Abstract: A hand-held acupressure device which includes a ball attached to an elongated rigid handle by an elastic cord enabling the user to easily position the ball over trigger points. Pressure is applied to the trigger points by pressing the body to the ball against a hard surface. The elastic cord allows the ball freedom of movement apart from the handle while in use, and pulls the ball back to its original position at the end of the handle after use.

Abstract: A laparoscopic scissor instrument can include a scissor assembly pivotally coupled to an elongate shaft. The scissor assembly can be formed of scissor blades having pivot posts thereon. The pivot posts can engage apertures on the elongate shaft, thus eliminating the need for a through-pinned pivot connection of the scissor blades. The scissor blades can also include actuation posts thereon. An actuation mechanism can include a slot to engage the actuation posts and open or close the blades of the scissor assembly. The scissor assemblies described herein can have a relatively low operational height such that they do not extend beyond a diameter of the elongate shaft during opening and closing of the scissor assembly.

Abstract: An active suture that can be used for both wound closure and the delivery of therapeutic fluids to the tissue surrounding a wound is disclosed. The active suture may include a connector designed to join a fluid source, such as a syringe or conventional IV delivery system, to an internal passageway that is embedded within a braided suture. The internal passageway may be comprised of a fine polymeric tube and is capable of conducting and emitting a fluid into at least a portion of the braided suture and surrounding tissue. The invention enables delivery of an efficacious volume of drug bearing solution on the order of milliliters per day, provides a high level of fluid delivery rate control enabling the physician to start or stop drug administration at his/her discretion, and offers a means of providing more than one type of medication that may be selected post-surgically in accord with unexpected patient symptoms that may arise.

Abstract: Sensing arrangements for a handpiece sense suction pressure or fluid flow within a suction path to determine the position of a movable cutting element relative to a fixed cutting element of a cutting accessory. A controller calculates actual speed of the movable cutting element from measured pressure or measured fluid flow. The cutting elements have openings that, when aligned, form a window. The controller controls power to a motor that drives the cutting element. When the handpiece is deactivated, the controller stops the movable cutting element at a predetermined position to close or partially close the window. The controller controls the cutting speed in view of joint pressure combined with suction pressure, or in view of fluid flow through the suction path, to maintain an optimal fluid flow rate that enhances the cutting action of the cutting accessory. Pressure or flow sensors may detect a clog in the suction path.

Abstract: A surgical operating apparatus includes an ultrasonic transducer which generates ultrasonic vibration, a transducer cover including a storing section which stores the ultrasonic transducer, an electric contact portion provided on an outer peripheral surface of a distal end portion of the transducer cover, and an insulative projection portion which is provided at a distal end portion of the transducer cover and projects more radially outward than an outer peripheral surface of the electric contact portion.

Abstract: An automatic document handler includes a compact document handling system capable of automatically feeding cut sheet documents and computer form documents to a pair of scanner arrays arranged on opposite sides of a curvilinear document transport path. The document handling system includes a constant velocity transport comprising at least a roller pair located along a curved portion of the curvilinear transport path to eliminate interference between a sliding scanner array and document feed rollers. The document handler scans originals without transporting them over the platen and the platen cover serves as an input tray for computer form original documents.

Abstract: An inkjet printhead includes a compact substrate of increased stability and structural integrity to provide a high resolution 600 dot-per-inch nozzle array having a one-half inch swath. A plurality of ink vaporization chambers are respectively aligned with the nozzles in two longitudinal columns, one column extending longitudinally along one edge of the substrate and a second column extending longitudinally along an opposite edge of the substrate, with ink feed channels communicating through an ink passage from an underside of the substrate around both edges of the substrate to the vaporization chambers. The ink feed channels have thereby been eliminated from the central portion of the substrate, and replaced by the ink feed channels at the edges of the substrate.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for cleaning residual particles from a surface that includes a cleaning brush with a fiberless segment and a fiber segment. These two segments enable the cleaning brush to both clean the surface with the fiber segment by rotating the cleaning brush and prevent cleaning when the fiberless segment is stopped, during development, in the home position. The fiberless segment, in the home position, enables image on image development, without retraction of the cleaner brush, by positioning the fiberless segment of the brush directly opposite to the surface where the image has being developed by image on image.

Abstract: In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus including a photoconductive drum, the photoconductive drum is electrically charged by a corona charger, and light corresponding to an image is projected onto the photoconductive drum by an exposure optical system, thereby forming an electrostatic latent image thereon. Thereafter, the formed electrostatic latent image is developed with toner by a developing unit to form a toner image thereon, and then the toner image is transferred onto a sheet of paper. There is further provided a voltage sensor for detecting a surface voltage at at least one position of the photoconductive drum. An operation value of at least one of the corona charger, the exposure optical system and the developing unit is adjusted by an adjustment controller based on the surface voltage detected by the voltage sensor at a timing between respective image forming processes when an image forming process is continuously repeated a plurality of times.

Abstract: A non-contact type of developing device for use in an image forming apparatus having an image forming body, includes a developer conveying body facing the image forming body in which a magnet body having a plurality of magnet poles are attached therein, to convey two-component developer in the form of a developer layer onto a developing area and a control electrode provided at the developing area or upstream of the developing area. The control electrode has an electrically insulating member which is in contact with or close to the developing layer, and an electrode to which a voltage is applicable is attached to the insulating member. The following condition is satisfied: ##EQU1## where D.sub.T represents a number of toner layers on the assumption that the toner particles passing through the developing area are filled most densely, D.sub.WS represents a conveying amount (mg/cm.sup.2) of the developer layer at the developing area on the developer conveying body, T.sub.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus such as a printer or copier includes a photoreceptor for holding a latent image; a charger for charging the photoreceptor; an exposure unit such as an LED array for exposing the photoreceptor with light so as to form a latent image on the photoreceptor; and a developer placed in the vicinity of the photoreceptor, for developing the latent image with a developing agent so as to form a developing agent image on the photoreceptor. The developer includes a developing sleeve for holding the developing agent on its surface and a transferor for transferring the developing agent image on the photoreceptor to a recording medium. A cleaner is provided for cleaning a residual developing agent on the photoreceptor after the developing agent image is transferred to the recording medium and a purge control unit is provided for purging foreign matter from the developing agent on the developing sleeve.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus provides a photosensitive body, a main charger, an exposing unit, developing unit and a contact-transfer charger. The main charger charges the photosensitive body with a predetermined electric potential. The exposing unit applies a laser beam on the surface of the photosensitive body to form an electric latent image. The developing unit develops the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image. The contact-transfer charger transfers the toner image on an image transfer paper. The image forming apparatus further provides controller for power supplies. The controller controls the power supplies after an image forming operation in a manner to enhance the electric potential of the photosensitive body to a high level by the main charger, drop the surface potential of the photosensitive body to a low level by the contact-transfer charger and then to cut off a bias voltage of the developing unit.

Abstract: Disclosed is an inkjet print cartridge including an ink reservoir; a substrate having a plurality of individual ink firing chambers with an ink firing element in each chamber along a top surface of said substrate and having a first outer edge along a periphery of substrate; the first outer edge being in close proximity to the ink firing chambers. The ink firing chambers are arranged in a first chamber array and a second chamber array and with the firing chambers spaced so as to provide 600 dots per inch printing. An ink channel connects the reservoir with the ink firing chambers, the channel including a primary channel connected at a first end with the reservoir and at a second end to a secondary channel; the primary channel allowing ink to flow from the ink reservoir, around the first outer edge of the substrate to the secondary channel along the top surface of the substrate so as to be proximate to the ink firing chambers.

Abstract: At least one simplified skive member for a skive mechanism for stripping a receiver member adhering to a fuser assembly roller. The simplified skive member includes an elongated, relatively flexible skive finger. The skive finger is readily releasably received in a support body so as to support a major portion of the skive finger to increase the rigidity thereof. Particularly, the support body has a first ledge upon which a skive finger can be slidably received, a second ledge opposite to the first ledge to retain a skive finger therebetween, a stop member to limit the distance to which the skive finger can slide along the first ledge, and a locking feature for preventing the skive finger, after engagement with the stop member, from moving in a direction opposite such sliding direction.

Abstract: The present invention provides a developing device of an electrophotographic recording system for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive drum. The developing device includes a hopper which stores toner and a developing roller which develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum using the toner stored in the hopper. On one side of the hopper at a predetermined height from its bottom, a light-emitting element for emitting light is positioned. A toner detecting device detects the existence or non-existence of toner by using a light-receiving element positioned on the interior of the hopper which outputs signals corresponding to the existence or non-existence of toner in the hopper in response to the amount of the light received from the light-emitting element.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus is disclosed which, by using a neural network to have preliminarily learned input conditions for a number of characteristic originals and having only the coupling coefficient after the learning and the output calculating portion to make calculations when necessary for the controlling in the apparatus itself, is capable of automatically performing an optimum copying control corresponding to various conditions of each of various originals.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus, a charging member, image transfer member or similar contact member contacts an image carrier implemented as a photoconductive element. Even when a voltage is applied to the contact member in a relatively low temperature environment, the contact member is provided with an adequate charge potential or an image transfer potential.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a contact charging device for uniformly charging a moving subject surface to a given potential by bringing a charging member to which a voltage is applied into contact with the moving subject surface. The charging member has a brush structure formed by closely setting a plurality of conductive bristle members into a conductive base member. The charging member is positioned so that the amount of engagement of the conductive bristle members with the subject surface is large on the upstream side of a surface moving direction of the subject surface and small on the downstream side of the surface moving direction. Accordingly, the adhesion of all the conductive bristle members to the subject surface can be enhanced and the deformation of all the conductive bristle members can be prevented. Further, the springing phenomenon of the conductive bristle members on the upstream side having a high charging efficiency can be eliminated.

Abstract: An elastic regulating member for regulating thickness of a layer of developer conveyed to a developing station by a rotatable developing sleeve is abutted against the developing sleeve. At a toner return inlet of a container associated with the developing sleeve, a flexible sheet for preventing the developer in the container from leaking through the toner return inlet is abutted against the developing sleeve along a longitudinal direction thereof. Side seals are abutted against both longitudinal end portions of the developing sleeve to prevent the developer from leaking through such longitudinal end portions. Both longitudinal end portions of the flexible sheet are overlapped with sheet supporting surfaces formed on extensions of the side seals without any clearance. Further, the both longitudinal end portions of the flexible sheet are abutted against the developing sleeve at areas outwardly of both ends of the elastic regulating member.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus capable of reading a book document while turning over pages of the book, image data representative of two spread pages of a book document are stored in a frame memory. Among the image data, image data matching the front of a sheet are read out of the frame memory first and then output on the front of a fresh sheet. Then, an image is formed on the rear of a sheet refed from a duplex copy tray or refeed tray. Alternatively, an arrangement may be made such that, among two pages of image data, the image data read last are out of the frame memory first and then output on the front of a fresh sheet, and then an image is formed on the rear of a sheet refed from the refeed tray.