Patent ID: 6945640
Filing Date: 2005-09-20
Classification: B41J

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for refilling a printer cartridge, said apparatus comprising: a dock for the printer cartridge, a dock for an ink replenishment cartridge having an ink receiver, an ink draw off conduit adapted to connect a docked printer cartridge to the ink receiver of a docked ink replenishment cartridge with the ink receiver, an ink replenishment draw in conduit to connect an ink replenishment outlet of the docked ink replenishment cartridge to the ink draw off conduit, one of the ink replenishment cartridge and the ink replenishment draw in conduit, and the ink replenishment draw in conduit, being adapted to allow only draw off flow from the ink replenishment cartridge outlet, a circuit completing conduit and at least part of the ink replenishment draw in conduit to connect the ink draw off conduit to the docked printer cartridge, a pump operable to pump in either direction on a circuit defined in part by at least part of the ink draw off conduit and in part by at least part of the circuit completing conduit, a one way valve on the ink draw off conduit between (i) the ink replenishment cartridge dock and (ii) the circuit and the ink draw off conduit, the valve favouring flow to the ink replenishment cartridge dock, and a one way threshold valve on the circuit, wherein a flow system arising from the apparatus is operable in the following modes, (a) an ink draw off mode with the pump operating in a first direction to take ink from within the docked printer cartridge into the ink receiver of the docked ink replenishment cartridge, the draw off mode not involving flow via said one way valve on the circuit, (b) an ink supply mode with the pump operating in a second direction to supply ink from within the docked ink replenishment cartridge into the docked printer cartridge, and (c) an ink re-routing mode with the pump operating in the second direction to re-route ink taken into the flow system from within the docked ink replenishment cartridge in mode (b) operation, the re-routing to: (1) cycle ink in the conduit when over a threshold pressure of and via the one way threshold valve on the circuit, (2) discharge ink into the ink receiver when over a threshold pressure of a one way threshold valve on the ink draw in the circuit, via one of both said one way threshold valves and both (1) and (2).