| 摘要 |
PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect a state immediately before the complete consumption of an ink by providing a float which is of the lower specific gravity than a stored ink and capable of shielding a light in a float chamber and also a photosensor at the lower end of an ink cartridge. SOLUTION: This ink cartridge consists of a main chamber 2a which stores an ink of a transparent or an opaque container 2, and a float storage chamber 2c partitioned by a wall 2b to the lateral side of the main chamber 2a. In the float storage chamber 2c, a float 2d is present, and is of the hollow spherical shape and black so that it shields a light. In addition, a photosensor 4 such as a photocoupler is provided on the top part of the lateral wall 3 of a printer and on the lower end of the container 2, across the float storage chamber 2c. When the sufficient quantity of the ink is left over, the float 2d is afloat at the upper part of the container 2, so that the sensor 4 does not generate an output because its light passes through the ink in the transparent float storage chamber 2c. However, if the ink is consumed and the float 2d lowered by the descent of an ink liquid level 5 interrupts the light, it is detected that the ink residue comes to the bottom. |
