Print material container
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsJustin Pettingill, Sean Daniel Fitzgerald, Gabriel S McDaniel, Jeffrey H Luke
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A print material container comprising a body, a transfer mechanism, an inner connector, and an outer connecter. The transfer mechanism is to move print material in or out of the body. The inner connecter is on a connecting side of the body, and is to couple to a first location of an image forming apparatus to provide print material to the image forming apparatus. The outer connecter is on the connecting side of the body, and is to couple to a second location of the image forming apparatus to collect or receive unutilized print material transferred or received from the image forming apparatus.
Claims13
A print material container comprising:
- a body;
- a transfer mechanism to move print material in to or out of the body;
- a memory device or smart chip for data;
- an inner connector, on a connecting side of the body, to couple to a first location of an image forming apparatus to provide print material to the image forming apparatus;
- and
- an outer connector, on the connecting side of the body, to couple to a second location of the image forming apparatus to collect or receive unutilized print material transferred or received from the image forming apparatus,
- wherein, based on the image forming apparatus determining that the print material in the print material container is below a predetermined threshold, the memory device or smart chip is to receive instructions from the image forming apparatus that the print material container is to collect unutilized print material transferred or received from the image forming apparatus.
An image forming device, comprising:
- a device to produce images or objects on a recording medium;
- and
- a print material container coupled to the device, wherein the print material container comprises:
- a body;
- a transfer mechanism to move print material in to or out of the body;
- a memory device or smart chip for data;
- an inner connector, on a connecting side of the body, to couple to a first location of the device to provide print material to the device;
- and
- an outer connector, on the connecting side of the body, to couple to a second location of the device to collect or receive unutilized print material transferred or received from the device,
- wherein, based on the image forming apparatus determining that the print material in the print material container is below a predetermined threshold, the memory device or smart chip is to receive instructions from the image forming apparatus that the print material container is to collect unutilized print material transferred or received from the image forming apparatus.
A method comprising:
- determining a print material container is coupled to a first location of an image forming apparatus to supply print material to the image forming apparatus;
- reading information indicating a status of the print material container stored on a memory device or smart chip of the print material container;
- determining, based on the reading, the status of the print material container is to supply print material to the image forming apparatus;
- determining, after the print material container supplies print material to the image forming apparatus, an amount of print material in the print material container is below a predetermined threshold;
- and
- when it is determined the amount of print material in the print material container is below the predetermined threshold, changing the status of the print material container on the memory device or smart chip from the status of the print material container is to supply print material to the image forming apparatus to a status of the print material container is to collect or receive unutilized print material transferred or received from the image forming apparatus;
- and
- displaying, on a user interface, information to remove the print material container from the first location.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.