Patent ID: 9079394
Filing Date: 2015-07-14
Classification: B41J,G05B,G07B

Abstract:
1. An apparatus comprising: a plurality of apparatus components collectively configured to be operated to produce an apparatus action; a controller configured to operate said apparatus components to produce said apparatus action; said apparatus components including a circuit board that receives an input signal from said controller and that produces a photoelectric barrier output signal to said controller, said circuit board being configured in one configuration variant among multiple configuration variants of said circuit board, each of said multiple configuration variants requiring a respectively different operation of said apparatus components by said controller in order to produce said apparatus action by said apparatus components; said circuit board comprising a circuit board input to which said input signal to said photoelectric barrier is supplied from said controller, and a circuit board output at which said photoelectric barrier output signal is supplied to said controller, and comprising a delay element electrically connected between said circuit board input and said photoelectric barrier that introduces a delay into said input signal, said delay being individualized for the respective configuration variant that said circuit board has among said multiple variants; and said controller being configured to detect a characteristic of said delay, selected from the group consisting of an occurrence or non-occurrence of said delay and a magnitude of said delay, and to identify said one configuration variant of said circuit board, among said multiple variants, from the detected characteristic of said delay, and to operate said components according to the operation required for said one configuration variant identified from said characteristic of said delay, to produce said apparatus action dependent on said one configuration variant of said circuit board.