| 摘要 |
PURPOSE:To accurately judge the consumption of toner without using any expensive parts such as a sensor by providing a projection and knowing the extent of the toner consumption from how much a toner cartridge slants when supported at the part of the projection. CONSTITUTION:The toner cartridge includes a toner tank 4 which contains toner 2 and has the projection 3 at the lower part and is so arranged that the cartridge 1 shifts in stable position according to whether the internal toner exceeds prescribed weight or not when supported by the projection 3. Namely, when the toner cartridge 1 is not used so much, the lower part 6 becomes stationary by abutting on a horizontal surface 5 and when the toner 2 in the toner tank 4 is consumed to decrease in amount, the lower part 7 of the toner cartridge 1 becomes stationary by abutting on the horizontal surface 5. Consequently, when the rest of the toner in use becomes small, that can be detected without providing any dedicated toner sensor. |
