Ink Jet Tray Positioning Pins for Tool-Free Accurate Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ink jet textile-printing apparatuses face difficulties in accurately positioning and easily exchanging trays due to cumbersome attachment mechanisms, leading to poor workability and positioning accuracy.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus incorporates a tray with protruding first and second positioning pins that fit into corresponding hole portions on the tray support portion, along with a biasing mechanism to correct mounting position unevenness, allowing for accurate and tool-free tray positioning and exchange.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a lengthy shaft portion for positioning is provided in the tray to improve positioning accuracy, then positioning accuracy is improved, but attachment and detachment work becomes difficult and tool-free exchange is not possible
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning function is segmented into two independent components: positioning pins attached to the tray and hole portions formed in the support portion. This segmentation allows the tray to be positioned accurately through simple insertion without requiring complex lengthy shaft structures, enabling tool-free attachment and detachment while maintaining high positioning accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of making the tray structure complex with lengthy shaft portions to achieve positioning, the invention inverts the approach by providing positioning features (hole portions) in the support portion and simple pins on the tray. This inversion simplifies the tray structure while achieving the same positioning function, improving ease of operation.
2Ease of operation
If the tray is mounted by simply placing it on the support portion to improve ease of operation, then attachment work becomes simple, but positioning accuracy is hardly considered
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning function is segmented into two independent parts: positioning pins on the tray and corresponding hole portions in the support portion. This allows the tray to be mounted simply by placement while the segmented positioning features ensure accurate positioning, resolving the contradiction between mounting simplicity and positioning accuracy.
3Manufacturing precision
If screw fixation is used to secure the tray to the support portion to improve positioning stability, then positioning accuracy is improved, but the tray cannot be exchanged without tools reducing productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The connection is segmented into removable positioning pins and corresponding hole portions, allowing the tray to be securely positioned during operation but easily removed by simple detachment. This eliminates the need for screw fixation while maintaining positioning accuracy, significantly improving tray exchange efficiency and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection between tray and support portion is made dynamic rather than static. The positioning pins can be easily inserted and removed, allowing the tray to be quickly exchanged without tools, while still providing stable positioning during the printing process. This dynamic connection resolves the contradiction between positioning stability and exchange efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an ink jet recording apparatus including a tray detachably mounted on a tray support portion of an ink jet recording apparatus in which the tray includes a main body having a support surface to support a medium, two of a first positioning pin and second positioning pin which protrude toward a mounting surface on an opposite side of a setting surface of the main body and are used at the time of mounting the main body on the tray support portion, and the tray support portion includes two of a first hole portion and second hole portion in which the two positioning pins are inserted respectively, and a placing portion on which the tray is mounted in a state where the two positioning pins are inserted in the two hole portions.