Seamed flexible electrostatographic imaging belt having a permanent localized solid attribute

An electrostatographic imaging apparatus comprising

• a flexible electrostatographic imaging belt having two parallel sides and a non imaging seam region extending substantially from one of the sides to the other side of the belt, the non imaging seam region having a leading edge, a trailing edge, and a seam within the non imaging seam region, the leading and trailing edges being perpendicular to the two parallel sides of the imaging belt, the belt comprising
• a substrate layer,
• a reflective electrically conductive layer,
• at least one imaging layer,
• an imaging region extending around the belt from adjacent the leading edge of the seam to adjacent the trailing edge, the imaging region adapted to reflect monochromatic infrared radiation and
• a permanent localized solid attribute at a predetermined location in the non imaging seam region adjacent the seam, the attribute adapted to reduce by at least about 50 percent direct reflection by the seam of a beam of monochromatic infrared radiation originally directed at the attribute,
• at least one support for the belt,
• a drive to cycle the belt on the support,
• a device for forming an electrostatic latent image in the imaging region,
• a device for developing the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image in conformance with the electrostatic latent image and
• a device for transferring the toner image to a receiving member,
• a light source adapted to direct, during belt cycling, at least one beam of monochromatic infrared radiation onto the imaging region and seam region along a path which extends over the solid attribute during cycling,
• a device adapted to generate a signal upon detection of suppressed reflection of monochromatic infrared radiation reflected from the seam region when the beam strikes the solid attribute, and
• a device to process the signal to track the seam.

An electrostatographic imaging process comprising

• providing a flexible electrostatographic imaging belt having two parallel sides and a non imaging seam region extending substantially from one of the sides to the other side, the non imaging seam region having a leading edge, a trailing edge, and a seam within the non imaging seam region, the leading and trailing edges being perpendicular to the two parallel sides of the imaging belt, the belt comprising
• a substrate layer,
• a reflective electrically conductive layer,
• at least one imaging layer,
• an imaging region extending around the belt from adjacent the leading edge of the seam to adjacent the trailing edge, the imaging region adapted to reflect monochromatic infrared radiation and
• a permanent localized solid attribute at a predetermined location in the non imaging seam region adjacent the seam, the attribute adapted to reduce by at least about 50 percent direct reflection by the seam itself of a beam of monochromatic infrared radiation originally directed at the attribute,
• cycling the belt in an electrostatographic imaging process comprising
• forming an electrostatic latent image in the imaging region,
• developing the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image in conformance with the electrostatic latent image and
• transferring the toner image to a receiving member,
• directing during cycling at least one beam of monochromatic infrared radiation onto the imaging region and the non imaging seam region along a path which extends over the solid attribute during cycling,
• detecting the suppression of monochromatic infrared radiation directly reflected from the non imaging seam region when the beam strikes the solid attribute,
• generating a signal when the directly reflected monochromatic infrared radiation is suppressed, and
• processing the signal to track the attribute.