Feed Tray Shutter Mechanism for Roll Sheet Jam Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
In image recording apparatuses with roll sheet feeding trays, the unrolled roll medium can become excessively long, leading to potential jams when inserting the tray into the housing, as the tip end of the roll medium may contact internal members.
Innovation Solution
A feed tray with a conveyance guide and a shutter mechanism that moves between intercept and retreat positions to control the length of the unrolled roll medium, preventing it from contacting internal housing members by setting the shutter to the intercept position during insertion and allowing conveyance along the path when in the retreat position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the roll medium is unrolled by a predetermined length before inserting the feed tray, then the operator can arbitrarily determine the unrolled length, but the unrolled roll medium may become excessively long and cause a jam when inserting the feed tray into the housing
Solution Approach 1:
The shutter is moved to the intercept position before the feed tray is inserted into the housing, preliminarily preventing the roll medium from becoming excessively long. This preliminary action ensures that even if the operator unrolls an excessive length, the shutter will block the conveyance path and prevent jamming during insertion.
Solution Approach 2:
The shutter acts as an intermediary element between the roll medium and the conveyance path. By positioning the shutter in the conveyance path, it mediates the interaction between the roll medium and the housing, preventing direct contact between the excessive roll medium and internal housing members that would cause jams.
2Reliability
If the shutter is located in the conveyance path to prevent excessive roll medium length, then jam during insertion is suppressed, but the roll medium cannot be conveyed along the path
Solution Approach 1:
The shutter is designed to be movable between the intercept position and the retreat position. During insertion, the shutter is in the intercept position to prevent jams. During normal operation, the shutter moves to the retreat position to allow roll medium conveyance. This dynamic positioning resolves the contradiction between jam prevention and productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
A feed tray includes a first accommodation part in which a roll body having a configuration where a first sheet-shaped medium is rolled in a roll shape is accommodated, a conveyance guide configured to define a conveyance path for a roll medium which is the first sheet-shaped medium unrolled from the roll body accommodated in the first accommodation part, and a shutter movable between an intercept position where the shutter is located in the conveyance path and a retreat position where the shutter is further from the conveyance path than the intercept position.