Printer Duplexer Waste Ink Roller Shielding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users may unintentionally contact and transfer waste ink from a duplexer's waste ink roller during removal, leading to undesirable ink transfer and potential contamination.
Innovation Solution
The duplexer design includes a housing with a concealed region and a receiving region for the waste ink roller, which moves between these areas, shielding the user from waste ink when uninstalled, and incorporates a scraper to collect ink and an aerosol collection chamber to reduce aerosol contamination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the waste ink roller is exposed and accessible in the duplexer, then it can be easily accessed for cleaning and maintenance, but users may unintentionally contact and transfer waste ink during removal
Solution Approach 1:
A protective cover is introduced as an intermediary element between the user and the waste ink roller. The cover shields the waste ink roller during duplexer removal, preventing direct contact while still allowing access when needed. The cover can be positioned to expose or conceal the waste ink roller based on operational requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective cover is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to dynamically adjust its position. The cover can be moved to a first position to expose the waste ink roller for cleaning access, and to a second position to conceal the waste ink roller during duplexer removal, thus adapting to different operational states.
2Ease of manufacture
If the duplexer is designed with a fixed structure, then manufacturing is simpler, but aerosol contamination cannot be effectively contained
Solution Approach 1:
The duplexer is divided into separate functional components: a housing structure, a movable protective cover, and an aerosol collection chamber. This segmentation allows the aerosol collection chamber to be integrated into the housing for containing contaminants, while the protective cover provides additional shielding, maintaining manufacturing simplicity through modular assembly.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the waste ink roller is always concealed, then user safety is improved, but access for cleaning and maintenance becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The protective cover is designed with movable capability, allowing it to transition between concealing the waste ink roller during normal operation (improving user safety) and exposing the waste ink roller when positioned at the first position (enabling easy access for cleaning and maintenance).
Data Source
AI summary
Printers and duplexers are described herein. An example duplexer for a printer includes a waste ink roller movable between a concealed region and a receiving region.