Abstract: A nip release mechanism for a fuser of a printing device includes a movable component in the printer base frame moved by opening and closing a cover, and a follower component in the fuser which follows movement of the movable component to adjust positions of a fuser pressure roll.

Abstract: The write lines of a color laser printer are maintained substantially equal throughout the printer's operation by an electronic control arrangement. At the factory, the write lines on all photoconductors of the color laser printer are calibrated to be substantially equal, and the ratio of each write line to a measuring line for each photoconductor is ascertained. During operation of the printer, the length of each of the measuring lines is periodically determined through counting the number of PELslice clock timing pulses produced from a PELslice clock operating at a fixed frequency determined during factory calibration. The length of the write line is determined by the product of the length of the measuring line and the factory calibrated ratio of the length of the write line to the length of the measuring line.

Abstract: An improved intermediate belt system (ITM module) is provided, which controls the lateral motion of the belt in the scan direction of an EP printer, without the use of edge reinforcements or other attachments added to the belt. The tracking system of this ITM module is passive, and maintains roll alignment/parallelism within a predetermined tolerance while also maintaining roll conicity-end flare to a predetermined maximum diametral variation over the roll to minimize the effect of external forces on the belt walk rate. The ITM module also provides angled tracking guides near the tension roll to control the lateral position of the belt; the position of these tracking guides is adjustable at time of manufacture to achieve the desired lateral belt position.

Abstract: A method of calibrating a multi-color electrophotographic machine having an image bearing surface includes forming toner patches of cyan, magenta, and yellow solid areas individually and in superimposed combination to form a series of single layer and multi-layer test patches. Light is emitted onto these single and multi-layer test patches. The amount of light that is reflected off of each test patch is measured. Light is also emitted onto a bare section of the image-bearing surface. The bare section has substantially no toner thereon. An amount of light that is reflected off of the bare section is measured. The step of measuring an amount of light reflected off single layer solid area test patches is repeated for a series of laser power and developer bias conditions. A laser power and/or a developer bias is adjusted dependent upon each of the three measuring steps.

Abstract: A method of setting a plurality of margins in an electrophotographic machine includes setting a top margin for a reference color black by establishing a first time delay between a vertical synchronization signal and a first line. A right margin or a left margin for the reference color black is set by establishing a second time delay between a horizontal synchronization signal and a start of printing. The other of the right margin and the left margin is set by adjusting a scan speed of a laser beam across a photoconductive element and adjusting a process speed in the cross-scan direction including the speed of the photoconductive element, image accumulation member, and print medium. A bottom margin is set by adjusting the process speed. The other three color planes, cyan, magenta and yellow are then registered or aligned to the reference color plane, black.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for improving adhesion between a polymeric planarizing film and a semiconductor chip surface. The method includes deposition resistive, conductive and/or insulative materials to a seimconductor chip surface to provide a semiconductor chip for an ink jet printer. The chip surface is treated with a dry etch process under an oxygen atmosphere for a period of time and under conditions sufficient to activate the surface of the chip. A polymeric planarizing film is applied to the activated surface of the semiconductor chip. As a result of the dry etch process, adhesion of the planarizing film is increased over adhesion between the planarizing film and a semiconductor surface in the absence of the dry etch treatment of the chip surface.

Abstract: The write lines of a color laser printer are maintained substantially equal throughout the printer's operation by an electronic control arrangement. At the factory, the write lines on all photoconductors of the color laser printer are calibrated to be substantially equal, and the ratio of each write line to a measuring line for each photoconductor is ascertained. During operation of the printer, the length of each of the measuring lines is periodically determined through counting the number of PELslice clock timing pulses produced from a PELslice clock operating at a fixed frequency determined during factory calibration. The length of the write line is determined by the product of the length of the measuring line and the factory calibrated ratio of the length of the write line to the length of the measuring line.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for providing transfer quality optimization in printers is disclosed. A transfer belt subassembly includes a transfer belt and a storage device. The transfer belt also includes a home position indicator. The transfer belt subassembly is measured and characterized relative to the home position indicator before being installed in a printer. The measurement and calibration data for the transfer belt is then stored in the storage device that is part of the transfer belt subassembly. When the transfer belt subassembly is inserted into a printer, a controller within the printer is placed in communication with the storage device. A sensor is used to determine the home position of the transfer belt from the indicator, and a resulting signal indicating when the belt is at the home position is provided to the controller.

Abstract: A method and apparatus provides for minimizing visual artifacts resulting from laser scan process direction position errors in an electrophotographic machine. The electrophotographic machine has a process direction, and includes a photoconductive member having an image forming surface having defined thereon a plurality of pixel locations which form a pixel grid, and wherein two adjacent pixels in the process direction are separated by a pixel spacing distance. A printhead unit has a first laser beam generator and a second laser beam generator, wherein the first laser beam generator generates a first laser beam which impinges the surface at a first location and the second laser beam generator generates a second laser beam which impinges the surface at a second location. The second location is spaced apart from the first location in the process direction by a separation distance equal to an integer multiple of the pixel spacing distance plus a distance less than the pixel spacing distance.

Abstract: A photoconductor comprises a substrate and at least one layer. The at least one layer is selected from the group consisting of charge transfer layers comprising a charge transfer molecule, polycarbonate and a first polyaryl ether selected from the group consisting of polyaryletherketones, poly(aryl-perfluoroaryl ether)s, polyaryletherketone-hydrazones, polyaryletherketone-azines and mixtures and copolymers thereof; charge generating layers comprising a pigment, a polyvinylbutyral and a second polyaryl ether selected from the group consisting of polyaryletherketones, polyarylethersulfones and mixtures and copolymers thereof; and mixtures thereof.

Abstract: An oil web system and method for operating a fuser system of an imaging apparatus in which remaining life of the oil web is determined from data on drive mechanism activation and data on web advancement lengths. A warning signal can be issued upon a predetermined remaining length being reached, and the machine can be disabled upon exhaustion of the web life.

Abstract: A method of media-to-image registration sets a top writing line margin on a print medium within an electrophotographic machine. Movement of a substantially stationary sheet of print medium along a print medium path within the electrophotographic machine is initiated. An image associated with the sheet of print medium is scanned onto a developing unit. The scanning step commences before the initiating step. Toner is adhered to the image on the developing unit. The toner is transferred from the developing unit to a moving toner transfer medium. The electrophotographic machine is provided with a toner transfer area in which the toner can be transferred to the moving sheet of print medium. A speed of the movement of the sheet of print medium is adjusted such that the toner is transferred from the moving toner transfer medium to a desired area on the sheet of print medium within the toner transfer area.

Abstract: The invention is directed to an ink jet printer including a printhead and a printhead driver. The printhead includes a substrate, a nozzle plate having a plurality of ink emitting orifices, a plurality of jetting heaters on the substrate and respectively associated with the plurality of ink emitting orifices, and at least one substrate heater associated with the substrate. Each of the jetting heaters and the substrate heaters include first and second terminals. The printhead driver has a plurality of energizable outputs including at least one power line output and at least two enable line outputs. One power line output is electrically connected to a first terminal of each of a jetting heater and a substrate heater. Two of the enable line outputs are coupled to a second terminal of the jetting heater and a second terminal of the substrate heater.

Abstract: The invention described in the specification relates to an apparatus and method for disabling an ink jet print head cartridge so that the disposable cartridge can not be refilled and used again. The method involves placing a monitoring and disabling device inside of the ink jet print head cartridge. When the print head has exceeded its useful life span, the disabling device disables the print head cartridge. The apparatus consists of a set of electrically charged capacitors, a small processor, ink sensors, and an extra long life miniature battery. A card containing the battery, processor and capacitors is placed in the ink jet print head cartridge. A sensor is placed in the bottom of each ink well of the cartridge. The processor periodically checks the level of ink in each inkwell. Once the processor determines that a specific inkwell has been empty for a certain period of time, the capacitors are discharged to the section of the nozzle plate corresponding to the expended inkwell.

Abstract: A host computer transmits raster information to a multi-color ink jet printer. The printer includes a printhead connected with an electrical processor. The printhead includes a plurality of arrays of ink jetting heaters. Each array of ink jetting heaters corresponds to a different color ink to be jetted onto the print medium, and is offset relative to an adjacent array of ink jetting heaters in an advance direction of the print medium. First raster information for a first raster is transmitted from the host computer to the electrical processor of the printer. The first raster information is associated with a first array of ink jetting heaters. The print medium is printed on by selectively actuating the ink jetting heaters of the first array of ink jetting heaters, using the first raster information. After the first printing step, second raster information for a second raster is transmitted to the electrical processor. The second raster information is associated with the first array of ink jetting heaters.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for inhibiting electrically induced ink build-up on flexible, integrated circuit connecting leads, for thermal ink jet printer heads is disclosed, and relates to a thermal ink jet printer having a print head comprising an integrated circuit chip, a nozzle plate including a plurality of ink ejecting nozzles therein and overlying a heater resistor for each of the nozzles. Each of the associated heater resistors has associated active circuitry on the chip. On the chip there are a plurality of auxiliary functions requiring power, for example a substrate (silicon chip) heater, a shift register containing print head identification, fault detection circuit connections, etc.

Abstract: An improved printer is provided that uses a hard disk drive resident in the printer to temporarily store some of the page data of print jobs received by this printer. Since disk access time is relatively slow as compared to access time of random access memory (RAM), only a minimal amount of pages are initially stored on the hard disk drive while the remaining pages of a print job continue to be stored in RAM, such that the pages on the hard disk drive are interleaved with those stored in RAM. Once the pages are stored on the hard disk drive, some of the areas of RAM where they previously resided are released, which allows the printer to free up some of its RAM. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, only every fourth page is initially stored on the hard disk drive, which effectively spreads out the effects of the slower disk access time across several pages as they are printed.

Abstract: Disclosed is an ink jet printhead apparatus for modulating drop size. Drop size modulation is achieved by providing an ink jet printhead chip for use in an ink jet printhead having a cavity in communication with a supply of ink and a nozzle. The chip includes an actuator having a first active section and a second active section. The first and second active sections are positioned at a substantially equal distance from the nozzle.

Abstract: A dispersed-dot stochastic dither array is provided for rendering halftone images having excellent visual quality and are created by a minimum density variance method. By minimizing the variance in the number of dots within each local region of the image, a smooth and dispersed distribution of dots may be obtained. For color printing, a separate threshold array is generated for each of the color planes, however, the stochastic screens are interlocked so that the threshold arrays are generated while considering the other color threshold arrays. In this manner, a blue noise distribution may be produced by the individual arrays as well as by any combination of the individual arrays. When generating a single threshold array for a color plane, a particular criterion is used to determine where the next threshold value should be located, and the selection of a threshold location in each array considers the criterion for all the threshold arrays being generated.

Abstract: The invention described in the specification relates to a nozzle plate for an inkjet printer including a first nozzle array having a plurality of nozzles, each of which is positioned to correspond to a desired print location, with the print location of each of the nozzles of the first array being different from one another; and a second nozzle array having a plurality of nozzles, each of which is positioned to correspond to a desired print location, with the print location of each of the nozzles of the second array corresponding to one of the print locations of the first array such that the first and second arrays each have one nozzle corresponding to each desired print location and a single ink flow path feeds ink to adjacent nozzles in each array.