> Knowledge base> Article: My cartridges are empty but the printer driver/ink level monitor says I have some ink left?

My cartridges are empty but the printer driver/ink level monitor says I have some ink left?

Article ID: 44553 Print
Question
My cartridges are empty but the printer driver/ink level monitor says I have some ink left?

Answer

My cartridges are empty but the printer driver/ink level monitor says I have some ink left?

The ink levels reflected in the printer driver preferences are an estimate of the ink level in the unit.  The levels are not actually read from the cartridges themselves.  For the color cartridge, this estimate is based on an average of all three colors.  The color cartridges are rated at approximately 120 discs at full coverage, using all three colors in the cartridge.  If the label you are printing is using one color more consistently than another, this will cause the cartridge to run out of ink prematurely for that color, while the ink levels are still showing plenty of ink remaining.  The ink level displayed in the printer driver is a mathematically calculated estimate based on the images that you send through the driver.  The ink level counter is not 'smart' in that it will not be able to detect exactly how much ink is left in each individual compartment.  This mathematical estimate is based on the number of spits of ink expelled by the cartridge, which are deducted from a known value of spits in a new cartridge.


related articles

Article Details
Views: 9194 Created on: May 24, 2014
Date updated: Jan 27, 2016

Poor
Outstanding