International Business Machines Corporation

John A Barkley

Frank B Shelledy

Neil L Robinson

Ross B Hooker, Iii

James R Walker

John D Armitage, Jr

Process for eliminating the need for a separate cleaning station in a one-cycle electrophotographic document copier machine of the transfer type. A backcharge corona generator is added to provide an overcharge/backcharge process to obtain the desired level of charge on the photoconductive system prior to exposure of the photoreceptor to the subject. In that manner, residual toner remaining on the photoconductor after production of the previous copy is cleaned simultaneously with the development of the succeeding copy.

Electrophotographic photoreceptive background areas cleaned by

Erase apparatus for use in an electrophotographic copier machine where an array of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are placed adjacent one end of a light channel with the other end adjacent a moving photoreceptive surface. The channel allows light rays to pass freely from LED to LED but contains the rays in a direction parallel to the direction of photoreceptor movement. The channel may be comprised of sides with reflective surfaces normal to the photoreceptive surface or may be a solid plastic sheet through which the rays pass. In the latter embodiment, rays are internally reflected from the surfaces of the plastic sheet.

Light pipe for accurate erasure of photoconductor charge

This magnetic head construction includes two or more elements defining a transducing gap which are positioned and held together within a shell by a wedge. The magnetic head assembly disclosed normally includes a shell structure, a pair of transducer elements defining a transducing gap, a wedge and a wedge follower. The wedge follower may be present as either a separate element or as a surface carried by one of the transducer elements. The assembly is normally formed by the process of disposing the transducer elements, and the wedge follower, if present, within the shell wall, and then rough positioning these elements within the shell, followed by the insertion of the wedge against the wedge following surface to bring the parts into final position in a locked relationship. Generally speaking, locking is achieved by selecting the wedge angle, .theta. as a function of the coefficients of friction of the mating surfaces according to given formulae. This head structure and process requires no additional adhesive, glass, or other material to lock the parts of the structure together.

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Boulder, CO, United States of America

John A Barkley