Patents Examined by Luis Gonzalez
  • Patent number: 11572241
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, a sheet conveying device includes a roller, a motor, a clutch, and a torque generator. The roller conveys a sheet. The motor is a driving source. The clutch connects or disconnects drive of the motor with respect to the roller. The torque generator applies a torque to the roller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2023
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Eizo Kurita
  • Patent number: 11568698
    Abstract: A media storage bin has a guide member mounted via a hinge adjacent to a wall of an enclosure and a second free end. The guide member directs inserted media items downward and pivots around an axis of the hinge. A base plate is mounted below the guide member in the enclosure and is arranged to hold a stack of inserted media items on a top surface thereof. A motor is coupled to move the base plate up and down within the enclosure. A controller is coupled to control movement of the motor and is configured to provide signals to the motor to move the base plate to a predetermined home position adjacent to the guide member upon startup and move the base plate upward to compress any deformed inserted media items on the base plate until an input feedback signal reaches a predetermined level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: NCR Corporation
    Inventors: Fraser Spowart, Scott Colston, Michael Rennie
  • Patent number: 11565898
    Abstract: A sheet accommodating apparatus includes a main body portion, a loading portion that is provided in the main body portion and supports a portion of a sheet loaded thereon from below, a lifting unit that lifts the loading portion, and a supporting portion that is connected to the main body portion and supports another portion of the sheet from below during a process in which the loading portion is lifted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Yoshiki Kimura, Kiyoshi Watanabe, Shoichi Maeda, Masashi Ikeda
  • Patent number: 11565900
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, a paper feeding device includes a paper feeding roller and a separation roller. The paper feeding roller and the separation roller are arranged in a parallel direction. The paper feeding roller and the separation roller interpose a sheet. The paper feeding device includes a paper feeding roller, a separation roller, a shaft, a holder, and a rotation stopping portion. The paper feeding roller is configured to convey the sheet in a conveyance direction. The separation roller is configured to be pressed against the paper feeding roller. The shaft is configured to rotatably support the separation roller via a torque limiter. The holder is configured to include a supporting portion. The supporting portion is provided with a first guide surface and a second guide surface facing each other and extending in the parallel direction. The rotation stopping portion is configured to be attached to the shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Masahiro Ohno
  • Patent number: 11554929
    Abstract: A transport apparatus includes a speaker and a mike disposed at respective positions between which a transport path of a medium is interposed, where the speaker and the mike face each other, a drive circuit that outputs a drive signal to the speaker, an amplifier circuit formed by coupling a plurality of amplifiers in series, where the amplifier circuit amplifies and outputs an output signal of the mike, a processor to which the output signal of the amplifier circuit is input, an attenuation circuit disposed in a stage preceding a predetermined amplifier, where the attenuation circuit attenuates an input signal and outputs the input signal to the predetermined amplifier, and a switch that switches an attenuation factor by the attenuation circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Seiji Takamatsu
  • Patent number: 11558518
    Abstract: An image reading apparatus includes a first stacking unit having a stacking surface, and an abutment portion that abuts a document stacked on the stacking surface, a feeding unit, a reading unit, a second stacking unit, a detection unit, a rotating shaft, a drive unit, and a control unit. The second stacking unit receives the document fed by the feeding unit and read by the reading unit. The detection unit detects presence or absence of the document stacked on the second stacking unit. The drive unit rotates the first stacking unit around the rotating shaft rotatably supporting the first stacking unit. Based on the detection of the absence of the document on the second stacking unit by the detection unit, the control unit controls the drive unit to rotate the first stacking unit in a direction with which the abutment portion is lowered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yuichi Yamamoto, Takayuki Fukushima
  • Patent number: 11544986
    Abstract: To prevent erroneous transfer onto a paper sheet loading platform and improve the operation stability over the entire length of a long-edge direction of a pressing member by ensuring a long time during which the pressing member continues to push in a paper sheet alone. To include two rotating bodies 120 and 130 that have recesses 120a and 130a and are rotatable in opposite directions to each other in synchronization with each other, a pressing member 140 that is movable and presses an intermediate portion of a back of a paper sheet forward, a drive mechanism 180, and a paper sheet loading platform 200. The drive mechanism rotates each rotating body by an angle from 195 degrees to 270 degrees in a time period after the pressing member starts to bring a center of the paper sheet into contact with the paper sheet loading platform from an initial state until the pressing member leaves the center of the paper sheet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: JAPAN CASH MACHINE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Oiyama
  • Patent number: 11546481
    Abstract: An image reading apparatus includes a first stacking unit having a stacking surface, and an abutment portion that abuts a document stacked on the stacking surface, a feeding unit, a reading unit, a second stacking unit, a first detection unit, a rotating shaft, a drive unit, and a control unit. The second stacking unit receives the document fed by the feeding unit and read by the reading unit. The first detection unit detects presence or absence of the document stacked on the first stacking unit. The drive unit rotates the first stacking unit around the rotating shaft rotatably supporting the first stacking unit. At a predetermined timing after the first detection unit detects the absence of the document on the first stacking unit, the control unit controls the drive unit to rotate the first stacking unit in a direction with which the abutment portion is lowered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yuichi Yamamoto, Takayuki Fukushima
  • Patent number: 11530014
    Abstract: Exemplary embodiments are directed to a pedal for a bicycle that includes a body, a spindle rotatably secured to the body and for connection with the bicycle, a first magnetic platter non-rotatably secured within the body, and a second magnetic platter rotatably secured within the body and overlaying the first magnetic platter. The first and second magnetic platters each include two magnetic blocks that are separated and magnetically charged by a respective permanent magnet plate positioned therebetween. The second magnetic platter includes a keyed protrusion configured to be engaged by a ferrous metal cleat, which can rotate the second magnetic platter between a first position where the pedal is in a magnetically inactive state and a second position where the pedal is in a magnetically active state magnetically securing the cleat to the second magnetic platter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignees: Smart Clips LLC, Magswitch Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Steven Ball
  • Patent number: 11530104
    Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus includes an apparatus body, an opening/closing member supported on the apparatus body, a sheet support supported on the opening/closing member, and a rotary feeding member provided on the apparatus body to feed the sheet supported on the sheet support in a feeding direction. A first engagement member is provided in the apparatus body, and a second engagement member is provided on a downstream end portion of the sheet support in the feeding direction and engages with the first engagement member in a vertical direction that intersects an axial direction of the rotary feeding member when the opening/closing member is positioned at the open position. The rotary feeding member is lowered toward the sheet supported on the sheet support in a case where the opening/closing member is positioned at the open position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Shunsuke Okazaki
  • Patent number: 11530102
    Abstract: A device is provided for feeding sheets to a sheet-processing machine having at least one processing mechanism. A feeder head is provided for cyclically separating the sheets from a pile of such sheets and has transporting suckers for transporting the sheets to a belt table. The belt table has at least one revolving transport belt which is guided over at least two feed rollers. A first drive is assigned to at least one feed roller and a sheet flap, which is connected to a pivotally mounted shaft, is provided between the transporting suckers and the at least one transport belt. A second drive is assigned to the shaft, for pivoting that shaft. A sheet arrival sensor, which is arranged between the belt table and the processing mechanism, generates first signals representing the arrival of the sheets for a sequence of sheets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: KOENIG & BAUER AG
    Inventors: Martina Sünder, Bernd Hanke, Benjamin Gohl, Richard Dorninger
  • Patent number: 11524854
    Abstract: A bearing which supports one end side of a driving roller includes a first restriction portion which is restricted from rotating and moving with respect to a first frame, and a bearing which supports the other end side of the driving roller includes a second restriction portion which is restricted from rotating and moving with respect to a second frame. As viewed from a direction perpendicular to a width direction of an intermediate transfer belt, a phase of shape of the first restriction portion in a state of being held by the first frame and a phase of shape of the second restriction portion in a state of being held by the second frame are equal to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Chikara Imaizumi
  • Patent number: 11505423
    Abstract: A loading unit includes a processing tray, alignment units, and a paddle. In the processing tray, a medium is placed. The alignment units are disposed an interval in a Y direction to align a downstream tip end in a positive A direction of the medium. The paddle moves the medium that has been fed onto the processing tray toward the alignment units. A coefficient of friction of a contact surface of the alignment unit is higher than a coefficient of friction of a front face of the alignment unit, and the contact surface is positioned downstream of the front face in the positive A direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Chiaki Shimada, Masaki Miyazawa, Kei Sadakuni, Hirohisa Kodaira
  • Patent number: 11498637
    Abstract: An armrest handlebar and a bicycle handlebar assembly having the armrest handlebar are disclosed. The bicycle handlebar assembly includes a steering handlebar, the armrest handlebar, and two armrest pads. The steering handlebar is pivotally engaged with a frame. The armrest handlebar includes two extending tubes which are engaged with the steering handlebar. Each of the extending tubes includes a combining segment, a lifting segment, a leaned segment, and a holding segment which are sequentially disposed. The lifting segment is raised above the combining segment at a first angle, and the leaned segment is raised above the combining segment at a second angle. A curved surface is formed by recessing from a top surface of each of the leaned segments. Each of the two armrest pads is engaged with the steering handlebar and has a concave surface for a rider to lean on.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: TIEN HSIN INDUSTRIES CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Fong-Syuan Gu
  • Patent number: 11485599
    Abstract: An image forming system includes: an image former that forms an image; a stacker that stacks a recording medium on which an image has been formed by the image former and which has been discharged from the image former; a lifter that raises or lowers the stacker between a stacking position where the recording medium is stacked and a lower position located below the stacking position; a recording medium detector that detects the recording medium stacked on the stacker; and a hardware processor that controls driving of the lifter so as to lower the stacker from the stacking position to the lower position when it is determined that the recording medium is on the stacker on the basis of a detection result of the recording medium detector within start-up time from a time when power is switched on to a time of shifting to an image formable state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventor: Kenichi Yamada
  • Patent number: 11479427
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a sheet storage unit including a sheet tray on which one or more sheets are to be stacked, a sensor configured to detect that the sheet storage unit is being operated, and a processor configured to execute a predetermined process after the sensor detects that the sheet storage unit has been operated, and a predetermined condition relating to an occurrence of the sheet conveyance error is satisfied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Norio Tanaka
  • Patent number: 11472652
    Abstract: A sheet transport system for moving a sheet in a transport direction while adjusting a position of the sheet in a lateral direction normal to the transport direction to a target position, includes first and second pinch roller sets spaced apart from one another in the transport direction, each pinch roller set including two pairs of pinch rollers spaced apart from one another in the lateral direction, each pair forming a nip for pinching and driving the sheet with an individually controllable speed; a detection system for detecting a position of the sheet in the lateral direction while the sheet is pinched by the first pinch roller set; and a control system configured for carrying out the following actions: by controlling the speeds of the pinch rollers of the first pinch roller set before the sheet has reached the second pinch roller set, rotating the sheet by a first rotation angle for adjusting a given reference point on a leading part of the sheet to its target position; and when the sheet has left the fi
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: CANON PRODUCTION PRINTING HOLDING B.V.
    Inventors: Sjirk H. Koekebakker, Joseph A. Schulkes, Johan P. Smits
  • Patent number: 11472648
    Abstract: A sheet supporting apparatus includes a sheet supporting unit having a sheet supporting portion including a supporting surface on which a sheet is supported, and a first engagement unit attached to the sheet supporting portion, and a second engagement unit to draw in the sheet supporting unit toward an attaching position where the sheet supporting unit is attached to an apparatus body. The first engagement unit includes a first engagement portion, a base portion supported by the sheet supporting portion, and a holder that is supported movably in a perpendicular direction perpendicular to the supporting surface by the base portion and configured to hold the first engagement portion. The base portion supports the holder swingably around a swing shaft that extends in a direction orthogonal to both the perpendicular direction and an inserting direction in which the sheet supporting unit is inserted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuya Morohashi, Akira Matsushima
  • Patent number: 11465867
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes first and second light emitting units, a light receiving unit for receiving light of the first light emitting unit when it is reflected, and receiving light of the second light emitting unit when it is not reflected, to output a signal of a predetermined level, and a control unit for starting light emission of the first light emitting unit before a front end of a paper sheet reaches an area, stopping light emission of the first light emitting unit while starting light emission of the second light emitting unit before a rear end of the paper sheet passes the area, and detecting a length of the paper sheet based on time after the output signal becomes a predetermined level during light emission of the first light emitting unit until the output signal becomes the predetermined level during light emission of the second light emitting unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Okito Ogasahara
  • Patent number: 11459197
    Abstract: The document feeder includes a lift plate, a pickup roller, a lift motor, a retard roller, and a control unit. In a manual feed mode, the control unit rotates the retard roller to feed a document in a document conveyance direction. Further, the control unit causes the lift motor to start lowering the lift plate while the pickup roller is feeding a document after starting to rotate the pickup roller. When there is a document set on the lift plate at the time when the pickup roller stops, the control unit automatically resumes the feeding in the manual feed mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: KYOCERA DOCUMENT SOLUTIONS INC.
    Inventors: Koji Fujii, Taro Kurahashi