Printer Ink Cartridges

• When you place an ink cartridge into a printer, the printer monitor measures the amount of ink remaining before and after each print job. If you do not have enough to cover the print job, the printer will give you a warning. Ordinarily, when your cartridge runs out, you will have to pay your printer manufacturer for a full-priced replacement. However, there are some types of cartridges that you can refill yourself using generic inks or dyes.
  
  

Refilling a Cartridge

• Most cartridge refilling methods involve removing the cartridge's fill plug and inserting a syringe into it. The fill plug is a membrane that sits atop the cartridge. It is this area of the cartridge through which ink is added in the factory. The syringe is usually filled with 12 to 15 ccs of ink or dye. When the user places the cartridge back into the printer, a sensor at the bottom of the printer detects the new ink and allows printing to commence.
  
  

The "Smart Chip"

• Because printer manufacturers make most of their profit from selling ink cartridges on an ongoing basis to repeat customers, they take a dim view of practices like these. To combat this, many of them have begun to implant chips into their cartridges that can detect when they have been tampered with. If you refill a cartridge with a smart chip using the syringe method, the cartridge will not register as "full" when you put it back into the printer.
  
  

The Chip Resetter

• A chip resetter is a standalone electronic device into which you place a compatible cartridge. Once in place, the metal pins in the resetter align with the cartridge's smart chip and are able to manipulate it. Specifically, the device resets the smart chip, effectively making it think that the cartridge is full. After using the resetter, you can refill the cartridge in the usual manner and the printer will function normally. It is important, however, that you only attempt to use a resetter on its target cartridge. if you force a cartridge into it that it was not designed for, you could damage both devices.