The present application is based on, and claims priority from JP Application Serial Number 2018-240170, filed Dec. 21, 2018, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
The present disclosure relates to a medium drying device that dries a medium, a medium processing apparatus including the medium drying device, and a recording system including the medium drying device.
In a medium processing apparatus that performs processing, such as stapling processing and punching processing, on a medium, for example, transported mediums are sent to a loading tray and ends of the mediums are aligned with each other in the loading tray. Thereafter, the processing such as the stapling processing and the punching processing is performed. Further, such a medium processing apparatus may be provided adjacent to a recording apparatus represented by a printer and may constitute a recording system as a whole.
In the above-described recording system, when the recording apparatus is an ink jet printer that performs recording by ejecting ink to a medium, an unique problem occurs. That is, in the medium on which the recording is performed by ejecting the ink, since friction of an ink ejection surface becomes high, there is a problem in that when the medium processing apparatus performs the processing, the integrity of the medium in the loading tray deteriorates. Then, in order to cope with the problem, a drying device that dries the medium before the medium is sent to the loading tray may be provided.
A drying device including a drying roller pair that heats a medium while sandwiching the medium is disclosed in JP-A-2012-210758.
In the drying device, when the medium is dried by applying heat to the medium from the outside, a liquid component near the surface of the medium is evaporated. However, the liquid component remains near the center of the medium in a thickness direction, and the medium may not be sufficiently dried.
The drying device may not only perform drying by heat, but also perform drying by blowing air to the medium. Similarly, in this case, only a liquid component near the surface of the medium is evaporated, and thus the liquid component remains near the center of the medium in the thickness direction.
A medium drying device for solving the above-described problems includes a drying processing unit that dries a medium recorded and transported by a recording section, and a perforation portion that forms a plurality of holes in an area including a recorded area of the medium.
Hereinafter, the present disclosure will be schematically described.
According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a medium drying device according to a first aspect includes a drying processing unit that dries a medium recorded by a recording section and transported, and a perforation portion that forms a plurality of holes in an area including a recorded area of the medium.
When a plurality of holes are formed in the medium, liquid is easily evaporated from the inside of the medium in the thickness direction. According to this aspect, since the medium drying device includes the drying-processing unit that dries the transported medium and the perforation portion that forms the plurality of holes in the medium, the medium can be effectively dried by the drying processing unit.
In the device, a second aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to the first aspect, in which the drying processing unit includes a drying roller pair that holds the medium between a drying driving roller that is rotationally driven and a drying driven roller that is driven to rotate by the rotation of the drying driving roller and transports the medium, and one or both of the drying driving roller and the drying driven roller are heated.
According to this aspect, since the drying processing unit includes a drying roller pair in which one or both of the drying driving roller and the drying driven roller are heated, the medium can be heated while the medium is nipped and transported by the drying roller pair.
In the device, a third aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to the first aspect or the second aspect, in which the perforation portion is disposed upstream of the drying processing unit in a medium transport direction.
According to this aspect, since a plurality of holes are formed in the medium before drying by the drying processing unit, the medium can be effectively dried by the drying processing unit.
In the device, a fourth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to any one of the first aspect to the third aspect, which further includes a transport roller pair that holds the medium between a transport driving roller that is rotationally driven and a transport driven roller that is driven to rotate by the rotation of the transport driving roller, in which the perforation portion includes a plurality of piercing portions that are configured to pierce the medium, and the piercing portions are provided on an outer peripheral surface of one of the transport driving roller and the transport driven roller.
According to this aspect, when the medium is transported by the transport roller pair that holds the medium between the transport driving roller and the transport driven roller, the piercing portions pierce the medium to form a plurality of holes in the medium.
In the device, a fifth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to the second aspect, in which the perforation portion includes a plurality of piercing portions that are configured to pierce the medium, and the piercing portions are provided on an outer peripheral surface of one of the drying driving roller and the drying driven roller.
According to this aspect, when the medium is transported by the drying roller pair, which is a drying processing unit, the piercing portions can pierce the medium to form a plurality of holes in the medium.
Since the plurality of holes are formed in the medium while the medium is heated by the drying roller pair as the drying processing unit, the medium can be effectively dried. Further, since the drying roller pair can have the function of the perforation portion, the device can be miniaturized.
In the device, a sixth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to the fifth aspect, in which the roller, on which the piercing portions are provided, is heated.
According to this aspect, since the roller, on which the piercing portions are provided, is heated, the medium can be more effectively dried.
In the device, a seventh aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to any one of the fourth aspect to the sixth aspect, in which the roller, on which the piercing portions are provided, is configured to be displaced between an advanced position where the piercing portions pierce the medium and a retracted position where the piercing portions do not pierce the medium.
According to this aspect, it is possible to switch between a state in which the piercing portions pierce the medium to form the plurality of holes in the medium and a state in which the piercing portions do not pierce the medium so as not to form the plurality of holes in the medium.
In the device, an eighth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to any one of the first aspect to the seventh aspect, which further includes a loop-like transport path that includes the drying processing unit and is configured to circumferentially transport the medium.
According to this aspect, since the medium drying device includes the loop-like transport path including the drying processing unit and configured to circumferentially transport the medium, by circumferentially transporting the medium, the drying processing by the drying processing unit can be performed a plurality of times, and more reliable drying can be performed. Further, it is possible to suppress an increase in the size of the device without increasing the size of the transport path for performing the drying processing a plurality of times.
In the device, a ninth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium drying device according to the eighth aspect, when the medium is transported through the loop-like transport path, the perforation portion perforates a hole from a surface facing an outside of a loop.
According to this aspect, since a hole is opened in the medium from the surface facing an outside of a loop of the loop-like transport path, the medium can be bent to open the hole when passing through the loop-like transport path, and a liquid component can be easily evaporated.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a medium processing apparatus according to a tenth aspect includes a reception unit that receives a medium to be processed, the medium drying device according to the first aspect to the ninth aspect, which performs drying processing on the medium received from the reception unit, and a processing unit that performs processing on the medium received from the reception unit or the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device.
According to this aspect, in the medium processing apparatus including the reception unit that receives the medium to be processed, the medium drying device that performs the drying processing on the medium received from the reception unit, and the processing unit that performs the processing on the medium received from the reception unit or the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device, the same function and effect as any one of the first aspect to the ninth aspect can be obtained.
In the apparatus, an eleventh aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium processing apparatus according to the tenth aspect, which further includes a saddle stitching processing unit that stitches a central portion of the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device in a medium transport direction.
According to this aspect, in addition to the processing by the processing unit, saddle stitching processing can be performed on the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device.
In the apparatus, a twelfth aspect of the present disclosure provides the medium processing apparatus according to the tenth aspect, which further includes a first discharge section that discharges the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device, to an outside of an apparatus body, a second discharge section that discharges the medium processed by the processing unit, to the outside of the apparatus body, and a tray that receives the medium from the second discharge section, in which a saddle stitching unit, which is provided outside the apparatus main body, receives the medium discharged from the first discharge section, and performs saddle stitching processing of stitching a central portion in a medium discharge direction, is configured to be attached to and detached from a lower side of the tray.
According to this aspect, in addition to the processing by the processing unit, since the saddle stitching unit is configured to be detachable from the lower side of the tray, it is possible to easily switch between a configuration having the saddle stitching unit and a configuration not having the saddle stitching unit.
Further, when the saddle stitching unit is mounted, the saddle stitching unit is located below the tray. Thus, removal of the medium discharged to the tray cannot be hindered by the saddle stitching unit.
According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a recording system according to a thirteenth aspect includes a recording unit that includes a recording section, and the medium processing apparatus according to any one of the tenth aspect to the twelfth aspect, which processes the medium after the recording by the recording section.
According to this aspect, in the recording system, the operational effects of any one of the tenth aspect to the twelfth aspect described above can be obtained.
Hereinafter, a first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In an XYZ coordinate system shown in each drawing, an X axis direction indicates the depth direction of an apparatus, a Y axis direction indicates the width direction of the apparatus, and a Z axis direction indicates the height direction of the apparatus.
A recording system 1 illustrated in
The first unit 5 is provided with a medium drying device 50 that performs drying processing on a received medium and an end stitching unit 42 that performs end stitching processing of bundling media on which recording has been performed by the recording unit 2 and stitching ends of the media. The end stitching unit 42 is an example of a processing unit that performs processing on the medium received by the first unit 5. The second unit 6 is provided with a saddle stitching processing unit 70 that performs saddle stitching processing of stitching and folding a center of a bundle of the media on which recording has been performed by the recording unit 2 to make a booklet.
The recording system 1 can be configured so as not to perform the saddle stitching processing as post-processing that is performed on the media which have been recorded by the recording unit 2 after the second unit 6 is removed. Further, illustration of the recording system 1 from which the second unit 6 is removed will be omitted.
The recording unit 2 performs recording on a transported medium. The intermediate unit 3 receives the medium, on which recording has been performed, from the recording unit 2 to send the medium to the first unit 5. The first unit 5 performs processing, such as the drying processing and the end stitching processing, on the received medium. The first unit 5 can transmit the medium after the drying processing to the second unit 6. The second unit 6 performs the saddle stitching processing.
Hereinafter, the recording unit 2, the intermediate unit 3, the first unit 5 (the medium processing apparatus), the medium drying device 50, and the second unit 6 will be described in detail in order.
The recording unit 2 will be described with reference to
A cassette accommodating unit 14 including a plurality of medium accommodating cassettes 12 is provided below the printer unit 10. A medium P accommodated in the medium accommodating cassette 12 is sent to a recording area by the line head 20 through a feeding path 21 illustrated by a solid line of
In
Further, the recording unit 2 includes a reversing path 24 indicated by a two-dot chain line of
The recording unit 2 is provided with a control unit 25 that controls an operation related to the transport and the recording of the medium in the recording unit 2. Further, the recording system 1 is configured such that the recording unit 2, the intermediate unit 3, the first unit 5, and the second unit 6 are mechanically and electrically coupled to each other, and the medium can be transported from the recording unit 2 to the second unit 6. The control unit 25 can control various operations of the intermediate unit 3 coupled to the recording unit 2, the first unit 5, and the second unit 6.
The recording system 1 is configured such that settings of the recording unit 2, the intermediate unit 3, the first unit 5, and the second unit 6 can be input from an operation panel which is not illustrated. The operation panel may be provided in the recording unit 2 as an example.
The intermediate unit 3 will be described with reference to
In the intermediate unit 3, there are two transport paths through which the medium is transported. A first transport path is a path through which the medium is transported from the reception path 30 via a first switchback path 31 illustrated by a dotted line of
The first switchback path 31 is a path through which the medium is received in a direction of an arrow A1 and is then switched back in a direction of an arrow A2. The second switchback path 32 is a path through which the medium is received in a direction of an arrow B1 and is then switched back in a direction of an arrow B2.
The reception path 30 branches into the first switchback path 31 and the second switchback path 32 at a branching portion 35. The branching portion 35 is provided with a flap which is not illustrated that switches destination of the medium to either the first switchback path 31 or the second switchback path 32.
Further, the first switchback path 31 and the second switchback path 32 are joined at a joining portion 36. However, even when the medium is sent from the reception path 30 to either the first switchback path 31 or the second switchback path 32, the medium can be delivered to the first unit 5 through the common joining path 33.
The intermediate unit 3 receives the medium into the reception path 30 in a state in which the latest recording surface is headed to the upper side by the line head 20 from the recording unit 2. However, the medium is bent and reversed in the joining path 33, and thus the latest recording surface is headed to the lower side.
However, the medium in a state in which the latest recording surface is headed to the lower side is delivered from the +Y direction of the intermediate unit 3 to a first transport path 43 of the first unit 5.
Further, in each of the reception path 30, the first switchback path 31, the second switchback path 32, and the joining path 33, one or more roller pairs which are not illustrated are arranged as an example of an unit for transporting the medium.
When recording is continuously performed on a plurality of media in the recording unit 2, the medium that has entered the intermediate unit 3 is alternately sent to a transport path passing through the first switchback path 31 and a transport path passing through the second switchback path 32. This can increase a throughput of medium transport in the intermediate unit 3.
Further, in a case where the recording is performed by ejecting the ink (the liquid) to the medium as in the line head 20 of the present embodiment, when the processing is performed by the first unit 5 or the second unit 6 in a subsequent stage, if the medium is wet, the recording surface may be rubbed and the integrity of the medium may be poor.
By delivering the medium, on which recording has been performed, from the recording unit 2 via the intermediate unit 3 to the first unit 5, a transport time until the medium on which recording has been performed is sent to the first unit 5 can be made long, and the medium can be further dried until reaching the first unit 5 or the second unit 6.
Subsequently, the first unit 5 (the medium processing apparatus) will be described. The first unit 5 illustrated in
The first unit 5 includes the medium drying device 50 that performs the drying processing on the medium received from the reception unit 41 and the end stitching unit 42 as a processing unit that performs processing on the medium received from the reception unit 41 or the medium processed by the medium drying device 50.
The first unit 5 includes the first transport path 43 through which the medium received from the reception unit 41 is sent to the end stitching unit 42 and a second transport path 44 which branches from the first transport path 43 at a second branching unit D2 and through which the medium is sent to the medium drying device 50. The second branching portion D2 is provided with a flap which is not illustrated that switches a destination of the medium between the first transport path 43 and the second transport path 44.
For example, the end stitching unit 42 is a configuration unit that performs the end stitching processing of stitching the end of the medium, such as one corner of the medium and one side of the medium. As an example, the end stitching unit 42 includes a stapler.
The medium drying device 50 performs the drying processing on the medium. In the present embodiment, the medium drying device 50 dries the medium by heating the medium. Although a detailed configuration of the medium drying device 50 will be described later, the medium drying-processed by the medium drying device 50 is sent to either the end stitching unit 42 or the saddle stitching processing unit 70 provided in the second unit 6.
In the first unit 5 of the present embodiment, as illustrated in
The medium drying device 50 and the end stitching unit 42 are arranged in such a positional relationship, so that an increase in a horizontal dimension of the first unit 5 can be suppressed, and the device can be miniaturized.
Further, as illustrated in
The medium received from the reception unit 41 can be sent to a processing tray 48 through the first transport path 43 illustrated in
The medium processed by the end stitching unit 42 is placed on a first tray 40 as a tray that receives the medium discharged from the second discharge section 62, while being discharged from the second discharge section 62 to the outside of an apparatus body of the first unit 5 by a discharge unit which is not illustrated. The first tray 40 is provided to protrude from the first unit 5 in the +Y direction. In the present embodiment, the first tray 40 includes a base section 40a and an extension portion 40b, and the extension portion 40b is configured to be accommodatable in the base section 40a.
Further, a third transport path 45 branching from the first transport path 43 at a third branching portion D3 downstream of the second branching portion D2 is coupled to the first transport path 43. The third branching portion D3 is provided with a flap which is not illustrated that switches a destination of the medium between the first transport path 43 and the third transport path 45.
An upper tray 49 is provided at an upper portion of the first unit 5. The third transport path 45 continues from the third branching portion D3 to the third discharge section 63 which will be described below, and the medium transported through the third transport path 45 is discharged from the third discharge section 63 to the upper tray 49 by a discharge unit which is not illustrated. The medium punching-processed by the punching processing unit 46 can be placed on the upper tray 49. Further, the medium on which no punching processing is performed and no processing is performed after the recording can be stacked.
The first transport path 43 is provided with an overlapping path 64 which branches from the first transport path 43 at a first branching portion D1 and is rejoined to the first transport path 43 at a first junction portion G1. The overlapping path 64 constitutes an overlapping processing unit 47 that stacks two sheets of the media and sends the two media to the medium drying device 50 or the end stitching unit 42. A leading medium transported in advance is sent to the overlapping path 64, and a trailing medium transported through the first transport path 43 is joined to the first junction portion G1, so that the leading medium and the trailing medium can be transported downstream of the first junction portion G1 while overlapping each other. Further, the overlapping processing unit 47 may be configured to provide a plurality of overlapping paths 64 and to send three or more sheets of the media to the downstream side while the media overlap each other. In the first unit 5, while the overlapping processing unit 47 is located vertically below the medium drying device 50, the medium drying device 50, the end stitching unit 42, and the overlapping processing unit 47 partially overlap each other when viewed from the vertical direction, that is, when viewed from the upper surface. Further, only the medium drying device 50 and the overlapping processing unit 47 may overlap each other or only the end stitching unit 42 and the overlapping processing unit 47 may overlap each other.
In the first unit 5, one or more roller pairs which are not illustrated as an example of an unit that transports the medium are arranged in each of the first transport path 43, the second transport path 44, and the third transport path 45.
Next, the medium drying device 50 as a first processing unit will be described.
The medium on which the recording has been performed by ejecting the ink (the liquid) from the line head 20 of the recording unit 2 is dried by evaporating the ink to some extent while being transported through the intermediate unit 3. However, when the medium is not sufficiently dried, if a plurality of media are aligned with each other in order to perform the end stitching processing and the saddle stitching processing, the integrity may be poor. Before the medium illustrated in
The medium drying device 50 illustrated in
Hereinafter, a configuration of the heat roller pair 51 that also serves as a function of the perforation portion 100 will be described.
As illustrated in
In the present embodiment, the drying driving roller 51a is configured to be heated. Therefore, the medium can be heated while the medium is nipped and transported by the heat roller pair 51.
The drying driving roller 51a may include, as an example, an induction coil 53 therein and can be heated by an induction heating method of heating a roller by action of a magnetic field generated by causing a current to flow to the induction coil 53. Further, in addition to the induction heating method, for example, a halogen lamp can also be used as a heat source.
The drying driving roller 51a is made of, as an example, a metal material having high thermal conductivity. Further, the drying driven roller 51b is formed of an elastic material such as a sponge formed of a resin material.
The heating temperature of the drying driving roller 51a can be adjusted by turning on and off heating by the induction coil 53. Further, for example, the temperature can be adjusted by controlling a duty ratio of the current flowing through the induction coil 53. Further, the medium drying device 50 can be provided with a temperature detection unit which is not illustrated that detects the roller temperature of the drying driving roller 51a.
In the present embodiment, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
In
Further, three or more induction coils 53 having different heating areas in the medium width direction may be provided or the entire area in the medium width direction may be heated by one induction coil 53.
Further, as in the present embodiment, in the heat roller pair 51, at least one of the drying driving roller 51a and the drying driven roller 51b constituting the heat roller pair 51 may be heated or only the drying driven roller 51b may be heated.
Further, both the drying driving roller 51a and the drying driven roller 51b may be heated. When both the drying driving roller 51a and the drying driven roller 51b are heated, both surfaces of a paper sheet are heated, so that the paper sheet can be more certainly dried.
As described above, the medium sent from the intermediate unit 3 is input from the reception unit 41 via the first transport path 43 to the second transport path 44 of the first unit 5 illustrated in
Here, in
Thus, in the present embodiment, as illustrated in a lower view of
In the present embodiment, as illustrated in
In more detail, the drying driving roller 51a is configured with a cylindrical base portion 103 formed of metal having thermal conductivity and a plurality of ring-shaped members 102 attached to the base portion 103. The ring-shaped member 102 has a plurality of piercing portions 101 in a circumferential direction of a ring.
The above-described induction coil 53 (the first induction coil 53a and the second induction coil 53b) is provided in a cylinder of the base portion 103. By attaching the ring-shaped member 102 to the base portion 103, the piercing portions 101 can be provided in the base portion 103.
The plurality of ring-shaped members 102 are attached to the base portion 103 at intervals in the X axis direction. In the present embodiment, the ring-shaped member 102 including the piercing portions 101 is formed of metal having thermal conductivity.
As illustrated in
The ring-shaped member 102 is fixed to the base portion 103 in the circumferential direction by fitting the recess portion 103a and the protrusion portion 102a in each other or fitting the recess portion 103b and the protrusion portion 102b in each other.
Further, as illustrated in
Instead of attaching the ring-shaped members 102 to the base portion 103, the surface of the base portion 103 may be cut and raised to directly form the piercing portions 101 in the base portion 103.
The piercing portions 101 are provided on one roller of the heat roller pair 51. Therefore, although the piercing portions 101 are provided not on the drying driving roller 51a but on the outer peripheral surface of the drying driven roller 51b, it is preferable that the piercing portions 101 are provided on the heated roller. By heating the roller on which the piercing portions 101 are provided, heat is applied to the inside of the medium when the medium is pierced by the piercing portions 101, so that the medium can be more effectively dried.
As the perforation portion 100 is provided in the heat roller pair 51 as a drying processing unit, when the medium is transported by the heat roller pair 51, the piercing portions 101 pierce the medium, so that a plurality of holes H can be formed in the medium P as illustrated in
Since the heat roller pair 51 heats the medium P and forms the plurality of holes H in the medium P, the medium P can be effectively dried.
Further, since the medium P can be dried and perforated by the heat roller pair 51, the number of components can be reduced and the apparatus can be miniaturized.
Further, as illustrated in
The loop-like transport path 52 illustrated in
After providing the loop-like transport path 52, by circumferentially transporting the medium a plurality of times, the drying processing by the heat roller pair 51 can be performed a plurality of times. Therefore, the medium can be dried more reliably.
Further, by providing the loop-like transport path 52, an increase in the size of the device can be suppressed without increasing the size of the transport path for performing the drying processing a plurality of times, as compared to, for example, a case where a plurality of the heat roller pairs 51 are provided in the transport path. Further, as compared to a case where the plurality of heat roller pairs 51 are provided in the transport path, a current supplied to a heat source of the heat roller pair 51 can be suppressed, and thus, an increase in power consumption can be suppressed.
Further, the piercing portions 101 are provided in the drying driving roller 51a. Thus, in the perforation portion 100, when the medium is transported through the loop-like transport path 52 illustrated in
As illustrated in a lower view of
In the heat roller pair 51, the drying driving roller 51a, in which the piercing portions 101 are provided, is configured to be displaceable between an advanced position where the piercing portions 101 pierce the medium P as illustrated in a left view of
As an example, the drying driving roller 51a is pressed by a first pressing member 93 such as a tension spring in a direction (the −Z direction) in which the drying driving roller 51a is retracted from the loop-like transport path 52. The first pressing member 93 is coupled to a first holder 97 that holds the drying driving roller 51a. Then, the drying driving roller 51a is configured to be displaceable in the Z axis direction by contacting the first holder 97 and rotating a first eccentric cam 94 by a driving source which is not illustrated. The rotation of the first eccentric cam 94 is controlled by the control unit 25, so that the drying driving roller 51a can be displaced between the advanced position (the left view of
As the drying driving roller 51a is displaced between the advanced position and the retracted position, a state in which the piercing portions 101 pierce the medium P to form the holes H in the medium P and a state in which the piercing portions 101 do not pierce the medium P so as not to form the holes H in the medium P are switched.
The position of the drying driving roller 51a can be switched according to conditions. The conditions include the amount of the ink ejected to the medium during the recording by the recording unit 2, whether the recording on the medium is double-sided recording or single-sided recording, environmental conditions such as the temperature and the humidity during the drying, and the like.
For example, when it is not necessary to perform the drying processing on the medium due to a small amount of the ink ejected to the medium during the recording by the recording unit 2, the drying driving roller 51a can be placed at the retracted position so that the medium P is not heated.
Further, in
Further, in
By controlling the rotation of the first eccentric cam 94 by the control unit 25, the pressing force of the drying driven roller 51b against the drying driving roller 51a can be adjusted, and thus the nip pressure of the heat roller pair 51 can be adjusted. It is preferable that the nip pressure of the heat roller pair 51 is changed according to the conditions.
The conditions include, for example, the amount of the ink ejected to the medium during the recording by the recording unit 2, whether the recording on the medium is the double-sided recording or the single-sided recording, the environmental conditions such as the temperature and the humidity during the drying, and the like in addition to the type, the rigidity, the thickness, and the basis weight of the medium.
By controlling the heating by the heat roller pair 51 according to these conditions, the medium can be more properly dried. Control of the heating by the heat roller pair 51 includes, for example, the presence or absence of the heating, the temperature during the heating, whether or not to perform residual heat during the heating, a timing when the heating by the heat roller pair 51 starts, and the like.
Further, in the recording system 1, the heating by the heat roller pair 51 is controlled by the control unit 25 (
Further, as illustrated in
Portions of the inner path forming portion 57a and the outer path forming portion 57b, corresponding to the first duct 55a and the second duct 55b, are formed by an inner suction portion 58a and an outer suction portion 58b having holes through which air of the loop-like transport path 52 passes, so that the air of the loop-like transport path 52 can be suctioned by each duct.
The inner suction portion 58a and the outer suction portion 58b can be formed, for example, in a vertical grid along a medium transport direction, and can be provided with holes or can be formed in a mesh shape.
By providing the first duct 55a and the second duct 55b, it is possible to quickly discharge the vapor generated when the medium containing the ink (the liquid) is heated by the heat roller pair 51, to the outside of the apparatus.
In the loop-like transport path 52 illustrated in
Further, in the loop-like transport path 52, a fifth transport path 60 is connected downstream of the first transport roller pair 54A and upstream of the second transport roller pair 54B. The fifth transport path 60 is a path coupled to the first discharge section 61 illustrated in
Further, the first unit 5 illustrated in
In the present embodiment, the switching flap 90 includes two flaps of a first switching flap 90a and a second switching flap 90b.
In more detail, in the loop-like transport path 52 illustrated in
The first switching flap 90a includes a first shaft portion 91a and is configured to be pivotable about the first shaft portion 91a. The second switching flap 90b includes a second shaft portion 91b and is configured to be pivotable about the second shaft portion 91b.
The first switching flap 90a and the second switching flap 90b are operated by a motor which is not illustrated or an electromagnetic clutch which is not illustrated, and the operation can be controlled by the control unit 25 provided in the recording unit 2 as an example.
When the medium is transported around the loop-like transport path 52, as illustrated in
When the medium processed by the medium drying device 50 is sent to the first discharge section 61, that is, when the medium is sent to the fifth transport path 60, the switching flap 90 is brought into the first state illustrated in a left view of
By setting the switching flap 90 in the first state, the medium drying-processed through the heat roller pair 51 can be sent to the fifth transport path 60, and the medium can be delivered from the first discharge section 61 to the second unit 6.
When the medium processed by the medium drying device 50 is sent to the end stitching unit 42, that is, when the medium is sent to the fourth transport path 59, the switching flap 90 is brought into the second state illustrated in a right view of
By setting the switching flap 90 in the second state, the medium drying-processed by the heat roller pair 51 can be sent to the fourth transport path 59, and can be sent to the end stitching unit 42.
By providing the switching flap 90 as described above, the drying processing can be performed both when the medium is sent to the second unit 6 and when the medium is sent to the end stitching unit 42. Further, as illustrated in
As the loop-like transport path 52 is accommodated within the area of the end stitching unit 42 when viewed from the horizontal direction, an increase in the horizontal dimension of the apparatus can be effectively suppressed, and the apparatus can be miniaturized.
Further, the medium drying device 50 may be configured not to have the loop-like transport path 52.
Further, in the present embodiment, the medium drying device 50 for drying the medium by heating the medium from the outside has been described. However, the medium drying device 50 may also be configured to dry the medium, for example, by blowing air to the medium.
Further, in the present embodiment, an apparatus in which a recording function is omitted from the recording system 1 may be regarded as a medium processing apparatus.
Next, the second unit 6 as a saddle stitching unit will be described with reference to
The second unit 6 is provided outside the apparatus body of the first unit 5, receives the medium discharged from the first discharge section 61, and performs the saddle stitching processing of stitching a central portion in the medium discharge direction (the +Y direction).
The medium delivered from the first discharge section 61 of the first unit 5 is transported along a transport path 69 indicated by a solid line of
The bundle M of the media, which has been saddle-stitching-processed by the saddle stitching processing unit 70, is discharged to a second tray 65 illustrated in
In the present embodiment, the second unit 6 is configured to be detachable from a lower portion of the first tray 40 provided in the first unit 5.
With this configuration, it is possible to easily switch between a configuration having the second unit 6 and a configuration without the second unit 6 in the recording system 1 or the first unit 5 as the medium processing apparatus. Further, when the second unit 6 is mounted, the second unit 6 is located below the first tray 40. Thus, removal of the medium discharged to the first tray 40 by the second unit 6 cannot be prevented.
Next, a configuration around the saddle stitching processing unit 70 will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
In
In
The stacking unit 71 is provided with the alignment unit 76 that can come into contact with a downstream end E1 of the medium P stacked on the stacking unit 71 in the transport direction +R and an abutting unit 77 that can come into contact with a downstream end E2 of the medium P stacked on the stacking unit 71 in the transport direction +R.
The alignment unit 76 and the abutting unit 77 are configured to be movable in both the transport direction +R of the medium P and an opposite direction −R thereto in the stacking unit 71 illustrated in
The stitching unit 72 that stitches the bundle M of the media stacked on the stacking unit 71 at a predetermined position in the transport direction +R is provided downstream of the junction position G. The stitching unit 72 is a stapler as an example. A plurality of the stitching units 72 are provided at intervals in the X axis direction that is the width direction of the medium. As described above, the stitching unit 72 is configured to stitch the bundle M of the media with a central portion C of the bundle M of the media as the stitched position in the transport direction +R.
In
A blade 74, which can switch between a retracted state in which the blade 74 is retracted from the stacking unit 71 as illustrated in
Next, a basic flow in which in the second unit 6, the medium P is transported, is saddle-stitching-processed, and is discharged will be described with reference to
In
Further, when the medium is received in the stacking unit 71, as illustrated in
When a predetermined number of media P are stacked on the stacking unit 71, the stitching processing is performed in which the central portion C of the bundle M of the media in the transport direction +R is stitched by the stitching unit 72. At a time point when the transport of the medium P from the transport path 69 to the stacking unit 71, as illustrated in
When the bundle M of the media is stitched by the stitching unit 72, as illustrated in a right view of
Next, when the central portion C of the bundle M of the media is disposed at a position facing the nip position N of the folding roller pair 73, as illustrated in a left view of
When the central portion C of the bundle M of the media is nipped by the folding roller pair 73, the folding roller pair 73 is rotated. As illustrated in a right view of
Further, after the central portion C is nipped by the folding roller pair 73, the alignment unit 76 is moved in the +R direction, returns to the state of
Further, the transport path 69 may be provided with a folding stripe forming unit that attaches a folding stripe to the central portion C of the medium P. By attaching the folding stripe to the central portion C that is a folded position by the folding roller pair 73, the bundle M of the media can be easily folded at the central portion C.
A second embodiment will be described with reference to
In the medium drying device 50A according to the second embodiment, the piercing portions 101A constituting the perforation portion 100A are provided not on the heat roller pair 51 but on another roller pair.
In the present embodiment, the piercing portions 101A are provided on an outer peripheral surface of a transport driving roller 68a of the transport roller pair 68 provided in the second transport path 44, and the transport roller pair 68 also serves as the perforation portion 100A. The transport roller pair 68 holds the medium between the transport driving roller 68a that is rotationally driven and the transport driven roller 68b that is driven to rotate by the rotation of the transport driving roller 68a, and transports the medium toward the heat roller pair 51. When the medium is transported by the transport roller pair 68, the piercing portions 101A can pierce the medium, and a plurality of the holes H can be formed in the medium.
Further, a configuration in which the piercing portions 101A are provided in the transport driving roller 68a may be the same as a configuration in which the piercing portions 101 are provided in the drying driving roller 51a according to the first embodiment. Since the transport driving roller 68a is not heated, a material having low thermal conductivity can be used as a material for forming the piercing portions 101.
In the present embodiment, the piercing portions 101A are provided in the transport driving roller 68a, that is, the perforation portion 100A is disposed upstream of the heat roller pair 51 in the medium transport direction. As the perforation portion 100A is located upstream of the heat roller pair 51, the plurality of holes H (
Further, although the piercing portions 101A can be provided on an outer peripheral surface of the transport driven roller 68b, it is preferable that the piercing portions 101A is provided in the transport driving roller 68a that is in contact with the latest recording surface of the recording unit 2.
Further, in the present embodiment, the configuration in which the transport roller pair 68 provided upstream of the heat roller pair 51 also serves as the perforation portion 100A has been described. However, the perforation portion 100A may be provided downstream of the heat roller pair 51.
Further, the piercing portions 101A may be provided in any one of the first transport roller pair 54A, the second transport roller pair 54B, and the third transport roller pair 54C, which transport the medium in the loop-like transport path 52, to form the perforation portion 100A.
Further, the transport driving roller 68a including the piercing portions 101A can also be configured to be displaceable between the advanced position where the piercing portions 101A pierce the medium and the retracted position where the piercing portions 101A do not pierce the medium, which is like the drying driving roller 51a described in the first embodiment and illustrated in
A third embodiment will be described with reference to
The first unit 5A illustrated in
As illustrated in
As the end stitching unit 42, the medium drying device 50, and the saddle stitching processing unit 70 are arranged in one unit, while an increase in the horizontal dimension of the apparatus is suppressed and the apparatus is miniaturized, all of the drying processing, the end stitching processing, and the saddle stitching processing can be performed by one apparatus.
Further, when the end stitching unit 42, the medium drying device 50, and the saddle stitching processing unit 70 are provided in one unit, not only arrangement as illustrated in
In the first unit 5A illustrated in
Further, it is apparent that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure described in the appended claims, and the modifications are also included in the scope of the present disclosure.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
JP2018-240170 | Dec 2018 | JP | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
20120249704 | Kato et al. | Oct 2012 | A1 |
20180015737 | Harada | Jan 2018 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2601376 | Apr 1997 | JP |
2012210758 | Nov 2012 | JP |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20200198369 A1 | Jun 2020 | US |