JP2003287899A - Machine plate supply arrangement - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide machine plate supply arrangement in which the installation area of the machine plate supply arrangement and the supplied height of the machine plates can be reduced as much as possible. <P>SOLUTION: A picture recording system comprises: a machine plate supply section 2; a multi-cassette section 3 having a plurality of vertically mutually laminated cassettes; an auto-loader section 4 taking out the machine plate from the interior of each of the cassettes for transportation; a supplying and discharging tray section 5 having a machine plate supply tray and a machine plate discharging tray; a conveyor section 8; and a picture recording section 6 for recording a picture on the machine plate. The machine plate in each of the cassettes is transported by means of the auto-loader section 4 and the conveyor section 8 and is mounted on the machine plate supply tray from the lower side end of the inclined machine plate supply tray and is again transported to the picture recording section 6 from the lower side end of the machine plate supply tray. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a plate supply device for supplying a plate contained in a cassette to an image recording section for recording an image on the plate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in order to print a color printed matter, four color printing plates of Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan) and K (black) are used. In order to create such a printing plate, an image is directly recorded on a printing plate such as a PS plate (Per-sensitized Plate), so-called CTP (C
An image recording device called an "computer to plate" machine is used. In this image recording apparatus, Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan),
A desired image is recorded on the printing plate by irradiating the printing plate with a light beam that is modulated according to each image signal of K (black).

On the other hand, a printing plate supply device for automatically supplying a printing plate to such an image recording apparatus conveys a printing plate from a cassette containing the printing plate toward the image recording device. And a transport mechanism that

[0004]

When the size of the printing plate is increased to print a large pattern, the size of the transport mechanism for transporting the printing plate is also increased accordingly.
For this reason, the installation area of the device and the supply height of the printing plate become large, which causes a problem in the storage space and maintainability of the device.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and provides a printing plate supply device capable of minimizing the installation area of the printing plate supply device and the supply height of the printing plate. With the goal.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plate supply device for supplying a plate to an image recording section, the cassette containing the plate and the plate placed on the cassette. An inclined plate feed tray for guiding the sheet to the image recording unit, and an autoloader unit for transporting the plate in the cassette toward the lower end of the plate feed tray. To do.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the plate supply tray guides the plate placed on the plate feed tray from the lower end side thereof to the image recording section.

According to a third aspect of the invention, in the invention according to the second aspect, a discharge tray for discharging a printing plate on which an image is recorded by the image recording section is provided below the plate supply tray. Is provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, a positioning member for arranging and positioning a plurality of printing plates in the cassette is arranged in the cassette, The autoloader unit simultaneously supplies the plurality of printing plates to the plate supply tray.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the fourth aspect, the autoloader unit holds one end of the printing plate housed in the cassette on the back surface side and inverts the printing plate, thereby performing the printing. The plate is conveyed to the plate supply tray.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the fifth aspect, the autoloader unit includes an interleaf sheet discharging mechanism for removing interleaf sheets disposed between the printing plates.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, there is provided a cassette tilting mechanism for tilting the cassette when a printing plate is stored in the cassette. , A moving mechanism for moving the cassette toward the cassette tilting mechanism.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image recording system equipped with a printing plate supply device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic side view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view thereof.

In this image recording system, a plate supply unit 2 used when storing a plate P in each cassette 9, and a multi-cassette unit 3 having a plurality of cassettes 9 vertically stacked on each other, An autoloader unit 4 that takes out the plate P from the cassette 9 that has moved to the plate supply position and conveys it.
An image recording unit 6 for recording an image on a plate, an image recording unit 6 for recording an image on a printing plate, and an image recording unit 6. And a transport mechanism 7 for transporting the printing plate P to the subsequent automatic developing device.

The conveyor section 8 is for conveying the printing plate P from the autoloader section 4 to the supply / discharge tray section 5. In order to improve the maintainability of the entire apparatus, the conveyor section 8 is configured to be capable of flipping up around one end thereof, as indicated by the chain double-dashed line in FIG.

In this image recording system, five cassettes 9 are stored in the multi-cassette part 3 in a stacked state. The plate P in the cassette 9 is used as the image recording unit 6
When it is transported to the automatic loader unit 4, the cassette 9 housed in the multi-cassette unit 3 is moved to the autoloader unit 4 by a slide mechanism described later. Then, the cassette 9 is moved up and down to the printing plate supply position shown in FIG.

Further, when a new printing plate P is stored in the cassette 9, the cassette 9 stored in the multi-cassette unit 3 is moved to the autoloader unit 4 by a slide mechanism described later. Then, the cassette 9 is moved up and down to a cassette take-out position at the same height as the horizontal cassette receiver 11 shown by the solid line in FIG. Thereafter, the motors 18 and 19 shown in FIG. 3 are driven to move the cassette 9 in the autoloader unit 4 along a guide member (not shown), and the cassette 9 is moved to the plate supply unit 2.
In the cassette receiver 11 at.

As shown in FIG. 4, this cassette receiver 11
Is arranged so as to be rotatable around a shaft 12 in the plate supply unit 2, and a spur gear 13 around the shaft 12 is arranged on the outer peripheral portion of the shaft 12. On the other hand, the plate supply unit 2
A motor 15 having a worm gear 14 is arranged in the. This worm gear 14 is a worm wheel 1 arranged coaxially with a spur gear 16 that meshes with the spur gear 13.
It meshes with 7. Therefore, this cassette receiver 11
2 is configured to swing by driving the motor 15 between a horizontal posture shown by a solid line in FIG. 2 and an inclined posture shown by a virtual line in FIG.

When moving the cassette 9 between the autoloader section 4 and the cassette receiver 11, the cassette receiver 11
Is in a horizontal position. Even when a relatively small printing plate P is stored in the cassette 9 that has moved into the cassette receiver 11,
The cassette receiver 11 may remain in a horizontal position. However, when a relatively large printing plate P is stored in the cassette 9, the cassette receiver 11 is inclined. As a result, a relatively large printing plate P can be easily stored in the cassette 9 without bending.

Next, a slide mechanism for moving the cassette 9 between the multi-cassette section 3 and the autoloader section 4,
The structure of the elevating mechanism for elevating the cassette 9 by the autoloader unit 4 will be described. 5 is a side view showing a configuration of a slide mechanism arranged from the multi-cassette unit 3 to the autoloader unit 4 and an elevating mechanism arranged in the autoloader unit 4, and FIG. 6 is arranged in the autoloader unit 3. It is a top view which shows the structure of the raising / lowering mechanism. 7 and 8 are enlarged views of the essential parts showing the relationship between the cassette 9 and the slide mechanism and the lifting mechanism. Note that FIG. 7 shows the relationship between the cassette 9 in the multi-cassette unit 3 and the slide mechanism and the lifting mechanism, and FIG. 8 shows the relationship between the cassette 9 in the autoloader unit 4 and the slide mechanism and the lifting mechanism.

The above-mentioned cassettes 9 are arranged in five stages in the multi-cassette section 3, as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, each of the five cassettes 9 includes an outer tray 21 and an inner tray 22 arranged in the outer tray 21. The printing plates P are stored in the internal tray 22 with the interleaving paper S interposed therebetween in a superposed state. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, a rack 33 is attached to an outer portion of one side surface of the external tray 21 in each cassette 9. The rack 33 meshes with a pinion 35 that is rotated by driving a motor 34 fixed to the multi-cassette unit 3.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, on the outer side portion of one side surface of the outer tray 21 in each cassette 9, five pieces are arranged in the multi-cassette part 3 corresponding to the arrangement position of each cassette 9. A roller 36 that engages with the guide member 37 of FIG. Further, on the outer side portion of the other side surface of the outer tray 21 in each cassette 9, 5 arranged in the multi-cassette unit 3 corresponding to the arrangement position of each cassette 9.
A roller 39 supported by a book support rail 38 is provided.

Therefore, when the pinion 35 is rotated by the drive of the motor 34, the rack 33 arranged on the outer tray 21 is pushed laterally, and the cassettes 9 as a whole are shown in FIGS. The left-right direction shown in FIG.
In the direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper). This allows
Each cassette 9 moves horizontally from the multi-cassette unit 3 toward the autoloader unit 4.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the autoloader unit 4 includes five guide members 3 in the multi-cassette unit 3.
One guide member 47 similar to that of No. 7 and one support rail 48 similar to the five support rails 38 of the multi-cassette unit 3 are provided. The guide member 47 and the support rail 48 are screwed with the ball screw 51 via the guide member bracket 41 and the support rail bracket 42. Further, the autoloader unit 4 is provided with a motor 44 and a pinion 45 which are similar to the motor 34 in the multi-cassette unit 3. The motor 44 is connected to the guide member bracket 41 via a connecting member (not shown), and is vertically movable together with the guide member bracket 41.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in the lower central portion of the autoloader section 4, a miter gear 53 is provided on its rotation shaft.
Is provided with a motor. The miter gear 53 is connected to the ball screw 51 screwed to the guide member 47 and the support rail 48 described above via the plurality of miter gears 54 and the shaft 55. Therefore, the guide member 47, the guide member bracket 41, the support rail 48, and the support rail bracket 42 described above perform the lifting operation by the driving of the lifting motor 52.

FIG. 5 shows a state in which the central cassette 9 is moved from the multi-cassette section 3 to the autoloader section 4. In this state, the multi-cassette unit 3
The guide member 37 and the support rail 38 in FIG. 3 and the guide member 47 and the support rail 48 in the autoloader unit 4 are arranged on the same straight line. Further, the pinion 35 in the multi-cassette unit 3 and the pinion 45 in the autoloader unit 4 are arranged at the same height position. The distance between the pinion 35 and the pinion 45 is smaller than the length of the rack 33 attached to the cassette 9.

In such a state, when the pinion 35 is rotated by the driving of the motor 34 in the multi-cassette section 3 and the pinion 45 is rotated by the driving of the motor 44 in the autoloader section 4, the cassette 9 is initially set to its original state. The rack 33 receives drive from the pinion 35, and is guided by the guide member 37 and the support rail 38 in the multi-cassette unit 3 to start moving from the multi-cassette unit 3 to the autoloader unit 4.

When the front end of the cassette 9 enters the autoloader unit 4, the cassette 9 is guided by the guide member 47 and the support rail 48 in the autoloader unit 4. Then, the rack 33 in the cassette 9 is replaced by the autoloader unit 4
After meshing with the pinion 45 in FIG. 2 and being driven by the pinion 45, the engagement state between the rack 33 and the pinion 35 in the multi-cassette unit 3 is released.

After the engagement between the rack 33 and the pinion 35 in the multi-cassette unit 3 is released, the cassette 9 is driven by the pinion 45 in the autoloader unit 4 and moves to the position shown in FIG. After that, by driving the elevating motor 52, the cassette 9 is moved to the printing plate supply position for transporting the printing plate P from the cassette 9 toward the image recording device 3, or the cassette 9 is moved to the printing plate supply unit 2. To the cassette removal position.

In the cassette 9, a plurality of printing plates P of various sizes can be arranged and stored. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 6, a groove 56 for mounting a positioning member for positioning the printing plates P of various sizes is formed on the bottom of the cassette 9.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing a state in which various size printing plates P are stored in the cassette 9. Note that FIG.
FIG. 9A shows a state in which a relatively large single size printing plate P is stored in the cassette 9, and FIG. 9B shows two sets of printing plates P of the same size stored in the cassette 9. FIG. 9C shows a state in which two sets of printing plates P having different sizes are housed in the cassette 9.

As shown in this figure, the printing plate P housed in the cassette 9 has one side abutted against the front wall of the cassette 9 and the other three sides mounted in the groove 56 in any state. The positioning member 57 is positioned while being in contact with the positioning member 57.

Next, a plate conveying mechanism for conveying the plate P from the cassette 9 arranged at the plate supply position to the conveyor section 8 and a plate arranged in the cassette 9 between the plate P and the plate P. The configuration of the interleaf paper ejection mechanism for ejecting the paper S will be described. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing the autoloader unit 4 together with the conveyor unit 8 for explaining the plate transport mechanism.
11 to 13 are explanatory views showing the operations of the plate transporting mechanism and the interleaf paper discharging mechanism in the autoloader unit 4.

The plate transport mechanism for transporting the plate P from the cassette 7 which has moved to the plate supply position toward the conveyor section 8 drives the endless synchronous belt 61 which is rotated by the drive of the motor 60. A traveling member 63 that receives and travels along the guide rail 62 is provided. The traveling member 63 is provided with a pinion (not shown) that meshes with a rack 64 arranged in parallel with the guide rail 62, and an arm 66 is fixedly mounted on the pinion. A pair of support plates 82, which will be described later, are arranged at the tip of the arm 66, and a plurality of suction pads 67 for holding the support plate P by suction are attached to the support plate 82. ing.

A support roller 69 is provided at the tip of the arm 66 to support the tip of the printing plate P from the lower surface when the printing plate P is conveyed. further,
The arm 66 has a support roller 71 for supporting the central portion of the printing plate P from the lower surface thereof.
It is connected to 5.

As shown in FIG. 10, the suction pads 67 described above are arranged in the cassette 9 side by side to form two sets of printing plates P.
It is attached to a pair of support plates 82 arranged so as to correspond to. The suction pads 67 attached to these support plates 82 are selected depending on the size of the printing plate P to be suction-held therein. It should be noted that these suction pads 67 may be moved in the row direction (left-right direction in FIG. 10) according to the size of the printing plate P to be suction-held therein.

In the carrying mechanism having such a structure, when the traveling member 63 is moved to the right from the state shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the arm 66 rotates about the pinion shaft center. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 11, when the traveling member 63 is moved to the right by the drive of the motor 60 in a state in which the two printing plates P are suction-held by the suction pad 67, it is shown in FIG. So that the suction pad 6
After the two printing plates P attracted and held by 7 are turned upside down, as shown in FIG. 13, a pair of carrying rollers for carrying the leading ends of the printing plates P toward the conveyor unit 8 are provided. It will be sandwiched between 72 and 73.

On the other hand, the interleaf sheet ejecting mechanism for ejecting the interleaf sheet disposed between the respective printing plates P has a ball screw 75 which is rotated by being driven by a motor 68 via a pair of miter gears 74, An elevating member 76 that ascends and descends along the ball screw 75 is provided. The lifting member 76 is provided with a pair of support plates 83 similar to the above-described pair of support plates 82. The support plate 83 has a suction pad for holding two interleaving sheets S by suction at the same time. 77 is provided.

In the vicinity of the upper end of the lifting stroke of the suction pad 77, a slip sheet conveying mechanism 81 for discharging the slip sheet S sucked and held by the suction pad 77 to the slip sheet container 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Is provided. Interleaving paper case 1
As shown in FIG. 2, the slip sheet S discharged to 0 is pressed by a slip sheet presser 43 attached to the back surface of the cassette receiver 11 to reduce its volume.

In this interleaf paper discharging mechanism, when the suction pad 67 starts suction holding the printing plate P, as shown in FIG. 11, the elevating member 76 stands by at the upper end of the elevating stroke. . Then, the elevating member 76 once descends to the lower end of the elevating stroke in a state where the suction pad 67 conveys the front end of the printing plate P adsorbed and held there toward the pair of conveying rollers 72, 73, and then adsorbs. The pad 77 sucks and holds the leading end portions of the two interleaving paper sheets S. After that, the elevating member 76 ascends together with the suction pad 77 that suction-holds the front end portion of the slip sheet S. And this lifting member 7
The reference numeral 6 designates two interleaving sheets S sucked and held by the suction pad 77.
After guiding one end of the sheet to the interleaf sheet conveying mechanism 81, the sheet returns to the upper end of the lifting stroke as shown in FIG.

Next, the image recording section 6 and the supply / discharge tray section 5
The configuration of will be described. FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the image recording unit 6 and the supply / discharge tray unit 5.

First, the configuration of the image recording section 6 will be described with reference to FIG. The image recording unit 6 includes a cylindrical recording drum 101 and a pair of recording heads 102 and 103.
And punch unit 104 and width adjustment unit 105
And an electrical unit 106. Further, the image recording section is provided with two pairs of conveying rollers 111 and 112 for guiding the printing plate P conveyed from the conveyor section 8.

The cylindrical recording drum 101 is for mounting one or two printing plates P on the outer peripheral portion thereof. The recording drum 101 rotates about a shaft oriented in the horizontal direction by the drive of the motor 115. On the outer peripheral portion of the recording drum 101, a front end clamp 116 for fixing the front end portion of the printing plate P and a rear end clamp 117 for fixing the rear end portion of the printing plate P are arranged. Further, on the outer peripheral surface of the recording drum 101, in order to position the printing plate P, a plurality of positioning pins (not shown) that engage with pin holes formed at the tip of the printing plate P are provided upright. .

The pair of recording heads 102 and 103 are for recording an image on one or two printing plates P mounted on the outer peripheral portion of the recording drum 101. Each of the recording heads 102 and 103 has a structure in which a large number of light emitting elements arranged therein emit a light beam modulated in accordance with an image signal. One of the recording heads 102, 103 is driven by a ball screw 121 rotated by a motor 118, and the recording drum 10 is driven.
Move in a direction parallel to the axis of 1. On the other hand, the other recording head 103 is driven by a ball screw 122 rotated by a motor 119 and moves in a direction parallel to the axis of the recording drum 101.

The punch unit 104 has a positioning pin hole at the leading end of the printing plate P before mounting the printing plate P on the outer peripheral portion of the recording drum 101, or a reference when the printing plate P is used in a subsequent process. This is for forming a pin hole that becomes Further, the width adjusting unit 105 is the punch unit 1
This is for positioning the printing plate P in the width direction before forming a pin hole at the leading end of the printing plate P by 04.

Next, with reference to FIG. 14 and FIGS. 15 to 19 showing the operation of conveying the printing plate P, the structure of the supply / discharge tray section 5 will be described. The feeding / discharging tray unit 5 temporarily mounts the printing plate P conveyed by the conveyor unit 8, and an inclined plate feeding tray 131 for guiding the printing plate P to the image recording unit 6, and image recording. Plate P on which images were recorded in Part 6
And an inclined plate discharge tray 132 for discharging the sheet to the transport mechanism 7 in the subsequent stage.

The plate feed tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 are connected to each other by a pair of side plates 133, and can swing in synchronism about a shaft 134 erected on each side plate 133. . Then, the pair of shafts 134
Is connected to a rotating mechanism (not shown). The plate feed tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 control the angular position of the shaft 134 to place the printing plate P on the plate feed tray 131 from the conveyor section 8. A first angular position when the printing plate P is placed, and a second angular position when the printing plate P is supplied to the punch unit 104 and the width-shifting unit 105,
It is possible to take the third angular position when supplying the printing plate P after the pin holes are formed to the recording drum 101.

At the lower end of the plate supply tray 131, the plate P
A pair of transport rollers 141 and 142 for transporting the sheet are provided. Further, in the opening formed at the center of the plate supply tray 131, the printing plate P placed on the plate supply tray 131 is provided.
A suction plate 143 for sucking and transporting the lower surface of the plate P, and an endless belt 144 for transporting the plate P by contacting the lower surface of the plate P placed on the plate feed tray 131 are provided. There is. The suction plate 143 and the endless belt 144 move in synchronization with each other. Further, on the surface of the plate supply tray 131, a large number of rollers 146 for contacting the lower surface of the plate P placed thereon and guiding the plate P are arranged.

On the other hand, an endless belt 145 for conveying the printing plate P placed on the plate discharge tray 132 is arranged in an opening formed in the center of the plate discharge tray 132.

The plate supply tray 131 described above is large enough to mount the printing plate P of the maximum size. At this time, since the plate feed tray 131 is inclined, even if the plate feed tray 131 has a large size, the installation area can be reduced.

In this embodiment, since the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 are vertically stacked, the installation area of the apparatus can be reduced. Further, as described later, the plate feeding tray 131 is
Since the plate P conveyed from the lower end portion is conveyed to the image recording portion 6 in a switchback manner from the lower end portion again, the height position of the image recording portion 6 is lowered. Further, the pair of recording heads 102 and 103 can be arranged below the plate supply tray 131.

Next, using the supply / discharge tray section 5 described above,
The plate P before image recording, which is conveyed from the autoloader unit 4 via the conveyor unit 8, is conveyed from the feeding / discharging tray unit 5 to the image recording unit 6, and the plate P on which image recording is completed is fed / discharged. FIG. 15 is a view showing a transporting operation of the printing plate P with respect to the transporting operation of the printing plate P discharged to the transporting mechanism 7 in the subsequent stage via the tray section 5.
It will be described with reference to FIGS.

When the plate P taken out from the cassette 9 in the above-mentioned autoloader unit 4 is conveyed by the conveyor unit 8, the plate feeding tray 1 in the feeding / discharging tray unit 5 is carried out.
The plate 31 and the plate discharge tray 132 are arranged at the first angular position shown in FIG. And FIG. 15 (b)
When the leading edge of the printing plate P is placed on the endless belt 144 from the conveyor unit 8 as shown in FIG. 5, the printing plate P is conveyed by being driven by both the conveyor unit 5 and the endless belt 144.

When the rear end of the printing plate P approaches the leading end of the conveyor section 8, as shown in FIG. 16 (a), the suction plate 143 rises and sucks the lower surface of the printing plate P. In this state, the endless belt 144 and the suction plate 143 move in synchronization with each other, so that the printing plate P is moved to the plate feed tray 1 as shown in FIG.
It is placed on 31.

Next, the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 in the supply / discharge tray section 5 are arranged at the second angular position shown in FIG. 17 (a). Then, as shown in FIG. 17A, the front end of the plate P is inserted into the punch unit 104 and the width-shifting unit 105, and the plate P is positioned and pin holes are formed.

When the positioning of the printing plate P and the punching of the pin holes are completed, the printing plate P is conveyed to a position where the leading end thereof is nipped by the pair of conveying rollers 141 and 142, as shown in FIG. 17 (b). At the same time, the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 in the supply / discharge tray unit 5 are arranged at the third angular position shown in FIG. 17B.

Next, the printing plate P placed on the plate supply tray 131 is conveyed to the recording drum 101, and its front end portion and rear end portion are fixed by the front end clamp 116 and the rear end clamp 117 shown in FIG. . When the mounting of the printing plate P on the outer peripheral portion of the recording drum 101 is completed, as shown in FIG. 18A, the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 in the sheet supply / discharge tray unit 5 are arranged at the first angular position. To do. In this state, the recording drum 101 is rotated at high speed, and the recording heads 102 and 103 are moved in the axial direction of the recording drum 101 while irradiating the recording heads 102 and 103 with light beams to record an image. In this state, as shown in FIG. 18A, the next printing plate P is conveyed on the conveyor section 8.

When the recording of the image on the printing plate P is completed, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 8B, the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 in the supply / discharge tray unit 5 are again arranged at the third angular position. Then, the printing plate P on which the image recording is completed is conveyed from the outer peripheral portion of the recording drum 101 onto the plate discharge tray 132. At this time, the next printing plate P is placed on the plate supply tray 131 after its positioning and pin hole formation are performed by the same steps as those described above.

When the plate P on which the image recording is completed is placed on the plate discharge tray 132, as shown in FIG.
The next printing plate P is conveyed toward the recording drum 101.

Then, as shown in FIG. 19B, the plate supply tray 131 and the plate discharge tray 132 in the sheet supply / discharge tray unit 5 are arranged at the first angular position, and the image is recorded on the next plate P. To execute. In this state, the plate P on which the image recording is completed first is conveyed toward the conveying mechanism 7 in the subsequent stage. Further, on the conveyor section 8, the next printing plate P
Are being transported.

In the above embodiment, the multi-cassette unit 3 and the autoloader unit 4 perform the horizontal movement and the vertical movement of the cassette 9 to position the desired cassette 9 among the plurality of cassettes 9 at the plate supply position. However, other methods are also possible. For example, the desired cassette 9 may be positioned at the printing plate supply position only by moving the cassette 9 up and down.

[0062]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cassette for storing the printing plate, the inclined plate feed tray for guiding the printing plate placed on the plate to the image recording section, and the inside of the cassette Since the plate is provided with an autoloader section for conveying the plate toward the lower end of the plate supply tray, it is possible to reduce the installation area of the plate supply device and the plate supply height. Become.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the plate feed tray guides the printing plate placed on the plate from its lower end to the image recording unit, so that the image recording unit is arranged at a low position. Further, it is possible to dispose a part of the image recording section below the plate supply tray.

According to the third aspect of the invention, since the discharge tray for discharging the printing plate on which the image is recorded by the image recording section is disposed below the plate supply tray,
It is possible to reduce the installation area of the device.

According to the invention described in claim 4, a positioning member for arranging and positioning a plurality of printing plates in the cassette is arranged in the cassette, and the autoloader section has the plurality of printing plates. Since a plurality of printing plates are simultaneously supplied to the plate supply tray, it is possible to convey a plurality of printing plates at the same time.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the autoloader section conveys the printing plate to the plate feeding tray by holding and reversing one end on the back side of the printing plate stored in the cassette. , The surface of the printing plate on which the image is recorded is not adversely affected.

According to the invention described in claim 6, since the autoloader section is provided with the interleaf sheet discharging mechanism for removing the interleaf sheet disposed between the printing plates, it is possible to effectively eliminate unnecessary sheet ejection during image recording. Can be discharged to.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the cassette tilting mechanism for tilting the cassette when the plate is stored in the cassette and the moving mechanism for moving the cassette toward the cassette tilting mechanism are provided. Therefore, even when a relatively large printing plate is stored in the cassette, it is possible to easily store the printing plate in the cassette without bending the printing plate.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image recording system including a plate supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of an image recording system including a plate supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of an image recording system including a plate supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a rotation mechanism of a cassette receiver 11.

5 is a side view showing a configuration of a slide mechanism arranged from the multi-cassette unit 3 to the auto loader unit 4 and a lifting mechanism arranged in the auto loader unit 4. FIG.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the configuration of an elevating mechanism arranged in the auto loader section 3.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of an essential part showing the relationship between the cassette 9 and the slide mechanism.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of an essential part showing the relationship between the cassette 9 and the slide mechanism.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which various size printing plates P are stored in a cassette 9.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing an autoloader unit 4 together with a conveyor unit 8 for explaining a plate transport mechanism.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing operations of a plate transporting mechanism and an interleaf paper discharging mechanism in the autoloader unit 4.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing operations of a plate transporting mechanism and an interleaf paper discharging mechanism in the autoloader unit 4.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing operations of a plate transporting mechanism and an interleaf sheet discharging mechanism in the autoloader unit 4.

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the image recording unit 6 and the supply / discharge tray unit 5.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing a transport operation of the printing plate P.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing a transporting operation of the printing plate P.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing a transporting operation of the printing plate P.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram showing a transporting operation of the printing plate P.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram showing a transporting operation of the printing plate P.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 Plate supply department 3 Multi-cassette section 4 Autoloader section 5 Feeding and discharging tray section 6 Image recording section 7 Transport mechanism 8 Conveyor section 9 cassettes 10 slip box 11 cassette receiver 56 groove 57 Positioning member 63 Traveling member 66 arms 67 Suction pad 77 Suction pad 101 recording drum 102 recording head 103 recording head 131 Plate supply tray 132 Discharge tray

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Ryuzo Tokimasa             4-chome Tenjin, which runs up to Teranouchi, Horikawa-dori, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto             1 Kitamachi No. 1 Dai Nippon Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd.             Inside the company F term (reference) 2H084 AA30 AE05 BB13                 2H097 CA17 DB03 DB07 DC01 LA03                 3F343 FA00 FA09 FB05 GD02 HA15                       HA36 HB04 HC03 HC30 JB02                       KB02 KB03 KB04 KB14 KB17                       LB06

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A printing plate feeding device for feeding a printing plate to an image recording section, comprising: a cassette for storing the printing plate; and an inclined feeding device for guiding the printing plate placed on the cassette to the image recording section. A plate supply apparatus comprising: a plate tray; and an autoloader unit for conveying the plate in the cassette toward a lower end of the plate supply tray. 2. The plate supply device according to claim 1, wherein the plate supply tray guides a plate placed on the plate supply tray to the image recording unit from the lower end side thereof. 3. The plate supply device according to claim 2, wherein a discharge tray for discharging a plate on which an image has been recorded by the image recording unit is disposed below the plate supply tray. Plate feeding device. 4. The printing plate supply device according to claim 1, wherein a positioning member for arranging and positioning a plurality of printing plates in the cassette is arranged in the cassette, and the autoloader unit includes: A plate feeding device that feeds a plurality of these plates to the plate tray at the same time. 5. The printing plate supply device according to claim 4, wherein the autoloader unit holds the one end on the back surface side of the printing plate housed in the cassette and inverts the printing plate to feed the printing plate. Plate supply device that conveys to the plate tray. 6. The printing plate supply device according to claim 5, wherein the autoloader unit includes an interleaf paper discharging mechanism that removes interleaving papers disposed between the printing plates. 7. The printing plate supply apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a cassette tilting mechanism that tilts the cassette when the printing plates are stored in the cassette, and the cassette. A plate feeding device comprising a moving mechanism that moves the cassette inclining mechanism.