Patents Examined by Leslie A. Nicholson, III
  • Patent number: 11111099
    Abstract: An equipment of accumulation of sheets forms a stack of sheets on an accumulation plane by means of driving belts and diverters arranged along the path of the sheets and jump on the accumulation plane. The height of the jump is modified by shifting vertically the accumulation plane with respect to the diverters according to number and/or thickness of the sheets. The diverters can be shifted according to the length of the sheets to be accumulated, while a series of arrest lugs delimits at the rear the area of collection of the sheets and a forwarding mechanism with a pair of output rollers forwards the stack of accumulated sheets when the lugs are released.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: Tecnau S.R.L.
    Inventors: Francesco Terrusi, Alberto Massucco
  • Patent number: 11111996
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems, gearing assemblies and methods for controlling a differential rotation rate between shafts of a vehicle using a variable speed motor. An embodiment includes a gearing assembly including a differential configured to engage a first axle shaft, a second axle shaft, and a drive shaft of a vehicle. The gearing assembly further includes a first plurality of adjustment gears and a second plurality of adjustment gears configured to engage the differential, configured to be driven by a variable speed reversible motor of the vehicle, and configured to controllably alter a rotation rate of a first axle shaft relative to a rotation rate of the second axle shaft based on rotation produced by the variable speed reversible motor. The first plurality of adjustment gears and the second plurality of adjustment gears each including stepped planetary gears.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Inventor: Shaun Chu
  • Patent number: 11104538
    Abstract: A method for producing a printed material includes providing pressure-induced phase transition particles to a part of an outside margin portion or a portion to be folded of a recording medium; bonding the pressure-induced phase transition particles to the recording medium; and pressure-bonding a multilayer body in which plural recording media are stacked, the recording media including the recording medium having the pressure-induced phase transition particles bonded thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Susumu Yoshino, Yoshifumi Iida, Satoshi Kamiwaki, Sakae Takeuchi, Satomi Kashiwagi, Sumiaki Yamasaki, Takahiro Ishizuka, Shigeru Seitoku, Kiyohiro Yamanaka
  • Patent number: 11104539
    Abstract: A postprocessing apparatus includes a horizontal alignment plate, a binder, a tray, and a shift actuator assembly. The horizontal alignment plate is positioned to align sheets in a sheet width direction. The binder binds sheets to form bound sheet bundles. The bound sheet bundles are stacked on the tray. The shift actuator assembly shifts the bound sheet bundles in the sheet width direction. A postprocessing controller controls the shift actuator assembly to shift the bound sheet bundles such that swollen portions of the bound sheet bundles are shifted inward of the horizontal alignment plate in the sheet width direction when the processed sheets are piled on the tray to the vicinity of the horizontal alignment plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Yoshiaki Sugizaki
  • Patent number: 11104175
    Abstract: A sheet processing apparatus includes a stapler, a translating actuator, a rotating actuator, and a controller. The stapler is configured to bind a plurality of sheets together. The translating actuator is configured to translate the stapler. The rotating actuator is coupled to the translating actuator and configured to rotate the stapler. The controller is configured to (a) receive an instruction input, (b) determine a target position and a target angle of the stapler based on the instruction input, (c) control the translating actuator to move the stapler to the target position, (d) control the rotating actuator to rotate the stapler to the target angle, and (e) control the stapler to bind the plurality of sheets together while the stapler is at the target position and the target angle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Taguchi, Shoichi Dobashi
  • Patent number: 11104537
    Abstract: A first unit includes a receiving portion that receives a medium to be processed, a drying unit that processes the medium received from the receiving portion, and an end stitching unit that processes the medium received from the receiving portion or the medium processed by the drying unit. The processing performed by the drying unit is processing of drying the medium, the drying unit is located vertically below the end stitching unit, and the drying unit and the end stitching unit have a portion overlapping when viewed in a vertical direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Yutaro Harada, Kohei Ueno, Nobuyuki Mizushima, Shunpei Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 11097919
    Abstract: A recording material processing apparatus includes first teeth that are used for binding processing of a recording material bundle; second teeth that move along a linear route toward the first teeth and presses the recording material bundle located between the first teeth and the second teeth; and a guide portion that is disposed along the linear route and guides the second teeth moving toward the first teeth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2021
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Masashi Matsumoto, Hideaki Ozawa, Yutaka Nobe, Takayuki Uchiyama, Takayuki Fukamachi, Takuya Makita, Naoto Terao, Hiroshi Kato, Mitsuhiro Nakamura
  • Patent number: 11092233
    Abstract: A planetary carrier includes a plurality of pinion gears, a plurality of pinion shafts that are each inserted in the corresponding pinion gear, a first supporting plate that supports one end of each of the pinion shafts, a second supporting plate that supports the other end of each of the pinion shafts, and a plurality of bridge plates, one end of each of which is joined to the first supporting plate via a welding portion and the other end of each of which is joined to the second supporting plate via a welding portion and which connects the first and second supporting plates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: AISIN AW CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Takashi Iwama, Takaaki Kawashima, Junya Abe, Yuuji Esaki
  • Patent number: 11091344
    Abstract: A medium transport device includes a feed roller pair, a stack portion that receives a medium transported by the feed roller pair between a support surface for supporting the medium in an inclined posture in which a downstream side in a transport direction is directed downward and an opposing surface opposing the support surface and stacks the medium, an alignment portion that aligns a downstream end of the medium stacked in the stack portion, and a control unit that controls a distance between the support surface and the opposing surface, in which the stack portion is configured to be capable of changing the distance and the control unit adjusts the distance according to a condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kohei Ueno, Nobuyuki Mizushima, Yutaro Harada, Shunpei Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 11092922
    Abstract: A binding device includes a pressing member that has a first tooth, which forms unevenness in a recording material bundle, and a second tooth, which is paired with the first tooth and forms unevenness in the recording material bundle, and presses the recording material bundle with the recording material bundle sandwiched between the first tooth and the second tooth and a control unit that performs control such that pressing is released after a timing when a load on the pressing member decreases from start of pressing of the recording material bundle by the pressing member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Masashi Matsumoto, Yutaka Nobe, Hideaki Ozawa
  • Patent number: 11085511
    Abstract: A positively-engaged infinitely-variable transmission (PE-IVT) system employs a gear assembly including a first helical gear and a second helical gear meshed with the first helical gear. The first helical gear is divided into a plurality of gear segments that can individually move axially along a spline shaft. The PE-IVT system further includes a swashplate configured to constrain the axial motion of the plurality of gear segments. In some embodiments, the system further includes one or more thread-aligners configured to axially align a gear segment with one or more additional gear segments. In some embodiments, the second helical gear is also divided into a plurality of gear segments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Inventor: Ethan Brush
  • Patent number: 11073203
    Abstract: A spindle is radially and axially compact. An impact wrench includes a motor, a sun gear rotatable by the motor, a planetary gear meshing with the sun gear, an internal gear meshing with the planetary gear, a gear case holding the internal gear, a spindle holding the planetary gear, and a first bearing located between the gear case and the spindle, and supporting the spindle on an outer circumference and the gear case on an inner circumference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: MAKITA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tatsuo Nakashima
  • Patent number: 11072511
    Abstract: A sheet pressing device includes a carry-in port that receives a Z-folded sheet having two folds; an additional folding roller disposed downstream of the carry-in port to press the fold; a lower folding guide having a pedestal disposed opposite to the additional folding roller; a first moving mechanism that moves the additional folding roller between a pressing position at which the additional folding roller is made to approach the pedestal and a retreat position at which the additional folding roller is moved relative to the pedestal from the pressing position; a second moving mechanism that moves the additional folding roller along the fold; and a control part. The control part controls the second moving mechanism so as to increase the number of times the additional folding roller is moved along the fold when a sheet section is positioned between the additional folding roller and the fold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: CANON FINETECH NISCA INC.
    Inventor: Shinnosuke Enomoto
  • Patent number: 11072510
    Abstract: Example described herein relate to a print shoes. For instance, a print shoe can include a body including a first surface, a first arm extending from the first surface and including a first mounting mechanism to couple to a spring, and a second arm extending from the first surface in a position substantially coplanar with the first arm, where the second arm includes a second mounting mechanism to couple to the spring and dispose the first arm a distance away from the second arm when coupled to the spring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Tom McCue, Lonny Morgan, Catherine Elizabeth Gould, Anthony W Ebersole, Robert Yraceburu, Elliott Downing, Robert Scott Beale, Bruce G Johnson
  • Patent number: 11066269
    Abstract: A sheet folding processing apparatus suppresses an increase in size and cost of the apparatus and performs folding processing on continuously conveyed sheets. In the sheet folding processing apparatus, a sheet conveyed by a feeding roller pair and hang in a loop shape in a loop forming space is pushed into a nipping portion of a folding roller pair by a pushing plate, so that the sheet is folded in a Z-shape to form a plurality of fold lines. The sheet is conveyed in the conveyance direction until the sheet rear end passes through the feeding roller pair, and after the sheet rear end is stored in a loop forming space by moving the pushing plate from a position for pushing the sheet into a nipping portion to a retracting position, the reinforcing processing of the fold line of the sheet is performed by an additional folding unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: CANON FINETECH NISCA INC.
    Inventor: Katsuya Takahashi
  • Patent number: 11066267
    Abstract: A recording material processing apparatus includes a processing tray, a detecting unit, a stapling unit, an instructing unit, a control unit, a switching unit, and a notifying unit. The detecting unit detects recording material placed in the processing tray. The stapling unit executes a stapling process for the recording material placed in the processing tray. The instructing unit outputs a stapling process execution instruction. Upon receipt of the execution instruction in a state in which the detecting unit has detected a recording material inserted in the processing tray from an outside of a main body of a main body apparatus, the control unit cause the stapling process to be executed. The switching unit switches a position of the stapling unit among a plurality of positions. The notifying unit provides notification of a placement position of the recording material in the processing tray corresponding to each of the plurality of positions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroshi Chihara, Kazuhisa Sato
  • Patent number: 11066268
    Abstract: A binding device includes a stacking device configured to receive sheets, a sheet alignment member configured to align the sheets on the stacking device, a binder configured to bind the sheets on the stacking device, a binder moving device configured to move the binder, and a retreat device configured to retreat the sheet alignment member from a range of movement of the binder. The retreat device retreats the sheet alignment member in response to a pressing force acting on the sheet alignment member in a direction of movement of the binder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Yuusuke Shibasaki, Kei Sasaki, Junya Suzuki, Koji Furuta, Yasuo Niikura, Kazuki Mishina, Kenji Hari, Yuuta Mori, Hisayoshi Sugawara
  • Patent number: 11066270
    Abstract: Provided is a sheet folding apparatus for folding sheets, including: a feeding-roller pair; a loop-forming space provided downstream from the feeding-roller pair, for forming a sheet loop; a pushing member for pushing the looped sheet; a folding-roller pair for nipping a prescribed part of the sheet pushed by the pushing member, thereby to fold the sheet; and a path provided between the feeding-roller pair and the folding-roller pair, for guiding the sheet fed from the feeding-roller pair toward the loop-forming space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: CANON FINETECH NISCA INC.
    Inventors: Tomohisa Shimizu, Shogo Iwai
  • Patent number: 11065904
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a processing tray, a post-processing controller, and a detection sensor. The processing tray is configured to support a sheet or a sheet bundle on which a post-processing is to be executed. The post-processing controller is configured to execute the post-processing on the sheet positioned on the processing tray. The detection sensor is configured to detect an object in a predetermined detection range including a space above the processing tray. The post-processing controller stops execution of the post-processing when the detection sensor detects the object at a determination timing other than a timing at which passage of the sheet or the sheet bundle through the detection range is estimated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shoichi Dobashi, Yasunobu Terao, Yoshiaki Sugizaki
  • Patent number: 11054009
    Abstract: An electric drive axle for a motor vehicle including an axle housing, an electric motor having an output shaft directly driven by a bevel pinion gear coupled thereto, a fixed ratio planetary gear arrangement, a differential unit including a differential gear arrangement housed within a differential case and a first clutch selectively operable to connect a portion of the planetary gear set to a stationary member of the drive axle so that the drive axle operates in a first gear ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Dana Heavy Vehicle Systems Group, LLC
    Inventor: James F. Ziech