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AssigneeLexmark International, Inc.
InventorsStephen Porter Bush, Timothy John Rademacher, Christopher Alan Adkins
Estimating the term…
A supply item has toner for use in an imaging device. A chip has memory storing quanta indicating allowed usage of the supply item over its lifetime and a multiplier correlating the quanta to toner mass. The imaging device requires quanta to conduct imaging operations and loads the quanta and multiplier by way of a certificate stored in the memory. The imaging device retrieves quanta from the chip over time and both devices keep tally. Initialization between the supply item and imaging device includes providing encrypted and unencrypted instances of firmware versions and certificates from the supply item that the imaging device can compare for security. Alternatively, the supply item defines a fuser assembly, imaging unit, intermediate transfer member, or other component installed for use in the imaging device.
In a supply item having toner configured for installation in an imaging device having a controller, a method of tracking lifetime of the supply item, comprising:
In a supply item having a chip installed in an imaging device having a controller, the chip having a memory storing quanta indicating allowed usage of the supply item over a lifetime thereof, a method of communicating with the imaging device for the quanta, comprising:
In a supply item having a slave chip installed in an imaging device having a master controller, the slave chip having a memory storing an original amount of quanta indicating allowed usage of the supply item over a lifetime and an ongoing tally of quanta decremented from said original amount of quanta, a method of negotiating additional quanta from said supply item, comprising:
In a chip configured for use with a supply item to be installed in an imaging device, a method of requesting quanta from the supply item, the quanta being stored in a certificate in a memory of the chip and corresponding to an allowed usage of the supply item, comprising:
A chip for installation with a supply item cartridge having imaging toner to be installed in an imaging device and configured for communication with a controller of the imaging device on a slave node of an I2C communications bus while the controller is configured on a master node of the I2C communications bus, comprising a memory having a certificate storing quanta indicating allowed usage of the imaging toner over a lifetime thereof and an amount of quanta decremented from said quanta upon receiving requests for additional quanta from the imaging device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.