Gear assembly for improved dot alignment in an imaging device

A gear assembly for an imaging device, comprising:

• a drive gear positioned to receive rotational force from the imaging device, the drive gear having a set of gear teeth;
• a driven gear positioned to mesh with the set of gear teeth of the drive gear and receive rotational force from the drive gear for rotating a photoconductive member, wherein the drive gear is operative to rotate one revolution from a time when a latent image is formed on the photoconductive member to a time when a toned image of the latent image is transferred from the photoconductive member to an image receiving medium such that the formation of the latent image and the transfer of the toned image occurs at a same rotational location on the drive gear that meshes with the driven gear when the latent image is formed and the toned image is transferred;
• and
• a second driven gear positioned to mesh with the set of gear teeth of the drive gear and receive rotational force from the drive gear for rotating a developer roll such that the drive gear drives both the photoconductive member and the developer roll to rotate.

An imaging device, comprising:

• a photoconductive drum rotatable from a first rotational position at which a latent image is formed on the photoconductive drum, to a second rotational position at which the latent image is developed into a toned image, and to a third rotational position at which the toned image is transferred from the photoconductive drum to an image receiving medium;
• a developer roll in contact with the photoconductive drum for developing the latent image into the toned image;
• and
• a gear mechanism including a drive gear having a set of gear teeth and positioned to receive rotational force from the imaging device and a driven gear positioned to mesh with a set of gear teeth of the drive gear and receive rotational force from the drive gear for rotating the photoconductive drum, wherein the drive gear is operative to rotate one revolution to cause the driven gear to rotate the photoconductive drum from the first rotational position to the third rotational position such that a rotational location on the drive gear that meshes with the driven gear when the latent image is formed on the photoconductive drum at the first rotational position is the same said rotational location on the drive gear that meshes with the driven gear when the toned image is transferred from the photoconductive drum at the third rotational position, and wherein the gear mechanism further includes a second driven gear positioned to mesh with the set of gear teeth of the drive gear and receive rotational force from the drive gear for rotating the developer roll such that the drive gear drives both the photoconductive drum and the developer roll to rotate.