Curved Long-Sheet Turnover Paths for Compact Duplex Conveyance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sheet conveying devices face challenges in efficiently handling and conveying long sheets, particularly in reducing device size while maintaining high throughput and accommodating sheets with varying stiffness, and ensuring stable conveyance without buckling.
Innovation Solution
The sheet conveying device incorporates a turnover conveyance path, first and second shunt conveyance paths with circularly curved shapes, and drum-like conveyance devices to allow long sheets to be turned over, shunted, and switched back, enabling compact design and high productivity with duplex printing capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If a linear sheet conveyance path is used, then the device structure is simple, but the device size cannot be reduced and productivity is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies curved conveyance paths instead of linear paths. Specifically, the turnover conveyance path includes a first curved section and a second curved section that guide the sheet through arc-shaped trajectories. This curvature allows the sheet to be turned over and redirected back toward the image forming apparatus, enabling compact device layout while maintaining functional complexity for duplex printing of long sheets.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a one-dimensional linear conveyance path to a multi-dimensional curved path system. The sheet moves through multiple spatial dimensions via the curved sections, allowing it to loop back and forth between the image forming apparatus and the conveying device. This dimensional change enables the sheet to complete duplex printing cycles within a compact footprint.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the conveyance path is extended to handle long sheets, then sheet handling capability is improved, but the device size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The curved conveyance paths allow long sheets to be redirected efficiently without requiring extended linear distances. The first and second curved sections guide the sheet through compact arc-shaped trajectories, enabling the sheet to loop back and complete duplex printing cycles within a limited spatial envelope, thus handling long sheets without proportionally increasing device size.
3Productivity
If the sheet is turned over for duplex printing, then productivity is improved, but sheets with varying stiffness may buckle
Solution Approach 1:
The curved conveyance paths provide smooth transitions for sheets during the turning over process. The arc-shaped trajectories reduce abrupt directional changes and mechanical stress on the sheets, preventing buckling even for sheets with varying stiffness. This enables reliable duplex printing of long sheets while maintaining high productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
A sheet conveying device includes: a sheet conveyance path that receives a long sheet conveyed from an image forming apparatus and allows the long sheet to be further conveyed; a turnover conveyance path that diverges from the sheet conveyance path, receives the long sheet conveyed from the sheet conveyance path to turn over the long sheet, and allows the turned-over long sheet to be further conveyed; a first shunt conveyance path that connects to the turnover conveyance path, has a circularly curved shape, and allows the long sheet conveyed from the turnover conveyance path to be shunted and switched back thereon; and a long-sheet conveyance path diverges from the turnover conveyance path connecting to the first shunt conveyance path and allows the long sheet switched back on the first shunt conveyance path to be conveyed toward a conveyance path leading to the image forming apparatus or an ejection device.