Dryer Rollers for Uniform Media Drying
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Solution Overview
Problem
Print apparatuses often produce drying marks on media due to non-uniform contact with support surfaces during the drying process, leading to visible defects in the final output.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system with a plurality of rollers in the drying zone to minimize contact with the media, combined with a tension engine to maintain optimal tension and spacing between rollers, reducing deformation and heat transfer, thereby minimizing drying marks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a platen or continuous support surface is used in the drying zone, then the media is supported during drying, but non-uniform contact causes drying marks on the media
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous support surface (platen) is segmented into multiple discrete rollers. This segmentation reduces the contact area between the support and the media, allowing heat to be applied more uniformly without creating localized contact points that cause drying marks. The rollers are spaced apart to minimize contact while still providing adequate support during the drying process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses cylindrical rollers instead of flat platen surfaces. The curved surface of the rollers provides line contact rather than surface contact with the media, reducing the contact area and improving heat distribution. This curvature helps eliminate the non-uniform contact that causes drying marks while maintaining structural support.
2Manufacturing precision
If rollers are placed close together to support media, then media deformation is reduced, but contact area increases causing more drying marks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses more rollers than the minimum required for support, with rollers spaced at intervals that provide adequate support without excessive contact. The number and spacing of rollers are optimized to provide just enough support to prevent deformation while minimizing contact area to avoid drying marks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes parameters such as roller spacing, roller diameter, and roller material properties to achieve the right balance between support and minimal contact. By adjusting these parameters, the system maintains media flatness while reducing the contact area that causes drying marks.
3Stability of the object's composition
If a platen is used to support media in the drying zone, then media is held stable, but heat transfer from the platen causes non-uniform drying
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the heat transfer function from the support structure. Instead of using a heated platen that transfers heat through contact, the system uses unheated rollers that provide mechanical support while allowing heat to be applied uniformly to the media surface from the drying zone above, eliminating non-uniform drying caused by platen heat transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
The rollers serve as an intermediary between the media and the support structure, providing mechanical support without direct heat transfer. This intermediary approach allows the media to be supported stably while preventing the heat transfer issues that cause non-uniform drying.
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
The solution effectively reduces drying marks by minimizing contact and heat loss, ensuring uniform drying and maintaining the quality of the printed media.
Implementation Method 1
minimize contact with the media, combined with a tension engine to maintain optimal tension and spacing between rollers, reducing deformation and heat transfer
Data Source
AI summary
In an example, a dryer system may include a dryer, a plurality of passive rollers, and a tension engine to maintain tension on web media based on dryer pressure. In another example, a dryer system includes a plurality of passive rollers in a drying zone and a moveable platen having a surface defining apertures corresponding to the plurality of rows of passive rollers such that the surface of the platen moves relative to an axis of the roifers. In another example, a platen device includes a roller, a moveable platen having a surface defining an aperture through which the roller fits, and a cover that moves in conjunction with movement of the platen to cover the aperture when the surface of the platen is adjusted to a height above the axis of the roller.