Researchers Submit Patent Application, "Methods and Devices for Remanufacturing Printer Cartridges", for Approval

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Politics & Government Week -- From Washington, D.C., VerticalNews journalists report that a patent application by the inventors Holmes, Denny (Los Angeles, CA); Ohanyan, Tigran (Van Nuys, CA), filed on July 11, 2012, was cleared for further review on November 8, 2012.

The patent's assignee for patent serial number 507595 is Mitsubishi Kagaku Imaging Corporation.

News editors obtained the following quote from the background information supplied by the inventors: "a. Field of the Invention

"The invention relates to electrophotography, particularly methods and devices for replacing photoconductive drums and methods and devices for remanufacturing printer cartridges.

"b. Background Art

"Remanufactured printer cartridges offer consumers an environmentally friendly and economical alternative to buying printer cartridges from the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Remanufactured printer cartridges come from used cartridges that go through a systematic remanufacturing process. The remanufacturing process typically includes replacing various worn parts, cleaning the printer cartridge, refilling the printer cartridge with toner, and sealing the printer cartridge.

"Photoconductive drums, also referred to as organic photoconductor (OPC) drums, are usually replaced when remanufacturing worn printer cartridges. Photoconductive drums are key components of electrophotographic image forming devices such as laser printers. Photoconductive drums are typically cylinders coated with a substance whose magnetic properties change in the presence of light. The photoconductive drum is magnetically charged and the laser changes the charge on the parts of the photoconductive drum it passes over. Those areas will pick up toner and apply it to the page. Certain photoconductive drums are attached to the printer with rotational force transmitting assemblies, such as those described in US patent application number US 2008/0260428. According to this patent application, rotational force transmitting assemblies enable photoconductive drums to be mounted and demounted to printers with substantially vertical movements while at the same time allowing the drums to be smoothly and uniformly rotated. Methods and devices for replacing photoconductive drums attached to printers with rotational force transmitting assemblies are desired and are addressed by the invention."

As a supplement to the background information on this patent application, VerticalNews correspondents also obtained the inventors' summary information for this patent: "In one embodiment there is provided a method of replacing a photoconductive drum of a printer cartridge where the photoconductive drum is configured to be attached to a laser printer via a rotational force transmitting assembly, and the photoconductive drum comprises a drum gear end and a drum flange positioned at the drum gear end. The rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member attached to the drum flange. The rotational force transmitting assembly further comprises a drive shaft attached to the drum gear coupling member. The method comprises cutting the drum flange and removing the drum gear coupling member from the drum flange. The method may further comprise providing a replacement photoconductive drum, the replacement photoconductive drum comprising a replacement drum gear end and a replacement drum flange positioned at the replacement drum gear end, and attaching the drum gear coupling member to the replacement drum flange of the replacement photoconductive drum. The cutting the drum flange may comprise providing a hole saw, the hole saw defining a recessed body, attaching the hole saw to a drill, inserting the drive shaft through the recessed body of the hole saw, and rotating the hole using the drill. The method may further comprise providing a protective sheet of material and positioning the protective sheet of material inside the recessed body of the hole saw, providing a fixture configured to support the photoconductive drum, mounting the photoconductive drum to the fixture, and supporting the hole saw in a manner that allows the hole saw to be aligned with the drum flange of the photoconductive drum.

"In another embodiment there is provided a method for remanufacturing a laser printer cartridge where the printer cartridge comprises a photoconductive drum, and the photoconductive drum comprises a drum gear end where the drum gear end of the photoconductive drum is configured to be attached to a printer via a rotational force transmitting assembly. The drum gear end comprises a drum flange, and the rotational force transmitting assembly is attached to the drum flange. The method comprises removing the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum, providing a replacement photoconductive drum, and attaching the rotational force transmitting assembly to the replacement photoconductive drum. The replacement photoconductive drum comprises a replacement drum flange, the rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member and a drive shaft attached to the drum gear end coupling member, the replacement drum flange defining a recess configured to accommodate the drum gear end coupling member. The method may further comprise providing a hole saw, the hole saw comprising a recessed body, providing a protective material, substantially surrounding the recessed body of the hole saw with the protective material, the protective material being configured to substantially minimize damage to the rotational force transmitting assembly, providing a drill, attaching the drill to the hole saw, rotating the hole saw using the drill to cut the drum flange, providing a fixture, supporting the photoconductive drum with the fixture, supporting the hole saw with the fixture, and aligning the hole saw with the drum flange.

"In another embodiment there is provided a method of replacing a photoconductive drum of a printer cartridge, the photoconductive drum configured to be attached to a laser printer via a rotational force transmitting assembly. The photoconductive drum comprises a drum gear end and a drum flange positioned at the drum gear end. The rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member attached to the drum flange, the rotational force transmitting assembly further comprising a drive shaft attached to the drum gear coupling member. The method comprising providing a tool having an elongated body with a first bent end having a C-shaped claw portion, a second elongated end, and a press part having an opening, the press part being attached to the elongated body. The method further comprises coupling the C-shaped claw portion to the rotational force transmitting assembly. The method further comprises removing the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum by rotating the tool and pulling out the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum. The method further comprises inserting the removed rotational force transmitting assembly into the opening of the press part. The method further comprises attaching the removed rotational force transmitting assembly into a replacement photoconductive drum. The replacement photoconductive drum comprises a replacement drum flange, the rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member and a drive shaft attached to the drum gear end coupling member, the replacement drum flange defining a recess configured to accommodate the drum gear end coupling member. The press part may be permanently fixed to the elongated body or removably attached to the elongated body.

"In another embodiment there is provided a device for removing a rotational force transmitting assembly of a photoconductive drum of a printer cartridge where the rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member configured to attach to a drum flange, and the drum gear coupling member has a predetermined diameter. The device comprises a hole saw comprising a cylindrical body. The cylindrical body has an internal diameter that is greater than the diameter of the drum gear coupling member. The cylindrical body has a height that allows at least a portion of the cylindrical body to penetrate through the drum flange. Preferably, the cylindrical body of the hole saw defines a recess. The device may further comprise a protective sheet of material. The protective sheet of material may be configured to be positioned within the recess to substantially prevent damage to the rotational force transmitting assembly. The device may further comprise a drill configured to rotate the hole saw. The device may further comprise a fixture comprising a base, at least one mounting block attached to the base, the at least one mounting block being configured to support a photoconductive drum, and a drill shaft guide connected to the base, the drill shaft guide configured to confine a drill shaft positioned between the hole saw and a drill, wherein the placement of the drill shaft guide relative to the at least one mounting block allows the hole saw to be aligned with the drum flange of the photoconductive drum that is supported by the at least one mounting block.

"In another embodiment there is provided a device for removing a rotational force transmitting assembly of a photoconductive drum. The device comprises a clamp configured to grasp the rotational force transmitting assembly, and a driving assembly attached to the clamp, the driving assembly configured to move the clamp. The rotational force transmitting assembly is removed from the photoconductive drum by the movement of the clamp. The driving assembly may comprise a jack screw, a rack and pinion gear, or another suitable driving assembly. The device may further comprise a frame. The driving assembly may comprise a drive shaft supported by the frame, the drive shaft being attached to the clamp, a pivot arm attached at an angle to the drive shaft, and, a handle attached to the pivot arm, wherein the handle is moved in a first direction such that the handle moves the pivot arm, the drive shaft, and the clamp to detach the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum.

"In another embodiment there is provided a device for removing and attaching a rotational force transmitting assembly of a photoconductive drum. The rotational force transmitting assembly comprises a drum gear coupling member configured to attach to a drum flange. The device comprises a unitary device having an elongated body with a first bent end having a C-shaped claw portion for engagement with the rotational force transmitting assembly in order to remove the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum. The elongated body further has a second elongated end. The device further comprises a press part attached to the elongated body. The press part has an opening for engagement with the rotational force transmitting assembly in order to attach the rotational force transmitting assembly to the photoconductive drum.

"In another embodiment, there is provided a device for replacing a photoconductive drum of a printer cartridge, the photoconductive drum configured to be attached to a laser printer via a rotational force transmitting assembly, the photoconductive drum comprising a drum gear end and a drum flange positioned at the drum gear end. The device comprises a tool having an elongated body with a first bent end having a C-shaped claw portion for engagement with the rotational force transmitting assembly in order to remove the rotational force transmitting assembly from the photoconductive drum, the elongated body further having a second elongated end. The device further comprises a press part attached to the elongated body, wherein the press part has an opening for engagement with the rotational force transmitting assembly in order to attach the rotational force transmitting assembly to a replacement photoconductive drum. The press part may comprise a one piece press part with one portion or a one piece press part with two portions. The press part may be permanently fixed to the elongated body or the press part may be removably attached to the elongated body.

"The above description sets forth, rather broadly, a summary of embodiments of the invention so that the detailed description that follows may be better understood and contributions of the invention to the art may be better appreciated. Some of the embodiments of the invention may not include all of the features or characteristics listed in the above summary. There may be, of course, other features of the invention that will be described below and may form the subject matter of claims. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and to the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or as illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways."

For additional information on this patent application, see: Holmes, Denny; Ohanyan, Tigran. Methods and Devices for Remanufacturing Printer Cartridges. U.S. Patent Serial Number 507595, filed July 11, 2012, and posted November 8, 2012. Patent URL: http://appft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-adv.html&r=3146&p=63&f=G&l=50&d=PG01&S1=20121101.PD.&OS=PD/20121101&RS=PD/20121101

Keywords for this news article include: Mitsubishi Kagaku Imaging Corporation.

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