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AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorOsamu Sato
Estimating the term…
The present invention has as its object to detect the termination of ink reliably and highly accurately in an ink jet recording apparatus. An ink cartridge 2 has an opening 5 for connection to a recording head 1, and is comprised of a negative pressure generating member containing portion 14 containing a negative pressure generating member 13 and having an atmosphere communicating port 10, and an ink containing portion 16 which is adjacent to the negative pressure generating member containing portion 14 and communicates therewith at the bottom 11 of the ink cartridge. Ink detecting means 3 is provided below the ink containing portion 16. When the detecting means 3 detects a reduction in the remain in the ink containing portion 16, ink remains only in the negative pressure generating member containing portion 14 and the remainder can be substantially estimated. For the remaining ink, the amount of use is calculated by the counting of discharge pulses or the like and is compared, whereby the remain of the ink can be detected accurately and easily.
An ink jet recording apparatus provided with an ink containing member having a plurality of ink containing portions differing in ink containing state from each other and communicated with each other by a gap portion, and an ink jet head for discharging ink supplied by being communicated with one end of said plurality of ink containing portion, said apparatus comprising:
A method of detecting an ink remain of an ink containing member in an ink jet recording apparatus provided with an ink containing member having a plurality of ink containing portions differing in ink containing state from each other and communicated with each other by a gap portion, and an ink jet head for discharging ink supplied by being communicated with one end of said plurality of ink containing portions, said method comprising the steps of:
An ink jet recording apparatus provided with an ink jet head for discharging ink, and an ink cartridge for supplying the ink to said ink jet head, said ink cartridge having a first ink containing chamber containing a negative pressure generating member therein and provided with a communicating portion for supplying the ink to said ink jet head, and a second ink containing chamber directly containing therein the ink to be supplied to said first ink containing chamber, said apparatus comprising:
An ink remain detecting device for an ink jet recording apparatus provided with an ink jet head for discharging ink and an ink cartridge for supplying the ink to the ink jet head, said ink cartridge having a first ink containing chamber containing a negative pressure generating portion therein and provided with a communicating portion for supplying the ink to the ink jet head and a second ink containing chamber directly containing therein the ink to be supplied to said first ink containing chamber, said ink remain detecting device comprising:
An ink remain detecting method for use in an ink jet recording apparatus provided with an ink jet head for discharging ink and an ink cartridge for supplying the ink to the ink jet head, said ink cartridge having a first ink containing chamber containing a negative pressure generating member therein and provided with a communicating portion for supplying the ink to said ink jet head and a second ink containing chamber directly containing therein the ink to be supplied to said first ink containing chamber, said method comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.