Patent Application
20090102908
The present invention relates to a conveying apparatus, a liquid applying apparatus, and an image forming apparatus.
Image forming apparatuses such as printers, facsimiles, copiers, and multi-function machines having the functions of a printer, a facsimile, and a copier, form images by conveying a medium (hereinafter also referred to as “paper”) and applying a liquid (hereinafter also referred to as “recording liquid” or “ink”) onto the medium. In forming the images, the image forming apparatus uses, for example, a liquid applying apparatus (e.g., liquid jet apparatus) including a recording head having a liquid jet head for jetting droplets of liquid (recording liquid). It is to be noted that image forming may also be referred to as recording, printing, image printing, or character printing. It is also to be noted that the material of the medium is not limited to a particular material. Thus, the medium may be also be referred to as a sheet of paper, a target medium, a recording medium, a transfer material, or a recording paper.
The image forming may be performed on a medium made of, for example, paper, thread, fiber, cloth, leather, metal, plastic, glass, wood, or ceramic. Furthermore, the image forming not only includes forming images which have meaning (e.g., characters, shapes) or forming images having no particular meaning (e.g., patterns), but also includes applying (coating) a material having a desired function onto a given area of a target medium. Furthermore, the liquid applying apparatus includes an apparatus that applies a liquid onto a target medium by using, for example, a liquid jet head, a roller, a brush, or a spray. Furthermore, the applied liquid is not limited to a recording liquid (ink). As long as it is a liquid, the applied liquid may also be, for example, a DNA sample, a resist material, a resin material, a patterning material, or a material having a desired function/property (e.g., an illuminating property, a light blocking property, a conductive property, a fixing function, a glossy property, a liquid absorbing function) and is not limited to a recording liquid or ink.
For example, in using an image forming apparatus that forms an image by applying a recording liquid onto a recording medium, the image forming apparatus requires some amount of time for waiting for the recording liquid to dry. Accordingly, during the period of waiting for the drying of the recording liquid, the image forming apparatus may keep the recording medium inside itself after performing the image forming process. In a case where the image forming apparatus performs double-side printing, the recording medium may be temporarily discharged to a sheet discharge tray after performing the image forming process on one side of the recording medium and fed back into the image forming apparatus for performing the image forming process on the other side of the recording medium.
For example, in an image forming apparatus shown in Japanese Registered Patent Publication No. 3109529, there is disclosed a delaying part for delaying the timing of discharging a recording medium for a predetermined period based on a predetermined value set according to the determination results of dot density of a previous recording.
As another example, in an image forming apparatus shown in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2000-001010, there is disclosed a configuration of temporarily discharging at least a portion of a sheet of paper outside of the image forming apparatus after printing on one side of the paper in a double-side printing operation for obtaining time for the paper to dry.
As another example, in an image forming apparatus shown in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2006-082546, there is disclosed a part that performs a paper discharging operation after a recording medium having an image formed thereon has both ends restrained until curling of the recording medium is unlikely to occur.
As another example, in an image forming apparatus shown in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2003-248349, there is disclosed a configuration for temporarily delaying the timing of discharging a sheet of paper having a low fixing property (e.g., OHP) until the temperature of the OHP decreases.
As another example, in an image forming apparatus shown in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2005-292651, there is disclosed a fixing apparatus including plural fixing parts for fixing a toner image on a sheet of paper, a roundabout conveying path for conveying the paper around at least one of the fixing parts, a main conveying path for conveying the paper via the roundabout conveying path, and a conveying path switching part for selecting a conveying path at a branching part between the roundabout conveying path and the main conveying path in which the time required for conveying the sheet through the roundabout conveying path is substantially equal to the time required for conveying the sheet through the main conveying path.
As another example, in a liquid applying apparatus using a brush or a roller, a sheet of paper is temporarily discharged from the apparatus until the paper becomes dry.
Meanwhile, in a typical image forming apparatus, a recording liquid having high viscosity (ink having high viscosity) is commonly used for achieving high speed recording and forming high quality images with respect to plain paper. Particularly, in a case where a pigment type ink (e.g., organic pigment, carbon black) is used as a coloring agent, a pigment is usually mixed together with a dispersant and dispersed in a stable state, to thereby obtain an aqueous ink. On the whole, the pigment type ink attains a high viscosity (no less than 5 mPa·s). Thus, in forming an image on plain paper, the pigment type ink exhibits a better quick-drying property than that of the dye type ink. Nevertheless, the pigment type ink has a tendency of causing curling of the recording medium.
More specifically, in using a dye type ink, moisture permeates from the back side of the recording medium to the front side of the recording medium and reduces the moisture difference between the front side of the recording medium and the back side of the recording medium. Therefore, although more drying time is required when using a dye type ink, curling due to moisture difference between the front and back side of the recording medium is relatively less likely to occur. On the other hand, in using a pigment type ink, due to its high quick-drying property, little time is required for the ink to dry. However, since time is required for the ink to sink (soak) into the recording medium, the moisture difference between the front side and the back side of the recording medium increases. This moisture difference leads to curling of the recording medium. In a case where such curl occurs, the recording medium may stiffen in the curled state due to the quick-drying property of the pigment type ink.
Therefore, conveying the recording medium in the curled state may cause jamming and adversely affect sheet-discharging steadiness. This results in a poorly printed recording medium.
Furthermore, although a pigment type ink has a high quick-drying property, smudging due to insufficient drying of ink may occur depending on the formula of ink or the type of paper used. Furthermore, the problem of drying which the pigment type ink faces is more serious in a case of using the dye type ink.
Thus, in a case where an insufficiently dried paper is conveyed, ink stains may adhere to a conveying part of an image forming apparatus. This may cause ink stains of the conveying part to re-adhere to a conveyed paper and cause the stains on the paper to adhere to other paper.
Furthermore, in one example of a liquid jet type image forming apparatus, paper may be flipped over (flipped upside down) and discharged from the liquid forming apparatus in a downward facing manner so that paper can be discharged (stacked) in an order corresponding to the order of printing on the paper. Therefore, in a case where curling occurs, the paper curls in a manner where the side opposite of the recorded side is facing upward, that is, in a manner where the ends of the paper are facing upward. Compared to a case of stacking the paper in a manner where the recorded side is facing upward, it is difficult to stack the paper on a discharged paper stacking part of the image forming apparatus.
Thus, demands for resolving the problems of curling of paper and staining of paper are growing. However, at the same time of resolving such problems, there is also a need to prevent productivity from decreasing due to decrease of throughput caused by correcting the curling or waiting for the drying of paper.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide a conveying apparatus, a liquid applying apparatus, and an image forming apparatus that substantially obviate one or more of the problems caused by the limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
Features and advantages of the present invention are set forth in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent from the description and the accompanying drawings, or may be learned by practice of the invention according to the teachings provided in the description. Objects as well as other features and advantages of the present invention can be realized and attained by a conveying apparatus, a liquid applying apparatus, and an image forming apparatus particularly pointed out in the specification in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, an embodiment of the present invention provides a conveying apparatus including: a plurality of conveyance paths arranged in parallel and configured to receive a plurality of conveyance objects fed from an upstream side of the plural conveyance paths and convey the received plural conveyance objects to a conveyance destination situated at a downstream side of the plural conveyance paths; wherein the plural conveyance paths are configured to convey the plural conveyance objects in the order in which the plural conveyance objects are received.
The present invention is described in detail based on the embodiments illustrated in the drawings.
First, an image forming apparatus (which is also a liquid applying apparatus) 1000 having a conveying apparatus 7 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
The image forming apparatus 1000 has a main body 1. The main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 1000 has installed, for example, the image forming part 2 for forming images and the sub-scan conveying part 3. In the image forming apparatus 1000, paper (conveyance object) 5 is fed sheet by sheet from a sheet feed part 4 provided at a bottom portion of the main body 1. The paper 5 is fed to the sub-scan conveying part 3. Then, the sub-scan conveying part 3 conveys the paper 5 to an area facing the image forming part 2. The image forming part 2 forms (records) an image on the paper 5 by jetting liquid droplets onto the paper 5 conveyed by the sub-scan conveying part 3. Then, in a case of single-side printing, the paper 5 is discharged to a sheet-discharge tray 8 situated on an upper part of the main body 1 via a conveying part (conveying apparatus) 7. In a case of double-side printing, the paper 5 is conveyed to a double-side printing unit 10 provided at a bottom part of the main body 1 via the conveying part (conveying apparatus) 7. Then, the paper 5 is conveyed back to the sub-scan conveying part 3 (switch-back conveying). Then, the sub-scan conveying part 3 conveys the paper to the area facing the image forming part 2 for printing an image on the other side of the paper 5. Then, after images are formed on both sides of the paper 5, the paper 5 is discharged to the sheet-discharge tray 8.
The image forming apparatus 1000 also includes an image reading part (scanner part) 11 provided above the sheet-discharge tray 8 for reading images. The image reading part 11 serves as an inputting system for inputting image data (printing data) to be formed by the image forming part 2.
The image reading part 11 has a scanning optical system 15 including a light source 13 and a mirror 14 and another scanning optical system 18 including mirrors 16 and 17. By moving (scanning) the scanning optical systems 15 and 18, an image of a document placed on a contact glass 12 is read out. The image signals of the scanned document image are read by an image reading element 20 situated behind a lens 19 and converted to digital image data. Then, image processing is performed on the digital image data. Thereby, the processed image data can be printed out.
As other inputting systems for inputting image data (printing data) to be formed by the image forming part 2, there are, for example, a data processing apparatus (e.g., personal computer), an image reading apparatus (e.g., image scanner), and an imaging apparatus (e.g., digital camera) which are connected to the image forming apparatus 1000 via a cable or a network. Accordingly, data can be received from outside of the image forming apparatus 1000. Likewise, image processing is performed on the received data. Thereby, the processed image data can be printed out.
As shown in
The image forming apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a shuttle type image forming apparatus which forms images by jetting liquid droplets from the recording head 24 while moving the carriage 23 in the main scanning direction and conveying the paper 5 in the sheet-conveying direction (sub-scanning direction) with the sub-scan conveying part 3.
It is to be noted that the image forming apparatus 1000 may use a line type head having liquid jetting heads of each color arranged in the sub-scanning direction. Furthermore, it is to be noted that the orientation of the recording head 24, the order of arranging the colors, and the orientation of the nozzles of the recording head 24 are not limited to those described above.
The recording head 24 according to an embodiment of the present invention has five liquid jetting heads 24c, 24m, 24y, 24k1, and 24k2 (simply referred to as “recording head 24” in a case of not distinguishing the liquid jetting heads of each color) corresponding to cyan ink (C), magenta ink (M), yellow ink (Y), and black ink (Bk) (two heads). The carriage 23 has sub-tanks 25 mounted thereon for supplying corresponding ink to the liquid jetting heads 24c, 24m, 24y, 24k1, and 24k2.
Furthermore, as shown in
The recording head 24 may be a piezoelectric type recording head using a piezoelectric element as a pressure generating part (actuating part) for applying pressure to ink contained inside an ink flow path. More specifically, the piezoelectric type recording head jets ink droplets by changing the volume of the ink flow path by changing the shape of a vibration plate forming a wall of the ink flow path. The recording head 24 may also be a thermal type recording head using a heating element. More specifically, the thermal type recording head jets ink droplets by heating the ink inside the ink flow path and generating bubbles in the ink flow path. The recording head 24 may also be an electrostatic type recording head having a vibration plate forming a wall of an ink flow path and an electrode positioned opposite of the vibration plate. More specifically, the electrostatic type recording head jets ink droplets by changing the volume of the ink flow path by changing the shape of the vibration plate with electrostatic force generated between the vibration plate and the electrode. It is, however, to be noted that the method of jetting the ink droplets is not limited to those described above.
As shown in
The maintenance/recovery apparatus 121 includes, for example, five moisture retention caps 122k2, 122k1, 122c, 122m, and 122y (simply referred to as “moisture retention cap 122” in a case of not distinguishing each color) for capping the nozzle faces of each of the liquid jetting heads 24c, 24m, 24y, 24k1, 24k2 of the recording head 24, an absorbing cap (not shown), a wiper blade 124 for wiping the nozzle faces of each liquid jetting head 24c, 24m, 24y, 24k1, 24k2 of the recording head 24, and a blank ejection receiving member 125 for jetting liquid droplets that do not contribute to image forming (recording).
As shown in
As shown in
The conveyor belt 31 of the sub-scan conveying part 3 is rotated in a sheet-conveying direction (sub-scanning direction) as shown in
Furthermore, a cleaning part 135 for removing paper particles or the like adhered to the surface of the conveyor belt 31 and a charge-removing brush 136 for removing charge on the surface of the conveyor belt 31 are provided between the driven roller 33 and the charging roller 34 of the sub-scan conveying part 3.
The sheet-feed part 4 includes a sheet-feed cassette 41, a sheet-feed roller 42, and a friction pad 43. The sheet-feed cassette 41 is removable from the front side of the main body 1 and is capable of having plural papers 5 stacked thereon. The sheet-feed roller 42 and the friction pad 43 are used to separate the plural papers 5 stacked on the sheet-feed cassette 41 and convey the separated papers 5 sheet by sheet.
Furthermore, the sheet-feed part 4 includes, for example, a manual sheet-feed tray 46, a manual sheet-feed roller 47, a friction pad 50, a straight sheet-feed tray 416, a straight manual sheet-feed roller 414, a straight manual sheet-feed friction pad 415, a conveying roller 48, and another conveying roller 49. The manual sheet-feed tray 46 is openable and closable between a position illustrated with broken lines and a position illustrated with solid lines in
The components used for conveying the paper 5 to the sub-scan conveying part 3 (e.g., sheet-feed rollers 42, 47, and 414) are rotatably driven by a sheet-feed motor (driving part) 45 including an HB type stepping motor via a sheet-feed clutch (not shown).
As shown in
The first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c merge at an area in front of a pair of conveying rollers 73, 74. By having the plural conveyance paths 401 merge into a single conveyance path at a point before the paper 5 reaches its destination (conveyance destination), the components required after the merging can be commonly shared. In other words, after the merging point, there is no need to provide components for each of the conveyance paths 401. Thereby, size-reduction of the image forming apparatus 1000 can be achieved and the number of components beyond the merging point can be reduced. As a result, manufacturing cost of the image forming apparatus 1000 can be reduced.
A sheet discharge part 412 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a pair of conveying rollers 73 and 74, a first branching plate 406; a second branching plate 60, a first pair of sheet-discharge rollers 76 and 78, a second pair of sheet-discharge rollers 77 and 79, and a pair of straight sheet-discharge rollers 410 and 411. The pair of conveying rollers 73 and 74 are configured to convey the paper 5 to a sheet-discharge conveyance path 70, the double-side printing unit 10, or a straight sheet-discharge tray 409 which is openable and closable between a position illustrated with solid lines and a position illustrated with broken lines in
Among the above-described pairs of rollers, it is preferable that the rollers 74, 76, 77, and 410 be configured as spurs. Thereby, the amount of stain carried by the rollers can be reduced. It is also preferable to dispose the spurs at positions not facing the conveying rollers. For example, it is preferable to dispose the spurs at positions illustrated with broken-line circles in
The branching plate 404, which is situated downstream of the conveying roller 71, is configured to switch the path of the paper 5 conveyed from upstream. More specifically, the branching plate 404 oscillates between the side toward the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b (position where the branching plate 404 is illustrated with solid lines in
Furthermore, the branching plate 405, which is also situated downstream of the conveying roller 71, is configured to switch the path of the paper 5 conveyed from upstream. More specifically, the branching plate 404 oscillates between the side toward the first conveyance path 401a (position where the branching plate 405 is illustrated with solid lines) and the side toward the second conveyance path 401b (position where the branching plate 405 is illustrated with broken lines in
The double-side printing unit 10 includes a vertical conveying part 101a and a horizontal conveying part 101b that form a united body. The vertical conveying part 101a includes the vertical double-side printing conveyance path 90c located at a side part of the main body 1. The double-side printing conveyance path 90c is configured to receive the paper 5 guided from the branching plates 406 and 60 and convey the paper downward to the horizontal conveying part 101b. The horizontal conveying part 101b includes a horizontal fetching conveyance path 90a and a switchback conveyance path 90b.
The vertical double-side printing conveyance path 90c includes a pair of entrance double-side rollers 91 configured to convey the paper 5 downward and a pair of conveying rollers 92 configured to deliver the paper 5 to the horizontal fetching conveyance path 90a. The horizontal fetching conveyance path 90a includes, for example, five pairs of double-side conveying rollers 93. The switchback conveyance path 90b includes plural reversible rollers for flipping over the paper 5 from the horizontal fetching conveyance path 90a and re-feeding the flipped over paper 5 to the pair of conveying rollers 48. In this example, the switchback conveyance path 90b includes a pair of exit double-side rollers 94 and three pairs of double-side conveying rollers 95.
The double-side printing unit 10 also includes an oscillatable branching plate 96 configured to switch between the path for conveying the paper 5 from the fetching conveyance path 90a to the switchback conveyance path 90b and the path for conveying the paper from the switchback conveyance path 90b to the pair of conveying rollers 48. The branching plate 96 oscillates between a position illustrated with solid lines (switchback side) and a position illustrated with broken lines (re-feed side).
The first branching plate 406, which is situated downstream of the pair of sheet-discharge conveying rollers 73, 74, is configured to switch the path of the paper 5 between the path extending to the sheet-discharge tray 8, the path extending to the double-side printing unit 10, and the path extending to the straight sheet-discharge tray 409. More specifically, the first branching plate 406 oscillates between the side toward the sheet-discharging side (position where the first branching plate 406 is illustrated with solid lines in
The second branching plate 60 is configured to switch the path of the paper 5 between the path extending to the straight sheet-discharge tray 409 and the path extending to the double-side printing unit 10. More specifically, the second branching plate 60 oscillates between the sheet-discharge side (position where the second branching plate 60 is illustrated with solid lines) and the double-side printing side (position where the second branching plate 60 is illustrated with broken lines). In a case where the second branching plate 60 is in the position of the sheet-discharge side, the paper 5 is guided to the side where the pair of sheet-discharge rollers 410 and 411 is provided. In a case where the second branching plate 60 is in the position of the double-side printing side, the paper 5 is guided to the side where the pair of entrance double-side rollers 91 is provided.
Furthermore, although not shown in the drawings, the image forming apparatus 1000 includes an image start sensor located at an upstream side of the image forming part 2 with respect to the paper conveying direction and an image end sensor located at a downstream side of the image forming part 2 with respect to the paper conveying direction. The image start sensor is configured to detect a front end of the paper 5, whereas the image end sensor is configured to detect a rear end of the paper 5.
Next, an exemplary configuration of a control part 200 included in the image forming apparatus 1000 is described with reference to
The control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a CPU 201 for managing the overall control of the image forming apparatus 1000; a ROM 202 for storing programs and data executed by the CPU 201; a RAM 203 is for temporarily storing, for example, image data (printing data); a non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204 for storing data even where the power of the image forming apparatus 1000 is turned off; an ASIC 205 is for processing input/output signals (e.g., processing various signals corresponding to image data, rearranging of image data, and controlling the entire image forming apparatus 1000); and a scanner control part 206 for reading image data by using the image reading part 11 or processing the read out image data.
The control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention also includes: an I/F (external interface) 207 for sending and receiving data and signals in a case of using data received from an apparatus outside of the image forming apparatus 1000; a head drive control part 208 and a head driver 209 for controlling the drive of the recording head 24 of the image forming section 2; and motor driving parts 211-215, and 317 including motor drivers for independently driving various motors (drive sources) such as a main scanning motor 121 for moving the carriage 23 in the main scanning direction, a sub-scanning motor 131 for rotating the conveyor belt 31 by rotating the conveying roller 32, a sheet-feed motor 45, a conveyance motor 318 for driving the rotation of the rollers of the conveying part 7 (conveying path 401), a sheet-discharge motor 271 for driving the rotation of the rollers of the sheet-discharge conveyance path 70, and a double-side printing conveyance motor 291 for driving the rotation of the rollers of the double-side printing unit 10.
The control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention also includes a clutch driving part 216 for driving a group of clutches (clutch group) 241. In this example, the clutch group 241 includes: a sheet-feed electromagnetic clutch (not shown) for separately driving the rotation of the sheet-feed rollers 42, 47, 414; another electromagnetic clutch (not shown) for separately driving the rotation of the rollers provided in the conveyance paths 401a, 401b, and 401c; a solenoid (not shown) for oscillating the branching plate 404 between the side of the third conveyance path 401c and the side of the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b; another solenoid (not shown) for oscillating the branching plate 405 between the side of the first conveyance path 401a and the side of the second conveyance path 401b; another solenoid (not shown) for oscillating the branching plate 406 between the side of the sheet-discharge tray 8 and the side including the double-side printing unit 10 and the straight sheet-discharge tray 409; another solenoid (not shown) for oscillating the branching plate 60 between the straight sheet-discharge tray 409 and the double-side printing unit 10; and another solenoid (not shown) for oscillating the branching plate 96 between the switchback side and the re-feed side.
The control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention also includes: an AC bias supplying part 217 for applying AC bias voltage (high voltage) to the charging roller 34; a heater part 425 for heating the paper at the conveyance path (standby conveyance path) 401; a fan (air current generating part) 426 for generating an air current (e.g., warm air, cool air) for facilitating drying of the paper 5 on the conveyance path 401; a curl correction (drying) control driving part 311 for driving the drying operation of the fan 426; an attraction conveyance control driving part 312 for attracting the paper 5 onto the conveyance path 401 by electrostatic attraction with use of a charging roller 422 or by air suction with use of an attraction fan 424.
The control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention also includes an I/O 221 for receiving detection signals from a temperature/humidity sensor 300 for detecting ambient temperature and humidity as well as detection signals from other sensors (e.g., image start sensor, image end sensor not shown). Furthermore, the control part 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention also includes a control panel 222 for inputting and displaying data used by the image forming apparatus 1000.
The temperature/humidity sensor 300 is located at least in one of the areas indicated as sensors S1-S4 in
It is to be noted that the temperature/humidity sensor 300 may also be positioned in the area capable of detecting the temperature and humidity surrounding the paper 5 fed by the sheet-feed cassette 41 (area indicated as sensor S2 in
In a case where an image (image data) of a document is read out by the image reading part 11, read image data are processed and stored in a buffer in the scanner control part 206. In a case where the image forming apparatus 1000 receives image data (e.g., printing data) from an outside apparatus such as a data processing apparatus (e.g., personal computer), an image reading apparatus (e.g., scanner), or a capturing apparatus (e.g., digital camera) via the external I/F 207, a reception buffer inside the external I/F 207 stores the received image data.
The CPU 201 reads out the image data stored in the scanner control part 206 or the I/F 207 and analyzes the image data. Then, the CPU 201 performs, for example, image processing on the image data or re-arranging the image data by using the ASIC 205. Then, the CPU 201 transfers the processed image data to the head drive control part 208. In outputting an image by generating dot pattern data based on the data received from an outside apparatus, font data may be stored, for example, in the ROM 202. Furthermore, image data may be processed into bitmap data by a printer driver of an outside apparatus and transferred to the image forming apparatus 1000.
The head drive control part 208, upon receiving image data (dot pattern data) amounting to a single line of data that can be output by each recording head 24, transfers the received dot pattern data to the head driver 209. Then, the head driver 209 drives each of the recording heads 24 by selectively applying a driving waveform to an actuating part of the recording head 24 based on the dot pattern data. Accordingly, each recording head 24 jets liquid droplets from a predetermined nozzle based on the drive applied from the actuating part.
In performing an image forming operation with the above-described the image forming apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the paper 5 is fed sheet by sheet from the sheet conveying part 4 or the double-side printing unit 10. Then, the paper 5 is pressed against the conveyor belt 31 by the pressure roller 36 so that its conveying direction is changed approximately 90 degrees. Then, the paper 5 is electrostatically attracted onto the conveyor belt 31 and conveyed in the sub-scanning direction by the rotation of the conveyor belt 31.
Then, by driving the recording head 24 according to received image signals while moving the carriage 23 above the paper 5 placed (fixed) on the conveyor belt 31, ink droplets are jetted onto the paper 5 for recording a single line of data on the paper 5. After recording the single line of data on the paper 5, the paper 5 is conveyed a single line forward for recording data on the next line. By intermittently conveying the paper 5 in this manner, an image is formed on the paper 5.
The image forming operation is completed upon receiving a recording completion signal or a signal indicating that the rear end of the paper 5 has reached a recording area.
Then, after a standby process (described in detail below) is performed in the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c in the conveying apparatus 7, the paper 5 is conveyed to the sheet-discharge tray 8, the straight sheet-discharge tray 409, or the double-side printing unit 10.
Next, the standby process (process of controlling conveyance including delaying of conveyance for waiting for curl correction (drying) is described with reference to the flowcharts shown in
As shown in
Then, an image forming process is initiated when the paper 5 is fed to the image formation start position of the sub-scan conveying part 3 as shown in
For example, in a case where the first conveyance path 401a is determined to be in a paper conveyable state, the first conveyance path 401a is designated (set) as the destination for conveying the paper 5 (conveyance destination). In a case where the first conveyance path 401a is determined to not be in the paper conveyable state, it is determined whether the second conveyance path 401b is in a paper conveyable state. In a case where the second conveyance path 401b is determined to be in a paper conveyable state, the second conveyance path 401b is designated (set) as the conveyance destination. In a case where the second conveyance path 401b is determined not to be in the paper conveyable state, it is determined whether the third conveyance path 401c is in a paper conveyable state. In a case where the third conveyance path 401b is determined to be in the paper conveyable state, the third paper conveyance path 401c is designated (set) as the conveyance destination. In a case where the third conveyance path 401c is determined not to be in the paper conveyable state (i.e. none of the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c being in the paper conveyable state), the determination steps are repeated until one of the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c become the paper conveyable state.
Accordingly, the paper 5 is conveyed to the plural conveyance paths 401 (401a, 401b, 401c) in a prioritized order starting from the first conveyance path 401a, the second conveyance path 401b, and the third conveyance path 401c. Therefore, in a case where conveying of the paper 5 is conducted without executing the standby process (standby mode, described in detail below), the first conveyance path 401a is selected as the first conveyance path. In the case where the first conveyance path 401a is selected, the conveying distance is shortest. Furthermore, since paper 5 can be conveyed substantially in a straight line to the first conveyance path 401a, a relatively firm paper can be conveyed by the first conveyance path 401a. Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, since only the first and second conveyance paths 401a and 401a are used in a case where the standby time is relatively short, paper 5 can be easily recovered, for example, in a case where jamming of the paper 5 occurs.
Although not shown in the drawings, jamming in the conveyance path 401 according to an embodiment of the present invention is fixed (resolved) by opening the sheet-discharge tray 8. Therefore, the second conveyance path 401b, which is situated above the first conveyance path 401a and in the vicinity of the sheet-discharge tray 8, is selected as the second priority following the first conveyance path 401b.
It is, however, to be noted that the conditions for selecting the conveyance path are not to be limited to the conditions described above. For example, in a case where there is little standby time, the first and second conveyance paths 401a and 401b may be alternately used, so that a preceding printed paper 5 (preceding paper having an image formed thereon) can be conveyed independently from a succeeding paper 5 to be printed. Particularly, in a case of a shuttle type image forming apparatus which intermittently conveys the paper 5 (i.e. repeats stopping and conveying of paper) during printing, the preceding paper 5 is also stopped and conveyed if the conveyance path is the same as the succeeding paper 5. Thus, in a case where the intermittent conveying is conducted when discharging the paper 5 from the sheet-discharge part 412, the paper 5 may be bent when discharging the paper 5 from the sheet-discharge part 412, to thereby prevent the paper 5 from being satisfactorily discharged.
In this case, the conveyance paths 401 may be switchably used for preventing such problem. That is, the conveyance path for conveying the preceding paper 5 and the conveyance path for conveying the succeeding paper 5 being printed may be switched, so that the preceding paper 5 can be conveyed separately from the succeeding paper 5 being printed. Therefore, the preceding paper 5 can be conveyed to the sheet-discharge part 412 and discharged without being stopped even where the succeeding paper 5 is being printed.
After designating (setting) any one of the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c as the conveyance destination in the above-described manner, image forming (printing) is performed on the paper 5 by moving the recording head 24 in the main scanning direction and conveying the paper 5 in the sub-scanning direction. Then, the paper 5 having an image formed thereon is conveyed to a standby position at one of the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c. The image forming process is repeated in the above-described manner in a case where there is a succeeding paper 5 to be printed.
Next, the standby process (delay process) is described with reference to
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the selection between the standby mode and the normal mode according to various setting conditions can be performed by storing a prepared table indicative of corresponding relationships between one or more setting conditions and the modes (standby mode, normal mode) in the non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204 and selecting the modes by reading out data (mode selection conditions) from the table. The mode selection conditions stored in the non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204 may preferably be allowed to be changed according to, for example, a user's input from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 or from a printer driver of an outside apparatus (host side).
In a case where the normal mode is selected, the paper 5 is conveyed to a conveyance destination located at a downstream side (e.g., the conveyance path extending to the sheet-discharge part 412 or the conveyance path extending to the double-side printing unit 10) without stopping.
In a case where the standby mode is selected, the paper 5 is conveyed and stopped at the standby position of the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c. Then, a standby time is determined (described in detail below) according to various setting conditions (e.g., temperature, humidity, type of recording medium, printing mode, size of paper, image data, amount of liquid droplet jetted to the entire image or a portion (e.g., end part) of the image, mode signal of outside apparatus, mode signal of control panel). The determination of the standby time according to an embodiment of the present invention can made by storing a prepared table indicative of corresponding relationships between one or more setting conditions and the standby time in the non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204 and determining the standby time by reading out data (standby time determination conditions) from the table. The standby time determination conditions stored in the non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204 may preferably be allowed to be changed according to, for example, a user's input from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 or from a printer driver of an outside apparatus (host side).
The paper 5, being assigned the determined standby time, stands by at the standby position until the elapse of the determined standby time. Upon the elapse of the determined standby time, it is determined whether the distance (interval) between the paper 5 and a preceding paper 5 is no less than a predetermined value (e.g., 20 mm). The position of the rear end of the preceding paper 5 is detected by calculating the conveyance distance from a paper end detecting sensor (not shown) to the paper 5. Thereby, even where plural papers 5 are assigned different standby times, disruption of page order (paper order), jamming due to collision with a preceding paper 5, or bending of paper can be prevented.
In a case where the distance between the paper 5 and the preceding paper 5 is no less than the predetermined value or where the paper 5 stands by until the distance with respect to the preceding paper 5 becomes no less than the predetermined value, the paper 5 is released from the standby state and is conveyed to the conveyance destination located at a downstream side (e.g., the conveyance path extending to the sheet-discharge part 412 or the conveyance path extending to the double-side printing unit 10). As described with
Next, the standby process is described with reference to
The example shown in
The paper 5A illustrated in
As shown in
Then, as shown in
Then, as shown in
Then, as shown in
Then, as shown in
Next, the various setting conditions used for switching between the standby mode and the normal mode and for determining the standby time are described with reference to
For example, the control part 200 detects temperature and humidity by reading out a detection signal from the temperature/humidity sensor provided in at least one of the sensors S1, S2, S3 illustrated in
Next, the control part 200 reads out data regarding the type of recording medium (paper 5). For example, data regarding the type of paper 5 may be input from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 by the user of the image forming apparatus 1000 or a printer driver of an outside apparatus (host side). Furthermore, the type of paper 5 may also be automatically detected. For example, in a case where the paper 5 is a type that easily curls (e.g., thin paper), the standby mode is selected, and a relatively long time is determined as the standby time. On the other hand, in a case of using a relatively firm paper that is resistant to curling, the conditions for selecting the normal mode increase.
Then, the control part 200 reads out the printing mode. The printing mode includes, for example, a high grade printing mode in which image quality has a relatively higher priority than printing speed or a high speed printing mode in which printing speed has a relatively higher priority than image quality. The printing mode is, for example, input from a printing driver of an outside apparatus (host side) by the user. In the high grade printing mode, the paper 5 remains inside the image forming apparatus for a relatively long time (substantially equivalent to standby time) since an image is formed by overlapping plural images on the paper 5. Therefore, in the case of a high grade printing mode, the conditions for selecting the normal mode increase. Furthermore, in a case where the standby mode is selected in the high grade printing mode, a relatively short time is determined as the standby time.
Then, the control part 200 reads out the size of paper 5 (paper size). For example, data regarding the paper size may be input from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 by the user of the image forming apparatus 1000 or a printer driver of an outside apparatus (host side). In this example, the “size of paper (paper size)” includes not only the actual size of the paper 5 but also includes the conveying direction (orientation) of the paper 5 (e.g., A4 size horizontal paper, A4 size vertical paper). For example, in a case where the paper size (length) of the paper 5 is greater than the length of the conveyance path (L1 in
The conveying direction of the paper and the curling property of the paper 5 are described in detail with reference to
It is to be noted that the curling direction of the paper 5 is not limited only to the vertical direction and the horizontal direction as described with the A4 size paper. The above-described curling of the A4 size horizontal and vertical paper is merely used as a common example considering the vast amount of A4 size distributed in the paper market. The curling direction may vary depending on, for example, the orientation of the arrangement of the fibers of the paper 5. More specifically, since the paper 5 expands in a direction perpendicular to the orientation of the arrangement of fibers of the paper 5, the paper 5 curls in a direction perpendicular to the orientation of the arrangement of fibers of the paper 5.
Then, the control part 200 reads out the image data to be formed (printed) on the paper 5. The image data may be read out, for example, from an outside apparatus (host side) or data read by the image reading part 11. Furthermore, the image data may be read out before or after performing an image forming process (printing process) on the paper 5. In this example, the standby mode or the normal mode is selected by determining the area (size) in which the image data are formed (printed) on the paper 5 and the distribution of image data formed (printed) on the paper 5. The greater the area of the printed image data or the greater the distribution of the printed image data, the more likely the paper 5 is curled. Furthermore, in such a case of selecting the standby mode where the curling is likely to occur, a relatively long time is determined as the standby time. However, the relationship between the standby time and the area (size) of image data printed on the paper 5 or the distribution of image data printed on the paper 5 is not limited to the above-described example. For example, the relationship with respect to standby time may significantly vary according to the distribution of image data printed on the paper 5.
Accordingly, by being able to determine whether to select the standby mode based on image data, the necessity of printing in the standby mode can be determined before actually jetting liquid (e.g., recording liquid) droplets to the paper 5.
Then, the control part 200 reads out the amount of recording liquid (liquid droplet jet amount) jetted from the recording head 24. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the image forming apparatus 1000 obtains the liquid droplet jet amount by counting the number of liquid droplets jetted from the recording head 24. After the printing process is finished, the control part 200 determines whether to select the standby mode based on the amount of liquid jetted onto the rear end of the paper (recording medium) 5.
For example, in a case of determining whether to select the standby mode based on the liquid droplet amount with respect to the entire area of the paper (i.e. averaged droplet count per a single sheet of paper=page coverage rate) where the length of time from printing to sheet-discharge becomes relatively shorter and the printed area is concentrated at the rear end of the paper 5 (i.e. a case where page coverage rate increases, a case where amount of liquid adhered to the paper 5 increases), it becomes difficult to correctly determine curling at the rear end of the paper 5. This results in the risk of inadequate stacking of paper 5.
On the other hand, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the problem of inadequate stacking of paper 5 can be prevented by determining whether to select the standby mode based on the amount of droplets jetted onto the rear end part of the paper 5. It is, however, to be noted that the determination of the selection of the standby mode may be based on parts of the paper other than the rear end part of the paper 5. For example, the determination may be based on the amount of droplets jetted onto a center part of the paper 5 in a case where data are printed only onto the center part of the paper 5. Furthermore, the standby mode or the standby time may also be determined based on the amount of droplets jetted onto other end parts likely to cause curling. As another example, the standby mode may be determined based on the amount of droplets jetted onto the entire area of the paper 5 and the rear end part of the paper 5. More specifically, first, the average number of droplets per square of an entire paper 5 (AVE 1) is obtained from the amount droplets jetted onto the entire paper 5, and the average number of droplets per square of a rear end part of the paper 5 (AVE 2) is obtained from the amount of droplets jetted onto the rear end part of the paper 5 (e.g., an area 50 mm in the sub-scanning direction at the rear end part of the paper 5). The greater one of the average number of droplets AVE1 and AVE2 is assumed as the page coverage rate of the paper 5. Based on the assumed page coverage rate, it is determined whether to select the standby mode.
Accordingly, compared to determining whether to select the standby mode based on either one of the amount of droplets jetted to the entire paper or the amount of the droplets jetted to the rear end part of the paper, the standby mode can be selected with more precision.
Then, as shown in
Next, an example of a method of determining whether to select the standby mode and determining the standby time based on a signal(s) from an outside apparatus or a signal(s) from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 is described. In this example, the signals may be input from a control panel of the image forming apparatus 1000 by the user of the image forming apparatus 1000 or from a printer driver of an outside apparatus (host side).
In one exemplary case of a user who usually prints only a few pages, the user selects (inputs) a normal mode (non-standby mode) setting if printing speed has a higher priority over discharged sheet stacking performance for the user. In a case where the control panel also has a setting for a high speed mode that provides a shortened standby time, the user selects (inputs) the high speed mode. In another exemplary case of a user using plain paper that is curl resistant, the user selects (inputs) a normal mode (non-standby mode) setting. Likewise, in a case where the control panel also has a setting for a high speed mode that provides a shortened standby time, the user selects (inputs) the high speed mode. Furthermore, the settings selected by the user may individually be stored in the non-volatile memory (NVRAM) 204, so that the selection of the standby mode and the standby time can be determined by reading out the conditions for each user.
By providing a part for switching between the standby mode and the normal mode (switching part), the conditions requiring no delay (standby) can be selected and paper can be conveyed without delay control (standby control). Thereby, decrease in productivity due to delay can be controlled to be a minimum amount. Furthermore, in a case where conditions unsuitable for the standby mode are selected as the setting conditions, the standby mode can be cancelled, to thereby prevent jamming of paper or bending of paper.
By being able to switch between the standby mode and the normal mode based on the above-described setting conditions, the curling correction time and the drying time can be anticipated according to the setting conditions. Accordingly, based on the anticipated time, it can be determined whether the mode should be switched to the normal mode or the standby mode. In a case where switching to the standby mode is unnecessary, the paper 5 can be conveyed without being put in a standby state (delay). This minimizes decrease of productivity due to time delay.
Furthermore, by selecting one or more of the plural conveyance paths according to a conveyance delay time (including a case of conveying without any delay,), decrease of productivity due to time delay can be minimized by selecting the conveyance path with the shortest conveyance distance (i.e. shortest conveying time). For example, in a case where the conveyance delay time is zero or extremely minute, a single conveyance path is used. In a case where, for example, the conveyance delay time is relatively short, papers are successively conveyed by using two conveyance paths. In a case where, for example, the conveyance delay time is relatively long, papers are successively conveyed by using three conveyance paths
With the above-described image forming apparatus having the conveying apparatus and the liquid jetting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, by using a non-contact type image forming method, images can be formed on a large variety of papers. Furthermore, image quality can be improved by being able to jet liquid droplets with high precision and form dots of fine size. Furthermore, both productivity and drying can be improved. Furthermore, energy savings and cost reduction can be achieved.
Hence, according to the above-described embodiments of the present invention, the conveying apparatus includes plural conveyance paths which are arranged in parallel and configured to receive a plurality of conveyance objects fed from an upstream side of the plural conveyance paths and convey the received plural conveyance objects to a conveyance destination situated at a downstream side of the plural conveyance paths, wherein the plural conveyance paths are configured to convey the plural conveyance objects in the order in which the plural conveyance objects are received. Thereby, with the simple configuration of the conveying apparatus, curling and staining of the conveyance object can be prevented while minimizing reduction of productivity.
Furthermore, the conveying apparatus is provided with a delaying part for delaying the timing of conveying the plural conveyance objects for each of the plural conveyance paths by temporarily stopping the reception of the plural conveyance objects or reducing the rate of conveying the plural conveyance objects. This configuration enables switching of conveyance paths among the plural conveyance paths so that the conveyance of a preceding conveyance object and a succeeding conveyance object does not affect one another. That is, a preceding conveyance object and a succeeding conveyance object can be conveyed independent from each other. Thereby, the preceding conveyance object can be, for example, stopped, delayed, or have its conveyance rate controlled while continuing to receive the succeeding conveyance objects. By delaying the conveyance of the preceding conveyance object while receiving the succeeding conveyance object, the conveyance of the conveyance object can be delayed to acquire time for the conveyance object to dry while minimizing reduction of productivity due to the delay.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7A according to a second embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
Among the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c included in the conveyance path 401, the first conveyance path (straight conveyance path) 401a is provided as the uppermost conveyance path according to the second embodiment of the present invention. This facilitates the fixing of jamming in the first conveyance path (most frequently used conveyance path among the conveyance paths) 401a.
Furthermore, the sheet-discharge part 412 according to the second embodiment of the present invention has a sheet-discharge conveyance path 70 including a first sheet-discharge conveyance path 70a, a second sheet-discharge conveyance path 70b, and a third sheet-discharge conveyance path 70c.
The sheet discharge part 412 according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes: a pair of conveying rollers 73 and 74; a first branching plate 406; a second branching plate 60; a third branching plate 407; a fourth branching plate 408; plural sheet-discharge conveying rollers 78, 82, and 86; plural spurs 76, 80, 84 facing the plural sheet-discharge conveying rollers 78, 82, and 86, respectively; a pair of sheet-discharge rollers 77 and 79; and a pair of straight sheet-discharge rollers 410 and 411. The pair of conveying rollers 73 and 74 are configured to convey the paper 5 to the sheet-discharge conveyance path 70, the double-side printing unit 10, or the straight sheet-discharge tray 409. It is preferable to use a spur as the conveying roller 74. The first branching plate 406 is oscillatable between a position illustrated with broken lines and a position illustrated with solid lines in
The third branching plate 407 is oscillatable between the side of the first and second sheet-discharge conveyance paths 70a, 70b (illustrated with solid lines in
The fourth branching plate 408 is oscillatable between the side of the first sheet-discharge conveyance path 70a (illustrated with solid lines in
Furthermore, as shown in
Hence, by using the arcuate turning parts as the branched conveyance paths for standby, the image forming apparatus 1000 can be formed in a smaller size. In addition, since the paper 5 is bent when in a standby state, the curling of the paper 5 can be corrected more efficiently. Thereby, the time for correcting the curled paper 5 can be minimized.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7B according to a third embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the third embodiment of the present invention, the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c are switched not by a switching plate but by an elevating mechanism that is driven by a driving source (not shown). The elevating mechanism vertically moves the conveyance path 401-403 for switching the path for conveying the paper 5. Accordingly, the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c are all straight conveyance paths. With this configuration, standby conveyance can be performed even where the conveyance object 5 is made of a material having a relatively high rigidity or a material having an unbendable property such as a plastic material (CD), cardboard paper, or glossy paper. In other words, by forming the conveyance paths 401a-401c with a substantially straight configuration, a conveyance object 5 having a relatively firm property can be conveyed. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7C according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference with
Alternatively, the length of the first and second conveyance paths 70f, 70g allows two sheets of paper 5 to be placed on a single conveyance path. In other words, a total of four sheets of paper 5 can be put in a standby state on the first and second conveyance paths 70f, 70g (L2≧L1×2). In a case of distributing (conveying) four sheets of paper 5 (fed in an order from paper 5A to paper 5D), the first and second papers 5A and 5B are conveyed to the first conveyance path 70f and put in a standby state on the first conveyance path 70f. Then, the third and fourth papers 5C and 5D may be conveyed to the second conveyance path 70g and put in a standby state on the second conveyance path 70g. Alternatively, the third and fourth paper 5C and 5D may be alternately conveyed to the first and second conveyance paths 70f and 7g, and put in a standby state on the first and second conveyance paths 70f and 70g, respectively. It is, however, to be noted that the method for conveying and putting the papers 5 in the standby state is not limited to that described in the fourth embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7D according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the fifth embodiment of the present invention, a first pair of sheet-discharge rollers 77 and 79 is provided to a first conveyance path 70d, and a second pair of sheet-discharge rollers 85 and 87 is provided to a second conveyance path 70e.
With this configuration, the length of the paper 5, which can put in a standby state, can be extended. Furthermore, since the paper 5 can be conveyed and put in a standby state to point beyond the first and second pairs of sheet-discharge rollers 77, 79, 85, 87, the limit in the length of the paper 5 can substantially be eliminated. It is to be noted that the first pair of sheet-discharge rollers 77 and 79 is positioned more downstream in the sheet-discharge direction than the second pair of sheet-discharge rollers 85 and 87 for a length (distance) of L3. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second conveyance paths 70d and 70e are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7E according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the sixth embodiment of the present invention, the conveying apparatus 7e has a first electrostatic attraction belt 423a serving as the first conveyance path 401a and a second electrostatic attraction belt 423b serving as the second conveyance path 401b. The first electrostatic attraction belt 423a is wound around a conveying roller 422a and a driven roller 421a for applying a tensile force to the first electrostatic attraction belt 423a. The second electrostatic attraction belt 423b is wound around a conveying roller 422b and a driven roller 421b also for applying a tensile force to the second electrostatic attraction belt 423a. The conveying apparatus 7e also includes charging rollers (charging parts) 421a, 421b for applying alternate high voltage from a high voltage power source to the surfaces 423a, 423b of the first and second electrostatic attraction belts 423a, 423b. Accordingly, the first and second electrostatic attraction belts 423a, 423b electrostatically attract the paper 5 thereon for conveying and putting the paper 5 in a standby state. Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state in a flattened (corrected) manner. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. Furthermore, this configuration uses no components (e.g., spurs) which directly contact the conveyed paper 5. Thus, even in a case of conveying a paper 5 which is not sufficiently dried, staining of the paper 5 can be prevented. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second electrostatic attraction belts 423a and 423b are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7F according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state in a flattened (corrected) manner. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. Furthermore, this configuration uses no components (e.g., spurs) which directly contact the conveyed paper 5. Thus, even in a case of conveying a paper 5 which is not sufficiently dried, staining of the paper 5 can be prevented. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second conveyor belts 424a and 424b are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7G according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the eighth embodiment of the present invention, the conveying apparatus 7G includes: first and second conveying guides 426a, 426b having an opening(s) to which for the paper 5 is attracted by air suction; first and second air suction fans for performing air suction with the first and second conveying guides 426a, 426b; a first pair of conveying rollers 171, 172, and a second pair of conveying rollers 173 and 174 for conveying the paper 5; and a first pair of spurs 177 and 178 facing the first pair of conveying rollers 171 and 172, and a second pair of spurs 179 and 180 facing the second pair of conveying rollers 173 and 174. In the eighth embodiment of the present invention, the first and second conveying guides 426a, 426b serve as the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b, respectively.
Accordingly, the first and second conveying guides 426a, 426b attract the paper 5 thereon with use of air suction for conveying and putting the paper 5 in a standby state.
Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state in a flattened (corrected) manner. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second conveying guides 426a and 426b are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c are the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first-third conveyance paths 401a-401c are the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention. The first electrostatic attraction belt 423a is wound around a conveying roller 422a and a driven roller 421a for applying a tensile force to the first electrostatic attraction belt 423a. The second electrostatic attraction belt 423b is wound around a conveying roller 422b and a driven roller 421b also for applying a tensile force to the second electrostatic attraction belt 423a. Accordingly, the first and second electrostatic attraction belts 423a, 423b electrostatically attract the paper 5 thereon for conveying and putting the paper 5 in a standby state. Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state in a flattened (corrected) manner. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. Furthermore, this configuration uses no components (e.g., spurs) which directly contact the conveyed paper 5. Thus, even in a case of conveying a paper 5 which is not sufficiently dried, staining of the paper 5 can be prevented. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second electrostatic attraction belts 423a and 423b are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention. Accordingly, the first and second conveyor belts 424a, 424b attract the paper 5 thereon with use of air suction for conveying and putting the paper 5 in a standby state. In the seventh embodiment of the present invention, the first and second conveyor belts 424a, 424b serve as the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b, respectively. Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state in a flattened (corrected) manner. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. Furthermore, this configuration uses no components (e.g., spurs) which directly contact the conveyed paper 5. Thus, even in a case of conveying a paper 5 which is not sufficiently dried, staining of the paper 5 can be prevented. It is to be noted that the standby process performed with the first and second conveyor belts 424a and 424b are substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7H according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the ninth embodiment of the present invention, the conveying apparatus 7H includes: first, second, and third conveying guides 427a, 427b, 427c each having a heating apparatus for accelerating drying of the paper 5; a first pair of conveying rollers 171, 172, and a second pair of conveying rollers 173 and 174 for conveying the paper 5; and a first pair of spurs 177 and 178 facing the first pair of conveying rollers 171 and 172, and a second pair of spurs 179 and 180 facing the second pair of conveying rollers 173 and 174. Accordingly, the paper 5 is conveyed on the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b while being dried by the first, second, and third conveying guides 427a, 427b, 427c.
Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state while having its drying speed accelerated. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. The method for transmitting the heat for heating the paper 5 may be, for example, a conductive heat transferring method, a convective heat transferring method, or a radiant heat transferring method. Furthermore, the method for heating the paper may be, for example, microwave heating, electromagnetic induction heating, radiant heating, or electric resistance heating. The position in which the heating apparatus is provided to the first-third conveying guides 427a-427c is not to be limited to the configuration shown in
Next, a conveying apparatus 7I according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the tenth embodiment of the present invention, the conveying apparatus 7I includes first, second, and third air-flow generating apparatuses 428a, 428b, and 428c for generating an air flow for accelerating the drying of the paper 5 conveyed on the first and second conveyance paths 401a and 401b. Accordingly, the paper 5 is conveyed and put on a standby state on the first and second conveyance paths 401a, 401b while being dried with air flow generated from the first, second, and third air-flow generating apparatuses 428a, 428b, and 428c.
Thereby, the paper 5 can be put in a standby state while having its drying speed accelerated. This allows the curled paper 5 to be corrected or dried in a shorter amount of standby time. This minimizes reduction of productivity. The air-flow generating apparatus may be a fan used for providing multiple functions in a case where, for example, a duct is provided in the vicinity of an exhaust fan for guiding the air from the exhaust fan to the paper 5. Other than the first, second, and third air-flow generating apparatuses 428a, 428b, and 428c, the standby process performed with the configuration of tenth embodiment of the present invention is substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
It is to be noted that the first through tenth embodiments of the present invention may be used in combination for attaining an enhanced effect. For example, by combining the ninth and tenth embodiments of the present invention, the heat from the heating apparatus positioned along the first and second conveyance paths 401a and 401b can be effectively applied to the paper 5 by using the fan (air-flow generating apparatuses 428a-428c).
Next, a conveying apparatus 7J according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the eleventh embodiment of the present invention, the above-described image forming apparatus 1000 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a coating apparatus 430 for coating a treating liquid (treatment) that enables liquid droplets (e.g., ink droplets) to react and fix to the liquid droplets. The coating apparatus 430 includes a replaceable treating liquid cassette 434, a treating liquid 435 contained in the cassette 434, a coating roller 432 for applying a coat of the treating liquid 435 onto the surface of the paper 5, an intermediate roller 433 for evenly coating the treating liquid 435 on the coating roller 432, and a conveyor roller 431 having satisfactory corrosion resistance (e.g., nitrile rubber). The surface of the intermediate roller 433 is formed of, for example, a foamed material, or a fibrous brush. The coating roller 432 has a fine concavo-convexo surface for holding the liquid with surface tension or with capillarity (capillary attraction). The surface of the coating roller 432 may be formed of an inelastic material such as metal, ceramic, or plastic. Although a foamed material, a fibrous material, or a fabric material may also be used, it is preferable to use an inelastic material especially in a case of coating a small amount of liquid. The coating roller 432 is driven to contact and separates from the paper 5 by a driving part (not shown) according to circumstance.
Accordingly, by coating the treating liquid onto the paper 5, according to a predetermined condition, the standby time can be relatively shortened. Thereby, productivity can be improved.
The treating liquid may be a material providing various functions and characteristics (a luminous property, a light blocking property, a conductive property, a fixing property, a glossy property, a liquid absorbing property). The treating liquid may be changed by replacing the treating liquid cassette 434 with another treating liquid cassette 434. Although the coating apparatus 430 according to this embodiment of the present invention is used in an image forming apparatus 1000 having an image forming part 2, the coating apparatus 430 may alternatively be used in a configuration including only the coating apparatus 430 and the conveying apparatus 7. Other than the coating apparatus 430, the standby process performed with the configuration of eleventh embodiment of the present invention is substantially the same as that described in the first embodiment of the present invention.
Next, a conveying apparatus 7I according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to
According to the twelfth embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the coating apparatus 430, the above-described image forming apparatus 1000 according to the first embodiment of the present invention also includes a coating apparatus 440 for coating another treating liquid (treatment) on a non-printing side of the paper 5 for preventing curling of the paper 5. The coating apparatus 440 includes a replaceable treating liquid cassette 444, a curl prevention treating liquid 445 contained in the cassette 444, a coating roller 442 for applying a coat of the treating liquid 445 onto the surface of the paper 5, an intermediate roller 443 for evenly coating the treating liquid 445 on the coating roller 442, and a conveyor roller 441 having satisfactory corrosion resistance (e.g., nitrile rubber). The surface of the intermediate roller 443 is formed of, for example, a foamed material, or a fibrous brush. The coating roller 442 has a fine concavo-convexo surface for holding the liquid with surface tension or with capillarity (capillary attraction). The surface of the coating roller 442 may be formed of an inelastic material such as metal, ceramic, or plastic. Although a foamed material, a fibrous material, or a fabric material may also be used, it is preferable to use an inelastic material especially in a case of coating a small amount of liquid. The coating roller 442 is driven to contact and separates from the paper 5 by a driving part (not shown) according to circumstance.
For example, the printing area or printing distribution is determined prior to a sheet-feeding process based on image data transferred from an outside apparatus (host side) or image data read out by the image reading apparatus 11. Based on the determination results, the curl prevention treating liquid is applied to a non-printing area in the vicinity of a printing area of the paper 5 via the coating roller 443. By applying substantially an equal amount of liquid onto both sides of the paper 5, the expansion of paper 5 occurring in the paper (fibers of the paper) is substantially the same on both sides. Thereby, curling of the paper 5 can be prevented. Accordingly, a relatively short time is needed to be set (determined) as the standby time. Thereby, productivity can be improved.
Furthermore, the method of coating the treating liquid is not limited to those explained in the above-described embodiments of the present invention. For example, the treating liquid may be applied by using a spraying type coating apparatus. Furthermore, the type of treating liquid is not to be limited to that explained in the above-described embodiments of the present invention. The coating apparatus 240 may be used without the image forming part 2. For example, the treating liquid 435 or the curl prevention treating liquid 445 may be applied on one side or both sides of the paper 5 by using the coating apparatuses 430 and 440. Then, the paper 5 may be conveyed and put in a standby state by the conveying apparatus 7 for drying and curl prevention. Then, the paper 5 may be, for example, conveyed to the double-side printing unit 10 and re-fed, so that recording (printing) can be performed on the paper 5 by a recording part (not shown) where the treating liquids 435, 445 coated on the paper 5 are in a dry state.
Hence, according to the above-described embodiments of the present invention, by using a liquid applying apparatus having a coating apparatus (e.g., roller type coating apparatus, brush type coating apparatus, a spray type coating apparatus) and a conveying apparatus, liquid can be coated on various types of paper (conveyance object) with a simple configuration (method) while improving both drying and productivity. Furthermore, energy savings and cost reduction can be achieved. Furthermore, in using a liquid jetting apparatus as a liquid applying part (liquid applying apparatus), various processes can be performed on a large variety of media (e.g., papers) by using a non-contact type process (e.g., non-contact type image forming method). In addition, liquid coating precision can be improved by being able to jet liquid droplets with high precision and form dots of fine size. Furthermore, both productivity and drying can be improved. Furthermore, energy savings and cost reduction can be achieved.
The above-described embodiments of the present invention can be effectively applied to a case where a pigment type ink (having a viscosity no less than 5 mPa·s in a temperature of 25° C.) is used as a recording liquid since curling is likely to occur when such pigment type ink is used. Thereby, image quality can be improved by forming images having satisfactory characteristics (e.g., high image density, sufficient color development, low bleeding, high double-side printing performance, high water-resistance, high quick-drying property) by using the pigment type ink while also improving drying and productivity. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments of the present invention also save energy and reduce manufacturing cost.
Further, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, but variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
The present application is based on Japanese Priority Application No. 2007-053238 filed on Mar. 2, 2007, with the Japanese Patent Office, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-053238 | Mar 2007 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2008/053107 | 2/15/2008 | WO | 00 | 10/27/2008 |
