1. A system for processing signals comprising:
a plurality of frame input terminals for receiving a plurality of input signals;
a cross point switch coupled to the input terminals to receive the input signals;
one or more output processors, wherein each of the output processors has one or more processor input terminals and one or more frame output terminals;
a controller coupled to:
the cross-point switch to couple at least some of the input terminals to one of the processor input terminals whereby the input signal received at the frame input terminals are provided at the corresponding processor input terminals; and
at least one of the output processors to configure the output processor to process input signals received at the processor’s processor input terminals to provide an output signal at processor’s frame output terminals.
2. The system of claim 1 further including a plurality of input modules, wherein the frame input terminals are coupled to the input modules and wherein the cross-point switch is coupled to the input modules at a plurality of cross-point switch input terminals.
3. The system of claim 2 wherein at least one of the input modules is configured to process one or more input signals coupled to the one input module and to provide a processed version of the input signals to the cross-point switch.
4. The system of claim 1 wherein at least some of the input terminals are adapted to receive radio frequency signals and at least some of the input terminals are adapted to receive optical signals.
5. The system of claim 1 wherein at least some of the input terminals are adapted to receive data signals.
6. The system of claim 1 wherein at least some of the input terminals are adapted to receive video signal signals.
7. The system of claim 1 wherein at least some of the input terminals are adapted to receive audiovideo signal signals.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A contact leveling surface for an ink jet imaging member comprising:
a coating disposed on a contact leveling substrate, wherein the coating comprises a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane of the formula
wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each, independently of the other, selected from a fluorine-substituted group comprising:
(a) alkyl, including linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted alkyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the alkyl group;
(b) aryl, including substituted and unsubstituted aryl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the aryl group;
(c) arylalkyl, including unsubstituted and substituted arylalkyl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkyl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkyl group;
(d) alkylaryl, including unsubstituted and substituted alkylaryl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylaryl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylaryl group;
(e) siloxyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, siloxyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(f) silyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(g) silane, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silane groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present; and
(h) a functional group selected from hydroxyl, amine, carboxylic acid, epoxide, fluoroalkyl, halide, imide, acrylate, methacrylate, nitrile, sulfonate, thiol, silanol, and combinations thereof, wherein two or more R groups can be joined together to form a ring.
2. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane.
3. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each, independently of the other, selected from a group comprising:
(a) alkyl having from about 1 to about 36 carbon atoms;
(b) aryl having from about 6 to about 36 carbon atoms;
(c) arylalkyl having from about 6 to about 36 carbon atoms;
(d) alkylaryl having from about 6 to about 36 carbon atoms;
(e) siloxyl having from about 6 to about 12 silicon atoms;
(f) silyl having from about 6 to about 12 silicon atoms; and
(g) silane having from about 6 to about 12 silicon atoms.
4. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane comprises a compound wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each the same and wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF3;
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3; or
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3.
5. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the coating comprises at least two different polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane compounds.
6. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the coating comprises a combination of at least two different polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane compounds wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are selected from:
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF3;
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3; and
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3.
7. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the coating is a neat fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane that is free of a polymeric binder.
8. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the coating comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane and a polymeric binder.
9. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the coating comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane and a polymeric binder selected from the group consisting of fluoroelastomers, fluoropolymers, polycarbonate, polymethylmethacrylate, polystyrene, polyimide, and polyurethane.
10. The contact leveling surface of claim 1, wherein the contact leveling surface is a contact leveling surface for an ink jet imaging device that prints direct to a final image receiving substrate; and
wherein the ink jet imaging device jets a phase change ink, a gel ink, a curable phase change ink, or a curable gel ink.
11. A printing apparatus comprising:
a printing station including at least one printhead for applying ink to an image receiving substrate to create an ink image;
a contact leveling member for conditioning the ink image by disposing the contact leveling member in pressure contact with the ink image;
wherein the contact leveling member comprises a substrate and a contact leveling coating disposed over the substrate; and
wherein the contact leveling coating comprises a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane of the formula
wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each, independently of the other, selected from a fluorine-substituted group comprising:
(a) alkyl, including linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted alkyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the alkyl group;
(b) aryl, including substituted and unsubstituted aryl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the aryl group;
(c) arylalkyl, including unsubstituted and substituted arylalkyl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkyl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkyl group;
(d) alkylaryl, including unsubstituted and substituted alkylaryl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylaryl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylaryl group;
(e) siloxyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, siloxyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(f) silyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(g) silane, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silane groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present; and
(h) a functional group selected from hydroxyl, amine, carboxylic acid, epoxide, fluoroalkyl, halide, imide, acrylate, methacrylate, nitrile, sulfonate, thiol, silanol, and combinations thereof, wherein two or more R groups can be joined together to form a ring.
12. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane.
13. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each the same and wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF3;
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3; or
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3.
14. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the coating comprises at least two different polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane compounds.
15. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the coating comprises a combination of at least two different polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane compounds wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are selected from:
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF3;
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3; and
CH2CH2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF2CF3.
16. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the coating is a neat fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane that is free of a polymeric binder.
17. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the coating comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane and a polymeric binder.
18. The printing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the coating comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane and a polymeric binder selected from the group consisting of fluoroelastomers, fluoropolymers, polycarbonate, polymethylmethacrylate, polystyrene, polyimide, and polyurethane.
19. The printing apparatus of claim 11, printing apparatus is a device that prints direct to a final image receiving substrate; and
wherein the ink is a phase change ink, a gel ink, a curable phase change ink, or a curable gel ink.
20. An image conditioning method comprising:
forming an image on an image receiving substrate with an ink;
conditioning the image by disposing a contact leveling member in pressure contact with the ink image;
wherein the contact leveling member comprises a substrate and a contact leveling coating disposed over the substrate;
wherein the contact leveling coating comprises a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane of the formula
wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, and R8 are each, independently of the other, selected from a fluorine-substituted group comprising:
(a) alkyl, including linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted alkyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the alkyl group;
(b) aryl, including substituted and unsubstituted aryl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in the aryl group;
(c) arylalkyl, including unsubstituted and substituted arylalkyl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkyl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkyl group;
(d) alkylaryl, including unsubstituted and substituted alkylaryl groups, wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylaryl group can be linear, branched, saturated, unsaturated, cyclic, or acyclic, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylaryl group;
(e) siloxyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, siloxyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(f) silyl, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silyl groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present;
(g) silane, including linear, branched, cyclic, acyclic, substituted, and unsubstituted, silane groups, and wherein hetero atoms may optionally be present; and
(h) a functional group selected from hydroxyl, amine, carboxylic acid, epoxide, fluoroalkyl, halide, imide, acrylate, methacrylate, nitrile, sulfonate, thiol, silanol, and combinations thereof, wherein two or more R groups can be joined together to form a ring.
21. The image conditioning method of claim 20, wherein the polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane comprises a fluoroalkyl-substituted polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane.
22. The image conditioning method of claim 20, wherein the image is formed directly on the final image receiving substrate; and
wherein the ink is a phase change ink, a gel ink, a curable phase change ink, or a curable gel ink.