Dynamic Conveyance Speed Control for Manual Sheet Insertion
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Solution Overview
Problem
In printing apparatuses with double-face printing and manual sheet paths, collisions between manually inserted sheets and previously conveyed sheets can cause jams, increasing user burden as existing systems do not adequately manage these collisions during operations.
Innovation Solution
A printing apparatus with a detecting unit, judging unit, and conveyer controller that reduces the speed of the preceding recording sheet when a manually inserted sheet is detected, preventing collisions by merging the manual sheet path with the sheet path upstream of the printing unit and using conveyer controllers to manage sheet flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the printing apparatus maintains normal conveyance speed during double-face printing operations, then printing efficiency is improved, but collision between manually inserted sheets and preceding sheets occurs causing jams
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyance speed of the preceding sheet is dynamically adjusted based on the detection of manually inserted sheets. When a manually inserted sheet is detected, the conveyance speed is reduced to prevent collision, and when no manually inserted sheet is present, the normal conveyance speed is maintained for efficient printing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
A detection unit continuously monitors the manual sheet path for manually inserted sheets and provides feedback to the control unit. The control unit processes this feedback and adjusts the conveyance speed of the preceding sheet accordingly, creating a closed-loop control system that prevents collisions while maintaining printing efficiency.
2Reliability
If the printing apparatus reduces conveyance speed to prevent sheet collision, then sheet jam prevention is improved, but printing efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyance speed is not permanently reduced but dynamically adjusted only when necessary. The system maintains normal high-speed operation during standard printing and temporarily reduces speed only when a manually inserted sheet is detected, thus preventing jams while minimizing impact on overall printing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveyance speed parameter is changed temporarily based on detection results. When a manually inserted sheet is detected, the speed parameter is reduced to a lower value to prevent collision; when no manual insertion is detected, the speed parameter returns to its normal higher value, optimizing both safety and efficiency.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the manual sheet path merges upstream with the sheet path, then integration of manual and automatic paths is improved, but collision risk between manually inserted sheets and preceding sheets increases
Solution Approach 1:
The detection unit performs preliminary detection of manually inserted sheets in the manual sheet path before the sheets merge with the main sheet path. This early detection allows the control unit to prepare for potential collisions by adjusting conveyance speed in advance, preventing collisions at the merge point while maintaining integrated path functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection unit acts as an intermediary between the manual sheet path and the main sheet path monitoring system. It detects manually inserted sheets and communicates this information to the control unit, which then mediates the conveyance speed to prevent collisions at the merge point, enabling safe integration of both paths.
Data Source
AI summary
A printing apparatus is provided. The printing apparatus includes a printing unit, a sheet feeder, a discharge unit, a sheet path including a feeding path, a discharge path, and a reversing path, a manual sheet inlet, through which a recording sheet is manually inserted, a manual sheet path merging into the sheet path at a merging point and guiding the manually-inserted recording sheet to the merging point, a detecting unit to detect the manually-inserted sheet fed through the manual sheet inlet while a double-face printing operation is conducted with a preceding recording sheet, a judging unit to judge whether the detecting unit detected the manually-inserted sheet, and a conveyer controller unit to reduce a speed to convey the preceding recording sheet in the sheet path when the judging unit judges that the detecting unit detected the manually-inserted sheet.