JP2000211193A - Tape printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tape printer without fault such as jamming or the like at a printing tape even when a force in a width direction is applied to the tape sandwiched between a platen and a print head. SOLUTION: In the tape printer comprising a printing tape T and an ink ribbon R of a tape cartridge 7 sandwiched between a print head 14 and a platen 15 to print to the cartridge 7 mounted at a cartridge mount 8, the platen includes a platen shaft 51 stood on the mount 8, a platen roller 52 rotatably pivoted to the shaft 51 and axially slidably supported to the shaft 51, and an urging member 53 for urging upward the roller 52.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tape printing apparatus for printing on a mounted tape cartridge by sandwiching a print tape and an ink ribbon between a print head and a platen.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as this type of tape printing apparatus,
The one described in JP-A-10-6579 is known. In this tape printing apparatus, an opening / closing lid is provided on the upper surface of the apparatus main body, and a cartridge mounting portion for detachably mounting a tape cartridge is formed in the opening / closing lid. A print head for printing on the tape fed from the tape cartridge and a platen for receiving the print head are provided upright on the cartridge mounting portion. The platen is
It is erected rotatably and pivots in conjunction with opening and closing of the opening and closing lid. That is, when the opening / closing lid is closed after the tape cartridge is mounted on the cartridge mounting section, the platen rotates, and the tape and the ink ribbon are sandwiched between the platen and the print head, thereby enabling printing. Conversely, when the opening / closing lid is opened, the platen rotates in a direction away from the print head to release the holding of the tape and the ink ribbon, so that the tape cartridge becomes detachable. On the other hand, the tape cartridge has a plurality of positioning holes on the lower surface, and the positioning holes are inserted into positioning protrusions projecting from the bottom surface of the cartridge mounting portion, whereby the tape cartridge mounted on the cartridge mounting portion is immovably positioned. It is supposed to be.

[0003]

In such a conventional tape printing apparatus, when a positioning hole engages with a positioning projection in the process of mounting the tape cartridge, the user feels the pushing resistance, and the tape cartridge is placed in the cartridge mounting portion. It may be misunderstood that it has reached the bottom and is completely mounted. In addition, a member holding the tape cartridge so as to prevent the tape cartridge from rattling during printing may feel a pressing resistance, resulting in an incompletely mounted state.
When the opening / closing lid is closed in such an incompletely mounted state,
The platen rotates to sandwich the tape and the ink ribbon between the print head and the print head, and finally the opening / closing lid pushes the tape cartridge. In other words, the cartridge case is pushed one step further in a state where the tape and the ink ribbon are held between the platen and the print head on the apparatus main body side. For this reason, the tape and the ink ribbon receive a pushing force from the guide surface of the cartridge case, the edge of the tape feeding port, and the like. In particular, the tape that is in contact with the rubber-covered platen receives large frictional resistance from the platen, and is less likely to move downward even when the platen rotates, eventually resulting in wrinkles or strong rubbing of the tape feed port. Jamming or the like may occur.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a tape printing apparatus which does not cause trouble such as jamming on a print tape even when a force in a width direction is applied to a print tape held between a platen and a print head. And

[0005]

A tape printing apparatus according to the present invention performs printing by sandwiching a printing tape and an ink ribbon of a tape cartridge between a print head and a platen with respect to a tape cartridge mounted on a cartridge mounting portion. In the tape printing apparatus, the platen includes a platen shaft erected on a cartridge mounting portion, a platen roller rotatably supported on the platen shaft and slidably in the axial direction, and a platen roller for urging the platen roller upward. And a biasing member.

[0006] According to this configuration, in a state where the tape cartridge is not properly mounted (floating state) with respect to the cartridge mounting portion, the print head and the platen sandwich the print tape and the ink ribbon of the tape cartridge.
When the mounting failure is eliminated, the print tape sandwiched between the print head and the platen receives a pushing force downward from a tape cartridge case or the like. At this time, the platen roller that is in direct contact with the printing tape receives a pressing force from the printing tape and moves downward against the urging member. That is, the platen roller also moves slightly together with the printing tape which moves slightly with the elimination of the mounting failure. For this reason, wrinkles and the like do not occur before and after the contact portion of the print tape sandwiched between the print head and the platen.

In this case, it is preferable that the platen roller is pushed down from the upper end position to the lower end position by the cartridge case of the tape cartridge installed in the cartridge mounting portion.

According to this configuration, when the mounting failure of the tape cartridge is eliminated, the platen roller receives a pushing force from the cartridge case instead of the printing tape. For this reason, the end of the printing tape does not newly contact a part of the cartridge case or the like.

In this case, the upper end position of the platen roller is regulated by a retaining member which engages with the upper end of the platen shaft.

According to this configuration, when the tape cartridge is not mounted, there is no trouble such as the platen roller coming off the platen shaft or protruding largely.

In these cases, the apparatus may further include a rotating body disposed below the platen roller and rotating with the platen roller, wherein the urging member is interposed between the rotating body and the platen roller. preferable.

According to this configuration, the urging member urges the platen roller by receiving the rotating body that rotates together with the platen roller, so that the urging member does not rub against the platen roller.

In this case, it is preferable that the rotating body is a platen gear for transmitting rotational power to a platen roller.

According to this configuration, the rotating body that receives the urging member can be also used as the platen gear, and an increase in the number of parts can be suppressed.

Another tape printing apparatus according to the present invention is a tape printing apparatus which performs printing by sandwiching a printing tape and an ink ribbon of a tape cartridge between a print head and a platen with respect to a tape cartridge mounted in a cartridge mounting section. A platen shaft erected on the cartridge mounting portion, a cylindrical roller body rotatably supported on the platen shaft and slidably in the axial direction;
A platen roller having a platen rubber wound around an outer peripheral surface of the roller main body, and a tapered guide slope for guiding the mounting of the tape cartridge is formed at an upper end of the roller main body. It is characterized in that it protrudes slightly outward in the radial direction from the outer peripheral surface of the main body, and that the upper end of the platen rubber is accommodated inside the extension surface of the guide inclined surface.

According to this configuration, the tape cartridge can be properly guided in mounting by the guide inclined surface of the roller body. Also, at this time, since the upper end of the platen rubber is housed inside the extended surface of the guide slope, the tape cartridge does not stick to the platen rubber, and the outer peripheral surface of the platen rubber is slightly outward in the radial direction from the outer peripheral surface of the roller body. Because of the protrusion, when the print tape is sandwiched between the platen and the print head, the print tape does not contact the roller body.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a tape printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. This tape printing apparatus prints (prints) desired characters and figures on a printing tape mounted in the apparatus via a tape cartridge, and cuts a printed portion of the printing tape into a predetermined length. This is for producing a label.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the external appearance of the tape printer in an opened state. As shown in FIG.
An outer shell is formed by the upper and lower two-part device case 2, a keyboard 3 including various input keys 3 a is disposed on the front upper surface of the device case 2, and an opening / closing lid 5 is provided on the rear upper surface. A lid release button 6 to be opened and the display 4 are provided. Inside the opening / closing lid 5, a cartridge mounting portion 8 for mounting the tape cartridge 7 is formed in a recessed manner.
Is attached to and detached from the cartridge mounting portion 8 in a state in which is opened.

A tape outlet 9 for communicating the cartridge mounting section 8 with the outside of the apparatus is provided on the left side of the apparatus case 2.
Is formed, and a tape cutter (see FIG. 4) 10 for cutting the sent print tape T faces the tape discharge port 9. Further, a cutter button 11 for operating the tape cutter 10 to be cut is provided at a left rear portion of the apparatus case 2.

On the other hand, the print head 14 covered with the head cover 13 and the print head 1
4 and a take-up reel drive shaft 16
And a guide projection 17 for guiding the mounting of the tape cartridge 7 is provided upright. A platen 15 and a take-up reel drive shaft 16 are provided below the cartridge mounting portion 8.
A tape feed mechanism (which will be described later in detail) 18 for rotating the tape is built in. Reference numeral 19 in the drawing denotes a head operation plate. When the cover 5 is closed, the head operation plate 19 causes the print head 14 to rotate to a printing position where the platen 15 is pressed, thereby enabling printing. Become.

After the user mounts the tape cartridge 7 on the cartridge mounting section 8, the user closes the opening / closing lid 5.
As a result, the print tape and the ink ribbon of the tape cartridge 7 are sandwiched between the print head 14 and the platen 15, and are in a print standby state. Where the user:
Printing information such as desired characters is input by the keyboard 3, and at the same time, the input result is confirmed and edited by the display 4. Next, when printing is instructed via the keyboard 3, the tape feeding mechanism 18 is driven to feed out the printing tape from the tape cartridge 7, and the print head 14 is driven to perform desired printing on the printing tape. Then, the printed portion of the printing tape is sent out from the tape outlet 9 as needed in parallel with the printing operation. Thus, when the desired printing is completed, the tape feeding mechanism 18 stops the feeding operation. Here, when the user presses the cutter button 11, the tape cutter 1 is pressed.
0 is activated and the print tape is cut to the desired length.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the tape cartridge 7 has an outer shell formed by a cartridge case 21 including an upper case 21a and a lower case 21b. Inside the cartridge case 21, a tape core 22 around which the printing tape T is wound, a ribbon feeding core 23 around which the ink ribbon R is wound, and a ribbon winding core 24 which winds the ink ribbon R are rotatably housed. Have been. The printing tape T is fed out from the tape core 22, while the ink ribbon R is fed out from the ribbon feeding core 23, overlaps the printing tape T and runs together, and is wound around the ribbon winding core 24.

In a portion where the printing tape T and the ink ribbon R overlap, a bottomless hollow portion 25 into which the printing head 14 and the platen 15 are inserted is formed. When the tape cartridge 7 is mounted on the cartridge mounting section 8,
A printing tape T and an ink ribbon R
And the print head 14 and the platen 15 are inserted. Similarly, a guide projection 17 is inserted into a hollow portion of the tape core 22 (actually, a hollow shaft of a lower case holding the tape core 22), and a take-up reel drive shaft 16 is inserted into a hollow portion of the ribbon take-up core 24. You. In addition, positioning projections 8a projecting from the bottom surface of the cartridge mounting portion 8
Positioning hole 30 formed in the lower surface of tape cartridge 7
Is inserted (see FIGS. 6 and 7).

When the platen 15 and the take-up reel drive shaft 16 rotate synchronously, the printing tape T and the ink ribbon R are fed simultaneously, and the print head 14 is driven, whereby printing is performed. The printing completion portion of the printing tape T is fed from a slit-shaped tape feeding port 26 formed in the cartridge case 21 to a tape discharging port 9 of the apparatus case 2.
It is sent out toward. Note that, when the tape cartridge 7 is mounted, an upper end of a head support shaft 42 and an upper end of a platen shaft 51 to be described later are inserted into the hollow wall 27 of the upper case 21 a facing the hollow 25. A shaft insertion hole 28 and a platen shaft insertion hole 29 are formed.

Next, the structure around the print head 14 and the platen 15 will be described with reference to FIGS. The illustrated base frame 31 is disposed in the lower space (below the bottom plate) of the cartridge mounting portion 8, and the print head 14, the platen 15, and the take-up reel drive shaft 16 stand on the base frame 31. Has been established. Also,
The base frame 31 includes a drive motor 32 that rotates the platen 15 and the take-up reel drive shaft 16, and a reduction gear train 33 that transmits the rotational power of the drive motor 32 to the platen 15 and the take-up reel drive shaft 16. A tape feed mechanism 18 is incorporated.

The reduction gear train 25 is connected to a platen drive gear 34 of the platen 15 and a take-up reel drive gear 35 of the take-up reel drive shaft 16.
As the 2 rotates, the platen drive gear 34 and the take-up reel drive gear 35 rotate via the reduction gear train 33. As a result, the printing tape T and the ink ribbon R run at the same time, the printing tape T is discharged to the outside while being used for printing, and the ink ribbon R is moved to the ribbon winding core 2.
4

The print head 14 is mounted on a head holder 41, and the head holder 41 is rotatably mounted on a head support shaft 42. Head support shaft 4
The reference numeral 2 stands on the base frame 31 with its lower end fixed to the base frame 31. The lower end of the head holder 41 is engaged with the distal end of a head operation arm 43 that is rotatably attached to the lower part of the head support shaft 42. The tail end of the head operation arm 43 extends to the side end of the base frame 31, and one end of the head pressure spring 44 and one end of the head release spring 45 are engaged with the tail end. Has been stopped. The head pressure spring 44 and the head release spring 45 extend in opposite directions from the tail end of the head operation arm 43, and the other end of the head pressure spring 44 is locked by the head operation lever 46 (FIG. 5). ), The other end of the head release spring 45 is locked to the base frame 31.

As shown in FIG. 5, the head operation lever 46
Is engaged with the head operating plate 19 of the opening / closing lid 5, and when the opening / closing lid 5 is closed, the head operating lever 46 is rotated via the head operating plate 19. When the head operation lever 46 is rotated, the head operation arm 43 and the head holder 41 are moved to the head support shaft 42 against the head release spring 45.
And the print head 14 contacts the platen 15 (with the print tape T and the ink ribbon R sandwiched). Conversely, when the opening / closing lid 5 is opened, the operation is exactly the opposite,
The head operation plate 19, the head operation lever 46, the head operation arm 43, and the head holder 41 rotate in opposite directions, respectively, and the print head 14 separates from the platen 15.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the platen 15 has a lower end fixed to the base frame 31 and a platen shaft 51 erected on the base frame 31. A platen roller 52 rotatably supported by the platen, the platen drive gear 34 disposed below the platen roller 52 and rotatably supported by the platen shaft 51, the platen roller 52 and the platen drive gear 34 Coil spring (biasing member) interposed between
53. At the upper end of the platen shaft 51, a retaining ring (retaining member) 54 for restricting the upward movement of the platen roller 52 in the axial direction is mounted.

The platen shaft 51 has a step 51a at its lower end on which the platen drive gear 34 is rotatably seated. The platen drive gear 34 is seated on the step 51a.
It rotates while meshing with the above-mentioned reduction gear train 33. At the upper end of the platen shaft 51, an annular groove 51b with which the retaining ring 54 is engaged is formed.
In the state engaged with the plate 1b, the slider slides axially relative to the platen shaft 51 by the width of the annular groove 51b. That is, when the tape cartridge 7 is not mounted, the platen roller 52 is urged by the coil spring 53 and the retaining ring 54
And pushes it up to the upper end position of the annular groove 51b. When the tape cartridge 7 is mounted, the platen roller 52 and the retaining ring 54 are pushed by the hollow wall 27 of the tape cartridge 7, and the lower end position of the annular groove 51 b is opposed to the coil spring 53. Has been pushed down.

The platen drive gear 34 has a disk-shaped disk portion 56 and an annular protrusion 57 extending upward from the disk portion 56, and the reduction gear train 2 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the disk portion 56.
5 are formed, and an engagement receiving portion 57a that engages with the outer peripheral portion of the lower end of the platen roller 52 is formed inside the annular protrusion 57. The engagement receiving portion 57a is engaged with the platen roller 52 in a spline manner,
The axial movement of the platen roller 52 is allowed.

The platen roller 52 is composed of a roller body 58 and a platen rubber 59 wound on the outer peripheral surface of the roller body 58. On the outer peripheral surface of the roller body 58, an annular concave portion 58a for winding the platen rubber 59 is formed. In this case, the outer peripheral surface of the platen rubber 59 wound around the annular concave portion 58a slightly protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the roller body 58, and even if the platen rubber 59 is depressed by the print head 14, the printing tape T Does not contact the roller body 58. Also,
At the lower end of the roller body 58, an engaging portion 58b corresponding to the engaging receiving portion 57a of the annular protrusion 57 is formed.

On the other hand, at the upper end of the roller body 58, a tapered guide slope 58c for guiding the mounting of the tape cartridge 7 is formed.
Platen rubber 59 slightly projecting radially outward from 8
Is located inside the extension surface of the guide slope 58c. Thus, the mounting of the tape cartridge 7 is appropriately guided so as not to be held on the platen rubber 59.

The coil spring 53 is interposed between the lower end surface of the platen roller 52 and the inner surface of the annular projection 57 of the platen drive gear 34. In this case, the platen drive gear 3
4 is seated on the step portion 51a of the platen shaft 51,
The platen roller 52 receives the platen drive gear 34 by a coil spring 53 and is urged upward. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the hollow wall 27 of the tape cartridge 7 is
In a pre-mounting stage in which a pressing load is applied to the tape cartridge 7 by contact with the tape cartridge 7, the coil spring 53 is expanded, and the platen roller 52 presses the retaining ring 54. In this state, when the tape cartridge 7 is pushed in against the load of the coil spring 53, the platen roller 52 is pushed through the retaining ring 54 by the hollow wall 27 of the tape cartridge 7, and the coil spring 53 contracts. (See FIG. 6).

On the other hand, as described above, the print head 14 rotates so as to be separated from and brought into contact with the platen 15 in conjunction with the opening and closing of the opening and closing cover 5. For this reason, even if the opening / closing lid 5 is closed by mistake in the incompletely mounted state in FIG. 7, the platen roller 52 moves (pushes) together with the tape cartridge 7. That is, even if the print head 14 and the platen 15 sandwich the print tape T and the ink ribbon R in the initial stage of the closing operation of the opening / closing lid 5, at least the print tape T and the platen roller 52 are at the complete mounting position together. Pushed into. The ink ribbon R moves to the same position as the printing tape T when the platen 15 starts rotating.

As described above, even if the cover 5 is erroneously closed in an incompletely mounted state, the printing tape T may come into contact with the edge of the tape outlet 26 of the cartridge case 21 and cause wrinkles. Therefore, jamming of the printing tape T based on erroneous mounting of the tape cartridge 7 can be effectively prevented.

It should be noted that a leaf spring or the like can be used instead of the above coil spring. In addition, a dedicated rotating body that receives a coil spring may be provided separately from the platen drive gear. Conversely, the platen roller and the platen drive gear may be integrated, and a coil spring (or a plate spring) may be provided below the platen drive gear. Further, instead of pushing down the platen roller with the cartridge case, the platen roller may be pushed down with an opening / closing lid (directly) or printing tape (via the cartridge case).

[0038]

As described above, according to the tape printing apparatus of the present invention, the platen roller can be moved even if the printing tape receives a downward pushing force from the tape cartridge case or the like due to incorrect mounting of the tape cartridge. Since the pressing force is absorbed, the printing tape sandwiched between the print head and the platen does not wrinkle. Therefore, jamming or the like does not occur in the printing tape, and the reliability of the apparatus can be improved.

Further, according to the other tape printing apparatus of the present invention, the tape cartridge can be appropriately guided by the guide inclined surface of the roller body, and the tape cartridge can be smoothly mounted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tape printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention with a tape cartridge removed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a state where an upper case of the tape cartridge is removed.

FIG. 3 is a cutaway plan view showing a state where the tape cartridge is mounted on a cartridge mounting portion.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view around a platen and a print head.

FIG. 5 is a side view around a platen and a print head.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cut side view around a platen with a tape cartridge mounted.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cut side view around a platen before the tape cartridge is pushed in.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Tape printer 5 Opening / closing lid 7 Tape cartridge 8 Cartridge mounting part 14 Print head 15 Platen 21 Cartridge case 26 Tape outlet 27 Hollow wall 31 Base frame 34 Platen drive gear 51 Platen shaft 52 Platen roller 53 Coil spring 54 Stop ring 58 Roller body 58c Guide slope 59 Platen rubber T Printing tape R Ink ribbon

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C055 CC01 CC05 2C058 AB12 AD09 AE15 AF31 DA20 DA32 DB09 DB24 2C060 BC02 BC21 BC46 2C068 AA01 EE27 HH05 HH06 HH19 MM03 MM22

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A tape printing apparatus for performing printing by sandwiching a printing tape and an ink ribbon of the tape cartridge between a print head and a platen with respect to the tape cartridge mounted on the cartridge mounting section, wherein the platen is a cartridge A platen shaft erected on the mounting portion; a platen roller rotatably supported on the platen shaft so as to be slidable in the axial direction; and a biasing member for biasing the platen roller upward. A tape printing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the platen roller is pushed down from an upper end position to a lower end position by a cartridge case of the tape cartridge provided in the cartridge mounting portion. apparatus. 3. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the upper moving end position of the platen roller is regulated by a retaining member that engages with an upper end of the platen shaft. 4. A rotating body disposed below the platen roller and rotating with the platen roller, wherein the urging member is provided between the rotating body and the platen roller. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein: 5. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the rotating body is a platen gear that transmits rotational power to the platen roller. 6. A tape printing apparatus for performing printing by sandwiching a printing tape and an ink ribbon of the tape cartridge between a print head and a platen with respect to the tape cartridge mounted on the cartridge mounting section, wherein the platen is a cartridge. A platen shaft erected on the mounting portion; a cylindrical roller body rotatably supported on the platen shaft and slidably in the axial direction, and a platen rubber wound around an outer peripheral surface of the roller body. A platen roller, a tapered guide slope for guiding the mounting of the tape cartridge is formed at an upper end portion of the roller body, and an outer peripheral surface of the platen rubber is radially outward from an outer peripheral surface of the roller body. The platen rubber protrudes slightly and the upper end of the platen rubber fits inside the extension of the guide slope. Tape printing apparatus characterized by there.