Patent ID: 7585064

Claim:
A bubble removing apparatus usable in an inkjet printer, comprising: an ink circulation line to connect an ink tank and a printhead; and a pumping unit to apply a pressure to the ink circulation line to remove bubbles from a channel and a chip of the printhead, wherein the pumping unit comprises: a housing including an inlet and an outlet that are connected to the ink circulation line; a vibration unit installed to the housing and capable of vibrating, the vibration unit to generate pressure variations to move ink from the intake to the outlet; a motor to drive the vibration unit; a circulation cam to vibrate the vibration unit while rotated by the motor in a circulation mode, to circulate the ink contained in the channel of the printhead along the ink circulation line; a purging cam installed coaxially with the circulation cam, the purging cam to vibrate the vibration unit while rotated by the motor in a purge mode, to discharge the ink contained in the chip of the printhead through a nozzle; and a clutch unit to transmit power of the motor to one of the circulation cam and the purging cam in a selective manner.