Capillary reservoir binary ink level sensor
US5079570A · kind A · utility
105Cited by
8References
6Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 18, 1989 |
| Grant date | Jan 7, 1992 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 18, 2009 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01F23/02
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An ink level sensor (18, 18', 18") is provided for detecting the level of ink in an ink cartridge (10) containing a capillary reservoir (14), such as foam, therein. The ink level sensor is a binary fluidic indicator, which provides both a human and machine readable indication of the level of the ink. A plurality of embodiments are described, including a two-port sensor (20), a one-port sensor (22), and a pair of fluidically-connected needles of different length (24).
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.