Storage and spittoon system for waste inkjet ink
US6247783A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 15, 1998 |
| Grant date | Jun 19, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 15, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB41J2/1721
- WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A storage and spittoon system is provided for an inkjet printing mechanism to handle waste inkjet ink that has been spit from an inkjet printhead during a nozzle clearing, purging or "spitting" routine. A rotating spit wheel has a rim with a concave cross sectional shape which receives ink residue spit from the printhead. A compliant scraper is spring biased to contact the spit wheel rim at a substantially tangential orientation to scrape the ink residue from the rim as the wheel is rotated past the scraper. The scraper directs the ink residue into a storage container as a string-like strip which is then packed to into a storage container as the spit wheel rotates. A method of purging ink residue from an inkjet printhead, along with an inkjet printing mechanism having such a waste ink storage and spittoon system, are also provided.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.