Patents Examined by Anh T. N. Vo
  • Patent number: 9802414
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an array-type ink cartridge. The present array-type ink cartridge comprises: a plurality of ink cartridge modules which each have a pair of heads arranged so as to cross each other in the longitudinal direction so that the print width expands; and a fixing plate for fixing the plurality of ink cartridge modules and aligning the fixing position so that the plurality of ink cartridge modules are in an array configuration in the longitudinal direction of the ink cartridge modules or the width direction of the ink cartridges. The array-type ink cartridge according to embodiments of the present invention can embody various colors and print widths of various sizes by using a plurality of ink cartridge modules, and can optionally expand the number of ink cartridge modules used according to the characteristics of a printing device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignee: WOOSIM SYSTEM INC.
    Inventor: Il Bok Lee
  • Patent number: 9796196
    Abstract: A carriage includes a base plate, a liquid jet head which includes a support plate attached to the base plate, a first engagement portion which is formed on one end in a Y direction of the support plate, and a fixing tool for positioning the support plate with respect to the base plate, the fixing tool being slidable in an X direction with respect to the base plate and engaged with the first engagement portion. The fixing tool allows movement in the Y direction of the first engagement portion with respect to the fixing tool, and restricts movement in the X direction of the first engagement portion and movement in the thickness direction of the base plate of the first engagement portion with respect to the fixing tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: SII PRINTEK INC.
    Inventor: Yuichiro Hamano
  • Patent number: 9789696
    Abstract: A part of a fluid container includes a wall and a latch handle connected to the wall through a live hinge. The latch handle slants away from the wall. A rib spans over the hinge and is connected to the latch handle and the wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Sittampalam Paranan, Djuhartini Tandjo, Yeang Chyn Wong, Lia Wijayanti Pratomo, Kiong Chin Chng, Boon Huey Yap, Soo Leng Teo, Ngee Hong Richard Lim, Ping Siew Kwok
  • Patent number: 9789697
    Abstract: A fluid sensor has a first electrode, a second electrode, a housing containing the first and second electrodes, such that the electrodes extend from the housing, exposed metal between the first and second electrodes, and a drive signal electrically connected to the second electrode, such that when fluid is present in the reservoir, either the first electrode senses the presence of the fluid, or the drive signal senses presence of the fluid. A fluid sensor has a first electrode, a second electrode, a housing containing the first and second electrodes, a drive signal electrically connected to the second electrode, and sensing circuitry to measure a current from the second electrode to indicate a fluid level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: David L. Knierim, Steven Ross Slotto, Blake Terry Weimer
  • Patent number: 9782978
    Abstract: A printer includes a printbar having plural dice partially overlap in the direction of rows and a halftoner. The dice receive nozzle firing data which determines when and where the individual print nozzles are to be operated in order to emit the colorant onto the media so as to form the desired printed image on a media. The halftoner is a bidirectional error diffusion halftoner that is structured to generate halftoned data. The halftoned data is mappable into the firing data. The halftoner includes a serpentine direction reverser which is structured to halftone print data image pixels in a first serpentine direction to form halftoned data and then to halftone print data image pixels in an opposite serpentine direction to form the halftoned data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Bradley D Chung, Hsue-Yang Liu, Matthew A Shepherd, Mark H MacKenzie, Jason M Quintana
  • Patent number: 9776395
    Abstract: In an example, a method for determining an issue in an inkjet nozzle includes providing an initial fire pulse for firing a nozzle, and receiving the initial fire pulse as a delayed fire pulse at a primitive of the nozzle. The method includes firing the nozzle with the delayed fire pulse, and determining a first time instant following the delayed fire pulse for taking a first impedance measurement across the nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Daryl E Anderson, Eric T Martin, Peter James Fricke
  • Patent number: 9776431
    Abstract: There are provided a medium conveying device and an image recording apparatus that can convey a medium without the generation of wrinkles and floating. Projections having the same size are regularly disposed on the peripheral surface of an image recording drum to form recessed portions and protruding portions on the peripheral surface of the image recording drum. An interval between the projections disposed in a middle region is set to be smaller than an interval between the projections disposed in both end regions. Accordingly, when a sheet is pressed against the peripheral surface of the image recording drum by a pressing roller, forces for pulling the sheet to the outside from the middle in a width direction can be generated. As a result, the sheet can be made to come into close contact with the peripheral surface of the image recording drum without the generation of wrinkles and floating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroshi Uemura
  • Patent number: 9770926
    Abstract: Example implementations relate to swath height error compensation. Some examples may determine a density of an image to be printed in an overlap area of a printing material. The overlap area may include target pixels capable of being printed by a first set of drop ejection elements and a second set of drop ejection elements that are redundant to the first set of drop ejection elements. Some implementations may also determine a mask to apply to the first and second set of drop ejection elements based on the determined density, and the mask may designate at least one additional drop to apply to at least one target pixel in the overlap area by at least one of the first and second set of drop ejection elements. Some implementations may also apply the mask to the first set of drop ejection elements and the second set of drop ejection elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: M. Isabel Borrell Bayona, Xavier Farina Vargas, Leticia Rubio, Utpal Kumar Sarkar
  • Patent number: 9770900
    Abstract: An inkjet recording apparatus includes a calculation section, a selection section, and a recording head. The calculation section calculates respective densities of first regions in pairs included in the image. The selection section selects dot patterns corresponding to the respective first regions according to the respective densities of the first regions. The recording head ejects ink onto a sheet based on a dot pattern corresponding to a region of the image other than the first regions and the dot patterns corresponding to the respective first regions. The first regions in pairs corresponds to end portions in pairs among a plurality of end portions of the image that each extend in a conveyance direction of the sheet. The dot patterns corresponding to the respective first regions each have a density lower than a corresponding one of the densities of the respective first regions calculated by the calculation section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2017
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Shoichi Sakamoto
  • Patent number: 9757941
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a method of maintaining nozzles in a print-ready condition includes determining image content to be printed in an upcoming print swath, and for each ink color present within the image content, constructing an inked portion of an associated spit bar adjacent to the upcoming print swath to include the present ink color. For each ink color not present within the image content, an empty portion of an associated spit bar is constructed adjacent to the upcoming print swath.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Antonio Gracia Verdugo, Oriol Borrell Avila, Francisco Javier Perez Gellida
  • Patent number: 9751336
    Abstract: The disclosure appropriately performs high-quality printing in a case of using ultraviolet curing ink in a serial type inkjet printer. As a solution, a printing apparatus for performing printing in an inkjet mode by a multi-pass scheme includes: inkjet heads, a temporarily hardening light source, a fully hardening light source, and a controller configured to serve as a pixel selector, wherein the temporarily hardening light source radiates ultraviolet light whenever a predetermined number of main scan operations are performed, and the fully hardening light source radiates ultraviolet light after main scan operations of all printing passes finish.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: MIMAKI ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Masaru Ohnishi
  • Patent number: 9751299
    Abstract: An inkjet recording device and an inkjet recording method are provided to suppress occurrence of banding in an inkjet recording technology using a plurality of heads. Control is performed on two heads in which some of nozzles of one head overlap nozzles of the other head such that at least one head does not perform ejection from nozzles included in the overlapping nozzles and positioned at ends of nozzle rows.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: MIMAKI ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kazuhiro Ochi, Eiichi Ohara
  • Patent number: 9751322
    Abstract: A waste ink recovery device (1) which is a fluid transport device has a tubing pump (40) configured to rotate around a shaft center by a motor, thereby transporting waste ink into a recovery container, flow passage members (30) for guiding the waste ink into the tubing pump (40), a flow passage selector (50), and a one-way clutch (70). The flow passage selector (50) has operating members (53) for opening and closing internal flow passages of the flow passage members (30), and an eccentric cam (54) configured to make the operating members (53) open and close the internal flow passages of the flow passage members (30).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: MIMAKI ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Akihiko Mizusaki
  • Patent number: 9754194
    Abstract: A calibration target is disclosed. The calibration target is created such that a color patch is sensitive to drop weight changes based on drop weight variations that show greater changes in color for a given change in drop weight.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Peter Morovic, Jan Morovic, Montserrat Solano Pallarol, Marti Rius Rossell, Juan Manuel Garcia Reyero Vinas
  • Patent number: 9751346
    Abstract: The liquid ejection head has a structure in which three or more head modules including a plurality of ejection elements are arranged along a single direction, and the liquid ejection head includes a first head module, a second head module and a third head module which are arranged in ascending order of slope of ejection volume distribution in the single direction or are arranged in descending order of the slope of the ejection volume distribution in the single direction, the slope of the ejection volume distribution in the single direction being evaluated by subtracting an ejection volume at one end part in the single direction from an ejection volume at the other end part in the single direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshikazu Hishinuma, Tadashi Kyoso, Yasutoshi Hirabayashi, Satoshi Shimobayashi
  • Patent number: 9744771
    Abstract: A fluidic dispensing device includes a housing having an exterior wall and a chamber. The exterior wall has a chip mounting surface defining a first plane and has an opening. The chamber has a port coupled in fluid communication with the opening. An ejection chip is mounted to the chip mounting surface and is oriented along the first plane, and is in fluid communication with the opening. The ejection chip has a fluid ejection direction that is substantially orthogonal to the first plane. A stir bar is located in the chamber, and has a rotational axis. The rotational axis of the stir bar is oriented in an angular range of perpendicular, plus or minus 45 degrees, relative to the fluid ejection direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: FUNAI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: James D. Anderson, Jr., Steven R. Komplin, Andrew L. McNees, Jason T. Vanderpool, Richard L. Warner
  • Patent number: 9738079
    Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide a replenishment container and an inkjet recording device that are capable of reducing staining by ink or a solvent during ink or solvent replenishing. The replenishment container comprises a storage member having an opening formed therein and having a storage chamber that stores ink or solvent, a stopper member that seals the opening of the storage member, and a lid member that covers the stopper member. The replenishment container is characterized by: comprising a seal member that has a throughhole between the stopper member and the lid member; the lid member having a throughhole that is opened concentrically with the throughhole of the seal member; and the inner diameter of part or all of the throughhole in the seal member being smaller than the inner diameter of the throughhole in the lid member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takehiko Matsushita, Naomichi Yoshida, Akira Miyao, Nobuhiro Harada
  • Patent number: 9738804
    Abstract: An ink composition includes colorant, hydroxylated and non-hydroxylated co-solvents, and water. A weight percent ratio of hydroxylated to non-hydroxylated co-solvents ranges from 46:54 to about 62:38. The composition also includes an acid and a polyurethane copolymer binder. The acid is selected from the group consisting of oleic acid, linoleic acid, undecanoic acid, dodecanoic acid, tridecanoic acid, and combinations thereof. The binder is formed from the polymerization of a diisocyanate and at least three diols including a first diol containing a hydrophilic stabilizing group, and a second diol having less than 8 atoms in a backbone chain between two hydroxyl groups. A mole percentage of the second diol is at least 30% of a total mole percentage of diol monomers in the binder. An acid number of the binder ranges from 50 to 75. The composition also includes lithium present in an amount ranging from about 50 to about 400 ppm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Richard J. McManus, Sundar Vasudevan, Vladimir Jakubek
  • Patent number: 9731514
    Abstract: A method and printing device of providing a customized drink and printing on a current drink through an ink-jet printer and computer programs can be configured to perform actions by instructions when executed by data processing apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: STEAM CC LTD.
    Inventors: Eyal Eliav, Yossi Meshulam, Marc Van Dyke
  • Patent number: 9731517
    Abstract: According to an example, an apparatus may include a controller and a non-transitory computer readable medium on which is stored instructions. The instructions may cause the controller to predict that a user is to instruct a printing device to perform a printing operation, in which the printing device includes a dryer, identify the user in response to the prediction, to access a user profile corresponding to the identified user, in which the accessed profile identifies a type of document that the identified user typically prints, and to adjust a setting of the dryer according to the identified type of document in the accessed profile.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Robert Yraceburu, Duane A. Koehler, Brooke Hoyer