Waste ink separator for ink jet printer maintenance system
US5329306A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 12, 1992 |
| Grant date | Jul 12, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 12, 2012 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB41J2/1728
- WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A waste ink separator is used in an ink jet printer maintenance station for management of the waste ink generated during printhead priming operations. The separator primarily consists of three main components, viz., a rigid chamber body with side walls and a top wall with an inlet and outlet therein, a chamber floor constructed of a material having a high moisture vapor transfer rate to pass moisture therethrough, and a foam material housed in the interior of the chamber body and floor for absorbing and storing waste liquid ink. The internal surface of the chamber top wall has interleaved parallel ribs which provide a serpentine floor path between the chamber inlet and outlet about the foam material for separating the liquid ink from the air.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.