The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 02, 1980
Filed:
Sep. 28, 1978
Cameron H Hafer, San Jose, CA (US);
Clayton V Wilbur, San Jose, CA (US);
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY (US);
Abstract
Electrothermal printing apparatus includes a thin, planar, endless ribbon of electrically resistive material having a thin conductive layer on an outside surface thereof and a row of spaced-apart, conductive styli individually selectively coupleable to the conductive layer through a voltage source and disposed in contact with the ribbon at the inside surface thereof opposite the conductive layer. Momentarily coupling selected ones of the styli to the voltage source produces heating of discrete areas of the resistive ribbon adjacent the momentarily coupled styli. The ribbon which is mounted on one or more rollers moves relative to the styli and in the same direction and at the same speed as an adjacent length of thermally sensitive paper so that discrete areas of the ribbon heated by the styli remain in contact with the thermally sensitive paper long enough to color discrete areas of the paper adjacent the heated discrete areas of the resistive ribbon.