JP2001080131A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To uniform a use amount of recording media such as ink ribbons, ink, etc., of a first and a second printing means by arranging the first printing means to one face of a recording paper and the second printing means to the other face of the recording paper, and setting a means for storing each cumulative print amount of the recording paper printed by the first and second printing means. SOLUTION: The printer has a memory means of an EEPROM for storing each cumulative print amount of a recording paper 2 printed by a first and a second printing means 7 and 17. For example in order to continuously print first printing information only to one face of the recording paper 2 by the printer, a detecting means compares the cumulative print amounts of the first and second printing means, and printing to an A face of the recording paper 2 is carried out by the printing means of a smaller cumulative print amount, e.g. by the first printing means 7. When the printing only to one face is repeated and the cumulative print amount of the first printing means 7 becomes larger than the cumulative print amount of the second printing means 17, the printing by the first printing means 7 is switched to printing by the second printing means 17 of a smaller cumulative print amount.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer,
In particular, the present invention relates to a printer having two printing units capable of printing on both sides of a recording sheet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG.
A plurality of recording sheets 2 are stored in a sheet feed tray 40. The paper 2 is elastically urged from the bottom of the paper feed tray 40 to the upper paper feed roller 42, and the uppermost recording paper 2 is pressed against the paper feed roller 42. By rotating the paper feed roller 42 in the clockwise direction, which is the direction of the arrow, the recording paper 2 in the paper feed tray 41 can be transported to the first printing unit 43 on the downstream side in the paper transport direction G. I have. The first printing means 43 is capable of printing on, for example, the side A, which is one side of the recording paper 2.
On the downstream side of the printing means 43, a second printing means 46 capable of printing on the other side B of the recording paper 2 is arranged.

[0003] The first printing means 43 includes a paper feed roller 42.
A platen 44 having a flat plate shape is provided below the recording paper 2 which is fed by the recording paper 2 on the side B of the drawing.
A thermal head 45 capable of coming in contact with and separating from the platen 44 is provided on the A side of the recording paper 2 in the upper part of FIG.
It is arranged movably in the direction of arrow H. Further, a rotatable first paper feed roller 49 and a first pressure contact roller 50 are disposed in a pressure contact state on the downstream side of the first printing means 43 in the sheet transport direction.

The second printing means 46 disposed downstream of the first paper feed roller 49 in the paper transport direction G is provided on the A side of the recording paper 2 sent by the first paper feed roller 49. A platen 47 is disposed on a certain upper side in the figure, and a first printing unit 43 which can be brought into contact with and separated from the platen 47 is provided on a lower surface side of the recording sheet 2 below the platen 47 facing the platen 47.
Thermal head 48 having the same configuration as the thermal head 45 of FIG.
Are movably arranged in the direction of arrow H. Further, a rotatable second paper feed roller 51 and a second pressure roller 52 are disposed in a pressure-contact state on the downstream side of the second printing means 46 in the paper transport direction. The second paper feed roller 51 is
The same material and shape as the first paper feed roller 49 of the first printing unit 43 is used.

[0005] Paper 41 by such a conventional printer
The double-sided printing operation on the paper tray 40 will be described first.
The recording paper 2 in the inside is elastically urged upward from below and pressed against the paper feed roller 42. From this state, the paper feed roller 42 is rotated clockwise in the direction of the arrow to convey the recording paper 2 in the paper conveyance direction G. Then, the recording paper 2 is passed between the platen 44 of the first printing unit 43 and the thermal head 45 in the separated state, and the front end of the recording paper 2 is moved by the first paper feed roller 49 and the first pressing roller 50. Press and hold. If the recording paper 2 is plain paper, the first and second
Ink ribbons (not shown) are arranged between the thermal heads 45 and 48 of the printing units 43 and 46 and the recording paper 2, respectively. And the first printing means 4
3, the thermal head 45 is moved toward the platen 44 and pressed against the platen 44 to selectively generate heat from a heating element (not shown) of the thermal head 45, so that an ink ribbon (see FIG. (Not shown) is thermally transferred to print a desired image.

At the same time as the printing operation of the first printing means 43 on the A side of the recording paper 2, the paper feed roller 49 is rotated clockwise to move the recording paper 2 printed on the A side in the paper transport direction G. Is transported to the second printing means 46 on the downstream side of.
Then, the leading end of the recording paper 2 on which the image is printed on the surface A is pressed and held between the paper feed roller 51 and the pressing roller 52.
In this state, in the second printing means 46, the thermal head 48 is moved to the platen 47 side and pressed against the platen 47, and the heating element (not shown) of the thermal head 48 is selectively caused to generate heat. A desired image is printed by thermally transferring the ink of an ink ribbon (not shown) to side B.

Such a conventional printer employs a recording paper 2
Has first and second print information for printing on one side and the other side, and the first print information is provided by the first printing unit 43.
Further, the second print information is printed on one side and the other side by the second print printing means 46, respectively. When printing is performed on only one side of the recording paper 2, printing is performed using one of the first and second printing units 43 and 46.

[0008]

However, in the conventional printer as described above, when printing on only one side of the recording paper 2, one of the printing means, for example, the first printing means 4 is used.
Since the printing is performed using No. 3, the amount of the ink ribbon 16 used by the first printing unit 43 increases when the printing on only one side increases. Therefore, the timing of replacing the used ribbon cassette 15 of the first printing means 43 from used to unused and the timing of replacing the used ribbon cassette 15 of the second printing means 46 from used to unused is shifted. Frequent replacement, and the printing efficiency is reduced. As a countermeasure, when the ink ribbon 16 of the first printing unit 43 has been used, the ribbon cassette 1 of the second printing unit 46 is used.
5 can be replaced at the same time, but if printing on only one side is frequently performed, the ink ribbon 16 of the second printing means 46 may be replaced.
However, it was very uneconomical because it was left almost unused.

Further, when printing on both sides of the recording paper 2, for example, as shown in FIG. When the operation of printing the first print information M and continuously printing the second print information N having a smaller print amount than the first print information M on the side B, which is the side B of the recording paper 2, is performed. Has a problem that the used amount of the ink ribbon 16 of the first printing unit 43 is larger than that of the second printing unit 46. Further, when the printing operation is performed on one of the first and second printing units 43 and 46, the printing unit with a larger print amount deteriorates more easily, so that a failure easily occurs. For example, there is a problem that print quality is deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has an ink ribbon of first and second printing means.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a printer capable of making the amount of use of a recording medium such as ink uniform.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printer according to the present invention, comprising: a first printing unit capable of printing on one side of a recording sheet; A second printing unit capable of printing on the surface, and a storage unit for storing the accumulated print amount of each of the printings printed on the recording paper by the first and second printing units.

As a second solution to solve the above problem, when printing is performed on only one side of the recording paper, the first or second printing of the storage means having the smaller cumulative printing amount. It is configured to print by means.

As a third means for solving the above problems, there are first and second print information for printing on one and the other two sides of the recording sheet, respectively. (2) When printing the print information on both sides of the recording paper, the first or second print information having a larger print amount to be printed on one or the other side of the recording paper is stored in the storage unit. The configuration is such that printing is performed by the first or second printing unit having the smaller cumulative printing amount.

As a fourth solution for solving the above-mentioned problem, the present invention is characterized in that during continuous printing on a desired number of recording sheets, the cumulative print amount of the first and second printing means is reduced. In the case of reverse rotation, printing is continuously performed until printing of the desired number of recording sheets is completed.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a printer according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
For example, to explain with a thermal transfer printer based on
A paper feeding unit 1 is provided below the drawing. The paper feeding unit 1 has a box-shaped paper feeding tray 3 capable of storing a plurality of large-sized recording papers 2 such as A4 size, for example. A movable plate 4 is provided so that the front side on the right side in the figure can turn up and down with the 4a as a fulcrum.

A portion of the recording paper 2 near the front end is placed on the movable plate 4. Further, an elastic member (not shown) is disposed on the right side of the movable plate 4 near the front in the figure, and an urging force for pushing up the movable plate 4 above the arrow D is applied to the movable plate 4 by the action of the elastic member. ing. Further, above the movable plate 4 near the front end, a paper feed roller 5 rotatable in a direction of an arrow F in a counterclockwise direction is provided. When the movable plate 4 is pivoted upward with the support 4a as a fulcrum, the paper feed roller 5 is brought into elastic contact with the front end of the recording sheet 2 on the movable plate 4.

In order to transport the recording paper 2 stored in such a paper supply unit 1 in the paper transport direction E, when the paper supply roller 5 is rotated in the direction of arrow F, the uppermost recording paper 2 is rotated. The recording paper 2 is separated from the lower recording paper 2, discharged from the paper feed tray 3, and transported downstream in the paper transport direction E. On the downstream side of the recording paper 2 conveyed from the paper supply unit 1 in the paper conveyance direction E, a plate for guiding the recording paper 2 sent thereto to first and second printing means 7 and 17 described later. Guide plate 6
Are arranged.

The guide plate 6 is formed in a curved shape as shown in FIG. 1, and turns the recording paper 2 sent from the paper feed unit 1 upward in the drawing at a substantially right angle to the downstream side of the guide plate 6. It is designed to guide the first printing means 7 arranged on the side. The first printing unit 7 is capable of printing a desired image on the A side, which is one side of the recording paper 2.

The first printing means 7 is provided with a flat first platen 8 made of rubber or the like on the right side of the recording sheet 2 turned upward by a guide plate 6 shown in FIG. ing. This first platen 8 is, as shown in FIG.
The printing surface 8a is disposed so as to be substantially vertical. Below the first platen 8, a first paper feed roller 9 capable of conveying the recording paper 2 conveyed from the paper supply unit 1 between the first platen 8 and a first thermal head 14 described later.
Are arranged.

The first paper feed roller 9 has a rotatable long rotary shaft 9a, and the first paper feed roller 9 formed of a plurality of rubbers and the like in a columnar shape is integrated with the rotary shaft 9a. It has been attached and installed. Further, the first paper feed roller 9 is provided with a first pressure roller 10 which is pressed against a predetermined pressure and is rotatable following the rotation of the first paper feed roller 9. The first pressure roller 10 is rotatably held by a roller holding member (not shown), and is independently elastically urged by the first paper feed roller 9 to be pressed. Then, the first paper feed roller 9 is rotated so that the recording paper 2 conveyed from the paper feed unit 1 has a predetermined holding force between the first paper feed roller 9 and the first pressing roller 10. The recording paper 2 can be conveyed to the first platen 8 downstream of the first paper feed roller 9 in the paper conveyance direction E.

A first carriage 11 is provided on a side facing the first platen 8.
Are supported by a rod-shaped guide shaft 12. The first carriage 11 is attached to an appropriate drive belt 13 stretched over a pair of pulleys (not shown), and drives the drive belt 13 by a drive means (not shown) such as a stepping motor to form a guide shaft. 12 is reciprocally movable.

The first carriage 11 is provided with a first thermal head 14 which can be moved toward and away from the first platen 8.
It is attached at a position facing the first platen 8.
The first thermal head 14 has a plurality of dot-shaped heating elements (not shown), and based on the first or second print information sent from a print control unit (not shown). A desired image is printed by selectively causing the heat generating element to generate heat, and thermally transferring the ink of the ink ribbon 16 to be described later onto the surface A of the recording paper 2.

A pair of rotatable bobbins 11b, 11b, which are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, are formed to project upward near the center of the cassette mounting surface 11a on the upper surface of the first carriage 11. The ribbon cassette 15 is detachable from the cassette mounting surface 11a of the first carriage 11. The ribbon cassette 15 has a pair of hole-shaped reels 15 with which the pair of bobbins 11b can be engaged.
a, 15a, around which a pair of reels 15a, 15a are wound with an ink ribbon 16 coated with a predetermined color of heat-meltable ink. Such a first printing unit 7
The first platen 8 and the first platen 8
The ends of the paper feed roller 9, the guide shaft 12, and the like are attached and integrated.

On the downstream side of the first printing means 7 in the paper transport direction E shown in FIG.
A second printing unit 17 capable of printing a desired image is provided on the surface side. The second printing unit 17 is provided with the first printing unit 17 shown in FIG.
Since the printing means 7 and the respective components are arranged on opposite sides and have the same configuration, detailed description will be omitted. As shown in FIG. 1, the second printing unit 17 has a second platen 18 disposed on the left side of the recording sheet 2 conveyed from the first printing unit 7 in the drawing, and a side opposite to the second platen 18. And the second
Second thermal head 1 that can be moved toward and away from platen 18
9 is attached to a second carriage (not shown) that can reciprocate along the second platen 18.

Further, below the second platen 18 in the drawing,
A rotatable second paper feed roller 20 made of rubber or the like capable of conveying the recording paper 2 conveyed from the first printing means 7 to the second platen 18 is provided. A second pressing roller 21 that is pressed at a predetermined pressure and is rotatable following the rotation of the second paper feed roller 20.
Are arranged.

Then, the second paper feed roller 20 is rotated to press and hold the recording paper 2 conveyed from the first printing means 7 between the second paper feed roller 20 and the second pressure roller 21. Thus, the recording paper 2 can be discharged to the outside of the second printing means 17 on the downstream side in the paper transport direction E.

The second printing means 17 is provided with a second carriage (not shown).
The ribbon cassette 15 described in the printing means 7 is detachable. Similarly to the first thermal head 14, the second thermal head 19 has a plurality of dot-shaped heating elements formed thereon, and the first or second print information sent from a print control unit (not shown). By selectively causing the heat generating elements to generate heat based on the above, the ink of the ink ribbon 16 can be thermally transferred to the surface B of the recording paper 2 to print a desired image.

The operation of the printer according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. First, the state in which the recording paper 2 is pressed against the paper feed roller 5 by the action of the movable plate 4 inside the paper feed tray 3 will be described. Then, the sheet supply roller 5 is rotated in the direction of arrow F to convey the uppermost recording sheet 2 stored in the sheet supply section 1 to the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction E. Next, the recording paper 2 sent from the paper supply unit 1 is guided by the guide plate 6 and is conveyed to the first printing unit 7 on the downstream side of the guide plate 6. Then, the leading end of the recording paper 2 is pressed and held between the rotating first paper feed roller 9 and the pressing roller 10, and the first paper feed roller 9 is pressed.
Downstream of the first platen 8 and the first in the head-up state
It is transported between the thermal heads 14.

The amount of rotation of the first paper feed roller 9 is controlled by a drive control unit (not shown) so that the printing start position on the A side of the recording paper 2 is positioned at the heating element of the first thermal head 14. Then, the rotation of the first paper feed roller 9 is stopped. Next, the first thermal head 14 is moved down, and the first thermal head 14 is moved downward via the recording paper 2 and the ink ribbon 16.
The thermal head 14 is pressed against the first platen 8 to selectively heat the heating elements of the first thermal head 14 based on the first or second print information for printing on the side A of the recording paper 2. The first carriage 11 is moved along the first platen 8 so that one line
Alternatively, the operation of thermally transferring the ink of the ink ribbon 16 simultaneously with a plurality of lines and the line feed operation by the first paper feed roller 9 by raising the first thermal head 14 are repeated, so that the first or The image based on the second print information is printed.

The recording paper 2 being printed by the first printing means 7 is sent to the second printing means 17 downstream of the first printing means 7 in the paper transport direction E by the line feed operation of the first paper feed roller 9. Conveyed. Then, the leading end of the recording paper 2 being printed on the surface A by the first printing means 7 is pressed and held between the second paper feed roller 20 and the second pressure roller 21 of the second transport mechanism 26,
With the rotation of the second paper feed roller 20, the recording paper 2 is transported between the second platen 18 on the downstream side in the paper transport direction E and the second thermal head 19 in the head-up state.

Next, the second thermal head 19 is lowered, the second thermal head 19 is pressed against the second platen 18 via the recording paper 2 and the ink ribbon 16, and printing is performed on the B side of the recording paper 2. The heating element of the second thermal head 19 is selectively caused to generate heat based on the first or second print information. Then, while moving a second carriage (not shown) along the second platen 18, an operation of thermally transferring the ink of the ink ribbon 16 to the B surface of the recording sheet 2 in one line or a plurality of lines at the same time; The line feed operation performed by rotating the second paper feed roller 20 by raising the thermal head 19 to print the image of the first or second print information on the B side of the recording paper 2,
A desired image can be printed on one side and the other side of the recording paper 2.

Such a printer of the present invention stores the respective accumulated print amounts printed on the recording paper 2 by the first and second printing means 7 and 17, for example, a storage means (not shown) comprising an EEPROM, for example. Are arranged. When the printer of the present invention prints the first print information only on one side of the recording paper 2, for example, continuously, the detection means compares the cumulative print amounts of the first and second print means. Thus, for example, the first printing unit 7, the printing unit 17
To print on the A side of the recording paper 2.

When the printing operation of only one side is repeated as described above, and the accumulated printing amount of the first printing means 7 becomes larger than the accumulated printing amount of the second printing means 17, the printing operation of the first printing means is performed. Is switched to the second printing means 17 having a small accumulated print amount for printing. At this time, the first print information is printed on the B side of the recording paper 2. That is, the printer of the present invention
When printing is performed on only one side of the recording paper 2, the printing is performed by the first or second printing unit 7, 17 having the smaller cumulative print amount in the storage unit.

Therefore, even when printing is performed on only one side of the recording paper 2 by the printer of the present invention, the usage amount of the ink ribbon 16 can be made uniform, and the first and second printing means 7 and 17 can be used. Each ribbon cassette 1 attached to
5 can be exchanged simultaneously.

The case where the first and second print information are printed on both sides A and B of the recording paper 2 by the printer of the present invention has been described in the related art. This will be described with reference to FIG. The print amount of the first print information M to be printed on the A side of the recording paper 2 is larger than the second print information N to be printed on the B side, and the first print information M stored in the storage unit is
For example, in the case where the first printing unit 7 has a smaller amount, the accumulated printing amounts of the second printing units 7 and 17 are converted into the first printing information M having the larger printing amount by the first printing unit 7 having the smaller accumulated printing amount. It is designed to be printed on the surface.

As described above, the double-sided printing operation of printing the first print information M having a large print amount by the first printing means 7 and the second print information N having a small print amount by the second printing means 17 is repeated. When the cumulative print amount of the first print unit 7 is larger than that of the second print unit 17, the first print information M having a large print amount is switched to the second print unit 17 having a small cumulative print amount and B Print on the surface. That is, when printing the first and second print information M and N on both sides of the recording paper 2, the printer according to the present invention prints the first or second print information M and N on one or the other side of the recording paper 2, which has a larger print amount. , Or the second printing information M, N is printed by the first or second printing means 7, 17 of the storage means having the smaller cumulative printing amount.

For this reason, even if the first and second print information M and N having different print amounts are continuously printed by the printer of the present invention, the used amount of the ink ribbon 16 can be made uniform. The replacement of the respective ribbon cassettes 15 mounted on the first and second printing means 7 and 17 can be performed simultaneously.

Further, in the printer of the present invention, during continuous printing on one side or both sides of the desired number of recording sheets 2, the accumulated print amounts of the first and second printing means 7 and 17 are reversed. In this case, printing is continuously performed until printing of the desired number of recording sheets 2 is completed, and the desired number of recording sheets 2
After the end of printing, the first or second printing unit is switched according to the accumulated print amount of the first or second printing unit 7 or 17 that has been reversed. for that reason,
During continuous printing of the desired number of print information of the same format, even if the accumulated print amounts of the first and second printing units are reversed, printing is continued as it is. Alternatively, the same format can be discharged in a state where the same format is aligned in the same direction without causing the B side to be separated upward and downward. Further, the printer of the present invention is not limited to a thermal transfer printer, but may be an ink jet printer or a printer used for a thermal printer that does not use an ink ribbon.

[0039]

As described above, since the printer according to the present invention has the storage means for storing the respective accumulated print amounts printed on the recording paper by the first and second printing means, the storage means stores the accumulated print amounts. By performing printing preferentially from the smaller accumulated printing amount, the usage amount of the recording medium such as the ink ribbon or ink of the first or second printing means can be made uniform, and the economy can be reduced. A good printer can be provided. In addition, the first and second information stored in the storage means are stored.
The accumulated printing amount of the printing means can be made uniform, and the deterioration of each printing means can be made uniform to provide a printer having a long life.

When printing is performed on only one side of the recording sheet, the printing is performed by the first or second printing section having the smaller cumulative printing amount in the storage means. Even when printing is performed, the used amount of the ink ribbon or the ink can be made uniform. Therefore, the respective ribbon cassettes mounted on the first and second printing units can be exchanged at the same time, the interval between ribbon cassette exchanges can be lengthened, and the number of exchanges can be reduced.

When the first and second print information are printed on both sides of the recording paper, the first or second printing information having a larger print amount to be printed on one or the other side of the recording paper is used. Since the print information is printed by the first or second print unit having the smaller cumulative print amount in the storage unit, the first and second print information having different print amounts are continuously printed. Even if it does, the used amount of the ink ribbon can be made uniform, and the respective ribbon cassettes attached to the first and second printing means can be exchanged at the same time.

Further, if the accumulated printing amount of the first and second printing means is reversed during continuous printing on the desired number of the recording sheets, the printing of the desired number of the recording sheets is performed. When printing continuously, the recording paper after printing must be aligned and discharged, for example, with the A side up and the B side down. Can be easily arranged after printing.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic structure of a printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a first printing unit according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a schematic structure of a conventional printer.

FIG. 4 is a diagram when printing information of a conventional printer is printed on recording paper.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Paper feed part 2 Recording paper 3 Paper feed tray 4 Movable plate 4a Support part 5 Paper feed roller 6 Guide plate 7 1st printing means 8 1st platen 8a Printing surface 9 1st paper feed roller 10 1st pressure contact roller 11 1st Carriage 11a Cassette mounting surface 11b Bobbin 14 First thermal head 15 Ribbon cassette 17 Second printing unit 18 Second platen 19 Second thermal head 20 Second paper feed roller 21 Second press roller M First printing unit N Second printing unit

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yutaka Fukuoka 1-7 Yukitani Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mitsuru Yoshii 1-7 Yukitani Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yuichi Tochihara 1-7 Yukitani Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Takeshi Kato 1-7 Yukitani-Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Alps Inside Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hideki Omori 1-7 Yukitani Otsuka-cho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Alps Electric Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 2C055 KK00 KK02 KK06 KK07 KK11 2C058 AB07 AC06 AE02 2C061 AQ04 AR03 AS06 HH13 HJ01 HK23 HN08 HN15

Claims (4)

[Claims] A first printing unit capable of printing on one side of a recording sheet; and a second printing unit capable of printing on the other side of the recording sheet. A printer comprising storage means for storing respective cumulative print amounts printed on recording paper. 2. The printing method according to claim 1, wherein when printing is performed on only one side of the recording paper, printing is performed by the first or second printing unit having the smaller cumulative printing amount in the storage unit. The printer according to 1. 3. A printing apparatus having first and second print information for printing on one side and the other side of the recording sheet, respectively, and printing the first and second print information on both sides of the recording sheet. The first or second print information having a larger print amount to be printed on one or the other side of the recording paper is replaced with the first or second print information having a smaller cumulative print amount in the storage means. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein printing is performed by a printing unit. 4. When the cumulative print amount of the first and second printing units is reversed during continuous printing on a desired number of the recording sheets, printing of the desired number of the recording sheets is performed. 4. The printer according to claim 2, wherein printing is continuously performed until the printing is completed.