Film transport roller assembly
AssigneeImation Corp.
InventorRobert J. Mattila
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A transport roller assembly for moving film along a film transport path between a pair of rigid plates in an imaging system. The rollers are preassembled in the bearing block assemblies and the assemblies are installed in the system by sliding them into receiving slots in the plates. The roller surface and the bearing block assembly are constructed from static dissipating materials to remove static from the surface of the film as it is transported.
Claims34
A film transport roller assembly for use in a laser imaging system for transporting a piece of photosensitive film along a film transport path, the film transport roller assembly comprising:
- a first and second bearing block assembly each configured to be removably mounted to a frame;
- a first roller;
- and
- a second roller;
- wherein the first roller and second roller are rotatably coupled in a nip position between the first and second bearing block assembly, and wherein the first and second bearing block assembly each comprise a slider block;
- a bearing block, wherein the bearing block includes a slider block receiving aperture, and wherein the slider block is slidably positioned within the bearing block;
- and a biasing mechanism coupled between the slider block and the bearing block which biases the slider block against the bearing block.
A film transport assembly for installation in an imaging system including a pair of rigid plates each forming a mounting slot, the invention comprising:
- a first and second roller each having a film engaging surface covering a central roller portion thereof and shaft portions extending from both ends of the central roller portion;
- a pair of bearing slide members each having a shaft receiving aperture, rotatably maintaining a respective one of the shaft portions of the second roller, surrounded by a shaft supporting surface;
- a pair of bearing blocks each including:
- a shaft receiving aperture rotatably maintaining a respective one of the shaft portions of the first roller,
- a shaft supporting surface surrounding the shaft receiving aperture,
- a bearing slide engaging area adjacent the aperture,
- a circumferential slot projecting into walls thereof and arranged for releasable engagement with the mounting slot in one of the pair of rigid plates for securing the bearing block to the rigid plate;
- wherein each of the pair of bearing slide members is movably positioned on the bearing slide engaging surface of a respective one of the pair of bearing blocks such that movement of the pair of bearing slide members toward a first position relative to the pair of bearing blocks, respectively, disengages the film engaging surface of the second roller from the film engaging surface of the first roller and movement of the pair of bearing slide members away from the first position causes the film engaging surface of the second roller to contact the film engaging surface of the first roller;
- and
- spring means operatively connected between one of the bearing slide members and a respective one of the bearing blocks for biasing the film engaging surface of the second roller into film transporting contact with the first roller.
A static dissipating film transport roller assembly for use in a laser imaging system for transporting a piece of photosensitive film along a film transport path, wherein as the film is transported along the film transport path static electricity may tend to build up on a surface thereof, the static dissipating film transport roller assembly comprising:
- a first and second bearing block assembly configured to be removably mounted to a frame and each made of a polymeric material having a static dissipating additive contained therein;
- and
- a first roller and a second roller, wherein the first roller and the second roller each include an elongated metallic shaft having a film engaging coating thereon, the film engaging coating made of a polymeric material having a static dissipating additive contained therein;
- wherein the first roller and the second roller are rotatably coupled in a nip position between the first and second bearing block assemblies.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.