Medium conveying device and image recording apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9776431-B2
Application number	US-201715429905-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 10, 2017
Priority date	Sep 5, 2014
Publication date	Oct 3, 2017
Grant date	Oct 3, 2017

Abstract

There are provided a medium conveying device and an image recording apparatus that can convey a medium without the generation of wrinkles and floating. Projections having the same size are regularly disposed on the peripheral surface of an image recording drum to form recessed portions and protruding portions on the peripheral surface of the image recording drum. An interval between the projections disposed in a middle region is set to be smaller than an interval between the projections disposed in both end regions. Accordingly, when a sheet is pressed against the peripheral surface of the image recording drum by a pressing roller, forces for pulling the sheet to the outside from the middle in a width direction can be generated. As a result, the sheet can be made to come into close contact with the peripheral surface of the image recording drum without the generation of wrinkles and floating.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A medium conveying device comprising:
a conveying unit for conveying a sheet-like medium while making the sheet-like medium come into close contact with a moving medium holding surface; and
a pressing unit for making the medium come into close contact with the medium holding surface by pressing the medium against the medium holding surface,
wherein the medium holding surface has recessed portions and protruding portions, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions have a shape in which the volume of recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface is gradually increased toward both ends from a middle in a width direction that is a direction orthogonal to a conveying direction of the medium.

2. A medium conveying device comprising:
a conveying unit for conveying a sheet-like medium while making the sheet-like medium come into close contact with a moving medium holding surface; and
a pressing unit for making the medium come into close contact with the medium holding surface by pressing the medium against the medium holding surface,
wherein the medium holding surface has recessed portions and protruding portions, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions have a shape in which the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface is increased in stages toward both ends from a middle in a width direction that is a direction orthogonal to a conveying direction of the medium.

3. The medium conveying device according to claim 1 ,
wherein protruding portions having the same size are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which an interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction is different from an interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

4. The medium conveying device according to claim 2 ,
wherein protruding portions having the same size are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which an interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction is different from an interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

5. A medium conveying device comprising:
a conveying unit for conveying a sheet-like medium while making the sheet-like medium come into close contact with a moving medium holding surface; and
a pressing unit for making the medium come into close contact with the medium holding surface by pressing the medium against the medium holding surface,
wherein the medium holding surface has recessed portions and protruding portions,
the protruding portions are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface at regular intervals, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which the area of the surface, which comes into contact with the medium, of each of the protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in a width direction that is a direction orthogonal to a conveying direction of the medium is different from the area of the surface, which comes into contact with the medium, of each of the protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

6. The medium conveying device according to claim 1 ,
wherein protruding portions are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface at regular intervals, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction is different from the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

7. The medium conveying device according to claim 2 ,
wherein protruding portions are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface at regular intervals, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction is different from the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

8. The medium conveying device according to claim 1 ,
wherein protruding portions are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface, so that the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed on the medium holding surface, and
the recessed portions and the protruding portions are formed in a shape in which at least one of the interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction, the area of the surface, which comes into contact with the medium, of each of the protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction, or the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at the middle portion in the width direction is different from the interval between adjacent protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, the area of the surface, which comes into contact with the medium, of each of the protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, or the height of each of the protruding portions disposed at both the end portions in the width direction, respectively, so that the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at both the end portions in the width direction is larger than the volume of the recessed portions per unit area of the medium holding surface at the middle portion in the width direction.

9. The medium conveying device according to claim 2 ,
wherein protruding portions are regularly disposed on the medium holding surface,

Assignees

• Fujifilm Corp

Inventors

• Uemura Hiroshi

Classifications

• B41J11/007

  Conveyor belts or like feeding devices · CPC title

• B41J11/0045 Primary

  Guides for printing material (curl smoothing B41J11/0005; platens B41J11/02, B41J11/06; guiding webs B41J15/046) · CPC title

• B41J11/0085

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

• B41J11/057

  Structure of the surface · CPC title