Sheet Discharge Roller Speed Control via Planetary Gear Transmission
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sheet conveying devices in image forming apparatuses face challenges in achieving high productivity and stackability while maintaining low power consumption, as they require additional motors to control the speed of sheet discharge rollers, leading to increased power consumption and manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
A sheet conveying device with a transmission mechanism, including a planetary gear mechanism and a clutch, that allows the circumferential speed of the sheet discharge roller to be reduced temporarily when discharging sheets, using a motor that drives the conveying unit at a constant system speed, thereby eliminating the need for a separate motor for the sheet discharge roller.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a separate motor is used to drive the sheet discharge roller at reduced speed, then stackability is improved, but power consumption and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the sheet discharge roller drive function with the existing conveying unit motor. The transmission mechanism transmits power from the motor that drives the conveying roller to the sheet discharge roller, eliminating the need for a separate sheet discharge motor. This combines multiple functions into a single motor system, reducing power consumption and manufacturing cost while maintaining the ability to control sheet discharge speed for improved stackability.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveying unit motor is designed to perform multiple functions: driving both the conveying roller and the sheet discharge roller through the transmission mechanism. This multi-functional approach allows a single motor to control both conveying and discharging operations, reducing the total number of motors required and lowering overall system power consumption while maintaining independent speed control capability for the sheet discharge roller.
2Productivity
If the sheet discharge roller rotates at high speed to increase productivity, then productivity is improved, but stackability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic speed control of the sheet discharge roller through the transmission mechanism. The roller speed can be adjusted based on operational requirements: rotating at high speed during conveying to maximize productivity, and temporarily reducing speed during discharge to improve stackability. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the system to optimize both productivity and stackability at different stages of the sheet handling process.
Solution Approach 2:
The sheet discharge roller operates with periodic speed variations: maintaining high speed during the conveying phase and temporarily reducing speed during the discharge phase. This periodic speed adjustment pattern allows the system to achieve high overall productivity while ensuring proper sheet stacking during discharge moments, creating a rhythm of high-speed conveying interspersed with controlled discharge actions.
3Ease of operation
If a separate motor is used for the sheet discharge roller, then speed control is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the sheet discharge roller drive function with the conveying unit motor through a transmission mechanism. This merging approach reduces the total number of motors from two separate motors to one shared motor system, simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining the capability for independent speed control of the sheet discharge roller through the transmission mechanism's speed reduction function.
Data Source
AI summary
A sheet conveying device includes: a sheet discharge roller disposed in a conveying path of sheets so as to discharge a sheet being conveyed to a sheet discharge tray; a conveying unit that conveys sheets on a side of the conveying path closer to an upstream side than the sheet discharge roller; a motor that rotates at a constant system speed during conveying of sheets to drive the conveying unit; a transmission mechanism that transmits power of the motor to the sheet discharge roller to rotate the sheet discharge roller; and a controller that controls an operation of the transmission mechanism, wherein the transmission mechanism changes a circumferential speed of the sheet discharge roller, and the controller performs speed reduction control of controlling the operation of the transmission mechanism to temporarily reduce the circumferential speed of the sheet discharge roller when a sheet is discharged to the sheet discharge tray.