Closed Loop Control of Nip Pressure in a Fuser System

A fuser system of a xerographic device and an associated closed loop control of a nip width, include a fuser member and a pressure member in which the pressure member is made to exert pressure upon the fuser member so as to form a nip having a nip width between the fuser member and the pressure member, wherein the nip width is set to within a specification nip width range based on the velocity of at least one of the fuser member, pressure member and media passing through the nip; a drive system for driving said fuser member relative to said pressure roll; a sensor for monitoring the torque of said drive system; a processor in communication with the sensor that receives torque data from the sensor, wherein the processor determines a current nip pressure uniformity from the torque data and compares the current nip pressure uniformity to the specification nip pressure uniformity range; and a nip pressure adjustment device in communication with the processor, which adjusts the current nip pressure uniformity to be within the specification nip pressure uniformity range.