Abstract:
An integrally-formed ink tube carrier for a printer is disclosed which has a plurality of carrier tubes arrayed in a substantially rectilinear fashion. The tubes are connected by integrally-formed connecting regions. The carrier tubes used to hold ink tubes are preferably closed, thus providing a secondary containment in the event of an ink leak. One or more of the tubes may be slit, allowing the insertion of electrical wires. The ink tube carrier is preferably formed of a plasticized nylon, an elastomeric polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), elastomeric nylon, or polyether block amides.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    A conventional printer, such as an ink jet printer, may include an ink supply station and a print head that is movable with respect to the ink supply station. Consequently, a set of long, durable, bendable ink tubes-one for each ink color-may be used to supply ink from the ink supply station to the moving print head. Because the print head requires electrical power, a set of long, durable, bendable electrical wires may be used to supply power and/or data from the printer electronics to the moving print head.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention comprises, in one embodiment, an ink tube carrier for a printer, comprising: a plurality of carrier tubes, wherein, in a cross section of the carrier, centers of the carrier tubes are approximately rectilinear, wherein adjacent carrier tubes are connected by connecting regions, and the carrier tubes and connecting regions are integrally formed, and wherein at least one of the carrier tubes is a closed tube, wherein a closed tube is configured so that a cross section of the closed tube has a closed configuration.  
           [0003]    In a further embodiment of the present invention, an ink tube carrier for a printer is provided, comprising: a plurality of carrier tubes connected by connecting regions, wherein at least four of the carrier tubes are closed tubes, wherein a closed tube is configured so that a cross section of the closed tube has a closed configuration, and wherein at least two of the carrier tubes are open tubes, wherein an open tube includes a slit that runs the length of the open tube, wherein the slit is configured to be opened to allow the passage of electrical wires into and out of the open tube.  
           [0004]    In a further embodiment of the present invention, an ink tube carrier for a printer is provided, comprising: a plurality of carrier tubes, wherein, in a cross section of the carrier, centers of the carrier tubes are approximately rectilinear, wherein adjacent carrier tubes are connected by connecting regions, and the carrier tubes and connecting regions are integrally formed, wherein each carrier tube has an inside diameter of between approximately 2.5 mm and 8.5 mm, and wherein the carrier comprises one of plasticized nylon, elastomeric polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), elastomeric nylon, and polyether block amides.  
           [0005]    In a further embodiment of the present invention, an ink jet printer system is provided, comprising: a beam; an ink supply station configured to hold an ink cartridge and connected to the beam; a carriage comprising a print head and movable on the beam; ink tubes, provided between the carriage and one of the beam and ink supply station, configured to transfer ink to the carriage; electrical wires, provided between the carriage and one of the beam and printer controller, configured to provide electrical power and/or data to the carriage; and an ink tube carrier, provided between the carriage and one of the beam and ink supply station, configured to house the ink tubes and electrical wires, and having a plurality of carrier tubes, wherein, in a cross section of the carrier, centers of the carrier tubes are approximately rectilinear, wherein adjacent carrier tubes are connected by connecting regions, and the carrier tubes and connecting regions are integrally formed, and wherein at least one of the carrier tubes is a closed tube, wherein a closed tube is configured so that a cross section of the closed tube has a closed configuration.  
           [0006]    In a yet further embodiment of the present invention, a method for holding ink tubes and electrical wires is provided, comprising: providing an ink tube carrier having a plurality of carrier tubes connected by connecting regions, wherein at least four of the carrier tubes are closed tubes, wherein a closed tube is configured so that a cross section of the closed tube has a closed configuration, and wherein at least two of the carrier tubes are open tubes, wherein an open tube includes a slit that runs the length of the open tube, wherein the slit is configured to be opened to allow the passage of electrical wires into and out of the open tube; inserting each ink tube of a printer into an open end of a closed tube and threading said ink tube through said closed tube; and opening a slit of an open tube and passing electrical wires of the printer into said open tube. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]    [0007]FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing of an embodiment of the ink jet printer system according to the present invention.  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 2 is a perspective drawing of an embodiment of the ink jet printer system according to the present invention.  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 3 is a side drawing of an embodiment of the ink tube carrier according to the present invention.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the ink tube carrier shown in FIG. 3. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0011]    Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an exemplary ink jet printer system  10  includes an ink supply station  12 , a carriage  14 , an air pressure source  18 , a printer controller  20 , a beam  22 , and ink tubes  28  and electrical wires  30  housed inside an ink tube carrier  24 . The system  10  is configured to print an image on media  16 , such as printer paper.  
         [0012]    As shown in FIG. 1, the ink supply station  12  contains ink cartridges  26 , which contain ink. The cartridges  26  may each contain a different color of ink. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, four cartridges  26  may hold four different ink colors. The ink supply station  12  is configured to supply ink from the cartridges  26  to the carriage  14  via ink tubes  28 . The pressure necessary to provide proper ink flow from the cartridges  26  to the carriage  14  may be provided by an air pressure source  18 , although other current and future means of providing the proper ink flow will be obvious to one skilled in the art. The printer controller  20  is configured to provide electrical power and/or control signals to the carriage  14  via electrical wires  30 .  
         [0013]    As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage  14  is connected to and movable on the beam  22 . The carriage  14  contains a print head (not shown), through which ink provided from the cartridges  26  flows to the media or paper  16 . The ink tubes  28  extend from the ink supply station  12  to the carriage  14 , and the electrical wires  30  extend from the controller  20  to the carriage  14 , via an ink tube carrier  24 . The ink tubes  28  and electrical wires  30  are not shown in FIG. 2 because they are housed inside the ink tube carrier  24 .  
         [0014]    The ink tube carrier  24  is configured to hold and house the ink tubes  28  and the electrical wires  30  so that they do not become tangled or damaged by the moving carriage  14 . In other words, the ink tube carrier  24  is configured to keep the ink tubes  28  and electrical wires  30  together, as well as to keep their motion and position (with respect to the carriage  14 ) predictable and consistent. As shown in FIG. 2, the ink tube carrier  24  is configured to freely bend in a lengthwise direction.  
         [0015]    The carrier may comprise one of plasticized nylon, elastomeric PBT, elastomeric nylon, and polyether block amides, because these materials are durable, reasonably resistant to wear, and flexible enough to allow the ink tube carrier  24  to freely bend in a lengthwise direction.  
         [0016]    The ink tube carrier  24  need not run the entire length between the ink supply station  12  and the carriage  14  (or the entire length between the controller  20  and the carriage  14 ). In an embodiment, the ink tubes  28  and electrical wires  30  may mate at the beam  22 , and the ink tube carrier  24  may be provided on the ink tubes  28 /electrical wires  30  between the point of mating on the beam  22  and the carriage  14 . In other words, the ink tube carrier  24  may be provided only where the ink tubes  28 /electrical wires  30  move or bend as a result of the motion of the carriage  14  on the beam  22 . Because the range of motion of the carriage  14  may be as much as 2 m, the ink tube carrier  24  may also have a length of between approximately 0.5 m and 2.5 m, preferably approximately 2 m.  
         [0017]    As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the ink tube carrier  24  may include a plurality of carrier tubes, such as closed tubes  32  and open tubes  36 , connected by connecting regions  34 . A closed tube is one that is configured so that a cross section (as shown in FIG. 4) has a closed configuration. An open tube is one that includes a slit  38  that runs the length of the tube, where the slit  38  is configured to be opened to allow the passage of electrical wires  30  (or ink tubes  28 ) into and out of the tube. In FIG. 4, for clarity of explanation, the slit  38  is shown having a nonzero width. However, the slit  38  may have substantially no width, such as where an open tube  36  is created by cutting a slit  38  into a previously closed tube  32 .  
         [0018]    The carrier tubes  32 ,  36  have approximately the same length (e.g., 2 m) and ends of the carrier tubes  32 ,  36  are approximately flush, as shown in FIG. 2. The closed tubes  32  are configured to house ink tubes  28  having an outside diameter of between approximately 2 mm and 8 mm; therefore, each closed tube  32  (and preferably each open tube  36 ) has an inside diameter of between approximately 2.5 mm and 8.5 mm, or preferably between approximately 4.5 mm and 5.5 mm. Further, each carrier tube  32 ,  36  may have a wall thickness of between approximately 0.4 mm and 0.8 mm.  
         [0019]    In an embodiment, the closed tubes  32 , open tubes  36 , and connecting regions  34  may be integrally connected. Each connecting region  34  between adjacent carrier tubes  32 ,  36  may have a width of between approximately 0.3 mm and 0.7 mm. Further, each connecting region  34  may have a thickness of between approximately 0.8 mm and 1.2 mm. Alternatively, the carrier tubes  32 ,  36  may be formed separately and connected by adhesive (i.e., the connecting regions  34  are strips of adhesive), or by melting them together (i.e., the connecting regions  34  are melted regions of adjacent carrier tubes  32 ,  36 ). In this embodiment, each connecting region  34  between adjacent carrier tubes  32 ,  36  may have an approximately zero width. There are a variety of other connection methods that may be used.  
         [0020]    In an embodiment, the ink tube carrier  24  may be configured so that centers  40  of the carrier tubes  32 ,  36  in a cross section of the ink tube carrier  24  are approximately rectilinear so that they lie on a line  42 , as shown in FIG. 4. In this embodiment, the ink tube carrier  24  is configured as a bendable ribbon, as shown in FIG. 2.  
         [0021]    In an embodiment, the ink tube carrier  24  has exactly four closed tubes  32 , one closed tube  32  for each of four ink tubes  28 , and exactly two open tubes  36 , configured to house electrical wires  30 . In another embodiment, the ink tube carrier  24  has exactly six closed tubes  32  and exactly two open tubes  36 . The ink tube carrier  24  could, of course, have only closed tubes  32  or only open tubes  36 , or different numbers of each. An advantage of using closed tubes  32  for the ink tubes  32  is that, in the case of a breach of an ink tube  28 , the ink will be contained inside the corresponding closed tube  32  and will only be able to leak from the closed tube  32  at one of the two open ends of the closed tube  32 . An advantage of using open tubes  36  for the electrical wires  30  is that the electrical wires  30  may be easily inserted into the open tubes  36  via the slits  38 . An advantage to using an open tube for the electrical wires is that electrical wires with connectors attached can be inserted into the open tubes via the slits.  
         [0022]    An end  44  of the ink tube carrier  24  may be connected to the carriage  14 , e.g., with screws, adhesive, or snap-on connectors (other means of connection would be obvious to one skilled in the art). The end  44  may also be sealed to the carriage  14  to prevent leakage of ink from the point of connection between the ink tube carrier  24  and the carriage  14  in the event of a breach of an ink tube  28 . In the case of a breach of an ink tube  28 , the ink will then only be able to leak from its corresponding closed tube  32  at an opposite end of the ink tube carrier  24  (e.g., the end closer to the beam  22  or ink supply station  12 ). The ink jet printer system  10  may be configured to detect a leakage of ink from the opposite end.  
         [0023]    By way of example, the ink tube carrier  24  may be attached to the system  10  in the following way. For each ink tube  28 , a loose end of the ink tube  28  may be inserted into an open end of a closed tube  32 ; the ink tube  28  may then be threaded all the way through the closed tube  32  so that the end of the ink tube  28  protrudes from the closed tube  32 ; the end of the ink tube  28  may then be attached to the carriage  14 . After this has been performed for all ink tubes  28 , the end  44  of the ink tube carrier  24  may be connected to and/or sealed to the carriage  14  (so that ink can flow to the print head). Then, the electrical wires  30  may be inserted into one or more open tubes  36  by opening a slit  38  of the open tube  36  and passing the electrical wires into the open tube  36 .  
         [0024]    The foregoing description of embodiments of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention. The embodiments were chosen and described to explain the principles of the invention and as a practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents.