Patent ID: 7219985

Claim:
An ink cartridge for detachably mounting on a carriage of an ink jet printing apparatus, the carriage having an ink supply needle communicating with a print head, the ink cartridge comprising: a bottom wall and a plurality of side walls arranged in parallel to an insertion direction of the ink cartridge into the carriage; an ink supply port formed in the bottom wall to engage the ink supply needle of the ink jet printing apparatus as the ink cartridge moves in the insertion direction; a circuit board formed on a side wall adjacent to the bottom wall and being located in the vicinity of the ink supply port; a plurality of electrodes divided into plural groups, each said group being located at an interval in the insertion direction of the cartridge relative to another group, the electrodes being disposed on the circuit board and one said electrode that is located in a center of one of the groups is disposed on a central line of the ink supply port; a semiconductor storage device located on the circuit board and which is in electrical communication with at least one of the electrodes; and an overhang portion located on the side wall on which the circuit board is formed.