Patent ID: 8453309

Claim:
A method for changing a belt in a machine assembly that is an electrographic printing or copying apparatus, said belt having an outer surface and an inner surface, comprising the steps of: providing a gripper with two flat longitudinally extending oppositely opposed strip-like legs; wherein the legs are joined at one end of each leg; wherein the legs are not joined at the end of each leg opposite of the joined end; wherein each leg includes a protective film on a surface of the leg that faces the other leg; wherein the legs are moveable from an open position to a closed clamping position; sliding the gripper over the belt and then moving the legs of the gripper into the closed clamping position such that the legs exert a gripping force onto the outer and inner surfaces of the belt over a width of the belt; while gripping the belt at said outer and inner surfaces between the legs of the gripper in said closed clamping position, using the gripper to slide the belt onto rollers of the machine assembly; wherein the rollers are of at least one of the roller types selected from the group consisting of a drive roller and a deflection roller arranged at the machine assembly; and moving the legs of the gripper to the open position such that the legs of the gripper release the belt, and then withdrawing the gripper from the machine assembly.