Abstract: A sheet or tractor media handling system for a compact printer having a housing, a cut-sheet supply station and a rotatable print platen constructed and located to feed top sheets from said supply station through a print path ingress past a print zone and out a print path egress. The system includes a mode control assembly for selectively controlling the movement of said supply station for sheet or tractor media; a pair of guide wheels constructed and mounted for engagement with tractor media along a tractor media inlet passage; bail rollers engaging the platen between the print path ingress and egress; and a variable spring system for urging the bail rollers against the print platen with higher or lower nip pressures for sheet or tractor media conditions.

Abstract: An improved sheet separator and guide construction for a printer having a supply station and a feeder/platen for feeding a top sheet from a supported sheet stack and transporting it through the printing region. The construction includes a force plate for urging a supported sheet stack so that its top sheet contacts the feeder-platen and is moved toward a supply station egress region. A pair of sheet corner deflectors located respectively at opposite edges of the supply station egress region are constructed to direct sheet corners fed there-against inwardly toward the sheet center, and a central deflector located along a central portion of the egress region in spaced relation between the corner deflectors is constructed to direct the center lead-edge of a sheet fed there-against upwardly toward the printer top.

Abstract: An improved nest device construction for use with insertable ink jet print/cartridges having detent portions accurately located vis a vis their orifice array. The construction includes a U-shaped member, having a handle and arms spaced to receive a print/cartridge, which is mounted on a printer carriage for rotation between insert and retain positions. The arms have interior pinch surfaces for slidably engaging an inserted print/cartridge during rotation of said member and a bottom lip edge that extends inwardly to initially support a print/cartridge in an insert position. A spring is located between the arms of the member to contact the bottom rear surface of an inserted print/cartridge and tilt its front face into engagement with a positioning knife edge.

Abstract: An improved construction for a continuous ink jet printing system of the kind having a chamber for receiving a plurality of ink cartridges, a plurality of ink supply sub-systems for delivering ink from the cartridges to respective print heads and a plurality of ink return sub-systems for returning ink from the print heads to respective cartridges. The cartridge chamber is constructed to be substantially air-tight and the ink cartridges have a vent opening to their interior. The chamber itself is coupled to a vacuum source and the cartridges in the chamber are maintained at the chamber pressure via their vent openings. The chamber evacuating source includes a source of compressed air and a venturi devcie coupled to the housing interior and the compressed air source. The compressed air source also can be coupled, via check valves structure, to provide drying air to the print heads.

Abstract: A modular ink circulation system for effecting ink flow, in a continuous ink jet printer, from the ink reservoir to the print head and from the print head back to the reservoir. The system comprises, e.g.: (i) an ink supply module including pump, heater and filter that are removable from the printer as a unit; (ii) an ink return module including a pressure transducer, an ink defoaming reservoir and an ink flow-control solenoid that are removable from the printer as a unit; and (iii) a vacuum module including an air pump, an air pressure regulator and an ink collector reservoir that are removable from the printer as a unit.