Abstract: A card printing and encoder apparatus for printing information on a card to provide identification of a person, and includes two encoding stations, one to encode a smart card chip embedded in the card, and the other station to encode a magnetic strip on the card. Card support and drive rollers support the card, and the card is bent out of its plane to contact the smart card encoding station contacts. A magnetic head for encoding a magnetic strip is held under a resilient force against an opposite side of the card from the smart card encoding station. The loading of the print head against a rotatable print platen is controlled in synchronism with card drive and support rollers so that the card drive and support rollers release and the card is driven only by the rotatable print platen during the printing operation.

Abstract: A card hopper includes a control gate that reliably allows cards of varying thicknesses to be fed individually through an outlet opening without adjustment. The hopper is configured to hold a stack of plastic cards or similar, fairly rigid, substrates. The control gate is positioned at the outlet opening and includes a flexible blade that reduces a height of the outlet opening to less than a thickness of an end card of the stack, whereby the flexible blade flexes in response to the end card when driven through the outlet opening. Also disclosed is a card feeder assembly that includes the above-described hopper.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method of performing a burn cycle in a thermal printer that reduces printhead switching while increasing printing speed and extending printhead life. In the method, data is loaded into a shift register of a thermal printhead to designate resistive elements that are to be enabled and disabled during the burn cycle. Next, the data is latched into a burn register of the printhead and a power supply of the printhead is activated thereby energizing the enabled resistive elements. New data is then loaded into the shift register. After a short burn period has expired, the new data is latched into the burn register. The steps of loading and latching new data are repeated a predetermined number of times, after which the power supply is deactivated to complete the burn cycle.

Abstract: A printer for printing on a substrate includes an input configured to receive data, a print mechanism configured to print an image on the substrate, and a controller coupled to the input and the print mechanism configured to actuate the print mechanism in response to the input. The controller includes a microprocessor and memory containing a multi-threaded operating system and programming instructions for the microprocessor. The memory implements a plurality of stacks, each stack related to a thread. The programming instructions include a plurality of separate programs and the operating system executes each program as a separate thread and stores information related to each thread on a respective stack in the memory.

Abstract: A printer for printing identification cards, in particular, is provided with a hopper for holding a stack of cards to be printed. A card feeder will feed one card at a time from the hopper. The hopper is mounted so that it can be moved away from the card feeder and provide a space into which a single card can be manually fed to the card feeder for processing and printing. The hopper then can be returned to its normal feeding position after the single card has been printed.

Abstract: A method for use with an identification card printing system to improve contrast of an original image represented by an array of pixels each having a pixel level representing an intensity of the pixel includes a first step of selecting a pixel of the pixel array. Next, an adjusted pixel level is calculated for the selected pixel based upon its pixel level and at least one proximal pixel level defined as the pixel level of a pixel located proximate to the selected pixel. Finally, the selecting and calculating steps are repeated for substantially all of the pixels of the pixel array to form an adjusted pixel array that represents an adjusted image having greater contrast than the original image.

Abstract: A card printer has a card feed hopper assembly that will support stacks of two different size cards in hopper sections. The card feed hopper assembly is movable transversely of the printer to position the respective hopper sections to be aligned with a card feed path on the printer, and then positioned so that cards in the hopper section aligned with the card feed path will be driven into the printer. The hopper is lifted when it is moved transversely, and then lowered down to provide the card drive for cards in the hopper section that is aligned with the card feed path.

Abstract: A card feed drive roller is provided with a drive section that is a soft elastomeric-material which has a coefficient of friction adequate to break away lower cards in a substantial stack of cards and has at least one support section that is of harder material that will limit the amount of compression of the drive section under weight of the card stack. The limitation of the compression of the drive section insures that when an outlet opening is adjusted it will be high enough so one card will always fit through the outlet opening, and multiple cards will not be fed through the opening.

Abstract: A reflective type light sensitive sensor assembly is used for sensing the position of marks on a surface moving past the sensor. A typical showing is in relation to sensing marks on a ribbon used during printing operations, or lamination operations. The sensor assembly includes a LED light source that has a central axis, and a light sensitive transistor or sensor mounted in a single housing, with the housing oriented so that the axis of the light from the LED is inclined at an acute angle relative to the surface of the ribbon. The axis is at an angle other than perpendicular or near perpendicular to the surface. The marks used for identification are light diffusing marks, such as white marks or strips that will provide adequate reflection of light back to the light sensitive transistor or sensor forming part of the sensor assembly.

Abstract: A ribbon for a thermal printer has a series of frames of different colors in a sequence that are correlated to the position of cards to be printed. The ribbon has indexing marks for each frame and also indicators for each repeating sequence of frames. The index marks are arranged in a line across the ribbon and the marks can be coded to individually indicate the color or other characteristic of the frame associated with the line of index mark. This information is received by a controller to control various printer functions.

Abstract: A laminator for laminating sheets of lamina onto substrates such as cards uses a web of lamina material that preferably has a bondable and printable layer on the reverse side and can then be printed with information and laminated onto a blank card. The web also preferably has a series of spaced transverse lines of reduced strength so the web can be separated into individual sheets of lamina by creating a tension in the web across the transverse line of reduced strength.

Abstract: A thermal printer has a thermal printhead mounted on a pivot frame which is movable from a working position where the printhead is in position to print from a thermal ribbon onto a substrate, to an open position which permits access to ribbon take-up and supply rolls. The printhead is pivotally mounted to the pivot frame, and its pivoting is controlled by a cam so that the sensitive thermal print element of the thermal printhead remain at a position that permits access to the ribbon and other printer working components, without exposing the print elements so they can easily be contacted by a person servicing the printer. Cooperating guide members are used for controlling the orientation of the printhead as the pivot frame moves between a working position and an open position.

Abstract: A printer for printing onto a substrate includes a substrate feed mechanism configured to secure the substrate during printing and a print mechanism configured to print on the substrate. A transceiver is configured to transfer power through a non-physical link to a radio frequency (RF) circuit carried on a printer supply to thereby power the RF circuit. The transceiver also responsively receives printer supply data through a non-physical link from the RF circuit.

Abstract: A printer for printing an image onto a substrate includes a thermal print head having a plurality of electrical resistors, a supply of coloring material adjacent the print head for deposition on the substrate and a print head controller. The print head controller provides a pulse train output to at least one of the electrical resistors. The pulse train includes a plurality of pulses and at least one pulse has a variable width related to a binary value at least another pulse has fixed width.

Abstract: A printer is provided with a smart card encoding device that is externally accessible. The smart card is a key with an integrated circuit including a memory that will retain a discrete password and other digital information. The password on the smart card key must be compared to a password stored in the printer memory before printing operations will be permitted. The digital information in the smart card key memory can include marks or graphics that would indicate that the cards being printed by the printer are secured cards and authorized cards. The information will be printed from the smart card key memory only when the passwords match so that the discrete information on the smart card key can be used for driving the printer for printing this information. The printer is made into a high security printer by permitting the overriding of the password only upon the generating of identical numbers from separated algorithms, one in the printer memory and one at a secure location.

Abstract: A mounting slider bracket for a card printer thermal printhead is supported between a spring and the printhead, and can be adjusted laterally relative to the printhead to shift the center of force that loads the printhead against the ribbon and a card that is being printed. The ability to change the location of the application of force on the printhead permits centering the force when a card of different width is fed from a supply through the printhead. Uniform printing will occur on cards regardless of the width, when properly adjusted by the operator.

Abstract: A card straightener is used for cooling a card that has been processed using heat, such as in a printing or lamination process. The card straightener includes a plate member that has a heat sink in heat conducting relation. The plate member is positioned to receive a card from the heated process. The card is passed over the plate and is urged against the plate so that the card is cooled while held flat while it becomes rigid, so it remains planar after cooling.

Abstract: A ribbon for a thermal printer has a series of frames of different colors in a sequence that are correlated to the position of cards to be printed. The ribbon has indexing marks for each frame and also indicators for each repeating sequence of frames. The index marks are arranged in a line across the ribbon and the marks can be coded to individually indicate the color or other characteristic of the frame associated with the line of index mark. This information is received by a controller to control various printer functions.

Abstract: A card feeder for a card printer provides a stack of cards at an input end of the printer. The cards are supported on a pair of rollers that are driven at differential speeds and through one-way clutches so that a card being fed from the stack will pass through an outlet opening and can be accelerated by further drives. The outlet opening is controlled as to size by a slidable gate that permits changing the thickness of the opening to permit use of different thickness cards in the hopper. The feeder includes cleaning rollers that are formed as a module that can be inserted and replaced, and also an encoding station where the card can be encoded such as for a magnetic strip, or for non contact radio frequency or other smart card chips contained on the card being processed prior to the printing operation.

Abstract: A printhead is mounted in a support frame that has reference mounting members on the sides of the frame that establish a reference plane for mounting the support frame in a printer The printhead is adjustable on the support frame relative to the reference plane about a pivot axis on the support frame and also laterally of the reference plane. A fixture is used for mounting the support frame with the reference mounting members in a known location, and the position of a print line of the printhead relative to a reference location established by a camera and monitor is adjusted until the print line is in a predetermined position. The camera provides a view of the print line relative to the predetermined position, and the printhead is adjusted on the support frame until the location of the print line viewed by the camera is at the proper position The printhead is then fixed to the support frame.