Unlike Laurie Riedman, I am not a geek at heart, I’ve only been doing public relations for Xerox since May, and science was my least favorite subject in school. That being said, I must admit that I am thoroughly impressed by the cool technologies Xerox researchers are developing.
This was my first time working with scientists on a research announcement – long-life photoreceptors – an aluminum substrate coated with a tough polymer composite composed of proprietary Xerox materials that converts light image into an electrostatic latent image. Get it? Neither do I. Let’s try this again.
A photoreceptor is the heart of a xerographic machine like coy machines or office printers. Simply put, they look like film cylinders, which attract electrostatic charges, which attract toner, which is then pressed onto paper to make up the image. They are made up of many different chemical layers, and just like the brakes on your car, need to be replaced after some time. But the newest photoreceptors, Xerox long-life photoreceptors, have super qualities.
I don’t know the secret (and I wouldn’t tell you anyway), but these super qualities come from a chemical armor, or tough top coating, that protects the photoreceptor from tears and scratches so it can last for one million revolutions inside a copier or printer – nearly doubling a normal photoreceptor’s life and reducing waste by 33%. So, say you’re an aggressive driver and you need to replace your brakes like every 20,000 miles. Well, how would you like it if you only had to replace them about every 30 to 40,000 miles? Cheaper, easier, greener…right?
Anyway, this innovation is just the beginning for long-life photoreceptors. Xerox researchers and scientists are now working on the next generation, which will actually be able to heal themselves when they get cuts and scratches – just like human skin – and last the life of the printer or copier. Now that’s awesome…even for those of us who are not quite in touch with that inner-geek.
Read the news release, watch the video and check out the photos at www.xerox.com/newsroom. It’s kind of a big deal.
— Christine Winter, Xerox public relations intern
