Patents Examined by Lam S Nguyen
  • Patent number: 11345154
    Abstract: The inkjet printing apparatus includes: a printing unit to eject ink; a wiping unit capable of wiping an ejection opening surface by moving relative to the ejection opening surface with an opening, adapted to be in contact with the ejection opening surface, put in contact with the ejection opening surface; a suction unit connected to the wiping unit and configured to apply negative pressure to the ejection opening surface via the opening; a moving unit to move the wiping unit relative to the ejection opening surface; and a control unit to perform suction wiping operation by wiping the ejection opening surface with the wiping unit while applying negative pressure to the ejection opening surface. The control unit determines the timing to perform the suction wiping operation, and, according to the timing, determines a moving speed of the moving unit and a pressure value caused by the suction unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takahiro Kiuchi, Noriko Sato, Hiroshi Nakai, Takashi Sasaki, Takatoshi Nakano, Atsushi Takahashi, Takuya Fukasawa, Yoshinori Nakagawa
  • Patent number: 11345144
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a liquid ejecting head ejecting a liquid by supplying a drive signal to a drive element, and a drive circuit that outputs the drive signal. The drive circuit includes an integrated circuit that outputs an amplification control signal, an amplifier circuit that output an amplified modulation signal, and a demodulation circuit that output the drive signal. The integrated circuit includes a modulation circuit that modulates the base drive signal to output a modulation signal, a switching circuit that outputs the amplification control signal according to the modulation signal, and a constant voltage output circuit that outputs a DC voltage signal based on the output of the modulation circuit. The constant voltage output circuit and the modulation circuit are electrically coupled to each other, and at least a part of the constant voltage output circuit is located between the modulation circuit and the switching circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Tomokazu Yamada
  • Patent number: 11338579
    Abstract: A printing apparatus according to an embodiment of this present invention includes a printhead with an orifice for discharging ink, and a recovery unit configured to perform recovery of the printhead by driving a print element of the printhead to discharge ink from the orifice. The apparatus makes a setting for a request for discharge recovery by the recovery unit after initialization processing performed upon power-on of the printing apparatus, and controls the recovery unit to execute one of first discharge recovery and second discharge recovery in which an ink discharge amount is smaller than in the first discharge recovery in accordance with the setting before a start of printing by the printhead.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoko Yaita, Kei Kosaka
  • Patent number: 11338577
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a print head that includes a first terminal and a second terminal, a first circuit substrate electrically coupled to the print head, and a second circuit substrate electrically coupled to the first circuit substrate, wherein the first circuit substrate includes a first coupling terminal electrically coupled to the print head, and a first electrolytic capacitor, wherein the second circuit substrate includes a constant voltage output circuit that outputs a constant voltage signal supplied to the second terminal, a first output terminal that is electrically coupled to the first circuit substrate, and a second output terminal that is electrically coupled to the first circuit substrate, and through which the constant voltage signal is output to the first circuit substrate, wherein the first electrolytic capacitor is electrically coupled to the second output terminal and the first coupling terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Inventor: Dai Nozawa
  • Patent number: 11331908
    Abstract: A liquid ejection head unit includes an ejection unit that ejects a liquid, a first wire configured to supply a fixed potential used for driving the ejection unit, a second wire configured to transmit a pulse signal that defines an ejection timing of the liquid in the ejection unit, a first counter whose count value changes based on a potential change in the first wire, a second counter whose count value changes based on a potential change in the second wire, and an ejection restriction unit that restricts an ejection operation of the liquid in the ejection unit according to a count value of the first counter and a count value of the second counter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsuya Sato, Shuichi Nakano
  • Patent number: 11331914
    Abstract: A droplet discharging apparatus that discharges liquid droplets from one or more nozzles based on drive waveforms, includes a memory and a processor configured to execute generating, as the drive waveforms, a first drive waveform, and a second drive waveform to change a drive voltage without discharging the liquid droplets; and controlling to output one set of drive waveforms including a predetermined number of instances of the first drive waveform and one instance of the second drive waveform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Norimasa Sohgawa
  • Patent number: 11331913
    Abstract: A drive circuit for a liquid ejecting device, such as an inkjet print head or the like, includes a load detection circuit to generate load number information corresponding to the number of actuators to be concurrently driven for an intended liquid ejection. A signal processing circuit is configured to compare a common drive waveform to a target common drive waveform, and then generate a common drive signal to drive the actuators based on the load number information and the comparison of the common drive waveform and the target common drive waveform. A switching circuit is configured to selectively apply portions the generated common drive signal to an actuator according to intended output of the liquid ejection device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Noboru Nitta
  • Patent number: 11325376
    Abstract: A drive circuit includes a drive signal output circuit that outputs a drive signal supplied to the piezoelectric element and a first constant voltage signal that is constant at a first voltage value; a switch circuit having one end electrically coupled to an output terminal of the drive signal output circuit and the other end electrically coupled to the first terminal of the piezoelectric element, and a reference voltage signal output circuit that is electrically coupled to the second terminal of the piezoelectric element and outputs a second constant voltage signal which is constant at a second voltage value, in which before the reference voltage signal output circuit starts to output the second constant voltage signal, the one end and the other end of the switch circuit are controlled to be non-conductive, and the drive signal output circuit outputs the first constant voltage signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2022
    Inventors: Toru Kashimura, Yoichiro Kondo, Tetsuo Takagi
  • Patent number: 11325377
    Abstract: A digital printing system (10) includes a print head (622) and a processor (20). The print head is configured to jet droplets of ink. The processor is further configured to translate a required shade of a color, to be printed at a given location on a substrate by tire print head, into a sequence of pulses (625, 630), the sequence including: (a) up to a predefined maximum number of driving pulses (625) that cause the print head to jet respective droplets, and (b) a tickling pulse (630), which has a smaller amplitude than the driving pulses and which causes the print head to jet a droplet smaller than the droplets jetted in response to the driving pulses. The processor is additionally configured to apply the sequence of pulses to the print head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2022
    Assignee: LANDA CORPORATION LTD.
    Inventors: Haggai Karlinski, Yishai Castel
  • Patent number: 11318737
    Abstract: A fluidic die includes primitives arranged to form a number of primitive zones, each primitive zone including a memory to store adjustment data, and at least one signal adjuster to receive a fire signal, and to adjust the received fire signal based on the stored adjustment data to provide an adjusted fire signal to each primitive of the primitive zone. The fluidic die includes an address bus and a set of data lines, each data line corresponding to a different one of the primitives. Mode circuitry directs address data from the address bus to each primitive and print data from each data line to the corresponding primitive when a mode signal has a first value, and directs data representing adjustment data from one of the address bus and the set of data lines to at least one of the memories when the mode signal has a second value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Vincent C. Korthuis, Rodrigo N. Henriquez, Eric T. Martin
  • Patent number: 11318741
    Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes a head, a sensor, a motor, and control circuitry. The head is configured to discharge liquid in a plurality of times of scanning. The sensor is configured to measure a density of a region formed with the liquid discharged in first scanning among the plurality of times of scanning. The motor is configured to move a measurement position at which the sensor performs measurement. The control circuitry is configured to control discharge of the head in second scanning performed after the first scanning among the plurality of times of scanning, based on the measurement position and the density measured at the measurement position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Hiroki Takahashi
  • Patent number: 11318736
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a differential signal output circuit that outputs a pair of differential signals based on an original control signal, a pair of first signal wirings that are electrically coupled to the differential signal output circuit and propagate the differential signals, a first receiving circuit that is electrically coupled to the first signal wirings, a second receiving circuit that is electrically coupled to the first signal wirings, and an ejector that includes a drive element and that ejects a liquid from a nozzle by driving the drive element, in which the first receiving circuit outputs a control signal for controlling driving of the drive element based on the differential signals, power consumption of the first receiving circuit is larger than power consumption of the second receiving circuit, and the first receiving circuit and the second receiving circuit are electrically coupled by a second signal wiring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Inventors: Kazuhito Fujisawa, Atsushi Obinata
  • Patent number: 11312133
    Abstract: A drive waveform acquisition unit that acquires a drive waveform; a drive voltage generation unit that generates a drive voltage; and a drive voltage supply unit that supplies the drive voltage are included. The drive waveform acquisition unit acquires an overflow waveform used to generate an overflow drive voltage. The drive voltage generation unit generates the overflow drive voltage including one or more overflow pulses corresponding to a period of 0.2 seconds or more and 90 seconds or less. The overflow pulses have a pulse width of 1.2 times or more and 1.8 times or less and an amplitude of 0.3 times or more and 0.8 times or less, and at least one of a rising period or a falling period of 0.3 times or less with respect to a jetting pulse.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Yuichi Ozaki, Baku Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 11312132
    Abstract: There is provided a head driving device for causing a head to discharge droplets. The device includes a drive circuit, a first drive waveform generation circuit, a second drive waveform generation circuit, and a correction circuit. The drive circuit is configured to drive the head based on a plurality of drive waveforms to discharge the droplets. The first drive waveform generation circuit configured to generate a first drive waveform of the plurality of drive waveforms. The second drive waveform generation circuit is configured to generate a second drive waveform of the plurality of drive waveforms. The correction circuit is configured to correct the first drive waveform and the second drive waveform with reference to an intermediate potential.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Tomohiro Mizutani, Katsuhiro Tobita, Toshihiro Tsukagoshi, Takatsugu Maeda
  • Patent number: 11305538
    Abstract: A microstructure including a minute structural part is manufactured by transferring a laminate including a photosensitive resin composition onto a substrate having an opening and patterning the laminate. The laminate includes a first layer that includes a first resin composition and a second layer that includes a second resin composition, each of the first and second resin compositions being a negative type photosensitive resin composition including a cationically polymerizable compound having an epoxy group. The laminate is transferred such that the second layer faces the substrate. The first resin composition is in a liquid state and the second resin composition is in a liquid state in the course of transferring the laminate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Satoshi Tsutsui
  • Patent number: 11305567
    Abstract: A hardware detection system according to one example includes a moveable contact body to contact a hardware item to be detected; an switching unit operatively coupled to the contact body; a reset device operatively coupled to the switching unit; and a control unit to receive a signal from the switching unit in response to a movement of the contact body and to issue a signal to the reset device in response to the signal from the switching unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Lorena Fernandez Llorens, Roque Bonilla Lucas, Pau Serra
  • Patent number: 11305566
    Abstract: A recording apparatus including: a recording head that includes an ejection component that ejects a liquid; a circulation unit configured to perform a circulation operation of circulating the liquid in a circulation route including the recording head; a cleaning mechanism that performs a cleaning process with respect to the recording head; and a preliminary ejection unit configured to perform a preliminary ejection operation of preliminarily ejecting the liquid from the ejection component. The cleaning mechanism performs the cleaning process in a state in which circulation of the liquid is stopped, and at least one of the circulation operation by the circulation unit and the preliminary ejection operation by the preliminary ejection unit is performed after the cleaning process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takuya Fukasawa, Takatoshi Nakano, Atsushi Takahashi, Yoshinori Nakagawa
  • Patent number: 11298962
    Abstract: An ink jet recording apparatus which is able to be operated by communication from a higher-level device includes a printing head that ejects ink, a communication unit which is able to perform communicating with the higher-level device, a program storage unit that stores a program, and a printing control unit that controls the printing head, and the program storage unit includes a communication program storage area in which a program corresponding to a predetermined communication protocol is stored in advance, and the program storage unit includes an extension area in which a program corresponding to a communication protocol different from the predetermined communication protocol is installable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Keisuke Okawa, Takashi Kawano
  • Patent number: 11298939
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a drive signal output circuit, a control signal output circuit, a differential signal output circuit, and a head unit, in which the head unit includes an integrated circuit that receives a first drive signal and outputs a second drive signal, and an ejector that ejects liquid from nozzle, and the integrated circuit includes a drive signal input terminal that inputs a first drive signal, a first signal input terminal that inputs a first signal, a second signal input terminal that inputs a second signal, a differential signal receiving circuit that receives the first signal and the second signal, and outputs the control signal, a drive signal selection circuit that outputs the second drive signal based on the control signal and the first drive signal, and a drive signal output terminal that outputs the second drive signal to the ejector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Inventors: Tomokazu Yamada, Atsushi Obinata
  • Patent number: 11292248
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus includes a liquid ejection head that ejects a liquid by driving a drive element, a drive signal output circuit that outputs a drive signal for driving the drive element, and a substrate provided with the drive signal output circuit, wherein the drive signal output circuit includes a modulation circuit that modulates an original drive signal to output a modulation signal, an amplifier circuit that amplifies the modulation signal to output an amplified modulation signal, and a demodulation circuit that demodulates the amplified modulation signal to output the drive signal for driving the drive element, and wherein the demodulation circuit is located, on the substrate, between the modulation circuit and the amplifier circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Inventor: Dai Nozawa