Rotatable Nip Guide Mechanism for Sheet Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sheet feeding apparatuses face issues with sheet separation and jamming, particularly when handling sheets of varying stiffness and thickness, due to the variability in the angle of the nip guide and the potential for increased abutting angles with high-friction rollers, leading to damage or overlapped feeding.
Innovation Solution
A sheet conveyance apparatus with a rotatable nip guide that maintains a consistent angle and position relative to the feed roller, using a stopper and biasing mechanism to prevent excessive rotation and ensure proper sheet alignment, and a separating roller with a torque limiter to manage sheet separation effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the nip guide is made movable to adjust the guide angle based on load, then sheet sorting capability is improved, but sheet separation reliability deteriorates due to increased abutting angle with the retard roller
Solution Approach 1:
The guide member is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to rotate about a rotation axis. The movable guide member rotates in response to load from the sheet bundle, enabling the guide angle to be dynamically adjusted based on the actual sheet feeding conditions, thus resolving the contradiction between adaptability and reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The guide angle parameter is made variable through the rotation of the movable guide member. By changing the guide angle according to the load condition (single sheet vs. bundle), the system adapts to different sheet types and thicknesses, improving both sheet sorting capability and separation reliability
2Adaptability or versatility
If the guide angle between the nip guide and sheet is increased to sort sheets, then sheet sorting is improved, but the abutting angle with the retard roller increases causing sheet damage or jamming
Solution Approach 1:
The movable guide member dynamically adjusts the guide angle by rotating about its axis in response to load variations. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize the guide angle for sheet sorting while preventing excessive abutting angles that would cause damage or jamming
Solution Approach 2:
The movable guide member preemptively adjusts the guide angle based on the load from the sheet bundle before the sheets reach the separation nip. This preliminary adjustment prevents the harmful effect of excessive abutting angles by already optimizing the sheet path angle
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 ensures reliable single-sheet separation without damaging the sheets, reduces jamming, and maintains consistent separation performance across different sheet types and thicknesses, enhancing the reliability and efficiency of the sheet feeding process.
Implementation Method 1
biased toward a direction approaching the feed roller (direction of arrow J2) by a tension spring 366
Implementation Method 2
A rotational driving force in a direction opposite to a sheet feeding direction (direction of arrow J3 of FIG. 19B) is transmitted via a torque limiter not shown to the retard roller 364
Implementation Method 3
a separating member pressing the rotator and separating the sheets one by one at a contact portion where the rotator and the separating member contact each other
Data Source
AI summary
A sheet conveyance apparatus is equipped with a stacking portion on which sheets are stacked, a rotator conveying a sheet by rotating in a contact state with the sheet stacked on the stacking portion, a separating member pressing the rotator and separating the sheets one by one at a contact portion where the rotator and the separating member contact each other, and a holder holding the separating member. A guide portion is rotatably provided with the holder and capable of guiding a front end of the sheet to the contact portion, and a regulating portion regulates the guide portion from rotating in a direction approximating the rotator in a state where the guide portion contacts against the regulating portion. The guide portion can be rotated in a direction separating from the rotator in a state where the separating member presses the rotator.