Printer Tension Applying Member With Oscillation Shaft
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional printers with heavy feed and take-up rollers struggle to effectively prevent skew and medium lifting during transport, leading to poor image quality and increased risk of crinkling.
Innovation Solution
A printer design featuring a tension applying member with a support portion at the medium's center and an oscillating shaft that absorbs tension differences between the two sides, ensuring steady transport and collection without meandering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the feed roller and take-up roller are made heavy to tightly wind the medium, then the medium transport reliability is improved, but the responsiveness of the rollers to axis inclination is deteriorated
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the tension application function into separate components: a dedicated tension applying member with an oscillation shaft, rather than relying on the heavy feed and take-up rollers to provide both winding and tension control. This segmentation allows the tension control mechanism to be lighter and more responsive while the rollers maintain their winding function with sufficient mass.
Solution Approach 2:
The tension applying member acts as an intermediary between the medium and the oscillation mechanism. It transfers the oscillating motion from the oscillation shaft to the medium, applying tension dynamically without requiring the heavy rollers to directly perform the oscillation function, thus resolving the conflict between mass and responsiveness.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the rollers are made heavy to tightly wind the medium, then the medium winding stability is improved, but the ability to prevent skew and medium lifting is deteriorated
Solution Approach 1:
The invention introduces a dynamic oscillation mechanism that can actively adjust tension in real-time during medium transport. The oscillation shaft can pivot to counteract skew and lifting forces as they occur, providing adaptive tension control that static heavy roller systems cannot achieve. This dynamic response prevents skew and lifting while maintaining winding stability through the dedicated tension applying member.
3Reliability
If a medium holder is added to prevent skew, then the skew prevention is improved, but the device complexity and space requirements are increased
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the tension application function with the skew prevention function into a single integrated oscillation mechanism. The oscillation shaft serves both to apply tension to the medium and to counteract skew forces, eliminating the need for separate dedicated skew correction components and reducing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The oscillation shaft and tension applying member perform multiple functions: they apply tension to the medium, prevent skew, and provide dynamic adjustment capability. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate components needed compared to having dedicated skew holders and tensioning mechanisms as separate systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively prevents skew and medium lifting, ensuring reliable and precise transport and reducing the risk of crinkling, while maintaining a simple and non-intrusive structure within the printer layout.
Implementation Method 1
an oscillation shaft extending in the width direction of the medium and adapted to oscillate in contact with the medium in a thickness direction of the medium, the oscillation shaft being oscillated on the support portion serving as fulcrum
Implementation Method 2
the oscillation shaft oscillates on the support portion serving as fulcrum
Data Source
AI summary
A printer is provided with: a feed roller on which an elongated shaped medium is wound in a roll form and from which the medium is unwound and fed in a predetermined transport direction; a printing unit that prints an object to be printed on the medium fed from the feed roller; a take-up roller that takes up the medium printed by the printing unit in a roll form; and a tension applying member that applies a tension to the medium by making a contact with a surface opposite to a print surface of the medium. The tension applying member has a support portion disposed at a center position in a width direction of the medium, and an oscillation shaft extending in the width direction of the medium and adapted to oscillate in contact with the medium. The oscillation shaft is oscillated on the support portion serving as fulcrum.