Apparatus for the photoelectrostatic reproduction of images

Claim 1

APPARATUS ADAPTED FOR THE REPRODUCTION OF IMAGES ON ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE SHEETS CARRYING A PHOTOELECTROSTATIC COATING WHICH COMPRISES IN COMBINATION; A HORIZONTAL, TRANSPARENT, ORIGINAL COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE; AN OPTICAL SYSTEM WHICH TRANSMITS AN IMAGE OF AN ORIGINAL COPY, POSITIONED FACE DOWNWARDLY ON THE SAID COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE, TO A VERTICAL IMAGE PLANE, AT A LEVEL BELOW THE SAID ORIGINAL COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE, AND INCLUDES AN ELECTRICALLY-OPERATED SHUTTER; A PLURALITY OF LIGHT SOURCES WHICH ILLUMINATE THE SAID COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE FROM BENEATH WITHOUT OBSTRUCTING THE LIGHT PATH OF THE OPTICAL SYSTEM, FROM THE SAID ORIGINAL COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE TO THE VERTICAL IMAGE PLANE; A CORONA DISCHARGE UNIT ADAPTED TO PROVIDE A CORONA DISCHARGE IN AN UPWARDLY DIRECTION; A SOURCE OF HIGH-POTENTIAL VOLTAGE FOR THE SAID CORONA DISCHARGE UNIT; A VACUUM PLATEN; A SOURCE OF VACUUM CONNECTED TO THE SAID VACUUM PLATEN BY A CONDUIT; A MAGAZINE ADAPTED TO HOLD A STACK OF PHOTOELECTROSTATIC COPY SHEETS AND TO DELIVER INDIVIDUAL SHEETS TO THE SAID VACUUM PLATEN; A TRANSPORT MEANS ADAPTED TO MOVE THE SAID VACUUM PLATEN FROM THE POSITION ABOVE THE SAID MAGAZINE IN WHICH IT RECEIVES A SHEET FROM THE SAID MAGAZINE, ALONG A HORIZONTAL PATH WHICH PASSES ABOVE THE SAID CORONA DISCHARGE UNIT WHILE THE LOWER SURFACE OF THE SAID PLATEN IS IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE, AND INTO A VERTICAL PLANE WHICH PLACES THE SURFACE OF A SHEET CARRIED THEREBY IN THE SAID VERTICAL IMAGE PLANE, TO RETURN THE SAID PLATEN TO A LATERALLY-DISPLACED POSITION ABOVE THE SAID MAGAZINE AND, FINALLY, TO ITS ORIGINAL POSITION ABOVE THE SAID MAGAZINE; A MAGNETIC TONING UNIT; A FUSER UNIT; A DELIVERY STATION ADJACENT THE SAID ORIGINAL COPYRECEIVING SURFACE; A CONVEYOR SYSTEM WHICH HAS AN UPWARDLY-CURVED PATH OF TRAVEL WHICH IS AT RIGHT ANGLES TO THE HORIZONTAL PATH OF TRAVEL OF THE FIRST TRANSPORT MEANS, WHICH CARRIES AT LEAST ONE MEANS FOR TAKING A SHEET FROM THE SAID VACUUM PLATEN WHILE IT IS IN ITS DISPLACED POSITION, AND IS ADAPTED TO CARRY THE SHEET TO BRING ITS SURFACE INTO CONTACT WITH THE SAID TONING MEANS, THEN ADJACENT THE SAID FUSING UNIT AND, FINALLY, DELIVERING THE SHEET TO THE SAID DELIVERY STATION; AND AN ELECTRICAL SYSTEM WHICH OPERATES THE SAID MAGAZINE, THE TRANSPORT MEANS, THE CORONA DISCHARGE UNIT, THE LIGHT SOURCES WHICH ILLUMINATE THE COPY-RECEIVING SURFACE, THE SHUTTER OF THE LENS SYSTEM, THE CONVERYOR SYSTEM, THE MAGNETIC TONING UNIT AND THE FUSER UNIT.