JP6705769B2 - Printer and printer control method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a printer, particularly a printer that prints on a plate such as a slide, and a method for controlling this printer.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a thermal transfer printer has been known in which a lowermost glass plate is sent out one by one from a cassette containing a plurality of glass plates for preparation, and the printed glass plate is printed (for example, Patent Document 1).

By using such a cassette accommodating a plurality of slides, printing can be continuously performed on a large number of slides.

JP, 2003-312063, A

However, printing is not always performed on many plates such as slides, but when printing on one or a small number of plates or when printing on a small number of plates of different sizes, printing is performed. It becomes complicated because it is necessary to load the plate into the cassette every time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printer that can easily perform printing on a small number of plates.

The above object of the present invention can be achieved by the following means.

A transport unit capable of transporting the plate in the first transport direction toward the insertion/ejection port or in the second transport direction opposite thereto, on both side surfaces in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the plate. A pair of transport members that contact each other, and a transport unit that sandwiches and transports the plate by the pair of transport members;
A print head that is swingable between a print position and a retracted position away from the print position is provided, and printing is performed on a print area on the surface of the plate that is transported by the transport unit by the print head that has moved to the print position. Print part,
A detection sensor for detecting the transport position before Symbol plate,
A transport unit, and a control unit for controlling the printing unit,
When the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the control unit prints the plate inserted from the insertion outlet through the print area of the plate based on the detection output of the detection sensor. It conveys to the 2nd conveyance direction until it exceeds a position, after that, conveyance of the plate to the 1st conveyance direction is started, and at the same time, to the print area of the plate by the print head moved to the print position. , And control to eject the plate from the insertion and ejection port ,
In the plate, the print area is provided in a partial area of the surface over a range of a predetermined length from one end in the transport direction or the vicinity of the one end, and the plate is provided with the print area. Inserted from the insertion and ejection port, with the end portion where the region is provided as the head,
The detection sensor is a reflective sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit,
The control unit determines whether the print area of the plate inserted from the insertion discharge port exceeds the print position due to a difference in the detection output of the detection sensor between the print area and the area other than the print area. Determine the printer.

The printer according to the present invention conveys the plate inserted from the insertion/ejection port in the second conveyance direction until the printing area of the plate exceeds the printing position, and then starts the conveyance of the plate in the first conveyance direction. At the same time, the print head moved to the print position performs printing on the print area of the plate and ejects the plate from the insertion/ejection port. By doing so, it is possible to provide a printer that can easily print on a small number of plates.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the outer appearance of a printer according to an embodiment of the invention. It is a figure which shows the plate for preparations. It is a perspective view showing an internal configuration of the entire printer according to the first embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a conveyance part periphery. It is a top view which shows the structure of a conveyance part periphery. It is a side view which shows the structure of a conveyance part and a printing part. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a printer control method according to the first embodiment. It is a perspective view showing the internal configuration of the entire printer according to the second embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a supply part. It is a side view which shows the structure of a supply part. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a conveyance part. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a conveyance part. It is a figure explaining the structure of a connection part and a contact part holding part. It is a figure explaining movement of a conveyance member. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a printer control method according to the second embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same elements will be denoted by the same reference symbols, without redundant description. Also, the dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for convenience of explanation, and may differ from the actual ratios.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an appearance of a printer 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a preparation plate 900 as a specific example of a plate printed by the printer 10. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the entire printer 10 according to the first embodiment. Hereinafter, in the accompanying drawings, the vertical direction is the Z direction, the front and back directions of the printer 10 are the X directions, and the direction orthogonal to these X and Z directions is the Y direction. Further, unless otherwise specified below, the transport direction of the plate 900 is the X direction, and the width direction is the Y direction. In addition, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 3, the direction particularly toward the insertion/ejection port in the transport direction is referred to as a “first transport direction”, and the opposite direction is also referred to as a “second transport direction”.

(Overall Configuration of Printer 10 according to First Embodiment)
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, the printer 10 includes a control unit 20, a display unit 25, an exterior 30, a detection unit 40, a conveyance unit 50, and a printing unit 60. The control unit 20 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, an auxiliary storage unit, etc., and controls the entire printer 10. An insertion/ejection port 39 for inserting/ejecting the plate 900 is provided on the front side of the exterior 30 of the apparatus. In the printer 10, the control unit 20 controls the printing unit 60 to print on the surface of the plate 900 inserted by the user through the insertion/ejection port 39.

As shown in FIG. 1, on the front side of the printer 10, there is further provided a display unit 25 for displaying the mode status, various data, and inputting settings. As the display unit 25, a liquid crystal display on which a touch panel is superimposed, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence), or the like is adopted.

As shown in FIG. 2, the plate 900 as a print medium used in the present embodiment is a glass plate for preparation, and for example, one sheet has a width of 25 mm, a length of 85 mm, and a thickness of 1.0 mm. An observation sample 92 is stuck on the plate 900, and is pressed by a cover glass 93 to prepare a slide 90 which is observed by a microscope or the like. On the plate 900, information (observation number, date, letters indicating memo, etc., or bar code) of the observation sample 92, which is so-called frosted portion 91, is written with a writing instrument or the like over a part of one surface. Some have a "printing area" that has been processed to facilitate recording. In this embodiment, the printing unit 60 prints on the frosted portion 91 of the plate 900. The size and position of the frost unit 91 may be stored in the storage unit of the control unit 20 in advance, or may be appropriately input by the user through the display unit 25 and the like. The frosted portion 91 is provided near one end of the plate 900 or one end thereof (hereinafter, referred to as “printing area side” or “leading side”). Then, the user inserts the plate 900 from the insertion/ejection port 39 with the print area side facing forward.

(Detection unit 40)
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration around the transport unit 50, and FIG. 5 is a top view. FIG. 5B is a diagram in which some components of FIG. 5A are extracted. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the configurations of the transport unit 50 and the printing unit 60. As shown in these drawings, the detection unit 40 includes detection sensors 41, 42 and a support plate 43. Each of the detection sensors 41 and 42 includes a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit, emits light from the light emitting unit toward a lower detection region, and receives light reflected by the detection region at the light receiving unit. The plate 900 reaches the detection area, and the irradiation light is reflected on the surface of the detection area to detect the transport position of the plate 900.

The detection sensor 41 is arranged such that the vicinity of the inside of the insertion/ejection port 39 on the transport path of the plate 900 is the detection region. The detection sensor 41 detects the presence or absence of the plate 900 in the detection area near the insertion/ejection port 39. The detection sensor 42 is mounted on the support plate 43, and is arranged such that the detection area is located on the back side of the platen roller 52 on the conveyance path. Then, the detection sensor 42 detects that the leading end portion of the conveyed plate 900 has passed and that the frosted portion 91 has passed. This detection can be performed because the reflectance is different between the frosted portion 91 and the area other than the frosted portion 91 on the surface of the plate 900. Based on the outputs of the detection sensors 41 and 42, the control unit 20 causes the plate 900 to be inserted by the user through the insertion/ejection port 39, and the frosted portion 91 (rear end) of the conveyed plate 900 to exceed the platen roller 52. Determine that.

(Transport unit 50)
The transport unit 50 includes transport rollers 511 and 512 formed of a pair of rollers that sandwich the plate 900 from both sides, a platen roller 52, a guide plate 53, and a drive motor (not shown). The transport rollers 511 and 512 are provided near the inside of the insertion/ejection port 39, and are rotated in the forward and reverse directions by a drive motor. The transport rollers 511, 512 contact both side surfaces in the width direction (Y direction) of the plate 900 inserted from the insertion/ejection port 39, and sandwich and transport the plate 900.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5B, the transport rollers 511 and 512 are connected via a plurality of gears. The driving force of the drive motor is transmitted from the upstream gear g1 to the transport rollers 511 and 512 via a plurality of gears. Further, at least one of the rotary shafts of the transport rollers 511 and 512 is movable in the width direction (Y direction) within a predetermined range, and retracts outward (in the direction of the arrow in the figure) as the plate 900 is inserted. These transport rollers 511 and 512 are biased inward in the width direction by the elastic force of an elastic body such as a spring. By providing such a configuration, the transport rollers 511, 512 retract to the outside in the width direction corresponding to the width of the plate 900 inserted therebetween, and rotate while biasing inward, The plate 900 is conveyed in the conveying direction while being sandwiched.

(Printing unit 60)
Next, the configuration of the printing unit 60 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the printing unit 60 has a thermal transfer unit 62 for transferring the ink of the ink ribbon 61 onto the plate 900, an original roll R0 of the roll-shaped ink ribbon, and an ink ribbon for unwinding the ink ribbon 61. A supply unit 63, an ink ribbon winding unit 64 that winds the ink ribbon 61, and a drive motor 65 (see FIG. 3) that drives these units are provided.

The ink ribbon 61 is conveyed while being stretched over the plurality of support rollers r1 to r5. The ink ribbon 61 includes at least a support layer 61b and an ink layer 61a applied on the support layer 61b. The ink ribbon 61 is unwound from the original roll R0, and the thermal transfer unit 62 transfers the ink corresponding to the print data to the plate 900 at the print position p1 (also referred to as “transfer position”) corresponding to the platen roller 52.

The thermal transfer section 62 includes a print head 621 and a pressure contact/release mechanism 622. The print head 621 is also referred to as a thermal head, and is swung between the retracted position (see FIG. 3) and the print position p1 (see FIG. 6) by the pressure contact/release mechanism 622. When transferring the ink, the print head 621 moves from the retracted position to the print position p1 in which the print head 621 is pressed against the platen roller 52 via the plate 900. The print head 621 includes a plurality of minute heating elements. At the print position p1 in FIG. 6, the print head 621 is in pressure contact with the surface of the plate 900 that carries the ink ribbon 61. In this state, a current is selectively applied to the heating element of the print head 621 to generate heat according to the image data, so that a part of the ink of the heated ink ribbon 61 is locally printed on the surface of the plate 900 at the printing position p1. To form an image on the surface.

(Control of Printer in First Embodiment)
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a control method of the printer 10 executed by the control unit 20.

First, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the plate 900 is inserted from the insertion/ejection port 39 by monitoring the output of the detection sensor 41 after the power is turned on (S101). In the initial state immediately after the power is turned on, the print head 621 is maintained at the retracted position.

When the plate 900 is inserted by the user (S101: YES), driving of the transport rollers 511 and 512 is started, and the plate 900 is transported in the second transport direction, that is, toward the back side of the apparatus (S102).

After the conveyance is started, the control unit 20 determines whether the printing area of the plate 900 is at the printing position p1, that is, the frosted portion 91 of the conveyed plate 900 has exceeded the platen roller 52, based on the output of the detection sensor 42. (S103).

If the print area has passed the print position p1 (S103: YES), the control unit 20 controls the drive motor to reverse the conveyance rollers 511 and 512 and rotate the plate 900 in the first conveyance direction, that is, the insertion/ejection port. It is conveyed toward 39 (S104).

Further, in the process of step S104, at the time of stop immediately before the reverse rotation or immediately after the reverse rotation is started, the control unit 20 controls the crimping/releasing mechanism 622 to lower the print head 621 to move it to the print position p1. (S105).

Then, the control unit 20 causes the printing unit 60 to perform printing according to the position of the frosted portion 91, which is the printing area that passes through the printing position p1 (S106).

After that, the sheet is conveyed in the first conveying direction as it is, and the plate 900 is ejected from the insertion/ejection port 39 to finish (S107, end).

As described above, in the present embodiment, it is not necessary to load the plate in the cassette 71, and the user simply inserts the plate 900 from the insertion/ejection port 39 provided in the exterior 30 of the apparatus to easily perform printing on the plate. be able to. In particular, the transport rollers 511 and 512 provided in the vicinity of the insertion/ejection port 39 can transport the plates 900 of various sizes (width direction), and the plates of different sizes can be supported and stable printing can be performed.

(Second embodiment)
In the printer 10 according to the first embodiment, the plate is supplied from the insertion/ejection port 39. On the other hand, in the printer 10B according to the second embodiment described below, it is possible to supply the plate from the cassette (cartridge) 71 in addition to the supply from the insertion/ejection port 39.

Hereinafter, the printer 10B according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 to 14. In these figures, the same components as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted. The printer 10B according to the second embodiment includes a supply unit 70 that includes a plurality of cassettes 71 that house a plurality of plates 900 therein, in addition to the components of the first embodiment. This cassette 71 functions as a "storage unit". In addition, the transport unit 50B includes a pair of contact portions 541 and 542 in addition to the pair of transport rollers 511 and 512 existing in the first embodiment. The pair of contact portions 541 and 542 function as a “first conveying member pair”, and the pair of conveying rollers 511 and 512 function as a “second conveying member pair”.

(Supply unit 70)
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the entire printer 10B. 9 and 10 are a perspective view and a side view showing the configuration of the supply unit 70, respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the supply unit 70 includes a plurality of cassettes 71, claw members 72, a moving mechanism 73, a swinging mechanism 74, a support housing 75, and a drive unit 77.

(Cassette 71)
The plurality of plates 900 are stored in a state of being stacked on the metal cassette 71. Each cassette 71 accommodates about 100 of this plate 900. The plates 900 stored in the cassette 71 are sent out in the first transport direction by the supply unit 70 one by one from the lowermost stage. After the lowermost plate 900 is sent out, the next lowermost plate 900 located above is dropped to a predetermined position regulated by a stopper (not shown). The printer 10 includes a drive mechanism (not shown) that moves the two cassettes 71 in the width direction. When the plate 900 of one of the two cassettes 71 set at the supply position is used up, the cassette 71 slides in the Y direction by the drive mechanism, and the other cassette 71 is set at the supply position. After that, the supply of the plate 900 is restarted from the other cassette 71 set at the supply position.

(Supply operation by the claw member 72)
As shown in FIG. 9 and the like, the moving mechanism 73 includes a mount 731 that holds the claw member 72, a slide shaft 732 that guides the mount 731 along the transport direction, and a position detection sensor 739 that detects the position of the mount 731 in the X direction. Equipped with. The drive unit 77 includes a drive motor 770 and a drive belt 771 that transmits drive. By operating the drive motor 770, the frame 731 connected to the drive belt 771 and the claw member 72 held by the frame 731 are moved from the “home position” at the upstream end to the “home position” at the downstream end in the first transport direction. It reciprocates between the other end positions. Positioning at the other end position can be detected by the position detection sensor 739. The home position can be detected by a similar position detection sensor (not shown).

The supply operation of the plate 900 by the supply unit 70 will be described with reference to FIG. 10. The drive motor 770 is operated under the control of the control unit 20, whereby the claw member 72 moves in the transport direction. The height of the claw member 72 is switched by the swinging mechanism 74 to a first height and a second height lower than the first height, as described later. At the first height, as shown in FIG. 10, the claw member 72 contacts the side surface of the lowermost plate 900 in the cassette 71. That is, the first height is a height at which the inclined tip end portion of the claw member 72 is located between the height of the lower surface and the height of the upper surface of the lowermost plate 900, and the side surface of the claw member 72 is preferably the height. The contact height is about half the thickness of the plate 900. At the second height, the claw member 72 is not in contact with the lowermost plate 900 while a predetermined amount of clearance (for example, 1 mm to 2 mm) is secured.

(Height adjustment by swing mechanism)
The assembly member shown in FIG. 9, that is, the claw member 72, the moving mechanism 73, the support housing 75, and the drive unit 77 are integrated with the printer 10 by the swing shafts 751 and 752, and the conveyance direction (X direction). It is supported so as to be swingable (in the direction of arrow a1) in the ZY plane orthogonal to. Hereinafter, these assembly members shown in FIG. 9 are referred to as “rocking assembly”. The swing shafts 751 and 752 are engaged with bearings (not shown) provided on the housing of the printer 10 main body. The height adjustment plate 757 (shown in gray in FIG. 9) of the support housing 75 comes into contact with the upper surface of the rocking mechanism 74 arranged below it. The entire swing assembly is supported from below by the swing mechanism 74, and the entire swing assembly is rotated about the swing shafts 751 and 752 by the swing mechanism 74 that moves up and down by the driving force of a drive motor (not shown). As it rocks. The lifting operation of the swinging mechanism 74 swings the entire swinging assembly, whereby the pawl member 72 is switched to the above-described first height and second height. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, when the claw member 72 moves in the first carrying direction, the claw member 72 is set to the first height and when moving in the second carrying direction. (Return from single downstream to home position) The pawl member 72 is set to the second height.

With this configuration, when the claw member 72 is moved in the first transport direction, the lowermost plate 900 is pushed out by the claw member 72 so that the plate 900 is supplied in the first transport direction. To do. Then, when returning the claw member 72 to the contact position, the second height is set. That is, the claw member 72 does not contact the lower surface of the next plate 900. This can prevent the surface of the plate 900 from being damaged.

(Transport unit 50B)
FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the transport unit 50B, and FIG. 12 is a top view. As shown in these drawings, in addition to the above-described transport rollers 511 and 512, the platen roller 52, and the guide plate 53 described in the first embodiment, the transport unit 50B includes a pair of plates that sandwich the plate 900 from both sides. The contact portions 541 and 542 and the drive portion 58 are provided. The pair of abutting portions 541 and 542 are plate-shaped members having abutting surfaces 541e and 542e facing each other, and the abutting surfaces 541e and 542e abut on side surfaces in the width direction (Y direction) of the plate 900 to thereby plate the plate. Hold 900.

The drive part 58 includes a drive motor 580 (see FIG. 8), a drive pulley 581, a drive transmission belt 582, a connecting part 583, an abutting part holding part 584, and a slide shaft 585. When the drive motor 580 operates, the drive pulley 581 and the drive transmission belt 582 rotate, whereby the connecting portion 583 fixed to the drive transmission belt 582 moves along the slide shaft 585 extending in the X direction. Move back and forth. The contact portion holding portion 584 on which the contact portions 541 and 542 are arranged is connected to the connecting portion 583. When the connecting portion 583 and the contact portion holding portion 584 reciprocate, the contact portions 541 and 542 also reciprocate. Further, one of the pair of contact portions 541, 542 has one contact portion 541 swinging in the width direction as well as reciprocating movement in the transport direction due to the configuration described below.

13A and 13B are diagrams mainly illustrating the configurations of the connecting portion 583 and the contact portion holding portion 584, FIG. 13A is a top view, and FIG. 13B is a side view seen from the front direction of the apparatus. .. FIG. 13C is a top view showing the swing guide 586.

The contact portion holding portion 584 includes a base portion 4a, an arm 4b, a slide contact shaft 4c, an arm 4d, a slide shaft 4e, and a spring 4f. A contact portion 541 is fixed to the arm 4b, and a contact portion 542 is fixed to the arm 4d.

Among them, the arm 4b, the slide contact shaft 4c (these are shown in gray in FIG. 13B), and the contact portion 541 fixed to the arm 4b are the slide shaft 4e extending integrally in the Y direction. Move along. Further, these members are biased in the negative Y direction (upward in the figure) by the spring force of the spring 4f. However, the movement of the slide contact shaft 4c in the minus Y direction is restricted by the edge e3 of the swing guide 586 that is fixedly installed in the housing of the printer 10. Then, as shown in FIG. 13C, the edge e3 is composed of parallel lines having a depressed center and extending along the X direction. With such a configuration, the contact portions 541 and 542 move in the X direction in accordance with the reciprocal movement of the connecting portion 583 and the contact portion holding portion 584 in the X direction, and the contact portion 541 further includes It also swings in the Y direction. Hereinafter, a specific operation of the contact portions 541 and 542 when using such a contact portion holding portion 584 will be described.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the movement of the contact portions 541 and 542 of the transport unit 50B. Note that, unlike FIG. 12, the display of the detection unit 40 is omitted in FIG. 14. Moreover, the orientation of the plate 900 is different. 12 and 14 show the states of the plate 900 supplied in the first and second modes, respectively. As shown in FIG. 12, when the contact portions 541 and 542 are at the home position (on the right side in FIG. 14), one contact portion 541 moves away from the other contact portion 542, that is, retracts to the outside. ing. At this time, the slide contact shaft 4c abuts at a position on the right side of the central depression of the edge e3 of the swing guide 586 (retraction range in FIG. 13C). In this state, the distance between the contact surfaces 541e and 542e facing each other is set to be slightly longer than the width of the plate 900. For example, it is about 1 to 2 mm longer than the width of the plate 900. By doing so, the plate 900 sent out by the supply unit 70 in the first transport direction does not collide with the contact portions 541 and 542.

After the feeding of the plate 900 by the supply unit 70 is completed, the control unit 20 controls the drive unit 58 to move the contact portions 541 and 542 to the downstream side in the first transport direction. With this movement in the transport direction, the plate 900 also moves in the width direction (arrow a2 in FIG. 14), and holds the plate 900 by the pair of contact portions 541 and 542. At this time, until the contact portion 541 contacts the side surface of the plate 900, the slide contact shaft 4c approaches the recessed side of the center of the edge e3 of the swing guide 586 (the sandwiching range in FIG. 13C). In the sandwiching range, when the plate 900 is actually sandwiched, the slide contact shaft 4c approaches the edge e3 but does not reach the contact and floats. At this time, the plate 900 slightly moves to the contact portion 542 side by the movement of the contact portion 541 in the width direction. In the sandwiched state, the contact portion 541 is biased toward the contact portion 542 by the spring force of the spring 4f.

Then, the pair of contact portions 541 and 542 move to the downstream side while sandwiching the plate 900. By the contact portions 541 and 542, the leading end side of the plate 900 that is nipped and conveyed reaches the position of the platen roller 52, and then the printing unit 60 prints on the plate 900 (the area of the frosted portion 91). After the printing on the plate 900 is completed, that is, when the frosted portion 91 passes through the printing position p1 (see FIG. 6) corresponding to the platen roller 52, the contact portion 541 moves away from the other contact portion 542. Retreat and release plate 900. At this time, at this time, the slide contact shaft 4c abuts at a position on the left side (retraction range in FIG. 13C) that has passed through the central recess of the edge e3 of the swing guide 586.

After that, the plate 900 is discharged to the outside of the machine from the insertion/discharge port 39 by the rotating platen roller 52 and the downstream conveying rollers 511 and 512. After that, the control unit 20 controls the drive unit 58 to return the contact portions 541 and 542 to the home position at the right end again, and the processing ends. Although not shown in FIG. 1 and the like, one or a plurality of printed plates 900 can be placed on the insertion/ejection port 39 and a stacker to be stored can be attached. Note that, as shown in FIG. 12 and the like, the platen roller 52 shares the same shaft as the drive pulley 581 and is driven by the drive motor 580.

As described above, the transport unit 50B according to the second embodiment employs a pair of plate-shaped contact portions 541 and 542 having opposed contact surfaces, and the plate 900 is configured by the pair of contact portions 541 and 542. While sandwiching, it is moved to the downstream side in the transport direction. By doing so, the plate 900 can be stably transported, and a higher quality printed matter can be output.

(Control of Printer According to Second Embodiment)
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a control method of the printer 10B according to the second embodiment executed by the control unit 20.

First, the control unit 20 selects either the "first mode" for printing on the plate 900 inserted by the user from the insertion/ejection port 39 or the "second mode" for printing on the plate 900 supplied from the cassette 71. It is determined whether it has been done (S201). The user can select the first and second modes from the display unit 25 or a PC (personal computer) connected via a communication interface (not shown) such as a USB.

If the first mode is selected, the mode is switched to the first mode (S201: YES), the process proceeds to step S101, and thereafter, the process of step S101 and subsequent steps shown in FIG. 7 is executed.

On the other hand, if the second mode is selected, the mode is switched to the second mode (S201: NO), and the input of a print start instruction is waited for (S202). When a print start instruction is input by pressing the start button on the front panel (S202: YES), the control unit 20 controls the supply unit 70 to supply the plates 900 one by one from the cassette 71 (S203). ).

Next, the control unit 20 controls the transport unit 50B and transports the supplied plate 900 in the first transport direction by the contact portions 541 and 542 which are the second transport member pair (S204). The plate 900 housed in the cassette 71 is housed so that the end on the print area side becomes the head when the plate 900 is carried in the first carrying direction. When the direction of the plate 900 loaded in the cassette 71 is wrong, an error determination may be performed based on the output of the detection sensor 42, and the result may be displayed on the display unit 25.

The control unit 20 determines whether the frosted portion 91 of the plate 900, that is, the leading end of the printing area has reached the printing position p1 based on the output of the detection sensor 42, and if it has reached (S205: YES), the process proceeds to the next, The print head 621 is moved down to the print position p1 by the same processing as S105 (S206).

Then, the control unit 20 causes the printing unit 60 to perform printing according to the position of the frosted portion 91 that passes the printing position p1 (S207). As described above, in the first mode and the second mode, the orientation of the plate 900 when printing is opposite. When printing here, the orientation of the image to be printed is aligned with the orientation of the plate 900.

After that, the plate 900 is conveyed as it is in the first conveyance direction, and the plate 900 is ejected from the insertion ejection port 39 (S208).

When printing is continuously performed on the next plate 900 (S209: YES), the processing from step S203 is repeated, and when printing is not continued (S209: NO), the processing ends (END).

As described above, in the present embodiment, when printing is continuously performed on a plurality of plates, continuous printing using the cassette 71 is performed in the second mode, and when not, in the first mode, insertion/ejection is performed. By simply inserting the plate 900 from the outlet 39, printing on the plate can be easily performed.

The configuration of the printer described above is the main configuration in describing the features of the above-described embodiment and modification, and is not limited to the above configuration. Further, the configuration of a general printer is not excluded. Further, the above embodiment is intended to exemplify the gist of the present invention and does not limit the present invention. Many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.

The control method for controlling the printer according to the present invention can be realized by a dedicated hardware circuit for executing each of the above procedures, or by executing a program describing each of the above procedures by the CPU. When the present invention is realized by the latter, the program for operating the image forming apparatus may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk or a CD-ROM, or a network such as the Internet. It may be provided online via.

10 Printer 20 Control Unit 25 Display Unit 30 Exterior 39 Insertion/Ejection Port 40 Detection Units 41, 42 Detection Sensor 43 Support Plate 50 Transport Units 511, 512 Transport Rollers (Second Transport Member Pair)
52 platen roller 53 guide plates 541, 542 conveying member (first conveying member pair)
541e, 542e Abutment surface 58 Drive portion 580 Drive motor 581 Drive pulley 582 Drive belt 583 Connecting portion 584 Abutment portion holding portion 4a Base body portion 4b Arm 4c Sliding contact shaft 4d Arm 4e Sliding shaft 4f Spring 585 Sliding shaft 586 Swing Guide 60 Printing unit 61 Ink ribbon 62 Thermal transfer unit 621 Printing head 622 Pressure contact/release mechanism 70 Supply unit 71 Claw member 73 Moving mechanism 731 Frame 732 Slide shaft 739 Position detection sensor 74 Moving mechanism 75 Support housing 751, 752 Swing shaft 757 Height adjustment plate 77 Drive unit 770 Drive motor 771 Drive belt P1 Printing position 90 Preparation slide 91 Frost portion (printing area)
900 plate (prepared glass plate)

Claims (8)

A transport unit capable of transporting the plate in the first transport direction toward the insertion/ejection port or in the second transport direction opposite thereto, on both side surfaces in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the plate. A pair of transport members that contact each other, and a transport unit that sandwiches and transports the plate by the pair of transport members;
A print head that is swingable between a print position and a retracted position away from the print position is provided, and printing is performed on a print area on the surface of the plate that is transported by the transport unit by the print head that has moved to the print position. Print part,
A detection sensor for detecting the transport position before Symbol plate,
A transport unit, and a control unit for controlling the printing unit,
When the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the control unit prints the plate inserted from the insertion outlet through the print area of the plate based on the detection output of the detection sensor. It conveys to the 2nd conveyance direction until it exceeds a position, after that, conveyance of the plate to the 1st conveyance direction is started, and at the same time, to the print area of the plate by the print head moved to the print position. , And control to eject the plate from the insertion and ejection port ,
In the plate, the print area is provided in a partial area of the surface over a range of a predetermined length from one end in the transport direction or the vicinity of the one end, and the plate is provided with the print area. Inserted from the insertion and ejection port, with the one end portion where the region is provided as a head,
The detection sensor is a reflective sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit,
The control unit determines whether the print area of the plate inserted from the insertion discharge port exceeds the print position due to a difference in the detection output of the detection sensor between the print area and the area other than the print area. Determine the printer. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the pair of transport members includes a pair of transport rollers provided near the insertion/ejection port. A storage unit that stacks and stores multiple plates,
And a supply unit that supplies the plates at the bottom of the storage unit one by one,
The control unit is capable of switching between a first mode in which printing is performed on a plate inserted from the insertion and ejection port and a second mode in which printing is performed on a plate supplied from the storage unit,
In the first mode, when the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the plate inserted from the insertion/ejection port is moved to the print area of the plate based on the detection output of the detection sensor. The plate is printed in the second carrying direction until it exceeds the printing position, and thereafter, the carrying of the plate in the first carrying direction is started, and the printing of the plate is performed by the print head that has moved to the printing position. Perform printing on the area, control to eject the plate from the insertion outlet.
In the second mode, by transporting the plate supplied by the supply unit in the first transport direction by the transport unit, the print area of the plate is moved to the print position, and the print position is changed. By the print head moved to, the print area of the plate is printed, and the plate is discharged from the insertion discharge port .
When printing is performed while being conveyed in the first conveying direction by the printing unit, in the first mode, the plate starts and ends with the one end where the printing area is provided as the leading end. Inserted from the outlet toward the second transport direction, in the second mode, with the one end portion as a head, is supplied from the supply unit toward the first transport direction,
In the first mode and the second mode, printing is performed while conveying in the first conveying direction, and the plate orientation is opposite in the first mode and the second mode. The printer according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the control unit adjusts the orientation of the image to be printed to the orientation of the plate . A storage unit that stacks and stores multiple plates,
A supply unit for supplying the lowermost plates of the storage unit one by one,
The plate inserted from the insertion/ejection port or the plate supplied from the supply unit is a conveyance unit that can convey the plate in the first conveyance direction toward the insertion/ejection port or in the second conveyance direction opposite thereto. There is provided a pair of transport members that abut on both side surfaces of the plate in a width direction orthogonal to the transport direction, and a transport unit that sandwiches and transports the plate by the pair of transport members,
A print unit that includes a print head that is swingable between a print position and a retracted position away from the print position, and that prints on the surface of the plate that is transported to the transport unit by the print head that has moved to the print position; ,
A detection sensor for detecting the transport position of the plate,
A control unit that controls the supply unit, the transport unit, and the printing unit;
The control unit is capable of switching between a first mode in which printing is performed on a plate inserted from the insertion and ejection port and a second mode in which printing is performed on a plate supplied from the storage unit,
In the first mode, when the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the plate inserted from the insertion/ejection port is moved to the print area of the plate based on the detection output of the detection sensor. The plate is printed in the second carrying direction until it exceeds the printing position, and thereafter, the carrying of the plate in the first carrying direction is started, and the printing of the plate is performed by the print head that has moved to the printing position. Perform printing on the area, control to eject the plate from the insertion outlet.
In the second mode, by transporting the plate supplied by the supply unit in the first transport direction by the transport unit, the print area of the plate is moved to the print position, and the print position is changed. By the print head moved to, the print area of the plate is printed, and the plate is discharged from the insertion discharge port .
The plate, in a partial region of the surface, the print region is provided over a range of a predetermined length from one end portion in the transport direction or the vicinity of the one end portion,
When printing is performed while being conveyed in the first conveying direction by the printing unit, in the first mode, the plate starts and ends with the one end where the printing area is provided as the leading end. Inserted from the outlet toward the second transport direction, in the second mode, with the one end portion as a head, is supplied from the supply unit toward the first transport direction,
In the first mode and the second mode, printing is performed while conveying in the first conveying direction, and the plate orientation is opposite in the first mode and the second mode. The printer controls the orientation of an image to be printed to match the orientation of the plate . The detection sensor is a reflective sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit,
The control unit determines whether the print area of the plate inserted from the insertion discharge port exceeds the print position due to a difference in the detection output of the detection sensor between the print area and the area other than the print area. The printer according to claim 4, wherein the printer determines. The pair of transport members includes a first transport member pair and a second transport member pair,
The first transport member pair is a plate-shaped member having opposing contact surfaces, and the first transport member pair holds the plate by the contact surfaces and also includes the first transport member. By moving the pair in the first transport direction, the plate is transported,
The printer according to claim 4 , wherein the second pair of transport members is a pair of transport rollers provided near the insertion/ejection port. A transport unit capable of transporting the plate in the first transport direction toward the insertion/ejection port or in the second transport direction opposite thereto, on both side surfaces in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the plate. A pair of conveying members that come into contact with each other, a conveying unit that sandwiches and conveys the plate by the pair of conveying members, and a print head that can swing between a printing position and a retracted position apart from the printing position. A printer control method comprising: a printing unit that prints on a printing area on the surface of the plate that is transported by the transport unit by the print head that has moved to the printing position; and a detection sensor that detects the transport position of the plate. There
When the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the plate inserted from the insertion discharge port is moved to the first position until the print area of the plate exceeds the print position based on the detection output of the detection sensor. The step (a) of carrying in the carrying direction of 2,
Starting step (b) of transporting the plate in the first transport direction;
By the print head has moved to the print position, and step (c) to be printed to the printing area of the plate,
Discharging the plate from the insertion and discharge port (d) ,
Only including,
In the plate, the print area is provided in a partial area of the surface over a range of a predetermined length from one end in the transport direction or the vicinity of the one end, and the plate is provided with the print area. Inserted from the insertion and ejection port, with the one end portion where the region is provided as a head,
The detection sensor is a reflective sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit,
In the step (a), a method of controlling a printer , wherein it is determined whether or not the print area exceeds the print position based on a difference in detection output of the detection sensor between the print area and areas other than the print area . An accommodating section for accommodating and accommodating a plurality of plates, a supply section for supplying the plates at the bottom of the accommodating section one by one, a plate inserted from an insertion/exhaust port, or a plate supplied from the supply section. Is a transport unit capable of transporting in a first transport direction toward the insertion/ejection port or in a second transport direction opposite thereto, on both side surfaces of the plate in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction. A pair of conveying members that come into contact with each other, a conveying unit that sandwiches and conveys the plate by the pair of conveying members, and a print head that can swing between a printing position and a retracted position apart from the printing position. A printer control method comprising: a printing unit that prints on the surface of the plate that is transported to the transport unit by the print head that has moved to the printing position; and a detection sensor that detects the transport position of the plate,
Step (a) of determining whether any one of a first mode for printing on the plate inserted from the insertion and ejection port and a second mode for printing on the plate supplied from the storage section is selected (a ) Is included,
When the first mode is selected,
When the print head is retracted to the retracted position, the plate inserted from the insertion/ejection port is moved until the print area of the plate exceeds the print position based on the detection output of the detection sensor. Transporting in the second transport direction (b) ,
Starting step (c) of transporting the plate in the first transport direction;
Printing (d) on the print area of the plate by the print head moved to the print position;
Performing step (e) of ejecting the plate from the insertion outlet,
When the second mode is selected,
A step (f) of transporting the plate supplied by the supply unit in the first transport direction by the transport unit, and moving a print area of the plate to the print position;
By the print head has moved to the print position, the step (g) to be printed to the printing area of the plate,
Performing step (h) of ejecting the plate from the insertion outlet,
The plate, in a partial region of the surface, the print region is provided over a range of a predetermined length from one end in the transport direction or the vicinity of the one end,
When printing is performed while being conveyed in the first conveying direction by the printing unit, in the first mode, the plate is inserted and ejected with the one end where the printing area is provided as a head. Inserted from the outlet toward the second transport direction, in the second mode, with the one end portion as a head, is supplied from the supply unit toward the first transport direction,
In the step (d) and the step (g), printing is performed while being conveyed in the first conveying direction, and in the steps (d) and (g), the plate orientation is opposite and the printing is performed. Align the orientation of the image with the orientation of the plate,
How to control the printer.