Incremental printing of symbolic information – Ink jet – Controller
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-22
2001-07-17
Tran, Huan (Department: 2861)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Ink jet
Controller
C347S086000, C439S065000, C439S067000, C439S955000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06260942
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to printers. More particularly, the present invention relates to a sensor in a printer for detecting the presence of a protective tape on a printer cartridge.
2. Description of the Related Art
New print heads and printer cartridges that include ink, such as ink jet printer cartridges, are usually supplied from the manufacturer with a piece of protective tape affixed thereto. In ink jet print heads and printer cartridges, the protective tape is typically applied over the nozzle plate to protect the nozzles from drying out and inadvertently leaking ink. The protective tape can also be used to protect the electrical contacts and terminals on the cartridge from damage. The protective tape must accordingly be removed from the printer cartridge prior to installation of the printer cartridge into the printer in order for the ink to flow for the printing function.
The installation instructions for the cartridges therefore direct the user to remove the protective tape prior to installation of the print head in the print head carrier, however, the printer users still often mistakenly install the printer cartridge onto the print head carrier with the protective tape still in place on the printer cartridge. The protective tape consequently prevents the printer from printing and users commonly believe that the printer is malfunctioning, instead of associating the problem with the unremoved protective tape. With the mistaken belief that the printer is malfunctioning, the printer users often contact the customer service center of the printer manufacturer and vendor to seek servicing of the printer. It can thus be seen that the simple failure to remove the protective tape generates unnecessary calls to the customer support centers of the manufacturer and vendor of the printer which adds cost to the printer assembly process and decreases the resources available for other significant customer service calls.
Thus, a method and apparatus that can detect the presence of the protective tape on a printer cartridge and notify the user of the printer of the presence of the protective tape would be advantageous. It is to the provision of such an improved method and apparatus that the present invention is primarily directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is sensor and method for detecting the presence of a protective tape on a print head or printer cartridge in contact with a printer cartridge interface, such as a printer carrier cable, in a printer. The sensor includes at least a first contact and a second contact between the printer cartridge and printer carrier cable, and a protective tape is on the printer cartridge for protection of the printer cartridge prior to installation into a printer. The protective tape bridges an electrical connection between the first contact and second contact, either directly or indirectly, when the printer cartridge is in contact with the printer carrier cable, or other printer cartridge interface.
The first contact and the second contact are preferably located on the printer cartridge interface, such as the printer carrier cable, or are located on the printer cartridge. Alternately, one of the first contact and the second contact is located on the printer cartridge interface, and the other of the first contact and second contact is located on the printer cartridge.
In one embodiment, the protective tape is non-conductive adhesive tape as is commonly used upon printer cartridges. The non-conductive protective tape then impedes a current from flowing between the contacts on the printer cartridge interface and printer cartridge. The non-conductive protective tape can impede a current between a first contact on the printer cartridge interface and a second contact on the printer cartridge, or can impede a current between two contacts for an existing function, such as temperature sensing of the printer cartridge.
The protective tape is, in another embodiment, an electrically-conductive material that conducts electricity throughout the tape. In a further embodiment, the protective tape has a non-conductive body and includes a metal strip that bridges an electrical connection between the first contact and second contact when the printer cartridge is placed in contact with the printer cartridge interface. Alternately, the protective tape can have a non-conductive body and with a conductive adhesive bonding the protective tape to the printer cartridge such that the conductive adhesive is between the protective tape and the first contact and second contact which are on the printer cartridge. Thus, the conductive adhesive on the protective tape bridges the electrical connection between the first contact and second contact, and the printer cartridge passes the voltage signal through the printer cartridge interface indicating that an electrical connection between the first contact and the second contact beneath the protective tape is bridged.
When the conductive protective tape includes a metal strip, the first contact and second contact are preferably raised contacts that touch the metal strip of the protective tape upon the print head printer cartridge being installed into the printer cartridge interface. Otherwise, the first contact and second contact are electrically conductive terminals as are known in the art.
The present invention accordingly provides a sensor circuit for detecting the presence of a protective tape on a printer cartridge for installation in a printer, the protective tape between the printer cartridge and printer cartridge interface in a printer. The circuit preferably includes a voltage source for applying a test potential between at least a first contact and a second contact between the printer cartridge and printer cartridge interface, and a protective tape on the printer cartridge. The protective tape bridges an electrical connection between the first contact and second contact when the printer cartridge is in contact with the printer cartridge interface, and the circuit further includes a voltage sensor in the printer that is responsive to current between the first contact and second contact to thereby detect the presence of the protective tape on the printer cartridge.
The inventive sensor circuit also alternately includes an indicator responsive to the voltage sensor where the indicator provides a signal to the user of the printer when the presence of the protective tape on the printer cartridge in installed position is detected. The indicator sends a signal to a display at the printer or to a host computer indicating that the protective tape is still on the printer cartridge.
In like manner to the sensor disclosed above, the first contact and the second contact are located on the printer cartridge interface, such as a printer carrier cable, or are alternately located on the printer cartridge or print head. However, in another embodiment, one of the first contact and the second contact is located on the printer carrier cable and the other of the first contact and second contact is located on the printer cartridge.
The protective tape is embodied in the sensor circuit as discussed above, and is in one embodiment made of a non-conductive material, or is alternately embodied as an electrically-conductive material. The protective tape alternately can be made of a non-conductive body and including a metal strip or having a conductive adhesive to bridge an electrical connection between the first contact and second contact. When the protective tape is embodied with the conductive adhesive, the printer cartridge passes the voltage signal through the printer cartridge interface to the voltage sensor in the printer indicating that an electrical connection between the first contact and the second contact is bridged.
The inventive sensor and sensor circuit thus provide a inventive method of detecting the presence of a conductive protective tape upon a printer cartridge installed into the printer cartridge interface of a printer. The method includes the s
Ahne Adam Jude
Edwards Mark Joseph
Lexmark International Inc.
Sanderson Michael T.
Tran Huan
LandOfFree
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