JPH02270752A - Conveying mechanism for thin member - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To apply the preset strength to a film in the conveying direction and avoid jamming by curving a plate member forming a passage conveying a thin member such as a film. CONSTITUTION:When a film F is conveyed in the auxiliary scanning direction, the film F is conveyed in a curved shape after the curved shape of plate members 38a and 38b. They are curved perpendicularly to the conveying direction in particular, thus strength is applied to the film F in the conveying direction. Even if such a phenomenon occurs that static electricity is generated by the friction between the film F and the insides of the plate members 38a and 38b and part of the film F is sucked, the film F is made so-called strong- kneed, thus it can smoothly pass between the plate members 38a and 38b. The film F is stably fed to an exposing section.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a mechanism for conveying a thin plate-like flexible material such as a photographic light-sensitive material. The present invention relates to a thin plate member conveyance mechanism that can stably supply the photosensitive material to an exposure section in an image recording apparatus that records an image by main scanning with a laser beam while pulling out a roll of photosensitive material.

[Background of the Invention] In recent years, in the fields of printing and plate making, image scanning reading and recording systems that create film originals by reading the image information of originals and electrically processing them have been developed for the purpose of streamlining work processes and improving image quality. has been adopted.

This image scanning reading/recording system is basically constructed of an image reading device, a control device, and an image recording device, either integrally or separately. That is, in an image reading device, a photo original or a line drawing original is scanned with a light beam and detected by a photomultiplier or the like, or a C
OD (Charge Coupled Device
) The image is read by a camera and the image information of the document is once converted into an electrical signal according to the intensity of the reflected light. Next, the image information photoelectrically converted by the image reading device is subjected to arithmetic processing in a control device to perform gradation correction, halftone separation, etc. according to the plate-making conditions.

Thereafter, the image information processed by the control device is converted into an optical signal consisting of laser light in an image recording device, and the laser light is irradiated onto the photosensitive material to record a desired image. After the image recording is completed, the photosensitive material is subjected to a development process to produce a final film original.

Therefore, in such an image scanning reading recording system, there are, for example, the following image recording apparatuses that irradiate a film or the like with laser light to record a desired image by exposure based on image information of a document.

That is, it is of a type in which a magazine is loaded into which a roll of film is stored. In such an image recording apparatus, the film is pulled out from the magazine and sent to the image scanning section. In the image scanning section, the film is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction via a sub-scanning conveyance means consisting of, for example, a rotationally driven drum and a nip roller that can freely come into sliding contact with the drum. A desired image is exposed and recorded on this film by main scanning with a laser beam modulated based on tone correction. Next, the film is automatically cut to a desired length by a cutter provided in the image recording device, and then sent to, for example, a developing device via a conveyance system.

By the way, when sending a film from a magazine to an image scanning section, it is necessary to use a pair of rollers to pull out the film toward the image scanning section and to transport the film along a predetermined path under the guidance of a guide plate or the like. be.

However, in this case, since flat plates are arranged in pairs as the guide plates with a predetermined clearance as a conveyance path, friction between the plates and the film or electrostatic phenomenon may cause the conveyance to be interrupted. So-called jamming may occur on the film midway through the process, and smooth transport of the film may be prevented. As a result, it often becomes impossible to transport the film thereafter, making it impossible to continue the image recording operation.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in order to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages. By passing the photosensitive material between them, strength is imparted to the photosensitive material in the transportation direction, thereby preventing jamming, etc., from occurring in the photosensitive material, and thus making the transportation smooth and stable. An object of the present invention is to provide a conveyance mechanism for a thin plate member configured to perform the following operations.

[Means for Achieving the Object] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a mechanism for transporting a flexible thin plate member in a predetermined direction, the transport path of the thin plate member being and a set of plate members for guiding the thin plate member in the predetermined direction, wherein at least a part of the plate member is curved in a cross section perpendicular to the conveying direction of the thin plate member. do.

[Embodiments] Next, preferred embodiments of the thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to the present invention will be described in detail in connection with an image recording apparatus to which the mechanism is applied, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 indicates an image recording apparatus incorporating a thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to this embodiment.

The casing-like housing 12 of this image recording device 10 includes:
In the figure, a bent-shaped lid 16 is attached to the upper right part via a hinge 14 so as to be openable and closable. A magazine loading section 20 is provided in the chamber 18 of the housing 12, and the magazine loading section 20 includes a plurality of pedestals 22a to 22C provided in the chamber 18, and a pressing member fixed to the lid 16. member 24. In this case, by opening the lid 16, the magazine 26 housed in the magazine loading section 20 can be freely attached to and removed from the magazine loading section 20.

A long unexposed film F wound into a roll is stored in the magazine 26, and the film F pulled out from the film outlet 28 of the magazine 26 is used for transporting thin plate members according to this embodiment. The light is guided to an exposure section 32 via a mechanism 30. The thin plate member transport mechanism 30 will be described in detail later.

The exposure section 32 basically consists of a large-diameter drum 34 that is rotatably driven, and a drum 34 that is connected to the drum 3 through an elastic body (not shown).
4, and the film F is main-scanned by a laser beam between the nip rollers 36a and 36b, and is also sent in the sub-scanning direction by the drum 34 and the nip roller 36a136b.

Here, a thin plate member transport mechanism 30 is illustrated in FIG. It includes feed rollers 40a and 40b provided therein. In this case, the plate members 38a and 38b are provided parallel to each other with a certain clearance so that the film F, which is an example of a thin plate member, can pass therethrough, and in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the film F. The cross section as a whole has a curved shape.

Next, a pair of conveyance rollers 42.44 is arranged downstream of the drum 34 and nip rollers 36a, 36b, and the exposed film F is placed between each pair of conveyance rollers 42.44. A pair of cutter blades 46a and 46b are provided for cutting to a predetermined length. The cut film F is sent to the developing device 50 from a film outlet 48 defined in the housing 12 via the pair of conveying rollers 44.

On the other hand, a light beam scanning section 60 for recording image information on the film F is provided below the drum 34.

The light beam scanning section 60 includes laser light sources 62a and 62b that output a recording laser beam L1 and a synchronization laser beam L2.
The laser light sources 62a and 62b are substantially arranged on a surface plate 64 fixed to the housing 12 side.

On the laser light output side of the laser light source 62a, there is a mirror 6 for scanning the recording laser light L1 onto the film F.
6. Deflector, e.g. galvanometer mirror 68, fθ
A scanning lens 70, such as a lens, and a mirror 72 are similarly mounted on the surface plate 64. On the other hand, the laser light source 62b
The synchronizing laser beam L2 from the mirror 66,
Galvanometer mirror 68, scanning lens 70, mirror 7
2 to a mirror 74. Here, in the direction in which the synchronizing laser beam L2 is reflected by the mirror 74, a reference grating plate 76 having a transmission type grid is disposed, and a condensing bar 78 is located close to the back side of the reference grating plate 76. Placed.

Note that a photodetector (not shown) is attached to both ends of the condensing bar 78, and this photodetector converts the synchronizing laser beam L2 that has passed through the reference grating plate 76 through the condensing bar 78 as a pulse signal. To detect.

The thin plate member conveyance mechanism 30 according to this embodiment and the image recording apparatus 10 to which the same is applied are basically constructed as described above, and the functions and effects thereof will be explained next.

First, the lid 16 is opened, and the magazine 26 containing the roll-shaped film F is loaded into the magazine loading section 20. In this case, the end of the film F is pulled out from the outlet 28, and as shown in FIG.
After passing between the plate members 38a and 38b that perform a guiding function at 0, the film is passed between the drum 34 and the nip rollers 36a and 36b that constitute the exposure section 32 and between the pair of transport rollers 42, as shown in FIG. Hold F in place.

Then, the lid 16 is closed to the housing 12.

Thereafter, the drum 34 is driven to rotate in the direction of the arrow. Therefore, the film F is transferred from the magazine 26 to the plate members 38a and 38.
It is sent out while being guided by b.

At that time, the light beam scanning section 60 is driven. That is,
Laser light L1 derived from laser light sources 62a and 62b
and L2 are reflected by a mirror 66 to reach a galvanometer mirror 68, and this galvanometer mirror 68
The laser beams L+ and L2 are deflected under the oscillating motion. Further, the laser beam L1 is transmitted to the respective nip rollers 36 a and 3 through the scanning lens 70 and the mirror 72 .
6. Irradiate film F from between b. On the other hand, the laser beam L2 is reflected by the mirror 74, enters the condensing bar 78 via the reference grating plate 76, and is detected as a pulse signal by a photodetector (not shown). This pulse signal is multiplied to a predetermined frequency and becomes a synchronization signal.

In this way, the laser beam L1 is main-scanned onto the film F, and the film F is moved onto the drum 34 which is rotationally driven.
The film F is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction via nip rollers 36a and 36b that are in sliding contact with the film F, and as a result, a desired image is exposed and recorded on the film F.

During this time, when the film F is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction,
As shown in FIG. 2, since the plate member 38a138b is curved, the film F is conveyed in a curved form following the shape of the plate member 38a138b. In this case, since the film F is curved perpendicularly to the transport direction, strength is imparted to the film F in the transport direction.

Therefore, even if static electricity is generated due to friction between the film F and the insides of the plate members 33a and 38b, and a part of the film F is attracted, the film F will not be stiff due to the above-mentioned reasons. is strong, so it is possible to smoothly pass between the plate members 38a and 38b.

Therefore, the film F is stably fed to the exposure section 32.

Next, other embodiments of the thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to the present invention will be described.

In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG.
a, 82b are formed, holes are formed in these flat parts 32a, 82b, and a required number of rollers 84 are provided in a freely rolling manner. In this manner, by providing the rollers 84, there is an advantage that the friction generated on the inner surface of the plate member Boa (80t) is reduced and the film F is conveyed more smoothly.

Further, FIG. 4 shows plate members 85a and 86b constituting the thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to the third embodiment.

Like these plate members 86a and 86b, the plate members 86a and 86b are gently curved in a wave shape, and the required number of curves 88 are formed at the peaks and valleys of the curved portions.
A similar effect can be obtained even if .

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, since the plate member that forms the path for conveying a thin plate member such as a film is formed in a curved manner, the film is conveyed while being curved along this shape. Because of this, it has a predetermined strength in the conveyance direction, and jamming between the plate members caused by friction and static electricity as in the prior art is avoided, and the conveyance path is therefore blocked. This can prevent such inconvenience from occurring. As a result, the effect that the film can be transported in a stable state at all times can be obtained.

Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.
Of course, various improvements and changes in design are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of an image recording apparatus to which the thin plate member transport mechanism according to the present invention is applied, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a plate member as a guide of the thin plate member transport mechanism, and Fig. 3 is a booklet. A perspective view of another embodiment of the plate member of the thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to the invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a plate member according to still another embodiment of the thin plate member conveyance mechanism according to the present invention. 10... Image recording device 26... Magazine 3
0... Conveyance mechanism for thin plate member 34... Drum 35a
, 36b...Nip rollers 38a, 38b...Plate member 60...Light beam scanning section F...Film

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A mechanism for conveying a thin, flexible member in a predetermined direction, comprising a set of plates that define a conveyance path for the thin plate member and guide it in the predetermined direction. What is claimed is: 1. A conveying mechanism for a thin plate member, comprising a member, wherein at least a portion of the plate member is curved in a cross section perpendicular to the conveying direction of the thin plate member. (2) A conveying mechanism for a thin plate member according to claim 1, characterized in that the plate member is provided with a required number of rollable rollers. (3) A conveying mechanism for a thin plate member according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the thin plate member is a photosensitive material.