Drying device

Abstract

To provide a drying device that can suppress the decrease in suction power of a record medium due to the thermal expansion of a conveying plate.SOLUTION: A drying device 3 comprises an endless conveying belt with a large number of through holes, which supports a medium and conveys the same in a predetermined conveying direction, a conveying plate 13 with a large number of through holes, which is in contact with the inner peripheral surface of the conveying belt to support the same, and a suction device which pulls the medium toward the conveying belt by sucking air through the through holes of both the conveying belt and the conveying plate 13. The conveying plate 13 is supported so as to be extendable and contractible in a direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a drying device that dries a recording medium on which an image has been formed in a high-temperature environment while conveying the recording medium. [Background technology]

[0002] An image forming system including an inkjet image forming apparatus is provided with a drying device that dries ink formed on a recording medium. The drying device described in Patent Document 1 includes a conveyor belt having through holes formed all over the surface, a conveyor plate having through holes formed all over the surface and supporting the conveyor belt, and a suction unit that draws air through the through holes of the conveyor belt and the conveyor plate to attract the recording medium to the conveyor belt. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-134456 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a drying device such as that described in Patent Document 1, the conveying plate is fixed to a frame that supports the conveying belt. In a high-temperature environment during operation of the drying device, the conveying plate may heat up and expand thermally, causing the conveying plate to float up. This may result in the formation of a gap, allowing air to leak, reducing the force of the suction unit sucking the recording medium, and causing poor conveyance and drying of the recording medium.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In consideration of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a drying device capable of suppressing a decrease in the suction force of a recording medium caused by thermal expansion of a transport plate. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the drying device of the present invention is a drying device that dries a medium on which an image is formed in a high-temperature environment while transporting the medium, and is equipped with an endless transport belt having a large number of through holes that supports the medium and transports it in a predetermined transport direction, a transport plate having a large number of through holes that contacts the inner surface of the transport belt and supports the transport belt, and a suction device that attracts the medium to the transport belt by sucking air through the through holes of the transport belt and the through holes of the transport plate, and is characterized in that the transport plate is supported so as to be expandable and contractible in a direction parallel to the transport direction.

[0007] In the present invention, the conveying plate may further include a drive roller and a driven roller around which the conveying belt is wound, and the end of the conveying plate on the drive roller side is fixed so as to be immovable, and the end of the conveying plate on the driven roller side is supported so as to be movable.

[0008] In the present invention, the amount by which the transport plate can expand and contract may be greater than or equal to the amount by which the transport plate thermally expands in a direction parallel to the transport direction between the drive roller and the driven roller due to a rise in temperature when the medium is dried.

[0009] In the present invention, the conveying plate may be made up of a plurality of plate pieces connected via fixed members along the conveying direction, and the fixed members may be supported so as to be movable in a direction parallel to the conveying direction.

[0010] In the present invention, the device may further include a support plate on which the fixed member is supported, the support plate having pins arranged at a distance in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, and the fixed member having long holes aligned along the conveying direction through which the pins are inserted.

[0011] In the present invention, the drive roller may be arranged downstream in the conveying direction, the driven roller may be arranged upstream in the conveying direction, and an end of the conveying plate on the upstream side in the conveying direction may be curved downward. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, when the conveying plate thermally expands in a high-temperature environment, the conveying plate is allowed to expand and contract in a direction parallel to the conveying direction, so that the conveying plate is prevented from floating up. Therefore, the recording medium can be conveyed without reducing the force for sucking the recording medium. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view showing the inside of a drying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a perspective view showing a transport unit (transport belt is not shown) in a drying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 1 is a perspective view showing a transport unit (a transport belt and a part of a transport plate are not shown) in a drying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a transport plate on a drive roller side in the drying device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a side view showing a transport plate on the driven roller side in the drying device according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, a drying device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0015] First, the overall configuration of the drying device 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a front view showing the inside of the drying device 1. Fr, Rr, L, and R shown in each drawing indicate the front side, rear side, left side, and right side of the drying device 1, respectively.

[0016] The drying device 1 includes a transport unit 3 that transports a recording medium on which an image is formed by an inkjet method, and a heating device 5 that dries the ink on the recording medium transported by the transport unit 3 in a high-temperature environment.

[0017] First, the transport unit 3 will be described with reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 to Fig. 5. Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 are perspective views showing the transport unit 3, Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the transport plate 13 on the drive roller 33 side, and Fig. 5 is a side view showing the transport plate 13 on the driven roller 31 side. The transport belt 11 is omitted in Fig. 2, and the transport belt 11 and part of the plate piece 41 are omitted in Fig. 3.

[0018] The transport unit 3 includes a transport belt 11 that transports the recording medium along a transport direction X1 from right to left in FIG. 1, a transport plate 13 that supports the transport belt 11, a suction device 15 that attracts the recording medium to the transport belt 11, and a frame 17 that supports these.

[0019] First, the frame 17 will be described. The frame 17 has front and rear side plates 21 (see Figs. 2 and 3) that are long in the width direction Y (a direction intersecting the conveying direction X1, the front-rear direction) and are arranged with a predetermined interval between them, a bottom plate 23 (see Fig. 3) provided between the front and rear side plates 21, and a support plate 25 (see Fig. 3) provided between the front and rear side plates 21 above the bottom plate 23. Rails 21a (see Fig. 3) are formed on the inner surfaces of the front and rear side plates 21 at a predetermined height position along the left-right direction.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 3, the space between the bottom plate 23 and the support plate 25 is divided into two lower chambers 29 (see also Fig. 1, designated 29-1 and 29-2 in order from the downstream side in the conveying direction X1) arranged side by side in the conveying direction X1 by three partition plates 27 arranged along the width direction Y. In this example, the volume of the downstream lower chamber 29-1 is formed to be slightly larger than the volume of the upstream lower chamber 29-2. A plurality of rectangular openings 25a are formed in the support plate 25 at predetermined intervals along the conveying direction X1.

[0021] A driven roller 31 is rotatably supported between the upstream ends (right ends) of the front and rear side plates 21, and a drive roller 33 is rotatably supported between the downstream ends (left ends) of the front and rear side plates 21. The drive roller 33 is connected to a motor (not shown).

[0022] Next, the conveyor belt 11 will be described. The conveyor belt 11 is an endless belt, and a large number of through holes penetrating in the thickness direction are formed on the entire surface. As shown in Fig. 1, the conveyor belt 11 is wound around a driving roller 33 and a driven roller 31. The driving roller 33 is driven by a motor to rotate, and the conveyor belt 11 circulates and runs in the counterclockwise direction in Fig. 1. The outer surface of the conveyor belt 11 along the upper track becomes the conveying surface along which the recording medium is conveyed.

[0023] Next, the conveying plate 13 will be described. The conveying plate 13 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface (the surface behind the conveying surface) of the conveying belt 11 running on the upper track, and supports the conveying belt 11. When the conveying belt 11 runs, the inner peripheral surface of the conveying belt 11 slides along the upper surface of the conveying plate 13.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 2, the conveying plate 13 is composed of a plurality of rectangular plate pieces 41 (four in this example) arranged along the conveying direction X1 (first, second, third, and fourth plate pieces 41-1, 41-2, 41-3, and 41-4 in order from the downstream side, in other words, from the side of the driving roller 33). Each plate piece 41 is made of aluminum or SUS. A large number of through holes penetrating in the thickness direction are formed on the entire surface of each of the four plate pieces 41. The four plate pieces 41 have a width equal to the interval between the front and rear side plates 21 and a predetermined thickness. In addition, the length along the conveying direction X1 is the shortest for the first plate piece 41-1, the second shortest for the fourth plate piece 41-4, and the longest for the second and third plate pieces 41-2 and 41-3, which are the same length.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 4, the downstream end (left end) of the first plate piece 41-1 is bent downward. No through hole is formed in this bent end. As shown in Fig. 5, the upstream end 41a (right end) of the fourth plate piece 41-4 is bent downward.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, the four plate pieces 41 ride on rails 21a formed on the front and rear side plates 21 of the frame 17, are connected in order by fixing members, and are supported by the support plate 25. As shown in Fig. 3, the fixing members include two end fixing members 43 (first and second end fixing members 43-1 and 43-2 in order from the downstream side, in other words, from the drive roller 33 side) and three intermediate fixing members 45 (first, second, and third intermediate fixing members 45-1, 45-2, and 45-3 in order from the downstream side, in other words, from the drive roller 33 side). The height of the end fixing members 43 and the intermediate fixing members 45 is equal to the height from the support plate 25 of the frame 17 to the upper surface of the rails 21a formed on the front and rear side plates 21, and the width is equal to the distance between the rails 21a of the front and rear side plates 21.

[0027] 4, the end fixing member 43 has a U-shaped cross section and includes upper and lower plates 43a and 43b that are parallel to each other, and a vertical plate 43c that is perpendicular to the upper and lower plates 43a and 43b. The intermediate fixing member 45 has a Z-shaped cross section and includes upper and lower plates 45a and 45b that are parallel to each other, and a vertical plate 45c that is perpendicular to the upper and lower plates 45a and 45b.

[0028] Slits (only slit 45d in upper plate 45a of first intermediate fixing member 45-1 is shown in FIG. 4) are formed in the upper plates 43a and 45a of both fixing members 43 and 45 along the width direction W. Further, long holes (only long holes 45e in lower plate 45b of first intermediate fixing member 45-1 is shown in FIG. 4) are formed in the lower plate 43b of the second end fixing member 43-2 and the lower plates 45b of the three intermediate fixing members 45 at predetermined intervals in the width direction W and along the conveying direction X1.

[0029] 3, the first end fixing member 43-1 has an upper plate 43a and a lower plate 43b facing the driven roller 31, and the second end fixing member 43-2 has an upper plate 43a and a lower plate 43b facing the drive roller 33. The first to third intermediate fixing members 45-1, 45-2, 45-3 have an upper plate 45a facing the drive roller 33, and a lower plate 45b facing the driven roller 31.

[0030] As shown in Fig. 3, the downstream end of the first plate piece 41-1 is fixed to the first end fixing member 43-1, and the upstream end is fixed to the first intermediate fixing member 45-1. The downstream end of the second plate piece 41-2 (not shown in Fig. 3) is fixed to the first intermediate fixing member 45-1, and the upstream end is fixed to the second intermediate fixing member 45-2. The downstream end of the third plate piece 41-3 is fixed to the second intermediate fixing member 45-2, and the upstream end is fixed to the third intermediate fixing member 45-3. The downstream end of the fourth plate piece 41-1 is fixed to the third intermediate fixing member 45-3, and the upstream end is fixed to the second end fixing member 43-2.

[0031] A detailed description will be given below. As shown in FIG. 4, the downstream end of the first plate piece 41-1 is fixed to the upper plate 43a of the first end fixing member 43-1 with screws B at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y, and the upstream end is fixed to the tip side (driving roller 33 side) of the upper plate 45a of the first intermediate fixing member 45-1 with screws B at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. The upper surface of each screw B does not protrude from the upper surface of the first plate piece 41-1. The lower plate 43b of the first end fixing member 43-1 is fixed to the support plate 25. Meanwhile, the long hole 45e of the lower plate 45b of the first intermediate fixing member 45-1 is fitted on the outside of a headed pin 51 erected on the support plate 25 at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. That is, the first intermediate fixing member 45-1 is movable in a direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1 (see FIG. 2, in this example, the direction opposite to the conveying direction X1). Furthermore, the head of the pin 51 restricts the movement of the lower plate 45b of the first intermediate fixing member 45-1 in the vertical direction.

[0032] Further, the downstream end of the first plate piece 41-1 is positioned by a first end fixing member 43-1 so as to be as close to the drive roller 33 as possible.

[0033] The downstream end of the second plate piece 41-2 is fixed to the base end side (follower roller 31 side) of the upper plate 45a of the first intermediate fixing member 45-1 with screws at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y, and the upstream end is fixed to the tip end side (drive roller 33 side) of the upper plate 45a of the second intermediate fixing member 45-2 with screws at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. The upper surface of each screw does not protrude from the upper surface of the second plate piece 41-2. Here, the downstream end of the second plate piece 41-2 and the upstream end of the first plate piece 41-1 do not overlap in the thickness direction. The long hole 45e of the lower plate 45b of the second intermediate fixing member 45-2 is fitted on a headed pin 51 erected on the support plate 25 at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. In this way, the second intermediate fixing member 45-2 is also movable in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1. Furthermore, the head of the pin 51 also restricts the movement of the lower plate 45b of the second intermediate fixing member 45-2 in the vertical direction.

[0034] The downstream end of the third plate piece 41-3 is fixed to the base end side (follower roller 31 side) of the upper plate 45a of the second intermediate fixing member 45-2 with a screw at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y, and the upstream end is fixed to the tip end side (drive roller 33 side) of the upper plate 45a of the third intermediate fixing member 45-3 with a screw at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. Here, too, the upper surface of each screw does not protrude from the upper surface of the third plate piece 41-3. In addition, the downstream end of the third plate piece 41-3 and the upstream end of the second plate piece 41-2 do not overlap in the thickness direction. The long hole 45e of the lower plate 45b of the third intermediate fixing member 45-3 is fitted on a headed pin 51 erected on the support plate 25 at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. In this way, the third intermediate fixing member 45-3 is also movable in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1. Furthermore, the head of the pin 51 also restricts the movement of the lower plate 45b of the third intermediate fixing member 45-3 in the vertical direction.

[0035] The downstream end of the fourth plate piece 41-4 is fixed to the base end side (follower roller 31 side) of the upper plate of the third intermediate fixing member 45-3 with screws at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y, and the upstream end is fixed to the upper plate 43a of the second end fixing member 43-2 with screws at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. Here again, the upper surface of each screw does not protrude from the upper surface of the fourth plate piece 41-4. In addition, the downstream end of the fourth plate piece 41-4 and the upstream end of the third plate piece 41-3 do not overlap in the thickness direction. The long hole 43e of the lower plate 43b of the second end fixing member 43-2 is fitted onto a headed pin 51 erected on the support plate 25 at a predetermined interval in the width direction Y. In this way, the second end fixing member 43-2 is also movable in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1. Furthermore, the head of the pin 51 also restricts the movement of the lower plate 43b of the second end fixing member 43-2 in the up and down direction.

[0036] 5, there is a predetermined gap between the upstream end of the fourth plate piece 41-4 and the driven roller 31. This gap is set to an amount (for example, 2 mm or more) that is greater than or equal to the amount of thermal expansion of the transport plate 13 in a high-temperature environment created by a heating device 5, which will be described later.

[0037] In this way, the first end fixing member 43-1 is fixed to the support plate 25, and the first to third intermediate fixing members 45-1, 45-2, 45-3 and the second end fixing member 43-2 are movable from the side of the driving roller 33 to the side of the driven roller 31 along the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1.

[0038] 1 and 3, the space between the conveying plate 13 and the support plate 25 is divided by the end fixing member 43 and the intermediate fixing member 45 into four upper chambers 61 (first, second, third and fourth upper chambers 61-1, 61-2, 61-3 and 61-4 in order from the downstream side, in other words, from the side of the driving roller 33) arranged in the conveying direction X1. These upper chambers 61 communicate with any of the lower chambers 29 through the openings 25a formed in the support plate 25. In this example, the first upper chamber 61-1 has the smallest volume, the fourth upper chamber 61-4 has the second smallest volume, and the second and third upper chambers 61-2 and 61-3 have the same volume and are the largest.

[0039] Next, the suction device 15 will be described. As shown in Fig. 1, the suction device 15 is disposed in the two lower chambers 29-1 and 29-2 of the frame 17. When the suction device 15 is driven, air from the through holes of the conveyor belt 11 and the through holes of the conveyor plate 13 is taken in through the opening 25a formed in the support plate 25 and the first to fourth upper chambers 61-1, 61-2, 61-3, and 61-4.

[0040] Next, the heating device 5 will be described. As shown in Fig. 1, the heating device 5 is disposed above the transport unit 3, and includes a plurality of blower fans 71 and a heater unit 73. The blower fan 71 takes in air and generates a downward airflow. The heater unit 73 heats the generated airflow.

[0041] The drying operation of the drying device 1 having the above configuration will be described. In the transport unit 3, the driving roller 33 is driven to rotate and the transport belt 11 runs. Thereafter, the recording medium on which an image is formed by the inkjet method is transported to the transport surface of the transport belt 11. Also, the suction device 15 is driven. As a result, as described above, air in the through holes of the transport belt 11 and the through holes of the transport plate 13 is taken in through the first to fourth upper chambers 61-1, 61-2, 61-3, and 61-4 and the opening 25a formed in the support plate 25, and the upper part of the transport surface of the transport belt 11 becomes negative pressure. Then, the recording medium is attracted to the transport surface. In this way, the recording medium is transported along the transport direction X1 while being attracted to the transport surface.

[0042] 3 and 4, each plate piece 41 and the upper plate 43a, 45a of each fixed member 43, 45 overlap, but the upper plate 43a, 45a has a slit 45d (see FIG. 3) formed along the width direction Y, and this slit 45d communicates with the through hole of the plate piece 41. Therefore, even in the portion where each plate piece 41 and the upper plate 43a, 45a of each fixed member 43, 45 overlap, air is drawn in through the slit 45d and the through hole, so that the recording medium can be attracted to the conveyor belt 11.

[0043] Furthermore, the blower fan 71 and the heater unit 73 of the heating device 5 are driven. The air taken in by the blower fan 71 is blown downward. The blown air is heated by the heater unit 73, and the heated air is blown onto the recording medium being transported by the transport unit 3, drying the ink on the recording medium.

[0044] In this manner, in a high-temperature environment in which the heating device 5 is driven, the conveying plate 13 (first to fourth plate pieces 41-1, 41-2, 41-3, 41-4) may also be heated to a high temperature and thermally expand. When each plate piece 41 thermally expands in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1, the end of the first plate piece 41-1 on the driving roller 33 side (first end fixing member 43-1) is fixed and the end on the driven roller 31 side (first intermediate fixing member 45-1) is movable in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1, so that the end on the driven roller 31 side extends toward the driven roller 31 side relative to the end on the driving roller 33 side. Meanwhile, the second to fourth plate pieces 41-2, 42-3, 41-3 are both movable at both ends (first to third intermediate fixing members 45-1, 45-2, 45-3, second end fixing member 43-2) in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1, and therefore move toward the driven roller 31 and extend toward the driven roller 31 as the first plate piece 41-1 extends. As a result, the conveying plate 13 as a whole extends from the drive roller 33 side toward the driven roller 31 side.

[0045] Furthermore, because the first to third intermediate fixing members 45-1 to 45-3 and the second end fixing member 43-2 are restricted from moving in the up and down direction, deformation such as upward warping of each plate piece 41 is also restricted.

[0046] Even when the conveying plate 13 extends in this manner, there is a predetermined gap between the upstream end of the fourth plate piece 41-4 and the driven roller 31 (see FIG. 5), so the fourth plate piece 41-4 does not interfere with the driven roller 31. Even when the fourth plate piece 41-4 approaches the driven roller 31 in the extended state of the conveying plate 13, the upstream end 41a of the fourth plate piece 41-4 is bent downward (see FIG. 5), so it does not come into contact with the conveying belt 11 and does not interfere with the running of the conveying belt 11.

[0047] When the temperature around the conveying plate 13 drops below a predetermined temperature, the conveying plate 13 contracts toward the driving roller 33 and returns to its original length.

[0048] As is clear from the above description, according to the drying device 1 of the present invention, when the transport plate 13 thermally expands in a high-temperature environment, the transport plate 13 is allowed to expand and contract in the direction X2 parallel to the transport direction X1, thereby suppressing the lifting of the transport plate 13. Therefore, the recording medium can be transported without reducing the force of the suction device 15 sucking the recording medium.

[0049] Moreover, since one end of the conveying plate 13 is fixed, when the plate expands due to heat, it expands from one end to the other end. For example, if one end of the conveying plate 13 is not fixed, and each plate piece 41 expands in a different direction (the conveying direction X1 or the opposite direction X2) during thermal expansion, the expansion of the conveying plate 13 as a whole becomes unstable. In the present invention, since one end of the conveying plate 13 is fixed, all plate pieces 41 expand in the same direction from one end to the other end. Therefore, the conveying plate 13 can be expanded and contracted stably.

[0050] Furthermore, the end of the conveying plate 13 on the driving roller 33 side is fixed. The rotation axis of the driving roller 33 is coaxially connected to the output axis of a motor provided in the main body (not shown) of the drying device 1. Therefore, the driving roller 33 is positioned with higher accuracy than the driven roller 31. Therefore, by fixing the end of the conveying plate 13 on the driving roller 33 side, even if the conveying plate 13 thermally expands, the conveying plate 13 can be extended from the driving roller 33 side to the driven roller 31 side while maintaining the positional relationship between the end of the conveying plate 13 on the driving roller 33 side and the driving roller 33. Furthermore, by bringing the conveying plate 13 and the driving roller 33 as close as possible, the recording medium can be attracted to the conveying plate 13 up to the downstream side in the conveying direction X1, so that the recording medium can be stably conveyed to the downstream side of the drying device 1.

[0051] Although the conveying plate 13 also thermally expands in the width direction Y, the length along the width direction Y is shorter than the length along the conveying direction X1, and therefore is less susceptible to the effects of thermal expansion.

[0052] The conveying plate 13 is made up of a plurality of plate pieces 41 connected via intermediate fixing members 45, which are supported so as to be movable in a direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1. This makes it easier to form the upper surface of the plate pieces 41 flat, so that the plate pieces 41 can be connected without impeding the sliding ability between the conveying belt 11 and the conveying plate 13. Furthermore, since each fixing member 43, 45 moves along an elongated hole aligned with the conveying direction X1, each plate piece 41 can also stably expand and contract in the direction X2 parallel to the conveying direction X1. The number of plate pieces 41 is not limited to four.

[0053] In addition, in order to allow the fixed members 43, 45 to move smoothly when the conveying plate 13 is extended or retracted, a material with good sliding properties may be attached to the lower surfaces of the lower plates 43b, 45b of the fixed members 43, 45, or a hemispherical protrusion may be formed on the lower surfaces of the lower plates 43b, 45b to reduce the contact area between the fixed members 43, 45 and the support plate 25.

[0054] Although the present invention has been described with respect to a specific embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The above embodiment may be variously changed, substituted, or modified without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention, and the claims include all embodiments that may be included within the scope of the technical idea. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 1 Drying device 11 Conveyor belt 13 Transport plate 15 Suction device 25 Support plate 31 Driven roller 33 Drive roller 41 Plate piece 43, 45 Fixing member 51 pin

Claims

1. A drying device that dries a medium on which an image is formed in a high-temperature environment while conveying the medium, an endless conveyor belt having a large number of through holes and supporting the medium and conveying it in a predetermined conveying direction; a conveying plate having a large number of through holes and contacting an inner peripheral surface of the conveying belt to support the conveying belt; a suction device that attracts the medium to the conveyor belt by sucking air through the through holes of the conveyor belt and the through holes of the conveyor plate, The drying device according to claim 1, wherein the conveying plate is supported so as to be extendable and contractible in a direction parallel to the conveying direction.

2. The conveyor further includes a drive roller and a driven roller around which the conveyor belt is wound, 2 . The drying device according to claim 1 , wherein the conveying plate has an end portion on the side of the driving roller that is fixed so as to be immovable, and an end portion on the side of the driven roller that is supported so as to be movable.

3. The drying device according to claim 2, characterized in that the amount of expansion and contraction of the transport plate is greater than or equal to the amount of thermal expansion of the transport plate in a direction parallel to the transport direction between the drive roller and the driven roller due to a rise in temperature when the medium is dried.

4. the conveying plate is made of a plurality of plate pieces connected via fixing members along the conveying direction, 2. The drying device according to claim 1, wherein the fixed member is supported so as to be movable in a direction parallel to the transport direction.

5. The fixing member is supported on a support plate. the support plate has pins spaced apart in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, 5. The drying device according to claim 4, wherein the fixing member has a long hole aligned along the conveying direction and through which the pin is inserted.

6. the drive roller is disposed downstream in the transport direction, and the driven roller is disposed upstream in the transport direction; 3. The drying device according to claim 2, wherein an end portion of the conveying plate on an upstream side in the conveying direction is curved downward.

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