This invention relates to inkjet printing mechanisms, and more particularly, to a mounting portion partial cover for ensuring that a proper toe-heel installation process is used to secure a detachable printer component to its respective mounting portion on the printer.
An ink-jet printer produces images and text on a page by firing drops of ink from the printheads of one or more ink cartridges while the cartridges move back and forth across the page. Examples of ink-jet printers include plotters, facsimile machines, and typical computer-attached ink-jet printers. The page on which a printer prints may be any sheet of material, such as paper, Mylar, foils, transparencies, card stock, etc.
The ink supply of an ink-jet printer is limited. Thus, many cartridges are designed to be detachably secured and replaceable. A user simply replaces the old, empty ink cartridge with a new, full ink cartridge. In these so-called cartridge-type printers, the cartridges can be manufactured as a unit that includes a printhead and an ink reservoir (referred to as an xe2x80x9cink/printhead cartridgexe2x80x9d herein). Thus, these types of ink/printhead cartridges are seated in a carriage that travels back and forth across the page during printing operation.
Alternatively, in some designs commonly known as off-axis printers, the ink reservoir is a container that may be disconnected from the printhead, which remains installed on the carriage while the container is replaced. In the typical off-axis printer, only a printhead moves across the page, while the ink reservoir is stationary and secured to the base of the printer. Ink is delivered to an inlet port in the printhead via a flexible, ink delivery tube that extends from the stationary ink reservoir. Typically, the ink reservoir is mounted to the printer chassis and may be replaced or refilled when empty. Off-axis printers may be equipped either with a single printhead for monochromatic printing, or with several printheads for color printing. Of course, for color printing, several reservoirs and associated tubes are required, with one set used for each color.
In the ink-delivery systems of off-axis printers, the ink-delivery tube may be permanently connected to the printhead, but this would prevent replacement of the printhead. The printhead may suffer mechanical breakdown or simply wear-out after firing millions of drops of ink. Therefore, the printheads of a typical ink-jet printer are designed to be replaced, as necessary. Similarly, the supply of ink in reservoirs or containers used in cartridge-type or off-axis type printers may be replenished in refill stations that are peripheral components of the printer system.
Irrespective of the nature of the removable ink-jet printer component (ink cartridge, reservoir or printhead, for example), it is desirable to ensure that those components are accurately connected in the printer. That is, a component such as an ink/printhead cartridge must be properly seated in the carriage. This proper seating and positioning requirement also applies to off-axis printers, especially where several reservoirs and associated ink-delivery tubes are involved.
In the past, various mechanical latches, datum features, and/or electrical identification techniques have been employed for ensuring that a replaceable printer component, such as an ink/printhead cartridge, ink reservoir, or printhead, is operably installed in the correct location in the printer. For example, the replaceable printer component may include a unique pattern of tabs for operably engaging appropriate recesses in the mounting portion of the printer to which the printer component is to be attached.
When installed correctly, a toe-heel-type printer component installation provides a particularly accurate, reliable, and durable connection between the printer component and its related mounting portion. This term originates from the similar appearing procedure for putting a conventional ski boot in a ski binding. Namely, the skier first places their toe in a front binding on a ski then steps down on the ski to secure a rear binding around the heel portion of the boot. In general, a traditional toe-heel printer component installation includes first operably securing a toe-end portion of the printer component into appropriate mounts received toward the front of the mounting portion, then snapping the back-end of the printer component into appropriate mounts received toward the back of the mounting portion.
Despite the benefits of traditional toe-heel printer component mounts, they offer several drawbacks. For example, the toe-end portion of the printer component must be installed first, a concept that is not necessarily intuitive to most users of printers. If an installer erroneously installs the back-end of the printer component, the toe-end will not likely be secured to its appropriate mounts, usually resulting in the printer component not operating. Moreover, after first improperly securing the back-end of the printer component to the mounts in the component mounting portion, some users may attempt to use excessive force to make the toe-end engage its mounts. Such force often results in premature wear or breakage of the printer component.
Accordingly, despite the available improvements offered by traditional toe-heel printer component mounts, there remains a need for a simple and economical device for ensuring that an installer will easily recognize and follow proper toe-heel installation of a detachable printer component. In addition to other benefits that will become apparent in the following disclosure, the present invention fulfills these needs.
The present invention is a partial mounting portion cover that extends above and partially over the front portion of the chamber in which the printer component is to be installed. The cover includes a substantially planar top surface positioned over the portion of the chamber receiving the toe-end of the printer component. The planar top surface is positioned above the printer component when the printer component is fully installed on the mounting portion, and it extends over the printer component only by an amount that precludes it from interfering with the toe-heel installation previously described.
Accordingly, so long as the installer performs a toe-heel installation of the detachable printer component, the mounting portion cover does not interfere with the installation. However, if an installer attempts to install the printer component in another manner besides using the toe-heel installation process, the cover blocks the toe-end of the printer component from entering the chamber, thereby alerting the installer of the improper installation. Moreover, the cover also serves as a visual obstacle to the installer, thereby suggesting that the toe-end must first be inserted below the cover before attempting to install other portions of the printer component. In a preferred embodiment, the cover is a visually distinguishable color from the mounting portion, further highlighting the visual benefits of this device.
More preferably, the cover is pivotally secured to the mounting portion at a pivot point by arms that extend from the substantially planar top surface to the mounting portion, and at least one beam spring extends from the substantially planar top surface to operably engage the mounting portion, thereby biasing the cover to a neutral position. The beam spring and pivot point allow the substantially planar top surface to deflect slightly upward during proper toe-heel installation, thereby facilitating the toe-end of the printer component into the appropriate area of the mounting portion. The leading edge of the substantially planar top surface may be angled upward to further facilitate entry of the toe-end of the printer component below the cover.