Abstract: A method of controlling the operation of an ink jet printhead having a burn voltage applied to a transducer nucleating an ink bubble to cause an ink droplet to be ejected from an ink ejecting orifice. The method includes determining a threshold power dissipated by the transducer sufficient to cause the bubble to nucleate, the threshold power being determined by a firing pulse having a pulse length and a threshold voltage, selecting the pulse length of the firing pulse to be approximately equal to a pulse length necessary to achieve the highest effective power dissipation in the transducer, and selecting the burn voltage as a function of the threshold voltage. Changes to the threshold power dissipated by the transducer necessary to eject from the ink ejecting orifice are determined and the pulse length of the firing pulse is adjusted accordingly.

Abstract: An ink jet printer is configured in a hybrid architecture wherein a full width printbar is combined with a partial width color scanning assembly to provide the capability of selectively printing in black only or, alternately, into producing color prints by operating the color scanning assembly exclusively. The cost of the hybrid system, when compared to a full width color system using four full width printbars, is greatly reduced. The partial width scanning assembly is mounted on a carriage which is stepped along a printing swath width, the sum of the incremental scan steps equaling the width of a full width printbar. A dimensional mismatch between the printbar and the scanning printhead in the direction perpendicular to paper motion (width direction) could result in image degradation because of misalignment of color drops to black drops. The mismatch could result in manufacturing errors in either the printhead width and/or the width of the carriage.

Abstract: A thermal ink-jet ejector having a fluid flow channel extending between an ink inlet and a nozzle for the ejection of liquid ink therefrom, includes a rear channel diffuser disposed between the heating element and the inlet, and/or a front channel diffuser disposed between the heating element and the nozzle. Each diffuser includes an arrangement of tapers which decrease the flow impedance of liquid ink flowing toward the nozzle, and increase the flow impedance of liquid ink flowing toward the inlet. The arrangement increases the kinetic energy of droplets being ejected, and also increases the speed of re-fill of the channel with liquid ink following ejection.

Abstract: The present invention is a method and apparatus for the rotation of images in conjunction with a block-wise, variable-length data compression operation. In a preferred embodiment, the rotation of image blocks on a microscopic level is accomplished independently from the rotation of the blocks themselves (macroscopic), stored in electronic precollation memory and the rotated image produced upon decompression of the stored rotated data.

Abstract: A dual-component magnetic brush developing device using a dual-component developer containing magnetic carriers and toner electrically attracted to the magnetic carriers.

Abstract: A method of recognizing the effects of coarse pixel quantization on text represented via raster signals to enable automatic selection between fax and normal modes of optical character recognition. A processor executes instructions stored in a memory to trace the contours of connected components included within a sample image and to count the number of runs one, two, and three pixels in length along the contour. If the sample image includes few runs two pixels in lengths along the contours of its connected components as compared to the number of runs one and three pixels in length, then the sample image has undergone coarse pixel quantization and the processor selects fax mode optical character recognition.

Abstract: A structured document retrieval apparatus which fetches an objective document from many documents stored in a storage device. In the apparatus, a logical structure extraction unit extracts the logical structure, document attribute, and content of a structured document, and the extracted information is stored in a document information storage unit. Since the information is stored only in this unit, it is not necessary to conduct cumbersome duplicate management such that the matching of information is always maintained. In the retrieval, a logical structure decision unit checks a document to decide whether it has the same logical structure as that written in a retrieval expression or not. Only in a document having the same logical structure, a component (for example, author) which is the ultimate retrieval object of the document is first accessed to be retrieved.

Abstract: A seven-segment ball for an electrical twisting ball display device made up of spheroidal balls rotatably disposed in an elastomer substrate. The device built with the seven-segment balls can provide, for example, two fully saturated colors, two partially saturated colors, and a background color, such as white. The ball is composed of seven segments arrayed substantially parallel to one another, each segment being adjacent to at least one other segment and to no more than two other segments, adjacent segments being adjoined to one another at substantially planar interfaces. The seven segments include a transparent central segment, transparent first and second exterior segments, and four colored interior segments, two on each side of the central segment. For example, the first, second, third, and fourth interior segments can each have different colors such as red, black, blue, and green.

Abstract: A hollow cylindrical electrostatographic imaging member supporting end flange including a disk shaped member, a supporting hub extending axially from the disk shaped member and a metal disk coaxially secured to the hub, the disk comprising a plurality of rectangular tabs extending radially from the disk in a direction away from an imaginary axis of the hub for engagement with the hollow cylindrical electrostatographic imaging member upon insertion of the hub and disk shaped member into one end of the hollow cylindrical electrostatographic imaging member. When this end flange is inserted into one end of the hollow cylindrical electrostatographic imaging member, the plurality of rectangular tabs extending radially from the disk engage the inner surface of the hollow cylindrical electrostatographic imaging member.

Abstract: A transmissive, backlit color twisted-nematic or super-twisted-nematic liquid crystal display employing a front fiber-optic faceplate or optical equivalent as a front retaining element of a liquid crystal cell that increases viewing angle between the display and a viewer while minimizing or eliminating undesirable variations in luminance, contrast ratio and chromaticity is described. The fiber-optic faceplate or optical equivalent includes cylindrical optical features and interstitial cladding material of greater optical index than the cylindrical optical features. The interstitial cladding material may include an opaque mask blocking layer to prevent the interstitial apertures from diffracting off-axis light into an observer's viewing cone.

Abstract: Full color, single pass and two-pass imaging processes using black, magenta, cyan and yellow toners and Non-interactive Development without fringe field development. Corona discharge is utilized for voltage leveling certain developed images prior to their passage through DAD developer housings. A Raster Output Scanner (ROS) used for creating the latent electrostatic images is also used for voltage leveling of images developed on the first pass of the two pass imaging process in order to remove certain other images for eliminating fringe field images as well as other undesired images.

Abstract: A heat sink for a thermal ink jet printhead has improved resistance to the corrosive effects of ink by forming a chromate film on a copper plated metal substrate. In one described embodiment, a thermal ink jet printer is formed by bonding together a channel plate and a heater plate. Resistors and electrical connections are formed in the surface of the heater plate. The heater plate is bonded to a heat sink comprising a zinc substrate having a copper film plated on one surface. The copper plated heat sink is immersed in a chromic acid and water bath. Metal anodes are placed within the bath and a field is applied for a period of time sufficient to form a polymeric chromate film on the copper plated surface. The chromate film has improved resistance to ink corrosion and exhibits a stronger printhead to heat sink bonding strength.

Abstract: A document image processing device segments a set of pixels in a document into a plurality of regions and classifies the sizes of the characters in the segmented regions. The characters are converted into a color image based on information indicating correspondence between size and color of the characters. An image is generated for an output document on the basis of the converted color image.

Abstract: A system for reducing toner or ink consumption in rendering images, in which reduced slope tone reproduction curve(s) or other draft/clip mode toner consumption reduction systems to render images on an object-oriented basis are used. Rendering systems including the use of single or multiple colors can be employed.

Abstract: A rotating type developing apparatus, having a plurality of developing devices which convey developer, which at least includes toner and carrier, to a developing roll while accommodating and circulating the developer; and a rotating body which holds and rotates the plurality of developing devices, in a rotating type developing apparatus in which the plurality of developing devices successively oppose a photosensitive drum due to the rotation of the rotating body so as to form a multicolor image, the apparatus having developer supplying equipment which supplies the developer to the developing devices; and collecting equipment which collects excess developer within the developing devices due to the rotation of the rotating body.

Abstract: Apparatus and method for glossing certain areas of a substrate. In particular, highlight images are created by incorporating in some of the images on a substrate a clear polymer material thereby providing them with a larger mass thereby resulting in a higher gloss than those images on the same substrate which do not contain the additional clear polymer.

Abstract: A semantic description storing means stores semantic descriptions representative of meanings of respective document components. A semantic description designating means designates one of the semantic descriptions stored in the semantic description storing means. A schema storage means stores, in a correlated manner, a schema and the designated semantic description of a document component of the schema. A document retrieving means performs retrieval on a database by using the semantic description thus stored in the schema storage means. A retrieval formula conversion means causes the schema retrieving means to call the correspondence between the semantic description and the schema from the schema storage means, receives a first retrieval formula relating to a first schema and directed to first retrieval, and converts the first retrieval formula to a second retrieval formula relating to a second schema and directed to second retrieval that is equivalent to the first retrieval.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a dynamic control of a drive circuit to a diode laser used in a raster output scanning system. In the prior art, the binary serial stream input to a diode laser operates on the laser to pulse the laser on when a "one" input is applied, the laser staying on when the first one input is immediately followed by successive one inputs. The first on pixel creates an exposure at an image plane which is less than uniform due to the characteristics of the drive circuit due to the overshoot or undershoot characteristics of the drive circuit. The second and succeeding pixels following the first pixel turned on will be at a maximum exposure value and hence will have an undesirable exposure contrast with the first pixel.

Abstract: A system for reducing toner or ink consumption in rendering images, in which reduced slope tone reproduction curve(s) is/are used to render images. Rendering systems including the use of single or multiple colors can be employed.

Abstract: In an electrostatographic liquid immersion development (LID) reproduction machine having an image bearing member having an image bearing surface, a development apparatus having a development electrode for forming a development nip with the image bearing surface and for effectively dissipating residual counter charges from the development nip. The development apparatus includes a housing mounted against the image bearing member and defining a sump portion, a conduit member having a development opening, a recovery chamber, and an opening into the recovery chamber. The development electrode consists of a conductive development shoe and a bias source connected to the development shoe. The development electrode is mounted across the development opening of the conduit member, and closely spaced from the image bearing surface for forming the development nip.