JP2007246205A - Automatic feeding device for lithographic printing plate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic feeding device for lithographic printing plates wherein only a plurality of lithographic printing plates are set while approximately horizontally superposed and bundled, and separated and carried out by using a sucker. <P>SOLUTION: The uppermost lithographic printing plate 11 out of a bundle of approximately horizontally set lithographic printing plates 11 is sucked by a suction surface part of the sucker 202 bent so as to form a waveform, and is separated so as to prevent close contact with the lithographic printing plate 11 immediately below the uppermost lithographic printing plate 11. A carrying-out roller 146 is fitted to the uppermost lithographic printing plate 11 so as to enable roll-contact. The uppermost lithographic printing plate 11 sucked by the sucker 202 is lifted up, laterally conveyed above a carrying-out roller 147 in the conveying direction downstream side, lowered on the carrying out roller 147, and carried out by being nipped between and brought into roll-contact with the carrying-out rollers 147, 146. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a lithographic printing plate in which only a plurality of lithographic printing plates are loaded in a stacked state in a horizontal direction and are separated into a sheet by lifting each lithographic printing plate one by one using a suction cup. Relates to the automatic feeding apparatus.

  In general, a lithographic printing plate (so-called PS plate) is used for offset printing. Also, in this lithographic printing field, upon receiving supply of an unexposed lithographic printing plate, the lithographic printing plate is subjected to laser exposure processing based on digital data from a computer or the like, and is applied onto the lithographic printing plate by an automatic processor. A CTP (Computer to Plate) system for making a printing plate directly by performing a development process for converting the formed latent image into a visible image has been put into practical use. Some CTP systems are equipped with an automatic supply device for lithographic printing plates.

  In a conventional automatic lithographic printing plate feeder of an automatic plate making machine, a plurality of lithographic printing plates and interleaf sheets are stacked alternately and stored in a printing plate packaging box, and the lid is closed. With the light shielded, it is loaded into the printing plate supply cassette in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device, the door of the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device is closed and the inside of the device is shielded from light. When the open / close lid is opened and the plate-making operation is started, the sheet is fed from the bundle of planographic plates by the sheet feeder of the automatic plate feeder from the bundle of planographic plates stored in the printing plate packaging box. There is a proposal that removes the lithographic printing plates one by one and transports them to the exposure processing unit side (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In such a lithographic printing plate automatic supply device of such an automatic plate making machine, the interleaf is removed from the photosensitive surface of the lithographic printing plate from which the packaging material has been removed while maintaining the light-shielded state in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device. In order to make it stock in the disposal site, an automatic device for removing a large interleaf paper having a complicated structure is necessary. When this is used for a CTP system equipped with an automatic lithographic printing plate supply device, the CTP system Becomes large and expensive.

  Further, the CTP system does not require protection of the interleaf, and the surface-enhanced photopolymer PS plate (so-called so-called “strengthened recording layer”) has been reinforced so that scratches do not pose a problem even when handled in a state of being stacked and bundled directly. Development of products using interleaf-free lithographic printing plates) is in progress.

  In the planographic printing plate constituted as this interleaf-free lithographic printing plate, a photosensitive layer is formed by coating a photosensitive agent on the surface of a thin aluminum substrate in a layered manner, and further a lithographic printing plate (PS plate) On the outermost surface of the photosensitive layer, an overcoat layer (PVA: polyvinyl alcohol called so-called OC layer) is applied to prevent desensitization development of the photosensitive layer by oxygen, and is resistant to external force (for example, normal Some strength properties are 20 times greater than those of PS plates.

  The OC layer of this interleaf-free lithographic printing plate is necessary until the completion of image recording (exposure). However, since it becomes an obstacle to development, the OC layer is formed so that it can be completely removed by a washing step before development. Consists of water-soluble materials.

  Furthermore, this lithographic printing plate is made of water glass so that the lithographic printing plates that are overlapped when the lithographic printing plates are transported do not adhere to the back surface of the aluminum substrate (the surface on which the photosensitive layer is not provided). There are those provided with a back coat layer.

  In a CTP system in which a planographic printing plate to be used uses, for example, a large interleaf-less planographic printing plate such as B1 size (interleaf-less PS plate), only a plurality of planographic printing plates are arranged in a horizontal direction, The backcoat layer of the other lithographic printing plate is directly brought into contact with the overcoat layer on the surface of one lithographic printing plate and stacked, and a predetermined number of stacked bundles are loaded into the housing of the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device, When the plate making operation is started, the lithographic printing plates are separated one by one from the bundle of lithographic printing plates by the sheet feeding device of the automatic feeding device, and are carried out to the exposure processing unit side.

  In such a lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus, it is only necessary to separate and carry out the slip-less lithographic printing plates one by one, so that the slip sheet take-out mechanism, slip sheet transport mechanism, and slip sheet stacking unit are not required. Thus, the productivity of the CTP system can be improved, an inexpensive CTP system can be provided, and the CTP system can be reduced in size while saving space.

  Further, an automatic lithographic printing plate supply device using this interleaf-free lithographic printing plate is provided with a rubber carrying-out roller as a pick-up roller on the surface of the uppermost lithographic printing plate in a stack of lithographic printing plates stacked. The rolling plate (roller) is rolled with the required nip force (pressure contact force) applied, so that the lithographic printing plate is separated and conveyed one by one against the resistance of the lithographic printing plate. It is conceivable to use a conveyance roller system.

  In an automatic feeding device of a transport roller type lithographic printing plate in a CTP system that uses such a slip-less lithographic printing plate, only a plurality of lithographic printing plates are arranged in a horizontal direction in a housing of the automatic feeding device. Since it is loaded in a bundled state, if the inside of the housing of the automatic supply device becomes hot and humid (for example, temperature 30 ° C., humidity 50% or more) as in the case of operation in the rainy season, the OC layer is in the air It tends to absorb water and dissolve and increase adhesion.

  As a result, in the automatic supply device of the transport roller type lithographic printing plate, the back surface of the aluminum substrate of the uppermost photosensitive printing plate on which the OC layer absorbs water and melts to increase the adhesion is superimposed on it. The transport load for peeling the uppermost photosensitive printing plate from the lower photosensitive printing plate and carrying it out increases, so the nip force is increased by strongly pressing the pickup roller. Increasing the transport force will be necessary.

  Further, in this automatic feeding device of the transport roller type lithographic printing plate, when the adhesive force of the portion where the OC layer absorbs water and melts and the adhesion is increased, a plurality of photosensitive printing plates are picked up at a time by the pickup roller. May be in a state of unloading, or a state in which the conveyance load increases and the conveyance is impossible.

  Further, in this transport roller type lithographic printing plate automatic supply device, the range of receiving the nip force of the unloading roller in the uppermost lithographic printing plate when the pick-up roller is strongly pressed to increase the transport force The back surface of the plate slides so as to rub against the surface of the planographic printing plate located therebelow.

  That is, in the automatic feeding device of the transport roller type lithographic printing plate, a portion in a range where the nip force of the carry-out roller in the lithographic printing plate immediately below the lithographic printing plate to be carried out is received via the lithographic printing plate to be carried out. However, it is rubbed strongly in the transport direction by the back surface of the lithographic printing plate to be transported.

For this reason, in the lithographic printing plate directly under the lithographic printing plate to be carried out, the photosensitive layer and the overcoat layer within the range affected by the nip force of the carrying-out roller are scratched to make a visible black scratch. This may cause serious problems on the printing surface.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-314771

  In view of the above-described problems, the present invention loads a plurality of planographic printing plates in a stacked state in a horizontal direction and bundles them together, and separates the sheets by lifting each of the planographic printing plates one by one using a suction cup. The purpose is to provide a new automatic supply device for lithographic printing plates to be carried out.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for automatically supplying a lithographic printing plate, wherein a plurality of lithographic printing plates are laminated on the surface of one lithographic printing plate by directly contacting the back surface of the other lithographic printing plate. The stacked and bundled undulates the storage device that is set in a state of being held substantially horizontally and the lithographic printing plate located at the top of the bundle of lithographic printing plates that are set substantially horizontally. The uppermost lithographic plate in a bundle of lithographic printing plates set almost horizontally and sucked so that the lithographic printing plate directly below the uppermost lithographic printing plate does not adhere by adsorbing at the adsorbing surface formed by curving The unloading roller mounted so as to be capable of rolling contact with the printing plate and the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer are lifted to a predetermined height position and then conveyed horizontally onto the unloading roller on the downstream side in the conveying direction. Lower the top lithographic printing plate onto the unloading roller It is nipped between the discharge roller, and having a a moving operation means for operating so as to enable unloading by rolling contact with a nip between the discharge roller and the carry-out roller.

  By configuring as described above, a predetermined plurality of lithographic printing plates are stacked and stacked without any interleaving paper, and are set in a state of being held substantially horizontally, and unloaded at the uppermost position. When the lithographic printing plate is sucked with soccer, the lithographic printing plate is lifted in a deformed state along the suction surface portion formed by curving so as to wave the soccer, so that the lithographic printing plate is curved and formed to wave. Good for peeling the downstream part of the transported lithographic printing plate from the underlying lithographic printing plate by lifting the lithographic printing plate while allowing air to flow in through the gap created by elastic deformation along the shape of the suction surface. Can be performed. Further, when the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer by the moving operation means is lifted to a predetermined height position and then transported laterally onto the unloading roller on the downstream side in the conveying direction, the conveying direction of the lithographic printing plate to be unloaded It is possible to perform a good rolling operation for peeling the upstream portion from the lithographic printing plate therebelow. Further, since the lithographic printing plates separated into one sheet are carried out by being nipped between the carrying-out roller and the carrying-out roller and rolling, the situation where the lithographic printing plates are brought into sliding contact with each other to cause scratches can be solved.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the first aspect, when the uppermost lithographic printing plate is lifted by adsorbing the unloading roller with the soccer, It is characterized in that it is mounted so that the lithographic printing plate directly below the uppermost lithographic printing plate does not adhere by making a level difference.

  By configuring as described above, in addition to the operation and effect of the invention according to claim 1, a portion near the downstream end in the transport direction of the lithographic printing plate is, for example, partly lifted to soccer, By being pushed down by the unloading roller at the other part, it is sufficiently elastically deformed and curved so as to draw a large wave, and it extends across the entire width direction downstream of the transport direction with the lithographic printing plate under it. In this state, the contact is completely released, air is sufficiently allowed to flow in through the gap generated by the elastic deformation of the lithographic printing plate, and the intermediate portion in the transport direction of the lithographic printing plate to be unloaded is removed from the lower lithographic printing plate. A tearing-off operation can be performed.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer is lifted to a predetermined height position, and then downstream in the conveying direction. A stopper is provided to prevent the lithographic printing plate adjacent to the uppermost lithographic printing plate from being unloaded together when being conveyed horizontally onto the side carry-out roller.

  With the above-described configuration, when the lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer moves substantially horizontally, even if the lithographic printing plate adjacent below it moves toward the downstream side in the conveyance direction, it is stopped by hitting the stopper. Therefore, only the lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer can be carried out more reliably.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer is lifted to a predetermined height position. The air blower nozzle is arranged to be separated by blowing air between the uppermost lithographic printing plate and the lithographic printing plate below the uppermost lithographic printing plate when transported horizontally onto the unloading roller on the downstream side in the transport direction. It is characterized by that.

  With the configuration described above, the lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer and the lithographic printing plate adjacent to the lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer are moved during the operation of moving the lithographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the transport direction. By blowing air between the plates, the space between them can be peeled off and separated, and only the planographic printing plate adsorbed by soccer can be more reliably carried out.

  According to the automatic lithographic printing plate supply apparatus of the present invention, only a plurality of lithographic printing plates are loaded in a stacked state in a horizontal direction, and each lithographic printing plate is lifted one by one using a suction cup. There is an effect that each lithographic printing plate can be reliably separated and carried out.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments relating to a planographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the present embodiment applies a photosensitive agent to the surface of a photosensitive printing plate as compared with, for example, a general photosensitive printing plate (PS plate) currently on the market. The formed photosensitive surface is strong against external force (20 times or more) and is a so-called interleaf-less photosensitive printing plate (interleaf-less PS plate) that is a photopolymer PS plate that does not require protection of the interleaf. B1 size or other large slip-less lithographic printing plates are bundled into a stack that is stacked in a substantially horizontal direction in the apparatus (with a small lithographic printing plate oriented in a substantially horizontal direction) The sheet feeding device may be configured to perform a feeding operation in which each lithographic printing plate is separated and transported one by one.

  That is, an interleaf-free photosensitive printing plate (interleaf-free photosensitive printing plate) as an interleaf-less lithographic printing plate used in this lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus is a thin plate formed into a rectangular plate of a predetermined size. On a support that is an aluminum plate, a photosensitive surface containing a photosensitive material (photosensitive agent surface that is an image recording layer, that is, an Em surface) is provided.

  The slip-less photosensitive printing plate used in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device is manufactured by manufacturing a predetermined number of the photosensitive printing plates, eliminating the slip sheet, and exposing the photosensitive printing plate to the surface of the photosensitive printing plate. It is transported and stored in a state of being laminated and bundled in a state where the back surface of the photosensitive printing plate hits the back side of the photosensitive printing plate (the back surface of the PS plate aluminum surface), and is the base material of the photosensitive printing plate. Even if the photosensitive printing plates are separated and carried out one by one while rubbing the photosensitive surface with the aluminum surface, there is a characteristic that scratches, pressure fog, etc. do not occur.

  In addition, the slip-less photosensitive printing plate used in this lithographic printing plate automatic feeding apparatus is recorded on the back side of the photosensitive printing plate stacked on the back side of the aluminum material which is the back side of the photosensitive printing plate. An overcoat layer may be applied to prevent the surface from being scratched.

  This interleaf-less photosensitive printing plate is manufactured, and after stacking, a predetermined number of sheets are stacked without interleaving paper to be bundled in a rectangular parallelepiped and packaged so that handling such as transportation and storage is easy. This interleaf-free photosensitive printing plate is supplied in a light-shielded state to the inside of a lithographic printing plate automatic supply device provided in the CTP system in the form of a bundle in which a predetermined number of sheets are stacked without unloading after unpacking. .

  This CTP (Computer to Plate) system performs laser exposure processing based on digital data from a computer or the like, and performs development processing to convert a latent image formed on a photosensitive printing plate into a visible image by an automatic processor. Make a printing plate directly.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, this CTP system includes a cassette storage device 10 to which a bundle of a plurality of planographic printing plates 11 stacked without a slip sheet is supplied, and a continuous storage device 10 for the cassette. Then, a sheet feeding device 12 for supplying the lithographic printing plates 11 (PS plates) one by one from a bundle of the lithographic printing plates 11, an inner drum exposure device (monogon scanner) 14, a buffer device 16, And a development processing device 18.

  The cassette storage device 10 in this CTP system stores a plurality of printing plate supply cassettes 20 carried by workers from the outside in a cassette rack 22 and supplies the required printing plate supply cassettes 20 to the sheet supply device 12. Constitute.

  For this reason, the cassette rack 22 is set in each of a plurality of (here, five) steps arranged in the vertical direction in a state where the printing plate supply cassette 20 that stores the planographic printing plate 11 in a horizontal direction is substantially horizontal. And can be stocked.

  In this cassette rack 22, the required printing plate supply cassette 20 in five vertical stages is aligned with the carry-in port of the sheet feeding device 12, and the leading end of the printing plate supply cassette 20 is inserted into the carry-in port. In order to be able to set in the supply state, the cassette rack 22 is mounted in the cassette storage device 10 so as to be movable up and down so that the cassette rack 22 can be moved to each predetermined five-stage position by a lifting mechanism (not shown).

  In the cassette storage device 10, the printing plate supply cassette 20 is moved by the cassette moving mechanism 23 in a state where the required printing plate supply cassette 20 is positioned at the height of the entrance of the sheet supply device 12. It is configured to be movable between a supply set position set in the carry-in port of the supply device 12 and a storage position stored in the shelf of the cassette rack 22.

  Further, in the cassette storage device 10, although not shown, when the required printing plate supply cassette 20 is moved and set into the carry-in port of the sheet supply device 12 by the cassette moving mechanism 23, the lid of the printing plate supply cassette 20 is covered. An opening / closing means for automatically closing the lid 20A when the printing plate supply cassette 20 is moved to the storage position on the shelf is provided.

  In addition, the sheet supply device 12 is a lithographic printing plate 11 which is carried out at the uppermost position in a bundle of lithographic printing plates 11 in a portion where the lid 20A of the printing plate supply cassette 20 set in the carry-in opening is open. And a conveying means for reducing the adhesive force between adjacent lithographic printing plates and a conveying means configured in a conveying roller system for feeding out the lithographic printing plates 11 that are rolled one by one. Here, “spreading” means lifting and sliding the transported planographic printing plate 11 at the uppermost position in a bundle (stacked plate) of a plurality of interleaf-free planographic printing plates 11, and the planographic plate therebelow This means that the close contact with the printing plate 11 is released.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, in the single-wafer supply apparatus 12, a pick-up unit 200 that is integrally configured by mounting a rolling means and a carrying-roller-type carrying-out means on a single operation member 206 is disposed. . In this pickup unit 200, a soccer (vacuum soccer, sucker) 202 as a rolling means and a carrying-out roller 146 made of a rubber roller for constituting a part of a carrying roller type carrying-out means are mounted on the operation member 206.

  The pickup unit 200 has a plurality of required suckers so that it can be lifted up over the entire length in the width direction in accordance with the size of the planographic printing plate 11 to be transported (not shown). 202 are arranged in a straight line in the width direction of the planographic printing plate 11.

  The operation member 206 is formed in a predetermined deformed plate shape in which a central portion of the long plate is cut out in a U-shape, and a pair of operation rods 208 project from both ends in the longitudinal direction. The operating member 206 connects a pair of operating rods 208 projecting from both ends thereof to a moving operating mechanism 122 that is driven and controlled by the control unit 120 with its longitudinal direction oriented in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. Install.

  This moving operation mechanism 122, together with the operation member 206 equipped with the soccer ball 202 and the carry-out roller 146, lifts the uppermost lithographic printing plate 11 set substantially horizontally to a predetermined height position, and then in the transport direction. The sheet is conveyed laterally onto the discharge roller 147 on the downstream side, the uppermost lithographic printing plate 11 is lowered onto the discharge roller 147 and nipped between the discharge roller 146, and the discharge roller 146 and the discharge roller 147 The moving operation means is configured to operate so as to be able to be carried out by nip and rolling contact.

  The moving operation mechanism 122 is configured to cause the operation member 206 to perform a predetermined control operation that combines a vertical movement in the height direction and a reciprocating movement that moves in a substantially horizontal direction.

  Although not shown, for example, the moving operation mechanism 122 has a pair of operation rods 208 pivotally attached to one end portion of the link, and the other end portion of the link is pivoted at a position eccentric from the rotation shaft of the rotary drive disk. 3, the follower projecting from each link is slidably inserted into the cam groove, and the rotary drive disk is rotated forward or reverse, thereby moving up and down as shown by arrow A in FIG. The substantially horizontal reciprocation shown and the up and down movement shown by the arrow C are configured. In addition, you may comprise and comprise the means to perform the controlled raising / lowering operation and the means to perform the controlled substantially horizontal reciprocation.

  In this sheet feeding device 12, the planographic printing plate 11 stored in the printing plate feeding cassette 20 is sucked and lifted by the soccer 202 of the pickup unit 200 operated by the moving operation mechanism 122 and then sent out onto the carry-out roller 147. Constitute.

  Therefore, in comparison with a so-called conveying roller type configuration in which a pick-up roller is brought into contact with the surface of the uppermost lithographic printing plate in a bundle of lithographic printing plates stacked in a conventional manner, the printing plate is used. A so-called lithographic printing plate transport height adjustment mechanism is not required to lift the bundle of lithographic printing plates stored in the supply cassette and press the uppermost lithographic printing plate against the pickup roller, thereby simplifying the configuration of the sheet feeding device 12 To lower the price.

  Each football 202 is attached to the operation member 206 at both ends in the longitudinal direction via a lifting device 210 in a so-called swingable state. The lifting device 210 is configured to be able to be lifted and lowered to a lifting position spaced a predetermined distance from a suction position where the football 202 is brought into close contact with the surface of the planographic printing plate 11 using an actuator or the like that is driven and controlled by the control unit 120.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 to 11, the soccer 202 is configured as a suction cup device for vacuum suction, and has a long and narrow shape so that the suction cup portion for vacuum suction is along the upper end of the planographic printing plate 11. (For example, an oval shape). The soccer 202 is configured by curving the suction surface portion that hits the bottom of the suction cup body 201 so as to wave in the longitudinal direction.

  That is, in the suction surface portion of the suction cup main body 201, a concave portion 201A for deformation operation that is curved so as to be separated from the suction plane is formed in a portion where the suction port portion 224 to which the vacuum hose 226 is connected is provided. In the soccer 202, a suction port 224 for sucking air is disposed at the center of the suction surface of the suction cup body 201.

  Further, the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201 is formed with recesses 201 </ b> A for deformation operation near both longitudinal ends of the suction cup body 201. Further, between the adjacent deforming operation recesses 201A, curved convex portions 201B are formed so as to be smoothly curved and continuous, and the end portions of the deforming operation recess portions 201A that hit both ends of the suction cup body 201 are formed as convex portions 201B. To form.

  The suction cup main body 201 is configured such that the height difference between the most depressed point of the concave part 201A for deformation operation and the most protruding vertex of the convex part 201B is 0.6 mm to 0.9 mm.

  When the planographic printing plate 11 is adsorbed by the suction cup body 201, the deformation operation recess 201A follows the curved shape of the deformation operation recess 201A by the suction force when air is sucked from the suction port 224. This is for elastically deforming the planographic printing plate 11. Therefore, the suction cup main body 201 is provided with at least one recess 201A for deformation operation in a portion where the suction port portion 224 connected to the vacuum hose 226 is provided.

  Further, the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201 is integrally formed with a frame-shaped contact edge portion 203 that is one step higher so as to surround the outer periphery thereof. Further, in the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201, the inner side of the contact edge portion 203 is formed in a shallow groove-shaped bottom surface portion 205 serving as an air passage. A suction port 224 is opened at the center of the bottom surface 205.

  On the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201, a skirt portion 202A is integrally formed from the outer peripheral side portion of the contact end edge portion 203 obliquely outward. The skirt portion 202A is configured to be relatively soft so as to have an action of maintaining airtightness by being interposed between the wavy contact edge portion 203 and the flat surface of the planographic printing plate 11, and the contact edge portion. It is configured to have a length corresponding to the height difference of the wave shape at 203. For this reason, the skirt portion 202A is configured to have a thin thickness of 0.3 mm to 0.5 mm.

  Also, one end of a vacuum hose 226 is connected to the suction port 224 of the soccer 202, and the other end of the vacuum hose 226 is connected to a vacuum pump 24 that is an intake device whose intake operation is controlled by the control unit 120. To do.

  The football 202 is driven and controlled by the control unit 120 to suck air from the suction port portion 224 of the football 202 through the vacuum hose 226, so that the corrugated shape is surrounded by the skirt portion 202A. The lithographic printing plate 11 is adsorbed so that the surface of the lithographic printing plate 11 comes into close contact with the edge 203, and the lithographic printing plate 11 is elastically deformed so as to follow the wave shape of the abutting edge rim 203. And the lithographic printing plate 11 underneath can be appropriately subjected to a rolling operation in which air is easily introduced from the gap and the vacuum contact is released.

  Further, in this soccer 202, since the skirt portion 202A is thin and has a weak elasticity, the skirt portion 202A is made to follow the waveform shape formed by the concave portion 201A and the convex portion 201B for deformation operation on the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201. When the lithographic printing plate 11 is adsorbed to the end, the end of the adsorbed lithographic printing plate 11 is pressed against the surface of the lithographic printing plate 11 underneath to prevent deformation so as to prevent air from entering, Air can easily enter between the adsorbed lithographic printing plate 11 and the lithographic printing plate 11 therebelow.

  When the elasticity of the skirt portion 202A is strong, the lithographic printing plate in which the end portion of the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the skirt portion 202A protruding obliquely outward from the end portion of the suction cup body 201 is located below. There is a risk that the plate 11 is pressed against the surface of the plate 11 and deformed into a suction cup shape, and the lithographic printing plate 11 below is sucked by the action of the suction cup. Therefore, in this soccer 202, the sucker development is prevented by configuring the skirt portion 202A to be thin and weak in elasticity.

  In addition, the soccer 202 used as described above is a rolling operation that lifts the lithographic printing plate 11 positioned at the top of the bundle of lithographic printing plates 11 placed in the printing plate supply cassette 20 in the direction of arrow A. Since the vacuum pump needs only a short driving time and a small air suction capability, it is possible to use an inexpensive vacuum pump with a relatively small size and low output.

  The football 202 configured in this manner has a predetermined short distance (adsorption) from the leading end (upper end in the figure) of the transported lithographic printing plate 11 at the uppermost position in the bundle of the plurality of interleaf-free lithographic printing plates 11. It is arranged in the pickup unit 200 so that it can be adsorbed at a position (distance from the tip of the object to the tip of the skirt). In the present embodiment, the distance from the front end of the lithographic printing plate 11 to the front end of the skirt portion 202A is set to a distance within the range of 2 mm to 10 mm.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a carry-out roller 146 is disposed on the operation member 206 so as to face a U-shaped cutout provided in the center in the longitudinal direction. The carry-out roller 146 is mounted so that both end portions of the rotary shaft 212 are rotatably supported by bearing members (not shown) provided on the back surface of the operation member 206.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the sheet feeding device 12, the carry roller type carry-out means rotates the carry-out roller 147 while the planographic printing plate 11 is nipped between the carry-out roller 147 and the carry-out roller 146. By doing so, the planographic printing plate 11 is configured to be carried out.

  Next, the pick-up unit 200 having the configuration shown in FIG. 7 is used to separate the transported planographic printing plates 11 at the uppermost position in the bundle of the plurality of interleaf-free planographic printing plates 11 one by one. The sheet separating operation executed by the lithographic printing plate supply apparatus and the unloading operation for unloading the lithographic printing plate 11 will be described.

  The pickup unit 200 controls the moving operation mechanism 122 by the control unit 120, whereby a whirling operation by an ascending / descending operation indicated by an arrow A in FIG. The operation for carrying out by the raising / lowering operation shown by C is performed.

  The pickup unit 200 stands by in a state in which the football 202 is moved to a predetermined ascending position separated from the contact level of the carry-out roller 146 with respect to the planographic printing plate 11 before the operation is started.

  When the control unit 120 receives an instruction to start the operation of separating and transporting the lithographic printing plates 11 one by one, the control unit 120 controls the pickup unit 200 to perform a predetermined rolling operation shown in the flowchart of FIG.

  The control unit 120 drives and controls the movement operation mechanism 122 to start controlling the rolling operation, and moves the pickup unit 200 from the standby state at the retracted position to the upper surface of the bundle of the slip-less lithographic printing plate 11. Let

  During this operation, in the pickup unit 200, the carry-out roller 146 first comes into contact with the surface of the lithographic printing plate 11 positioned at the top.

  Next, the control unit 120 drives and controls the elevating device 210 to press the football 202 against the surface of the planographic printing plate 11 and set it in a starting operation state.

  Next, the control unit 120 starts the control of the whirling operation shown in the flowchart of FIG. 12, and starts driving the vacuum pump 24 in the close contact start process of step 30. As a result, the vacuum pump 24 is driven and sucks air from the suction port portion 224 provided in the suction cup body 201 of the football 202 via the vacuum hose 226, so that the inside of the bottom surface portion 205 and the skirt portion 202 </ b> A is drawn. The operation of adsorbing the surface of the planographic printing plate 11 on the surface at a predetermined distance from the end in the transport direction is started, and the process proceeds to the next step 31.

  In this step 31, as a standby process for deformation, a planographic printing plate adsorbed in a corrugated shape formed by the concave portion 201A and convex portion 201B for deformation operation on the suction surface portion of the suction cup body 201 as shown in FIG. 11 is adapted so that the shape is adapted and the position is kept waiting for a deformation waiting time (here, 3 seconds), and then the process proceeds to the next step 32.

  In this step 32, as the air introduction lifting process, the control unit 120 drives and controls the movement operation mechanism 122 to move and operate the operation member 206, whereby the soccer 202 and the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed thereto are obtained. The air is lifted at a relatively low speed, and an operation for creating a chance for air to enter between the planographic printing plates 11 is performed.

  At this time, the lithographic printing plate 11 is elastically deformed along the corrugated shape of the contact edge portion 203 at the portion adsorbed by the soccer 202 near the end in the transport direction, and the lithographic printing plate underneath it. A relatively small opening into which air can flow is opened between the surface and the surface of 11 and the contact is partially released.

  At the same time, the lithographic printing plate 11 has a relatively large portion of the entire width near the end in the conveying direction, which is pushed down by the unloading roller 146 at the center, and lifted by the soccer 202 at both sides. The state shown in FIG. 11 is obtained by sufficiently elastically deforming and curving so as to draw a wave, and at least the width direction of the leading end in the conveying direction between the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 and the planographic printing plate 11 therebelow. It will be in the state from which contact | adherence was entirely released over the whole.

  Next, proceeding to step 33, the process proceeds to the tilting operation step in which the lifting operation is performed, and the control unit 120 controls the movement operation mechanism 122 to perform the tilting operation for reciprocating the pickup unit 200 up and down. In this tilting operation, the control unit 120 controls the moving operation mechanism 122 so that the soccer 202 and the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed thereto are moved 70 mm from the surface of the planographic printing plate 11 at the relatively fastest speed. A series of operations of lifting to a height of 20 mm from the surface of the planographic printing plate 11 and then lifting it to a height of 20 mm is repeated three times to turn the planographic printing plate 11 to perform a scooping operation.

  By performing a tilting operation on the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 in this way, the lithographic printing plate 11 carried out simultaneously has a relatively small wave shape and a relatively large wave shape at the tip. A gap is formed in a state of being elastically deformed as it is formed, and it is adsorbed by the football 202 by being swallowed while taking in a large amount of air from a gap that is spaced over the entire width with respect to the surface of the lithographic printing plate 11 therebelow. Since the air that has entered between the planographic printing plate 11 and the planographic printing plate 11 below it enters from the front end of the planographic printing plate 11 toward the center, the adhesion is released. The state in which the lithographic printing plate 11 and the lithographic printing plate 11 thereunder are in close contact with each other is released from the front end to the center of the lithographic printing plate 11, and the process proceeds to the next step 34.

  In step 34, as a separation step for separating the entire surface as a separation operation by a substantially horizontal operation, the control unit 120 drives and controls the movement operation mechanism 122 so that the planographic printing plate 11 sucked by the football 202 is 70 mm high. From the state of being lifted up, it is moved substantially horizontally by a distance of about 150 mm toward the downstream side in the transport direction.

  The operation of moving the lithographic printing plate 11 by about 150 mm in a substantially horizontal direction while adsorbing the leading end portion of the lithographic printing plate 11 with the football 202 and lifting it to a height of 70 mm is a relatively fast required operation corresponding to the thickness of the lithographic printing plate 11. Do it at speed.

  In the operation of moving the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the conveying direction, the rear end side portion of the lithographic printing plate 11 to be carried out and the printing plate supply cassette 20 in the vicinity thereof. The lithographic printing plate 11 that is to be left in the air is pushed in so as to release the close contact of the rear end portion in the transport direction of the lithographic printing plate 11 that is carried out by being pushed in.

  Further, in the operation of moving the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the transport direction, the air above the rear end side portion of the lithographic printing plate 11 to be carried out becomes lean. The rear end portion in the transport direction of the lithographic printing plate 11 carried out by the suctioning action is pulled so as to be separated from the lithographic printing plate 11 therebelow.

  Further, the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 slides while being separated on the surface of the adjacent lithographic printing plate 11 by the operation of moving substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the transport direction. As a result, the contact state is completely released.

  Next, the control unit 120 proceeds to step 35 and shifts to a carry-out preparation process by a lowering operation. The control unit 120 drives and controls the movement operation mechanism 122 to lower the pickup unit 200 and is attracted to the football 202. The tip of the lithographic printing plate 11 is placed on a rubber roller carrying-out roller 147 rotated by a drive motor (not shown), and the lithographic printing plate 11 is nipped between the carrying-out roller 147 and the carrying-out roller 146. Then, the process proceeds to the next step 36.

  Next, the control unit 120 proceeds to step 36 and shifts to the carry-out process, where the control unit 120 stops the vacuum pump 24 and opens an electromagnetic valve that opens to the atmosphere to return the negative pressure in the football 202 to atmospheric pressure. Thus, the sucking state of the football 202 is released, the planographic printing plate 11 is opened, and the elevating device 210 is further driven to move the soccer 202 to a predetermined ascending position separated from the planographic printing plate 11.

  Thereafter, the control unit 120 drives and controls a drive motor (not shown) of the carry-out roller 147 to convey the planographic printing plate 11 nipped between the carry-out roller 147 and the carry-out roller 146 to the inner drum exposure device 14. To the conveyor belt winding mechanism.

  As described above, when the lithographic printing plate 11 is carried out by being nipped between the carry-out roller 147 and the carry-out roller 146, the situation that the lithographic printing plates 11 are brought into sliding contact with each other to eliminate scratches is eliminated. it can.

  When the carry-out operation of the single planographic printing plate 11 described above is completed, the control unit 120 drives and controls the movement operation mechanism 122 to return the pickup unit 200 to the standby position and prepare for the next transport operation.

  That is, the sheet separation operation for separating the lithographic printing plates 11 one by one using the pickup unit 200 and the unloading operation for unloading the lithographic printing plates 11 are performed as a first stage of rolling. The uppermost planographic printing plate 11 stored in the printing plate supply cassette 20 is sucked by vacuum suction of the soccer 202, and the soccer 202 of the planographic printing plate 11 is in close contact with the corrugated shape of the sucking surface of the soccer 202. Crawl at the part directly underneath (create a trigger for air inflow).

  Next, in this sheet separation operation and unloading operation, as the second stage of rolling, when the lithographic printing plate 11 is sucked and lifted by the football 202, the height position of the soccer 202 sucked on the lithographic printing plate 11; Due to the difference in height from the height position at which the carry-out roller 146 contacts the planographic printing plate 11, the vicinity of the front end of the planographic printing plate 11 is scratched.

  Next, in this sheet separation operation and carry-out operation, as a third stage of rolling, the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 is lifted up to a height of, for example, 70 mm from the adsorption surface by the operation of the pickup unit 200 and then up to a height of 20 mm. By repeating a series of operations of lowering three times and raising the lithographic printing plate 11, the vicinity of the center of the lithographic printing plate 11 that is in contact is scratched.

  Next, in this single wafer separation operation and unloading operation, as a fourth stage of rolling, for example, the pickup unit 200 is moved substantially horizontally with the soccer ball 202 positioned at a height of 70 mm from the suction surface, and the unloading roller The rear end portion of the lithographic printing plate 11 that is in close contact is moved by the operation of stopping above 146.

  Next, in this sheet separation operation and unloading operation, the pickup unit 200 is lowered, and the lithographic printing plate 11 is nipped between the unloading roller 146 and the unloading roller 147, and then the unloading roller 147 is rotated to rotate the lithographic plate. The operation of unloading the printing plate 11 is performed.

  Next, the operation of separating and carrying out the lithographic printing plates 11 carried out at the uppermost position in the bundle of the plurality of interleaf-free lithographic printing plates 11 by the pickup unit 200 described above can be executed more reliably. Means for doing so will be described.

  In the carrying-out operation by the pickup unit 200 described above, the lithographic printing plate 11 adjacent below is dragged in the operation of moving the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the transport direction. There is a risk of being carried out.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, in the means for separating the lithographic printing plates 11 one by one more surely, the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 is placed at a predetermined position downstream in the transport direction in the printing plate supply cassette 20. A protruding piece-like (or wall-like) stopper 25 having a predetermined height below the lifting position is disposed.

  When the stopper 25 is provided in this way, when the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 is moved substantially horizontally, the adjacent planographic printing plate 11 is moving toward the downstream side in the transport direction. However, since it is stopped by hitting the stopper 25, only the planographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the football 202 can be carried out more reliably.

  Further, in the means for separating the lithographic printing plates 11 more reliably one by one, as shown in FIG. 6, an air blower nozzle 27 is arranged at a predetermined position near the downstream side in the transport direction of the printing plate supply cassette 20. To do.

  In the case of such a configuration, the lithographic printing plate 11 sucked by the football 202 and the lower side thereof are moved in the operation of moving the lithographic printing plate 11 sucked by the football 202 substantially horizontally toward the downstream side in the transport direction. By blowing air between the adjacent lithographic printing plates 11, they are peeled apart and separated, and only the lithographic printing plate 11 adsorbed by the soccer ball 202 can be carried out more reliably.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the sheet feeding device 12, the lithographic printing plate 11 separated by the pickup unit 200 as described above is fed to the transport belt winding mechanism.

  The transport belt winding mechanism includes a main transport belt winding mechanism 150 that stretches a main transport belt 148 and a sub-transport belt 152 so that each lithographic printing plate 11 is transported to the inner drum exposure device 14. The sub-transport belt winding mechanism 154 is installed.

  The main conveyor belt winding mechanism 150 stretches the conveyor belt 148 between the loading position of the planographic printing plate 11 and the unloading position to the inner drum exposure device 14 to form a conveying path.

  Further, the sub-transport belt winding mechanism 154 shares a part of the transport path set below the main transport belt 148 in the main transport belt winding mechanism 150 so that the lithographic printing plate 11 being transported drops off. Configure to prevent.

  For this reason, the sub-transport belt winding mechanism 154 is moved from the intermediate roller 156 on the downstream side in the transport direction from the guide range in the main transport belt 148 where the leading end of each planographic printing plate 11 transported from the transport roller 147 is abutted. In the section of the intermediate roller 158 close to the exit of the transport path set on the lower side of the transport belt 148, the main transport belt 148 and the sub transport belt 152 are wound so as to run together.

  In the main conveyance belt winding mechanism 150 configured as described above, the front end of the lithographic printing plate 11 nipped between the carry-out roller 146 and the carry-out roller 147 is conveyed to the first roller 151 at the front end of the main conveyance belt 148. And the intermediate roller 156 hits a guide range 148A corresponding to a portion stretched between the intermediate roller 156 and the intermediate roller 156 according to the travel operation of the main conveyor belt 148.

  Then, the planographic printing plate 11 whose leading end is guided by the main transport belt 148 is transported on the transport path while being sandwiched and sandwiched between the main transport belt 148 and the sub transport belt 152 at the position of the intermediate roller 156. Then, the nipping state is released at the position of the intermediate roller 158 close to the outlet, and it is carried into the inner drum exposure device 14.

  The inner drum exposure apparatus 14 in this CTP system is configured with a support 134 having a circular arc inner peripheral surface shape (a shape constituting a part of a cylindrical inner peripheral surface) as a base, and on the inner peripheral surface of the support 134. The planographic printing plate 11 is supported along the same.

  In this inner drum exposure device 14, exposure is performed after holding the lithographic printing plate 11, which is an unrecorded recording medium, securely in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the support 134 by a vacuum suction means (not shown). Process.

  In the inner drum exposure device 14, a spinner mirror device 136 as a light beam deflector is disposed at the center of the arc of the support 134. This spinner mirror device 136 is configured such that a rotary shaft 140 having a reflecting mirror member (spinner mirror) 138 disposed on the top surface thereof can be rotated at high speed by a motor as a drive source whose rotation is controlled by a spinner driver of a control unit (not shown). To do. The spinner mirror device 136 is configured such that the rotation center axis of the rotation shaft 140 coincides with the arc center axis of the support 134.

  In the spinner mirror device 136, the light beam projected from the optical system on the light source side is reflected on the reflecting mirror surface of the rotating reflecting mirror member 138 to scan the photosensitive surface of the planographic printing plate 11 in the main scanning direction. Perform exposure.

  The spinner mirror device 136 performs sub-scanning by being controlled to move at a constant speed in the axial direction of the arc center axis of the support 134 (direction penetrating from the front surface to the back surface in FIG. 2) by a sub-scanning moving unit (not shown). .

  Therefore, in the spinner mirror device 136, the rotation of the motor is controlled by the spinner driver of the control unit, and the movement is controlled in the sub-scanning direction by a sub-scanning moving unit (not shown).

  The spinner mirror device 136 configured in this manner reflects the light beam projected from the optical system on the light source side and modulated in accordance with image information to the reflecting mirror surface of the rotating reflecting mirror member 138 in the main scanning direction. The two-dimensional image is recorded on the entire recording surface of the planographic printing plate 11 by moving the spinner mirror device 136 in the sub-scanning direction while performing the scanning exposure.

  The buffer device 16 provided in the CTP system has a function of carrying the lithographic printing plate 11 exposed by the inner drum exposure device 14 into the development processing device 18 at a required timing by adjusting the conveyance speed.

  The development processing device 18 develops the exposed lithographic printing plate 11 that has been carried in, visualizes the latent image, and makes a printing plate.

  In addition to the photopolymer PS plate that does not require the protection of the slip sheet, the automatic lithographic printing plate supply device described above is, for example, a so-called thermal PS plate for a recording layer that forms an image formed on the surface. In order to prevent scratches, an overcoat layer (an OC layer composed of a water-soluble material that can be completely removed by a washing process before development) is applied on the outermost surface of the recording layer. can do. Furthermore, the lithographic printing plate automatic supply device does not require protection of interleaf paper, and it is a surface-enhanced thermal plate that has a surface that has been strengthened to the extent that scratches do not pose a problem even when handled in a stacked and bundled state. PS version can be used.

  In addition, the configuration of this lithographic printing plate automatic supply device is a lithographic printing plate that is generally compatible with a plate making method used in the field of lithographic printing, and records an image on a recording layer using light (optical mode). Lithographic printing plate, lithographic printing plate for recording an image on a recording layer using heat (thermal mode), lithographic printing plate for recording an image by converting light into heat in the recording layer (light, thermal mode) Of course, the present invention can be used to separate and supply a lithographic printing plate using a chemical reaction, a lithographic printing plate using physical development, and a so-called conventional lithographic printing plate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire CTP system provided with an automatic lithographic printing plate supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram of the inside of a CTP system including an apparatus for automatically supplying a lithographic printing plate according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic block diagram which takes out and shows the part of the automatic supply apparatus of the lithographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view of a main part showing a state where one lithographic printing plate is lifted by a pickup unit in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view of a main part showing an operation when the lithographic printing plate is moved up and down by a pickup unit in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory view of a main part showing an operation when a lithographic printing plate is moved substantially horizontally by a pickup unit in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a principal part schematic perspective view which takes out and shows the part of the automatic supply apparatus of the lithographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which takes out the soccer used for the automatic supply apparatus of the planographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention, and shows a bottom face side. It is a perspective view which takes out and shows the soccer used for the automatic supply apparatus of the planographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which takes out and shows the state which adsorb | sucked the lithographic printing plate with the soccer used for the automatic supply apparatus of the lithographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view of a main part showing a state where one lithographic printing plate is lifted by a pickup unit in the lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure which isolate | separates and carries out one by one with the automatic supply apparatus of the planographic printing plate concerning embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Cassette storage apparatus 11 Planographic printing plate 12 Sheet feeding apparatus 14 Inner drum exposure apparatus 20 Printing plate supply cassette 22 Cassette rack 23 Cassette moving mechanism 25 Stopper 27 Nozzle 120 control part 122 Moving operation mechanism 146 Unloading roller 147 Unloading roller 200 Pickup unit 201 sucker body 202 soccer 202A skirt portion 203 abutting edge portion 205 bottom surface portion

Claims (4)

In a state in which a predetermined number of the lithographic printing plates are stacked and bundled on the surface of one lithographic printing plate by bringing the back surface of the other lithographic printing plate into direct contact with each other and being held substantially horizontally A storage device set,
Immediately below the uppermost lithographic printing plate by adsorbing it to the uppermost lithographic printing plate in the bundle of lithographic printing plates set substantially horizontally, by adsorbing it on the adsorbing surface portion formed so as to wave And the football that crawls so that the lithographic printing plate of the
A carry-out roller mounted so as to be capable of rolling contact with the uppermost lithographic printing plate in a bundle of lithographic printing plates set substantially horizontally;
The uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by the football is lifted to a predetermined height position and then horizontally conveyed onto a carry-out roller on the downstream side in the carrying direction, and the uppermost lithographic plate is lowered onto the carry-out roller. A moving operation means that is niped between the unloading roller and niped between the unloading roller and the unloading roller to enable unloading, and
An apparatus for automatically supplying a lithographic printing plate, comprising:   The lithographic printing plate immediately below the uppermost lithographic printing plate is created by making a difference in height from the soccer when the uppermost lithographic printing plate is lifted by sucking the unloading roller with the soccerball. The lithographic printing plate automatic supply device according to claim 1, wherein the lithographic printing plate is mounted so as not to adhere.   When the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by the soccer is lifted to a predetermined height position and then horizontally conveyed onto a carry-out roller on the downstream side in the conveyance direction, the lithographic printing plate adjacent to the uppermost lithographic printing plate 3. An apparatus for automatically supplying a lithographic printing plate according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper for preventing the plates from being carried out together.   The uppermost lithographic printing plate and the lithographic printing plate below the uppermost lithographic printing plate, when the uppermost lithographic printing plate adsorbed by the football is lifted to a predetermined height position and then horizontally conveyed onto a discharge roller on the downstream side in the conveying direction. The lithographic printing plate automatic supply apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an air blower nozzle is disposed to be separated from the printing plate by blowing air.

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