Patent ID: 8905532

Claim:
An ink-jet recording apparatus comprising: a recording head configured to eject an ink; an auxiliary reservoir having a partition portion, a side wall, and a bottom wall, wherein the auxiliary reservoir is configured to store the ink, wherein the partition portion divides an internal space of the auxiliary reservoir into an upstream chamber and a downstream chamber that are both open to an atmosphere and has a filter section at least partially contacting the ink in the upstream chamber and the downstream chamber, wherein the side wall has a first side wall and a second side wall, wherein the bottom wall has a first bottom wall and a second bottom wall, wherein the upstream chamber is defined by the first side wall, the first bottom wall, and the partition portion, and wherein the downstream chamber is defined by the second side wall, the second bottom wall, and the partition portion; a first supply passage for supplying the ink from the downstream chamber of the auxiliary reservoir to the recording head; a return passage for returning the ink from the recording head to the upstream chamber of the auxiliary reservoir, the return passage being connected to an ink inlet formed on one of the first side wall and the first bottom wall; a waste reservoir for storing the ink discharged from the auxiliary reservoir; and a discharge passage through which the ink is discharged from the upstream chamber of the auxiliary reservoir to the waste reservoir, the discharge passage being connected to an ink outlet formed on one of the first side wall and the first bottom wall, wherein a position of the ink outlet connecting to the discharge passage is closer to the filter section than a position of the ink inlet connecting to the return passage.