Lexmark International, Inc.

Curtis Ray Droege

Fred Young Brandon

Bruce David Gibson

Sam Norasak

Frank Edward Anderson

James Harold Powers

Benjamin Alan Askren

Kent Lee Ubellacker

Robert Wilson Cornell

Jeffery James Buchanan

Donn Duane Bryant

Gary Raymond Williams

Michael John Dixon

John Dennis Zbrozek

Edward Lawrence Kiely

Lawrence Russell Steward

Bryan McKinley

John Edward Borsuk

Stephen Francis DeFosse

Elios Klemo

Robert Flynt Strean

Ann Marie Trebolo

Robert Arnold Christiansen

Kenneth James Harshbarger

Laura Leigh Garcia

William Michael Toon

William Paul Cook

Adam Jude Ahne

Carl Edmond Sullivan

David Emerson Greer

Paul Timothy Spivey

Gary Scott Overall

Steven Andrew Rice

Hrishikesh Pramod Gogate

Ganesh Vinayak Phatak

Raymond Jay Barry

Calvin Dale Murphy

Charles Stanley Aldrich

Melissa Marie Waldeck

Kin Ming Kwan

Gregory Alan Long

Johnny Ray Sears

Eric Spencer Hall

Michael Wesley Baskette

Andrew Charles Hogan

Randall Steven Gall

Laura Garcia Baxter

Adam Neal Chalin

Methods for fabricating micro-fluid ejection heads and micro-fluid ejection heads are provided herein, such as those that use non-conventional substrates. One such micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate having first and second glass layers disposed adjacent to a surface thereof and a plurality of fluid ejection actuators disposed adjacent to the second glass layer. The first glass layer is thicker than the second glass layer and the second glass layer has a surface roughness of no greater than about 75 &#x212b; Ra.

Micro-fluid ejection heads with multiple glass layers

An inkjet printhead having a housing having a top face and a bottom face, an ink ejection device and a contact circuit. The contact circuit is affixed to the housing in a substantially horizontal orientation and is in communication with the ink ejection device. The contact circuit is configured to connect the ink ejection device to an external device.

Low profile printhead

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an inkjet printhead within which a removable ink cartridge can be installed. Upon installation, the ink cartridge can be coupled to one or more wicks in the printhead for establishing fluid communication between one or more chambers in the ink cartridge and nozzles through which ink exits the printhead during operation. The wick can extend from a cartridge receptacle to a substantially enclosed ink reservoir in order to transport ink from the removable cartridge to the ink reservoir.

Bridging wick and method for an inkjet printhead

A printhead garage for receiving an ink jet printhead cartridge includes a chassis defining an opening for receiving the ink jet printhead cartridge when the ink jet printhead cartridge is not installed for use by the imaging apparatus for printing. A maintenance assembly is coupled to the chassis and configured to perform at least one printhead maintenance operation. In one embodiment, a printhead firing unit is coupled to the chassis.

Ink jet printhead garage configured to perform maintenance functions

A multi-fluid body and an ejection head substrate connected in fluid flow communication with the multi-fluid body for ejecting multiple fluids therefrom. The multi-fluid body includes at least two segregated fluid chambers. Independent fluid supply paths lead from each of the fluid chambers providing fluid to multiple fluid flow paths in the ejection head substrate. The ejection head substrate is attached adjacent an ejection head area of the body. The fluid flow paths in the ejection head substrate have a flow path density of greater than about one flow paths per millimeter.

Multi-fluid ejection device

An apparatus for the management of the fluid level in a media coating system. In one embodiment, the apparatus has a supply item for the storage of a media coating fluid and an applicator having a trough for receiving the media coating fluid from the supply item. The apparatus utilizes a fluid level detection sensor that is located within the applicator to measure whether the media coating fluid level within the trough of the applicator is either above or below a threshold position and to generates an output signal. The apparatus has a controller for receiving the output signal and controlling delivery of the media coating fluid from the supply item to the applicator.

System and method of fluid level regulating for a media coating system

An ink jet aerosol control includes a carrier frame, a carrier, at least one airflow channel and a filter. The carrier is disposed and moveable within the frame and selectively creates a high-pressure zone and a low-pressure zone. The airflow channel joins the high-pressure zone to the low-pressure zone. The filter is disposed in association with the airflow channel.

Ink jet aerosol control using carrier movement as a piston pump

An ink jet printer for printing on a print medium includes an ink jet cartridge assembly movable at a scan velocity in scan directions. The ink jet cartridge assembly includes a nozzle plate. A rotary wiper is positioned in association with the nozzle plate for contacting the nozzle plate. The rotary wiper is rotatable with a tangential velocity which is greater than the scan velocity.

Rotary wiping assembly for a nozzle plate in an ink jet printer

The invention provides a printhead for an ink jet printer and a method for making a printhead for an ink jet printer. The printhead includes a printhead body having a chip surface side, an ink surface side opposite the chip surface side and a first coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). A semiconductor chip containing ink ejector devices is adhesively attached to the chip surface side of the printhead body. A stiffener is adhesively attached to the ink surface side to provide body stiffening during curing of the adhesive. The semiconductor chip has a second CTE and the stiffener has a third CTE wherein the second and third CTE's have a similar value. The invention provides an improved structure for printheads which resist warpage and/or breakage of the semiconductor chips during the manufacturing process used to make the printheads.

Ink jet semiconductor chip structure

The present invention relates to a system and a method for securing tubing which includes a reservoir, preferably being a printer cartridge, having a rigid wall with interior and exterior surfaces, a rigid restraining member for a tube, and the restraining member further having a passage therethrough. In one embodiment, the invention includes at least one locking lever with top and bottom ends, the locking lever having at least one notch proximate to the top end and the bottom end is pivotably attached to the interior surface of the reservoir wall, and the restraining member is alternately attached to the top end of the locking lever. In another embodiment, the locking lever is rigidly attached to the interior surface of the reservoir and the restraining member is alternately attached to the reservoir. In a further embodiment, the restraining member is attached to interior of the reservoir wall by at least two locking arms. The reservoir wall has an opening and a tube assembly comprised of the rigid restraining member and the flexible tubing fits into the opening. The tube assembly thus either engages the locking lever notch and pivots the locking lever against the interior surface of the reservoir wall or is placed against the locking lever notch of the rigidly attached locking lever, or is pushed against the locking arms into the opening so as to secure the tube assembly against the rigid wall of the reservoir and within the opening of the reservoir wall to create a substantially fluid tight seal between the tube assembly and the opening of the reservoir.

System for securing tubing

An ink mist controller for a maintenance station including spit louvers and a spit wheel which serve as accumulating surfaces. A flow of air directs ink mist through the louvers and around the spit wheel. Mist that is not attracted to a surface is carried to a manifold which filters, then exhausts, air to the environment, thereby preventing contamination of articles surrounding the printer. Color ink droplets are ejected onto the spit louvers. Low pressure is created between and below the louvers, which increases air and mist velocity over the entire spit zone. An unrestricted air curtain occurs on three sides of the color printhead to further control the location of mist deposit. Black ink is ejected onto the spit wheel which holds the mist deposit during evaporation. At defined intervals, the spit wheel rotates a fraction of a revolution. A scraper removes the non-volatile residue from the wheel during rotation. An air curtain is created on all four sides of the spit wheel to direct mist to this surface. As with the color ink, contaminated air is filtered prior to being exhausted to the environment.

Maintenance mist control

A process of, and apparatus for controlling waste ink from an ink jet printer printhead, transfers waste ink to an absorptive diaper, and at least intermittently forces air across the absorptive diaper to promote evaporation of certain volatile ink components from the transferred ink. Waste ink may be received and temporarily retained on a plurality of spaced apart inclined louvers located above the absorptive diaper, and air conveyed across and between the louvers to promote evaporation of certain volatile components from the received ink.

Waste ink management

A print head having an ink reservoir therein is made by forming, in a one-shot plastic injection molding step, a rigid monolithic frame including high melt temperature material having an opening therein extending from a first side to a second side, and first and second bonding surfaces surrounding the opening and facing the first and second sides, respectively. First and second thin flexible films are adhesively secured to the first and second bonding surfaces, respectively. The adhesive material may be a hot melt adhesive or dry adhesive films pre-formed to the shape of the bonding surfaces. By securing the flexible films to the bonding surfaces adhesively, rather than by heat staking, it is not necessary to form the frame of different materials during two separate molding steps.

Print head cartridge made with jointless one-piece frame consisting of a single material throughout

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Richmond, KY, United States of America

Curtis Ray Droege