Ink cartridge and ink-jet printer
US7357494B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 13, 2004 |
| Grant date | Apr 15, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 9, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB41J2002/17576
- WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
An ink cartridge has an ink tank in which the ink is stored, and a shutter mechanism which is arranged in the ink tank. The shutter mechanism includes a lever which is supported swingably and which has one end provided with a shutter and the other end provided with a float. The mass and the volume of the float are set so that the first direction, in which the lever moves by the buoyancy and the gravity generated when the entire shutter mechanism is positioned in the ink, is opposite to the second direction in which the lever moves by the buoyancy and the gravity when a part of the float protrudes from the ink liquid surface. A residual amount of an ink is indicated without being excessively affected by any disturbance such as the surface tension of the ink.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.