CN108687831B

CN108687831B - Cutting mechanism

Info

Publication number: CN108687831B
Application number: CN201810250014.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 松永英树; 矢岛康司
Original assignee: Seiko Epson Corp
Current assignee: Seiko Epson Corp
Priority date: 2017-03-29
Filing date: 2018-03-26
Publication date: 2022-04-08
Anticipated expiration: 2038-03-26
Also published as: US20180282104A1; JP7069554B2; CN108687831A; JP2018167332A

Abstract

The invention provides a cutting mechanism capable of cutting a medium with high precision. The cutting mechanism includes: a cutter blade (51) capable of cutting the medium; a cutter unit (70) to which a cutter blade is attached; and a rack (64) which supports the cutter unit and is configured in such a manner that the cutter blade cuts the medium by the cutter unit moving in the traveling direction along the guide rail, wherein the cutter unit includes a second pinion (92) and a fourth roller (84) which are in contact with the guide rail so as to be held by the guide rail, and the second pinion and the fourth roller are arranged so as to sandwich the cutter blade in the traveling direction.

Description

Cutting mechanism

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a cutting mechanism provided in a recording apparatus such as a printer.

Background

As an example of a recording apparatus, there is a printer including a cutting mechanism that cuts a medium on which an image such as characters or a photograph is recorded into a desired size. Patent document 1 describes, as an example of the cutting mechanism, a mechanism for cutting the roll paper by moving a cutter unit provided with a rotary blade along a guide rail.

[ Prior art documents ]

[ patent document ]

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2016-55379

In the cutting device described in patent document 1, for example, due to the manner of attaching the cutter unit to the guide rail, when the cutter unit moves along the guide rail, there is a possibility that the cutter unit may be shaken. If the cutter unit is shaken, the medium may not be cut accurately.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a cutting mechanism capable of cutting a medium with high precision.

The technical means for solving the above problems and the operational effects thereof are described below.

The cutting mechanism for solving the problems comprises: a cutter blade capable of cutting the medium; a cutter unit to which the cutter blade is attached; and a guide rail that supports the cutter unit, wherein the cutter blade is configured to cut the medium by moving the cutter unit in a traveling direction along the guide rail, wherein the cutter unit includes a first holding portion and a second holding portion that are in contact with the guide rail to be held by the guide rail, and wherein the first holding portion and the second holding portion are arranged to sandwich the cutter blade in the traveling direction.

When the cutter unit moves in the traveling direction to cut the medium, a moment for rotating the cutter unit about a cutting position of the cutter blade on the medium as a fulcrum is generated in the cutter unit. According to the above configuration, since the first holding portion and the second holding portion are disposed so as to sandwich the cutter blade, it is possible to reduce rattling of the cutter unit caused by rotation about the cutting position as a fulcrum. Therefore, the medium can be cut with high accuracy.

In the above cutting mechanism, it is preferable that the first holding portion and the second holding portion are disposed so as to sandwich the guide rail.

According to this configuration, since the first holding portion and the second holding portion are arranged so as to sandwich the guide rail, the rattling of the cutter unit can be reduced.

In the above-described cutting mechanism, it is preferable that the first holding portion is disposed rearward of the cutter blade in the traveling direction, and the cutting mechanism is configured such that a distance between the first holding portion and the cutter blade in the traveling direction is larger than a distance between the second holding portion and the cutter blade in the traveling direction.

According to this configuration, since the first holding portion is disposed at a position of the cutter blade farther from the second holding portion in the traveling direction, the rattling of the cutter unit can be further reduced.

In the above-described cutting mechanism, it is preferable that the guide rail is formed of a rack, the cutter unit includes a drive gear disposed so as to mesh with the rack, the drive gear rotates by meshing with the rack when the cutter unit moves in the traveling direction, and the cutter blade rotates by the drive gear when the cutter unit moves in the traveling direction.

According to this configuration, the cutter blade can be rotated to easily cut the medium.

In the cutting mechanism, it is preferable that the first holding portion is formed of a pinion gear capable of meshing with the rack.

According to this configuration, since the pinion gear as the first holding portion is engaged with the rack, the rattling of the cutter unit can be reduced as compared with a case where the first holding portion is a roller, for example.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a side view schematically showing an internal structure of an embodiment of a recording apparatus including a cutting mechanism.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the cutting mechanism.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the cutting mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a side view of the cutting mechanism.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the cutting mechanism.

Description of the symbols

A 50 … cutting device, a 51 … cutter blade, a 52 … driving blade, a 53 … driven blade, a 60 … guide frame, a 61 … bottom wall, a 62 … front wall, a 64 … rack (guide rail), 65 … teeth, a 66 … groove, a 67 … bottom surface, a 70 … cutter unit, a 71 … holding body, a 73 … medium passage, a 74 … inlet, a 75 … rod, a 81 … first roller, a 82 … second roller, an 83 … third roller, a 84 … fourth roller (second holding portion), an 85 … fifth roller, a 91 … first pinion (drive gear), a 92 … second pinion (first holding portion), 93 … teeth, 94 … teeth, an HP … initial position, a Q … cutting position, S … medium, an X … width direction, a Y … conveying direction, and a Z … vertical direction.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a recording apparatus including a cutting mechanism will be described with reference to the drawings.

As shown in fig. 1, the recording apparatus 11 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing 12. The recording apparatus 11 includes, in a housing 12: the recording unit 20 for recording images such as characters and photographs on the medium S, and the first support member 31 and the second support member 32 for supporting the medium S. The recording device 11 includes, in the housing 12: a conveying unit 40 that conveys the medium S, and a cutting mechanism 50 that cuts the medium S recorded by the recording unit 20. That is, the recording section 20, the first supporting member 31, the second supporting member 32, the conveying section 40, and the cutting mechanism 50 are housed in the housing 12.

A winding roll body R, which is formed by winding a medium S, for example, a sheet of paper, in a stacked manner, is disposed in the housing 12. The roll body R is disposed rearward in the right frame 12 in fig. 1. The roll body R is rotatably supported by a shaft 13 provided to extend in the width direction X of the medium S. In the present embodiment, the shaft 13 rotates counterclockwise in fig. 1, and the medium S is fed from the winding roller body R. The discharged medium S is conveyed by the conveying unit 40, passes through the discharge port 15 opened in the front surface 14 of the housing 12, and is discharged from the inside of the housing 12 to the outside of the housing 12. That is, in the present embodiment, a direction from the rear to the front of the housing 12, and a direction from the right to the left in fig. 2, is a conveyance direction Y of the medium S conveyed by the conveyance unit 40. The front surface 14 of the housing 12 is a surface having expansions in the vertical direction Z and the width direction X.

The recording section 20 includes: for example, a head 21 for ejecting a liquid such as ink onto the medium S, and a carriage 22 on which the head 21 is mounted. The carriage 22 is supported by a frame 16 provided in the housing 12 and a guide shaft 17 attached to the frame 16. The guide shaft 17 extends in the width direction X of the medium S. The carriage 22 is movable along the guide shaft 17. That is, the carriage 22 can move in the width direction X. The head 21 is moved along the guide shaft 17 by the carriage 22, and can eject the liquid onto the medium S over the entire region in the width direction X.

The first support member 31 and the second support member 32 are plate-shaped members. The first support member 31 is disposed upstream of the second support member 32 in the transport direction Y, and guides the medium S fed from the roll body R toward the recording unit 20. The second support member 32 is disposed so as to face the head 21 of the recording unit 20.

The transport unit 40 transports the medium S discharged from the winding roller body R from the inside of the housing 12 to the discharge port 15 along the first support member 31 and the second support member 32. The conveying section 40 includes, in order from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveying direction Y: a first conveying roller pair 41, a second conveying roller pair 42, a third conveying roller pair 43, and a fourth conveying roller pair 44. The first conveying roller pair 41 is disposed upstream of the head 21 in the conveying direction Y and between the first support member 31 and the second support member 32. The second conveying roller pair 42, the third conveying roller pair 43, and the fourth conveying roller pair 44 are disposed downstream of the head 21 in the conveying direction Y.

The first conveying roller pair 41, the second conveying roller pair 42, the third conveying roller pair 43, and the fourth conveying roller pair 44 include: a drive roller 45 which can be rotationally driven by a motor not shown, and a driven roller 46 which can be driven to rotate relative to the rotation of the drive roller 45. The first conveyance roller pair 41, the second conveyance roller pair 42, the third conveyance roller pair 43, and the fourth conveyance roller pair 44 convey the medium S by rotating in a state where the drive roller 45 and the driven roller 46 sandwich the medium S. The drive roller 45 is disposed so as to contact the medium S from below. The driven roller 46 is disposed so as to contact the medium S from above. That is, the driven rollers 46 of the second conveying roller pair 42, the third conveying roller pair 43, and the fourth conveying roller pair 44 are in contact with the surface on which the liquid is ejected onto the medium S when the medium S is conveyed. Therefore, the driven rollers 46 of the second conveying roller pair 42, the third conveying roller pair 43, and the fourth conveying roller pair 44 are configured by a star wheel or the like having a small contact area with the medium S in order to reduce deterioration in quality of an image recorded on the medium S. The first conveyor roller pair 41, the second conveyor roller pair 42, the third conveyor roller pair 43, and the fourth conveyor roller pair 44 are arranged in plurality at predetermined intervals in the width direction X.

The cutting mechanism 50 is disposed between the third conveying roller pair 43 and the fourth conveying roller pair 44 in the conveying direction Y. The medium S cut by the cutting mechanism 50 is conveyed by the fourth conveying roller pair 44 and discharged from the discharge port 15. The recording device 11 in the present embodiment is configured such that the user cannot insert a hand from the discharge port 15 into the housing 12, and the interval in the vertical direction Z of the opening of the discharge port 15 is relatively small.

The recording apparatus 11 in the present embodiment is generally used in a state of being installed on a horizontally extending floor surface. The housing 12 of the recording apparatus 11 is preferably provided so that the front surface 14 thereof intersects the ground, and is preferably formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape in which the front surface 14 thereof is orthogonal to the ground. In this case, an orthogonal coordinate system including three axes of the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis is considered, and the coordinate system is configured such that the floor surface on which the recording device 11 is installed is a plane including the X axis and the Y axis, and the front surface 14 of the housing 12 is a plane including the X axis and the Z axis. Then, the width direction X coincides with the direction in which the X axis extends, the transport direction Y coincides with the direction in which the Y axis extends, and the vertical direction Z coincides with the direction in which the Z axis extends. An X axis extending in the width direction X, a Y axis extending in the conveyance direction Y, and a Z axis extending in the vertical direction Z are orthogonal to each other. That is, in the present embodiment, the width direction X, the conveyance direction Y, and the vertical direction Z show three different directions.

Next, the cutting device 50 will be explained.

As shown in fig. 2, the cutting device 50 includes: a cutter blade 51 for cutting the medium S, a cutter unit 70 to which the cutter blade 51 is attached, and a guide frame 60 supporting the cutter unit 70. The guide frame 60 extends in the width direction X to have a longer dimension than the winding roller body R that can house the recording apparatus 11. That is, the longitudinal direction of the guide frame 60 coincides with the width direction X. The cutter unit 70 is capable of reciprocating along the guide frame 60. The cutter mechanism 50 is configured to cut the medium S by the cutter blade 51 by moving the cutter unit 70 along the guide frame 60. For convenience of explanation, the left side in fig. 2 is defined as + X side and the right side opposite thereto is defined as-X side in the width direction X. In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 2, the end portion on the + X side in the width direction X of the guide frame 60 is the home position HP of the cutter unit 70.

The guide frame 60 is formed by bending a metal plate material. The guide frame 60 is formed in a claw shape when viewed from the width direction X. The guide frame 60 includes: a bottom wall 61, and a front wall 62 and a rear wall 63 extending in an upwardly curved manner from the bottom wall 61. The front wall 62 is located downstream of the rear wall 63 in the conveyance direction Y, and extends from the bottom wall 61 so as to be shorter than the rear wall 63 in the vertical direction Z.

The guide frame 60 includes a rack 64 extending in the width direction X. The rack 64 is attached to a surface on the downstream side in the conveyance direction Y on the rear wall 63 of the guide frame 60. The rack 64 is disposed along the upper edge of the rear wall 63, and is provided so that the length in the width direction X is slightly shorter than the guide frame 60. The rack 64 has teeth 65 in the width direction X at a portion that becomes the lower side thereof. The rack 64 has a groove 66 for guiding the movement of the cutter unit 70 in the width direction X at a portion that becomes the upper side thereof.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the cutter unit 70 includes: a holding body 71 for holding the cutter blade 51, and a moving body 72 held by the guide frame 60. The cutter unit 70 shown in fig. 2 and 3 is located at the home position HP. The holding body 71 and the moving body 72 are fixed to each other so as to be integrally treated. The holding body 71 and the moving body 72 are fixed so that a part of them overlap each other when viewed in the conveyance direction Y. More specifically, the holding body 71 and the moving body 72 are arranged such that a lower portion of the holding body 71 and an upper portion of the moving body 72 overlap each other in the vertical direction Z.

The holding body 71 is attached to a surface on the downstream side in the transport direction Y of the moving body 72. The holding body 71 has a medium passage 73 extending in the width direction X at a position above the moving body 72 in the vertical direction Z. The medium passage 73 is a passage for passing the medium S through the holding body 71 when the cutter unit 70 moves in the width direction X along the guide frame 60. The medium passage 73 has a portion on the-X side in the width direction X as an inlet 74 for introducing the medium S into the medium passage 73. The inlet 74 is configured to easily introduce the medium S into the medium passage 73 as follows: the opening degree in the vertical direction Z in the width direction X is gradually increased from the + X side to the-X side.

The holder 71 holds the cutter blade 51 at a position in the middle of the medium passage 73. That is, when the cutter unit 70 moves in the width direction X, the medium passage 73 guides the medium S to the cutter blade 51. The cutter blade 51 is disposed on the + X side of the inlet 74 in the width direction X and is positioned adjacent to the inlet 74. The cutter blade 51 is composed of a disk-shaped driving blade 52 and a driven blade 53. The driving blade 52 and the driven blade 53 are rotatably attached to the holding body 71. The driving blade 52 and the driven blade 53 are provided so as to be aligned in the vertical direction Z, and are disposed so as to sandwich the medium passage 73. The driving blade 52 is located below the driven blade 53 in the vertical direction Z, and is located downstream of the driven blade 53 in the transport direction Y.

The cutter blade 51 is held by the holding body 71 in a state where a cutting edge of an upper portion of the driving blade 52 and a cutting edge of a lower portion of the driven blade 53 overlap each other when viewed in the conveyance direction Y. The cutting edge of the driving blade 52 and the cutting edge of the driven blade 53 contact each other at a cutting position Q at a position closer to the-X side in the width direction X in a portion where the cutting edges overlap each other. The driving blade 52 in the present embodiment is held by the holding body 71 in a posture in which the rotation axis thereof is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the driven blade 53 extending in the conveying direction Y. The cutter blade 51 cuts the medium S at a cutting position Q at which the cutting edges of the driving blade 52 and the driven blade 53 contact each other by the rotation of the driving blade 52 and the driven blade 53. That is, when the cutter unit 70 moves from the + X side to the-X side in the width direction X, the cutter mechanism 50 cuts the medium S passing through the medium passage 73 by pinching the medium S passing through the medium passage 73 by the rotating drive blade 52 and the driven blade 53. In the present embodiment, the direction from the + X side toward the-X side in the width direction X is set as the traveling direction in which the cutter unit 70 travels when the cutter blade 51 cuts the medium S. That is, in the cutter unit 70, the + X side in the width direction X becomes the rear side in the traveling direction, and the-X side in the width direction X becomes the front side in the traveling direction. The cutting mechanism 50 in the present embodiment cuts the medium S by moving from the + X side to the-X side in the width direction X, and then returns to the home position HP by moving from the-X side to the + X side.

The holding body 71 has a rod 75 at its upper portion for connecting the carriage 22 of the recording unit 20 and the cutter unit 70. The lever 75 can be engaged with an engagement portion, not shown, provided on the carriage 22, such as a claw extending from the carriage 22. That is, the cutter unit 70 is coupled to the carriage 22 via the lever 75, and is movable in the width direction X in accordance with the movement of the carriage 22. Further, the lever 75 is constituted in the following manner: the engagement state with the engagement portion and the release state without engagement with the engagement portion can be switched by an actuator, a motor, or the like. In the present embodiment, for example, when the recording unit 20 records on the medium S, the lever 75 is in the release state, and when the cutting mechanism 50 cuts the medium S, the lever 75 is in the engagement state. When the lever 75 is in the released state, the cutter unit 70 does not move in accordance with the movement of the carriage 22, and when the lever 75 is in the engaged state, the cutter unit 70 moves in accordance with the movement of the carriage 22.

As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the movable body 72 includes, in its lower portion: a first roller 81, a second roller 82, and a third roller 83 disposed so as to sandwich the front wall 62 of the guide frame 60. The first roller 81 and the second roller 82 are disposed on the front wall 62 so that the circumferential surface thereof contacts the surface on the downstream side in the conveyance direction Y. The third roller 83 is disposed on the front wall 62 so that the peripheral surface thereof contacts the surface on the upstream side in the conveying direction Y. The first roller 81 is positioned at the end portion on the + X side in the width direction X of the movable body 72, and the second roller 82 is positioned at the end portion on the-X side. The third roller 83 is located between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 in the width direction X. The rotation axes of the first roller 81, the second roller 82, and the third roller 83 extend in the vertical direction Z, and rotate due to friction with the front wall 62 when the moving body 72 moves in the width direction X. That is, the first roller 81, the second roller 82, and the third roller 83 guide the movement of the cutter unit 70 along the front wall 62.

As shown in fig. 4 and 5, the moving body 72 includes a fourth roller 84 and a fifth roller 85 at an upper portion thereof, and the fourth roller 84 and the fifth roller 85 are disposed so that a part thereof is accommodated in the groove 66 of the rack 64. The fourth roller 84 and the fifth roller 85 are disposed so that the peripheral surfaces thereof contact the bottom surface 67 of the groove 66. The fourth roller 84 is positioned at the end portion on the-X side in the width direction X of the moving body 72, and the fifth roller 85 is positioned at the end portion on the + X side in the width direction X. That is, in the traveling direction of the cutter unit 70, the fourth roller 84 is positioned forward of the cutter blade 51, and the fifth roller 85 is positioned rearward of the cutter blade 51. The cutter unit 70 in the present embodiment is configured as follows: in the traveling direction, the distance between the fifth roller 85 and the cutter blade 51 is larger than the distance between the fourth roller 84 and the cutter blade 51 in the traveling direction.

The fourth roller 84 is positioned above the second roller 82, and the fifth roller 85 is positioned above the first roller 81. The rotation shafts of the fourth roller 84 and the fifth roller 85 extend in the conveyance direction Y, and rotate by friction with the bottom surface 67 of the groove 66 when the movable body 72 moves in the width direction X. That is, the fourth roller 84 and the fifth roller 85 guide the movement of the cutter unit 70 along the groove 66 of the rack 64. In other words, the cutter unit 70 moves along the rack 64. In short, the first roller 81, the second roller 82, the third roller 83, the fourth roller 84, and the fifth roller 85 guide the movement of the cutter unit 70 along the guide frame 60.

The moving body 72 includes a first pinion gear 91 and a second pinion gear 92 that can mesh with the teeth 65 of the rack 64. That is, the cutter unit 70 includes a plurality of pinions. The first pinion gear 91 and the second pinion gear 92 are rotatably attached to the moving body 72. The first and

second pinions

91, 92 have

teeth

93, 94 on their peripheral surfaces and are arranged at intervals in the width direction X. The first pinion gear 91 is disposed on the-X side in the width direction X relative to the second pinion gear 92. The first pinion gear 91 is located directly below the cutter blade 51. The second pinion gear 92 is located rearward in the traveling direction of the cutter unit 70 than the cutter blade 51. In the present embodiment, the second pinion gear 92 is arranged as follows: in the traveling direction of the cutter unit 70, the distance between the second roller 92 and the cutter blade 51 is larger than the distance between the fourth roller 84 and the cutter blade 51. When the cutter unit 70 moves along the guide frame 60, the first pinion gear 91 and the second pinion gear 92 rotate while meshing with the rack gear 64.

As shown in fig. 5, the cutter unit 70 is attached to the rack 64 by sandwiching the rack 64 in the vertical direction Z between the fourth roller 84 and the fifth roller 85, and the first pinion 91 and the second pinion 92. That is, in the present embodiment, the rack 64 functions as a guide rail that supports the cutter unit 70. In the present embodiment, the fourth roller 84, the fifth roller 85, the first pinion gear 91, and the second pinion gear 92 function as a holding portion that contacts the rack 64 in order to hold the cutter unit 70 on the rack 64. The cutter unit 70 is held by the rack 64 via the fourth roller 84, the fifth roller 85, and the first pinion 91 and the second pinion 92.

The cutter unit 70 includes a transmission gear, not shown, that transmits the rotation of the first pinion gear 91 to the drive blade 52. That is, the cutter unit 70 is configured as follows: when moving in the width direction X along the guide frame 60, the driving blade 52 rotates in accordance with the rotation of the first pinion gear 91. In the present embodiment, the first pinion gear 91 functions as a drive gear that rotates the drive blade 52. In fig. 3 of the present embodiment, the driving blade 52 is configured to rotate counterclockwise when the cutter unit 70 moves from the + X side to the-X side in the width direction X, that is, moves in the traveling direction. The driven blade 53 is rotated by the rotation of the driving blade 52 by the contact of the cutting edge thereof with the cutting edge of the driving blade 52.

Next, the operation of the cutting mechanism 50 provided in the recording apparatus 11 configured as described above will be described.

As shown in fig. 5, when the cutting mechanism 50 cuts the medium S, the cutter unit 70 moves in the traveling direction, which is a direction from the + X side to the-X side in the width direction X, in accordance with the movement of the carriage 22 connected by the lever 75. The cutter unit 70 cuts the medium S by the cutter blade 51 by moving in the traveling direction along the rack 64. At this time, in the cutter unit 70, a force from the + X side to the-X side in the width direction X is applied from the carriage 22 of the recording section 20 to the lever 75 positioned at the upper portion of the holding body 71. Therefore, when cutting the medium S, the following may occur in the cutter unit 70: a moment about the fulcrum is generated with the lever 75 as a point of application and the cutting position Q at which the cutter blade 51 and the medium S are in contact as a fulcrum. When a moment is generated around the cut-off position Q, the cutter unit 70 rotates in its traveling direction with the cut-off position Q as a fulcrum. Therefore, the cutter unit 70 may sometimes shake with respect to the rack 64. In this regard, the cutting mechanism 50 of the present embodiment includes a first holding portion and a second holding portion for reducing the rattling of the cutter unit 70.

When the cutter unit 70 moves in the traveling direction to cut the medium S, the cutter unit 70 rotates counterclockwise in fig. 5 with the cutting position Q as a fulcrum. That is, the cutter unit 70 will rotate as follows: the forward portion in the traveling direction moves downward and the rearward portion in the traveling direction moves upward. At this time, the second pinion gear 92 is strongly pressed against the rack 64 from below, and the fourth roller 84 is strongly pressed against the rack 64 from above. That is, the second pinion gear 92 and the fourth roller 84 hold the cutter unit 70 on the rack 64 so as to suppress rotation of the cutter unit 70. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the second pinion gear 92 functions as a first holding portion, and the fourth roller 84 functions as a second holding portion. In short, the rattling of the cutter unit 70 is reduced by the first holding portion and the second holding portion arranged so as to sandwich the cutter blade 51 in the traveling direction.

According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) When the cutter unit 70 moves in the traveling direction to cut the medium S, a moment that rotates the cutter unit 70 about the cutting position Q of the cutter blade 51 on the medium S as a fulcrum is generated in the cutter unit 70. In this regard, in the cutting mechanism 50, the second pinion gear (first holding portion) 92 and the fourth roller (second holding portion) 84 are disposed so as to sandwich the cutter blade 51. Therefore, the cutter unit 70 can be prevented from rattling due to the rotation about the cutting position Q as a fulcrum. Therefore, the medium S can be cut with high accuracy.

(2) Since the second pinion gear (first holding portion) 92 and the fourth roller (second holding portion) 84 are disposed so as to sandwich the rack (guide rail) 64, the rattling of the cutter unit 70 can be reduced.

(3) The second pinion gear (first holding portion) 92 is disposed at a position farther from the cutter blade 51 than the fourth roller (second holding portion) 84 in the traveling direction of the cutter unit 70. Therefore, the rattling of the cutter unit 70 can be further reduced. That is, the cutting mechanism 50 can effectively reduce the rotation of the cutter unit 70 about the cutting position Q as a fulcrum by increasing the distance between the cutting position Q and the fourth roller (second holding portion) 84 in the traveling direction.

(4) The cutter blade 51 is constituted in the following manner: when the cutter unit 70 moves in the traveling direction, the cutter blade 51 rotates in accordance with the rotation of the first pinion gear (drive gear) 91. Therefore, the medium S can be easily cut by the rotation of the cutter blade 51.

(5) Since the first pinion 91 as the first holding portion is meshed with the rack 64, the rattling of the cutter unit 70 can be reduced as compared with a case where the first holding portion is a roller, for example.

(6) The first holding portion is provided as a pinion (second pinion 92). A plurality of pinions including a first pinion 91 and a second pinion 92 are engaged with the rack 64. Therefore, when the cutter unit 70 moves along the rack gear 64, the possibility of the first pinion gear 91 jumping the teeth with respect to the rack gear 64 can be reduced. By reducing the tooth skipping of the first pinion 91, the cutter blade 51 rotates at a constant cycle, and therefore, the medium S can be cut with high accuracy.

(7) The cutting mechanism 50 includes a first pinion 91 and a fifth roller 85. Therefore, even when the cutter unit 70 is rotated counterclockwise in fig. 5 with the cutting position Q as a fulcrum, the backlash can be reduced.

The above embodiment may be modified as follows. The following modifications may be combined as appropriate.

The first holding portion may be a roller, for example. In this case, it is preferable that the rack 64 has a groove instead of the tooth 65.

The guide rail may be not limited to the rack 64 but only a rail. In this case, the first pinion gear 91 and the second pinion gear 92 are preferably formed as rollers.

The cutter blade 51 is not limited to a rotary structure and may be a fixed blade. In this case, the first pinion gear 91 may not transmit the driving force for rotation to the cutter blade 51. That is, the drive gear may not be provided.

The driving blade 52 may be a structure rotated by a motor. In this case, the first pinion gear 91 may not transmit the driving force for rotation to the cutter blade 51. That is, the drive gear may not be provided.

The distance between the second pinion 92 functioning as the first holding portion and the cutter blade 51 may be equal to or less than the distance between the fourth roller 84 functioning as the second holding portion and the cutter blade 51 in the conveying direction Y.

The fifth roller 85 may not be provided.

The cutter unit 70 may be moved by a drive source such as another motor. Even in this case, there is little possibility that rattling occurs in the cutter unit 70.

The recording device 11 may be a fluid ejecting device that ejects or discharges a fluid other than ink (including a liquid, a liquid or gel-like fluid in which particles of a functional material are dispersed or mixed in a liquid, and a solid that can be ejected as a fluid) to perform recording. For example, the liquid ejecting apparatus may be a liquid ejecting apparatus that performs recording by ejecting a material containing, in a dispersed or dissolved form, an electrode material or a colored material (pixel material) used for manufacturing a liquid crystal display, an EL (electroluminescence) display, a surface light emitting display, or the like. Further, the ejection device may be a fluid ejection device that ejects a fluid such as a gel (e.g., a physical gel), or a powder or granule ejection device that ejects a solid such as a powder (powder or granule) such as a toner (e.g., a toner-jet recording device). The present invention can be applied to any of the above-described fluid ejecting apparatuses. In the present specification, the term "fluid" includes, for example, a liquid (including an inorganic solvent, an organic solvent, a solution, a liquid resin, a liquid metal (molten metal), and the like), a liquid, a fluid, and a powder (including a granule and a powder).

Claims

1. A cleaving mechanism, comprising:

a cutter blade capable of cutting the medium at a cutting position;

a cutter unit to which the cutter blade is attached;

a guide rail supporting the cutter unit; and

a lever which is engageable with the carriage and is disposed above the cutting position,

the cutter blade is configured to cut the medium by moving the cutter unit in a traveling direction along the guide rail in accordance with movement of the carriage connected by the rod,

the cutter unit includes:

a first holding portion that contacts a lower side portion, i.e., a lower surface, of the guide rail; and

a second holding portion contacting an upper side portion, i.e., an upper surface, of the guide rail,

the first holding portion and the second holding portion are arranged so as to sandwich the cutter blade in the traveling direction,

the first holding portion and the second holding portion are provided below the cutting position,

the first holding portion is located rearward of the cutter blade in the traveling direction,

the cutter blade cuts the medium, a surface of the medium extending in the same direction as the lower surface of the guide rail and the upper surface of the guide rail,

the guide rail is a rack which is provided with a plurality of guide rails,

the cutter unit includes a drive gear disposed in meshing engagement with the rack,

the drive gear rotates by meshing with the rack when the cutter unit moves in the traveling direction,

when the cutter unit moves in the traveling direction, the cutter blade is configured to rotate by the drive gear rotating.

2. The cleaving mechanism of claim 1,

a distance between the first holding portion and the cutter blade in the traveling direction is larger than a distance between the second holding portion and the cutter blade in the traveling direction.

3. The cleaving mechanism of claim 1,

the first holding portion is a pinion gear capable of meshing with the rack.