Print media processing device and method for adjusting the print media processing device

Abstract

To provide a print medium processing device that subjects a long print medium before or after printing to predetermined processing and can impart predetermined tension to a print medium wound from a medium delivery part even when various kinds of print media are subjected to the processing.SOLUTION: A print medium processing device includes: a medium processing part which subjects a print medium to processing; a medium delivery part where the print medium before being processed by the medium processing part is arranged while being wound in a roll form; and a medium winding part where the print medium after having been processed by the medium processing part is arranged while being wound in the roll form. The medium delivery part includes a support shaft 11 which supports a roll-like medium 9 that is the print medium wound in the roll form and is rotated together with the roll-like medium 9 and acts as the center of rotation of the roll-like medium 9, and a torque limiter 13 connected to the support shaft 11, and the torque set value of the torque limiter 13 can be adjusted.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a print media processing apparatus that performs a predetermined process on a long piece of print media before or after printing, and also to a method for adjusting such a print media processing apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a textile printing method using an inkjet system has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The textile printing method described in Patent Document 1 includes a pretreatment process in which a pretreatment agent is applied to a print medium (a material to be printed) before printing, a printing process in which printing is performed by an inkjet printer on the print medium after the pretreatment process, a color-fixing process in which the print medium after the printing process is heated with high-temperature steam to fix and color the ink, and a cleaning process in which excess pretreatment agent and ink remaining on the print medium after the color-fixing process are washed away.

[0003] Also, a steaming device for inkjet printing used in the color fixing process is conventionally known (see, for example, Patent Document 2). The steaming device described in Patent Document 2 includes a steam chamber in which a long strip of printed fabric is heat-treated with high-temperature steam, a fabric mounting section in which the fabric before heat treatment is placed, and a fabric removal section in which the fabric after heat treatment is placed. A fabric transport mechanism for transporting the fabric is installed in the steam chamber. The fabric transport mechanism is composed of an upper roller group consisting of multiple transport rollers, and a lower roller group consisting of the multiple transport rollers. In the steam chamber, the fabric is transported while meandering up and down.

[0004] Furthermore, a roll paper feeder mounted on a copying machine is also known (see, for example, Patent Document 3). The roll paper feeder described in Patent Document 3 includes multiple paper feed sections in which roll paper is placed, and a cutter that cuts the printing paper pulled out from the paper feed sections. The paper feed sections include flange members fixed to both axial ends of the roll paper, two receiving tables on which the flange members are placed and which have two receiving rollers that rotatably support the flange members, and feed rollers that feed the printing paper pulled out from the roll paper in forward and reverse directions.

[0005] In the roll paper feeder described in Patent Document 3, one of the two receiving rollers on one receiving stand is equipped with a rewinding mechanism that reverses a flange member to rewind the roll paper and eliminate slack in the roll paper after the print paper is cut by the cutter. The rewinding mechanism includes an inner roller fixed to a roller shaft fixed to the receiving stand, a torsion coil spring arranged on the outer periphery of the inner roller, and an outer roller arranged on the outer periphery of the torsion coil spring. One end of the torsion coil spring is fixed to the inner roller, and the other end of the torsion coil spring is fixed to the outer roller.

[0006] In addition, in the roll paper feeder described in Patent Document 3, the outer roller includes a sleeve, a square coil arranged on the outer periphery of the sleeve, and an outer case arranged on the outer periphery of the square coil. The other end of the torsion coil spring is fixed to the sleeve. The outer roller is a torque limiter that uses the square coil, and is capable of applying a constant transport load to the roll paper. Therefore, in the roll paper feeder described in Patent Document 3, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the printing paper pulled out from the roll paper. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-342454 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2014-25154 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2003-276264 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] The present inventor is considering providing a print media processing device that performs a predetermined process on a long print medium after printing or before printing, such as the steaming device described in Patent Document 2, with a medium payout section in which the print medium before processing is wound in a roll and a medium winding section in which the print medium after processing is wound in a roll. The present inventor is also considering using a common print media processing device to perform predetermined processes on various types of print media. The present inventor is also considering using a torque limiter such as that described in Patent Document 3 in this print media processing device to apply a predetermined tension to the print medium paid out from the medium payout section.

[0009] However, in the case of the torque limiter described in Patent Document 3, the torque setting value of the torque limiter is constant, and therefore, when the weight per unit length of the printing medium varies depending on the type of printing medium, it is difficult to apply an appropriate tension to the printing medium. Specifically, the inventor's study revealed that when the torque setting value of the torque limiter is set according to a printing medium with a light weight per unit length, a predetermined tension cannot be applied to a printing medium with a heavy weight per unit length, causing slack in the printing medium, and that when the torque setting value of the torque limiter is set according to a printing medium with a heavy weight per unit length, excessive tension is applied to the printing medium with a light weight per unit length.

[0010] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a print media processing device that performs predetermined processing on long print media before or after printing, and that is capable of applying a predetermined tension to the print media being fed out from a medium feeding unit even when processing various types of print media. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for adjusting such a print media processing device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] In addition, in order to solve the above problems, the print media processing device of the present invention is a print media processing device that performs a predetermined process on a long print medium before or after printing, and includes a media processing unit that processes the print medium, a medium feeding unit in which the print medium before being processed by the media processing unit is wound in a roll and arranged, and a media winding unit in which the print medium after being processed by the media processing unit is wound in a roll and arranged, the media feeding unit includes a support shaft that supports the rolled medium, which is the print medium wound in a roll, rotates together with the rolled medium and serves as the rotation center of the rolled medium, a torque limiter connected to the support shaft, and a frame that rotatably supports the support shaft, and the media winding unit includes a media winding mechanism that winds up the print medium into a roll, and the print medium is the driving force for transporting the print medium is applied only by the media winding mechanism and is applied to the print medium by rotating the print medium wound into a roll by the media winding mechanism, the torque limiter comprises a rotating side member connected to the support shaft and rotating together with the support shaft, a fixed side member attached to the frame and rotatably holding the rotating side member, a friction plate disposed between the rotating side member and the fixed side member in the axial direction of the support shaft, and a biasing member biasing the rotating side member against the fixed side member in a direction in which the rotating side member, the friction plate, and the fixed side member come into contact with each other, the torque limiter is provided separately from the media winding mechanism and operates in response to the rotational torque of the support shaft which is rotated only by the driving force applied to the print medium by only the media winding mechanism, By adjusting the biasing force of the biasing member, it is possible to adjust the torque setting value of the torque limiter. It is characterized by: In the print media processing device of the present invention, the medium payout unit includes a support shaft that rotates together with the rolled medium and a torque limiter connected to the support shaft, and the torque setting value of the torque limiter is adjustable. Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to adjust and set the torque setting value of the torque limiter to an appropriate value according to the print medium being processed. Therefore, in the present invention, by adjusting and setting the torque setting value of the torque limiter to an appropriate value according to the print medium being processed, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the print medium paid out from the medium payout unit by the torque limiter, even when processing various types of print media.

[0014] In the present invention, for example, the print medium disposed inside the medium processing section meanders in the vertical direction. In addition, in the present invention, for example, the print medium is a fabric. In these cases, the tension acting on the print medium fed from the medium feeding section is prone to fluctuate, but in the present invention, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the print medium fed from the medium feeding section by using a torque limiter.

[0015] In the method for adjusting a print media processing device of the present invention, for example, Weight of the rolled media when it is set in the media feed section The torque setting value of the torque limiter is adjusted according to the type of print media being processed. By adjusting the print media processing device in this manner, it becomes possible to apply a predetermined tension to the print media being fed out from the media feed section by the torque limiter, even when processing various types of print media. Effect of the Invention

[0016] As described above, in the present invention, in a print media processing device that performs a predetermined process on a long print medium before or after printing, even when processing various types of print media, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the print medium paid out from the medium pay-out unit. Furthermore, by adjusting the print media processing device using the adjustment method for the print media processing device of the present invention, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the print medium paid out from the medium pay-out unit by the torque limiter, even when processing various types of print media. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view illustrating a configuration of a print media processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a side view of a portion of the medium feeding section shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the torque limiter shown in FIG. 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0019] (Schematic configuration of print media processing device) FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating the configuration of a print media processing device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0020] The print media processing device 1 of this embodiment is a device for performing a predetermined process on a long print medium 2 (strip-shaped print medium 2) after printing. Specifically, the print media processing device 1 is a color fixing machine (steaming machine) that heats the print medium 2 after printing with high-temperature steam to fix the ink on the print medium 2 and cause color to develop. The print medium 2 of this embodiment is a fabric. Printing is performed on the print medium 2 by, for example, an inkjet printer. The print media processing device 1 of this embodiment is capable of performing a heat process on various types of print media 2 with different weights per unit length.

[0021] The print media processing device 1 includes a media processing unit 4 that processes the print medium 2, a medium feeding unit 5 in which the print medium 2 before being processed by the media processing unit 4 is wound in a roll and arranged, and a medium winding unit 6 in which the print medium 2 after being processed by the media processing unit 4 is wound in a roll and arranged. The media processing unit 4 is a steam chamber that heats the print medium 2 to fix the ink on the print medium 2 and cause it to develop color. Inside the media processing unit 4, multiple transport rollers 7 that transport the print medium 2 are installed. The print medium 2 arranged inside the media processing unit 4 meanders in the vertical direction. That is, the print medium 2 is transported in a zigzag manner while meandering in the vertical direction inside the media processing unit 4.

[0022] The medium winding unit 6 is disposed at the lower end of the print media processing device 1. A rolled medium 8, which is the print medium 2 wound into a roll after printing, is disposed in the medium winding unit 6. The medium winding unit 6 is equipped with a media winding mechanism that winds up the print medium 2 after printing into a roll. The medium feeding unit 5 is disposed at the upper end of the print media processing device 1. The medium feeding unit 5 is also disposed above the medium winding unit 6. A rolled medium 9, which is the print medium 2 before printing, which is wound into a roll, is disposed in the medium feeding unit 5. The configuration of the medium feeding unit 5 will be described below.

[0023] (Configuration of the media feeding section) Fig. 2 is a side view of a portion of the medium feeding section 5 shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the torque limiter 13 shown in Fig. 2.

[0024] The medium feeding unit 5 includes a support shaft 11 that supports the rolled medium 9, a frame 12 that rotatably supports the support shaft 11, and a torque limiter 13 that is connected to the support shaft 11. The medium feeding unit 5 also includes a gear 14 attached to the end of the support shaft 11, a gear 15 that meshes with the gear 14, and a rotating shaft 16 to which the gear 15 is attached. The axial direction of the support shaft 11 coincides with the width direction of the long print medium 2. In the following description, the axial direction of the support shaft 11 is referred to as the "left-right direction", and the Y1 direction side in Figures 2 and 3, which is one side of the left-right direction, is referred to as the "right" side, and the Y2 direction side in Figures 2 and 3, which is the opposite side, is referred to as the "left" side.

[0025] A rolled medium 9 is removably attached to the support shaft 11. As described above, the print media processing device 1 is capable of performing heat treatment on various types of print media 2, and various types of rolled media 9 are removably attached to the support shaft 11. The rolled medium 9 rotates together with the support shaft 11, with the support shaft 11 serving as the center of rotation. In other words, the support shaft 11 rotates together with the rolled medium 9 and serves as the center of rotation of the rolled medium 9. The support shaft 11 is rotatably supported by the frame 12 via bearings.

[0026] The frame 12 includes a support member 17 that rotatably supports the rotating shaft 16, and a support member 18 fixed to the support member 17. The support member 17 is fixed to the right end of the frame body of the frame 12. The support member 17 rotatably supports the rotating shaft 16 via a bearing. The support member 17 also rotatably supports the right end of the support shaft 11 via a bearing.

[0027] The rotating shaft 16 is disposed so that the axial direction of the rotating shaft 16 coincides with the left-right direction. The rotating shaft 16 is disposed, for example, below the right end of the support shaft 11. The gear 14 is attached to the right end of the support shaft 11. The gear 14 rotates together with the support shaft 11. The gear 15 is attached to the center position of the rotating shaft 16 in the left-right direction. The gear 15 rotates together with the rotating shaft 16. The pitch circle diameter of the gear 15 is smaller than the pitch circle diameter of the gear 14.

[0028] The torque limiter 13 includes a rotating member 21 attached to the rotating shaft 16, a fixed member 22 that rotatably holds the rotating member 21, a friction plate 23 that is arranged between the rotating member 21 and the fixed member 22 in the left-right direction, a compression coil spring 24 as a biasing member that biases the rotating member 21 to one side in the left-right direction, and an adjustment member 25 for adjusting the biasing force of the compression coil spring 24. The torque limiter 13 applies a brake to the printing medium 2 that is paid out from the medium pay-out unit 5, thereby providing a predetermined tension to the printing medium 2. Specifically, the torque limiter 13 applies a brake to the support shaft 11, thereby providing a predetermined tension to the printing medium 2.

[0029] The rotating member 21 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a flange, and includes a cylindrical portion 21a and a flange portion 21b. The flange portion 21b is formed at the left end of the cylindrical portion 21a. The flange portion 21b is formed in an annular, flat shape that spreads radially outward from the cylindrical portion 21a. A male thread 21c is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the right end portion of the cylindrical portion 21a. The rotating shaft 16 is inserted into the inner peripheral side of the rotating member 21.

[0030] A pin groove 21d in which the parallel pin 27 is disposed is formed on the left surface of the flange portion 21b. A through hole 16a in which the parallel pin 27 is inserted is formed in the rotating shaft 16. The rotational force of the rotating shaft 16 is transmitted to the rotating-side member 21 by the parallel pin 27, so that the rotating-side member 21 rotates together with the rotating shaft 16. That is, the rotating-side member 21 rotates together with the rotating shaft 16, the gears 14, 15, and the support shaft 11. The rotating-side member 21 is also connected to the support shaft 11 via the rotating shaft 16 and the gears 14, 15. That is, the torque limiter 13 is connected to the support shaft 11 via the rotating shaft 16 and the gears 14, 15.

[0031] The fixed-side member 22 includes a cylindrical portion 22a and a flat, annular portion 22b connected to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 22a. The annular portion 22b is connected to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 22a at a middle position of the cylindrical portion 22a in the left-right direction. The fixed-side member 22 is fixed to the support member 18. Specifically, the left end of the cylindrical portion 22a is fixed to the right end surface of the support member 18. That is, the fixed-side member 22 is attached to the frame 12. The rotating-side member 21 is inserted into the inner peripheral side of the fixed-side member 22. The flange portion 21b of the rotating-side member 21 is disposed on the left side of the annular portion 22b, and the cylindrical portion 21a of the rotating-side member 21 is disposed on the inner peripheral side of the annular portion 22b.

[0032] The adjustment member 25 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a flange, and includes a cylindrical portion 25a and a flange portion 25b. The flange portion 25b is formed at the right end of the cylindrical portion 25a. The flange portion 25b is formed in an annular and flat shape that spreads radially outward from the cylindrical portion 25a. The inner diameter of the flange portion 25b is smaller than the inner diameter of the cylindrical portion 25a. The right end portion of the cylindrical portion 21a of the rotation side member 21 is inserted into the inner peripheral side of the adjustment member 25. The inner peripheral surface of the flange portion 25b is formed with a female thread 25c that screws into the male thread 21c of the rotation side member 21.

[0033] When the adjustment member 25 is rotated relative to the rotation-side member 21 with the left-right direction as the axis of rotation, the adjustment member 25 moves left-right relative to the rotation-side member 21. The outer diameter of the cylindrical portion 25a is smaller than the inner diameter of the cylindrical portion 22a of the fixed-side member 22. The outer diameter of the flange portion 25b is larger than the outer diameter of the cylindrical portion 22a. The flange portion 25b is disposed to the right of the right end face of the cylindrical portion 22a. When the adjustment member 25 is moved a predetermined amount to the left relative to the rotation-side member 21, the left end portion of the cylindrical portion 25a enters the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical portion 22b.

[0034] The friction plate 23 is formed in an annular and flat shape. The cylindrical portion 21a of the rotation-side member 21 is inserted into the inner periphery of the friction plate 23. The friction plate 23 is disposed between the flange portion 21b of the rotation-side member 21 and the annular portion 22b of the fixed-side member 22 in the left-right direction. The cylindrical portion 21a is inserted into the compression coil spring 24. The compression coil spring 24 is disposed on the inner periphery of the cylindrical portion 22a of the fixed-side member 22 and the cylindrical portion 25a of the adjustment member 25. The left end of the compression coil spring 24 contacts the right surface of the annular portion 22b, and the right end of the compression coil spring 24 contacts the left surface of the flange portion 25b of the adjustment member 25.

[0035] The compression coil spring 24 biases the adjustment member 25 and the rotation-side member 21 to the right with respect to the fixed-side member 22. Due to the biasing force of the compression coil spring 24, the right surface of the flange portion 21b and the left surface of the friction plate 23 come into contact with each other at a predetermined contact pressure, and the right surface of the friction plate 23 and the left surface of the annular portion 22b come into contact with each other at a predetermined contact pressure. That is, the compression coil spring 24 biases the rotation-side member 21 with respect to the fixed-side member 22 in a direction in which the rotation-side member 21, the friction plate 23, and the fixed-side member 22 come into contact with each other (specifically, in a direction in which the flange portion 21b, the friction plate 23, and the annular portion 22b come into contact with each other).

[0036] In this embodiment, the biasing force of the compression coil spring 24 can be adjusted by rotating the adjustment member 25 to move it in the left-right direction. In addition, the torque set value of the torque limiter 13 can be adjusted by adjusting the biasing force of the compression coil spring 24 to adjust the contact pressure between the flange portion 21b and the friction plate 23 and the contact pressure between the friction plate 23 and the annular portion 22b. That is, in this embodiment, the torque set value of the torque limiter 13 is adjustable, and the torque set value of the torque limiter 13 is adjusted by adjusting the biasing force of the compression coil spring 24. When the torque set value of the torque limiter 13 is set, the adjustment member 25 is prevented from rotating relative to the rotation-side member 21 by a rotation-stop member (not shown).

[0037] As described above, the print media processing device 1 is capable of performing heat treatment on various types of print media 2, and various types of rolled media 9 are attached to the support shaft 11. In this embodiment, the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 is adjusted and set according to the weight of the rolled medium 9 when it is attached to the support shaft 11. In other words, the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 is adjusted and set according to the weight of the rolled medium 9 when it is set in the medium payout unit 5.

[0038] (Main effects of this form) As described above, in this embodiment, the medium feeding section 5 includes the support shaft 11 that rotates together with the rolled medium 9 and the torque limiter 13 that is connected to the support shaft 11, and the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 is adjustable. Also, in this embodiment, the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 is adjusted and set according to the weight of the rolled medium 9 when it is set in the medium feeding section 5. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to adjust and set the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 to an appropriate value according to the printing medium 2 to be processed. Therefore, in this embodiment, by adjusting and setting the torque setting value of the torque limiter 13 to an appropriate value according to the printing medium 2 to be processed, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the printing medium 2 fed from the medium feeding section 5 by the torque limiter 13, even when processing various types of printing media 2.

[0039] In addition, in this embodiment, the printing medium 2 is a stretchable fabric, and the printing medium 2 placed inside the media processing unit 4 meanders in the vertical direction, so the tension acting on the printing medium 2 paid out from the media pay-out unit 5 is prone to fluctuate. However, in this embodiment, it is possible to apply a predetermined tension to the printing medium 2 paid out from the media pay-out unit 5 by the torque limiter 13.

[0040] (Other embodiments) The above-described embodiment is one example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0041] In the above-described embodiment, the torque limiter 13 is connected to the support shaft 11 via the rotating shaft 16 and the gears 14 and 15, but the torque limiter 13 may be directly connected to the support shaft 11. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the print medium 2 may be a medium other than fabric, such as printing paper or a resin sheet (resin film). Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the print medium processing device 1 may be a pretreatment machine that applies a pretreatment agent to the long print medium 2 before printing to adjust the penetration rate of the ink, or may be a washing machine that washes away excess pretreatment agent and ink remaining on the print medium 2 after heat treatment in the color development machine. [Explanation of symbols]

[0042] 1 Print media processing device 2 Print media 4 Media Processing Unit 5 Media feeding section 6 Media take-up section 9 Rolled media 11 Support shaft 12 Frames 13 Torque limiter 21 Rotating member 22 Fixed side member 23 Friction plate 24 Compression coil spring (biasing member)

Claims

1. A print medium processing device that performs a predetermined process on a long print medium before or after printing, a media processing unit that processes the print medium, a media payout unit in which the print medium before being processed by the media processing unit is wound in a roll and disposed, and a media winding unit in which the print medium after being processed by the media processing unit is wound in a roll and disposed, The medium feeding unit includes a support shaft that supports a rolled medium, which is the printing medium wound in a roll, rotates together with the rolled medium, and serves as a rotation center of the rolled medium, a torque limiter that is connected to the support shaft, and a frame that rotatably supports the support shaft, the medium winding unit includes a medium winding mechanism that winds up the print medium into a roll, a driving force for transporting the print medium is applied to the print medium only by the medium winding mechanism, and is applied to the print medium by rotating the print medium wound into a roll by the medium winding mechanism; the torque limiter comprises a rotating-side member connected to the support shaft and rotating together with the support shaft, a fixed-side member attached to the frame and rotatably holding the rotating-side member, a friction plate disposed between the rotating-side member and the fixed-side member in the axial direction of the support shaft, and a biasing member biasing the rotating-side member against the fixed-side member in a direction in which the rotating-side member, the friction plate, and the fixed-side member come into contact with each other; the torque limiter is provided separately from the medium winding mechanism and operates in response to a rotational torque of the support shaft which is rotated only by the driving force applied to the print medium by only the medium winding mechanism; 4. The print media processing device, wherein a torque setting value of the torque limiter can be adjusted by adjusting the biasing force of the biasing member.

2. 2. The print media processing device according to claim 1, wherein the print media arranged inside the media processing section meanders vertically.

3. 3. The print medium processing device according to claim 1, wherein the print medium is a fabric.

4. A method for adjusting a print media processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising the steps of:

13. A method for adjusting a print media processing device, comprising the steps of: adjusting and setting a torque setting value of the torque limiter in accordance with a weight of the rolled media when the rolled media is set in the media feeding section.

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