JPH06286266A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make a printer compact by effectively utilizing part of the space in a transfer device transferring recording papers as a storing space for a printing head when the printer is not used. CONSTITUTION:A paper feed roller 9 is set at a main body 1a of a case, and a printing head 20 is arranged in a lid body 1b via a prescribed distance from a transfer path for a recording paper 2. The recording paper 2 is printed in this constitution. The lid body 1b is axially supported to the main body 1a to be openable/closable. A head storing part 33 is formed in the main body 1a corresponding to a stopping position of the printing head 20 when printing is not conducted. When the printer is not used, the printing head 20 is stored in the head storing part 33 intruding in the transfer path for the recording paper 2 by the closing action of the lid body 1b. Therefore, the lid body 1b is closed to a position where it overlaps with the main body 1a in the horizontal direction, and the apparatus is folded compactly.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printer that prints information such as symbols.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a printer, a conveying path for a recording medium and a print head facing the conveying path are provided in a printer case, and the print head prints information such as characters, numbers and symbols on the recording medium. It has become.

By the way, personal computers, word processors, and the like have been designed to be portable, and accordingly, printers have also been desired to be portable.

[0004]

However, in a printer, it is necessary to secure an installation space for the recording medium transport path and the print head so that the print head faces the recording medium transport path, which is a small size. However, there is a problem that it becomes bulky when it is not used, such as when it is carried.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a printer that can be made compact when not in use, such as when it is carried.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a print head for printing information such as characters, numbers and symbols on a recording medium and a recording medium conveying device are provided in a printer case, and the conveying device prints. In a printer provided with a conveyance path for guiding the recording medium in a direction orthogonal to the print line of the head and a feeding means for feeding the recording medium along the conveyance path,
The printer case is composed of a first case and a second case that are relatively displaceable between a closed position and an open position, and printing is performed on one of the first case and the second case. The head is provided and a carrying device is provided on the other side. When the first case and the second case are relatively closed, the print head enters the carrying path for guiding the recording medium. When the first case and the second case are stored in the position, and the first case and the second case are relatively open, the print head is located at the regular position facing the conveyance path for guiding the recording medium.

[0007]

According to the present invention, by relatively opening the first case and the second case, the print head is located at the regular position facing the conveying path for guiding the recording medium, and along the conveying path. Information such as letters, numbers, and symbols can be printed on the recording medium fed by the printer. If the first case and the second case are relatively closed, the print head has entered the conveyance path for guiding the recording medium. A part of the space of the transport device for the recording medium, which is stored in the position, is effectively used as the storage space of the print head, which makes the device compact.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the printer case 1 includes a box-shaped case body 1a as a first case,
It is composed of a lid 1b as a second case, which is leaned on the upper part thereof in a half-opened state.
The recording paper 2 as a recording medium is inserted between the lid 1b and the case body 1a from the front side (the right side in FIG. 2) which is the opening side of b. On the back side (left side in FIG. 2) of the printer case 1, a case body 1a and a lid 1b are provided.
A sheet discharge port 3 is formed between the recording sheet 2 and the recording sheet 2, and after printing, the printed recording sheet 2 is discharged through the sheet discharge port 3.

Hinge pins 4 that rotatably support one end of the lid 1b are attached to both sides of the case body 1a, and engaging projections that click-engage with the lid 1b near the hinge pins 4 are attached. 5 is integrally formed, and the lid 1b is held in a half-opened state by the engaging projections 5.

The case main body 1a is constructed so that the upper surface thereof can guide the recording paper 2. The recording paper 2 is printed while being conveyed on the upper surface of the case main body 1a at the time of printing, and the printed recording paper 2 after printing. Are transported on the upper surface of the case body 1a and discharged through the paper discharge port 3.

The upper surface of the case body 1a is a substantially flat horizontal surface so that the recording paper 2 can be conveyed horizontally and without being caught. An elongated rectangular opening 8 is formed on the upper surface of the case body 1a in a direction orthogonal to the recording paper 2 conveyance direction. The opening 8 extends in a direction perpendicular to the recording paper 2 conveyance direction. A paper feeding roller 9 is attached as a feeding means for stretching the paper.

The paper feed roller 9 is composed of a drive roller 9a and a driven roller 9b that is pressed against the drive roller 9a, and the recording paper 2 can be nipped and conveyed by both rollers 9a and 9b. Both ends of the driven roller 9b are axially supported by a bearing 10 mounted on the upper surface of the case body 1a and are pressed against the drive roller 9a at a position slightly above the upper surface of the case body 1a. The recording paper 2 is inserted between the drive roller 9a and the driven roller 9b through the space between the lid body 1b and the case body 1a (from the right side in FIG. 2), and then the drive roller 9a and the driven roller 9 are inserted.
The recording paper 2 is conveyed horizontally on the upper surface of the case body 1a by b. Both ends of the drive roller 9a are rotatably supported by a frame (not shown) inside the case body 1a.

The rib 1 is provided on the upper surface of the case body 1a.
1 is protrudingly formed, and a slide knob 12,
The operation switch 13 and the indicator light 14 are attached. A plurality of ribs 11 are arranged side by side at a predetermined interval in a direction orthogonal to the recording paper 2 conveyance direction, and these ribs are extended in the recording paper 2 conveyance direction so that the recording paper 2 can be conveyed when the recording paper 2 is conveyed. It is configured to prevent the case body 1a from being closely attached to the upper surface by static electricity or the like. A plurality of slide knobs 12 are arranged side by side in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 2, and these are provided so as to be slidable and used as an initial setting switch. The slide knobs 12 are provided between the ribs 11 so as not to project above the ribs 11 and do not hinder the conveyance of the recording paper 2. The operation switch 13 is used as a printing operation switch, and the indicator lamp 14 is also used as a printing operation indicator lamp, both of which are provided on the side of the conveyance path of the recording paper 2.
It does not interfere with the transportation of.

Inside the case body 1a, a paper feed motor 15, a control circuit board 16 constituting an electric device, and a battery 17 are attached. Paper feed motor 15
Is attached to a frame (not shown) at one end side on the side where the operation switch 13 and the indicator light 14 are attached. The paper feed motor 15 can rotate the drive roller 9a via a deceleration mechanism (not shown), and receives the drive force to drive the paper feed roller 9 during printing.

The control circuit board 16 is attached to the bottom wall of the case body 1a via fixing means (not shown). The control circuit board 16 includes a circuit device 1 such as a CPU and a transformer.
8 is mounted and is used for controlling print drive. The control circuit board 16 is provided on the bottom wall of the case body 1a so as to extend over almost the entire area, and the circuit device 1 is provided in the middle portion.
Tall devices out of eight are centrally arranged.

The battery 17 is used as a power source for printing drive. The battery 17 is attached above one end of the control circuit board 16 so as not to overlap with a tall device of the circuit devices 18 in a plane, and the tall device of the circuit device 18 is positioned laterally. Has been done. A battery lid 19 is removably attached above the battery 17, and the battery 17 can be detached by removing the battery lid 19 as needed.
The battery lid 19 constitutes a part of the upper surface of the case body 1a, and a part of the plurality of ribs 11 is formed to project and the slide knob 12 is attached.

On the other hand, the lid 1b has arms 1c on both sides.
Are integrally formed, and the tip of the arm 1c is rotatably supported by the case body 1a via the hinge pin 4 and the engaging projection 5 is engaged with the middle portion of the arm 1c to allow the case body 1a to move. It is held half open at the top. The engagement state between the arm 1c and the engagement protrusion 5 is released by pushing down the free end side end of the lid 1b.

The case body 1a is provided on the back surface of the lid 1b.
A print head 20 is attached so as to face the upper surface of the recording paper 2 at a predetermined distance, and the recording paper 2 is printed by the print head 20. That is, the print head 20 is attached to the back surface of the lid 1b so as to face the transport path of the recording paper 2 at a predetermined distance upstream of the paper feed roller 9. In this embodiment, the print head 20 is an inkjet type, and ink is supplied from an ink tank 21 (shown in FIG. 3).
The print head 20 is mounted on a carrier 22 together with an ink tank 21.

The carrier 22 has a head fixing lever 23.
The print head 20 is detachably attached by the head fixing lever 23. The carrier 22 is supported by a lid 1b via a guide shaft 24 so as to be movable in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 2 and to be changeable in posture. That is, the guide shaft 24 extending in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the recording paper 2 on the lid 1b.
Is attached to the carrier 22, and the guide 22 is slidably and rotatably fitted on the carrier 22.
a is formed, and the carrier 22 is guided by the guide shaft 24 so as to be movable in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 2 and the posture thereof can be changed around the guide shaft 24.

The carrier 22 has a paper feed roller 9
Engaging portion 22 slidably engaged with the driven roller 9b
b is formed, and the engagement of the engaging portion 22b with the driven roller 9b holds the print head 20 in a predetermined posture facing the conveyance path of the recording paper 2 at a predetermined distance, and in this posture, the guide shaft 24 and the driven shaft are driven. Guided by the roller 9b, it can move in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 2. A link 25 is provided between the guide shaft 24 and the driven roller 9b to connect one ends of the guide roller 24 and the driven roller 9b. The link 25 ensures the space between them and the parallelism therebetween so that the carrier 22 can be smoothly guided. ing. The engagement state of the engagement portion 22b with the driven roller 9b is the carrier 2
2 can be released by changing the posture of the guide 2 around the guide shaft 24 in the counterclockwise direction in FIG.

A drive piece 26 is engaged with the carrier 21 on the side fitted with the guide shaft 24, and a moving force is applied through the drive piece 26. That is, a pair of fitting portions 22 a of the carrier 21 with the guide shaft 24 are provided at a predetermined interval, and the pair of fitting portions 2 a are provided.
As shown in FIG. 3, a drive piece 26 is slidably and rotatably engaged with the guide shaft 24 between 2a.

The driving piece 26 is locked to a part of a timing belt 29, and a moving force can be applied to the carrier 21 via the timing belt 29. The timing belt 29 is provided with a lid 1b via a pulley (not shown).
It is attached to the back surface of the carrier and is rotationally driven by the driving force of the carrier motor 31 via a reduction mechanism (not shown) so that a moving force can be applied to the driving piece 26. The carrier motor 31 has the carrier 2 on the back surface of the lid 1b.
It is attached to the side of the moving path of 1.

The driving piece 26 has a roller 2 at one end.
7 is rotatably supported, and one end of a tension coil spring 28 is locked to the other end. The tension coil spring 28 includes a carrier 21 and a driving piece 26.
2 and the roller 27 is pressed against the back surface of the lid 1b to hold the driving piece 26 in a predetermined posture around the guide shaft 24 and the carrier 22 around the guide shaft 24.
Is urged in the clockwise direction to engage the driven roller 9b with the engaging portion 22b.
Holds the engaged state of. That is, by changing the posture of the carrier 22 around the guide shaft 24 in the counterclockwise direction of FIG. 2 against the spring force of the tension coil spring 28, the engagement state of the engagement portion 22b with the driven roller 9b is released. It has become so. In addition, on the back surface of the lid 1b,
A flat plate-shaped plate 30 is fixed in parallel with the guide shaft 24, and the roller 27 is pressed against the plate 30.

Therefore, at the time of printing, the recording paper 2 is inserted from the front side (right side in FIG. 2) of the printer case 1 between the drive roller 9a and the driven roller 9b through the space between the lid body 1b and the case body 1a. After that, the recording paper 2 is horizontally conveyed on the upper surface of the case body 1a by the drive roller 9a and the driven roller 9b, and is printed by the print head 20. During the printing operation, the print head 20 is orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the recording paper 2. After the printing, the printed recording paper 2 is conveyed on the upper surface of the case body 1a and discharged through the paper discharge port 3.

A sensor 35 facing the slide knob 12 is attached to the print head 20, and the slide position of the slide knob 12 is read by the sensor 35 to be initialized. The print head 20 is stopped at a predetermined position shown in FIG. 1 after printing, and is positioned at a predetermined stop position shown in FIG. 1 when not printing. In addition, the print head 20 is connected to the control circuit board 16 via the connector 36.
Is connected to the flat cable 37, and a signal for print control is sent through the flat cable 37. In addition, the flat cable 37
A wide portion 37a is formed in the middle of the
The operation switch 13 and the indicator lamp 14 are connected to a, so that the operation switch 13 operates as a printing operation switch, and the indicator lamp 14 operates as a printing operation indicator lamp.

In the printer configured as described above,
As shown in FIG. 4, the lid 1b is closed so as to be horizontally overlapped with the upper portion of the case body 1a when not in use such as when being carried and compactly folded.

That is, the guide shaft 24 is slidably attached to the lid body 1b so that the link 25 does not hinder the rotation operation of the lid body 1b around the hinge pin 4, and the end portion of the lid body 1b on the free end side. By pushing down, the engagement state between the arm 1c and the engagement protrusion 5 is released, and the lid body 1b can be closed in a direction in which the lid body 1b horizontally overlaps with the upper portion of the case body 1a.

On the upper surface of the case body 1a, the lid 1
The motor storage portion 32 is formed in a concave shape corresponding to the mounting portion of the carrier motor 31 to b, and the head storage portion corresponds to the stop position (position shown in FIG. 1) of the print head 20 during non-printing. 33 is formed in a concave shape, and when the lid 1b is closed at the time of non-printing, the carrier motor 31 is stored in the motor storage portion 32 in a state where the carrier motor 31 enters the conveyance path of the recording paper 2, and at the same time, the print head 20 moves the carrier 21. At the same time, the recording paper 2 is stored in the head storage unit 33 in a state where the recording paper 2 has entered the conveyance path.

The battery 17 and the tall circuit device 1 are also provided.
The mounting position of 8 is the motor storage part 32 and the head storage part 3
When the carrier motor 31 is stored in the motor storage portion 32 and the print head 20 and the carrier 21 are stored in the head storage portion 33, the carrier motor 31, the print head 20, and the carrier 21 does not interfere with the battery 17 or the tall circuit device 18. Further, a cutout portion 16a is formed in a portion of the control circuit board 16 corresponding to the head storage portion 33 so that the depth of the recess of the head storage portion 33 can be secured and the print head 20 can be stored as much as possible. As a result, the lid 1b can be closed to a position where the lid 1b horizontally overlaps with the upper portion of the case body 1a.

The size of the head storage portion 33 is set so that the print head 20 and the carrier 21 can be stored without rattling when the lid 1b is closed. Further, an engaging claw 1d is integrally formed on the end of the lid 1b on the side opposite to the shaft support side of the case body 1a, and the case 1a is closed to a position where the lid 1b is horizontally overlapped. Occasionally, the engaging claw 1d snaps into engagement with the engagement hole 6 (see FIG.
Is formed in order to prevent the lid body 1b from being inadvertently opened by the engagement of the engagement claw 1d with the engagement hole 6 when the lid body 1b is closed to a position where the lid body 1b is horizontally overlapped. There is.

Next, the operation will be described. When not in use such as when being carried, the print head 20 is located at the non-printing stop position shown in FIG. 1, and in this state the tension coil spring 28
2 against the spring force of the carrier 22, the carrier 22 is rotated around the guide shaft 24 in the counterclockwise direction to release the engaged state of the engaging portion 22b of the carrier 22 from the driven roller 9b. When the free end of the body 1b is pushed down, the engagement between the engagement protrusion 5 and the arm 1c is released, and the lid 1 is released.
b is horizontally closed on the upper part of the case main body 1a, and by this operation, the print head 20 is housed in the head housing 33 together with the carrier 21 in the transport path of the recording paper 2, and the carrier motor 31 is also housed. The recording paper 2 is stored in the motor storage portion 32 in a state where the recording paper 2 has entered the conveyance path, and as a result, the lid body 1b is removed from the case body 1 as shown in FIG.
It is closed to a position where it horizontally overlaps with the upper part of a and is folded compactly. In this folded state, the engaging claw 1d of the lid 1b engages with the engaging hole 6 of the case body 1a, and the lid 1
b does not open carelessly.

From this folded state, if the end of the lid 1b on the free end side is pulled up, the engaging claw 1d of the lid 2 is pulled.
And the engagement state of the case body 1a with the engagement hole 6 are released, the lid 1b is opened obliquely to the upper part of the case body 1a, and this operation causes the print head 20 together with the carrier 21 to be withdrawn from the head storage portion 33. At the same time, the carrier motor 31 is pulled out from the motor storage portion 32. Then, the engagement protrusion 5 and the arm 1c are engaged with each other so that the lid body 1b becomes the case body 1a.
1b to the position where it can be leaned against the top of
1 is opened, the carrier motor 31 faces the conveyance path of the recording paper 2 at a predetermined distance, and the tension of the tension coil spring 28 causes the carrier 22 to engage the driven roller 9b. The joining portion 22b is engaged to allow the print head 20 to move in a direction orthogonal to the paper feed direction in a predetermined posture with a predetermined distance from the conveyance path of the recording paper 2, whereby printing can be performed.

Therefore, when not in use, such as when being carried, the conveyance path of the recording paper 2 is effectively used as a storage space for the print head 20 and the carrier 21, and it can be folded compactly without being bulky when it is carried. It's convenient. In particular, since the mounting positions of the battery 17 and the tall circuit device 18 are set to the side of the head storage portion 33, the print head 20 is positioned to the side of the battery 17 and the tall circuit device 18 in the folded state. And print head 2
The movement path of 0 is effectively used, and it can be folded compactly without wasting more space.

In the above embodiment, the lid 1b is rotatably attached to the case body 1a, but as shown in FIG. 5, the lid body 1b is not attached to the case body 1a, and a pantograph-type connector or the like is not shown. Therefore, the height may be variable. According to this structure, the guide shaft 24 is fixed to the lid 1b, and no member such as a link for connecting the guide shaft 24 and the driven roller 9b is provided between the guide shaft 24 and the driven roller 9b. As a result, the lid 1b is variably mounted by a pantograph-type connector or the like. Further, the lid 1b is held by a holding means (not shown) at the open position shown by the solid line and the closed position shown by the chain double-dashed line. Then, in the state where the lid body 1b is held at the open position shown by the solid line, the paper feed gap 4 is provided between the case body 1a and the lid body 1b.
0 and a paper discharge gap 41 are formed, and the print head 20 can face the conveyance path of the recording paper 2 with a predetermined gap therebetween for printing, and the lid 1b is held at the closed position indicated by the chain double-dashed line. In this state, the battery 17 inside the case body 1a is in a state in which the print head 20 and the carrier 21 have entered the conveyance path of the recording paper 2 in the same manner as in the above embodiment.
It is designed to be stored in the side part of the.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the electric device such as the control circuit board 16 and the battery 17 is attached to the case body 1a provided with the conveyance path for the recording paper 2, but for example, the print head 20 is attached. You may make it attach electric devices, such as the control circuit board 16 and the battery 17, to the cover body 1b.

Further, in the above embodiment, the recording paper 2 is conveyed horizontally along the upper surface of the case body 1a.
A round platen may be attached to the case main body 1a, and the recording paper 2 may be wound around the round platen and conveyed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the printer is a so-called horizontal type has been described, but it is of course possible to apply to a so-called vertical type printer.

In the above embodiment, the battery 17 is used as the power source, but an AC power source circuit may be provided in the mounting portion of the battery 17 so that the battery 17 can be driven by the AC power source.

Further, although the ink jet type is used as the print head 20 in the above embodiment, it is not limited to this and it is also possible to apply an impact type or a thermal transfer type print head.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, an example in which the print head 20 is applied to a serial printer in which the print head 20 moves in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording paper 2 at the time of printing has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a line printer or the like. Of course, it can be applied to the printers of other printing methods.

[0041]

As described above, according to the present invention,
When not in use, such as when carrying it, part of the space for the recording medium transport device can be used effectively as a print head storage space, allowing it to be folded compactly, which is convenient and not bulky when carried. It has the excellent effect of being.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view around a print head.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a folded state corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Printer Case 1a Case Main Body (First Case) 1b Lid (Second Case) 2 Recording Paper (Recording Medium) 9 Paper Feed Roller (Feeding Means) 16 Control Circuit Board (Electric Device) 17 Battery (Electric Device) ) 18 circuit device (electrical device) 20 print head

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A print head for printing information such as letters, numbers and symbols on a recording medium and a conveying device for the recording medium are provided in a printer case, and the conveying device has a print line for the print head. In a printer provided with a conveyance path for guiding the recording medium in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance path and a feeding means for feeding the recording medium along the conveyance path, the printer case has a closed position and an open position. It is configured by a first case and a second case that are relatively displaceable with respect to a position, and the print head is provided on one of the first case and the second case, and On the other side, the carrying device is provided, and when the first case and the second case are relatively closed, the print head is stored at the position where the print head has entered the carrying path. the above Printer and 1 case and the second case is when it is in an open state relatively, the print head is characterized in that located in the normal position facing the conveying path. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein an electric device for printing drive is provided on the other of the first case and the second case. 3. The printer according to claim 2, wherein the electric device is a power source such as a battery or a circuit device for controlling print driving.