JP4258443B2 - Laminating apparatus and plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus using the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is a non-contact type such as a cash card with a face photo produced by laminating at least two sheets, an employee card, a student card, an individual card, a residence card, various driver's licenses, various qualification certificates, etc. Information media with contact-type personal information image information, laminating equipment used to produce plastic sheets used for personal identification image sheets, image display boards, display labels, etc. used in medical settings, and electrophotographic image formation The present invention relates to a plastic sheet producing apparatus for producing a plastic sheet obtained by laminating a film formed (recorded) directly by an apparatus using the laminating apparatus.

  In recent years, along with the development of image forming technology, means for forming images of the same quality in large quantities and at low cost by various printing methods such as intaglio printing, relief printing, planographic printing, gravure printing, and screen printing are known. Yes. Such a printing method is used for surface printing of an information medium that can store predetermined information such as an IC card, a magnetic card, an optical card, or a combination of these, and can communicate with an external device in contact or non-contact. Are often used.

  However, for example, the screen printing requires a large number of printing plates corresponding to the number of images to be printed, and in the case of color printing, printing plates corresponding to the number of colors are further required. Therefore, these printing methods are unsuitable for individually responding to individual identification information (face photo, name, address, date of birth, various licenses, etc.).

  The most mainstream image forming means for the above problems is an image forming method using a printer or the like employing a sublimation type or melting type thermal transfer system using an ink ribbon or the like. However, these can easily print personal identification information, but still have the problem that the resolution decreases when the printing speed is increased and the printing speed decreases when the resolution is increased.

  In contrast, in electrophotographic image formation (printing), the surface of the image carrier is uniformly charged, exposed in accordance with an image signal, and an electrostatic latent image due to a potential difference between an exposed portion and a non-exposed portion is generated. Then, a color powder (image forming material) called toner having a polarity opposite to (or the same as) the charge is electrostatically developed to form a visible image (toner image) on the surface of the image carrier. Done in the way. In the case of a color image, this process is repeated a plurality of times, or a plurality of image forming devices are arranged in parallel to form a visible color image, and these are transferred and fixed (fixed: mainly by heat) to the image recording medium. This is performed by a method of obtaining a color image by melting and solidifying the color powder by cooling.

  As described above, in the electrophotographic method, the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier is electrically formed by the image signal, so that not only the same image can be formed many times, but also different images can be easily handled. Image formation is possible. Further, the toner image on the surface of the image carrier can be transferred almost completely to the surface of the image recording body, and the toner image slightly remaining on the surface of the image carrier can be easily removed with a resin blade or a brush. Therefore, it is possible to easily produce printed materials for multi-product small-volume production.

  The toner is usually formed by melt-mixing a heat-meltable resin, a pigment, and optionally an additive such as a charge control agent, and pulverizing and finely pulverizing the kneaded product. Further, the electrostatic latent image in the electrophotographic method has a considerably higher resolution than the finely divided toner, and a sufficient resolution is expected even when compared with the resolution of the screen printing or thermal transfer method of the ink ribbon. it can.

  For color images, the four primary colors of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are used as color toners, and these can be mixed to theoretically reproduce the same color as in printing. In the above color toner, since the toner resin and the pigment can be blended relatively freely, it is easy to increase the image concealment by the toner.

Examples of printing various cards using the electrophotographic apparatus described above include the following.
For example, in addition to various personal information, an invisible barcode is printed on a 250 μm-thick vinyl chloride sheet or a 280 μm-thick polyester sheet by electrophotography, overlaid on the printed surface, and laminated with a hot press. A method is presented (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  However, in the above-mentioned vinyl chloride sheets, the friction coefficient between sheets is too large, and the sheets are in close contact with each other, so the sheet transportability is poor, the electrophotographic apparatus stops, or the insulator having a thickness of 250 μm or more as described above On the (sheet), the image forming material (toner) is not sufficiently transferred, and image defects may increase. In addition, when the resin film that softens at a relatively low temperature is used for printing using an electrophotographic apparatus, in the fixing process, the fixing temperature is higher than the softening temperature of the film, and thus the adhesiveness is developed. There are problems that occur. Further, if the image forming material is offset to the fixing device or the fixing of the 250 μm thick sheet is continued, the fixing device may be damaged more than necessary at the edge (corner) of the sheet.

  It has also been proposed that personal identification information is printed on a light-transmitting laminate sheet, and that the printing is performed as a mirror image (see, for example, Patent Document 2). However, regarding the light-transmitting laminate sheet, it is preferable that at least a part is a biaxially stretched polyester film, or a film made of ABS or polyester / biaxially stretched polyester film, but may be vinyl chloride. It ’s just that.

  Therefore, in this specification, since the film is a simple insulator, a transfer failure of the image forming material to the film surface occurs, and a resolution equivalent to that of the thermal transfer system cannot be obtained. In addition, in this device with an emphasis on productivity improvement, the laminate sheet used is in the form of a roll, so it can handle emergency or multi-product production such as different printing for one to several cards. Therefore, there is a problem that a lot of loss and waste occur.

  Furthermore, not only image formation on the film but also the automation of the process of conveying and laminating the film on which the image is formed and the core sheet (base material) serving as the core and the laminating process have been hardly studied. However, it is necessary to design each of the above processes and manufacturing apparatuses from the viewpoint of improving productivity.

  As a manufacturing apparatus for automating the laminating process, for example, a pair of upper and lower entrance rollers and a pair of upper and lower exit rollers are supported in parallel, and an endless belt is provided between at least the lower entrance roller and the exit roller. A method has been proposed in which the entrance side roller is a heating device and the exit side roller is a cooling device (see, for example, Patent Document 3). In general, when producing a laminated plastic sheet, it is preferable to laminate using, for example, a pair of belts in which two endless belts are pressed against each other in order to obtain flatness.

However, endless belts used in the above devices are generally formed endlessly by welding a metal plate such as stainless steel. In the endless belt obtained in this way, a joint part welded in the width direction remains, and the joint part has irregularities.
Therefore, if heat and pressure are applied while the laminate surface composed of the film and the core sheet is in contact with the joining portion existing on the outer peripheral surface of the endless belt during lamination, the surface of the laminated laminate (ie, plastic sheet) is applied. Causes a problem that the marks due to the unevenness of the joint portion remain, resulting in a defective product.

In order to solve this problem, it is necessary to detect the position of the joint on the peripheral surface of the endless belt and to produce a plastic sheet while avoiding the joint. Furthermore, from the viewpoint of ensuring high productivity, the joints on the outer peripheral surface side of both endless belts must be face-to-face in a region where the outer peripheral surfaces of both endless belts face each other when rotating in the circumferential direction. It is necessary.
However, the displacement of the two joining portions is caused by the difference in the belt circumferential length of each of the pair of endless belts, the difference in the outer circumferential length of each of the pair of rollers provided on the inlet side and the outlet side of the laminate portion. For this reason, if the position of the joint portion is detected and an attempt is made to produce a plastic sheet while avoiding the joint portion, the positional deviation between the two joint portions becomes large, and the timing is set so that the joint portion and the laminate do not contact at the time of lamination. The time is increased and productivity is reduced.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art.
That is, the present invention provides a laminating apparatus capable of producing a plastic sheet with high productivity, and a high-resolution plastic provided with the laminating apparatus and used as an image forming means without greatly remodeling a conventional electrophotographic apparatus. It is an object of the present invention to provide a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus capable of manufacturing a sheet.

The above-mentioned subject is achieved by the following present invention. That is, the present invention
<1> A pair of endless belts (a first endless belt and a second endless belt) having a joint portion in the circumferential surface width direction and at least a part of the outer circumferential surface being pressed against each other to form a nip portion; One pair of endless belts and two or more pairs of rolls disposed opposite to each other and in contact with the second endless belt inner circumferential surface, and the pair of the two pairs of rolls via at least one pair of rolls. A drive motor for rotating the endless belt,
At least a pair of the two or more pairs of rolls is a heat and pressure roll that forms the nip portion and heats the nip portion,
In a laminating apparatus for producing a plastic sheet by laminating a laminate in which two or more sheets are laminated, by inserting the nip portion while heating and pressing,
When the circumferential position of the first endless belt outer circumferential surface side joint portion and the circumferential position of the second endless belt outer circumferential surface side joint portion are shifted, alignment is made so that they face each other during rotation. A positioning mechanism for performing driving force transmission releasing means for releasing transmission of the driving force to one of the pair of rolls to which the driving force of the driving motor is transmitted. It is a laminating apparatus characterized by including .

<2> The driving force transmission release means is connected to one driving motor and one of the two or more pairs of rolls so as to be interlocked, and the driving force of the driving motor is transmitted. The drive gear is connected to the other roll of the pair of rolls so as to be interlocked, and the driven gear that is directly or indirectly engaged with the drive gear is connected to the one roll and the drive gear, or the other roll It is a laminating apparatus as described in <1> characterized by including the clutch which connects a roll and a driven gear .

<3> The driving force transmission release means is connected to one driving motor and one of the two or more pairs of rolls so as to be interlocked, and transmits the driving force of the driving motor. a drive gear, wherein the operatively linked to the other roll of the pair of rolls, a driven gear that is fitted directly or indirectly the driving gear, fitted canceling means for canceling the fit between the driven gear and the drive gear a laminating apparatus according to <1>, which comprises a.

<4> The laminating apparatus according to any one of <1> to <3>, further including a detection sensor that detects a position in a circumferential direction of a joint portion of the pair of endless belts .

<5> Positioning a laminated body in which an image forming unit for forming an image by an electrophotographic method and a film on which an image is formed by the image forming unit are laminated so as to face each other through a core sheet on the surface of the film An apparatus for producing a plastic sheet, comprising: a positioning unit that performs positioning; and a laminating unit that laminates the core sheet with a film on which an image is formed by the image forming unit by heating and pressing the positioned laminated body. There,
The said lamination part is a plastic sheet production apparatus characterized by including the lamination apparatus as described in any one of <1>-<4>.

  As described above, according to the present invention, a laminating apparatus capable of producing a plastic sheet with high productivity, and the laminating apparatus are provided, and a conventional electrophotographic apparatus as an image forming means is not greatly modified. It is possible to provide a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus that can be used to manufacture a high-resolution plastic sheet.

  In the following description of the present invention, in order to facilitate understanding, first, an outline of a conventional plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus, a configuration of a laminating apparatus that constitutes a laminating portion of this apparatus, and a laminate are laminated. The structure of the laminated body obtained in this way will be described. Next, based on the above knowledge, the present invention will be described in detail.

-Composition of plastic sheet-
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of a plastic sheet manufactured by a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus. The plastic sheet shown in FIG. 1 has a core sheet 1 and a surface film 3 and a back film 5 (both light-transmitting films) on which images 2 and 4 are formed, and a surface on which the images 2 and 4 are formed is a core. The sheet 1 is stacked so as to face each other and laminated.

In addition, the structure of the plastic sheet produced using the laminating apparatus of the present invention to be described later is a three-layer structure as in the example shown in FIG. 1 and an electrophotographic method at the interface of each sheet such as a film or a core sheet. It is not limited only to the structure provided with the image formed by the above.
For example, it may be simply a laminate of two sheets. Also, a sheet on which an image formed by electrophotography or other image forming method is formed on the surface of any sheet, and other sheets so that the image forming surface of this sheet is a laminate surface A plastic sheet may be produced by laminating.

  Further, in the plastic sheet having the configuration shown in FIG. 1, either one of the front film 3 and the back film 5 may be a non-light-transmitting film, or one of the images 2 and 4. The formation of the image may be omitted. Moreover, the form which forms an image in the single side | surface of the surface film 3 and / or the back surface film 5 (for example, light non-permeable film), and laminates the non-image surface facing each other may be sufficient. In this case, the image surface of the film may be further laminated with a protective film.

-Plastic sheet manufacturing equipment-
Such a plastic sheet as illustrated in FIG. 1 is manufactured by a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus as shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the construction of a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus will be described with reference to the drawings on the assumption that the plastic sheet shown in FIG. 1 is manufactured.
FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a configuration example of a plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus.
The plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 2 includes an image forming apparatus (film storage section, image forming section) 10, a collating apparatus 20, and a laminating apparatus (laminating section) 30.

  The image forming apparatus 10 includes, for example, a film stacker 11 (film storage unit), an image forming unit 12, a conveyance path 13 that conveys a light transmissive film from the film stacker 11 to the image forming unit 12, and an image forming unit 12. The conveyance path 15 conveys the light-transmitting film after image formation to the discharge port 14. Other configurations are omitted.

  Although not shown, the image forming unit 12 develops a latent image carrier that forms a latent image, a developer that develops the latent image using a developer containing at least toner, and obtains a toner image, and the developed toner image The image forming apparatus includes a known electrophotographic color image forming apparatus including a transfer device for transferring the toner image to the light transmissive film, and a fixing device for fixing the toner image transferred to the light transmissive film by heating and pressing. .

  The conveyance paths 13 and 15 are composed of a plurality of roller pairs including guide roller pairs and guides (not shown). Further, the conveyance path 15 is an inversion path that reverses the conveyance direction of the light transmissive film by 180 °. 16 is provided. Near the branch between the conveyance path 15 and the reverse path 16, a cam 17 is provided for changing the guide direction of the light transmissive film. When the light transmissive film is reciprocated on the reversing path 16 and returned to the transport path 15 again, the transport direction of the light transmissive film is reversed by 180 ° and the front and back surfaces of the light transmissive film are reversed and transported.

  The collating apparatus 20 includes a core sheet stacker 22, a collating tray (positioning unit) 25, a conveyance path 24 that supplies the core sheet 1 from the core sheet stacker 22 to the collating tray 25, and a discharge port 14 of the image forming apparatus 10. The conveyance path 21 is configured to supply the light transmissive film discharged from the sheet to the collating tray 25.

  In addition, the discharge portion of the conveyance path 24 that supplies the core sheet 1 to the collating tray 25 and the discharge portion of the conveyance path 21 that supplies the light transmissive film to the collation tray 25 are provided in parallel in the height direction. ing.

  The transport path 21 may be, for example, a structure provided with a smooth plate-shaped member and a transport roll for transporting the light-transmitting film on the surface thereof, or a rotating belt-shaped transport body. It may be configured. Then, at the timing when the light transmissive film is discharged from the image forming apparatus 10, the transport roll and the belt rotate to transport the light transmissive film to the collating tray 25.

  Further, the core sheet stacker 22 is provided with a pick-up roll and a paper feed roll as provided in a normal paper feeder, and the collating tray 25 has moved to the position of the discharge port of the core sheet stacker 22. The sheet feeding roll or the like rotates at the timing immediately after that, and the core sheet 1 is conveyed to the collating tray 25.

  The collating tray 25 has, for example, a part of its end portion in the drawing so that the core sheet 1 and the light transmissive film are respectively supplied from the discharge portion of the conveyance path 24 and the discharge portion of the conveyance path 21. It is connected to a belt outer wall stretched around the belt and is configured to move up and down as the belt rotates. Not only such lifting means, but also known lifting means such as a motor drive system can be applied. Moreover, although not shown in figure, the means to align and align the edge part of the laminated | stacked core sheet 1, the surface film 3, and the back film 5 is provided.

  The collating tray 25 is provided with a temporary fastening device 26 for temporarily fastening a laminated body in which two light transmissive films are laminated via the core sheet 1. The temporary fixing device 26 is composed of, for example, a pair of protruding pieces made of metal so as to be heated by a heater or the like, and the laminated body is sandwiched between the heated pair of protruding pieces. The end of each is heat-welded and temporarily fixed.

  When the temporary fastening device 26 is provided on the transport path of the laminate from the collating tray 25 to the laminating device 30 as shown in FIG. 2, the temporary fastening device 26 is used only when temporarily fastening. It is necessary to adopt a structure that is disposed at the end of 25 and can be retracted from the conveyance path at other times.

  The laminated body whose end is temporarily fastened by the temporary fastening device 26 is transported from the collating tray 25 to the laminating device 30, and is disposed in the laminating device 30 (members indicated by reference numerals 31 to 35). A plastic sheet is formed by laminating at a portion constituted by (1) and then discharged to the discharge tray 41.

-Laminator-
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing details of a configuration example of a conventional laminating apparatus arranged in the plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. A driving force transmission member such as a gear that transmits the driving force generated by the driving motor to the roll is omitted.
By adopting a belt nip method in which the laminating portion is composed of a pair of endless belts (first endless belt and second endless belt) 31 in which at least a part of the outer peripheral surface is pressed against each other to form a nip portion, The plastic sheet can be easily produced online.

The pair of endless belts 31 are stretched and supported by two or more pairs of rolls arranged in contact with each other and in contact with the inner peripheral surface of the first endless belt and the inner peripheral surface of the second endless belt. In the example shown in FIG. 6 , the belt is stretched by a pair of tension rolls 32 and a pair of inlet rolls 35. The pair of tension rolls 32 are provided with tension springs 36 for pulling the pair of tension rolls in a direction substantially opposite to the side on which the pair of inlet rolls are provided. This causes distortion in the pair of endless belts 31. To prevent that.

Then, on the inner peripheral surface side of the pair of endless belts 31, a pair of heating is performed between the tension roll 32 and the inlet roll 35 from the side where the tension roll 32 is provided to the side where the inlet roll 35 is provided. A pressure roll (a pair of heating and pressure rolls) 34 and a pair of cooling rolls 33 are sequentially arranged so that the two pairs of rolls 33 and 34 press the inner peripheral surfaces of the pair of endless belts 31 so as to form a nip portion. Has been placed.
The tension roll 32 and the inlet roll 35 are installed such that a gap is provided between the pair of endless belts 31 without pressing the respective roll pairs. Thereby, even if a pair of endless belts 31 meander by continuous operation, it is possible to return the belt to a predetermined position while operating.

  Although not shown as a method of returning to a predetermined position when the pair of endless belts 31 meanders, a stopper may be installed so that the pair of endless belts 31 is not displaced from the predetermined position, or installed on the left and right. The spring force of the tension spring may be controlled to prevent the pair of endless belts 31 from meandering.

In the laminating apparatus 30, the laminated body is heat-sealed (laminated) with a nip portion formed by a heating and pressing roll 34 arranged behind the inlet roll 35 (side where the tension roll 32 is arranged). Is carried out by heating and pressurizing as it passes.
The laminated body heat-sealed as described above is held so as not to be deformed between the heating and pressing roll 34 and the cooling roll 34, and passes through the cooling roll 34 while maintaining flatness. It will be. Here, in order to promote the cooling of the laminated body, here, a cooling fan 37 is installed between the heating and pressurizing roll 34 and the cooling roll 33 (if the cooling fan 37 is not installed, natural cooling is performed). Further, in order to remove dirt and the like on the outer peripheral surface of the pair of endless belts 31 due to continuous operation, the cleaning device 38 is installed close to the outer peripheral surface.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 6 , the driving force generated by the driving device including the driving motor 60 is transmitted to the pair of endless belts 31 via the pair of inlet rolls 35. Can rotate.
Here, the driving force generated by the driving motor 60 is transmitted to the first roll by the driving force transmission system 50 that connects the driving motor 60 and one of the pair of inlet rolls 35 (first roll). At the same time, the driving force is transmitted to the other roll (second roll) of the pair of inlet rolls 35 via the driving force transmission system 51. That is, in the configuration shown in FIG. 6 , the pair of inlet rolls 35 also function as drive rolls.

Note that the driving force transmission system as indicated by reference numerals 50, 51, etc. in FIG. 6 is composed of one or a plurality of driving force transmission members (for example, gears) . configuration as shown in 7, and the like.
FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing one configuration example of the driving force transmission system of the laminating apparatus shown in FIG. 6 , where 50 ′ represents the driving force transmission system, 70 represents the driving gear, 71 represents the driven gear, and 60 represents the figure. 6 is a drive motor. The drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 are directly engaged with each other, and are coupled to the respective rolls of the pair of inlet rolls 35 so as to be interlocked with each other. The drive gear 70 is transmitted with the drive force of the drive motor 60 via the drive force transmission system 50 '. For this reason, the transmission of the driving force generated by the driving motor 60 is transmitted to the driving gear 70 via the driving force transmission system 50 ′ and simultaneously to the driven gear 71 that engages with the driving gear 70. The inlet roll 35 can rotate simultaneously. Incidentally, the driving force transmission system 50 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the drive force transmission system 50 'and the drive gear 70 in FIG. 7, the driving force transmission system 51 corresponds to a drive gear 70 and driven gear 71 in FIG. 7 To do.

  The pair of endless belts 31 used in the laminating apparatus 30 are obtained by joining the end portions of a sheet made of metal or the like by welding or the like, and there are joint portions 39a and 39b in the width direction. . For this reason, each of the pair of endless belts 31 has one joining portion per circumference. For this reason, when laminating a laminated body, if this joining part and a laminated body overlap, an unevenness | corrugation will generate | occur | produce on the surface of a plastic sheet.

In order to prevent this problem, a detection sensor 40 for detecting the joining portion of each endless belt is provided, and the laminated body that passes through the nip portion is prevented from coming into contact with the joining portions 39a and 39b. A method of adjusting the entry timing can be considered.
In the example shown in FIG. 6 , optical non-contact detection sensors are provided as the detection sensors 40 on the outer peripheral surfaces of a pair of endless belts 39.
Further, the timing adjusting means for adjusting the timing of entry into the nip portion of the laminate is not particularly limited. For example, when a conveyance path (not shown in FIG. 2) using a belt that conveys the laminated body from the collating tray 25 to the laminating section is provided, the rotation speed of the belt is adjusted or the belt is laminated on the conveyance path. By providing the gate for forcibly preventing the movement of the body, the timing of the entry into the nip portion of the laminated body can be adjusted. Thereby, it is possible to obtain a high-quality plastic sheet having no irregularities due to the joints on the surface of the plastic sheet.

As described above, in the conventional laminating apparatus, it is possible to carry out the lamination of the laminated body while avoiding the joint portion of the belt, so that a plastic sheet with excellent quality can be obtained.
However, due to the difference in the outer peripheral length of both the pair of inlet rolls 35 and the tension roll 32, the difference in the peripheral length of both the pair of endless belts 31, the positions of the joint portions 39a and 39b are opposed to each other in the initial state ( FIG. 6 ) . Even if the position is set so as to face each other in the region to be met, when the laminating apparatus 30 is driven for a long time, the positions of the joint portions 39a and 39b are shifted as shown in FIG .

In such a state, since the laminated body enters the laminating apparatus 30, the time for adjusting the timing becomes long, which causes a problem that the productivity is lowered. Further, there is a concern that the unevenness of the joint portion may cause problems such as the joint portion on the outer peripheral surface side of one belt of the pair of endless belts 31 damaging or denting the outer peripheral surface of the other belt.
Therefore, as a result of intensive studies by the present inventors, in order to solve such a problem, the positional deviation between the joint portion 39a and the joint portion 39b is periodically adjusted, or the joint portion 39a and the joint portion 39b are adjusted. Therefore, the following two inventions were found.

(First invention)
That is, the laminating apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention has a pair of endless belts (the first endless belt and the first endless belt) that have a joint portion in the circumferential surface width direction and at least a part of the outer circumferential surface is pressed together to form a nip portion. 2 endless belts), two or more pairs of rolls disposed in contact with each other and in contact with the inner circumferential surface of the first endless belt and the inner circumferential surface of the second endless belt, and at least of the two or more pairs of rolls A driving device that rotates the pair of endless belts via a single roll, and at least a pair of the two or more pairs of rolls forms the nip portion and heats and presses the nip portion. In a laminating apparatus for producing a plastic sheet by laminating a laminate in which two or more sheets are laminated, by inserting the nip portion while heating and pressing, Position where alignment is performed so that the two endless belt outer peripheral surface side joints are aligned to face each other during rotation when the circumferential position of the second endless belt outer peripheral surface side joint is displaced from the circumferential position of the second endless belt outer peripheral surface side joint. An alignment mechanism is provided.

The laminating apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention is characterized in that it includes an alignment mechanism for aligning the two joints in the circumferential direction. The other configuration is, for example, the configuration shown in FIG. Can have.
For this reason, when the position in the circumferential direction of the two joint portions existing on the outer peripheral surfaces of the pair of endless belts is shifted as shown in FIG. 8 , the alignment mechanism performs alignment. The joints on the outer peripheral surface side of the pair of endless belts can be returned to a state where the outer peripheral surfaces can face each other in a region where the outer peripheral surfaces face each other ( FIG. 6 ). For this reason, a plastic sheet can be produced with high productivity.

Here, the “positioning mechanism” detects the position of the joint portion on the circumferential surface of the endless belt, and outputs a detection signal when the joint portion is detected. “Joint position alignment means” that performs position alignment, and a detection signal that is generated when the joint position confirmation means detects the joint, senses the misalignment between the two joints, The “control unit” is configured to control to transmit the control signal to the bonding unit alignment unit when the position of the bonding unit is shifted by a certain amount or more, and includes the above three parts.
Hereinafter, the details of the alignment mechanism will be described in the order of the control unit, the bonding unit position checking unit, and the bonding unit positioning unit.

-Control unit-
The control unit is configured by a control circuit, a control program, and the like, and may be included in a control unit that performs various controls other than the position alignment of the joint, or may be included in the joint position alignment unit. Also good.
In the alignment, when the circumferential length of the endless belt is about 1 m, the position of the two joints when the state where the two joints are farthest (the state where the positional deviation is maximized) is taken as 100%. It is preferable to carry out when the deviation amount falls within the range of 2% to 40%, and more preferably within the range of 5% to 10%.

  When the alignment is performed with the amount of positional deviation between the two joints being less than 2%, the alignment must be performed frequently, and the time required for the alignment increases, resulting in a decrease in productivity. There is a case. In addition, when the alignment is performed after exceeding 40%, since the laminated body enters the laminating apparatus, the time for adjusting the timing becomes long, and the productivity may be lowered.

-Junction position confirmation means-
The joint position confirmation means has a function of detecting the position of the joint part on the peripheral surface of the endless belt and transmitting a detection signal to the control unit when the joint part is detected, and a known detection sensor can be used. For example, an optical non-contact type sensor using infrared light or a stylus type contact type sensor can be used, but when a detection sensor is provided to detect a joint on the outer peripheral surface side of the endless belt. In order to prevent the occurrence of scratches on the outer peripheral surface, it is preferable to use a non-contact type detection sensor. Further, since the joint portion exists on the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral side of the endless belt, the detection sensor may be installed on the outer peripheral surface side of the endless belt as shown in FIG. You can also.
As shown in FIG. 6 , the detection sensor can be normally provided for each of a pair of endless belts. For example, when an optical non-contact sensor is used, an optical fiber or the like is used. Thus, it is possible to provide only one detection sensor for detecting the light reception signals from the two light receiving sections branched.

  Further, the detection sensor can be used not only for the purpose of aligning the joints, but also for the purpose of adjusting the entry timing of the laminate into the laminating apparatus as in the prior art. In this case, when the joint portion is detected, in addition to the control unit that controls the alignment, for example, the detection signal is simultaneously transmitted to the control unit that controls the transport system that transports the laminate to the laminate. Can do.

-Joint alignment means-
The joint position alignment means in the first alignment method has a function of performing position alignment of the joint in response to a control signal from the control section, and is composed of a combination of one or a plurality of mechanical elements. If it is, it will not specifically limit, However, The following 1st-3rd embodiment is mentioned suitably.
First, there is a case where two drive motors that transmit driving force independently are provided to each of a pair of endless belts (first embodiment).

Moreover, the case where the driving force transmission cancellation | release means which cancels transmission of the driving force to any one roll among a pair of rolls to which the driving force of a drive motor is transmitted is also mentioned.
In this case, the driving force transmission canceling means can be realized by providing a mechanism for canceling the transmission of the driving force in any part of the driving system that transmits the driving force from the driving motor to each of the pair of rolls. Various configurations are conceivable depending on the configuration of the drive system that rotates the endless belt.

  For example, a drive system that rotates a pair of endless belts is coupled to one drive motor and one of the two or more pairs of rolls so that the drive force of the drive motor is transmitted. In the case where the drive gear is configured to include a driven gear that is coupled to the other roll of the pair of rolls and is coupled directly or indirectly to the drive gear, the following two embodiments are provided. Can be mentioned.

  That is, in the case of providing driving force transmission releasing means (connecting the gear and the roll via a clutch) for releasing the connection between either the drive gear or the driven gear and the roll connected thereto ( Second embodiment) or a case where a driving force transmission releasing means (a fitting release means between the driving gear and the driven gear) for releasing the transmission of the driving force between the driving gear and the driven gear is provided (third embodiment) ). The following first to third embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

-First embodiment-
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example according to the first embodiment of the laminating apparatus of the first invention . In contrast to the example shown in FIG. 6 , each of the pair of endless belts 31 is independent. It is characterized in that two drive motors 60 and 61 that transmit driving force are provided. That is, the driving force of the driving motor 60 is transmitted to one roll of the pair of inlet rolls 35 via the driving force transmission system 50, and the driving force of the driving motor 61 is paired with the pair of inlet rolls 35 via the driving force transmission system 52. It is the structure transmitted to the other roll.

In the first embodiment, normally, when laminating a laminated body (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as “laminate mode”), each of the pair of endless belts rotates at the same speed in the circumferential direction. Driving force is transmitted from the driving motor 60 and the driving motor 61.
However, when the misalignment of the joints 39a and 39b occurs and alignment is necessary (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as “alignment mode”), the pair of heating and pressurizing rolls 34 and the pair of cooling are provided. With the nip formed by the roll 33 open, stop the rotation of one of the endless belts, or make the rotation speed and rotation direction of both differ, so that the positions of the joints 39a and 39b face each other. It is possible to adjust to match.

-Second Embodiment-
The second embodiment is characterized in that either the drive gear or the driven gear and a roll connected to the gear are connected via a clutch. For example, FIG. The structure shown is mentioned.
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example according to the second embodiment of the laminating apparatus of the first invention, and shows a configuration in which a clutch is provided in the example shown in FIG. . In Figure 4, 72 denotes the clutch (one-way clutch), others are those having the same functions as those shown in FIG.

In the second embodiment, the driven gear 71 and the roll connected to be interlocked with the driven gear 71 are connected via the clutch 72. Therefore, in the laminate mode, the clutch 72 is connected to the pair of endless ends. Both belts 31 can be rotated at the same speed.
On the other hand, in the alignment mode, one of the pair of endless belts 31 is completely rotated by disengaging the clutch 72 with the nip formed by the pair of heating and pressing rolls 34 and the pair of cooling rolls 33 opened. Therefore, it is possible to adjust the positions of the joint portions 39a and 39b so that they can face each other. Further, if necessary, the positioning can be performed earlier if the drive motor 60 is reversed.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, the clutch 72 is used to prevent the drive force on the drive gear 70 side where the drive force of the drive motor 60 is continuously applied from being transmitted to the roll connected to the driven gear 71. The clutch 72 may be provided not on the driven gear 71 side but on the drive gear 70 side.

-Third embodiment-
The third embodiment is characterized in that engagement release means for releasing (direct or indirect) engagement between the drive gear and the driven gear is provided. For example, an example shown in FIG. 5 is given. .
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example according to the third embodiment of the laminating apparatus of the first invention. In the example shown in FIG. 7 , the engagement between the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 is released. The state is shown.
That is, in the alignment mode, the nip formed by the pair of heating and pressing rolls 34 and the pair of cooling rolls 33 is opened, and the engagement between the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 is not engaged as shown in FIG. Since the driving force can be transmitted only to the driving gear 70 by the driving motor 60, the positions of the joint portions 39a and 39b can be adjusted so as to face each other.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5, the engagement release means for releasing the engagement between the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 is not particularly illustrated, but for example, between the rotation shafts of both the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71. In addition, an eccentric cam that contacts these two rotating shafts and can be moved away from each other in a direction perpendicular to the rotating shaft direction, or a drive gear 70 using a solenoid or the like is provided. Means such as a configuration in which only the driven gear 71 can be moved so that the driven gear 71 does not mesh can be used.

Further, the example shown in FIG. 5 is based on the premise that the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 are directly engaged in the laminate mode as shown in FIG. 7 , but the third embodiment is based on this. It is not limited. For example, a transmission gear (not shown) that is slidable in the rotation axis direction is provided between the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71, and the drive gear 70 and the driven gear 71 are indirectly engaged via the transmission gear. It is good (in the second embodiment, the two gears 70 and 71 may be indirectly engaged in the same manner).
In this case, in the alignment mode, the nip formed by the pair of heating and pressing rolls 34 and the pair of cooling rolls 33 is opened, and the transmission gear provided between the drive gear and the driven gear is rotated in the direction of the rotation axis. The indirect engagement via the transmission gear between the driving gear and the driven gear is released, and the driving force can be transmitted only to the driving gear 70 by the driving motor 60, so that the joint portion It is possible to adjust the positions of 39a and 39b so that they can coincide with each other.

(Plastic sheet manufacturing equipment)
The laminating apparatus of the present invention as described above faces the film as shown in FIG. 1 through the core sheet and an image forming unit that forms an image by electrophotography on the surface of the film. A plastic sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising: a positioning unit that positions the laminated body laminated in this manner; and a laminating unit that laminates the core sheet with the film by heating and pressing the positioned laminated body. It can be used as a laminate part.

It is a schematic cross section which shows one structural example of the plastic sheet produced with the production apparatus of a plastic sheet. It is a schematic block diagram which shows one structural example of the production apparatus of a plastic sheet. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structural example concerning 1st Embodiment of the lamination apparatus of 1st this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structural example concerning 2nd Embodiment of the lamination apparatus of 1st this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structural example concerning 3rd Embodiment of the lamination apparatus of 1st this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the detail of one structural example of the conventional laminating apparatus arrange | positioned in the plastic sheet production apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration example of a driving force transmission system of the laminating apparatus illustrated in FIG. 6 . FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which the positions of the joining portions of a pair of endless belts are shifted in the laminating apparatus shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Core sheet 2, 4 Image 3 Surface film (film)
5 Back film (film)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus 11 Film stacker 12 Image forming parts 13, 15, 21, and 24 Conveying path 14 Discharge port 16 Reversing path 17 Cam 20 Collating device 22 Coastucker 23 Back film stacker 25 Collating tray (positioning part)
26 Temporary fastening device 30 Laminating device 31 Endless belt pair 31a, 31b Endless belt 32 Tension roll pair 33 Cooling roll pair 34 Heating and pressing roll pair 35 Inlet roll pair 36 Tension spring 37 Cooling fan 38 Belt cleaning devices 39a, 39b Joint 40 sensor 41 output tray 50, 50 ', 51, 52 the driving force transmission system 60, 61 drive motor 70 drive gear 71 driven gear 72 clutch

Claims (5)

A pair of endless belts (a first endless belt and a second endless belt) having a joint portion in the circumferential width direction and at least a part of the outer circumferential surface being pressed together to form a nip portion; and the first endless belt Two or more pairs of rolls arranged oppositely in contact with the inner circumferential surface of the belt and the second inner circumferential surface of the second endless belt, and the pair of endless belts via at least one pair of rolls of the two or more pairs of rolls A drive motor that rotates,
At least a pair of the two or more pairs of rolls is a heat and pressure roll that forms the nip portion and heats the nip portion,
In a laminating apparatus for producing a plastic sheet by laminating a laminate in which two or more sheets are laminated, by inserting the nip portion while heating and pressing,
When the circumferential position of the first endless belt outer circumferential surface side joint portion and the circumferential position of the second endless belt outer circumferential surface side joint portion are shifted, alignment is made so that they face each other during rotation. A positioning mechanism for performing driving force transmission releasing means for releasing transmission of the driving force to one of the pair of rolls to which the driving force of the driving motor is transmitted. A laminating apparatus comprising: The driving force transmission release means is connected to one driving motor and one of the two or more pairs of rolls so as to be interlocked, and a driving gear to which the driving force of the driving motor is transmitted. The driven gear is connected to the other roll of the pair of rolls so as to be interlocked and is directly or indirectly engaged with the drive gear, and the one roll is connected to the drive gear, or the other roll is driven. The laminating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a clutch that connects the gears . The driving force transmission release means is connected to one driving motor and one of the two or more pairs of rolls so as to be interlocked, and a driving gear to which the driving force of the driving motor is transmitted. A driven gear coupled to the other roll of the pair of rolls so as to be interlocked and directly or indirectly engaged with the driving gear, and a fitting release means for releasing the fitting between the driving gear and the driven gear. The laminating apparatus according to claim 1 . The laminating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a detection sensor that detects a circumferential position of a joint portion of the pair of endless belts. Positioning unit for positioning a laminated body in which an image forming unit for forming an image by an electrophotographic method and a film on which an image is formed by the image forming unit are stacked so as to face each other through a core sheet When, by heating and pressing the laminate, which is positioned, comprising a laminating unit for laminating the image has been formed film by a co Ashito the image forming unit, a manufacturing apparatus of a plastic sheet,
The said lamination part contains the lamination apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-4 , The plastic sheet production apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.