Display device for use as a computer monitor, having a printer controller and a pagewidth printhead

• US 20050018220A1
• Filed: 08/23/2004
• Published: 01/27/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Memjet Technology Ltd. (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Granted Patent: US 7,672,012 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.800
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/01 Ink jet
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/175 Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/14435 Moving nozzle made of thermal bend detached actuator
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/28 for printing downwardly on flat surfaces, e.g. of books, drawings, boxes , envelopes, e.g. flat-bed ink-jet printers
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/46 Printing mechanisms combined with apparatus providing a visual indication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1601 Constructional details related to the housing of computer displays, e.g. of CRT monitors, of flat displays constructional details related to flat displays integrated in a portable computer, e.g. laptop, handheld computer G06F1/1637; constructional details related to television receivers H04N5/64

Abstract

A display device for use as a computer monitor, the display device comprising: a flat panel display for displaying images from a computer; a printer, the printer including: (a) a printer controller configured to receive print data in a compressed form, decompress the print data, and output dot data based on the decompressed print data; (b) a pagewidth printhead for receiving the dot data and printing onto print media.

Claims

1. A display device for use as a computer monitor, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images from a computer;

a printer, the printer including;

(a) a printer controller configured to receive print data in a compressed form, decompress the print data, and output dot data based on the decompressed print data;

(b) a pagewidth printhead for receiving the dot data and printing onto print media.

2. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the printer includes at least two of the printheads, the printheads being disposed on either side of a path through which print media is fed for printing, thereby enabling substantially simultaneous printing of both sides of the print media.

3. A display device according to claim 1, configured to receive the print data, and display data to be displayed, from a computer system.

4. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the printer controller is configured to halftone at least some of the decompressed print data as part of generating the dot data.

5. A display device according to claim 4, wherein the printer controller is configured to composite text data with the halftoned data as part of generating the dot data.

6. A display device according to claim 1, the printer controller being configured to decompress both losslessly and lossily compressed print data.

7. A display device according to claim 6, the printer controller being configured to halftone the decompressed lossily compressed print data.

8. A display device according to claim 6, the printer controller being configured to composite the halftoned print data with the decompressed losslessly compressed print data as part of generating the dot data.

9. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the printing and display device includes a connection configured to allow releasable operative connection of the computer system to the printing and display device, for receiving the print data and the display data from the computer system.

10. A printing a display device according to claim 9, wherein the connection includes at least one socket for accepting at least one corresponding data cable.

11. A display device according to claim 9, wherein the connection includes a wireless receiver for receiving the print data and/or the display data.

12. A display device according to claim 9, wherein the connection is a Universal Synchronous Bus (USB) connection.

13. A display device according to claim 1, further including a paper feed mechanism for feeding paper to the printhead for printing, the printhead being arranged to print onto the paper.

14. A display device according to claim 13, wherein the paper feed mechanism is configured to position the paper substantially parallel in at least one direction with respect to a plane defined by the flat panel display.

15. A display device according to claim 14, wherein the paper feed mechanism is configured to accept a single sheet of paper at a time for printing.

16. A display device according to claim 14, wherein the paper feed mechanism includes a paper separator for feeding a single sheet of paper to the printhead from a stack of sheets of paper.

17. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the printer is a process color printer.

18. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the printer is an inkjet printer.

19. A display device according to claim 18, wherein the printer has more than 5,000 inkjet nozzles.

20. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the flat panel display measures at least 14 inches on the diagonal.

21. A display device according to claim 1, including at least two of the printheads, the printheads being disposed on either side of a path through which the paper is fed for printing, thereby enabling substantially simultaneous printing of both sides of a sheet of paper.

22. A display device according to claim 1, configured to enable printing of standard A4 or Letter sized sheets of paper.

23. A display device according to claim 1, configured such that paper to be printed is fed manually into a paper path that directs the paper from a region adjacent the upper edge of the flat panel display, past the printhead for printing, then out of the device adjacent a lower edge of the flat panel display.

24. A display device according to claim 1, further including a curved paper guide disposed, when the device is in use, beneath the flat panel display, such that the paper that has been printed is urged horizontally as it exits the device.

25. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the flat panel display is of one of the following types:

Liquid Crystal Display (LCD);

Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED)

Field Emission Display (FED)

Plasma Display Panel (PDP)

26. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images from a computer;

a printhead for printing onto print media;

a sheet feeder for receiving at least one sheet of the print media and feeding the at least one sheet to the printhead for printing, wherein the sheet feeder is at least partially fed by gravity.

27. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images from a computer;

a stand for holding the flat panel display in at least one operative position; and

a printer, the printer including a printhead for printing onto paper;

wherein the stand is configured such that the at least one operative position includes one in which the flat panel display makes an angle of 0 to 45 degrees to the vertical.

28. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display;

a printer, including a printhead for printing onto paper; and

a print media print path along which print media is supplied to the printer, wherein at least a majority of the print path is in a plane that is substantially parallel to a plane defined by the flat panel display.

29. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display;

a printer, including a printhead for printing onto paper; and

a sheet feeder for feeding print media to the printhead, the device being configured such that standard print media to be printed is supported, immediately prior to commencement of printing, such that at least an edge of the print media is visible above an upper edge of a the flat panel display.

30. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images from a computer, the flat panel defining a plane;

a printer, including a pagewidth printhead for printing onto print media; and

a print media print path along which print media is supplied to the printer, wherein at least a majority of the print path is parallel to the plane in at least one direction.

31. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images received from a computer system; and

a printer, the printer including a pagewidth printhead for printing onto print media, the pagewidth printhead extending across a majority of the width of the device.

32. A display device as claimed in claim 1, the display device comprising:

a flat panel display for displaying images received from a computer; and

a printer, the printer including a pagewidth printhead for printing onto print media, the printhead being disposed adjacent a lower portion of the display device.