JP2928082B2 - Cylindrical inner surface scanning device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cylinder inner surface scanning apparatus which is applied in the fields of printing and plate making and draws an image such as a line drawing, a character or a picture on a photosensitive material by a light beam.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A cylindrical inner surface scanning device is disclosed in, for example,
As disclosed in JP-A-27190 and JP-A-5-5846, a cylindrical inner drum having a photosensitive material mounted on its inner surface (a cylindrical inner drum means a drum having an inner surface having a cylindrical shape, and an outer surface Not necessarily a cylindrical shape), a laser oscillator for oscillating a light beam modulated by an image signal, an optical system for guiding the light beam to the internal space of the cylindrical inner drum, and a cylinder in the space. A deflector movably disposed in the center axis direction (sub-scanning direction) of the inner drum and deflecting the light beam entering from the center axis direction in the inner surface direction to scan in the circumferential direction (main scanning direction). And a scanning head having the same.
Sensitive materials used in this apparatus include, for example, films, plate materials, and photosensitive paper. When the plate material is exposed and developed, it can be directly applied to a printing machine as a printing plate on which a halftone image is formed. A typical example of this plate material is a PS plate (presen) for offset lithographic printing.
This PS plate is formed by applying a photosensitive liquid on the surface of an aluminum plate or the like.

In such a cylindrical inner surface scanning device,
When loading and mounting the photosensitive material on the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum,
Conventionally, a method has been generally used in which an operator directly and manually places a photosensitive material on the inner surface and then attaches the photosensitive material by vacuum suction. When the photosensitive material is discharged from the inner drum of the cylinder after the exposure, the vacuum suction is released and the photosensitive material is directly removed from the inner drum of the cylinder by an operator. In this case,
There is an advantage that it can be simply realized in that it is not necessary to provide a special device for loading / unloading the photosensitive material.

On the other hand, a technique for automatically supplying and discharging photosensitive material to and from a cylindrical inner drum is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-71386. In this technique, first of all, a flexible conveying means is provided in a flat position adjacent to the cylindrical inner drum,
One photosensitive material is placed horizontally on the upper surface of the transport means and positioned. Next, the transporting means and the photosensitive material are horizontally moved to a position where the lower surface is in close contact with the inner wall of the cylindrical inner drum, and thereafter,
The carrying means is positioned and held in a curved state with respect to the inner wall, and thus the photosensitive material is positioned and held with respect to the inner wall via the carrying means. Thereafter, the photosensitive material is exposed, and after the exposure is completed, the photosensitive material is discharged through the reverse process. Then, one new photosensitive material is positioned and fixed on the upper surface of the transport means in a horizontal state again, and the same operation is repeatedly performed.

[0005]

However, the above-mentioned prior art has the following problems. First, in the prior art, since the loading and unloading of the photosensitive material are all performed manually, there is a problem that the burden on the operator is heavy, and the workability and productivity are poor. In particular, in order to prevent the photosensitive material from being exposed to light, these operations are performed in a dark room or in a dark place depending on the type of the photosensitive material. Moreover, such an operation is an operation inside the cylindrical inner drum. Therefore, the working environment is extremely bad for the operator. This deterioration of the working environment hinders improvement of working efficiency and production efficiency.

When the above-mentioned PS plate is used as a light-sensitive material, care must be taken when handling the PS plate because it is made of an aluminum material. Because the cylindrical inner drum itself is also usually formed by processing a metal such as an aluminum alloy, if the PS plate and the inner or outer surface of the cylindrical inner drum rub against each other, the exposed surface of the PS plate is damaged. This is because there is a possibility that the film is damaged and becomes useless. In addition, if the film on the exposed surface of the PS plate is shaved by this damage, aluminum dust is scattered on the exposed surface of the PS plate. Then, when the light beam is scanned, there is also a problem that the dust blocks the light beam and the image is not exposed on the PS plate. In that respect, careless contact between the PS plate and other units around the cylindrical inner drum must also be avoided. Therefore, when directly handling the PS plate manually, careful handling is required of the operator. For this reason, the operator is further burdened, and the workability is reduced. In addition, PS plates come in a variety of dimensions, which can generally be said to be large. For example,
Various types of PS plates are used, from a so-called chrysanthemum half size having a size of 550 mm x 650 mm to a so-called chrysanthemum size having a size of 820 mm x 1030 mm. Careful handling of such a PS plate having relatively large dimensions in a dark room is not easy. The above-mentioned points also apply similarly when films having various dimensions such as the A1 series and the A2 series are used for the photosensitive material.

On the other hand, although the conventional technology can certainly realize automatic supply and discharge, in order to realize it, a special function such as a flexible transportation means in a flat position is provided. The configuration must be realized, and as a result, there is a problem that the entire apparatus becomes very complicated. In particular, since the photosensitive material must first be positioned horizontally on the transporting means, when using the PS plate as the photosensitive material, the size of the upper surface of the transporting means is large due to its large size as described above. Become. Since such a large-sized transport means projects horizontally in the vicinity of the side surface of the cylindrical inner drum, the size of the entire apparatus is further increased.

Further, in the prior art, since the photosensitive material is set on the upper surface of the transport means for each sheet, and the loading and discharging are repeated, the operator is required to perform the exposure of the photosensitive material and the completion of the discharging each time. Then, after taking out the previous photosensitive material, the next new photosensitive material must be set on the upper surface of the transportation means again. Therefore, when taking out the previous photosensitive material and setting the next photosensitive material, the operator must eventually work in a dark room. Considering the poor workability of these operators, it can be said that the conventional technology is still insufficient as a technology for automatically supplying and discharging photosensitive materials. In other words, the operator only needs to stock all the photosensitive materials to be exposed in the stocker at the beginning, and thereafter,
Automation is required to the extent that the entire process from loading to discharging is automatically performed for all photographic materials, but at present the conventional technology has not been able to respond to this request. is there.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its object is to automatically carry in / discharge a photosensitive material regardless of the kind, size and quantity of the photosensitive material. It is an object of the present invention to provide a small-sized cylindrical inner surface scanning device capable of performing the above operation.

[0010]

The invention according to claim 1 is
A cylindrical inner drum, a cylindrical inner unit for loading and mounting a photosensitive material to the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum from a loading / unloading port formed in the cylindrical internal drum, and carrying out the photosensitive material to the loading / unloading port after exposure; A scanning head for scanning a light beam modulated by a signal in the circumferential direction of the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum and in the direction of the central axis thereof to expose a photosensitive material mounted on the inner surface; and the cylindrical inner drum and the cylindrical inner surface In a cylindrical inner surface scanning device having a unit and a housing for accommodating the scanning head, a stock means for stocking a plurality of the photosensitive materials, and taking out the photosensitive materials one by one from the plurality of photosensitive materials sequentially from the stock means Then, a first transport unit that transports the photosensitive material while bending the photosensitive material into an arc shape, and bending the photosensitive material transported by the first transport device into an arc shape to the loading / unloading port. Further comprising a second conveying means for feeding. And the stock means, the first and the second transport means are also housed in the housing.

In the invention according to claim 2, the second transport means according to claim 1 receives the exposed photosensitive material carried out to the carry-in / out port by the cylindrical inner surface unit, and then bends it into an arc shape. It is also a means for transporting to the discharge side in the housing.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the first and second conveying means have a plurality of rollers which are both rotatable, and the plurality of rollers form a row of rollers arranged in a row on an arc. doing.

[0013]

[Action]

[Invention of Claim 1] First, the first transport means takes out the photosensitive material from the stock means, and transports the photosensitive material to the second transport means while bending the photosensitive material into an arc shape. The second transport means transports the photosensitive material transported from the first transport means to the loading / unloading port of the cylindrical inner drum while also bending the photosensitive material in an arc shape. Since the cylindrical inner surface unit is provided at the loading / unloading port, the cylindrical inner surface unit thereafter receives the photosensitive material from the second transport means at the loading / unloading port, and carries the photosensitive material into the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum. Installing. Thus, the preparation for exposing the photosensitive material is completed, and thereafter, the exposure is performed by scanning the scanning head with a light beam.

At this time, since the stock means and the first and second transport means are all housed in the housing, unnecessary light in the surroundings enters each of the above means during the transport of the photosensitive material, and Is not exposed.

[Invention of Claim 2] After the exposure, the cylindrical inner surface unit carries out the photosensitive material mounted on the inner surface to the carry-in / out port. Then, the second transport means receives the photosensitive material carried out to the carry-in / out port, and further transports the photosensitive material to the discharge side while bending the photosensitive material in an arc shape. Thus, the discharge of the photosensitive material ends. In this case as well, since the light does not enter the cylindrical inner surface unit and the second transport means, the photosensitive material is not exposed during transport.

[Invention of Claim 3] Each roller in the first transport means transports the photosensitive material taken out of the stock means along an arc formed by the rollers. Thereby, the photosensitive material is conveyed toward the second conveying means while being smoothly bent in an arc shape. Similarly, in the second transport means, the photosensitive material is transported while being smoothly bent by the roller rows.

[0017]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view mainly showing a cylindrical inner drum 1 and a scanning head 6 in a cylindrical inner surface scanning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The main components of the cylindrical inner surface scanning device, including the cylindrical inner surface drum 1 and the scanning head 6, are all housed in a housing 600 (see FIG. 2).
Therefore, FIG. 1 is drawn with the housing 600 removed for convenience of explanation. The cylindrical inner surface scanning device has a laser oscillator modulated by an image signal representing a halftone image or the like, and an optical system for introducing a light beam SB oscillated by the oscillator into the cylindrical inner drum 1. However, their illustration is omitted not only in FIG. 1 but also in each of the following drawings. Cylinder inner drum 1
The configuration of the scanning head 6 is as follows.

First, the cylindrical inner drum 1 is basically in a semi-cylindrical shape, and a part of the side surface 15 is completely removed in parallel with the central axis 14 to form an opening 16. . The opening 16 is the side surface 1 of the cylindrical inner drum 1.
5, and also as a loading / unloading port of the photosensitive material as described later. Further, portions 17 on both sides of the side surface 15 are processed into flat portions parallel to the central axis 14. However, FIG.
In the figure, only one of the two flat portions 17 is shown. In the two flat portions 17, the cylindrical inner drum 1 is
It is connected to two U-shaped support bases 4A and 4B by bolting. The cylindrical inner surface drum 1 is a drum made of an aluminum alloy and is not shown in FIG. 1, but has a plurality of grooves formed on its inner surface 2 for vacuum suction of the loaded photosensitive material. (See FIG. 14).

On the other hand, a sub-scanning base 5 is mounted on both support bases 4A and 4B. An opening 12 is formed at the center of the sub-scanning base 5 so as to face the opening 16, and two rails 9 are laid on the upper surface 11. In addition, the positions of the two rails 9 are adjusted by adjusting screws 13 arranged on one support base 4A so as to be parallel to the direction of the central axis 14. The sub-scanning base 5 including the rail 9 corresponds to a guide member for moving the scanning head 6 in the direction of the central axis 14. The sub-scanning base 5 is disposed such that both ends of the sub-scanning base 5 in the direction of the central axis 14 are more protruded from the end face 3 and the other end face of the cylindrical inner drum 1. 6 can move between the end face 3 and the other end face.
Hereinafter, a direction parallel to the central axis 14 is referred to as a sub-scanning direction X,
The circumferential direction of the inner surface 2 is referred to as a main scanning direction Y.

On the other hand, the L-shaped scanning head 6 is
It is roughly divided into an arm part 6A, a head part base 7, and a head part main body 8. One end of the arm 6A is loosely fitted to the two rails 9 and further screwed to a ball screw (disposed between both rails 9) not shown in the figure. The other end of the arm 6A is connected to the opening 1 described above.
2 on which the head base 7 is mounted. A head body 8 is further attached to the head base 7. Therefore, the scanning head 6
Under the action of the ball screw, it can move in the sub-scanning direction X along the rail 9. At this time, the head section main body 8 moves on the central axis 14.

The head section main body 8 has two holding sections 8A, 8 which protrude above the central axis 14 and face each other in the direction of the axis 14.
B, and a through hole (not shown) whose central axis is coaxial with the central axis 14 is formed in each of the holding portions 8A and 8B. A lens (not shown) for forming an image of the light beam SB on the photosensitive material mounted on the inner surface 2 is inserted and attached in the through hole of one holding portion 8A.
A deflector (not shown) is provided in the through hole of the other holding portion 8B.
Is inserted and fixed. The deflector includes a deflecting surface that reflects the incident light (light beam) SB from the direction of the central axis 14 in a direction toward the inner surface 2 and a mechanism that rotates the deflecting surface about the central axis thereof ( Not shown). The specific configuration is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-5846. In FIG. 1, 5A is the inner side surface of the sub-scanning base 5, 5B is the lower surface of the sub-scanning base 5, 1
0 is a main scanning motor.

In the present embodiment, the PS plate described above is used as a light-sensitive material. Therefore, it must be handled with great care. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is only necessary to store a plurality of PS plates in the stock tray in advance. Thereafter, the PS plates are automatically loaded one by one onto the inner surface 2 without damaging the PS plates. Similarly, a device capable of discharging the PS plate after drawing from the inner surface 2 without causing damage is realized in the cylindrical inner surface scanning device. Hereinafter, this P
The following description focuses on the S-plate automatic feeding and discharging device.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the inside of the cylindrical inner surface scanning device viewed from the direction of arrow 18 shown in FIG. However, in order to show that each component except the collection unit 400 is housed in the housing 600, the housing 6
00 is represented by its cross section. Although the driving mechanism (motor, belt, pulley, etc.) of the scanning head 6 is actually provided on the sub-scanning base 5, in FIG. Is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cylindrical inner surface drum 1 shown in FIG. The pedestal 22 is arranged on the floor 24 via the jack 23. On the other hand, the automatic feeding / discharging device conveys the stocked PS plate 20 to the opening 16 (FIG. 1: hereinafter referred to as the carry-in / out port 16), and conversely carries the PS plate 20 from the carry-in / out port 16 to the discharge port 601. And the PS plate 20 transported to the loading / unloading port 16
Is carried in along the inner surface 2, and after the drawing is completed,
A cylindrical drum unit 500 for carrying out the S plate 20 along the inner surface 2 to the carry-in / out port 16, and the casing 600 so that the PS plate 20 can be received from the above-described discharge port 601 formed on the side surface of the casing 600. And a recovery unit 400 attached to the Further, the transport system is subdivided into a first transport unit including a stock unit 100 and a first transport unit 200 and a second transport unit including a second transport unit 300. Then, the second transport unit 300
Is a portion having both functions of carrying in and discharging the PS plate 20. Further, the stock unit 100 and the first and second transport units 200 and 300 are all housed in the housing 600. With this configuration, the loading / unloading and discharging operations of the PS plate 20 can be performed consistently in a light room.

These units 100, 200, 300
Of these, the stock unit 100 is disposed on the one support 4B side. That is, support columns 21 are disposed on the upper surface 11 at both ends of the sub-scanning base 5, and a part of the stock unit 100 is fixed to a part of the support columns 21. A leg 25 is fixedly provided on the bottom surface of the stock unit 100, and the stock unit 100 is arranged on the floor 24 via the leg 25. Further, above the loading / unloading port 16, first and second transport units 200 and 300 are fixed to the support column 21 so as to cross the inner drum 1. 2, a bracket 513 provided on the lower surface 5B of the sub-scanning base 5 and a fifth motor 517 provided on the bracket 513 will be described later. The third optical sensor 55 disposed on the end face 3 will also be described later.

In FIG. 2, the part shown by the thick line is the PS plate 20.
Is shown. That is, at the time of loading, PS version 2
0 is carried into the inner surface 2 one by one from the stock unit 100 through the first and second transport units 200 and 300. At the time of discharging, first, the PS plate 20 is carried out from the inner surface 2, and thereafter, is carried from the second carrying unit 300 to the collecting unit 400. Hereinafter, each unit 100-5
The configuration of the control system 00 and the configuration of a control system for controlling the operation of the configuration 00 will be described more specifically.

First, the stock unit 100 includes a stock tray 101 (stock device) capable of stocking a plurality of PS plates 20, and the stock tray 101.
The PS plate 20 is taken out one by one from the first transport unit 2
It is separated from the take-out unit 100A (FIG. 2) which transports to 00. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the configuration of the stock tray 101, which corresponds to the front view of FIG. 1 viewed from the arrow 19 side. Although the stock unit 100 itself is further housed in the housing 111 (FIG. 4), when stocking the PS plate 20, the stock tray 101 can be taken out from the cylindrical inner surface scanning device, that is, from the housing 600. For this purpose, wheels 26 are provided on the bottom surface of the stock tray 101. Stock tray 10
1 denotes a plurality of PS plates 20 and PS plates 20 of various dimensions (for example, 550 mm × 650 mm to 820 mm × 1).
030 mm), and has a PS plate mounting surface 27 inclined with respect to the support 4B. Therefore, the PS plate 20 placed on the surface 27 is leaned obliquely against the support 4B. With such a configuration, the space required for installing the stock tray 101 can be reduced. That is, the size of the stock unit 100 projecting outward from the support 4B can be reduced as much as possible. The stock tray 101
When the PS plate 20 is stored in the tray 2, one side of the PS plate 20 is always placed on the stock tray 10 so that the end of the PS plate 20 attached to the inner surface 2 projects from the end surface 3.
1 so that the PS plate 20 is located at a predetermined position in the surface 27.
Is placed.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory front view of the internal structure of the stock unit 100 viewed from the direction of arrow 18 in FIG. 1. In particular, the PS plate 20 stocked in the stock tray 101 is moved to the plate stock position P ₃ . The takeout unit 100 </ _b > A having a function of taking out and transporting from the delivery position P < _b > ₂ to the first transport unit 200 is mainly shown. However, in order to avoid complication of the drawing, in this drawing, each roller described later is drawn as a center. Therefore, each roller is represented by a solid line, and other parts are represented by a broken line or a chain line.

[0029] First, the first arm 103 includes an arm portion 103A of the base portion is supported rotatably around a point P _A shown in FIG. 4, the base point P _B as the pivot center Consists of a pair of two arms of an arm 103B rotatably supported. Then, both arm portions 103A, 1
Reference numeral 03B denotes a first motor 104 (FIG. 12) not shown in FIG. 4 at each of the rotation center points P _A and P _B.
) Via a connecting member (also not shown). Accordingly, the two arms 103A and 103B rotate synchronously by receiving the rotational force of the first motor 104. Both ends of the arms 103A and 103B are connected to the suction device 112. And
One end face of the suction device 112 (stock tray 10
As shown in FIG. 4, a suction cup 102 is provided on the end face facing the first side.
Is attached, and the suction device 112 is not directly shown in FIG.
2). Therefore, the first arm 103
With the rotation of, the suction cup 102 also rotates. The first arm 103, the case without taking out and conveyance of the PS plate 20 is retracted to the retracted position P ₁ shown in FIG. By the way, only one first arm 103 is illustrated in FIG. 4, but this is a result of convenience of illustration, and actually, more specifically, in the stock unit 100,
The center axis 14 is set within the side surface of the housing 111 of the unit 100.
(FIG. 1) Two first arms 103 near both sides in the direction.
Are arranged. The remaining number of sheets in the stock tray 101 decreases with the removal of the PS plate, and the removal position of the suction device 112 is controlled according to the decrease.

Two second arms 105 are disposed in the space between the first arms 103 described above. Similarly, FIG. 4 illustrates only one second arm 105 for convenience of illustration. The second arm 105 includes two arm portions 105A and 105B, and includes the two arm portions 105A and 105B.
05B is connected so as to be swingable. The base of the arm 105A is rotatably connected to the rotation shaft of a second motor 109 (pulse motor) provided in the stock unit 100, while the arm 105B is
One end of the spring unit 108 is connected to the other end of the stock unit 100 in the vicinity of the connection with the arm unit 105A. Also, the arm portion 105B is pivotally supported at an intermediate portion 105C. Accordingly, the two second arms 105 receive the urging force of the spring portion 108, and synchronize with the rotation of the second motor 109.
Swing up and down inside 0. Then, both the second arms 10
The swing roller 106 is rotatably supported at the distal ends of both arm portions 105B so as to connect the first and second arm members 105 to each other. The second arm 105 or the swing roller 106 is a PS plate 20
Is not carried out, the retreat position P shown in FIG.
Have been evacuated to ₄ . In addition, as a result of the swing, the swing roller 106
There as can be linear contact with the feed roller 107 and the pressing position P ₅ to be described later, each of the arm portions 105A, the length of 105B is set.

Various rollers are disposed in the space further inside the second arms 105. That is, PS version 20
A delivery roller 107 for applying a propulsive force to the PS plate 20 for sending the sheet to the first transport unit 200 side is disposed in the inner space in the direction of the central axis 14. A third motor 114 (pulse motor) is provided in the stock unit 100 as a source of rotational force for rotating the delivery roller 107. A driving auxiliary roller 115 is connected to the rotation shaft of the third motor 114, and an auxiliary roller 116 and a transport roller 117 are disposed above the auxiliary roller 115. A belt 119 is hung on these rollers 107, 115 to 117. Further, a belt 119 is also hung on a pulley 124 attached to one roller 121a in a delivery roller row 110 described later. Thereby, the third motor 1
When the 14 rotates, the rotational force is transmitted to the delivery roller 107 and the transport roller 117 via the belt 119.
The transport roller 118 is disposed so as to be in line contact with the transport roller 117 so as to face the transport roller 117. Therefore, the two transport rollers 117 and 118 press the transported PS plate 20 toward the transport outlet 120 formed in the housing 111 while pressing the transported PS plate 20 against the transporting roller 120. Each of these rollers 11
5 to 118 are also arranged in the direction of the central axis 14.

Further, above the delivery roller 107, a plurality of rollers 121 are rotatably disposed in the direction of the central shaft 14. In addition, all of these rollers 121 are arranged such that their centers are located on an arc having a certain radius of curvature, which passes through both centers of the sending roller 107 and the conveying roller 117. Thus, each roller 121 arranged in an arc shape
Is the PS plate 20 extracted by the sending roller 107.
Are transported along the arc-shaped path formed by each roller 121 to the transport rollers 117 and 118, and at this point, each roller 121 forms the delivery roller row 110.

At both ends of the transport roller 117, gears 122 are attached concentrically.
A gear 123 is meshed with the gear 22, and the first gear is further meshed with the gear 123.
Gear 204 as one element of the transport unit 200 (FIG. 6)
Are engaged. At this time, an opening (window) WD is formed in a corresponding portion of the housing 111 so that a part of the gear 123 can protrude from the housing 111. As a result, the rotational force of the third motor 114 is transmitted to the first transport unit 200 via the gears 122, 123, and 204. That is,
The third motor 114 is a transport drive source of the PS plate 20 in the stock unit 100 and also serves as a transport drive source of the PS plate 20 in the first transport unit 200.

Further, a reflection type first optical sensor 125 (FIG. 6) is disposed outside the carry-out port 120, that is, in a gap between the stock unit 100 and the first transport unit 200. This first optical sensor 125 is
When the light emitted from the PS plate 5 is reflected by the PS plate 20, the reflected light is detected to detect the presence of the leading end of the PS plate 20 pushed from the outlet 120. 20 is one component of a safety system when carrying out the transport of 20. This point will become clear in the description of the operation procedure described later. Note that the output signal of the first optical sensor 125 rises from the “0” level to the “1” level when the leading end of the PS plate 20 passes over the first optical sensor 125, and the rear end of the PS plate 20 When the unit passes over the first optical sensor 125, it falls from the “1” level to the “0” level. Also, a broken line 126 in FIG.
Indicates a transport path of the PS plate 20.

In order to facilitate understanding of the above description, each of the arms 103 and 105 and each of the rollers 106 and 107,
FIG. 5 shows an arrangement relationship of 121 (110). However, FIG.
Is the stock unit 1 from above in FIG.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory plan view schematically showing a case where the inside of 00 is viewed, in which illustration of other portions is omitted.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory front view showing the internal structure of the first transport unit 200, and corresponds to an explanatory front view of the inside of the housing 600 from the direction of arrow 18 in FIG. . The first transport unit 200 itself is also individually housed in the housing 205. However, on both sides of the housing 205, a window for receiving the transported PS plate 20, that is, a carry-in port 206, and a window for carrying out the PS plate 20 to the outside of the first transport unit 200, that is, a transport window Exit 207
And a part of the end of the side surface of the housing 205 in which the carry-in port 206 is formed is removed in order to make the gear 204 protrude toward the stock unit 100 side.

The core of the first transport unit 200 is composed of two drive rollers 201A, 201B (both rollers 201A,
201B is collectively referred to as a drive roller 201). Both drive rollers 201A and 201B are rotatably disposed in the direction of the central axis 14. Then, a belt 208 is hung on both drive rollers 201A and 201B. Further, a gear 209 is attached concentrically to both ends of one drive roller 201 </ b> A, and the gear 209 meshes with the gear 204. The gear 204 itself is mounted concentrically on a shaft rotatably mounted on a bracket (not shown) provided on the housing 205 using a bearing or the like. Therefore, when the rotational force of the third motor 114 is transmitted to the gear 204, the rotational force is further transmitted to the drive roller 201A via the gear 209. As a result, the drive roller 201A rotates in synchronization with the rotation of the third motor 114, and the drive roller 201B also rotates.

The pressing rollers 203A and 203B (collectively, the pressing rollers 20A and 201B) are brought into line contact with each of the driving rollers 201A and 201B via the belt 208.
3) is also rotatably disposed in the direction of the central axis 14. Specifically, both holding rollers 203A, 203B
Are mounted concentrically on a shaft which is supported via a bearing or the like on a bracket (not shown) fixed to the inner surface of the housing 205. Therefore, loading port 2
The PS plate 20 conveyed from 06 is pressed by the pressing roller 2
While being pressed by 03A, it is pushed by the drive roller 201A to the left in FIG. 6, and then conveyed to the press roller 203B by the belt 208. And the pressing roller 2
While the PS plate 20 is pressed again by 03B, the PS plate 20 is pushed to the carry-out port 207 by the drive roller 201B.

Here, in order to simplify the description, each of the rollers 201A, 201B, 203A, 20A
FIG. 7 shows an arrangement relationship between 3B, the belt 208, and the gears 204 and 209. FIG. 7 is also an explanatory plan view schematically showing the configuration when viewed from above the paper surface of FIG.

The broken line 202 in FIG.
Is shown.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory front view showing the internal structure of the second transport unit 300, and is also a view in which the inside of the housing 600 is viewed from the direction of arrow 18 in FIG. Also, in this figure, in order to avoid complicating the drawing, each roller described later is represented by a solid line, and other parts (the third arm 306 and the like) arranged in the space outside the rollers are shown. Is represented by a broken line.

Similarly, the second transport unit 300 itself
It is housed in a housing 310. The second transport unit 300 transports the PS plate 20 transported from the first transport unit 200 to the loading / unloading port 16 of the cylindrical inner drum 1 and transfers the PS plate 20 to the cylindrical drum unit 500 (FIG. 2).
0, and conversely, a function of receiving the drawn PS plate 20 from the cylindrical drum unit 500 at the loading / unloading port 16, transporting it to the collection unit 400 side, and discharging it. . Therefore, the second
The transport unit 300 includes a supply unit 300A and a switching unit 30.
OB, the guide / discharge unit 300C, and the discharge unit 300D.

First, the supply unit 300A switches the PS plate 20 received from the first transport unit 200 to the switching unit 300B.
And a supply path 311 indicated by a broken line. That is, a window for receiving the PS plate 20, that is, a carry-in port 312 is formed in the upper portion of one side surface of the housing 310 so as to face the carry-out port 207 of the first transport unit 200. 312, three supply rollers 313 to 3 toward the inside of the unit 300.
Reference numeral 15 is rotatably disposed in the direction of the central axis 14. The supply rollers 313 to 315 are arranged such that their centers are located on an arc having a certain radius of curvature, and form a supply roller row 301 forming an arc-shaped supply path 311. And these supply rollers 313-31
5, a wall plate 316 is provided along the supply path 311. The wall plate 316 is attached to three brackets 317 to 319 fixed to one end surface of the housing 310 (the surface facing the paper surface of FIG. 8). Accordingly, the PS plate 20 that has entered from the carry-in entrance 312 is conveyed to the switching unit 300B while being bent in an arc shape along the supply path 311. Then, even if the PS plate 20 deviates from the supply path 311 and protrudes outward, the non-exposed surface (back surface) side of the PS plate 20 is pressed by the above-described wall plate 316, whereby the PS plate 20 is moved to the supply path It is corrected so that it is conveyed along. Of course, the driving force of the transport is the drive roller 201B of the first transport unit 200 described above.

The switching section 300B is a section for switching the transport path of the PS plate 20, and includes two switching rollers 302.
A and 302B, and a third arm 306 for switching the positions of the rollers 302A and 302B. That is, both rollers 302A and 302B (these are collectively referred to as a switching roller row 302) are
The rollers extend in the respective directions, and are rotatably attached to the support plate 321 at both ends of their shafts. Moreover, the support plate 321 is attached to a support member 341 (see FIG. 9) provided on the housing 310 so as to be rotatable at the center thereof. At one end of the support plate 321, an arm 306 </ b> C of the third arm 306 is connected to the support plate 321. This third arm 306
Is composed of three arm portions 306A to 306C, and a central arm portion 306B has arm portions 306A at both ends.
A and 306C are rotatably connected. And
The base end of the arm 306A is connected to the first solenoid 305. Also, the middle part 306D of the arm part 306B.
Are rotatably supported.

The first solenoid 305 is connected to the PS plate 20
Is not excited at the time of loading, and is in the OFF state. The switching roller array 302 in the OFF state
Is represented by a dashed line in FIG. Therefore, at the time of loading, the switching rollers 302A and 302B
The supply path 311 is connected to a guide / discharge path (also referred to as a carry-in / out path) 322 in the guide / discharge unit 300C. This allows
The PS plate 20 includes a supply roller 301 and a switching roller row 30.
2, and is conveyed to the guide unit 300C.

On the other hand, at the time of discharge (or at the time of unloading), the first solenoid 305 is excited and turned on, the third arm 306 swings, and the two support plates 321 rotate about their centers. Rotate. As a result, the support plate 3
Numeral 21 stops at the vertical position shown by the broken line in FIG. As a result, both switching rollers 302A and 302B are also positioned vertically as indicated by the solid lines. As a result, the supply path 311 is separated from the guide path 322, and conversely, the discharge path 32 that is the path of the PS plate 20 in the discharge unit 300D.
3 and the guiding path 322 are connected. As a result, the PS plate 20 is conveyed from the guide / discharge unit 300C to the discharge unit 300D via the switching roller row 302 while being bent in an arc shape.

The guiding / discharging section 300C is a section for carrying the PS plate 20 into the cylindrical drum unit 500 (FIG. 2) and receiving and discharging the PS plate 20 from the cylindrical drum unit 500. Accordingly, the guide / discharge path 322 in the guide / discharge unit 300 </ b> C is a common path that is a path for carrying in the PS plate 20 to the inner surface 2 and also serves as a discharge path from the inner surface 2.

The cores of the guide unit 300C are two guide rollers 303A and 303B (both are collectively referred to as a guide roller array 303) and a drive roller 324.
First, the two guide rollers 303A and 303B are arranged rotatably in the direction of the central axis 14. A belt 325 is hung between these rollers 303A and 303B. Further, the drive roller 324 is also connected to the central shaft 14 so as to make linear contact with one of the guide rollers 303B via the belt 325 and a belt 331 described later.
It is arranged to be rotatable in the direction. This drive roller 32
The fourth drive source is a fourth motor 327 (pulse motor). That is, the pulley 328 and the drive roller 324 attached to the rotation shaft of the fourth motor 327,
A belt 331 is hung on the two drive rollers 329 and 330 in 00D. Therefore, the fourth
The rotational force of the motor 327 is transmitted to the drive roller 324 by the belt 331, and further transmitted to the guide roller 303B and the guide roller 303A via the belt 325. Thus, at the time of carrying in, one of the guide rollers 303A receives the PS plate 20 from between the switching rollers 302A and 302B, and moves to the guide roller 303B side.
The S plate 20 is propelled, and thereafter the PS plate 20 is transported by the belt 325. And the guiding roller 3
03B presses the PS plate 20 in pressure. Thus, this roller 3
03B functions as a pressing roller. Then, the drive roller 324 further pushes the PS plate 20 toward the loading / unloading port 16 side. It should be noted that, at the time of discharging, the reverse operation is performed. Moreover, the guide roller row 303
, A wall plate 332 is also provided. The wall plate 332 is also attached to a bracket 333 fixed to an end surface of the housing 310 (a surface facing the paper surface of FIG. 8). Therefore, even if the PS plate 20 is deviated from the guide path 322, the non-exposed surface (back surface) of the PS plate 20 contacts the wall plate 332 and is pushed to the opposite side.
The zero transport path is corrected to the guide path 322.

On the other hand, the discharge section 300D is used to transfer the exposed PS plate 20 carried out from the inner surface 2 to a discharge port 334 (also referred to as a discharge window or discharge side) formed in a side surface of the housing 310.
, And forms an arc-shaped discharge path 323 as a transfer path for the PS plate 20. That is, 8
The rollers 335 are disposed rotatably in the direction of the central axis 14. Further, these rollers 335 are arranged such that their centers are located in an arc shape having a certain radius of curvature. In this sense, the eight rollers 335 form the discharge roller row 304. Moreover, the discharge roller row 30
The above-mentioned drive rollers 329 and 330 (also referred to as discharge rollers) are disposed so as to make line contact with two of the rollers 335a and 335b. Therefore, the rollers 335a and 335b not only form the discharge path 323 of the PS plate 20 together with the other rollers 335, but also form the PS plate 2
It also plays a role as a pressing roller for zero. Therefore, the PS plate 20 conveyed to the discharge roller row 304 by the switching roller row 302 is conveyed to the discharge port 334 while being bent in an arc shape along the discharge path 323. Moreover, since the two wall plates 336 and 337 are attached to the inside of the casing 310 via the brackets 338 and 339 along the discharge path 323, the discharge path 32
Even if the PS plate 20 protrudes from 3, it is corrected to the discharge path 323 by these wall plates 336 and 337. The driving roller 330 and the discharge roller 335b
The PS plate 20 is pushed forward so that the S plate 20 is further discharged from the discharge port 334 to the collection unit 400 via the discharge port 601 provided in the housing 600.

In order to facilitate understanding of the above description, the supply roller row 301, the switching roller row 302, the third arm 306, and a part of the discharge roller row 304 are shown in plan view from above in FIG. An explanatory diagram is schematically shown in FIG.

Also, as shown in FIG.
B and the light emitted between the guide roller 303A (PS plate 2
The reflection type second optical sensor 340 is connected to the switching unit 300 so that light not having a wavelength for exposing 0: infrared light, for example, passes through.
It is disposed obliquely below B or obliquely above the guiding / discharging portion 300C. The second optical sensor 340 detects the reflected light of the light emitted from itself at the leading end of the PS plate 20, so that the leading end of the PS plate 20 is switched to the switching roller 3.
It is detected that the sheet has been conveyed between 02B and the guide roller 303A. At this time, the output of the second optical sensor 340 is
It rises from "0" level to "1" level. This point
The same applies to the first optical sensor 125 described above. Then, P
When the rear end of the S plate 20 passes between the rollers 302B and 303A, the output of the second optical sensor 340 falls from the “1” level to the “0” level. That is, at the time of the fall, the second optical sensor 340 detects that the rear end of the PS plate 20 has reached between the two portions 300B and 300C.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory front view showing the internal structure of the collection unit 400, and corresponds to a view in which the inside of the collection unit 400 is viewed from the direction of the arrow 18 in FIG. The unit 400 is also housed in the housing 410. As described above, the housing 41 is
A carry-in port 411 is formed on a side surface of the housing 0, and a receiving plate 412 is fixedly provided inside the side surface of the casing 410 immediately below the carry-in port 411. And this receiving plate 4
A collection tray 401 is provided so as to face the tray 12. The collection tray 401 includes a receiving plate 402 that receives the PS plate 20 protruded downward from the receiving plate 412,
It has a leg 403 that supports it, and a connecting plate 404 that connects the receiving plate 402 and the leg 403 and that is elastically deformed by the inclination of the receiving plate 402. Case 4
The inclination angle θ of the receiving plate 402 with respect to the side surface 413 of the ten
The end 414 is swingably attached to the side surface 413 so that it can be manually changed according to the quantity and size of the PS plate 20 to be discharged. Therefore, the display of the receiving plate 402 is indicated by a solid line and a dashed line in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram schematically showing the entire control system of the cylindrical inner surface scanning device. The control unit 50 forms the heart of this control system.
Main controller 51 and first and second transport controllers 52 and 55
0. The main control unit 51 has a CPU unit and a memory unit (not shown), and has a command signal V ₁ input from an input device or an operation device 53 (the command signal V ₁ is
This is a general term for various command signals described later. ), And directly controls the first and second transport control units 52 and 550, the main scanning control unit 65, the sub-scanning control unit 66, and the display device 57. In addition, the first transport control unit 52
It has a PU unit 64 and a first memory unit 62 (FIG. 12), and receives a command signal V ₂ from the main control unit 51, and communicates with the first transport unit 54 (stock unit 100 and first transport unit 200). This is a part that controls the second transport unit 300. Note that the first transport control unit 52 is
The first control signal V _C1 output to is a signal that collectively refers to various drive signals described later. Similarly, the first transport control unit 52
Output to the second transport unit 300 from the second control signal V _C2
Is also a general term for various drive signals. Further, the second transfer control unit 550 also includes the second CPU unit 551 and the second memory unit 5.
52 (FIG. 16), and receives a command signal V ₃ output from the main control unit 51 to receive the cylindrical drum unit 500.
To control the unit 500 by outputting the third control signal V _C3 . The third control signal V _C3 is also a general term for various drive signals described later.

The second transport control unit 550 receives an output signal of a reflective third optical sensor 55 (see FIG. 2) provided above the end face 3 of the cylindrical inner drum 1. This third
The detection principle of the optical sensor 55 is also the same as that of the first and second optical sensors 125 and 340 described above. Then, the main control unit 51 receives the output signal V _S3 (FIG. 16) of the third optical sensor 55 received by the second transport control unit 550, and from the control of the first transport control unit 52 to the second transport control unit 550. Control or the reverse control operation is performed. This point will also be described later.

The main control unit 51 outputs fourth and fifth command signals V ₄ and V ₅ to the main scanning and sub-scanning control units 65 and 66, respectively, to operate the respective units 65 and 66. Control. Here, the main scanning control unit 65 is a part that controls the rotation of the deflector in the scanning head 6 and the adjustment of the position of the imaging lens for deflecting and scanning the light beam SB (FIG. 1) in the main scanning direction Y. is there. Further, the sub-scanning control unit 66
This is a part for controlling the driving mechanism of. Further, the main control unit 5
1 outputs an alarm signal V ₆ to the display device 57. The display device 57 is a portion that displays various malfunctions performed in the cylindrical inner surface scanning device as alarms.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the control system between the first transport control unit 52 and the first transport unit 54 or the stock unit 100 in more detail. First, the first transport control unit 52 controls the first and second timers 58 and 59 (both 58 and 5).
9 and a third timer 63 (FIG. 13) described later,
Timer unit 957).
59 is controlled by the first CPU 64 of the first transport controller 52. Among them, the second timer 59 is used to confirm an error operation when the PS plate 20 is transported in the stock unit 100. Specifically, the second timer 59 is used for the PS roller 107 (FIG. 4). by measuring the elapsed time T ₂ of the from the conveyance start of the plate 20, and outputs the measurement result as an output signal V _T2. The first timer 58 is a timer used for confirming an error operation when the PS plate 20 is vacuum-sucked by the suction cup 102 (FIG. 4) in the stock unit 100. Specifically, the first timer 58
Is the elapsed time T since the first vacuum pump 61 was turned on.
₁ is measured and the result is output as an output signal _VT1 .

First to third motors 104, 109, 11
4. The first vacuum pump 61, the vacuum switch (vacuum degree sensor) 60, and the first optical sensor 125 are all connected to the data bus 5
6 is connected to a first CPU section 64 of the first transport control section 52. Then, the first to third motors 104, 1
09 and 114 are driven according to the first to third drive signals V _{D1 to} V _D3 output by the first transport control unit 52, respectively.
The first vacuum pump 61 is also driven according to a first pump drive signal V _DP1 output from the first transfer control unit 52. The output signals V _S1 and V _SW of the first optical sensor 125 and the vacuum switch 60 are output to the first CPU unit 64 of the first transport control unit 52.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram schematically showing details of a control system of the first transport control unit 52 and the second transport unit 300. The first solenoid 305, the fourth motor 327, and the second optical sensor 340 are all connected to the first transport control unit 52 via the data bus 56.
The third timer 63 is an element included in the first transport control unit 52, and is a guiding unit 300 in the second transport unit 300.
This is a timer used to confirm an operation error in C. Specifically, when the third motor 63 starts the fourth motor 327, the third timer 63 accordingly outputs the discharge roller 303A,
303B to start the measures the elapsed time T ₃ from when starting loading of the PS plate 20 to the cylindrical drum 500 side, as the output signal V _T3 of the measurement result, the 1CP
Output to U section 64. The fourth motor 327 and the first solenoid 305 are driven by fourth and fifth drive signals V _D4 and V _D5 output by the first transport control unit 52, respectively. Further, the second optical sensor 340 outputs the output signal V _S2 to the first CPU unit 64 of the first transport control unit 52.

Next, the configuration and operation of the cylindrical drum unit 500 will be described. First, the unit 500
The operation of (1) is outlined as follows. In other words, the unit 500 receives the P conveyed from the guide unit 300C.
The S plate 20 is received, and the PS plate 20 is further conveyed along the inner surface 2 in the inner circumferential direction, and the entire PS plate 20 is brought into close contact with the inner surface 2. On the other hand, at the time of discharge, the PS plate 20 closely contacted with the inner surface 2 is unloaded toward the loading / unloading port 16 along the circumferential direction of the inner surface 2, and the PS plate 20 is transported through the loading / unloading unit 300C at the loading / unloading port 16. Hand over to Hereinafter, the configuration and more detailed operation will be described based on the perspective view of FIG.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the cylindrical inner drum 1 and the cylindrical drum unit 500 viewed from the direction of the arrow 30 in FIG. 1. For convenience of explanation, the scanning head 6 and other units 100 to 400 and the like are shown. The display is omitted. or,
FIG. 15 is an enlarged perspective view showing a rotating arm 501 and a shovel arm 502 described later. The cylindrical drum unit 500 includes a rotating arm 501 (FIG. 15) rotatable along the circumferential direction of the inner surface 2, a shovel arm 502 connected to the rotating arm 501 and rotating with the rotating arm 501 in the circumferential direction, and a starting point pressing roller. 503, an end point pressing roller 504 (FIG. 14), an end side contact plate 505 that forms a carry-in reference position when the PS plate 20 is carried in,
An end-point floating plate 506, a sub-positioning plate 507 (see FIG. 19) not shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, and a reflection-type third optical sensor 55 disposed on the end face 3 on the side of the carry-in / out port 16 side.
They are roughly divided into Among them, the third optical sensor 55 is as described above, and the sub-positioning plate 507 is provided in the perforation device 700 disposed below the end face 3. The description will be made at the time of the description. The configuration of each of the other parts of the cylindrical drum unit 500 is as follows.

The rotary arms 501 are provided in the vicinity of both ends in the direction of the central axis 14 of the opening 12 of the sub-scanning base 5. Therefore, each of the rotating arms 501 is connected to the rotating arms 501A and 501A as shown in FIG.
Let's call it B. Then, both rotating arms 501A,
Since the configuration of 501B is the same, here, only one rotary arm 501A and its peripheral configuration will be described, and the description will be replaced with the description of the other rotary arm 501B and its peripheral configuration.

First, the bracket 547A has an opening 508A at the center thereof, and the bracket 547A is positioned so that the center of the opening 508A is located on the central axis 14.
One end of A is attached to the lower surface 5B of the sub-scanning base 5 (see FIG. 1). However, FIG. 14 does not show the attached state. And the center is the opening 50
A pulley 509A is disposed on the bracket 547A so as to be concentric with the center of the pulley 509A.
10A, a part of the rotary arm 501A,
One side surface of the letter-shaped plate 511A (FIG. 14) is connected. The other side surface of the L-shaped plate 511A is also an L-shaped plate 512A that also forms a part of the rotary arm 501A.
Is connected to one side. As described above, the rotary arm 501A is composed of a combination of the two L-shaped plates 511A and 512A. On the other hand, the L-shaped bracket 51
One side of 3A is the lower surface 5B of the sub-scanning base 5 (FIG. 1).
14 (not shown in FIG. 14 but shown in FIG. 2), and an opening 514A formed in the center of the other side surface. Are rotatably supporting the rotary shaft 515. This rotating shaft 51
As shown in FIG. 14, 5 is also pivotally supported by an opening 514B of a bracket 513B on the other rotating arm 501B side. A gear 516 is attached to the tip of the rotating shaft 515.
Meshes with a gear 518 attached to the rotating shaft of the fifth motor 517 (pulse motor). And the rotating shaft 5
A pulley 519A is attached to 15 and a belt 520A is hung between the pulley 519A and the pulley 509A. Therefore, when the fifth motor 517 rotates, its rotating force is transmitted to the pulley 509A via the rotating shaft 515 and the belt 520A, and as a result, the rotating arm 5
Numeral 01 rotates in the circumferential direction of the inner surface 2, that is, in the main scanning direction Y, with one point on the central axis 14 as its rotation center. This is the same for the other rotating arm 501B. Further, sixth and seventh motors (both DC motors) 522 and 523 are attached to the other side surface 521A of the L-shaped plate 512A of the rotating arm 501A. Note that the motors 522 and 523 are provided only on the L-shaped plate 512A, and the L-shaped plate 5 on the rotating arm 501B side.
12B is not provided.

On the other hand, the shovel arm 502 is attached to both rotating arms 501A and 501B as follows. That is, the rotating shaft body 524 has two L-shaped plates 512A,
The shaft 524 is rotatably supported by the side surfaces 521A and 521B (FIG. 15) of the shaft 12B.
A gear 526 meshing with a gear 525 attached to the rotation shaft of the sixth motor 522 is attached to the end on the A side. The shovel arm 50 having five L-shaped protrusions 527 (FIG. 15) at the center of the rotating shaft 524.
2 are connected. In addition, the five protrusions 527
Are fitted in grooves 529 (FIG. 14) formed in the inner surface 2 along the circumferential direction. The thin grooves 5 formed on the inner surface 2 between the grooves 529
Numeral 30 is for vacuum-adsorbing the PS plate 20,
These grooves 530 are connected to a second vacuum pump 531 (see FIG. 16) not shown in FIG. Accordingly, when the rotary arms 501A and 501B rotate in the circumferential direction, the tip 528 of the shovel arm 502 also moves in the groove 529 in the circumferential direction with the rotation. When the sixth motor 522 rotates, the rotating shaft 524 rotates around its central axis as the rotating shaft. As a result, the tip 528 of the shovel arm 502 is
Within, it will move up and down.

The structure of the starting point pressing roller 503 is as follows. That is, the rotating shaft body 548 is
A, 521B rotatably supported on its side surface 5A.
A gear 532 meshing with a gear 534 attached to the rotation shaft of the seventh motor 523 is attached to the end on the 21A side. Then, start point pressing rollers 503 are rotatably mounted on connecting portions 533A, 533B mounted on both sides of the rotating shaft body 548. Therefore, the rotating arm 50
When 1A and 501B rotate in the circumferential direction, the start point pressing roller 503 also rotates in the circumferential direction. Further, when the seventh motor 523 rotates, the start point pressing roller 503 is rotated by the rotation of the seventh motor 523 in the middle portion 54 of the shovel arm 502.
9 and in the direction away from the intermediate portion 549. Of course, this starting point pressing roller 5
The axis of rotation of 03 is the central axis of the rotating shaft body 548.

The end point pressing roller 504 (FIG. 14) is disposed in the space of the inner surface 2 as follows. That is, the brackets 535A and 535B are attached to one end of the inner side surface 5A (FIG. 1) of the sub-scanning base 5 so as to face the brackets 513A and 513B, respectively. It is rotatably supported by 535B. An eighth motor 537 (DC motor) is attached to the bracket 535B, and a gear 539 meshed with a gear 538 attached to the rotating shaft of the eighth motor 537 is attached to the rotating shaft 536. Further, connecting portions 54 are provided at both ends of the rotating shaft 536.
The end holding roller 504 is rotatably supported by both connecting portions 540. Therefore, when the eighth motor 537 rotates, the end point pressing roller 504 rotates around the center axis of the rotating shaft body 536 integrally with the connecting portion 540.

A part of the end contact plate 505 is fixed to the upper surface 541 of the cylindrical inner drum 1 so as to protrude above the end press roller 504. An end point floating plate 506 driven by the second solenoid 542 is provided below the end point pressing roller 504.

FIG. 16 shows a cylindrical drum unit 50.
It is a block diagram which shows the control system of 0. Second transport control unit 5
The unit 50 has a second CPU unit 551, a second memory unit 552, and a counter unit 553, and exchanges signals with each unit in the cylindrical drum unit 500 via the data bus 543. That is, the fifth to eighth motors 517, 522, 52
Drives 3 and 537 are controlled by sixth to ninth drive signals V _{D6 to} V _D9 output by the second CPU unit 551, respectively. The second solenoid 542 is turned on or off by a tenth drive signal _VD10 output by the second CPU 551.
The OFF state is controlled. The second vacuum pump 531 receives the second pump drive signal V _DP2 output from the second CPU unit 551.
Thus, the vacuum suction of the PS plate 20 is started.

On the other hand, the punch driving unit 544 includes a plate sub-positioning motor 545 (pulse motor) and a plate punching motor 546 (DC motor) in the punch 700 described later, and is used in the printing process. For printing presses,
The printing plate is set on the plate cylinder surface of the printing press by a plate positioning means called a pin system. Therefore, holes for passing the pins must be formed in advance at the ends of the printing plate. Therefore, after the exposure (after the drawing) or before the exposure, a drilling operation for processing the hole is required in the cylindrical inner surface scanning device. Therefore, when the PS plate 20 is carried into the inner surface 2, the cylindrical drum unit 500 holds the PS plate 20 on the inner surface in such a manner that an end (portion forming a hole) of the PS plate 20 is projected from the end surface 3 by a predetermined dimension. Carry in 2 In addition, in consideration of this point, one side of the PS plate 20 is always P
The PS plate 20 is stocked in the stock tray 101 so as to reach a predetermined position in the S plate mounting surface 27 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The motors 545 and 546 are driven and controlled by eleventh and twelfth drive signals V ₁₁ and V ₁₂ , respectively.

FIGS. 17 and 18 are a front view and a perspective view, respectively, for explaining the configuration of the punching device 700 provided on the end face 3 shown in FIG. FIG. 19 shows the drilling device 7.
00 included in the mobile unit 704 (mobile unit 70
4A and 704B), particularly for explaining the arrangement and operation of the auxiliary positioning plate 507. Therefore, in FIG. 19, the symbols A and B are not added to the symbols indicating the components of the mobile unit 704,
They are shown collectively. Further, FIG. 19 does not show an origin sensor 709 and wings 710 (see FIG. 17), which will be described later, for convenience of illustration. Hereinafter, FIGS. 17 to 19
Based on the above, the configuration of the punching device 700 will be described.

The punching device 700 has a punch unit moving device 701 provided on the end face 3 and punch units 800A and 800B provided in the device 701. The punch units 800A and 800B have the same configuration, and will be hereinafter simply referred to as the punch unit 800 when collectively referred to as a punch unit.

FIG. 17 is a front view of the apparatus 701, 800A, 800B, etc. viewed from the direction indicated by the arrow 702 in FIG. However, the arrangement position of the punch unit moving device 701 shown in FIG. 18 on the end face 3 is different from that shown in FIG.

The punch unit moving device 701 is a device for moving the punch unit 800 in the direction X (sub scanning direction) of the central axis 14 of the cylindrical inner drum 1. The plate sub positioning motor 545, the moving units 704A and 704B, Are roughly divided into

First, the plate sub-positioning motor 545 (hereinafter simply referred to as the motor 545) is
This portion serves as a drive source for moving 0 in the sub-scanning direction X, and its drive is controlled by the above-described second transport control unit 550 (see FIG. 16). The attachment of the motor 545 to the end face 3 is as follows. That is, the bracket 705
One of the mounting surfaces 705 a is bolted to the end surface 3, and the other mounting surface 705 b of the bracket 705 is
Install 5. Then, a pulley 7 for hanging belts 706A and 706B is attached to the tip of the rotation shaft of the motor 545.
Insert the hole 05c.

Each of the moving units 704A and 704B is a part for directly moving the punch unit 800 in the sub-scanning direction X under the driving force of the motor 545. It is a component. The moving unit 704
B denotes a point not provided with an origin sensor 709 and a wing 710 described later, and a moving table 708 of the punch unit 800B.
Since it has exactly the same configuration as the mobile unit 704A except that the connection position to B is reversed, the configuration of the mobile unit will be described in detail below centering on the mobile unit 704A.

The moving unit 704A is disposed on the end face 3 via an L-shaped bracket 711A. That is,
One side surface of the L-shaped bracket 711A is bolted to the end surface 3, and the lower surface 712A1 (FIG. 17) of the base block 712A of the moving unit 704A is bolted to the other side surface of the bracket 711A. The components of the moving unit 704A provided on the base block 712A are as follows.

That is, an L-shaped mounting plate 713A is provided on the protruding portion 712A2 (FIG. 17) of the end of the base block 712A.
The transmission shaft is fitted into the center hole of the mounting plate 713A, and a pulley 714 is attached to the tip of the transmission shaft.
A is connected. A belt 706A is hung on the pulley 714A and the pulley 705c of the motor 545. Also, the protrusion 7 at the center end of the base block 712A is provided.
12A3 (FIG. 18), an L-shaped mounting plate 71
5A is fixedly provided, and two guide rails 7 are provided between the side surface of the mounting plate 715A and the mounting plate 713A.
16A (see FIGS. 18 and 19) are disposed so as to be parallel to the sub-scanning direction X. Moreover, the pulley 714A
The transmission shaft 720 (FIG. 19) connected to the
7 (see FIG. 19), and the mounting plate 71 so that its transmission shaft 720 is parallel to the sub-scanning direction X.
It is arranged between 3A and 715A. The moving base 708A is screwed to the ball screw 717A, and both guide rails 716A are loosely fitted to the moving base 708A. A base of an L-shaped sub-positioning plate 507 is fixed on the upper surface of the movable base 708A. Therefore, when the motor 545 rotates, the rotational force of the motor 545 is transmitted to the ball screw 717 via the belt 706A and the pulley 714A.
A, the moving table 708A and the auxiliary positioning plate 507
Is along the guide rail 716A, that is, in the sub-scanning direction X.
Will be moved to.

Further, the concave portion 712A of the base block 712A
4 (FIG. 17), two guide rails 718A are also laid, and a fitting portion 800A1 fixed to the lower portion of the punch unit 800A is slidably provided between the cut portions of both guide rails 718A. It is loosely fitted. The lower part of the punch unit 800A and the side surface of the moving table 708A are connected by a connecting block 719A.
Thereby, the moving table 708 is changed according to the rotation of the motor 545.
When A moves in the sub scanning direction X, the punch unit 800
A also slides or moves along the guide rail 718A in the sub-scanning direction X together with the moving table 708A.

On the other hand, the protrusion 712 of the base block 712A
An origin sensor 709 is provided at an end of the side surface on the mounting plate 713A side of the side surface of A3 (FIG. 18). This origin sensor 709 has a U-shaped portion 709a (FIG. 1).
7) a light emitting element (LED)
), And a photodetector (such as a photodiode) for detecting light emitted from the light emitting element. The output terminal of the photodetector is connected to the second transport control unit 550 shown in FIG. 16 (however, not shown in FIG. 16). On the other hand, the moving table 708A has
As shown in FIG. 18, a wing portion 710 is attached. Accordingly, the wing portion 710 moves in the sub-scanning direction X together with the moving table 708A. Therefore, the moving table 708A
When the wing portion 710 crosses the U-shaped portion 709a of the origin sensor 709 due to the movement of the origin sensor 709, the wing portion 710 blocks the light emitted from the light emitting element, and the output signal of the photodetector, that is, A change occurs in the output signal. This change is detected by the second transport control unit 550, but the moving table 708A at this time, and thus the punch unit 800
The position of A in the sub-scanning direction X is the origin position P
₀ (FIG. 19). At this time, the auxiliary positioning plate 5
07 is located at a position _PA0 in FIG. Then, the PS plate 20 is carried into the inner surface 2 by the cylindrical drum unit 500 so that the end of the PS plate 20 is located at this position P _A0 from the beginning of the carry-in, and as described above, the stock tray 101 is used. The PS plate 20 is stocked at a predetermined position in the box. This origin sensor 709 is
Since it is sufficient to provide it in one mobile unit 704A, it is not provided in the other mobile unit 704B as described above in this embodiment.

Next, the configuration and operation of the punch unit 800 will be described in detail. Here, FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the disconnection S in FIG.
FIG. 9 is an explanatory longitudinal sectional view of the punch unit 800 regarding −S ′, and shows only main parts thereof. The punch unit 800 includes a plate punching motor 881 (hereinafter simply referred to as a motor 881), a cam mechanism 882, a punch 883, and a die 884 as its main elements. The motor 881 is attached to a bracket 886 of the punch unit 800 via a motor bracket 885, and the bracket 886 is attached to the punch block 8 by bolting.
87 is attached. Further, the rotating shaft of the motor 881 is provided with a bearing mechanism 889 having two bearings 888.
Is fitted to the center of the shaft 8811 supported by the shaft. Therefore, the central axis of the rotating shaft of the motor 881 coincides with the central axis of the shaft 8811. On the other hand, at a position eccentric from the central axis of the shaft 8811,
The shaft of the eccentric cam 882A of the cam mechanism 882 is fitted. Therefore, the axis of the eccentric cam 882A is eccentric with respect to the rotation axis of the motor 881. Further, a follower 882B is coupled to the eccentric cam 882A via an elliptical elongated hole (not shown in FIG. 20), thereby forming a cam mechanism 882. Then, the punch 883 passes through the through hole 8812 provided in the punch block 887, and the upper end of the punch 883 is
82B. Also, a punch block 887
A die 884 is bolted to the lower surface of the die 884, and a die hole 8814 is formed at the distal end of the die 884 so that the distal end 8813 of the punch 883 fits into the die hole 8814. And the punch block 88
In the gap 8815 formed between the die 7 and the die 884, PS
The end of the plate 20 is inserted and placed on the die 884.

Since the punch unit 800 has such a configuration, it operates as follows. That is, the motor 88
When 1 is driven by a motor driver (not shown),
The rotational force of the motor 881 is transmitted to the eccentric cam 882A via the shaft 8811, and the eccentric cam 882A rotates around the central axis at a position eccentric from the central axis of the shaft 8811. According to this eccentric rotation, the follower 88
2B starts moving up and down. Thus, the rotational force of the motor 881 is converted by the eccentric cam 882A into a driving force in the vertical direction. Under this driving force, the punch 883 is directed downward from above, that is, from the non-mounting surface (exposed surface) side to the mounting surface (non-exposed surface) with respect to the end of the PS plate 20.
Then, the end portion of the PS plate 20 placed on the die 884 is punched out. As a result, a punch is made in the PS plate 20 and the punch residue is removed from the die hole 8814.
Fall down through. Tip portion 881 of punch 883
As 3, not only a round hole but also a long hole may be used.

A reflection type fourth optical sensor 8817 is fixed on both brackets 885 and 886 via a support plate 8818. The fourth optical sensor 8817 is for confirming the vertical movement of the punch 883. That is, the deformed disc 8819 is fixed to one end of the shaft 8811 so as to face the bracket 886 so that the center thereof is located on the center axis direction of the axis of the eccentric cam 882A. Therefore, the deformed disk 8819 rotates in synchronization with the rotation of the eccentric cam 882A. The fourth optical sensor 8817 detects the vertical movement of the punch 883 using the rotation of the deformed disk 8819. This detection signal is a signal indicating whether or not the punching of the punch 883 has been completed. Therefore, the fourth optical sensor 88
17 is output to the second transport control unit 550 in FIG. 16, and the control unit 550 uses the detection signal of the fourth optical sensor 8817 to confirm the start of the transport of the PS plate 20 from the inner surface 2. doing.

FIGS. 21 to 24 are flow charts showing the procedures for carrying in, carrying out and discharging the PS plate 20 in this cylindrical inner surface scanning device. Hereinafter, the operation procedure will be described based on this flowchart with reference to other drawings.

(Step S1) This step S1
This is a step corresponding to the preparation work by the operator's manual, and is the only work in a dark room. That is, the operator takes out the stock tray 101 from the inside of the housing 600 and stocks a plurality of PS plates 20 to be drawn in the stock tray 101. At that time, PS version 2
0 so that the non-exposed surface of the PS plate 20 faces the suction cup 102 side.
Is turned over and stored in the stock tray 101. This is because the non-exposed surface of the PS plate 20 is always sucked by the suction cup 102, and the exposed surface is protected from being damaged by the delivery roller array 110 or the like during transportation. . Further, as described above, it is necessary to stock each PS plate 20 so that one side of each PS plate 20 is always located at a predetermined position on the PS plate mounting surface 27. After the stock is completed, the stock tray 101 is returned to the stock unit 100 in the original state.

(Step S2) The first motor 104 is driven to move the first arm 103 to the plate stock position P ₃ (FIG. 4).
Operation). That is, the operator operates the operating device 5
3 using the first PS plate 20 (stock tray 1).
Superimposed on the 01 among the plurality of the PS plate 20 which is stock, issues a transport command signal V ₁₁ for the corresponding) to the PS plate 20 at the top, the main control unit 51 in response to the signal V ₁₁ the first conveyance control unit 52 outputs a command signal V ₂ which instructs the start of the braking operation. Then, in response to the command signal V _2, the first conveyance control unit 52 starts the operation of loading and unloading sequence for operating the first conveyor 54 and the second conveying unit 300. First, first
Conveyance control unit 52, to the first arm 103 at the current retreat position P _1, and outputs a first driving signal V _D1. Thus, the first arm 103 is rotated toward the retracted position P ₁ to the stock tray 101 thereunder. And the first
When the arm 103 reaches the plate stock position P _3, the first conveyance control unit 52 stops the output of the first driving signal V _D1. This is because the first transport control unit 52 outputs the first drive signal V _D1
This is realized by counting the number of pulses.
In other words, the pulse count is previously set to the first arm 103
Than when from the retracted position P ₁ becomes equal to the count value obtained by counting operating until the stock position P ₃ (stored in the first memory unit 62 of the first conveyance control unit 52) the Te, detects that the first arm 103 has reached the plate stock position P _3. With operation of the first arm 103, the suction cups 102, are also moved toward the plate stock position P _3. As a result, sucker 102 is in the position P _3, contacts the non-exposed surface of the first PS plate 20 (the back surface).

(Step S3) The first vacuum pump 61 is turned on. That is, the first transfer control unit 52 outputs the first pump drive signal V _DP1 to the first vacuum pump 61, and at the same time, the first transfer control unit 52 starts the first timer 58.

(Step S4) When the suction by the first vacuum pump 61 starts, the suction cup 102 thereafter sucks the first PS plate 20. At this time, as understood from FIG. 5, the two suction cups 102 try to adsorb the PS plate 20 in the vicinity of both sides of the PS plate 20.

(Steps S5 and S6) Suction device 112
Output signal V of the vacuum switch 60 for detecting the vacuum state in the chamber
The first transport control unit 52 determines whether the _SW has reached the ON level.
Judge. At this time, if the vacuum switch 60 is ON, the process proceeds to the next step S7. Vacuum switch 60 is ON
If not, the first CPU unit 64 sets the first timer 5
It is determined whether or not the elapsed time T ₁ given by the output signal V _{T1 of} 8 has exceeded the suction time T _P stored in the second memory unit 62 in advance. This suction time _TP is equal to the first vacuum pump 61.
Is the time required for normal operation and suction of the PS plate 20. Therefore, if T ₁ > T _P , it is considered that the suction cup 102 has not reliably adsorbed the PS plate 20 and is in a malfunction state. Therefore, the first transport control unit 52 determines that the suction operation of the PS plate 20 is an error, outputs an alarm signal to the main control unit 51, and in response to the alarm signal, the main control unit 51 operates the display device. An alarm signal V ₆ is output to 57. As a result, the display device 57
Displays an alarm.

(Step S7) First PS plate 20
The removed from stock tray 101 carries up delivery position P _2. Therefore, by driving the rotation direction of the reverse, to return the first arm 103 to delivery position P ₂ than when again the first motor 104 to step S2. Along with this operation, the suction cup 102 moves the first th PS plate 20 to the position P ₂ remains adsorbed. In this case, the driving of the first arm 103 is also controlled by counting the number of pulses of the first drive signal V _D1 output by the first transport control unit 52 by itself. Thereby, the first PS
The plate 20 (hereinafter, referred to as the PS plate 20) is taken out of the stock tray 101 and is further lifted upward.

(Step S8) By driving the second motor 109, the second arm 105 is operated downward from the retreat position P ₄ (FIG. 4) and stopped at the press contact position P ₅ (FIG. 4). The operation of the second arm 105 is also achieved by the first transport control unit 52 counting the number of pulses of the second drive signal _VD2 output to the second motor 109. That is, the second arm 10 is previously set between the positions P ₄ and P _5.
5 is operated, the number of pulses of the second drive signal V _D2 required at that time is measured, and the result is transmitted to the first transport control unit 5.
2 in the first memory unit 62. Then, at the time and the result of this measurement the actual count in the operation result is equal, the first conveyance control unit 52 detects that the second arm 105 has reached the pressing position P _5, the second motor 109
To stop. At this time, the swing roller 106
It contacts the delivery roller 107 with the leading end of the S plate 20 interposed therebetween. That is, the swing roller 106 is in pressure contact with the PS plate 20.

(Step S9) The first vacuum pump 61 is turned off. That is, the first transport control unit 52
The output of the pump drive signal V _DP1 is stopped, and the suction device 112 is stopped.
The inside is changed from the vacuum state at the time of suction to the atmospheric pressure. As a result, the suction cup 102 comes off the non-exposed surface of the PS plate 20.

(Step S10) First motor 104
And it is driven in the reverse rotation again, returning the first arm 103 from the delivery position P ₂ to the original retracted position P _1. The operation of the first arm 103 is also realized by the control of the first transport control unit 52 by counting the number of pulses of the first drive signal _VD1 .

(Step S11) The work of transporting the PS plate 20 is started. That is, the first transport control unit 52 outputs the third drive signal _VD3 to the third motor 114 to drive the third motor 114. With this drive, the delivery roller 107 and the transport roller 118 are rotated, and the P
As described above, the S plate 20 is transported on the transport path 126 toward the first transport unit 200 while being bent in an arc shape by the delivery roller row 110.

(Steps S12 to S15) It is checked whether or not the first optical sensor 125 has detected the leading end of the PS plate 20. This is performed when the first transport control unit 52 detects that the output signal V _S1 of the first optical sensor 125 rises to the “1” level. The PS version 20
Is detected, step S15, that is, the transport of the PS plate 20 from the stock unit 100 to the first transport unit 200 is continued as it is.

On the other hand, if no detection is made, it is further determined in step S13 whether or not the elapsed time T ₂ measured by the second timer 59 has exceeded the previously determined transfer time t ₂ in the stock unit. The one transport control unit 52 makes a determination. The transport time t ₂ in the stock unit is a time required for the tip of the PS plate 20 to be transported normally from the contact position with the delivery roller 107 to the position of the first sensor 125 without malfunction, and is measured in advance. The data is stored in the first memory unit 62 of the first transport control unit 52. Therefore, when T ₂ > t ₂ , the stock unit 1
It is highly probable that a transport error has occurred within 00. Therefore, at this time, the first transport control unit 52 outputs an alarm signal to the main control unit 51, judging uniformly as a transport error, and the main control unit 51 receives the alarm signal V
₆ is output to the display device 57. Thereby, the display device 5
7 displays an alarm and notifies the operator of a transport error (step S14).

On the other hand, if T ₂ <t ₂ , the process returns to step S12, and steps S12 and S13 are repeated.

(Step S16) The third motor 114 continues to be driven. As a result, the PS plate 20 is moved from the stock unit 100 to the first transport unit 200 to the second transport unit 200.
Supply unit 300A of transport unit 300 → switching unit 300
B, at this time, the switching roller 3
As described above, the PS plates 20A and 302B are set in the state indicated by the broken line in FIG. 8, so that the PS plate 20 is conveyed toward the guide roller 303A. afterwards,
If the sheet is normally conveyed without error,
The second optical sensor 340 disposed immediately before 03A should detect the leading end of the PS plate 20. Therefore, the first
The transport control unit 52 outputs the output signal V _S2 of the second optical sensor 340.
Is determined to have risen to "1" level.

(Step S17) Second optical sensor 340
When the first transport control unit 52 detects that the output signal V _{S2 rises to} the “1” level, the first transport control unit 52 stops outputting the third drive signal V _D3 and stops the third motor 114. This allows
The conveyance is stopped in a state where the leading end of the PS plate 20 has advanced into the guide / discharge unit 300C.

(Step S18) The PS plate 20 is conveyed from the guide unit 300C to the loading / unloading port 16 on the cylindrical drum unit 500 side. That is, the first transport control unit 52
Drives the fourth motor 327 to guide the discharge roller 303
A, 303B is rotated, whereby the PS plate 20
Is further transported. The leading end of the PS plate 20 is a guide roller 3
03B, and is then pushed out by the third optical sensor 55 installed on the end face 3 near the loading / unloading port 16.
The tip of the plate 20 is detected.

(Steps S19 and S20) The first transport control unit 52 uses the output signal V _S3 of the third optical sensor 55 to
It is determined whether or not the sensor 55 has detected the presence of the leading end of the PS plate 20. When this detection is confirmed, step S
20 and the first transport control unit 52 controls the fourth motor 327
To stop driving. In the PS plate 20 at this time, the leading end of the PS plate 20 goes outside the guide / discharge unit 300C to reach the carry-in / out port 16, and the other part is the guide / discharge unit 300C.
From the switching unit 300B (the supply unit 30 depending on the size).
0A).

(Step S21) Thereafter, the operation shifts to the operation of the cylindrical drum unit 500. That is, as described above, the cylindrical drum unit 500 receives the leading end of the PS plate 20 and places it in the inner surface 2 in the circumferential direction Y (FIG. 1).
7) and brought into close contact with the inner surface 2. Then, P
The S plate 20 is attached to the inner surface 2 by vacuum suction. The details of these operations will be described below, but the control of those operations is all performed by the second transport control unit 550.

The main controller 51 includes a second transport controller 55
Against 0, it commands the start of the load sequence of the PS plate 20 by the command signal V _3. In response to this command,
The transfer control unit 550 starts up the load sequence and starts operation control of each unit of the cylindrical drum unit 500. Here, FIG. 25 to FIG. 43 are front explanatory views schematically showing the operation of each part of the cylindrical drum unit 500 for the purpose of making it easy to understand. This corresponds to the view of FIG. For the sake of simplicity, FIGS. 25 to 42 show only the parts necessary for the description of each operation. Hereinafter, the description will be made sequentially from FIG. 25.

(1) Guide unit 3 of second transport unit 300
The P which has been transported to the loading / unloading port 16 by 00C.
The S plate 20 is stopped by the detection of the leading end by the third optical sensor 55. This point is as described above, and FIG. 25 shows a state immediately before the detection.
As described above, since the end of the PS plate 20 in the direction of the central axis 14 (sub-scanning direction X) is conveyed to the carry-in / out port 16 in a manner protruding from the end surface 3 for the perforation, the PS plate 20 is disposed on the end surface 3. The obtained third optical sensor 55 can detect the leading end of the PS plate 20.

(2) At this time, the rotating arm 501 is waiting near the carry-in / out port 16. Moreover, the tip 528 of the shovel arm 502 is maintained in a raised state in the groove 529. Therefore, the distal end of the PS plate 20 is on the distal end 528 of the shovel arm 502 (FIG. 26).

(3) The second transport control unit 550 drives the seventh motor 523 to lower the starting point pressing roller 503 from the initial position, and nip the leading end of the PS plate 20 (FIG. 27).

(4) The second transport control unit 550 rotates the rotary arm 501 in the CW direction (corresponding to the counterclockwise direction as viewed from above the paper in each of the drawings in FIGS. 25 to 43). In synchronization with the rotation, the first transport control unit 52
The motor 327 is driven again to restart the guide unit 300C. As a result, the entire PS plate 20 is transferred to the loading / unloading port 1.
6 and is carried into the cylindrical inner drum 1. At this time, the tip of the PS plate 20 is lifted from the inner surface 2 by being nipped, and in this state, the PS plate 20 is
Is carried in the circumferential direction Y along the inner surface 2, so that the leading edge portion of the PS plate 20 and the exposed surface thereof are not damaged. Therefore, not only does aluminum dust generated by friction between the PS plate 20 and the inner surface 2 not occur, but also the inner surface 2 itself is not damaged (FIG. 28).

(5) The loading is controlled by counting the number of pulses of the fifth motor 517. This is performed by the counter unit 553 of the second transport control unit 550. That is, when the count result of the counter unit 553 matches the required count number stored in the second memory unit 552 in advance, the second CPU unit 551 stops driving the fifth motor 517. When the loading is completed, the first transport control unit 51 causes the fourth motor 327 to respond to the command transmitted from the second transport control unit 550 via the main control unit 51.
To stop. Thus, the transport operation of the guide unit 300C stops. Thereafter, the second CPU unit 551 rotates the fifth motor 517 in the reverse direction to rotate the rotary arm 501 in the direction opposite to the CW direction, that is, in the CCW direction, and moves the rear end of the PS plate 20 to the end point plate 505. Protruding part 50 of
5a, the PS plate 20 is brought into close contact with the inner surface 2 (FIG. 29). At this time, the rotation control of the fifth motor 517 in the CCW direction is also performed by the method of counting the number of pulses. At this time, the required number of pulses is measured in advance and stored in the second memory unit 552, and the rotation is controlled by comparing the stored data with the count result of the counter unit 553.

(6) The second CPU section 551 drives the sixth motor 522 to drive the distal end 52 of the shovel arm 502.
8 is lowered in the groove 529. This releases the nip at the tip of the PS plate 20 (FIG. 30). At this time, the starting point pressing roller 503 is raised.

(7) The second CPU unit 551 includes a motor 545
(FIG. 18) to drive the auxiliary positioning plate 507 (FIG. 19).
Moving the to move to a predetermined position P _A shown in FIG. 19. This control also is performed by counting the number of pulses of the drive signal V ₁₁ of the motor 545. As a result, the PS plate 20 also _moves from the origin position P _A0 to the predetermined position P
_A is pushed back in the direction of the central axis 14 to _A , whereby the position adjustment of the PS plate 20 in the sub-scanning direction X is achieved.

(8) The second CPU unit 551 reversely rotates the fifth motor 517 again to rotate the rotary arm 501 in the CCW direction by a rotational movement amount corresponding to a predetermined number of pulses. Thereby, the PS plate 20 is further brought into close contact with the inner surface 2 (FIG. 31).

(9) The second CPU unit 551 is the eighth motor 5
37 (FIG. 14) is driven to lower the end point press roller 504 to press the PS plate 20 (FIG. 32).

(10) Then, the second CPU unit 551 further rotates the fifth motor 517 by the predetermined number of pulses, and
The rotation arm 501 is rotated in the CCW direction, and the PS plate 20 is further brought into close contact with the inner surface 2. This is because when the PS plate 20 is pressed by the end point pressing roller 504, the P
Since the slack is generated on the S plate 20 toward the starting point, the PS plate 20 is further moved to the end plate 50 in order to remove the slack.
5 (end point) side (FIG. 33).

(11) The second CPU 551 drives the seventh motor 523 to lower the start point pressing roller 503. As a result, the starting point pressing roller 503 is
The plate 20 is held down (FIG. 34). This is the PS version 20
This is for removing the floating that occurs on the tip end side (starting point side).

(12) Loading the PS plate 20 into the inner surface 2
Since the close contact is completed, the second CPU unit 551 drives the second vacuum pump 531 to suck or mount the PS plate 20 on the inner surface 2 (FIG. 35).

(13) After the suction is completed, the end-point pressing roller 5
The second CPU 551 drives the seventh and eighth motors 523 and 537 in reverse rotation so that both rollers 50
3, 504 is raised, and the pressing of the PS plate 20 is released (FIG. 36).

(14) Then, the second CPU section 551 rotates the fifth motor 517 in the forward direction with a predetermined number of pulses, and rotates the rotary arm 501 in the CW direction (FIG. 37). As a result, the arm 501 is retracted from the drawing effective area (the range where the light beam is effectively scanned by the scanning head 6). This rotation control is also performed by counting the number of pulses. As described above, the load sequence (step S
21) ends.

(Step S22) The light beam SB (FIG. 1) modulated by the image signal is introduced into the space inside the cylindrical inner drum 1, and is scanned in the main scanning direction Y by the scanning head 6, and the scanning head 6 is Move in the scanning direction X,
The PS plate 20 is exposed (drawn).

(Step S23) Second transport control unit 55
0 drives both the punch units 8
00A and 800B are moved in the direction of the central axis 14, and both punches 883 are moved to a predetermined punching position. Then, the second transport control unit 550 drives the motor 881 to make a hole in the end of the PS plate 20.

(Step S24) When the second transport control unit 550 confirms the end of the perforation, the P from the inner surface 2
The operation proceeds to the preparation work for carrying out the S-plate 20. This unloading preparation operation is also controlled based on the unloading sequence of the second transfer control unit 550. Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to FIGS.

(15) The second CPU section 551 rotates the rotary arm 501 in the CCW direction by rotating the fifth motor 517 in reverse with a predetermined number of pulses, whereby the tip 528 of the shovel arm 502 is rotated. It is brought into contact with the tip of the PS plate 20 (FIG. 38).

(16) The second CPU section 551 turns off the second vacuum pump 531 to release the PS plate 20 from vacuum suction (FIG. 39).

(17) The second CPU section 551 rotates the seventh motor 523 in the normal direction to lower the start point pressing roller 503, and also rotates the sixth motor 522 in the normal direction to raise the tip 528 of the shovel arm 502. Thus, the tip of the PS plate 20 is nipped again (FIG. 40).
This is to prevent the edge of the PS plate 20 from being damaged by contact and friction with the inner surface 2 even at the time of unloading.

(18) The second CPU 551 causes the fifth motor 517 to rotate forward with a predetermined number of pulses,
01 is rotated in the CW direction. As a result, the rear end of the PS plate 20 is separated from the end contact plate 505, and the PS plate 20 is slightly pushed in the CW direction along the inner surface 2. As a result, slack occurs near the rear end (FIG. 41). The reason for slackening the rear end portion in this way is to make the rear end portion of the PS plate 20 float more easily in cooperation with the next end point floating plate 506 (FIG. 14).

(19) The second CPU 551 excites the second solenoid 542 to turn it on, thereby raising the end point floating plate 506. As a result, the rear end of the PS plate 20 is floated from the inner surface 2. At this time, the second solenoid 542 is energized to such a level that the rear end can get over the end plate 505 (FIG. 42).

(20) The first transport control section 52 excites the first solenoid 305 to turn it on, and the switching roller train 3
02 is switched to the discharge position (the plate discharge position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 8). As a result, the path of the PS plate 20 is switched from the guiding path 322 to the discharging path 323.

(Step S25) In order to further smoothly receive the PS plate 20 from the cylindrical drum unit 500, the first transport control unit 52 rotates the fourth motor 327 in the opposite direction to that in step S18 in advance. To rotate the guide rollers 303A and 303B in the reverse direction.

(Step S26) At the stage when the preparation for unloading has been completed, the cylindrical drum unit 500 is driven to move the PS plate 20 from the inner surface 2 along the circumferential direction Y, and the PS plate 20 is moved. The leading end of the plate 20 (the portion that was the rear end at the time of carrying in) is carried out to the carrying-in / out port 16.

Then, the second CPU section 551 rotates the fifth arm 517 in the CCW direction by rotating the fifth motor 517 in the reverse direction (FIG. 43).

(Step S27) Thereafter, the leading end of the PS plate 20 (the trailing end at the time of carrying in) is connected to the guide roller 303B.
The PS plate 20 is received by the guide unit 300
It is drawn to C. Therefore, thereafter, the process proceeds to the step of discharging the PS plate 20. Thereafter, the PS plate 20 is conveyed toward the discharge port 601, that is, the collection unit 400, while being bent into an arc shape by the discharge roller row 304 (FIG. 8), as described above.

(Steps S28 to S30) Whether the third optical sensor 55 has detected the trailing end of the PS plate 20 being discharged (corresponding to the leading end at the time of carrying in) is determined by the output signal V _S3 of “3”. The first transport control unit 52 makes a determination by detecting the fall to the 0 "level (step S28). YE
If S, the process proceeds to step S29, where the first transport control unit 5
2 starts the third timer 63 and sets the measured time T _3
Is detected through reception of the output signal V _T3 . And the third
Measurement time T ₃ of the timer 63 to check whether more than the rear end discharge time T _OUT. This rear end discharge time T _OUT is
This is the time required for the rear end of the PS plate 20 to reach the outlet 601 after being detected by the third optical sensor 55, and is measured in advance and stored in the first memory unit 62 of the first transport control unit 52. Is stored. If T ₃ ≧ T _OUT , the PS plate 20 is received on the receiving plate 402 via the receiving plate 412, and the first transport control unit 52 stops driving the fourth motor 327 (step S30). .

(Step S31) Main control unit 51
Is the PS plate 20 input by the operator through the operation device 53.
Of all PS plates 20 based on the total number N of
It is determined whether or not it has been collected to 00. That is, the main control unit 51 sends the collected PS to the collection unit 400.
1 is added to the number n of the plate 20 to obtain (n + 1), and this (n +
1) The current PS with the newly recovered PS plate 20 added
The data is updated as the number n of plates (n = 1 in the case of the setting so far). Then, it is determined whether or not the relational expression n = N holds. If n <N, the next step S
32, and the next PS plate 20 stock tray 101
, And the above-described series of steps of carrying in, exposing, piercing, carrying out, and discharging are repeated. On the other hand, if n = N, all the PS plates 20 have been exposed and collected, and the above operation ends.

As described above, in this embodiment, the PS plate 2
0 to the inner surface 2 and discharge from the inner surface 2 to the unloading / collecting unit 400, the stock unit 100,
Since this is realized by the first and second transport units 200 and 300 and the cylindrical drum unit 500, there is an advantage that the above-mentioned carry-in, carry-out and discharge can all be performed automatically. In this case, the operator only has to store a plurality of PS plates 20 to be exposed in the stock tray 101 in advance, and the workability of the operator can be significantly improved. In addition, the loading, unloading, and discharging operations are all performed in a bright room, and the productivity of the printing plate in the cylindrical inner surface scanning device is also remarkably improved.
If a PS plate automatic developing machine is used instead of the collecting unit 400, the whole series of operations including development can be automated.

The stock tray 101 in the stock unit 100 is disposed in a state of being leaned against the side surface 15 of the cylindrical inner drum 1.
00, the first and second PS plate take-out units 100A
Since the transport units 200 and 300 are arranged on the upper side of the cylindrical inner drum 1, the space around the cylindrical inner drum 1 is effectively used. For this reason, there is an advantage that the automatic supply / discharge device of the PS plate 20 can be reduced in size. Moreover, in the present embodiment, the second transport unit 300
Has a switching unit 300B, and
Both functions of loading and unloading the plate 20 can be provided. This configuration can greatly contribute to miniaturization of the automatic supply / discharge device.

When the PS plate 20 is transported in the stock unit 100 and the second transport unit 300, the PS plate 20 is always smoothly curved in an arc shape by using the delivery roller row 110 and the supply roller row 301. The sheet is conveyed, and also at the time of discharge, the discharge roller row 304
Thus, the PS plate 20 is conveyed while being bent in an arc shape. This point can also be said to greatly contribute to downsizing of the stock unit 100 and the second transport unit 300. In addition, when the PS plate 20 is transported by each of the roller rows 110, 301, 304, the non-exposed surface (back side) of the PS plate 20 is moved by these roller rows 110, 301, 304.
The PS plate 20 can be transported to the cylindrical drum unit 500 without damaging the exposed surface of the PS plate 20 at all, and the PS plate 20 can be transported from the unit 500 to the collection unit 400. .

On the other hand, there are the following advantages in carrying in / out the PS plate 20 using the cylindrical drum unit 500 to / from the inner surface 2. That is, since the PS plate 20 is carried in and out while nipping the tip of the PS plate 20 and floating from the inner surface 2, the exposed surface of the PS plate 20 and the inner surface 2 itself are not damaged and the PS plate 20 is not damaged. 20 is automatically carried into the inner surface 2 and the second transport unit 30
It can be carried out to zero. Further, unlike the prior art, a pin is not used for positioning the photosensitive material, the transporting means and the photosensitive material are integrally mounted on the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum, and the air cylinder is not used for the drive unit. Therefore, also in this respect, there is an advantage that the number of parts can be reduced as compared with the related art. Also, the cylindrical drum unit 500
Not only the stock unit 100 and the second transport unit 300, but also the driving members (the third, fourth, and fifth motors 114, 327, and 517) in these units.
) Is performed by a method of counting the number of pulses. In this embodiment, each unit 100, 200,
There is an advantage that control of 300 and 500 can be made easy.

Various modifications of the present embodiment are conceivable as follows.

First, an arc-shaped wall plate is provided outside the above-described transport path 126 in place of the delivery roller row 110, and the PS plate is contacted with the non-exposed surface of the PS plate 20 while contacting the wall plate. 20 may be transported along the wall plate.
Thus, the PS plate 20 is conveyed while being bent in an arc shape. It goes without saying that the same modification can be applied to the supply roller row 301 and the discharge roller row 304.

The drive roller 201A is connected to the third motor 11
4, the drive roller 201 may be directly driven by a DC motor. However, it is necessary to rotate this DC motor in synchronization with the third motor 114. Further, a DC motor may be used instead of the first solenoid 305. This point can be applied to the second solenoid 542.

In this embodiment, one PS plate 20 is used.
Each time after taking out, carrying in, exposing, carrying out, and discharging, each work after taking out the next PS plate is automatically performed.
Instead of this, the take-out of the next PS plate 20 and the transfer control to the second transfer unit 300 may be performed in parallel with the work of unloading and discharging the preceding PS plate 20. In this case, the subsequent PS plate 20 is transferred from the first transport unit 200 to the second
Upon entering the supply path 311 in the transport unit 300, the second transport control unit 550 needs to determine whether the first solenoid 305 is in the ON state. If the first solenoid 305 is in the ON state, the previous PS
Since the plate 20 is currently being discharged toward the collection unit 400, the first CPU unit 64 temporarily stops the third motor 114. Then, after the first solenoid 305 is turned off, the conveyance of the next PS plate 20 temporarily stopped in the supply path 311 to the guide path 322 is restarted. On the other hand, if it is determined that the first solenoid 305 is already in the OFF state at that time, the first CPU
The unit 64 continues the transport of the next PS plate 20 as it is.
It is clear that the work efficiency and the production efficiency can be further improved by performing this control.

The above embodiment can be applied to the case where a film is used as a light-sensitive material.

[0140]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the transfer of the photosensitive material from the stock means to the cylindrical inner surface unit can be automated, and as a result, the work of transporting the photosensitive material to the inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum can be performed. Can be fully automated consistently. In this case, the operator need only stock the photosensitive material in the stock means in advance, so that the burden on the operator is remarkably reduced and the production efficiency can be greatly improved. Further, in the present invention, since the photosensitive material is transported while being bent in an arc shape, the configuration of the first and second transport means can be reduced in size. Thereby, the present invention can also contribute to miniaturization of the entire device. Moreover, since all the components in the present invention are housed in the housing, the above-mentioned loading operation can be performed in a bright room. Thereby, the workability can be further improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, not only the carrying-in work but also the carrying-out / discharging work of the photosensitive material from the inner surface can be completely automated. Therefore, the burden on the operator is further reduced, and the production efficiency can be further improved. In addition, loading and unloading operations can also be performed in the light room. This means that the cylinder inner surface scanning device is installed in a bright room, the photosensitive material is loaded, exposed, and
This means that all operations up to the discharge of the photosensitive material can be performed consistently in the light room, and as a result, high productivity can be realized. Moreover, in the present invention, the photosensitive material is conveyed and discharged to a discharge side different from the stock means, so that the stock portion and the collection portion of the photosensitive material can be separated. Also in this respect, the processing efficiency or the production efficiency can be remarkably improved as compared with the case where the photosensitive material is collected again in the stock portion. Further, in the present invention, since the second transporting unit has both a transporting portion for loading and discharging the photosensitive material and a transporting portion for discharging the photosensitive material, also in this respect, it can greatly contribute to downsizing of the apparatus.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the photosensitive material can be transported without damaging the exposed surface, and the photosensitive material can be easily and smoothly bent in an arc shape and transported. An apparatus having the configuration can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view mainly showing a cylindrical inner drum and a scanning head in a cylindrical inner surface scanning device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory front view showing the internal configuration of the cylindrical inner surface scanning device.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory front view showing a configuration of a stock tray.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory front view of the internal configuration of the stock unit.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory plan view for explaining an arrangement relationship between first and second arms and each roller in a stock unit;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory front view showing the internal configuration of the first transport unit.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory plan view illustrating an arrangement relationship among a belt, each gear, and each roller in a first transport unit.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory front view showing the internal configuration of the second transport unit.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory plan view for explaining an arrangement relationship between a third arm and each roller in a second transport unit.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory front view showing the internal configuration of the collection unit.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a control system of the cylindrical inner surface scanning device.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control system of a first transport unit.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control system of a second transport unit.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a cylindrical inner drum and a cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged perspective view showing a configuration of a rotary arm and a shovel arm in a cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 17 is a front view showing the configuration of the punching device.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a punching device.

FIG. 19 is a side view showing a configuration of a moving unit in the punching device.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory sectional view showing a configuration of a punch unit.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a procedure for loading, unloading, and discharging a PS plate.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing a procedure for loading, unloading, and discharging a PS plate.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing a procedure for loading, unloading, and discharging a PS plate.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a procedure for loading, unloading, and discharging a PS plate.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 26 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 27 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 28 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 29 is an explanatory front view for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 30 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 31 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 32 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 33 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 34 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit.

FIG. 35 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 36 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 37 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 38 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 39 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 40 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 41 is an explanatory front view showing the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 42 is an explanatory front view for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

FIG. 43 is an explanatory front view shown for explaining the operation of the cylindrical drum unit;

[Description of Signs] 1 cylindrical inner drum 2 inner surface 3 end surface 5 sub-scanning base 6 scanning head 14 center axis 16 loading / unloading 20 PS plate 52 first transport control unit 55 third optical sensor 100 stock unit 101 stock tray 102 sucker 103 first 1 arm 104 1st motor 105 2nd arm 106 swing roller 107 sending roller 109 2nd motor 110 sending roller row 111 case 112 suction device 114 3rd motor 200 1st conveying unit 208 belt 300 2nd conveying unit 301 supply roller Row 302 Switching Roller Row 303 Guide / Discharge Roller Row 304 Discharge Roller Row 306 Third Arm 310 Housing 400 Recovery Unit 500 Cylindrical Drum Unit (Cylinder Inner Surface Unit) 501 Rotating Arm 502 Shovel Arm 503 Start Point Press Roller 04 endpoint pressing roller 505 end point per plate 506 end point spacing plates 507 auxiliary positioning plate 550 second conveyance control unit 600 housing 601 out opening 700 punches 800 punch unit

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Toru Kawada One of 465 Kuze Tsukiyama-cho, Minami-ku, Kyoto, Japan The inside of the Kuze factory (56) References JP-A-5-249689 (JP, A) JP-A-5-27188 (JP, A) JP-A-5-270190 (JP, A) Table of contents JP-A-6-505211 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G03F 7/20-7/24 G03F 9/00-9/02

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cylindrical inner drum, and a cylinder for loading and mounting a photosensitive material to an inner surface of the cylindrical inner drum from a loading / unloading opening formed in the cylindrical internal drum, and carrying out the photosensitive material to the loading / unloading port after exposure. An inner surface unit, a scanning head for scanning a light beam modulated by an image signal in a circumferential direction of the inner surface of the cylindrical inner surface drum and in a direction of a central axis thereof to expose a photosensitive material mounted on the inner surface, and the cylindrical inner surface. drum,
A cylindrical inner surface scanning device comprising a cylindrical inner surface unit and a housing for accommodating the scanning head; a stock means for stocking a plurality of the photosensitive materials; and A first transporting unit that transports the photosensitive material while bending it in an arc shape after taking out the photosensitive material, and a second transporting device that bends the photosensitive material transported by the first transporting device in an arc shape to the loading / unloading port. And a transport unit, wherein the stock unit, the first and the second transport units are also housed in the housing. 2. The second transporting means receives the exposed photosensitive material carried out to the carry-in / out port by the cylindrical inner surface unit, and then transports the photosensitive material while further bending it into an arc shape to the discharge side in the housing. 2. The cylindrical inner surface scanning device according to claim 1, wherein the device is also a means. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second conveying means have a plurality of rollers that are both rotatable, and the plurality of rollers form a row of rollers arranged in a row on an arc. The cylindrical inner surface scanning device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein