Self-calibrating temperature control device for a heated fuser roller
US4951096A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 26, 1989 |
| Grant date | Aug 21, 1990 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 26, 2009 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG03G15/2039
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A temperature control device, for controlling, at a desired set point, the temperature of an environment or member being heated or being cooled, is particularly suitable for controlling the temperature of a heated electrostatographic fuser roller. The device includes a large tolerance, low precision temperature sensing element that is encapsulated in a compound that has a known and precise solid/liquid phase change melting or freezing point approximately at such a desired temperature set point. The device also includes a control unit which during a warmup or a cool-down period for the environment or member, for example, the heated fuser roller, repeatedly monitors the temperature of the encapsulated sensing element in order to detect the phase change point, for example, the melting point of the encapsulating compound. The phase change point, when so detected, is then utilized by the control unit to responsively self-calibrate the control device, thereby substantially increasing its overall precision in controlling the temperature of the environment or member.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.