by insert molding the Y-Z reference rod 190 into the carriage body 75, substantially parallel to the center line 194 of the insert molded bearings 54. In this manner, accurate alignment of the pens with respect to the Y and Z datums is provided relative to the carriage scanning axis, which is defined by carriage guide rod 48. Two carriage features contribute to the accurate alignment of the Y1 and Z datums for the pens.
- the V-groove bearings 54 are inserted molded into body 75 as zero-clearance bearings with a zero press fit error in the illustrated embodiment. Insert molding of bearings 54 eliminates common contributors to both Y position and theta-Z errors, which commonly occurred when using pressed-in cylindrical bushings in earlier printing mechanisms.
- the second feature contributing to accurate alignment of the Y1 and Z datums concerns the concept of aligning the pen Y1 pen datums 112, 146 along the straight reference rod 190.
- the rod 190 preferably has a length approximately twice as long as the distance between the black and color Y1 datums 112, 146.
- the Y-Z rod 190 is also accurately supported at both ends by the carriage body pockets 191, 192.
- the Y direction positional errors are approximately half of any positional errors which may occur at the ends of rod 190, since the distance between the supports 191, 192 are twice as long as the distance between the Y1 pen datums 112, 146.
- the theta-Z positioning of the pens 60, 62 is advantageously controlled by adjusting a single registration mechanism 210.
- a single registration mechanism 210 By making the theta-Z adjustment from the black pen chamber side of wall 76, alignment of the black nozzles of printhead 64 is optimized. Optimization of the black pen nozzles is preferred in the illustrated embodiment because the black pen 60 has a taller nozzle column or swath height, on the order of 1.27 cm (0.5 inches), relative to the swath height of each group of color nozzles of printhead 66, which are on the order of 0.53 cm (0.21 inches). It is apparent that any thickness error of the X2 color datum 188 may add to any theta-Z positional error for the color pen 60.
- any thickness error for the X2 datums 182, 188 is minimized through the use of cylindrically shaped members 182, 188.
- using cylindrically shaped members 182, 188 advantageously minimizes positional errors of the color pen 60, due to twisting of the X2 datum beam from theta-Z adjustments.
- the carriage system 50 is particularly advantageous in providing inherently accurate X axis referencing, through the use of the relatively thin main wall 76 and the high tolerance pin 184. Both the X axis and Y axis referencing schemes are able to approach machining tolerances without requiring costly secondary machining operations.
- the theta-Z registration scheme 210 accurately allows simultaneous adjustment of the pens to machined tolerances, using an economical molded alignment foot 214 and an adjustment screw 215.
- the lever actuated clamping system 70, 72 provides a more controlled application of force to the pens during clamping than in earlier systems.
- the operator interacts with the levers 70, 72 to seat the pens in a printing position, rather than interacting with the pens directly. In this manner, during clamping potentially damaging lateral forces to the pen are avoided, as was often encountered in earlier printer designs.
- Another advantage of carriage 50 is the use of the biasing coil springs 178 for the X biasing flexure members 170, 172.
- the coil springs 178 provide more accurate control of the biasing force than earlier flexure spring designs, which suffered greater force variations due to small manufacturing variations in the flexure thickness.
- the X biasing mechanism of carriage 50 provides a more accurate control of the biasing force.
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Abstract
Description
- This invention relates generally to an inkjet printing mechanism, and more particularly to a dual inkjet pen carriage system that accurately aligns two pens for scanning across a printzone of the mechanism to print high quality images.
- Inkjet printing mechanisms use pens which shoot drops of liquid colorant, referred to generally herein as "ink," onto a page. Each pen has a printhead formed with very small nozzles through which the ink drops are fired. To print an image, the printhead is propelled back and forth across the page, shooting drops of ink in a desired pattern as it moves. The particular ink ejection mechanism within the printhead may take on a variety of different forms known to those skilled in the art, such as those using piezo-electric or thermal printhead technology. For instance, two earlier thermal ink ejection mechanisms are shown in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,278,584 and 4,683,481, both assigned to the present assignee, Hewlett-Packard Company. In a thermal system, a barrier layer containing ink channels and vaporization chambers is located between a nozzle orifice plate and a substrate layer. This substrate layer typically contains linear arrays of heater elements, such as resistors, which are energized to heat ink within the vaporization chambers. Upon heating, an ink droplet is ejected from a nozzle associated with the energized resistor. By selectively energizing the resistors as the printhead moves across the page, the ink is expelled in a pattern on the print media to form a desired image (e.g., picture, chart or text).
- To clean and protect the printhead, typically a "service station" mechanism is mounted within the printer chassis so the printhead can be moved over the station for maintenance. For storage, or during non-printing periods, the service stations usually include a capping system which humidically seals the printhead nozzles from contaminants and drying. Some caps are also designed to facilitate priming, such as by being connected to a pumping unit that draws a vacuum on the printhead. During operation, clogs in the printhead are periodically cleared by firing a number of drops of ink through each of the nozzles in a process known as "spitting," with the waste ink being collected in a "spittoon" reservoir portion of the service station. After spitting, uncapping, or occasionally during printing, most service stations have an elastomeric wiper that wipes the printhead surface to remove ink residue, as well as any paper dust or other debris that has collected on the printhead.
- To improve the clarity and contrast of the printed image, recent research has focused on improving the ink itself. To provide faster, more waterfast printing with darker blacks, pigment based black inks have been developed. These pigment based inks have a higher solid content than the earlier dye based inks. Both types of ink dry quickly, which allows inkjet printing mechanisms to use plain paper. To provide high quality hard copy printed images with both dark blacks and vivid colors, current printer designs employ a black pen, and a single tri-color pen, or a black pen in combination with four monochrome color pens.
- One earlier printer employs four discrete pens that carry black, cyan, magenta and yellow inks. The carriage structure for aligning these four pens has six datums that match associated datums on each pen. The datums required to control the pen registration are in the following three orthogonal directions:
- 1. A printhead scanning direction (X axis),
- 2. A paper advance direction (Y axis), and
- 3. An upright direction (Z axis). Another pen misalignment is known as a theta-Z (-Z) error, which refers to an angular twist of the pens around the Z axis. A theta-Z error manifests itself as a saw tooth error in the printed image, as a result of the printhead columns of nozzles not being parallel to the Y axis paper advance direction.
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- To maintain proper pen alignment, the earlier four-pen printer design required both the pens and the carriage to have very close tolerances. Unfortunately, the required tolerances could not be obtained using economical molded parts. Instead, all of the carriage datums had to be machined, and for each pen, three of the six datums required machining. These secondary machining operations are labor intensive and costly, as opposed to merely molding a datum.
- This earlier four-pen carriage located the pens against the X datums using an X-biasing spring and a flexure member with an insert molded cam that applied the necessary force against the clamping surface of the pen to seat it securely against the X, Y, and Z datums. Unfortunately, the X-biasing springs used in this earlier four-pen design required costly secondary manufacturing operations, including heat treating and plating, to obtain the desired performance levels. This earlier carriage used the electrical interconnect mechanism, which communicates the firing signals from the carriage to the pens, to supply the force necessary to seat the pens securely against one of the Y axis datums.
- For pen installation, the clamping system employed by this earlier four-pen printer required an operator to push and rotate each pen until it snapped into place. This snap-in design required an operator to overcome frictional forces within the carriage, which often resulted in uneven or lateral forces being applied to the pens during insertion. Unfortunately, these installation difficulties can prevent the pen datums from properly seating on their corresponding carriage datums. Such improper seating of the pens degraded print quality, because the nozzles were no longer aligned with respect to the other pens in the carriage.
- In a two pen system, employing one black pen and a second tri-color pen, the carriage must provide precise and repeatable positioning of the pens relative to each other and to the entire printing system. Accurate positioning of the pens is one of the primary variables to control the registration of the ink dots on the paper, which directly affects print quality. Furthermore, there is a need for a carriage clamping system that allows easy replacement of the pens, while assuring a high degree of repeatability in the seating of the pen datums against the carriage datums. Moreover, there is a need for a more economical carriage system that achieves pen positioning tolerances comparable to the earlier four-pen printer design, without secondary machining operations. Thus, a need exists for an improved dual inkjet pen carriage system for maintaining printhead alignment during printing.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, a dual pen carriage system is provided for scanning a pair of inkjet pens across a printzone of an inkjet printing mechanism. The carriage system has a carriage body with a main wall configured to be sandwiched between the pair of pens. The main wall has two opposing side surfaces each defining at least one datum. The carriage system also has a bias mechanism supported by the body to push each pen into contact with the main wall datums.
- According to another aspect of the present invention, the main wall side surfaces each define at least two datums which may be either a convexly curved surface or a substantially flat surface.
- According to a further aspect of the present invention, the main wall side surfaces each define three datums. Each pen has a printhead portion for selectively ejecting ink, and a side wall with three registration datums extending therefrom for contacting the main wall datums when installed in the carriage body. On each main wall side surface, a first datum is located adjacent the printhead portion, a second datum is located laterally from the first datum, and a third datum is located in an upright direction from the first datum.
- An overall goal of the present invention is to provide an inkjet printing mechanism which uses a pair inkjet pens to provide a high quality hardcopy output.
- Another goal of the present invention is to provide a dual inkjet pen carriage system for pens made of moulded parts, without sacrificing print quality, to provide an economical inkjet printing mechanism.
- A further goal of the present invention is to provide a method of accurately aligning a pair of inkjet pens in a printing mechanism.
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- FIG. 1 is a partially cut away perspective view of an inkjet printing mechanism incorporating one form of a dual inkjet pen carriage system of the present invention.
- FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the dual inkjet pen carriage system of FIG. 1, shown holding two pens, with the pen latches open.
- FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the two pens of FIG. 1, shown side-by-side as oriented within the carriage system.
- FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the two pens of FIG. 1, shown side-by-side as oriented within the carriage system.
- FIGS. 5 and 6 are front perspective views of the carriage system of FIG. 1 taken from different angles, with the pens removed to show different features of the pen receiving chambers.
- FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view of the carriage system of FIG. 1, with the pens removed.
- FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective view of the carriage system of FIG. 1, shown holding two pens with the pen latches closed for printing.
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- FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of an inkjet printing mechanism, here shown as an
inkjet printer 20, constructed in accordance with the present invention, which may be used for printing for business reports, correspondence, desktop publishing, and the like, in an industrial, office, home or other environment. A variety of inkjet printing mechanisms are commercially available. For instance, some of the printing mechanisms that may embody the present invention include plotters, portable printing units, copiers, cameras, video printers, and facsimile machines, to name a few. For convenience the concepts of the present invention are illustrated in the environment of aninkjet printer 20. - While it is apparent that the printer components may vary from model to model, the
typical inkjet printer 20 includes achassis 22 surrounded by a housing, casing orenclosure 24, typically of a plastic material. Sheets of print media are fed through aprint zone 25 by a printmedia handling system 26. The print media may be any type of suitable sheet material, such as paper, card-stock, transparencies, mylar, and the like, but for convenience, the illustrated embodiment is described using paper as the print medium. The printmedia handling system 26 has afeed tray 28 for storing sheets of paper before printing. A series of conventional paper drive rollers (not shown), driven by astepper motor 30 and drivegear assembly 32, may be used to move the print media fromtray 28 under a paper guide member 34 into theprint zone 25, as shown forsheet 35, for printing. After printing, themotor 30 drives the printedsheet 35 onto a pair of retractable output dryingwing members 36. Thewings 36 momentarily hold the newly printed sheet above any previously printed sheets still drying in anoutput tray portion 38 before retracting to the sides to drop the newly printed sheet into theoutput tray 38. Themedia handling system 26 may include a series of adjustment mechanisms for accommodating different sizes of print media, including letter, legal, A-4, envelopes, etc., such as a slidinglength adjustment lever 40, a slidingwidth adjustment lever 42, and a slidingenvelope feed plate 44. - The
printer 20 also has a printer controller, illustrated schematically as amicroprocessor 45, that receives instructions from a host device, typically a computer, such as a personal computer (not shown). Theprinter controller 45 may also operate in response to user inputs provided through akey pad 46 located on the exterior of thecasing 24. A monitor coupled to the computer host may be used to display visual information to an operator, such as the printer status or a particular program being run on the host computer. Personal computers, their input devices, such as a keyboard and/or a mouse device, and monitors are all well known to those skilled in the art. - A
carriage guide rod 48 is supported by thechassis 22 to slideably support a dual inkjetpen carriage system 50 constructed in accordance with the present invention for travel back and forth across theprint zone 25. Thecarriage 50 is also propelled alongguide rod 48 into a servicing region, as indicated generally byarrow 52, located within the interior of thehousing 24. As shown in FIG. 2, thecarriage 50 has a pair ofbearings 54 which slideably support the carriage as it travels along theguide rod 48. The carriage also has aroller member 55 which rolls along a lateral surface of thechassis 22. Theroller 55 in combination with the pair ofbearings 54 provides a three-point carriage support system. Preferably,bearings 54 are V-groove type bearings, such as those disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,366,305, assigned to Hewlett-Packard Company, the assignee of the present invention. Acarriage DC motor 56 is coupled by adrive gear 57 to drive anendless belt 58. Themotor 56 operates in response to control signals received from thecontroller 45. Thebelt 58 may be secured in a conventional manner to thecarriage 50 to incrementally advance the carriage alongguide rod 48 in response to rotation ofmotor 56. - In the
print zone 25, themedia sheet 35 receives ink from an inkjet cartridge, such as ablack ink cartridge 60 and/or acolor ink cartridge 62. Thecartridges color pen 62 is a tri-color pen, although in some embodiments, a pair of discrete monochrome pens may be used. While thecolor pen 62 may contain a pigment based ink, for the purposes of illustration,pen 62 is described as containing three dye based ink colors, such as cyan, yellow and magenta. Theblack ink pen 60 is illustrated herein as containing a pigment based ink. It is apparent that other types of inks may also be used inpens - The illustrated pens 60, 62 each include reservoirs for storing a supply of ink therein. The
pens printheads printheads printheads print zone 25 under the nozzle. The printhead resistors are selectively energized in response to firing command control signals delivered by amulti-conductor strip 68 from thecontroller 45 to theprinthead carriage 50. - Referring to FIG. 2, the
carriage 50 includes a latch mechanism, illustrated as two clamping levers, latch members orlids hinge 74 to abody portion 75 of the carriage. Thecarriage body 75 preferably also defines a thin alignment web ormain wall 76, which may be between 1.0-6.0 mm (millimeters) thick, but more preferably is on the order of a nominal 3.5 mm thick. Themain wall 76 divides an interior portion of thebody 75 into ablack pen chamber 80, and acolor pen chamber 82. Before discussing the manner in which thecarriage 50 clamps and aligns the pens, it is helpful to understand the various datum points and cam surfaces which are conveniently molded into the exterior of thepens - FIGS. 3 and 4 show respective back and front views of the
pens black pen 60 has ahollow body 84 which forms a reservoir for storing a supply of ink, which is selectively ejected through nozzles within theprinthead 64. Thepen body 84 includes anouter perimeter member 85, within which are seated anoutboard side wall 86 and aninboard side wall 88. An insertion handle or grippingsurface 90 is conveniently located between afront wall 92 and anupper wall 94 for use in installing and removingpen 60 fromcarriage 50. Abottom wall 95 extends between thefront wall 92 and anose portion 96 which houses theprinthead 64. Arear wall 98 extends downwardly from theupper wall 94 to form a portion ofnose 96. - The
rear wall 98 supports a conventionalflex tab circuit 100 having a plurality of electrical interconnect pads (omitted for clarity), which may be constructed as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,907,018, assigned to the present assignee, Hewlett-Packard Company. In this location, theflex tab circuit 100 may be conveniently extended to make electrical contact with theprinthead 64. Preferably, thehandle 90, theperimeter walls printhead mounting wall 102 which receivesprinthead 64, are all molded as a singleunitary part 85. This is particularly advantageous because a group of pen locating datums may also be defined by this singlepen perimeter member 85. - In the illustrated embodiment, the
outer perimeter member 85 defines a plurality of X, Y, Z coordinate axes locating members or datums. For the purposes of illustration, an X, Y, Z coordinateaxis system 103 is shown in FIGS. 1-8, with the X axis pointing in the scan direction parallel to the scanning axis of thecarriage 50 defined byguide rod 48. The Y axis is parallel to the paper advance path through theprinter 20. The Z points in an upright direction and is used as a reference for pen-to-paper spacing, which is one critical component to providing high quality hard copy images. - To locate the
pen 60 with respect to the X axis, theperimeter member 85 is preferably contoured during molding to define three X-axis direction positioning lands or datums, specifically: anX1 datum 104 located near thepen nose 96, anX2 datum 106 located along thebottom wall 95 nearfront wall 92, and anX3 datum 108 located at the upper back corner. To orient thepen 60 with respect to the Z axis, theperimeter member 85 defines aZ datum 110, located along thebottom wall 95. Two datums are used to orient thepen 60 with respect to the Y axis, specifically: a Y 1datum 112 is offset from thenose portion 96 and extends downwardly from thebottom wall 95, and aY2 datum 114 projects from therear wall 98. While in the illustrated embodiment theX datums same side wall 88, it is apparent that for some implementations, theouter perimeter member 85 may also define similarly located datums next to theoutboard wall 86. - The
outer perimeter member 85 also defines a latchingland 115, which is sculpted by moldingmember 85 to include a contour having a sloped cam surface. The latchingland 115 is useful in securely seatingpen 60 withincarriage 50, as described further below. The latchingland 115 lies adjacent a buttressmember 116, which advantageously is used to provide a support surface for theX3 datum 108. In the illustrated embodiment, the slopedcam surface 115 slopes upwardly (positive Z direction) when traversing in a negative Y direction away from theperimeter member 85. Thecam surface 115 also slopes downwardly (negative Z direction) when traversing in a positive X direction from the side where it joins the buttressmember 116. The latchingland cam structure 115 is located along an upper rear corner orshoulder 118 of theperimeter member 85, and below theupper wall 90. Theshoulder surface 118 is particularly useful for installing and extracting thepen 60 fromcarriage 50, as described further below. - The illustrated
color pen 62 includes anouter perimeter member 120, which in the illustrated embodiment is sandwiched between aninboard side wall 122, and anoutboard side wall 124, which together define ahollow pen body 125. Thehollow pen body 125 preferably defines or houses three reservoirs for storing a supply of three colors of ink (e.g. cyan, magenta, and yellow), which is selectively ejected through nozzles within theprinthead 66. In the illustrated embodiment, thepen 62 has an insertion handle orgripping surface 126 conveniently located between front andupper walls handle 126 is useful for installing and removing thepen 62 fromcarriage 50. Abottom wall 132 joins thefront wall 128 with anose portion 134 which houses theprinthead 66. Arear wall 136 extends downwardly from theupper wall 130 to form a portion ofnose 134. - A conventional
flex tab circuit 138, such as described above forflex tab circuit 100 may have a plurality of electrical interconnect pads (omitted for clarity) which are supported by therear wall 136 to make electrical contact with theprinthead 66. Preferably, thehandle 126, theperimeter walls printhead mounting wall 138 which receivesprinthead 66, are all molded as a singleunitary part 120. This is particularly advantageous because a group of pen locating datums may also be defined by this singlepen perimeter member 120. - In the illustrated embodiment, the
outer perimeter member 120 defines a plurality of X, Y, Z coordinate axes locating members or datums. To locatepen 62 with respect to the X axis, theperimeter member 120 is preferably contoured during molding to define three X-axis direction positioning lands or datums, specifically: anX1 datum 140 located near thepen nose 134, anX2 datum 142 located along thebottom wall 95 nearfront wall 92, and anX3 datum 144 located at the upper back corner. To orient thepen 62 with respect to the Z axis, theperimeter member 120 defines aZ datum 145, located along thebottom wall 132. Two datums are used to orient thepen 62 with respect to the Y axis. First, aY1 datum 146 is offset from an angular portion of thebottom wall 132 to extend downwardly from thebottom wall 132. Second, aY2 datum 148 projects from therear wall 98. While in the illustrated embodiment theX datums same side wall 122, it is apparent that for some implementations, theouter perimeter member 120 may also define similarly located datums adjacent theoutboard wall 124. For instance, the illustratedpen 62 includes three datums for pen registration in the scanning axis (X) direction, specifically, anX1 datum 150, anX2 datum 152, and anX3 datum 154, all opposite their respective X1, X2 and X3 datums 140, 142 and 144. - A latching
land 155, contoured to have a sloped cam surface, is joined to theouter perimeter member 120, for instance by bonding with adhesives, using ultra-sonic welding techniques, or other comparable methods known to those skilled in the art. The latchingland 155 is useful in securely seatingpen 62 within thecarriage 50, as described further below. In the illustrated embodiment, the slopedcam surface 155 slopes upwardly (positive Z direction) when traversing in a negative Y direction away from theperimeter member 120. Thecam surface 155 also slopes downwardly (negative Z direction) when traversing in a negative X direction towardside wall 124. The latchingland 155 lies adjacent a rounded shoulder surface 156 (see FIG. 2) formed along thetop surface 130 of theperimeter member 120. Therounded shoulder 156 is useful in guiding thelatch member 72 downwardly over thepen 62, as described further below. The latchingland cam structure 155 is located along an upper rear comer orshoulder 158 of theperimeter member 120, and below theupper wall 130. Theshoulder surface 158 is particularly useful for installing and extracting thepen 62 fromcarriage 50, as described further below. - For the illustrated
pen 62, having Y and Z datums located substantially central to thepen body 125, and symmetrical X datums located along each side of the pen, it is apparent thatpen 62 may be oriented in other implementations against an alignment wall beside theside wall 124. To aid in this symmetrical design, the latchingland 155 is also symmetrically formed with a second sloped surface which joins thecam surface 155, which is of interest here. It is apparent thatpen 60 may also be symmetrically designed for use in other implementations. - As shown in FIGS. 5-8, the
carriage 50 includes a group of X, Y and Z datums or locator lands for both the black and color pens 60, 62. First considering alignment in the X axis direction, thepens pen 60 is biased toward themain wall 76 by a spring-loadedflexure member 170, whereas thecolor caatridge 62 is biased towardwall 76 by spring-loadedflexure member 172. Preferably, eachflexure member respective side walls carriage body 75. As shown in FIG. 7, themembers respective walls spring members respective pens main wall 76. - For the
black pen 60, theX1 datum 104 is forced against anX1 datum 180, and theX2 datum 106 is forced against anX2 carriage datum 182. The X1 and X2 datums 180, 182 are shown as sculpted lands which are molded as an integral portion ofmain wall 76. To provide a desired pen separation near the top ofblack pen 60, thewall 76 defines a slot which surrounds analignment pin 184, which serves as an X3 carriage datum to contact the blackpen X3 datum 108. It is apparent that theX3 datum 184 may also be a molded sculpted land, such as shown for the X1 and X2 datums 180, 182; however, for ease of manufacturability, theX3 alignment pin 184 is preferred. - Indeed, preferably the X1 datum is a separate pin, shown as an X1 datum pin 180' (shown only in FIGS. 5 and 6), which is located closest to the printhead of all the X datums. Preferably, the X1 datum pin 180' and the
X3 datum pin 184 are of a steel, which may be manufactured with close dimensional tolerances on the order of 0.0025 millimeters (+/- 0.0001 inches) in diametrical error. These tolerances are easily and economically attained with steel, although other materials may prove suitable in some implementations. In the illustrated embodiment, the X1 datum pin 180' and theX3 datum pin 184 are insert molded into arear wall 185 of thecarriage body 75, to extend into slots defined by themain wall 76. For convenience, in the remainder of the detailed description, only the X1 moldeddatum 180 will be referred to, although it is apparent that the X1 datum pin 180' may be substituted for theX1 land 180 in any given implementation. - For the
color pen 62, along the interior of thecolor pen chamber 82, themain wall 76 has anX1 datum 186 and anX2 datum 188, which are shown as being integrally molded withinwall 76. As described above for the X1black carriage datum 180, the X1 color carriage datum is preferably a steel pin 180' (shown only in FIGS. 5 and 6), but for convenience in the following description, only the X1 moldeddatum 186 will be referred to, although it is apparent that the X1 datum pin 180' may be substituted for theX1 land 186 in any given implementation. The colorpen X1 datum 140 engages theX1 carriage datum 186, and theX2 pen datum 142 engages the X2color carriage datum 188. The portion of theX3 steel pin 184 extending into thecolor pen chamber 82 serves as an X3 alignment datum for thecolor pen 62. The X3color pen datum 144 engages the X3alignment pen datum 184. In this manner, all of the X1, X2 and X3 datums in eachpen chamber carriage body 75 to assure repeatability for successive carriage bodies. - Now examining alignment in the remaining Y and Z directions, the
carriage system 50 includes aY-Z reference rod 190, which is preferably integrally molded withinpockets carriage walls rod 190 has alongitudinal axis 193 which is substantially parallel with abore axis 194 through thecarriage bearings 54. Along the underside of theblack pen 60, theY1 datum 112 and theZ datum 110 rest at 90° angles along theY-Z reference rod 190, as shown in FIG. 8. Similarly, theY1 datum 146 and theZ datum 145 on thecolor pen 62 also engage theY-Z rod 190 as it extends through the interior ofcarriage chamber 82. A second Y2 carriage datum is provided by therear carriage wall 185, along aY2 datum region 196 for theblack pen 60, and aY2 datum region 198 for thecolor pen 62. TheY2 datum region 196 is intersected by theY2 pen datum 114 for theblack pen 60, whileregion 198 is intersected by theY2 pen datum 148 for thecolor pen 62. Similarly, theback wall surface 198 withinchamber 82 provides a Y2 datum surface for thecolor pen 62, which is aligned with Y2color pen datum 148. - To provide a positive biasing force in each of the X, Y and Z directions, as well as to secure the pens, 60, 62, within
carriage 50, the latching mechanism comprises the clamping levers 70, 72, which serve as a main body of the mechanism. The latching mechanism also has biased engagement members, such as spring loaded cam surfaces 200, 202 located along the lever undersides. Thecam surface 202 on theblack lever 70 engages the slopedcam surface 115 onpen 60, whereas, thecam surface 202 on thecolor lever 72 engages the slopedcam surface 155 ofpen 62. The cam surfaces 200, 202 are preferably integrally molded to project from engagement members, such asspring board members spring boards respective levers spring pocket 206 therein for receivingsprings 205, with the exterior of the spring pocket extending above the upper surface of eachlever spring boards respective levers springs 205 are compressed during closing of the levers. - To close the latch mechanism when the
pens chambers levers hinge 74 over the pens. While closing the latch mechanism, a controlled force is applied bycams pen pens main wall 76, the X datums along therear wall 185, and the Y-Z datums established by thereference rod 190. Thelevers spring boards springs 205 with respect to thehinge 74 are preferably arranged to function as an over-center clamping mechanism. In this manner, when closing thelevers pens carriage 50 and keeps the levers in a closed position. - Each
lever cams guide cams spring boards pens carriage system 50. The action provided by thelever guide cams carriage 50 when removal is required. - Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, an additional alignment adjustment is provided by a theta-Z (-Z) angular alignment or
registration mechanism 210. The theta-Z adjuster 210 moves a lower portion of themain wall 76 with respect to the carriagebody side walls main wall 76 is spring biased away from the colorchamber side wall 176 by a biasing member, such as acoil spring 212. Themain wall 76 has a rotational registration member, which in the illustrated embodiment is formed by terminating the lower portion ofwall 76,opposite spring 212, with anangled alignment foot 214. Thefoot 214 has a vertical wall which extends at an angle toward the positive X direction moving in a negative Y direction toward the back of the carriage 50 (see FIG. 5). The angled surface offoot 214 may be engaged at various points along its length by an adjustment member, such as a rotatable threaded member, forinstance screw 215. Theregistration screw 215 extends through and threadably engages a threaded passageway defined by a threadedboss portion 216 located along the lower surface of thecarriage body 75. - Rotating the
angular registration screw 215 further into engagement with thefoot 214 pushes the black andcolor X2 datums color pen chamber 82. Rotation of theregistration screw 215 out of theboss 216 allows themain wall 76 andX2 datums black pen chamber 80 under the biasing force provided by thespring member 212. This theta-Z angular adjustment is typically performed at initial assembly, or during field service or maintenance. - Advantageously, the theta-
Z adjustment system 210 may be activated by extending a probe (not shown) through ahole 218 formed within the carriagebody side wall 174. Such a probe then intersects the blackpen X2 datum 182 to measure the X axis offset ofwall 76 with respect to theblack X1 datum 180. Thescrew 215 may then be rotated until a desired theta-Z adjustment has been made, as measured by the probe. Through adjustment of a single registration member, the theta-Z angular alignment of eachpen chamber color printheads - The
carriage body 75 also includes a pennose guide portion 220, which may be configured as a generally T-shapedmember 220 extending from the underside of themain wall 76. This T-shapedguide 220 advantageously positions thepens rear wall 185. During pen installation, theguide 220 pushes thepen noses Y-Z reference rod 190, rather than on top of the rod. - The front-facing surface of the carriage
rear wall 185 preferably has a series of spring-loaded interconnect pins (omitted for clarity from the figures) for delivering firing commands to the conductor pads of the pen flex-tab circuits arrows - The rear-facing surface of the carriage
rear wall 185 may provide a convenient mounting location for several different components. For example, theflexible conductor 68 delivering the firing commands to the pens may be connected to an electronics decoding board mounted to the back surface of therear wall 185. To propel thecarriage 50 across theprint zone 25 and theservice station area 52, thecarriage drive belt 58 may be attached in a conventional manner to the rear ofwall 185. Preferably, to aid in dynamic stability of thecarriage 50, thedrive belt 58 is attached to the carriagerear wall 185 as close as possible to thecarriage bearings 54. - To provide carriage positional feedback information to
printer controller 45, an encoder strip 225 (see FIG. 1) extends along the length of theprint zone 25 and over theservice station area 52. A conventional optical encoder reader (not shown) may also be mounted on the back surface of the carriagerear wall 185 to read positional information provided by theencoder strip 225. To provide accurate positional information, preferably the optical encoder reader is located as close as possible to the nozzle plates of theprintheads belt 58 to the carriage, as well as the manner providing positional feedback information via the encoder strip reader, may be accomplished in a variety of different ways known to those skilled in the art. - In operation, with a
printer housing lid 230 open (FIG. 1) thepens carriage 50 usinghandles pens carriage 50. The pen installation provided bycarriage 50 is intuitively simple because the user actuated latches 70, 72 and cam surfaces 200, 202 help guide thepens carriage 50. Thecarriage 50 is then moved from side to side alongguide rod 48 through operation ofmotor 56 via thebelt 58, as instructed byprinter controller 45. The pens 60. 62 receive firing commands from theprinter controller 45 via theflex circuit conductors 68. During periods of inactivity, the carriage returns thepens service station area 52 for servicing, maintenance, and capping (sealing) during periods of printer inactivity. Thepens carriage 50 by raising the clamping levers 70, 72 and lifting the pens byhandles printer lid 230 is opened, thecontroller 45 moves the carriage to a location along theprint zone 25, for instance as shown in FIG. 1, where the pens may be easily replaced. - As used herein, the terms "alignment," "registration," "datum" and "reference" are all substantially synonymous. However, to aid in clarity, generally only one of these adjectives has been used in connection with a single carriage component. For instance, the
Y-Z reference rod 190 could also be referred to as an "alignment rod," a "datum rod," or a "registration rod." Furthermore, while thechambers side walls pens main wall 76. Moreover, while the illustratedcarriage 50 holds a pair of pens, it is apparent that these concepts may be easily expanded to two pair of pens, that is, a four pen system. Such a four pen carriage system may be constructed by doubling thecarriage 50, for example, by constructing a substantial mirror image of thecarriage 50, and makingside walls 176 either joined, or more preferably, as a single unitary wall. - To provide a high quality image on
sheet 35 as a hardcopy output ofprinter 20, the positioning of theprintheads pens carriage 50 positions the pens through a strategic selection of datums that reference the pens to the carriage, and the carriage to the printer. - The X axis positioning of
pens carriage 50, the blackpen X datums pen X datums main wall 76 and theX3 alignment pin 184 sandwiched therebetween. By sandwiching themain wall 76 between the pens, the thickness ofwall 76 may be more easily controlled than in earlier designs, such as the DeskJet® 1200, where the datums were all located to one side of the pen and effected by varying tolerances in pen thicknesses. Of the three X datums, the X1 datums 104, 140 (pens) and 182, 188 (carriage) are believed to be the most influential in affecting accurate drop placement, since these datums are closest to the nozzles ofprintheads - The Y axis positioning of
pens Y-Z reference rod 190 into thecarriage body 75, substantially parallel to thecenter line 194 of the insert moldedbearings 54. In this manner, accurate alignment of the pens with respect to the Y and Z datums is provided relative to the carriage scanning axis, which is defined bycarriage guide rod 48. Two carriage features contribute to the accurate alignment of the Y1 and Z datums for the pens. First, the V-groove bearings 54 are inserted molded intobody 75 as zero-clearance bearings with a zero press fit error in the illustrated embodiment. Insert molding ofbearings 54 eliminates common contributors to both Y position and theta-Z errors, which commonly occurred when using pressed-in cylindrical bushings in earlier printing mechanisms. - The second feature contributing to accurate alignment of the Y1 and Z datums concerns the concept of aligning the pen
Y1 pen datums straight reference rod 190. Therod 190 preferably has a length approximately twice as long as the distance between the black andcolor Y1 datums Y-Z rod 190 is also accurately supported at both ends by the carriage body pockets 191, 192. Advantageously, the Y direction positional errors are approximately half of any positional errors which may occur at the ends ofrod 190, since the distance between thesupports Y1 pen datums - The theta-Z positioning of the
pens single registration mechanism 210. By making the theta-Z adjustment from the black pen chamber side ofwall 76, alignment of the black nozzles ofprinthead 64 is optimized. Optimization of the black pen nozzles is preferred in the illustrated embodiment because theblack pen 60 has a taller nozzle column or swath height, on the order of 1.27 cm (0.5 inches), relative to the swath height of each group of color nozzles ofprinthead 66, which are on the order of 0.53 cm (0.21 inches). It is apparent that any thickness error of theX2 color datum 188 may add to any theta-Z positional error for thecolor pen 60. However, the effect of any thickness error for the X2 datums 182, 188 is minimized through the use of cylindrically shapedmembers members color pen 60, due to twisting of the X2 datum beam from theta-Z adjustments. - The
carriage system 50 is particularly advantageous in providing inherently accurate X axis referencing, through the use of the relatively thinmain wall 76 and thehigh tolerance pin 184. Both the X axis and Y axis referencing schemes are able to approach machining tolerances without requiring costly secondary machining operations. The theta-Z registration scheme 210 accurately allows simultaneous adjustment of the pens to machined tolerances, using an economical moldedalignment foot 214 and anadjustment screw 215. - The lever actuated clamping
system levers carriage 50 is the use of the biasingcoil springs 178 for the X biasingflexure members carriage 50 provides a more accurate control of the biasing force.
Claims (3)
- A dual pen carriage system (50) for scanning a pair of inkjet pens (60, 62) across a print zone (25) of an inkjet printing mechanism (20), comprising:a carriage body (75) having a main wall (76) configured to be sandwiched between the pair of pens (60, 62), the main wall (76) having two opposing side surfaces each defining at least one datum (180, 180', 182, 184; 180', 184, 186, 188); anda bias mechanism (170; 172) supported by the body to push each pen (60, 62) into contact with the main wall datums (180, 180', 182, 184; 180', 184, 186, 188).
- A dual pen carriage system (50) according to claim 1, wherein the main wall side surfaces each define at least two datums which may be either a convexly curved surface (180', 182, 184; 180', 184, 188) or a substantially flat surface (180; 186).
- A dual pen carriage system (50) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein:the main wall side surfaces each define three datums (180, 180', 182, 184; 180', 184, 186, 188);each pen (60; 62) has a printhead portion (64; 66) for selectively ejecting ink, and a side wall (88; 122) with three registration datums (104, 106, 108; 140, 142, 144) extending therefrom for contacting the main wall datums (180, 180', 182, 184; 180', 184, 186, 188) when installed in the carriage body (75); andon each main wall side surface, a first datum (180, 180'; 180', 184) is located adjacent the printhead portion (96, 134), a second datum (182; 188) is located laterally from the first datum (180, 180'; 180', 184), and a third datum (184; 184) is located in an upright direction from the first datum (180, 180'; 180', 184).
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US39924495A | 1995-03-02 | 1995-03-02 | |
US399244 | 1995-03-02 | ||
EP95307796A EP0729844B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
EP00201349A EP1018436B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP00201349A Division EP1018436B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP1234679A2 true EP1234679A2 (en) | 2002-08-28 |
EP1234679A3 EP1234679A3 (en) | 2002-11-27 |
EP1234679B1 EP1234679B1 (en) | 2005-07-20 |
Family
ID=23578763
Family Applications (3)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP95307796A Expired - Lifetime EP0729844B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
EP02077163A Expired - Lifetime EP1234679B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
EP00201349A Expired - Lifetime EP1018436B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
Family Applications Before (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP95307796A Expired - Lifetime EP0729844B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
Family Applications After (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP00201349A Expired - Lifetime EP1018436B1 (en) | 1995-03-02 | 1995-11-01 | Dual inkjet pen carriage system |
Country Status (5)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (3) | EP0729844B1 (en) |
JP (1) | JP3856864B2 (en) |
KR (1) | KR100402568B1 (en) |
CN (1) | CN1083340C (en) |
DE (3) | DE69519790T2 (en) |
Cited By (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
GB2392877A (en) * | 2002-07-17 | 2004-03-17 | Hewlett Packard Development Co | Printhead-assembly-to-support-structure z-axis datuming in a printing device |
US11254124B2 (en) | 2019-03-29 | 2022-02-22 | Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha | Liquid ejecting device including first endmost liquid ejecting head having liquid ejecting portion positioned deviated toward second endmost liquid ejecting head |
Families Citing this family (11)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US6637863B2 (en) | 2001-04-09 | 2003-10-28 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Print cartridge latching system |
US6655793B2 (en) * | 2002-03-26 | 2003-12-02 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Print cartridge supporting apparatus |
EP1647405A1 (en) * | 2004-10-13 | 2006-04-19 | BOWA Bosse + Wagner oHG | Apparatus for hermetically transporting and storing a replaceable ink cartridge for use in ink jet printer |
JP5353755B2 (en) * | 2010-02-19 | 2013-11-27 | 株式会社リコー | Image forming apparatus |
US8770106B2 (en) * | 2010-02-25 | 2014-07-08 | Eastman Kodak Company | Printer component mounting and alignment system |
CN102642403B (en) * | 2012-05-08 | 2014-07-23 | 珠海天威飞马打印耗材有限公司 | Ink-jet printer |
WO2015185160A1 (en) * | 2014-06-06 | 2015-12-10 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Latching systems |
US9427973B1 (en) * | 2016-03-22 | 2016-08-30 | Dataprint Technology, Inc. | Postage meter printer module and housing therefor |
US10994562B2 (en) | 2017-04-25 | 2021-05-04 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Print-head carriages |
US11052666B2 (en) | 2017-06-01 | 2021-07-06 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Printhead carriages with mechanical protectors |
CN111137019B (en) * | 2020-01-16 | 2020-12-22 | 库玛(厦门)***集成有限公司 | Ink horn mount pad and portable ink jet numbering machine of many specifications of adaptation ink horn |
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US4683481A (en) | 1985-12-06 | 1987-07-28 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Thermal ink jet common-slotted ink feed printhead |
US4907018A (en) | 1988-11-21 | 1990-03-06 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Printhead-carriage alignment and electrical interconnect lock-in mechanism |
US5278584A (en) | 1992-04-02 | 1994-01-11 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Ink delivery system for an inkjet printhead |
Family Cites Families (6)
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US4706097A (en) | 1986-04-03 | 1987-11-10 | Hewlett Packard Company | Near-linear spring connect structure for flexible interconnect circuits |
US5212502A (en) * | 1992-03-04 | 1993-05-18 | Eastman Kodak Company | Ink jet print head mounting mechanism |
US5295839A (en) | 1993-03-16 | 1994-03-22 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Method and system for interconnectingly engaging circuits |
SG72611A1 (en) * | 1993-04-30 | 2000-05-23 | Hewlett Packard Co | Reliable contact and arrangement on plastic print cartridge |
US5392063A (en) * | 1993-04-30 | 1995-02-21 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Spring cartridge clamp for inkjet printer carriage |
US5366305A (en) | 1993-06-09 | 1994-11-22 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Two-line contact carriage bearing subsystem |
-
1995
- 1995-11-01 EP EP95307796A patent/EP0729844B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1995-11-01 DE DE69519790T patent/DE69519790T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-11-01 EP EP02077163A patent/EP1234679B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1995-11-01 DE DE69534328T patent/DE69534328T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-11-01 DE DE69529779T patent/DE69529779T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-11-01 EP EP00201349A patent/EP1018436B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
-
1996
- 1996-02-26 CN CN96102433A patent/CN1083340C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1996-02-29 KR KR1019960005377A patent/KR100402568B1/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1996-03-01 JP JP04492396A patent/JP3856864B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Patent Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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US4683481A (en) | 1985-12-06 | 1987-07-28 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Thermal ink jet common-slotted ink feed printhead |
US4907018A (en) | 1988-11-21 | 1990-03-06 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Printhead-carriage alignment and electrical interconnect lock-in mechanism |
US5278584A (en) | 1992-04-02 | 1994-01-11 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Ink delivery system for an inkjet printhead |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
GB2392877A (en) * | 2002-07-17 | 2004-03-17 | Hewlett Packard Development Co | Printhead-assembly-to-support-structure z-axis datuming in a printing device |
GB2392877B (en) * | 2002-07-17 | 2006-09-20 | Hewlett Packard Development Co | Printhead-assembly-to-support-structure z-axis datuming in a printing device |
US11254124B2 (en) | 2019-03-29 | 2022-02-22 | Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha | Liquid ejecting device including first endmost liquid ejecting head having liquid ejecting portion positioned deviated toward second endmost liquid ejecting head |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
EP1234679A3 (en) | 2002-11-27 |
JPH08244230A (en) | 1996-09-24 |
EP0729844B1 (en) | 2001-01-03 |
KR960033762A (en) | 1996-10-22 |
JP3856864B2 (en) | 2006-12-13 |
EP0729844A1 (en) | 1996-09-04 |
DE69519790T2 (en) | 2001-04-19 |
DE69534328D1 (en) | 2005-08-25 |
CN1083340C (en) | 2002-04-24 |
EP1018436A3 (en) | 2000-11-22 |
DE69519790D1 (en) | 2001-02-08 |
DE69534328T2 (en) | 2006-05-04 |
EP1018436A2 (en) | 2000-07-12 |
DE69529779D1 (en) | 2003-04-03 |
DE69529779T2 (en) | 2003-11-27 |
KR100402568B1 (en) | 2004-03-09 |
CN1138527A (en) | 1996-12-25 |
EP1018436B1 (en) | 2003-02-26 |
EP1234679B1 (en) | 2005-07-20 |
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