Typewriting machines – Sheet or web – Including friction-feed means
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-10
2004-02-24
Meier, Stephen D. (Department: 2853)
Typewriting machines
Sheet or web
Including friction-feed means
C400S634000, C347S104000, C271S193000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06695504
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a conveying apparatus using a conveying belt and a recording apparatus for recording an image on a conveyed object conveyed by the conveying apparatus, which can be preferably utilized in particular for a conveying apparatus for applying a voltage to electrodes provided on the conveying belt to convey the conveyed object while electrostatically adsorbed or attracted to the conveying belt and a recording apparatus provided with the conveying apparatus.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, as a recording apparatus of this type, there is known, for example, a recording apparatus such as a printer by an ink-jet method.
In general, an ink-jet recording apparatus is an apparatus for discharging ink from a recording head to record an image on a recording medium. The ink-jet recording apparatus has such advantages that a recording head can be made compact easily, an image of high definition can be recorded fast, running costs are low, noise is less due to a non-impact method and it is easy to record a color image using inks of many colors.
Among all recording apparatuses of this type, an apparatus of a full-line type can realize further high-speed recording, which uses a recording head of a line-type in which a multiplicity of nozzles are arranged in a paper width direction.
However, in the apparatus of a full-line type, a distance from a recording head in a position on the most upstream side to a recording head in a position on the most downstream side becomes rather long. Thus, rising of a recording sheet occurs in a recording area and a jam or a disturbance of a recording image is caused.
Therefore, there is generally known a method of generating an electric force by applying a voltage to electrodes provided on a conveying belt to adsorb or attract the recording sheet so as to urge the recording sheet downward to prevent it from rising.
In such an ink-jet recording apparatus, a recording sheet supplied by a sheet supplying device is conveyed while being adsorbed to an upper surface of a conveying belt and held there by adsorption force generating means provided on the conveying belt, and an image is recorded on a recording area by a recording head.
FIG. 9
is a schematic view showing the configuration of an entire recording apparatus in accordance with a conventional art. The recording apparatus having an automatic sheet supplying device is composed of (I) a sheet supplying unit, (II) a conveying belt unit, (III) a recording head unit and (IV) a sheet discharging unit. Each of these units will be hereinafter described with reference to FIG.
9
. (I) Sheet supplying unit
In the figure, a sheet supplying unit
102
has a configuration in which a pressure plate
121
loading a recording sheet P and a supplying rotator
122
supplying the recording sheet P are attached to a base
120
. The pressure plate
121
is rotatable around a rotation shaft a combined to the base
120
and is biased to the supplying rotator
122
by a pressure plate spring
124
.
In a part of the pressure plate
121
opposing the supplying rotator
122
, a separation pad
125
is provided which is made of a material with a large friction coefficient such as artificial leather for preventing double supplying of the recording sheet P.
Moreover, in the base
120
, a separation pawl
126
for covering a corner part of loaded recording sheet P in one direction to separate one recording sheet P from another and a not-shown release cam for releasing abutment of the pressure plate
121
and the supplying rotator
122
are provided.
In the above-mentioned configuration, in a waiting state, the release cam presses down the pressure plate
121
to a predetermined position, and then the abutment of the pressure plate
121
and the supplying rotator
122
is released.
In this state, when a driving force of a conveying roller
132
is transmitted to the supplying rotator
122
and the release cam by a gear or the like, the release cam separates from the pressure plate
121
to lift the pressure plate
121
, and the supplying rotator
122
and the recording sheet P abut each other.
Then, as the supplying rotator
122
rotates, the recording sheet P is picked up and starts to be supplied, and one sheet is separated from another by the separation pawl
126
to be sent to a conveying belt unit
103
.
The supplying rotator
122
continues to rotate until it supplies the recording sheet P into the conveying belt unit
103
. Then, the sheet supplying unit turns into a waiting state again in which the abutment of the recording sheet P and the supplying rotator
122
is released, and the driving force from the conveying roller
132
is cut off.
Reference numeral
190
denotes a supplying rotator for hand supplying. The supplying rotator
190
supplies the recording sheet P placed on a hand supply tray
191
in accordance with a record instruction signal of a computer and conveys it to the conveying belt unit
103
.
(II) Conveying Belt Unit
The conveying belt unit
103
has a conveying belt
131
for adsorbing and conveying the recording sheet P and a not-shown PE sensor. The conveying belt
131
is driven by a driving roller
134
and is wound and suspended by a conveying roller
132
and a pressure roller
135
that are driven rollers.
Further, the conveying roller
132
and the driving roller
134
are rotatably attached to a platen
130
, the pressure roller
135
is rotatably attached to the other end of an arm
150
that is swingably attached to the platen
130
at one end, and applies a tension to the conveying belt
131
by the arm
150
being pressed by a spring
151
.
In addition, the platen
130
is positioned below the conveying belt
131
and plays a role of regulating downward displacement of the conveying belt
131
.
In a position opposing the conveying roller
132
, a pinch roller
133
following the conveying belt
131
is provided abutting the conveying belt
131
. The pinch roller
133
becomes in contact with the conveying belt
131
under pressure by a not-shown spring, thereby guiding the recording sheet P to a recording head unit
107
.
At an entrance of the conveying belt unit
103
to which the recording sheet P is conveyed, an upper guide
127
and a lower guide
128
for guiding the recording sheet P are arranged. In addition, a PE sensor lever
123
for transmitting detection of a front end and a rear end of the recording sheet P to a PE sensor (not shown) is provided in the upper guide
127
.
Moreover, the recording head unit
107
for forming an image based on image information is provided on the downstream side in the conveying direction of a recording sheet of the conveying roller
132
.
In the above-mentioned configuration, the recording sheet P conveyed to the conveying belt unit
103
is guided by the upper guide
127
and the lower guide
128
and then conveyed to a roller pair of the conveying roller
132
and the pinch roller
133
. At this point, a recording position on the recording sheet P is found by sensing the front end of the conveyed recording sheet P by the PE sensor lever
123
.
In addition, the recording sheet P is conveyed by the conveying belt
131
rotating via the conveying roller
132
by a sheet feeding motor to be described later.
(III) Recording Head Unit
The recording head unit
107
is provided with four ink-jet recording heads of line type in which a plurality of nozzles are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the recording sheet P. These ink-jet recording heads are arranged on a head holder
170
with a predetermined interval in the order of
107
K (black),
107
C (cyan),
107
M (magenta) and
107
Y (yellow) from the upstream in the conveying direction of the recording sheet P.
The recording heads
107
K,
107
C,
107
M and
107
Y can give heat to ink by a heater or the like. Then, the ink is film-boiled by this heat, and the ink is discharged from the nozzles of the recording heads
107
K,
107
C,
107
M and
107
Y by pressure change caused by growth or
Meier Stephen D.
Shah Manish
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