Hewlett-packard Company

Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Hewlett-packard Corporation

Geoff Wotton

Steve Orrin Rasmussen

Steven B Elgee

John A Barinaga

Robert M Yraceburu

John D Rhodes

Angela S Chen

Todd R Medin

Daniel J Fredrickson

Laurent Andrew Regimbal

John A Underwood

Jason M Quintana

Harold Dail Kimrey, Jr

David E Smith

Tod S Heiles

Yi-Hua Tsao

Richard Alan Kelley

Thomas W Ruhe

Jeffrey C Madsen

Mark L Choy

James O Beehler

Brooke E Smith

Michel Anthony Riou

Larry G Neubauer

John Sturman

Michael F Klopfenstein

Robert J Reichert

David Rehman

A method for servicing a printhead includes moving the printhead along a first path away from a printing position adjacent a drum to a service position away from the drum, moving a service station carrying a printhead service element through an arc-shaped second path from a rest position to a servicing position, and conducting a service operation with the service element on the printhead at the service position.

Service station and method for servicing drum printer

A printer has a media transport with a rigid, air-transmissive platen. A movable air-transmissive flexible web overlays the platen. A suction device communicates with the platen to draw air through the web and through the platen such that a sheet of media carried on the web is biased toward the platen. A valve sheet overlays or underlies the platen, and includes a plurality of shut-off elements, each movable in response to temperature changes between a closed position in which the element contacts a portion of the platen to prevent air flow through that portion of the platen, and an open position, in which the element is spaced apart from the platen to admit air to the platen portion. The shut off elements may include resistive heaters and bimetallic strips so that application of electricity generates heat to flex the strip to an open position.

Printer with vacuum platen having bimetallic valve sheet providing selectable active area

A print media preheating method and apparatus uses heat, vacuum, and mechanisms for drying and flattening a sheet prior to ink-jet printing thereon. Pre-shrinking the media, driving out and substantially reducing inherent moisture content prior to depositing wet ink thereon provides greater flatness in the print-zone whereby ink-jet print quality is improved.

Print media heating techniques for a vacuum belt hard copy apparatus

Techniques are disclosed for servicing a printhead. In one exemplary technique, the printhead is moved along a path away from a printing position adjacent a drum to a service position away from the drum. A service operation is conducted on the printhead at the service position. The printhead is then moved back to the printing position to reposition the printhead adjacent the drum.

Service station architecture and method for drum printer

Conductive additives, the aqueous inks and precoat agent compositions to which the additives are added, and the methods for using such conductive additives in the aqueous inks and precoat agent compositions in printing processes employing microwave or radiofrequency (RF) drying processes.

Conductive additives for use in printing processes employing radiational drying

In an implementation of printing mechanism hinged printbar assembly, a hinged printbar assembly pivots about a hinge between a print position and a service position. Print modules coupled to the hinged printbar assembly each have one or more printheads and the printheads of the print modules collectively span a width of a print media when the hinged printbar assembly is in the print position. A wiper assembly services the printheads on the hinged printbar assembly and includes printhead caps to cover the printheads on the hinged printbar assembly.

Printing mechanism hinged printbar assembly

An inkjet printer includes a microwave drying station passing media through a waveguide thereof. A vacuum source coupled to the waveguide draws air into the waveguide and thereby aides in disturbing and scrubbing a boundary layer of vapor at the media surface otherwise hindering efficient drying of media thereat. Supporting the media on a perforated belt through the waveguide couples media to the belt by vacuum force and thereby contributes to an overall media feed mechanism.

Microwave applicator for inkjet printer

A print unit, such as an inkjet printing mechanism, includes a hinged printbar assembly that has print modules with one or more printheads to deposit an imaging medium, such as ink, onto a print media. The one or more printheads of the print modules collectively span a width of a print media when the hinged printbar assembly is in a print position. The hinged printbar assembly pivots about a hinge from the print position to a service position to provide service access to the one or more printheads of the print modules. The print unit also includes a wiper assembly having one or more wipers that correspond to the one or more printheads, such that when the wiper assembly and the print module are positioned in the service position, the wipers clean the printheads.

A print unit, such as an inkjet printing mechanism, includes a printbar assembly that has print modules with one or more printheads that collectively span a print region corresponding to a width of a print media and deposit an imaging medium, such as ink, onto the print media. Wiper assemblies move from a print position to a service position in the print region to service the one or more printheads of the print modules. A wiper assembly has one or more wipers that correspond to the one or more printheads, such that when the wiper assembly and the print module are positioned in the service position, the wipers clean the printheads. The wiper assembly also has one or more printhead caps that cover the one or more printheads on the print modules.

Printing mechanism service station for a printbar assembly

A print unit, such as an inkjet printing mechanism, includes a printbar assembly that has print modules and integrated servicing assemblies to service printheads on the print modules. The one or more printheads of the print modules collectively span a width of a print media and deposit an imaging medium, such as ink, onto the print media. The integrated servicing assemblies move from a retracted position within the printbar assembly to a service position to clean and/or cap the one or more printheads of the print modules. A servicing assembly has one or more wipers that correspond to the one or more printheads, such that when the servicing assembly and the print module are positioned in the service position, the wipers clean the printheads. The servicing assembly also has one or more printhead caps that cover the one or more printheads on the print modules.

Integrated print module and servicing assembly

Described are techniques for preventing the forces attributable to shrinkage of print media from shifting print media on the media-carrying belt in the vicinity of the print zone. In one approach, a &ldquo;hold zone&rdquo; is identified immediately upstream of the print zone. In the hold zone, a mechanism is employed for securing the media to be immovable relative to the belt. The hold mechanism provides sufficient force to overcome tension transmitted to the dry portion of the media as the remaining portion shrinks. In one embodiment, the hold mechanism is a roller that pinches the media against the belt. In another embodiment, the amount of vacuum pressure applied to the belt is regulated so that the suction force applied to the media in the hold zone is greater than the suction force applied to the media in the portion upstream of the hold zone.

Linefeed control in belt-type printers

A printer has a media transport with a rigid, air-transmissive platen. A movable air-transmissive flexible web overlays the platen. A suction device communicates with the platen to draw air through the web and through the platen such that a sheet of media carried on the web is biased toward the platen. A valve sheet overlays or underlies the platen, and includes a plurality of shut-off elements, each movable in response to temperature changes between a closed position in which the element contacts a portion of the platen to prevent air flow through that portion of the platen, and an open position, in which the element is spaced apart from the platen to admit air to the platen portion. The shut off elements may include resistive heaters and bimetallic strips, so that application of electricity generates heat to flex the strip to an open position.

Heat is uniformly conducted to print media in an ink-jet printer in conjunction with the uniform application of vacuum pressure to the media for supporting the media as it is conveyed on a heated belt through the printer. The heat is applied to the media by conduction, in a manner that does not overheat the print head of the printer nor interfere with the trajectory of the droplets expelled from the print head. The heat is applied to the media in the print zone as well as regions on either side of the print zone where the media enters and exits the print zone. The amount of heat applied to each of these regions is independently controlled, and can be related to the physical characteristics of the particular type of print media or inks that are used.

Conductive heating of print media

An ink-jet apparatus is disclosed having a vacuum type print media transport subsystem for moving the print media through a printing zone. A transport belt is provided with an array of perforations such that vacuum flow is restricted. The perforations only pass vacuum induced airflow through the belt when over vacuum ported platen regions. In an alternative embodiment, belt lifting is controlled and substantially eliminated via vacuum ports associated with non-perforated regions of the transport belt.

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Battle Ground, WA, United States of America

Geoff Wotton