Xerox Corporation

Stephen Bradley Williams

Paul Michael Fromm

Steven Matthew Russel

William Alexander Burton

Lawrence Arnold Clark

Kenneth Paul Moore

Augusto E Barton

Joseph M Ferrara, Jr

Michael J Linder

Melissa Ann Monahan

William R Haag

Anthony Salvatore Condello

Brian J Dunham

Brian Roy Ford

Annie Liu

Brendan H Williamson

Richard E Eisemann

Julie Marie Hanfland

Systems, methods, and devices for mitigating print head dry out. In an example embodiment, a system can be implemented, which includes an arrangement of cross rollers and a registration transport for transporting one or more sheets for printing, and a steering mechanism that drives the sheet(s) into the opposing registration print edges of print heads on the registration transportation, wherein the cross rollers only engage when the sheet is being registered to the appropriate edge of the print heads, thereby allowing the print heads to be exercised prior to drying out. When one or more of the sheets are out of the nip, the nip disengages, thereby allowing the next sheet to be stirred on the opposing edge of the registration print heads. The opposing registration print heads comprise an inboard registration edge and an outboard registration edge.

Dual edge registered sheets to mitigate print head jet dry out on short sheets within inkjet cut sheet printing

A locating pin that is configured to be connected to a dockable member in a printer includes a shaft, first and second ends, and a conical member. The first end has a surface forming a partial ellipsoid and the conical member has a base aligned with the surface of the first end and a tip extending from the surface of the first end. The shaft is configured to engage the dockable member along a portion of the shaft between the second end and the first end.

Docking device with locating pin and receptacle for dockable members in a printer

An apparatus, system and method are provided for controlling a bulge radius of a pressure member in a belt-roll fuser. The belt-roll fuser has a first pressure member. The belt-roll fuser also has a fuser belt having a portion that faces a surface of the first pressure member at a region defining a fusing nip. The belt-roll fuser further has a second pressure member that faces another portion of the fuser belt at the fusing nip such that the fuser belt is entrained between the first pressure member and the second pressure member. The belt-roll fuser additionally has a deformation member configured to deform the first pressure member.

Apparatus, method and system for controlling bulge radius of a pressure member

A self-positioning belt roll fuser stripping apparatus and system includes an internal pressure roll entraining a fuser belt. The internal pressure engages an external pressure roll to form a fusing nip. The internal pressure roll includes an internal pressure roll bearing to which a mounting plate is attached, allowing the mounting plate to move about a rotational axis of the internal pressure roll. A strip bar is attached to the mounting plate, and configured to force the fuser belt toward the external pressure roll. A mounting plate ski is configured to contact an external pressure roll bearing to limit movement of the mounting plate, positioning the strip shoe as desired when the mounting plate is moved to guide the strip show toward the fusing nip.

Self-positioning stripper bar apparatus and systems for belt roll fuser systems

A belt-roll fuser system includes a belt-roll fuser module that is movable to engage and disengage to a main frame of the belt-roll fuser system. The belt-roll fuser has an internal pressure member that defines a fusing nip with an external pressure member of the main frame when the belt-roll fuser module is engaged. The belt-roll fuser module is movable by a latch, and when engaged, a nip load path crosses through a point at which the latch attaches to the belt-roll fuser module.

Apparatus, systems, and methods for belt-roll fuser latching

A belt-roll fuser system includes a belt-roll fuser apparatus wherein a belt is entrained about at least a first internal pressure roll and a second internal pressure roll. The first internal pressure roll and the second internal pressure roll are configured to force a belt against an external pressure roll at a fusing nip, the belt conforming to the external pressure roll across substantially a length of the fusing nip. A passive belt support may interpose internal pressure rolls for ensuring a consistent fusing pressure across the length of the nip. A pressure belt may interpose the fuser belt and the internal pressure rolls.

Self-stripping belt-roll fuser apparatus and systems

A rapid warm-up and cool-down pressure roll assembly is provided and includes (a) a rotatable pressure roll including a cylindrical sleeve having an outer surface, and an inner surface defining a hollow interior to the rotatable pressure roll; (b) a thermoelectric assembly sheet positioned within the hollow interior and having a first substrate facing the inner surface of the cylindrical sleeve, a second substrate, an electric current flow path therethrough, and electric current input and output terminals associated with the electric current flow path; and (c) an electric current input switching device connected to the electric current input and output terminals for enabling selective reversing of a direction of electric current flow through the electric current flow path, thereby reversing which of the first substrate and the second substrate of the thermoelectric assembly sheet is hot and which is cold, and therefore selectively enabling a rapid warm-up or rapid cool-down of the cylindrical sleeve of the pressure roll.

Rapid warm-up and cool-down pressure roll assembly and a fusing apparatus including same

There is disclosed an improved fuser cleaning system in which a strip of flexible material, including first second and third portions, is fed from a source roll to a take-up roll in such a manner that a fuser roll is cleaned or oiled. A first detectable mark may be disposed on a side of the strip of flexible material in one of the first and second portions. During operation of the fuser cleaning system, the third portion is taken up by the take-up roll and when an amount of the third portion is taken up by the take-up roll, the first detectable mark is detected by a sensor and a signal, indicating that the amount of the third portion has been taken up by the take-up roll, is transmitted to a controller. A second detectable mark may be disposed on the side of the strip of flexible material. When substantially all of the third portion has been taken up by the take-up roll, a signal is transmitted from the sensor to the controller indicating that substantially all of the third portion has been taken up by the take-up roll.

Systems and methods for monitoring a fuser cleaning web

A method and apparatus for measuring nip width in an image production device is disclosed. The method may include receiving a signal to measure the nip width, the nip width being the distance of an arc length created by an intersection of a fuser roll and a pressure roll, positioning a nip width measuring device into the nip, measuring the nip width, determining if the measured nip width meets a required nip width, wherein if the measured nip width does not meet the required nip width, adjusting the nip width.

Method and apparatus for measuring nip width in an image production device

An apparatus () and method () that adjusts a fuser nip width in an apparatus that can include a fuser member having a fuser nip configured to fuse an image on media is disclosed. The method can include feeding () a media sheet in a media sheet travel direction through the fuser nip. The method can also include sensing () a media sheet exit temperature of the media sheet after the media sheet exits the fuser nip. The method can also include adjusting () a fuser member nip width according to the sensed media sheet exit temperature, where the fuser nip width is substantially parallel to the media sheet travel direction.

Apparatus and method for adjusting fuser nip width

Apparatuses useful for printing and methods for stripping media from surfaces in apparatuses useful for printing are disclosed. An apparatus useful for printing including a first member including a first outer surface; a second member including a second outer surface; a belt including an inner surface and an outer surface; a first nip formed by contact between the inner surface of the belt and the second outer surface and contact between the outer surface of the belt and the first outer surface; and a stripping mechanism including a stripping member disposed internal to the belt. The stripping member is positionable relative to the first nip to vary a pressure applied by the outer surface of the belt against the first outer surface downstream from the first nip. The media are stripped from the outer surface of the belt after exiting from the first nip.

Apparatuses useful for printing and methods of stripping media from surfaces in apparatuses useful for printing

A feed apparatus which combines a slider crank feed head drive system and cam actuated stack height sensing system to form a new combined shuttle feeder. The new feed head drive includes the replacement of a solenoid driven feed head with a more reliable stepper driven twin slider crank drive. Included in the slider crank drive for the feed head is an integral cam as part of the crank arm mounted to the motor shaft. This cam is designed drives a stack height sensor to drop and lift the stack height sensing arm to sense stack height after the sheet trail edge has passed the point of arm contact with the stack. The cam also provides a &ldquo;service mode&rdquo; position for the stack height arm which lifts it out of the way of the paper supply when it is opening. The cam dwells in a neutral home position during the rest of the drive out and return motion of the feed head.

Vacuum corrugation shuttle feed device for high capacity feeder

A stack height assembly consisting of two transmissive sensors and two flags, the stack height of a feeder module can be set to three different levels depending on the weight of the media. This &ldquo;optimization&rdquo; of the stack height to address the media's failure mode results in increased latitude. When feeding lightweight media, the stack height is set larger in order to increase the gap to the feedhead. This allows more room for separation of the media using fluffer jets. This increased gap also reduces the chances that the un-acquired media will be fluffed into contact with the acquisition surface and subsequently be shingle fed into the take away roll due to the friction between sheets. When feeding heavyweight media the stack height will be set smaller. This reduces the gap to the feedhead and reduces the time required to acquire.

Multiple zone stack height sensor for high capacity feeder

A media tray lifting mechanism for use with a driving mechanism to present sheet media for processing in a printing machine is provided. The mechanism includes a tray for supporting the sheet media and a cable affixed in at least three spaced apart positions to the tray to form cable connections. The mechanism also includes a plurality of support pulleys affixed to the printing machine and movably attached to the cable for supporting the cable within the machine. At least two of the support pulleys is associated with each of the cable connections to form pulley sets. At least one of the support pulleys within each pulley set subtends another pulley within the pulley set to provide a substantially vertical section of the cable between the pulleys. An adjustment pulley is movably secured to the printing machine and is movably attached to the cable. The adjustment pulley is positioned between adjacent sets of pulley sets.

Leveling enhancement to tray cable lift system

An integral sheet stopping, stacking and lateral registration system, in which sequential incoming sheets are fed into a tray and stopped at an edge registration position and also repositioned laterally by lateral sheet repositioning scuffers engaging an edge of the sheets at the edge registration position, with improved protection against sheet edge distortion or damage provided by movable partial sheet stopping surfaces partially shielding the incoming sheet lead edge from full impact with the lateral scuffers but without interfering with the subsequent lateral movement of the sheets by the lateral scuffers. The incoming sheets are fed in and stacked under a stack-floating curved input guide baffle and floating frictional input flapper scuffers feeding and holding an incoming sheet downstream against the lateral scuffers for improved lateral registration. The movable partial sheet stopping surfaces are mounted to ride vertically on the floating baffle and also ride horizontally against the lateral scuffers and thereby maintain a desired preset spacing relative thereto.

Growing community of inventors

Marion, NY, United States of America

Stephen Bradley Williams