Abstract: To reduce a quantity of uselessly consumed ink when an ink jet head is recoverably activated, the capacity of an ink path communicated with a group of ejecting ports having a small flow rate coefficient is determined to be smaller than that of an ink path communicated with a group of ejecting ports having a large flow rate coefficient. While all of plural groups of, ejecting ports are fully covered with a common recovering cap with the aid of sucking means, ink is, sucked from the plural groups of ejecting ports. When the ink remaining in the region extending from the plural groups of ejecting ports to predetermined positions in a plurality of ink paths communicated with the plural groups of ejecting ports is discharged, ink discharging positions are dislocated to predetermined positions in a plurality of ink paths to positionally coincide with the predetermined positions in the substantially same timing relationship after ejection recovering treatment starts to be conducted.

Abstract: Ink tank which enables accurate detection of existence/absence of liquid even if a storage containing liquid such as ink is stored under a severe environment, and a cartridge including the ink tank, as well as a printing apparatus utilizing the cartridge. A low surface energy processing agent including alkyl polysiloxane and alcohol is coated on prism 180 provided on the bottom portion of ink tank 7, thereby performing low surface energy processing on the prism 180.

Abstract: Provided is a black ink capable of mitigating the dependency on image quality of recording media and giving a high quality image stably, which comprises at least one salt selected from the group consisting of (M1)2SO4, CH3COO(M1), Ph_COO(M1), (M1)NO3, (M1)Cl, (M1)Br, (M1)I, (M1)2SO3 and (M1)2CO3, where M1 is an alkali metal, ammonium or organo-ammonium and Ph is a phenyl group, and a self dispersible carbon black.

Abstract: An ink container includes a casing, an air vent which is located in the casing, an ink supply opening for supplying ink out of the casing, and an ink absorbing material that is contained in the casing. The ink absorbing material retains ink therein, and has a generally rectangular parallelopipedal shape defined by sides of the ink absorbing material, and also has an ink supply portion for supplying ink to the ink supply opening. The ink absorbing material includes corner portions which are located between adjacent sides of the ink absorbing material. A preventing means prevents complete surface contact between the casing and said ink absorbing material by providing spaces between the casing and ink absorbing material which are in fluid communication with each other with a given space that is adjacent to a particular one of the corner portions that is most remote from the ink supply portion. The air vent is in fluid communication with the spaces.

Abstract: Provided is a black ink capable of mitigating the dependency on image quality of recording media and giving a high quality image stably, which comprises at least one salt selected from the group consisting of (M1)2SO4, CH3COO(M1), Ph_COO(M1), (M1)NO3, (M1)Cl, (M1)Br, (M1)I, (M1)2SO3 and (M1)2CO3, where M1 is an alkali metal, ammonium or organo-ammonium and Ph is a phenyl group, and a self dispersible carbon black.

Abstract: Provided is a black ink capable of mitigating the dependency on image quality of recording media and giving a high quality image stably, which comprises at least one salt selected from the group consisting of (M1)2SO4, CH3COO(M1), Ph_COO(M1), (M1)NO3, (M1)Cl, (M1)Br, (M1)I, (M1)2SO3 and (M1)2CO3, where M1 is an alkali metal, ammonium or organo-ammonium and Ph is a phenyl group, and a self dispersible carbon black.

Abstract: There is disclosed a method and apparatus for recovering an ink jet head having an opening communicating with a discharge port, the opening being provided on a same planar surface on which the discharge port for discharging ink is provided. An area of the opening is larger than an area of the discharge port. The method includes the steps of forcibly introducing gas into the ink jet head simultaneously through the discharge port and the opening, and exhausting the gas introduced into the ink jet head in the introducing step with ink through the discharge port. The gas introduced into the ink jet head enables the ink to be exhausted at an increased velocity in the exhausting step.

Abstract: The invention provides an ink comprising a coloring material, a solvent for dissolving or dispersing the coloring material, and an amphoteric polymer having both anionic and cationic groups. The invention also provides an ink-jet recording process and apparatus using such an ink.

Abstract: An ink jet head includes a first member with an energy generating element for generating energy to eject ink, a second member having an ejection outlet forming member provided with an ink ejection outlet through which the ink is ejected, the second member being affixed to the first member to form a liquid passage in fluid communication with the ejection outlet, and urging means for urging the first and second members together to substantially fix them against each other. The ejection outlet forming member has a jaw connected with a surface of the first member which has the energy generating element, the jaw being adjacent a first member side of the ejection outlet. The following relationships are satisfied, namely, b.gtoreq.5 microns, c.gtoreq.

Abstract: An ink jet recording apparatus includes a liquid passage for ejection of ink; a liquid chamber for supplying ink to the passage; a device for mounting the recording head on the ink jet recording apparatus at an angle not more than 45 degrees relative to the horizontal plane; wherein the chamber has an internal surface which is slanted in a direction from an ink inlet thereof toward the liquid passage at the angle of 5-40 degrees relative to an extension of the liquid passage.

Abstract: The present invention is related to an ink jet head comprising a substrate having a support, an intermediate layer provided on said support and a lower layer provided on said intermediate layer, and a heat energy generating member which generates heat energy to be utilized for discharging ink provided on said substrate. The ink jet head is characterized in that ink channels communicated to discharge openings for discharging ink are formed corresponding to the heat generating portions of said heat energy generating member on said heat generating substrate, and the thermal conductivity of said intermediate layer is selected higher than that of said support and higher than that of said lower layer.

Abstract: An ink jet recording apparatus comprises an ink tank containing ink; a recording head for performing recording by selectively ejecting ink; a mounting portion for mounting the ink tank and the recording head; a liquid passage coupling portion provided on either or both of the ink tank and the recording head for separating or connecting the ink passages in the ink tank and the recording head; a holding portion provided on either or both of the ink tank and recording head for guiding the ink tank to the recording head in order to hold them separably; and an electrically or mechanically connecting portion provided on either or both of the recording head and mounting portion for electrically or mechanically connecting the recording head to or separating it from the mounting portion.

Abstract: An ink jet head includes a base member, a first member having recesses and coupled with the base member to form ink passages using the recesses and a second member integral with the first member and extending at an angle from an end of the first member, the second member having ink ejection outlets communicating with the ink passages.

Abstract: Provided is an ink-jet recording process for forming a color image on a recording medium using a liquid formulation and a color ink in combination, wherein the liquid formulation contains a cationic polymer having a weight-average molecular weight in the range of from 400 to 1,400, and the liquid formulation and the ink are each ejected from a recording head having an ink ejection volume per dot of from 2 to 25 picolitters.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a water-based pigment ink comprising a coloring material composed of self-dispersing carbon black obtained by bonding at least one hydrophilic group directly or through another atomic group to the surface of carbon black, a humectant of the general formulaH--(CH.sub.2).sub.m --C--((CH.sub.2).sub.n OH).sub.3wherein m and n are independently an integer of from 1 to 5, and an aqueous medium composed of water and a water-soluble organic solvent.

Abstract: Three discharge port groups, each having a plurality of discharge ports, discharge inks of three primary colors to record swaths of the respective colors on a recording medium and repeat the discharging to complete a record. Joints of each of Y, M and C color swaths are spaced from joints of swaths of the other two colors by an equal distance, and the discharge port groups are offset from each other by 8n times of a discharge port pitch in a direction of feed of the recording medium. In a number of image buffers corresponding to the discharge ports, image data in one buffer is separated from image data in a different image buffer by an amount that is an integer multiply of one 8 bit byte.

Abstract: A sealed ink jet assembly which is removable from an ink jet apparatus includes an ink jet head which has an ejection outlet found at a first surface of the ink jet head, an energy generating element for generating energy to eject ink through the ejection outlet, and an electric contact portion for supplying an electric signal from the ink jet apparatus to the energy generating element by mounting the electric contact portion to the ink jet apparatus. The electric contact portion is provided on the surface of the ink jet head which differs from the first surface, and an integral sealing member covers both the ink ejection outlet and the electric contact portion. The integral sealing member is removed when the assembly is mounted onto the ink jet apparatus.

Abstract: An ink jet head includes a passage-forming member providing a plurality of ink passages and an orifice plate having an array of ejection outlets in communication with respective ink passages. The orifice plate has a plurality of edge portions and the ejection outlets are arranged along a line that runs parallel to at least one of the edge portions and intersects opposing edge portions at crossing points. A confining member is configured to hold the orifice plate against the passage-forming member only in areas proximate to the crossing points.

Abstract: An ink container, as well as a method of making the same, which has ink absorbing material for retaining ink, a casing for holding the ink absorbing material, an ink supply port through which ink is withdrawn from the absorbing material, and an air vent. The air vent and ink supply port are each provided adjacent to different longitudinal halves of the ink absorbing material, and the casing is initially filled with an amount of ink which is larger than the quantity of ink which can be retained by the ink absorbing material. Then, ink adjacent to the air vent is removed to such an extent that the casing contains the quantity of the ink which the ink absorbing material can retain. Thus, ink is retained at a higher density adjacent to the ink supply port than adjacent to the air vent.

Abstract: A liquid-discharge recording apparatus such as an ink-jet printer comprises: a liquid-discharge recording unit having an emission energy generating device including an electrothermal energy converting device which can heat a recording liquid such as an ink to form liquid droplets in response to an electrical signal, in which this recording unit emits the liquid droplets and deposits them on a recording paper and thereby recording thereon; a recording unit control circuit which can set and supplies the electrical signal to form the liquid droplets to the emission energy generating device in response to a recording signal; and an emission controller for setting the electrical signal to form the liquid droplets to the recording unit control circuit when a power supply is turned on, thereby allowing the recording unit to and emit the liquid droplets in accordance with an environmental condition such as a temperature of the recording liquid.