Patents Examined by Anh T Vo
  • Patent number: 12220912
    Abstract: A printing apparatus includes a printing head that includes a plurality of nozzles, each of which ejects an ink pushed out from a pressure chamber by driving of an actuator, a display unit, a detector that generates a residual vibration in the pressure chamber by imparting, to the actuator, a predetermined drive signal that prevents the nozzle from ejecting the ink, and, based on the residual vibration, performs, for each of the plurality of nozzles, defective nozzle detection processing of detecting a defective nozzle having ejection failure, and a display control unit that causes the display unit to display defective nozzle information including a position, in the printing head, of the defective nozzle detected by the detector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2025
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Masahiro Owa
  • Patent number: 12214587
    Abstract: A cartridge configured to be mounted on a tape printer, the cartridge including a cartridge case, in which the cartridge case is provided with a tape feed port through which a tape fed from an accommodated tape roll is fed out of the cartridge case, a tape insertion port into which the tape is configured to be inserted in a first direction from one end portion in a width direction of the tape, and a tape guide that is positioned in the first direction with respect to the tape insertion port and guides feeding of the tape by the tape printer, the tape guide is provided with a protruding portion that comes into contact with the tape, and a tape guide chamfered portion is provided at an end portion of the protruding portion in a second direction opposite to the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2025
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Keisuke Taruya, Taishi Sasaki, Akio Ishimoto
  • Patent number: 12208616
    Abstract: A printing system and method of inspecting drop ejection in a printing system is disclosed. The method includes capturing an image of each of a plurality of drops of a print material after ejection from an ejector of a printing system, creating a temporally averaged image from each image of the plurality of drops of print material, and classifying one of the plurality of drops of print material based on the temporally averaged image that was created. The use of a pretrained convolutional neural network for classifying one of the plurality of drops and comparing the temporally averaged image to another temporally averaged image to classify one of the plurality of drops may be employed. The printing system also includes a camera with a high-speed shutter where the shutter is synchronized to an ejector pulse, and a video analytic framework coupled to the ejector and the camera configured to generate a jetting result for each of the one or more drops of liquid print material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: ADDITIVE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Peter Knausdorf, Sakib Zargar, Joseph C. Sheflin, Palghat S. Ramesh, Collin Alexander Ladd, Chu-Heng Liu, Paul J. McConville
  • Patent number: 12208637
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to optical devices. More specifically, embodiments described herein relate to optical devices and methods of manufacturing a patterned optical device film on an optical device substrate. According to certain embodiments, an inkjet deposition process is used to deposit a patterned inkjet coating layer on the optical device substrate. A deposition process may then be used to deposit an optical device material on the patterned inkjet coating and the optical device substrate. The patterned inkjet coating on the optical device substrate may then be washed with an appropriate detergent to lift-off the patterned inkjet coating layer from the optical device substrate to form the patterned optical device film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yingdong Luo, Jinyu Lu, Takashi Kuratomi, Alexia Adilene Portillo Rivera, Xiaopei Deng, Zhengping Yao, Daihua Zhang, Rami Hourani, Ludovic Godet
  • Patent number: 12208629
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a conveyance unit, a carriage, a recording head, a frame, and a guide member. The conveyance unit conveys a sheet in a conveyance direction. The carriage moves in a scanning direction crossing the conveyance direction and has a first abutment portion and a second abutment portion higher in position than the first abutment portion. The recording head is mounted on the carriage, arranged to face a sheet conveyed by the conveyance unit, and ejects a liquid onto the conveyed sheet to record an image. The frame has a first sliding portion in abutment with the first abutment portion and has a second sliding portion in abutment with the second abutment portion. The guide member supports the carriage and is fixed to the frame at a position separated from the first sliding portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Taiji Maruyama, Atsushi Kohnotoh, Yasuyuki Takanaka, Norio Sakurai, Takashi Abe, Kousuke Tanaka, Yusuke Naratani, Shuhei Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 12202274
    Abstract: A printing device includes a thermal head, a rotation shaft extending in an axial direction and rotatably supported, a pivot member connected to the rotation shaft and configured to pivot integrally with the rotation shaft about the rotation shaft, a biasing unit configured to bias the thermal head upward, a first pivot shaft supported by the pivot member, extending parallel to the axial direction, located below the rotation shaft, and configured to pivot integrally with the pivot member about the rotation shaft, a support member supported by the first pivot shaft to be movable along the first pivot shaft and to be pivotable about the first pivot shaft, the support member including a lower end portion located below the rotation shaft, and a pressing portion provided on the lower end portion of the support member and configured to press the thermal head downward.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2025
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kei Kondo, Yasutoshi Kano, Kazuma Hojo
  • Patent number: 12207418
    Abstract: In a method for manufacturing a display panel according to an embodiment, a first anisotropic conductive layer is formed by ejecting a first anisotropic conductive layer forming material in order to bond the circuit board to the display panel, a reinforced curing layer is formed by ejecting a reinforced curing layer forming material onto a side surface of the first anisotropic conductive layer, a second anisotropic conductive layer is formed by ejecting a second anisotropic conductive layer forming material to an inner side of the second anisotropic conductive layer and the reinforced curing layer in order to bond the display drive integrated circuit, and a pixel is formed by ejecting a material for pixel printing to an inner side of the second anisotropic conductive layer for fixing the display drive integrated circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2025
    Assignee: UNIJET CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Gil Hwan Yeo
  • Patent number: 12195633
    Abstract: An inkjet ink contains an aqueous solvent, a pigment, and thixotropy-imparting agent, having a viscosity at 25° C. at a shear rate of 1000 (1/s) of 15 mPa·s or less, and a viscosity at 25° C. at a shear rate of 1 (1/s) of 150 mPa·s or more in a state where the aqueous solvent is removed from the inkjet ink so that a mass is 80% of an initial mass of the inkjet ink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2025
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Takenori Omata, Akio Maeda
  • Patent number: 12187041
    Abstract: A liquid storage container includes: a discharge port member including a discharge port through which liquid stored in a storage portion is discharged and a coupling portion in which a male thread portion is arranged on the outside; and a cover portion including a female thread portion on the inside and configured to be attachable to the discharge port member, the female thread portion configured to be screwed to the male thread portion, in which the male thread portion is discontinuous in the coupling portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2025
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kyosuke Nagaoka, Ryoji Inoue, Noriyasu Nagai, Kenta Udagawa, Hideaki Matsumura, Taiji Maruyama
  • Patent number: 12187045
    Abstract: There is provided an ink-jet printer including: an ink tank including an ink inlet; a cap; and a cover configured to be movable with respect to the ink inlet between a closed position and an open position. The cover includes an inner surface configured to face the ink inlet under a condition that the cover is in the closed position, and a rib provided at the inner surface. The rib is configured to face a part of the cap, in which the cap is sealed the ink inlet under the condition that the cover is in the closed position and the rib is configured to abut against the part of the cap under a condition that the cap is not appropriately sealed the inlet when the cover moving from the open position to the closed position, thereby the cover being prevented from reaching the closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2025
    Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Yoshinori Osakabe
  • Patent number: 12187044
    Abstract: An ink container includes a storage section configured to store an ink, a supply tube configured to supply the ink stored in the storage section to a printer, a sealing member disposed in the supply tube, and a holding member configured to hold the sealing member. The holding member is detachably attached to the supply tube and has an indication that indicates that a refilling operation was performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2025
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Naoki Naito, Eiko Yanagida, Yoshiharu Mizuno
  • Patent number: 12179498
    Abstract: An illustrative dye sublimation apparatus (also referred to as a dye sublimation machine) may have at least four stations, each station implementing a discrete step of a sublimation cycle. Multiple beds are rotatably mounted such that the beds pass through the stations to perform the corresponding steps. Therefore, the sublimation apparatus may perform multiple sublimation cycles simultaneously with the beds containing printed sheets and substrates at different steps of the multiple sublimation cycles. As the beds are rotatably mounted, the sublimation apparatus may allow for a fixed loading and unloading station proximate to a fixed, dedicated personnel station.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: SEKISUI KYDEX, LLC
    Inventors: Jeffrey Humenick, Jym Kauffman, Rebecca Gallup
  • Patent number: 12173119
    Abstract: An amino functionalized siloxane resin particle obtainable by polycondensation of a cationic alkoxysilane surfactant according to general formula I (I) and an amino functionalized alkoxysilane according to general formula (II). The amino functionalized siloxane resin particle can be incorporated in jettable liquids for inkjet printing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: Agfa NV
    Inventors: Johan Loccufier, Luc Decoster
  • Patent number: 12172448
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for suppressing adhesion of a liquid to the plug member. A disclosed liquid storage container has a storage chamber for storing a liquid, a supply port having a hollow cylindrical portion protruding from the storage chamber and being capable of supplying the liquid to the storage chamber, and a plug member detachably attached to the supply port. The plug member has a plug portion inserted into the hollow cylindrical portion to plug the supply port. On the plug portion, a first water repellent film having water repellency is formed on an exposed surface exposed at least to the inside of the hollow cylindrical portion in a portion inserted into the storage chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Ryo Shimamura
  • Patent number: 12172447
    Abstract: There is provided an ink replenishment container for replenishing ink into an ink tank via an ink inlet flow path member, the ink replenishment container including a container main body, an ink outlet forming portion having a tubular portion, a spring valve having a valve body mounted in the tubular portion and a spring for urging the valve body toward the ink outlet, and a sealing member mounted in the tubular portion and having a sealing end configured to contact with the valve body in a valve close state, in which the sealing member has a cylindrical inner peripheral wall and an elastic membrane portion extending from the inner peripheral wall toward a center, and the elastic membrane portion is formed with a slit-shaped gap passing through a center portion including the center.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tadahiro Mizutani, Yoshihiro Koizumi, Shun Oya, Takumi Nagashima, Tadashi Watanabe, Manabu Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 12168357
    Abstract: There is provided a liquid discharge apparatus including: a head having nozzles; a conveyer; and a controller. The controller is configured to carry out a conveyance process of conveying a recording medium in a conveyance direction, and a discharge process of discharging a liquid from the nozzles to the recording medium. The discharge process includes a plurality of discharge steps carried out to a unit area of the recording medium based on data obtained by decomposing an image data into complementary patterns. In at least one of the discharge steps corresponding to the unit area, a function of a discharge duty of the nozzles has an ascending portion or a descending portion. The controller is configured to carry out before the discharge process: a detection process of detecting a defect nozzle in the nozzles; and in a case that the defect nozzle is detected, a change process of changing the function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2024
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Yasunari Yoshida
  • Patent number: 12163035
    Abstract: An example of a white inkjet ink includes: a non-self-dispersed white pigment; from about 0.005 wt % to about 1 wt %, based on a total weight of the white inkjet ink, of an anionic copolymer dispersant having a weight average molecular weight (Mw) ranging from about 125,000 g/mol to about 30,000,000 g/mol; a polymeric binder; and an aqueous vehicle. The white inkjet ink may be used in a textile printing kit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2024
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Dennis Z. Guo, Jie Zheng, Barbara Casanas Montes, Marcos A. Barreto Caban
  • Patent number: 12162274
    Abstract: A roll paper printer includes: a case configured to accommodate a paper roll in which paper is wound in such a way that one surface of the paper faces outward; a transport roller that pulls the paper from the paper roll and transports the paper in a transport direction; a first paper guide configured to come into contact with the other surface of the paper upstream of the transport roller in the transport direction; a second paper guide that faces the first paper guide and is configured to come into contact with the one surface of the paper; a third paper guide configured to be attached/detached and configured to come into contact with the one surface of the paper and curve the paper upstream of the second paper guide in the transport direction; a sensor configured to detect the third paper guide; and a controller that decreases, when the third paper guide is detected by the sensor, a transport speed for the paper transported by the transport roller to be lower than that when the third paper guide is not dete
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2024
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Takehiro Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 12155806
    Abstract: A printing apparatus includes a hardware processor and a printer. The hardware processor is configured to set a temporary base coat region which is a region where a base coat is to be applied, set a temporary design region which is a base design region and which includes an outer shape corresponding to a bounding polygon of the temporary base coat region, detect a base coat region of a nail where the base coat is applied, and adjust the temporary design region so that an outer shape of the temporary design region matches the outer shape of a bounding polygon of the base coat region, set a portion of the adjusted temporary design region overlapping with the base coat region as a design region, and generate design printing data. The printer prints a design on the nail based on the design printing data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2024
    Assignee: CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shuichi Yamasaki
  • Patent number: 12145372
    Abstract: A liquid storage container includes a container main body that is capable of storing a liquid and at least a portion of which includes a translucent outer wall; a support member that is integrally formed with the container main body; and a rotation member that is rotatably supported by the support member. The rotation member includes a float that rotates due to fluctuations in a liquid level of the liquid, and a display member that rotates in conjunction with the float and is capable of displaying a position of the float to an outside through the translucent outer wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Masahisa Watanabe