FILMSTRIP TRANSPORT MECHANISM WITH COMPENSATION FOR PERFORATION PITCH VARIATIONS FOR IMPROVED FILM REGISTRATION

摘要

A perforated filmstrip transportation and registration system (100) and method provide a substrate in the form of a rotating drum (104) with vacuum holes (106) to allow an internally produced vacuum to act upon an engaged filmstrip (102). The rotating drum (104) has a number of registration-tension pin pair assemblies (216) that register and subsequently advance a filmstrip (102) at the 3 o'clock position in a registration mode (FIGS. 2 and 3), and are ready to be inserted in filmstrip perforations (208) when they approach the 3 o'clock position in a load mode (FIG. 4). The registration-tension pin pair assemblies (216) each contain a registration pin (220) and a tension pin (230) which are sized small enough to fit into filmstrip perforations (208) without interference, and which move away and towards each other in the nature of scissors blades in the preferred embodiment. In the registration mode, a side of the registration pin (220) rests against a side of one perforation, while the tension pin (230) engaged in an adjacent perforation, places the filmstrip (102) in tension by moving away from the registration pin (220). In the load mode, the tension pin (230) moves toward the registration pin (220) so that distance therebetween allows both pins to be easily inserted into prospective adjacent filmstrip perforations (208). In the preferred embodiment, the registration and tension pins (220, 230) are part of pin bodies (222, 232) which are spring loaded and activated via interaction with cam surfaces (260, 262).