Patents Examined by Anh T Vo
  • Patent number: 11975548
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a housing, a recording unit that is accommodated in the housing and that performs recording on a medium, a medium supply port that is provided in an upper portion of the housing, and where the medium is set to supply the medium toward the recording unit, and a medium support member that supports the medium set in the medium supply port, wherein the medium support member includes a first support member configured to be opened and closed with respect to the medium supply port and a second support member that rotatably supports the first support member, and the recording apparatus includes a biasing mechanism configured to, when the first support member is in a closed state with respect to the medium supply port, bias the first support member in a first direction toward the housing which faces a distal end portion of the first support member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2024
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Saeful Azhar, Erik Hidayat
  • Patent number: 11975543
    Abstract: A liquid replenishing system includes a liquid tank and a liquid storage bottle for storing liquid to be replenished to the liquid tank. The liquid tank includes a tank body, a cylindrical adapter, and a needle penetrating into the tank body inside the cylindrical adapter. One end of the needle is located outside the tank body and another end of the needle is located inside the tank body. The liquid storage bottle includes a bottle body, a nozzle having an ejection port for ejecting a liquid stored in the bottle body, and includes a slit valve provided at the ejection port. In a case where the nozzle of the liquid storage bottle and the cylindrical adapter of the liquid tank are fitted to each other, one end of the needle is inserted into the slit valve so that the liquid storage bottle is secured to the liquid tank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takanori Yashiro, Chiaki Muraoka, Tatsuo Nanjo, Hirofumi Okuhara, Kazumasa Matsushita, Yuji Tamaru
  • Patent number: 11975540
    Abstract: A head chip prevented from deteriorating in printing quality is provided. The head chip is provided with an intermediate plate which has a plurality of columns of communication hole groups for each channel column, the communication hole group having communication holes individually communicated with ejection channels of an actuator plate and arranged in a line in an X direction. The communication holes adjacent to each other in the X direction are arranged so as to be shifted in a Y direction from each other. The intermediate plate is provided with a non-penetrating groove closed by a nozzle plate, and a penetrating hole communicated with the non-penetrating groove, and communicated with an outside of the head chip through a non-ejection channel. A part of the non-penetrating groove is located in an inter-communication hole region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2024
    Assignee: SII PRINTEK INC.
    Inventor: Tooru Mine
  • Patent number: 11970007
    Abstract: A ROM unit mounted to a bottle has a plurality of terminal plates on the front end surface of the ROM unit. The ROM unit is movable in a direction orthogonal to a bottle axis Ax, and can be positioned at a retreat position where an interference with a contamination preventing eaves is avoided, and a contact position projected more front than the retreat position. The terminal plates can be electrically contacted with reservoir terminals when positioning at the contact position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: KEYENCE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Miyauchi, Mamoru Idaka
  • Patent number: 11945229
    Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes a head configured to discharge a liquid, and a liquid container configured to contain the liquid to be supplied to the head. The liquid container includes an inlet from which the liquid is supplied to the liquid container, a first lid configured to cover and openably close the inlet, the first lid having a first fitting part fittable to a first key detachably attached to a refill bottle containing the liquid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Kenta Takahashi, Takashi Watanabe, Takeyuki Kobayashi, Kazuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 11945213
    Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes a conveying part configured to convey a medium in a conveying direction. A discharge head is configured to discharge a droplet onto a medium carried by the conveying part. A heating part is arranged at the downstream of the discharge head and configured to heat a medium while contacting with the medium attached with a droplet discharged by the discharge head. The heating part is arranged at a position contacting with at least part of the droplet present on the surface of the medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takuya Hamada, Kenichi Ogawa
  • Patent number: 11938736
    Abstract: A printing liquid container includes first and second members having a supply port and a valve, respectively. The members rotate with respect to each other between first and second states. The valve closes and opens the supply port in the first and second states, respectively. The first and second members have first and second fitting portions, respectively. The fitting portions fit to a fitted portion of a tank in the first state. The second fitting portion allows rotation of the second member with respect to the fitted portion when the first fitting portion are fitted to the fitting portion. The first member does not rotate together with the second member due to fitting between the fitted portion and the first fitting portion. The second member cannot be removed from the fitted portion due to fitting of the second fitting portion to the fitted portion in the second state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2024
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masahiro Hayashi, Satoru Oki, Nanami Ashida, Naoya Okazaki
  • Patent number: 11932028
    Abstract: A printing device includes a housing, a print head, a platen roller, a holder, and a cover. The housing has a cassette attaching opening through which a printing cassette accommodating a printing tape is attachable to the housing. The holder holds one of the print head and the platen roller. The holder is movable between a nip position in which the print head and the platen roller nip the printing tape and a non-nip position in which the print head and the platen roller do not nip the printing tape. The cover is attachable to the housing. The cover is movable between a covering position to cover at least part of the cassette attaching opening and an engaged position to engage with the housing. The holder moves from the non-nip position to the nip position in conjunction with movement of the cover from the covering position to the engaged position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuya Tagami, Shinji Ukai
  • Patent number: 11932021
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a tank including a chamber configured to store liquid to be supplied to a recording head that ejects the liquid and a filling port from which the liquid is injected into the chamber, and an injection auxiliary member configured to assist injecting of the liquid into the chamber from the filling port, the injection auxiliary member including a first and a second flow channels each defined by a first or a second upper end portion that opens toward outside of the tank and a first or a second lower end portion that opens toward inside of the tank, wherein the second flow channel has an expansion portion arranged in a middle portion between the second upper end portion and the second lower end portion and configured to form a step to expand a cross-sectional area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yusuke Naratani, Koya Iwakura, Hideaki Matsumura, Tetsu Hamano, Nobuhiro Toki, Daiju Takeda, Fumie Kameyama, Koki Shimada, Shota Asada, Ken Takenaga, Yusuke Tanaka, Yuta Araki, Taiji Maruyama, Atsushi Matsuyama, Kousuke Tanaka, Toshimitsu Takahashi, Nanae Uchinuno
  • Patent number: 11932024
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a container configured to store a liquid to be supplied to a discharge unit, a first cover portion capable of moving between a closing position where an inlet portion in the container is covered and an opening position, a second cover portion capable of moving between a closing position where the first cover portion is covered and an opening position where the first cover portion is exposed so as to be opened/closed, and a valve which opens/closes a passage communicating with an inside of the container. The valve closes the passage interworking with a movement of the first cover portion to the opening position, and opens the passage interworking with a movement of the second cover portion to the closing position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masashi Ito, Yuri Mori, Takashi Abe, Nanae Uchinuno
  • Patent number: 11919312
    Abstract: A printing apparatus includes a carriage, ink tanks, ink tubes, and a first tube holder. The carriage reciprocates in a predetermined direction with respect to a recording medium and has recording heads ejecting ink to the recording medium. The ink tanks are arranged outside the carriage and are configured to contain ink. The ink tubes connect the ink tanks and the recording heads to each other to supply the ink contained in the ink tanks to the recording heads, and the ink tubes undergo follow-up deformation along with reciprocating movement of the carriage. The first tube holder is rotatably supported with respect to the carriage and holds the ink tubes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: FUNAI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Junpei Oka, Kohsuke Hori
  • Patent number: 11915909
    Abstract: The present invention provides apparatus for an imaging system comprising a multitude of chemical emitting elements upon a substrate. In some embodiments the substrate may be approximately round with a radius of approximately one inch. Various methods relating to using and producing an imaging system of chemical emitters are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Inventor: Frederick A. Flitsch
  • Patent number: 11890873
    Abstract: An inkjet printer detects vibrations within the printer and compensates for the detected vibrations by adjusting a gap between the printheads and the media transport. Additionally, the inkjet printer detects media sheet heights that may cause damage as they pass through the print zone of the printer and adjusts the gap to enable the media sheets to pass through the print zone without contacting the printheads. A method of operating an inkjet printer so configured is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2024
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Ron E. Dufort, Elizabeth L Barrese, Dara N. Lubin, Matthew J. Ochs
  • Patent number: 11884068
    Abstract: There is provided a liquid discharge apparatus including: a discharge section; a first wiring for transmitting a setting information signal group that has a first setting information signal and a second setting information signal and a discharge control signal group; and a second wiring for transmitting a driving signal, in which the apparatus is configured to be operated in a first print mode in which printing is performed with a first gradation number according to the setting information signal group, and in a second print mode in which printing is performed with a second gradation number smaller than the first gradation number, and in the second print mode, the droplets are discharged from the discharge section according to the first setting information signal and the second setting information signal in which bit data of the first setting information signal is inverted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Satoru Uematsu
  • Patent number: 11878509
    Abstract: The position information includes first position information about a position, at a first timing, of a droplet ejected from a first nozzle, which is one of the plurality of nozzles, and traveling in air, and second position information about a position, at the first timing, of a droplet ejected from a second nozzle, which is one of the plurality of nozzles N and is different from the first nozzle, and traveling in air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Shohei Mizuta, Toshiro Murayama
  • Patent number: 11872822
    Abstract: In a board that includes a plurality of contact portions that are arranged to contact corresponding apparatus-side terminals when the board is mounted in a printing apparatus, some contact portions are disposed in a first region, and the remaining contact portions are disposed in a second region. The some contact portions include a first contact portion, a second contact portion, a third contact portion, and a fourth contact portion. The remaining contact portions include a fifth contact portion. The some contact portions are arranged in a first pattern in the first region and the remaining contact portions are arranged in a second pattern in the second region, and the first pattern is asymmetrical to the second pattern with respect to a first virtual line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2024
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shuichi Nakano, Yasuhiko Kosugi, Jun Sato
  • Patent number: 11865847
    Abstract: There is provided a liquid discharge apparatus including: a head having a nozzle; a tank; a gas channel; a valve unit; a memory; and a controller. The controller is configured to execute: making of the valve unit to be in an open state, under a condition that a count value indicating an amount of a liquid discharged from the nozzle has reached an opening threshold value ?V. The opening threshold value ?V is represented by: ?V?(Vtmax?Vi)×Pm/(P?Pm). Note that Vtmax represents a volume of the tank, Vi represents the maximum amount of the liquid storable in the tank, P represents an atmospheric pressure, and Pm represents a meniscus-withstanding pressure of the liquid formed in the nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Inventors: Fumio Nakazawa, Yoshinori Osakabe, Taichi Shirono, Sosuke Kuroyanagi
  • Patent number: 11865845
    Abstract: An example print material replenishment device includes a container to contain print material, a dispensing end to engage a fill port of a printing device, the dispensing end including an opening that is offset from a center axis of the container, and a rotatable cover coupled to the dispensing end, the rotatable cover to expose the opening of the dispensing end based on a rotation of the print material replenishment device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Andrew P. Chick, Kenneth K. Smith, Matthew James Storey, Pratik Shah, Luke Kim, Sean Daniel Fitzgerald, Mathew Lavigne, Jeffrey H. Luke, Jiwon Moon, Minchul Lee, Corbett Benjamin Schoenfelt, Bennett Alexander Nadeau, Zackary Thomas Hickman, Jefferson Blake West, Muriel Hale Shields, An Tran
  • Patent number: 11866595
    Abstract: Ceramic inkjet inks for non-porous substrates (such as glass, metals) whereby the viscosity of the inks at the jetting temperature of 33-50° C. is 8-20 mPa·s and increase substantially to more than a factor of 5 (greater than 100 mPa·s) after landing on the substrate. The invention also relates to processing/formulating steps and tuning of the bulk and dynamic properties suitable for (i) inkjet printing in the printhead channel and (ii) desirable high viscosity after landing on the glass substrate. The ink comprises: Glass Frit composition which is in the form of particles having a volume particle size distribution Dv90 of less than 1.5 ?m, carriers (30-50 wt %) and additives (0-10%). The ceramic ink mitigate ink splattering, spreading during and after landing, eliminate/reduce image defects because of dust contaminations from the environment on wet inks after printing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: TECGLASS SL
    Inventors: Javier Fernandez Vazquez, Tri Ratna Tuladhar
  • Patent number: 11858277
    Abstract: A printing apparatus is disclosed. The printing apparatus comprises a rotating housing comprising a wall with an inner side defining a chamber and an outer side. The wall has a bore communicating the inner side and the outer side, and the chamber is to receive a fluid container. The printing apparatus also comprises a fix frame holding the rotating housing. The printing apparatus further comprises an optical sensor comprising an emitter to issue a detecting optical signal through the bore and a receiver to receive a detected optical signal associated to the detecting optical signal. The detected signal is sent to a controller to determine whether the fluid container is present in the rotating housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Jordi Hernandez Creus, Marta Coma Vives, Javier Chavarria Roe, Jose Maria Rio Doval