Printronix, Inc.

Cxc Corporation

Richard E Schumaker

Gordon B Barrus

Andrew W Edwards

Duane Gibbs

Kevin Mark Smith

Rudy Concepcion, Jr

Gary A Nelson

Patrick N Godding

Keith D Walter

Michael D Teener

Edward S Marrone

Everett O Rigsbee, Iii

Stillman F Gates

Theodore A Chapman

James Harkins

Stephen S Morris

Stillman E Gates

Bradley S Jarvis

Rudy Concepcion Jr

James P Harkins

Duane C Gibbs

An RFID label with embedded tag is passed through an RFID antenna in a printer system, where the RFID antenna allows a roll of such labels to pass in close proximity to the antenna and still allow each individual RFID tag to be read and/or programmed. The RFID antenna module is formed with a transmission line coupled to an RF phase splitter, where in one embodiment, the transmission line is formed from two parallel conductive strips.

RFID tag, antenna, and printer system

An RFID label with embedded tag is passed through an RFID antenna in a printer system, where the RFID antenna allows a roll of such labels to pass in close proximity to the antenna and still allow each individual RFID tag to be read and/or programmed. The RFID antenna has a rectangular RF field spreader in contact with a triangular divergent RF conductor with an RF source point at the point. Ground planes are located on either side of the antenna. In another embodiment, the printer system extracts or parses bar code commands from a data stream and passes the commands to both a printer and an RFID reader to print the image and program the tag with the bar code information.

RFID tag and printer system

An RFID label with embedded tag is passed through an RFID antenna in a printer system, where the RFID antenna allows a roll of such labels to pass in close proximity to the antenna and still allow each individual RFID tag to be read and/or programmed. The RFID antenna is formed with two parallel microstrip transmission lines coupled to an RF phase splitter there between.

A printer is disclosed of the dot matrix type having a series of hammers with pins that print upon an underlying media, and which are released from magnetic retention by reversing the polarity of a permanent magnet and having electro-mechanical drive circuits and logic circuits. A power supply supplies an output of a voltage level for driving the electro-mechanical circuits connected to a ribbon drive, platen drive, paper feed, shuttle motor, and fans at a given voltage and the hammers at a different voltage. A thermal sensor is connected to a heat sink of the power supply, and to the printer controller to change the rate of printing when pre-established temperatures are sensed.

Printer power supply

The present invention provides a communications system that improves upon the availability of communications paths between devices and simplifies the connectivity requirements to communicate data and control information to and from a remote station. System nodes are provided which are disposed along a time multiplex network signal stream. The nodes serve to interface remote stations to the network signal stream and may also switch information to different stations connected to the same node. The nodes are operative to allocate a variable bandwidth of the network signal stream for data communications between devices connected to different nodes. The nodes include switching devices that may be configured to accommodate stations that operate at different speeds. Allocation of bandwidth may be dynamically varied such that system resources are not unnecessarily diverted. Control of bandwidth allocation and internal switching within the node is accomplished via control information communicated to and from the node. Such control information may be contained within the network signal stream and decoded by the node or communicated to the node via a dedicated control communications line. Control information may be encoded into the signal stream communicated between the system node and the remote station. Thus, communication of data and control signals between the stations and the system node does not require complex wiring. Accordingly, individual stations may be more conveniently located.

Variable bandwidth switching system

A communications switching system is provided for transferring information between a plurality of node information highways (66,68) and between node information highways (66,68) and station ports (284,286), the system (221) comprising a plurality of switches (243) each switch having a station to highway section (244) and a highway to station section (246), each section (244,246) being in electrical communication with a station port (284,286) and with a plurality of node information highways (272,274). The station to highway section (244) and highway to station section (246) are each independently and dynamically configurable to communicate a selected bandwidth of information between the station ports and a selected node information highway. Each section (244,246) further being operative to serially integrate control information into the data stream communicated to the station port, and to derive control information from the serial signal stream received from the station port. Thus, connectivity requirements between the station device and the network signal stream are simplified and greater utilization of the network signal stream is possible.

Integrated voice/data/control switching system

A variable bandwidth branch exchange system is disclosed for interfacing a network ring to a plurality of peripheral loops, each of the peripheral loops being connected to one or more local stations and to a node on the network ring. Time bit slots on the network ring signal stream are assigned, on a dynamic basis, for communication between local stations. The network ring signal stream is diverted to the peripheral loop by the node when the bit slots assigned to the local station connected to that loop become accessible at the node, thereby placing the peripheral loop in the network ring signal stream. Bit slot bandwidth is variable in accordance with the requirements of a particular local station. Voice, data, and image communications are supported. The modular nature of the system permits the implementation of multiple rings for wide area networking.

Distributed variable bandwidth switch for voice, data, and image

Growing community of inventors

Orange, CA, United States of America

Richard E Schumaker