Ink delivery system employing vibrating wires

Claim 1

A FEEDING MECHANISM FOR ELECTROSTATIC PRINTING SYSTEMS AND THE LIKE WHICH INCLUDE A COUNTER-ELECTRODE AND AN ELECTROSTATIC PRINTING SCREEN WITH AN ELECTROSTATIC FIELD ESTABLISHED THEREBETWEEN; SAID FEEDING MECHANISM COMPRISING A CONTAINER HAVING A LOWER WALL AND A SIDE WALL, SAID CONTAINER ALSO HAVING AN INTERIOR CHAMBER FOR HOUSING ELECTROSCOPIC INK, SAID SIDE WALL BEING SPACED FROM SAID LOWER WALL THEREBY FORMING A DISCHARGE SLOT THEREBETWEEN, A PLATE OPERATIVELY MOUNTED ON SAID SIDE WALL AND EXTENDING TOWARD SAID LOWER WALL, RESILIENT MEANS OPERATIVELY INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID SIDE WALL AND SAID PLATE, A PLURALITY OF WIRES HAVING ONE END RIGIDLY MOUNTED ON SAID PLATE AND EXTENDING TOWARD SAID LOWER WALL, SAID WIRES BEING DISPOSED ACROSS THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF SAID DISCHARGE SLOT AND TERMINATING AT THEIR LOWER ENDS IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO SAID LOWER WALL FOR SELECTIVE METERING OF ELECTROSCOPIC INK, THE SPACING BETWEEN EACH OF SAID WIRES BEING SUFFICIENTLY SMALL TO PREVENT FLOW OF INK PARTICLES THERETHROUGH WHEN SAID WIRES ARE IN A STATIC STATE, AND VIBRATORY MEANS OPERATIVELY MOUNTED ON SAID PLATE FOR VIBRATING SAID WIRES TO AN EXTENT SUFFICIENT TO PERMIT INK PARTICLES TO PASS THROUGH THE SPACINGS BETWEEN EACH OF THE WIRES.