Hewlett-packard Company

Other

Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Seccombe, S. Dana

S Dana Seccombe

Timothy L Weber

John Paul Harmon

Colin C Davis

David J Waller

Paul J McClellan

Charles R Steinmetz

Norman E Pawlowski

John A Underwood

Mark J Hauck

Jon J Fong

John A Barinaga, Jr

James M Cameron

James R Hulings

Michael B Saunders

Andre Garcia

Rajeev Babyal

A method and apparatus for subdividing and printing regions of a substrate with multiple print heads or multiple print head assemblies which substantially decreases printing time is described. The method includes a feathering method which reduces overlap artifacts which is useful in any printing situation where adjacent regions are printed that could be misaligned, offset, or have slightly different colors.

Means for higher speed inkjet printing

Non-contact method and apparatus for Drying, Conditioning, Shaping and Manipulating of sheet fed Media. These functions are performed either on one side, or simultaneously or delayed one from the other on both sides, of the Media. For Drying, the energy applied is minimized to that necessary to supply latent heat of vaporization permitting use in, for example, low cost printers. No friction is introduced in the transport path enabling high speed, reliable Media transport. A region is established between Media and Platen wherein heat, support, and chemical or other processing may occur in a controlled way. Relatively few, inexpensive, and small parts are needed lowering the cost, energy, and space requirements for performing the various functions allowing for new applications in many fields. Media is supported a specific distance from a Platen by a balance of Fluid forces. The Media and the Platen bound a region in which forced convection greatly enhances process rates otherwise be limited by diffusion. The method and apparatus described is particularly suitable for high speed, low cost, inkjet printing.

Apparatus and method for non-contact manipulation, conditioning, shaping and drying of surfaces

This invention relates to the art of printing, that is, using inks to print onto paper or other media. This invention relates to a dryer for removing water from printed sheets of paper or other print media. The dryer may emit evanescent microwave radiation which attenuates quickly in air. The frequency of the microwaves may be about 2.45 GHZ or any other frequency at which the electromagnetic field excites the dipole moments in water molecules. This results in friction which causes the water to evaporate. In one embodiment the invention is a printer having the dryer as a feature of the printer. In another embodiment, the invention is a dryer for a printer. The microwave radiation emitting dryer has a modest cost. It is suitable for use with low throughput printers as well as high throughput printers. The dryer does not cause discoloration of the print media.

Printer including microwave dryer

The present invention is a constant pressure ink supply for use in a printing system. The ink supply includes a flexible fluid reservoir for containing a quantity of fluid, and a spring which has an expanded position, and a contracted position. The spring is configured to operatively engage the flexible ink reservoir as the spring transitions from the expanded position to the contracted position and wherein the flexible fluid reservoir is biased by the spring as the spring contracts to produce fluid at a substantially constant fluid pressure at a fluid outlet.

Method and apparatus for pressurizing ink in a printer ink supply using spring force

An ink-jet printing system having a pressure regulator that changes the volume of the ink receptacle as the ink pressure changes relative to the ambient pressure so that the ink remains at a substantially constant pressure for delivery to the print head.

Fluid accumulator for ink-jet print heads

A method and apparatus for improving ink-jet print quality uses a print head having an array using a plurality of nozzles in sets in each drop generator mechanism. Where a conventional ink-jet pen fires a single droplet of ink at a pixel per firing cycle, the present invention fires a plurality of droplets at different subdivisions of pixels. The particular array design may vary from ink-to-ink or pen-to-pen. Each drop generator of a print head array includes a plurality of nozzles wherein each of the nozzles has an exit orifice with an areal dimension, and produces an ink droplet that produces a dot on adjacent print media wherein the dot has an areal dimension, less than the areal dimension of a pixel to be printed. Dots are printed in a pattern for each pixel wherein print quality is achieved that approximates a higher resolution print made by conventional ink-jet methodologies.

Method and apparatus for improved ink-drop distribution in ink-jet printing

The present invention is a constant pressure ink supply for use in an inkjet printing system. The ink supply includes a flexible ink reservoir for containing ink, an ink outlet, and a spring which has an expanded position, and a contracted position. The ink supply is in fluid communication with an inkjet printhead. The flexible ink reservoir is disposed and arranged to engage the flexible ink reservoir as the spring transitions from the expanded position to the contracted position thereby rolling the flexible ink reservoir and the spring together to produce fluid at a substantially constant fluid pressure at a fluid outlet.

Method and apparatus for pressurizing ink in an inkjet printer ink supply using spring force

Method and apparatus for removing air from an inkjet print cartridge by collecting the air in a predetermined area and forcing the air from the air collection area using a conduit.

Method and apparatus for removing air from an inkjet print cartridge

A method and apparatus for improving inkjet print quality uses a printhead having an array using a plurality of nozzles in sets in each drop generator mechanism. Where a conventional inkjet pen fires a single droplet of ink at a target pixel per firing cycle, the present invention simultaneously ejects a plurality of droplets at different subdivisions of pixels. Drop generators of a printhead array includes a plurality of nozzles for the drop generators arranged such that the light absorption of the sum of the simultaneously ejected ink droplets is like that of conventionally ejected drops but distributed over an area of the printed medium greater than that of a conventional target pixel.

Method and apparatus for improved ink-drop distribution in inkjet

Method and apparatus for improved ink-drop distribution in ink-jet

In the preferred embodiment, an inkjet printer includes a replaceable print cartridge which is inserted into a scanning carriage. An ink tube extends from the scanning carriage to a separate ink supply located within the printer. A fluid interconnect on the print cartridge connects to a fluid interconnect on the carriage when the print cartridge is inserted into the carriage to complete the fluid connection between the external ink supply and the print cartridge. In one embodiment, the fluid interconnection is made between the print cartridge and the ink tube simply by placing the print cartridge into a stall in the scanning carriage. A pressure regulator, which may be internal or external to the print cartridge, regulates the flow of ink from the external ink supply to the print cartridge. The external ink supply may be pressurized or non-pressurized.

Inkjet printer with off-axis ink supply

An ink-jet printing system having a fluid accumulator for the print head that changes the volume of the ink containment as the temperature of the ink changes so that the ink remains at substantially constant pressure for delivery to the print head.

A apparatus for removing air from an ink-jet print cartridge by collecting the air in a predetermined area and drawing off the air from the air collection area using a conduit. The conduit is mounted within the housing of the ink jet print cartridge wherein a plenum is coupled with the air collection area.

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Foster City, CA, United States of America

S Dana Seccombe