JP3879753B2 - Image recording device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus that records an image on a recording material held by a rotating member.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an image recording apparatus that records an image on a recording material, there is an apparatus that records an image on a recording material held on a rotating member while holding the recording material on a rotating member and rotating the rotating member. .

  In such an image recording apparatus, when holding the recording material on the rotating member, when discharging the recording material held on the rotating member, and after discharging the recording material, it is necessary to position the rotating member at a predetermined position. There is. Therefore, in the conventional image recording apparatus, a detected portion for positioning is provided on the rotating member, and the detected portion is positioned at a predetermined position by detecting the detected portion.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus has a driving unit because of the large speed difference of the rotating member between the image forming time and the recording material supply / discharge time, and either one of the two driving units is provided. I was trying to drive.

  However, as described above, in order to position the rotating member at a predetermined position, detecting the detected part every time requires rotating the rotating member accordingly. In particular, when the detected part is located on the downstream side in the rotation direction of the rotating member with respect to the detecting part, the detected part cannot be detected unless it is further rotated about once. In other words, extra time is required for positioning at a predetermined position, and the cycle time of image recording is extended.

  In the conventional image recording apparatus, whether or not the recording material has been wound around the rotating member, or whether or not the discharge of the recording material held on the rotating member has been completed. Alternatively, the determination is made by detecting the trailing edge of the recording material to be discharged by a sensor. For this reason, it is necessary to provide a sensor or the like, resulting in an increase in the cost of the apparatus.

  Further, in the conventional image recording apparatus using two driving means, the second driving means driven at the time of feeding and discharging the recording material is an AC motor, so that the rotating member at the time of feeding and discharging the recording material It is difficult to accurately perform the stop position.

  In addition, when drive means controlled by excitation is used for the two drive means, it is configured to exclusively drive control, but if for some reason it cannot be driven exclusively, it should not drive. If the drive means is excited, the drive means will be forcibly turned and may break, and the excitation of the drive means will act as a brake, preventing stable rotation .

  Accordingly, it is a first object to be able to position the rotating member at a predetermined position at high speed and to improve the cycle time of image recording.

  Further, it is possible to detect whether the recording material has been wound around the rotating member or whether the recording material held on the rotating member has been discharged with a simple configuration, thereby reducing the cost. Is the second issue.

A third problem is to accurately perform the stop position of the rotating member when the recording material is fed and discharged. (Problem related to invention of claim 1)
Moreover, even if an error occurs in exclusive driving of the first and second driving means, a fourth problem is to ensure stable rotation without breaking the driving means.

  The first problem is that (1) a recording member is held on a peripheral surface, a rotating member that rotates, and one rotation of the rotating member are divided equally, and a plurality of clocks are rotated during one rotation of the rotating member. A clock pulse generating means for generating a pulse, and an image recording means for recording an image on a recording material held on the peripheral surface of the rotating rotating member based on the clock pulse generated by the clock pulse generating means; The reference pulse generating means for generating one reference pulse during one rotation of the rotating member, and the clock pulse generating means based on the reference pulse generated by the reference pulse generating means According to an image recording apparatus, wherein the image recording apparatus is configured to detect a position of the rotating member based on a count value of the counted clock pulse It can be solved.

  That is, the position of the rotating member is grasped by counting the clock pulses at the time of image recording conventionally used in the image recording apparatus by the counting means. Therefore, the position of the rotating member can be known from the count value of the counting means, and it is not necessary to detect the detected portion every time before the rotating member is positioned at a predetermined position. Since it is not necessary to rotate, the rotating member can be positioned at a predetermined position at high speed, and the cycle time of image recording can be improved.

  (2) Furthermore, it is preferable that the count means resets the count value when detecting the reference pulse. Thereby, while being able to reduce the count value by a counting means, an exact position can always be grasped | ascertained.

  (3) Further, when the rotating member is not holding the recording material, when the rotating member is moved from the standby position by causing the rotating member to wait at a position shifted by a predetermined amount from the position where the reference pulse is generated, Immediately, a reference pulse is generated, and an accurate position can be grasped.

  (4) Further, the position where the rotating member is waiting is on the upstream side in the rotation direction in which the rotating member rotates when holding the recording material with respect to the position where the reference pulse is generated. When the material is held, it can be stopped at an accurate position.

  (5) Furthermore, when rotating the rotating member in a stopped state to a predetermined position, the rotating member can be accurately rotated to a predetermined position by rotating the rotating member based on the count value.

  (6) Further, when the rotating member in a stopped state is rotated to a predetermined position, the rotational direction of the rotating member is determined based on the count value, and rotated to reach the predetermined position with the shortest distance. The cycle time can be shortened.

  The second problem can be solved by the following configuration.

  (7) A clock member that holds a recording material on the peripheral surface, and divides the rotating member that rotates and the one circumference of the rotating member equally to generate a plurality of clock pulses during one rotation of the rotating member. An image recording apparatus comprising: a generating unit; and an image recording unit that records an image on a recording material held on a peripheral surface of the rotating member that is rotating based on the clock pulse generated by the clock pulse generating unit A counting means for counting clock pulses generated by the clock pulse generating means, a rotation start command for the rotating member for discharging the recording material from the rotating member, and a count value of the counting means, An image recording apparatus for determining completion of discharge of a recording material.

  (8) A recording material is wound and held on the peripheral surface, and the rotating member that rotates and one rotation of the rotating member are divided equally to generate a plurality of clock pulses during one rotation of the rotating member. Clock pulse generating means for performing image recording on the recording material held on the peripheral surface of the rotating member rotating based on the clock pulse generated by the clock pulse generating means. In the image recording apparatus, the completion of winding of the recording material is determined based on the counting means for counting the clock pulses generated by the clock pulse generating means, the rotation start command for the rotating member, and the count value of the counting means. An image recording apparatus.

  (9) The image recording apparatus records an image on a recording material obtained by cutting a roll-shaped recording material into a predetermined length by a cutting unit, and the cutting unit and the recording material are disposed on a circumferential surface of the rotating member. When the distance between the winding position and the recording material is shorter than the length of the recording material, based on the rotation start command of the rotating member after cutting by the cutting means and the count value of the counting means, The image recording apparatus according to (8), wherein the completion of winding is determined.

  That is, in the image recording apparatus according to the present invention, in order to detect whether or not the recording material has been wound around the rotating member, or whether or not the recording material held on the rotating member has been discharged. Without providing a sensor for detecting the trailing edge of the recording material, the clock pulse is counted by the counting means using the rotation start command of the rotating member as a trigger, and winding or discharging is detected by this count value. It can be detected by the configuration, and the cost can be reduced.

  Moreover, the said 3rd subject (problem which concerns on invention of Claim 1) can be solved by the following structures.

(10) A rotating member that holds and rotates a recording material on the peripheral surface, an image recording unit that records an image on the recording material held on the peripheral surface of the rotating member, and a recording material that is supplied to the rotating member Supplying means, discharging means for discharging the recording material held by the rotating member, first driving means for rotating the rotating member during image recording, and / or when supplying the recording material to the rotating member, and / or And a second driving means for rotating the rotating member when discharging the recording material from the rotating member, wherein the first driving means is an AC servo motor, and the second driving means is An image recording apparatus which is a pulse motor, wherein the rotating member is rotated by switching between the AC servo motor and the pulse motor. (Invention of Claim 1)
The fourth Division title can be solved by the following constitution.

  (11) A rotating member that holds a recording material on a peripheral surface and rotates, an image recording unit that records an image on the recording material held on the peripheral surface of the rotating member, and a recording material that is supplied to the rotating member Supplying means, discharging means for discharging the recording material held by the rotating member, first driving means for rotating the rotating member during image recording, and / or when supplying the recording material to the rotating member, and / or And a second driving means for rotating the rotating member when the recording material is discharged from the rotating member. The driving means in which the first driving means and the second driving means are both subjected to excitation control. In addition, when either one of the first drive means and the second drive means is driven, excitation to the other drive means is not performed.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to accurately perform the stop position of the rotating member at the time of feeding and discharging the recording material (effect according to the invention of claim 1). Moreover, even if an error occurs in the exclusive operation of the first and second drive means, without breaking the drive means, moreover, Ru can be secured stable rotation.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following description, the present invention is an embodiment in which the present invention is used for a color proof creating apparatus which is an image recording apparatus. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a schematic configuration inside a color proof producing apparatus.

  The apparatus main body 2 of the color proof producing apparatus 1 exposes a photosensitive material (in this embodiment, a reversal exposure direct positive photosensitive material, hereinafter also referred to as paper), and exposes an image (in this case). , A latent image) and a development processing unit 7 for developing the paper on which the latent image is formed by the exposure unit 3.

  The exposure unit 3 feeds paper by the paper feeding means 20 by reducing the inside by a paper feeding means 20 for supplying paper stored in a cartridge 10 mounted on the upper part of the apparatus main body 2 and a pressure reducing means 37 to be described later. Supporting means 30 for holding the formed paper, an optical unit 40 for recording an image on the paper held by the supporting means 30, and discharging for discharging the paper held by the supporting means 30 and conveying it to the development processing unit 7 And a unit for recording an image on paper.

  The development processing unit 7 includes a second exposure unit 71 that exposes the entire surface of the paper to form a pseudo image on a portion that has not been exposed by the exposure unit 3, a development unit 72 that develops the paper, and a development process. A fixing unit 73 for fixing the fixed paper, a stabilizing unit 74 for stabilizing the fixed paper, and a drying unit 75 for drying the stabilized paper. A latent image is formed by the exposure unit 3. This is a unit for developing the developed paper to make it visible.

  Next, details of the exposure unit 3 will be described based on FIG. 2 which is a side sectional view of a part of the exposure unit 3, FIG. 3 which is a plan sectional view, and FIG. 4 which is a control block diagram. The control unit 100 includes a CPU 101, a RAM 103, and a ROM 102 that stores a program, takes in various information, and controls various actuators.

  The cartridge 10 containing the roll-shaped paper is loaded on the upper part of the apparatus main body 2. In addition, the cartridge 10 is set at the position of paper feed rollers 21a and 21b, which will be described later, with the leading end of the paper pulled out by a predetermined length. At this time, the cartridge 10 is maintained in a light tight state by a cover (no reference).

  The paper supply means 20 is means for supplying the paper stored in the cartridge 10 to the support means 30, and includes paper supply rollers 21 a and 21 b, a paper supply motor 22, a paper supply roller pressure release mechanism 23, and a cutter 24. An encoder roller 25, a guide 26, a paper supply / discharge roller 27, a paper supply / discharge motor 28, and a paper supply / discharge roller press release mechanism 29. The paper feed rollers 21 a and 21 b are rollers that pull out paper from the cartridge 10. The paper feed motor 22, the paper feed roller pressure release mechanism 23, the cutter 24, the encoder roller 25, the paper feed / discharge motor 28 and the paper feed / discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29 are controlled by the control means 100.

  The paper feed roller 21a is a drive roller, and the paper feed roller 21b is a driven roller that can contact and separate from the paper feed roller 21a. The paper feed motor 22 is a drive unit that rotationally drives the paper feed roller 21a. The paper feed roller pressure release mechanism 23 contacts and separates the paper feed roller 21b from the paper feed roller 21a, that is, a position separated from the position (shown by a solid line in FIG. 2) (a broken line in FIG. 2). It is a means to move between. By this paper feed roller press release mechanism, the paper feed roller 21b is moved to a position separated from the paper feed roller 21a in order to prevent the occurrence of paper wrinkles due to the roller press except during the paper transport operation.

  The cutter 24 is a cutting unit that cuts the paper drawn by the paper feed rollers 21a and 21b into a predetermined length. The encoder roller 25 is means for feeding the paper by its rotation and detecting the paper feed amount. Note that the cutter 24 operates when the paper feed amount detected by the encoder roller 25 reaches a predetermined length.

  The paper supply / discharge roller 27 is a roller provided so as to be able to contact and separate from a drum 31 described later. The paper supply / discharge motor 28 is a driving unit that rotationally drives the paper supply / discharge roller 27, and in this embodiment, is a pulse motor that is subjected to excitation control. The paper supply / discharge motor 28 is configured to rotate the paper supply / discharge roller 27 when the paper supply / discharge roller 27 is pressure-bonded to the drum 31 by a later-described supply / discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29. ing. Accordingly, the paper supply / discharge motor 28 serves as a second rotation driving unit that rotates the drum 31 following the paper supply / discharge roller 27 when the paper supply / discharge roller 27 is pressed against the drum 31. When 27 is not pressure-bonded to the drum 31, no driving force is transmitted to the drum 31. The paper supply / discharge roller press release mechanism 29 contacts / separates the paper supply / discharge roller 27 with respect to the drum 31, that is, a position separated from the position (shown by a solid line in FIG. 2) (a broken line in FIG. 2). It is a means to move between. When the paper supply / discharge roller 27 winds the paper around the peripheral surface of the drum 31 and discharges the paper on the peripheral surface of the drum 31, the supply / discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29 Move to the position where it is crimped to the peripheral surface. At this time, the paper supply / discharge roller 27 is driven to rotate from the paper supply / discharge motor 28.

  The support means 30 is a means for holding the paper fed by the paper feed means 20 when the inside is decompressed by a decompression means 37 to be described later. In the present embodiment, the support means 30 is constituted by a hollow cylindrical drum 31. Has been. A plurality of suction holes 31 c, which are holes penetrating from the circumferential surface to the inside, are formed on the circumferential surface of the drum 31. The shaft portions 31a and 31b at both ends of the drum 31 are rotatably supported by bearings 32a and 32b.

  The main scanning drive unit 35 is a first drive unit that is provided on the one shaft portion 31 a side of the drum 31 and rotates the drum 31. The main scanning drive unit 35 is provided on the drum motor 351 which is a drive source controlled by the control unit 100, an output pulley 353 provided on the rotation shaft of the drum motor 351, and the shaft portion 31a side of the drum 31. A driving pulley 354 and a belt 352 suspended between the output pulley 353 and the driving pulley 354 are provided, and the drum 31 is rotated by driving of the drum motor 351. In the present embodiment, the drum motor 351 uses an AC servo motor that is excitation controlled.

  The rotary encoder 36 is a clock pulse generator provided on one shaft portion 31 a of the drum 31 that divides one circumference of the drum 31 into equal parts and generates a plurality of clock pulses during one rotation of the drum 31. Yes, used for dot clock generation synchronized with drum rotation. Further, the rotary encoder 36 is also a reference pulse generating means for generating one reference pulse during one rotation of the drum 31.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the rotary encoder 36 includes a disk-shaped scale plate 363 provided with a plurality of clock marks 361 equally arranged in the circumferential direction and one reference mark 362, and a clock mark. A clock light source (not shown) that irradiates light to 361, a reference light source (not shown) that irradiates light to the reference mark 362, and a clock pulse detection that detects light emitted from the clock light source and transmitted or reflected by the clock mark 361 364, a reference pulse detector 365 that detects light emitted from the reference light source and transmitted or reflected by the reference mark 362, and a clock pulse generator 366 that generates a clock pulse based on a signal obtained by the clock pulse detector 364. A reference pulse generator 367 for generating a reference pulse based on the signal obtained by the reference pulse detector 365, It has. Therefore, as the drum 31 rotates, the rotary encoder 36 sequentially detects a plurality of clock pulse marks 361 and generates a clock pulse synchronized with the rotation of the drum 31 and also outputs one reference pulse during one rotation. appear.

  The decompression unit 37 is a unit provided on the other shaft portion 31 b of the drum 31 to decompress the inside of the drum 31. The decompression means 37 includes a blower 371 that decompresses the inside of the drum 31 and is controlled by the control means 100, and a pipe 372 that connects the interior of the drum 31 and the blower 371. Therefore, when the blower 371 is driven, the inside of the drum 31 is depressurized via the pipe 372 and the drum 31 is provided with the suction hole 31c. Therefore, the paper wound on the peripheral surface of the drum 31 is removed. It can be held tightly. The blower 371 makes a loud noise when driven, and is disposed as a separate body from the apparatus main body 2, for example, in a room separate from the room where the apparatus main body 2 is placed. It is configured to communicate with. In the present embodiment, the blower 371 is used as the decompression means 37, but a vacuum pump or the like may be used.

  The optical unit 40 as image recording means is means for recording an image on the paper held on the peripheral surface of the drum 31. In this embodiment, the paper that receives the digital image signal and is adsorbed to the drum 31. And means for recording an image (latent image) by exposure with laser beams of red light, green light, and blue light. The optical unit 40 includes a red laser light source (HeNe) 41R that emits a laser beam of red light, a green laser light source (HeNe) 41G that emits a laser beam of green light, and a blue laser light source that emits a laser beam of blue light. (Ar) 41B is arranged. The laser beams from the red laser light source 41R, the green laser light source 41G, and the blue laser light source 41B are respectively controlled in intensity by AOMs (acousto-optic elements: controlling the light intensity) 42R, 42G, and 42B. The green light is condensed through the mirrors 432 and 433 and the blue light is condensed through the mirrors 434 and 433 by the condenser lens 44, and the paper on the drum 31 is collected by the imaging lens 45. To form an image and expose the image. The exposure shutter 46 is provided so as to be insertable / retractable (open / close) in the optical path of the laser beam, and opens / closes the optical path at the start / end of exposure.

  Here, the flow of image data and exposure control will be described with reference to FIG. 4. The halftone image data of each color (Y, M, C, BK) created by the external device 200 is an image data I / F unit. Then, the data is converted into an exposure format, and digital image data is obtained. Data for one sheet is stored in the data buffer 202. On the other hand, in synchronization with the clock pulse obtained from the rotary encoder 36 by the rotating drum 31, the digital image data is sent from the data buffer 202 to the LUT (look-up table) 204 and the D / A converters 205R, 205G, and 205B. To the AOM drivers 206R, 206G, and 206B, and these AOM drivers 206R, 206G, and 206B drive the AOMs 42R, 42G, and 42B, respectively.

  The sub-scanning moving unit 47 is a unit that moves the optical unit 40 in the sub-scanning direction (a direction parallel to the axis of the drum 30 and the vertical direction in FIG. 3). The sub-scanning moving unit includes a sub-scanning motor 471 that is a drive source controlled by the control unit 100, a pulley 472 provided on the shaft of the sub-scanning motor 471, a moving belt 473 to which the optical unit 40 is fixed, A pulley 474 that suspends the moving belt 473 together with the pulley 472, a pair of guide rails 475 that guide the optical unit 40 in a direction parallel to the rotation axis of the drum 31, and a home position detection sensor that detects the home position of the optical unit 40. 476 and a writing start position detection sensor 477 for detecting the writing start position of the image. According to the sub-scanning moving unit 47, first, the optical unit 40 is stopped at the home position where the optical unit 40 is detected by the home position detection sensor 476. Then, by driving the sub scanning motor 471, the optical unit 40 fixed to the moving belt 473 moves in the sub scanning direction along the guide rail 475, and the writing start position detection sensor 477 detects the optical unit 40. From the writing start position, exposure of the paper on the drum 31 is started by the optical unit 40. Then, the movement in the sub-scanning direction is stopped by the movement amount corresponding to the image size, and the movement is returned to the home position.

  The discharge means 50 is means for discharging the paper held on the drum 31 and transporting it to the development processing unit 7, and a peeling guide provided so as to be swingable for peeling the paper held on the drum 31. 51, a peeling rocking mechanism 52 that rocks the peeling guide 51, conveyance rollers 53 and 54, a discharge motor 55 that drives the conveyance rollers 53 and 54, an exit shutter 56, and paper peeled from the drum 31. And an accumulator 57 (see FIG. 1). The peeling swing mechanism 52, the discharge motor 55, and the exit shutter 56 are controlled by the control means 100. The peeling guide 51 is moved up and down by a peeling rocking mechanism 52, and in an upper position (shown by a solid line in FIG. 2), the claw portion 51 a of the peeling guide 51 contacts the drum 31 and is held on the drum 31. The paper is temporarily stored in the accumulator 57 at the lower position (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2). The accumulator 57 adjusts the transport timing with the development processing unit 7 by temporarily storing paper even when the transport speed of the development processing unit 7 is slower than the discharge speed of the exposure unit 3. The processing capability of the exposure unit 3 is not reduced.

  The paper peeled from the drum 31 by the peeling guide 51 is sequentially transported by the transport rollers 53 and 54, passes through the exit shutter 56 opened at a predetermined timing according to the paper discharge timing, and is sent to the development processing unit 7. Is done. In this way, the paper on which the image is recorded by the exposure unit 3 is developed and visualized by the development processing unit 7. That is, the paper sent from the exposure unit 3 is formed with a pseudo image in a portion that is not exposed by the exposure unit 3 by the second exposure unit 71, and the second exposed paper is the developing unit 72 and the fixing unit 73. The photosensitive material is transported to the stabilizing unit 74 and developed, and the processed photosensitive material is dried by the drying unit 75 and then discharged.

  The operation display means 92 (see FIG. 4) is an input means provided on the outer surface of the apparatus main body 2 for inputting information for various settings and operations, and also a display means for displaying the status of the apparatus and various information. is there. The operation display unit 92 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel and a touch panel.

  The counter 93 is a counting unit that counts clock pulses obtained from the rotary encoder 36. A rotary encoder 36 is connected to the clock terminal of the counter 93 and a clock pulse is input. The control means 100 is connected to the preset terminal of the counter 93, and a preset value is input. The reset terminal of the counter 93 is connected to a mask unit 94 which will be described later, and receives a reset signal. Further, the control means 100 is connected to the output terminal of the counter 93, and the current count value or the signal is output to the control means 100 when it is counted up. The count value counted by the counter 93 is taken into the control means 100 and used to detect the position of the drum 31 or by counting up, the paper held on the drum 31 is discharged from the drum 31. Used to detect whether or not the paper has been wound around the drum 31, and used to stop the drum 31 at a predetermined position. It is done. The count value that can be counted by the counter 93 may be at least a value that can count the number of clock pulses generated while the drum 31 rotates once.

  In the present embodiment, the single counter 93 is configured to be used for each application described above, but a plurality of counters, for example, a counter may be provided for each application. Further, the CPU 101 and the RAM 103 of the control means 100 may also serve as a counter. In this case, it is preferable to use the interrupt terminal of the CPU 101 as a substitute for the reset terminal of the counter 93 for more accurate detection. It is preferable that the interrupt terminal is a maskable terminal because unnecessary processing can be prohibited and the load on the CPU 101 can be reduced.

  The mask unit 94 is a unit that is controlled by the control unit 100 and masks the output to the reset terminal of the counter 93. That is, when detecting whether or not the paper held on the drum 31 is discharged from the drum 31, or when detecting whether or not the paper has been wound around the drum 31, the count value is determined by the reference pulse. Is controlled so that the reference pulse is not output to the reset terminal of the counter 93.

  Next, the operation of the exposure unit 3 of the color proof creating apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. The following operation is stored as a program in the ROM 102 and is read out and executed by a CPU (computer).

  First, when the main switch is turned on (S1), initial processing of the electrical device of the apparatus and various error checks are performed (S2). In this initial process, various units such as the drum 31 and the optical unit 40 are returned to their initial positions, and data is loaded from the ROM 102 to the RAM 103.

  Here, the initial position of the drum 31 will be described in detail. The control unit 100 controls the paper supply / discharge roller press release mechanism 29 to press the paper supply / discharge roller 27 to the drum 31 and drive the paper supply / discharge motor 28. Then, the drum 31 is rotated to the standby position that is the initial position. That is, this standby position is a position (a position slightly deviated) from the position where the reference pulse detector 365 detects the reference mark 362 (in other words, the position where the reference pulse is generated), preferably a reference position. The position of the mark 362 is the upstream side in the rotation direction in which the drum 31 rotates when paper is wound (held) on the drum 31 with respect to the reference pulse detection unit 365, and the drum 31 is rotated to this standby position. Let

  If an error is detected at this time, an error message is displayed on the operation display means 92 (S3). When the initial process and the error check in S2 are completed, until the recording start instruction is received from the operation display means 92 or the external device 200, conditions are set by operating the operation display means 92 (S5). When it is received (S4), the process proceeds to an image recording operation.

  In the image recording operation, first, the paper feed roller pressure release mechanism 23 is driven to press the paper feed roller 21b against the paper feed roller 21a, and the paper feed / discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29 is driven to feed / discharge the paper 27 Is pressed on the drum 31, and the drum motor 351 is turned off to make the drum 31 rotatable (S6). Then, the paper feed motor 22 is turned on (driven), the paper feed rollers 21a and 21b are rotated, and the paper transport is started (S7).

  On the other hand, the mask portion 94 is turned off (that is, a state in which the reference pulse can be output to the reset terminal of the counter 93), and the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned on (driven) (S8). Accordingly, the paper supply / discharge roller 27 starts rotating by the drive of the paper supply / discharge motor 28, and the drum 31 is rotated following the rotation of the paper supply / discharge roller 27. At this time, since a clock pulse is generated from the rotary encoder 36, the counter 93 counts this clock pulse. Since the standby position of the drum 31 is a position deviated by a predetermined amount from the position where the reference pulse detection unit 365 detects the reference mark 362, when the drum 31 is rotated by the predetermined amount, the reference pulse is transferred to the mask unit. The counter 94 is input to the reset terminal of the counter 93, and the count value of the counter 94 is reset. Even if the count value is reset, since the drum 31 continues to rotate, the counter 94 counts. The drum 31 continues to rotate until the count value of the paper supply / discharge position stored in the ROM 102 or RAM 103 in advance matches the count value of the counter 93 (S9). Is turned off to stop the rotation of the drum 31 (S10).

  By the way, in S7, when the leading edge of the paper that has been started is detected by a paper leading edge reference position sensor (not shown) (S11), the length of the paper is determined by the rotation of the encoder roller 25 based on this detection. Measurement is started (S12). Then, the length of the paper is counted from the feed amount of the paper, and when the paper is conveyed until a predetermined length, that is, until the front end of the paper is nipped by the paper supply / discharge roller 27 and the drum 31 (S13) (in other words, the paper When the tip of the paper reaches the paper feed / discharge position, the paper feed motor 22 is turned off and the paper feed roller pressure release mechanism 23 is driven to release the pressure on the paper feed roller 21b (S14). The paper can be conveyed by the rotation of the drum 31.

  Next, the blower 371 is turned on (driven) (S15), waits for its stability (S16), and after stabilization, the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned on (S17). As a result, the paper can be wound while adsorbing the paper to the drum 31.

  The paper length measurement started in S16 is continued, and when it is detected that a length (predetermined length) matching the paper size has been pulled out (S18), the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned off. Then, the paper feed roller pressure release mechanism 23 is driven to press the paper feed roller 21b to the paper feed roller 21a via the paper (S19). Here, the cutter 24 is driven to cut the paper (S20), and a sheet-like paper is obtained from the roll-like paper. Then, the mask unit 94 is turned on, and a preset value is input from the control means 100 to the preset terminal of the counter 93 (S21). That is, by turning ON the mask unit 94, even if a reference pulse is generated, it is not input to the reset terminal of the counter 93, while the cutter 24 and the paper supply / discharge position (feed) stored in the ROM 102 or RAM 103 in advance are set. A count value corresponding to the distance between the paper discharge roller 27 and the position where the paper discharge roller 27 is in contact with the drum 31 is input from the preset terminal of the counter 93 as a preset value.

  Thereafter, the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned ON (according to this, the drum 31 also starts rotating, and the counter 93 starts counting by the generated clock pulse), and the paper supply roller pressure release mechanism 23 is driven to supply the paper. The press release of the paper roller 21a is performed (S22). When the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned ON, the paper sandwiched between the paper supply / discharge roller 27 and the drum 31 is sequentially wound around the circumferential surface of the drum 31 and the drum 31 is blown by the blower 371. As the pressure is reduced, the drum 31 is brought into close contact with the peripheral surface of the drum 31 through the suction hole 31c.

  When the count value of the counter 93 coincides with the preset value set in S21, that is, when the count is counted up, it is determined that the winding of the paper around the drum 31 is completed (S23). When it is determined that the paper has been wound around the drum 31, the drum feeding / discharging motor 28 is turned off (the rotation of the drum 31 is stopped), the excitation of the feeding / discharging motor 28 is turned off (excitation is not performed), and the feeding is performed. The paper discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29 is driven to release the pressure on the paper supply / discharge roller 27 (S24).

  Next, the drum motor 351 is turned on (driven) (the excitation of the drum motor 351 is of course performed), the drum 31 is rotated (S25), and the drum 31 is rotated at a predetermined rotational speed (this embodiment). In the embodiment, the system waits for stabilization at the number of rotations when the image is recorded (S26).

  When the predetermined number of rotations is reached, the sub-scanning motor 471 is turned on (S27), and the optical unit 40 located at the home position is started to move in the sub-scanning direction. Then, the exposure shutter 46 is turned on (that is, the optical path is opened) (S28). When the optical unit 40 that has started moving in S27 is detected by the writing start position detection sensor 477 (S29), output of image data, that is, exposure (writing) on paper is started (S30).

  At this time, the red laser light source 41R, the green laser light source 41G, and the blue laser light source 41B emit light, and the intensity is controlled by the AOMs 42R, 42G, and 42B based on the LUT 204 data of the set channels, respectively. An image having a color corresponding to the color of the printing paper is exposed.

  When the writing of the image data is completed (S31), the mask section 94 is turned on (that is, the count value of the counter 93 is reset each time a reference pulse is generated, so the count value of the counter 93 is set to the drum 31. Then, the drum motor 351 is turned off and the sub-scanning motor 471 is rotated in the reverse direction to move the optical unit 40 to the home position (S32). When the optical unit 40 is detected by the home position detection sensor 476, the sub-scanning motor 471 is turned off.

  When it is confirmed that the drum 31 has stopped (S33), the control means 100 reads the count value of the counter 93, confirms the position (current position) where the drum 31 has stopped, and the drum 31 is the earliest paper supply / discharge position. In order to reach, it is determined in which direction the rotation should be performed, in other words, the rotation direction is determined so that the distance between the current position and the paper supply / discharge position is shorter (S34).

  Then, the paper discharge roller press release mechanism 29 is driven to press the paper supply / discharge roller 27 to the drum 31 and the excitation of the drum motor 351 is turned off (S35). Next, the drum 31 is rotated by driving the paper supply / discharge motor 28 and rotating the paper supply / discharge roller 27 so that the drum 31 rotates in the rotation direction determined in S34 (S36), and stored in advance. The rotation of the drum 31 is continued until the count value of the current paper supply / discharge position matches the count value of the counter 93 (S37). Is stopped (S38).

  Here, the peeling rocking mechanism 52 is driven to rock the peeling guide 51 to the upper position (that is, the position where the claw portion 51 a contacts the drum 31), and the outlet shutter 56 to the development processing unit 7 is opened. (S39). The mask unit 94 is turned on, and a preset value is input from the control means 100 to the preset terminal of the counter 93 (S40). That is, by turning on the mask unit 94, even if a reference pulse is generated, it is not input to the reset terminal of the counter 93, while a count corresponding to the length of the paper stored in advance in the ROM 102 or RAM 103. The value is input from the preset terminal of the counter 93 as a preset value.

  Then, the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned on to rotate the paper supply / discharge roller 27 (counting by the counter 93 is started), and the blower 371 is turned off (S41). Accordingly, the paper wound around the drum 31 is conveyed by the rotation of the paper supply / discharge roller 27 and the drum 31 and is discharged from the drum 31 while being peeled off by the claw portion 51 a of the peeling guide 51. Further, in S41, the discharge motor 55 is also turned on, and the paper discharged from the drum 31 is conveyed at high speed by the conveyance rollers 53 and 54. When the leading edge of the paper is transported to the vicinity of the entrance of the development processing unit 7, the discharge motor 55 is stopped, and when the paper discharge from the exposure unit 3 is completed, the paper transport speed in the phenomenon processing unit 7. The discharge motor 55 is started by switching to a constant speed according to the above. Then, the paper transported by switching to a low speed is developed in the development processing unit 7 as described above.

  On the other hand, when the paper is nipped and conveyed by the conveyance rollers 53 and 54, the separation rocking mechanism 52 is driven to place the separation guide 51 in the lower position (S42), and the count value of the counter 93 is S40. When the preset value matches the set preset value, that is, when the count is counted up, it is determined that the paper has been completely discharged onto the drum 31 (S43). When the paper is discharged from the drum 31 (S43), the mask unit 94 is turned off (S44), and the counter 93 counts the clock pulse in a state reset by the reference pulse, and the drum 31 is moved to the standby position. Move (S45). Since the standby position is a position deviated by a predetermined amount from the position where the reference pulse detection unit 365 detects the reference mark 362 as described above, the drum 31 is rotated by the predetermined amount at the time of the next image recording. The reference pulse is input to the reset terminal of the counter 93 via the mask unit 94, and the count value of the counter 94 is reset. Even if the count value is reset, since the drum 31 continues to rotate, accurate position control can be performed.

  When the drum 31 rotates to the standby position, the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is turned off, the drum motor 351 is excited so that the drum 31 does not rotate freely, and the paper supply / discharge roller pressure release mechanism 29 is driven to supply / discharge paper. By releasing the pressure bonding of the roller 27 (S46), the recording is completed, and the process proceeds to a state of waiting for recording the next image data (S4).

  Thus, in the present embodiment, the position of the drum 31 is detected using the clock pulse used for image recording. More specifically, the reference pulse generator 367 generates 1 during one rotation of the drum 31. Based on the two reference pulses, the clock pulse used for image recording generated by the clock pulse generator 366 is counted by the counter 93, and the drum position is detected based on the count value of the counter 93. The position of the image can be accurately grasped, no extra rotation is required, and the cycle time of image recording can be shortened.

  Further, since the counter 93 is configured to reset the count value when the reference pulse is detected, the value that can be counted by the counter 93 may be at least the number of clock pulses generated during one rotation of the drum 31. And cost reduction can be realized. Further, when the drum 31 is not holding paper (after the image recording is completed), the next image is recorded by waiting the drum at a position (standby position) shifted by a predetermined amount from the position where the reference pulse is generated. Therefore, when the drum 31 is rotated to the paper supply / discharge position, a reference pulse is immediately generated, and accurate positioning is possible. Further, since the standby position of the drum 31 is on the upstream side in the rotation direction in which the drum 31 rotates when holding the paper with respect to the position where the reference pulse is generated, the drum 31 from the standby position to the paper supply / discharge position is provided. The rotation direction of the drum 31 and the rotation direction of the drum 31 when the paper is wound are the same direction, so that the drum 31 can be accurately stopped at the paper supply / discharge position. Further, when the drum 31 in a stopped state is rotated to a predetermined position, it can be accurately rotated to a predetermined position by rotating the rotating member based on the count value of the counter 93. Furthermore, by determining the rotation direction of the drum 31 based on the count value of the counter 93 and rotating it, the drum 31 can be moved faster and the cycle time can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the rotation of the drum 31 for discharging the paper from the drum 31 (that is, the ON command for the paper supply / discharge motor 28) and the count value of the counter 93 are used. By determining the completion of the discharge, it is possible to determine the completion of the discharge without providing a sensor or the like for detecting the trailing edge of the paper, thereby realizing cost reduction.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the drum 31 is rotated based on the rotation start command of the drum 31 for winding the paper around the drum 31 (that is, the command to turn on the paper supply / discharge motor 28) and the count value of the counter 93. By determining the completion of winding of the paper around 31, it is possible to determine the completion of discharging without providing a sensor or the like for detecting the trailing edge of the paper, and cost reduction can be realized. In particular, in this embodiment, since the completion of winding of the paper is determined based on the rotation start command of the drum 31 after the paper is cut by the cutter 24 and the count value of the counter 93, the count value until the determination is made. Can be made small, is not easily affected by motor step-out, etc., and can be accurately determined. In particular, this case is effective when the distance between the cutter 24 and the position where the paper is wound around the peripheral surface of the drum 31 (feed / discharge position) is shorter than the length of the paper.

  In this embodiment, the completion of the winding of the paper is determined based on the rotation start command of the drum 31 after cutting the paper by the cutter 24 and the count value of the counter 93. The completion of paper winding may be determined based on the rotation command of the drum 31 at the start of paper winding (specifically, S17) and the count value of the counter 93. In this embodiment, the mask unit 94 is provided so that the count value of the counter 93 is properly used for each application. However, without providing the mask unit 94, the count value of the counter 93 is set to the value of the drum 31. The position may be represented, and the position may be read by the control unit 100 to determine whether the paper has been wound or discharged.

  In the present embodiment, an AC servo motor is used as the drum motor 351 (first driving means) for rotating the drum 31 during image recording, and the paper is discharged from the drum 31 when the paper is supplied to the drum 31. At the time of image recording and feeding / discharging, a pulse motor is used as the sheet feeding / discharging motor 28 (second driving means) for rotating the drum, and the AC motor and the pulse motor are switched to rotate the drum 31. Even if the rotational speed difference (about several hundred times) between the drum 31 and the drum 31 is sufficiently covered, accurate positioning is possible even when the drum 31 is moved to the standby position or the paper supply / discharge position. Become.

  In the present embodiment, both the drum motor 351 and the paper supply / discharge motor 28 are drive units that are excited and controlled, and either the drum motor 351 or the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is driven. When the other motor is not excited, the other motor does not act as a brake, and there is an error in the exclusive drive of both motors. However, stable rotation can be ensured without breaking the motor. In this embodiment, the excitation control of the drum motor 351 and the paper supply / discharge motor 28 is such that when one motor is driven, the other motor is not excited. The excitation control may be controlled exclusively by proceeding.

It is a schematic diagram of schematic structure inside a color proof production apparatus. It is side surface sectional drawing of a part of exposure unit. It is a plane sectional view of a part of the exposure unit. It is a control block diagram of an exposure unit. It is a flowchart figure of an exposure unit. It is a flowchart figure of an exposure unit. It is a flowchart figure of an exposure unit.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Color proof production apparatus 2 Apparatus main body 3 Exposure unit 7 Development processing unit 10 Cartridge 27 Supply / discharge roller 31 Drum 31c Suction hole 36 Rotary encoder 361 Clock mark 362 Reference mark 363 Scale plate 364 Clock pulse detection unit 365 Reference pulse detection unit 366 Clock pulse generation unit 367 Reference pulse generation unit 37 Decompression unit 371 Blower 40 Optical unit 51 Separation guide 92 Operation display unit 93 Counter 94 Mask unit 100 Control unit

Claims (1)

A rotating member that holds the recording material on the peripheral surface and rotates;
Image recording means for recording an image on a recording material held on the peripheral surface of the rotating member;
Supply means for supplying a recording material to the rotating member;
Discharging means for discharging the recording material held by the rotating member;
First driving means for rotating the rotating member during image recording;
An image recording apparatus comprising: a second driving unit configured to rotate the rotating member when supplying the recording material to the rotating member or / and discharging the recording material from the rotating member;
The first driving means is an AC servo motor, and the second driving means is a pulse motor,
An image recording apparatus, wherein the rotating member is rotated by switching between the AC servo motor and the pulse motor.

Images