JP2005022770A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer housing a claw and a line head in a compact case. <P>SOLUTION: The claw 171a for sliding an instant film to a development roller 17b side is provided for a starting end part side of the line head 16. The claw 171a is arranged at a position where the claw 171a interferes with the line head 16 when slid. Sliding of the claw 171a is controlled by an operation control part comprised of an internal CPU and a printing control part, only when the line head 16 is at a terminal end part, and a mounting space corresponding to a slide range of the claw 171a is cut down. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has a medium loading chamber in which a recording medium is loaded, a printer that records an image according to image data on the recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber, and sends the recording medium on which the image is recorded to the outside About.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The printer is provided with a medium loading chamber, and an image is recorded on a recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber. In this medium loading chamber, for example, a large number of recording media are stacked and loaded, and an image is recorded for each recording medium by a line head in the printer. The line head is driven in the sub-scanning direction intersecting with the main scanning direction of the line head, and sequentially records images in the main scanning direction while moving in the sub-scanning direction. When the image is recorded for each sheet, the recording medium on which the image is recorded is discharged to the outside of the printer by the transport mechanism in the printer.
[0003]
There are various types of such a transport mechanism, and among those using an instant film as a recording medium, there is one that realizes a simple transport mechanism by properly combining rollers and claws (see Patent Document 1). .
[0004]
In this Patent Document 1, an instant film on which an image is recorded by a line head is scraped to the roller side by a nail provided on the start end side, and the instant film scraped by the nail is sandwiched between rollers. The instant film is discharged outside while developing.
[0005]
Since such a transport mechanism can be disposed in a small space, it is often used to reduce the size of the printer.
[0006]
By the way, in many cases, a plurality of instant films are stored in a film pack in a stacked state. When this transport mechanism is applied to a small printer such as a portable printer, the outer shape of the printer includes the instant film pack. It seems that it can be made as small as possible, but in reality it is necessary to provide a space for moving the nails, and it is not possible to achieve further downsizing.
[0007]
Further, when the line head is arranged away from the instant film, the light irradiated from the light emitting element to the instant film spreads, and the dots recorded on the instant film become rough. When the light spreads in this way, in order to obtain the same amount of light as the dots that can be irradiated without spreading the light, the amount of light emitted from the light emitting element must be increased, and a large-capacity battery is required. End up. Therefore, in order to be able to use a small battery with a small capacity and to obtain a high resolution for dots, it is necessary to arrange the line head close to the instant film. In this case, the claw and the line head have to be arranged at almost the same height, and there is a restriction on the position where the claw moves, and it is impossible to realize downsizing.
[0008]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-133896
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a sufficiently miniaturized printer.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The printer of the present invention that achieves the above object has a medium loading chamber in which a recording medium is loaded, and an image corresponding to image data is recorded on the recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber, and the image is recorded. In a printer that sends out recording media to the outside,
A data acquisition unit for acquiring image data;
The data acquisition unit is acquired by the data acquisition unit while being driven in the sub-scanning direction, which is arranged at a position facing the recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber, extends in a predetermined main scanning direction, and intersects the main scanning direction. A line head for recording an image according to the image data,
A line head driving device for moving the line head between the start end and the end in the sub-scanning direction;
A nail that pushes a recording medium provided on the start end side and on which an image is recorded by the line head and slides the recording medium, and a recording medium that sandwiches the recording medium that is provided on the terminal end side and is slid by the nail A medium delivery device having a roller for delivering the toner to the outside of the printer,
So that the medium delivery device operates only when the line head is moved to the end portion,
An operation control unit that controls the line head driving device and the medium feeding device is provided.
[0011]
By providing the operation control as described above, when the medium feeding device is operated only when the line head is moved to the end portion, the claw is disposed so as to be close to the line head. In addition, even when the nail and the line head are arranged at substantially the same height, both the nail and the line head can be sufficiently operated by driving both of them while being shifted in time. If it does so, it will become unnecessary to provide the space for a nail | claw to move, and a printer will be reduced in size sufficiently.
[0012]
Here, the medium loading chamber is a medium in which a plurality of recording media are stacked, a medium that covers the stacked recording media, and has a cover that is sent out to the outside by the medium feeding device after being loaded into the medium loading chamber. A media loading chamber in which the pack is loaded;
When the image recording is performed on each recording medium except the last one in the medium pack loaded in the medium loading chamber, the operation control unit moves the line head to the start end after the image recording. At the same time, it is preferable that the line head driving device is controlled so that the line head is stopped at the end when the image is recorded on the last recording medium.
[0013]
Then, when the cover is used as a member for protecting a plurality of recording media stacked in the medium pack before loading, the cover becomes unnecessary after loading the medium pack. The cover can be discharged immediately after loading the media pack into the loading chamber.
[0014]
The medium loading chamber is a medium loading chamber in which a latent image is formed by exposure and loaded with an instant film that is developed and developed upon delivery, and the line head is loaded with the medium loading. It records an image consisting of a latent image on an instant film loaded in the room,
The medium delivery device is preferably a device that develops a developer on the instant film while feeding the instant film on which the latent image is recorded with the roller interposed therebetween.
[0015]
A latent image is recorded on the instant film loaded in the medium loading chamber in this manner by the line head driven by the head driving device, and the instant film on which the latent image is recorded is sent out by the medium feeding device, It can also be applied to those in which an instant film is developed.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
[0017]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printer 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed obliquely from the front.
[0018]
This printer is used in combination with a mobile phone or the like. The printer receives image data transmitted from the mobile phone and records an image on an instant film. This instant film corresponds to the recording medium referred to in the present invention. Here, an instant film is used as a recording medium, but plain paper may be used.
[0019]
As described above, some mobile phones can perform infrared communication conforming to IrDA, and the information possessed by the mobile phone can be transmitted to other information devices using this infrared communication. If so, the image data can be sent to this printer.
[0020]
The printer according to the present invention, for example, when image data representing an image taken with a camera-equipped cellular phone or image data transmitted to a cellular phone by e-mail or the like is transmitted to the printer using infrared communication. An image is recorded on the instant film sheet based on the image data, and the image is re-recorded based on the transmitted image data without being retransmitted from the mobile phone. It is possible to record an image on another, that is, another instant film, by a simple operation of operating an operator that gives an output instruction.
[0021]
The configuration of the printer of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
[0022]
The printer 1 is portable and has a small and lightweight structure that can record an image by holding both the cellular phone and the printer. An instant film pack is loaded in the casing 1a of the printer 1, and an image is recorded on each of a plurality of stacked instant film sheets in the instant film pack.
[0023]
A power switch (hereinafter referred to as a power switch) 11, a print switch (hereinafter referred to as a print SW) 12, a print data correction switch (hereinafter referred to as a print switch) for instructing to turn on and off the power of the printer 1 are provided on the upper surface of the casing 1 a of the printer 1. Data correction SW) 13 is provided. An LCD panel 14 is provided at the center, and the remaining number of instant film sheets and the contents of the print data correction SW 13 are displayed on the LCD panel 14. In addition, the light receiving element 15 that receives the image data transmitted by the infrared communication described above is disposed at a position where the mobile phone can easily face the printer, in this case, at the end of the housing 1a. Although not shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 also has a communication port for USB communication.
[0024]
The print SW 12 is operated when re-recording the same image as the recorded image after the recording of the image on the recording medium is completed. The print data correction SW 13 is recorded on the recording medium. This is for adjusting the darkness or darkness (Darken or Lightten) of the image. When this print data correction SW 13 is switched to the Darken side, the entire tone of the image based on the image data becomes slightly dark on the instant film sheet. When the image is recorded and is switched to the Lightten side, an image in which the entire tone becomes slightly brighter is recorded on the instant film sheet. When the print SW 12 is operated after the print data correction SW 13 is operated, photographs having the same composition but different tastes are obtained.
[0025]
In FIG. 2, after a latent image is recorded on the instant film sheet by a line head described later, the instant film 1001 is discharged from the discharge port of the printer while the latent image on the instant film 1001 is visualized. It is a figure which shows a state when being performed.
[0026]
In this printer, when image data transmitted from the outside by infrared communication or USB communication is acquired by this printer, a latent image based on the acquired image data is recorded on an instant film by exposure, as shown in FIG. As shown, the instant film 1001 on which the latent image is recorded is discharged outside the printer 1 while being visualized. Thereafter, when the print SW 12 is operated, the same image as that image is re-recorded on another instant film, and the instant film 1001 is discharged as shown in FIG.
[0027]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the lower surface of the printer 1 as viewed obliquely from above.
[0028]
A film door 101a for loading the film pack 100 is provided on the lower surface side of the printer 1, the film door 101a is opened, and the film pack 100 is loaded into the film loading chamber 100a. The film loading chamber 100a corresponds to the medium loading chamber referred to in the present invention. A film door switch (hereinafter referred to as FLDSW) for detecting that the film door 101a is opened is provided in the medium loading chamber. The medium loading chamber includes a plurality of recording media stacked, and an instant film pack 100 that includes a cover that covers the stacked recording media and is sent to the outside by a medium feeding device after being loaded into the medium loading chamber. It is to be loaded. This cover is a light shielding sheet, and is covered on the surface of an instant film laminated as a cover for covering the film sheet. Here, ten instant film sheets are laminated in the film pack. In the medium loading chamber, a pack switch (hereinafter referred to as PAKSW) that is pushed to operate when the film pack 100 is loaded is provided.
[0029]
A battery loading chamber 10a in which a battery 1b serving as a power source for the printer 1 is loaded is also adjacent to the film loading chamber 100a. The battery loading chamber 10a is also provided with a door, the door is opened, and the battery 1b is loaded.
[0030]
Two spring members 1011a and 1012a are provided on the inner side 101a of the film door, and these spring members 1011a and 1012a are inserted into two holes in the cover of the instant film pack and stacked in the film pack 100. The instant film sheet is pushed to the upper surface side of the printer 1. With such a configuration, among the instant film sheets in the instant film pack 100, the instant film sheet 1001 on the uppermost side of the printer is pushed up to a position close to the discharge port 11a, and the instant film pushed up to that position. Many light spots focused on the sheet are recorded by exposure.
[0031]
FIG. 4 is a view of the inside of the printer with the exterior cover on the top side of the printer 1 removed.
[0032]
As shown in FIG. 4, the line head 16 is disposed at a position facing the recording medium 1001 loaded in the medium loading chamber, extends in a predetermined main scanning direction, and receives driving in the sub scanning direction intersecting with the main scanning direction. However, an image corresponding to the image data is recorded on the recording medium 1001. One end of the line head 16 is provided with a lead screw 161a that moves between a start end and a terminal end in the sub-scanning direction, and the line head 16 is driven by the lead screw 161a. The lead screw 161a, a stepping motor 162a for rotating the lead screw 161a, and a guide shaft 1611a provided at the end opposite to the lead screw 161a correspond to the head driving device according to the present invention. Also, a claw 171a which is provided on the start end side and slides the instant film 1001 by pressing the instant film 1001 on which an image is recorded by the line head 161a, and the instant film sheet which is provided on the end side and is slid by the claw 171a. A developing roller 17b that feeds the instant film sheet 1001 to the outside of the printer with 1001 interposed therebetween is provided as a transport mechanism. The pawl, the developing roller, and the developing motor that drives them are equivalent to the medium feeding device according to the present invention.
[0033]
A partition plate 111a is provided on the upper surface of FIG. 4, and a part of the partition plate 111a is cut to form a guide groove 111b. A control board (not shown) is disposed above the partition plate 111a. Printer data is supplied from the print control unit on the control board to the line head 16 to record an image. In order to record a latent image on the instant film sheet 1001 while moving the line head 16 by the head driving device, print data is supplied from the control unit to the line head 16 using the FPC 1800 here. Since the FPC 1800 is flexible and flat, it does not require a space for installation. However, if the FPC 1800 is not guided well when the line head 16 is moved, the FPC 1800 may be violated due to twisting or the like.
[0034]
Therefore, a guide groove 111b is formed in the partition plate 111a to regulate the position of the FPC 1800 so as to connect the control board and the line head 16. The guide groove 111b of the partition plate 111a is provided up to the central portion of the partition plate 111a. When the line head 16 is at the home position, the FPC 180 is exposed from the guide groove 1111a of the partition plate 111a, and a portion reaching the line head is formed. It becomes a curved state. Here, when the FPC 1800 is in such a curved state, the FPC 1800 is brought into contact with the guide shaft 1611a, and the posture is regulated so that the FPC 1800 is sandwiched between the partition plate 111a and the guide shaft 1611a.
[0035]
In this way, after the line head 16 is driven by the head driving device and a latent image is recorded on the instant film sheet 1001, the instant film sheet 1001 is slid to the developing roller 17b side by the claw 171a and is sandwiched between the developing rollers 17b. Then send it out of the printer while developing. A series of processing performed by this medium sending device is called expansion processing. By performing this series of development processing, the user obtains a developed photograph.
[0036]
As shown in FIG. 1, this printer is small and light enough to be able to easily use the printer by gripping the grip portion 110a by hand, and is used when the grip portion 100a is gripped by hand. It is preferable that the outer shape gives ease to the user. For this reason, there is a restriction on the outer shape of the printer that is required from the viewpoint of ease of use, and it is not possible to provide a space in the printer for ensuring the sliding range of the claw 181a. Therefore, in the printer according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, a claw is provided at a position almost at the same height as the line head provided near the start end of the line head 16 and close to the instant film. By doing so, the design that satisfies the restrictions on the outer shape of the printer is performed, and the housing is reduced in size.
[0037]
However, when the claw 171a is provided at a position almost at the same height as the line head, and the claw 171a is operated when the line head 16 is at the start end, the line head 16 is moved to the start end side. The claw 171a hits the line head 16. Therefore, the operation control unit referred to in the present invention, in which the CPU and the print control unit, which will be described later, perform sequence control of the position of the line head 16 when operating the nail, and operate without causing the nail 171a and the line head 16 to interfere with each other. By satisfying the requirements, the outer shape constraints are satisfied.
[0038]
Here, the configuration of the line head driving device will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 4, the positional relationship between the line head 16 and the claw 171a will be described, and the timing when the claw 171a is slid will be described.
[0039]
A rack member 161 screwed into a lead screw 161a of the line head drive device is provided at the end of the line head 16, and a guide is provided on the opposite side of the line head portion 16 from the side on which the rack member 161 is provided. The end of the line head 16 is engaged with the shaft 1611a. While the line head 16 is guided by the guide shaft 1611a, the line head 16 is moved by screwing of the lead screw 161a and the rack member 161. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the lead screw 161a is rotated by the stepping motor 162a, and the line head 16 is positioned on the start end side where the claw 171a is disposed. At this time, a detection signal from the home SW 162b is detected by the CPU 180, which will be described later, and it is detected that the position of the line head 16 is at the start end (hereinafter referred to as the home position). As shown in FIG. 4, when the line head 16 is at the home position, the claw 181a approaches the line head 16 so that it cannot slide. However, after moving the line head 16 to the end portion and recording the latent image on the line head 16, the claw 171 a can be easily slid because the line head 16 is at the safe position. In view of this, when the terminal is located, the CPU and the print controller, which will be described later, are controlled to slide the nail.
[0040]
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state when the line head 16 is located at the end portion.
[0041]
At this time, since the position of the line head 16 is away from the claw 181a, the claw 181a can be easily slid.
[0042]
When the line head 16 is at the terminal end, the safe SW 162c is activated, and the CPU described later detects that the line head 16 is at the terminal end (hereinafter referred to as a safe position). The safe SW and the home SW may be either a mechanical switch or a light switch such as a photo interrupter.
[0043]
In this way, a control signal is supplied from the print control unit to the line head 16 driven by the line head driving device, and the shutter speed of each liquid crystal shutter is controlled in accordance with the image data by the control signal, corresponding to each of RGB. Light is irradiated onto the instant film, and a latent image composed of 480 light spots (dots) is recorded in the main film scanning direction of the instant film.
[0044]
When the light spot consisting of 480 dots is recorded in the main scanning direction of the instant film 1001 by the electronic scanning of the line head 16, the stepping motor 162a is driven based on a control signal from a print control unit, which will be described later, and the lead screw 161a is moved. After rotating a predetermined angle, light spots of 480 dots are sequentially recorded by the line head 16 in a direction crossing the main scanning direction, and when the line head moves to the end portion shown in FIG. 5, a latent image is recorded. Ends. In the following description, the direction intersecting with the main scanning direction is referred to as the sub-scanning direction. In this sub-scanning direction, 640 dots of light spots recorded in one main scan of the line head are recorded as one line, and 640 lines of light spots are recorded as a latent image representing a full-color image over the entire instant film. .
[0045]
When a latent image representing a full-color image is recorded by the collection of the light spots, the instant film sheet is slid by the claw 171a provided on the home position side while the line head is retracted to the safe position, and is moved to the developing roller side. Extrude. Then, the extruded instant film sheet is sandwiched by the developing roller 17, the developer in the instant film is developed on the entire instant film sheet 1001, and discharged to the outside of the printer while developing the latent image. The instant film sheet 1001 is a self-development processing type photosensitive material, and when the instant film 1001 is sandwiched between the developing rollers 17, the developer filled in the instant film is uniformly spread on the entire instant film sheet, and the instant film sheet The upper latent image is visualized. In this way, light spots arranged in the main scanning direction intersecting the sub-scanning direction while moving in the predetermined sub-scanning direction by the line head 16 are irradiated on the instant film according to the image data. A latent image is recorded.
[0046]
Here, the configuration of the line head 16 will be briefly described with reference to FIG.
[0047]
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the line head.
[0048]
FIG. 6 shows the arrangement order of the light emitting elements 163R, 163G, and 163B disposed at the end of the light guide plate 164, and the traveling directions of the R, G, and B light irradiated as light spots on the instant film. Is schematically indicated by an arrow.
[0049]
As shown in FIG. 6, the line head 16 includes R, G, and B light emitting elements 163R, 163G, and 163B, a light guide plate 164, the liquid crystal shutter array 165, and a lens 166, which are the three primary colors of light. Consists of.
[0050]
As shown in FIG. 6, the light emitting elements 163R, 163G, and 163B of the three primary colors are disposed at the end portions of the light guide plate 164, and the light emitted from these light emitting elements is instant film 1001 by the light guide plate 164. Led to the side. The path of the light guided to the instant film sheet 1001 side is changed by the light guide plate 164 and irradiated onto the instant film sheet 1001. The irradiated light passes through the shutters of the liquid crystal shutter array 165, passes through the Selfoc lens (registered trademark) 166, and reaches the instant film 1001. Thus, the light whose light amount is adjusted by each shutter of the liquid crystal shutter array 165 is converged on the instant film by the SELFOC lens, and a lot of focused light spots are recorded on the instant film. Here, by controlling the shutter speed of each shutter according to the image data using a 480 element liquid crystal shutter array, 480 light spots having a gradation corresponding to the image data are recorded on the instant film. This is recorded in the sub-scanning direction for 640 lines, and a light spot of 480 × 640 (VGA size) is recorded as a latent image on the instant film. This latent image is a latent image representing a color image in which light of three colors R, G, and B is recorded at the same light spot by the lens 166.
[0051]
A control configuration for controlling the line head 16, the developing roller 17b, and the stepping motor 162a will be shown and the operation will be described.
[0052]
FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the internal control configuration of the printer.
[0053]
As shown in FIG. 7, this printer is controlled by the CPU 180 in a centralized manner. The CPU 180 controls the power supply unit 181, the image processing unit 182, the print processing unit 183, and the developing motor 17.
[0054]
A description will be given of how the printer operates when the power switch of the printer is turned on and image data is wirelessly transmitted from the outside by infrared communication.
[0055]
When image data is sent from the outside to the printer 1 by infrared communication, the image processing unit 182 having the external I / F 1821 outputs a signal indicating reception to the CPU 180 when the infrared ray is received by the light receiving element 15. . In response to this signal, the CPU causes the image processing unit 182 to delete both the RAM 184 and FLASHMEMORY 185 image data. Further, the image processing unit 182 is made to receive new image data, and the received image data is stored in the RAM 184 via the bus. The CPU 180, the image processing unit 182 and the RAM 184 correspond to the data acquisition unit referred to in the present invention.
[0056]
When the CPU 180 causes the data acquisition unit to acquire image data from the outside, the CPU 180 causes the image processing unit 182 to read out the image data stored in the RAM 184 and cause the image processing unit 182 to generate print data. The print data refers to data that has been subjected to appropriate processing by the image processing unit and can control the shutter speed of each shutter of the line head 17, and has been acquired by the image acquisition unit. Different from image data. In the following description, in order to distinguish both data, the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit and stored in the RAM for the print data is referred to as pre-print data.
[0057]
When the CPU 180 generates the print data in the image processing unit 182, the CPU 180 causes the image processing unit 182 to transfer the print data, and causes the print control unit 183 to control the shutter speed of each shutter. Then, according to the print data, the opening time of each shutter arranged in the main scanning direction, that is, the shutter speed is controlled, and the light amounts of the R, G, and B colors passing through each shutter are adjusted. Further, the printing control unit 183 controls the stepping motor driver 1621a, and the stepping motor 162a scans the line head 16 in the sub-scanning direction, and the shutter speed of each shutter is set according to the print data for each scanning. 183 to control the light quantity of each light spot in the sub-scanning direction. In this way, the light quantity of all the light spots is adjusted, and a latent image representing an image made up of a collection of these light spots is recorded on the instant film. The print processing unit 183, the line head 17, the stepping motor 162a, and the stepping motor driver 1621a correspond to the image recording unit referred to in the present invention.
[0058]
After the latent image is recorded on the instant film 1001 by the image recording unit, the CPU 180 turns off the output of the power supply unit 181 and drives the developing motor 17 by the developing motor driver 17a.
[0059]
The developing motor 17 rotates the developing roller to sandwich the instant film, develops the developer on the entire instant film, visualizes the latent image, and discharges the instant film to the outside of the printer.
[0060]
The above is a series of development processes that the CPU 180 causes each unit to perform when image data is sent by infrared communication or USB communication after the power source SW11 is turned on.
[0061]
When the print SW 12 is operated, an image is recorded on the instant film sheet based on the image data in the RAM 184, and then a series of development processes are performed.
[0062]
The CPU controls from such image recording to a series of development processing.
[0063]
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure performed by the CPU.
[0064]
FIG. 8 shows the main process.
[0065]
First, processing performed by the CPU 180 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0066]
When the battery 1b is inserted, first, initial setting of each part is performed in step S801. By this initial setting, the oscillation frequency of the clock supplied to the CPU 180 is set. The CPU 180 has a low power consumption mode, and operates with a slow clock in the low power consumption mode. In the next step S802, the image data in FLASHMEMORY 185 is deleted. Here, for example, since image data for inspection before shipment remains in the FLASHMEMORY 185, the image processing unit deletes the image data.
[0067]
In step S803, the system waits for the power SW11 to be turned on. When the power SW13 is turned on, a power ON process is performed in step S804. In this power ON process, a menu is displayed on the LCD panel, or the processing speed of the CPU 180 is increased by increasing the clock speed.
[0068]
In the next step S805, a transition is made to a standby state where the state of a signal input to the CPU 180 side waits for a transition.
[0069]
Here, the CPU 180 operates the print SW 12 or the print data correction SW 13 as an item to monitor the transition of the state input to the CPU 180 and switches it to the ON side, and the image data is received by the external IF 1821 and received. It is listed that a signal is detected, that the power SW 11 is switched to the off side, and that the auto power off function of the printer of this embodiment works.
[0070]
If CPU 180 determines that any of these input states has transitioned, CPU 180 causes each unit to perform processing corresponding to the transitioned state.
[0071]
First, in step S806, in response to the print data correction SW being operated to the ON side, the print data correction SW processing process in the image processing unit is started, and the correction coefficient of the image data according to the operation content of the print data correction SW. Is set to image data, and the process returns to the standby state.
[0072]
Further, in response to the image data transmitted from the mobile phone and the external IF 1821 detecting the reception of the image data, the infrared communication process in the image processing unit 182 is started in step S807, and the external IF 1821 in the image processing unit 182 is started. And image data is acquired by an image acquisition unit comprising the RAM 184. When the image data is acquired by the image acquisition unit, each process is performed in steps S813 to S815 to discharge the instant film to the outside. When image data is acquired through USB communication in step S808, the same processing as in step S807 is performed.
[0073]
Next, when the print SW 12 is operated and switched to the ON side, if the time is exceeded by referring to the timer value in the CPU in step S809, the process returns to the standby state in step S805. If it is within a predetermined time with reference to the timer value, the process proceeds to step S810, the print data RAM development process is performed, the image data is restored to the RAM, and the image recording process based on the image data is performed from step S813 to step S815. Let me do it. In this embodiment, an output operation instruction is that the print SW 12 has been operated and switched to the ON side, and the output operation instruction is received by the CPU 180 serving as an output instruction acquisition unit, and image recording processing is performed.
[0074]
Further, when the power SW 11 is switched to the off side or the auto power function is activated, the power off processing process in the CPU 180 is started, and the timer value in the CPU 180 is referred to and the timer value is set. When it is detected that the time is within a predetermined time, the image processing unit 182 corresponding to the image transfer unit transfers the image data stored in the RAM 184, and the image data is saved in the FLASHMEMORY 185. Thereafter, the power-off process of each part is performed, and the process returns to the main routine.
[0075]
In this embodiment, the power switch 11 is switched to the off side, or the CPU 180 receives the power-off instruction as a power-off instruction indicating that the auto power-off function has been activated, and the power-off process is performed according to the power-off instruction. To do.
[0076]
The above processing is performed to reduce the power consumption of the battery, reduce the running cost on the user side, and handle this printer with a simple operation.
[0077]
In the printer of this embodiment, the remaining number of instant film sheets in the film pack loaded in the medium loading chamber is counted, and control relating to image recording and a series of development processes is performed. This control is performed by an operation control unit comprising a CPU 180 and a print control unit, and detects the open / closed state of the film door 101a as well as the position control of the claw 171a and the line head 16 associated with a series of unfolding processes, and the film pack. When 100 is replaced and a new film pack is loaded in the medium loading chamber, initialization processing is also performed.
[0078]
This initialization process will be described with reference to FIG.
[0079]
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of initialization processing when a new film pack is loaded.
[0080]
The flow will be described with reference to FIG.
[0081]
First, in step S901, the on / off state of the FLDSW is determined. If the FLDSW is on, the film remaining number counter FCOUNT is reset to return to the main routine on the assumption that film replacement is performed in step S902. When the remaining number counter FCOUNT in this CPU is set to 0, the CPU 180 knows that there is no film number. Therefore, when the film is replaced in step S902, the drive processing such as the motor and the developing motor is stopped by the print processing unit so that the film can be replaced safely.
[0082]
If the FLDSW is OFF and closed in step S901, it is determined in the next step S903 whether the film pack has been replaced and a new film pack has been loaded. If a film pack is loaded in this step and PAKSW is turned on, the process proceeds to step S903. If the film pack is not loaded and remains off, the process proceeds to step S904.
[0083]
If it is determined that there is no film pack in step S903, the line head 16 is moved to the safe position in step S904 on the assumption that the film pack will be replaced in the future, and the remaining number counter FCOUNT in the CPU 180 is reset in step S905. .
[0084]
If it is determined in step S903 that there is a film pack, it is determined in next step S906 whether the door flag EF_FLD is set to 1. This door flag EF_FLD is set by the CPU when the CPU detects that the film door has been opened.
[0085]
If it is determined in step S906 that the door flag EF_FLD is not set, the process proceeds to the N side. If there is an instant film sheet in the previous film pack, the remaining number counter FCOUNT is left as it is, and the process proceeds to step S907 to make the line head safe. Move to position. In the next step S910, the claw 171a is slid and the developing motor 17 is driven to perform the developing process of the instant film. After the instant film is discharged to the outside of the printer, the remaining number count FCOUNT is decremented, and the line head is moved to the home position in the next step S911 to prepare for the recording of the next image. Then, the process returns to the main routine.
[0086]
If it is detected in step S906 that the door flag EF_FLD is set and proceeds to the Y side, and the state of the film door flag EF_FLD has changed from 0 to 1 while proceeding, the remaining number counter is set to 11 in the next step S908. 11 indicates the number of 10 instant films in the film pack 100 plus the cover. When the process proceeds to the next step S909 and it is determined whether or not the safe SW is turned on and it is confirmed that the line head is in the safe position, in the next step S910, the developing motor is driven to slide the nail. At the same time, the unfolding roller is rotated to perform the unfolding process of the cover. When the expansion process is completed, the remaining number counter is decremented to prepare for the next recording, and in step S911, the line head is moved to the home position.
[0087]
In this way, the cover can be discharged immediately after the film pack is loaded.
[0088]
Here, a series of development processing will be described with reference to a timing chart.
[0089]
FIG. 10 is a timing chart for explaining a series of development processing.
[0090]
The upper part of FIG. 10 shows the waveform of a signal supplied from the CPU to the developing motor, and the lower part of FIG. 10 shows the waveform indicating the operating state of the CAMSW that operates during the developing process.
[0091]
This series of development processing is performed by an operation control unit including the CPU 180 and the print control unit 183.
[0092]
Here, the CPU 180 activates a development process in the print control unit, and causes the print control unit to perform a series of development processes. Once this process is activated, a series of development processes are performed to the end. Therefore, it is necessary for the CPU side to grasp the progress of the development process to be performed by the print control unit. Therefore, a mechanical switch, for example, a cam switch (hereinafter referred to as CAMSW) that operates in the middle of the developing process of the instant film is provided in the vicinity of the developing roller, and the time until the CAMSW is operated and the time until a series of developing processes are completed. The CPU checks whether or not the expansion process is normally performed. When a time over is detected by this check, the print control unit is requested to interrupt the development process. Further, when the CPU detects a time-over, it performs an emergency stop process and a failure display of the developed motor. Note that the predetermined time for determining the time over is stored in FLASHMEMORY and does not disappear even when the auto power-off is activated. Therefore, the predetermined time is referred to whenever the development process is performed.
[0093]
The above is the procedure of the initialization process when the film pack is loaded.
[0094]
Details of each process in the flowchart of FIG. 9 will be described here.
[0095]
FIG. 11 shows details of the processing from step S901 to step S902 in FIG.
[0096]
Since the film door is opened in step S1101 and the flag EF_FLD is set, the driving of the line head is stopped in step S1102, and the developing motor is stopped in the next step S1103. In step S1104, the remaining number counter FCOUNT is reset and the process returns to the main routine.
[0097]
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing details when the door closing is detected in step S901 in FIG.
[0098]
As shown in FIG. 12, when the film pack is loaded in step S1201 and the door is closed, the door open flag EF_FLD becomes 0, so the line head is moved to the safe position in the next step S1202. In the next step S1203, it is determined whether or not the expansion processing flag EF_TENKAI is set to 1. The development processing flag is set after the print control unit finishes the image recording process. If the development processing flag is 1, the process proceeds to the Y side and the development processing process of the print processing unit is started in step S1204. . If the expansion processing flag is 0 in step S1203, step S1204 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S1205. In step S1205, the state of PAKSW is detected to detect the presence or absence of a film pack.
[0099]
If it is determined that there is a film pack, the process proceeds to the Y side. In the next step S1206, the remaining number counter FCOUNT is set to 11 to perform development processing, decrementing, and the process proceeds to the next step S1207. In step S1207, the line head is moved to the home position in preparation for the next recording, and the processing of this flow is terminated. If it is determined in this step that there is no pack, the process proceeds to the N side, and this flow ends.
[0100]
The operation control unit including the CPU and the print control unit performs image recording on each recording medium except for the last one in the medium pack loaded in the medium loading chamber. The line head drive device is controlled so that the line head is stopped at the safe position when the image is recorded on the last one recording medium.
[0101]
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when the image recording process in the print processing unit 182 is started and the image recording is performed on each recording medium after the film pack 100 is exchanged.
[0102]
In step S1301, it is confirmed that the line head is at the home position. If it is confirmed in step S1302 that the line head is at the home position, the print control unit drives the motor to output print data to the line head side while moving the line head in the sub-scanning direction.
[0103]
When the output of the print data to the line head side is completed, the process proceeds to the Y side and proceeds to the next step S1304. In step S1304, the expansion processing process of the print processing unit is started to discharge the instant film to the outside of the printer. When the expansion processing process is completed, the remaining number counter FCOUNT in the CPU is decremented. In next step S1305, an instruction is issued to the print control unit, the drive position of the line head is returned to the home position, and the process returns to the main routine.
[0104]
In this way, when more and more images are recorded on the film sheets in the film pack, and when the number of instant film sheets in the film pack is reduced and images are recorded on the last film sheet, The processing based on the processing procedure of FIG. 14 is performed according to the value.
[0105]
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when the remaining number of films is one.
[0106]
In step S1401, it is confirmed that the line head is at the home position, and the latent image is recorded in accordance with the print data while moving the line head in the next step S1402. When the latent image is recorded up to the end position in the sub-scanning direction in this step S1402, the process proceeds to the Y side and development processing is performed to decrement the remaining number counter. Since it is the last one, it becomes 0, and when this 0 is counted, the processing of this flow is terminated without returning the line head to the home position.
[0107]
In this way, when the film pack is replaced and the film door is closed, the film door closing process shown in the figure is started, and the cover is immediately ejected to prepare for recording.
[0108]
As described above, when the nail is driven, the line head is retracted to the safe position, and the nail and the line head do not interfere with each other so that the nail does not move.
[0109]
In addition, by retracting the line head to the safe position in this way, reducing the distance from the line head without providing a space for the slide range of the claw, and further arranging the claw at almost the same height as the line head, The size of the printer can be reduced.
[0110]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the camera of the present invention, it is possible to provide a printer in which a discharge claw and a line head are accommodated in a compact housing. Furthermore, although most embodiments of the present invention have been described with regard to ejection with an instant film, the present invention is sufficiently applicable to a printer having a line head and a recording medium ejection mechanism.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention when viewed obliquely from above.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state where an instant film loaded in the printer is discharged to the outside of the printer.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the lower surface of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention as viewed obliquely from above.
4 is a view of the inside of the printer as seen from diagonally forward and upward, with the exterior cover of the printer of FIG. 1 removed.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state when the line head is at the end portion.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of an optical head.
FIG. 7 is a configuration block diagram showing a control configuration inside the printer.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing routine of a main routine.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure of processing performed by a CPU when the film is exchanged.
FIG. 10 is a timing chart illustrating a series of development processing.
FIG. 11 shows details of processing from step S901 to step S902 in FIG.
12 is a flowchart showing details of processing when the film door is closed from step S901 to step S911 in FIG. 9;
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when an image is recorded by this printer after the film pack is exchanged.
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when the remaining instant film sheets in the film pack become one sheet.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Printer
1a case
10a Battery loading chamber
1b battery
100a Film loading chamber
101a film door
1011a 1012a Spring member
100 instant film pack
1001 Instant film sheet
110a gripping part
111a Partition plate
111b hole
10 Various switches
11 Power SW
12 Print SW
13 Print data correction SW
14 LCD panel
15 Light receiver
16 Optical head
161 Rack member
161a Lead screw
1611a guide rod
162a Stepping motor
162b Home SW
162c Safe SW
1621a Stepping motor driver
163R 163G 163B Light emitting element
164 Light guide plate
165 LCD shutter array
166 Selfoc Lens (registered trademark)
17 Deployment motor
17a Deployment motor driver
17b Roller
171a Nail
180 CPU
1800 FPC
180A temperature sensor
180B Origin sensor
180C terminal sensor
181 Power supply
182 Image processing unit
1821 External I / F
183 Print processing department
184 RAM
185 FLASHMEMORY

Claims (3)

In a printer that has a medium loading chamber in which a recording medium is loaded, records an image according to image data on the recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber, and sends the recording medium on which the image is recorded to the outside.
A data acquisition unit for acquiring image data;
The data acquisition unit is acquired by the data acquisition unit while being driven in the sub-scanning direction that is arranged at a position facing the recording medium loaded in the medium loading chamber and extends in a predetermined main scanning direction. A line head for recording an image according to the image data,
A line head driving device for moving the line head between a start end and a terminal end in the sub-scanning direction;
A nail that slides the recording medium by pressing a recording medium that is arranged on the start end side and on which an image is recorded by the line head, and a recording medium that is sandwiched between the recording medium that is arranged on the end side and is slid by the nail A medium delivery device having a roller for delivering the toner to the outside of the printer,
An operation control unit that controls the line head driving device and the medium feeding device so that the medium feeding device operates only when the line head is moved to the terminal portion. Printer. The medium loading chamber includes a plurality of recording media stacked, a medium pack including a cover that covers the stacked recording media and is sent to the outside by the medium feeding device after being loaded into the medium loading chamber. A medium loading chamber to be loaded;
The operation control unit returns the line head to the start end after the image recording when the image recording is performed on each recording medium except the last one in the medium pack loaded in the medium loading chamber. In addition, the line head driving device is controlled so that the line head is stopped at the end when the image is recorded on the last recording medium. Item 1. The printer according to Item 1. The medium loading chamber is a medium loading chamber in which a latent image is formed by exposure and loaded with an instant film that is developed and developed at the time of delivery.
The line head records an image composed of a latent image on an instant film loaded in the medium loading chamber,
2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the medium feeding device develops a developer on the instant film while feeding the instant film having a latent image recorded between the rollers.

Images