Patent Application
20050151832
The present invention relates generally to remanufacturing printer cartridges, and more particularly to techniques for splitting a printer cartridge during the remanufacturing process.
In the printing industry, there is a growing market for the remanufacture and refurbishing of various types of printing components such as toner cartridges, ink cartridges, magnetic rollers, seals, and the like. Toner cartridges, once spent, are unusable for their originally intended purpose. Without a refurbishing process, they would simply be discarded, even though the cartridge itself may still have potential life. As a result, techniques have been developed specifically to address this issue. These processes may entail, for example, the disassembly of the various structures of the cartridge, replacing toner, cleaning, adjusting or replacing any worn components and reassembling the cartridge.
During transportation, printer toner cartridges are subject to leakage of toner from the toner hopper unless the opening of the toner hopper is sealed. For example, the toner hopper opening of the HP4600 toner cartridge is sealed by heat bonding a film material around the perimeter of the hopper opening. An extension is provided on one side of this film and is doubled back over the seal area, extending outside of the cartridge housing on one side of the cartridge. Prior to initial usage of the cartridge, the end user grasps the portion of the film, which extends outside the cartridge and pulls it. This action peels the film away from the hopper, uncovering the opening and allowing the toner to flow into the development mechanism of the cartridge.
During subsequent refurbishment of toner cartridges, it becomes necessary to reseal the hopper after it is refilled with toner. However, construction of the hopper is such that adequate access to the seal area for seal replacement often does not exist. In the case of the HP4600, the original manufacturer ultrasonically welded the developer roller housing to the hopper, attaching it directly over the hopper seal area. To gain access to the seal area for seal replacement, it is necessary to remove the developer roller housing from the toner hopper.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, techniques are provided for splitting a printer cartridge. In one aspect of the present invention, a cartridge splitter includes guide rails for supporting a toner cartridge having a first portion and a second portion. A first cutting blade is disposed in a first plane of operation for cutting the toner cartridge along the first plane as the toner cartridge is moved along the guide rails. A second cutting blade disposed in a second plane of operation for cutting the toner cartridge along the second plane as the toner cartridge is moved along the guide rails. The second plane of operation is offset from the first plane of operation by a predetermined distance such that the cutting of the toner cartridge along the first plane and the second plane separates the first portion from the second portion.
In another aspect of the present invention, a method of splitting a cartridge includes the steps of providing a toner cartridge splitting apparatus including a first cutting device for cutting in a first plane and a second cutting device for cutting in a second plane which is offset from the first plane. Toner cartridge is moved adjacent the first and second cutting devices, where the first cutting device cuts the toner cartridge in the first plane and the second cutting device cuts the toner cartridge in the second plane. The first portion of the toner cartridge is then separated from the second portion of the toner cartridge.
A more complete understanding of the present invention, as well as further features and advantages of the invention, will be apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.
The following detailed description of preferred embodiments refers to the accompanying drawings which illustrate specific embodiments of the invention. In the discussion that follows, specific techniques for splitting an HP4600 toner printer cartridge are disclosed. Other embodiments having different structures and operations for the splitting of other types of cartridges for use with other types of printers do not depart from the scope of the present invention. For example, the techniques of the present invention may be adapted to split an HP5500 toner cartridge.
As described in greater detail below, in one aspect of the present invention techniques are provided for separating the developer roller housing 102 from the toner hopper 104.
To separate the developer roller housing 102 from the toner hopper 104, the toner hopper assembly 100 is first placed onto the guide rails 512 and 514. Then the toner hopper assembly 100 is moved along the guide rails 512 and 514 past the circular blades 502 and 506 which perform the cutting operation to split the toner hopper assembly 100. As seen more clearly in
In an alternate embodiment, the guide rails 512 and 514 may hold the toner hopper assembly 100 in a fixed position and the circular blades 502 and 506 may move past the toner hopper assembly 100.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, those of ordinary skill in the art appreciate that any arrangement which is calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown and that the invention has other applications in other environments. For example, other cutting techniques such as knife blades, jigsaw cutters, and the like may be utilized to perform the cutting operation. This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the present invention. The following claims are in no way intended to limit the scope of the invention to the specific embodiments described herein.
