Patents by Inventor Toshio Kumagai

Toshio Kumagai has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7845750
    Abstract: Ink type information is read by a read and write system (62) from a semiconductor storage system mounted on ink cartridges (9a to 9d) attached to a cartridge holder (8). A decision control system (61) decides whether or not ink type information has already been stored in ink type storage system (63), and stores the ink type information thus read when the ink type information is not stored. In the case in which the ink cartridge is exchanged, the ink type information is similarly read and it is decided whether or not the same ink type information is identical to the ink type information stored in the ink type storage system (63). If they are not identical to each other, the operation of the recording apparatus is inhibited and a display system (68) is caused to display an error message thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Atsushi Kobayashi, Toshio Kumagai, Shuichi Nakano, Daisuke Miyashita
  • Publication number: 20100283821
    Abstract: There is provided an ink cartridge which is formed from an ink-filled ink pack and a hermetic outer shell case for housing the ink pack and which supplies ink to a recording head by means of application of air pressure to a space between the outer shell case and the ink pack. The outer shell case is formed by coupling an upper case and a lower case together. The ink-filled ink pack is housed in the lower case, and the upper case is laid on the lower case from above. The upper and lower cases are hermetically sealed by vibratory welding or heat welding, thus constituting the ink cartridge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2010
    Publication date: November 11, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Taku ISHIZAWA, Toshio KUMAGAI, Masanori KAMIJYO
  • Patent number: 7824020
    Abstract: A liquid feed tube for feeding a liquid from a liquid tank disposed on a liquid jetting device body side to a jetting head mounted on a reciprocating carriage, including: a long elastic member and a film member connected in an airtight state to the elastic member along a longitudinal direction of the elastic member; and a space part formed by the elastic member and the film member and used as a liquid feed passage, wherein the elastic member is made of a specific resin composition. Thus, the bending rigidity of the liquid feed tube can be lowered, and the resistance to moisture permeability and the gas barrier property thereof can be realized at low cost.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2010
    Assignees: Bridgestone Corporation, Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Youkou Saito, Tadashi Utsunomiya, Toshio Kumagai, Hitoshi Matsumoto, Masanori Takemura, Kazuyuki Saito, Yasushi Soya
  • Publication number: 20100271447
    Abstract: Provided is a liquid injecting apparatus equipped with a liquid injecting head, which is mounted on a carriage and moved reciprocally in a widthwise direction of a target, and a valve unit, which is mounted on the carriage to be supplied with liquid via a supply passage from a liquid retainer and to supply liquid to the liquid injecting head. The valve unit has a pressure chamber connected to the liquid retainer via the supply passage; a valve, which opens or closes the supply passage to supply liquid to the pressure chamber; and a flexible film member, which is displaced based on a negative pressure generated as liquid in the pressure chamber decreases to thereby operate the valve.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2010
    Publication date: October 28, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiharu ARUGA, Toshio KUMAGAI, Hitoshi MATSUMOTO
  • Patent number: 7806523
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention has a translationally movable member configured to be connected to a liquid container inserted in a container mounting unit, in link motion with a straight operation of the liquid container when inserting a liquid feed needle through a liquid feed port of the liquid container, translationally advance in the direction parallel with the straight operation, an apparatus side fixing structure for releasably restricting the movement of the liquid container in the mounting state in the pull-out direction, having a stopper pin to be stopped in a guide groove of a container side fixing structure formed in the liquid container, and apparatus side positioning structures installed in the translationally movable member, in cooperation with a container side positioning structure formed in the liquid container, for positioning the liquid container in a predetermined position to the translationally movable member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 5, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Takeo Seino, Toshio Kumagai, Hitotoshi Kimura, Atsushi Kobayashi, Taku Ishizawa, Munehide Kanaya, Yoshiharu Aruga
  • Publication number: 20100224693
    Abstract: A fluid ejecting apparatus includes a nozzle that ejects fluid; a transporting section that transports in a direction of transportation a medium on which the fluid lands; and a mist sucking section that sucks air including a mist portion when the nozzle ejects the fluid, so as to move the mist portion from a route that extends from the nozzle to the spot on the medium where the fluid lands. The mist portion is a portion of mist, which is part of the fluid ejected by the nozzle that does not land on the medium and is floating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2010
    Publication date: September 9, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kaoru KOIKE, Toshio KUMAGAI, Hiroki MATSUOKA
  • Patent number: 7784896
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus including an ejecting head that ejects a liquid from at least one row of nozzles of the ejecting head to an object, a capping unit that caps a nozzle-formed surface of the ejecting head, a suction unit that suctions a space in the capping unit, a detector that, when a liquid supplied to the ejecting head is switched to a different liquid, detects a characteristic of the different liquid and/or a characteristic of the liquid ejected by the ejecting head, and a controller that performs determination of a level of the detection and control of suction of the suction unit on the basis of a result of the determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hidenori Usuda, Toshio Kumagai, Nobuhito Takahashi
  • Patent number: 7784923
    Abstract: There is provided an ink cartridge which is formed from an ink-filled ink pack and a hermetic outer shell case for housing the ink pack and which supplies ink to a recording head by means of application of air pressure to a space between the outer shell case and the ink pack. The outer shell case is formed by coupling an upper case and a lower case together. The ink-filled ink pack is housed in the lower case, and the upper case is laid on the lower case from above. The upper and lower cases are hermetically sealed by vibratory welding or heat welding, thus constituting the ink cartridge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Taku Ishizawa, Toshio Kumagai, Masanori Kamijyo
  • Patent number: 7780277
    Abstract: Provided is a liquid injecting apparatus equipped with a liquid injecting head, which is mounted on a carriage and moved reciprocally in a widthwise direction of a target, and a valve unit, which is mounted on the carriage to be supplied with liquid via a supply passage from a liquid retainer and to supply liquid to the liquid injecting head. The valve unit has a pressure chamber connected to the liquid retainer via the supply passage; a valve, which opens or closes the supply passage to supply liquid to the pressure chamber; and a flexible film member, which is displaced based on a negative pressure generated as liquid in the pressure chamber decreases to thereby operate the valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshiharu Aruga, Toshio Kumagai, Hitoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 7735992
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a support drum which rotates while supporting a recording medium on a support surface thereof. A guide shaft of the recording apparatus is spaced apart from the support surface by a predetermined distance and extends in parallel to a direction perpendicular to a rotation direction of the support drum. A carriage which is guided by the guide shaft is reciprocally moved along the support surface. A recording head mounted on the carriage ejects an ultraviolet curing ink toward the recording medium. An ultraviolet ray irradiation unit irradiates ultraviolet rays to the ultraviolet curing inks which are ejected from the recording head. In operation, the carriage is moved along the guide shaft so as to form an image formed by the ultraviolet curing ink and a coat ink over the overall surface of the recording medium supported by the support drum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Toshio Kumagai
  • Patent number: 7699449
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus comprises a liquid cartridge for storing a liquid, a liquid ejection head for ejecting the liquid toward a target, a liquid supply path for guiding the liquid to the liquid ejection head from the liquid cartridge, and a capping device for drawing the liquid from the liquid ejection head. The liquid supply path comprises a plurality of wall surfaces, and a part of the wall surface is formed of a flexible member that is flexed by the inside-and-outside pressure difference of the liquid supply path. A pressure pump for adjusting the pressure of a fluid within the liquid supply path in the upstream side of the flexible member is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Keiichiro Yoshino, Toshio Kumagai, Takeo Seino, Koji Morikoshi
  • Publication number: 20100079569
    Abstract: A fluid ejecting device includes a transporting member for transporting a medium in a transporting direction, a fluid ejecting head for ejecting fluid containing a color material onto the medium, an irradiating unit provided on the downstream side of the fluid ejecting head in the transporting direction to cure the fluid by irradiating the fluid on the medium with ultraviolet rays, and a charge applying member for applying charges to the color material of the fluid on the medium before irradiation of the fluid with the ultraviolet rays.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2009
    Publication date: April 1, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toshio Kumagai, Kazutoshi Fujisawa, Shinichi Kamoshida
  • Publication number: 20090322817
    Abstract: A fluid ejecting apparatus includes a drum that rotates while holding a medium on its outer periphery, a head that ejects a fluid on to the medium held on the periphery of the drum, a fixing section that fixes the fluid ejected on to the medium by the head, a measuring section that measures a diameter of the drum, and a controller that varies an ejection timing of the fluid ejected from the head in accordance with variation in the diameter of the drum measured by the measuring section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2009
    Publication date: December 31, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hidenori USUDA, Hideo NORO, Toshio KUMAGAI, Shinichi KAMOSHIDA
  • Publication number: 20090322810
    Abstract: A fluid ejecting apparatus includes a rotatable drum that holds a medium on a periphery thereof, a head that ejects a fluid onto the medium held by the drum, a fixing portion that fixes the fluid ejected from the head onto the medium, an outer-radius measuring portion that measures an outer radius of the drum, an adjusting portion that adjusts a distance between the drum and the head, and a controller that causes the adjusting portion to adjust a distance between the head and the medium in accordance with a variation in the outer radius of the drum measured by the outer-radius measuring portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2009
    Publication date: December 31, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hidenori USUDA, Hideo NORO, Toshio KUMAGAI, Shinichi KAMOSHIDA
  • Publication number: 20090322820
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes an array of nozzles and a light-emitting portion that emits ultraviolet light. A control portion alternately and repetitively transports a medium in a transporting direction relative to the nozzles. The control portion forms a dot group in the transporting direction on the medium by ejecting a liquid toward the medium from the nozzles. The control portion also performs a light-emitting operation every time the control portion forms a dot group. The light-emitting operation is performed by causing the light-emitting portion to emit the ultraviolet light toward the dot group to cure the dot group. During the light-emitting operation, at least one of two ends of the dot group in the transporting direction is exposed to the ultraviolet light at a time later than the time at which a midsection of the dot group in the transporting direction is exposed to the ultraviolet light.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2009
    Publication date: December 31, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hidenori USUDA, Toshio Kumagai
  • Publication number: 20090322804
    Abstract: A fluid ejecting apparatus includes: a fluid ejecting unit that ejects a colored fluid and a colorless fluid toward a fluid ejection target medium; an irradiating unit that irradiates ultraviolet rays onto a fluid that lies on or over the fluid ejection target medium so as to cure the fluid; and a controlling unit that controls the fluid ejecting operation of the fluid ejecting unit and the ultraviolet ray irradiating operation of the irradiating unit. The controlling unit performs control so that the colorless fluid is ejected on an image that is made of the colored fluid that landed on the fluid ejection target medium. After the start of the agglomeration of the colorless fluid that landed on the image, the controlling unit performs control so that ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the colorless fluid.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2009
    Publication date: December 31, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hidenori USUDA, Toshio KUMAGAI, Kazutoshi FUJISAWA
  • Publication number: 20090322833
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus includes liquid cartridges, each of which includes a liquid container and a pressure chamber, the liquid container having a flexible portion and storing liquid therein, and the pressure chamber applying pressure to the flexible portion of the liquid container; a liquid ejection head, which ejects the liquid; liquid flow paths, which communicate the liquid containers with the liquid ejection head; and an air supply member, which supplies pressurized air to the pressure chambers for compressing the flexible portions so as to supply the liquid from the liquid containers to the liquid flow paths. The air supply member includes: a distribution member, which has an air intake portion for introducing the pressurized air, and air outlet portions for distributing the pressurized air to the liquid cartridges, and branch flow paths, which respectively communicate the air outlet portions with the pressure chambers of the liquid cartridges.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 27, 2009
    Publication date: December 31, 2009
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Toshio KUMAGAI, Atsushi Kobayashi
  • Publication number: 20090251510
    Abstract: A waste liquid treatment device includes a storage unit configured to store waste liquid which is cured upon reception of an ultraviolet ray and an irradiating unit configured to irradiate a liquid surface of the waste liquid in the storage unit in an uncured state with an ultraviolet ray, and the irradiating unit performs a spot irradiation of the ultraviolet ray so that the surface area of the liquid surface which is irradiated with the ultraviolet ray is smaller than the surface area of the liquid surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 1, 2009
    Publication date: October 8, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hideo NORO, Toshio KUMAGAI, Shinichi KAMOSHIDA
  • Publication number: 20090213174
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus including an ejection head capable of ejecting liquid that may be cured by irradiation of an energy ray, a wiping member that is capable of wiping a nozzle forming face of the ejection head, an irradiation unit that is capable of curing and solidifying the liquid adhering to the wiping member by irradiating the energy ray after the nozzle forming face is wiped by the wiping member, and a removal unit that removes the solidified liquid from the wiping member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 26, 2009
    Publication date: August 27, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shinichi Kamoshida, Toshio Kumagai, Norihiro Masuda
  • Publication number: 20090214398
    Abstract: A waste liquid processing device includes: a waste liquid tank to which a liquid to be hardened by radiation of an energy ray is introduced as a waste liquid; a radiation unit which radiates the energy ray for hardening the waste liquid to the waste liquid introduced to the waste liquid tank; and a buffer tank which temporarily stores the waste liquid in a non-hardened state between a waste liquid discharging source and the waste liquid tank and which intermittently introduces the stored waste liquid to the waste liquid tank.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 26, 2009
    Publication date: August 27, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shinji HIRATA, Toshio KUMAGAI