Eastman-kodak Company

Xerox Corporation

Anthony R Lubinsky

Robert W Kulpinski

James F Owen

Xin Wen

John C Boutet

Diane Carol Freeman

John W May

Omid A Moghadam

Thomas E Kocher

Simon D Yandila

Christopher Newell Delametter

James Edward Williams

Linda A Kaszczuk

Richard A Landholm

David Leroy Cole

Yali E Chan

James F Schmitt

David D Kessler

Charles D DeBoer

Gary Allen Denton

David Louis Jeanmaire

Douglas W Couwenhoven

William Mey

Richard N Blazey

John Gasper

John Patrick Spence

Bruce R Whiting

Paul D Keller

Donald Michael Korn

Nea Y Woo

William F Garbe

Carl E Cowan

Malcolm R Specht

Ann K Pillman

Cory L Krajewski

Thomas W Nylund

Apparatus and method for maintaining a substantially constant closely spaced working distance between an inkjet printhead and a printing receiver

An inkjet printing apparatus and method of operating an inkjet printhead provides an inkjet orifice of the printhead that is located within a predetermined spacing of less than 1000 micrometers, and more preferably in a range of 50-500 micrometers for printing high resolution images. Electrical drive signals are provided to the printhead, the drive signals being adapted to enable the printhead to generate a droplet. In response to the drive signals, a free spherical droplet is formed between the orifice and a receiver member and deposits a droplet upon the receiver member substantially without presence of an attached or detached ligament of printing liquid that would otherwise provide an artifact mark on the receiver member.

Electrical drive waveform for close drop formation

An inkjet printing apparatus and method of operating an inkjet printhead provides an inkjet orifice of the printhead that is located within a predetermined spacing of less than 1000 micrometers, and more preferably in a range of 50 to less than 500 micrometers for printing high resolution images. Electrical drive signals are provided to the printhead, the drive signals being adapted to enable the printhead to generate a droplet. In response to the drive signals, a free droplet is formed between the orifice and a receiver member and deposits a droplet upon the receiver member substantially without presence of any satellites.

Electrical waveform for satellite suppression

An ink jet plate maker and proofer apparatus ( ) and method adapted for printing a proof of a work to be printed, and making a printing plate ( ) for printing the work, including a first element ( ) including circuitry ( ) controllably operable for generating ink drops of a first predetermined volume for printing the proof on a proofing receiver, and a second element ( ) including circuitry ( ) controllably operable for generating liquid drops of a second predetermined volume for image wise making or completing the printing plate ( ), the second predetermined volume being different from the first predetermined volume. According to an exemplary embodiment, the apparatus includes a first print head ( ) connected in fluid communication with a source of ink ( ) for printing the proof of the work, and a second print head ( ) in fluid communication with a source of a liquid ( ) for making the printing plate, the print heads ( ) being disposed for ejecting drops of the ink and the liquid for making the printing plate onto a proofing receiver and a treated plate, respectively, positionable on a platen ( ) relatively moveable with respect to the print heads ( ). The first element ( ) is connected in electrical communication with the first print head ( ) and includes a first clock ( ) connected to a signal generator ( ) operable for producing a drive signal for generating the ink drops of the first predetermined volume for printing the proof on the proofing receiver. The second element ( ) includes a second clock ( ) connected to the signal generator ( ) and operable in conjunction therewith for driving the second print head ( ) for generating the liquid drops for making the printing plate ( ).

Ink jet plate maker and proofer apparatus and method

In a method for microfluidic printing of colored images on a receiver, including providing a first set of reservoirs containing colorant precursors for different colors; providing at least one reservoir containing a reactant; and reacting the colorant precursors and reactant(s) to provide colored pixels of the desired colors.

Using colorant precursors and reactants in microfluidic printing

An imaging apparatus capable of inhibiting inadvertent ejection of a satellite ink droplet and method of assembling same. The imaging apparatus comprises a print head transducer including a pair of sidewalls defining a chamber therebetween, the channel having the ink body disposed therein. The transducer is in fluid communication with the ink body for inducing a first pressure wave in the ink body in order to eject an ink droplet. A waveform generator is connected to the transducer for supplying voltage waveforms to the transducer, so that the transducer induces pressure waves in the ink body. However, the first pressure wave has a reflected portion formed by the first pressure wave reflecting from the sidewalls. The reflected portion is sufficient to otherwise inadvertently eject unintended satellite ink droplets. Thus, a sensor is in fluid communication with the ink body for sensing the reflected portion and is connected to the transducer for inducing a second pressure wave in the ink body. The second pressure wave has an amplitude and phase damping the reflected portion of the first pressure wave in order to the inhibit inadvertent ejection of satellite ink droplets.

Imaging apparatus capable of inhibiting inadvertent ejection of a satellite ink droplet therefrom and method of assembling same

An imaging apparatus capable of suppressing inadvertent ejection of a satellite ink droplet and method of assembling the apparatus. The imaging apparatus comprises a print head transducer including a pair of sidewalls defining a chamber therebetween, the channel having an ink body disposed therein. The transducer is capable of inducing a first pressure wave in the ink body in order to eject an intended ink droplet. A waveform generator is connected to the transducer for supplying a voltage waveform to the transducer, so that the transducer induces pressure waves in the ink body to eject the ink droplet. However, the first pressure wave has a reflected portion formed by the first pressure wave reflecting from the sidewalls. The reflected portion is sufficient to inadvertently eject unintended satellite ink droplets following ejection of the intended ink droplet. To avoid formation of satellite ink droplets, a sensor is in fluid communication with the ink body for sensing the reflected portion. A feedback circuit interconnects the transducer and the sensor for inducing a second pressure wave in the ink body in response to the reflected portion sensed by the sensor. The second pressure wave has an amplitude and phase damping the reflected portion of the first pressure wave in order to the suppress inadvertent ejection of the satellite ink droplets.

Imaging apparatus capable of suppressing inadvertent ejection of a satellite ink droplet therefrom and method of assembling same

A method for printing information on an image receiver includes metering and collecting amounts of different fluids which when mixed will provide an ink of a desired color; transferring the fluids to cells formed on a surface where they are mixed to provide an ink of a desired color; and transferring the ink from the cells to an image receiver.

Delivering mixed inks to an intermediate transfer roller

An inkjet printing apparatus for printing continuous tone images on a receiver in response to a digital image, including a structure defining a plurality of colorant or colorant precursor receiving chambers, and another structure defining at least one mixing chamber for receiving a plurality of microdrops of colorants or colorant precursors from the colorant or colorant precursor receiving chambers to produce a desired colorant. The apparatus further includes a microdrop nozzle for each receiving chamber and in communication with the mixing chamber and a printing nozzle for each mixing chamber for causing a mixed drop to be delivered to the receiver. Further, the ejection of the desired number of microdrops is controlled and in response to the digital image and connected to the receiving chamber and the mixing chamber and for causing the desired number of microdrops to be ejected into the mixing chamber and then ejecting a mixed drop of colorant from the mixing chamber through the printing nozzle to the receiver.

Apparatus for mixing and ejecting mixed colorant drops

An ink jet printer capable of increasing spatial resolution of a plurality of marks to be printed thereby and method of assembling the printer. The printer comprises a print head body having a nozzle block including a plurality of adjacent ink channels of predetermined pitch 'P' for printing an image on a receiver. The nozzle block is slidably disposed in the print head body and thus is movable relative to the print head body. A displacement mechanism is connected to the nozzle block for slidably moving the nozzle block a predetermined distance 'P.sub.1 ' less than pitch P. Before the nozzle block is moved, the channels are enabled in order to eject ink droplets which have pitch P for defining a first spatial resolution of the marks on the receiver. The displacement mechanism then moves the nozzle block the predetermined distance P.sub.1 to a second position. The channels are again enabled while the nozzle block is in this second position. Additional marks are then formed intermediate the marks formed when the nozzle block was in its first position. All the marks formed on the receiver now define a second spatial resolution greater than the first spatial resolution of the marks, so that the image has increased spatial resolution.

Ink jet printer capable of increasing spatial resolution of a plurality

Printhead container and method. The container comprises an enclosure surrounding a printhead body having an ink channel terminating in a nozzle orifice. The ink channel has ink therein. The enclosure is capable of being pressurized to a predetermined internal pressure. The internal pressure acts on the ink to retain the ink in the channel, so that the ink is prevented from flowing along the channel and through the orifice. A one-way valve is in communication with the interior of the enclosure for ingress of a pressurizing medium into the interior of the enclosure, while avoiding reverse flow through the valve in order to allow sustained pressurization of the enclosure. Moreover, a support frame disposed in the enclosure may be provided, the frame defining a well sized to matingly receive the printhead body for constraining movement of the printhead body during transport of the enclosure.

Printhead container and method

Ink jet printing apparatus and method for improved accuracy of ink droplet placement on a receiver medium by compensating for jet direction variabilities between ink nozzles. More specifically, the invention is an ink jet printing apparatus and method for printing an output image on a receiver medium in response to an input image file having a plurality of pixels. The apparatus includes a print head and a nozzle integrally attached to the print head. The nozzle has a droplet placement characteristic (e.g., undesired placement of the droplet on the receiver medium) associated therewith. A waveform generator associated with the nozzle generates an electronic waveform including a plurality of electronic pulses to be supplied to the nozzle for adjusting the droplet placement characteristic. In this manner, the invention compensates for the undesired droplet placement characteristic, so that the droplet is accurately placed on the receiver medium irrespective of physical variabilities between nozzles.

Ink jet printing apparatus and method for improved accuracy of ink

Printer apparatus and method. The apparatus includes a substrate having a plurality of spaced-apart pairs of selectively actuatable side walls defining respective channels therebetween of different depths. Each channel receives an associated one of a plurality of ink bodies therein and the substrate is formed of piezoelectric material responsive to electric stimuli. The pairs of side walls are preferably separated one from another by means of an intervening cut-out for reducing mechanical coupling between the ink channels. A cover plate is connected to the substrate and has a plurality of orifices therethrough in registration with respective ones of the channels such that the orifices are off-set one from another. Accordingly, in one embodiment of the invention, the channels have different depths and, therefore, the orifices, which are in registration with the channels, are off-set one from another to accommodate the different depths of the channels. A selected ink channel, which belongs to a first group of channels having a first predetermined depth, pressurize as its pairs of side walls are actuated. Also, a non-selected ink channel, which belongs to a second group of channels having a second predetermined depth, remains unpressurized as the selected channel is actuated. Moreover, the two groups of channels are interleaved. The channels of the first group are actuated at a later time that the channels of the second group as the printhead traverses a receiver medium. This feature of the invention reduces mechanical and hydraulic coupling between channels because actuation of selected channels belonging the two groups are spaced-apart in time.

Printer apparatus and method

Continuous tone black and white images are duplicated using laser thermal digital halftone printing. A continuous tone black and white image signal is provided by a source such as a medical imaging source. The image signal is screened with a digital halftone screen, such that each pixel of said image signal is represented by a predetermined matrix of micropixels, whereby to produce a digital halftone image signal corresponding to the continuous tone black and white image signal. A master is created by printing the digital halftone image onto a dye ablated medium by means of laser thermal recording. A duplicate of the master is produced by contact printing onto a duplicating medium.

Duplicating radiographic, medical or other black and white images using

The contrast of an electrographic image or a region of interest of an electrographic image having low contrast is enhanced by developing the electrographic image with toner using a development electrode which is biased to a potential which has a value near the average potential of the image but outside of the range of values of potential corresponding to image features selected for enhancement. The voltage potential of the electrographic image is measured to determine the average potential in the region of interest. The development electrode bias is set at a potential near the average potential but outside of the range of potentials corresponding to the image features selected for enhancement in the region of interest of the image. When developed with toner, the toner image has enhanced contrast. If the image is a xeroradiographic image, diagnostic capability of low contrast regions can be enhanced.

Growing community of inventors

Webster, NY, United States of America

Anthony R Lubinsky