Cantilever Separation Roller Shaft Elastic Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sheet feeding apparatuses experience misalignment and uneven wear of rollers due to load displacement, leading to reduced durability and sheet conveyance performance, particularly when the retard roller comes into pressure contact with the feed roller.
Innovation Solution
The sheet feeding apparatus incorporates a separation roller shaft supported in a cantilever condition with an elastic support portion that inclines the separation roller shaft by a predetermined angle with respect to the conveying roller shaft, allowing it to deform and maintain parallel alignment with the conveying roller shaft, ensuring uniform contact pressure and reducing wear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the separation roller comes into pressure contact with the conveying roller and the conveying roller rotates to feed a sheet, then the sheet is conveyed successfully, but the free end side of the driving shaft supporting the conveying roller is displaced to a downstream side, causing misalignment between the separation roller and the conveying roller
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the support portion of the separation roller shaft elastically deformable. This allows the separation roller shaft to dynamically adjust its position in response to loads during sheet conveyance, maintaining parallel alignment between the separation roller and conveying roller shafts while still enabling successful sheet feeding. The elastic deformation compensates for the displacement that would otherwise cause misalignment.
2Reliability
If the separation roller comes into pressure contact with the conveying roller, then the sheet separation function is achieved, but uneven wear occurs on the separation roller and conveying roller, reducing their durability
Solution Approach 1:
The elastic deformability of the support portion allows the separation roller shaft to dynamically adjust during operation, ensuring uniform contact pressure distribution between the separation roller and conveying roller. This prevents concentrated loads that would cause uneven wear, thereby maintaining both the sheet separation function and extending the durability of the rollers.
3Ease of repair
If the separation roller shaft is supported in a cantilever condition to enable easy roller replacement, then the ease of repair is improved, but the structural rigidity is reduced, potentially causing misalignment under load
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies this principle by using an elastically deformable support portion for the separation roller shaft. This flexible support structure maintains the cantilever configuration for easy roller replacement while incorporating elastic properties that prevent excessive deformation under load, thus maintaining alignment precision without sacrificing repairability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enhances the durability and sheet conveyance performance by maintaining balanced nip pressure and reducing misalignment, leading to improved reliability and reduced maintenance costs.
Implementation Method 1
a supporting portion configured to support the separation roller shaft in a state in which the separation roller shaft is inclined in the sheet conveying direction by a predetermined angle with respect to the conveying roller shaft and to elastically deform such that the separation roller shaft is substantially paralleled with the conveying roller shaft by a force received by the separation roller from the driving conveying roller
Data Source
AI summary
A separation roller is provided in a first end portion of a separation roller shaft through a torque limiter. The separation roller is provided to be able to come into pressure contact with a conveying roller rotatably supported by a conveying roller shaft. A support portion supports the separation roller in a cantilever condition and is formed to be elastically deformable. The support portion supports the separation roller shaft such that the separation roller shaft is inclined by a predetermined angle with respect to the conveying roller shaft such that the first end portion of the separation roller shaft is positioned upstream in a sheet conveying direction of a second end portion in a state in which the conveying roller is not driven.