Recording Medium Binding Device with Variable Tooth Engagement

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing recording-medium binding devices face challenges in effectively binding media of varying thicknesses, as either insufficient deformation occurs with large thicknesses when using small engagement overlapping amounts or media breakage happens with small thicknesses when using large overlapping amounts.

Innovation Solution

The device employs two tooth rows with varying tooth heights, where one tooth row has uniform teeth and the other has both low and high teeth, allowing for different engagement overlapping amounts in specific regions to accommodate media of different thicknesses, thereby ensuring proper deformation and binding without breakage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If tooth rows with small engagement overlapping amount are used, then thin recording media can be bound without breakage, but thick recording media cannot be sufficiently deformed for proper binding

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebinding reliability for thin mediaVSAvoiddeformation quality for thick media

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The tooth rows are divided into multiple regions along the tooth arrangement direction, with each region having teeth of different heights. This segmentation allows different portions of the recording medium batch to experience different engagement overlapping amounts, enabling simultaneous accommodation of both thin and thick media without breakage while ensuring sufficient deformation for proper binding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different regions of the tooth rows are assigned different tooth heights to create local variations in engagement overlapping amount. This local quality differentiation ensures that thin media regions receive gentle pinching (small overlapping amount) to prevent breakage, while thick media regions receive stronger pinching (large overlapping amount) to achieve sufficient deformation for binding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Manufacturing precision

If tooth rows with large engagement overlapping amount are used, then thick recording media can be sufficiently deformed for binding, but thin recording media may break

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedeformation quality for thick mediaVSAvoidbinding reliability for thin media

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The tooth rows are divided into multiple regions along the tooth arrangement direction, with each region having teeth of different heights. This segmentation allows different portions of the recording medium batch to experience different engagement overlapping amounts, enabling simultaneous accommodation of both thin and thick media without breakage while ensuring sufficient deformation for proper binding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different regions of the tooth rows are assigned different tooth heights to create local variations in engagement overlapping amount. This local quality differentiation ensures that thin media regions receive gentle pinching (small overlapping amount) to prevent breakage, while thick media regions receive stronger pinching (large overlapping amount) to achieve sufficient deformation for binding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

3Device complexity

If uniform tooth height is used in both tooth rows, then device structure is simple, but cannot accommodate recording media of varying thicknesses

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetooth row structure complexityVSAvoidadaptability to different media thicknesses

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

Different regions of the tooth rows are assigned different tooth heights to create local variations in engagement overlapping amount. This local quality differentiation ensures that thin media regions receive gentle pinching (small overlapping amount) to prevent breakage, while thick media regions receive stronger pinching (large overlapping amount) to achieve sufficient deformation for binding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The tooth rows are designed to perform multiple functions by incorporating teeth of different heights within the same tooth row structure. This multi-functionality enables the binding device to handle both thin and thick recording media batches with a single device configuration, eliminating the need for multiple specialized tooth rows or frequent device adjustments.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS10214043B2Recording-medium binding device

Publication Date: 2019.02.26 FUJIFILM BUSINESS INNOVATION CORP

AI summary

A recording-medium binding device includes a first tooth row and a second tooth row. The first tooth row and the second tooth row to be engaged with the first tooth row cooperate with each other to pinch a recording medium batch. The first tooth row and the second tooth row include at least one first region and at least one second region adjacent to the at least one first region. When the first tooth row and the second tooth row are engaged with each other, teeth of the first tooth row and teeth of the second tooth row overlap one another in a tooth height direction by a first engagement overlapping amount in the at least one first region and by a second engagement overlapping amount in the at least one second region. The second engagement overlapping amount is larger than the first engagement overlapping amount.