Solvent Patents (Class 347/28)
  • Patent number: 11859095
    Abstract: An ink set includes an inkjet ink and a recording head filling liquid. The inkjet ink includes a pigment, a pigment coating resin, a first alkali metal ion, and water. The recording head filling liquid includes polyethylene glycol, a second alkali metal ion, a surfactant, and water. The polyethylene glycol has a mass average molecular weight of at least 180 and no greater than 800. A content ratio of the surfactant in the recording head filling liquid is greater than 0.00% by mass and no greater than 0.10% by mass. The first and second alkali metal ions each contain at least one of Li+, Na+, and K+.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Noriaki Ozawa, Yasuko Takaori, Toyotsune Inoue
  • Patent number: 11760096
    Abstract: A method is provided for cleaning a print head, wherein the print head includes a cavity for the circulation of jets and at least one first spraying nozzle for projecting at least one cleaning fluid towards at least one inner portion of the cavity. The method includes the step of projecting, using the first spraying nozzle, several pulses of cleaning fluid towards the inside of the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: Dover Europe Sàrl
    Inventors: Damien Bonneton, Camille Gobin, Jean-François Abadie, Jean-Marie Rolland, Niklaus Hugi
  • Patent number: 11305544
    Abstract: There is disclosed a method comprising determining, by a processor, if there are consecutive nozzles of a print apparatus that are occluded by a contaminant; and, when a predetermined number of consecutive nozzles are occluded, automatically triggering a cleaning operation to at least partially remove the contaminant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Adria Gallart del Burgo, Alex Campa Coloma, Maria Isabel Borrell Bayona, Jordi Bas Ferrer
  • Patent number: 11192368
    Abstract: A method of preparing a printer cartridge for transport may comprise applying a volume of immiscible fluid to a nozzle bore of a printhead. A printer cartridge may comprise a volume of immiscible fluid deposited into a nozzle bore of a nozzle of the printhead and a layer of immiscible fluid applied over the nozzle bore opening. A printhead die may comprise a volume of immiscible fluid deposited into a nozzle bore of the die and a layer of immiscible fluid applied over the nozzle bore opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Jeffrey Allen Wagner, Sierra Lynn Triebe, Maria Magdalena Martinez, Ronald Albert Askeland
  • Patent number: 11141979
    Abstract: An inkjet printing apparatus includes: a print head having an ejection opening surface on which an ejection opening for ejecting ink is provided; a wiping unit configured to wipe the ejection opening surface; a moving unit configured to move the wiping unit in a first direction; and a treatment liquid holding portion having a holding member for holding a treatment liquid and an applying member for applying the treatment liquid to the wiping unit by coming into contact with the wiping unit, wherein a plurality of treatment liquid holding portions are arranged in a second direction crossing the first direction such that adjacent treatment liquid holding portions are not in contact with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroshi Nakai, Takahiro Kiuchi, Noriko Sato
  • Patent number: 11097552
    Abstract: A droplet discharge apparatus includes a first head, a first-ink pack storing first ink, a second head, a second ink pack storing second ink, a cleaning liquid container storing cleaning liquid, a common flow path system, a cleaning liquid flow path, a first pump feeding the first ink from the first ink pack to the second ink pack through the common flow path system, a second pump feeding the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid container to the first ink pack through the cleaning liquid flow path and the common flow path system, a first valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common flow path system and the first ink pack, a second valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common flow path system and the second ink pack, a third valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common flow path system and the cleaning liquid flow path, and a control unit, wherein the common flow path system, the first valve, and the second valve are located higher than a liquid surface in the first ink pac
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kinya Ozawa, Takayuki Yokoyama
  • Patent number: 11052662
    Abstract: Inkjet printhead cleaning methods and systems control an articulation structure (that is connected to a wiper blade) to move the wiper blade to contact an inkjet printhead to wipe the inkjet printhead. These methods/systems further control the articulation structure to move the wiper blade to contact a blade cleaning structure to clean the wiper blade. The blade cleaning structure comprises a fluid manifold and bundles of fibers mounted in brush openings of the fluid manifold, and cleaning fluid is in the fluid manifold. The mounting ends of the bundles of fibers are mounted in the brush openings of the fluid manifold and the cleaning ends of the bundles of fibers are positioned to contact the wiper blade. The blade cleaning structure is positioned so as to gravity feed the cleaning fluid from the mounting ends of the fibers to the cleaning ends of the fibers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Richard P. Ficarra, Victoria L. Warner, Richard A. Kalb, Douglas A. Gutberlet
  • Patent number: 10933642
    Abstract: An ink jet recording apparatus includes an ink container in which ink to be used to perform printing on a print target is stored, a nozzle which is connected to the ink container and from which pressurized and supplied ink is jetted, charging electrodes that charge ink particles jetted from the nozzle with electricity, deflecting electrodes that polarize the ink particles charged with electricity by the charging electrodes, a gutter that recovers ink not used for printing, a solvent container in which a solvent is stored, and a liquid nozzle which is connected to the solvent container and from which a pressurized and supplied solvent is jetted. The liquid nozzle includes a liquid flow passage portion that extends from the nozzle in a direction of the gutter, and a liquid jet hole that is formed at an angle allowing the pressurized and supplied solvent to hit the nozzle through the liquid flow passage portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takahiro Arima, Sho Mizoguchi, Mamoru Okano
  • Patent number: 10864738
    Abstract: A printer may comprise a printhead comprising a number of nozzles, an immiscible fluid applicator, and a processor to instruct the immiscible fluid applicator to apply immiscible fluid onto the surface of the printhead to cap the number of nozzles. A printer subassembly may comprise an immiscible fluid applicator to wipe a layer of immiscible fluid onto a surface of a printhead. A printer may comprise a page wide array printhead, an immiscible fluid applicator to wipe a layer of immiscible fluid over a printhead to cap nozzles over the width of the printhead, and a controller to instruct the printhead to print after the layer of immiscible fluid has been applied over the printhead so that ink ejects through the immiscible fluid while non-used nozzles remain capped by the immiscible fluid layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2020
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Xavier Gasso Puchal, Gonzalo Gaston Llado, Marian Dinares Argemi, Jeffrey Allen Wagner
  • Patent number: 10836172
    Abstract: Provided are a recording head and an ink jet recording apparatus provided with the same capable of cleaning an ink ejection surface while preventing damage to a wiper. The recording head is provided with an ink ejection surface including an ink ejection region in which a plurality of ink ejection ports for ejecting ink onto a sheet is opened. With respect to the ink ejection region, on the upstream side in a wiping direction in which a wiper wipes the ink ejection surface, a plurality of concave parts is provided. Inside each of the concave parts, two or more cleaning liquid supply ports for supplying a cleaning liquid are provided in the wiping direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 17, 2020
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Yasutaka Inui, Kenichi Satake, Takuma Araki
  • Patent number: 10821734
    Abstract: A coloring nozzle cleaning assembly is used to clean a coloring nozzle of a 3D printing device. The coloring nozzle cleaning assembly includes a cleaning tank, a movable scraper and a liquid-absorbent interference member. The cleaning tank includes an opening and receives a cleaning liquid inside. The movable scraper has a contact end placed inside the cleaning tank and immersed in the cleaning liquid, and the contact end can be moved out of the cleaning tank through the opening to scrape against the coloring nozzle. The liquid-absorbent interference member is disposed within an area of the opening, and is located over a liquid level of the cleaning liquid and interferes with a movement course of the movable scraper. Excess cleaning liquid adhered to the movable scraper is absorbed by the liquid-absorbent interference member before the movable scraper cleans the coloring nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2020
    Assignees: XYZPRINTING, INC., KINPO ELECTRONICS, INC.
    Inventor: Hsueh-Kuan Shih
  • Patent number: 10821732
    Abstract: The inkjet printer includes a head, a circulation flow path, a cap, a first pump, and a control unit. The head has a nozzle surface having nozzles to eject ink. The circulation flow path circulates ink. The cap can contact the nozzle surface. The first pump is connected to an exhaust hole formed in the cap. In a soaking processing, the processor drives the first pump and causes the nozzle surface to be soaked in liquid, in a capping state in which the cap is in contact with the nozzle surface. In a circulation processing, the processor causes the ink to circulate in the circulation flow path in a state in which the nozzle surface is soaked in the liquid, after the soaking processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2020
    Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Katsunori Nishida
  • Patent number: 10766262
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a liquid ejecting head which ejects liquid from a nozzle that is disposed on a nozzle surface, a first wiping portion which is able to wipe away the liquid that is adhered to the nozzle surface, and a second wiping portion which is able to hold the liquid that is adhered to the nozzle surface by contacting the nozzle surface, wherein it is possible to perform a first maintenance operation in which the nozzle surface is wiped using the first wiping portion and a second maintenance operation in which the second wiping portion is caused to contact the nozzle surface due to the second wiping portion being biased by the first wiping portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Shigenori Nakagawa, Keiji Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 10767080
    Abstract: Disclosed is a coating composition suitable for coating onto a wall or other substrate to yield a dry-erase coating, The composition may be prepared by reacting an excess amount of an aminosilane with a carbonate, an epoxy alcohol, or both in aqueous media to yield a silylurethane, and/or a silylamino polyol. In some approaches, the compositions and/or methods may further include an epoxysilane, and allowing the epoxysilane to react with the aminosilane to yield an aminodisilane. This reaction will result in a coating composition that comprises one of a silylurethane, a silylamino polyol, or both, and the aminodisilane. The aqueous mixture of the silylurethane, the silylamino polyol, or both, and the aminodisilane together constitute a coating composition that, upon curing, forms a dry-erase coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: The Sherwin-Williams Company
    Inventors: Frank F. Markovitz, Brian Makowski, Jay A. Reimann
  • Patent number: 10759172
    Abstract: A head cleaning device includes a liquid discharge head, a wiping member, a rotatable pressing member, and a moving assembly. The liquid discharge head includes a nozzle, which discharges liquid, on a nozzle surface. The wiping member wipes the nozzle surface. The rotatable pressing member presses the wiping member against the nozzle surface. The moving assembly contacts the wiping member with the nozzle surface and relatively moves the liquid discharge head and the wiping member to perform a wiping operation. The pressing member includes a recess corresponding to a nozzle forming portion of the nozzle surface on a part of a surface of the pressing member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Yuichi Tanioku
  • Patent number: 10603898
    Abstract: The method includes in order: forming an intermediate image by applying the aqueous ink to a transfer body; transferring the intermediate image by bringing the intermediate image into contact with the recording medium; and cleaning the transfer body by applying an aqueous cleaning liquid to the transfer body, and if necessary, further includes applying an aqueous reaction liquid containing a reactant which reacts with the aqueous ink to the transfer body, wherein at least one of the aqueous ink and the reaction liquid contains a resin particle (however, when not including the applying of the reaction liquid, the aqueous ink contains the resin particle), and the cleaning liquid contains a first water-soluble organic solvent having an SP value [unit: (J/cm3)1/2] of 17.0 or more to 29.0 or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2020
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takashi Imai, Futoshi Hirose, Susumu Hirosawa, Atsushi Sakamoto
  • Patent number: 10596810
    Abstract: A liquid jetting apparatus includes: a liquid jetting head having individual channels, first and second common channels connected to the individual channels, the individual channels having nozzles respectively; a pump which circulates liquid inside the liquid jetting head; and a controller. The controller is configured to: reduce a unit circulation amount of the liquid in stages as standby time becomes longer, the unit circulation amount being a circulation amount of the liquid per unit time by the pump, the standby time being a length of time during which a standby state is continued, the standby state being a state in which the liquid jetting head is ready without jetting the liquid; and in a case of shifting the liquid jetting head from the standby state to a jetting operation, determine a type of recovery operations in accordance with the standby time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2020
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Shuhei Suzuki
  • Patent number: 10576771
    Abstract: Provided is an ink jet recording method capable of suppressing movement of a coloring material and adhesion thereof to a porous layer even after repeated contact of the porous layer with a first image. This method of recording an image on a recording medium by using an aqueous reaction liquid and a water-based ink containing a first ink includes applying a reaction liquid containing a reactant and resin particles to the entirety of a first recording medium; applying a coloring material-containing first ink to the first recording medium to form a first image; and bringing a porous layer of a liquid absorption member into contact with the first image to absorb a liquid component from a first-image-including portion on the first recording medium. The volume-based cumulative pore size (?m) at 10% of the porous layer is greater than the volume-based cumulative particle size (?m) at 90% of the resin particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yoshitaka Torisaka, Shinichi Sakurada, Takashi Imai
  • Patent number: 10538085
    Abstract: Influence of transform of quality to an entire liquid discharge head is suppressed when a heat resistor and a covering portion are electrically connected to each other. To address this problem, a liquid discharge head substrate includes fuse portions for respective heat resistor arrays.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yoshinori Misumi, Yuzuru Ishida, Maki Kato, Takahiro Matsui
  • Patent number: 10343403
    Abstract: A method for forming a film that covers a side wall of a through hole in a substrate having the through hole, the method including, in the following order, the steps of providing a substrate having a through hole that passes therethrough from a first surface to a second surface, which is a surface opposite to the first surface, forming, on the first surface, a lid member that blocks an opening of the through hole open on the first surface, recessing, in a direction away from the first surface, a surface of the lid member that blocks the opening by removing part of the lid member through the opening, and forming a film that covers the side wall of the through hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Atsushi Teranishi, Masaya Uyama
  • Patent number: 10336078
    Abstract: A recording head of the present disclosure includes an ink ejection surface where a plurality of ink ejection ports for ejecting ink onto a recording medium are disposed. A plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports for supplying a cleaning liquid are disposed on an upstream side with respect to the ink ejection ports in a wiping direction which is a direction in which a wiper wipes the ink ejection surface. The plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports each have a chamfer portion formed at a portion thereof that intersects a surface to be wiped by the wiper, the chamfer portion being R-shaped in section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Noriaki Furukawa, Takashi Somete, Masanobu Maeshima
  • Patent number: 10252534
    Abstract: A recording head recovery system has a recording head, a tank, and a control portion. The control portion can perform a recovery operation of the recording head including a cleaning solution feeding operation where cleaning solution is fed through cleaning solution feed ports by locating the tank such that the solution surface of the cleaning solution in the tank is above a first position which is the height of the cleaning solution feed ports, a wiping operation where a wiper wipes an ink ejection surface, and a non-feeding operation where the cleaning solution is sucked into the cleaning solution feed ports by locating the tank such that the solution surface of the cleaning solution in the tank is below the first position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2019
    Assignee: KYOCERA DOCUMENT SOLUTIONS INC.
    Inventors: Kenichi Satake, Yasutaka Inui, Takuma Araki
  • Patent number: 10232655
    Abstract: A printing device for dispending material on a heated substrate is provided. The device may include a printing head having one or more nozzles and a heat shield that partially masks a side of the printing head that faces the heated substrate when printing so as to reduce heat transfer from the substrate to the printing head. The shield includes a slot aligned with the one or more nozzles to enable passage of material from the one or more nozzles to the heated substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: XJET LTD.
    Inventors: Eliahu M. Kritchman, Hanan Gothait, Yigal Rozval, Meir Debi
  • Patent number: 10207281
    Abstract: An electrostatic painting method includes supplying, via a pure water supply passage, pure water to a paint tank within which paint is stored, applying a voltage to paint that is pushed out from the paint tank by the supplied pure water, and spraying the paint to which the voltage has been applied, at an object to be painted. Pure water remaining in the pure water supply passage is replaced to increase an electrical resistance value of the pure water before starting to paint the object to be painted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2019
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Isamu Yamasaki, Kengo Honma, Nobuo Kodaka
  • Patent number: 10195854
    Abstract: A print device includes a processor and a memory. The memory storing computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the processor, perform processes. The processes include covering processing controlling a cap into a covering state in which the cap covers a nozzle. The processes include first purge processing purging, in a state in which the cap is in the covering state and a supply valve is closed, an ink from the nozzle by operating a pump at a first rotation speed. The processes include injection processing injecting, after the first purge processing and in a state in which the cap is in the covering state and the supply valve is open, the cleaning liquid into the interior of the cap by operating the pump at a second rotation speed to cause the cleaning liquid to soak a nozzle face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2019
    Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Katsunori Nishida, Takao Hyakudome, Goro Okada, Haruo Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 10137691
    Abstract: A printhead maintenance station to cleaning a nozzle plate of a printhead and a method of operating the printhead maintenance station are disclosed. The printhead maintenance station includes a wiper bar, a wiper secured to the wiper bar, a wiper cleaning assembly, and an actuator. The wiper is stored in the wiper cleaning assembly when not in use. The controller operates the actuator to rotate the wiper bar to move the wiper from the wiper cleaning assembly to a wiping position, and causes relative movement of the printhead maintenance station and the print unit to wipe the nozzle plate with the wiper.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2018
    Assignee: R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company
    Inventors: Anthony V. Moscato, Jeffrey M. Sabin
  • Patent number: 9994025
    Abstract: A cleaning module includes an actuator device, a fluid chamber, and a wiper member. The actuator device may enter an activation state based on a movement of at least a portion of the actuator device in response to an engagement with the printhead. The fluid chamber may store and supply fluid to the porous wipe material in response to the activation state of the actuator device. The wiper member may apply pressure to a porous wipe material including the fluid therein to wipe the printhead.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2018
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Mauricio Seras Franzoso, Marta Coma Vives, Antonio Gracia Verdugo
  • Patent number: 9925779
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a liquid ejecting unit having nozzles able to eject a first liquid to a medium; and a fluid ejecting device having ejection ports able to eject a fluid including a second liquid to the liquid ejecting unit, in which the fluid ejecting device performs, as a maintenance operation of the liquid ejecting unit, a first fluid ejection of ejecting a fluid including small droplets of the second liquid that are smaller than a nozzle opening to an opening region in which the nozzles of the liquid ejecting unit open, and a second fluid ejection of ejecting a fluid including droplets of the second liquid in which the smallest droplets are larger than the small droplets to the liquid ejecting unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2018
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Toshihiro Shinbara, Kazuhiko Hara, Takayuki Kawakami, Kazuyuki Fujioka, Hitotoshi Kimura
  • Patent number: 9919531
    Abstract: Provided are a nozzle wiping sheet, a nozzle wiping unit, and an image forming apparatus capable of preventing occurrence of streaks during printing immediately after maintenance. A wiping member (120) wipes a nozzle surface (57K) of a jetting head (56K) provided with a nozzle through which liquid droplets are jetted, in which a shape of the liquid droplet added dropwise to the wiping member (120) after a cleaning liquid (108) is added to the wiping member (120) satisfies the following condition when an aspect ratio of the liquid droplet after 40 seconds after the addition of the cleaning liquid (108) is assumed to be R, and the R is 1.3 or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2018
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroshi Mataki, Jun Yamanobe, Hiroshi Inoue
  • Patent number: 9902156
    Abstract: A recording device including a recording head, a tank, a valve capable of being switched between an open state where ink is supplied from the tank to the recording head and a closed state where the ink is not supplied, a cap covering a discharge port surface, a pump configured to make a pressure of an inside of the cap negative, an acquiring unit configured to acquire information on an atmospheric pressure of an environment where the recording device is placed, and a control unit configured to perform a suction operation of sucking the ink from the discharge port surface by driving the pump when the valve is in the closed state, making the pressure of the inside of the cap negative, and then switching the valve to the open state and to control the suction operation based on the acquired information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shin Genta, Masaya Uetsuki, Toshimitsu Danzuka, Kazuo Suzuki, Yoshinori Nakagawa, Masataka Kato, Tsuyoshi Ibe, Tomoki Yamamuro
  • Patent number: 9878549
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to devices, systems and methods for contactless maintenance of inkjet print heads. Specifically, the disclosure relates to devices, systems and methods for removing purged ink from inkjet print head without contacting the aperture plate by drawing vacuum, with liquids or other mechanical means, such as wipes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: Nano-Dimension Technologies
    Inventors: Sharon Fima, Dotan Sela
  • Patent number: 9827769
    Abstract: There is provided a liquid discharge device including: a wiping member that performs wiping on a nozzle forming surface by being caused to perform relative movement on the nozzle forming surface while coming into contact with the nozzle forming surface; a cleaning liquid supply section that supplies cleaning liquid to at least one of a head and the wiping member; and a circulation speed adjustment section that is capable of adjusting a circulation speed of the liquid, which is circulated between a liquid storage section and the head, to a second speed which is faster than the first speed. In addition, the circulation speed during the wiping is the second speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yoshihiro Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 9738077
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of cleaning a fluid circuit in an inkjet printer that comprises a print head connected to the fluid circuit through an umbilical (19), and also comprises means (50) of recovering fluid from the print head (1), this method comprising at least sending solvent to said fluid recovery means (50), without making this solvent flow in the umbilical or in the print head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: DOVER EUROPE SÀRL
    Inventor: Francis Pourtier
  • Patent number: 9604447
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a washing water supplying path connected to an ink chamber, including a seal blade and a doctor blade slidably contacting an outer circumference of an anilox roll; a washing water supplier for supplying washing water to an inside of the ink chamber through the washing water supplying path; a supplying path opening/closing device that opens and closes the washing water supplying path; a washing water recovering paths connected to the ink chamber; a suction recovering device that recovers the washing water in the ink chamber by suction through the washing water recovering path; and a controller that controls operations of the washing water supplier, the supplying path opening/closing device, and the suction recovering device. The control mode includes a decompression control mode in which the seal blade is elastically deformed towards the ink chamber by decompressing the inside of the ink chamber by recovering the washing water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES PRINTING & PACKAGING MACHINERY, LTD.
    Inventors: Mitsuhiro Nadachi, Osamu Hatano
  • Patent number: 9469112
    Abstract: A rotary wiper assembly for a fluid-ejection printhead that has fluid-ejection nozzles includes one or more wipers and a rotatable shaft to which the wipers are at least indirectly attached. The rotatable shaft is to rotate the wipers to a static wiping position. While the wipers are stationary in the static wiping position, the fluid-ejection printhead is to move back and forth in relation to the wipers while the wipers are not to move, to cause the wipers to come into contact with the fluid-ejection nozzles to wipe material from the fluid-ejection nozzles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Jacinto Berrios, Matias Negatu, Rafael Ulacia Portoles, Michael W. Munro
  • Patent number: 9457577
    Abstract: It is an object of the invention to provide an inkjet recording device that can clean a blade of a wiper to which ink had adhered, whereby nozzle clogging in an inkjet head and ink color mixing are prevented to enable recording with high image quality. As a solution, an inkjet recording device (1) according to the present invention includes a wiping unit (30) that wipes off ink by sliding a blade (34) on a nozzle surface (24) of an inkjet head (20); and a cleaning unit (40) that performs cleaning by pouring cleaning liquid on the blade (34).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2016
    Assignee: MIMAKI ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shunsuke Akuta
  • Patent number: 9399347
    Abstract: A nozzle arrangement has nozzle arrays arranged in a first direction. Liquid passages are interconnected via a communication path and arranged in the first direction. Nozzles in each one of the nozzle arrays are connected to a corresponding one of the liquid passages. Each of the liquid passages has a first end connected to a supply port and a second end connected to the communication path, in a second direction. The controller controls a flushing operation ejecting liquid from the nozzles as waste liquid. The controller controls the head portion to perform a selective flushing operation. The selective flushing operation is an operation of ejecting the liquid from the nozzles corresponding to a part, being at least one of the liquid passages, of a set of liquid passages while stopping ejection of the liquid from the nozzles corresponding to a remaining part of the set of liquid passages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2016
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Naoki Mizuno, Takao Hyakudome
  • Patent number: 9328320
    Abstract: A maintenance liquid for inkjet printers includes at least 50 wt % of at least one ether solvent according to Formula (I) or (II) with the wt % based on the total weight of the maintenance liquid: R1(CO)x(OR2)yOR3??Formula (I), and R4CO(OR5)zOCOR6??Formula (II), wherein R1, R4 and R6 independently represent an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms; R2 rand R5 independently represent an ethylene group or a propylene group; R3 represents a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms; x represents an integer of 0 or 1; y and z independently represent an integer of 1 to 4; and wherein the maintenance liquid contains no more than 25 ppm of peroxide expressed as hydrogen peroxide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2016
    Assignee: AGFA GRAPHICS NV
    Inventors: Raphael Voets, Jaymes Van Luppen, Eric Hoes, Johan Loccufier
  • Patent number: 9321086
    Abstract: An ultrasonic cleaner and a coater equipped with the ultrasonic cleaner are provided. The ultrasonic cleaner is configured to clean an inkjet head for ejecting an alignment solution. The cleaner comprises a cleaning receiver for receiving a clean agent, an ultrasonic generator for generating an ultrasonic, and a storing device for retrieving and storing the clean agent, and each of the ultrasonic generator and the storing device is connected to the cleaning receiver. The ultrasonic cleaner can clean the blocked nozzle hole of the inkjet head quickly and thoroughly in a short time. Besides, the cleanliness in the equipment will not be destroyed and the cleaning agent can be retrieved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: SHENZHEN CHINA STAR OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Guodong Zhao, Tao Song, Ming Liu, Tao Ma
  • Patent number: 9193164
    Abstract: Inkjet head cleaning and storage includes cleaning an orifice plate by inserting a tip of a shaped wiper into a slit of a printing mask, such that one or more shoulders of a handling end of the shaped wiper are in contact with respectively one or more edges of the slit. The shoulders of the shape wiper facilitate the tip applying a predetermined pressure to an orifice surface during wiping. Preventing sediment buildup during extended periods of non-printing includes placing at least the orifice plate of the printing head in a protecting liquid that avoids evaporation of the volatile liquid from the nozzles. An innovative “night plate” can be used to seal the slit of a printing mask and ink purged from the printing head used to fill a gap between the printing head and the mask, thereby covering at least the orifice plate with the purged ink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 24, 2015
    Assignee: XJET LTD.
    Inventors: Eli Kritchman, Hanan Gothait, Timofey Shmal, Sharon Fima
  • Patent number: 9044949
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus, including: a head having an ejection face having at least one ejection opening for ejecting liquid; a sealing mechanism configured to selectively establish one of a sealing state in which the sealing mechanism seals an ejection space and an open state in which the sealing mechanism does not seal the ejection space; an air introduction opening configured to open in an area that faces the ejection space in the sealing state; a humid air supplier configured to supply a humid air from the air introduction opening to the ejection space in the sealing state; a cleaner configured to clean the liquid contacting at least a part of an area of the head and the sealing mechanism, the area facing the ejection space; and a controller configured to control the cleaner to clean the liquid before the supply of the humid air supplier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hiroshi Taira
  • Patent number: 9022523
    Abstract: Among a plurality of recording heads in a non-recording area, a leading end of a second recording head closer to a recording area is situated further forward than the that of another recording head, and a second cover which is provided in a position close to the leading end of the second recording head houses a second cleaning unit which is in contact with the second recording head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Takeaki Shima
  • Patent number: 9016830
    Abstract: An inkjet cleaning unit includes a reservoir housing an inkjet wiping fluid that includes a non-wettable material; and an applicator wick fluidly coupled to the reservoir, in which the applicator wick is configured to transport the inkjet wiping fluid from the reservoir to a surface of an inkjet material dispenser. A method for cleaning an inkjet material dispenser includes applying an inkjet wiping fluid from a reservoir housing the inkjet wiping fluid to a surface of the inkjet material dispenser; in which the inkjet wiping fluid includes a non-wettable material; and in which an applicator wick is fluidly coupled to the reservoir to transport the inkjet wiping fluid from the reservoir to the surface of the inkjet material dispenser.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Dennis P. Parazak, Dustin W. Blair
  • Patent number: 9016831
    Abstract: When cleaning inkjet print heads, a first cleaning fluid is provided which includes at least one cellulase or a catalytically active derivative thereof. A contaminated and/or blocked inkjet print head (12) is cleaned using this first cleaning fluid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Océ Printing Systems GmbH
    Inventors: Walter Brenner, Admir Lela
  • Patent number: 8926058
    Abstract: A droplet jetting apparatus includes: a droplet jetting head that is supplied with a jetting liquid and jets out droplets of the jetting liquid from nozzles formed in a nozzle surface; a spray device that sprays maintenance liquid on the nozzle surface; and a maintenance liquid temperature control unit that controls a temperature of the maintenance liquid so that the temperature of the maintenance liquid comes closer to or becomes higher than or equal to a temperature of the droplet jetting head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Takashi Yagi
  • Publication number: 20140375721
    Abstract: A printing head assembly with integrated purge mechanism is disclosed. The printing head assembly comprises: (a) a liquid dispensing head comprising one or more dispensing nozzles enclosed in a nozzle plate, driven by at least first and second pressures, and (b) a shielding mask including an opening in front of the one or more nozzles, wherein the opening being configured such that when printing liquid is dispensed from the head driven by the first pressure, the liquid being dispensed in pulses through the opening in the shielding mask, and (ii) when purge printing liquid is dispensed from the head driven by the second pressure, the liquid being drawn to a capillary gap formed between the shielding mask and the nozzle plate thereby removing the purge printing liquid from the nearby nozzles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 29, 2014
    Publication date: December 25, 2014
    Applicant: XJET LTD.
    Inventors: Eli KRITCHMAN, Ronen MIMON, Hanan GOTHAIT
  • Patent number: 8915572
    Abstract: An inkjet printhead adapter, including a chassis operative to accommodate one or more printheads and include one or more ink recycling valves and one or more ink supply valves communicating with an ink reservoir via an ink feeding tube and with one or more printhead accommodated in the adapter and wherein the ink supply valve is operative to direct a flow of ink from the feeding tube to one or more of the printhead and the ink recycling valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Dip-Tech Ltd.
    Inventor: Yaakov Levi
  • Publication number: 20140368575
    Abstract: A liquid ejection device includes a liquid ejection head, a cleaning member, and a waste liquid tank. The liquid ejection head has a nozzle face on which a nozzle is formed. The cleaning member has a concave space therein and is configured to be attached to the nozzle face such that the concave space is arranged between the cleaning member and the nozzle face. The waste liquid tank is configured to collect cleaning liquid discharged from the cleaning member. The cleaning member further includes a first channel configured to supply the cleaning liquid toward the nozzle face and a second channel configured to discharge the cleaning liquid from the concave space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 29, 2014
    Publication date: December 18, 2014
    Inventor: Nobuaki KAMIYAMA
  • Patent number: 8888231
    Abstract: A cleaning method of an ink supply path in a recording apparatus where ink is supplied from an ink cartridge, includes a first cleaning step of cleaning by supplying to the ink supply path a gas-liquid mixture of a cleaning liquid A provided with an ink cleaning action and gas, and a second cleaning step of cleaning by supplying to the ink supply path a cleaning liquid B provided with an air bubble suppressing action after the first cleaning step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Aoyama, Hitoshi Ohta
  • Patent number: 8882239
    Abstract: In a method for determining a maintenance performance of a maintenance unit of an inkjet printing system, the inkjet system comprises an inkjet print head having an orifice surface, the orifice surface comprising an orifice, which orifice is in fluid communication with an ink chamber. The method comprises operating the maintenance unit to perform a maintenance operation on the orifice surface of the inkjet print head and detecting the presence of a wiper element or amount of ink over the orifice by detecting a pressure wave in the ink chamber and analyzing the detected pressure wave to determine the maintenance performance of the maintenance unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: Oce-Technologies B.V.
    Inventors: Mark Miedema, Bastiaan J. H. Middelbos