Ink container

Abstract

To provide means that prevents an electrode of an IC substrate of an ink cartridge from being positionally displaced.SOLUTION: An ink cartridge 30 comprises main bodies 31 and 32 having storage chambers 46 for storing ink, a supply part 33 extending forward from the storage chambers 46, which supplies ink in the storage chamber 46 to the outsides of the main bodies, and an IC substrate 60, separated upward to be orthogonal to a front side with respect to the supply part 33, which has an electrode 61. The main bodies have: a front wall 53; a second wall 55 leading to the front wall 53 and facing to the right side; a left wall 54 leading to the front wall 53 and facing to the left side; and an upper wall 56 joining the right wall 55 to the left wall 54 and facing to the upper side. The IC substrate 60 is positioned at the upper wall 56. The upper wall 56 has a through-hole 90 positioned closer to a front side than the electrode 61 of the IC substrate 60 and a front part 511 defining a front end of the upper wall 56 and a front end of the through-hole 90.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an ink container in which ink is stored. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an ink cartridge in which ink is stored. The ink cartridge described in Patent Document 1 is inserted into a cartridge mounting portion of a printer in an insertion direction intersecting with the vertical direction, and is removed in a removal direction opposite to the insertion direction. The ink cartridge has a front wall that defines the front end in the insertion direction, and a rear wall that defines the rear end. The ink cartridge also has a left wall that defines the left end of the ink cartridge between the front wall and the rear wall, and a right wall that defines the right end. The ink cartridge has a board support portion that connects the right wall and the left wall. An IC board having electrodes is supported on the board support portion. The electrodes of the IC board are conductive with the contacts of the cartridge mounting portion when the ink cartridge is mounted on the cartridge mounting portion. Furthermore, the front end and the upper end in the vertical direction of the ink cartridge has a space recessed from the front wall in the removal direction. The rear part of the space has an upper end defined by the board support portion. The front part of the space is open in the insertion direction and upward. The space in the ink cartridge receives a protrusion provided on the cartridge mounting portion when the ink cartridge is mounted in the cartridge mounting portion. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2017-52122 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The ink cartridge described in Patent Document 1 has a space at the front and top of the ink cartridge, so the strength of the area around the space is lower than other parts. Therefore, if the ink cartridge is dropped to the floor and a strong impact is applied to the right or left wall that defines the ink cartridge space, the impact may be transmitted to the board support part connecting the right and left walls, causing the board support part to deform. If the board support part deforms, the position of the electrodes of the IC board on the board support part may shift from the position before deformation, causing a poor connection between the electrodes and the contacts of the cartridge mounting part.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has an object to provide a means for preventing the electrodes of the electrical interface of the ink container from becoming misaligned. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] (1) The present disclosure relates to an ink container that is inserted into a mounting space of a mounting part. The ink container includes a main body having a storage chamber for storing ink, a supply part extending forward from the storage chamber and supplying the ink in the storage chamber to the outside of the main body, and an electrical interface that is spaced upwardly perpendicular to the forward direction from the supply part and has an electrode. The main body has a first wall, a second wall that is continuous with the first wall and faces rightward, a third wall that is continuous with the first wall and faces leftward, and a fourth wall that connects the second wall and the third wall and faces upward. The electrical interface is located in the fourth wall. The fourth wall has a through hole that is located forward of the electrode of the electrical interface and a front end that defines a front end of the fourth wall and a front end of the through hole.

[0007] For example, even if a strong impact occurs around the front end of the main body when the ink container is dropped on the floor, the front end is easily deformed, so the impact of the fall is easily absorbed by the front end. Since the through hole is located between the front end and the electrode of the electrical interface, the force generated by the deformation of the front end is easily dispersed to the second wall and the third wall connected to the front end. Therefore, the impact is not easily transmitted from the front end to the periphery of the electrical interface in the fourth wall, so the deformation of the periphery of the electrical interface in the fourth wall is suppressed, and the electrode of the electrical interface is not easily displaced. As a result, when the ink container is attached to the attachment part, the occurrence of a connection failure between the electrode of the electrical interface and the contact of the attachment part is suppressed.

[0008] (2) The front end of the front end portion may be connected to the first wall at a right end and a left end.

[0009] Since the force generated by the deformation of the front end portion is easily dispersed to the first wall, the strength of the front end portion is improved.

[0010] (3) The first wall may have a second through hole located below the front end portion.

[0011] (4) The main body may have a first member having a partition wall that partitions the storage chamber, and a second member having the first wall, the second wall, the third wall, and the fourth wall. The first member may be engaged with the second member so as to be relatively movable in the up-down direction. An upper end and a front end of the partition wall are located below the through hole.

[0012] Since the first member is vertically movable relative to the second member having a fourth wall on which the electrical interface is located, the electrical interface can be positioned in the mounting portion independently of the first member. This makes it easy to align the electrical interface with the mounting portion. Even if the front end and upper end of the first member moves upward as a result of the first member moving vertically relative to the second member when the ink container is mounted in the mounting portion, the front end and upper end of the first member are positioned below the through hole of the second member, so that the through hole prevents the upper end and front end of the first member from contacting the fourth wall.

[0013] (5) The front end portion may have an upper surface facing upward. The main body may have a first protrusion protruding upward from the upper surface to the right of the through hole and a second protrusion protruding upward from the upper surface to the left of the through hole.

[0014] Since the force generated by the deformation of the front end portion is easily dispersed to the first projecting piece and the second projecting piece, the strength of the front end portion is improved.

[0015] (6) The front end portion may have an upper surface facing upward, and an inclined surface adjacent to the front of the upper surface and inclined relative to the upper surface so as to face downward as it extends forward.

[0016] When the ink container is attached to the attachment portion, the guide of the attachment portion comes into contact with the inclined surface, so that the ink container is easily guided to the correct position in the vertical direction.

[0017] (7) The fourth wall may have a first portion that is continuous with a rear end of the front end and extends leftward from the second wall, and a second portion that is continuous with a rear end of the front end and extends rightward from the third wall. The first portion may define a right end of the through hole. The second portion may define a left end of the through hole.

[0018] Since the force generated by the deformation of the front end portion is easily dispersed rearward from the front end portion, the strength of the front end portion is improved.

[0019] (8) A length of the through hole in a direction perpendicular to the front and upper directions may become shorter toward the rear.

[0020] Since the force generated by the deformation of the front end portion is more easily dispersed from the front end portion to the rear, the strength of the front end portion is improved.

[0021] (9) The first member may have an air vent port that communicates the storage chamber with the outside. The ink container may further include a valve located within the first member and capable of opening and closing the air vent port. The valve may be exposed to the outside through the air vent port and the second through hole. The second through hole may receive a protrusion extending from a mounting portion.

[0022] When the ink container is attached to the attachment portion, if the second through hole receives the protrusion, the valve is pressed by the protrusion, opening the atmosphere vent. Therefore, when the ink in the storage chamber is supplied to the outside of the main body, air easily flows into the storage chamber through the atmosphere vent, making it easy for the ink in the storage chamber to be supplied to the outside of the main body. Effect of the Invention

[0023] According to the present disclosure, the electrodes of the electrical interface of the ink container are less likely to become misaligned. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic internal structure of a printer 10. As shown in FIG. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of cartridge case 110 as seen from the rear. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge 30 as viewed from the front and above. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink cartridge 30 as viewed from behind and below. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a right side view of the ink cartridge 30. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a plan view of the ink cartridge 30. As shown in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the ink cartridge 30. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a front view of the ink cartridge 30. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a rear view of the ink cartridge 30. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a left side view of the ink cartridge 30. FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a front view of the four ink cartridges 30. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a perspective view with a partial cross section showing the state in which the ink cartridge 30 is inserted into the cartridge case 110. As shown in FIG. [Figure 13] Figure 13 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink cartridge 30 is positioned inside the cartridge case 110 and the ink receiving member 130 is in the first position. Figure 13(A) is a cross-sectional view including the bottom surface 70 of the ink cartridge 30. Figure 13(B) is a cross-sectional view including the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30. [Figure 14] Figure 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink cartridge 30 is positioned inside the cartridge case 110 and the ink receiving member 130 is in the second position. Figure 14(A) is a cross-sectional view including the bottom surface 70 of the ink cartridge 30. Figure 14(B) is a cross-sectional view including the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30. [Figure 15] Figure 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the ink cartridge 30 is positioned inside the cartridge case 110 and the supply tube 102 has entered the supply port 34. Figure 15(A) is a cross-sectional view including the bottom surface 70 of the ink cartridge 30. Figure 15(B) is a cross-sectional view including the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30. [Figure 16] Figure 16 is a cross-sectional view showing the ink cartridge 30 attached to the cartridge case 110. Figure 16(A) is a cross-sectional view including the bottom surface 70 of the ink cartridge 30. Figure 16(B) is a cross-sectional view including the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a perspective view, partially in section, showing the ink cartridge 30 mounted in the cartridge case 110. As shown in FIG. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a perspective view of an ink cartridge 30 according to a modified example, viewed from the front and above. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the support member 38. As shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the embodiments described below are merely examples of the present disclosure, and the embodiments can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

[0026] In the following, the ink cartridge 30 is inserted and removed from the cartridge case 110 in a horizontal direction (a direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity). In addition, in this disclosure, forward and backward directions may be collectively referred to as the front-rear direction, upward and downward directions may be collectively referred to as the up-down direction, and right and left directions may be collectively referred to as the left-right direction. The explanation is given on the premise that the front-rear direction and the left-right direction are horizontal. In addition, the vertical direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction is defined as the up-down direction. The direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the front-rear direction is defined as the left-right direction. In addition, the state in which the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110 and used is the state in which the ink cartridge 30 is inserted up to the attachment position of the cartridge case 110. The attachment position is a position in which the supply tube 102 provided in the cartridge case 110 is inserted into the supply port 34 provided in the ink cartridge 30 and connected to each other. In addition, in the following, the posture of the ink cartridge 30 when the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110 and used is referred to as the use posture. Unless otherwise specified, the top, bottom, left, right, front and back in the following description are based on the usage position of the ink cartridge 30.

[0027] Additionally, in the following description, "facing forward" refers to the direction in which the ink cartridge 30 moves toward the cartridge case 110 in the front-to-rear direction. "facing backward" refers to the direction in which the ink cartridge 30 moves away from the cartridge case 110 in the front-to-rear direction. When describing that an element constituting the ink cartridge 30 faces in a particular direction, the direction in which the element faces is not limited to only that particular direction. For example, when "the front surface faces forward," the front surface may face both forward and upward.

[0028] The front surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the front view shown in FIG. 8. The rear surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the rear view shown in FIG. 9. The top surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the plan view shown in FIG. 6. The bottom surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the bottom view shown in FIG. 7. The left surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the left side view shown in FIG. 10. The right surface of ink cartridge 30 is the surface that appears in the right side view shown in FIG. 5.

[0029] [Printer 10 Overview] As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 10 has a cartridge case 110, a subtank 120, an ink tube 20, a recording head 21, and an ink cartridge 30. The printer 10 is an inkjet recording device that records an image by ejecting ink droplets from the recording head 21 onto a sheet based on an inkjet recording method, and is, for example, an inkjet printer. The printer 10 has a cartridge case 110. The cartridge case 110 is an example of an attachment section. An ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110. The ink cartridge 30 is an example of an ink container. The cartridge case 110 has an opening 112 at its rear end. The ink cartridge 30 is inserted forward into the cartridge case 110 through the opening 112. The ink cartridge 30 is removed backward from the cartridge case 110 through the opening 112. The opening 112 is opened and closed by a cover 126. Note that FIG. 1 shows a state in which the ink cartridge 30 has been attached to the cartridge case 110. 1 shows the ink cartridge 30 in an installed state. The ink cartridge 30 in the installed state is in the usage position.

[0030] The ink cartridge 30 stores ink that can be used in the printer 10. The ink may be a liquid containing a coloring material such as a pigment, or may be a processing liquid containing an additive for improving image quality instead of a coloring material. When the ink cartridge 30 is completely attached to the cartridge case 110, the ink cartridge 30 and the recording head 21 are connected via the ink tube 20. The recording head 21 ejects the ink supplied from the ink cartridge 30 from a plurality of nozzles 29. Specifically, a head control board included in the recording head 21 selectively applies a drive voltage to a plurality of piezo elements 29A provided corresponding to the plurality of nozzles 29. This causes the ink to be selectively ejected from the nozzles 29. In other words, the recording head 21 consumes the ink stored in the ink cartridge 30 attached to the cartridge case 110.

[0031] The printer 10 includes a paper feed tray 15, a paper feed roller 23, a pair of transport rollers 25, a platen 26, a pair of discharge rollers 27, and a paper output tray 16. The paper feed roller 23 feeds the paper on the paper feed tray 15 toward the transport path 24. The paper fed to the transport path 24 reaches the pair of transport rollers 25. The pair of transport rollers 25 transports the paper that has reached the pair of transport rollers 25 onto the platen 26. The recording head 21 selectively ejects ink onto the paper passing over the platen 26. This causes an image to be recorded on the paper. The paper that has passed the platen 26 reaches the pair of discharge rollers 27. The pair of discharge rollers 27 discharges the paper that has reached the pair of discharge rollers 27 to the paper output tray 16 located at the most downstream end of the transport path 24.

[0032] [Cartridge case 110] As shown in FIG. 2, the cartridge case 110 includes a case body 101 and a supply pipe 102.

[0033] The case body 101 is box-shaped. The case body 101 has an internal space in which the ink cartridge 30 is mounted. The case body 101 has an end surface 103 that defines the front end of the ink cartridge 30 when it is mounted in the internal space, a left wall that defines the left end of the internal space, a right wall that defines the right end of the internal space, a bottom wall, and a cover wall 171 that covers a pressing plate 134 (described later). The cover wall 171 has an upper wall 172 that faces upward, and a rear wall 173 that extends downward from the rear end of the upper wall 172. The case body 101 has an opening 112 at the rear end. When a user opens the cover 126 to use the printer 10, the opening 112 is exposed.

[0034] The internal space of the case body 101 has three partition walls 109 arranged at intervals in the left-right direction. The case body 101 has a slot 108 into which the ink cartridge 30 is attached. Specifically, the slot 108 of the case body 101 has four slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D arranged in the left-right direction. The slot 108A is located on the rightmost side of the four slots 108 of the case body 101. The slot 108B is located to the left of the slot 108A. The slot 108C is located to the left of the slot 108B. The slot 108D is located to the left of the slot 108C and is located to the leftmost side of the four slots 108. The slots 108 are divided into slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D by the three partition walls 109 that divide the internal space of the case body 101 and the inner surface of the case body 101.

[0035] The partition walls 109 extend upward from the upper surface of the upper wall 172 of the cover wall 171. The three partition walls 109 are positioned at equal intervals in the left-right direction. The partition walls 109 are flat and extend in the up-down and left-right directions. The partition walls 109 extend from the front end to the rear end of the upper wall 172.

[0036] The case body 101 has a guide surface 161. The guide surface 161 is provided in the internal space of each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. The guide surface 161 faces upward. The guide surface 161 is a roughly semicircular surface. When the ink cartridge 30 is attached to or detached from the case body 101, the guide surface 161 guides the ink cartridge 30 in the front-rear direction. Furthermore, when the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the case body, the guide surface 161 supports the lower end of the ink cartridge 30. Furthermore, as shown in Figures 13(A) and 13(B), there is a space 162 below the supply tube 102.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 2, the cover wall 171 is located below the end surface 103 of the case body 101. The upper wall 172 is a flat plate extending in the front-rear and left-right directions. The upper wall 172 extends from the left wall to the right wall of the case body 101. The rear wall 173 is a flat plate extending in the up-down and left-right directions. The rear wall 173 extends from the left wall to the right wall of the case body 101. In the rear wall 173, through holes 144 are located at equal intervals in the left-right direction in each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. Below the through holes 144, the guide surface 161 is located. The supply pipe 102 is inserted into the through holes 144 and protrudes rearward from the rear wall 173.

[0038] In each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D, the upper wall 172 has a groove 113 and a groove 114. The grooves 113 and 114 in each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D have the same shape. The groove 113 is located at the left end of each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D, and the groove 114 is located at the right end. Both the grooves 113 and 114 are recessed downward from the upper wall 172 and extend in the front-rear direction so as to open into the rear wall 173. The walls 71 of the ink cartridge 30, which will be described later, enter the grooves 113 and 114, respectively.

[0039] In each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D, between the grooves 113 and 114 in the left-right direction, there are two protruding pieces 117 that protrude upward from the upper wall 172 of the cover wall 171 and are spaced apart in the left-right direction. The upper wall 172 of the cover wall 171 has a through hole 140A that is continuous with the space between the two protruding pieces 117. The rear wall 173 of the cover wall 171 has a through hole 140B. The lower end of the through hole 140A is continuous with the upper end of the through hole 140B. A first key slot 115 is located between the two protruding pieces 117 in each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. Specifically, slot 108A has a first key slot 115A, slot 108B has a first key slot 115B, slot 108C has a first key slot 115C, and slot 108D has a first key slot 115D. The first key slot 115 opens upward and toward the rear. A first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30, which will be described later, can enter the first key slot 115.

[0040] The first key slots 115A, 115B, 115C, and 115D have different left-right positions relative to the grooves 113 and 114. Specifically, the first key slot 115A is closer to the groove 113 than the center between the grooves 113 and 114 in the left-right direction. The first key slot 115B is closer to the groove 114 in the slot 108B compared to the left-right position of the first key slot 115A relative to the grooves 113 and 114 in the slot 108A. The first key slot 115C is closer to the groove 114 in the slot 108C compared to the left-right position of the first key slot 115B relative to the grooves 113 and 114 in the slot 108B. The first key slot 115D is closer to the groove 114 in the slot 108D compared to the left-right position of the first key slot 115C relative to the grooves 113 and 114 in the slot 108C.

[0041] In each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D, there is a rib 118 above the groove 113 and a rib 119 above the groove 114. In the slot 108A, the rib 118 projects from the inner surface of the right wall 129. In the slot 108B, the rib 118 projects from the right partition wall 109. In the slot 108C, the rib 118 projects from the right partition wall 109. In the slot 108D, the rib 118 projects from the right partition wall 109. In the slot 108A, the rib 119 projects from the left partition wall 109. In the slot 108B, the rib 119 projects from the left partition wall 109. In the slot 108C, the rib 119 projects from the left partition wall 109. In the slot 108D, the rib 119 projects from the inner surface of the left wall 128. The ribs 118 and 119 face each other in the left-right direction in the slot 108 .

[0042] The supply tube 102 is provided in the internal space of each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. The supply tube 102 is located below the first key slots 115A, 115B, 115C, and 115D. The supply tube 102 is a hollow circular tube. The supply tube 102 extends in the front-rear direction from the sub-tank 120 toward the internal space of the slot 108. The tip of the supply tube 102 is open. The tip of the supply tube 102 is located in the internal space of each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. Although detailed description is omitted, a valve is located in the internal space of the supply tube 102. The valve opens and closes the opening of the supply tube 102. The supply tube 102 is connected to the supply port 34 of the ink cartridge 30.

[0043] 1, the front end of the supply pipe 102 is connected to a subtank 120. The subtank 120 has a space for storing ink supplied from the ink cartridge 30 through the supply pipe 102. The internal space of the subtank 120 is connected to the outside at its upper part and is open to the atmosphere. The ink in the subtank 120 is supplied to the recording head 21 through the ink tube 20.

[0044] 2, the rod 121 is provided above each of the first key slots 115A, 115B, 115C, and 115D. The rod 121 protrudes rearward from the end surface 103. The rod 121 is connected to a valve mechanism 504 of the ink cartridge 30, which will be described later.

[0045] The mating pieces 122 and 123 are located above each of the first key slots 115A, 115B, 115C, and 115D and below the rod 121. The mating piece 122 is a plate-shaped member. In the slot 108A, the mating piece 122 protrudes leftward from the inner surface of the right wall 129. In the slot 108B, the mating piece 122 protrudes leftward from the right partition wall 109. In the slot 108C, the mating piece 122 protrudes leftward from the right partition wall 109. In the slot 108D, the mating piece 122 protrudes leftward from the right partition wall 109. The mating piece 123 is a plate-shaped member. In the slot 108A, the mating piece 123 protrudes rightward from the partition wall 109. In slot 108B, mating piece 123 protrudes rightward from left partition wall 109. In slot 108C, mating piece 123 protrudes rightward from left partition wall 109. In slot 108D, mating piece 123 protrudes rightward from the inner surface of left wall 128. Mating pieces 122 and 123 face each other in the left-right direction in slot 108.

[0046] 13, in each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D, a contact 125 is located on the inner surface of the upper side of the case body 101. The contact 125 is electrically connected to the IC board 60 of the ink cartridge 30. Through the contact 125, the control unit of the printer 10 reads information stored in the IC board 60 of the ink cartridge 30 and records information on the IC board 60.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 13, an ink receiving member 130 is positioned in the space 162 of the case body 101. The ink receiving member 130 is provided for each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D. The ink receiving member 130 has a front end portion 131 extending in the left-right direction. The front end portion 131 is supported by the case body 101. The ink receiving member 130 has a generally flat plate shape extending rearward and upward from the front end portion 131, and the rear end portion 132 is located near the rear end of the supply tube 102. The ink receiving member 130 rotates around the front end portion 131 as an axis such that the rear end portion 132 moves generally in the up-down direction. A coil spring 133 extending in the front-rear direction is positioned between the ink receiving member 130 and the case body 101. The coil spring 133 biases the rear end portion 132 of the ink receiving member 130 forward.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 13, the ink receiving member 130 biased by the coil spring 133 is held in a state in which the rear end portion 132 abuts against the bottom surface of the supply tube 102. When the rear end portion 132 of the ink receiving member 130 abuts against the bottom surface of the supply tube 102, the ink receiving member 130 is in the first position. When the ink cartridge 30 is not attached to the supply tube 102, the ink receiving member 130 abuts against the bottom surface of the supply tube 102. Therefore, even if ink drips from the tip of the supply tube 102 when the ink cartridge 30 is removed from the case main body 101, the ink is received by the ink receiving member 130 abutting against the bottom surface of the supply tube 102. The received ink moves along the ink receiving member 130 from the rear end portion 132 toward the front end portion 131 so as to move away from the ink cartridge 30. As a result, it is possible to prevent ink from adhering to the bottom wall of the case main body 101.

[0049] 14(A) and 14(B), when the ink receiving member 130 has moved downward against the coil spring 133, the ink receiving member 130 is in the second position. Between the ink receiving member 130 in the second position and the supply tube 102, there is a space large enough to allow the supply portion 33 of the ink cartridge 30 to be received in the supply tube 102. In other words, when the supply tube 102 is received in the supply port 34 of the ink cartridge 30 that is inserted forward into the slot 108, the ink receiving member 130 does not prevent the ink cartridge 30 from moving forward.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 2, the pressing plate 134 is located below the cover walls 171 of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D and in front of the rear wall 173. The pressing plate 134 is supported by the case body 101 so as to be movable in the vertical direction. A lower end 135 of the pressing plate 134 abuts against the ink receiving member 130 between a front end portion 131 and a rear end portion 132 of the ink receiving member 130. An upper end 136 of the pressing plate 134 is located below the first key slot 115. A part of the pressing plate 134 is located below the through hole 140A of the cover wall 171. Also, a part of the pressing plate 134 is located in front of the through hole 140B of the rear wall 173. With this configuration, the pressing plate 134 can come into contact with a first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30 (described later) through the first key slot 115, the through hole 140A, and the through hole 140B. The pressing plate 134 is held in a raised position by the ink receiving member 130 biased by the coil spring 133.

[0051] Although details will be described later, when the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30 enters the first key slot 115, the first key portion 77 and the wall 71 press the pressing plate 134 down against the biasing force of the coil spring 133. When the pressing plate 134 moves downward, the ink receiving member 130 moves from the first position to the second position.

[0052] As shown in FIG. 2, the second key slots 138 are located at positions corresponding to the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D on the surface 137 located on the upper side of the periphery that defines the opening 112 of the case body 101. Specifically, the second key slot 138A is located in the slot 108A of the case body 101, the second key slot 138B is located in the slot 108B, the second key slot 138C is located in the slot 108C, and the second key slot 138D is located in the slot 108D. The second key slot 138 is configured as a recess in which a part of the rear end of the top surface is recessed upward. The lower end of the second key slot 138 is continuous with the internal space of the case body 101. The rear end of the second key slot 138 opens toward the outside of the case body 101. The distance between the lower end and the upper end of the opening at the rear end of the second key slot 138 is greater than the distance between the lower end and the upper end of the opening at the front end of the second key slot 138. In this embodiment, the distance between the lower end and the upper end of the opening in the second key slot 138 gradually decreases from the rear end of the opening to the front end of the opening. Alternatively, the distance between the lower end and the upper end of the opening in the second key slot 138 may gradually increase from the rear end of the opening to the front end of the opening, and then gradually decrease. The second key slots 138A, 138B, and 138C are located to the left of the center in the left-right direction of each of the slots 108A, 108B, and 108C. The second key slot 138D is located to the right of the center in the left-right direction of the slot 108D. The second key portion 78 of the ink cartridge 30 enters the second key slot 138.

[0053] A locking portion 139 is located in the space that defines the opening of each second key slot 138. The locking portion 139 is a rod-shaped member that extends in the left-right direction. The locking portion 139 abuts against a locking surface 87 of the ink cartridge 30, which will be described later.

[0054] [Ink Cartridge 30] The ink cartridge 30 is a container that stores liquid ink. As shown in Figs. 3 to 10, the ink cartridge 30 has a container body 31, a cover 32, and an IC board 60. The container body 31 is an example of a first member. The cover 32 is an example of a second member. The container body 31 and the cover 32 are an example of a main body. The cover 32 is located in front of the container body 31. The ink cartridge 30 is inserted forward with the cover 32 facing the slot 108 of the cartridge case 110.

[0055] The container body 31 has a thin, flat, cubic shape with a left-right length smaller than its up-down and front-rear lengths. The container body 31 has a supply portion 33 and a second key portion 78.

[0056] The container body 31 has a front wall 40, a rear wall 41 facing the front wall 40 in the front-rear direction, a left wall 42 connecting the front wall 40 and the rear wall 41, a right wall 43 facing the left wall 42 in the left-right direction, an upper wall 44 connecting the front wall 40 and the rear wall 41, and a lower wall 45 facing the upper wall 44 in the up-down direction. The container body 31 has an upper surface 80 which is the outer surface of the upper wall 44. The outer surface of the front wall 40 faces forward. The rear wall 41 has a rear surface 62 facing rearward. The outer surface of the left wall 42 faces leftward. The outer surface of the right wall 43 faces rightward. The outer surface of the upper wall 44 faces upward. The outer surface of the lower wall 45 faces downward.

[0057] 13, the front wall 40, the rear wall 41, the left wall 42, the right wall 43, the upper wall 44, and the lower wall 45 define a storage chamber 46 in the internal space of the container body 31. The front wall 40, the rear wall 41, the left wall 42, the right wall 43, the upper wall 44, and the lower wall 45 are examples of partition walls. The front wall 40, the rear wall 41, the left wall 42, the right wall 43, the upper wall 44, and the lower wall 45 are translucent to such an extent that the liquid level of the ink stored in the storage chamber 46 can be visually recognized from the outside. The container body 31 is, for example, an integrally molded product made of a synthetic resin.

[0058] The front wall 40 has an upper front wall 40U located above and a lower front wall 40L located below. The upper front wall 40U is located forward of the lower front wall 40L in the front-rear direction. The upper end of the upper front wall 40U is continuous with the front end of the upper wall 44. The space behind the upper front wall 40U in the front-rear direction is also part of the storage chamber 46. In other words, the upper part of the storage chamber 46 extends forward more than the lower part of the storage chamber 46. The lower front wall 40L is continuous with the supply section 33.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 10, the left wall 42 has a front left wall 42F located in the front in the front-rear direction and a rear left wall 42R located in the rear. As shown in FIG. 5, the right wall 43 has a front right wall 43F located in the front in the front-rear direction and a rear right wall 43R located in the rear. The front left wall 42F and the front right wall 43F are continuous with the upper front wall 40U. The rear left wall 42R and the rear right wall 43R are continuous with the rear wall 41. The space between the front left wall 42F and the front right wall 43F is a part of the storage chamber 46. The left-right distance between the outer surface of the front left wall 42F and the outer surface of the front right wall 43F is smaller than the left-right distance between the outer surface of the rear left wall 42R and the outer surface of the rear right wall 43R.

[0060] The front left wall 42F has two protrusions 52 located thereon. The front right wall 43F has two protrusions 52 located thereon. The two protrusions 52 are spaced apart in the up-down direction on the front left wall 42F. The two protrusions 52 are spaced apart in the up-down direction on the front right wall 43F. The protrusions 52 are rectangular in side view. The protrusions 52 enter through holes 76 of the cover 32, which will be described later.

[0061] As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the supply unit 33 is a cylindrical member. The supply unit 33 has an outer peripheral surface that extends rearward from the supply port 34. The outer peripheral surface is a curved surface that curves in the circumferential direction about the front-rear direction as an axis. The supply unit 33 is located at the lower end of the container body 31, and a part of the outer surface of the supply unit 33 forms the lower surface 47 of the container body 31. The supply unit 33 has a supply port 34 from which ink flows out. The supply port 34 opens toward the front in the front-rear direction. The supply port 34 is circular when viewed from the front.

[0062] The lower surface 47 includes a lower half of a circumferential surface having an axis in the front-rear direction. The lower surface 47 has a first surface 48 that is cylindrical in the front-rear direction, and a second surface 49 that is located rearward of the first surface 48 in the front-rear direction. The outer diameter of the supply portion 33 decreases from the first surface 48 to the second surface 49.

[0063] As shown in FIG. 13, the supply unit 33 has a cylindrical shape and has an internal space. The internal space of the supply unit 33 communicates with the supply port 34 at the front in the front-rear direction and communicates with the storage chamber 46 at the rear in the front-rear direction. The seal member 35, the valve 36, and the coil spring 37 are located in the internal space of the supply unit 33. The seal member 35 is an annular member made of an elastic member, such as rubber, and is located around the supply port 34 in the internal space of the supply unit 33. The valve 36 is movable in the front-rear direction in the internal space of the supply unit 33. The valve 36 abuts against the seal member 35, thereby sealing the supply port 34. The coil spring 37 biases the valve 36 toward the seal member 35.

[0064] When the supply tube 102 is received in the supply port 34, the valve 36 moves rearward against the biasing force of the coil spring 37. When the valve 36 moves rearward, the internal space of the supply unit 33 and the internal space of the supply tube 102 communicate with each other, and the ink in the storage chamber 46 flows into the internal space of the supply tube 102 through the internal space of the supply unit 33. The seal member 35 is in liquid-tight contact with the outer surface of the supply tube 102.

[0065] As shown in FIG. 4, a convex portion 59 that protrudes downward is located on the first surface 48 of the supply unit 33. As shown in FIG. 7, the outline of the portion where the convex portion 59 is continuous with the first surface 48 is substantially square when viewed from below upward in the vertical direction, and the length of the outline in the front-rear direction and the length in the left-right direction are substantially equal. Both left-right side surfaces of the convex portion 59 are downward-facing triangles. Both left-right side surfaces of the convex portion 59 are tapered surfaces that incline toward the center in the left-right direction as they extend downward. In other words, the convex portion 59 has a tapered shape in which the length in the left-right direction gradually decreases as it extends downward.

[0066] 13, the upper front wall 40U of the container body 31 has a cylindrical atmosphere communication portion 502 that defines an atmosphere communication port 501 that connects the vicinity of the upper end of the storage chamber 46 to the outside. The atmosphere communication portion 502 extends rearward from the atmosphere communication port 501. The atmosphere communication port 501 is located forward of the supply port 34 in the front-rear direction. The atmosphere communication port 501 opens forward in the upper front wall 40U.

[0067] The support member 38 having a substantially cylindrical shape is located in the atmosphere communication portion 502. The support member 38 is inserted into the internal space of the atmosphere communication portion 502 through the atmosphere communication port 501. The support member 38 is in pressure contact with the inner peripheral surface of the atmosphere communication portion 502. As shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 19, the support member 38 has a cylindrical main body portion 503A having a cylindrical shape and a square tube portion 503B having a square tube shape. The inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical main body portion 503A defines a circular gas flow path. The square tube portion 503B extends rearward from the rear end of the cylindrical main body portion 503A. The inner space of the square tube portion 503B is in communication with the inner space of the cylindrical main body portion 503A. The inner peripheral surface of the square tube portion 503B defines a rectangular gas flow path that is longer in the up-down direction than in the left-right direction. The cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path of the rectangular tube portion 503B cut in a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction is smaller than the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path of the cylindrical main body portion 503A cut in a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction. The rear end of the rectangular tube portion 503B defines an opening 515 that opens toward the rear. The opening 515 has a rectangular shape that is longer in the up-down direction than in the left-right direction. The rectangular tube portion 503B has multiple recesses 516 that are recessed toward the front from the rear end of the rectangular tube portion 503B. The multiple recesses 516 are positioned at equal intervals in the up-down direction. This prevents a meniscus from being formed by ink at the opening 515.

[0068] The valve mechanism 504 is located in the internal space of the support member 38. The support member 38 supports the valve mechanism 504. The valve mechanism 504 has a valve seat 17, a valve 50, and a coil spring 51.

[0069] The valve seat 17 is located in the atmosphere communication port 501. The valve seat 17 is fitted into the inner peripheral surface of the atmosphere communication part 502. The valve seat 17 is annular and has a through hole 17A extending along the front-rear direction. The rear end of the valve seat 17 abuts against the front end of the support member 38.

[0070] The valve 50 has a columnar portion 50A inserted into the through hole 17A of the valve seat 17 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction, and an extension portion 50B extending radially outward from the outer circumferential surface of the columnar portion 50A. The outer diameter of the columnar portion 50A is smaller than the inner diameter of the through hole 17A. This provides a gap between the outer circumferential surface of the columnar portion 50A and the inner circumferential surface of the through hole 17A through which air can flow. The front end of the columnar portion 50A is located forward of the through hole 17A. The rear end of the columnar portion 50A is located rearward of the through hole 17A. The extension portion 50B is annular and extends around the entire circumference of the outer circumferential surface of the columnar portion 50A in the circumferential direction. The front surface of the extension portion 50B abuts against the rear end of the valve seat 17.

[0071] The coil spring 51 is located in the internal space of the support member 38. The front end of the coil spring 51 is located above and forward of the supply port 34 of the supply unit 33. The front end of the coil spring 51 is located forward of the second key portion 78. The coil spring 51 biases the valve 50 forward. The front end of the coil spring 51 abuts against the rear surface of the extension portion 50B of the valve 50. The rear end of the coil spring 51 is supported by the inner circumferential surface of the support member 38. As a result, the front surface of the extension portion 50B is pressed against the rear end of the valve seat 17. As a result, the air communication port 501 is sealed. Note that, although details will be described later, when the valve 50 moves backward against the biasing force of the coil spring 51, the air communication port 501 is opened and air can flow between the outside and the storage chamber 46.

[0072] The cover 32 is a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is shorter in the up-down direction and the front-rear direction than the container body 31, and is a box shape with an opening facing rearward. The cover 32 is attached to the container body 31 so as to generally cover the upper front wall 40U of the container body 31, the front side of the upper wall 44, the front left wall 42F, and the front right wall 43F.

[0073] The cover 32 has a front wall 53, a left wall 54 extending rearward from the left end of the front wall 53, a right wall 55 facing the left wall 54 in the left-right direction, an upper wall 56 extending rearward from the upper end of the front wall 53, and a lower wall 57 facing the upper wall 56 in the up-down direction. The front wall 53, the left wall 54, the right wall 55, the upper wall 56, and the lower wall 57 define an internal space of the cover 32. An opening of the cover 32 is defined by the rear ends of the front wall 53, the left wall 54, the right wall 55, the upper wall 56, and the lower wall 57.

[0074] The front wall 53 is part of the front wall of the ink cartridge 30. The front wall 53 is an example of a first wall. The left wall 54 is part of the left wall of the ink cartridge 30. The left wall 54 is an example of a third wall. The right wall 55 is part of the right wall of the ink cartridge 30. The right wall 55 is an example of a second wall. The upper wall 56 is part of the upper wall of the ink cartridge 30. The upper wall 56 is an example of a fourth wall. The lower wall 57 is part of the lower wall of the ink cartridge 30.

[0075] The vertical length of the cover 32 is smaller than the vertical length of the container body 31. The front-rear length of the cover 32 is smaller than the front-rear length of the container body 31. The left-right length of the cover 32 is slightly larger than the left-right distance between the outer surfaces of the front left wall 42F and the front right wall 43F of the container body 31, and is approximately the same as the left-right distance between the outer surfaces of the rear left wall 42R and the rear right wall 43R.

[0076] The left wall 54 has two through holes 58 spaced apart in the vertical direction. The right wall 55 has two through holes 58 spaced apart in the vertical direction. The convex portion 52 of the container body 31 is located in the through holes 58. The through holes 58 are rectangular. Specifically, the vertical length of each through hole 58 is greater than the length in the front-rear direction. The through holes 58 are sufficiently larger than the outer shape of the convex portion 52. That is, the vertical length of each through hole 58 is greater than the vertical length of each convex portion 52. The front-rear length of the through holes 58 is greater than the front-rear length of the convex portion 52. The convex portions 52 enter the through holes 58, respectively, so that the container body 31 and the cover 32 are assembled. Since the through holes 58 are greater than the outer shape of the convex portions 52, the cover 32 can move relatively to the container body 31 in the vertical direction and the front-rear direction when the container body 31 and the cover 32 are assembled. Since the through hole 58 is sufficiently larger than the outer shape of the protrusion 52, the cover 32 can move relative to the container body 31 not only in the vertical and front-to-rear directions, but also in the direction in which the cover 32 rotates relative to the container body 31.

[0077] When attached to the container body 31, the cover 32 covers the upper front wall 40U, the front side of the upper wall 44, the front left wall 42F, and the front right wall 43F of the container body 31. The front wall 53 of the cover 32 is located forward of the supply port 34. The supply port 34 is located below the bottom wall 57 of the cover 32.

[0078] An IC board 60 is located on the upper wall 56 of the cover 32. The IC board 60 extends in the front-rear and left-right directions. The IC board 60 is located above the supply port 34. The IC board 60 is a board made of, for example, silicone or glass epoxy, on which an IC and three electrodes 61 are mounted. The IC is not shown in the drawings. The three electrodes 61 face upward. The IC board 60 may be a flexible board having flexibility.

[0079] The IC substrate 60 is adhered to the upper wall 56 of the cover 32 by, for example, a photocurable resin. The IC substrate 60 may be adhered to the cover 32 by an adhesive other than the photocurable resin, or may be attached to the cover 32 by a means other than adhesion, such as fitting.

[0080] The electrodes 61 of the IC board 60 come into contact with the contacts 125 during the process of inserting the ink cartridge 30 into the cartridge case 110. Furthermore, when the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110, the IC board 60 comes into contact with the contacts 125 and is electrically connected.

[0081] The IC is a semiconductor integrated circuit. Information about the ink cartridge 30 is readably stored in the IC. The information about the ink cartridge 30 is data indicating information such as the lot number, the date of manufacture, and the color of ink.

[0082] The electrodes 61 are electrically connected to the IC. The electrodes 61 extend in the front-rear direction. The electrodes 61 are arranged side by side and spaced apart in the left-right direction on the upper surface of the IC substrate 60. The electrodes 61 are exposed on the upper surface of the IC substrate 60 so as to be electrically accessible. The IC substrate 60 is an example of an electrical interface.

[0083] 3 and 6, the upper wall 56 of the cover 32 has a through hole 90 in front of the IC board 60. The through hole 90 is a rectangle that is longer in the left-right direction than in the front-rear direction when viewed from above. The upper wall 56 has a front portion 511 that defines the front end of the through hole 90, a right portion 512 that defines the right end of the through hole 90, and a left portion 513 that defines the left end of the through hole 90.

[0084] The right end of the front portion 511 is continuous with the upper end of the right wall 55. The left end of the front portion 511 is continuous with the upper end of the left wall 54. The front portion 511 has an upper surface 511A facing upward and an inclined surface 511B. The upper surface 511A is adjacent to the front of the through hole 90. The inclined surface 511B is adjacent to the front of the upper surface 511A. The inclined surface 511B extends from the right end to the left end of the upper surface 511A. The front end of the inclined surface 511B is continuous with the upper end of the front surface of the front wall 53 over the entire length in the left-right direction. The inclined surface 511B is inclined with respect to the upper surface 511A so as to face downward as it moves forward. The front portion 511 is an example of a front end portion.

[0085] The right portion 512 extends rearward from the right end portion at the rear end of the front portion 511. The right portion 512 extends in the front-rear direction from the rear end of the front portion 511 to the rear end of the through-hole 90. The right portion 512 extends leftward from the upper end of the right wall 55. The left end of the right portion 512 defines the right end of the through-hole. The right portion 512 is an example of a first portion.

[0086] The left portion 513 extends rearward from the left end portion at the rear end of the front portion 511. The left portion 513 extends in the front-rear direction from the rear end of the front portion 511 to the rear end of the through-hole 90. The left portion 513 extends rightward from the upper end of the left wall 54. The right end of the left portion 513 defines the left end of the through-hole 90. The left portion 513 is an example of a second portion.

[0087] As shown in FIG. 13, the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 is located below the through hole 90. The support member 38 is located below the through hole 90. In the upper wall 56 of the cover 32, guide pieces 91, 91 extending in the front-rear direction protrude upward near both ends in the left-right direction. The right guide piece 91 extends from the upper surface 511A of the front part 511 of the upper wall 56 to the rear end of the upper wall 56. The right guide piece 91 is an example of a first protrusion. The left guide piece 91 extends from the upper surface 511A of the front part 511 of the upper wall 56 to the rear end of the upper wall 56 except for the central part in the front-rear direction. The left guide piece 91 is an example of a second protrusion. The IC board 60 is located between the right guide piece 91 and the left guide piece 91 in the left-right direction. The left and right guide pieces 91 function as guides for the cover 32 to move in the front-rear direction when the cover 32 is inserted into the cartridge case 110 .

[0088] 7, a lower surface 70, which is the outer surface of the lower wall 57 of the cover 32, is located above and in front of the supply port 34. The lower surface 70 is a plane extending rearward from the lower end of the front wall 53 and is inclined so as to extend downward as it extends rearward.

[0089] The cover 32 has walls 71 extending downward from both ends in the left-right direction of the lower surface 70. One wall 71 and the other wall 71 are located apart in the left-right direction. The wall 71 is a plate-shaped member extending in the up-down direction and the front-rear direction and having a thickness in the left-right direction. The length of the wall 71 in the front-rear direction is greater than the length of the wall 71 in the left-right direction and the length of the wall 71 in the up-down direction. The length of the wall 71 in the up-down direction is greater than the length of the wall 71 in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the front surface of the wall 71 has a first front surface 72 located at its upper part and a second front surface 73 located at its lower part. The front end of the first front surface 72 is inclined so as to extend downward as it moves forward from the upper surface of the wall 71. The second front surface 73 is inclined so as to face downward as it moves rearward.

[0090] As shown in Fig. 7, the rear ends of the two walls 71 extend forward from a sub-front wall 88. The sub-front wall 88 extends downward from the rear end of the lower surface 70. The sub-front wall 88 is a plate-shaped member that extends in the up-down and left-right directions and has a thickness in the front-to-rear direction. The length of the sub-front wall 88 in the left-to-right direction is greater than its length in the up-down direction. The outer surface of the sub-front wall 88 that faces forward is part of the front surface of the cover 32.

[0091] A groove 74 is located in the left wall 54 of the cover 32, extending in the front-rear direction above the wall 71. A groove 74 is located in the right wall 55 of the cover 32, extending in the front-rear direction above the wall 71. The groove 74 is longitudinal in the front-rear direction. As shown in FIG. 8, the recess of the groove 74 is composed of an upward surface 74L, a surface 74U facing the surface 74L in the up-down direction, and a surface 74M connecting the surface 74L and the surface 74U. The front end of the groove 74 opens in the front wall 53 of the cover 32. As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 10, the first front surface 72 of the one wall 71 is a guide for guiding the rib 118 of the cartridge case 110 into the one groove 74. The first front surface 72 of the other wall 71 is a guide for guiding the rib 119 of the cartridge case 110 into the one groove 74. One groove 74 has a length capable of receiving rib 118 of case body 101, and the other groove 74 has a length capable of receiving rib 119 of case body 101. Specifically, the vertical distance between surface 74L and surface 74U of groove 74 is greater than the vertical lengths of ribs 118 and 119 of case body 101. Surfaces 74U and 74L abut against rib 118 and rib 119, thereby positioning cover 32 in the vertical direction.

[0092] The outer surface of the front wall 53 of the cover 32 is the front surface 75. The front surface 75 is located forward of the supply port 34. The front surface 75 has an upper front surface 75U located at its upper portion and a lower front surface 75L located below the upper front surface 75U. The upper end of the lower front surface 75L is continuous with the upper front surface 75U. The lower end of the lower front surface 75L is located further rearward than the upper end, and is inclined upward as it approaches the front. The lower front surface 75L is a guide for guiding the ribs 118 and 119 into the groove 74. Specifically, the lower front surface 75L abuts against the front ends of the ribs 118 and 119 during the process of inserting the ink cartridge 30 into the cartridge case 110, and guides the ribs 118 and 119 into the groove 74.

[0093] The upper front surface 75U of the front wall 53 of the cover 32 has a through hole 76. The front end of the through hole 76 is located forward of the supply port 34 of the supply unit 33. The upper end of the through hole 76 is close to the upper end of the front wall 53. The through hole 76 faces the atmosphere communication port 501 of the container body 31 in the front-rear direction. The front end of the valve seat 17 of the container body 31 is located in the through hole 76. The valve seat 17 and the valve 50 of the container body 31 are exposed to the outside through the through hole 76. The through hole 76 is an example of a second through hole.

[0094] The underside 70 of the cover 32 has a first key portion 77. The first key portion 77 is located above the supply port 34 and below the upper surface of the electrode 61 of the IC substrate 60. The front end of the first key portion 77 is forward of the front end of the electrode 61. The first key portion 77 is located below the through-hole 76. In other words, the atmosphere communication port 501 of the atmosphere communication portion 502 is located between the first key portion 77 and the electrode 61 in the up-down direction. The first key portion 77 is located in front of the ink cartridge 30.

[0095] As shown in FIG. 8, the first key portion 77 is located between the pair of walls 71 in the left-right direction and extends downward from the lower surface 70. The rear end of the wall 71 is connected to the sub-front wall 88. The first key portion 77 has a lower surface 77L that defines the lower end of the first key portion 77, a side surface 77S, and a front surface 77F that defines the front end. The side surface 77S of the first key portion 77 consists of a surface facing left and a surface facing right. The side surface 77S of the first key portion 77 extends along the up-down direction and the front-rear direction.

[0096] The lower surface 77L of the first key portion 77 extends along the front-rear direction. The lower surface 77L defines the thickness of the first key portion 77 in the left-right direction. In this embodiment, the first key portion 77 is a plate-shaped member whose length in the front-rear direction is greater than its length in the left-right direction and its length in the up-down direction, but the shape of the first key portion 77 is not limited to this. For example, the length in the front-rear direction of the first key portion 77 may be smaller than its length in the up-down direction. The lower surface 77L and the upper surface of at least one electrode 61 of the IC substrate 60 are in a position where they overlap when viewed from the up-down direction. In other words, the lower surface 77L is located below at least one electrode 61 in the up-down direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the length L1 in the front-rear direction of the lower surface 77L is longer than the length L2 in the front-rear direction of the upper surface of the electrode 61. The front surface 77F of the first key portion 77 faces forward. The front surface 77F is located behind the front end of the first front surface 72 of the wall 71. The first front surface 72 is located behind the front end of the second front surface 73. Also, the front surface 77F of the first key portion 77 is located behind the front end of the front wall 53 of the cover 32. As a result, when the ink cartridge 30 is dropped with the front wall 53 of the cover 32 facing downward, even if the first front surface 72 and the second front surface 73 of the wall 71 or the front end of the front wall 53 of the cover 32 hits the floor or the like, the front surface 77F of the first key portion 77 does not hit the floor or the like. Therefore, since there is little risk that the first key portion 77 will be deformed by a direct impact, the ink cartridge 30 is properly attached to the cartridge case 110.

[0097] 11, a first key portion 77 is assigned to each of the slots 108A, 108B, 108C, and 108D according to the characteristics of each ink cartridge 30 that is attached to the slots. The first key portions 77 have different mechanical characteristics, such as their arrangement and shape. The left-right position of the first key portions 77 differs according to the characteristics of the ink stored in the storage chamber 46. The ink characteristics include, for example, the color and composition of the ink.

[0098] The cover 32 has a third key portion 79. The third key portion 79 is defined as a combination of two or more of the four members consisting of a recess recessed in the left wall 54 of the cover 32, a recess recessed in the right wall 55, a protrusion protruding leftward from the left wall 54, and a protrusion protruding rightward from the right wall 55. In this embodiment, the third key portion 79 has a recess recessed in the left wall 54 of the cover 32 and a recess recessed in the right wall 55. In FIG. 8, the third key portion 79 is a combination of a recess in the left wall 54 and a recess in the right wall 55. The third key portion 79 is located above the first key portion 77 and below the upper surface of the electrode 61 of the IC board 60. In this embodiment, the third key portion 79 is located below the through hole 76. The third key portion 79 is located at both ends of the upper front surface 75U in the left-right direction. The front end of the third key portion 79 opens forward at the upper front surface 75U of the cover 32.

[0099] The mechanical characteristics such as the arrangement and shape of the third key portion 79 vary depending on the characteristics of each ink cartridge 30. The characteristics of the ink cartridge 30 indicated by the third key portion 79 may be the same as or different from the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30 indicated by the first key portion 77. In this embodiment, the characteristics of the ink cartridge indicated by the first key portion 77 are the color of the ink, and the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30 indicated by the third key portion 79 are the contract type of the printer in which the ink cartridge 30 is used. The contract type is, for example, a contract in which the user is charged according to the number of pages of image recording performed regardless of the amount of ink used. As long as this contract is concluded, a new ink cartridge 30 is delivered when the ink in the storage chamber 46 of the ink cartridge 30 is consumed, but the user does not need to pay for the ink cartridge 30 itself. Alternatively, the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30 indicated by the third key portion 79 are the sales region of the printer in which the ink cartridge 30 is used. The shape of the third key portion 79 of the ink cartridge 30 used in one sales region is different from the shape of the third key portion 79 of the ink cartridge 30 used in another sales region. For example, the third key portion 79 may be disposed on only one of the left and right sides, or the shape of the third key portion 79 opening forward may differ. Furthermore, the presence or absence and shape of the fitting pieces 122 and 123 of the cartridge case 110 may differ depending on the presence or absence and shape of the third key portion 79.

[0100] As shown in FIG. 9, the container body 31 has a rear surface 62 as an outer surface of the rear wall 41 of the container body 31. The rear surface 62 has a first rear surface 63, a second rear surface 64, and a third rear surface 65. The second rear surface 64 is to the left of the first rear surface 63. The third rear surface 65 is to the right of the first rear surface 63. The first rear surface 63 is a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction. The second rear surface 64 is a plane intersecting the front-rear direction and the left-right direction. The right end of the second rear surface 64 is continuous with the first rear surface 63. The left end of the second rear surface 64 is to the left and rear of the first rear surface 63. The third rear surface 65 is a plane intersecting the front-rear direction and the left-right direction. The left end of the third rear surface 65 is continuous with the first rear surface 63. The right end of the third rear surface 65 is to the right and rear of the first rear surface 63. The length of the first rear surface 63 in the left-right direction is constant in the up-down direction.

[0101] 4, 5, and 9, the bottom wall 45 of the container body 31 has a first bottom wall 45A and a second bottom wall 45B extending downward from the first bottom wall 45A. The rear end of the first bottom wall 45A is continuous with the lower end of the rear wall 41. The front part of the first bottom wall 45A extends in the front-rear direction. The front end of the first bottom wall 45A is continuous with the front wall 40. The curved surface of the supply part 33, including the rear end of the supply part 33, protrudes downward from the first bottom wall 45A.

[0102] The second lower wall 45B is continuous with the lower end of the rear wall 41. The second lower wall 45B is an inclined wall that is inclined with respect to the front-rear direction. The second lower wall 45B is inclined with respect to the front-rear direction and the up-down direction so that the upper end is located rearward and above the lower end. The lower end of the second lower wall 45B is continuous with the rear end of the lower surface 47 of the supply unit 33. The lower end of the second lower wall 45B is continuous with the rear end of the supply unit 33 below the first lower wall 45A. The left-right length of the second lower wall 45B is smaller than the left-right length of the first lower wall 45A.

[0103] Since the supply part 33 is located below the first lower wall 45A, as shown in FIG. 9, when the ink cartridge 30 is viewed from the rear, the lower surface 47 of the supply part 33 is visible. Therefore, the user can recognize where the supply part 33 is located when viewed from the rear, and when the ink cartridge 30 is mounted in the slot 108, the ink cartridge 30 can be easily mounted in the correct orientation. In addition, the lower wall 45 is continuous with the rear end of the supply part 33, so that the rear end of the supply part 33 is reinforced. This prevents the supply part 33 from being deformed even if the lower end of the ink cartridge 30 receives an impact. The lower wall 45 may have only the first lower wall 45A, omitting the second lower wall 45B.

[0104] The second rear surface 64 has a recess 66 near the upper end. The recess 66 is formed by a space recessed forward from the second rear surface 64 and a surface that defines the space. The third rear surface 65 has a recess 67 near the upper end. The recess 67 is formed by a space recessed forward from the third rear surface 65 and a surface that defines the space. As shown in FIG. 1, the recesses 66, 67 accommodate a protrusion 127 protruding from a cover 126 that opens and closes the opening 112 of the cartridge case 110. The protrusion 127 of the cover 126 in the closed state abuts against the surface that forms the upper end of the recesses 66, 67. The protrusion 127 of the cover 126 in the closed state abuts against the recesses 66, 67, thereby preventing the ink cartridge 30 attached to the cartridge case 110 from coming off the cartridge case 110 due to impact or the like. 9, the left-right length of the first rear surface 63 sandwiched between the recesses 66 and 67 is greater than the left-right length of the recesses 66, and is greater than the left-right length of the recesses 67. This makes the first rear surface 63 easy to see from behind the ink cartridge 30, so that when installing the ink cartridge 30 in the cartridge case 110, the user can easily press the area near the first rear surface 63, which is the upper part of the rear surface.

[0105] As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, the rear end of the upper surface 80 of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 includes the operation surface 68. The operation surface 68 is an inclined surface 511B that is inclined so as to face upward and backward. The operation surface 68 is continuous with the upper end of the rear surface 62. The operation surface 68 has a plurality of protrusions 69 that protrude upward and extend along the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 12, the protrusions 69 extend downward from both ends of the operation surface 68 in the left-right direction to the outer surfaces of the left wall 42 and the right wall 43. From the left end of the operation surface 68 to the left wall 42, three protrusions 69 extend with a space between them in the front-rear direction. From the right end of the operation surface 68 to the right wall 43, three protrusions 69 extend with a space between them in the front-rear direction. The protrusions 69 function as a slip-proofing when the user operates the operation surface 68. The anti-slip structure may be, for example, a recess recessed downward from the operation surface 68 instead of the protrusion 69.

[0106] The upper surface 80 of the container body 31 has a first upper surface 81 , a second upper surface 82 , a third upper surface 83 , an upper end surface 86 , and an operation surface 68 .

[0107] The first upper surface 81 is located at the frontmost position on the upper surface 80. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the first upper surface 81 has a surface 81A located in the center in the left-right direction, a surface 81B located on the left, and a surface 81C located on the right. The surface 81A is a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The surface 81B is continuous with the left end of the surface 81A. The surface 81C is continuous with the right end of the surface 81A. The surface 81B is a surface facing upward and to the left. The surface 81C is a surface facing upward and to the right. The left-right length of the surface 81A is smaller than the left-right length of the surface 81B. The left-right length of the surface 81A is smaller than the left-right length of the surface 81C.

[0108] The second upper surface 82 is continuous with the rear end of the first upper surface 81. The rear end of the second upper surface 82 is located higher than the front end. The second upper surface 82 has a surface 82A located in the center in the left-right direction, a surface 82B located to the left of the surface 82A, and a surface 82C located to the right of the surface 82A. As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 10, the surface 82A is inclined with respect to the front-rear direction so as to face forward and upward. The surface 82A is a flat surface extending in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction. The surface 82A extends toward the left as it moves toward the rear. Specifically, the surface 82A has a surface extending toward the rear and a surface extending toward the left as it moves toward the rear. The surface 82B is continuous with the left end of the surface 82A and faces toward the left. The surface 82C is continuous with the right end of the surface 82A and faces toward the right. The left-right length of surface 82A is smaller than the left-right length of surface 82B. The left-right length of surface 82A is smaller than the left-right length of surface 82C. The left-right length of surface 82A is equal to the left-right length of surface 81A. The front-rear length of surface 82A is larger than the front-rear length of surface 81A.

[0109] The third top surface 83 is continuous with the rear end of surface 82C of the second top surface 82. The third top surface 83 is a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The third top surface 83 is located higher than the first top surface 81. The rear end of the third top surface 83 is continuous with the operation surface 68. The third top surface 83 has an abutment surface 92. The abutment surface 92 extends rearward from the lower end of a lock surface 87 of the second key portion 78, which will be described later.

[0110] As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the second key portion 78 is located on the third upper surface 83 of the container body 31. The second key portion 78 protrudes upward from the third upper surface 83. The second key portion 78 is located above the supply port 34. The upper end of the second key portion 78 is located above the upper surface of the electrode 61 of the IC substrate 60. The second key portion 78 is located forward of the operation surface 68. When the convex portion 52 of the container body 31 is located at the upper end of the through hole 58 of the cover 32, the cover 32 is located at the lowest position relative to the container body 31. When the cover 32 is located at the lowest position relative to the container body 31, the upper end of the second key portion 78 is located above the IC substrate 60.

[0111] The second key portion 78 has a first front inclined surface 84A, a second front inclined surface 84B, a left inclined surface 85A, a right inclined surface 85B, an upper end surface 86, and a lock surface 87. The first front inclined surface 84A is a plane inclined in the front-rear direction so as to face upward and forward. The first front inclined surface 84A is continuous with the rear end of the surface 82B of the second upper surface 82. The front end of the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the rear end of the surface 82A. The second front inclined surface 84B extends leftward from the front end toward the rear. The rear end of the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the upper end surface 86. The lower end of the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the third upper surface 83. The left end of the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the right end of the first front inclined surface 84A. The boundary between the first front inclined surface 84A and the second front inclined surface 84B extends leftward from the front end toward the rear. The upper end of the boundary between the first front inclined surface 84A and the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the upper end surface 86.

[0112] The upper end surface 86 is a flat surface facing upward. The upper end of the locking surface 87 is continuous with the rear end of the upper end surface 86. In other words, the upper end surface 86 is located between the second front inclined surface 84B and the locking surface 87 in the front-rear direction. The locking surface 87 is a flat surface facing backward. When the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110, the locking surface 87 and the abutment surface 92 are configured to abut against the locking portion 139 of the cartridge case 110.

[0113] The left inclined surface 85A is a plane that inclines in the left-right direction so as to face upward from the left end to the right end. The left inclined surface 85A is continuous with the left end of the first front inclined surface 84A. The boundary between the left inclined surface 85A and the first front inclined surface 84A extends toward the right as it approaches the front end or the rear end. The rear end of the boundary between the left inclined surface 85A and the first front inclined surface 84A is continuous with the lock surface 87. The right inclined surface 85B is a plane that inclines in the left-right direction so as to face upward from the right end to the left end. The right inclined surface 85B is continuous with the right end of the second front inclined surface 84B. The boundary between the right inclined surface 85B and the second front inclined surface 84B extends toward the left as it approaches the front end to the rear end. The rear end of the boundary between the right inclined surface 85B and the second front inclined surface 84B is continuous with the upper end surface 86. The rear end of right inclined surface 85B is continuous with lock surface 87. Since second key portion 78 has first front inclined surface 84A, second front inclined surface 84B, left inclined surface 85A, and right inclined surface 85B, second key portion 78 has greater strength than a case in which second key portion 78 has a surface extending perpendicular to the horizontal direction. Therefore, second key portion 78 is less likely to deform when subjected to impact from the left or right direction.

[0114] As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, the first angle θ1 of the second front inclined surface 84B with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller than the second angle θ2 of the left inclined surface 85A with respect to the horizontal plane. The third angle θ3 of the right inclined surface 85B with respect to the horizontal plane may be different from the second angle θ2 of the left inclined surface 85A. The first angle θ1 is, for example, within a range of 5° to 10°, and is 7° in this embodiment. The second angle θ2 is, for example, within a range of 30° to 40°. The third angle θ3 is, for example, within a range of 30° to 40°.

[0115] The mechanical characteristics of the second key portion 78, such as the arrangement and shape, differ depending on the characteristics of each ink cartridge 30. The characteristics indicated by the second key portion 78 may be the same as or different from the characteristics indicated by the first key portion 77 and the third key portion 79. In this embodiment, the characteristic of the ink cartridge 30 indicated by the second key portion 78 is the composition of the ink. The left-right position of the second key portion 78 on the second upper surface 82 differs depending on the composition of the ink. The composition of the ink refers to the materials contained in the ink, such as whether the coloring material contained in the ink is a black dye or a black pigment.

[0116] As shown in Fig. 8, the left-right length M1 of the first key portion 77 is smaller than the left-right length M2 of the second key portion 78. As shown in Fig. 5, the up-down length M3 of the front end of the first key portion 77 is larger than the maximum length M4 of the up-down length of the second key portion 78. Length M4 corresponds to the up-down length of the locking surface 87 of the second key portion 78.

[0117] 5, a first distance N1, which is the shortest distance from the center of the supply port 34 to the first key portion 77, is shorter than a second distance N2, which is the shortest distance from the center of the supply port 34 to the second key portion 78. With this configuration, as described below, when the rear end of the container body 31 is rotated upward around the supply port 34, the length of the path along which the first key portion 77 rotates is shorter than the length of the path along which the second key portion 78 rotates.

[0118] As shown in FIG. 11, the ink cartridge set 300 is composed of a plurality of ink cartridges 30. Each ink cartridge 30 constituting the ink cartridge set 300 has different mechanical characteristics such as the arrangement and shape of the first key portion 77, the second key portion 78, or the third key portion 79 according to the difference in the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30. In the four ink cartridges 30 shown in FIG. 11, the position of the first key portion 77 corresponds to the color of the ink stored in the ink cartridge 30. The position of the second key portion 78 corresponds to the composition of the ink stored in the ink cartridge 30. The position and shape of the third key portion 79 correspond to the sales region of the printer in which the ink cartridge 30 is used. The ink cartridge 30A in FIG. 11 corresponds to the ink cartridge 30 disclosed in FIG. 3 to FIG. 10.

[0119] The position of the first key portion 77 in the left-right direction corresponds to the position of the first key slot 115 of the cartridge case 110. The first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A located at the rightmost position in FIG. 11 is located to the right of the center in the left-right direction on the bottom surface 70. The first key portion 77B of the ink cartridge 30B located second from the right in FIG. 11 is located to the left of the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A in the left-right direction on the bottom surface 70. The first key portion 77C of the ink cartridge 30C located third from the right in FIG. 11 is located to the left of the first key portion 77B of the ink cartridge 30B in the left-right direction on the bottom surface 70. The first key portion 77D of the ink cartridge 30D located at the leftmost position in FIG. 11 is located to the left of the first key portion 77C of the ink cartridge 30C in the left-right direction on the bottom surface 70.

[0120] The left-right positions of the second key portions 78A, 78B, 78C, and 78D of the ink cartridges 30A, 30B, 30C, and 30D correspond to the position of the second key slot 138 of the cartridge case 110. The second key portions 78A, 78B, and 78C of the ink cartridges 30A, 30B, and 30C are located to the left of the left-right center of the second top surface 82. The second key portion 78D of the ink cartridge 30D is located to the right of the left-right center of the second top surface 82. In this embodiment, the four ink cartridges 30 shown in FIG. 11 are from the same sales region, so the position and shape of the third key portion 79 are common.

[0121] [Installing the ink cartridge 30 into the cartridge case 110] As shown in FIG. 12, the ink cartridge 30 is inserted forward into a predetermined slot 108 in the cartridge case 110. In other words, the ink cartridge 30 is inserted so that the front wall 53 of the ink cartridge 30 faces the slot 108 of the cartridge case 110. In the four slots 108, the ink cartridges 30 storing magenta, cyan, yellow, and black inks are inserted from the right end in the left-right direction. In the following, an example will be described in which the ink cartridge 30A storing magenta ink is inserted into the slot 108A at the right end in the left-right direction. The ink cartridge 30A storing magenta ink is located at the rightmost position in FIG. 11. The user pushes the first rear surface 63 of the ink cartridge 30A forward with his or her fingers to insert the ink cartridge 30A forward toward the cartridge case 110.

[0122] 13(A) and 13(B), the ink cartridge 30A is inserted into the slot 108A through the opening 112 of the case body 101. The bottom surface 47 of the inserted ink cartridge 30A is supported by the guide surface 161 of the case body 101 shown in FIG.

[0123] Before the supply port 34 of the ink cartridge 30A reaches the supply tube 102, the second key portion 78A reaches below the second key slot 138A of the case body 101. The second key portion 78A of the ink cartridge 30A is located on the left side of the center in the left-right direction of the second upper surface 82. On the other hand, the second key slot 138A is located on the left side of the center in the left-right direction of the slot 108A. Therefore, when the ink cartridge 30A is further inserted forward, the second key portion 78A enters below the second key slot 138A as shown in FIG. 14(A) and FIG. 14(B). At this time, the inclined surface 511B of the front part 511 of the cover 32 abuts on the contact 125 of the case body 101 forward, while the second front inclined surface 84B of the second key portion 78A abuts on the lock portion 139, so that a downward force is applied to the ink cartridge 30A. A downward force is applied to the inclined surface 511B of the front portion 511 of the cover 32 and the second front inclined surface 84B of the second key portion 78A, so that the cover 32 moves downward and the container body 31 rotates clockwise in Fig. 14(A) and Fig. 14(B). As a result, the lower surface 47 of the supply portion 33 that defines the lower end of the ink cartridge 30 abuts against the guide surface 161 of the case body 101, and the second key portion 78A moves forward while abutting against the lock portion 139, and reaches below the second key slot 138A. At this time, the container body 31 rotates clockwise while the cover 32 moves downward, so that the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 approaches the lower surface of the upper wall 56 of the cover 32. However, since the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 is located below the through-hole 90 of the upper wall 56, the through-hole 90 prevents the container body 31 from contacting the upper wall 56. The front end 44A of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 is an example of the upper end and front end of a partition wall.

[0124] Furthermore, with the supply portion 33 abutting against the guide surface 161 of the case body 101 and the second front inclined surface 84B of the second key portion 78A abutting against the lock portion 139, the first key portion 77A enters the first key slot 115A.

[0125] Moreover, one of the pair of walls 71 enters groove 113. The other of the pair of walls 71 enters groove 114. Moreover, rib 118 enters one of the two grooves 74. rib 119 abuts against the other of the two grooves 74. One of the pair of walls 71 enters groove 113 and the other enters groove 114, thereby guiding the cover 32 forward. The rib 118 enters one of the two grooves 74 and the rib 119 enters the other, thereby guiding the cover 32 forward and positioning the cover 32 with respect to the cartridge case 110 in the up-down direction.

[0126] One of the second front faces 73 of the wall 71 moves forward while abutting against the lower surface of the groove 113, and the other of the second front faces 73 moves forward while abutting against the lower surface of the groove 114, so that one of the walls 71 is guided to the groove 113 in the vertical direction, and the other is guided to the groove 114. Also, either one of the first front faces 72 of the wall 71 or the lower front face 75L of the cover 32 moves forward while abutting against the rib 118, so that the groove 74 is guided to the rib 118 in the vertical direction. Either the other of the first front face 72 of the wall 71 or the lower front face 75L of the cover 32 moves forward while abutting against the rib 119, so that the groove 74 is guided to the rib 119 in the vertical direction. In addition, when the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A enters the first key slot 115A, the side surface 77S of the first key portion 77A shown in Figures 4 and 8 moves forward while abutting against the protrusion 117, thereby guiding the first key portion 77A into the first key slot 115A in the left-right direction.

[0127] As the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A enters the first key slot 115A, the second key portion 78A enters the second key slot 138A. As the second key portion 78A enters the second key slot 138A, the second front inclined surface 84B and the upper end surface 86 come into contact with the lock portion 139 in that order. As shown in FIG. 14(A) and FIG. 14(B), when the second front inclined surface 84B comes into contact with the lock portion 139, a downward and rearward force acts on the container body 31, and when the upper end surface 86 comes into contact with the lock portion 139, a downward force acts on the container body 31. When the second front inclined surface 84B or the upper end surface 86 slides on the lock portion 139, the lower surface 70 of the container body 31 slides on the guide surface 161.

[0128] When the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A enters the first key slot 115A, the lower surface 77L of the first key portion 77A abuts against the upper end 136 of the pressing plate 134. As the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A enters the first key slot 115A, the lower surface 77L of the first key portion 77A presses the pressing plate 134 downward, moving the ink receiving member 130 from the first position to the second position. At this time, the urging force of the coil spring 133 acts upward on the cover 32, but the surfaces 74L and 74U of the groove 74 shown in FIG. 8 abut against the rib 118, so that the cover 32 is positioned in the vertical direction. In addition, the surfaces 74L and 74U of the groove 74 abut against the rib 118, so that the cover 32 is positioned in the vertical direction. This prevents the cover 32 from moving upward. As the wall 71 moves forward, the pressing plate 134 moves downward along the second front surface 73 against the biasing force of the coil spring 133. As the pressing plate 134 moves downward, the ink receiving member 130 moves from the first position shown in Figures 13(A) and 13(B) to the second position shown in Figures 14(A) and 14(B).

[0129] When the ink receiving member 130 is in the second position, as the ink cartridge 30A moves forward, the supply port 34 becomes connected to the supply tube 102. The supply tube 102 presses the valve 36, causing the valve 36 to move rearward against the biasing force of the coil spring 37. The outer circumferential surface of the supply tube 102 connected to the supply unit 33 comes into liquid-tight contact with the seal member 35.

[0130] As shown in FIG. 15(A) and FIG. 15(B), as the ink cartridge 30 moves forward, the rod 121 of the slot 108A abuts against the valve 50 located at the air vent 501 of the container body 31 through the through hole 76 of the cover 32. The rod 121 pushes the valve 50, and the valve 50 moves backward against the biasing force of the coil spring 51. By the valve 50 moving backward, the air vent 501 is opened and air can flow between the outside and the storage chamber 46. The rod 121 is an example of a protrusion. Also, the electrode 61 of the IC board 60 abuts against the contact 125 to be electrically connected. Also, the lock surface 87 of the second key portion 78A is located forward of the lock portion 139. The abutment surface 92 is located below the lock portion 139.

[0131] Although contact 125 applies a downward contact pressure to electrode 61, cover 32 does not move downward because the vertical movement of cover 32 is restricted by ribs 118 and 119 abutting groove 74. In addition, the biasing force of coil spring 133 acting upward on cover 32 and the downward contact pressure of contact 125 cancel out the vertical force applied to cover 32.

[0132] 15(B), the front-rear position where the upper end 136 of the pressing plate 134 abuts against the wall 71 and the first key portion 77A is different from the front-rear position where the contact 125 abuts against the electrode 61. Specifically, the front-rear position where the upper end 136 of the pressing plate 134 abuts against the wall 71 and the first key portion 77A is located forward of the front-rear position where the contact 125 abuts against the electrode 61. This applies a force to the cover 32 to rotate the rear end side of the cover 32 upwardly with respect to the front end side, with the left-right direction as the rotation axis. In contrast, the rotation of the cover 32 is suppressed by the abutment of the ribs 118 and 119 with the groove 74 as shown in FIG.

[0133] As shown in FIG. 17, when the ink cartridge 30A is inserted most forward in the slot 108A, the third key portion 79 fits into the fitting piece 122 and the fitting piece 123. Suppose an ink cartridge 30 sold in a different sales region and not provided with one of the third key portions 79 located on the left and right is inserted into the slot 108D. In the slot 108D, the fitting piece 122 is located on the right and the fitting piece 123 is located on the left. In the ink cartridge 30 not provided with one of the third key portions 79, the front wall 53 of the cover 32 abuts against either the fitting piece 122 or the fitting piece 123. This prevents the ink cartridge 30 from being inserted further forward into the slot 108D. Since the ink cartridge 30 cannot be inserted into the slot 108D, it is identified that the ink cartridge 30 is an ink cartridge 30 to be used in a printer in a sales region different from the printer 10.

[0134] In the state shown in FIG. 15(A) and FIG. 15(B), the container body 31 can rotate around the supply port 34 so that the rear end side faces upward in the slot 108. When the ink cartridge 30A rotates so that the rear end side moves upward, the lock surface 87 of the second key portion 78A and the lock portion 139 face each other in the front-rear direction. When the user releases his / her fingers from the ink cartridge 30A, the ink cartridge 30A moves backward due to the biasing force of the coil spring 37 and the coil spring 51, and the lock surface 87 abuts against the lock portion 139 as shown in FIG. 16(A) and FIG. 16(B). This keeps the ink cartridge 30A attached to the cartridge case 110. In addition, the abutment surface 92 abuts against the lock portion 139. This positions the container body 31 of the ink cartridge 30A in the up-down direction with respect to the cartridge case 110.

[0135] When ink cartridge 30A is held in cartridge case 110, the internal space of ink cartridge 30A communicates with the atmosphere through atmosphere communication port 501. As a result, ink in storage chamber 46 flows into the internal space of supply tube 102 through the internal space of supply portion 33 and is supplied to subtank 120.

[0136] In addition, the ink cartridge 30A is biased backward by the coil springs 37 and 51, but the backward movement of the ink cartridge 30A is restricted by the contact between the lock surface 87 of the ink cartridge 30A and the lock portion 139 of the cartridge case 110. As a result, the ink cartridge 30A is held in the cartridge case 110.

[0137] Furthermore, when the ink cartridge 30A is held in the cartridge case 110, the electrode 61 of the IC board 60 abuts against the contact 125. Furthermore, when the cover 126 is closed, the electrode 61 is in electrical contact with the contact 125, enabling communication with the control unit of the printer 10.

[0138] Furthermore, when ink cartridge 30A is in the installed state, the downward force that electrode 61 of ink cartridge 30A receives from contact 125 is transmitted to supply tube 102 inserted into the internal space of supply unit 33. The downward force transmitted to supply tube 102 is weakened by being received by pressure plate 134, thereby reducing the possibility of supply tube 102 being deformed.

[0139] Suppose that the ink cartridge 30A is mistakenly inserted into the slot 108B of the cartridge case 110 shown in FIG. 2. In the second slot 108B from the right, the first key slot 115B is located slightly to the right of the center of the slot 108B in the left-right direction. Therefore, the left-right positions of the first key portion 77A of the ink cartridge 30A and the first key slot 115B of the slot 108B are misaligned, so the first key portion 77A cannot enter the first key slot 115B and abuts against the rear wall 173. As the front surface 77F of the first key portion 77A abuts against the rear wall 173, the ink cartridge 30A cannot be further inserted into the slot 108B. Since the ink cartridge 30A cannot be inserted into the slot 108B, the user understands that the ink cartridge 30A is not the ink cartridge 30 that should be inserted into the slot 108B.

[0140] Assume that the ink cartridge 30, which has the first key portion 77 in the same position as the ink cartridge 30A and the second key portion 78 in the same position as the ink cartridge 30D, is inserted into the rightmost slot 108A of the cartridge case 110 shown in FIG. 2. In the rightmost slot 108A, the first key slot 115A is located to the right of the slot 108A in the left-right direction, so the first key portion 77 of the ink cartridge 30 can enter the first key slot 115A. On the other hand, the second key slot 138A is located to the left of the center of the slot 108A in the left-right direction. Therefore, the second key portion 78 of the ink cartridge 30 and the second key slot 138A of the slot 108A are misaligned in the left-right direction, so that the upper end surface 86 abuts against the case body 101 before the second key portion 78 enters the second key slot 138A as the ink cartridge 30 rotates. As a result, the lock surface 87 and the lock portion 139 do not face each other in the front-rear direction, and therefore the ink cartridge 30 is not held in the slot 108D. Because the container body 31 cannot rotate, the user understands that the ink cartridge 30 is not the ink cartridge 30 that should be inserted into the slot 108A.

[0141] Next, the movement of the ink cartridge 30A when the ink cartridge 30A mounted in the cartridge case 110 is removed from the cartridge case 110 will be described. As shown in Fig. 17, in the mounted state, the vertical movement and rotation of the cover 32 are restricted by the ribs 118 and 119 that abut against the grooves 74. Since the container body 31 is movable relative to the cover 32, even if the vertical movement and rotation of the cover 32 is restricted, only the container body 31 can rotate about the supply port 34. The rotation of the container body 31 causes the lock surface 87 and the lock portion 139 to engage with each other or to separate from each other in the vertical direction.

[0142] In the attached state, when the user presses down on the operation surface 68 of the container body 31 with his / her finger, the rear end side of the container body 31 moves downward. This causes the lock surface 87 and the lock portion 139 to separate in the vertical direction. Then, when the user removes his / her finger from the operation surface 68, the urging force of the coil spring 37 and the coil spring 51 causes the ink cartridge 30A to move backward in the slot 108A.

[0143] In the mounted state, the protrusion 59 of the ink cartridge 30A is located in the space 162 of the case body 101. As the ink cartridge 30A moves rearward through the slot 108A, the protrusion 59 also moves rearward through the space 162 and abuts against the front end of the guide surface 161. This restricts the rearward movement of the ink cartridge 30A, and as shown in Figures 14(A) and 14(B), the ink cartridge 30A does not jump out of the slot 108A and remains stationary with the front side of the ink cartridge 30A positioned in the slot 108A. Furthermore, as shown in Figures 13(A) and 13(B), as the ink cartridge 30A moves rearward, the protrusion 59 of the ink cartridge 30A moves away from the guide surface 161 of the slot 108A, and the ink cartridge 30A is removed from the slot 108A.

[0144] [Effects of this embodiment] The ink cartridge 30 has a front portion 511 that defines the front end of the through hole 90 in the upper wall 56 of the cover 32. For this reason, even if a strong impact occurs around the front portion 511 of the cover 32 when the ink cartridge 30 is dropped on the floor, the front portion 511 is easily deformed, so the impact of the fall is easily absorbed by the front portion 511. Since the through hole 90 is located between the front portion 511 and the electrode 61 of the IC board 60, the force generated by the deformation of the front portion 511 is easily dispersed to the right wall 55 and the left wall 54 connected to the front portion 511. Therefore, the impact is not easily transmitted from the front portion 511 to the periphery of the IC board 60 in the upper wall 56, so the deformation of the periphery of the IC board 60 in the upper wall 56 is suppressed. As a result, the position of the electrode 61 of the IC board 60 is not easily shifted. This suppresses the occurrence of poor connection between the electrode 61 of the IC board 60 and the contact 125 of the cartridge case 110 when the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110. Therefore, the control unit of the printer 10 can read out the information stored in the IC board 60 of the ink cartridge 30 through the contacts 125 more reliably.

[0145] The right and left ends of the front end of the front portion 511 of the ink cartridge 30 are connected to the front wall 53. For this reason, the force generated by the deformation of the front portion 511 is easily dispersed to the front wall 53, so that the strength of the front portion 511 is high.

[0146] Since the container body 31 of the ink cartridge 30 is movable in the up-down and front-back directions relative to the cover 32, the IC board 60 is positioned in the cartridge case 110 independently of the container body 31. This makes it easy to align the IC board 60 with the cartridge case 110. When the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110, the container body 31 moves in the up-down and front-back directions relative to the cover 32, so even if the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 of the container body 31 moves upward in the clockwise direction, the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 is positioned below the through hole 90 of the cover 32, so that the through hole 90 prevents the front end 44A of the upper wall 44 from contacting the upper wall 56 of the cover 32.

[0147] Near both left and right ends of the upper wall 56 of the cover 32 of the ink cartridge 30, left and right guide pieces 91, 91 protruding upward from the upper surface 511A of the front portion 511 are provided. For this reason, the force generated by the deformation of the front portion 511 is easily distributed to the left and right guide pieces 91, 91, and the strength of the front portion 511 is high.

[0148] When the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110, the inclined surface 511B of the front part 511 of the cover 32 contacts the contact 125 of the case body 101 facing forward, so that the cover 32 is guided in the vertical direction relative to the cartridge case 110 while reducing the impact caused by contact between the cover 32 and the contact 125.

[0149] The upper wall 56 of the cover 32 of the ink cartridge 30 has a right portion 512 that defines the right end of the through-hole 90 and extends rearward from the right end portion at the rear end of the front portion 511, and a left portion 513 that defines the left end of the through-hole 90 and extends rearward from the left end portion at the rear end of the front portion 511. Therefore, the force generated by the deformation of the front portion 511 is easily dispersed rearward from the front portion 511, improving the strength of the front portion 511.

[0150] When the ink cartridge 30 is attached to the cartridge case 110, the through-hole 76 of the cover 32 receives the rod 121 of the cartridge case 110, and the valve 50 is pressed backward to open the atmosphere communication port 501 of the container body 31. Therefore, when the ink in the storage chamber 46 is supplied to the subtank 120 through the internal space of the supply part 33 and the internal space of the supply tube 102, air easily flows into the storage chamber 46 through the atmosphere communication port 501. Therefore, the ink in the storage chamber 46 is easily supplied to the subtank 120.

[0151] [Variations] Although the front end of the top wall 56 in the cover 32 of the ink cartridge 30 described above is connected to the upper end of the front wall 53, it does not have to be connected to the upper end of the front wall 53. In this case, the upper end of the front wall 53 may be lower than the upper wall 56, for example.

[0152] The ink cartridge 30 described above includes a container body 31 and a cover 32, but the container body 31 and the cover 32 may be integrally configured. In this case, the front wall of the ink cartridge 30 corresponds to the first wall. The right wall of the ink cartridge 30 corresponds to the second wall. The left wall of the ink cartridge 30 corresponds to the third wall. The top wall of the ink cartridge 30 corresponds to the fourth wall. Furthermore, in this case, the through hole 90 in the top wall of the ink cartridge 30 may be closed by a semipermeable membrane that blocks the passage of ink and allows the passage of air. In this case, the atmosphere communication port 501, the through hole 76, and the valve mechanism 504 may be omitted.

[0153] The container body 31 of the ink cartridge 30 described above is movable in the vertical direction and the front-rear direction relative to the cover 32, but it may be movable only in the vertical direction relative to the cover 32.

[0154] The ink cartridge 30 described above has left and right guide pieces 91, 91 protruding upward from the upper surface 511A of the front portion 511, but at least one of the left and right guide pieces 91, 91 may be omitted.

[0155] Although the front portion 511 of the ink cartridge 30 described above has the inclined surface 511B, the inclined surface 511B may be omitted.

[0156] The ink cartridge 30 described above has the right portion 512 and the left portion 513 extending rearward from the rear end of the front portion 511 of the cover 32, but at least one of the right portion 512 and the left portion 513 may be omitted.

[0157] The through-hole 90 of the ink cartridge 30 described above is a rectangle longer in the left-right direction than in the front-rear direction when viewed from above, but it may be formed so that the length along the left-right direction becomes shorter toward the rear. In this way, the length along the left-right direction of the right portion 512 and the left portion 513 of the upper wall 56 of the cover 32 becomes longer toward the rear, so that the force generated by the deformation of the front portion 511 is easily dispersed from the front portion 511 to the right portion 512 and the left portion 513. This improves the strength of the front portion 511.

[0158] In the above-described embodiment, the ink cartridge 30 includes the container body 31 and the cover 32. Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 18, the ink cartridge 30 may include a container 431 in which the container body 31 and the cover 32 are integrally molded. In this case, the container 431 stores ink. The first key portion 77, the second key portion 78, and the IC board 60 are located in the container 431.

[0159] In the above embodiment, the atmosphere communication port 501 is located in the upper front wall 40U of the container body 31. However, the atmosphere communication port 501 may be located in a wall other than the front wall 40 of the container body 31, for example, in the upper wall 44.

[0160] In the above embodiment, the pressing plate 134 and the ink receiving member 130 are disposed inside the cartridge case 110, but these may be omitted. In other words, the first key portion 77 may only realize the function of identifying the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30.

[0161] Furthermore, the second key portion 78 does not necessarily have to have the lock surface 87. In other words, the second key portion 78 may only have the function of identifying the characteristics of the ink cartridge 30.

[0162] In the above-described embodiment, the ink cartridge 30 is shown as an example of an ink container, but the ink container may be a bottle for refilling ink into the printer tank or the like, rather than a cartridge that is installed in the printer 10. [Explanation of symbols]

[0163] 30···Ink cartridge (ink container) 31... Container body (first member) 32 Cover (second member) 33...supply section 50···Valve 53...Front wall (1st wall) 54 Left wall (third wall) 55...Right wall (2nd wall) 56...Upper wall (4th wall) 60···IC board (electrical interface) 61...electrode 76...Through hole (second through hole) 90...Through hole 91 Right guide piece (first protrusion) 91...Left guide piece (second protrusion) 110 Cartridge case (mounting part) 121 Rod (protrusion) 501: Atmospheric vent 511...Front part (front end) 511A...Top surface 511B...Slope surface 512...right part 513...Left part

Claims

1. An ink container to be inserted into a mounting space of a mounting portion, A main body having a storage chamber for storing ink; a supply section extending forward from the ink storage chamber and supplying the ink in the ink storage chamber to the outside of the main body; an electrical interface spaced upwardly and perpendicularly to the front relative to the supply and having an electrode; The above body is The first wall, a second wall that is continuous with the first wall and faces to the right; a third wall that is continuous with the first wall and faces leftward; a fourth wall connecting the second wall and the third wall and facing upward; the electrical interface is located on the fourth wall; The fourth wall has a through hole located forward of the electrode of the electrical interface, and a front end defining a front end of the fourth wall and a front end of the through hole.

2. 2. The ink container according to claim 1, wherein the front end of the front portion is joined to the first wall at a right end and a left end.

3. 3. The ink container according to claim 1, wherein the first wall has a second through hole located below the front end.

4. The above body is A first member having a partition wall that partitions the storage chamber; a second member having the first wall, the second wall, the third wall, and the fourth wall; The first member is engaged with the second member so as to be movable relative to the second member in the up-down direction, 4. The ink container according to claim 3, wherein an upper end and a front end of the partition wall are located below the through hole.

5. The front end has an upper surface facing upward; The above body is a first protruding piece protruding upward from the upper surface to the right of the through hole; 3. The ink container according to claim 1, further comprising: a second protruding piece protruding upward from the top surface to the left of the through hole.

6. The front end portion is an upper surface facing upward; 3. The ink container according to claim 1, further comprising an inclined surface adjacent to the front of said upper surface and inclined downward relative to said upper surface as it moves forward.

7. The fourth wall is a first portion that is continuous with a rear end of the front end portion and extends leftward from the second wall; a second portion that is continuous with a rear end of the front end portion and extends rightward from the third wall, The first portion defines a right end of the through hole, 3. The ink container according to claim 1, wherein the second portion defines a left end of the through hole.

8. 3. The ink container according to claim 1, wherein the length of the through hole in a direction perpendicular to the front and upper directions becomes shorter toward the rear.

9. The first member has an atmosphere communication port that communicates the storage chamber with the outside, The device further includes a valve located in the first member and capable of opening and closing the atmosphere communication port, the valve is exposed to the outside through the atmosphere communication port and the second through hole, 5. The ink container according to claim 4, wherein the second through hole receives a projection extending from the mounting portion.

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