Abstract: A compact disc transporter is described for transporting a compact disc between multiple process stations. These stations may include a printer, a recorder, a verifier, and a compact disc supply station. Methods have been described for pre-positioning a compact disc prior to printing so that an image located on the compact disc can be positioned for subsequent printing operations. A camera may be used in conjunction with a processor to rotatably position a compact disc into a preferred position prior to a printing operation. An optical sensor is also described for detecting a mark, index mark or other image for positioning a compact disc to a preferred rotational position.

Abstract: A printing press includes an interchangeable plate cylinder, in which the plate cylinder may have variable cutoff diameters. The plate cylinder is mounted in the printing press in rolling contact with a fixed diameter blanket cylinder. The ink rollers of the inker mechanism may be positionally adjusted to accommodate a plate cylinder of various diameters. The surface of the printing blanket which is mounted on the blanket cylinder includes a material of low polarity surface energy, such as PTFE. The ink used in the press is selected such that, in combination with the PTFE of the blanket surface, the ink does not remain as a latent image on the blanket cylinder after transfer of the image from the blanket cylinder to a web of material.

Abstract: A tensioning frame (1) for stencils (9) formed of metal foils or plastic films, especially for stencil printing, provided at their margins (8) with perforations (10) for tensioning. The frame includes a tensioning device operated by a pressure medium for driving tensioning bars (5) that carry hooking pins (6) that engage the perforations of the stencil. The tensioning device is formed by an elastically deformable tensioning tube (4) disposed in a frame profile (2) and uniformly supplied with a pressure medium. The tensioning bars lie with the full length of their front sides in contact with the tensioning tube and with their back sides resting against fulcrum nubs (17) which in turn are supported against an extrusion (3) which closes the frame profile. The tensioning bars can be pivoted by inflating and expanding the tensioning tubes to stretch the stencil over a bridge (16) on the frame.

Abstract: A printing assembly (10) having a printer (30) and a single sheet transport mechanism (22) for automatically transporting discrete sheets seriatim from within a tray held in a tray receptacle (32) to the printer and a discrete sheet load enhancement apparatus with a holder (24) of an auxiliary supply of printable stock (18), a removable open tray (20) with a feed opening (40) accessible for receipt of discrete sheets (14) of printable stock fed within the feed opening while releasably mounted within the tray receptacle and a continuous discrete sheet feeder and producer (16) for automatically feeding the sheets (14) seriatim from the separate supply of printable stock (18) through the feed opening (40) into the removable open tray (20).

Abstract: Transferring a sublimation ink image to the surface of an object by forming a plurality of conically shaped objects from a master cast. Coating the objects with an organic polymer. Casting a heat transfer block to match a portion of the exterior surface of then object. Printing an image with a sublimation ink onto a release paper. Manipulating the image to accommodate the configuration of the objects. Placing the image on one the objects and introducing heat and pressure to the image and the release paper through said block to effect the transfer of the image to the object.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a mechanism for transporting a printing ribbon past the print head of a printer using a rocking beam mechanism the rocking beam being driven by a drive means. The invention also provides a printer, notably a thermal printer, incorporating such a transport mechanism and a method for operating the printer.

Abstract: A printer comprising a carriage making reciprocating movement and a printing head mounted thereon, the movement of the carriage comprising an outward section from a home position to the other position, a homeward section from the other position to the home position, and two reverse sections to change the direction of the movement, a printing being made on a printing paper by defining the outward and homeward sections as a printing area, in which, when printing includes a mark printing to print a mark on an edge of the printing paper, the mark printing is carried out by using one of the reverse sections.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus (10) includes an imaging drum (300). A printhead (500) moves along a line parallel to the longitudinal axis (301) of the imaging drum as the imaging drum rotates. A linear drive motor (258) turns a lead screw (250) and is mounted directly onto the shaft of the lead screw. The motor is constrained from rotation by means of a rotational stop (296) that is magnetically held. A similar means is used to constrain a drum encoder (344).

Abstract: A method of screen printing on to a hard non-absorbent substrate (1) involves using a screen (10) which has an ink permeable area (B) whose pattern corresponds to whatever is to be printed. The area B is divided into two parts (X and Y). Part X is of normal, maximum, ink carrying capacity and part Y is of reduced ink carrying capacity. The ink carrying capacity of the reduced ink carrying capacity part Yis determined by the extent to which it is coated with ink/impenetrable emulsion (20), the size of the pores (18) in the screen (10) and the type of ink used. The ink carrying capacity of the part Y reduces with distance away from part X. The emulsion coating (20) may be in the form of dots (200), with the dots (200) increasing in diameter with distance away from part X. During printing, the reduced ink carrying capacity part Y is located over the edge region (E) of the substrate (1), and the substrate is printed up to but not on to its edge (6).

Abstract: A method and a corresponding control are described for the start-up of production printing in a sheet-processing printing machine, in particular, a sheet-fed offset printing machine, in which ink is supplied via a vibrating roller which is movable back and forth between an ink fountain roller and a ink distribution roller wherein clearance is given for the entry into the machine of a first sheet to be printed as a function of the state of movement of the vibrating roller. When production printing is resumed, the state of movement of the vibrating roller for clearance for the sheet entry is selected from a memory as a function of the state of movement of the vibrating roller during entry of a last sheet into the machine before the commencement of the print interruption.

Abstract: Method of controlling a printing device of a printing press wherein substrates to be printed are conveyed on a conveying path to the printing device, the conveyed substrates being detected by a sensor disposed along the conveying path, upstream of the printing device, as viewed in a conveying direction of the substrate, includes starting a printing operation whenever a leading edge of a respective substrate is detected, and stopping a printing operation whenever a trailing edge of the substrate is detected.

Abstract: In a tape cutting mechanism, when a tape is cut manually, a rack 58 which is lowered by pushing a push button 14 down meshes with a gear 48 by guidance of a guide groove 59 to thereby cause a scissors cam 46 to make a single complete rotation along with a pin 46b around a cam shaft 47. The pin 46b half rotates to raise a turnable arm 52b up so that a turnable blade 52a is turned toward a fixed blade 55 to cut a printed tape portion. By the remaining half rotation, the turnable arm 52b is returned to its reference position. When the rack 58 rises with the resiliency of a compression spring 57 due to release of the push button 14 from its pushed state, the rack 58 is disengaged from the gear 48 with the guide of the guide groove 59.

Abstract: A printing press having a plurality of laterally spaced printing stations is provided with an interstation dryer system, interposed between the printing stations, for effectively drying liquid printing substances, such as inks, coatings, and the like, on a moving printed sheet. The dryer system includes a plurality of infrared elements which are adapted to transmit infrared radiation toward the moving printed sheet to effectuate drying of liquid printing substances thereon and bonding thereto. In order to effectively dry a complete spectrum of ink colors and other liquid printing substances, the infrared elements comprise an alternating and repetitive series of shortwave infrared lamps and mediumwave infrared lamps which generate relatively short wavelength infrared radiation and relatively medium wavelength infrared radiation, respectively.

Abstract: Can-holding device for holding filled beverage cans for printing on their surfaces, consisting of a frame (1) and two jaws (2) displaceable in the axial direction of the beverage can (D)to be held between a closed position (FIG. 2) and an open position (FIG. 1) for gripping the beverage can (D) to be printed at its two ends, with jaws (2) each being pretensioned by a spring (3) into its closed position and with grippers (21, 22) which permit gripping by external opening elements (Z) for optional movement of the jaws into their open position, and with each jaw (2)consisting of a jaw carrier (23) that cooperates with guide (11) on frame (1) and is provided with a gripper (21, 22), and of a jaw body (24) rotatable relative thereto, said body being lockable in a reference rotational position (FIG.

Abstract: A keyboard in which raised portions are embossed on a rubber sheet in correspondence to the respective switches of a membrane switch so that the raised portions may be pressed down to actuate the switches. A housing made of highly rigid synthetic resin is provided which has openings formed therethrough. A key top is disposed within each of the openings and formed integrally with the housing by means of at least two hinges. Each of the widthwise delimiting regions formed integrally with the housing between each widthwise adjacent openings has notches cut in from adjacent openings in depthwise staggered position. Each of the key tops has engagement tabs extending oppositely outward from two opposed side edges thereof adjoining the side edge where the hinges are formed and entering into the notches. A face panel having key top openings formed therethrough and arrayed in correspondence to the key tops is attached to the upper surface of the housing.

Abstract: A printing apparatus and method of use therefore are disclosed. The printing apparatus is usable as a replacement printer for replacing an existing printer apparatus without having to change printer drivers or make custom firmware changes in computers on a computer network. The inventive printer apparatus includes a map of source number assignments in the memory of the replacement printer apparatus for the replaced existing printer apparatus and for the replacement printer apparatus. The printing apparatus has a plurality of paper sources with each paper source being assigned a particular pre-assigned assignment code. The print request codes associated with the existing network printer being replaced must be determined. The print request codes are representative of a particular type of paper source. A map of print request codes which are sent by computers on the network for driving the existing printer are compared with the pre-assigned source number assignment of the replacement printer.

Abstract: A color control system for maintaining the color of a printed page of a printing press constant, within the context of the human perceptual color space system optimizes the settings of a plurality of ink keys in a printing press in accordance with a test image and a reference image. The test and reference images comprise a plurality of ink key zones corresponding to the plurality of ink keys, each ink key zone including a plurality of regions of interest (ROIs). The system includes a unit for imaging an area of the printed page in generating the reference and test images, a unit for extracting color information based on actual image colors from the test image, a unit for measuring color deviations with reference to the reference image, and a unit for analyzing and comparing global features of regions of interest (ROIs) that cover substantially the color gamut of the test image against like features of the reference image.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a key structure of a keyboard for easy grease injection. The key structure comprises a top cover installed with a supporting structure, a key cap, and a link bar. The supporting structure comprises two hooks at two sides. Each hook comprises a plate structure on its top portion and a horizontal sliding slot below the plate structure. The key cap comprises two clamps installed on a bottom side of the key cap. The link bar comprises two upper ends installed in the two clamps, and two lower ends installed in the horizontal sliding slots. Each of the plate structures comprises an injection hole. The injection hole is positioned so that grease can be injected into the horizontal sliding slot below the plate structure through the injection hole so as to reduce the friction between one lower end of the link bar and the horizontal sliding slot of the hook when the lower end of the link bar slides in the horizontal sliding slot.

Abstract: In a thermal printer in which ink is transferred from a single-use thermal print ribbon to a substrate such as packaging material by energizing selected print elements of a thermal print head (22), a first print run is executed by energizing only a group of print elements in registry with one half of the ribbon width so that ink is depleted from only one half of the ribbon, and a second print run is executed by energising the same group of elements using the same ribbon but with the ribbon supply and take-up spools interchanged in order that ink is depleted only from the other half of the ribbon. This allows printing on comparatively narrow printing areas using ribbon which is at least twice the width of the printed area without undue ribbon wastage and with reduced ribbon breakage frequency compared to the breakage frequency with a ribbon of a width nearer to the width of the printed area.

Abstract: An ink film cassette 33 incorporates therein a supply reel 30 having an ink film wound thereon and a rewind reel 31 for taking up the ink film 32 and is attached detachably to a thermal transfer printer 10. In the cassette 33, a first torque limiter 85 for transmitting braking force to a supporting shaft 78a of the supply reel 30 inside the cassette 33 is fixed detachably to the supporting shaft 78a. Bearings 81a and 81b on the take-upside transmit braking force to supporting shafts 80a and 80b of the rewind reel 31 inside the ink film cassette. Further in the cassette 33, a second torque limiter 97 for limiting the driving torque of the rewind reel 31 in the ink film cassette is fixed detachably to the supporting shaft 81a. A kick spring 106 for causing the ink film paid off the supply reel 30 to be rewound on the supply reel 30 is also fixed detachably to the supply reel 30 in the cassette 33.