Parts of a Printer – Trays, Lid, Glass and Ink Cartridges

All 9 parts on the diagram

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Start here: 5 main parts 5

Input tray Holds the blank paper, standing up at the back. The printer pulls in one sheet at a time from here.
Output tray Catches the printed pages as they come out of the front. It pulls out, and an extender opens for longer paper.
Lid Lifts up, then closes over a page to copy or scan it. You lay the page face down on the scanner glass.
Control panel The buttons and lights for using the printer without a computer. Power, copying, cancel, and lights that warn about paper or ink.
Ink cartridges They hold the ink. This printer takes two, one black and one color, clipped into the carriage.

Other 4

Paper guide Slides in against the side of the paper stack. Each sheet then feeds in straight.
Scanner glass You lay a page face down on it to copy or scan. Also called the platen.
On button Turns the printer on or off.
Print carriage Holds the cartridges and slides back and forth across the page. It sprays tiny drops of ink as the paper moves through.

How this list was compiled: Read 2026-09-28. (1) HP Deskjet 1510 series user guide, "Printer parts" and "Control panel features" (archive.org manualsbase-id-9758): input tray, paper-width guide, ink cartridges, lid and lid-backing, control panel with its On button, Cancel and copy buttons and warning lights, cartridge access door, print carriage (moves to the center when the door opens), output tray and output tray extender, scanner glass, USB port, power connection. (2) Canon PIXMA MP510 guide (archive.org manualzilla-id-7063416): paper support, paper guide (slid against the side of the paper stack), paper output support, document cover, operation panel, ON/OFF button, scanning unit (printer cover), print head holder, ink tanks. (3) Wikipedia, Image scanner, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_scanner : a flatbed scanner with its lid open; documents laid face down on the platen (the glass bed). (4) Wikipedia, Inkjet printing, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inkjet_printing : the print head moves across the page as paper advances; ink cartridges. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site by script, 2026-09-28. Own work, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

These are the parts of a printer on a home all-in-one inkjet, with the lid and the front door open so the parts inside show. Each part has its function in Study. Start with the 5 main parts.

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Paper in, pages out

Paper stands in the input tray at the back, with the paper guide slid against its side. The printer pulls in one sheet at a time, prints it, and pushes it out onto the output tray at the front.

Ink and scanning

Behind the front door, the ink cartridges clip into the print carriage, which slides across the page spraying ink. On top, the lid lifts off the scanner glass, where a page lies face down to be copied or scanned.

A laser printer has the same trays and panel, but uses a toner cartridge and a drum instead of ink cartridges.

Questions and answers

What are the main parts of a printer?

The input tray that holds the paper, the output tray that catches the printed pages, the control panel, and the ink cartridges. An all-in-one printer also has a lid and scanner glass on top for copying and scanning.

Where do the ink cartridges go?

Into the print carriage, behind a door on the front or top. When the door opens, the carriage moves to the middle so the cartridges can be reached and clipped in.

What is the glass on top of a printer called?

The scanner glass, also called the platen. You lay the page face down on it and close the lid over it to copy or scan.