Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Differential fluid etching apparatus – With microwave gas energizing means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-10
2002-05-07
Osele, Mark A. (Department: 1734)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Differential fluid etching apparatus
With microwave gas energizing means
C156S583200, C134S007000, C451S039000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06383329
ABSTRACT:
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for a printing system. More specifically, the invention relates to a cleaning device for the manufacture of printing systems.
Cross reference is made to the following application filed concurrently herewith: U.S. application Ser. No. 09/371,765, abandoned, entitled “An Apparatus and Method for Cleaning a Soft Surface with a Chilled Medium” by Rajiv S. Agarwala et al.
The features of the present invention are useful in the printing arts and more particularly in electrophotographic printing. In the well-known process of electrophotographic printing, a charge retentive surface, typically known as a photoreceptor, is electrostatically charged, and then exposed to a light pattern of an original image to selectively discharge the surface in accordance therewith. The resulting pattern of charged and discharged areas on the photoreceptor form an electrostatic charge pattern, known as a latent image, conforming to the original image. The latent image is developed by contacting it with a finely divided electrostatically attractable powder known as “toner.” Toner is held on the image areas by the electrostatic charge on the photoreceptor surface. Thus, a toner image is produced in conformity with a light image of the original being reproduced. The toner image may then be transferred to a substrate or support member (e.g., paper), and the image affixed thereto by fusing the toner image to the paper to form a permanent record of the image to be reproduced. Subsequent to development, excess toner left on the charge retentive surface is cleaned from the surface. The process is useful for light lens copying from an original or printing electronically generated or stored originals such as with a raster output scanner (ROS), where a charged surface may be imagewise discharged in a variety of ways.
Increasingly, machines and components are being recycled. The machines or components are removed from service and returned to the original manufacturer or to remanufacturing facilities where the machines are disassembled and components inspected. Components which may be reused into a newly remanufactured machine or component are then cleaned and repainted and any other processing step is performed on the component so that it may be reused.
One of the steps in reutilizing used components for remanufacturing is to clean those components. Often these used components are very difficult to clean. The difficulty in cleaning used components may be because the labels may be securely adhered to the components and be difficult to remove. Also the components may be made of a soft material, for example a plastic which may be easily damaged.
Often the components are cleaned through the use of a chemical process which may cause less damage to the surface of the soft material and be effective in removing the label and the adhesive used for the label from the component.
One such process is the use of LTS chemical solution. The mechanical component may be dipped in the solution for an extended period of time say from 4 to 6 hours. To remove the solution from the component, the component may be dipped in water. The label, if any on the component, must then be manually removed by scraping off the label with a blade. After the majority of the label has been removed manually by the blade, Lysol™ or a similar component, for example, XTC, is used to remove the remaining adhesive residue on the component. Once the adhesive has been removed from the component, the operation is complete and the component is sent to a parts washer for cleaning.
The process for cleaning soft components and for removing labels is very slow and time consuming. Also, chemicals may be required which require special handling which may require additional capital equipment and necessitate additional costs for the manufacturing process. Further, the use of blades and knives to physically remove the label is slow and time consuming. Further, the use of blades and knives may cause damage to the component surface.
Further, this process is slow and time consuming requiring many operators to perform this function in high capacity productive environments. Further, the chemical byproducts from this process must be safely handled and disposed.
The present invention is directed to alleviate at least some of the aforementioned problems.
The following disclosures may be relevant to various aspects of the present invention:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,128
Patentee: Bowen et al
Issue Date: Dec. 29, 1998
U.S. Pat. No. 5,782,263
Patentee: Isaacson, Jr. et al.
Issue Date: Jul. 21, 1998
U.S. Pat. No. 5,766,368
Patentee: Bowers
Issue Date: Jun. 16, 1998
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U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,128 discloses a method of removing photoresist or redeposited material from a substrate or other surface using a carbon dioxide jet spray. A substrate having photoresist or redeposited material on its surface is disposed in an environmental enclosure. A carbon dioxide jet spray is generated and directed onto the surface of the substrate and photoresist or redeposited material. The carbon dioxide jet spray cools or freezes the material and causes a mismatch in the thermal coefficient of expansion of the material and the substrate. The material debonds from the substrate due to the induced thermal shock to the material. This rapid shrinkage loosens the material and allows the solid particles in the spray to knock the material from the surface of the substrate. The removed photoresist or redeposited material may be collected in a filter, and removed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,782,263 discloses a system is provided for removing material from a structure having at least one layer of the material formed on a substrate. The system includes a radiant energy source, such as a flashlamp, with an actively cooled reflector for irradiating a target area of a structure with radiant energy, preferably sufficiently intense in at least the visible and ultraviolet, to break or weaken chemical bonds in the material, and an abrasive blaster for impinging the material after irradiation with a cool particle stream, preferably including of CO2 particles, to remove the irradiated material and cool the substrate. The system may also include light sensors used in a feedback loop to control the removal process by varying the speed at which the radiant energy source is moved along the structure, the repetition rate of the source, the intensity of the source, the pulse width of the source and/or the distance between the source and the structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,766,368 discloses a method of cleaning an integrated circuit chip module prior to attaching wire bonds thereto. The method involves disposing a module containing an integrated circuit chip and IC bond pads without wire bonds in an environmental process enclosure. A carbon dioxide jet spray cleaning system having a spray nozzle and orifice assembly is disposed the environmental process enclosure. A jet spray of carbon dioxide is generated using the jet spray cleaning system. The carbon dioxide jet spray is directed onto the surface of the module such that the spray impacts the IC bond pads and module bond pads to clean unwanted adhesive from the surface of the module and thus clean the IC and module bond pads.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,514,024 discloses a CO2 nozzle which expels liquid CO2 under pressure through an orifice therein for converting the liquid into CO2 snow. The CO2 nozzle is contained within an elongated mixing cavity within a body which is coupled to an exhaust nozzle for directing the CO2 snow toward the workpiece. The CO2 nozzle includes
Agarwala Rajiv S.
Johnson Cynthia A.
Osele Mark A.
Ryan Andrew D.
Xerox Corporation
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