US5204696A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Ceramic printhead for direct electrostatic printing
Assignee: Xerox Corp
•
Filing: 1991-12-16
•
Granted: 1993-04-20
•
Expires: 2011-12-16
Abstract
Abstract A printhead for electrostatic printing comprises a membrane, made of a non-crystalline ceramic material, defining a first surface and a second surface, and defining a plurality of apertures therein. A plurality of addressable segmented electrodes are disposed on the first surface around substantially the periphery of an aperture on the first surface, each segment of the addressable segmented electrodes being isolated from each other segment. A conductive layer is disposed on the second surface around substantially the periphery of at least one aperture on the second surface. The ceramic membrane facilitates the incorporation of active electronic devices on the printhead.
Inventors
- 👤 Fred Schmidlin
- 👤 Heiko Rommelmann
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 16:07
CPC Classifications
B; B41; B41J; B41J2/00; B41J2/385; B41J2/41; B41J2/415; B41J2/4155
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim
136 words
A printhead for electrostatic printing, comprising: a membrane, made of a non-crystalline ceramic material, defining a first surface and a second surface, and defining a plurality of apertures therein; a donor member, adapted to convey toner particles to the plurality of apertures in the membrane; a plurality of addressable segmented electrodes, each disposed on the first surface of the membrane around substantially a periphery of an aperture on the first surface, each segment of the addressable segmented electrodes being isolated from each other segment; and a conductive layer, disposed on the second surface of the membrane around substantially a periphery of at least one aperture on the second surface, one of said first or second surface of the membrane faces said donor member and is shaped to substantially conform to the shape of the donor member.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
136 words
A printhead for electrostatic printing, comprising: a membrane, made of a non-crystalline ceramic material, defining a first surface and a second surface, and defining a plurality of apertures therein; a donor member, adapted to convey toner particles to the plurality of apertures in the membrane; a plurality of addressable segmented electrodes, each disposed on the first surface of the membrane around substantially a periphery of an aperture on the first surface, each segment of the addressable segmented electrodes being isolated from each other segment; and a conductive layer, disposed on the second surface of the membrane around substantially a periphery of at least one aperture on the second surface, one of said first or second surface of the membrane faces said donor member and is shaped to substantially conform to the shape of the donor member.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
12 words
A printhead as in claim 1, wherein the ceramic material is rigid.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
21 words
A printhead as in claim 1, wherein the ceramic material is photosensitive during a step in the manufacture of the printhead.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
20 words
A printhead as in claim 1, further comprising a base extending from the membrane and forming a partial enclosure therewith.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
18 words
A printhead as in claim 4, wherein the membrane and the base are formed as a unitary member.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
26 words
A printhead as in claim 1, further comprising: an active electronic device; and means for attaching the active electronic device on one surface of the membrane.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
25 words
A printhead as in claim 6, wherein the segmented electrodes are adapted for multiplexed control of the apertures associated therewith by the active electronic device.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
113 words
A printhead as in claim 1, further comprising: an array of apertures defined in the membrane, the array having intersecting columns and rows, each column and row in the array including a plurality of apertures; a plurality of column electrodes formed by the segmented electrodes, each column electrode being common to the apertures in a column and electrically isolated from the column electrodes associated with other columns; and a plurality of backplane electrodes formed by the conductive layer, disposed on the second surface around substantially the circumference of each aperture on the second surface, each backplane electrode being common to a row and electrically isolated from the backplane electrodes associated with other rows.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
29 words
A printhead as in claim 8, further comprising electronic addressing means for creating a potential between a column electrode and a backplane electrode for at least one selected aperture.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
37 words
A printhead as in claim 9, wherein the electronic addressing means includes a shift register for loading imagewise data to selected apertures in a selected row, and a backplane driver for activating the selected row of apertures.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
28 words
A printhead as in claim 10, wherein at least a portion of the electronic addressing means is in the form of an integrated circuit attached to the membrane.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3689935A
Cited
US4016813A
Cited
US4409604A
Cited
US4595938A
Cited
US4571602A
Cited
US4647179A
Cited
US4743926A
Cited
US5093676A
Cited
US4959668A
Cited
US4876561A
Cited
US4860036A
Cited
US4921316A
Cited
US5038159A
Cited
US5040004A
Cited
US5097277A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1996-04-19 | 1996-10-19 | 1997-04-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2000-04-19 | 2000-10-19 | 2001-04-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2004-04-19 | 2004-10-19 | 2005-04-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |