Inkjet Printer Continuous Paper Acceleration Tension Control

Solution Overview

Problem

Inkjet printers experience unstable sheet behavior during acceleration, leading to wasted paper due to improper ink placement and potential contact with the inkjet head, which reduces print quality and increases waste.

Innovation Solution

An inkjet printer system with a conveyor, inkjet head, tension adjuster, and head gap adjuster, controlled by a controller to manage sheet tension and head gap during acceleration and printing, reducing waste by optimizing tension and gap settings.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of time

If the tension applied to the sheet during acceleration is reduced, then the acceleration time is reduced and wasted portion is reduced, but the sheet behavior becomes unstable and the sheet may contact the inkjet head

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of timeVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The tension adjusting mechanism dynamically changes the sheet tension during the acceleration phase, starting with low tension to reduce acceleration time and then increasing tension as the sheet approaches printing speed to stabilize sheet behavior and prevent contact with the inkjet head

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system preliminarily applies low tension during the initial acceleration phase to minimize wasted portion, then proactively increases tension before the sheet reaches the inkjet head to prevent contact, anticipating the stability issue before it occurs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If the tension applied to the sheet during acceleration is increased, then the sheet behavior becomes stable, but the acceleration time increases and wasted portion increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

Rather than maintaining constant high tension, the system dynamically adjusts tension levels throughout the acceleration phase, applying high tension only when necessary for stability near the end of acceleration, thereby minimizing overall acceleration time while ensuring sheet stability when needed

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

3Manufacturing precision

If printing is suspended during acceleration, then print quality is maintained, but the wasted portion increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The system preliminarily accelerates the sheet with reduced tension and adjusted head gap to minimize wasted portion, then transitions to printing mode, thereby reducing waste while still enabling printing on the accelerated sheet portion

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS9782989B2Inkjet printer for continuous paper

Publication Date: 2017.10.10

AI summary

A controller drives a conveyer to start to convey a sheet of continuous paper and accelerates the sheet to a printing conveyance speed, and drives an inkjet head to start to perform a printing while driving the conveyer to convey the sheet at the printing conveyance speed. The controller drives a tension adjuster to adjust a tension of the sheet such that the tension of the sheet during acceleration after start of conveyance of the sheet is smaller than the tension of the sheet during the printing, and drives the head gap adjuster to adjust a head gap between the inkjet head and the sheet such that a first head gap during the acceleration of the sheet is greater than a second head gap during the printing.