Patent ID: 8240793

Claim:
A fluid supply device comprising: a main tank in which a fluid is stored in a sealed storage unit of variable capacity; a subtank having a fluid chamber of variable capacity to which fluid is supplied from the main tank; a head that can discharge the fluid supplied from the subtank; a movable carriage on which the head and the subtank are mounted; an expansion mechanism that enables a fluid refill operation in which a movable member that moves in contact with a regulator part disposed on a main device side, to expand the fluid chamber and supply fluid from the main tank; a fluid volume detection unit that detects fluid volume in the main tank; an evaluation unit that determines based on the detection by the fluid volume detection unit that fluid volume is low when the fluid stored in the main tank is less than a specified level and is sufficient when the fluid stored in the main tank is greater than or equal to the specified level; and a setting unit that when the evaluation unit determines the remaining fluid volume is low sets at least one of a long time mode in which the stop time of the carriage for the fluid refill operation is longer, and a low speed mode in which speed of the moveable carriage for the fluid refill operation is slower, than when the remaining fluid volume is sufficient.