Abstract:
A printer accessory module for coupling to a printer to increase its printing capacity. The printer accessory module includes an auxiliary media module for storing and supplying printer media; and an auxiliary ink supply station for storing and supplying ink to the printer. The auxiliary ink supply station is connected to the printer by a ink delivery conduit system.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    The present disclosure relates generally to printer accessory modules and more particularly to a high volume accessory module for a printer. 
         [0002]    The printing capacity of a printer is often correlated to the capacity of the printer&#39;s input print media tray. Some printers have input media trays capable of storing and handling in excess of several hundred pages of print media. During high volume printing, the operation of printing may be interrupted when print media is depleted and has to be manually topped up in the input print media tray. As such, accessory trays have been developed to couple to such printers. These accessory trays have additional input print media trays which increase the print media capacity of the printer. 
         [0003]    The printing capacity of a printer may however also be correlated to the volume of ink immediately accessible to the printer during operation. Increasing the availability of ink to the printer also results in the printer being able to at print at higher capacities without being interrupted. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0004]      FIG. 1  illustrates an auxiliary module for a printer in accordance with the present embodiment; and 
           [0005]      FIG. 2  shows a simplified block diagram of  FIG. 1   
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0006]      FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  show a printing system  100  incorporating the present embodiment. The system  100  comprises a printer  10  and an auxiliary module  50 . The printer  10  and the auxiliary module  50  are both adapted to interconnect to each other and to operate in an interconnected manner. The printer  10  may be in general a inkjet type printer which comprises multiple components which are not described in detail in the present disclosure. A person skilled in the art would be familiar with the operational characteristics and technical details of such a printer  10 . 
         [0007]    The printer  10  in the present embodiment comprises at least a primary ink supply station  14 . Such a primary ink supply station  14  may be an off-axis ink supply or may be a direct mounted ink supply adjacent to one or more print heads  16  of the printer  10 . The ink supply station  14  comprises at least one or a plurality of ink cartridges  14 A mounted into the ink supply station  14 . The ink in the ink cartridges  14 A is then drawn from the ink supply station  14  via fluid couplings, tubes and conduits to the print heads  16 . The ink may be pressurized by mechanical or an electromechanical means (not shown) such as pumps or may be drawn by gravity in delivering the ink to the print heads  16 . 
         [0008]    The auxiliary module  50  comprises an auxiliary media module  53  and an auxiliary ink supply station  54 . The auxiliary module  50  has a housing  62  having an upper surface for supporting the printer  10 . When in operation, the printer  10  may be mounted on the auxiliary module  50  and is connected or coupled together to the printer  10 . The housing  62  further comprises a receptacle  51  for receiving an auxiliary media tray  52  moveable into and out of the receptacle  51 . The receptacle  51  and auxiliary media tray  52  in combination forms the auxiliary media module  53 . Additional print media such as paper or transparencies may be stored in the auxiliary media tray  52  of the auxiliary media module  53  and supplied to the printer  10  for printing. A media handling means  56  further forms part of the auxiliary module  50  and serves to transport individual media from the auxiliary media module  53  to a media feed system of the printer  10 . The printer  10  would also be adapted to couple with the auxiliary module  50  and also to operate with and receive media from the media handling means  56  of the auxiliary module  50 . 
         [0009]    The auxiliary ink supply station  54  comprises at least one or a plurality of ink cartridges  54 A mounted into the auxiliary ink supply station  54 . The auxiliary ink supply station  54  may be located in a convenient location on the housing  62  permitting easy user access to the ink cartridges  54 A. An auxiliary ink conduit system located within the housing  62  is adapted to provide fluid communication between the auxiliary ink supply station  54  and the plurality of print heads  16  and serves to deliver ink from the cartridges  54 A of the auxiliary ink supply station  54  to the print heads  16  of the printer  10 . As the auxiliary ink supply station  54  is sited relatively remote from the print heads  16 , a mechanical or an electromechanical means such as a pump may be incorporated into the ink supply station  54  to provide pressure in the delivery of the ink to the print heads  16 . Alternatively, such a pressurizing means may be incorporated into the cartridges  54 A to provide the pressure for delivery of ink to the print heads  16 . An example of such a pressurizing means would be a diaphragm pump incorporated into the ink cartridges. 
         [0010]    The housing of the auxiliary module  50  further comprises at least one guide pin  58 , for guiding the printer  10  to be seated on the auxiliary module  50  correctly. This ensures that the auxiliary module  50  couple with the printer  10  in a manner which permits the auxiliary media module  53  to properly transport and feed media to the printer  10 . 
         [0011]      FIG. 2  shows a simplified block diagram of the printing system of  FIG. 1 . A multi-way valve assembly  61  fluidically links the primary ink supply station  14 , the auxiliary ink supply station  54  and the print heads  16  of the printer  10 . The multi-way valve assembly  61  further comprises a plurality of multi-way valves  61 A, each of which links an individual conduit from each of the ink cartridges  54 A of the auxiliary ink supply station  54 , to a corresponding ink cartridge  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14  and to a corresponding print head  16 . 
         [0012]    At any one time, the multi-way valves  61 A ensure that each of the print heads  16  is fluidically coupled to only one of a corresponding cartridge of either the primary ink supply station  14  or the auxiliary ink supply station  54 , but not both. As such, ink will be drawn from one cartridge of either ink supply stations by each of the print heads  16 . Actuation of one of the multi-way valves  61 A will result in de-coupling of one of the corresponding cartridge from one of the ink supply stations and coupling to a corresponding cartridge of the other ink supply station. 
         [0013]    The auxiliary module  50  further comprises a fluid link  60  which has a corresponding fluid link in the printer  10 . The guide pin  58  further serves to ensure that the fluid link  60  of the auxiliary module  50  is properly coupled to corresponding fluid link of the printer  10 . The fluid link  60  may further comprise of a plurality of conduits and couplings corresponding to the auxiliary ink conduit system. 
         [0014]    The multi-way valve assembly  61  is generally located in the printer  10 . The fluid link  60  found on the housing  62  of the auxiliary module  50  serves to connect the auxiliary ink supply station  54  to the multi-way valve assembly  61 . When the auxiliary module  50  is not coupled to the printer  10 , the multi-way valve assembly always fluidically couples the primary ink supply station  14  to the print heads  16 . 
         [0015]    Selection of cartridges from either the primary ink supply station  14  or the auxiliary ink supply station  54  may be based on whether priority is given to using up ink from one of the stations first then utilizing ink from the other station. Alternatively, it may be predetermined by a user setting on the multiway valves  61 A or by predetermined instructions to the printer  10 . 
         [0016]    During operation, ink is usually first supplied by the cartridges  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14  to the print heads  16 . However, as printing occurs, ink from at least one of the ink cartridges  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14  may become depleted. 
         [0017]    When this occurs, the usual approach would be to interrupt the printing and to manually replace the depleted ink cartridge  14 A with a new one. 
         [0018]    In an example of an operational scenario in accordance with the present embodiment, during printing, one of the ink cartridges  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14  is depleted. Detection of the empty cartridge  14 A occurs in the printer  10  and the multiway valve  61 A corresponding to the empty ink cartridge  14 A of the multi-way valve assembly  61  is actuated in response to sensing the depletion of ink from that ink cartridge  14 A. The valve  61 A actuated fluidically disconnects the depleted ink cartridge  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14  and fluidically connects the corresponding ink cartridge  54 A of the auxiliary ink supply station  54  to the corresponding print head  16 . Ink is now drawn from the ink cartridge  54 A of the auxiliary ink supply station  54 . This then allows uninterrupted printing when ink is depleted from the ink cartridges  14 A of the primary ink supply station  14 . 
         [0019]    It is to be understood that the term “connect/connected” or “couple/coupled” are broadly defined herein to encompass a variety of divergent connection or coupling arrangements and assembly techniques. These arrangements and techniques include, but are not limited to (1) the direct connection or coupling between one component and another component with no intervening components therebetween; and (2) the connection or coupling of one component and another component with one or more components therebetween, provided that the one component being “connect to” or “coupled to” the other component is somehow operatively connected to the other component (notwithstanding the presence of one or more additional components therebetween). 
         [0020]    Numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated.