Patents Examined by Jason Uhlenhake
  • Patent number: 9475321
    Abstract: A judgment reference data having a resolution lower than a nozzle resolution in a nozzle arranging direction is generated based on input image data. The judgment reference data and read data acquired by reading a printed image are compared to judge whether the printed image has color unevenness or not.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shinsuke Ikegami, Akira Kuronuma, Kenji Kubozono
  • Patent number: 9475291
    Abstract: An image recording device includes a support member, a print head, a maintenance unit, a first guide mechanism and a second guide mechanism. The first guide mechanism is configured to guide movement of the print head between the image recording position and the maintenance-receiving position. The second guide mechanism is configured to guide movement of the maintenance unit between a withdrawn position for separating away from the print head and a maintenance position for drawing nearer to the print head than the withdrawn position while the maintenance unit faces the print head disposed at the maintenance-receiving position. A surface of the maintenance unit facing the print head when the maintenance unit is at the withdrawn position is disposed farther away from the print head in a movement direction of the maintenance unit than a portion of the support surface that is disposed closest to the print head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Akihisa Wanibe
  • Patent number: 9475292
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting head includes generating chambers communicating with nozzles, a manifold communicating with the pressure generating chambers, a flexible member that has a compliance region, which is able to perform deflection in response to pressure fluctuation in the manifold, a compliance space disposed on a side opposite to the manifold through the flexible member, a cap member facing the flexible member through the compliance space; a frame-like member disposed between the flexible member and the cap member, and an island-like member to be disposed in the compliance region and separated from the frame-like member. One surface of the frame-like member faces the flexible member and the other surface faces the cap member. In a direction in which the flexible member and the cap member face each other, the island-like member is thinner in thickness than the frame-like member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Takahiro Kanegae, Katsuhiro Okubo, Hiroshige Owaki, Takashi Kato
  • Patent number: 9463628
    Abstract: A waste ink absorber is for absorbing waste ink discharged from a head for ejecting ink. In a side cross-sectional view of the waste ink absorber, a portion low in density and a portion high in density as compared with the portion low in density are laid alternately and obliquely such that the portion low in density and the portion high in density appear alternately on each surface of the waste ink absorber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hidehiro Takano, Shunichi Seki
  • Patent number: 9463631
    Abstract: An ink-jet recording apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a recording portion, a wipe unit, a cleaning mechanism, a wipe moving-up/down mechanism, a transfer surface moving mechanism, and a control portion. The wipe unit has a wipe blade that wipes purged ink that is forcibly discharged from an ejecting nozzle. The cleaning mechanism has a cleaning member onto which ink adhering to a tip end surface of the wipe blade is transferred. The control portion controls the wipe moving-up/down mechanism to force the wipe blade to repeat contacting and leaving a plurality of times the transfer surface of the cleaning member substantially vertically to remove the ink present on the tip end surface of the wipe blade, and controls the transfer surface moving mechanism in such a manner that the tip end surface of the wipe blade contacts a clean portion of the transfer surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Tetsuo Tanda
  • Patent number: 9446598
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method and an apparatus for controlling light emission of an ink cartridge. The method includes: an ink cartridge control unit (304), configured to receive a light emitting control instruction from an imaging device main body and identifying the instruction; the ink cartridge control unit (304), configured to control light emission of a light emitting unit (303) of the ink cartridge (10) according to the identified light emitting control instruction and preset control information corresponding to the light emitting control instruction so that the light emitting unit (303) does not emit light at an adjacent position light detection stage but emits light at an facing position light detection stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2016
    Assignee: ZHUHAI NINESTAR MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Lei Qin, Zhizheng Jia, Weichen Liu, Yuedan Liang
  • Patent number: 9440442
    Abstract: In one example, a datuming system to position a printhead assembly relative to a component external to the printhead assembly includes first primary datum points and second primary datum points. The first primary datum points establish a first datum plane to position the printhead assembly relative to a first component external to the printhead assembly. The second primary datum points establish a second datum plane to position the printhead assembly relative to a second component external to the printhead assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Joseph Sheffelin, Daneil Gonzalez Perello, Joaquim Brugue Garvi, Rafael Ulacia Portoles
  • Patent number: 9440434
    Abstract: A printer attenuates banding visual defects arising from a lack of flatness in media as ink is ejected onto the media. The printer includes a detector that generates a signal corresponding to the slope in the media and a controller that modulates a volume of the ink drops ejected by one or more printheads in the vicinity of the slope in the media.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Douglas K. Herrmann, Jason M. LeFevre, Derek A. Bryl
  • Patent number: 9427957
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes: a modulation circuit that generates a modulated signal obtained by performing pulse modulation on a source signal; a transistor that amplifies the modulated signal to generate an amplified modulated signal; a lowpass filer that smoothes the amplified modulated signal to generate a driving signal; a piezoelectric element that is displaced when the driving signal is applied; and a circuit substrate on which the modulation circuit, the transistor, and the lowpass filter are mounted. The transistor includes a die, a first electrode, a second electrode, a third electrode, a conductive die pad, a first lead which is electrically connected to the second electrode by a bonding wire, and a second lead which is electrically connected to the third electrode by a bonding wire. The die pad, the first lead, and the second lead are electrically connected to different wiring patterns of the circuit substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Akira Abe, Hiroshi Sugita
  • Patent number: 9427971
    Abstract: A printer includes a head, a wiper, a cap, a supply flow path, a supply opening/closing valve, a gas channel, a gas opening/closing valve, a waste fluid flow path, a suction portion, and a processor. The processor is configured to set a covered state in which the cap covers the at least one nozzle, supply the cleaning fluid to the cap, in the covered state, by opening the supply opening/closing valve, closing the gas opening/closing valve, and driving the suction portion, discharge the cleaning fluid, in the covered state, by closing the supply opening/closing valve, opening the gas opening/closing valve, and driving the suction portion, set an uncovered state in which covering the at least one nozzle by the cap is released, and cause the wiper to slide in contact with the nozzle surface, in the uncovered state, by moving the wiper relatively with respect to the nozzle surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Haruo Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 9427956
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment, a drive method for an ink jet head comprising: a drive pulse, applying a first pulse for increasing and then restoring the volume of a pressure chamber and giving pressure vibration to the chamber in which ink are accommodated, and then a second pulse for reducing and then restoring the volume of the pressure chamber to an actuator arranged corresponding to the pressure chamber; wherein the second pulse is turned on at first point of time causing the pressure vibration amplitude at second point of time to be the same with that of generated by the first pulse when the first pulse is turned on, wherein the second point of time is the time when flow velocity of the ink nearby the nozzle inside the pressure chamber becomes 0 after the first point of time, and the second pulse is turned off at the second point of time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignees: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA, TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Noboru Nitta, Takashi Norigoe
  • Patent number: 9421774
    Abstract: An inkjet recording apparatus includes a conveyance section, a recording head, a maintenance mechanism, and a control section. The conveyance section conveys a recording medium. The recording head discharges ink droplets toward the recording medium while the conveyance section conveys the recording medium. The maintenance mechanism performs maintenance on the recording head. The control section causes the maintenance mechanism to operate upon determination that a width of a next recording target recording medium is greater than a width of a recording medium subjected to image recording prior to the next recording target recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Satoshi Tsunemi, Shinji Yoshinaga, Takeshi Watanabe, Hiroatsu Tamai, Hidenori Takenaka, Jumpei Hobo, Tomohisa Soda
  • Patent number: 9421803
    Abstract: A screening output density corrector of an image processor corrects output densities of a plurality of types of dotted pattern data stored in a screening data storage upon printing. A dotted image data generator uses a plurality of types of the dotted pattern data subjected to the output density correction for performing screening processing to each of images, the images being represented by the continuous tone image data. Consequently, the dotted image data generator generates dotted image data of the images with the corrected output density. Accordingly, output density correction is made not to the continuous tone image data but to the dotted pattern data. Consequently, uniformity of the discharge characteristic (the number of ink droplets) is obtainable upon printing with different types of dotted pattern data. This allows prevention of unevenness in printing through the screening processing based on a plurality of types of dotted pattern data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignees: Screen Holdings Co., Ltd., Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kazuki Fukui, Seiya Nomura, Kunio Muraji
  • Patent number: 9421769
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting head includes a liquid ejecting head main body that has a nozzle group that is formed by arranging a plurality of nozzles, which eject a liquid, in parallel, and that ejects a liquid from each nozzle, and a fixation member to which the liquid ejecting head main body is fixed. The fixation member has a fixation part to which the liquid ejecting head main body is fixed and a reference surface that is formed on a side opposite fixation part, and which includes a reference part serving as reference for a positioning the liquid ejecting head main body with respect to an installation target, and a position adjusting part adjusting the relative position between the reference surface and the nozzle group is provided between the liquid ejecting head main body and the fixation part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroshige Owaki, Hiroyuki Ishii
  • Patent number: 9421770
    Abstract: A printing apparatus prints by discharging inks from respective nozzle arrays, the printhead having a plurality of nozzle arrays including at least a first nozzle array, a second nozzle array, and a third nozzle array, and the first nozzle array and the second nozzle array being arrayed to be shifted in a nozzle arrayed direction. The printing apparatus controls the first and second nozzle arrays to discharge inks to form a plurality of first patterns. The printing apparatus controls the third nozzle array to discharge inks to form second patterns while changing a shift amount in a direction which intersects with the nozzle arrayed direction with respect to the plurality of first patterns. The printing apparatus calculates an adjustment value required to adjust relative printing positions between the first nozzle array and the third nozzle array in the intersecting direction using the first patterns and the second patterns.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shingo Nishioka, Akihiro Tomida, Yoshinori Nakajima, Naoki Uchida
  • Patent number: 9409405
    Abstract: A sub-tank is pressurized by a pump, with head valves closed. Then, one of the head valves is opened to perform a first purge on a first head. After the one head valve is closed, a different one of the head valves is opened to perform a second purge on a second head different from the first head. After these purges, an open-to-atmosphere valve is opened, with the head valves closed, to decrease the pressures inside the heads which are increased by the purges. This allows a selective purge on only a head which requires a purge. As a result, the amount of ink forced out is suppressed during the pressurized purges. After the sub-tank is made open to the atmosphere, a depressurizing pump depressurizes the sub-tank to form ink menisci in the heads. This prevents air bubbles from being drawn into nozzles during the formation of the ink menisci in the nozzles after the purges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2016
    Assignee: SCREEN HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yuichi Nagase, Tamio Fukui, Muneaki Kitaoji
  • Patent number: 9405254
    Abstract: Described herein is a device that generates a beam of light with uniform intensity. The device includes an array of light sources. The light generated passes through a beam splitter. One beam is used for feedback to maintain uniform intensity. The other beam passes through a barrel which is used to mold the beam with uniform intensity into the desired shape and to reduce divergence. The device can be used as part of a quality control system for testing a photoreceptor drum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2016
    Assignee: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Markus R. Silvestri, Edward A. Domm, Mario Errico, Charles Hubert Henry Howes, Martin John Hinckel, Surendar Jeyadev, Nancy L. Belknap
  • Patent number: 9393810
    Abstract: When a medium is located immediately under a distance sensor in printing, a controller of a printer acquires a distance from the medium to a first irradiator and a second irradiator in a direction orthogonal to a relative movement direction in which the medium moves relative to a liquid ejecting head, on the basis of a detection signal from the distance sensor. On the basis of the distance, the controller changes relative positions of irradiation ranges irradiated with light from the first irradiator and the second irradiator on the medium so as to define relative positions of the irradiation ranges such that the degree of overlapping between the irradiation ranges and the distance between the irradiation ranges do not increase significantly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Mitsuteru Aoyama
  • Patent number: 9393807
    Abstract: A recording section that performs recording on a recording medium, a static eliminator that eliminates static electricity from the recording medium, and a moving section that moves the static eliminator with respect to the recording section are provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Daisuke Miyashita
  • Patent number: 9393820
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting head including a head which discharges ink from a nozzle surface on which a nozzle is included based on data, a signal line which sends data to the head via a connector, a carriage on which the head is mounted, and a first concave section and second concave section which accommodate the signal line and are included toward the outside of the carriage, in which the signal line is connected to the connector lined up with a terminal in the Y direction, and a position of a folded portion of the signal line which is accommodated in the first concave section and the second concave section overlaps with a fourth portion to a fifth portion which are a section of the carriage, and overlaps with a first portion to a second portion which are a section of the head in the X direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Haruki Kobayashi, Yoshiyuki Okazawa