JP5254657B2 - Label printing system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a label printing system provided with a label printer that prints a processing place, processing date and time of a product on a label attached to the product.

  Containers or packaging of food, beverages, etc. must be printed with quality indications including product name, raw materials, contents, expiration date, storage method, manufacturer's name and address, etc. ing. A label printer that prints a quality display on a label includes, for example, a clock IC that outputs a date and time, and a calculation unit (CPU) that calculates the expiry date from the processing date and the number of best days, using the date as the processing date of the product. And a display unit for displaying the product name, processing date, expiration date (or expiry date), etc., and a printer for printing the product name, processing date, manufacturer's name and address, expiration date, etc. (See Patent Document 1).

  The label printer prints the date and time when the product is manufactured, adding the specified number of days from the date and time when the product was manufactured. However, the label printer is not linked to the standard time, and the time recognized by the printer is used. It was in the state left to the setting of the printer to be. As a result, products with improper labeling that pretends the expiry date have been circulating, which has become a social problem.

  In order to solve such a problem, Patent Document 2 proposes a label printer that has a built-in standard time radio module and prints the expiration date of the contents calculated from the time of filling the contents based on the standard time radio waves. ing.

  In recent years, in order to differentiate products, branding of agricultural products and livestock products and other product production areas has been promoted. Due to the growing health and safety consciousness, consumers are also producing products. Interest in the earth is growing. For this reason, for example, merchandise with improper labeling, such as fake foreign production as domestic production, has been circulating, which has become a social problem.

On the other hand, in Patent Document 3, a code issue requesting device receives a signal from a quasi-zenith satellite at the time of product shipment, measures a location, and includes position information indicating a positioning result and time information indicating a positioning time. By issuing a land guarantee code, distributing this production place guarantee code to the product, and making a production place confirmation request to the production place guarantee apparatus based on the production place guarantee code using a terminal device by the consumer , Allowing consumers to see where goods are produced.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-127469 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-25611 JP 2005-107799 A

  In view of the above-described background art and its problems, the present invention is a label that cannot be printed by improperly changing information on date and time such as processing date and time of expiration and information on location such as processing (shipping) location. An object of the present invention is to provide a label printing system including a printer.

The present invention relates to a label printing system comprising a data creation apparatus and a plurality of label printers,
The data creation device includes a GPS receiving antenna that receives a radio wave signal from a GPS satellite, a clock circuit, and a GPS receiver that includes a positioning unit that obtains a position of a reception point and a current date and time based on the radio wave signal, A calculation unit that obtains the address of the reception point based on the position of the reception point and map information stored in advance, and creates quality display data including at least the address of the reception point and the current date and time, and the quality A transmission unit for transmitting display data to the plurality of label printers,
Each of the plurality of label printers includes a reception unit that receives the quality display data transmitted from the data generation device, a calculation unit that generates display data and print data based on the quality display data, a display unit for displaying the display data, based on the print data is intended to include a printing portion for printing and places the address and the current date and time of at least said reception point labels applied to the product.

In the label printing system configured as described above, among the contents printed on the label, the current date and time indicating the processing date and time of the product and the address of the receiving point indicating the processing (shipment) location of the product are the radio waves from the GPS satellite. Since these are obtained and printed on the basis of these, it is not possible to arbitrarily change these displays. Therefore, since the processing date and time of the product and the expiration date cannot be falsified or the processing location cannot be falsified, it is possible to prevent a product with an improper display regarding these items from entering the market. In addition, since complicated calculations for calculating the current date and time and the position of the reception point are performed centrally by the data creation device, each label printer can be configured at low cost, and a plurality of label printers are provided in one factory. It is suitable for the case. Furthermore, the map information that needs to be updated regularly only needs to be registered in the data creation device, which facilitates system maintenance.

Further, in the label printing system, the data creation device obtains a best-before date from a pre-stored best-before date for each product and the current date and time, the quality display data further includes the best-before date, and the printing unit further includes The expiration date may be printed on the label. With this configuration, since the expiration date printed on the label cannot be falsified, it is possible to prevent a product with an improper expiration date from entering the market. In the label printing system, the data creation device may be provided with a fraud prevention means. With such a configuration, quality control data is created only by the data creation device, and therefore, if the data creation device is managed, fraudulent acts in the factory where the system is built can be prevented.

  Alternatively, in the label printing system, the GPS receiver, the calculation unit, and a data creation device including a transmission unit that transmits the data, a reception unit that receives the data, and the printing unit are provided. A plurality of label printers can be provided. Thereby, map information should just be registered only in a data preparation apparatus, and a maintenance becomes easy. In addition, since complicated calculations for calculating the current date and time and the position of the reception point are performed centrally by the data creation device, each label printer can be configured at low cost, and a plurality of label printers are provided in one factory. It is suitable for the case.

  The present invention has the following effects.

  According to the present invention, among the contents printed on the label, the current date and time indicating the processing date and time of the product and the address of the receiving point indicating the processing (shipment) location of the product are based on the radio signal from the GPS satellite. Therefore, it is possible to prevent fraud that arbitrarily changes these displays.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same or corresponding elements are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

(Embodiment 1)
Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing the inside of a factory where the label printing system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention is introduced, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the label printing system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the label printing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a GPS antenna repeater 20 that relays a GPS radio signal from a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite 40, and a GPS radio signal. Are provided with a plurality of label printers 30, 30,.

  First, the GPS antenna repeater 20 will be described. The GPS antenna repeater 20 is disposed in the factory 10 at a position near the opening 11 such as a window, for example, where a GPS radio signal can be directly received. Alternatively, the GPS antenna repeater 20 is disposed in the factory 10 and connected to an outdoor GPS antenna disposed outdoors via an antenna cable (both not shown), and the GPS radio wave signal received by the outdoor GPS antenna is an antenna. It can also be made to input into a GPS antenna repeater via a cable. As described above, the GPS antenna repeater 20 is configured to receive a GPS radio signal directly or indirectly.

  The GPS antenna repeater 20 includes a receiving antenna 21 that receives radio waves received from the GPS satellite 40, a cable (not shown) that amplifies while transmitting radio waves, and a transmission antenna 22 that reradiates the radio waves into the factory 10. It has. The radio wave re-radiated from the transmitting antenna 22 of the GPS antenna repeater 20 is received by the GPS receiver 31 of the label printer 30 disposed in the factory.

  Next, the label printer 30 will be described. The plurality of label printers 30, 30,... Are provided along a product conveyance line 15 provided in the factory 10. The operator 12 performs an operation of attaching the label 14 issued by the label printer 30 to the product 13 flowing through the transport line 15. Each label printer 30 includes a GPS receiver 31, a calculation unit 32, a printing unit 35, an input unit 33, and a display unit 34. The label printer 30 receives a radio wave from the GPS satellite 40 to indicate the current location and the current date and time. It is configured so that it can be calculated and printed on the label 14.

  The GPS receiver 31 of the label printer 30 includes a GPS receiving antenna 42, a positioning unit 41, and a clock circuit 43. The GPS receiver 31 can obtain the position of the reception point and the accurate current date and time from the radio wave transmitted from the GPS satellite 40. The GPS receiving antenna 42 receives a signal emitted from the GPS satellite 40 and inputs it to the positioning unit 41. The signal emitted from the GPS satellite 40 includes the time at which the signal was sent and the satellite location information. Then, the positioning unit 41 calculates the position of the reception point and the current date and time while calibrating the clock circuit 43 based on the radio waves received from four or more GPS satellites 40, 40,. Here, the position of the reception point is the position of the GPS reception antenna 42. The position of the reception point and the current date and time are transmitted to the calculation unit 32.

  The calculation unit 32 of the label printer 30 determines the address of the reception point, creates print data including at least the address of the reception point and the current date and time, and outputs the print data to the printing unit.

  The calculation unit 32 is configured as a microprocessor centered on the CPU 44, and in addition to the CPU 44, a ROM 45 that stores a processing program, a RAM 46 that temporarily stores data, a product name master storage unit 47, and a map information storage Part 48 and an input / output port 49. The position of the reception point and the current date and time from the GPS receiver 31 and the input information from the input unit 33 are input to the calculation unit 32 via the input / output port 49. In addition, print data is output from the arithmetic unit 32 to the print unit 35 via the input / output port 49, and display data is output to the display unit 34. The product name master storage unit 47 stores a plurality of product name master data consisting of data such as product names, raw materials, additives, contents, best days, manufacturers and their addresses in association with a plurality of product name codes. . The map information storage unit 48 stores map information from which the address can be derived from the position information (for example, latitude and longitude) of the reception point. The map information stored in the map information storage unit 48 is updated every predetermined period.

  The calculation unit 32 derives the address of the reception point from the map information stored in the map information storage unit 48 and the position information of the reception point. Then, the calculation unit 32 creates display data and outputs it to the display unit 34. The display data includes a product name code, product name, raw material, additive, content, processing date and time, expiration date (or expiry date), and the like. Here, the processing date and time refers to the date when an item is packed, for example, and a label is attached to the pack, and corresponds to the current date and time. The expiration date is calculated from the current date and time and a predetermined expiration date for each product.

  Further, when a label issuing command is input from a label issuing key (not shown) of the input unit 33, the calculation unit 32 creates print data and outputs it to the printing unit 35. In addition to the product name code, product name, raw materials, additives, contents, processing date and time, and expiration date included in the display data, the print data includes the address of the receiving point, the manufacturer and its address, etc. It is.

  The printing unit 35 of the label printer 30 receives the print data from the calculation unit 32 and prints the content of the print data on a label. Therefore, at least the date and time of processing based on the current date and time, the expiration date, and the address of the receiving point as the processing (shipping) location are printed on the label. Of the contents printed on the label, at least the processing date and time, the expiration date, and the processing (shipping) location are calculated based on the radio signal from the GPS satellite 40, and therefore cannot be arbitrarily changed. . Therefore, since the processing date and time and the expiration date cannot be falsified or the processing (shipping) location cannot be falsified, it is possible to prevent a product with an improper display regarding these from being put on the market.

  In particular, since the label printing system according to the first embodiment can reliably receive a GPS radio signal even in the label printer 30 installed at a position where it is difficult to receive the radio wave signal from the GPS satellite 40, it is generally indoors. In the labeling work for the product performed in (1), problems due to poor reception of GPS radio wave signals are unlikely to occur and are practical.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing the inside of the factory where the label printing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention is introduced, and FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the label printing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the label printing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes a data creation device 50 including a GPS receiver 51 that receives a radio signal from a GPS satellite 40, and a plurality of labels. And printers 30, 30,.

  First, the data creation device 50 will be described. The data creation device 50 is disposed at a position where a radio signal from the GPS satellite 40 in the vicinity of the opening 11 such as a window side in the factory 10 can be received. The data creation device 50 includes a GPS receiver 51, a calculation unit 52, an input unit 53, and a transmission unit 54, calculates the current date and time, the position and address of the reception point based on the GPS radio signal, Quality display data is created and transmitted to the label printer.

  The GPS receiver 51 of the data creation device 50 includes a GPS receiving antenna 62, a positioning unit 61, and a clock circuit 63. The GPS receiver 51 can obtain the position of the reception point and the accurate current date and time from the radio wave signal sent from the GPS satellite 40. The GPS receiving antenna 62 receives a signal emitted from the GPS satellite 40 and inputs the signal to the positioning unit 61. The signal emitted from the GPS satellite 40 includes the time at which the signal was sent and the satellite location information. Then, the positioning unit 61 calculates the position of the reception point and the current date and time while calibrating the clock circuit 63 based on radio signals received from four or more GPS satellites 40, 40,. The position of the reception point and the current date and time are transmitted to the calculation unit 52 of the data creation device 50.

  The calculation unit 52 of the data creation device 50 is configured as a microprocessor centered on the CPU 64. In addition to the CPU 64, a ROM 65 that stores processing programs, a RAM 66 that temporarily stores data, and a product name master storage unit 67. A map information storage unit 68 and an input / output port 69. The position and current date / time of the reception point from the GPS receiver 51 and the input information from the input unit 53 are input to the calculation unit 52 via the input / output port 69. Further, the quality display data is output from the calculation unit 52 to the transmission unit 54 via the input / output port 49. The product name master storage unit 67 stores a plurality of product name master data including data such as product names, raw materials, additives, contents, best days, manufacturers and their addresses in association with a plurality of product name codes. . The map information storage unit 68 stores map information from which the address can be derived from the position information (for example, latitude and longitude) of the reception point. The map information stored in the map information storage unit 68 is updated every predetermined period.

  The calculation unit 52 derives the address of the reception point from the map information stored in the map information storage unit 68 and the position information of the reception point. Then, the calculation unit 52 creates quality display data. The quality display data includes a product name code, product name, raw material, additive, content, processing date and time, expiration date (or expiry date), receiving point address, manufacturer and address. Here, the processing date and time refers to the date when an item is packed, for example, and a label is attached to the pack, and corresponds to the current date and time. The expiration date is calculated from the current date and time and a predetermined expiration date for each product.

  The transmission unit 54 of the data creation device 50 transmits the created quality display data to the label printer 30. The data creation device 50 and the label printer 30 are connected via wired or wireless communication means (for example, wireless communication means such as infrared communication or wireless LAN, or wired communication means such as an intranet). Data can be transmitted and received with each other.

  Next, the label printer 30 will be described. The plurality of label printers 30, 30,... Are provided along the conveyance line 15 for the product 13 provided in the factory 10. The operator 12 performs an operation of attaching the label 14 issued by the label printer 30 to the product 13 flowing through the transport line 15. Each label printer 30 includes a calculation unit 32, a reception unit 56, an input unit 33, a display unit 34, and a printing unit 35. The label printer 30 receives quality display data from the data creation device 50 and displays it on the display unit 34. Or the label can be printed by the printing unit 35.

  The reception unit 56 of the label printer 30 corresponds to the transmission unit 54 of the data creation device 50 so that the quality display data transmitted by the transmission unit 54 of the data creation device 50 can be received and transmitted to the calculation unit 32. It is configured.

  The calculation unit 32 of the label printer 30 is configured as a microprocessor centered on the CPU 44. In addition to the CPU 44, a ROM 45 that stores a processing program, a RAM 46 that temporarily stores data, and an input / output port 49 are provided. I have. The quality display data is input from the receiving unit 56 and the input information is input from the input unit 33 to the calculation unit 32 via the input / output port 49. In addition, print data is output from the arithmetic unit 32 to the print unit 35 via the input / output port 49, and display data is output to the display unit 34.

  The calculation unit 32 creates display data based on the quality display data and outputs the display data to the display unit 34. Here, the display data includes, among the quality display data, the product name code, product name, raw material, additive, internal volume, processing date and time, expiration date (or expiry date), and the like.

  Further, when a label issuing command is input from a label issuing key (not shown) of the input unit 33, the calculation unit 32 creates print data based on the quality display data and outputs the print data to the printing unit 35. The print data includes the product name code, product name, raw material, additive, content, processing date and time, and expiration date, as well as the address of the receiving point, the manufacturer and its address, etc. Yes.

  The printing unit 35 of the label printer 30 receives the print data from the calculation unit 32 and prints the content of the print data on a label. Therefore, at least the date and time of processing based on the current date and time, the expiration date, and the address of the receiving point as the processing (shipping) location are printed on the label. Among the contents printed on the label, at least the processing date and time, the expiration date, and the processing (shipping) location are calculated based on radio signals from GPS satellites, so workers in the factory can arbitrarily change Cannot be added. Therefore, since the processing date and time and the expiration date cannot be falsified or the processing (shipping) place cannot be falsified, it is possible to prevent a product with an improper display regarding these from being put on the market.

  In particular, in the label printing system according to the second embodiment, map information and product name master data need only be registered in the data creation device 50, and maintenance becomes easy. In addition, since complicated calculation for calculating the current date and time and the position of the reception point is performed by the data creation device 50, each label printer 30 does not need to have a GPS reception function and a GPS radio wave signal processing function. This is suitable when the printer 30 can be constructed at low cost and a plurality of label printers are provided in one factory. Furthermore, since each label printer 30 cannot operate the information included in the quality display data, the data creation device 50 is strictly managed and provided with fraud prevention means to prevent fraud in the factory. It is possible.

  The label printing system according to the present invention can be widely applied to a system including a device having a label printer function for printing a processing (shipment) place of goods and a processing date and time. For example, the present invention can be applied to a system including a scale having a label printer function.

It is a top view which shows typically the mode in the factory which introduced the label printing system which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the label printing system which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a top view which shows typically the mode in the factory which introduced the label printing system which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the label printing system which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Factory 11 Opening part 12 Worker 13 Goods 14 Label 15 Carrying line 20 GPS antenna repeater 30 Label printer 31 GPS receiver 32 Calculation part 33 Input part 34 Display part 35 Printing part 47 Product name master storage part 48 Map information storage part 40 GPS satellite 41 Positioning unit 42 GPS receiving antenna 43 Clock circuit 50 Data creation device

Claims (3)

A label printing system comprising a data creation device and a plurality of label printers,
The data creation device includes a GPS receiving antenna that receives a radio wave signal from a GPS satellite, a clock circuit, and a GPS receiver that includes a positioning unit that obtains a position of a reception point and a current date and time based on the radio wave signal, A calculation unit that obtains the address of the reception point based on the position of the reception point and map information stored in advance, and creates quality display data including at least the address of the reception point and the current date and time, and the quality A transmission unit for transmitting display data to the plurality of label printers,
Each of the plurality of label printers includes a reception unit that receives the quality display data transmitted from the data generation device, a calculation unit that generates display data and print data based on the quality display data, A display unit that displays display data, and a printing unit that prints at least the address of the reception point and the current date and time on a label attached to a product based on the printing data ,
Label printing system.   The data creation device obtains the expiration date from the number of days of pre-stored merchandise and the current date and time,
  The quality indication data further includes the expiration date,
  The label printing system according to claim 1, wherein the printing unit further prints the expiration date on the label.   The label printing system according to claim 1, wherein the data creation device includes fraud prevention means.

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