Xerox Corporation

Charles Scott Kneisel

Raymond A Povio

Douglas K Herrmann

Erwin Ruiz

Paul S Bonino

David Lalley

Glenn M Herbert

Russell McDonald

Michele D Zirilli

Kenneth B Mahon

Apparatuses useful for printing and methods of stripping media from surfaces in apparatuses useful for printing are provided. An exemplary embodiment of an apparatus useful for printing includes a first member including a first surface; a second member including a second surface forming a nip with the first surface; a gas source; a rotary valve including a gas inlet in fluid communication with the gas source, a gas outlet and a rotor including a gas passage; a gas knife in fluid communication with the gas outlet of the rotary valve, the gas knife being adapted to emit gas onto the second surface downstream from the nip; and a motor coupled to the rotor. The motor is operable to rotate the rotor to selectively position the rotary valve in at least a first open position in which the gas passage is in fluid communication with the gas inlet and gas outlet, gas is supplied from the rotary valve to the gas knife which emits the gas having a first pressure onto the second surface, and a closed position in which the gas passage is not in fluid communication with the gas inlet and gas outlet and gas is not supplied from the rotary valve to the gas knife.

Gas knife apparatus and methods for stripping media from surface in printing apparatus

A media handling device includes sensing means disposed in a media elevator that is movable in a generally-vertical travel path proximate to a generally-fixed surface. The sensing means detects a recorded information that is disposed in the surface. The resulting detected information is used to identify the media elevator's current position. Also, another media handling device includes a recorded information disposed in a movable media elevator. Sensing means are fixed proximate to a generally-vertical media elevator travel path. The recorded information is sensed and the resulting detected information is used to identify the media elevator's current position.

Media elevator's current position identification method and a media handling device arranged with the same

An electrophotographic printing in which successive copy sheets are supplied from a supply source thereof. A tray is arranged to have a stack of copy sheets disposed thereon. When one marginal region of the stack of copy sheets has a greater thickness than the other marginal region, a support is interposed between the tray and the lowermost sheet of the stack of copy sheets so that at least the opposed marginal regions of the uppermost sheet of the stack of copy sheets are at substantially about the same level.

Sheet feeding and leveling apparatus

A top vacuum corrugation feeder employs a vacuum feedhead working in conjunction with an air knife to feed sheets from the top of a stack. The feedhead is valveless and has a vacuum applied thereto during the entire feed cycle in order to increase reliability and decrease minimum feed speed. The air knife includes trapezoidal shaped fluffer jets in front of the stack and side fluffer jets and added on the sides of the stack in order to assist the feedhead in separating severely downcurled sheets for feeding. A rotational damper member is positioned above and has a portion thereof resting on the stack for controlling sheet flutter and leakage of air from the stack sides. A belt coast control member controls the precise stopping position of vacuum belts that surround the vacuum feedhead in order to minimize multifeeding of sheets from the stack.

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Farmington, NY, United States of America

Charles Scott Kneisel