Abstract: A method of printing an image on a recording medium with a liquid ink printhead moving in a scanning direction having drop ejectors depositing ink drops on a recording medium at a given default frequency and in a plurality of pixel locations spaced by a predetermined resolution, the method comprising the steps of (a) determining a pixel size drop volume of liquid ink necessary at the predetermined resolution to fill one of the pixel locations; (b) determining a reduced subpixel size drop volume of liquid ink for subpixel drops to be printed by dividing the pixel size drop volume by a factor of at least three; (c) determining a frequency for firing and printing the subpixel drops in a fast scan direction such that a succeeding subpixel drop lands on the recording medium before a preceding subpixel drop has completely spread, and so as to preserve throughput; and (d) firing and depositing multiple subpixel drops each having the determined reduced volume of liquid ink, at the determined frequency, and in a shing

Abstract: Method and apparatus for receiving an image source representative of an image to be printed on an outer surface of a rotating media is described. The image source has a plurality of image points. A radial printing system is described that includes an imaging system configured to convert the plurality of image points into a polar-based representation of the image and a head assembly coupled to the imaging system for outputting the polar-based representation of the image onto the rotating media. The rotating media may represent a compact disk, wherein an inner surface of the compact disk is configured to store digital data. Printing distortion is controlled by selecting a higher proportion of the polar points corresponding to a first radius is selected than of polar the points corresponding to a second radius.

Abstract: A liquid jetting device includes a plurality of liquid passages each having a liquid ejecting element and communicating with an ejection hole, a common liquid chamber communicating with each of the plurality of liquid passages and an air bubble introducer for making a non-disappearable air bubble formed by thermal energy exist in the common liquid chamber before a start of liquid ejection. The liquid is allowed to be ejected in the presence of the air bubble. The non-disappearable air bubble functions as a buffer to absorb pressure during discharge to restrict flow of the ink in the direction opposite to the discharge port.

Abstract: A recording system including a first feeding mechanism for feeding a sheet, a second feeding mechanism disposed at a downstream side of the first feeding mechanism and adapted to pinch and feed the sheet, a motor, and a controller for controlling the motor so as to drive the first and second feeding mechanisms to feed the sheet in a predetermined direction. The feeding speed is slowed prior to when the trailing edge of the sheet passes through the first feeding mechanism where part of the sheet is pinched by the second feeding mechanism, so that the sheet is conveyed at a slow speed by the second feeding mechanism when the trailing edge of the sheet passes through the first feeding mechanism.

Abstract: An ink supply device having an ink flow passage for communicating an ink containing part for containing an ink with a discharge part for discharging the ink, the ink flow passage is characterized by a filter device including a filter and a filter box for containing the filter and provided with an ink inlet port and an ink outlet port, wherein an area at the ink inlet port side of the filter box is disposed beneath an area at the ink outlet port side of the filter box, and an inside diameter of ink flow passage at the ink inlet port side of the filter box is narrowed in a diameter to be smaller than an inside diameter of the ink flow passage immediately before expanding into a bell-bottomed shape towards the filter.

Abstract: A printer apparatus includes a carriage for moving a printer head in a reciprocal manner, a carriage supporting member for guiding the movement of the carriage by slidably supporting the carriage using a sliding supporting member which slidably supports the carriage, and a displacement portion which is provided to the carriage and is capable of displacement along the surface of the sliding member within a plane which is vertical to the movement direction of the carriage. This arrangement allows stable running of the carriage even if irregularities in height such as offsets exist in the sliding portion of the supporting member which slidably supports the carriage.

Abstract: In an inkjet printer controlled by a program in a recording medium, the interlace method is applied to record an image in a first area where the rollers in the feeding section ensure the accuracy of sheet feeding, in order to attain the high picture quality. A printable area where an image can be recorded is extended to a second area, where rollers in a delivering section are used to carry out the sheet feeding of relatively low accuracy after the lower end of the printing medium comes off the rollers in the feeding section. The second area does not directly adjoin to the first area, but there is a middle area that adjoins to both the first area and the second area and enables image recording with sufficient accuracy of sheet feeding.

Abstract: A method of operating a printing system that can print any of several different colors onto a point on a sheet of printer media. The method includes using a halftoning screen with a matrix of assorted threshold values, along with image data having a matrix of image data elements. For each data element and each color, a density value is determined to establish the amount of each color needed to produce the color associated with the original data element. Then a calculation determines which of the colors will be printed to the particular location. In a selected sequence of colors, density values of the colors are added one by one to generate a density sum that increases until it exceeds the threshold value. The last color added, which caused the sum to exceed the threshold, is then printed to the media sheet at a corresponding point.

Abstract: In a multi-beam drawing method in which drawing is performed with a plurality of light-emitting devices (LDs), it is detected whether any LD is damaged. Of a plurality of partial LD lines obtained by partitioning at a damaged LD or LDs, the partial LD line including the largest number of LDs is selected as an effective LD line for use in drawing. Spiral correction is performed by dividing image data to be supplied to the LDs into a plurality of virtual small images parallel to the sub-scanning direction which are shifted in a reverse direction to the sub-scanning direction.

Abstract: An indexing wiper scraper cleaning system for cleaning a scraper, which has removed ink residue from a wiper following an inkjet printhead wiping routine where the residue was first removed from the printhead in an inkjet printing mechanism, has a reservoir filled with an ink solvent. Rotary scraper member having a series of scraper bars projecting radially from a cylindrical body is supported to periodically soak at least one of the scraper bars in the ink solvent bath. Following this soaking, the scraper bars are rotated through an indexing motion into a scraping position to scrape the ink residue from the wiper. After the scraping operation, the scraper bars are returned to the solvent bath to ready them for the next scraping operation. A method of cleaning an inkjet printhead, along with an inkjet printing mechanism having such a indexing wiper scraper cleaning system are also provided.

Abstract: An ink jet printing apparatus is provided comprising first and second print cartridges. The first print cartridge includes at least one first resistive heating element in at least one first ink-containing chamber having a first orifice. The first heating element has a first surface area. The second print cartridge includes at least one second resistive heating element in at least one second ink-containing chamber having a second orifice. The second heating element has a second surface area which is less than the first surface area. The apparatus further comprises a driver circuit, electrically coupled to the first and second print cartridges, for selectively applying to one of the first and second heating elements via a common drive circuit a firing pulse. The firing pulse to the first heating element causing a vapor bubble to be produced in the first chamber such that a droplet of ink of a first size is ejected from the first chamber orifice.

Abstract: A CIJ printer has a drop generator and a mount. The mounting of the drop generator on the mount is by a pair of fixing screws locating in countersunk screw-threaded bores in the drop generator and disposed in the resilient bushings located in corresponding bores in the mount. To reduce the transfer of ultrasonic vibrations and mounting stresses imposed on the drop generator, two pairs of point contacts protrude between the mount and the drop generator. Each pair being in alignment with the centre of a respective one of the fixing screws and on respective lines perpendicular to a line connecting the centers of the fixing screws.

Abstract: Inputted multivalued image data is first stored in an image memory, and the multivalued image data is converted to binary data for driving each of a plurality of ink-jet head units, which discharge different colors of ink or ink with different densities, by referring to an ink-type distribution table based on the multivalued image data read out of the image memory. The converted binary data is stored in an address of the image memory, where the corresponding multivalued image data has been stored. The binary data stored in the image memory, each bit of which is to be outputted to each ink-jet head unit, is read out and outputted to the corresponding ink-jet head unit.

Abstract: A printing apparatus for printing on double-sides of a recording medium has a first print control unit for controlling an one-line exposure for the right or reverse side by a horizontal synchronous signal, and a second print control unit for controlling the one-line exposure for the reverse or right side by using this horizontal synchronous signal. A print start timing for the right side can be synchronized with a timing for the reverse side, and is capable of preventing a deviation in print position between the right side and the reverse side of the recording medium even by providing the print control units for the right side and the reverse side, individually.

Abstract: A replaceable inkjet printhead cleaner service station system has separate replaceable cleaning units for each printhead in an inkjet printing mechanism, which has a pallet that moves the cleaning units translationally to service the printheads. Each cleaning unit has a printhead wiper, a printhead snout wiper, a capping system, a spittoon, and optionally, an ink solvent application system. The application system has a reservoir body impregnated with an ink solvent, and a solvent distribution member including a unitary applicator wick having a ramped portion located to apply the ink solvent to the printhead when an edge of the printhead is brought into contact with the wick. A wick support spring is preloaded to supply a substantially consistent amount of ink solvent to the printhead, regardless of vertical spacing or tolerance variations therebetween. A method is provided for cleaning an inkjet printhead, along with a printing mechanism employing such a system.

Abstract: A recording head of an ink-jet-recording apparatus has a plurality of nozzles, a plurality of pressure chambers connected to the plurality of nozzles respectively, and an ink saving chamber connected to the plurality of the pressure chambers for supplying ink into the pressure chambers and for temporarily saving the ink. An ink way is connected to the ink saving chamber for supplying the ink into the ink saving chamber. A driver causes respective pressures in the pressure chambers to change in such a manner that the ink is jetted from the nozzles so as to carry out flushing operations of the nozzles. A flushing controller causes the driver to carry out the flushing operations so that a flushing operation for a pressure chamber arranged relatively further from the ink way is delayed in starting for a predetermined time with respect to a flushing operation for another pressure chamber arranged relatively closer to the ink way.

Abstract: An apparatus and related method for automatically aligning one or more print head modules in an ink jet printing system are provided. A mounting supports and aligns a print head module with respect to three axes of movement. The mounting includes rotatable cams that contact control surfaces connected to the print head module to move the print head module in a desired direction. The related method automatically positions multiple stationary print heads with respect to three axes of movement, including rotational adjustment about a Z-axis. The method also automatically adjusts the position of a single print head with respect to its angular rotation about the Z-axis.

Abstract: A printer controller 41 sets compensation values, representing the positional deviations of LED array chips 31, in a delay circuit section 68 via shift register 61 and a latch circuit 63. The shift register 69 sequentially acquires bit map data from the printer controller 41, and supplies the acquired bit map data to an AND gate 66 through the latch circuit 62. Upon receiving a strobe signal from the printer controller 41, the delay circuit section 68 supplies the received strobe signal to the AND gate 66 after a delay time corresponding to a preset compensation value has lapsed. The AND gate 66 generates drive signals each being the logical product of the input bit map data and the strobe signal, and supplies them to the LED array chips 31 through a buffer 67. The LED array chips 31 make LEDs emit light at the timings corresponding to the positional deviations so that images are formed without a positional deviation.

Abstract: Apparatus for controlling ink in a continuous ink jet printer in which a continuous stream of ink is emitted from a nozzle includes a nozzle bore to establish a continuous stream of ink; a heater having a plurality of selectively independently actuated sections which are positioned along respectively different portions of the nozzle bore; a variable power source for the heater sections; and an actuator adapted to selectively activate none, one, or a plurality of said heater sections with an adjustable amount of power such that actuation of heater sections associated with only a portion of the entire nozzle bore perimeter produces an asymmetric application of heat to the stream to control the direction and the amount of deflection of the stream as a function of the amount of power of the activated heater sections.

Abstract: An apparatus for the ink cartridge of a jet printer, which mainly comprises an ink-storage container and a cylinder; the ink-storage container has a cylindrical body portion, of which the bottle mouth is furnished with a retaining ring and screw threads to be connected with a piston ring and a threaded cap respectively so as to store ink; one end of the cylindrical body portion is furnished with an outer body portion having a large diameter; the cylindrical body portion and the inner cylinder of the cylinder are assembled together; the piston ring of the bottle mouth is in close contact with the inner cylinder; the front end of the sealed surface of the cylinder is furnished with a tapered ink straw to be plugged and connected with a through hole of the ink cartridge; hold the outer surface of the cylinder, and then the thumb pushes the shoulder portion of the ink-storage container upwards so as to generate a negative pressure for replenishing ink into the ink cartridge.