Abstract: A label printing assembly (10) that effectively eliminates labeling errors caused by pharmacists placing the wrong prescription labels on medicine vials or packages. The label printing assembly is preferably configured for use with an automated medicament dispensing control workstation (11) and broadly includes a label print head (12), a label supply assembly (14), a label peeler assembly (16), and a control assembly (18).

Abstract: For printing special symbols, particularly stamps onto letters and packages, increasingly so-called thermal transfer printing methods are used. When inserting the thin transfer ribbon (4) over the printing head (10), the ribbon (4) is frequently partially damaged or even torn. The proposed printing mechanism makes it possible to reduce the time required for exchanging the ribbon (4), on the one hand, and to substantially reduce the damage to the ribbon, on the other hand. The object is met by a guide rod (7) provided on a stirrup (8).

Abstract: A screen printing machine with an improved device for aspirating excess ink, comprising a printing bed for supporting a glass plate to be printed, which is provided in an upward region with a frame with a mesh surface forming a permeable portion. Ink is placed on the frame. The machine has a doctor unit comprising a doctor and a complementary doctor whose dimensions are equal to the width of the frame and which are adapted to move along the frame from one end to the other in order to respectively distribute and collect the ink. The machine further comprises a suction unit provided with a suction nozzle and means for guiding the nozzle along a preset path. The suction nozzle moves on the mesh surface so as to follow the path traced by the perimetric edge of the glass plate in order to aspirate the excess ink.

Abstract: A holder for roll-type print media and a roll-type print media cassette, for easing replacement of a roll, including a printing apparatus capable of detecting the presence of a roll-type print media. The holder and cassette include supporting means for supporting the roll-type print media rotatively and regulating means for regulating the unwinding of the print media. The printing apparatus includes print media supporting means for supporting the roll-type print media rotatively such that the position of the axis of rotation is fixed. A contact sensor for detecting the presence of roll-type print media is also provided.

Abstract: A media handling system having an endless belt which carries a media sheet through a print zone achieves improved media advance accuracy by including closed loop feedback control. The position of either a drive shaft which rotates the endless belt or the endless belt itself is monitored to provide feedback to a drive motor. The drive motor is linked to the drive shaft through a gear train. The endless belt is rotated by the drive shaft, either directly, or through rollers mounted to the drive shaft.

Abstract: A scheme for extending the life of a drum maintenance unit that applies a release agent to the surface of a transfer drum in a phase change ink inkjet printer determines a release agent usage ratio based on an ink coverage percentage for each print. The release agent usage ratios for each print are accumulated, and each time the release agent ratio accumulation value has an integer change a maintenance counter in the drum maintenance unit is decremented by one from an initial nominal number of prints to produce a number of prints remaining. Once the number of prints remaining reaches a specified low value, the maintenance counter may be decremented by one for each additional print to allow for variability in the amount of release agent consumed per print from projected values. As a result depending upon a particular customer usage profile a drum maintenance unit having a nominal life of 30,000 prints, for example, may be extended by over 40%.

Abstract: Disclosed are printers capable of easy and precise head gap adjustment. In the printer, a cam mechanism 61 consisting of a fixed cam 62 and a rotatable cam 63 put between each end of a platen 10 and a swing frame 4. The platen 10 is normally biased to the swing frame 4 by a torsion coil spring 14. A driving gear 64 rotatably supported on the swing frame 4 is engaged with a driven gear 63a formed on the rotatable cam 63. The driving gear 64 is rotated by an operating tool 66 inserted from above, whereby the rotatable cam 63 is rotated by gear drive. In accordance with the rotation of the rotatable cam 63, the platen 10 vertically moves with the fixed cam 62, whereby head gap with respect to a printing head is adjusted. The driving gear 64 can be unrotatable by securing a screw 65 as a rotatable axis thereof by operation from above, whereby the platen 10 is secured.

Abstract: A roll-shaped image-receiving sheet and process for forming an image therein. The sheet comprises a seal part having a color receptor layer, a substrate and an adhesive layer in this order and a peeling sheet applied to the adhesive layer so as to be peeled, and the seal part has a plurality of parts to be cut by a half-cut treatment in one image-receiving portion, each detection mark in the shape of a hole is formed at an interval of each image-receiving portion for indicating a starting position for formation of a printing-image. In the image forming process, the roll-shaped image-receiving sheet is formed for determining a starting-position for formation of a printing-image, a detector for detecting a detection mark on the image-receiving sheet in a printer is located along a transfer line of the detection mark, when the detection mark is detected by the detector, the image-receiving sheet is stopped to make a registration of an image forming position on the image-receiving sheet.

Abstract: A Z-fold print media handling system for printing banners and the like uses an inkjet printing mechanism without a tractor-feed. A series of stuttering stopping and starting steps generates varying static and dynamic frictional forces to separate the first sheet of a Z-fold stack from the remainder of the stack. Both conventional cut-sheet media and Z-fold media are fed using the same printing mechanism, which pulls the media toward a printzone through frictional engagement with a first surface of the media. To prevent printhead crashes and smearing the image near the perforations joining the Z-fold sheets, the printhead to media spacing is increased for Z-fold media over the standard spacing used for cut-sheet media. A cam feature is incorporated into the media drive clutch disk to determine whether an operator has set a selector lever for cut-sheet or Z-fold printhead to media spacing.

Abstract: A prototyping method and apparatus incorporating the invention enables rapid fabrication of heterogeneous parts with non-planar and/or layer-by-layer printing. An electronically addressable array of micro-electrodes is employed as a "printing" panel, A processor controls the printing panel through use of two dimensional planar slice data. Such slice data is used to address electrodes that correspond to points in the slice image. When the printing panel is brought close to a flat powder bed, a static electrical field at each addressed electrode attracts particles to the electrode's surface. The powder image on the printing panel electrodes is then placed over a substrate and the powder image is released to the substrate by applying a reverse polarity voltage to the electrodes. Multiple applications of powder image layers, with intervening fixing of each image layer, enables a three dimensional object to be rapidly constructed.

Abstract: A multicolor thermal transfer ribbon having black ink and at least two other color inks besides black and white is used with a thermal transfer printer and a label in a method of labeling packages. Variable black ink indicia is imaged, using the thermal transfer printer and ribbon, on a first face of the label, and color indicia from at least one of the at least two other color inks on the ribbon is also imaged on the first face of the label. Then the pressure sensitive adhesive of the second face of the label is pressed onto a package (such as an envelope, carton, etc.). The black variable indicia preferably includes variable bar code and text indicia including address indicia, and the color indicia is preferably just one color, indicating a particular type of express delivery service.

Abstract: A paper reversing apparatus of a printer includes a printing medium exhaust path which is connected between an outlet of a printing unit and an outside of a printer main body to guide exhaustion of a printing medium. A guide unit selectively guides a leading edge of the printing medium passing the printing unit to enter one of the printing medium exhaust path or a reversing path, which is branched from the printing medium exhaust path. The printing medium exhausted to the reversing path is reversed and re-supplied to an inlet side of the printing unit. A paper resupply unit is installed between an inlet of the entrance path and an outlet of the reversing path, and is capable of pivoting. Paper detection sensors are installed at the inlet of the entrance path for detecting a type of printing medium entering the entrance path.

Abstract: When different tape cartridges accommodating printing tapes having different hardness, thicknesses or widths are exchangeably mounted in the same printing apparatus, excellent printing can be obtained using the present embodiment. In a platen 12 provided in a tape cartridge 10, the harder, thicker or wider the tape T accommodated in the tape cartridge 10, the softer a platen rubber provided on a surface of the platen. The platen rubber 14 having a hardness corresponding to the properties of the tape T is used so as to obtain an ideal contact state between a printing head and the tape T regardless of the properties of the tape T when the tape cartridge 10 is mounted in a tape writer 1. Accordingly, the tape T can be properly conveyed by the platen 12 and a tape guide pin 26 regardless of its properties, and can be brought into contact with a printing head through an ink ribbon R in an ideal and consistent contact state.

Abstract: There is disclosed a method of feeding a dampening water to a plate cylinder in an offset printing press which is accelerated to, operated at and then decelerated from a predetermined speed for printing. The method comprises the step of programmatically controlling the feeding amount of the dampening water to increase in accordance with the increase in speed of the printing press along a first curve which is predetermined to indicate the relation of the feeding amount of dampening water to the speed of printing press, when the printing press is accelerated. The method further comprises the step of programmatically controlling the feeding amount of the dampening water to decrease in accordance with the decrease in speed of the printing press along a second curve which is predetermined to indicate the relation of the feeding amount of dampening water to the speed of printing press, when the printing press is decelerated.

Abstract: A printer 80 integrally comprises a printing section 81 for printing on a recording medium such as a cut sheet S and continuous paper L2 based on printing data transmitted from an external host unit H, a control panel 70 containing an indicator section for indicating operating states of the printing section 81, a display panel 60 for displaying data transmitted from the host unit H to the printing section 81 and instructed to be displayed, an interface 86 for transmitting/receiving signals between the host unit H and the printing section 81 and interfaces 87 and 62 for transmitting/receiving signals between the printing section 81 and the display panel 60. It is possible to securely prevent disagreement of printed content and displayed content and to realize down-sizing and simplification of the system structure by constructing a printer as described above.

Abstract: A portable electronic printing system including power supply assembly is disclosed. The printing system includes a printer comprising a printer housing having first and second ends, a handle disposed at the first end of the housing for allowing a user to tote the portable electronic printing system, and a power supply foot disposed at the second end of the housing. The power supply foot includes a power supply circuit for supplying power received from an external power source to the printing system. The power supply assembly includes a sidewall and a bracket for supporting a first electronic device and for sinking heat generated by the first electronic device away from the first electronic device. The bracket is coupled to the sidewall such that heat received by the bracket from the first electronic device is transferred to the sidewall. A second electronic device is mounted to the bracket such that the bracket absorbs vibrational energy applied to the second electronic device.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel structure of a tape cartridge accommodating a printing tape and an ink ribbon used for printing, which prevents the printing tape from being stuck in a cartridge case or the ink ribbon from being slackened. The tape cartridge of the invention has a mechanism for preventing an end of the tape from being reversely moved back into the cartridge case. A typical structure of the mechanism includes an anti-inversion system which prevents a tape core having a tape wound thereon from rotating in a reverse direction, that is, a direction opposite to a normal rotating direction for printing. The anti-inversion effects are removed when the tape cartridge is set in a printing device such as a tape writer to ensure smooth feeding of the tape for printing. When the tape is forcibly pressed back into the cartridge case, a movable platen clamps the tape between the platen and a fixed wall to prevent reverse movement of the tape.

Abstract: A document-printing arrangement (8) having one or more paper paths (10, 110), via which one or different continuous paper webs (20, 120) can be fed to a printing station (14) equipped with a thermoprinting strip (32) and a backing roll (34). In order to compensate for transport speed tolerances, a paper bulge (66) is built up upstream of the printing station (14).

Abstract: A low-profile printer includes a main housing portion, a front portion, a media transport mechanism, a print mechanism and a media tray. The front portion is pivotally or detachably secured to the main housing portion. The media tray is positioned inside the main housing portion. In a preferred embodiment, the media transport mechanism and print mechanism are mechanically coupled to the front portion. The media transport mechanism, the print mechanism and the media tray are accessible when the front portion is in an opened position.

Abstract: A hot melt ink jet printing device 1 includes guides 27 disposed on a printing surface 11 of a platen 12 at both sides of a print area and guides 28 disposed downstream side of the platen 12 in a sheet feed direction F. Heaters 21, 25 are mounted on an under surface of the platen 12 for applying heat to a recording sheet 7 placed on the printing surface 11. The print head 13 is disposed away from the platen 12 such that a nozzle surface 13a of the print head 13 confront the printing surface 11. The guides 27, 28 effectively prevent the recording sheet 7 from rising off the printing surface 11 toward the print head 13 when the recording sheet 7 is supplied with heat from the heater 21, 25. In this way, the recording sheet 7 is prevented from contacting the nozzle surface 13a.