Abstract: Methods and systems are provided to increase or optimize the illumination used with a sensor to measure printed ink colors on a substrate at high speed (up to 3 m/s) and high resolution. By modifying the number of light sources, their wavelengths and/or their relative intensities, the optical contrast can be increased or optimized to yield a higher signal-to-noise ratio and improved accuracy for the measurement of multiple colors. In one implementation, multiple LEDs with selected output peak wavelength may be used to achieve higher contrast imaging for each color.

Abstract: As provided herein, there are supplied teachings to systems and methods for resizing a halftone image using halftone tile parameters. One approach entails receiving into a digital imaging system, a digital halftone image and a desired resizing factor for that digital halftone image. The system will then define cells within the digital halftone image and determine from those cells, a number of halftone tile seams to suitable for manipulation. The orientation of these halftone tile seams is dictated by the received desired resizing factor. The seam energy of these halftone tile seams is then determined according to an energy metric so as to provide indication of a number of low energy determined halftone tile seams. The number of low energy seams identified is sufficient to achieve the desired resizing factor. A resizing of the halftone image is then performing by iteratively deleting the low energy determined halftone tile seams within the halftone image.

Abstract: A computer implemented method and an apparatus for comparing spans of text are disclosed. The method includes computing a similarity measure between a first sequence of symbols representing a first text span and a second sequence of symbols representing a second text span as a function of the occurrences of optionally noncontiguous subsequences of symbols shared by the two sequences of symbols. Each of the symbols comprises at least one consecutive word and is defined according to a set of linguistic factors. Pairs of symbols in the first and second sequences that form a shared subsequence of symbols are each matched according to at least one of the factors.

Abstract: Systems and methods are described hereinto to provide a notification when a predetermined event occurs that is related to a consumable. A print engine outputs hard copies based on electronically received data. One or more toner cartridges that are utilized by the print engine to place toner onto a hard copy substrate. A meter monitors and provides a level of remaining toner for each of the one or more cartridges. A yield component receives level data from each meter to compare to an expected yield and an expected grams per impression, wherein if the expected yield and/or the expected grams per impression are outside of a predetermined threshold, a signal is output.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes plural developing units separately containing a toner A and a toner B that satisfy relationships (1) and (2) and have similar colors. The toner A and the toner B each contain a binder resin containing a polyester about 90 mass % or more of the binder resin, and about 90 mass % of the binder resin of the toner A and about 90 mass % of the binder resin of the toner B are the same resin. The polyester contains an amorphous polyester having an alkyl side chain and a crystalline polyester. The relationship (1) is Ta (toner A)>Tb (toner B) in terms of flow tester ½ effluent temperature. The relationship (2) is Aa (toner A)>Ab (toner B) in terms of an amount of an aluminum (with reference to net intensity) measured with fluorescent X-ray.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments provide materials, systems and methods for ink jet printhead, wherein a low-adhesion coating can be applied to at least one surface portion of an ink chamber within the printhead to reduce or eliminate actuator membrane damage during ink freeze/thaw cycles.

Abstract: An ink jet print head includes an ink chamber defined by an electrostatically actuated membrane and a nozzle plate opposing the membrane. The nozzle plate includes a nozzle hole and a group of priming holes, the priming holes configured to maintain a substantially ink free surface on the nozzle plate during a freeze thaw cycle of ink in the ink chamber. A method for accommodating expansion and contraction of ink during a freeze thaw cycle of ink in an ink chamber is also provided. The method includes providing a group of priming holes in a nozzle plate of the ink chamber, the group of priming holes maintaining a substantially ink free surface on the nozzle plate during the freeze thaw cycle.

Abstract: A print head has a jet stack having an array of jets, an array of transducers arranged on the jet stack such that each transducer corresponds to a jet in the array of jets, and a flexible circuit substrate arranged adjacent the array of transducers such that contact pads on the flexible circuit substrate make electrical connection to at least some of the array of transducers, the flexible circuit substrate being embossed so that the contact pads extend out of a plane of the flexible circuit substrate.

Abstract: A solid ink stick for use in an imaging device, such as a phase change inkjet printer, is provided. The solid ink stick has a retrieval feature located on a top surface thereof. When the ink stick is incorrectly loaded through the insertion opening of a feed channel of the printer, the retrieval feature has a vertical dimension such that the ink stick can be grasped, such as by two fingers of a user, to remove the ink stick through the insertion opening. The retrieval feature generally includes two lower surfaces interconnected with at least one upper surface.

Abstract: Multi-label classification is performed by (i) applying a set of trained base classifiers to an object to generate base classifier label prediction sets comprising subsets of a set of labels; (ii) constructing a set of second level features including at least one second level feature defined by a predetermined combination of two or more of the base classifier label prediction sets; and (iii) applying a second level classifier to label the object with a set of one or more labels comprising a subset of the set of labels, labeling being based on the set of second level features. The multi-label classifier is trained by: (iv) applying operations (i) and (ii) to labeled training objects of a set of labeled training objects to generate training metadata comprising sets of second level features for the labeled training objects; and (v) training the second level classifier using the training metadata.

Abstract: An apparatus has a continuous loop conveyor belt mounted on a frame. The conveyor belt has a first edge, a second edge, and a belt surface between the first edge and the second edge. The first edge is positioned relatively higher than the second edge such that the belt surface is at an angle with respect to a horizontal ground reference plane, and such that the belt surface slopes downwardly from the first edge toward the second edge. In addition, a sidewall is connected to the frame. The sidewall is positioned adjacent the second edge, and the sidewall is perpendicular to the belt surface and runs parallel to the second edge. Therefore, the sidewall prevents items from falling off the belt surface at the second edge. Further, a plurality of rectangular fins are connected to the belt surface. The fins are perpendicular to the sidewall and perpendicular to the belt surface. A vibrator is connected to the frame and transmits vibrations to the conveyor belt.

Abstract: An information processing device that is connected to a projecting device that projects an annotation image input from an external, terminal a projection area including an object and a background, and is connected to an image capture device that captures an image of the projection area including the object and the background, includes: a detecting unit that detects movement of the object from an image captured by the image capture device; an extracting unit that extracts a changed region that is caused in the captured image by the movement of the object; and a processing unit that performs processing on at least one of the captured image and the annotation image, when the annotation image exists in the changed region.

Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus including: an image scanner that scans in an image of an original, the image scanner including an opening and closing member capable of moving between an open position and a closed position, a closing operation detection unit that detects closing operation of the opening and closing member, and a determination unit that determines a size and orientation of the original; an image forming unit that forms an image on recording paper based on scanned image data; a switching unit that independently switches between power supply or supply interruption for the image scanner and the image forming unit; and a notification unit that, after power supply has been resumed to the image scanner, executes notification to urge selection of either manual input of the size and the orientation of the original or opening and closing operation of the opening and closing member.

Abstract: A system and method for conducting a lottery for at least one item are provided. The method includes, for each of a plurality of buyers, receiving a buyer's declared valuation for each of at least one item being offered in a lottery by a seller, the item having an assigned non-deterministic probability of being allocated to the buyer, providing insured prices for outcomes of the lottery which are a function of the buyer's declared valuation of the at least one item, randomly drawing an allocation of each of the at least one item to a respective one of the buyers, based on its assigned non-deterministic probability, and allocating the insured prices to the buyers based on respective outcomes of the random drawing.

Abstract: A computer implemented electronic out-of-office message analysis system and method are disclosed. The method includes, for each of a plurality of users, receiving a user-generated electronic out-of-office message in a natural language in which a time window of absence and at least one alternate named contact are expressed and, based on the out-of-office message, generating a structured representation of the out-of-office message which links the alternate contact to a normalized representation of the time window. The structured representation of the out-of-office message is stored in a database. From the database it can be determined whether a current user's out-of-office message conflicts with another user's out-of-office message. If a conflict is detected, the current user can be notified.

Abstract: A method manufactures solid ink sticks by forming a solid ink paste and injecting the paste into a mold having internal cavities. The solid ink paste can be formed by mixing liquid ink and solid ink in a barrel of an injection molding machine. The liquid ink is formed by melting solid ink particulates in the barrel with a heated conveyor and the solid ink particulates are maintained in a solid phase by cooling a portion of the barrel. Movement produced by the heated conveyor mixes the liquid ink and the solid ink in an area between the cooled portion of the barrel and the heated conveyor.

Abstract: A valuation optimization method includes generating offeree decision information (buyer decision information, by way of illustrative example) by presenting a sequence of mechanisms to a sequence of offerees wherein the mechanisms comprise menus of transaction offers (sale offer menus, by way of illustrative example). Actual transactions (sale transactions, by way of illustrative example) are conducted responsive to acceptances of transaction offers by buyers. At a selected time in the generating, an offeree valuation distribution belief and the current mechanism are updated optimize an offeree's utility. The offeree's utility comprises an offeree's utility function constrained by a robust learning constraint computed based on a local differential of an earlier offeree's utility function with respect to the earlier offeree's valuation.

Abstract: A method comprises: presenting a plurality of offers to one or more offerees, the offers including at least one non-deterministic offer having non-deterministic consideration for the offeree; conducting business activity including the presenting and further including at least one actual business transaction executed in response to an acceptance by an offeree of one of the plurality of offers; receiving offeree decision data during the conducting of business activity; and generating valuation information based on the offeree decision data. Optionally the method further includes generating a new offer based on the generated valuation information and conducting additional business activity including presenting the new offer. Optionally the method is performed using n offeree folds wherein the generating of a new offer for an ith offeree fold is based on the generated valuation information for offeree folds other than the ith offeree fold.

Abstract: What is disclosed is a novel system and method for banding defect detection in user document images to improve image quality trend analysis in multifunction digital imaging system architectures. The present banding detection process uses region-based, time sequence analysis, and graylevels of image regions in a collection of a sequence of regions, to improve banding detection. The present method independently analyzes the colorant separations to detect banding due to sources that are colorant-dependent, e.g., due to a single developer housing. This identification can be performed in the presence of multiple banding defects.