1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to liquid supply apparatuses and liquid containers.
2. Description of Related Art
A known liquid container, e.g., a liquid cartridge is configured to be removably mounted to a container mounting portion provided in an apparatus such as an ink-jet printer. The known liquid container has a movable member, such as a float, which is configured to move according to the change of the liquid level in the container. By detecting the position of the movable member, the liquid amount (liquid level) in the container can be determined.
For example, a known ink cartridge such as an ink cartridge described in JP-A-2008-087159 is configured to be removably mounted to a cartridge mounting portion of an ink jet printer. The ink cartridge has an arm having a float and a light-blocking panel at both ends thereof. The amount of ink stored in the ink cartridge can be determined by detecting the position of the light-blocking panel when the float moves up and down according to the change of the ink level in the cartridge. Such a detection is performed by an optical sensor provided at the cartridge mounting portion.
In the liquid container having the movable member such as the float as described above, when the movable member moves greatly due to the fluctuation of the liquid surface caused by vibrations applied from the outside of the container when the container is not in use, e.g., when the container is transported, the movable member or the interior of the container may be damaged. Moreover, when bubbles are formed in the liquid container by the movement of the movable member, and the liquid container is used with the bubbles formed therein, the movement of the movable member may be blocked by the bubbles, and the liquid amount in the container cannot be determined accurately. Therefore, in another known liquid container, the movable member is fixed to a case of the container when the liquid container is not used.
For example, a fuel tank such as a fuel tank described in JP-A-2005-145126, stores fuel for an automotive vehicle and has a float configured to be detected for determining the amount of fuel in the tank. This fuel tank has a stopper configured to restrict the movement of the float, and a string connected to the stopper. The movement of the float is restricted by the stopper when the fuel tank is transported, and the float is released from the restriction when the stopper is removed by pulling the string.
The stopper is configured to restrict the movement of the float by directly contacting the float, and the string is connected to the stopper such that the stopper can be removed from the outside of the tank when the tank is used. However, when the string is pulled from the outside of the tank, the float may be damaged because a force to pull the string may be applied heavily to the float, or the stopper may come into contact with and hence damage the interior of the tank before being removed out of the tank. Therefore, an attention should be paid not to cause the damage when the stopper is removed.