Patent attributes
An ink-jet printing device is presented including (1) an ink-jet printing head for printing an image by discharging ink droplets from a number of nozzles onto a recording medium and (2) a purging unit for sucking ink from the nozzles. The purging unit includes a cap, a suction pump, and a supporting member. The cap has a flat, plate shaped base, and a cylindrical lip that extends upright from the base. When the lip of the cap is in abutment with the ink-jet printing head, the suction pump lowers the pressure in a space defined between the ink-jet printing head and the cap. The supporting member is disposed in the cap and is capable of supporting the lip from the inside of the cap. When a distal end portion of the lip abuts the ink-jet printing head, the lip hermetically encloses the nozzles. At least a portion of the base corresponding to the inner side of the lip is flexible enough to be deformed so as to project inwardly of the lip when the pressure in the space is lowered. The supporting member includes an abutment portion, the abutment portion abutting the inner side of the distal end portion of the lip when the base deforms.
