JP7435567B2 - printing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a printing device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, printing apparatuses are known that create labels by printing characters, figures, etc. on a strip-shaped printing medium.

For example, in the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 1, printing is performed by pressing a platen roller against a thermal head. The printed portion of the tape-shaped label sheet is sent out to the outside of the printing device by conveying the label sheet.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-239259

There are various types of printing media used in printing devices such as those disclosed in Patent Document 1, which differ in material, thickness, and the like. However, depending on the shape of the conveyance path of the print medium in the printing device, it may be difficult to stably convey the print medium.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printing device that can stably transport a printing medium.

In order to achieve the above object, the printing device of the present invention includes:
a print head that prints on the tape;
a tape discharge port through which the tape after printing is discharged;
a platen roller that rotates to convey the tape in a discharge direction toward the tape discharge port while the tape is held between the print head;
a tape guide section that guides the tape discharged from between the print head and the platen roller in the same direction as the discharge direction;
the lower end position of the platen roller and the tape ejection port are approximately at the same height;
The discharge direction is a direction from the lower end position of the platen roller toward the tape discharge port,
the print head is fixedly arranged;
The platen roller is arranged to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the tape ejection direction.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a printing device that can stably transport a printing medium.

1 is a perspective view of a printing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. (a) is a perspective view of a label creation part, and (b) is a perspective view of the label creation part from a different viewpoint from (a). (a) is a perspective view of a label creation unit that accommodates a tape cartridge, and (b) is a partially enlarged view of the X section in (a). (a) is a perspective view of an arm to which a platen roller is attached, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of (a). It is a perspective view of a head holder. FIG. 3 is a view of the head holder seen from one side. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the head holder is attached. (a) is a partially enlarged view showing the conveyance state of the printing tape according to the prior art, and (b) is a partially enlarged view showing the conveyance state of the printing tape according to the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the X-axis is the direction in which the printing tape is discharged, the Y-axis is the direction of the rotational axis of a cam, which will be described later, and the Z-axis is the direction of the rotational axis of the platen roller, according to the arrows in each figure.

The printing device 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is, for example, a tape printer having an appearance shown in FIG. (label printer).

The printing device 100 prints on the printing tape PT using a tape cartridge 200 containing a printing tape PT to be printed and an ink ribbon IR (tape-shaped recording medium TM) shown in FIG. 3(b).

(Printing device configuration)
As shown in FIG. 1, the printing device 100 includes a keyboard 101 for inputting a printing pattern, a display 102 for displaying the inputted printing pattern, etc., and an opening/closing lid 103 for housing the tape cartridge 200 in the printing device 100. Be prepared. Although not shown, the printing device 100 also includes an input/output terminal for connecting to an external device such as a personal computer, a power terminal to which a power cord is connected, a battery accommodating portion for storing batteries, and a storage medium such as a memory card. It also has an insertion port for insertion.

The keyboard 101 accepts key inputs from the user. The keyboard 101 includes pattern input keys for inputting pattern data, print keys for instructing to start printing, cursor keys for moving the cursor on the display screen of the display 102, and various function keys for setting the print mode and performing various setting processes. Consisted of.

The display 102 functions as a main display screen in the printing apparatus 100, and displays images related to input data, selection menus for various settings, messages related to various processes, and the like. The display 102 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display panel. Note that the keyboard 101 and the display 102 may be configured with a combination of an input function and a display function, such as a touch panel with a touch switch function.

The opening/closing lid 103 is a cover that is formed inside the printing apparatus 100 and covers a label creation section 110 in which the tape cartridge 200 is loaded and for creating a label on which a print pattern is printed.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3(a), the printing apparatus 100 is provided with a label creation section 110 into which a tape cartridge 200 is loaded. A tape printing mechanism 120 that prints on a printing tape housed in a tape cartridge 200 and a cartridge receiving section 130 that places the tape cartridge 200 in a predetermined position are formed in the label creation section 110. There is.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2(a) and 2(b), each member of the tape printing mechanism 120 and the cartridge receiving portion 130, such as a camshaft mounting portion 112 and an arm mounting portion 113, which will be described later, is located on the main surface on the +Z side. A mounting portion 111 made of a substantially U-shaped plate material is disposed in the camshaft mounting portion 111, a camshaft mounting portion 112 is erected along the side edge of the mounting portion 111 in the +Y direction, and a camshaft mounting portion 112 is erected near the center of the mounting portion 111 and will be described later. The printing apparatus 100 is attached to the printing apparatus 100 by an arm attachment part 113 that swingably (rotatably) supports an arm 123.

The mounting portion 111 includes a camshaft mounting portion 112, an arm mounting portion 113, a cartridge receiving portion 130, a motor (not shown) that rotates a cam 124 (described later), and a gear (not shown) that rotates a platen roller 122 (described later). etc. are installed. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3(a), a gear 114, a worm gear 115, etc. that transmit the power of the motor to the cam 124 are attached to the camshaft attachment part 112 so as to be rotatable around the Y axis, and the label creation part This contributes to the space saving of 110. The motor also supplies power to a half-cut mechanism and a full-cut mechanism, which will be described later, that cut the printing tape PT shown in FIG. 3(b). The arm 123 is attached to the arm attachment portion 113 so as to be swingable around the Z-axis by an arm rotation shaft 1234.

The tape printing mechanism 120 includes a thermal head (print head) 121 in which a plurality of heating elements for heating an ink ribbon IR or a thermal recording medium are arranged in a line, and is arranged at a position facing the thermal head 121. , a tape-shaped recording medium TM (printing tape PT (indicated by a thick line in FIG. 3(b)) and ink ribbon IR (indicated by a dashed line in FIG. 3(b))) will be described later while being held between the thermal head 121. A platen roller (conveyance unit) 122 that conveys the tape in the direction of the tape ejection port 140 , an arm 123 that rotatably supports the platen roller 122 , and an arm 123 that is separated from the thermal head 121 and is directed toward the thermal head 121 . A cam 124 for pressing, a spring (elastic member) 125 for pressing the platen roller 122 toward the thermal head 121, and a ribbon winding core 204 (described later) inside the tape cartridge 200 to wind up the ink ribbon IR used for printing. A ribbon winding shaft 126 is provided.

The thermal head 121 has a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line in a direction (Z-axis direction) perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the tape-shaped recording medium TM. When the tape cartridge 200 is loaded into the label creation section 110, the platen roller 122 is pressed with a predetermined pressing force toward the thermal head 121 by a control section (not shown) of the printing device 100, which will be described in detail later. As shown in FIG. 3B, the thermal head 121 comes into contact with the surface (printing surface) of the printing tape PT via the ink ribbon IR. The thermal head 121 selectively causes a plurality of heating elements to generate heat based on print data generated from data input by the user from the keyboard 101, and thermally transfers ink from the ink ribbon IR onto the printing tape PT. The thermal head 121 is erected in the +Z direction on the main surface of the mounting section 111 by a thermal head fixing section (printing head fixing section) 1211 made of aluminum die-casting, and the main surface of the thermal head 121 is attached to the camshaft mounting section 112. It is arranged parallel to the main surface.

The platen roller 122 is a roller for sending out the tape-shaped recording medium TM in the direction of the tape discharge port 140 (+X direction, discharge direction), and thermally heats the tape-shaped recording medium TM with appropriate pressure during printing. This is a roller for pressing toward the head 121. The main body 1221 of the platen roller 122 shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B is composed of, for example, a cylindrical body whose outer peripheral surface is covered with an elastic member such as rubber. An insertion shaft 1222 protruding from both ends of the platen roller 122 in the longitudinal direction (Z-axis direction) is rotatably inserted into roller insertion holes 1232, 1238, etc., which will be described later in the arm 123. Further, the platen roller 122 is configured to be able to reciprocate in the illustrated vertical direction, that is, in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the printing tape PT.

As shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the arm 123 includes a main body 1231, which is a substantially U-shaped member when viewed from the X-axis direction and an inverted T-shaped member protruding in the +Y direction, and a main body. A roller insertion hole 1232 formed near the end of the section 1231 on the thermal head 121 side, and an arm rotation shaft insertion hole formed near the end of the main body section 1231 in the -X direction (the side far from the tape discharge port 140). 1233. Furthermore, the arm 123 is engaged with an arm rotation shaft 1234 that is inserted into an arm rotation shaft insertion hole 1233 and an arm rotation shaft insertion hole 1131 of the arm mounting portion 113 shown in FIG. 1235, a pressed portion 1236 pressed by the cam 124, and a platen roller pressing force that presses the insertion shaft 1222 of the platen roller 122 in the -Y direction (the direction in which the thermal head 121 is arranged) by the pressing force of the spring 125. It has a member 1237. The roller insertion hole 1232 is formed in an oval shape with a major axis extending approximately in the Y-axis direction. The roller insertion hole 1238 is formed in a circular shape having a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the arm rotation shaft 1234.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3(a) and (b), a tape discharge port 140 communicating with the outside of the printing apparatus 100 is formed near the side surface of the label creation section 110 in the +X direction. Although not shown, the tape ejection port 140 includes a full cut mechanism that cuts the printing tape PT and release tape of the tape-shaped recording medium TM in the width direction, and a full-cut mechanism that cuts only the printing tape PT of the tape-shaped recording medium TM. It has a built-in half-cut mechanism.

As shown in FIG. 3(a), the tape cartridge 200 includes a cartridge case 201. As shown in FIG. The cartridge case 201 includes a tape core 202 wound with printing tape PT shown in FIG. 3(b), a ribbon supply core 203 wound with an unused ink ribbon IR, and a tape core 203 wound with a used ink ribbon IR. A ribbon winding core 204 is built-in. Further, the cartridge case 201 is formed with a head placement section 210 in which the thermal head 121 is located when the tape cartridge 200 is loaded into the label creation section 110.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3A, the four corner portions of the cartridge case 201 are provided with engaged portions 205 that engage with and are supported by the cartridge receiving portion 130 of the label creation section 110. is formed. Although not shown, predetermined unevenness is formed on the engaged portion 205 of the cartridge case 201 depending on the type of the tape cartridge 200. Further, in the cartridge receiving section 130 of the label creation section 110, a predetermined recording width detection switch (not shown) is provided to determine the unevenness formed on the engaged portion 205 of the cartridge case 201 when the tape cartridge 200 is loaded. is located.

When the tape cartridge 200 is loaded into the label creation section 110, the engaged portion 205 of the cartridge case 201 engages with some or all of the recording width detection switches disposed in the cartridge receiving section 130 of the label creation section 110. do. The recording width detection switch engaged with the engaged portion 205 is pressed. The control unit of the printing apparatus 100 determines the type of tape cartridge 200 based on the combination of recording width detection switches that are turned on.

A control unit (not shown) is composed of a processing device such as a processor. The control unit operates according to a program stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory) (not shown) to create print data, print a print pattern, control the rotation angle of the cam, and the full cut mechanism and half cut mechanism. etc.

Next, the structure of the thermal head mounting member 150 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. Note that in FIG. 7, some parts of the printing apparatus 100 are not shown.

The thermal head mounting member 150 includes a base portion 151, an arm mounting portion 113, and a thermal head fixing portion 1211. The thermal head mounting member 150 is made of metal such as aluminum die-casting, and is integrally formed. The arm attachment part 113 and the thermal head fixing part 1211 extend in the same direction from the base part 151.

The base 151 is formed into an irregularly shaped plate. The base portion 151 includes an insertion hole 151a and an insertion hole 151b for attachment to the attachment portion 111. Furthermore, the arm rotation shaft 1234 is inserted through the insertion hole 151a. In addition, holes for arbitrary purposes may be provided.

The arm attachment portion 113 has a generally rectangular bar shape, and has a plurality of cutouts 113a provided on its surface to reduce weight. An arm rotation shaft insertion hole 1131 shown in FIG. 3(a) is provided at the tip of the arm attachment portion 113 at a position facing the insertion hole 151a. An arm rotation shaft 1234 is supported by the arm rotation shaft insertion hole 1131.

The thermal head fixing portion 1211 is generally formed into an elongated plate shape. The connecting portion between the base portion 151 and the thermal head fixing portion 1211 has a wide width and is provided with three triangular ribs 1211d as shown in the figure. A shallow groove-shaped recess 1211a, which is slightly longer than the length of the platen roller 122, is provided on the tip side of the thermal head fixing part 1211. The thermal head 121 is placed in the recess 1211a and fixed with a fastener. A tape guide portion 1211b having approximately the same length as the recess 1211a is provided at the edge of the recess 1211a in the tape ejection direction.

The upper end portion of the tape guide portion 1211b is formed flat. The position of the upper end is approximately the same as the height when the thermal head 121 is placed in the recess 1211a. An inclined surface 1211c is formed at the boundary between the tape guide portion 1211b and the recessed portion 1211a. The edge of the tape guide section 1211b in the tape ejection direction is perpendicular to the upper end of the tape guide section 1211b.

FIGS. 8(a) and 8(b) show the conveyance state of the printing tape PT according to the prior art and this embodiment. In an example of a conventional printing device, as shown in FIG. 8A, a thermal head 521 is arranged to be movable in the vertical direction indicated by a double-headed arrow Ar1, and a platen roller 522 is arranged at a fixed position. ing. The lower end position of the platen roller 522 is higher than the height of the tip of the arrow Ar2 indicating the conveyance direction of the printing tape PT, that is, compared to the discharge position from the printing apparatus 100. In such a configuration, since the thermal head 521 is configured to be movable up and down, a corresponding space is required. During printing, as the thermal head 521 moves upward, the printing tape PT printed by the thermal head 521 and platen roller 522 is folded downward as shown by arrow Ar2. As a result, the printing tape PT was separated from the ribbon at a position a distance L1 from directly below the platen roller 522, and was discharged from the platen roller 522 onwards along an S-shaped transport path, for example, as indicated by an arrow Ar2.

In contrast, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8(b), the thermal head 121 is arranged at a fixed position, and the platen roller 122 is arranged so as to be movable in the vertical direction shown by the double-headed arrow Ar3. ing. As shown in the figure, the lower end position of the platen roller 122 during printing is approximately the same height as the tip of the arrow Ar2 indicating the conveyance direction of the printing tape PT, that is, the ejection position from the printing apparatus 100. . In such a configuration, the printing tape PT printed between the thermal head 121 and the platen roller 122 is held by the tape guide portion 1211b of the thermal head mounting member 150 from directly below the platen roller 122. That is, the printing tape PT is guided by the tape guide portion 1211b and conveyed straight, is separated from the ribbon at a distance L2, and thereafter is discharged along a straight conveyance path as indicated by the solid arrow Ar2. Note that in this specification, "straight" means that the printing tape PT fed out from between the thermal head 121 and the platen roller 122 maintains the same direction as the feeding direction.

Furthermore, even when the printing tape PT is transported in the opposite direction to that shown in FIG. 8(b), the printing tape PT is guided by the tape guide portion 1211b and transported straight. For example, the leading end of the printing tape PT is conveyed in the opposite direction to near the platen roller 122. Here, if the tape guide part 1211b is not provided, when the tape is transported in the forward direction again, it will be transported downward so as to sneak into the space 160 between the thermal head 121 and the tape cartridge 200, and the tape will jam (jam). ) occurs. In order to solve this problem, it is preferable to provide the tape guide section 1211b.

In conventional label printers, due to the S-shape described above, there was a risk that unnecessary loads would be applied to the tape when printing on various media such as unevenness, thickness, and cutouts. This also causes problems such as lifting or jamming of the separator (release paper). Furthermore, since the ribbon was peeled off near the nip of the platen roller, peeling could not be performed when cold, causing deterioration in printing quality.

In this embodiment, the position of the thermal head 121 is fixed, and the position of the platen roller 122 is movable in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the printing tape PT is discharged from between the thermal head 121 and the platen roller 122. are doing. In addition, a tape guide portion 1211b is provided on the thermal head mounting member 150. With the above configuration, in this embodiment, the platen roller 122 is movable up and down, but the position of the thermal head 121 is fixed. Therefore, unlike the prior art, there is no need for a space in which the print head can move. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8(b), it became easy to make the tape conveyance path straight. This makes it possible to stabilize the conveyance of various printing media such as unevenness, thickness, and die cutting. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the ribbon peeling timing is delayed, that is, the peeling point at which the printing medium (tape) and the ink ribbon are peeled from the printing position becomes longer. This makes it possible to secure the time required for cooling after printing, making stable cold peeling possible. As a result, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a printing device that can improve printing quality by stably transporting a printing medium.

(Modified example)
In the above embodiment, the printing device 100 was equipped with the keyboard 101 and the display 102, but the printing device 100 may be a printing device without a keyboard that is connected to a personal computer, a tablet, a smartphone, etc. by wire or wirelessly, or a printing device without a keyboard and a display. It may be.

In the above embodiment, a tape-shaped recording medium TM having an ink ribbon IR and a printing tape PT is used, but a thermal recording medium or the like that does not use an ink ribbon may be used.

Further, in the above embodiment, in the printing apparatus 100, the spring 125 presses the platen roller 122 toward the thermal head 121, but it is also possible to separate the platen roller 122 from the thermal head 121. It is also possible to use only a cam without using a spring.

In the above embodiment, the printing apparatus 100 uses two springs 125 to press the platen roller 122 toward the thermal head 121, but three or more springs or one spring may be used. Rubber or other elastic members may be used instead of springs.

As described above, this embodiment can be applied to various printing media such as uneven, thick, die-cut, etc.

In this embodiment, a head holder 150 is used in which the arm attachment part 113 and the thermal head fixing part 1211 are integrated into the same member. In addition, the arm mounting portion 113 and the thermal head fixing portion 1211 may be separated, or may be integrated with other members.

In this embodiment, the thermal head fixing part 1211 and the tape guide part 1211b of the head holder 150 are preferably the same member, but in addition to this, the tape guide part 1211b may be provided as a separate member.

In this embodiment, the printing tape PT is conveyed straight in the horizontal direction, but it may also be used at a certain angle in the horizontal direction.

In this embodiment, the printing tape PT is conveyed in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction in FIG. 8(b), but it may not be conveyed in the opposite direction. In this case, the tape guide portion 1211b may not be provided.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to such specific embodiments, and the present invention includes the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents. It will be done. Below, the invention described in the original claims of the present application will be added.

(Additional note)
(Additional note 1)
a print head that prints on the tape;
a platen roller that rotates to convey the tape while the tape is held between the print head;
a tape guide section that guides the tape discharged from between the print head and the platen roller in the same direction as the discharge direction;
the print head is fixedly arranged;
The platen roller is arranged to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the ejection direction of the tape.
Printing device.

(Additional note 2)
further comprising a print head fixing part to which the print head is fixed,
The tape guide portion is disposed on the print head fixing portion and has an inclined surface at least on a side closer to the print head.
The printing device according to Supplementary Note 1.

(Additional note 3)
The tape guide part is a member made of the same material as the print head fixing part, and is a part protruding from the print head fixing part.
The printing device according to appendix 2.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100... Printing device, 101... Keyboard, 102... Display, 103... Opening/closing lid, 110... Label creation part, 111... Mounting part, 112... Camshaft mounting part, 113... Arm mounting part, 113a... Notch, 1131... Arm Rotating shaft insertion hole, 114... Gear, 115... Worm gear, 120... Tape printing mechanism, 121... Thermal head, 1211... Thermal head fixing part, 1211a... Recessed part, 1211b... Tape guide part, 1211c... Inclined surface, 1211d... Rib, 122...Platen roller, 1221...Body part, 1222...Insertion shaft, 123...Arm, 1231...Body part, 1232...Roller insertion hole, 1233...Arm rotation shaft insertion hole, 1234...Arm rotation shaft, 1235...Engagement part, 1236...Pressed part, 1237...Platen roller pressing member, 1238...Roller insertion hole, 124...Cam, 125...Spring (elastic member), 126...Ribbon winding shaft, 130...Cartridge receiving part, 140...Tape discharge port, 150... Attachment member for thermal head etc., 151... Base, 151a, 151b... Insertion hole, 160... Space, 200... Tape cartridge, 201... Cartridge case, 202... Tape core, 203... Ribbon supply core, 204... Ribbon winding core, 205...Engaged part, 210...Head placement part, 521...Thermal head, 522...Platen roller, IR...Ink ribbon, PT...Printing tape, TM...Tape-shaped recording medium

Claims (3)

a print head that prints on the tape;
a tape discharge port through which the tape after printing is discharged;
a platen roller that rotates to convey the tape in a discharge direction toward the tape discharge port while the tape is held between the print head;
a tape guide section that guides the tape discharged from between the print head and the platen roller in the same direction as the discharge direction;
the lower end position of the platen roller and the tape ejection port are approximately at the same height;
The discharge direction is a direction from the lower end position of the platen roller toward the tape discharge port,
the print head is fixedly arranged;
The platen roller is arranged to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the ejection direction of the tape.
Printing device. further comprising a print head fixing part to which the print head is fixed,
The tape guide part is disposed in the print head fixing part and has an inclined surface on at least a side closer to the print head for guiding the tape in the ejection direction,
The inclined surface has a shape that rises from the print head side toward the ejection direction.
The printing device according to claim 1. The tape guide part is a member made of the same material as the print head fixing part, and is a part protruding from the print head fixing part.
The printing device according to claim 2.