Hewlett-packard Company

Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Eric Joseph Johnson

Antoni Murcia

Robert Warren Beauchamp

B Michael Eckard

Eric Stephen Mattis

Xavier Bruch

Christopher Taylor

Antoni S Murcia

Donald L Michael

Brian P Canfield

Jesus Garcia

Frank Drogo

Emilio Angulo

Paul E Martinson

John Ferraro

Elizabeth Zapata

Robert R Giles

Mark E Young

W Wistar Rhoads

Felix Ruiz

Don Boutin

Rick Becker

Steve Castle

Doug Watson

Alan Shibata

Todd R Medin

Hector Jose Lebron

James P Kearns

Richard H Lewis

Steven T Castle

Xavier Girones

John H Dion

Brian D Gragg

Martin Urrutia

Kelvin J Hasseler

James A Harvey

Joan Carles Vives

Catherine A Rotering

Albert Serra

William Wistar Rhoads

Christopher C Taylor

Antoni Murcia Serra

Minh Chu

Lee A Sutherland

A technique for servicing an inkjet printhead on an inkjet printer including a first service module. The technique includes identifying a printhead-related service condition not adequately addressed by servicing the printer with the first service module, providing a second service module different from the first service module and adapted to address the printhead-related service condition. A set of instructions can be provided for using the second service module with the inkjet printer. The technique can further include removing the first service module from the printer, installing the second service module in the printer, and using the set of instructions, conducting a special printer servicing operation. After completion of the special printer servicing operation, the second service module can be removed from the printer, and the first service module reinstalled in the printer in place of the second service module.

Special service station module for extra servicing

A wet-wiping printhead cleaning system for inkjet printer incorporating a wiper for wiping the printhead including a treatment fluid applicator configured for placing treatment fluid onto at least one element of the printhead and wiper elements involved in wiping the printhead orifice plate surface, the treatment fluid being placed on said at least one element by direct contact of the applicator, subsequently the wiper wipes the printhead, the treatment being available to enhance cleaning effectiveness, the treatment fluid lubricating the wiper so as to lengthen wiper service life and enhance wiping performance, as well as acting to render unwanted accumulations on the printhead more removable by wiping.

Servicing system for an inkjet printhead

A wet-wiping printhead cleaning system including a treatment fluid applicator placing treatment fluid on at least one of two elements involved in wiping, said two elements being a printhead orifice plate surface and a wiper, the system being so configured that treatment fluid is applied before wiping the printhead by projecting treatment fluid onto at least one element through the atmosphere, thereby avoiding direct contact between the applicator and said one element, the treatment fluid being placed so as to be available to assist in wiping a portion of the printhead orifice plate where the nozzle orifices are located to remove debris that may have accumulated, the treatment fluid lubricating the wiper so as to lengthen wiper service life and enhance wiping performance, as well as acting to render such accumulations more removable by wiping, the source of treatment fluid being uncontaminated by contact with either the printhead or the wiper.

Wet wiping printhead cleaning system using a non-contact technique for applying a printhead treatment fluid

A carriage including a printing component support and a pair of bushings having an inner region with at least three spaced rail contact regions separated by respective non-contact regions.

Multiple orientation image forming device and carriage for use with same

Print cartridges on printers using stationary print cartridges are accessed by service station components such as wipers, scrapers, cleaning fluid applicators, ink receiving receptacles and cappers in a manner similar to what is done in a conventional scanning printhead printing system. A print cartridge support structure holds one or more print cartridges in a stationary position while applying ink on a media. A printhead is located on each of the print cartridges. The printhead has nozzles for ejecting ink which are arranged in a nozzle array of one or more columns of nozzles. A media movement mechanism provides movement of the media though a print zone located beneath the nozzle array. A printhead servicing station is located outside of the print zone and has one or more servicing modules dedicated for interaction with one of the nozzle arrays when the one of the nozzle arrays is positioned in aligned proximity with its dedicated servicing module. A motorized device coupled to the print cartridge support structure moves the print cartridge support structure out of the print zone to the service station during a period when the print cartridges are not applying ink to the media.

Print cartridge servicing for an inkjet printing system using stationary print cartridges

An inkjet printer includes a plurality of fixed printheads and a transfer roller. The transfer roller collects ink from the printheads and transfers the collected ink onto a print medium.

Inkjet printer including fixed printheads and transfer roller

A print cartridge support structure holds one or more print cartridges in a stationary position while applying ink on media. A printhead servicing station is located outside of the print zone and has one or more servicing modules dedicated for interaction with one of the nozzle arrays of a print cartridge when such nozzle array is positioned in aligned proximity with its dedicated servicing module. The printhead servicing modules may include wipers, scrapers, cleaning fluid applicators, ink receiving receptacles and cappers. A motorized device may be used to relocate the print cartridge and/or the servicing modules to be in close proximity for servicing the printhead during a period when the nozzle arrays are not applying ink to the media.

Printhead servicing based on relocating stationary print cartridges away from print zone

A method of automatically servicing the orifices of an inkjet printhead particularly beneficial for inexpensive fixed or stationary printhead printers capable or printing onto either a series of discrete media sheets or onto a continuous media web. The method includes orifice servicing at the start of each character printing job and at periodic intervals during completion of print jobs. Printing ink is used for automatic cleaning or flushing of the printhead orifices.

Periodic ejection of printing fluid to service orifices of an inkjet printer

A replaceable inkjet printhead cleaner service station system has separate replaceable cleaning units for maintaining each printhead in an inkjet printing mechanism. Each cleaning unit has a printhead wiper, a printhead snout wiper, a capping system, a spittoon, and an ink solvent application system. A set of non-replaceable wiper scrapers are supported by the service station frame. When printing with interchangeable printheads that dispense mutually incompatible inks the cleaning units are exchanged when installing a printhead with an ink which is incompatible with the ink dispensed by a previous printhead to avoid cross-contamination if the inks at the wipers and caps. To prevent cross-contamination at the permanent scrapers, the scraper for each pen is divided into two separate regions each dedicated to cleaning only one wiper associated with one type of ink. A method is provided for cleaning an inkjet printhead, along with a printing mechanism employing such a system.

Dual wiper scrapers for incompatible inkjet ink wipers

A removable service module in a printer service station periodically interacts with a print cartridge, and is sized for proper installation in a matching service carriage slot. Upper and lower boundary guides on the service carriage prevent an unmatched or wrongly positioned service module from fitting through a slot entrance and becoming seated into a completed mounting position.

Error-proof service station installation

Service station components for interacting with one type of printhead are located to be aligned in operative position only in a first servicing mode, and service station components for interacting with another type of printhead are differently located to be aligned in operative position only in a second servicing mode. This allows for different servicing schemes of two or more modes to be applied based on the individual characteristics of the ink and/or nozzle plates employed in inkjet printheads. In some instances, an individual printhead can be serviced in more than one servicing mode. In a preferred embodiment, replaceable service station units are provided for each different printhead.

Independent servicing of multiple inkjet printheads

A replaceable inkjet printhead cleaner service station system has separate replaceable cleaning units for each printhead in an inkjet printing mechanism, which has a pallet that moves the cleaning units translationally to service the printheads. Each cleaning unit has a printhead wiper, a printhead snout wiper, a capping system, a spittoon, and optionally, an ink solvent application system. The snout wiper cleans ink residue from a non-ink-ejecting snout portion of an inkjet printhead cartridge installed in the printing mechanism. The snout wiper has a base which moves between a rest position and a wiping position. A wiper is supported by the base to wipe ink residue from the non-ink-ejecting snout portion of the cartridge through motion of the cartridge while the base remains stationary at the wiping position. A method is provided for cleaning an inkjet printhead, along with an inkjet printing mechanism employing such a snout wiping system.

Replaceable snout wiper for inkjet cartridges

Growing community of inventors

San Diego, CA, United States of America

Eric Joseph Johnson