Angled air impingment system for document control

摘要

A document-endorse arrangement has a document transport mechanism wherein documents are advanced down a track past one or more print stations where a jet-print nozzle array projects an ink stream to the document. One or more angled air streams arise from the track. Each air stream is directed downstream of the track at an acute angle of approximately 20 degrees with respect to the track. At least one of the airstreams is upstream of the nozzles and is adapted to pneumatically float each document past the nozzles so as to maintain a prescribed gap between the document and both the track and nozzles. This inhibits contamination of the nozzle from surplus ink and dust.