Abstract: An energy efficient thermoremanent magnetic imaging method and apparatus comprising a moving magnetic recording medium which is passed through a nip formed by a thermal printhead and a pressure roller, so that the magnetizable surface of the recording medium is in pressure contact with the heating elements of the thermal printhead. The recording medium is pre-magnetized prior to entry in the nip and passed through a magnetic field of lower strength and opposite polarity at the nip. Small areas or pixels of the pre-magnetized recording medium are heated by the thermal printhead in image configuration and allowed to cool in the presence of the magnetic field at the nip. The magnetic poles of the imagewise pixels are switched, forming fringe fields between the pixels and pre-magnetized background areas.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display device having high extinction ratio polarizers on the input and output sides of a transmissive, twisted nematic liquid crystal cell. The liquid crystal cell incorporating a dichroic dye which is admixed with the liquid crystal material. The high extinction ratio polarizers get the full contrast and density capability from the liquid crystal cell while the dichroic dye prevents the buildup of the contrast limiting orthogonal mode of the polarized light passing therethrough, thus, further increasing the optical contrast and density. Such an arrangement provides optical contrasts of around 150:1 with a 10 micron thick liquid crystal cell.

Abstract: An improved ink jet recording interlace strategy. Sequentially generated ink droplets directed to a recording medium are first charged and deflected by a uniform electric field. The charge sequence on the droplets is such that the droplets are separated by the electric field as they travel toward the medium thereby reducing electrostatic and aerodynamic interactions between droplets. The separation of droplets conforms to an interlace scheme wherein droplets directed to closely adjacent recording medium locations are separated by a number of droplets whose placement of said medium conforms to a multi-level interlace such that the scan direction of the number of droplets is disrupted at least once. In this way, sequentially generated droplets are directed to non-sequentially pixel locations in non-sequential interlace portions of the total number of adjacent pixel locations assigned to a particular nozzle.

Abstract: A thin film magnetic recording head and process for fabricating it is disclosed. The magnetic recording head has a core with a gap the same length as the width of an original document to be produced and is positioned in contact with a moving magnetic recording medium and perpendicular to the direction of movement thereof. A high magnetic permeable body is disposed in the gap of the head core and is in contact with the magnetic recording medium. A heat generation body of the same length as the high magnetic permeable body is positioned in contact therewith. Means for selectively heating segments of the heat generation body corresponding to the width of a picture element is provided.

Abstract: A vacuum cleaning apparatus for a magnetic tape used in a magnetographic printer. The apparatus comprises an elongated nozzle opening in a flat base with a non-conductive screen attached thereto which covers the entire base and nozzle opening. A relatively high vacuum source is connected to the nozzle opening by conduit. The recording surface of the magnetic tape moves in planar contact with the screen in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle opening. Graphite seals are placed at each edge of the screen, the edges with the seals being parallel to the direction of tape movement. The seals direct the flow of air from the upstream and downstream ends of the apparatus to the nozzle opening. The air flow is restricted to that which will flow in and around the woven material forming the screen and along the length thereof to produce a high velocity, turbulent air flow.

Abstract: An ink jet printing method and apparatus having an oscillating printing bar with multiple nozzles. The nozzles emit continuous streams of ink droplets which are charged and deflected to the recording medium or the gutter for recirculation. The recording medium moves at a constant velocity in a direction perpendicular to the direction of oscillation by the printing bar and travels in a single-pass, straight-through path past the printing bar. The ink droplets are deflected in the direction of movement of the recording medium for a predetermined height of one character. This enables the printing bar to print swaths one character high and for the full width of the recording medium for each half cycle of printing bar oscillation. The normal scan length for each half cycle is the distance between adjacent nozzles in the printing bar. Omni-font capability is provided by the printer controller which can overscan the printing bar in one direction without overlapping printing by adjacent nozzles.

Abstract: Magnetographic copier having a movable carriage on which the process stations for recording, developing, transferring and cleaning are mounted. A ribbon of magnetic tape is threaded through the process stations and is held stationary during the image processing, so that the movement of the carriage causes the tape to pass all of the process stations. A CCD array scans segments of a fixed original document and then returns to a start of scan position where it is stepped. The carriage and CCD array are concurrently stepped a distance substantially equal to width of a segment prior to the next scan. The CCD array and carriage are connected by cable and move concurrently. The elements of the CCD array are connected in a one-to-one manner with elements of a magnetic recording head at the recording station.

Abstract: A multicolor display which comprises a high contrast liquid crystal device, light source and a luminance balanced color mask. The liquid crystal device is the transmissive, twisted nematic type having high extinction ratio polarizers on the input and output sides and functions as a light shutter for the display. The liquid crystal material has a dichroic dye admixed therein to prevent buildup of the contrast limiting orthogonal mode electric vector of polarized light. The color mask contains different colored patches with gray surround about them, and each colored patch is luminance balanced in order that each different colored data presented are of substantially equal brightness. during the off-state there is no light bleed through so that the display presents a uniformly dark state or dead front.

Abstract: An ink jet droplet exciter for generating pressure waves in a droplet generator. The preferred exciter is a composite made of PZT, Pb (Zr:Ti) O.sub.3, and a polyethylene supporting material. The mean diameter of the PZT particles is 7 mils and the entire exciter thickness is between 10 and 12 mils. The composite is pliable and can be made in sheets of a large enough area to provide droplet excitation for a multiple nozzle generator.

Abstract: An ink jet printer having a drop generator for directing streams of ink droplets through deflection electrodes so that droplets travel to either a gutter or to selected regions on a printing medium. The gutter is constructed of a first low surface energy material such as parylene coated to a high surface energy material such as stainless steel. Only a portion of the steel is coated so that a boundary between high and low surface energy material is contacted by ink after it strikes the gutter. This boundary attracts the ink away from the gutter entrance due to capillary action and in a preferred embodiment is also aided by the force of gravity due to the orientation of the gutter.

Abstract: A power regulating device which maintains a constant rms voltage across a load by periodically interrupting the application of voltage to the load for a predetermined number of cycles. To accomplish this, a functional solution to the equation which describes the relationship between the rms line voltage developed across the load and the rms voltage of a desired control set point is continuously provided. The solution of this equation is obtained by squaring a sampling of the applied load voltage, subtracting the square of the desired control voltage, and then integrating over time the difference therebetween. When the resultant time integral reaches a predetermined constant value, the voltage applied to the load is interrupted for a predetermined number of half or full cycles.

Abstract: In a radiant energy beam scanning system, a detector, positioned at a predetermined position along the path scanned by the beam, for sensing the center position of the power distribution within the beam and generating a signal indicative thereof. When utilized in an information recording system, the detector is positioned adjacent the start position of the scan path so that the generated indicator signal provides a reference for system timing and synchronization. In such a recording environment, synchronization of the system relative to the center position of power distribution within the beam compensates for variations in beam power level and focus, assuring proper alignment of information recorded on consecutive scan lines. In a preferred form, a diode detector, partially masked in a cross-scan direction, is employed to provide an output signal when irradiated by the scanning beam.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are described wherein, a charge pattern is applied to an insulating imaging member by styli in contact to the insulating imaging member, the force of the styli on the imaging member being below the triboelectric threshold. More preferably, the force of the styli on the imaging member is between the triboelectric threshold and the imaging threshold.

Abstract: In the formation of a thin film device, integrity of the semiconductor-insulator and semiconductor-conductor interfaces is preserved by depositing layers of insulator, semiconductor, and conductor in successive sequence under continuous vacuum. In a preferred embodiment, the method minimizes contamination exposure of the critical interfaces between semiconductor and gate insulator and semiconductor and source-drain contacts of a thin film transistor.

Abstract: An electro-optic wave guide substrate for both intensity modulating and continuously deflecting an incident laser beam. A first set of electrodes for intensity modulating the beam include substantially parallel, periodically interdigital conductors affixed to a substrate surface and coupled to a controlled voltage source. A second set of electrodes for beam deflecting have non-parallel conductors affixed to the same substrate and are also coupled to a controlled voltage. By controlling the voltage applied to the second set of electrodes the beam can be continuously deflected through a controlled angle to facet track a rapidly rotating multi-faceted mirror of a raster output scanner. The substrate is fabricated using a new technique whereby the atmosphere in which the waveguiding surface is diffused is controlled. In particular, the diffusion is done in a heated oxygen environment having an elevated moisture content.

Abstract: An improved ink jet marking architecture for enhancing ink droplet placing accuracy. The improved architecture combines a bipolar scanning arrangement with a drop interlace scheme. The preferred marking apparatus comprises an array of ink jet column generators which direct ink droplets to first a charging region and then through a deflection region. The droplets are charged either negatively or positively depending on a desired droplet trajectory; thus the bipolar designation. The deflection region has an electric field strength slightly less than the breakdown field strength of air for the environment in which the apparatus is to operate. The high field strength reduces the charge which must be applied to the droplets and therefore minimizes the drop to drop coulomb interaction. The interlace strategy causes sequential drops from a given generator to be printed in non-sequential locations on the paper.

Abstract: A sheet feed mechanism is disclosed which will permit manual feed as well as automatic seriatim feeding. The mechanism includes a main feed roller movable into and out of contact with the top sheet of a stack, another feed roll above and in contact with the main roller and a pinch roller above and in contact with the other roller to form a nip through which a sheet may be manually guided for feeding.