Method and apparatus for pinless feeding of web to a utilization device

A method for controlling movement of a continuous web that is free of tractor pin feed holes on edges thereof through a high-volume electronic printer having a moving image transfer element that performs print operations at selected locations on the web, the printer including a drive section having a drive roller that directs the web through the image transfer element, the drive roller being operatively connected to a central drive motor and wherein the drive roller moves in synchronization with movement of the image transfer element, the drive roller being operatively connected to a registration differential and registration motor that advances and retards the drive roller relative to movement of the central drive motor, the printer further including a mark sensor for sensing marks located at predetermined intervals on the web, wherein each mark corresponds to a section of the web, located upstream of the image transfer element, and a registration controller that compares an occurrence marks sensed by the mark sensor to pulses representative of movement of predetermined length increments by the drive roller to thereby control movement of the registration motor to maintain movement the web in synchronization with movement of the image transfer element, the method comprising the steps of:

• counting a number of pulses with respect to a sensing of a mark adjacent the section to thereby measure a length of a section of the web located upstream in a direction of web movement from the image transfer element;
• comparing a location of each of the marks to a number of pulses and thereby determining an offset of the section from a desired synchronization with the image transfer element;
• based upon the offset, deriving a correction factor and providing the correction factor as a number of pulses to the step of counting to update the step of counting and further providing a value that includes a predetermined conversion factor between a number of length increments in a first measurement system to which the pulses correspond and a number of length increments in a second measurement system different from the first measurement system;
• averaging the correction factor with respect to the length of the section to derive a rate of correction thereover;
• and
• operating the registration motor at the rate of correction when the section reaches the image transfer element and continuing to operate the registration motor as the section passes through the image transfer element.