JPS6335435B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a ribbon cassette set in a printer.

Some ribbon cassettes are equipped with an ink cartridge inside to supply ink to the ink ribbon. Among the ribbon cassettes having such a structure, one having means for switching the ink cartridge between a position in contact with the transfer roller and a position away from the transfer roller is already well known. However, the known switching means uses a completely different part from the ink cartridge, resulting in an increase in the number of parts. Additionally, there was a drawback that it was difficult to assemble and replace the ink cartridge.

The present invention aims to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks.

To explain the embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, this cassette consists of a top plate 1 and a bottom plate 2, both of which have a protrusion 3 projecting integrally from the bottom plate 2. They are combined by press-fitting the pin 4 on the back side of the two. A transfer roller 5 is rotatably supported between the top plate 1 and the bottom plate 2 at the center thereof, and this transfer roller 5 has four transfer surfaces 5Y, 5.
It has M, 5C, and 5B at intervals. An upper shaft 6 and a lower shaft 7 of the transfer roller 5 protrude through the upper plate 1 and the lower plate 2, respectively, and a gear 8 is fixed to the lower shaft 7. This gear 8 meshes with a gear (not shown) on the printing device side when this ribbon cassette is set in a printing device (not shown) to drive the transfer roller 5 counterclockwise in FIG. belongs to. A peripheral wall portion 9 is integrally protruded from the front portion of the upper plate 1, and a head (not shown) of a printing device is inserted into a recess 10 defined by the outer peripheral portion of the peripheral wall portion 9. Ru. Additionally, top plate 1 and bottom plate 2
A separator 11 having a substantially U-shaped cross section is inserted between the separator 11 and the inner space defined by the top plate 1 and the bottom plate 2.
divided. The space between the peripheral wall 9 and the separator 11 serves as a passage or storage chamber for the endless ink ribbon 12, and the outside of the separator 11 serves as the ink cartridges 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13B.
It has become an installation space for The separator 11 has four window holes 11a in its center (corner) as shown in FIG.
Y, 5M, 5C, and 5B are partially protruding.
And these protruding transfer surfaces 5Y, 5M, 5C, 5
An ink ribbon 12 is pressed against B via a pressure spring 14. The ink ribbon 12 has four color bands 12 divided parallel to its longitudinal direction as shown in FIG.
Y, 12M, 12C, and 12B are formed and are in contact with the transfer surfaces 5Y, 5M, 5C, and 5B, respectively. Further, the ink ribbon 12 is passed between a back tension spring 17 and a pass roller 16 rotatably fitted to a shaft portion 15 protruding from the bottom plate 2 on its exit side, thereby being pulled out from the storage chamber. Appropriate tension is applied to the ink ribbon 12. The transfer roller 5 also serves as a feed roller for the ink ribbon 12, and the ink ribbon 12 is fed into the storage chamber by its counterclockwise rotation.

Ink cartridge 13Y, 13M, 13C,
The inks 13B are impregnated with, for example, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black inks, and are arranged radially around the transfer roller 5. Ink cartridge 13
Y, 13M, 13C, 13B are ink cores 18Y,
The other configurations are exactly the same except that 18, 18C, and 18B are located at positions facing the transfer surfaces 5Y, 5M, 5C, and 5B shown in the third figure, respectively. Therefore, each ink cartridge 13Y, 13M, 13
The configuration and arrangement structure of the ink cartridges 13B and 13B will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 5 for the ink cartridge 13Y.
As for 13C and 13B, corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals.

The top plate 1 and the bottom plate 2 are provided with guide grooves 19 and 2 having a predetermined length from the peripheral edge toward the center of the transfer roller 5.
0 is open, and guide protrusions 21 and 22 protruding from the upper and lower surfaces of the ink cartridge 13Y are slidably engaged with the guide grooves 19 and 20. A switching lever 23 is integrally formed from the rear end of the guide protrusion 21, and this switching lever 23 extends diagonally above the guide protrusion 21, and is engaged with the end 19a of the guide groove 19 at its tip. A claw portion 23a is provided in a protruding manner. Further, the rear surface of the ink cartridge 13Y is equipped with a pressing means, and in this example, a pair of pressing arms 24a, 24a are used to press the slit 2.
4b into a bifurcated shape, each arm portion 24a,
Protrusions 24c, 24c are provided on the rear surface of 24a. In the free state, the arms 24a, 24a are in the position indicated by the chain lines in FIG.
It is locked by the locking claw 25 of. As a result, the ink cartridge 13Y is urged toward the transfer roller 5 by the spring force of the pressing spring 24a, and the ink core 18Y comes into elastic contact with the transfer surface 5Y. The ink in the ink cartridge 13Y adheres to the transfer surface 5Y via the core 18Y, and this ink is transferred to the transfer roller 5.
When the color band 12Y of the ribbon 12 is rotated, the color band 12Y of the ribbon 12 is replenished. Other ink cartridges 13M, 13C, 1
3B works similarly.

By the way, when the claw portion 23a of the switching lever 23 is pushed into the end portion 19a of the guide groove 19, the ink cartridge, for example 13Y, is held at a position slightly retreated from the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 (see FIG. 6). situation).
At this time, the ink core 18Y separates from the corresponding transfer surface 5Y. Ink cartridge 13 as above
The separation switching of Y, 13M, 13C, and 13B is performed in the following cases. For example, before the ribbon cassette is set in the printing device, the ink cartridges 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13B are held at positions separated from the transfer roller 5. Moreover, even after the ink cartridge 13Y is set, unnecessary ink cartridges 13Y,
13M and 13C can be kept separated from the transfer roller 5. This prevents the color bands 12Y, 12M, and 12C that are not used for printing from containing excessive ink. Also, when not printing, the transfer roller 5
is stationary, but in order to prevent the stationary transfer roller 5 from locally containing excessive ink, the ink cartridges 13Y, 13M, 1
It is also used to separate the transfer rollers 3C and 13B from the transfer roller 5.

In the above embodiment, the pressing means was integrally molded, but since the spring force of the plastic material may be reduced due to cleavage, the pressing spring was separately formed from a metal spring material instead of integral molding, and it was ink-filled. It may also be fixed to the rear surface of the cartridge. Furthermore, the guide protrusion 21 is not necessarily necessary since the switching lever 23 can also be used as a guide protrusion. The present invention is also applicable to monochromatic ribbon cassettes consisting of a single ink cartridge and a single ink ribbon.

As described above, according to the present invention, the position of the ink cartridge can be changed with a very simple configuration, and the operation is easy. Furthermore, since it is not necessary to add any extra parts, the structure can be made compact. Further, according to this structure, since the ink cartridge can be inserted and removed in the radial direction of the transfer roller, the ink cartridge can be easily replaced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the ribbon cassette according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a front view thereof, FIG. 2 is a partially sectional plan view, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line of FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is a front view of the separator, FIG. 5 is a back view of the ink cartridge, and FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the main part when the ink cartridge is separated from the transfer roller. 1...Top plate of cassette, 2...Bottom plate of cassette, 5...Transfer roller, 5Y, 5M, 5C, 5B
...Transfer surface, 12...Ink ribbon, 12Y, 1
2M, 12C, 12B...Color band, 13Y, 13
M, 13C, 13B...Ink cartridge, 1
8Y, 18M, 18C, 18B...Ink core, 1
9, 20... Guide groove, 22... Guide protrusion, 2
3...Switching lever, 23a...Claw portion, 24a...
Pressing spring (pressing means), 25...locking claw.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Guide grooves of a predetermined length are provided in the top and bottom plates of a cassette that rotatably supports a transfer roller having a transfer surface that contacts the ink ribbon, extending from the respective peripheral edges toward the center of the transfer roller. formed into an ink cartridge having an ink core that can come into contact with and separate from the transfer surface of the transfer roller, and slidably fit into one of the guide grooves and move diagonally upward and towards the center of the transfer roller. A switching lever extending toward the direction of the ink cartridge and a guide protrusion slidably fitted to the other side are provided, and the ink cartridge is fixed to either the top plate or the bottom plate on the back side of the ink cartridge. A pressing means is provided for urging the trigger toward the transfer roller, and the switching lever has a pawl at its tip, and when the pawl is engaged with one end of the guide grooves, When the ink core of the ink cartridge separates from the transfer surface of the transfer roller against the spring force of the pressing means and the claw portion is released from one end of the guide grooves, the ink A ribbon cassette, wherein the ink core of the cartridge comes into elastic contact with the transfer surface of the transfer roller by the spring force of the pressing means. 2. The ribbon cassette according to claim 1, wherein the pressing means is an arm-shaped member integral with the ink cartridge.