Patents Examined by Jeremy Bishop
  • Patent number: 8801170
    Abstract: A method of producing a deinkable print on an image-bearing member includes transferring a toner image onto the image-bearing member to form a continuous or discontinuous toner image layer, wherein toner in the toner image is soluble in a hydrophobic or oliophilic organic solvent. An ink image corresponding to the toner image is printed onto the toner image on the image-bearing member, the ink including colorant in a hydrophilic carrier fluid, so that the colorant is disposed over the toner image layer. The toner image and ink image are fixed to the receiver. The image-bearing member has an unprinted reflection density and has a deinked reflection density at most 0.15 above the unprinted reflection density.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Thomas Nathaniel Tombs, Donald Saul Rimai
  • Patent number: 8789913
    Abstract: A color inkjet printing apparatus in which an image capturing part captures an image of a page identifier printed on each page of a printing medium, and an inspection part compares a page identification result acquired from an output of the image capturing part with page identification information included in print data. The page identifier includes single-color parts that are each printed with only one of a plurality of colors used in the printing apparatus. Thus, a printing defect can be quickly detected during inspection of the first page in which the printing defect has occurred, irrespective of the ink color in which the printing defect has occurred.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2014
    Assignee: Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Toshio Maeda
  • Patent number: 8783807
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a first nozzle group forming a main image; a second nozzle group ejecting auxiliary ink and lined up with the first nozzle group in a moving direction of the nozzle group; and a third nozzle group ejecting the auxiliary ink and positioned on a downstream side of a medium transport direction relative to the first nozzle group, in which ink is ejected from the first nozzle group on a region where the main image is formed in the image forming region on the medium in a first ejection operation, and auxiliary ink is ejected from the second nozzle group on a region where the main image is not formed in the image forming region, and, in an ejection operation after the first ejection operation, the auxiliary ink is ejected from the third nozzle group over the entire image forming region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yoshitaka Shimada
  • Patent number: 8786646
    Abstract: A light-emitting chip includes: a substrate; plural light-emitting elements arrayed in line on the substrate, each of the light-emitting elements including a light-emitting region having a length in an array direction of the array different from a length in a direction orthogonal to the array direction; and a light-up current supplying interconnection including plural connecting portions, each of the connecting portions being provided on the light-emitting region of a corresponding one of the light-emitting elements in a shorter direction of the light-emitting region either the array direction or the direction orthogonal to the array direction, each of the connecting portions being connected to an electrode provided on the light-emitting region, the light-up current supplying interconnection supplying a current for lighting up to the plural light-emitting elements through the plural connecting portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Taku Kinoshita, Yoshinao Kondoh, Seiji Ohno
  • Patent number: 8777353
    Abstract: A method of printing an image on a receiving medium includes increasing the number of pixels in each row of a part of the image by x pixels, resulting in the part of the image including m by n+x pixels; assigning a printing element to each added pixel; identifying pixels to which a compensating printing element of the defective printing element is assigned; changing the value of at least one identified pixel into an integer value greater than zero; increasing the first printer resolution in the main-scanning direction to a second printer resolution by multiplying the first printer resolution in the main-scanning direction with a factor equal to (n+x)/n; and printing the part of the image according to the second printer resolution in the main-scanning direction and according to the values of the pixels of the part of the image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2014
    Assignee: OCE-Technologies B.V.
    Inventor: Paul Kuiper
  • Patent number: 8780159
    Abstract: An optical scanner includes a light source, an optical element, a deflector, a casing, and a first cover. The deflector deflects the light beam emitted from the light source to scan a photoreceptor through the optical element. The casing includes an upper opening, walls including a transparent plate defining a deflector compartment to accommodate the deflector, and an optical element mounting portion to accommodate the light source and the optical element. The first cover covers the upper opening of the casing and includes a recessed portion recessed toward the bottom of the casing and including a first opening at the bottom thereof facing the deflector. The recessed portion and the walls are directly or indirectly connected to define a single continuous space isolating the deflector compartment from the optical element mounting portion. The recessed portion and the deflector compartment communicate via the first opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2014
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Keiichi Serizawa, Takeshi Yamakawa, Kazunori Watanabe
  • Patent number: 8764143
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a plurality of heads, each of which includes a capacitive load used as an actuator for discharging ink; a drive-voltage generating circuit that outputs a drive voltage to be applied to the actuator and includes a plurality of current amplifying circuits; and a plurality of head drivers that control the actuators of the heads. Each of the current amplifying circuits is configured to include a plurality of bipolar transistors and to operate so as to equalize output current loads of the bipolar transistors included in the current amplifying circuits, and waveforms of the drive voltages output from the current amplifying circuits are combined to form a combined waveform of the drive voltages to be applied to each of the head drivers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Limited
    Inventor: Yuji Ieiri
  • Patent number: 8767028
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus having: a light source for emitting a beam; a deflector for deflecting the beam; a light receiving element for receiving the beam and generating a detection signal; a converter for converting electric potentials of the detection signal into data values and generating time data associated with the data values; and a first calculator for calculating a position of center of the beam from the data values and the time data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Daisuke Fujita, Shinpei Arino
  • Patent number: 8764166
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting head includes a main liquid ejecting head body, in which is formed a liquid flow channel through which a liquid flows, that ejects the liquid from a nozzle opening using a pressurizing unit; a driving board configured so as to supply power to the pressurizing unit; a connector provided at an end portion of the driving board; and a holding member configured so as to hold the driving board in a bent state and erected relative to one end surface of the main liquid ejecting head body. The holding member has a stopping portion that holds an end of the driving board in which the connector is provided, and the configuration is such that the stopping portion prevents the driving board from opening in the direction of the bend.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroki Miyajima, Kimiyasu Otsuki
  • Patent number: 8764151
    Abstract: A method for image correction preserves edges in image data stored in a printing system. The method identifies edge image data values within a plurality of image data values and excludes the identified edge image data values from the dithering of the image data values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: David Allen Mantell
  • Patent number: 8752922
    Abstract: Provided herein are devices, methods and other means, including those related to printers, as well as computer readable media for storing code to execute instructions for a device, and other systems for providing and supporting mobile printing and other types of devices. The printer, for example, can be coupled with one or more docks and/or other accessory devices, examples of which are also discussed herein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: ZIH Corp.
    Inventors: Michael L. Lamontagne, Hussam Eassa, David F. Beck, Scott E. Lane, Patrick J. Hegarty, Michael Cranston, Craig A. Horrocks, John Stevens, James Phillips, Kevin M. Lemoi, Gregory J. Klein, Roy P. Lyman, Matthew D. Corvese
  • Patent number: 8736645
    Abstract: A printhead and related fabrication method are described with the printhead including a spacer layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2014
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Napoleon J. Leoni, Omer Gila, Cary G. Addington, Paul H. McClelland, Henryk Birecki
  • Patent number: 8730290
    Abstract: A light source includes a plurality of light-emitting units arranged in a two-dimensional array. An optical element changes divergence angles of laser beams from the light-emitting units. A splitting element splits a part of each of the laser beams passing through the optical element. A compensating element compensates for a fluctuation in the divergence angle of each of the laser beams incident on the splitting element due to a change of temperature. A light-receiving element receives laser beams split by the splitting element. The light source, the optical element, the splitting element, the compensating element, and the light-receiving element are integrally supported.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Nobuaki Kubo
  • Patent number: 8723907
    Abstract: Since a photodiode (PD) is disposed in the vicinity of the plurality of light emitting elements and, therefore, the PD also receives a laser beam emitted only by a bias current during the APC period, setting a bias current based on a result of light amount detection by the PD does not result in a bias current setting with sufficient accuracy. To solve this issue, an electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an electrostatic latent image pattern on a photosensitive drum, and controls the value of the bias current set for a first light emitting element based on the potential of the electrostatic latent image pattern and a detecting result of the PD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Satoru Takezawa
  • Patent number: 8721020
    Abstract: The throughput of a serial printer is improved. A inkjet printer 100 has a print unit that prints on a print medium; a first transportation unit that conveys the print medium in the primary scanning direction; a second transportation unit that conveys the print unit in a secondary scanning direction substantially perpendicular to the primary scanning direction; and a control unit that controls the transportation operations of the first and second transportation units, so that the time required to move the print unit from the stop-printing position where the print unit finishes printing one print area to the start-printing position where transportation for printing the next print area starts is shortest. The control unit also determines a transportation range that may include the print unit going beyond the stop-printing position when the print unit prints the one print area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Masayuki Akizuki, Masayuki Nakagawa, Yoshiki Ushiyama, Katsunori Takeuchi
  • Patent number: 8702189
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus including: a head having an ejection face having ejection openings for ejecting liquid onto a recording medium; a convey belt that has a support region for supporting the recording medium and a preliminary ejection region onto which the liquid is ejected in preliminary ejection and that conveys the recording medium in a conveying direction, wherein the preliminary ejection is ejection not contributing to image recording; and a controller which controls the head and the convey belt based on preliminary ejection data such that, until a specific length of time has passed from the ejection of the liquid onto the preliminary ejection region, liquid is landed on a position in the preliminary ejection region in current ejection, which position does not overlap at least one position of the liquid landed after the ejection of the liquid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2014
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Junji Watanabe
  • Patent number: 8698860
    Abstract: An image forming device includes a photoconductive body, an exposure unit configured with a plurality of light emitting elements aligned in a predetermined direction, the exposure unit being adopted to expose the photoconductive body to light emitted by the light emitting elements, a frame configured to support both sides of the exposure unit in the predetermined direction, the frame having a reference portion configured to position the exposure unit in the predetermined direction in contact with an end of the exposure unit in the predetermined direction, and a pressing member provided to one of the frame and the exposure unit, the pressing member being configured to press the end of the exposure unit against the reference portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yosuke Sugiyama, Junichi Yokoi
  • Patent number: 8684485
    Abstract: A printing device includes a nozzle row for chromatic ink comprising K nozzles and a nozzle row for achromatic ink comprising (n·K) nozzles. In a color region, an image-forming operation is performed m times in which the movement direction of the nozzle rows switches alternately between forward and reverse directions, whereby a region of the image having a predetermined width is formed. The image-forming operation performed m times includes the image-forming operation performed once in which both of the nozzle rows for chromatic ink and for achromatic ink are used, and the image-forming operation performed (m?1) times in which only the nozzle row for chromatic ink is used. In a monochrome region, the image-forming operation is performed once in which only the nozzle row for achromatic ink is used, whereby a region of the image having a predetermined width is formed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Akito Sato, Bunji Ishimoto, Takahide Miyashita, Katsuhiko Sugiyama, Yasuhiro Takeuchi
  • Patent number: 8687030
    Abstract: There is provided an exposing device which includes an elongated optical head in which a plurality of light emitting portions are arranged, and a supporting member to which the optical head is adhered. The optical head and the supporting member are adhered by a first adhesive, and a second adhesive of which a modulus of elasticity after curing is lower than that of the first adhesive. The second adhesive is applied in a second adhesive area which is located at a boundary between the optical head and the supporting member and which is longer, in a longitudinal direction of the optical head, than a first adhesive area which is located at the boundary and to which the first adhesive is applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2014
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Taizo Matsuura
  • Patent number: 8678533
    Abstract: A method comprises selecting a first and second datum stored in an array of image data and corresponding to a first and second defective inkjet ejector, the second defective inkjet ejector being within a search pattern positioned about the first datum, modifying the search pattern positioned about the first datum in response to detection of the second datum being within the search pattern positioned about the first datum, identifying a third datum stored in the array of image data and being within the modified search pattern positioned about the first datum, the third datum corresponding to a first functional inkjet ejector, modifying the third datum with reference to the first datum, and operating the first functional inkjet ejector with reference to the modified third datum to compensate for the first defective inkjet ejector being unable to eject ink corresponding to the first datum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: David Allen Mantell