Roll-Sheet Recording Control for Rewinding and Mid-Job Cutting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional digital printing machines waste paper due to the need for manual rewinding and cutting operations, leading to inefficiencies in handling interruptions during multi-job printing.
Innovation Solution
A recording apparatus with automated rewinding and cutting mechanisms that allow continuous printing across jobs, minimizing paper waste by controlling the sheet conveyance direction to optimize image recording and cutting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual rewinding and cutting operations are performed after each job, then products can be removed from the winding portion on a per-job basis, but paper waste increases due to discarded blank portions
Solution Approach 1:
The control portion automatically performs preliminary actions by detecting job completion and initiating rewinding operations without user intervention. The system proactively manages the sheet by rewinding it to optimal positions before the next job begins, preventing the need to discard blank portions and enabling continuous utilization of the roll sheet.
Solution Approach 2:
The system serves itself by automatically detecting when a job is complete and autonomously executing the rewinding and repositioning operations. The control portion monitors the printing process, determines when cutting should occur, and manages the rewinding mechanism without requiring manual user input, thereby eliminating paper waste while maintaining per-job product removal capability.
2Reliability
If the sheet is manually rewound to the starting position after interruption, then the next job can be resumed, but user involvement is required for determination and operation
Solution Approach 1:
The control portion autonomously manages the entire resumption process by detecting job interruptions, automatically rewinding the sheet to the correct starting position, and preparing the system for the next job without requiring any user determination or manual operation. The system self-monitors its state and self-corrects by rewinding when necessary.
Solution Approach 2:
The control portion continuously monitors the printing process and sheet position, using this feedback to automatically determine when rewinding is needed and to execute the rewinding operation at the appropriate moment. This closed-loop control ensures reliable job resumption while eliminating the need for user intervention in the determination and execution of rewinding operations.
3Loss of substance
If the sheet is rewound automatically after each job, then paper waste is reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control portion serves multiple functions: it monitors the printing process, detects job completion and interruptions, determines optimal cutting points, controls the rewinding mechanism, and manages sheet repositioning. By consolidating these diverse functions into a single multi-functional control system, the patent reduces overall system complexity while achieving automatic paper waste reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the control functions for printing, cutting, and rewinding into an integrated control portion that manages all operations. This merging of previously separate functions (printing control, cutting control, and rewinding control) into a unified system simplifies the overall device architecture while enabling automatic paper waste reduction through coordinated operation of all components.
Data Source
AI summary
A recording apparatus includes a setting unit for providing a setting for collecting a product, in advance, when a plurality of images is to be recorded consecutively onto a sheet, for a first job and a second job following the first job, the product including a first image recorded on the sheet for the first job. When the setting is made by the setting unit, and a feeding portion and a winding portion are caused to execute a rewinding operation for conveying the sheet in a reverse conveying direction, the control portion executes a first operation of starting recording a second image for the second job following the first job, on a second area following a first area of the sheet, the first area being an area where the first image is recorded, and stopping recording the second image halfway through.