초록 ▼

Customer billing system for electrostatographic reproducing machines in which a replaceable copy cartridge provides a guaranteed number of copies or prints, each cartridge having an integral copy counter which, on reaching a predetermined copy count, is disabled, rendering the cartridge dead and act

Customer billing system for electrostatographic reproducing machines in which a replaceable copy cartridge provides a guaranteed number of copies or prints, each cartridge having an integral copy counter which, on reaching a predetermined copy count, is disabled, rendering the cartridge dead and activating an additional copy counting mechanism for counting a limited number of grace copies that can be made using the dead cartridge, after which further operation of the machine is prevented until a new cartridge is installed.

대표청구항 ▼

A customer billing system for an electrostatographic copying or printing machine, said machine having a movable photoreceptor, charging means for uniformly charging the photoreceptor, means for exposing the photoreceptor following charging to create electrostatic latent images on the photoreceptor,

A customer billing system for an electrostatographic copying or printing machine, said machine having a movable photoreceptor, charging means for uniformly charging the photoreceptor, means for exposing the photoreceptor following charging to create electrostatic latent images on the photoreceptor, developing means for developing the electrostatic latent images on the photoreceptor, transfer means for transferring the developed images from the photoreceptor to a support material, fixing means to fix the transferred images on the support material and an operating system for controlling operation of said machine, comprising, in combination: (a) at least one of said photoreceptor and developing means comprising a replaceable cartridge having a limited operational life allowing said machine on installation of said cartridge to produce a preset number of copies; (b) said cartridge including a copy counter; (c) counter operating means on said machine for indexing said cartridge copy counter as copies are produced by said machine; and (d) counter disabling means to disable said cartridge copy counter when said cartridge copy counter reaches a predetermined count representative of said preset number of copies. A customer billing system for an electrostatographic copying or printing machine, said machine having an operating system for controlling operation of said machine, comprising, in combination: (a) a replaceable cartridge for use in operating said machine, said cartridge having a limited operational life allowing said machine on installation of said cartridge to produce a predetermined number of copies; (b) said cartridge including a copy counter; (c) counter operating means on said machine for indexing said cartridge copy counter as copies are produced by said machine; and (d) counter disabling means to disable said cartridge copy counter and render said cartidge dead when said cartridge copy counter reaches a preset copy count; (e) said operating system including grace means to allow said machine to produce a predetermined number of grace copies using a dead cartridge pending installation of a fresh cartridge. A billing and warranty method for a copier/printing machine using a replaceable subassembly guaranteed to provide a preset number of copies, comprising the steps of: (a) tolling a count of copies made on at least one counter in said machine and on a counter in said cartridge; (b) when the copy count on said cartridge counter reaches a predetermined copy count, preventing further counting by said cartridge counter; (c) continuing tolling a count of subsequent copies on said machine counter; and (d) when the copy count on said machine counter reaches a predetermined copy count reflecting said guaranteed number of copies, shutting down said machine until a new cartridge is installed.