PULLEY TENSIONER

摘要

A pulley tensioner (10) for applying torque or tension to a pulley (14) is disclosed which includes a spring system (16) configured to at least partially encircle the periphery (18) of the pulley (14). The spring system (16) is anchored to the pulley housing (12) or some other fixed location. The spring system (16) is made up of one or more coil springs (28, 30, 32) which are wrapped at least partially around the periphery (18) of the pulley (14). Where multiple springs are used, preferably each spring has a different spring constant and length. This allows the operator to select the desired tension depending on the operating parameters of the printer (40). The applied tension may be further modified/tuned by using an additional spring member to anchor the spring system (16) to the pulley housing (12) or some other fixed location.