Patent ID: 6311035
Filing Date: 2001-10-30
Classification: G03G

Abstract:
An imaging system for effecting contact electrostatic printing of an image, having at least one contact electrostatic printing engine operable upon a copy substrate, wherein the printing engine comprises:an imaging station for generating a latent image;a latent image carrier member having a latent image bearing surface for carrying the latent image;an imaging member having a developed image bearing surface;a toner cake layer delivery apparatus operable for delivering a toner cake layer to at least one of the developed image bearing surface and the latent image bearing surface;wherein the latent image carrier member and the imaging member are operable for engagement of the latent image bearing surface with the developed image bearing surface at a development nip, the toner cake layer being thereby separated, in correspondence with the image and non-image regions of the latent image, into a developed image on the developed image bearing surface and a background on the latent image bearing surface; anda transfer assembly for impressing the copy substrate upon the developed image borne by the developed image bearing surface, so as to effect direct adhesive transfer of the developed image at a transfer nip to the copy substrate, the direct adhesive transfer being effected according to the following:A1<C<A2 (Eq.1)wherein A1 represents the extent of adhesion of the developed image to the developed image bearing surface; C represents the extent of cohesion of the developed image, the extent of cohesion being sufficient to resist shearing or splitting of the developed image; and A2 represents the extent of adhesion of the developed image to the copy substrate.