Recording device and workpeice-advancing/retracting method for recording device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9254679-B2
Application number	US-201113196092-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 2, 2011
Priority date	Aug 20, 2010
Publication date	Feb 9, 2016
Grant date	Feb 9, 2016

Abstract

A recording device includes a workpiece stage that holds by suction a recording region of an elongated workpiece fed in a first feed direction, a recording unit that carries out recording in the recording region, a workpiece-holding unit arranged on a downstream side of the workpiece stage in the feed direction, and immovably holds or releases a part of the workpiece, an advancing/retracting unit that causes the workpiece stage and the workpiece-holding unit to travel relatively apart in an extension direction of the workpiece, and a control unit that controls the individual configurations. The control unit performs a recording operation, a holding operation for immovably holding part of the workpiece, and an advancing/retracting operation for retracting from the workpiece stage the recording region where recording has been completed and advancing onto the workpiece stage the recording region where recording has yet to occur.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A recording device comprising:
a workpiece stage configured and arranged to hold by suction a recording region, the workpiece stage being movable between a first position and a second position, the second position being located downstream of the first position in a first feed direction;
a recording unit configured and arranged to carry out recording in the recording region held onto the workpiece stage by suction;
a workpiece-holding unit movable between a third position and a fourth position, the third position being located on a downstream side of a downstream end of the workpiece stage in the first feed direction while the workpiece stage is located in the second position, the fourth position being located on an upstream side of the downstream end of the workpiece stage in the first feed direction while the workpiece stage is located in the second position, the workpiece-holding unit being further configured and arranged to immovably hold or release a part of the workpiece;
an advancing/retracting unit configured and arranged to cause the workpiece stage and the workpiece-holding unit to travel relatively apart in an extension direction of the workpiece; and
a control unit configured to control the recording unit, the workpiece-holding unit, and the advancing/retracting unit,
wherein the control unit performs
a recording operation to carry out recording in the recording region,
a holding operation to immovably hold the part of the workpiece by the workpiece-holding unit that is located in the fourth position in a state in which the workpiece stage is located in the first position subsequent to the recording operation, and
an advancing/retracting operation to cause the workpiece-holding unit to move from the fourth position to the third position in a state in which the workpiece stage is located in the first position subsequent to the holding operation so that the recording region where recording has been completed is retracted from the workpiece stage and the recording region where recording has yet to occur is advanced onto the workpiece stage.

2. The recording device according to claim 1 , wherein
the control unit, between the holding operation and the advancing/retracting operation, is configured to perform a suction-releasing operation to release holding by suction of the recording region.

3. The recording device according to claim 2 , further comprising
nip sections provided at both ends of the workpiece stage and imparting a prescribed tension to the workpiece, the nip sections being movable in the extension direction in association with the workpiece stage; and
a raising/lowering unit configured and arranged to cause upper parts of the nip sections to rise or fall between a lowered position that is a position coplanar with an upper face of the workpiece stage and a raised position that is above the lowered position,
subsequent to the suction-releasing operation, the control unit being configured to cause the nip sections to travel to the raised position, and to perform a separation operation to separate the recording region from the workpiece stage.

4. The recording device according to claim 1 , wherein
in the advancing/retracting operation, the control unit is configured to immobilize the workpiece stage, and to cause the workpiece-holding unit to travel.

5. The recording device according to claim 1 , wherein
in the advancing/retracting operation, the control unit is configured to immobilize the workpiece-holding unit, and to cause the workpiece stage to travel.

6. The recording device according to claim 1 , further comprising
a supply/recovery unit configured and arranged to feed the workpiece to the workpiece stage in a reel-to-reel format, the supply/recovery unit including a wind-up device having a wind-up reel configured and arranged to wind up the workpiece, and a wind-up-side buffer mechanism configured and arranged to buffer, with respect to the workpiece stage, the workpiece to be wound onto the wind-up reel.

7. The recording device according to claim 6 , wherein
the supply/recovery unit further includes a delivery device having a delivery reel configured and arranged to deliver the workpiece, and a delivery-side buffer mechanism configured and arranged to buffer, with respect to the workpiece stage, the workpiece delivered from the delivery reel.

8. A workpiece-advancing/retracting method for a recording device in which a workpiece-holding unit is used for immovably holding an elongated workpiece, the workpiece-advancing/retracting method comprising:
positioning a recording region of a workpiece fed in a first feed direction on a workpiece stage that is movable between a first position and a second position, the second position being located downstream of the first position in the first feed direction, and performing recording;
subsequent to the recording, immovably holding a part of the workpiece by the workpiece-holding unit that is movable between a third position and a fourth position, while the workpiece-holding unit is located in the fourth position in a state in which the workpiece stage is located in the first position, the third position being located on a downstream side of a downstream end of the workpiece stage in the first feed direction while the workpiece stage is located in the second position, the fourth position being located on an upstream side of the downstream end of the workpiece stage in the first feed direction while the workpiece stage is located in the second position; and
subsequent to the holding of the part of the workpiece, causing the workpiece-holding unit to move from the fourth position to the third position in a stage in which the workpiece stage is located in the first position, so that the recording region where recording has been completed is retracted from the workpiece stage and the recording region where recording has yet to occur is advanced onto the workpiece stage.

Assignees

• Kojima Kenji
• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Kojima Kenji

Classifications

• B41J11/0085

  Using suction for maintaining printing material flat (on rotatable drums B41J13/226) · CPC title

• B41J3/28 Primary

  for printing downwardly on flat surfaces, e.g. of books, drawings, boxes {, envelopes, e.g. flat-bed ink-jet printers} · CPC title

• B41J11/06

  Flat page-size platens {or smaller flat platens having a greater size than line-size platens (B41J11/0085 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B41J15/04

  Supporting, feeding, or guiding devices; Mountings for web rolls or spindles · CPC title