Funai Electric Company Ltd.

Jonathan Andrew Wharton

Randal Scott Williamson

Brian M Langness

Gregory Leon Hutchison

Lane Thomas Butler

A wiper for a maintenance station of an imaging device, including a foundational body that attaches to the maintenance station and a blade on top of the foundational body for scraping fluid and debris from a printhead of the imaging device, the blade being formed of a flexible material having two terminal sections and a central section defining a longitudinal extent of the blade, wherein each of the two terminal sections connects to the foundational body with a thicker expanse of the flexible material compared to the central section that connects to the body with a thinner expanse of the flexible material.

Variable force wiper for maintenance station of imaging device

A wiper for a maintenance station of an imaging device includes a foundational body and a flexible blade. The body rigidly attaches to the maintenance station. The blade attaches to the body. The blade scrapes fluid and debris from a printhead during use. The blade comprises a flexible material having terminal sections intervened by a central section. Each terminal section connects to the body with a thicker expanse of flexible material, whereas the central section connects to the body with a thinner expanse. The connection provides the terminal sections with a higher wiping force and a shorter effective beam length for wiping an encapsulant of the printhead and gives while the central section a lower wiping force and a longer effective beam length for wiping a nozzle plate of the printhead. The embodiments note curved surfaces with variable radiuses where the expanses of flexible material connect to the body.

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Lexington, KY, United States of America

Jonathan Andrew Wharton