Abstract: According to aspects described herein, there is disclosed an apparatus and method for controlling a position of a belt in a printing system. The apparatus including a roller assembly for engaging at least a portion of a belt, a pair of laterally spaced support arms and an actuating assembly for pivotally moving at least one support arm. The belt being generally moveable in a process flow direction within the printing system, wherein a lateral direction extends substantially along the belt and substantially perpendicular to the process flow direction. The roller assembly extending laterally across the belt. The pair of laterally spaced support arms each rotatably supporting opposed ends of the roller assembly. Each support arm being pivotally coupled to the printing system for movement about a pivot axis extending substantially in the lateral direction. The pivotal movement pivoting one support arm relative to the other.

Abstract: An exposure device includes a plurality of light emitting elements, a load, a first supplying unit and a second supplying unit. The first supplying unit supplies a driving current to one of (i) light emitting elements used to form an image among the plurality of light emitting elements and (ii) the load, in accordance with a modulation signal. The first supplying unit supplies a bias current to the other. The second supplying unit supplies the bias current to light emitting elements not used to form the image among the plurality of light emitting elements, regardless of the modulation signal.

Abstract: A liquid developer includes: magnetic polymer particles including a magnetic material containing yttrium iron garnet (YIG), a polymer compound having a carboxylate salt structure, and a colorant; and a dispersion medium in which the magnetic polymer particles are dispersed.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image holder; an exposure member that has an exposure portion exposing the image holder; a first positioning unit that determines a distance in a first direction, which is a direction of an optical axis of the exposure member, between the exposure member and the image holder; and a second positioning unit that determines a position of the exposure member with respect to the image holder in a second direction being a direction of an axis line of the image holder, and a position of the exposure member with respect to the image holder in a third direction being perpendicular to both the first direction and the second direction, and that determines the distance between the exposure member and the image holder at a position substantially closer to the exposure member than the position of the first positioning unit.

Abstract: An ink stick for use in a phase change ink imaging device comprises an ink stick body having a leading surface, a trailing surface, and a top surface. The top surface has a front edge that is rearwardly offset from a top edge of the leading surface, and a back edge that is at least partially rearwardly offset from the top of the trailing surface. A leading canted face extends between the top edge of the leading surface and the front edge of the top surface. A trailing canted face extends between the top edge of the trailing surface and the back edge of the top surface. The back edge includes a key that is complementary to an insertion opening key of an ink loader.

Abstract: A method to detect edges based on chrominance information alone or in combination with gray level values includes comparing chrominance values to a registration parameter based on chromacity measurements of a backing. To calibrate a system, a small scan obtains sample image data for the backing in the document feeder. Using the sampled image data, average chrominance values for the backing are determined. Based on the averages, a channel having a low chrominance contribution is selected as the registration channel. A registration parameter is calculated for automatic registration of documents based on the average chrominance and chrominance deviation for the registration channel.

Abstract: A method for determining a toner usage estimate for a print job to be performed by a printing system having at least one print engine and at least one controller includes determining a set of print conditions for the print job and selecting a set of parameters associated with the print conditions. The method further includes estimating a total amount of toner usage for each of the print job's pages. The set of parameters may include image rendering, job dependent and engine dependent parameters.

Abstract: Methods are provided for preparing aromatic silicon-containing compounds. The methods include providing an aromatic starting material; reacting the aromatic starting material with a base to form an aromatic salt; and reacting the aromatic salt with a halo-alkylene-silane to form an aromatic silicon-containing compound. Compositions prepared by these methods, protective layers that include hydrolysis and condensation products of such compositions, electrophotographic photoreceptors that include such protective layers, and image forming apparatuses that include such electrophotographic photoreceptors are also provided. In addition, method for preparing electrophotographic photoreceptors that include protective layers including hydrolysis and condensation products of aromatic silicon-containing compounds prepared by the methods for preparing aromatic silicon-containing compounds are provided.

Abstract: A question answering system includes a question input unit, a search unit, an answer candidate extraction unit, an answer candidate inspection unit and an answer output unit. The search unit executes search processing based on an input question. The answer candidate extraction unit extracts an initial answer candidate based on a result of the search processing. The answer candidate inspection unit inspects the initial answer candidate. The answer candidate inspection unit executes search processing with using a query including the initial answer candidate. The answer candidate inspection unit determines whether each word of a sentence obtained as a result of the search processing has a similar lexical meaning to that of each word of the input question. The answer candidate inspection unit selects an initial answer candidate contained in a query determined to have the similar lexical meaning, as a secondary answer candidate.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for classifying fine particles, the method comprising: introducing a fine particle dispersion in which fine particles are dispersed in a liquid medium into an inlet of a microchannel having the inlet and a recovery portion; and delivering the fine particle dispersion, which has been introduced through the inlet, to the recovery portion in laminar flow, wherein delivering the fine particle dispersion includes classifying the fine particles using the difference in sedimentation speed or floatation speed among the fine particles in the fine particle dispersion. The present invention also provides a device used in the method for classifying fine particles.

Abstract: Methods are presented in which one or more pages of a print job are segmented into two or more parts, with the first part being transferred and affixed to the printed medium prior to transferring and affixing the second part, in order to facilitate high TMA (pile height) printing while mitigating adverse retransfer, blur, fusing, and hollow character effects.

Abstract: A teeter-totter valve device for metering magnetic particles from a hopper includes (i) a tube connected to the hopper for flow of magnetic particles out of the hopper; (ii) a teeter-totter member having a first arm including a first distal end, and a second adjustable arm including a second distal end; (iii) a support assembly supporting the teeter-totter member on and spaced from the tube; (iv) a first magnet located at the first distal end; (v) a second magnet located at the second distal; and (vi) a moving assembly for moving each of the first magnet and the second magnet towards and away from a first near point and a second near point on the tube to create or remove a point magnetic field and magnetic particles dam within the tube, thereby stopping or allowing flow of a desired quantity of magnetic particles past the first near point and past the second near point.

Abstract: An information reading device for reading identification information from a medium to which at least one magnetic element for generating a signal upon receiving a magnetic field is provided, which includes a plurality of detecting parts that detect a signal generated from the magnetic element according to the magnetic field applied to the medium, and an information reading part that reads information formed by the magnetic element based on a combination of detecting parts which have detected the generated signal.

Abstract: A method of printing using an image-on-image device that includes a photoreceptor, including monochrome exposing the photoreceptor or monochrome charging the photoreceptor, wherein monochrome exposing the photoreceptor includes charging the photoreceptor, successively exposing the photoreceptor in a monochrome mode using a plurality of exposing devices during a single revolution of the photoreceptor relative to the exposing devices, and developing a monochrome image on the photoreceptor; and monochrome charging the photoreceptor includes successively charging the photoreceptor via a plurality of charging devices during a single revolution of the photoreceptor relative to the charging devices, exposing the photoreceptor using an exposing device, and developing an image on the photoreceptor. A marking device capable of implementing the method of printing.

Abstract: A printing system includes printers capable of redirecting print jobs to one another. A negotiator associated with each printer negotiates print job redirections. If a printer is unable to execute a print job, the negotiator seeks to outsource the print job by communicating an outsource request to other negotiators. In formulating an outsource request, the negotiator utilizes one or more constraint services. A negotiator which receives the outsource request includes an insource mechanism which determines whether to make an offer in which the associated printer is to execute at least a portion of the print job to be outsourced. If negotiator determines to make the offer, the insource offer is communicated to the first negotiator. The negotiators may each contemporaneously conduct a plurality of negotiations for a particular print job to be outsourced and/or contemporaneously conduct a plurality of negotiations for different print jobs to be insourced.

Abstract: A method and system is provided for obtaining an archival model of a selected print job executed in a network imaging system comprised of a plurality of imaging engines. The print job is archived to include job data comprising the imaging information defining the desired job and the production status performance data of the particular engine at about the time of the executing of the job. The job data and the engine performance data are associated and archived for later retrieval for enhanced temporal and distributed consistency in a reprinting of the job.

Abstract: A charging device comprises first and second electrodes forming a charging zone. A plurality of nanostructures adhere to at least one of the first and second electrodes. A charging voltage supply couples to the electrodes to support the formation of gaseous ions in the charging zone. An aperture electrode or grid proximate to the first and second electrodes is coupled to a grid control voltage supply which grid control voltage supply, in turn, controls a flow of gaseous ions from the charging zone to thereby charge a proximately-located receptor. In one embodiment, the charging voltage supply is arranged to provide a pulsed-voltage waveform. In one variation of this embodiment, the pulsed-voltage waveform comprises a pulsed-DC waveform. In another embodiment, the charging voltage supply is arranged to provide an alternating-current waveform. In one embodiment, the charging device itself is comprised in an image forming device.

Abstract: Fuser assemblies, xerographic apparatuses including the fuser assemblies, and methods of fusing toner on media in xerographic apparatuses are disclosed. An embodiment of the fuser assemblies comprises a first roll including an electrically-conductive first surface; an electrically-conductive second surface, the first surface and the second surface defining a nip therebetween at which toner is fused on a medium; at least one voltage sensor for sensing a first voltage difference between the first surface and the second surface; and at least one power supply connected to the first surface and the second surface. A controller is connected to each voltage sensor and each power supply. The controller receives a signal from each voltage sensor indicating the first voltage difference, and the controller controls each power supply to produce a second voltage difference between the first surface and the second surface based on the first voltage difference.

Abstract: A system suited to scheduling print jobs for a printing system includes a first processing component which identifies preliminary attributes of print jobs to be printed on sheets. A job scheduler receives the preliminary attributes and assigns each of the print jobs to one of a plurality of job queues in time order for printing. Print jobs spanning the same time are scheduled for printing contemporaneously. In one mode of operation, the assignment of the print jobs to the job queues is based on their preliminary attributes and on the application of at least one constraint which affects contemporaneous printing of at least two of the plurality of print jobs. A second processing component identifies detailed attributes of the print jobs. A sheet scheduler receives information on the assignments of the print jobs and their detailed attributes and forms an itinerary for each sheet to be printed.

Abstract: A drawing processing device includes a rendering section, first and second figure drawing sections, a registration section, and a control section. The rendering section performs rendering based on a drawing command. The first figure drawing section draws a figure based on a figure pattern obtained by performing the rendering. When the rendering section performs the rendering for a figure, the registration section registers the figure pattern for the figure. If a figure drawing command is received and if a figure pattern corresponding to the received figure drawing command is stored, the second figure drawing section selects the corresponding registered figure pattern and draws a figure in place of the first figure drawing section. Based on an appearance state of figures in a page to be processed, the control section controls whether or not figure drawing performed by the second figure drawing section is caused to function in the page.