Seiko Epson Corporation

Ryohei Ito

Shuichi Koganehira

Ryuichi Shiohara

Masaki Tsukida

Masaharu Iwamoto

Daisuke Nagai

Taku Ishizawa

Yasuhiko Kosugi

Takeshi Iwamuro

Kenji Matsumoto

Tomohiko Sano

Masayuki Ishida

Naoki Ogasawara

A printer to which an ink tank that contains an ink is fixed and that is configured such that a user can refill the ink tank with the ink includes: a consumption amount calculation unit that calculates a consumption amount of the ink; a storage unit that stores a count value that is updated based on the consumption amount of the ink calculated by the consumption amount calculation unit; a sensor that detect whether or not the ink is present at a predetermined position in the ink tank; and a control unit that executes ink presence/absence detection with the sensor. The ink presence/absence detection is for determining whether or not the ink is present. The control unit resets the count value to an initial value thereof if the control unit executes the ink presence/absence detection and determines that the ink is present.

Liquid consumption apparatus

A printer which is configured so that an ink tank which accommodates ink is fixed and a user can refill the ink tank with the ink, includes one pair of electrodes which are disposed in the ink tank and serve as sensors for detecting whether or not the ink is present at a predetermined height (first threshold value). A control portion which controls the printer performs liquid presence detection to detect whether or not the ink is present at the predetermined height (first threshold value) by using the sensors, and performs initial filling which corresponds to the result of the detection.

Liquid discharging apparatus

An object is to improve a user's convenience. There is provided a liquid ejecting apparatus including a head ejecting a liquid onto a medium; a containing unit containing the liquid; and a mounting unit on which a storage material storing a liquid amount of the containing unit is mounted. If the storage material is removed from the mounting unit when the liquid ejecting apparatus performs an operation, the liquid ejecting apparatus selects any one state between a first state of stopping the operation and a second state without stopping the operation.

Liquid ejecting apparatus

Ejection of ink is prohibited when a count value of an amount of ink supplied from an ink tank to an ejection head reaches a value limit. An image is displayed to prompt an operator of the printing apparatus to confirm the amount of ink in the ink tank. When the ink remains, the count value of the amount of ink is returned only by a given amount by the selection of the operator. Thus, since the ink in the ink tank is sufficiently consumed and then the ink can be supplemented, all of the ink in an ink bottle can be supplemented. As a consequence, it is possible to prevent the ink remaining in the ink bottle from deteriorating and prevent the remaining ink from being supplemented.

Printing system and program

If an ink amount supplied from an ink tank to an ejection head reaches a predetermined limit value, ink ejection is not permitted. If initialization data are input and the input initialization data are appropriate, a count value of the ink amount is initialized, and the ink ejection is started again. In addition, the initialization data which is input once and determined to be appropriate is determined to be inappropriate thereafter. By doing so, although ink of which the property and state are inappropriate is used for the refilling, since appropriate initialization data may not be input, it is possible to avoid the inappropriate ink from being used for the refilling.

Provided is an apparatus capable of mounting an expendable cartridge thereon, including: a consumption amount counting unit that counts up the consumption amount of expendable cartridges in the apparatus when a change is detected for the first time during the continuous operation or the apparatus. The detected change is a residual expendable amount of the expendable cartridge decreasing from a value higher than a predetermined low residual level to a value lower than or equal to the low residual level. The consumption amount of the expendable cartridges is counted up and is detected in a number of different manners, depending on the circumstances surrounding the measured values of the residual expendable amounts and the replacement of the cartridges.

Apparatus capable of mounting expendable cartridges, method for counting consumption amount of expendable cartridges, and computer program

A digital camera including a lens, first and second sensors, a shutoff member, a display, a detector, an exposure amount determiner, and a still image generator. The first sensor receives light through the lens and the second sensor also receives light through the lens, but is different from the first sensor. The shutoff member performs a first shutoff of the light received by the first sensor through the lens and also ends the first shutoff. The display displays a moving image based on the light received by the first sensor, and while the moving image is displayed, the detector detects a shutter operation. The exposure amount determiner determines, in response to the detected shutter operation, an exposure amount based on the light received by the second sensor when the first sensor does not receive light through the lens. The still image generator generates a still image based on the light received by the first sensor and the exposure amount determined by the exposure amount determiner.

Digital camera displaying moving image and exposure control method thereof

A control method of a digital camera includes: displaying a moving image on a screen based on charges stored in an image sensor by an electronic shutter with a shutter curtain opened; detecting illuminance of the shutter curtain with the shutter curtain closed; setting a still image exposure period based on the detected illuminance of the shutter curtain; exposing the image sensor in the still image exposure period with the shutter curtain opened; and storing a still image in a recording medium based on the charges stored in the image sensor in the still image exposure period.

Digital camera having a shutter curtain and exposure control method thereof

A digital camera allowing a user to easily check shooting conditions with low power consumption is to be provided. The digital camera includes a display unit having a display panel on which a plurality of shooting conditions are displayed and an indicator needle, a driving unit for driving the indicator needle in response to an input given by a user and indicating one of the shooting conditions by using the indicator needle, and an image pick-up unit for converting an optical image formed by an optical system to a digital image on the basis of the shooting condition indicated by the indicator needle.

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Nagano, Japan

Ryohei Ito