JP2005178315A - Printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing device capable of certainly preventing an ink-ribbon unit from being incorrectly mounted and certainly obscuring the printing marks remained on the ink ribbon after using, and which has a simple classification mechanism capable of assorting an unnecessary tip part separated by cutting and an image recording portion. <P>SOLUTION: The ink-ribbon unit 95 mounted on the printing device 63 performs the task of winding the ink ribbon 96 on a feeding reel 97 at one end of which a large-diameter flange 99 has been formed, and a winding reel 98 for winding the used portion is also provided. When the ink-ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted at the ink-ribbon mounting part of the printing device 63, the member interfering a projection part 102 near the pivot hinge 101 at the lower-end inside of a front lid 83 does not exist, therefore the front lid 83 can be closed correctly. However, if the ink-ribbon unit 95 is mounted accidentally with the reverse order between the feeding reel 97 and the winding reel 98, the front lid 83 can not be closed correctly due to the projection part 102 contacting the large-diameter flange 99. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention reliably prevents erroneous mounting of the ink ribbon unit, reliably obfuscates the print marks remaining on the used ink ribbon, and easily separates the unnecessary tip portion and the image recording portion that have been cut and separated. The present invention relates to a printing apparatus having a sorting mechanism.

Conventionally, roll paper and ink ribbon are detachable, and built-in multiple printing devices that perform printing by thermally transferring ink ribbon ink to the roll paper, and automatically print the user's desired print for a fee. There are known photo printing vending machines standing on the streets and stores that are provided. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1.)
FIG. 16 is a front view showing an external configuration of a photographic printing vending machine incorporating such a conventional roll paper and a printing apparatus using an ink ribbon. As shown in the figure, the photo printing vending machine 1 includes a display / operation unit (display & touch panel) 2, a key input unit 3, a recording medium insertion port 4, an LED 5, a fee display unit 6, a coin on the front side of the apparatus. A slot 7, a bill slot 8, a return lever 9, a change slot 10, and a print take-out slot 11 are provided. In addition, auxiliary display portions (not shown) are provided on the left and right side surfaces of the photo printing vending machine 1.

  The display / operation unit 2 includes a display unit of a liquid crystal display and an operation unit that operates keys, buttons, icons, and the like displayed on the liquid crystal display with a finger, for example. In the display / operation unit 2, for example, image information captured by a digital camera or the like is displayed as a thumbnail, and a selection icon for a pay mode or a free mode is also displayed.

The user can select image information displayed as thumbnails in accordance with the display on the display / operation unit 2 on the screen or by the key input unit 3, and can individually specify the number of prints.
The recording media insertion port 4 (4a to 4e) is an insertion port into which a plurality of types of recording media can be inserted. For example, the compact flash (registered trademark) insertion port 4a and the smart media (registered trademark) insertion port 4b. A memory stick (registered trademark) insertion slot 4c, a PC card insertion slot 4d, and a floppy (registered trademark) disk insertion slot 4e.

  In addition, the coin insertion slot 7, the bill slot 8, and the change slot 10 are configured to be used when the photo printing vending machine 1 is used for a fee. Insert coins. At this time, the deposited amount is displayed on the charge display unit 6. In addition, a fee is returned to the change mouth 10 when the change is returned or when the user stops using the change.

The photo printing vending machine 1 reads the image data from the media received in the insertion slot 4 in addition to the devices shown in the above-mentioned appearance, and the printer unit for printing the read photo image, and the fee for the printed matter is settled. The billing device for doing this is built in.
The user saves the image data taken with a digital camera, a camera-equipped mobile phone, or the image data taken into a personal computer in any of the above-mentioned various recording media. Is taken to the photo printing vending machine 1 and attached to the insertion slot 4.

The photo printing vending machine 1 reads image data from a mounted recording medium, and performs a printing process by a built-in printer unit. The printed matter is output to the print take-out port 11 of the photo printing vending machine 1.
FIGS. 17A and 17B are diagrams for explaining the internal structure of the photo printing vending machine 1 having the above-described external configuration. As shown in FIG. 1A, the photo printing vending machine 1 includes a front unit 12, a paper duct 13, and a rear unit 14.

  The front unit 12 includes a main controller that performs overall control of the photo printing vending machine 1 and the operation / display unit (touch panel & liquid crystal display) 2 described above. The paper duct 13 is a component for guiding printed paper to the print take-out port 11. The rear unit 14 includes a plurality of detachable printing devices 15 and a power supply unit (not shown). Each printing device 15 is mounted on a predetermined position of the rear unit 14 by sliding on the slide rail 16.

  When there are no consumables such as roll paper for printing or thermal transfer ink ribbon in each printing device 15, first, as shown in FIG. 5B, first, the front unit 12 and the paper duct 13 are opened outward, and then Pull out two printers 15 that require replacement of consumables together with other printers 15 arranged side by side, and open the upper lid 17 of the printer 15 that requires replacement of consumables upward and backward, The front lid 18 is opened to the front and lower side, the roll paper 21 with the hollow core 19 is replaced, and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 is replaced.

FIG. 18 is a side sectional view showing the configuration of the printing apparatus 15 arranged inside the photo printing vending machine 1. As shown in FIG. 18, the printing apparatus 15 is provided with a front lid 18 also shown in FIG. 17B and an upper lid 17 covering the upper rear.
When the upper lid 17 is closed, the fixing hook 23 on the main body side is fixed by engaging with a locking pin 24 on the upper lid side. When the upper lid 17 is opened, the hinge 17 is disengaged from the locking pin 24 to release the hinge. The inside is opened by rotating upward and backward (upper right in the figure) with 25 as a fulcrum. Inside, a roll paper 21 with a hollow core 19 as a recording medium is accommodated and supported by a paper holder. From the roll paper 21 with the hollow core 19, the paper leading edge image forming portion 21 a is pulled out in the direction of the printing portion described later.

  On the other hand, the front lid 18 is fixed by engaging the fixing hook 26 on the main body side with a locking pin that cannot be clearly seen in the figure on the front lid side when the front lid 18 is closed. By releasing the engagement, the hinge 27 is pivoted forward (lower left in the figure) to open the inside. A thermal head 28 is disposed integrally with the front lid 18, and the thermal head 28 moves together with the front lid 18 to the lower front side when the front lid 18 is opened.

  Inside the space opened by the movement of the front lid 18 and the thermal head 28, a thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 is attached and a delivery reel 29 for feeding the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 to the printing unit, and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 is used for printing. A take-up reel 31 that winds up the portion is disposed so as to be supported by a mounting portion that is divided into two upper and lower portions.

  As shown in FIG. 18, when the front lid 18 is closed, the ribbon draw-out portion 22a drawn from the delivery reel 29 and spanned on the take-up reel 31 is pushed into the interior by the thermal head 28, and the paper The platen roller 32 is pressed against the leading edge image forming unit 21a. A plurality of conveying roller pairs are arranged at various locations along the passage path of the paper leading edge image forming portion 21a of the roll paper 21 and the ribbon drawing portion 22a of the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22, and printing is executed as will be described in detail later.

A motor 33 is arranged approximately in the middle of the arrangement portion of the roll paper 21 and the arrangement portion of the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22. When printing is performed, the motor 33 rotationally drives each unit via a drive system including a gear train (not shown).
The paper leading edge image forming unit 21a, whose printing has been finished and the trailing edge of the printing has been discharged to the paper discharge port 34, is cut off from the paper leading edge image forming unit 21a main body by the cutting mechanism 35 and guided to the paper switching guide unit 30. Then, it is discharged (printed out) to the print take-out port 11 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram schematically showing an aspect during printing of the printing device 15. In the figure, the same components as in FIG. 18 are given the same reference numerals as in FIG. As shown in FIG. 19, each printing apparatus 15 includes a thermal head 28, a thermal transfer ink ribbon 22, a take-up reel 31, a roll paper (print paper) 21 having a hollow core 19, a plurality of feed roller pairs 36 and 37, 38, a cutting mechanism 35, and a platen roller 32.

The roll paper 21 is fed to the thermal head 28 by the feed roller pair 36 and cut to a predetermined paper length by the cutting mechanism 35.
The thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 is provided with yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C) inks and a surface coating agent that are successively connected one screen length at a time, so that the roll paper 21 can be printed. It is wound as a printing ink ribbon for screen printing corresponding to the number of sheets.

  The feed roller pair 37 is a roller for superimposing the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 and the roll paper 21 and feeding the thermal paper 28 to the thermal head 28. As the roll paper 21 and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 are conveyed in the direction of the arrow in the figure, The thermal head 28 is pressed in the direction of the platen roller 32 and the ink on the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 is thermally transferred to the roll paper 21 to print a photograph.

When printing of the first color (Y) is completed, only the roll paper 21 is returned and conveyed in the direction opposite to the arrow, the leading end of the roll paper 21 is detected by a sensor (not shown), and the roll paper 21 and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 are detected in the arrow direction. And the second color (M) is printed.
When such printing processing is repeated until printing of the third color (C) and the surface coating agent and printing by the thermal head 28 is completed, the thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 and the roll paper 21 that have been printed are conveyed by the feed roller pair 38. The used thermal transfer ink ribbon 22 for which the printing process has been completed is taken up by the take-up reel 31, and the printed roll paper 21 is fed into the paper duct 13.

When the roll paper 21 disappears due to use by printing, it is replaced with a new roll paper 21 as shown in FIG.
FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a specific configuration in the vicinity of the recording paper cutting section of the printing apparatus 15 described above. As shown in the figure, the cutting mechanism 35 that cuts the recording paper (paper leading edge image forming unit 21a of the roll paper 21) of the printing apparatus 15 includes a cutter 35a and a cutter driving unit 35b. The leading edge image forming portion 21a of the roll paper 21 cut by the cutting mechanism 35 is guided by a guide plate 42 fixed to the main body frame 41 along the paper transport direction, and the paper is switched from the cutting mechanism discharge port 43. It is discharged to the guide unit 30.

  Generally, in a thermal transfer type printing apparatus using an ink ribbon, printing is performed while conveying a sheet while applying a certain load to the sheet. Therefore, a pair of conveyance rollers is installed downstream of the thermal head 28 in the sheet conveyance direction, and printing is executed while the sheet is sandwiched and pulled by the roller pair. For this reason, an unprinted portion (margin portion) sandwiched between a pair of conveying rollers at the beginning of printing always occurs at the leading edge of the sheet. Therefore, when the print finish is to be in the form of full-page printing, it is necessary to cut the blank portion generated at the top of the paper after printing.

However, if the paper is simply cut, the blank portion and the printed portion are combined and discharged to the take-out port. Therefore, it is necessary to separate the blank portion and the printed portion. FIG. 20 shows a configuration in which printed paper is cut while sorting the margin portion and the printed portion.
That is, the sheet switching guide unit 30 includes a rotation guide plate 44 and a holding unit 45 that holds the rotation guide plate 44, and the holding unit 45 is supported by a support shaft 46. As a fulcrum, it rotates between a broken line position and a solid line position in the figure as indicated by a double-headed arrow in the figure.

  FIGS. 21A, 21B, 21C, and 21D are diagrams for explaining the operation of the cutting mechanism 35 and the sheet switching guide unit 30 configured as described above. FIG. 21A shows a state in which the cutter 35a is driven to cut the blank portion 21a-1 located at the head of the paper leading edge image forming portion 21a (image forming portion) of the roll paper 21. b) is a perspective view seen from a slightly different angle. In this state, the rotation guide plate 44 is rotated counterclockwise as shown in FIG. 5A by the support portion 45 about the support shaft 46 as a fulcrum, and does not hinder the natural fall of the blank portion 21a-1. The cut margin portion (cut end) 21a-1 falls in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG.

  Next, the rotation guide plate 44 is rotated clockwise by the support portion 45 with the support shaft 46 as a fulcrum, and as shown in FIGS. It is set at a position along the discharge path of the forming portion 21a. The leading end 21a of the roll paper 21 is conveyed, and the paper leading edge image forming unit 21a of the roll paper 21 is guided through the paper duct 13 shown in FIG. Guided in the direction of the outlet 11.

Thereafter, when the end of the paper leading edge image forming unit 21a of the roll paper 21 reaches the position of the cutter 35a, the conveyance is stopped and the cutter 35a is driven again. The paper leading edge image forming unit 21 a cut from the roll paper 21 main body falls obliquely downward and is discharged to the takeout port 11 through the paper duct 13.
JP 2001-283323 A ([Summary], FIG. 1)

  By the way, conventionally, when a user or a maintenance worker of a printing apparatus mounts a new ink ribbon on the printing apparatus, the error that the take-up side and the supply side of the ink ribbon are often reversed is mounted. In this case, since the printing apparatus cannot be operated, it was necessary to investigate the cause, find out the wrong mounting, and re-mount.

  In addition, when the printing apparatus is a printing method in which the ink ribbon ink is thermally transferred onto the recording paper such as roll paper as described above, the ink ribbon sheet after use that is wound around the take-up reel is transferred to the recording paper. There is a problem that a print mark is clearly left by a portion that has not been transferred and a portion that has not been transferred, and the printed image can be easily discriminated, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of privacy protection.

In addition, the conventional auto cutter that cuts the printed part and unnecessary blank part from the roll paper main body has only a function of cutting the paper, so that it rotates as a separation mechanism for separating the printing part and the blank part of the recording paper. It is necessary to provide a separate guide plate, and this separation mechanism requires a drive mechanism for rotating the rotation guide plate, a sensor for controlling the drive, and the like, which causes a problem of an increase in cost. .

  In view of the above-described conventional situation, the object of the present invention is to reliably prevent erroneous mounting of the ink ribbon unit, to surely obscure the print marks remaining on the ink ribbon after use, and to cut and separate the unnecessary tip portion. And a printing apparatus having a simple sorting mechanism for sorting images and image recording portions.

  A printing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a thermal transfer ink ribbon, a supply reel for attaching and feeding the thermal transfer ink ribbon, and a take-up reel for winding the used thermal transfer ink ribbon. An ink ribbon unit configured to be detachably held on the apparatus main body in a state of being spanned between the take-up reel and the supply reel, and a supply that engages the supply reel and holds the supply reel A recording medium, comprising: a reel mounting portion; a winding reel mounting portion that engages with the take-up reel and holds the take-up reel; and a mounting portion that detachably mounts the ink ribbon unit. Incorrect printing of the ink ribbon unit for notifying whether or not the ink ribbon unit has been properly installed in the printing apparatus that thermally transfers the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon. Configured with intellectual means.

  The ink ribbon unit erroneous attachment notifying means covers, for example, a large-diameter flange provided on only one of the supply reel or the take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit and the ink ribbon unit attached to the attachment portion. The lid member can be freely opened and closed, and blocking means for preventing the lid member from closing due to interference by a large-diameter flange when the ink ribbon unit is erroneously mounted.

  Further, the printing apparatus of the second invention includes, for example, a thermal transfer ink ribbon, a supply reel for attaching and feeding out the thermal transfer ink ribbon, and a take-up reel for winding the used thermal transfer ink ribbon. An ink ribbon unit configured to be detachably held on the apparatus main body in a state of being spanned between the take-up reel and the supply reel, and to hold the supply reel by engaging with the supply reel A recording medium comprising: a supply reel mounting portion; and a winding reel mounting portion that engages with the take-up reel and holds the take-up reel, and a mounting portion that detachably mounts the ink ribbon unit. In the printing apparatus for thermally transferring the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon, it is provided only on either the supply reel or the take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit. A large-diameter flange, an erroneous attachment detection means for detecting the large-diameter flange when the ink ribbon unit is erroneously installed, and a warning lamp is turned on based on detection of the large-diameter flange by the erroneous attachment detection means And an erroneous attachment notification means for performing blinking, displaying a warning message by a display device, and / or emitting a buzzer.

  The erroneous attachment detection means is provided on, for example, an openable / closable lid member that covers the ink ribbon unit attached to the attachment portion, and the large diameter of the ink ribbon unit that is erroneously attached when the lid member is closed. It is composed of a mechanical switch that operates in contact with the flange, and is composed of, for example, an optical sensor arranged so as to be close to the edge of the large-diameter flange of the ink ribbon unit that has been mismounted.

  Subsequently, a printing apparatus of a third invention includes a thermal transfer ink ribbon, a supply reel for attaching and feeding out the thermal transfer ink ribbon, and a take-up reel for winding the used thermal transfer ink ribbon. A ribbon transport roller pair that pulls in the thermal transfer ink ribbon that has been used in the direction of the take-up reel, and in the printing apparatus that thermally transfers the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon to a recording medium. One of the rollers is composed of a rubber roller, and the other roller is composed of a metal roller whose peripheral surface is embossed.

  And the printing apparatus of 4th invention records an image on the said recording medium, paying out and conveying the recording medium wound by the cylindrical shape from the outermost peripheral front-end | tip part, The said recording medium on which image recording was carried out Is a printing apparatus that cuts the recording medium into a predetermined size by a cutting mechanism and discharges it to a paper discharge unit, and is disposed in the discharge path of the recording medium near the downstream of the cutting mechanism, and does not need to receive a front end unnecessary portion of the recording medium A rotating member that is integrally formed with a part receiving part and a recorded part guide part that guides an image recorded part of the recording medium to the paper discharge part and that rotates in conjunction with a cutting mechanism; The rotating member receives the unnecessary portion of the recording medium cut and separated by the cutting mechanism by the unnecessary portion receiving portion located in the discharge path, and then rotates to discharge the discharging portion. Place the recorded partial guide section on the road, On the other hand, the unnecessary portion receiving portion rotated from the position of the discharge path allows the unnecessary portion of the tip to fall naturally to the unnecessary portion collection portion, and on the other hand, the recorded partial guide portion disposed at the position of the discharge path. Thus, the image recording portion of the recording medium that continues after the front end unnecessary portion is cut is guided to the paper discharge portion.

  According to the present invention, a large-diameter flange is provided only on one of the supply reel and the take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit, and the lid that covers these reel mounting portions corresponds to the reel side where the large-diameter flange is not provided. Protrusion is provided at the position where the ink ribbon unit is installed incorrectly, so that the large diameter flange and the projection interfere with each other so that the lid cannot be closed, and the user or maintenance worker can easily notice the installation error. Can do.

  Similarly, a large-diameter flange is provided only on one of the supply reel and take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit, and a position corresponding to the reel side where the large-diameter flange is not provided on the lid portion covering these reel mounting portions. If the ink ribbon unit is installed incorrectly, the sensor detects a large-diameter flange that should not be present, and the warning lamp lights up or flashes, a warning message is displayed by the display device, and Alternatively, since the buzzer is sounded, it is possible to visually and audibly notify the user or maintenance worker of the erroneous mounting, and the erroneous mounting can be easily noticed.

  In addition, since at least one roller of a pair of ribbon transport rollers that draws a used ink ribbon in the direction of the take-up reel is composed of a metal roller having an embossed peripheral surface, it can be used to be taken up on a take-up reel. The used ink ribbon surface is embossed by a pair of ribbon transport rollers, which makes it possible to dispose of used ink ribbon in a way that the print marks are unclear and privacy is not compromised. Easy to get and convenient.

  In addition, since the auto cutter unit has a built-in mechanism for separating the unnecessary blank portion and the print portion of the recording paper, it is possible to contribute to simplification of the configuration of the printing apparatus and cost reduction.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a photo printing vending machine in which a printing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention is incorporated and used. As shown in the figure, a photo printing vending machine 50 includes a display / operation unit (display & touch panel) 51, a recording medium insertion port 52, a charge display unit 53, a bill insertion port 54, a coin insertion port 55, A return lever 56, a change port 57, a receipt take-out port 58, and a print take-out port 59 are provided.

  The display / operation unit 51 includes a display unit of a liquid crystal display and an operation unit that operates keys, buttons, icons, and the like displayed on the liquid crystal display with a finger, for example. In the display / operation unit 51, for example, image information captured by a digital camera or the like is displayed as a thumbnail, and a pay mode or free mode selection icon or the like is also displayed. The user can select image information displayed as thumbnails according to the display on the display / operation unit 51 by an operation on the screen, and can individually specify the number of prints.

  The recording medium insertion port 52 includes an insertion port into which a plurality of types of recording media can be inserted. For example, the compact flash (registered trademark), smart media (registered trademark), memory stick (registered trademark), PC card, floppy ( A registered trademark disk, MO (magneto-optical disk) or the like can be inserted and mounted.

  The bill insertion slot 54, the coin insertion slot 55, and the change slot 57 are used when the photo printing vending machine 50 is used for a fee. Insert coins from 55. At this time, the deposited amount is displayed on the charge display unit 53. In addition, a change is returned to the change mouth 57 when the change is returned or when the user stops using the change.

The photo printing vending machine 50 includes, in addition to the devices shown in the above-described appearance, a printing unit that reads out image data from a medium received in the recording medium insertion port 52 and prints the read photo image, and a fee for printed matter. Built-in billing device for paying off.
The user saves the image data taken with a digital camera, a camera-equipped mobile phone, or the image data taken into a personal computer in any of the above-mentioned various recording media. Is taken to the photo printing vending machine 50 and mounted in the recording medium insertion slot 52.

The photo printing vending machine 50 reads image data from a loaded recording medium, and performs a printing process by a built-in printing apparatus. The printed matter is output to the print takeout port 59 of the photo printing vending machine 50.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams for explaining the internal structure of the photo printing vending machine 50 having the above-described external configuration. As shown in FIG. 2A, the photo printing vending machine 50 includes a main body 60 and a front door 61. In the main body 60, approximately 2/3 of the upper part is partitioned left and right by a vertical partition plate 62, and the left partition that is widely partitioned is further partitioned into three upper and lower stages.

  Four printing apparatuses 63 (63a, 63b) are arranged side by side in the upper and middle stages of the three-stage partitions so that they can be pulled out in the front direction. The upper printing device 63a is a printing device dedicated to L size, and the middle printing device 63b is a printing device dedicated to 2L size. A chip receiving box 64 is disposed at the lower stage of the three-stage partition.

  A main controller 65 is disposed on the right partition of the vertical partition 62. From the main controller 65, signal / power supply lines 66 and 67 for controlling each part of the front door portion 61 are wired to the front door portion 61. A maintenance switch 68 is provided at the upper end of the vertical partition 62. The maintenance switch 68 is a switch that is input to perform maintenance such as replacement of consumables or replenishment of change.

A power supply unit 69 is provided at the lower third partition of the main body 60, that is, the lowermost part, and a power switch 71 is provided on the front surface of the power supply unit 69. Power is supplied from the power supply unit 69 to each unit via the main controller 65.
On the other hand, the front door 61 is provided with a cover for protecting the internal devices of the respective parts shown in FIG. The bill display unit cover 72 is provided with a bill stacker 73 integrally therewith. The recording medium insertion portion cover 75 disposed below the display / operation portion cover 74 is formed with an acceptance chip relay portion 76 integrally therewith, and the generated chips are stored in the reception chip. It is collected in the chip receiving box 64 described above via the relay unit 76.

  When the recording medium insertion portion cover 75 is opened as shown in FIG. 4B, the coin mech cassette 77 and the inner device 78 of the recording medium insertion port 52 are exposed, and maintenance of these can be performed. The coin mech cassette 77 is a device for storing and paying out coins corresponding to the coin insertion slot 55 and the change slot 57 shown in FIG. 1, and a coin box 79 is provided below it. A receipt printer 81 is disposed below the coin box 79. The receipt printer 81 prints the receipt amount on the small roll paper 82, cuts off the printed portion (receipt), and outputs the receipt to the receipt take-out port 58 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 3 is an external front view of the printing device 63. As shown in the figure, the printing apparatus 63 is provided with a front lid 83 that opens and closes about 1/2 of the upper front side from the front. A large number of cooling ventilation holes 84 are formed in the front lid 83. A status lamp 85, a communication lamp 86, an error lamp 87, an error release switch 88, a print enable switch 89, and a test mode switch 91 are provided on the front surface of the left side of the left side.

  These lamps and switches are observed and operated during maintenance of the printing apparatus 63 by a maintenance worker, and the status lamp 85 is a lamp that indicates the state of the printing apparatus 63, and includes roll paper and thermal transfer. When the ink ribbon runs out, it lights up in orange, for example. The communication lamp 86 is a lamp indicating a communication state between the printing apparatus 63 and the main controller 65, and lights up in green or the like during communication. The error lamp 87 indicates the occurrence of an error. When the roll paper or the thermal transfer ink ribbon runs out, for example, the error lamp 87 intermittently blinks a certain number of times. The number of flashes varies depending on the content of the error.

  The error release switch 88 is a switch that is pressed after the roll paper or the thermal transfer ink ribbon is replaced, or after a paper jam recovery measure is taken. The print enable switch 89 is a switch that is pressed when all maintenance processes are completed and printing is possible. The test mode switch 91 is a switch that is used when trouble occurs when replacing the roll paper or the thermal transfer ink ribbon.

  FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a method for attaching and detaching the coreless roll paper in the printing apparatus 63 configured as described above. As shown in FIG. 5A, first, the front lid 83 is opened forward and downward as indicated by an arrow a, and then the upper lid 92 is opened upward and rearward as indicated by an arrow b. Then, after removing the remainder of the rear end portion of the paper, a new coreless roll paper 93 is attached to the paper attachment portion as shown in FIG.

  FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are views for explaining a method of mounting the ink ribbon unit in the printing apparatus 63 having the above-described configuration. FIG. 5A shows the ink ribbon unit 95, and FIG. (b) shows a state in which the ink ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus 63, and FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the ink ribbon unit 95 includes an ink ribbon 96 before use, a supply reel 97 on which the ink ribbon 96 is attached, and a take-up reel 98 for winding the used ink ribbon. Become. The supply reel 97 is provided with a large-diameter flange 99 at one end, and the start end portion of the ink ribbon 96 is fixed to the take-up reel 98.

  First, as shown in FIG. 4B, the coreless roll paper 93 is mounted on the paper mounting portion, and then the upper lid 92 is closed as shown in FIG. 5B, and the ink ribbon shown in FIG. The unit 95 is mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing device 63 as shown by the arrow c in FIG. In this state, as shown in FIG. 4C, the supply reel 97 with the large diameter flange 99 is positioned above the ink ribbon mounting portion, and the take-up reel 98 without the large diameter flange is below the ink ribbon mounting portion. Is located. A protrusion 102 as a blocking means is disposed in the vicinity of the rotating hinge 101 inside the lower end of the front lid 83.

  In the configuration of the printing apparatus 63 in the first embodiment, a large-diameter flange 99 is formed on the supply reel 97, and the protrusion 102 is disposed on the inner side of the lower end of the front lid 83. Other than that, the coreless roll paper 93 is used for the recording paper as the recording medium, and the other parts are the same as the configuration of the printing apparatus 15 shown in FIG. That is, the leading end of the coreless roll paper 93 shown in FIG. 4B is pulled out and under the ink ribbon 96 stretched between the supply reel 97 and the take-up reel 98 as shown in FIG. When the front lid 83 is closed after being pulled out through the apparatus main body through a slanting lower right side in the figure, the front end of the thermal head 103 attached to the front lid 83 causes the ink ribbon 96 and the recording paper to pass through the platen roller. Pressing 104 makes preparations for starting printing.

  FIGS. 6A and 6B are views showing a state when the front lid 83 is closed when the ink ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus 63 as described above. As shown in FIG. 6A, the front lid 83 is properly closed, and as shown in FIG. 5B, the protrusion 102 inside the lower end portion of the front lid 83 interferes with or blocks this. Such a member is attached at a position where it is not disposed inside the main body. As a result, the front lid 83 is properly closed.

  7A and 7B, the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously attached to the ink ribbon attachment portion of the printing device 63 with the attachment positions of the supply reel 97 and the take-up reel 98 reversed. FIG. While the supply reel 97 and the take-up reel 98 are switched up and down as shown in FIG. 6A, the ink ribbon unit 95 is connected to the printing device 63 as shown in the arrow d and FIG. If it is erroneously attached to the ink ribbon attachment portion, the take-up reel 98 without the large diameter flange is positioned above the ink ribbon attachment portion and the supply reel 97 with the large diameter flange 99 is provided, as shown in FIG. Is located below the ink ribbon mounting portion.

  FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams showing a state in which a malfunction is detected when the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously mounted as described above and is notified to the outside. As shown in FIG. 5A, when the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously installed, the supply reel 97 with the large-diameter flange 99 comes below the ink ribbon mounting portion, so that the front lid 83 is not completely closed. In addition, the protrusion 102 on the inner side of the lower end of the front lid 83 abuts on the large-diameter flange 99, and as shown in FIGS.

As a result, the user or the maintenance worker can easily notice that the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously attached, and can immediately switch to the correct attachment.
(Embodiment 2)
FIGS. 9A, 9B, and 9C are views for explaining a method of mounting the ink ribbon unit in the configuration of the printing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. The unit 95 is shown, and FIG. 7B shows a state where the ink ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus 63 ′, and FIG.

  The photo printing vending machine incorporating the printing device 63 'shown in FIGS. 9B and 9C in the second embodiment is the same as the photo printing vending machine 50 shown in FIGS. The appearance configuration of the printing device 63 'and the method of mounting the coreless roll paper 93 on the paper mounting portion are the same as those of the printing device 63 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A, 4B. It is.

  Further, in the internal configuration of the printing device 63 ′, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the configuration of the ink ribbon unit 95 and the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing device 63 ′ of the ink ribbon unit 95 are provided. The mounting method is the same as that of the printing apparatus 63 shown in FIGS. Therefore, in this printing device 63 ′, the same components as those of the printing device 63 are denoted by the same numbers as those of the printing device 63.

  The internal configuration of the printing device 63 ′ is different from that of the printing device 63, as shown in FIG. 9C, as an erroneous attachment detection means in the vicinity of the rotating hinge 101 inside the lower end portion of the front lid 83. The mechanical switch 105 (105a, 105b) is provided. The mechanical switch 105 includes a switch base part 105a and a detection lever part 105b that is urged by an urging member (not shown) in a direction away from the inner wall of the front lid 83 from the switch base part 105a. At this position, the detection lever portion 105b is in a position where no erroneous mounting is detected with respect to the switch base portion 105a.

  FIGS. 7B and 7C show a state in which the ink ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus 63 ′. Therefore, the supply reel 97 with the large-diameter flange 99 is an ink ribbon. The take-up reel 98, which is positioned above the mounting portion and has no large-diameter flange, is positioned below the ink ribbon mounting portion.

  FIGS. 10A and 10B are views showing a state when the front lid 83 is closed when the ink ribbon unit 95 is correctly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus 63 ′ as described above. . As shown in FIG. 6A, the front lid 83 is properly closed, and as shown in FIG. 5B, the detection lever portion 105b of the mechanical switch 105 inside the lower end portion of the front lid 83 interferes with this. The members that are blocked or blocked are arranged so as to protrude at positions where they are not arranged inside the main body. Thereby, in a state where the front lid 83 is correctly closed, the detection lever portion 105b does not move, and remains in a position where no erroneous mounting is detected with respect to the switch base portion 105a. Therefore, the main controller 65 is maintained in a normal state without being notified of any abnormal signal.

  11 (a) and 11 (b), the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously attached to the ink ribbon attachment portion of the printing apparatus 63 'with the attachment positions of the supply reel 97 and the take-up reel 98 reversed. It is a figure which shows a state when being done. While the supply reel 97 and the take-up reel 98 are switched up and down as shown in FIG. 6A, the ink ribbon unit 95 is connected to the printing device 63 'as shown in the arrow e and FIG. If the ink ribbon is erroneously attached to the ink ribbon attachment portion, the take-up reel 98 without the large diameter flange is positioned above the ink ribbon attachment portion and the supply reel with the large diameter flange 99 is provided, as shown in FIG. 97 is located below the ink ribbon mounting portion.

  FIGS. 12A and 12B are diagrams illustrating a state in which a malfunction is detected when the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously mounted as described above. As shown in FIG. 11A, the front lid 83 of the printing device 63 ′ is completely closed. However, inside, as shown in FIG. Since the supply reel 97 with the diameter flange 99 comes below the ink ribbon mounting portion, the detection lever portion 105b that protrudes inside the lower end of the front lid 83 in response to closing the front lid 83 has a large diameter. By abutting the flange 99 and completely closing the front lid 83, the detection lever portion 105b is pushed down to the inner wall side of the front lid 83, and moves to a position of erroneous mounting detection with respect to the switch base portion 105a.

  As a result, an abnormal signal indicating erroneous mounting is notified to the main controller 65, and based on this notification, the main controller 65 performs lighting or blinking processing using, for example, an error lamp 87 as a notification lamp, and display on the display / operation unit 51. An erroneous attachment notification such as warning message display processing by the apparatus and / or buzzer sound emission processing (not shown) is performed.

As a result, the user or the maintenance worker can easily notice that the ink ribbon unit 95 is erroneously attached, and can immediately switch to the correct attachment.
(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 13A is a view showing a pair of feed rollers disposed immediately before the take-up reel 98 of the ink ribbon in the printing apparatus according to the third embodiment, and FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure of the metal roller which comprises one roller of a pair, The figure (c) is a figure which shows the operation state.

  One roller of the feed roller pair 106 shown in FIG. 2A is composed of a metal roller 106a with a protrusion disposed above, and the other roller is composed of a rubber roller 106b disposed below. As shown in FIG. 2B, the metal roller 106a with protrusions is configured such that fine protrusions 107 are densely formed on the entire peripheral surface, thereby embossing the used ink ribbon.

  That is, in the printing device 63 or 63 ′ shown in the first or second embodiment, when the feed roller pair 106 of this example is provided, when printing proceeds, the printing device 63 or 63 ′ is fed out from the supply reel 97 of the ink ribbon unit 95. The ink on the ink ribbon 96 is sequentially transferred onto the recording paper and used for printing, and the used portion of the ink ribbon 96 is drawn in the direction of the take-up reel 98 by the feed roller pair 106 shown in FIG.

  At this time, the projection 107 of the metal roller 106a with projection shown in FIG. 13 (b) is pressed so as to bite into the peripheral surface of the rubber roller 106b shown in FIG. 13 (a), as shown in FIG. 13 (c). The print image trace 96b remaining on the used portion 96a of the ink ribbon 96 that is nipped by the feed roller pair 106 and conveyed in the direction of the take-up reel 98 (not shown) indicated by the arrow f is sent downstream from the feed roller pair 106. When this occurs, the embossed surface 96c is formed of fine wrinkles formed on one surface by embossing by the feed roller pair 106, and is discharged as an uneven surface that has been subjected to surface destruction processing that cannot be distinguished from the printed image trace 96b. .

As described above, according to the feed roller pair 106 of this example, the printed image trace 96b left in the used portion 96a is almost used, and the used trace only has an unclear pattern even if it is observed well. The ink ribbon is taken up on the take-up reel 98.
Thereby, when the used ink ribbon unit 95 is discarded, there is no possibility that the private information of the ink ribbon user is infringed by others.

  In addition, in order to change from the conventional printing apparatus to the method of this example, when there is either one of a roller pair or a metal roller for pulling the used ink ribbon to the take-up reel side in the conventional printing apparatus. Since only the metal roller is replaced with a metal roller with protrusions, the metal roller can be easily changed without significant cost increase.

(Embodiment 4)
By the way, in the conventional printing apparatus 15 shown in FIGS. 19 to 21, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21 (a), (b), (c), (d) A cutting mechanism that cuts and separates the image forming unit, and a sheet switching guide mechanism that sorts and guides the unnecessary blank portion and the image forming unit that have been cut and separated in the direction of the dust box 47 and the direction of the paper duct 13 have independent and separate configurations. It was arranged as a mechanism.

Therefore, in the fourth embodiment of the printing apparatus of the present invention, the cutting mechanism and the sheet switching guide mechanism are integrated as an auto cutter unit, the configuration and drive system are simplified, the control is simplified, and the entire printing apparatus is reduced in size. And cost reduction by reducing assembly process.
FIGS. 14A, 14B, and 14C are diagrams showing a configuration of a paper cutting guide mechanism as an auto cutter unit of a printing apparatus according to a fourth embodiment and a state of an initial position thereof. (d), (e) is a figure which shows the cutting | disconnection operation | movement of the unnecessary blank part of the paper by the paper cutting guide mechanism. 14 (a) is a perspective view of the paper cutting guide mechanism, FIG. 14 (b) is a front view thereof, FIG. 14 (c) is a sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. FIG. 4 (e) shows a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG.

First, as shown in FIGS. 14A, 14B, and 14C, the paper cutting guide mechanism 110 is slidably supported by the frame 111, and the front end image of the coreless roll paper 93 is formed by the motor 112. A movable blade 113 is provided that slides in the main scanning direction indicated by the double-directional arrow g in the drawing of the portion 93a.
The movable blade 113 includes a base portion 113a driven by the motor 112, a cam portion 113b formed at a lower portion of the base portion 113a, and a rotary blade 113c pivotally supported by the cam portion 113b and the base portion 113a. .

  Sensors 114 (114a, 114b) are disposed at both ends of the sliding path of the movable blade 113, and the sensors 114 detect that the movable blade 113 has moved to the end portion, respectively. The movement of 113 is stopped. The state in which the movable blade 113 is stopped at the left end of the frame 111 shown in FIGS.

  A separation guide 115 is disposed near the downstream side of the sliding path of the moving blade 113 in the sheet conveyance direction. The separation guide 115 has a shape in which two guide plates 115a and 115b, whose longitudinal direction is slightly longer than the paper width, are connected at an angle of about 90 °, and the connecting portion thereof is connected to the rotating shaft 116. It is fixed and arranged. Shaft spur gears 117a and 117b are fixed to both ends of the rotating shaft 116, respectively.

  An idle gear 118 meshes with the flat shaft gear 117a arranged on the left end side of the frame among the flat gears 117a and 117b for the shaft, and the large-diameter flat gear of the double gear 119 is engaged with the idle gear 118. 119a meshes, and a lever bevel gear 121 meshes with the small-diameter bevel gear 119b of the double gear 119. The lever bevel gear 121 is fixed with a “<”-shaped lever 122 facing downward.

The cam portion 113b of the movable blade 113 at the initial position is slidably contacted with the inclined upper back surface of the downwardly-arranged “<”-shaped lever 122 to push the lever 122 downward.
On the other hand, of the shaft flat gears 117a and 117b, the shaft flat gear 117b disposed on the right end side of the frame is directly meshed with the large-diameter flat gear 123a of the other two-gear 123 without an idle gear. . Another lever bevel gear 124 meshes with the small-diameter bevel gear 123b of the two-gear 123, and another "<"-shaped lever 125 is fixed downward on the lever bevel gear 124.

  14A, 14B, and 14C, the paper leading edge image forming portion 93a of the coreless roll paper 93 is conveyed to the paper cutting guide mechanism 110, and an unnecessary blank portion 93a- The leading end of 1 is brought into contact with and stopped at the guide plate 115a serving as the initial elevation portion of the separation guide 115, and most of the unnecessary blank portion 93a-1 is located on the guide plate 115b serving as the initial horizontal portion.

  Here, the motor 112 is rotated and the movable blade 113 is driven, and the movable blade 113 is moved to the right end portion of the frame 111 as shown in FIG. Unnecessary blank portion 93a-1 is cut and separated from the tip of 93a and placed on guide plate 115b forming a horizontal portion.

  At the same time, the cam portion 113b of the moving blade 113 that has moved to the right end of the frame 111 slides on the downwardly facing “<” shape of the lever 125 and pushes the lever 125 downward. As a result, the lever bevel gear 124 integral with the lever 125 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 14 (d), and the small-diameter bevel gear 123 b of the two-piece gear 123 meshing with the lever bevel gear 124 becomes the side surface of the frame 111. It turns counterclockwise when viewed from the direction.

  As a result, the large-diameter flat gear 123a of the two-gear 123 also rotates counterclockwise, and the shaft flat gear 117b that meshes with the large-diameter flat gear 123a rotates clockwise. Similarly, the rotation shaft 116 integrated with the spur gear 117b rotates clockwise, and the separation guide 115 integrated with the rotation shaft 116 also rotates about 90 ° in the clockwise direction.

  As a result, the guide plate 115b forming the horizontal portion at the initial position shown in FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 5C of the separation guide 115 is suspended downward by the rotating shaft 116 rotated 90 °. Then, the unnecessary blank portion 93a-1 placed on the upper surface at the time of cutting is naturally dropped to the inside of the apparatus (the right side in the figure (e)) as shown in the figure (e).

At the same time, on the other hand, the guide plate 115a that has formed the rising surface portion of the initial position of the separation guide 115 is turned horizontally by the rotating shaft 116 rotated by 90 °, and the guide plate 115b up to that time. Move to the position.
In addition, the lever 122 pushed downward at the initial position is released from the cam portion 113b of the movable blade 113, and the shaft at the left end of the frame 111 is rotated by the rotation shaft 116 being rotated by 90 ° as described above. Rotate upward via the gear spur gear 117a, the idle gear 118, the large-diameter spur gear 119a of the double gear 119, the small-diameter bevel gear 119b of the dual gear 119, and the lever bevel gear 121 and lift up from the initial position. ing.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a state of the guide operation of the paper image forming portion 93a by the paper cutting guide mechanism 110 after cutting the unnecessary blank portion 93a-1.
As shown in the drawing, a sheet image forming portion 93a conveyed by a pair of conveying rollers (not shown) is guided in a substantially horizontal direction by a guide plate 115a after the separation guide 115 is rotated, and the end portion of the image forming portion is When it comes to the cutting part, the motor 112 again rotates in the opposite direction again, and the movable blade 113 is driven, and the leading edge of the sheet is moved by the rotary blade 113c while moving from the right end position to the left end position of the frame 111 in FIG. The terminal portion of the image forming unit 93a is cut off from the roll paper 93 main body and separated. Thereafter, the paper leading edge image forming section 93a separated from the roll paper 93 main body is discharged from the paper discharge port of the printing apparatus 63 or 63 ′ shown in the first or second embodiment to the outside of the apparatus.

Further, at the end of the cutting operation of the end portion of the paper leading edge image forming portion 93a by the moving blade 113, the cam portion 113b of the moving blade 113 whose lever 122 has returned to the initial position is again used in FIGS. ) Is pushed down to the lower position shown.
As a result, the rotating shaft 116 is moved to the initial position via the lever bevel gear 121, the small-diameter bevel gear 119b of the double gear 119, the large-diameter flat gear 119a of the double gear 119, the idle gear 118, and the flat shaft gear 117a. The separation guide 115 integrated with the rotation shaft 116 is also rotated to the initial position and returned to the positions shown in FIGS. 14 (a), (b), and (c).

Thus, according to this example, since the mechanism for separating the unnecessary blank portion and the print portion of the recording paper is built in the auto cutter unit, it is possible to contribute to simplification of the configuration of the printing apparatus and cost reduction.
In each of the first and second embodiments, the large-diameter flange 99 is formed on the supply reel 97. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be formed on the take-up reel 98. Good. However, in that case, the protrusion 102 or the mechanical switch 105 (105a, 105b) may be disposed on the front back side upper part of the front lid 83.

  In addition, the detection of the large-diameter flange 99 of the ink ribbon unit 95 that is erroneously installed is not limited to the protrusion 102 or the mechanical switch 105 (105a, 105b), and ink that is erroneously installed when the front lid 83 is closed. The photosensor may be an opposing photosensor disposed at a position where the peripheral end portion of the large-diameter flange 99 of the ribbon unit 95 is sandwiched, or the peripheral end portion of the large-diameter flange 99 may be a member that can reflect light to reflect light. You may make it arrange | position a sensor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a photo printing vending machine that uses a printing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. (a), (b) is a figure explaining the internal structure of a photo printing vending machine. 1 is an external front view of a printing apparatus according to a first embodiment built in a photo printing vending machine. (a), (b) is a figure which shows the attachment / detachment method of the coreless roll paper in the printing apparatus of 1st Embodiment incorporated in the photo printing vending machine. (a), (b), (c) is a figure explaining the mounting method of the ink ribbon unit in the printing apparatus of 1st Embodiment incorporated in the photo printing vending machine. (a), (b) is a figure which shows the state when a front cover is closed, when an ink ribbon unit is correctly mounted in the ink ribbon mounting part of the printing apparatus of 1st Embodiment. (a), (b) is the case when the ink ribbon unit is mistakenly attached to the ink ribbon attachment portion of the printing apparatus of the first embodiment with the attachment position of the supply reel and take-up reel reversed (erroneous attachment). It is a figure which shows a state. (a), (b) is a figure which shows the state by which the malfunction when an ink ribbon unit is mismounted in the printing apparatus of 1st Embodiment is detected and alert | reported outside. (a), (b), (c) is a figure explaining the mounting method of the ink ribbon unit in the printing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment built in the photo printing vending machine. (a), (b) is a figure which shows the state when a front cover is closed, when an ink ribbon unit is correctly mounted in the ink ribbon mounting part of the printing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. (a), (b) is the case when the ink ribbon unit is mistakenly mounted on the ink ribbon mounting portion of the printing apparatus of the second embodiment with the mounting position of the supply reel and take-up reel reversed (erroneous mounting). It is a figure which shows a state. (a), (b) is a figure which shows the state by which the malfunction is detected when the ink ribbon unit is mismounted in the printing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. (a) is a figure which shows the feed roller pair arrange | positioned just before the take-up reel of an ink ribbon in the printing apparatus in 3rd Embodiment, (b) is the metal roller which comprises one roller of a feed roller pair. The figure which shows a structure, (c) is a figure which shows the operation state. (a), (b), (c) are diagrams showing the configuration of the paper cutting guide mechanism of the printing apparatus and its initial position in the fourth embodiment, and (d), (e) are the paper cutting guide. It is a figure which shows the cutting | disconnection operation | movement of the unnecessary margin part of the paper by a mechanism. It is a figure which shows the state of guidance operation | movement of the paper image formation part after unnecessary blank part cutting | disconnection by the paper cutting guide mechanism of the printing apparatus in 4th Embodiment. It is a front view which shows the external appearance structure of the photographic printing vending machine incorporating the printing apparatus using the conventional roll paper and an ink ribbon. (a), (b) is a figure explaining the internal structure of the photographic printing vending machine incorporating the printing apparatus using the conventional roll paper and an ink ribbon. It is a sectional side view which shows the structure of the printing apparatus arrange | positioned inside the conventional photo printing vending machine. It is a figure which shows typically the aspect at the time of the printing of the conventional printing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the specific structure of the recording paper cutting part vicinity of the conventional printing apparatus. (a), (b), (c), (d) is a figure explaining the operation | movement of the cutting mechanism of a conventional printing apparatus, and a paper switch guide part.

Explanation of symbols

1 Photo printing vending machine 2 Display / operation unit 3 Key input unit 4 Insertion slot 5 LED
6 Charge Display Portion 7 Coin Insertion Port 8 Banknote Port 9 Return Lever 10 Change Port 11 Print Ejection Port 12 Front Unit 13 Paper Duct 14 Rear Unit 15 Printing Device 16 Slide Rail 17 Top Cover 18 Front Cover 19 Hollow Core 21 Roll Paper 21a Paper Edge Image forming portion 21a-1 Margin portion 22 Thermal transfer ink ribbon 22a Ribbon drawer portion 23 Fixing hook 24 Stop pin 25 Hinge 26 Fixing hook 27 Hinge 28 Thermal head 29 Sending reel 30 Paper switching guide portion 31 Take-up reel 32 Platen roller 33 Motor 34 Paper discharge port 35 Cutting mechanism 35a Cutter 35b Cutter drive unit 36, 37, 38 Feed roller pair 41 Body frame 42 Guide plate 43 Cutting mechanism paper discharge port 44 Rotating guide plate 45 Holding unit 46 Support shaft 47 D BOX 50 Photo printing vending machine 51 Display / operation unit 52 Recording media insertion port 53 Charge display unit 54 Bill insertion port 55 Coin insertion port 56 Return lever 57 Change port 58 Receipt port 59 Print output port 60 Main unit 61 Front door 62 Vertical partition plate 63 (63a, 63b), 63 ′ Printing device 64 Chip receiving box 65 Main controller 66, 67 Signal / power line 68 Maintenance switch 69 Power source 71 Power switch 72 Charge display unit cover 73 Bill stacker 74 Display / Operating section cover 75 Recording medium insertion section cover 76 Receiving chip relay section 77 Coin mech cassette 78 Inner device 79 Coin box 81 Receipt printer 82 Small roll paper 83 Front cover 84 Cooling ventilation hole 85 Status lamp 86 Communication lamp 7 Error lamp 88 Error release switch 89 Print enable switch 91 Test mode switch 92 Top cover 93 Coreless roll paper 93a Paper leading edge image forming part 93a-1 Unnecessary blank part 95 Ink ribbon unit 96 Ink ribbon 96a Used part 96b Printed image trace 96c Embossed surface 97 Supply reel 98 Take-up reel 99 Large-diameter flange 101 Rotating hinge 102 Protrusion 103 Thermal head 104 Platen roller 105 (105a, 105b) Mechanical switch 106 Feed roller pair 106a Protrusion metal roller 106b Rubber roller 107 Protrusion 110 Paper cutting Guide mechanism 111 Frame 112 Motor 113 Moving blade 113a Base 113b Cam portion 113c Rotary blade 114 (114a, 114b) Sensor 115 Separation guide 115a, 115b Guide plate 116 Rotating shaft 117a, 117b Shaft flat gear 118 Idle gear 119 Two gear 119a Large diameter flat gear 119b Small diameter bevel gear 121 Lever bevel gear 122 Lever 123 Two gears 123a Large diameter flat gear 123b Small diameter bevel gear 124 Lever bevel gear 125 Lever

Claims (7)

A thermal transfer ink ribbon; a supply reel for attaching and feeding out the thermal transfer ink ribbon; and a take-up reel for winding up the used thermal transfer ink ribbon; between the take-up reel and the supply reel An ink ribbon unit configured to be detachably held in the apparatus main body in a stretched state, a supply reel mounting portion that engages with the supply reel and holds the supply reel, and engages with the take-up reel And a take-up reel mounting unit that holds the take-up reel, and a mounting unit that detachably mounts the ink ribbon unit, and a printing apparatus that thermally transfers the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon to a recording medium In
A printing apparatus comprising: an ink ribbon unit misloading informing means for notifying whether or not the ink ribbon unit has been properly mounted. The ink ribbon unit erroneous attachment notifying means is
A large-diameter flange provided only on either the supply reel or the take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit;
An openable and closable lid member that covers the ink ribbon unit mounted on the mounting portion;
Blocking means for blocking the closure of the lid member due to interference by a large-diameter flange when the ink ribbon unit is erroneously mounted;
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, comprising: A thermal transfer ink ribbon; a supply reel for attaching and feeding out the thermal transfer ink ribbon; and a take-up reel for winding up the used thermal transfer ink ribbon; between the take-up reel and the supply reel An ink ribbon unit configured to be detachably held in the apparatus main body in a stretched state, a supply reel mounting portion that engages with the supply reel and holds the supply reel, and engages with the take-up reel And a take-up reel mounting unit that holds the take-up reel, and a mounting unit that detachably mounts the ink ribbon unit, and a printing apparatus that thermally transfers the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon to a recording medium In
A large-diameter flange provided only on either the supply reel or the take-up reel of the ink ribbon unit;
An erroneous mounting detection means for detecting the large-diameter flange when the ink ribbon unit is erroneously mounted;
An erroneous mounting notification means for turning on or flashing a notification lamp based on detection of the large-diameter flange by the erroneous mounting detection means, displaying a warning message by a display device, and / or emitting a buzzer;
A printing apparatus comprising:   The erroneous attachment detecting means is provided on a lid member that can be freely opened and closed to cover the ink ribbon unit attached to the attachment portion, and the large-diameter flange of the ink ribbon unit that is erroneously attached when the lid member is closed. The printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the printing apparatus is a mechanical switch that contacts and operates.   4. The printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the erroneous mounting detection means is an optical sensor disposed so as to be close to an edge portion of the large-diameter flange of the erroneously mounted ink ribbon unit. The thermal transfer ink ribbon, the supply reel for attaching and feeding out the thermal transfer ink ribbon, the take-up reel for winding up the used thermal transfer ink ribbon, and the used in the direction of the take-up reel A printing apparatus that includes at least a pair of ribbon conveyance rollers that draws the thermal transfer ink ribbon, and thermally transfers the ink of the thermal transfer ink ribbon to a recording medium;
One of the ribbon conveying roller pairs is constituted by a rubber roller, and the other roller is constituted by a metal roller whose peripheral surface is embossed. An image is recorded on the recording medium while the recording medium wound in a cylindrical shape is fed out from the outermost peripheral tip and conveyed, and the recording medium on which the image has been recorded is cut into a predetermined size by a cutting mechanism and discharged. A printing device for discharging to a paper section,
An unnecessary portion receiving portion that is disposed in a discharge path of the recording medium near the downstream of the cutting mechanism and receives an unnecessary portion of the leading end of the recording medium and an image recorded portion of the recording medium are guided to the discharging portion. A rotating member that is formed integrally with the recorded partial guide portion and that rotates in conjunction with the cutting mechanism,
The rotating member receives the unnecessary portion of the recording medium that has been cut and separated by the cutting mechanism by the unnecessary portion receiving portion located in the discharge path, and then rotates to the discharge path. The recorded partial guide part is arranged, and on the one hand, the unnecessary part receiving part rotated from the position of the discharge path causes the tip unnecessary part to fall naturally to the unnecessary part collection part, and on the other hand, the discharge path Guiding the recorded image portion of the recording medium that continues after the tip unnecessary portion is cut by the recorded portion guide portion disposed at a position;
A printing apparatus characterized by that.

Images