Patent · US Expired

Waste ink container ink level monitoring in an ink jet recorder

US6227642A · kind A · utility

18Cited by
13References
17Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJun 30, 1997
Grant dateMay 8, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateJun 30, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
  • CPC primaryB41J2/1728
  • WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

In an ink jet recording apparatus, a plurality of kinds of heads are separately mounted and a waste ink container is provided. The ink level of the waste ink container is monitored, and the kind of ink jet head mounted is detected. The amount of waste ink exhausted from a mounted ink jet recording head is corrected in response to the kind of ink jet head mounted. Each kind of ink jet printhead mounted has distinct waste ink exhaust properties caused by factors such as different size of ink drops, or different number of printhead exhaust ports which affect preliminary discharge amounts of waste ink and factors such as different suction loads on the ink tanks, different flow resistances of the ink flow passages and different viscosities of the inks used in the printheads which affect suction recovery amounts of waste ink. The recovery function is corrected such that the waste ink amount exhausted from the mounted head is carried out in accordance with the mounted ink jet head.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.