IP 4200 ink

  • Thread starter Thread starter Andy Petro
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Andy Petro

My IP 4200 Cannon printer shows both black cartridges CLI 5 & CLI8 as
being empty although both are still 3/4 full.
The black is hardly ever used because i only use this printer for color
photos. What can i do ?
 
Andy Petro said:
My IP 4200 Cannon printer shows both black cartridges CLI 5 & CLI8 as
being empty although both are still 3/4 full.
The black is hardly ever used because i only use this printer for color
photos. What can i do ?
Click to expand...
Press the resume button (the one under the power button) and carry on?
 
Andy Petro said:
My IP 4200 Cannon printer shows both black cartridges CLI 5 & CLI8 as
being empty although both are still 3/4 full.
The black is hardly ever used because i only use this printer for color
photos. What can i do ?
Click to expand...

How do you know the cartridges are 3/4 full? If you remove one of the
cartridges you will see it consists of two compartments, one of them is foam
filled and one has only ink in it. If the one that is not foam filled is empty
then the cartridge is empty regardless of the amount of ink in the foam filled
compartment.
Even if you don't print text the large cartridge will be used up during
automatic routine head cleaning cycles and the small black is used in photos
added to the other colours to make up the correct colour composition.
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging
 
Tony said:
How do you know the cartridges are 3/4 full? If you remove one of the
cartridges you will see it consists of two compartments, one of them
is foam
filled and one has only ink in it. If the one that is not foam filled
is empty
then the cartridge is empty regardless of the amount of ink in the
foam filled
compartment.
Even if you don't print text the large cartridge will be used up
during
automatic routine head cleaning cycles and the small black is used in
photos
added to the other colours to make up the correct colour composition.
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging
Click to expand...
The one not foam filled are both 3/4 full.
 
Andy Petro said:
The one not foam filled are both 3/4 full.
Click to expand...

Well there is something amiss. The way the printer knows when the cartridge is
empty is by using a prism (part of the cartridge) and it physically detects the
ink is firstly "low" and then "empty". The chip on the cartridge is in addition
to this and I guess you are using OEM inks otherwise the printer would not
report ink levels at all.
The only way you are going to find out is to replace one of the cartridges that
is reported as empty.
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging
 
Tony said:
Well there is something amiss. The way the printer knows when the
cartridge is
empty is by using a prism (part of the cartridge) and it physically
detects the
ink is firstly "low" and then "empty". The chip on the cartridge is in
addition
to this and I guess you are using OEM inks otherwise the printer would not
report ink levels at all.
The only way you are going to find out is to replace one of the cartridges
that
is reported as empty.
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging
Click to expand...
I have read a few posts of these printers misreading the chipped OEM
cartridges. Canon's brilliant move to try to thwart refilling has backfired
in some cases! I don't know if it was the cart/chip that was defective or
if it was the printer. As Tony said, you will find out if you change the
cart.
 
Tony said:
Well there is something amiss. The way the printer knows when the cartridge is
empty is by using a prism (part of the cartridge) and it physically detects the
ink is firstly "low" and then "empty". The chip on the cartridge is in addition
to this and I guess you are using OEM inks otherwise the printer would not
report ink levels at all.
The only way you are going to find out is to replace one of the cartridges that
is reported as empty.
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging
Click to expand...

This is not exactly right. The memory chip on the cartridges memorizes ink consumption
data stored into them by the printer. The printer probably counts the number of nozzle
firing and stores the count for each color into the corresponding chip on the cartridge.
The printer then reads the data in the chips and translates that into ink levels.

The printer also has an optical sensor for detecting emptiness of ink cartridges. This
sensor prevents the printer from printing whenever any cartridge becomes really empty.
 
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