Resin Base Member Guiding Section for Sheet Backlash Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge is to maintain the rigidity of the base member in an image recording apparatus while reducing the impact of backlash from a sheet traveling through a curved path, which is essential for downsizing the apparatus and minimizing manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves a base member made of resin with a guiding section that includes a first guiding plane and a second guiding plane, where the second guiding plane is formed to dent and intersect with the first guiding plane, providing additional rigidity and reducing backlash impact by strategically positioning it on the downstream side of the return-conveyer roller.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the base member is made thinner to reduce size and cost, then manufacturing cost and device size are reduced, but rigidity is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The base member is divided into multiple layers: an upper resin layer and a lower resin layer, with a gap between them. This segmentation allows each layer to be thinner while collectively providing the necessary rigidity, resolving the contradiction between reduced thickness and maintained strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The guiding section is nested within the base member structure, with the second guiding plane positioned in the gap between the upper and lower resin layers. This nesting allows the guiding function to be integrated without requiring additional external support structures.
2Volume of moving object
If the curvature radius of the curved path is reduced to downsize the apparatus, then device size is reduced, but backlash impact from the sheet is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The second guiding plane acts as an intermediary element between the sheet and the base member. It is positioned to receive the sheet and guide it through the curved path, reducing the direct impact of backlash on the base member structure while maintaining the compact curvature radius.
Solution Approach 2:
The second guiding plane is specifically positioned at the location where the sheet contacts the base member during the curved path traversal. By concentrating the guiding function at this specific location rather than requiring the entire base member to be rigid, the design achieves local support where needed while maintaining overall compactness.
Data Source
AI summary
An image recording apparatus, including a tray, a chassis defining a first conveyer path and a second conveyer path, a base member including a guiding section that forms a part of the second conveyer path, a recording unit, and a conveyer roller to convey the sheet in the first conveyer path in a first conveying direction, is provided. The second conveyer path guides an inverted sheet from an upstream of the recording unit with regard to the first conveying direction to the first conveyer path through a curved path. The guiding section includes a first guiding plane, which forms a part of the second conveyer path on an upstream of the curved path with regard to the second conveying direction, and a second guiding plane, which adjoins the first guiding plane along a widthwise direction and is formed to dent with respect to the first guiding plane.