Abstract: Drilling of an implant shaft is carried out with a handpiece tool whose location and angular orientation with respect to a radiographic working guide is updated in real time with respect to the radiographic working guide and anatomical structures of the patient, free of viewing obstructions. Prior to the drilling, the radiographic working guide is fitted to a particular patient. Real-time imaging support is provided on a display of a computer, wherein the radiographic workpiece guide includes a plurality of fiducial markers that define a substantially planar reference surface of the radiographic workpiece guide. The radiographic workpiece guide also includes an alignment structure located a predetermined distance from a pilot hole proximate the work site. The image is updated based on an initial radiographic scan and updated position information from the handpiece tool as to location and angular orientation of the handpiece tool relative to the workpiece guide.

Abstract: Drilling of an implant shaft is carried out with a handpiece tool whose location and angular orientation with respect to a radiographic working guide is updated in real time with respect to the radiographic working guide and anatomical structures of the patient, free of viewing obstructions. Prior to the drilling, the radiographic working guide is fitted to a particular patient. Real-time imaging support is provided on a display of a computer, wherein the radiographic workpiece guide includes a plurality of fiducial markers that define a substantially planar reference surface of the radiographic workpiece guide. The radiographic workpiece guide also includes an alignment structure located a predetermined distance from a pilot hole proximate the work site. The image is updated based on an initial radiographic scan and updated position information from the handpiece tool as to location and angular orientation of the handpiece tool relative to the workpiece guide.

Abstract: Drilling of an implant shaft is carried out with a handpiece tool whose location and angular orientation with respect to a radiographic working guide is updated in real time with respect to the radiographic working guide and anatomical structures of the patient, free of viewing obstructions. Prior to the drilling, the radiographic working guide is fitted to a particular patient. Real-time imaging support is provided on a display of a computer, wherein the radiographic workpiece guide includes a plurality of fiducial markers that define a substantially planar reference surface of the radiographic workpiece guide. The radiographic workpiece guide also includes an alignment structure located a predetermined distance from a pilot hole proximate the work site. The image is updated based on an initial radiographic scan and updated position information from the handpiece tool as to location and angular orientation of the handpiece tool relative to the workpiece guide.

Abstract: An inkjet printhead includes a compact substrate of increased stability and structural integrity to provide a high resolution 600 dot-per-inch nozzle array having a one-half inch swath. A plurality of ink vaporization chambers are respectively aligned with the nozzles in two longitudinal columns, one column extending longitudinally along one edge of the substrate and a second column extending longitudinally along an opposite edge of the substrate, with ink feed channels communicating through an ink passage from an underside of the substrate around both edges of the substrate to the vaporization chambers. The ink feed channels have thereby been eliminated from the central portion of the substrate, and replaced by the ink feed channels at the edges of the substrate.

Abstract: The contact pads of a print cartridge are formed on a flexible tape. Each of the uniformly spaced contact pads is preferably a square separated from an adjacent square by a minimum distance to provide each contact pad with a maximum area. Conductive traces run along the flexible tape and between the contact pads to allow for a minimum separation between contact pads, thus allowing the contact pads to be made relatively large. This improves the reliability of the interconnection between the pads and the printer electrodes.

Abstract: At least two different printmasks are used for different printing devices--such as inkjet pens--that operate concurrently, or different printing steps that proceed concurrently, to produce respective image swaths in a single, pixel-based printing machine. In one form of the invention, the different printing devices produce different respective pixel-row pitches (related to resolution) on a printing medium, and the different printmasks help to minimize adverse patterning effects that result from interaction of the different pitches with dot-placement errors. The different pitches on the print medium may be provided through different pitches of marking devices (for example, the number of inkjet nozzles per unit distance along a pen) or in other ways.

Abstract: At least two different pixel densities are used for different printing devices--such as inkjet pens--that operate concurrently, or different printing steps that proceed concurrently, to produce respective image swaths in a single, pixel-based printing machine. The different print devices or steps produce image swaths of respective different swath heights. In one form of the invention, the taller-swath-height printing device operates at lower pixel density, spreading its colorant over a greater area while printing-medium advance keeps pace with operation of the shallower-swath-height printing device. This procedure allows more drying and penetrating time for the colorant applied by the taller-swath device, thereby improving print attributes such as bleed, offset, cockle, curl, overall drying time and throughput.

Abstract: An inkjet printhead includes a compact substrate of increased stability and structural integrity to provide a high resolution 600 dot-per-inch nozzle array having a one-half inch swath. A plurality of ink vaporization chambers are respectively aligned with the nozzles in two longitudinal columns, one column extending longitudinally along one edge of the substrate and a second column extending longitudinally along an opposite edge of the substrate, with ink feed channels communicating through an ink passage from an underside of the substrate around both edges of the substrate to the vaporization chambers. The ink feed channels have thereby been eliminated from the central portion of the substrate, and replaced by the ink feed channels at the edges of the substrate.

Abstract: In the preferred form, a scanning carriage in a color inkjet printer houses a high resolution printhead for black (or monochrome) printing and one or more lower resolution printheads for color printing. The nozzle arrangements, paper feed increments, and ink drop firing frequency for the black printhead and color printhead(s) are selected to provide various alignments between the larger color ink dots and the smaller black ink dots to achieve maximum ink coverage with a minimum of ink or to achieve additional color shades.

Abstract: An inkjet printer is disclosed with mixed print resolution capabilities. The printed dots have a high resolution monochrome component such as black and lower resolution components such as cyan, magenta and yellow. For increased throughput, a higher resolution black printhead has a wider swath. Various alignments between the printheads and printed dots are disclosed. In one embodiment, the top edges of the smaller color printheads are aligned in a scanning carriage at or near the top of the wider black printhead. In other embodiments, the bottom edges of the smaller color printheads are aligned at or near the bottom of the wider black printhead. In another embodiment, the small color printheads are centered with the wider black printhead.

Abstract: A printer/plotter having a carriage for removably mounting a plurality of printheads, with one type of printhead such as a wider swath higher resolution black inkjet cartridge having one type of electrical interconnect and another type of printhead such as a narrower swath lower resolution color inkjet cartridge having a different type of electrical interconnect. The carriage includes differently configured flex-circuit conductive assemblies for each different type of electrical interconnect without having to change the datum configuration of the cartridges mounted in the carriage.

Abstract: A printer with mixed base resolution capabilities, having a higher resolution monochrome component such as black and lower resolution components such as cyan, magenta and yellow. The different resolution components are integrated into the same printing mechanism for composite printing of higher resolution black and lower resolution color at the same time. For increased throughput, a higher resolution black printhead has a wider swath.

Abstract: At least two different printmasks are used for different printing devices--such as inkjet pens--that operate concurrently, or different printing steps that proceed concurrently, to produce respective image swaths in a single, pixel-based printing machine. In one form of the invention, the different printing devices produce different respective pixel-row pitches (related to resolution) on a printing medium, and the different printmasks help to minimize adverse patterning effects that result from interaction of the different pitches with dot-placement errors. The different pitches on the print medium may be provided through different pitches of marking devices (for example, the number of inkjet nozzles per unit distance along a pen) or in other ways.

Abstract: An inkjet printer is disclosed with mixed print resolution capabilities. The printed dots have a high resolution monochrome component such as black and lower resolution components such as cyan, magenta and yellow. For increased throughput, a higher resolution black printhead has a wider swath. Various alignments between the printheads and printed dots are disclosed. In one embodiment, the top edges of the smaller color printheads are aligned in a scanning carriage at or near the top of the wider black printhead. In other embodiments, the bottom edges of the smaller color printheads are aligned at or near the bottom of the wider black printhead. In another embodiment, the small color printheads are centered with the wider black printhead.

Abstract: A printer/plotter having a carriage for removably mounting a plurality of printheads, with one type of printhead such as a wider swath higher resolution black inkier cartridge having one type of electrical interconnect and another type of printhead such as a narrower swath lower resolution color inkjet cartridge having a different type of electrical interconnect. The carriage includes differently configured flex-circuit conductive assemblies for each different type of electrical interconnect without having to change the datum configuration of the cartridges mounted in the carriage.

Abstract: An inkjet printhead includes a compact substrate of increased stability and structural integrity to provide a high resolution 600 dot-per-inch nozzle array having a one-half inch swath. A plurality of ink vaporization chambers are respectively aligned with the nozzles in two longitudinal columns, one column extending longitudinally along one edge of the substrate and a second column extending longitudinally along an opposite edge of the substrate, with ink feed channels communicating through an ink passage from an underside of the substrate around both edges of the substrate to the vaporization chambers. The ink feed channels have thereby been eliminated from the central portion of the substrate, and replaced by the ink feed channels at the edges of the substrate.

Abstract: A printer-plotter system includes a vacuum-buffered bidirectional paper drive system for moving paper uniformly forward and backward over a sprocketed platen and sprocketed drum. The platen comprises a stationary portion with a flat region and a rotatable sprocketed portion. The platen and drum are connected by a drive belt for synchronous rotation of the drum with the sprocketed portion of the platen to assure proper contact of a print head with the flat region of the stationary portion and proper movement of paper by the sprocketed portion after printing.

Abstract: A printer-plotter system is provided having a single horizontally movable, print-plot head comprising geometrically arranged thermal resistor elements which are processor-controlled for plotting continuous multi-directional line segments and for printing, while plotting, upper and lower case alphanumeric characters and punctuation characters in four orthogonal directions. Characters are printed in 5-columns-by-7-rows dot matrix form, with neighboring dots partly overlapping each other in order to impart a continuous or drawn appearance rather than a discontinuous dot appearance to the printed characters. The geometric arrangement of the head elements also provides for varying the width of line segments plotted along selected orthogonal directions.