Printing material container, and board mounted on printing material container

• US 8,366,233 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2008
• Issued: 02/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Asauchi, Noboru
• Primary Examiner(s): ZARROLI, MICHAEL C
• Application Number:
  US12/257,914
• Publication Number:
  US 20090058944A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,565 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 347/19
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17503 Ink cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1752 Mounting within the printer
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17526 Electrical contacts to the cartridge
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1753 Details of contacts on the cartridge, e.g. protection of contacts
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17546 electronically
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17553 Outer structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17566 Ink level or ink residue control
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/14491 Electrical connection
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/17579 Measuring electrical impedance for ink level indication
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 439/9241 Contacts arranged for sequential connection

Abstract

A printing material container is detachably attachable to a printing apparatus having a plurality of apparatus-side terminals. The printing material container comprises a first device, a second device, and a terminal group that includes a plurality of first terminals, at least one second terminal and at least one third terminal. The plurality of first terminals are connected to the first device and respectively include a first contact portion for contacting a corresponding terminal among the plurality of apparatus-side terminals. The at least one second terminal is connected to the second device and includes a second contact portion for contacting a corresponding terminal among the plurality of apparatus-side terminals. The at least one third terminal is for the detection of shorting between the at least one second terminal and the at least one third terminal and includes a third contact portion for contacting a corresponding terminal among the plurality of apparatus-side terminals. The at least one second contact portion, the plurality of the first contact portions, and the at least one third contact portion are arranged so as to form one or multiple rows. The at least one second contact portion is arranged at an end of one row among the one or multiple rows.

Claims

1. An ink cartridge for mounting on an ink jet printing apparatus, the ink jet printing apparatus having a print head and a plurality of apparatus-side contact forming members, the ink cartridge comprising:

a body having a length, a width, and a height;

an ink supply opening having an exit on an exterior portion of the body, adapted to supply ink from the ink cartridge to the printing apparatus;

a memory device adapted to be driven by a memory driving voltage;

an electronic device adapted to receive a voltage higher than the memory driving voltage; and

a plurality of terminals adapted and positioned to contact corresponding apparatus-side contact forming members so that electrical communication is enabled with the ink jet printing apparatus, the terminals including a plurality of memory terminals electrically coupled to the memory device, a first high voltage terminal electrically coupled to the electronic device, a second high voltage terminal electrically coupled to the electronic device, and at least one short detection terminal positioned and arranged to electrically contact a contact forming member that itself is electrically coupled to a short detection circuit of the printing apparatus, wherein;

the terminals are arranged so that, when the terminal arrangement is viewed with the ink cartridge oriented with the exit of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the terminal farthest to the left is the first high voltage terminal, the terminal that is farthest to the right is the second high voltage terminal, the terminal that is second farthest to the right is the short detection terminal, and the memory terminals are located to the left of the short detection terminal and to the right of the first high voltage terminal.

2. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is an ink level sensor.

3. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is a piezoelectric device.

4. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is adapted to output an oscillating signal.

5. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is adapted to receive a first voltage and output a voltage lower than the first voltage.

6. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the short detection terminal is the closest terminal to the second high voltage terminal.

7. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the short detection terminal is positioned to intersect a straight line drawn from the second high voltage terminal to at least one memory terminal.

8. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein at least three of the terminals are arranged to be intersected by a straight line.

9. The ink cartridge of claim 1, and including a second short detection terminal arranged so that, when the terminal arrangement is viewed with the ink cartridge oriented with the exit of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the second short detection terminal is the second farthest of the terminals to the left.

10. The ink cartridge of claim 9, wherein the memory terminals are to the left of the short detection terminal and the second high voltage terminal and to the right of the second short detection terminal and the first high voltage terminal.

11. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein, when the terminal arrangement is viewed with the ink cartridge oriented with the exit opening of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the first high voltage terminal, the memory terminals, the at least one short detection terminal and the second high voltage terminal are arranged in a single row in this order from left to right.

12. The ink cartridge of claim 1, wherein the number of terminals adjacent to the second high voltage terminal is smaller than the number of terminals adjacent to the short detection terminal.

13. A combination of an ink cartridge for an ink jet printing apparatus having a print head, and a portion of the printing apparatus, the combination comprising:

a portion of the printing apparatus, said printer portion comprising a plurality of apparatus-side contact forming members and a short detection circuit; and

an ink cartridge, the ink cartridge comprising;

a cartridge body having a length, a width, and a height;

an ink supply opening having an exit on an exterior portion of the body, adapted to supply ink from the ink cartridge to the printing apparatus;

a memory device adapted to be driven by a memory driving voltage;

an electronic device adapted to receive a voltage higher than the memory driving voltage;

at least one short detection terminal positioned and arranged in electrically conductive contact at a short detection contact portion thereof with a contact forming member that itself is electrically coupled to the short detection circuit;

a plurality of terminals adapted and positioned in electrically conductive contact at contact portions thereof with corresponding contact forming members, the contact portions including a plurality of memory contact portions electrically coupled to the memory device, a first high voltage contact portion electrically coupled to the electronic device, and a second high voltage contact portion electrically coupled to the electronic device, wherein;

the contact portions are arranged so that, when the contact portion arrangement is viewed with the exit of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the contact portion farthest to the left is the first high voltage contact portion, the contact portion that is farthest to the right is the second high voltage contact portion, the contact portion that is second farthest to the right is the short detection contact portion, and the memory contact portions are located to the left of the short detection contact portion and to the right of the first high voltage contact portion; and

the short detection circuit is adapted to detect shorting between the short detection terminal and at least the second high voltage terminal.

14. The combination of claim 13, wherein the electronic device is an ink level sensor.

15. The combination of claim 13, wherein the electronic device is a piezoelectric device.

16. The combination of claim 13, wherein the electronic device is adapted to output an oscillating signal.

17. The combination of claim 13, wherein the electronic device is adapted to receive a first voltage and output a voltage lower than the first voltage.

18. The combination of claim 13, wherein the short detection contact portion is the closest terminal to the second high voltage contact portion.

19. The combination of claim 13, wherein the short detection contact portion is positioned to intersect a straight line drawn from the second high voltage contact portion to at least one memory contact portion.

20. The combination of claim 13, wherein at least three of the contact portions are arranged to be intersected by a straight line drawn across the three contact portions.

21. The combination of claim 13, and including a second short detection contact portion arranged so that, when the contact portion arrangement is viewed with the exit of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the second short detection terminal is the second farthest of the contact portions to the left.

22. The combination of claim 21, wherein the memory terminals are to the left of the short detection terminal and the second high voltage terminal and to the right of the second short detection terminal and the first high voltage terminal.

23. The combination of claim 13, wherein, when the contact portion arrangement is viewed with the exit of the ink supply opening at the bottom, the first high voltage terminal, the memory terminals, the at least one short detection terminal and the second high voltage terminal are arranged in a single row in this order from left to right.

24. The combination of claim 13, wherein the number of terminals adjacent to the second high voltage terminal is smaller than the number of terminals adjacent to the short detection terminal.