Tube pump, tube for tube pump and liquid ejecting apparatus

Abstract

A tube pump, includes a tube, a tube pump body including a roller, and rotating the roller for depressing to flatten the tube, and a pump holder, having substantially a cylindrical shape, and containing the tube pump body and the tube therein. The tube has a curve portion, an upstream side portion extended upstream from the curve portion, and a downstream side portion extended downstream from the curve portion. The tube is drawn out so as to overlap the upstream side portion and the downstream side portion being parallel each other. Also, a second tube pump includes a tube, a casing containing a flow path middle portion of the tube, and a pressing member pressing the flow path middle portion against an inner wall of the casing. The pressing member includes a contact member facing to the casing through the tube and an urging member urging the contact member to the tube by an elastic force. Also, a tube for a tube pump includes a plurality of tube bodies, each including a flow path, and a tube connecting portion connecting the tube bodies separately from each other so as to escape wall thicknesses of the tube bodies in a state that the tube is depressed to flatten.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A tube for a tube pump, comprising: 
 a plurality of tube bodies, each including a flow path; and    a tube connecting portion, connecting the tube bodies separately from each other so as to escape wall thicknesses of the tube bodies in a state that the tube is depressed to flatten.    
     
     
         2 . The tube as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the tube is depressed to flatten by a load given by multiplying a load for depressing a single tube body of the tube bodies to flatten by substantially a number of the tube bodies of the tube.  
     
     
         3 . The tube as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the tube includes at least two tube bodies connected by the tube connecting portion; and 
 wherein a diameter of each of the tube bodies is 4.6 mm, a wall thickness thereof is 1 mm, and a distance between centers of adjacent tube bodies of the at least two tube bodies is 5.1 mm.    
     
     
         4 . The tube as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the tube connecting portion separates the tube bodies from each other in a state that the tube is not depressed to flatten; and 
 wherein the tube makes the tube bodies proximate to each other in a state that the tube is depressed to flatten.    
     
     
         5 . The tube as set forth in  claim 4 , wherein the tube connecting portion is buckled so as to make the tube bodies proximate to each other when the tube is depressed to flatten.  
     
     
         6 . The tube as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the tube connecting portion connects the tube bodies substantially at a center of the tube bodies in a direction of depressing the tube bodies to flatten.  
     
     
         7 . A tube pump, comprising: 
 a tube, drawn out in a shape of a ring;    a tube pump body, including a roller, and rotating the roller for depressing to flatten the tube from an inner side of the ring;    a pump holder, having substantially a cylindrical shape, and containing the tube pump body and the tube therein; and    a tube holder, detachably mounted on the pump holder, and holding the tube in the shape of the ring as a ring portion by overlapping an upstream side portion extended upstream from the ring portion of the tube and a downstream side portion extended downstream from the ring portion of the tube.    
     
     
         8 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 7 , wherein the tube holder is detachably mounted on the pump holder in a direction intersecting with the ring portion of the tube.  
     
     
         9 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 7 , wherein the tube includes a plurality of tube bodies; and 
 wherein the tube holder includes a positioning projection projected along a longitudinal direction of the tube bodies for positioning the tube bodies.    
     
     
         10 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 7 , wherein the tube holder holds the tube in a state of bending the tube.  
     
     
         11 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 7 , wherein the tube holder includes a tube holder body and a tube holder lid; 
 wherein the tube holder body and the tube holder lid holds the tube at a clearance therebetween; and    wherein the clearance is smaller than an outer diameter of the tube in a sate that the tube holder is attached to the pump holder.    
     
     
         12 . A tube pump, comprising: 
 a tube;    a tube pump body, including a roller, and rotating the roller for depressing to flatten the tube; and    a pump holder, having substantially a cylindrical shape, and containing the tube pump body and the tube therein,    wherein the tube has a curve portion, an upstream side portion extended upstream from the curve portion, and a downstream side portion extended downstream from the curve portion; and    wherein the tube is drawn out from the tube pump body so as to overlap the upstream side portion and the downstream side portion being parallel each other.    
     
     
         13 . A tube pump, comprising 
 a tube;    a casing, containing a flow path middle portion of the tube; and    a pressing member, pressing the flow path middle portion against an inner wall of the casing,    wherein the pressing member includes: 
 a contact member, facing to the casing through the tube; and  
 an urging member, urging the contact member to the tube by an elastic force.  
   
     
     
         14 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 13 , wherein the inner wall of the casing is formed in a cylindrical shape; 
 wherein the urging member includes: 
 a rotating member, rotated with a center of the inner wall as an axis center;  
 a supporting member, supported on the rotating member so that a distance of the contact member from the axis center can be changed, and supporting the contact member; and  
 an elastic member, disposed between the rotating member and the supporting member, and urging the supporting member by the elastic force such that the contact member is separated from the axis center.  
   
     
     
         15 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 13 , wherein the flow path middle portion is contained along the inner wall of the casing so as to draw in a Q shape; and 
 wherein the tube has a bundled portion in which an upstream side end portion and a downstream side end portion of the flow path middle portion are overlapped in a state that directions of liquid flow in the upstream side end portion and the downstream side end portion are reverse to each other.    
     
     
         16 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 15 , wherein the supporting member is supported on the rotating member such that a position of the contact member can be changed between a first position and a second position; 
 wherein the first position is capable of pressing the bundled portion so that the upstream side end portion and the downstream side end portion are simultaneously depressed to flatten; and    wherein the second position is capable of depressing to flatten the flow path middle portion between the upstream side end portion and the downstream side end portion.    
     
     
         17 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 13 , wherein the tube includes a plurality of tubes.  
     
     
         18 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 17 , wherein the tubes has a tube connecting portion which connects adjacent tubes of the tubes.  
     
     
         19 . The tube pump as set forth in  claim 13 , wherein only a single one of the contact member is provided on the supporting member.  
     
     
         20 . A liquid ejecting apparatus, comprising: 
 a tube pump, including: 
 a tube;  
 a casing, containing a flow path middle portion of the tube; and  
 a pressing member, pressing the flow path middle portion against an inner wall of the casing,  
   wherein the pressing member includes: 
 a contact member, facing to the casing through the tube; and  
 an urging member, urging the contact member to the tube by an elastic force.  
   
     
     
         21 . The liquid ejecting apparatus as set forth in  claim 20 , wherein the flow path middle portion is contained along the inner wall of the casing so as to draw in a Ω shape; and 
 wherein the tube has a bundled portion in which an upstream side end portion and a downstream side end portion of the flow path middle portion are overlapped in a state that directions of liquid flow in the upstream side end portion and the downstream side end portion are reverse to each other.