Xerox Corporation

Wayne C Powley

Daniel Lee Carter

Dara Nanette Lubin

Michael J Linder

Matthew Ryan McLaughlin

Thomas C Hollar

Alan G Schlageter

Nicholas M Soures

James W Patterson

Elden R Morrison

Timothy D Turner

Richard W Flemming

An adjustable force driving nip assembly for use in a sheet transport system of a document creating apparatus has a plurality of adjustable force driving nips aligned and spaced transversely across the sheet travelling path of the sheet transport system. Each driving nip has a spring biased idler roller mounted on a cam follower and mated with a driven roller. The spring bias produces a normal force for the idler roller that urges the idler roller against the driven roller. A stepper motor is adapted to interact concurrently with the cam followers and, upon actuation, vary the force of the spring thus adjusting the normal force of the idler rollers. A controller actuates the stepper motor in response to sheet media data entered into a control panel of the document creating apparatus by an end user, thereby automatically adjusting the normal force of the idler rollers to prevent sheet marking.

Adjustable force driving nip assemblies for sheet handling systems

A structure for calibrating an image sensor or other photosensor includes a baffle for passage of a sheet therethrough. A photosensor is disposed to receive light reflected from a sheet passing through the baffle. A selectably-positionable target member has a target surface associated therewith, and is positionable in one position establishing a width of the baffle suitable for passage of a sheet through the baffle, and another position wherein the first target surface is disposed adjacent to the photosensor.

Positionable calibration target for a digital printer or image scanner

A sheet feeding system in which the idler roller shafts are loosely mounted between opposing side walls of a slot for limited movement relative to their mating sheet feeding rollers, and spring biased theretowards to provide sheet feeding nips with the desired normal force, wherein the spring biasing is nonsymmetrical to additionally provide an orthogonal spring biasing of the idler shafts towards only one of the side walls of their mounting slots. This nonsymmetrical spring biasing may be provided by a torsion spring with a central coil wrapped around the idler shaft and extending legs anchored in nonsymmetrical anchoring positions and/or with nonsymmetrically shaped legs.

Printer sheet feeding path idler rollers biased mounting system

A sheet transporting device assembly, such as a idler mounting assembly, of an image forming device has a frame portion attachably detachable to a guide member. The frame portion has at least one opening able to receive at least one idler roll. Each idler roll is rotatably attached to a shaft. The shaft is moveably attached to the frame by an attachment structure. The idler mounting assembly is pivotably and precisely aligned with the outer mainframe so that the components of the outer frame and the idler mounting assembly are aligned, and further allows the user to gain access the space around the guide member and between the idler rolls and drive rolls of the outer frame.

Idler mounting tie-bar assembly

Apparatus for transporting sheets in a longitudinal direction includes an improvement for reducing the imparting to the sheet material of friction, static charge, and foreign deleterious material while substantially minimizing the burnishing of the surface of the sheets. To this end, a plurality of elongated sheet supporting rib members project outwardly from a guide surface, extend diagonally relative to the longitudinal direction, are all of uniform height above the sheet guide surface, and are of uniform cross section. The sheet supporting rib members are so dimensioned and positioned that any random element of a sheet being fed in the longitudinal direction through the apparatus crosses only one of the sheet supporting rib members. Actually, a plurality of first sheet supporting rib members extend diagonally in a first direction and another plurality of elongated second sheet supporting rib members extend diagonally in a second direction which is transverse of the first direction. The incidence angle between the longitudinal direction and each of the sheet supporting rib members is in the range of about 5&deg; to about 30&deg; and, preferably, in the range of about 10&deg; to about 20&deg;. A drive roll mechanism may be provided for engaging the sheets in the region of the sheet supporting rib members.

Sheet handling system for minimizing surface defects

In an electrostatographic copier wherein the fuser rolls are positioned closer than the dimensions of the copy sheet from the image transfer area, speed mismatch compensation between the fuser roll nip and the initial image support surface is provided by intentionally driving the fuser roll nip at a different pre-set velocity to form a buckle in the intermediate portion of the copy sheet controlled by selective cyclic reductions in the vacuum applied to a vacuum chamber sheet guide surface between the fuser nip and the initial image support surface, wherein the vacuum guide is in two areas, one of which is provided with a vacuum by the other, but is cyclically atmospherically vented.

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Ontario, NY, United States of America

Wayne C Powley