Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) says a steadfast commitment to research and development is one way to help survive tough economic times. Just last year, Xerox and its inventors earned 609 U.S. utility patents, exceeding a commitment to increase the companys annual number of awarded patents by one-third.
Xerox Chief Technology Officer and president of the Xerox Innovation Group, Sophie Vandebroek says companies must keep the innovation pipeline flowing even in a lean economic climate or they will face huge product gaps in future years.
"You cannot sacrifice tomorrow to save today. Our investment in innovation guarantees Xerox leadership in our core business and creates opportunity to grow in new markets," said Vandebroek. "Its also a source of pride for us. More than 2,300 employees, past and present, have been granted five or more patents - an extraordinary accomplishment."
Important discoveries among the 2008 patents include:
U.S. Patent No. 7,377,971 covers low energy solid inks and was used in the Phaser™ 8860. This innovation will also help reduce energy consumption.
U.S. Patent No. 7,413,842, which covers advanced emulsion aggregation (EA) toner technology that allowed the extension of the use of EA toners to high-end office products. EA toner yields sharper image quality, higher reliability and reduced toner usage in an energy efficient manufacturing process. Pages printed with EA toner use 40 percent to 50 percent less material than conventional toner.
U. S. Patent No. 7,382,993, which proposes a method for controlling image quality consistency between print engines operating in parallel. The technology improves engine-to-engine toner reproduction consistency in the Xerox Nuvera™ production system.
U.S. Patent No 7,370,034, which is the basis for TrueMatch Search and Retrieval, enables users to scan a document, then locate and send the corresponding original electronic version to their e-mail account and print a fresh copy.
Included in the 2008 total are 18 patents granted to Dr. Peter Kazmaier, a chemist and manager of the New Materials Design group at the Xerox Research Centre Canada. Kazmaier is one of only 18 Xerox inventors to reach the elite 100-patent milestone, ending 2008 with 101. Several of Kazmaiers recent patents, including his 100th, relate to Xeroxs erasable paper project that will ultimately help reduce paper use by making printed images last only a day, so that the paper can be used again and again.
The patent tally also includes those awarded to the Palo Alto Research Center and XMPie, wholly owned subsidiaries of Xerox Corporation. When combined with Xeroxs joint venture partner in Japan, Fuji Xerox Co. Ltd., the total for the Xerox Group is more than 940 patents. The two companies coordinate their research strategically. Together, Xerox and Fuji Xerox invest about $1.5 billion annually in research, development and engineering.
In 2008 Xerox introduced 29 new products, garnering more than 230 awards worldwide. The company currently holds more than 8,900 active patents in the U.S., and it has received more than 55,000 worldwide patents since the company was founded.
Xerox Corporation operates research and technology centers in the United States, Canada and Europe that conduct work in color science, digital imaging, computational methods, work practices, system science, materials science and other disciplines connected to Xeroxs expertise in printing and document management. The company consistently builds its inventions into business by embedding them in Xerox products, services and solutions, using them as the foundation of new businesses, or licensing or selling them to other entities. For more information, visit www.xerox.com/innovation.
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Xerox
