Sheet Conveyance Guide Access for Printer Jam Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing printing apparatuses face difficulties in accessing and removing jammed print media due to complex conveyance mechanisms, making maintenance cumbersome and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A structure that includes pivotable and slidable discharge trays, combined with a pivotable upper surface guide portion and a flapper mechanism, allows easy access to the internal components for maintenance and removal of jammed sheets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a complex conveyance mechanism is used in the printing apparatus, then the printing function is improved, but the ease of maintenance and jam removal deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The printing apparatus is divided into multiple accessible segments: the discharge tray can be removed, the discharge guide can be detached, and the upper surface guide portion can be pivoted open. This segmentation allows maintenance personnel to access different internal components independently without disassembling the entire apparatus, resolving the contradiction between maintaining a complex printing system and enabling easy maintenance access.
Solution Approach 2:
The discharge tray is designed to be completely removable from the apparatus main body, and the discharge guide can be extracted from the discharge tray. This extraction principle provides direct access to the discharge path and conveyance mechanisms, allowing easy removal of jammed print media while preserving the complete printing functionality when components are assembled.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the discharge tray is fixed, then the structural stability is improved, but the ease of access to internal components deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The discharge tray is designed with dynamic characteristics - it can be removed completely for major maintenance, and the discharge guide attached to it can be detached or pivoted. This dynamic design allows the structure to transition between a stable closed state during printing operations and an open accessible state during maintenance, resolving the contradiction between structural stability and ease of access.
Solution Approach 2:
The upper surface guide portion is designed to pivot in a different dimension (rotating to face upward) rather than simply moving linearly. This dimensional change provides access to the discharge path from above, allowing maintenance personnel to reach internal components without compromising the overall structural stability of the apparatus when closed.
3Ease of repair
If a simple cover opening structure is used, then the ease of maintenance is improved, but the completeness of access to internal mechanisms deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of a single fixed cover, the access structure is segmented into multiple components: the removable discharge tray, the detachable discharge guide, and the pivotable upper surface guide portion. Each segment can be independently manipulated to provide access to specific areas of the discharge path, achieving both ease of maintenance and comprehensive access coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The upper surface guide portion pivots to face upward, creating access from a different spatial dimension. This rotational movement expands the accessible area without requiring complete disassembly of the apparatus, allowing maintenance personnel to reach internal mechanisms while maintaining structural integrity when closed.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A printing apparatus, comprises a housing including an opening at an upper portion, a printing unit arranged in the housing, a guide mechanism arranged in the housing and configured to guide a sheet from the printing unit, and a cover portion configured to move between a first position at which the opening is opened and a second position at which the opening is closed, wherein the guide mechanism includes a first guide portion for guiding a first surface of the sheet, and a second guide portion for guiding a second surface of the sheet, arranged to face the first guide portion, and the first guide portion is movable to open a conveyance path of the sheet formed between the first guide portion and the second guide portion in a case where the cover portion is at the first position.