Abstract: A fuser for fusing toner images to a receiving sheet includes a pressure roller and a fusing belt. The fusing belt has leading and trailing ends. A towing device is positioned to receive both the leading and trailing ends of the belt to form an endless belt. The towing device is moved through a path which moves the fusing belt through an endless path, which path includes a fusing nip with the pressure roller. The belt is backed by a heated roller at the fusing nip which defines a portion of the endless path and cooperates with the pressure roller to provide pressure in the nip.

Abstract: Image forming apparatus includes a logic and control which receives an input indicative of the compliance of a fusing roller and adjusts the temperature of the fuser in response to that input. The apparatus also can receive an input indicative of the melt viscosity of one or more toners making up an image to be fused to similarly adjust the fusing temperature. Alternatively, the pressure in a fusing nip can be adjusted in response to either or both inputs. The inputs can be received in the logic and control from a fusing roller cartridge having machine readable indicating device, indicative of the compliance of the fusing roller. Similarly, the melt viscosity of the toner can be input from a machine readable indicia or the like on a toner bottle.

Abstract: A toner container receiving apparatus has a sump and a sump opening with box-like upwardly extending vertical walls around the sump opening. A toner container includes box-shaped downwardly extending walls which fit around the sump walls when the container is positioned over the sump. A flexible cover is movable from a covering position above the box-shaped walls through a curved path to a position alongside an exterior vertical wall of the container. A lever on the receiving apparatus is movable to a vertical position and is coupled to structure which locks the container to the sump during that movement. A handle connected to the cover is positioned to fit into a slot into the lever and prevent moving of the lever away from its vertical locking position until the cover has been moved to its covering position. The cover is flexible enough to move through the curved path but stiff enough to be pushed back to its covering position.

Abstract: An imaging system includes an imaging member having an imaging surface on which transferable images are formed. Preferably the imaging member is a photoconductive drum. The system further includes a transfer drum having an outer surface adapted to receive and retain an image-receiver sheet having lead and trail edges. A shim member, preferably thinner than the image-receiver sheet, is positioned on the peripheral surface of the transfer drum adjacent the lead and/or trail edges of a retained image-receiver sheet. The shim member acts to reduce system velocity fluctuations which occur as the lead and trail edges of the image-receiver sheet, respectively, enter and leave a nip formed by the transfer drum and the imaging member.

Abstract: A toner image carried by heat softenable layer on a receiving sheet is either fixed or texturized by a pair of pressure members. The pressure members include a fusing member and a pressure roller. To prevent hot offset of the leading portion of the heat softenable layer, a recess in the pressure roller receives the leading edge of the receiving sheet, thus reducing the pressure in the nip for the leading portion of the receiving sheet.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for supporting an object from a channel. The apparatus is comprised of a channel clip, formed of a flexible material, whose length is much greater than its width and which is adapted to be applied to a channel. The channel clip includes a receiving loop and a pair of arms extending from the respective sides of the loop. The arms extend in the same direction and are spaced from each other. A retaining loop extends from each arm. The retaining loops lie in essentially parallel planes, and the outer perimeter of the retaining loops conforms generally in shape to a surface which defines the channel. The channel clip is used to support an object from a channel by first inserting the object into the receiving loop. The receiving loops are then pressed together and aligned such that planes within which the receiving loops lie are parallel with the channel. The retaining loops are inserted into the channel after which the channel clip is rotated about 90.degree.

Abstract: A fuser for an image-forming apparatus includes a fusing roller which is replaceable in a cartridge. The fusing roller cartridge includes a cover for covering an access opening providing access to the fusing roller. The cover is openable, either directly by an operator to a latched condition, by the apparatus in response to insertion of the cartridge, by the operator before insertion but held in an uncovering position by the receiving apparatus or by suitable mechanism in the apparatus after insertion of the cartridge. Preferably, the cover closes early in the removal motion so that the fingers of the removing operator cannot touch a hot fusing roller. A metallic heat shield between the fusing roller and the cartridge housing helps prevent the housing from becoming too hot to touch.

Abstract: A color tranparency having high density includes overlying color toner images on opposite sides of a transparent substrate. The color images are formed by first forming two sets of electrostatic images, one set being a mirror image of the other. The electrostatic images are toned by application of different color toners to the images of each set and then each set is transferred in registration to opposite sides of the transparency.

Abstract: A toning station particularly usable in a multicolor image-forming apparatus includes an applicator and a developer mixing mechanism. A transport roller with a fluted surface transports developer from the mixing device to the applicator. A magnetic gate is positioned inside the transport roller and has a first position in which it attracts developer from the mixing device to the transport roller to facilitate delivery of developer to the applicator. The magnetic gate is movable to a position opposite the applicator where it inhibits passage of developer to the applicator to stop the development action of the station.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for control of cross-track registration of a web member in an image forming apparatus, such as a photocopier or printer. A control patch is laid down on the web member and toned. After toning, the amount of toner for a particular section of the control patch is sensed and compared with known amounts of toner to determine the cross-track position of the web. Once the cross-track position is determined, a printhead is programmed to alter the web lay-down location, of an image to be reproduced, to adjust for the actual cross-track location of the web.

Abstract: A method of forming a toner image on a receiving sheet includes a step of either transferring or fixing a toner image to the receiving sheet, in which the receiving sheet is heated to a temperature of at least 100.degree. C. To allow steam to escape from the receiving sheet, a gas impermeable layer on the side of the sheet opposite the toner image is made permeable by application of small, closely spaced holes in the layer. The method is particularly usable with a receiving sheet having a heat-softenable layer which is heated beyond its softening point to facilitate transfer of images made up of very small toner particles. The holes are preferably mechanically punched in a curl-preventing layer on the opposite side of the sheet.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for producing a hardcopy reproduction of image information. A uniform layer of toner particles is applied to a surface. A receiver sheet with a thermoplastic outer layer is placed over the layer of toner particles, the thermoplastic layer contacting the layer of toner particles. An electrostatic attraction is established between the layer of toner particles and the receiver sheet. The thermoplastic layer is imagewise exposed to heat to selectively soften the thermoplastic layer, allowing the toner particles opposite the softened thermoplastic to migrate into the layer. The receiver sheet is then removed from the surface, taking with it the migrated particles in an imagewise pattern.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a nest for receiving a photoconductive drum cartridge. The nest includes an electrometer projecting from an end of the nest parallel to an axis of rotation of a drum in a received cartridge. An opening in a received cartridge housing receives the electrometer closely spaced from the photoconductive drum. The cartridge also includes a charging station and a cleaning station. The cleaning station includes a blade and a roller upstream of the blade for directing cleaned toner toward a containing device opposite the blade from the roller.

Abstract: Image forming apparatus includes a cleaning device for cleaning toner from a surface. Magnetic particulate cleaning material is moved through a cleaning zone by a rotating magnetic core. The particulate cleaning material moves on a surface which is extended generally in an upstream direction with respect to movement of the surface being cleaned. The extension increases the effectiveness of the cleaning without increasing pickup of the cleaning material by the surface.An alternative cleaning device includes a magnetic shunt between a rotating core and a shell in which magnetic particulate cleaning material is driven by rotation of the core. The shunt interrupts the magnetic field of the core to increase the effectiveness of the cleaning without adversely affecting its softness.

Abstract: In electrographic apparatus a latent image on a flexible photoconductor is developed with toner particles at a development station and subsequently transferred to a receiver sheet, such as a copy sheet, and then fused to the sheet. Sometimes unwanted particles are on the photoconductor, including the area where an image is to be developed on the photoconductor. These particles are removed by a magnetic brush system located closely adjacent the surface of the photoconductor prior to the charging station. A biased ski located under the photoconductor presents the photoconductor to the cleaning nap at a predetermined uniform pressure and a desired distance, so that the photoconductor is uniformly cleaned and buffed.

Abstract: Image forming apparatus includes a toner cleaning device for cleaning toner off an image surface. The cleaning device includes a cleaning applicator for moving magnetic particulate cleaning material past the surface to be cleaned. Particulate material is moved from a sump to the cleaning applicator by a transport positioned between them. A detoning roller is positioned to attract toner from particulate material associated with the transport. When the cleaning device is not cleaning, it has a mode of operation in which the transport and the detoning roller continue to operate to continue to detone particulate material which moves from the sump around the transport and back to the sump.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus in which toner images are transferred using a combination of heat and pressure to a receiving sheet includes a transfer drum with a vacuum holding means for the receiving sheet. To prevent a loss of nip pressure over vacuum holes, the drum is formed of a metallic core with a slot running generally parallel to the core's axis of rotation. A thin metallic sheet is positioned around the core, which sheet has very thin slots running across the slot in the core. A vacuum is applied to the core slot which communicates through the sheet slots to hold a receiving sheet to the outside surface of the metallic sheet.

Abstract: Image forming apparatus includes a developing device for developing electrostatic images with dry toner. The developing device has more than one developing unit supported on a carriage for movement through a development position. A unitary sump component defines the sump for each unit and includes a mixing device in each sump. The sump component is removable for replacement of developer. The sump component includes a shaft extending from the component which is engageable by a drive in the developing device.

Abstract: A magnetic roller cleaning apparatus for removing residual toner particles from an image-bearing surface in a copier or printer includes a housing and a rotatable magnetic roller for moving a nap of a magnetic cleaning mix in the housing. The cleaning apparatus also includes a detoning roller for removing residual toner particles from the nap being moved by the magnetic roller. The cleaning apparatus further includes a magnetic member mounted externally on the housing and upstream of the detoning roller for mixing a top portion and a bottom portion of the nap on the magnetic roller prior to detoning.

Abstract: The present invention is used in an image-recording apparatus wherein a substantially uniform layer of triboelectrically charged thermoplastic toner particles is deposited onto an imaging member. The toner particles are imagewise heated such that the heated toner particles are thermally tacked to the imaging member. The imaging member is then contacted with a mass of magnetic carrier particles to attract nonheated toner particles to the carrier particles, thereby removing nonheated toner particles from the imaging member and ladening the carrier particles with the removed toner particles. In accordance with the invention, upon using the carrier particles to attract and remove toner from the imaging member, the toner-laden carrier particles are mixed with a supply of carrier particles in which the average number of toner particles per carrier particle is lower than that of said toner-laden carrier particles.