Claims
- 1. A positioning system for a carriage in a printing system, comprising:a support plate having a groove along a length of the plate; a rail positioned along the groove, the carriage being transported along the rail; a first adjusting mechanism which positions the rail in a first direction; and a second adjusting mechanism which positions the rail in a second direction substantially normal to the first direction.
- 2. The positioning system of claim 1, wherein the groove is shaped such that the rail makes a two-point contact with the groove along the entire length of the groove.
- 3. The positioning system of claim 1, wherein the support plate has a second groove along the length of the plate, the groove being substantially parallel to the first groove and the first groove and the second groove being located on opposite sides of the plate across the width of the plate.
- 4. The positioning system of claim 3, further comprising a second rail positioned in the second groove.
- 5. The positioning system of claim 1, wherein the position in the first direction is maintained to a tolerance of about ±0.0005 inch.
- 6. The positioning system of claim 1, wherein the position in the second direction is maintained to a tolerance of about ±0.0005 inch.
- 7. The positioning system of claim 1, wherein the first adjusting mechanism and the second adjusting mechanism are jack-screw mechanisms.
- 8. A method of positioning a carriage holding a set of print heads, comprising:adjusting the position of a rail in a first direction with one or more first adjusting mechanisms, the rail being aligned along a groove of a support plate; and adjusting the position of the rail in a second direction with one or more second adjusting mechanisms, the second direction being substantially normal to the first direction.
- 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising adjusting the position of a second rail in the first direction with one or more of the adjusting mechanisms, the second rail being aligned along a second groove of the support plate, the second groove being substantially parallel to the first groove, and the first groove and the second groove being located on opposite sides of the plate across the width of the plate.
- 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising adjusting the position of the second rail in the second direction with one or more of the second adjusting mechanisms.
- 11. The method of claim 8, wherein the first and the second adjusting mechanisms are jack-screw mechanisms.
RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/244,299, filed on Oct. 30, 2000. The entire teachings of the above application are incorporated herein by reference.
US Referenced Citations (14)
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60/244299 |
Oct 2000 |
US |