JP7536613B2 - Printer, printer set - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a printer that prints information on a print medium.

Printers that are configured to print on fanfold paper (also called continuous forms) have been known for some time (for example, Patent Document 1).

As shown in Figures 1A and 1B, the fanfold paper 301 has a strip-shaped (long) backing 302 (release paper) in the length direction, and a number of label pieces 303 temporarily attached to the upper layer of the surface 306 of the backing 302. An adhesive layer is formed on the back surface of the label piece 303 facing the backing 302.

In particular, the label pieces 303 are folded in a zigzag pattern (a series of alternating mountain and valley folds) along multiple creases 304 formed in the width direction of the backing 302 between adjacent label pieces 303. The creases 304 are made of perforations drilled into the backing 302.

As shown in FIG. 1C, a position detection mark 305 is printed in advance on the back surface 307 of the mount 302, and is used to detect the position of the label piece 303 when printing the required information using an arbitrary printer (not shown).

In the printer described in Patent Document 1, fanfold paper is inserted through a fanfold paper insertion port located on the back of the printer and ejected from the front of the printer.

JP 2007-237565 A

However, in the printer described in Patent Document 1, the insertion opening is provided on the rear surface of the printer body, and the fanfold paper insertion opening is opened and closed by a double-door or single-door cover, so in order to open the cover to insert the fanfold paper, it is necessary to provide a space behind the printer body for the open cover to occupy. Therefore, it lacks space-saving capabilities.

The present invention aims to provide a printer that can print on fanfold paper while still saving space.

According to one aspect of the present invention,
an insertion opening for inserting fanfold paper, the insertion opening being formed in a bottom surface of the printer body that faces a printer mounting surface ;
a slide-type opening/closing cover that is slidably attached to the bottom of the printer body and that opens and closes the insertion opening;
A printer is provided that includes:

One aspect of the present invention makes it possible to print on fanfold paper while still conserving space.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of fanfold paper, FIG. 1B is a plan view of the front side of the fanfold paper, and FIG. 1C is a plan view of the back side of the fanfold paper. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the front, top, and left side of the printer according to the embodiment of the invention with the printer cover open. FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of the printer, the cradle, and the fanfold paper placed behind the cradle. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the rear, bottom and left side of the printer according to the embodiment of the invention. FIG. 5 is a front, top, and right side perspective view of a cradle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the front, bottom and right side of a cradle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a bottom cover, a sliding cover, and a frame of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view showing the bottom cover, the frame, and the sliding open/close cover in the vicinity of the insertion opening provided in the bottom of the printer according to the embodiment of the invention. FIG. 9A is a plan view showing a sliding open/close cover and its surrounding area of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9B is a partially enlarged plan view showing a locking portion provided on the sliding open/close cover and its surrounding area of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an insertion opening provided at the bottom of the printer, the sliding cover in the open position, and fanfold paper inserted through the open insertion opening. Figure 11A is a side cross-sectional view showing a bottom cover, a frame, and a sliding opening/closing cover in an open position near the insertion opening at the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 11B is an oblique view showing the bottom cover near the insertion opening at the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the sliding opening/closing cover in an open position. Figure 12A is a side cross-sectional view showing a bottom cover, a frame, and a sliding opening/closing cover in a closed position near the insertion opening on the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 12B is an oblique view showing the bottom cover, near the insertion opening on the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the sliding opening/closing cover in a closed position. 13A to 13E are side cross-sectional views showing a process of attaching a sliding open/close cover to the bottom of the printer body in a printer according to an embodiment of the invention. Fig. 14A is a side cross-sectional view showing a bottom cover near an insertion opening provided on the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, a frame, and another sliding cover in an open position. Fig. 14B is a side cross-sectional view showing a bottom cover near an insertion opening provided on the bottom of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, a frame, and yet another sliding cover in an open position. Fig. 14C is a side cross-sectional view showing a sliding cover and its surroundings of a printer according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The following describes one embodiment of a printer according to the present invention.

(1) Printer Configuration The printer 1 according to the embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the front, top, and left side of the printer 1 according to the embodiment with the printer cover 3 open.

As shown in FIG. 2, the printer 1 of this embodiment includes a main body case 2, a printer cover 3, a display panel 4, a platen roller 10, and a thermal head 28.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the bottom surface of the printer 1 is roughly rectangular, and the direction along the long side is defined as the front-to-rear direction. That is, the side where the display panel 4 is provided is defined as the front (FR), and the side opposite the opening and closing cover is defined as the rear (RR). The right side (RH), left side (LH), top side (UP), and bottom side (LO) are defined based on the front-to-rear direction. In the following explanation, the right side (RH) direction or left side (LH) direction will be referred to as the horizontal direction, and the top side (UP) direction or bottom side (LO) direction will be referred to as the up-down direction, as appropriate.

As shown in FIG. 2, the interior of the printer 1 may be provided with a roll paper storage chamber 9 for storing roll paper when printing on the roll paper, and the main body case 2 may be formed with an internal bottom surface 2a (see FIG. 3) for placing the roll paper.

The printer cover 3 is a cover that opens and closes the inside of the printer 1. A hinge 8 is provided at the rear end of the printer cover 3 to support the printer cover 3 rotatably relative to the main body case 2.

The display panel 4 provides an input/output interface for the user and is, for example, a liquid crystal display panel with a touch panel function.

As shown in FIG. 2, the platen roller 10 is supported so as to be rotatable in both forward and reverse directions on the tip side of the printer cover 3, which is the side opposite the hinge 8. When the printer cover 3 is closed, as shown in FIG. 3, the platen roller 10 is positioned behind the thermal head 28.

2 to 4, the printer body bottom 113 is formed with a printer side insertion opening (referred to as "insertion opening" in the present invention) 121 for inserting fanfold paper. As shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 3, the insertion opening 121 is located midway between the center of the roll paper guide 6a (i.e., the position of the central axis of the roll paper R held by the roll paper guide 6a) and the rear end of the roll paper storage chamber 9 in the front-rear direction. The insertion opening 121 also extends in the width direction (left-right direction) of the main body case 2 from near the left end to near the right end of the main body case 2. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, the printer side insertion opening 121 penetrates from the bottom surface 113a of the printer body bottom 113 to the inner bottom surface 2a.

The platen roller 10 is a transport means for transporting fanfold paper 301 (hereinafter simply referred to as "paper P" as appropriate) inserted into the roll paper storage chamber 9 through the insertion opening 121 from the bottom of the main body case 2, and is formed in a state where it extends along the width direction of the paper P. The platen roller 10 is mechanically connected to and driven by a stepping motor (not shown) or the like.

Fanfold paper 301 is an example of a print medium.

The thermal head 28 is a printing means for printing information such as characters, symbols, figures, or bar codes on the paper P. As shown in FIG. 3, when the printer cover 3 is closed, the printing surface of the thermal head 28 faces the paper feed path of the paper P and faces the platen roller 10. On the printing surface of the thermal head 28, multiple heating resistors (not shown) that generate heat when electricity is applied are arranged in a line along the width direction of the paper P. The thermal head 28 is connected to a circuit board (not shown) that transmits print signals to the thermal head 28.

A compression spring 157 is provided on the back side of the thermal head 28 as a biasing member that applies a biasing force to the thermal head 28.

When the printer cover 3 is closed and printing is being performed, the paper P is conveyed by the platen roller 10 and is sandwiched between the platen roller 10 and the thermal head 28. At this time, the thermal head 28 is pressed against the platen roller 10 by the above-mentioned biasing force, thereby generating a head pressure suitable for printing.

(2) Configuration of the Cradle The cradle 201 is a mounting device on which the printer 1 is mounted. The cradle 201 and the printer 1 mounted on the cradle 201 are an example of a printer set.
As shown in FIGS. 3, 5 and 6, an internal cradle space 207 is provided inside the rear of the cradle 201.

In addition, a first cradle-side insertion port 203 (an example of a cradle-side insertion port) is provided between the cradle-interior space 207 and the upper surface of the cradle 201 to connect the cradle-interior space 207 and the space above the cradle 201.

Furthermore, a second cradle-side insertion port 205 is provided between the space inside the cradle and the rear surface of the cradle to connect the space inside the cradle 207 with the space behind the cradle 201.

The space inside the cradle 207, the first cradle side insertion opening 203, and the second cradle side insertion opening 205 all extend in the left-right direction from near the left end of the cradle 201 to near the right end.

As shown in FIG. 5, the cradle 201 is provided with a mounting surface 209 on which the printer 1 is placed. As shown in FIG. 6, the cradle 201 is provided with a bottom surface 208.

(3) Fanfold Paper Transport Path As shown in FIG. 3 , the printer 1 is placed on the cradle 201, a block of fanfold paper 301 is placed behind the cradle 201, and the fanfold paper 301 can be inserted into the roll paper storage chamber 9 via the second cradle-side insertion port 205, the space inside the cradle 207, the first cradle-side insertion port 203, and the printer-side insertion port 121.

If the cradle internal space 207 is large enough to accommodate the fanfold paper 301 inside, the printer 1 can be placed on the cradle 201, a block of fanfold paper 301 can be placed inside the cradle internal space 207, and the fanfold paper 301 can be inserted into the roll paper storage chamber 9 through the first cradle side insertion opening 203 and the printer side insertion opening 121.

Alternatively, the printer 1 may be raised by a member supporting the printer 1 from below so that the bottom surface 208 of the printer 1 is higher than the height of the loaded fanfold paper 301, and the fanfold paper 301 may be placed in the resulting space below the bottom surface 208 of the printer 1, and such fanfold paper 301 may be inserted into the roll paper storage chamber 9 through the insertion opening 121.

Of the fanfold paper 301 inserted into the roll paper storage chamber 9, the paper P printed by the thermal head 28 facing the platen roller 10 is discharged to the outside of the printer 1 from an outlet on the top surface of the printer 1, which is the gap between the main body case 2 and the printer cover 3.

(4) Configuration of the Insertion Hole As shown in FIGS. 7 and 11A, the printer body bottom 113 has a double bottom structure including a bottom cover 115 and a frame 117.

Therefore, the insertion hole 121 is composed of two parts: the bottom cover side insertion hole 121p (see Figure 7) and the frame side insertion hole 121q (see Figure 7).

(5) Sliding Opening and Closing Cover A sliding opening and closing cover 123 for opening and closing the insertion opening 121 is attached near the insertion opening 121 on the bottom 113 of the printer body.

The sliding open/close cover 123 can be slid between an open position and a closed position in the depth direction (front-to-back direction) of the printer body while still attached to the bottom 113 of the printer body, for example, by a user.

Here, when the sliding cover 123 is attached to the printer body bottom 113, the side of the sliding cover 123 that is on the rear side of the printer 1 is referred to as the rear side of the sliding cover 123, and the side of the sliding cover 123 that is on the front side of the printer 1 is referred to as the front side of the sliding cover 123.

The open position is the position when the sliding open/close cover 123 slides forward relative to the insertion opening 121 in the bottom 113 of the printer body, opening the insertion opening 121.

The closed position refers to the position when the sliding open/close cover 123 slides rearward relative to the open position of the insertion opening 121 in the bottom 113 of the printer body, closing the insertion opening 121.

Figure 3 shows the state in which the sliding open-close cover 123 is in the open position, with the fanfold paper 301 being inserted through the opening 121 that is thus opened. When the sliding open-close cover 123 is in the closed position, the opening 121 is closed, and the fanfold paper 301 cannot be inserted through the opening 121.

As described above, the insertion opening 121 has a double-bottom structure including the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117, and as shown in FIG. 7, the sliding opening/closing cover 123 is disposed between the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117.

Referring to Figures 7, 8 and 9A, the sliding opening and closing cover 123 has a base portion 125 and a guide portion 127.

The base 125 is, for example, a flat plate-like portion having a planar shape for closing at least the insertion opening 121 when the sliding opening/closing cover 123 is in the closed position. Note that the base 125 does not necessarily have to be flat, and for example, a portion of the upper or lower surface may be recessed.

The guide portion 127 is integrated with the base portion 125 by being connected to the side surface of one of the long sides of the base portion 125. The guide portion 127 also has a guide surface 127b on the side opposite to the side connected to the base portion 125.

Referring to FIG. 8, the guide portion 127 has an eave-shaped upper protrusion 129 that protrudes upward when the top surface of the base portion 125 is viewed as the reference surface when the guide portion 127 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom portion 113 of the printer body.

Also, referring to FIG. 8, the guide portion 127 has a lower protrusion 131 that is shaped like a canopy and protrudes downward when the lower surface of the base portion 125 when attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom portion 113 of the printer body is taken as the reference surface.

Furthermore, referring to FIG. 8, in a vertical cross section parallel to the sliding direction when the sliding open/close cover 123 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom 113 of the printer body (a cross section perpendicular to the left-right direction of the printer), the guide portion 127 has multiple arc-shaped portions 133 on the rear side.

In the example of FIG. 8, there are three arc-shaped portions 133. The direction of curvature of these arcs when viewed in cross section may be the same. The center of the arc of the arc-shaped portion 133 is located forward of the arc-shaped portion 133. Furthermore, the convex portion of the outline on the tip side of the guide portion 127 may be connected to form the arc 135 shown by the dashed line. For example, the arc-shaped portion 133 in the middle row and the arc-shaped portion 133 in the upper row may be joined to make the total number of arc-shaped portions 2, or all the arc-shaped portions 133 may be joined to make the total number of arc-shaped portions 1.

The recess, which is the difference between the arc 135 and the outline showing the rear end face of the guide portion 127, is provided to fit the rear inner wall 121b of the insertion opening 121 when the sliding opening cover 123 is closed. As a result, when the sliding opening cover 123 is closed, no opening is created between the rear end face of the guide portion 127 and the rear inner wall 121b of the insertion opening 121.

Furthermore, the arc of the arc-shaped portion 133 provided near the lower end of the guide portion 127 becomes arc 137 when extended.

Furthermore, the arc of the arc-shaped portion 133 provided near the upper end of the guide portion 127 becomes arc 139 when extended.

When the sliding cover 123 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom 113 of the printer body, the front surface 129a of the upper protrusion 129 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction, near the front of the printer) is positioned approximately at the same position in the front-to-rear direction as the front surface 131a of the lower protrusion 131 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction, near the front of the printer).

In contrast, when viewed in the position when the sliding opening/closing cover 123 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom 113 of the printer body, the rear surface (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the rear of the printer) 129b of the upper protrusion 129 is slightly forward of the rear surface (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the rear of the printer) 131b of the lower protrusion 131.
Further, a rear surface 129 b of the upper protrusion 129 , a rear surface 131 b of the lower protrusion 131 , and the surface therebetween form a guide surface 127 b of the guide portion 127 .

Referring to Figures 10, 11A and 11B, when the sliding open/close cover 123 is in the open position, the entire base 125 retreats forward of the insertion opening 121, opening the insertion opening 121. This allows the fanfold paper 301 to be inserted through the insertion opening 121.

Even when the sliding cover 123 is in the open position, the guide portion 127 is in the insertion opening 121. To explain in more detail, when the sliding cover 123 is in the open position, when viewed from the front to rear of the printer body, the front surface 129a of the upper protrusion 129 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the front of the printer) is in contact with or close to the frame wall surface 117a included in the front inner wall 121a, and the front surface 131a of the lower protrusion 131 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the front of the printer) is in contact with or close to the bottom cover wall surface 115a included in the front inner wall 121a.

When the sliding cover 123 is in the open position, the height of the top end of the base 125 is approximately the same as the height of the boundary between the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117 when viewed from the top to bottom of the printer body.

In addition, the height of the upper end of the front surface 129a of the upper protrusion 129 is the same as or slightly lower than the height of the upper end of the frame wall surface 117a included in the front inner wall 121a.

Furthermore, the height of the lower end of the front surface 131a of the lower protrusion 131 is the same as or slightly higher than the height of the lower end of the bottom cover wall surface 115a (height of the bottom surface 113a) included in the front inner wall 121a.

When the sliding cover 123 is in the open position, the guide portion 127 covers the front inner wall 121a from the left end to the right end when viewed from the left to right direction of the printer body.

Therefore, when the sliding open/close cover 123 is in the open position, the guide surface 127b covers most of the front inner wall 121a, and in particular covers at least the boundary 119 between the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117 on the front inner wall 121a and its surroundings.

10, when the sliding opening/closing cover 123 is in the open position, the surface 306 of the mount 302 of the fanfold paper 301 faces the front inner wall 121a (see FIG. 11) of the insertion opening 121. Therefore, the label piece 303 temporarily attached to the surface 306 of the mount 302 of the fanfold paper 301 directly faces the guide surface 127b of the guide portion 127 of the sliding opening/closing cover 123. This makes it possible to prevent the surface 306 of the mount 302 of the fanfold paper 301 and the label piece 303 temporarily attached thereto from contacting the front inner wall 121a of the insertion opening 121. In particular, it is possible to prevent the surface 306 of the mount 302 of the fanfold paper 301 and the label piece 303 temporarily attached thereto from contacting the boundary between the bottom cover wall surface 115a and the frame wall surface 117a included in the front inner wall 121a of the insertion opening 121. Therefore, even if there is a step or gap at the boundary between the bottom cover wall surface 115a and the frame wall surface 117a included in the front inner wall 121a of the insertion opening 121, the edge portion of the label piece 303 temporarily attached to the surface 306 of the backing paper 302 of the fanfold paper 301 being transported by the platen roller 10 during printing can be prevented from getting caught in such a step or gap, and further, the label piece 303 can be prevented from peeling off from the backing paper 302.

In addition, as described above in FIG. 8, the guide surface 127b of the guide portion 127 has an arc-shaped portion 133 when viewed in cross section, so that even if the fanfold paper 301 comes into contact with the guide surface 127b, the label piece 303 can be prevented from peeling off from the backing paper 302, and further, the resistance to the transport of the fanfold paper 301 can be kept small.

Referring to Figures 12A and 12B, when the sliding cover 123 is in the closed position, the sliding cover 123 covers the insertion opening 121. This makes it impossible for the fanfold paper 301 to be inserted through the insertion opening 121.

When the sliding cover 123 is in the closed position, the guide portion 127 is in the insertion opening 121, just as when the sliding cover 123 is in the open position. To explain in more detail, when the sliding cover 123 is in the closed position, when viewed from the front-to-rear direction of the printer body, the rear surface (surface toward the rear of the printer) 129b of the upper protrusion 129 contacts or is close to the frame wall surface 117b included in the rear inner wall 121b, and the rear surface (surface toward the rear of the printer) 131b of the lower protrusion 131 contacts or is close to the bottom cover wall surface 115b included in the rear inner wall 121b.

In addition, the frame wall surface 117b included in the rear inner wall 121b extends upward to the vicinity of the inner bottom surface 2a of the storage section 151, so the height of the upper end of the rear surface 129b of the upper protrusion 129 is significantly lower than the upper end of the frame wall surface 117b included in the rear inner wall 121b.

Furthermore, the height of the lower end of the rear surface 131b of the lower protrusion 131 is the same as or slightly higher than the height of the lower end of the bottom cover wall surface 115b (height of the bottom surface 113a) included in the rear inner wall 121b.

When the sliding open/close cover 123 is in the closed position, the guide portion 127 covers the rear inner wall 121b from the left end to the right end when viewed from the left to right direction of the printer body.

As already explained, when the sliding open/close cover 123 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the bottom 113 of the printer body, the rear surface 129b of the upper protrusion 129 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the rear of the printer) is slightly forward of the rear surface 131b of the lower protrusion 131 (the surface perpendicular to the sliding direction toward the rear of the printer). Correspondingly, the frame wall surface 115bb included in the rear inner wall 121b of the insertion opening 121 is slightly forward of the bottom cover wall surface 115b included in the rear inner wall 121b of the insertion opening 121. As a result, when the sliding cover 123 is in the closed state, the boundary between the rear surface 129b of the upper protrusion 129 and the frame wall surface 115bb included in the rear inner wall 121b is slightly forward of the boundary between the rear surface 131b of the lower protrusion 131 and the bottom cover wall surface 115b included in the rear inner wall 121b. Therefore, when the sliding cover 123 is in the closed state, no straight gap is created between the rear inner wall 121b and the guide portion 127. Therefore, it is possible to prevent foreign objects from entering the storage portion 151 when the sliding cover 123 is in the closed state.

Referring to FIG. 9A, when the sliding cover 123 is attached near the insertion opening 121 of the printer body bottom 113, a pair of locking parts 141 are provided in the front area of the base 125 of the sliding cover 123. The pair of locking parts 141 lock the sliding cover 123 in each of the open and closed positions. This makes it possible to prevent the sliding cover 123, once slid to the open or closed position, from sliding again without any operation by the user.

9A and 9B, each locking portion 141 has a biasing portion 143 integrally molded with the base 125, an opening/closing cover side engaging portion 145 biased by the biasing portion 143, and a bottom side first engaging portion 147 and a bottom side second engaging portion 149 provided on the bottom cover 115.
The base 125 and the biasing portion 143 and the opening/closing cover side engaging portion 145, which are integrally molded therewith, are made of resin. The biasing portion 143 is curved in a U-shape and generates an elastic force for biasing the opening/closing cover side engaging portion 145 in the direction of the bottom side first engaging portion 147 and the bottom side second engaging portion 149.

When the sliding opening/closing cover 123 is in the closed position, the opening/closing cover side engagement portion 145 and the bottom side first engagement portion 147 engage with each other.

When the user applies force to the sliding cover 123 to slide the sliding cover 123 to the open position while the sliding cover 123 is in the closed position, the engagement between the cover side engagement portion 145 and the bottom side first engagement portion 147 is released, and the sliding cover 123 slides to the open position via the intermediate position.

When the sliding open/close cover 123 is in the open position, the open/close cover side engagement portion 145 and the bottom side second engagement portion 149 engage with each other.

When the sliding cover 123 is in the open position and a force is applied by the user to the sliding cover 123 to slide the sliding cover 123 to the closed position, the engagement between the cover side engagement portion 145 and the bottom side second engagement portion 149 is released, and the sliding cover 123 slides through the intermediate position to the closed position.

As shown in FIG. 7, when assembling, the sliding opening and closing cover 123 is first attached to the bottom cover 115, and then the frame 117 is assembled to the bottom cover 115.

Figures 13A to 13E are diagrams for explaining how to attach the sliding opening/closing cover 123 to the bottom cover 115.

First, in the front-to-rear direction of the printer body, the guide portion 127 is held over the rear end of the insertion opening 121, and the sliding cover 123 is slid from diagonally upward toward the front and downward with the bottom cover middle surface 115c as the reference point until the front portion of the base 125 of the sliding cover 123 abuts against the bottom cover middle surface 115c (Figures 13A and 13B).

Next, while keeping the front portion of the base 125 of the sliding cover 123 in contact with the bottom cover middle surface 115c, the sliding cover 123 is slid forward while decreasing the inclination angle until the sliding cover 123 becomes horizontal with respect to the bottom cover between the closed position and the open position (FIGS. 13C and 13D).

Next, slide the sliding opening/closing cover 123 to the closed position and lock it (Figure 13E).

In the above embodiment, the sliding open/close cover 123 is positioned so that the height of the base 125 is the same as the height of the boundary 119 between the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117. Alternatively, as shown in Figures 14A to 14C, the guide base 125 may be modified to include bases 125P, 125Q, and 125R. Also, the guide 127 may be modified to include 127P, 127Q, and 127R.

In the example of FIG. 14A, the height of the underside of the base 125P is made approximately the same as the height of the boundary 119.

In the example of FIG. 14B, the base 125Q straddles the bottom cover 115 and the frame 117.

In the example of FIG. 14C, the height of the upper surface of the base 125R is made lower than the height of the boundary 119.

The present invention can be implemented in various other forms without departing from its spirit or main features. Therefore, the above-described embodiments are merely illustrative and should not be interpreted as being limiting. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims and is not limited to the text of the specification. Furthermore, all modifications and changes within the equivalent scope of the claims are within the scope of the present invention.

1 Printer 2 Main body case 2a Inner bottom surface 3 Printer cover 4 Display panel 6a Roll paper guide 8 Hinge 9 Roll paper storage chamber 10 Platen roller 28 Thermal head 113 Printer main body bottom 113a Bottom surface 115 Bottom cover 115a Bottom cover wall surface 115b Bottom cover wall surface 115c Bottom cover middle surface 117 Frame 117a Frame wall surface 117b Frame wall surface 119 Boundary 121 Printer side insertion opening ("insertion opening" of the present invention)
121a Front inner wall 121b Rear inner wall 121p Bottom cover side insertion opening 121q Frame side insertion opening 123 Sliding opening/closing cover 125 Base 127 Guide portion 127b Guide surface 129 Upper protrusion 129a Front surface 129b Rear surface 131 Lower protrusion 131a Front surface 131b Rear surface 133 Arc-shaped portion 135 Arc 137 Arc 139 Arc 141 Lock portion 143 Pressing portion 145 Opening/closing cover side engagement portion 147 First engagement portion 149 Second engagement portion 151 Storage portion 157 Compression spring 201 Cradle 203 First cradle side insertion opening (referred to as "cradle side insertion opening" in this invention)
205 Second cradle side insertion opening 207 Space inside the cradle 208 Bottom surface 209 Placement surface 301 Fanfold paper 302 Backing paper 303 Label piece 304 Fold 305 Position detection mark 306 Front surface 307 Back surface P Paper

Claims (9)

an insertion opening for inserting fanfold paper, the insertion opening being formed in a bottom surface of the printer body that faces a printer mounting surface ;
a slide-type opening/closing cover that is slidably attached to the bottom of the printer body and that opens and closes the insertion opening;
A printer comprising: A roll paper storage chamber for storing the roll paper is provided inside,
The insertion opening communicates with the roll paper storage chamber.
The printer of claim 1 . The fanfold paper is inserted into the roll paper storage chamber through the insertion opening and directed toward the discharge opening.
The printer of claim 2. the insertion opening is formed between a position of an imaginary center axis of the roll paper accommodated in the roll paper accommodation chamber and a rear end position of the roll paper accommodation chamber when viewed from the side.
The printer of claim 2. the printer body bottom has a double bottom structure including a bottom cover on the lower side and a frame on the upper side at least in the periphery of the insertion opening,
The sliding cover includes a base and a guide.
The sliding cover is slidable between a first position and a second position;
the base closes the insertion opening when the sliding cover is in the first position and opens the insertion opening when the sliding cover is in the second position;
The guide portion is configured to cover at least a portion of the boundary between the bottom cover and the frame when the sliding cover is in the second position.
The printer of claim 1 . the guide portion occupies an area spanning the bottom cover and the frame in a thickness direction of the insertion opening at least when the sliding open-close cover is in the second position;
The printer according to claim 5 . the slide-type opening/closing cover is in the second position, and the slide-type opening/closing cover is attached so that a surface of the fanfold paper on which a label is attached faces the guide section when the fanfold paper is inserted into the insertion opening for printing.
7. The printer according to claim 5 or 6 . the insertion opening is provided so as to at least partially overlap a cradle-side insertion opening formed in an upper surface of the cradle when the printer is placed on the cradle;
The printer according to any one of claims 1 to 7 . A printer according to any one of claims 1 to 7 ;
a cradle on which the printer is placed,
A cradle-side insertion port is formed on the upper surface of the cradle,
the insertion opening of the printer is provided so as to at least partially overlap with the cradle-side insertion opening when the printer is placed on the cradle;
Printer set.

Images