Abstract: A bookmaking system includes sets of redundant cover printers and book block printers and a binder (or set of binders) for binding a printed cover page, printed by an assigned one of the set of redundant cover printers, and a corresponding set of printed pages for a book block, printed by an assigned one of the set of redundant book block printers, together to form a book. A transport mechanism connects the redundant printers and redundant cover printers with the binder. An assigned one of a plurality of book block buffers, intermediate the book block printers and the binders, stores the set of printed pages until the corresponding printed cover page is ready for binding; and/or an assigned one of a plurality of cover buffers, intermediate the cover printers and the binders, stores the printed cover page until binding can be performed.

Abstract: A support material for use in additive manufacturing includes greater than about 30 weight percent up to about 70 weight percent of a C12 to C18 fatty alcohol ethoxylate, about 30 weight percent to about 70 weight percent of a C16 to C22 fatty alcohol, and a tackifier, a transition temperature measured as the temperature immediately before phase change, based on viscosity measurement, is less than about 65° C. A system for additive manufacturing includes such a support material and a build material, the ratio of C12 to C18 fatty alcohol ethoxylate to C16 to C22 fatty alcohol is selected for property matching of the support material to the build material. A method of additive manufacturing includes providing such a system and printing via an inkjet printer the support material and the build material to provide a precursor to a three-dimensional printed article.

Abstract: A system and method are provided for registering source and target images. The method includes receiving a first source image and a first scanned image. The first scanned image is one that has been generated by scanning a printed page that has been generated by printing the first source image or a transformed first source image derived from the first source image. Locations of corners of a target image in the first scanned image are identified. With a first computed transform, the corners of the target image in the first scanned image are aligned to corners of the first source image to generate an aligned target image. Local features in the source image and aligned target image are detected. A second transform is computed to align the target image with the first source image, based on the detected local features.

Abstract: A system for tracking the location of an electronic device includes an electronic device and a wireless location tag. The wireless location tag includes a microcontroller unit, and a modular connector interface configured to be communicatively coupled to a port of the electronic device. The wireless location tag is configured to establish an Internet connection to one or more backend electronic devices in response to detecting that the wireless location tag has been communicatively coupled to the port of the electronic device, obtain identifying information that is associated with the electronic device, and identify tag identifying information associated with the wireless location tag. The wireless location tag is also configured to send one or more instructions to the one or more backend electronic devices via the Internet connection, and send one or more ping messages to the one or more backend electronic devices.

Abstract: The present disclosure discloses methods and systems for printing a document having pages with different margins. The method includes receiving a document having a plurality of pages for printing, wherein the document having a combination of pages to be printed in first pre-determined sheets and second pre-determined sheets. A margin value for each page of the document is automatically identified. Based on the identification, one or more pages having margin value greater than a pre-defined margin value is automatically identified. The one or more pages with greater margin value are marked to be printed in the first pre-determined sheets and the remaining pages are marked to be printed in the second pre-determined sheets. Finally, information is sent to a printer to print the one or more pages having a greater margin value in the first pre-determined sheets and to print the remaining pages in the second pre-determined sheets.

Abstract: An indicator tag and a method for fabricating the same are disclosed. For example, the indicator tag includes a three-dimensional mesh comprising a plurality of pores, wherein the three-dimensional mesh is printed with a water soluble and ultra-violet (UV) light curable ink, a container enclosing the three-dimensional mesh, a membrane coupled to the three-dimensional mesh, and a dye dispensed on top of the membrane, wherein the three-dimensional mesh interacts with the dye when in contact with the dye to provide an indication.

Abstract: The present disclosure discloses methods and systems for printing an address directly on an output medium. The method is implemented at a multi-function device. The method includes providing a user interface for displaying an address print option; based on receiving a selection of the address print option, displaying, by a controller, an address form requiring address details on the user interface, wherein the user provides the address details via the user interface; receiving, by the controller, the address details to be printed on the output medium; and printing, by a printing engine, the address details on the output medium based on receiving a selection of a type of the output medium. The method enables the user to print the address on the output medium without requiring an external device.

Abstract: A system of determining a distance between a mobile electronic device and an obstacle in an environment includes an electronic device, and a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium includes one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the electronic device to obtain from a camera of a mobile electronic device one or more images of one or more obstacles in a surrounding environment, and apply a convolution neural network to one or more of the obtained images to generate a one-dimensional array of depth perception estimates. The array includes one or more angle-distance pairs. an angle value of each angle-distance pair represents an angle of one or more of the obstacles relative to the camera. A distance value of each angle-distance pairs represents an estimated distance between the camera and one or more of the obstacles at the corresponding angle of the angle-distance pair.

Abstract: A grounding structure for an endless belt includes: an endless belt including a conductive layer, the endless belt being configured to move; a conductive conducting unit that is in contact with the conductive layer which is exposed at an end surface of the conducting unit in a direction intersecting a moving direction of the endless belt such that the conducting unit is electrically connected to the conductive layer; a pressure contacting unit that brings the conducting unit into pressure contact with the end surface of the conductive layer of the endless belt; and a grounding unit that grounds the conducting unit.

Abstract: A document management system includes a processor configured to receive print data of a document to be printed, the print data being transmitted from a first user, transmit, to another user belonging to a predetermined group, document specification information that specifies the document when a request to print the document is received from the other user, and compute a number of other users who have printed the document on a basis of the document specification information and user specification information that specifies another user, the information being transmitted from a printing device when the other user uses the printing device to print the document on a basis of the document specification information.

Abstract: A method for printing a structure, the structure including a plurality of pillars. The method for printing can include ejecting only a first drop of a print material such as a liquid metal sequentially at each of a plurality of pillar locations, then ejecting only a second drop of the print material sequentially onto the first drop at each of the plurality of print locations. Additional drops can be ejected at two or more of the pillar locations to form the plurality of pillars. Ejecting only a first drop at each pillar location allows the first drop to cure (i.e., cool or dry) before ejecting the second drop. The printer continues printing while the drops cure, thus improving processing efficiency and increasing production throughput.

Abstract: A method is disclosed. For example, the method executed by a processor of a multi-function device (MFD) includes executing a defect learning routine to identify defects, cataloging the defects based on a job function, a type of paper, and a machine state, receiving a job request, determining a known defect that has been catalogued based on the job function, the type of paper, and the machine state, and presenting a visualization of the known defect on a display of a user interface before executing the job request.

Abstract: A method and system of configuring a network using a network application of a mobile device including detecting a gesture sequence that comprises at least one gesture, in response to a user performed action. The detected gesture sequence may be indicative of network configuration rules associated with at least one network device. The method may further include receiving and storing network access credentials, and accessing a network configuration database. The network configuration database may comprise a plurality of gesture sequences and a plurality of associated tasks. The method may also include determining a match for the detected gesture sequence among the plurality of gesture sequences; determining an associated task based on the match; and performing the associated task to achieve the network configuration action. The associated task may include a network configuration action based on the network configuration rules associated with at least one network device.

Abstract: Various methods and devices control operating components using a device operation program, control a user interface device using a menu program to display a device menu having menu options, receive menu choices in response to the device menu, control the operating components based on the menu choices, and convert the device menu into a browser-compatible menu compatible with internet protocols using the menu reproduction program. The browser-compatible menu has the same menu options included in the device menu. These methods and devices provide the browser-compatible menu to external devices using a wired or wireless communications device, receive external device input from the external devices responding to the browser-compatible menu, supply, from the wired or wireless communications device, the external device input to the device operation program and control the operating components by the device operation program based on the external device input.

Abstract: A system for performing multifunction device session management includes a multifunction device and a computer-readable storage medium that includes one or more programming instructions. The one or more programming instructions cause the multifunction device to detect by one or more sensors of the multifunction device an indication that a session is to be initiated, in response to detecting the indication that the session is to be initiated, initiate the session, retrieve a device policy associated with the multifunction device from a data store associated with the multifunction device, identify a condition from the device policy, monitor for the occurrence of one or more triggers during the session, wherein each trigger is associated with the identified condition in the device policy, and in response to detecting that one or more of the triggers have occurred at the multifunction device, perform one or more actions pertaining to completion of the session.

Abstract: A method for printing a three-dimensional crystalline structure such as a chocolate layer wherein, after printing, the material has a desired crystal structure. An embodiment can include printing a liquid first layer of material with a printer onto a second layer of material having a crystal structure. Subsequently, the printed liquid first layer is processed to solidify the first layer. During the processing of the printed liquid first layer, the second layer functions as a crystal seed layer through physical contact with the printed liquid first layer and the second layer crystallizes with the crystal structure.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to a multilayer imaging blanket for a variable data lithography printing system, including: a multilayer base having a lower contacting surface configured to wrap around or to be mounted on a cylinder core of the variable data lithography printing system; and a platinum catalyzed fluorosilicone surface layer opposite the lower contacting surface; wherein the multilayer base is a sulfur-free carcass including: a top layer including a sulfur-free rubber substrate such as an ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber substrate, a bottom layer including the lower contacting surface; and a compressible layer disposed between the top layer and the bottom layer, the compressible layer being attached to a surface of the top layer opposite the platinum catalyzed fluorosilicone surface layer and a surface of the bottom layer opposite the lower contacting surface, optionally the top layer further comprises a reinforcing fabric layer, the reinforcing fabric layer attached to a surfa

Abstract: An additive manufacturing system operates an extruder to extrude a swath of thermoplastic material through at least two nozzles of the extruder to form a swath of thermoplastic material along a path of relative movement between the extruder and a platform. The speed of the extruder along the path corresponds to a predetermined speed selected with reference to an orientation of the extruder and the angle for the path of relative movement between the extruder and the platform. A controller in the system operates at least one actuator operatively connected to at least one of the extruder and the platform to move the at least one of the extruder and the platform relative to the other of the extruder and the platform along the path of relative movement at the predetermined speed to make the swath of the thermoplastic material contiguous in a cross-process direction.

Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices are configured to print and reuse customized sample sets while printing documents. They include receiving instructions to retrieve an electronic document and processing the electronic document in a sample print mode. The electronic document are arranged in a plurality of page with each page containing readable information. They further include identifying a subset of pages of the electronic document to print in a first phase of the sample print mode and printing the subset of pages on a physical readable media in the sample print mode. They additionally include displaying a message on a user interface after completion of the first phase of the sample print mode and printing remaining pages of the electronic document on a physical readable media in response to user input based on the displayed message.

Abstract: Various methods and devices control operating components using a device operation program, control a user interface device using a menu program to display a device menu having menu options, receive menu choices in response to the device menu, control the operating components based on the menu choices, and convert the device menu into a browser-compatible menu compatible with internet protocols using the menu reproduction program. The browser-compatible menu has the same menu options included in the device menu. These methods and devices provide the browser-compatible menu to external devices using a wired or wireless communications device, receive external device input from the external devices responding to the browser-compatible menu, supply, from the wired or wireless communications device, the external device input to the device operation program and control the operating components by the device operation program based on the external device input.