Laterally Spaced Sensors (e.g., To Sense Misalignment) Patents (Class 271/261)
  • Patent number: 10800625
    Abstract: Media skew correction is performed by determining a leading edge skew value for the media and selecting a respective media model from a memory for a media type, each media model including a paired slope and an intercept. Based on the paired slope and intercept for the respective media model, differential velocity of a pair of aligned media feed rollers in a media feed mechanism is adjusted to correct a trailing edge skew for the media to within a desired operational window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Saurabh Bhide, Rafael Gonzalez, Luke P Sosnowski, Joseph Emery
  • Patent number: 8899400
    Abstract: The check deposit apparatus of the present invention comprises an insertion part that is used to insert a check from outside for deposit, a feed part furnished with a feed roller that feeds the placed check along a feed path, an alignment part furnished with an alignment roller that feeds the check fed from the feed part to one side of the feed path and also aligns it, a check reading part that reads information of the check that has been aligned by the alignment part, first and second sensor groups that judge whether the check inserted into the insertion part has a specification that enables it to be fed and processed toward the alignment part normally, a third sensor group that judges whether the check aligned in the alignment part has a specification that enables it to be read and processed normally in the check reading part, and a control part that judges whether to deposit or return the check in question based on the information sensed by the first and second group or third sensor group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2014
    Assignee: Nautilus Hyosung Inc.
    Inventors: Jae Hoon Kwak, Woo Ho Lee
  • Patent number: 8579285
    Abstract: A document conveying device includes a document conveying unit, a controller, first and second document detectors, a pulse count detector, and a determining unit. The first document detector is located on a feeding path along which a document is fed by the document conveying unit, and detects a document leading edge. The second document detector is located at a position different from that of the first document detector in both a document feeding direction and a direction orthogonal thereto, and detects the document leading edge. The determining unit determines whether the number of pulses detected by the pulse count detector during the period from detection of the document leading edge by one of the first and second document detectors to detection of the document leading edge by the other exceeds a predetermined value. If the number of pulses exceeds the predetermined value, the controller stops the document feeding operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Kyocera Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Takurou Murata
  • Patent number: 8540239
    Abstract: A sheet conveying apparatus which detects an end part position of a sheet in a sheet width direction orthogonal to a conveying direction of the sheet conveyed on a sheet conveying path, comprising a plurality of sensor portions; a holding portion which holds the plurality of sensor portions; a plurality of aperture stops which is disposed between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portions and which is provided on the holding portion; and a driving portion which causes a movement of the holding portion in the sheet width direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Miho Kaiga, Shinkichi Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8285191
    Abstract: A sheet size detecting apparatus having a first arm moved by a moving sheet contacting therewith, a second arm moved by the moving sheet contacting therewith, the second arm being disposed at a location differing from that of the first arm in a direction orthogonal to the movement direction of the sheet, and a sensor, wherein the output level of the sensor when only one of the first arm and the second arm has been moved is the same as the output level thereof when neither of the first arm and the second arm is moved, and the output level of the sensor when both of the first arm and the second arm have been moved differs from the output level thereof when neither of the first arm and the second arm is not moved. Thereby, the cost can be suppressed and yet, the wrong detection of the sheet size can be prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2012
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shinsuke Kobayashi, Jun Agata
  • Patent number: 8205880
    Abstract: A plurality of moving-amount detecting units respectively detects a moving amount of the sheet fed by a feeding unit at a plurality of points in a width direction of the sheet. A skew detecting unit detects a skew of the sheet based on the moving amount of the sheet detected by the moving-amount detecting units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 26, 2012
    Assignee: PFU Limited
    Inventors: Keisuke Kimura, Shigeru Yonemura, Takeshi Kimura
  • Patent number: 8177228
    Abstract: The invention relates to an apparatus and a method for monitoring the singling of sheet material, in particular of bank notes. The invention starts out from monitoring the singling of sheet material, in particular of bank notes, by means of a singler having a drive and a control device for a monitoring and controlling of the singler, wherein a monitoring of place, time, orientation and state of the singled sheet material is effected immediately after the singling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2012
    Assignee: Giesecke & Devrient GmbH
    Inventors: Dominik Nützel, Frantz Reuter, Rainer Stoll
  • Patent number: 8172968
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for contacting a flexible sheet to a first element with improved lateral alignment. The method includes a step of measuring a first lateral misalignment after establishing a first contact between the flexible sheet and either of the first element and a sheet parking surface called anchor in the first stage. If the 5 misalignment exceeds a predetermined threshold the flexible sheet is parked at the anchor such that it is not in contact with the first element, and the relative position of the first element and the anchor is altered during the second stage for correcting the mismatch during a contact between the flexible sheet and the first element to be established within the next step of the method. During the steps of shifting the contact point to obtain the second stage 10 the contacting process is more accurate and reproducible than the process for establishing the initial contact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2012
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
    Inventors: Marcus Antonius Verschuuren, Mischa Megens
  • Patent number: 8167305
    Abstract: A transport device and a transporting method. The transporting device includes a transporting unit, a plurality of medium sensing units, an encoder, a paper management module, a determining unit, and a transport controller. When the determining unit determines that a transport error has occurred in a succession transport medium based on a count value for an encoder signal, the paper management module stops counting, and the transport controller controls the transporting unit such that the transporting unit continues transporting a previous transport medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2012
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Takeshi Shiode
  • Patent number: 8095062
    Abstract: The present application is directed to sensors and methods of use to determine a width of a media sheet moving along a media path. In one embodiment, the sensor includes a shaft that extends at least partially across the media path. First and second paddles may extend outward from the shaft and into the media path. The paddles may be axially spaced apart along a length of the shaft, and the first paddle may be positioned upstream along the media path from the second paddle. A flag may extend outward from the shaft. A detector may be positioned in proximity to the shaft. In use, the shaft may rotate during contact between the media sheets and the paddles to move the flag. The detector may be able to differentiate between a first amount of rotation due to contact with a wide media sheet and a second amount of rotation with a narrow media sheet to determine a width of the media sheets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: Lexmark International, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Paul Maddux, Clark Edwin Jarnagin, Daniel P. Cahill
  • Patent number: 8091887
    Abstract: A plurality of moving-amount detecting units respectively detects a moving amount of the sheet fed by a feeding unit at a plurality of points in a width direction of the sheet. A skew detecting unit detects a skew of the sheet based on the moving amount of the sheet detected by the moving-amount detecting units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: PFU Limited
    Inventors: Keisuke Kimura, Shigeru Yonemura, Takeshi Kimura
  • Patent number: 8066279
    Abstract: A sheet conveyance apparatus capable of detecting a sheet end portion in a short time period even if sheets are conveyed at a narrow interval and at high speed, thus making it possible to expedite the start timing of a subsequent sheet alignment operation. In accordance with results of detection by lateral registration detection sensors performed when a sheet reaches a lateral registration detection sensor unit, the sensor unit is moved in a width direction for sheet end detection. Based on a moving distance of the sensor unit from a standby position to a position where the sheet end is detected, a shift amount to be shifted the sheet in the width direction, i.e., a lateral registration error, is computed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2011
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Naoki Ishikawa, Yasuo Fukatsu, Tsuyoshi Moriyama, Hitoshi Kato
  • Patent number: 8020861
    Abstract: A sheet conveyance device according to an aspect of the invention includes a conveyance roller pair which is rotated to convey a sheet by receiving a driving force from a motor conveying a sheet; a conveyance guide which guides the sheet conveyed by the conveyance roller pair; and sheet detection unit for detecting the sheet guided by the conveyance guide. In the sheet conveyance device, a sheet conveyance speed of the conveyance roller pair is controlled based on information from the sheet detection unit. The sheet detection unit is a sheet scanner having an optical sensor layer in which photoelectric conversion devices formed by combinations of organic transistors and organic photodiodes are continuously arranged in a matrix shape, and the sheet scanner is provided in an area of the conveyance guide in order to continuously detect the sheet conveyed by the conveyance roller pair in a predetermined area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2011
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Toshifumi Itabashi, Yusuke Imai, Kiyoshi Oyama, Takuma Koizumi, Ayumu Murakami, Yuichi Yamamoto, Haruhisa Oshida
  • Patent number: 7959151
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus conveying a recording medium through a sheet conveying path may include a recording medium conveying device, and includes an edge position detector to detect a position of a side edge of a recording medium along a width direction perpendicular to a sheet travel direction of the recording medium in the sheet conveying path, and an edge position recognizer to recognize, based on detection results obtained by the edge position detector, the position of the side edge at multiple detection positions of the recording medium in the sheet travel direction of the recording medium. The multiple detection positions includes a detection position located within a dog ear region in the vicinity of either a leading edge or a trailing edge of the recording medium in the sheet travel direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2011
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Noriaki Fukube
  • Patent number: 7950655
    Abstract: An apparatus for controlling reception of various kinds of paper media includes a reception unit to allow the various kinds of paper media to be received, a pick-up unit to pick up the paper media from the reception unit one sheet by one sheet, a transport unit to transport the picked up paper media, a separation control sensing unit mounted on the transport unit to sense whether the paper media is passing through a predetermined transport path, a skew sensing unit mounted on the transport unit to sense skew of the paper media, and a control unit to operate the pick-up unit when the separation control sensing unit senses the paper media passing, and to suspend a forward operation of the transport unit and operate the transport unit backwards when the skew sensing unit senses the skew of the paper media.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2011
    Assignee: Nautilus Hyosung Inc.
    Inventors: Chang Ho Park, Jin Yong Hwang
  • Patent number: 7900913
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes: a first sensor that is provided in a conveying path for a sheet and detects a first passage time of the sheet; a second sensor that is provided in a position different from a position of the first sensor in both a conveying direction of the sheet and a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, and detects a second passage time of the sheet; a skew determining unit that calculates a skew amount of the sheet from a difference between the first passage time detected by the first sensor and the second passage time detected by the second sensor and determines occurrence of skew of the sheet on the basis of the skew amount; and a cause estimating unit that estimates, when the skew determining unit determines that the skew occurs, a cause of the occurrence of the skew.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2011
    Assignees: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroyo Katou, Yoshikatsu Kamisuwa
  • Patent number: 7866664
    Abstract: A method for sensing a paper skew adapted for a device having a paper feeding mechanism is provided. The device has a feed sensor which is fixed at a start position of paper feeding; and, a position sensor which moves in a direction perpendicular to a direction of paper feeding and passes through a first and a second positions. The first position is the intersection of a moving path of the position sensor and a line. The feed sensor is on the line, and the line is parallel to the direction of paper feeding. The method includes the device having a first distance; moving the position sensor to the second position; feeding a work paper into the device; obtaining a second distance which is a moving distance of the work paper fed; and determining whether the work paper is skewed or not according to the difference between the first and the second distances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2011
    Assignee: Kinpo Electronics, Inc.
    Inventor: Tsung-Fu Kao
  • Patent number: 7866663
    Abstract: A method for sensing a paper skew adapted for a device having a paper feeding mechanism is provided. The device has a feed sensor which is fixed at a start position of paper feeding; and, a position sensor which moves in a direction perpendicular to a direction of paper feeding and passes through a first and a second positions. The first position is the intersection of a moving path of the position sensor and a line. The feed sensor is on the line, and the line is parallel to the direction of paper feeding. The method includes the device having a first distance; moving the position sensor to the second position; feeding a work paper into the device; obtaining a second distance which is a moving distance of the work paper fed; and determining whether the work paper is skewed or not according to the difference between the first and the second distances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2011
    Assignee: Kinpo Electronics, Inc.
    Inventor: Tsung-Fu Kao
  • Patent number: 7832726
    Abstract: A sheet-convey device, includes a holder, a convey member, and a recognizer. On the holder, a first sheet having a first width and a second sheet having a second width larger than the first width are placeable. The convey member conveys a sheet placed on the holder in a predetermined direction. The recognizer recognizes a width of the sheet and includes first and second sensors for sensing whether a part of the sheet is present at respective first and second positions of the holder. The first position is located inside of the first width in the widthwise direction with the first sheet placed on the holder, while the second position is located outside of the first width and inside of the second width with the second sheet placed on the holder. The second position is located upstream of the first position in the predetermined direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2010
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Yoshinori Osakabe
  • Patent number: 7792479
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus is configured so that a first detection position and a second detection position are set along the direction of conveying a transfer material between adjacent conveyance rollers. The image forming apparatus has four sensors, two of which are disposed in the first detection position at a predetermined interval, and the remaining two of which are disposed in a second detection position at a predetermined interval. An actual length of the transfer material can be detected with high accuracy by performing (1) cancellation of an error in detection caused by variation in a speed at which the transfer material is conveyed, (2) cancellation of an error in detection caused by a skew, and (3) cancellation of an error in detection caused by oblique passing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2010
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Takeshi Yasumoto
  • Patent number: 7742736
    Abstract: A sheet size detecting apparatus having a first arm moved by a moving sheet contacting therewith, a second arm moved by the moving sheet contacting therewith, the second arm being disposed at a location differing from that of the first arm in a direction orthogonal to the movement direction of the sheet, and a sensor, wherein the output level of the sensor when only one of the first arm and the second arm has been moved is the same as the output level thereof when neither of the first arm and the second arm is moved, and the output level of the sensor when both of the first arm and the second arm have been moved differs from the output level thereof when neither of the first arm and the second arm is not moved. Thereby, the cost can be suppressed and yet, the wrong detection of the sheet size can be prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2010
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shinsuke Kobayashi, Jun Agata
  • Patent number: 7703766
    Abstract: A method for sensing a paper skew adapted for a device having a paper feeding mechanism is provided. The device has a feed sensor which is fixed at a start position of paper feeding; and, a position sensor which moves in a direction perpendicular to a direction of paper feeding and passes through a first and a second positions. The first position is the intersection of a moving path of the position sensor and a line. The feed sensor is on the line, and the line is parallel to the direction of paper feeding. The method includes the device having a first distance; moving the position sensor to the second position; feeding a work paper into the device; obtaining a second distance which is a moving distance of the work paper fed; and determining whether the work paper is skewed or not according to the difference between the first and the second distances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2010
    Assignee: Kinpo Electronics, Inc.
    Inventor: Tsung-Fu Kao
  • Patent number: 7654520
    Abstract: A sheet-handling apparatus with a detecting device includes a casing, a plurality of entrance rollers located in the casing, an image collector arranged at one side of the casing, a plurality of middle reflectors and side reflectors. A paper path is formed between the entrance rollers, the paper path includes a middle path and two side paths arranged in the sides of the middle path. The image collector includes an illuminant and an image sensor. The middle reflectors are fixed in the casing and at the other side of the paper path and face to the middle path. The side reflectors are arranged at the side of the middle reflectors. The invention can monitor a paper when it is stuck in the paper path, and the manufacture cost of the invention is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2010
    Assignee: Foxlink Image Technology Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Yueh-Shing Lee
  • Patent number: 7628400
    Abstract: A conveying apparatus includes a conveyor roller, an angular velocity detection device, and a rotation angle calculation device. The conveyor roller conveys a conveyance object by a rotation thereof. The angular velocity detection device is provided to one of the conveyor roller and a rotating portion rotating with the conveyor roller such that an angular velocity detection axis is parallel with a rotation shaft of the conveyor roller. The rotation angle calculation device calculates a rotation angle of the conveyor roller based on an angular velocity detected by the angular velocity detection device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2009
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kan Ishikawa
  • Publication number: 20090236799
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes: a first sensor that is provided in a conveying path for a sheet and detects a first passage time of the sheet; a second sensor that is provided in a position different from a position of the first sensor in both a conveying direction of the sheet and a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, and detects a second passage time of the sheet; a skew determining unit that calculates a skew amount of the sheet from a difference between the first passage time detected by the first sensor and the second passage time detected by the second sensor and determines occurrence of skew of the sheet on the basis of the skew amount; and a cause estimating unit that estimates, when the skew determining unit determines that the skew occurs, a cause of the occurrence of the skew.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2009
    Publication date: September 24, 2009
    Applicants: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA, TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hiroyo Katou, Yoshikatsu Kamisuwa
  • Patent number: 7481428
    Abstract: A paper leaf detecting device includes a plurality of sensors positioned at an oblique angle relative to a transporting direction of leaves of paper, the plurality of sensors being arranged in a single row that extends in a direction orthogonal to the transporting direction of the leaves of paper. The paper leaf detecting device makes it possible to detect information on leaves of paper by using their transportation to scan the leaves of paper in a direction that is orthogonal to the transporting direction. An increase in size in the transporting direction of the leaves of paper is prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2009
    Assignee: Laurel Precision Machines Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Yoshiyuki Kato
  • Patent number: 7460825
    Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus includes a sheet placing tray on which a sheet is placed, a feeding member for feeding the sheet placed on the sheet placing tray, a first sheet detection unit for detecting presence of the sheet on the sheet placing tray at a first detection position, and a second sheet detection unit for detecting presence of the sheet on the sheet placing tray at a second detection position disposed on an upstream side of the first detection position in a sheet feeding direction. A control unit controls the feeding member so as not to perform the sheet feeding operation when the first detection unit detects the sheet and the second detection unit does not detect the sheet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kei Sawanaka, Satoshi Sugita
  • Patent number: 7392743
    Abstract: There are provided a thickness detecting apparatus which can restrain erroneous detection even though a sheet or the like overlaps with only a part of a rotary body, and, which can enhance the degree of accuracy of detection, comprising a cylindrical displaceable rotary body and a cylindrical stationary rotary body which are opposed to each other, the thickness detecting apparatus detecting a thickness of the sheet or the like to be transferred in accordance with a displacement by which the displaceable rotary body is separated from the stationary rotary body, when the sheet or the like passes through between the displaceable rotary body and the stationary rotary body, and the center of a load with which the displaceable rotary body presses the sheet or the like is biased from the center of the displaceable rotary body in one of center axial direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2008
    Assignee: Hitachi-Omron Terminal Solutions, Corporation
    Inventors: Ryota Kawaguchi, Katsuyoshi Funai
  • Publication number: 20080030811
    Abstract: A sheet conveying apparatus includes a skew amount detecting unit configured to detect an amount of skew of a sheet, two rollers configured to convey the sheet in a predetermined conveyance direction when rotating in a same direction and to rotate the sheet around a predetermined point when rotating in mutually different directions, and a control unit configured to control the two rollers such that the two rollers convey the sheet to a position where a distance from the predetermined point to a specific edge of the sheet becomes a predetermined value and then rotate the sheet based on the amount of skew detected by the skew amount detecting unit to change an orientation of the sheet.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 6, 2007
    Publication date: February 7, 2008
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hitoshi Nishitani, Hideki Kawashima
  • Patent number: 7319842
    Abstract: To provide a sheet conveying apparatus capable of enhancing an accuracy of correcting a skew of a sheet, and of preventing position shift of a sheet. The present invention provides a sheet conveying apparatus for conveying a sheet by a sheet conveying unit disposed along a sheet conveying path, including: a skew detection sensor for detecting a skew of the sheet with respect to a sheet conveying direction by a plurality of detection sensors disposed in a direction intersecting perpendicularly the sheet conveying direction; and a skew correction roller adapted to be pivotally moved in a direction of correction of a skew of the sheet in a state with the skewed sheet being held on the basis of a detection signal from the skew detection sensor, in which one of the plurality of detection sensors of the skew detection sensor is disposed nearly on an extension line from a pivotal movement center of the skew correction roller in the sheet conveying direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2008
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Noriaki Koyanagi, Takeshi Suga
  • Patent number: 6955351
    Abstract: A paper feeding device comprises a document tray for loading the document, a document-detecting sensor for detecting the document loaded in the document tray and a MYLAR® made of a sheet-shaped resilience material. A part of the MYLAR® is in contact with the document carrying surface at the upstream side of the detecting position of the document-detecting sensor The document is pushed towards the detecting position during the MYLAR® pushing the upper surface of the document. The MYLAR® is bent to form a loop. The lower guide plate is arranged to be in contact with a part of the loop When the document is not detected, the filler of the document-detecting sensor and the MYLAR® overlap each other. A long hole is set in the loop of the MYLAR®.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2005
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Hideki Sueoka
  • Patent number: 6913259
    Abstract: An apparatus for detection of multiple documents (10) in a document transport system comprises a transmitter (15), located on a first side of a document feed path (40), and emits a signal through the document feed path. A reflector (52), located on a second side of said document feed path, reflects the signal through the document feed path. A first sensor detects the signal from the transmitter. A second sensor detects the signal from the transmitter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2005
    Inventors: Daniel P. Phinney, Jennifer J. Phinney, Nelson A. Blish, David M. Schaertel
  • Patent number: 6811336
    Abstract: A register cam and a printing press incorporating the register cam are disclosed. The register cam permits the selection of alternative configurations that permit the alteration of parameters of the registration without the removal of the register cam from the printing press. The register cam can have one or more arms movably connected to and extending from the body. The one or more arms include at least two faces with each face having a distinct profile such that when an arm is in a first orientation a first face is presented to contact a gripper arm of the printing press and in a second orientation a second face is presented to contact the gripper arm of the printing press.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2004
    Assignee: Jostens, Inc.
    Inventor: Todd Sarnstrom
  • Patent number: 6796434
    Abstract: There is disclosed a sheet handling machine capable of surely verifying whether the number of bills is one or not based on the kind of a bill even when bills different in thickness are inserted, handling the bills of different thickness mixed in, dealing with new bills issued in recent years using various novel feature technologies for bill forgery prevention, and detecting the presence of a foreign object in the bill surface. The kind of each of bills successively fed in is specified by bill checking means for identifying the kind of a bill, and reference thickness information regarding the sheet of a specified kind is read from a reference thickness table recording a bill kind and the thickness information of a bill full surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2001
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2004
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yutaka Kako, Riichi Katou
  • Patent number: 6781111
    Abstract: Includes a sensor section (240) which irradiates light onto paper that is being conveyed and which detects a quantity of light transmitted through the paper, and a type-of-money judging section (290) and a number-of-sheet-of-paper collating section (320) which correct a light transmission quantity when the external shape of paper obtained from the light transmission quantity coincides with a prescribed shape and also when the light transmission quantity is lower than a pre-set threshold value, and judge types of money and a number of sheets of paper based on a result of this correction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2004
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventor: Masanori Mukai
  • Patent number: 6748801
    Abstract: A sheet separation and feeding system for measuring substrate bending stiffness and thereby basis weight on a real time basis. Provided is a corrugator having a plurality of parallel ribs, with one or more sheets of the substrate provided below the corrugator wherein a predetermined gap exists between a topmost sheet of the sheets and the corrugator. A vacuum is applied between the corrugator and the topmost sheet, wherein the vacuum is sufficiently large to raise the topmost sheet, thereby deflecting and bending it into a profile corresponding to the arrangement and size of the corrugator ribs and bending stiffness of the substrate. One or more sensors are provided for measuring the deflection of the topmost sheet. The vacuum, an air knife output and/or a fluffer output are then adjusted according to predetermined rules and the measured deflection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2004
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: Robert A. Clark
  • Patent number: 6672587
    Abstract: In a multiple-sheet monitoring device for sheet-processing machines, provision is made to arrange a number of sensing elements spaced apart from one another over the format width of the sheets to be conveyed or the sheet stream to be conveyed, and in this case all the sensing elements interact with the same switching element in order to stop the sheet-processing machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2004
    Assignee: Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
    Inventors: Markus Möhringer, Jochen Renner
  • Patent number: 6648327
    Abstract: A device for detecting a placement position of a document includes at least two sensors mounted on a document feeding device. Each of the sensors is in parallel with the tangential direction of the leading edge of a document feeding roller, and may be moved by the document feeding device to adjust the placing document width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2003
    Assignee: Avision Inc.
    Inventor: Chin-Yuan Lin
  • Patent number: 6581456
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for measuring substrate bending stiffness and thereby basis weight on a real time basis. Provided is a corrugator having a plurality of parallel ribs, with one or more sheets of the substrate provided below the corrugator wherein a predetermined gap exists between a topmost sheet of the sheets and the corrugator. A vacuum is applied between the corrugator and the topmost sheet, wherein the vacuum is sufficiently large to raise the topmost sheet, thereby deflecting and bending it into a profile corresponding to the arrangement and size of the corrugator ribs and bending stiffness of the substrate. One or more sensors are provided for measuring the deflection of the topmost sheet. The vacuum, an air knife output and/or a fluffer output are then adjusted according to predetermined rules and the measured deflection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2003
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: Robert A. Clark
  • Patent number: 6508463
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for staging envelopes in a mail insertion machine. In the mail insertion machine, envelopes are moved into an envelope inserting area one at a time with the flap of the envelopes trailing the envelope bottom edge and flipped away so as to allow enclosure material to be inserted into the envelope. While one envelope is paused in the envelope inserting area for receiving enclosure material, the next envelope is moved towards the envelope inserting area such that the flap of the paused envelope in the envelope inserting area is partially overlapped with the next envelope in a shingling fashion. In order to properly separate these envelopes, a sensing device is used to sense the arrival of the bottom edge of the next envelope in order to control the further movement of the next envelope.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2003
    Assignee: Pitney Bowes Inc.
    Inventors: David Auerbach, Carlos de Figueiredo, John W. Sussmeier, William Wright, Karel J. Janatka
  • Patent number: 6318714
    Abstract: An automated banking machine (10) identifies and stores documents such as currency bills deposited by a user. The machine then selectively recovers such documents from storage and dispenses them to other users. The machine includes a central transport (70) wherein documents deposited in a stack are unstacked, oriented and identified. Such documents are then routed to storage areas in recycling canisters (92, 94, 96, 98). When a user subsequently requests a dispense, documents stored in the storage areas are selectively picked therefrom and delivered to the user through an input/output area (50) of the machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1998
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2001
    Assignee: Diebold, Incorporated
    Inventors: William D. Beskitt, H. Thomas Graef, Damon J. Blackford, Jeffrey Eastman, Sean Haney, Bill Schadt
  • Patent number: 6241244
    Abstract: An automated banking machine (10) identifies and stores documents such as currency bills deposited by a user. The machine then selectively recovers such documents from storage areas and dispenses them to other users. The machine includes a sheet thickness detector (810) used for distinguishing single sheets from double sheets which pass through the machine. The thickness detector includes a radiation source (822). Radiation from the radiation source is directed by radiation guide (824) to a generally linear elongated radiation outlet (826) which extends transversely to the sheet path. A receiver (814) includes a radiation sensitive element (830) which is also transversely elongated relative to the sheet path. Sheets passing between the emitter and the receiver cause variations in the amount of radiation reaching the receiver. The transversely elongated surface of the sheet through which the transmission of radiation is sense enables accurately distinguishing single sheets from double sheets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1998
    Date of Patent: June 5, 2001
    Assignee: Diebold, Incorporated
    Inventor: Al Modi
  • Patent number: 5931462
    Abstract: To produce a desired sheet orientation between upstream and downstream positions of a sheet path along which sheets travel successively in a predetermined sheet travel direction, each sheet is driven uniformly along the path with an intermediate phase in which the sheet is driven differentially to rotate the sheet without changing its velocity component in the sheet travel direction. If the sheet has a skew or an offset error, the amount of rotation and its starting point are adjusted appropriately to compensate for both.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 1997
    Date of Patent: August 3, 1999
    Assignee: C.P. Bourg S.A.
    Inventor: Christian Delfosse
  • Patent number: 5918876
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a sheet conveying apparatus with a pair convey rollers arranged upstream of a registration mechanism for correcting a skew-feed of a sheet in a sheet conveying direction that can be abutted against or separated from each other, or can be shifted in accordance with a length of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction. As the result, when the skew-feed of the sheet is corrected by the registration mechanism, a trailing end of the sheet is not restrained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 1997
    Date of Patent: July 6, 1999
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroyoshi Maruyama, Masahiko Yashiro
  • Patent number: 5918877
    Abstract: A cut sheet feeding device having a function of detecting a skew of the sheet to be fed is incorporated in an image reader, a printing apparatus, etc. The cut sheet feeding device is capable of surely detecting the skew of a document without an operator visually monitoring the same. The cut sheet feeding device has size sensors corresponding to standard sheet sizes, respectively, for detecting the size of a document that is being fed along a feeding path. The detected document size is compared with a set document size stored in advance. If the detected document size is greater than the set document size, it is determined that there is an abnormality in feeding the document. The cut sheet feeding device also has a document passage detector for detecting the passage of the document. The outputs of the document passage sensor and size sensor are compared with each other, to calculate a skew of the document that is being fed. This skew is used to determine whether or not the document is being fed normally.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 6, 1999
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventors: Yukako Takei, Tamio Amagai, Yoshio Tabata
  • Patent number: 5911417
    Abstract: A sheet jamming-proof mechanism for a paper-feeding system provided outside of a left and a right paper boundaries delimited along a predetermined paper-feeding pathway to supervise the paper-feeding direction for preventing sheet jamming. The sheet jamming-proof mechanism includes: a plurality of touch plates, each touch plate being closely contiguous to the outside of the left or right boundary of paper-feeding pathway and being elastically hold by the paper-feeding system so that the touch plate is forced to shift when the contact plate is pressed by a deviated paper; a plurality of detectors, each detector locates in the vicinity of the touch plate to sense the shift of the touch plate; and a controller which controls the driving device of the paper-feeding system to alter the ordinary paper-feeding operation for preventing sheet jamming when shift of any touch plate is sensed by the detectors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: June 15, 1999
    Assignee: Mustek Systems, Inc.
    Inventor: John Lin
  • Patent number: 5775682
    Abstract: A sheet transfer member (17) has at least one outwardly opening slot (20) into which a sheet can be received. The member (17) is rotatably mounted in use so that a sheet in the slot (20) can be transferred to a sheet stacking position. A portion of the rotatable member (17) comprises high friction insert (22) which, during a dispense operation, withdraws sheets from the stacking position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 7, 1998
    Assignee: De La Rue International Limited
    Inventors: Steven Michael Hosking, Raymond William Simpson-Davis
  • Patent number: 5694849
    Abstract: Overshooting-sheet safety device for sheet deliveries of printing presses includes a triggering member responsive to overshooting sheets for triggering a stoppage of the printing press, the triggering member extending across the width of an oncoming sheet and being mounted in bearings at both sides thereof, the triggering member being deflectable perpendicularly to a line connecting said bearings for triggering a stoppage of the printing press.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 9, 1997
    Assignee: Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
    Inventors: Josef Wehle, Helmut Buck, Manfred Henn
  • Patent number: 5662321
    Abstract: The disclosed document feeder apparatus includes a document drive that comprises only a single line of feed rollers with a simple skew adjustment system. This drive is shown incorporated in a cassette-loaded automatic document feeder ("ADF") that is attachable to an existing independent engineering document copier in a non-intrusive manner. The cassette can be loaded, either when positioned in the ADF or at a location remote from the ADF, with a stack of large engineering documents of mixed media and varying sizes; and it is even possible for the cassette to carry a document several yards (meters) long. Documents are fed serially from the top of the stack through the ADF's document flow path by the document drive which is centered for alignment along a line positioned parallel to the document flow path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 1995
    Date of Patent: September 2, 1997
    Assignees: Stephen Borostyan, David M. Borostyan
    Inventors: Stephen Borostyan, David M. Borostyan
  • Patent number: 5527031
    Abstract: A series of sensors are placed transversely to the line of movement of the bill so that the leading edge passes over the sensors substantially simultaneously. If the bill is misaligned and the sensors are blocked within a predetermined period, the bill will be rejected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 1994
    Date of Patent: June 18, 1996
    Assignee: Coin Bill Validator, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Walsh, Miroslaw Blaszczec