i5f@L.CC.PURDUE.EDU (S Bechtolsheim) (05/27/88)
I once measured a deviation of almost 3% in the resolution of a laser printer. Discussing this with somebody he mentioned that he talked to some laser printer manufacturer (don't remember which one); the manufacturer put the blame on the crystal resposible for the sweep of the laser beam. Any comments?! I don't quite believe that because my limited electronics background (I am a ham radio operator) tells me that crystals don't deviate in frequency that much..... Stephan Bechtolsheim Statistics Dep, Purdue Univ.
henry@utzoo.UUCP (06/07/88)
> I once measured a deviation of almost 3% in the resolution of a laser > printer...the manufacturer put the blame on the crystal resposible for the > sweep of the laser beam... crystals don't deviate in frequency that much... It is indeed the crystal that is to blame, but in a more subtle way than you think. The problem is not that the crystal is off its assigned frequency; the problem is that the assigned frequency is not quite the right one for the printer! Rather than get a custom crystal done to exactly the right frequency, the manufacturer has settled for the nearest standard crystal. This is common. Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology {ihnp4,decvax,uunet!mnetor}!utzoo!henry