Segmented Rail Pinch Roller Assembly for Cost-Effective Printing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional medium transportation devices with pinch roller assemblies require high rigidity and precision, making them costly and difficult to manufacture as straight components, which increases the overall cost of printers and cutting devices.
Innovation Solution
A medium transportation device with a support table and conveyor system that includes a driving roller, rail, and pinch roller assembly, where the rail is divided into shorter rails, allowing the pinch roller assembly to move perpendicular to the transportation direction, reducing the need for high rigidity and precision in the rail components, thus lowering production costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a lengthy shaft is formed to be straight with high rigidity, then the pinch roller assemblies can slide smoothly, but the component becomes costly and difficult to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The lengthy shaft is divided into multiple shorter shaft portions (first shaft portion and second shaft portion) connected by a coupling portion. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured separately with lower precision requirements, avoiding the need for expensive high-precision lengthy shafts while maintaining smooth sliding functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling portion is provided with a guide groove that provides localized guidance for the pinch roller assembly. This local quality enhancement ensures smooth sliding in the critical area without requiring the entire lengthy shaft to have high precision, thereby reducing manufacturing costs.
2Reliability
If the rail is made as a single lengthy component, then the pinch roller assembly can be supported along the entire perpendicular direction, but the rail requires high rigidity and precision processing
Solution Approach 1:
The single lengthy rail is segmented into multiple shorter rails (first rail and second rail) connected by coupling portions. Each short rail can be manufactured with lower precision requirements, and the guide grooves in the coupling portions ensure proper alignment and support stability throughout the assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling portion acts as an intermediary element that connects the short rails and provides guidance through its guide groove. This intermediary structure ensures that the pinch roller assembly is properly supported and guided without requiring the entire rail system to be manufactured as a single high-precision component.
Data Source
AI summary
A medium transportation device includes a support table to support a medium, and a conveyor to transport the medium supported by the support table in a transportation direction. The conveyor includes a driving roller, a rail, and a pinch roller assembly. The driving roller is provided on the support table, extends in a perpendicular direction that is perpendicular to the transportation direction, and is rotatable in the transportation direction. The rail faces the support table and extends in the perpendicular direction. The pinch roller assembly is in engagement with the rail so as to be movable in the perpendicular direction along the rail. The rail includes shorter rails arranged along a line extending in the perpendicular direction.