Patents Examined by Lisa Solomon
  • Patent number: 11110703
    Abstract: Each of a first image processing unit and a second image processing unit is configured to generate print data to be used by a printing unit based on image data generated by a controller. The controller comprises a transmission control unit configured to select, based on a sheet size which is a print setting corresponding to a print job as a condition, one of first transmission control of controlling a transmission unit to alternately transmit band data included in first image data and band data included in second image data and second transmission control of controlling the transmission unit so that the band data included in the second image data will be transmitted after the band data included in the first image data has been transmitted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Shioiri, Kazuhiro Ueda
  • Patent number: 11104127
    Abstract: A method comprises: providing a first stream of discrete volumes (908b) of material, and directing a pulsed laser beam (912) at a first discrete volume (908b) of material in the first stream of discrete volumes of material so as to interact with the first discrete volume of material and thereby displace the first discrete volume away from the first stream. An apparatus and a system for achieving such steps are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: HP Indigo B.V.
    Inventors: Boaz Tagansky, Gil Fisher, Michael Plotkin, Mark Sandler, Albert Teishev
  • Patent number: 11104131
    Abstract: A liquid discharge head includes a flow channel member that includes discharge holes, pressurizing chambers that are linked to the discharge holes, respectively, a first common flow channel(s) that is/are commonly linked to the pressurizing chambers, a second common flow channel(s) that is/are commonly linked to the pressurizing chambers, a first flow channel that links the pressurizing chambers and the first common flow channel(s), and a second flow channel that links the pressurizing chambers and the second common flow channel(s), and pressurizing parts that pressurize the pressurizing chambers, respectively, wherein the first flow channel includes a first connection flow channel that connects the first common flow channel(s) and first separate flow channels that are linked to one of the pressurizing chambers, and one of the first common flow channel(s) includes sets that are composed of the first connection flow channel and the first separate flow channels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: KYOCERA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Wataru Ikeuchi, Kenichi Yoshimura
  • Patent number: 11104123
    Abstract: A printing system for printing on a substrate, comprises a movable intermediate transfer member in the form of a flexible, substantially inextensible, belt guided to follow a closed path, an image forming station for depositing droplets of a liquid ink onto an outer surface of the belt to form an ink image, a drying station for drying the ink image on the belt to leave an ink residue film on the outer surface of the belt, first and second impression stations spaced from one another in the direction of movement of the belt, each impression station comprising an impression cylinder for supporting and transporting the substrate and a pressure cylinder carrying a compressible blanket for urging the belt against the substrate supported on the impression cylinder, and a transport system for transporting the substrate from the first impression station to the second impression station.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: LANDA CORPORATION LTD.
    Inventors: Aharon Shmaiser, Benzion Landa, Sagi Moskovich, Nir Zarmi, Yehuda Solomon
  • Patent number: 11097544
    Abstract: Provided is a liquid discharging head including: a membranous member including a discharging port through which a liquid is discharged; and a displacement member disposed at membranous member's one side at which the liquid to be discharged through the discharging port is provided and configured to displace a position of the membranous member to cause the liquid to be discharged through the discharging port.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2021
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koichi Muramatsu, Takahiko Matsumoto, Shinnosuke Koshizuka, Satoshi Okano, Satoshi Nakazawa, Yuzuru Kuramochi, Ryuya Mashiko, Takeshi Akai, Daisuke Takagi, Tomoaki Nakayama, Hidekazu Yaginuma, Hiroshi Fujie, Manabu Yamanaka
  • Patent number: 11097539
    Abstract: A liquid ejection head includes a supply manifold, a return manifold, a plurality of individual channels, and a connecting throttle channel. The supply manifold includes a supply port through which liquid is supplied from an exterior. The return manifold includes a return port through which liquid is discharged to the exterior. Each individual channel is connected, at an upstream end thereof, to the supply manifold and, at a downstream end thereof, to the return manifold. Each individual channel communicates with a corresponding one of nozzles and includes an individual throttle channel. Through the connecting throttle channel, adjacent ones of the individual throttle channels communicate with each other. The connecting throttle channel has a channel resistance less than or equal to a channel resistance of each individual throttle channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Keita Hirai, Shohei Koide, Keita Sugiura, Hiroshi Katayama
  • Patent number: 11090935
    Abstract: A liquid ejection module includes a pressure chamber, a supply flow channel that supplies a liquid to the pressure chamber, a collection flow channel that collects the liquid from the pressure chamber, a liquid feeding chamber connected to one of the supply flow channel and the collection flow channel, and a connection flow channel connecting the liquid feeding chamber to the other of the supply flow channel and the collection flow channel. The liquid feeding chamber includes a liquid feeding mechanism that circulates the liquid in the supply flow channel, the pressure chamber, the collection flow channel, the liquid feeding chamber, and the connection flow channel. A ratio of a sum of flow channel resistance of the supply flow channel, the pressure chamber, and the collection flow channel relative to flow channel resistance of the connection flow channel is equal to or above 0.5.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Toru Nakakubo, Akihisa Iio, Rei Kurashima, Takahiro Akiyama, Hiroyuki Ozaki
  • Patent number: 11084295
    Abstract: A liquid-consuming apparatus includes: a tank including a liquid storage chamber which stores a liquid, an inlet formed in a surface of the tank, and an outlet through which the liquid from the liquid storage chamber flows; a cap which is movable between a first position and a second position; a cover which is movable relative to the tank between a closed position and an open position; and a holding member which is connected to the cap and which holds the cap at the second position. The cap at the second position or the holding member is configured to obstruct a movement of the cover from the open position to the closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KAUBSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yoshinori Osakabe, Tomohisa Higuchi
  • Patent number: 11084284
    Abstract: A liquid ejection head includes an array of first nozzle holes, an array of second nozzle holes, first pressure chambers to which an ejection pressure is applied for liquid ejection from the first nozzle holes, second pressure chambers to which an ejection pressure is applied for liquid ejection from the second nozzle holes, and a manifold. The manifold includes a first channel communicating with the first pressure chambers, a first opening located at the first channel and through which liquid enters from an exterior, a second channel communicating with the second pressure chambers, a second opening located at the second channel and through which liquid exits to the exterior, a first communication passage communicating one end of the first channel with one end of the second channel, and a second communication passage communicating the other end of the first channel with the other end of the second channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Taisuke Mizuno
  • Patent number: 11072176
    Abstract: A liquid jet head chip capable of exerting a stable ejection performance is provided. The liquid jet head chip is provided with an actuator plate and an electrode. The actuator plate has an obverse surface, a reverse surface, and two or more ejection channels which penetrate the actuator plate in a thickness direction from the obverse surface toward the reverse surface, which are disposed so as to be adjacent to each other at intervals in a first direction perpendicular to the thickness direction, and which are disposed so as to extend in a second direction perpendicular to both of the thickness direction and the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: SII PRINTEK INC.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Nakayama, Yuji Nakamura, Yuki Yamamura, Mizuki Kudo
  • Patent number: 11072189
    Abstract: The medium discharging apparatus includes a medium receiving portion that includes a first portion and a second portion that is provided on the first portion and that is configured to be displaced between a retracted position and an advanced position, a moving member configured to move between a first position and a second position, in which the moving member pushes and moves the second portion towards the advanced position as the moving member moves from the first position towards the second position and in which the moving member is moved to the first position as the second portion is displaced to the retracted position, a pushing member that pushes the moving member towards the second position, and a restricting member configured to switch between a restricting state that restricts a movement of the moving member towards the second position, and a non-restricting state that releases the restricting state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Yuji Miyamoto, Masaki Shimomura, Akira Nakazawa, Toshihiro Imae
  • Patent number: 11072169
    Abstract: Maintenance routines that can be used to maintain the operability of one or more DOD print heads in a card processing system. The maintenance routines can include, but are not limited to: a cover routine where a cover or cap is selectively and automatically located over the print head(s) to protect the print head(s); a shake pulse routine that energizes the nozzles of the print head(s) without causing an ejection of ink; a spit routine where the nozzles of the print head(s) are energized to eject one or more drops of ink; and a purge routine where the nozzles are not electrically energized but the pressure holding the ink in the nozzles of the print head(s) is reversed to push ink out of the nozzles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: ENTRUST CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kevin Bontrager, Daniel Sarkinen, Cory D. Wooldridge, Jon Wawra, Brendan Hinnenkamp, Andrew Luu, Brian O'Dell, Kyle Johnson, Randy Jordan
  • Patent number: 11072171
    Abstract: Provided is a liquid discharging head including: a nozzle discharging a liquid; a chamber plate having a plurality of pressure chambers, drive elements provided in correspondence with each pressure chamber, and a plurality of lead electrodes for supplying electric signals to the drive elements; and a circuit substrate having terminals coupled to the lead electrodes. A first pressure chamber and a second pressure chamber communicate with the nozzle in common. A first segment electrode is formed so as to overlap the first pressure chamber and is not to overlap the second pressure chamber in plan view. A second segment electrode is formed so as to overlap the second pressure chamber and is not to overlap the first pressure chamber in plan view. The first segment electrode and the second segment electrode are coupled to the same lead electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Shohei Mizuta, Motoki Takabe, Shunya Fukuda, Yoichi Naganuma
  • Patent number: 11065898
    Abstract: An electronic apparatus according to an embodiment of the technology includes an obtaining section, a determining section, and an instructing section. The obtaining section obtains a first design image or corresponding data corresponding to the first design image. The determining section determines one or a plurality of second design images different from the first design image on the basis of the first design image or the corresponding data obtained by the obtaining section. The instructing section instructs printing of one or both of the one second design image determined by the determining section and a plurality of the second design images determined by the determining section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Soichi Fukasawa, Fumiko Shiga, Naoko Ishiduka, Yue Ouyang, Sachiko Takahashi, Akira Tange, Shogo Kawata, Nobuyuki Uchiyama, Tomomasa Watanabe
  • Patent number: 11059289
    Abstract: A directionality detector is configured for use in an inkjet printer to attenuate the effects of ink drying in the nozzles of a printhead during printing operations. The directionality detector includes an optical sensor that generates image data of a test pattern formed on media by the printer, a diffuser that emits humidified air toward the media before the media is printed, and a controller operatively connected to the optical sensor and diffuser. The controller is configured compare the image data of the test pattern to stored image data of the test pattern printed at a previous time and determine whether any difference between the two images is greater than a predetermined threshold. The controller then operates the diffuser to direct humidified air toward the media passing the diffuser using the differences between the stored image data of the test pattern and the image data of the test pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Seemit Praharaj, Douglas K. Herrmann, Paul J. McConville, Jason M. LeFevre, Chu-heng Liu, David A. VanKouwenberg, Michael J. Levy, Linn C. Hoover, Thomas J. Wyble, John P. Meyers
  • Patent number: 11059301
    Abstract: An inkjet printing apparatus is provided with a tank that stores ink, a print head that performs print operation by ejecting ink supplied from the tank, a circulation unit that establishes a circulating state to circulate ink in a circulation path if print operation is performed and establishes a stopped state to stop circulation of ink if print operation is terminated, and a deaeration unit that performs deaeration operation to deaerate ink inside the circulation path. The apparatus includes an estimation unit that estimates a dissolved gas amount in ink inside the circulation path based on dissolved gas amounts increased in the circulating state and in the stopped state, respectively, and a control unit that causes the deaeration unit to execute deaeration operation after completion of print operation if the dissolved gas amount estimated by the estimation unit exceeds a predetermined threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takatoshi Nakano, Yoshinori Nakagawa, Atsushi Takahashi, Takuya Fukasawa
  • Patent number: 11052667
    Abstract: A gas-absorbing apparatus disposed in a liquid housing that has a supply port portion for supplying the liquid to an external, includes a space retaining member that forms an internal space of the gas-absorbing apparatus, and a gas-permeable film that partitions off an inside of the internal space from an outside in a state where the internal space is depressurized to a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure, the gas-absorbing apparatus being separate from the supply port portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masahiro Karasawa, Kazuyuki Hirata
  • Patent number: 11052672
    Abstract: A printing system includes: a printing device including a thermal head, a supplier, a winder and a ribbon transport mechanism; a moving mechanism moving the printing device in a width direction of an ink ribbon; and a controller configured to: move the printing device in the width direction; when the printing device is moved for printing of a second row, rewind the ink ribbon; store the longest length of use of the ink ribbon by the printing in a first column of the ink ribbon; when printing with the thermal head proceeds to a second column, determine a transport amount of the ink ribbon based on the stored length; and after the first column of the ink ribbon is used by the printing, transport the ink ribbon based on the determined transport amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Keisuke Fujita
  • Patent number: 11046102
    Abstract: An example ink tank includes an ink tank and a cap assembly attached to the ink tank with a preloaded hinge. The hinge rotates the cap assembly from a closed position to an open position when the cap assembly is unlatched. The cap assembly includes a bung to seal the ink tank during a partial rotation of the cap assembly when the cap assembly is unlatched. The ink tank also includes spring-loaded linkage connected to a valve in the ink tank. An effector extending from the cap assembly engages the spring-loaded linkage when the cap assembly is latched and disengages from the spring-loaded linkage after the cap assembly is unlatched. The spring-loaded linkage opens the valve when engaged with the effector, and closes the valve when disengaged from the effector, while the bung maintains a tank seal until the internal valve is closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: John J. Cantrell, Keith Jariabka, Theodore J. Conley, William S. Osbome
  • Patent number: 11046075
    Abstract: The flow channel forming substrate has a partition wall which is disposed between two of the outlet flow channels adjacent to each other and which partitions the outlet flow channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Toshiro Murayama, Shunsuke Watanabe, Yuma Fukuzawa