Abstract:
A one-way valve, a valve unit assembly and ink cartridge using this valve or valve unit assembly for controlling ink flow are disclosed. The one-way valve includes a foot support portion, a wall support portion projecting at an angle from an interior side of the foot support portion, a shoulder support portion bending towards an interior side of the wall support portion, and a head support portion projecting from a shoulder support portion with a through hole. The valve unit assembly includes a bottom cover with a through hole for holding the one-way valve, a pressing cover with a through hole, and an elastic one-way valve disposed between the bottom cover and the pressing cover. The pressing cover is maintained selectively in contact with the head support portion through hole by a pressure difference. The one-way valve and the valve unit assembly are disposed in an ink chamber to replace a porous member usually used in the ink chamber. As a result, the ink cartridge using the one-way valve can store more ink and remaining ink is handled in a more environment friendly manner.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims priority from, and expressly incorporates by reference herein, pending U.S. application Ser. No. 09/930,517, filed Aug. 15, 2001, which claims priority from provisional U.S. application 60/225,722, filed Aug. 16, 2000, and International application PCT/CN01/00312, filed Feb. 28, 2001, which claims priority from Chinese application 00106428.2, filed Apr. 3, 2000. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to a one-way valve, a valve unit assembly and an ink cartridge using the valve or the valve unit assembly to control ink flow.  
         [0003]     Conventionally, in an ink jet printer, the printhead is connected with the ink cartridge for printing out characters or drawings. A basic requirement thereof is that the ink cartridge can supply ink to the printhead smoothly. Currently, a porous member such as sponge for storing ink by capillary force is used in ink cartridges. China patent publication No. CN1185379A discloses this kind of ink cartridge, as shown in  FIG. 43 , which is divided into two chambers  2  and  4 . A foam  3  is employed to absorb the ink, and obviously the foam occupies a part of the volume or inner space of the ink cartridge. Volumetric efficiency, however, in using foam is about 60-65%. Therefore, these designs are deemed to be less efficient than desired since a reduced amount of ink is stored in the cartridge.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     The present invention provides a one-way valve or a valve unit assembly. The one-way valve is bellows shaped in order to be deformed easily.  
         [0005]     The present invention provides an ink cartridge employing the one-way valve or the valve unit assembly for controlling ink flow.  
         [0006]     The one-way valve is designed as a bellows shape with a foot support portion, a wall support portion projecting from an interior of the foot support portion, a shoulder support portion bending toward an interior of the wall support portion, and a head support portion with a through hole projecting from the shoulder support portion. And the valve unit assembly of the present invention includes a bottom cover with a through hole for supporting the valve, a pressing cover with a through hole, and an elastic valve disposed between the bottom cover and the pressing cover, the through hole of the head support portion of the valve selectively contacting the non-through hole portion of the pressing cover.  
         [0007]     The ink cartridge of the present invention comprises at least an ink chamber with an ink outlet, and a one-way valve disposed between the ink chamber and the ink outlet. A pressing cover is maintained selectively in contact with the one-way valve head support portion through hole by a pressure difference. In addition, as another preferred embodiment, the one-way valve and the pressing cover can be substituted for a valve unit assembly which comprises a bottom cover with a through hole for holding a valve, a pressing cover with a through hole, and an elastic valve with a head support portion through hole disposed between the bottom cover and the pressing cover, said pressing cover being maintained selectively in contact with said head support portion through hole of said elastic valve by a pressure difference.  
         [0008]     A valve socket for holding the one-way valve unit assembly is provided in the ink cartridge according to another preferred embodiment. The inlet of the one-way valve unit assembly is connected with the ink chamber, and the outlet of the one-way valve unit assembly is connected to the ink outlet. As a result, when the pressure difference between an inlet side and outlet side varies during printing, the one-way valve opens or closes automatically, and adjusts the ink flow.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]     The present invention is exemplified in the following drawings and the preferred embodiments.  
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of a first embodiment.  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  is a sectional view showing the configuration of a pressing cover of the one-way valve unit assembly of the first embodiment.  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the one-way valve.  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  is a sectional view showing the sealing member in the ink outlet.  
         [0014]      FIG. 5  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of a second embodiment.  
         [0015]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line A-A of  FIG. 5 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line B-B of  FIG. 5 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line C-C in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 9  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of a third embodiment.  
         [0019]      FIG. 10  is an exploded view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of the third embodiment.  
         [0020]      FIG. 11  is an exploded view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of a fourth embodiment.  
         [0021]      FIG. 12  is a front view of the fourth embodiment.  
         [0022]      FIG. 13  is a rear view of  FIG. 12 .  
         [0023]      FIG. 14  is a top view of  FIG. 12 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 15  is a bottom view of  FIG. 12 .  
         [0025]      FIG. 16  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line D-D of  FIG. 12 .  
         [0026]      FIG. 17  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line E-E of  FIG. 14 .  
         [0027]      FIG. 18  is an exploded view showing the ink cartridge of a fifth embodiment.  
         [0028]      FIG. 19  is a front view showing the ink cartridge of the fifth embodiment.  
         [0029]      FIG. 20  is a rear view of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0030]      FIG. 21  is a top view of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0031]      FIG. 22  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line H-H of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0032]      FIG. 23  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line J-J of  FIG. 21 .  
         [0033]      FIG. 24  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line I-I of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0034]      FIG. 25  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line F-F of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0035]      FIG. 26  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line G-G of  FIG. 19 .  
         [0036]      FIG. 27  is an exploded view showing the one-way valve unit assembly.  
         [0037]      FIG. 28  is a perspective view showing the ink cartridge with the cover removed.  
         [0038]      FIG. 29  is a front view of  FIG. 28 .  
         [0039]      FIG. 30  is a bottom view of  FIG. 28 .  
         [0040]      FIG. 31  is a top view of  FIG. 28 .  
         [0041]      FIG. 32  is a sectional view taken along a line K-K of  FIG. 31 .  
         [0042]      FIG. 33  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line L-L of  FIG. 31 .  
         [0043]      FIG. 34  is a sectional view showing the ink cartridge in a seventh embodiment.  
         [0044]      FIG. 35  is a cross-sectional view at a section taken along a line M-M of  FIG. 34 .  
         [0045]      FIG. 36  is an enlarged exploded perspective view showing the one-way valve unit assembly.  
         [0046]      FIG. 37  is a sectional view showing the ink cartridge of an eighth embodiment.  
         [0047]      FIG. 38  is a sectional view showing the ink supplying status of the eighth embodiment.  
         [0048]      FIG. 39  is a sectional view showing the ink cartridge of a ninth embodiment.  
         [0049]      FIG. 40  is a sectional view showing the ink cartridge of a tenth embodiment.  
         [0050]      FIG. 41  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of an eleventh embodiment.  
         [0051]      FIG. 42  is a sectional view showing the configuration of the ink cartridge of the twelfth embodiment.  
         [0052]      FIG. 43  is a sectional view of one type of conventional ink cartridge. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0053]     A number of different embodiments are described below in conjunction with various environments in which the present invention is employed. It will be understood that like terms are used to describe like components, even though different reference numerals may be used when referring to specific components of a particular embodiment.  
       Embodiment One  
       [0054]     In  FIG. 1 , a one-way valve unit assembly  110  is illustrated for use in this embodiment. The one-way valve unit assembly is located in a valve socket  111  of ink chamber  100 , and cylindrical wall of a bottom cover  114  extends along an interior wall of the valve socket  111  and a flange of the bottom cover  114  contacts step  105  of the valve socket  111 . The ink flow from the ink chamber  100  to ink outlet  109  is controlled by selective opening or closing of valve  112 , the structure and operation of which will be described in greater detail below with respect to  FIG. 3 . To ensure ink flow from the one-way valve unit  110  to ink outlet  109 , it is necessary to seal the region between the exterior of the bottom cover of the one-way valve unit assembly  110  and corresponding side walls, bottom wall or steps. According to the present invention, one preferred material for the bottom cover of the one-way valve unit assembly  110 , may be a metal such as copper, or the sealing may be achieved by fusion, by use of an adhesive, or by adding an elastic sealing member. In this embodiment, a sealing member  106  is provided between the bottom cover of the one-way valve unit and the bottom portion of the valve socket  111 . Moreover, an air vent  102  and an ink filling port  104  which is sealed by a colloid stopper  103  are set in cover  101  of the ink cartridge.  
         [0055]      FIG. 2  shows top view of pressing cover  113  of the one-way valve unit assembly of this embodiment. There are three troughs  113 B in the pressing cover  113 , and a valve plane region  113 A being maintained selectively in contact with the head support portion through hole of the valve  112 .  FIG. 3  shows a sectional view of a bellows valve  112  that is preferably formed of a rubber with a Shore degree hardness of 30°˜65°, and a preferred profile of the bellows is a truncated cone. The bellows valve includes a foot support portion  112 E, that abuttingly engages and is supported by an internal wall of bottom cover  114 . The foot support portion is dimensioned for sealing contact with the wall. The enlarged thickness of the foot support portion  112 E is reduced and tapered along wall support portion  112 A. That is, the wall thins in cross section and tapers inwardly to a reduced diameter as the bellows valve merges from the foot support portion toward shoulder portion  112 B. At the shoulder support portion  112 B, the bellows valve undergoes a reverse curve, the shoulder support portion merging into an inwardly extending support section that defines a well or recess that supports head support portion  112 C. The support portion has a through opening  112 D. The shoulder portion  112 B bends inwardly along the wall support portion  112 A to support shoulder support portion  112 B. The contour of the bellows valve is responsive to small or subtle pressure differences so that it regulates and controls ink flow to ink outlet  109 .  
         [0056]     When the printer operates, there is a difference of pressure between two sides of the bellows valve that results in the deformation of the bellows valve. The wall support portion  112 A which bends to the inside of the shoulder support portion and forms the well, guarantees that the head support portion  112 C moves in response to small pressure changes. In fact, the configuration of the shoulder support portion  112 B guarantees that subtle changes result in movement or influence in head support portion  112 C. Therefore, the configuration of the shoulder support portion  112 B provides for a sensitive releasing of pressure.  
         [0057]     The movement of the head support portion  112 C is greater when there is a large negative pressure difference in order to both control the flow of ink and to reset the head support portion  112 C quickly. Therefore the thickness of the foot support portion  112 E is greater than that of the head support portion  112 C and the supporting shoulder  112 B of the valve. It is easy to understand that the thickness of shoulder support portion  112 B is designed to be less than the thickness of the head support portion  112 C, especially in the curved portion  112 F which is ranges from approximately 0.15 to 0.5 mm. An opening or hole  112 D in the wall support portion  112 A is designed to be cone shaped. The head support portion  112 C slopes inwardly at an angle θ1 of 85° which is greater than the slope angle of the foot support portion  112 E represented by angle θ2 of 65°. An equilibrium condition is obtained when the sloping angle θ1 is reduced in response to negative pressure in the ink chamber.  
         [0058]     Referring to  FIG. 4 , a sealing member  107  has a block portion  108  that is selectively separated via a frangible connection  107 A. A tapered surface  107 B is provided inwardly of the sealing member to facilitate separation of the block portion  108  from the frangible connection  107 A. The tapered surface  107 B is provided to facilitate the block portion being pushed upward, the sloping angle formed between the tapered surface  107 B and the lateral direction is preferably around 30˜45 degrees. The sealing member  107  is made of an elastic material with Shore hardness 30˜50 degrees. The block portion  108  has a generally cylindrical shape. When an ink supply needle (not shown) is inserted through sealing portion  107 A, the block portion  107  of the sealing member at least partially separates from the remainder of the sealing member. The frangible connection portion is an average thickness. The width of the frangible connection  107 A is 0.1˜0.3 mm, and the thickness of the frangible connection portion  107 A is 0.15˜0.4 mm.  
         [0059]     When the ink cartridge is mounted to the printer, an ink supply needle (not shown) punctures block  108  of sealing member  107 . During printing, there is a pressure difference between two sides of the one-way valve unit assembly. The head support portion  112 C of the bellows valve moves down when the degree of pressure reaches a predetermined level, e.g., −120 mm water, and the opening  112 D is opened as the valve separates from the pressing cover  113 , the liquid ink is filled into the ink outlet port. According to the valve  112  of this invention, the opening pressure is −200 to 0 mm water and optimum opening pressure is −150 to −30 mm water.  
       Embodiment Two  
       [0060]     Referring to  FIGS. 5-8 , this embodiment also advantageously employs the one-way valve unit assembly between the ink chamber and the ink outlet. Moreover, in this embodiment, the ink chamber is further divided into a main ink chamber and supplementary ink chamber. The supplementary chamber is designed to supply ink to print several more pages after an ink out alarm is encountered. The ink chamber includes cap  202 , two end walls  206  and  216 , bottom side  210  and two side walls. A supplementary chamber  201  is separated from the main chamber  203  by a partition wall  215  and is connected with the main chamber  203  through an ink passage way  214 . And an ink out detecting prism  213  is set near the ink passageway  214 . The outlet of the valve socket  212  is connected to ink outlet  207 . The sealing membrane  211  seals the process hole of the valve socket  212 . A fiber  208  is disposed in an upper part of ink outlet  207 , and a funnel-shaped sealing member located in a lower part of ink outlet  207 . A sealing film  205  is provided to seal the exterior end of the ink outlet  207 . The cap  202  is provided with an air vent and a ventilated plug  204  is employed to block the air vent. The ventilated plug  204  is preferably composed of cylindrical elements with air vent of 10˜60 μm, which are made of polythene. The ventilated plug can allow the air to communicate with the ink chamber to keep a desired negative pressure within the ink chamber and can prevent the ink from polluting the environment when the ink cartridge is removed from the printer once being used, such as when the cartridge is inverted upon removal from the printer. The ventilated plug  204  is also sealed by the sealing film  205  as shipped from the manufacturer. Referring to  FIG. 6 , ink outlet  207  and the air vent are both sealed by the sealing film  205  and torn away when the ink cartridge is used. At the entrance of the valve socket  212 , the ink passages  218  and  219  are connected to the ink outlet  207  and the ink passage  219  is provided in the exterior surface of the ink outlet  207 . A sealing membrane  211  is used to seal ink passages  218  and  219 .  
         [0061]     As shown in  FIG. 7 , at the left side of the valve socket  212  is an ink passage  220  connecting to the ink chamber for guiding ink therefrom, and at the bottom right side is an ink passage  218  connecting to ink outlet  207 . The one-way valve unit assembly includes a pressing cover  221 , bottom cover  223  and the valve  222 . A trough is provided in the pressing cover  221  which is being maintained selectively in contact with the through hole of the valve  222 . A through hole is provided in the central portion of the bottom cover  223 . The valve unit assembly is engaged tightly with the valve socket.  
         [0062]     Referring to  FIG. 8 , an ink out detecting prism  213  is integrally formed with the bottom wall of the ink cartridge. The ink out detecting prism  213  projects inwardly toward the ink chamber and projects outward to form a rib  224  on the exterior surface of bottom wall. The sealing membrane  211  seals the ink passage  225  from the supplementary chamber  201  to the valve socket  212 .  
       Embodiment Three  
       [0063]     Referring to the embodiment of  FIG. 9 , the supplementary chamber is part of the main chamber, i.e., it is integrated therewith. The ink cartridge comprises a cap  302 , two side walls  306  and  316 , and bottom side  310 . A supplementary chamber  301  is separated from the main chamber  303  by an invisible plane  332 , which is the reflecting point of the ink out detecting prism  312 . Thus, additional ink is provided from this supplemental volume located below the plane  332  once the ink out detecting prism signals that the ink cartridge is out of ink.  
         [0064]      FIG. 10  shows the accessories and their assembly relations. A ventilated plug  304  is engaged tightly with the through hole in cap  302 , and there are three troughs  333  in pressing cover  321 . Through hole  335  of the valve  322  is engaged with the valve plane  334  at the central region of the pressing cover  321 , and a through hole  336  is provided in the middle of bottom cover  323 . After the one-way valve is loaded or assembled in the valve socket  312 , the sealing membrane  311  seals the process hole in the valve socket and ink passages  318  and  319 . The fiber  308  is engaged tightly with ink outlet  307 . The sealing member  309  is provided with two hoops or circumferentially continuous protrusions to seal tightly with the ink outlet  307 . The sealing membrane  305  seals the air vent and ink supply port  307  and is torn away or removed before the ink cartridge is used.  
       Embodiment Four  
       [0065]     Referring to  FIG. 11 , this embodiment is a single-color ink cartridge. Cartridge body  402  comprises an ink chamber and a cap  401  welded with cartridge body  402 . In a lower portion of cartridge body  402  is a valve socket  403  that receives the one-way valve unit assembly that includes bottom cover  410 , pressing cover  408  and the valve  409 . Preferably, the valve unit assembly is loaded into valve socket  403  by employing a sealing member  404  that seals about a periphery of the valve unit assembly when it is mounted in the valve socket. Sealing membrane  411  is used to seal valve socket  403  and a groove or passage connected to outlet of the valve. Ink guiding member  406  is a fiber made of hydrophilic material, i.e., having an affinity for absorbing water, such as polypropylene, polythene, or fibrin and alternative materials that serve the same function, which is loaded into ink outlet at the bottom of the ink cartridge. A sealing member  407  is disposed outside the ink guiding member  406 . A sealing membrane  405  covering a groove/passage connected to the entrance of the one-way valve unit is provided at the bottom of the cartridge body  402 . A picking member or deflectable lever arm  413  is provided on the protective cover and facilitates loading and unloading the ink cartridge in a protecting cover  412 . A stopper  415  is a ventilated and water proof porous member made of macromolecule material such as terylene, polypropylene, polythene or similar material, which is inserted into the air vent in cap  401 . When the ink cartridge is covered with the protecting cover  412 , the vent sealing  414  on the protecting cover  412  will seal the air vent.  
         [0066]     Referring to  FIG. 12  and  FIG. 13 , a row of localized bulges or ridges  422  lies at the cap of the ink cartridge, and a groove or passage  423  is located in the exterior of the ink cartridge. One end  425  of the groove  423  enters into an upper portion of the ink outlet  424 , and the other end of the passage enters into the valve socket  403  of the one-way valve.  
         [0067]     Referring to  FIG. 14 , air vent  421  lies in top of the cap of the ink cartridge, and two of localization bulges or ridges  422  having a sloped surface are illustrated.  
         [0068]     Referring to  FIG. 15 , another groove  427  is provided in the exterior of the bottom of the ink cartridge, with one end  426  entering into valve socket, and the other end entering into the ink chamber. This figure also illustrates how the ink outlet  424  changes slowly from a circle to an ellipse as the ink outlet proceeds from the interior to the exterior.  
         [0069]     Referring to  FIG. 16 , although the ink outlet  424  lies below the ink chamber  428 , the ink outlet is not connected directly to the ink chamber  428 , and rather is connected to ink chamber via the one-way valve unit and an ink passage. In addition, an ink guiding member  406  and a sealing member  407  are disposed within the ink outlet  424 .  
         [0070]     Referring to  FIG. 17 , a stopper  415  is loaded into the air vent  421  in the cap of the ink cartridge and allows air to vent therethrough while preventing fluid (e.g., ink) from passing therethrough. An inverted concave chamber  429  is formed surrounding the air vent  421 , and vent port  430  is formed in the interior end of the air vent  421  and is designed to be located below the bottom plane  431  of the concave chamber  429 . Although the valve socket  403  is inside of the ink cartridge, the valve socket is not connected directly to the ink chamber  428 , and instead is connected by the ink passage that includes groove  427  and the sealing membrane  405 .  
       Embodiment Five  
       [0071]     Referring to  FIG. 18 , this embodiment relates to a three-color ink cartridge, i.e., the cartridge body  502  comprises three independent ink chambers  528 A,  528 B and  528 C. There is an air vent  521  with a ventilated and waterproof stopper  515  relative to each ink chamber in the cap  501 ; three valve sockets  503  and two sealing membranes  511 A and  511 B are disposed in side walls of the cartridge body  502 . The one-way valve unit assembly includes bottom cover  510 , a cap  508  and valve  509 ; an ink guiding member  506  and a sealing member  507  are disposed in each of three ink outlets. On the top of the protecting cover  512  are three openings or holes  517  corresponding to or located for mating relation with air vents  521 ; a sealing member  514  made of rubber is positioned in each of the holes  517 ; a picking member or flexible lever  513  is provided on the top of the protecting member  512 ; and at the bottom there is an ink outlet sealing member  519 , which seals the three ink supply ports when the ink cartridge is loaded in the protecting member  512 . The material and configuration of the accessories not mentioned in this embodiment are the same as the ones in the fourth embodiment.  
         [0072]     Referring to  FIG. 19 , a valve socket  503 A is formed in the side of the cartridge body  502 . One end  526 A of groove  527 A enters into ink chamber  528 A ( FIG. 22 ), and the other end is connected to valve socket  503 A. One end  525 B of the groove  523 B enters into the upper portion of the ink outlet  524 B, and the other end is connected to valve socket  503 B in the other side of the cartridge body  502 .  
         [0073]     Referring to  FIG. 20 , cartridge body side  502  is provided with two valve sockets  503 B and  503 C. One end  525 A of the groove  523 A enters into the upper portion of the ink outlet  524 A, and the other end is connected to valve socket  503 A in the other side of the cartridge body  502 . One end  526 B of the groove  527 B enters into ink chamber  528 B, and the other end is connected to  503 B; and one end  526 C of the groove is connected to ink chamber  528 C, and the other end is connected to valve socket  503 C.  
         [0074]     Referring to  FIG. 21 , three air vents  521 A,  521 B, and  521 C in the cap  501  are connected to three ink chambers respectively. There are five localization bulges or ridges  522  having a sloped surface.  
         [0075]     Referring to  FIG. 22 , it can be seen from this sectional view that two separate ink chambers  528 A and  528 B are formed after top  501  and cartridge body  502  are joined or fused together such as by ultrasonic welding. The air vent  521 A has stopper  515 A that allows air to pass therethrough but precludes passage of ink from the ink chamber  528 A. It can be also seen that ink outlets  524 A and  524 B, respectively, with ink guiding members  506 A and  506 B, and sealing members  507 A and  507 B, are not connected directly to corresponding ink chambers  528 A and  528 B. To facilitate removal of the cartridge body from the mold when being made, the ink supply port is not located directly below the corresponding ink chamber, and is instead arranged crosswise as shown in  FIG. 21 .  
         [0076]     Referring to  FIG. 23 , it can be seen that the vent port  530 B of air vent  521 B is below the bottom plane  531 B of inverted concave chamber  529 B in the ink chamber  528 B.  
         [0077]     Referring to  FIG. 24 , likewise, an inverted concave chamber  529 C is provided in the ink chamber  528 C in the cap  501 , and the port  530 C of the air vent in this region is below the bottom  531 C of inverted concave chamber  529 C. The valve socket  503 C and ink outlet in this chamber  528 C are all in the lower portion. These components are connected by the ink passage, formed by the holes in the inside wall of cartridge body  502 , a groove in the exterior wall and a sealing membrane.  
         [0078]     Referring to  FIG. 25 , a preferred arrangement of three independent ink chambers  528 A,  528 B and  528 C, and air vents  521 A,  521 B and  521 C can be seen.  
         [0079]     Referring to  FIG. 26 , after the one-way valve unit assembly is assembled with bottom cover  510 A, pressing cover  508 A and the valve  509 A, the assembly is set in valve socket  503 A and its circumference is welded to secure the assembly therein.  
         [0080]     Referring to  FIG. 27 , pressing cover  508  is a molded plastic member. On the outside, there is a flange whose bottom surface  532  is used for welding with bottom cover  510 . In addition, the pressing cover defines a valve plane  533 , includes three entrances or through passages  535  and a press ring  534  for fixation of the valve. The head support portion of the elastic valve  509  has a through hole  536  that selectively contacts elastically and tightly with valve plane  533 , and a circumference  537  that is extruded and generally fixed. The bottom cover  510  is a molded plastic member, comprising a ring  538  adapted to be welded with the valve socket, an outlet  542 , protrusions  539  (four illustrated here) formed on the end of outlet  542  and protruding ring  541  surrounding outlet  542 , which is of same height as protrusion  539  and has multiple passages, shown here as four groove ports  540 . When assembled together, these three components form a highly useful one-way valve unit assembly that finds particular application in the ink cartridge environment as illustrated and described herein.  
       Embodiment Six  
       [0081]     Referring to  FIG. 28 , multiple ink outlets  601  are dimensioned for engagement with the printer (not shown) and lie in a side of the substantial hexahedron. In this embodiment, five ink chambers are composed by three longitudinal partition members and a transverse partition member, and the five ink chambers are arranged as two rows, three ink chambers  602  are in the front row and two ink chambers  603  are in the rear row.  
         [0082]     Referring to  FIG. 29 , it can be seen that longitudinal ink supply tubes  604  are connected to the ink chambers in the front row, and transverse ink supply tubes  605  are connected to the ink chambers in the rear row.  
         [0083]     Referring to  FIG. 30 , the cover for covering the transverse ink supply tube has been removed and is not shown. The inner chamber  607  in the ink supply tube is surrounded by wall  606  at the bottom  608  of the ink cartridge. One end of the inner chamber  607  contains a valve socket for holding a one-way valve unit assembly, and the other end extends to a position near ink outlet  601 .  
         [0084]     Referring to  FIG. 31 , the arrangement of the ink chambers  602  and  603  and the valve socket  609  in each chamber can be seen clearly.  
         [0085]      FIG. 32  shows the configuration of the ink chamber  602  in the front row. At a bottom of the ink chamber  602  is provided valve socket  610 , ink supply tube  611 , and ink supply port  601  proceeding from the interior to the exterior which are in fluid communication and together constitute an ink supply passage.  
         [0086]      FIG. 33  shows the configuration of the ink chamber  603  in the rear row. At a bottom of the ink chamber  603  is provided valve socket  610 , ink supply tube, and ink outlet  601  proceeding from the interior to the exterior which are in fluid communication and together constitute an ink supply passage. A difference between ink chamber  603  and the ink chamber  602  is that the ink supply tube in ink chamber  603  is divided into two parts, one part being horizontal part composed of inner chamber  607 , and the other being vertical part composed of inner part  613 . The two parts are connected by opening or hole  612 .  
       Embodiment Seven  
       [0087]     Referring to  FIG. 34 , the cartridge body includes cap  701  and cartridge  706 . At ink outlet  713  there is a sealing member  714  provided at the bottom of ink chamber  705 . An air vent  703  is provided in the cap  701  and connects the air with the ink chamber  705 . A valve socket  712  lies between two side walls  716  and ink passage  710  is a low-position tube composed of a groove in the exterior of the bottom of the ink cartridge and a sealing membrane  711 ; so that the ink in the ink chamber  705  enters into valve socket  712  passing ink passage  710  and reaching the entrance to the one-way valve unit assembly. The ink supply tube is divided into two parts, one part is connected to vertical part of ink outlet  713 , i.e. the tube holding fiber member  717  and sealing member  714 ; and the one-way valve unit assembly is fixed vertically at the side of the socket  712 . In  FIG. 34 , the stopper  704  is for sealing the ink filling port; ventilated sealing membrane  702  is made of water proof material for sealing air vent  703  against ink leakage but allowing air to flow therethrough, guaranteeing that the negative pressure value in ink chamber remains substantially constant, and at the same time, preventing ink from leaking or evaporating from air vent  703 . The flexible lever  707 , having an integral locking member on it, and the locking members  715 ,  718  at the opposite side of the ink cartridge are used for mounting or fixing the ink cartridge. The positioning member  708  further cooperates with the ink cartridge holder to ensure the operation of ink out detecting apparatus.  
         [0088]     Referring to  FIG. 35 , a valve socket  711  includes an ink passage  710  to ink chamber  705  disposed at the bottom and separated from the ink cartridge  706 . The one-way valve unit assembly is received or set in a hole in a side wall of the ink cartridge and contacts tightly with another side wall  716  of the cartridge. The hole is sealed by sealing membrane  720  after the one-way valve unit assembly is received in the hole. An ink out detecting prism  709  protruding to an interior of the ink chamber  705  lies at the bottom of the ink chamber  705 . There is a groove connecting the one-way valve unit assembly with the vertical part of ink supply tube in the exterior of the side wall  716 , and the groove and sealing membrane  721  constitute the horizontal part of the ink supply tube  722 .  
         [0089]     Referring to  FIG. 36 , the one-way valve unit assembly comprises pressing cover  724 , valve  726 , and bottom cover  727 . The circumference  726  of the valve is pressed tightly between pressing cover  724  and bottom cover  727 . A through hole  725  selectively contacts tightly with the valve plane on an underside of the cap  724  to shut off or cut off the ink passage when the valve is closed. When ink is consumed to a certain level, the negative pressure in the tube will make or urge the valve  726  to move downwards, that is, the through hole  725  will leave the valve plane defined on the underside of the pressing cover  724  and, therefore, ink in the ink chamber will enter into ink supply tube passing in order through the through hole  723  in the pressing cover  724 , the through hole  725  in the valve  726 , and the through hole  728  in the bottom cover  727 , and the one-way valve assembly is opened. Except when ink is supplied as described above, the through hole of the valve  725  will contact tightly with the valve plane depending on its elasticity and the one-way valve assembly is closed.  
       Embodiment Eight  
       [0090]     Referring to  FIG. 37  and  FIG. 38 , a sealing member  806  is disposed in ink outlet; a block  805  is connected with sealing member  806  by a very thin ring membrane; and a one-way valve unit assembly is positioned between ink chamber  801  and ink outlet. The one-way valve unit assembly comprises a bottom cover  810  with a through hole  808 , the valve  809  with a through hole  812  and a pressing  813  with a through hole  811 . The head portion with through hole  812  contacts tightly with the valve plane of the pressing cover  813  depending on the elasticity of the valve  809  which is preferably made of elastic material. The space between the valve plane and block  805  is an ink supply chamber  807 . There is an idle body  804  at the axis of the ink supply needle  815  as shown in  FIG. 37 , engaging with a gap in a bushing  802 . The sealing member  803  guarantees the sealing between idle body  804  and bushing  802  when the idle body  804  moves in an axial direction relative to bushing  802 . The idle body  804  should be of same sectional area, i.e., maximum outer diameter, as the ink supply needle  815 , in order that one can be replaced for the other upon insertion of the ink cartridge on the printer. A passage  814  is also selectively displaced when the idle body member is displaced by the printer needle (compare location of passage  814  in  FIG. 37  with  FIG. 38 ) and is located between a part of the idle body  804  in ink chamber  801  and a middle part, connecting ink chamber with ink supply chamber when ink supply needle is not inserted in. From the point of view of the technology of ink cartridge manufacture, it is convenient for ink to be filled into the two chambers under same pressure. Obviously, the passage  814  can be replaced with the grooves in the exterior side of the idle body as an alternative construction. When ink supply needle  815  is pierced into sealing member  806 , the ring membrane breaks, block  805  breaks off, and ink supply needle  815  pushes idle body  804  upwardly out of the ink supply chamber  807 . At the same time, passage  814  is blocked off from ink supply chamber  807  by sealing member  803  and becomes a blind or dead end passage.  
       Embodiment Nine  
       [0091]     Referring to  FIG. 39 , a sealing member  906  is positioned or set in an ink outlet. A block  905  is connected with sealing member  906  by a very thin ring membrane and a one-way valve unit assembly is located between ink chamber  901  and the ink outlet. The valve unit assembly comprises a bottom cover  910  with a through hole  908 , the valve  909  with a through hole  912 , and a pressing cover  913  with a through hole  911 . The head portion of through hole  912  contacts tightly with the valve plane of the pressing cover  913  depending on the elasticity of the valve  909  which is made of elastic material. The space between the valve plane and sealing member  906  is defined in this embodiment as the ink supply chamber  907 . There is a passage for discharging pressure between ink chamber  901  and ink supply chamber  907 , in which a one-way valve  917  discharging pressure is set inversely, i.e., the valve will open only when the pressure in the ink supply chamber  907  reaches or exceeds a predetermined value which should be lower than 0.3 times of the pressure value that could damage print head, or else, the valve will close. The configuration of the valve  917  is substantially the same as the one-way valves described in the other embodiments except for the predetermined value parameter. It can be seen from the drawing that the bottom cover  910  of one valve is facing upward and the other is facing downward. It is obvious that they can be exchanged with each other relative to the ink cartridge.  
       Embodiment Ten  
       [0092]     Referring to  FIG. 40 , a sealing member  1006  is secured or set in ink outlet and a block is connected with the sealing member  1006  by a very thin ring membrane. A one-way valve unit assembly is positioned between ink chamber  1001  and ink outlet, and the valve unit assembly comprises a bottom cover  1010  with a through hole  1008 , valve  1009  with a through hole  1012 , and a pressing cover  1013  with a through hole  1011 . The head portion of through hole  1012  selectively contacts with a valve plane located on an underside of the pressing cover  1013  depending on the elasticity of the valve  1009  which is made of elastic material. The space between the valve plane and sealing member  1006  defines ink supply chamber  1007 . There is a passage  1019  for discharging pressure between ink chamber  1001  and ink supply chamber  1007 , which passage is cut off or sealed by a sealing membrane  1018  which is a flexible bag in a contracted state. The volume variation value of the flexible bag between enlarged status and contracted status should be substantially equal to the volume of ink supply needle in the ink supply chamber; and the flexible bag is waterproof, for example the bag may be made of rubber, plastic and so on. Also, the sealing membrane may be designed as an elastic bowl body, the side of which is fixed in the passage  1019 . In a new ink cartridge, the sealing membrane  1018  is in the stable state that the bowl bottom is downward, and when the ink supply needle is inserted in, the sealing membrane  1018  is reversed into another stable state such that the bowl bottom is displaced upward when the pressure in ink supply chamber reaches a predetermined value as a result, the volume of the ink supply chamber is enlarged. The volume enclosed between the two steady states should be substantially equal to the volume of ink supply needle in the ink supply chamber.  
       Embodiment Eleven  
       [0093]     Referring to  FIG. 41 , the cartridge body  1109  comprises an ink chamber  1101  for storing ink, a cartridge cap  1104  with an air vent  1103  allowing the ink chamber to receive air, and an ink outlet blocked by a sealing member  1107 . To prevent ink from leaking out from air vent  1108  when the ink cartridge is removed from the printer or unloaded, in this embodiment, the ink cartridge further comprises a leakage prevention apparatus  1102  surrounding the air vent. The leakage prevention apparatus  1102  is a thin membrane bag made of elastic material with a tiny orifice, whose port is connected to a circumference of the cartridge cap  1104 . During printing, as the ink is being constantly consumed, the volume chamber formed between the cartridge cap  1104  and the membrane  1102  is enlarged until the tiny orifice is opened, whereby the air is supplied into the ink chamber to keep a pressure balance in the ink cartridge, and, therefore, the printing can be continued. When the printing is stopped, the tiny orifice that was opened will close depending on the elasticity of the membrane, and as a result, ink cannot flow into the membrane chamber. There is a one-way valve  1106  for controlling ink flow in the ink chamber  1101 . The pressing cover  1105  presses tightly on the head support portion of the valve and its valve plane blocks off the through hole of the head support portion of the valve  1106 .  
       Embodiment Twelve  
       [0094]     Referring to  FIG. 42 , a spring  1254  is interposed between the bellows valve  1230  and the lower wall of the cartridge. The spring  1254  urges the bellows valve  1230  into sealing engagement with the pressing cover  1234  to adjust the pressure sensitivity. A soft tube  1242  extends inside to one third of the depth of the ink chamber to prevent ink from leaking.  
         [0095]     While the present invention has been described with respect to what is presently considered to be the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. To the contrary, the invention is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.