Back to results
US 11,886,130 B2Granted
Print agent applicator positioning devices
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsLavi Cohen, Elad Alfo, Shimi Nakash, Yonni Hartstein
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A positioning device to control the position of a print agent applicator comprises a mount to support a print agent applicator at a load point on the mount; an actuator coupled to the mount to apply a driving force at an actuation point on the mount; and a guide mechanism to guide the mount and supported print agent applicator, under the driving force, to translate along a predetermined path towards a printing drum to form an engaging contact between the print agent applicator and the printing drum.
Claims13
An apparatus comprising a print agent applicator positioning device, the device comprising:
- a mount to support a print agent applicator at a load point on the mount;
- an actuator coupled to the mount to apply a driving force at an actuation point on the mount;
- and
- a guide mechanism to guide the mount and supported print agent applicator, under the driving force, to translate along a predetermined path towards a printing drum to form an engaging contact between the print agent applicator and the printing drum, wherein the printing drum is a photoconductive printing drum, wherein the predetermined path is curved, and wherein there is no change in the orientation of the mount and supported print agent applicator relative to the printing drum during the translation along the curved predetermined path.
1 more element
A positioning system for a print agent applicator comprising:
- two positioning devices to support a common print agent applicator, wherein each positioning device comprises:
- a mount to support the common print agent applicator;
- an actuator coupled to the mount to apply a driving force at an actuation point on the mount;
- a guide mechanism to guide the mount and the supported print agent applicator, under the driving force, to translate along a predetermined path towards a printing drum to form an engaging contact between the supported print agent applicator and the printing drum;
- a first feedback control module comprising:
- a sensor to determine a position parameter indicative of the position of the supported print agent applicator;
- a controller to monitor the position parameter and to control the respective actuators of the positioning devices to control the position of the mount and the supported print agent applicator relative to the printing drum in response to the position parameter;
- and
- a second feedback control module comprising:
- a second sensor to determine a force parameter indicative of the driving force or an engaging force applied by the supported print agent applicator on the printing drum when the supported print agent applicator and printing drum are in engaging contact;
- and
- a second controller to monitor the force parameter and to control the respective actuators of the positioning devices to control the driving force and/or the engaging force in response to the force parameter.
9 more elements
A method comprising:
- supporting a print agent applicator at a load point on a mount;
- applying a driving force from an actuator at an actuation point on the mount;
- guiding the mount and supported print agent applicator under the driving force, by a guide mechanism, to translate along a predetermined path towards a printing drum;
- forming an engaging contact between the supported print agent applicator and the printing drum for print agent to be transferred from the supported print agent applicator to the printing drum;
- determining, via a sensor, a position parameter indicative of the position of the supported print agent applicator;
- monitoring, via a controller, the position parameter and controlling respective actuators of positioning devices to control the position of the mount and the supported print agent applicator relative to the printing drum in response to the position parameter;
- determining, via a second sensor, a force parameter indicative of the driving force or an engaging force applied by the supported print agent applicator on the printing drum when the supported print agent applicator and printing drum are in engaging contact;
- and
- monitoring, via a second controller, the force parameter and controlling the respective actuators of the positioning devices to control the driving force and/or the engaging force in response to the force parameter.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.