A media handling system is disclosed, which system includes a media picking unit for picking up individual media sheets from a stack of media sheets and a media output unit for advancing a printed media sheet toward an output area. The media picking unit includes a rotatable lifting shaft, a rotatable pick roller shaft, a pick roller and a pick arm. The pick roller is rotatably connected to one end of a pick arm, and the one end of the pick arm is pivotally connected to the pick roller shaft. The media output unit includes at least one sheet support member operable to support the printed portion of the media sheet above the output area. The sheet support member is linked to the lifting shaft by a linking structure such that the sheet support member is movable between a supporting position and a retracted position by a rotational movement the lifting shaft.

A media storage bin including a floor and a pair of spaced apart walls specifically spaced to receive pieces of media and to retain the pieces of media in a stacked condition. A drop control flap is mounted to an individual one of the spaced walls for delaying the fall of a piece of media into the bin. This wall includes a top surface. A platform for supporting a stack of pieces of media is disposed in the bin, between the wall top surface and the floor. A helical spring is disposed between the platform and the floor for maintaining the top of the media stack at a predetermined distance from the wall top surface to provide thereby a constant fall distance between an individual one of the pieces of media and the wall top surface. This is accomplished in a manner whereby the spring rate enables the platform to drop the thickness of one piece of media for each piece of media added to the top of the stack.

A technique of forming a bar of a bar code on print media by a printing device having a plurality of colorants. Each one of the individual bars has a leading edge and a trailing edge that help to define a central region of the bar. The relative locations of the leading edge and trailing edge are determined and a first colorant, usually black, is deposited at the leading edge. A composite of the first colorant, and the other printhead colorants, are deposited in the central region while the first colorant is deposited at the trailing edge. A bar of a bar code produced by this technique has a clearly defined leading and trailing edge for bar code readers to measure while the central region of the bar includes a composite of colorants.

A media eject system for a printer having an output tray includes an edge wing for supporting an edge of media exiting the printer, the edge wing movable between support and non-support positions. A kicker engages a trailing edge of media and moves the media into the tray. The kicker is movable between a retracted position and an extended position and operable to move the media into the tray by movement of the kicker from the retracted position to the extended position. A controller determines a print condition including at least one of a media type and a print format, and adjusts a position of the wing dependent upon the print condition.

A multi-function media eject system and method for operation particularly useful for ink jet printers. At the start of a print job, the media type and print format are determined. If the media is either banner paper or envelope, or if the print format is draft quality printing, wings and kickers of the eject system are disabled, so the media exits the printer without support from the wings or influence from the kickers.