Primera Technology, Inc.

Fargo Electronics, Inc.

Michael R Tolrud

Robert P Cummins

Erick Hagstrom

Todd A Britz

Gary M Klinefelter

Matthew K Dunham

Darren W Haas

Kevin R Lilland

Brent L Nordhus

Matthew P Kaiser

Brent L Nordus

Robert T Cummins

A compact and portable printer, scanner and copier having dimensions and a housing allowing the device to be portable for travel with a laptop computer or other tablet or portable computing device. The three in one printer has a pivotal carriage for linear and rotational movement of the carriage and an ink cartridge. The printer also has an easily accessible removable ink cartridge maintenance system.

Maintenance system for portable printer, scanner, and copier

Portable printer, scanner, and copier

A label finishing station receives a web carrying printed images for labels arranged so there are a plurality of images formed in rows or ranks across the width of the web. The images are also arranged in longitudinal columns along the length of the web. A cutting station carries a plurality of cutter heads to cut out the plurality of labels forming each row or rank simultaneously. The web, with the label peripheries cut out, may be slit longitudinally and formed into finished rolls of labels.

System for finishing printed labels using multiple X-Y cutters

A disc processor, such as a printer or a recorder, or a combination processor, has a robotic arm that will pick a compact disc to be processed from a storage stack and move it to a tray associated with the processor. The robotic arm includes a sensor to sense when a disc is in a position to be held in a picker on the arm. The sensor signal can be used for determining whether or not the stack of discs in the input bin is of the correct height; for determining whether or not more than one disc has been picked up by the handler; and also for determining the presence of a disc in the tray or held on the picker arm.

Disc error checking sensor for printers and duplicators

A disc copying or recording device and a disc label printer are mounted in a common assembly, and include a printhead moveable along a guide shaft on a frame. A disc transport carriage is mounted on the same guide shaft as the printhead, can be moved along this guide shaft for picking up discs in a storage area, moving a disc to a tray or support used for recording and then to a disc tray or support for printing, and moving a finished disc to a finished disc storage region. The carriage has an arm with a disc picker that can be moved to hold and release discs in a desired location. The carriage is latched to the printhead and the printhead drive is used for moving the carriage along the guide shaft in the preferred showing.

CD recorder and printer

A label printer assembly has a support for a supply roll of labels on a flexible web which is fed into an ink jet printer for printing onto a label without contacting the label. After printing, the web carrying the printed label is fed beyond a tear strip to permit removing the printed label by tearing off the web at a space between the labels carried on the web. A feed roller is used to provide a slack loop on the output side of the supply roll that is controlled as to its size during printing, so the drag of the web on the printer feed rollers is reduced. The printer will selectively print bar codes onto the labels.

Label printer with label supply feed control

A processor, such as a laminator for laminating a film onto a disc, such as a CD, DVD or the like has a tray for holding a disc for movement from a loading position to a processing position. The tray has a recess for receiving the disc, when the disc is properly positioned for processing. A sensor is provided to sense when a disc is not properly located in the recess, or when more than one disc, a warped disc or some other anomaly is present that may damage the processor. As shown, the processor is a laminator for laminating a film onto an upper surface of a disc.

Disc tray error system

A printer is arranged to be self propelled for movement on a surface of a sheet on which printing is to take place. The printer is independently driven, while the sheet is held stationary, and does not have to be fed the sheet. The sheet can be oriented in a home position and indexed relative to a frame carrying the printer so that the printhead on the printer will print a line at a time perpendicular to the direction of travel of the frame.

Printer for large sheets of print media

A printer for printing onto substrates includes a housing that mounts a movable carrier for the substrates such as a compact disc or digital versatile disc. The carrier for the substrate is driven relative to the printhead while printing takes place, and a platen is provided to urge the substrate toward the printhead for printing and to a position to space the substrate from the printhead when raised surface areas of the substrate underlie the printhead. The force applied by the platen can be varied as a function of the position of the substrate as well, in addition the carrier can be driven at a variable speed selected as a function of the length of the line being printed.

Variable position, force and velocity printer

A label for a component is provided with a continuous color tone background at least in segments of the label that can be detected as to a configuration using selected colored light sources which reflect from the different color tones of the label. A sensor can be used for discriminating between the reflection patterns from the light sources. A continuous color tone on the label changing smoothly from one color to others is applied to make a uniform shading from one color at one end of the label to another color at a second end, with various colors between the two ends. As an added feature, a number of black appearing strips forming a bar code can be provided on the label, with some of the strips reflecting infrared light and others not reflecting infrared light, so an infrared detector can be utilized for determining the pattern of the bar code for further identification of the labeled component. The bar code pattern will not be identifiable with the naked eye.

Continuous color tone infrared detected barcodes

A label printer and cutter combination will print a number of labels on a large sheet that is fed from a sheet tray coupled to the printer. The labels are oriented orthogonally along X-Y axes on the sheet, and once all the labels on the sheet have been printed, a transfer section coupled to the printer changes position and the sheet is fed, with the printed labels on the sheet, into a cutter. The cutter is operated to individually cut the labels and deposit the sheet of properly cut labels onto a storage tray. The printer and the cutter are operated under digital control and can be programmed to accommodate different size labels as well as different size sheets as well as provide signals for controlling related functions of the printer and cutter.

Growing community of inventors

Chaska, MN, United States of America

Michael R Tolrud