Patents Examined by An H. Do
  • Patent number: 11052658
    Abstract: A head module includes a pressure chamber, a piezoelectric member, a supply manifold, a return manifold, and a damper portion. The pressure chamber is configured to hold liquid therein and in fluid communication with a nozzle orifice. The piezoelectric member is configured to apply pressure to liquid held in the pressure chamber. The supply manifold is in fluid communication with the pressure chamber and configured to allow liquid to flow into the pressure chamber therefrom. The return manifold is in fluid communication with the pressure chamber and configured to allow liquid not ejected from the nozzle orifice to flow thereinto. The damper portion is positioned between the supply manifold and the return manifold when viewed in plan from a nozzle surface of the head module. The nozzle surface has the nozzle orifice defined therein. The damper portion includes a particular plate having a particular recessed portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Keita Hirai, Shohei Koide, Keita Sugiura, Hiroshi Katayama
  • Patent number: 11052665
    Abstract: A liquid discharging head, having a plurality of individual flow paths, a common flow path, a damper, a heater pattern, a heat source, and a connecting pattern, is provided. The individual flow paths are arrayed in a first direction. The common flow path extends in the first direction throughout the individual flow paths and is connected with the individual flow paths. The damper extends in the first direction throughout the individual flow paths. A part of the damper forms an inner face that defines an end of the common flow path in a second direction. The heater pattern is provided to the damper. The connecting pattern connects the heater pattern with the heat source. In a range, in which in the first direction the individual flow paths are arranged, the heater pattern extends in the first direction without inclining with respect to the first direction at 45 degrees or larger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Taisuke Mizuno
  • Patent number: 11046091
    Abstract: A data generation system includes circuitry configured to generate data of sub-images constructing an image. Each of the sub-images includes at least one of image elements of the image. The image elements are aligned in a direction perpendicular to a given direction in which an image forming apparatus moves to form the image. The circuitry is configured to, when, in an attempt to add another one of the image elements adjacent to the at least one of the image elements in one of the sub-images, the other one of the image elements does not fit within the one of the sub-images, generate data of the one of the sub-images without the other one of the image elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takeshi Shikama, Yasunari Harada, Hiroki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 11046094
    Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes a liquid discharge head configured to discharge a liquid onto a medium, a carriage mounting the liquid discharge head configured to move the liquid discharge head in a main scanning direction, a dummy-discharge receptacle to receive a dummy-discharge liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head in a dummy-discharge operation, a light irradiator to irradiate the dummy-discharge liquid in the dummy-discharge receptacle with a light, and circuitry. The circuitry sets a plurality of dummy-discharge areas virtually dividing an interior of the dummy-discharge receptacle, moves the carriage in the main scanning direction to a first dummy-discharge area among the plurality of dummy-discharge areas, drives the liquid discharge head to discharge the dummy-discharge liquid onto the first dummy-discharge area in the dummy-discharge receptacle, and irradiates the dummy-discharge liquid in the first dummy-discharge area in the dummy-discharge receptacle with the light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Junichi Mizawa
  • Patent number: 11027550
    Abstract: An example of an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes a printhead to dispense a first print fluid and a second print fluid. In addition, the apparatus includes a first nozzle disposed on the printhead. The first nozzle is to eject a first plurality of drops of the first print fluid. The apparatus also includes a second nozzle disposed on the printhead. The second nozzle is offset from the first nozzle by an offset distance along a relative direction of media travel. The second nozzle is to eject a second plurality of drops of the second print fluid. Furthermore, the apparatus includes a textile to receive the first plurality of drops and the second plurality of drops. The textile is to be moved relative to the printhead by the offset distance between ejection of the first plurality of drops and the second plurality of drops.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Travis Timothy Hagen, Jeffrey Neal Daley, Murthy Srikantom
  • Patent number: 11020980
    Abstract: A droplet-discharge-apparatus includes a first-head, a first-ink-container storing first-ink, a second-head, a second-ink-container storing second-ink, a cleaning-liquid-container storing cleaning-liquid, a common-flow-path-system, a cleaning-liquid-flow-path, a first-pomp feeding the first-ink from the first-ink-container to the second-ink-container through the common-flow-path-system, a second-pomp feeding the cleaning-liquid from the cleaning-liquid-container to the first-ink-container through the cleaning-liquid-flow-path and the common-flow-path-system, a first-valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common-flow-path-system and the first-ink-container, a second-valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common-flow-path-system and the second-ink-container, a third-valve controlling a liquid flow rate between the common-flow-path-system and the cleaning-liquid-flow-path, and a control-unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kinya Ozawa, Takayuki Yokoyama
  • Patent number: 11020984
    Abstract: White-balance is improved when printing on colored media, while minimizing the time and use of costly materials required by present approaches. In an embodiment, the typical solid white fill or background layer is altered by including in the white layer one or more of the other colors already available in the printer to shade this layer. Thus, a small amount of cyan, for example, helps balance a pink-ish (red) media; yellow is used for blue media; and magenta is used for green media; as well as combinations thereof. A combination of transparent process inks and opaque white helps to maintain brightness (luminosity).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: ELECTRONICS FOR IMAGING, INC.
    Inventors: Peter Heath, Joseph A. Lahut, Dwight Cram, Bryan Ko
  • Patent number: 11013959
    Abstract: Determining pace or speed based on sensor data may include determining an amount of contact time a user's foot has with a workout surface such as the ground. Contact time may be determined by identifying samples in the sensor data that correspond to various events such as a heelstrike, a toe-off and a subsequent heelstrike. In one example, these events may be identified by determining a sequence of three sample values (e.g., a triplet) that exceeds corresponding thresholds. The validity of an identified triplet (e.g., heelstrike, toe-off and heelstrike) may be confirmed by determining whether a difference between a last event sample and a middle event sample is greater than a difference between the middle event sample and an initial event sample. Once confirmed, a contact time may be determined from the triplet. A linear or non-linear relationship may then be applied to the contact time to determine a speed or pace.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: NIKE, Inc.
    Inventors: Aaron B. Weast, James M. Mullin
  • Patent number: 11014381
    Abstract: Disclosed is a media transport system utilizing a honeycomb core platen for transporting and maintaining the flatness of a sheet of media in an associated printing system. According to one exemplary embodiment, the honeycomb platen includes a plurality of laminated layers that include features configured to communicate vacuum throughout the entire thickness of the platen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Carlos M. Terrero, Brian J. Dunham, James J. Spence
  • Patent number: 11015972
    Abstract: A method for analyzing the condition of a machine, and an apparatus for analyzing the condition of a machine are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Inventor: Lars-Olov Elis Hedin
  • Patent number: 11014354
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting head including: a first liquid ejecting portion including a first liquid storage chamber storing a liquid and a first nozzle; a second liquid ejecting portion including a second liquid storage chamber storing the liquid and a second nozzle; and a flow path structure being formed by stacking substrates and including a distribution flow path that supplies the liquid to the first liquid storage chamber and the second liquid storage chamber. The distribution flow path includes a common flow path through which the liquid flows, a supply flow path that supplies the liquid to the common flow path, a collection flow path that collects the liquid from the common flow path, a first communication flow path communicating the common flow path with the first liquid storage chamber, and a second communication flow path communicating the common flow path with the second liquid storage chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Ryota Kinoshita
  • Patent number: 11007787
    Abstract: There are provided an ink refill container configured to appropriately refill an ink tank with ink and an ink refill system including such an ink refill container. An ink refill container 63 includes a container main body 64 provided to include an ink chamber 76; an ink outlet forming portion 66 provided at an edge of the container main body to include an ink outlet 65 configured to allow ink to flow out from the ink chamber; a valve 74 provided in the ink outlet forming portion and configured to seal the ink outlet in an openable and closable manner; and a positioning structure configured to abut on part of the ink tank and position the valve relative to the ink tank when the valve is opened. The positioning structure has a positioning surface 84 that is located on an opposite side to a container main body side where the container main body is located, across the valve and that is extended in a direction intersecting with a center axis 85 of the ink outlet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tadahiro Mizutani, Taku Ishizawa, Noriyuki Fukasawa, Naomi Kimura, Shoma Kudo, Manabu Akahane
  • Patent number: 11001076
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus is configured to generate a plurality of pieces of partial printing data by executing a generating process including a color conversion process. A printing execution device performs N-th and (N+1)-th partial printing. An area in which the N-th partial printing is performed includes an overlap area, and first and second non-overlap areas respectively arranged on upstream and downstream sides, in the conveying direction, with respect to the overlap area. In the overlap area, dots are formed by both the N-th and (N+1)-th partial printings. The color conversion process includes a first converting process for the first non-overlap area with reference to a first profile, a second converting process for the second non-overlap area with reference to a second profile, and a third converting process for the overlap area, the third converting process being different from both the first and second converting process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoru Arakane, Masashi Kuno, Shota Morikawa
  • Patent number: 10994529
    Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes a head array including heads each having nozzles to discharge liquid onto a recording medium, arranged as a nozzle line in a sub-scanning direction; a moving part to move the head array alternately in the scanning direction and in the sub-scanning direction perpendicular to each other while discharging or not discharging the liquid; and a controller including a memory and a processor. The processor adjusts image data for juncture areas of two heads adjacent to each other in the sub-scanning direction; and drives the head array to discharge the liquid from the nozzles while the moving part moves the head array. The adjusting adjusts the image data such that the image data is thinned to make print rates for the juncture areas smaller at ends of the nozzle lines, and the print rates vary among the juncture areas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hada
  • Patent number: 10994535
    Abstract: A marking system includes a valve body including an orifice plate including multiple orifices and multiple micro-valves. Each micro-valve includes an actuating beam movable from a closed position in which a corresponding one of the orifices is sealed by a portion of the actuating beam such that the micro-valve is closed, into a peak position in response to application of a control signal. A controller is configured to generate a control signal for each of the actuating beams, each control signal including a drive pulse having a predetermined voltage such that the actuating beam moves from the closed position into the peak position in which the corresponding orifice is open and returns to the closed position in a characteristic period, wherein the drive pulse has a duration that substantially corresponds to the characteristic period such that the actuating beam is in the closed position after the drive pulse is complete.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: Matthews International Corporation
    Inventors: William A. Buskirk, Steven E. Flego, Charles C. Haluzak, John Whitlock, Eric R. Miller, Ken Trueba, Jeff Hess
  • Patent number: 10994242
    Abstract: An inkjet printing apparatus includes a first stage on which a substrate is disposed, an ink storage portion including ink and a plurality of pollutant adsorption balls dispersed in the ink, a head portion including a nozzle configured to eject the ink supplied from the ink storage portion to the substrate, and a gas discharging portion disposed on a side of the ink storage portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Inventor: Yoonho Kang
  • Patent number: 10994534
    Abstract: A printing system and method for forming an ink droplet through the use of a multi-pulse driving signal to increase the printing frequency without reducing the droplet size by applying a multi-pulse driving signal to a small nozzle and to increase the inkjet printing speed by using a smaller nozzle to produce the same-size droplet using a multi-pulse driving signal, which allow for higher printing frequency due to the smaller nozzle size as dictated by the fundamental droplet formation dynamics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: Board Of Trustees Of The University Of Arkansas
    Inventors: Wenchao Zhou, Chao Sui
  • Patent number: 10987939
    Abstract: To set a shading relationship between the plurality of shading inks having the same system color and different densities included in a plurality of kinds of inks, to perform provisional color separation processing to decide a color space value in a virtual color space in the second color system for every lattice point that defines a correspondence relationship between the first and second color spaces, to perform first processing of setting a position of the lattice point where a generation amount of the first ink at the lattice point can be maximized and an ink amount at the lattice point for a first ink which is one of light inks from a result of the provisional color separation processing, and then to perform second processing of setting an ink amount of the first ink and an ink amount of a second ink having a higher density by giving priority to a use of the first ink while maintaining a virtual color space value of the provisional color separation processing result for the first ink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Katsuyuki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 10989519
    Abstract: A sensor system and a method of operating a sensor system including a plurality of sensors tracking a moving object in an area having known bounding surfaces. The apparatus and method calculate a time-specific position of the object based on data and sensor parameters from at least two of the plurality of sensors and determine errors between the calculated time-specific positions calculated. The method and apparatus calculate a minimum system error attributable to the at least two sensors by constraining at least one dimension in the data of the sensor used in the calculated time-specific position of the object associated with the sensor, the constraining based on an object/surface interaction, the minimum system error calculated by solving for modified sensor parameters for each sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: SPORTSMEDIA TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Roger R. Labbe, Divya Ramakrishnan, Lavanya Sridharan, Richard Cavallaro, Marvin S. White
  • Patent number: 10989603
    Abstract: The disclosure has a configuration including: a supporting substrate having a cavity; at least one bridge section extending directly above the cavity and having at least one end supported by the supporting substrate and an other end; and a thermopile wiring formed in the bridge section and including hot junctions in the bridge section and cold junctions directly above the supporting substrate, the hot junctions being connected to the cold junctions. The bridge section is provided with: at least one breakage detection wiring for detecting breakage of the bridge section; and at least one heater wiring. The breakage detection wiring is wired along the thermopile wiring. The heater wiring is wired such that part of the heater wiring is in an area between the other end of the bridge section and the hot junctions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Katsumi Kakimoto, Takafumi Okudo, Yosuke Hagihara, Akira Matsuura