Movable Side-Guides for Compact Image Recording Apparatus
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image recording apparatuses face challenges in reducing the size of the conveying direction while ensuring the label sheet is conveyed parallel to the conveying direction without being obliquely conveyed, leading to potential skew issues and increased apparatus size.
Innovation Solution
The image recording apparatus incorporates movable first and second side-guides positioned upstream and downstream of the conveying rollers, respectively, to guide the label sheet and prevent skew, allowing for a more compact design by maintaining the sheet's alignment and stability throughout the conveyance process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the pair of conveying rollers and the pair of supplying rollers are sufficiently spaced away from each other and the guide surfaces are sufficiently long, then the label sheet can be conveyed without being obliquely conveyed, but the size of the printer becomes large in the conveying direction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the guide surfaces movable rather than fixed. The first guide surface is movable in the width direction and can be positioned at different locations along the conveying path. This allows the system to adapt the guide surface position dynamically, enabling effective skew prevention with a more compact overall apparatus size compared to conventional fixed, sufficiently-long guide surfaces.
2Reliability
If the label sheet is conveyed by being pulled by the pair of conveying rollers while being guided by the two guide surfaces, then the label sheet is conveyed without being obliquely conveyed, but the apparatus size increases in the conveying direction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamics by making the first guide surface movable in the width direction, allowing it to be positioned optimally for different sheet widths and conveyance conditions. This dynamic positioning capability maintains conveyance stability and prevents oblique conveyance while enabling a more compact apparatus design with reduced spacing between rollers and guide surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by allowing the position of the first guide surface to vary in the width direction. This parameter adjustment enables the system to maintain effective guidance and stability for different sheet widths and conveyance scenarios, achieving reliable conveyance with a compact apparatus size that would not be possible with fixed guide surfaces.
Data Source
AI summary
An image recording apparatus includes a pair of conveying rollers configured to convey a sheet in a conveying direction, a recording unit located downstream of the pair of conveying rollers in the conveying direction and configured to record an image on the sheet, a first side-guide located upstream of the pair of conveying rollers in the conveying direction and configured to come into contact with at least one of opposite ends of the sheet in a width direction orthogonal to the conveying direction. The first side-guide is movable in the width direction. The image recording apparatus further includes a second side-guide located downstream of the pair of conveying rollers and upstream of the recoding unit in the conveying direction, the second side-guide being configured to come into contact with at least one of opposite ends of the sheet in the width direction and movable in the width direction.