Patent ID: 7997198

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a generally cylindrically-shaped base body having a cylindrically-shaped outer surface, the base body being rotatable around an axis of rotation; a compressed air system coupled to the base body and switchable between an on state during which air pressure is applied outward from the base body's outer surface and an off state during which no air pressure is applied outward from the base body's outer surface; a cylindrically-shaped tube at most as long as the base body and having a generally cylindrically-shaped inner surface defining a hollow region, a cylindrically-shaped outer surface, a first end, and a second end, the tube's inner surface configured to have a diameter relative to the diameter of the base body's outer surface such that when the tube is on the base body, and the compressed air system is in the off state, the base body's outer surface that is covered by the tube makes mechanical contact with the tube's inner surface to temporarily secure the tube to the base surface and when the compressed air system is in the on state, the tube inner surface is expanded so that the tube can be mounted onto and unmounted from base body, such that when the tube is secured to the base surface with the compressed air system off, and the base body rotated, the tube also rotates, the tube further including one or more mechanisms around the outer surface of the tube arranged to secure and unsecure a flexible sheet of material wrapped around the outer surface of the tube, the one or more mechanisms including one or both of (i) vacuum grooves or holes coupled when the tube is secured on the base body to a vacuum system connected to the base body, and (ii) a clamp system that extends longitudinally, and that is operable to clamp an end of the sheet onto the outer surface of the tube, the tube being configured such that when the tube is secured to the base body with the compressed air system off and the sheet is secured on the outer surface of the tube, the tube, base body, and sheet combination is rotatable and the sheet can be exposed by an exposing mechanism in the case that the base body is part of a drum imager that includes the exposing mechanism and the sheet is a sensitized sheet for exposing, or scanned by a scanning mechanism in the case that the base body is part of a drum scanner that includes the scanning mechanism and the sheet is a sheet for scanning, the tube further being configured to be removable from the base body as part of normal operation for example after the exposing or scanning, the base body being configured such that different tubes may be mounted thereon and unmounted therefrom as part of normal operation.