JP2005205831A - Recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inhibit the delay of a carriage against the movement of a timing belt and prevent the occurrence of a poor printing-position in the main scanning direction. <P>SOLUTION: For a dot-impact printer 10 as the recording device which makes the carriage 21 mounted with a recording head 20 traveled by the timing belt 42 and performs the operation of recording an image on the recording sheet, a connecting piece 63 is made integrally molded with the timing belt 42, and the connecting piece 63 is connected to the carriage 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording apparatus that prints and records on recording paper.

  While the carriage mounted with the recording head runs along the axial direction of the platen, a plurality of recording wires in the recording head are projected toward the platen so that the sheet conveyed between the recording head and the platen A dot impact printer is known as a recording apparatus that records an image via an ink ribbon.

In such a recording apparatus, a fixing portion is generally provided on the carriage, the fixing portion is fixed to an endless timing belt, and the carriage is driven by the timing belt. The fixing portion is formed with a U-shaped insertion groove for sandwiching the timing belt, and a flat tooth-like irregularity is formed on the inner surface of the insertion groove so that a flat tooth formed on the surface of the timing belt is formed. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-4404

  However, the unevenness formed on the fixed portion and the timing belt may have some manufacturing variations. Accordingly, the timing belt may not be inserted into the insertion groove of the fixed part because the dimensions do not match, or a gap (backlash) may occur between the unevenness of the fixed part and the unevenness of the timing belt. .

  In particular, if a gap (backlash) occurs between the fixed portion and the timing belt, the movement of the carriage is delayed with respect to the movement of the timing belt when the carriage travels in the direction of the carriage. Will result. Also, as the carriage travels at a higher speed in the girder direction, the tension on the timing belt increases, so the irregularities of the timing belt are deformed, and the gap (backlash) between the fixed part and the timing belt becomes larger. The printing position defect becomes noticeable.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a recording apparatus capable of suppressing a carriage delay with respect to the movement of a timing belt and preventing a print position defect in a digit direction. .

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, in a recording apparatus in which a carriage having a recording head mounted thereon is driven by a timing belt and an image is recorded on recording paper by the recording head, a connecting piece is integrally formed with the timing belt. The connecting piece is connected to the carriage.

  The present invention is also characterized in that, in the above invention, the connection piece has a claw shape for preventing the connection piece from coming off from the carriage.

  In the present invention, the connecting piece is formed such that the length from the surface of the timing belt is larger than the width of the timing belt so as to suppress tilting of the carriage with respect to the timing belt. It is characterized by being.

  According to the present invention, in the recording apparatus in which a carriage having a recording head mounted thereon is driven by a timing belt and an image is recorded on recording paper by the recording head, the carriage and the timing belt are integrally formed.

  According to the recording apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to suppress the delay of the carriage with respect to the movement of the timing belt and to prevent the printing position defect in the digit direction.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entirety of a dot impact printer as an embodiment of a recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are perspective views showing a configuration of a printer main body of the dot impact printer. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the printer body.

  A dot impact printer 10 as a recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 presses a recording wire included in a recording head 20 (see FIG. 3) against a sheet (recording paper) via an ink ribbon (both not shown). An image including characters is recorded by forming dots on the sheet. As this sheet, there are a cut sheet cut to a predetermined length and a continuous sheet in which a plurality of sheets are connected. The cut sheet includes, for example, plain paper such as cut paper and cut copy paper, as well as passbooks, postcards, and envelopes, and continuous sheets include continuous paper and continuous copy paper.

  The dot impact printer 10 is roughly divided into a printer main body 11 as a recording apparatus main body, a push tractor unit 12 (FIG. 2) and a discharge unit 13 that are detachably attached to the printer main body 11, and an upper portion of the printer main body 11. The upper case 14 </ b> A and the lower case 14 </ b> B are provided as exterior bodies covering the lower portions.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the printer main body 11 includes a base frame 15 as a main body frame, a front frame 16, a rear frame 17 (FIG. 4), a left side frame 18 and a right side frame 19, and a recording head 20. And a recording mechanism 22 having a carriage 21, a platen 23, a sheet guide 24, a first sheet conveying mechanism 27 having a first driven roller 25 and a second driven roller 26, a third driven roller 28 and a driving roller 29. And a second sheet conveyance mechanism unit 30 provided with

  A left side frame 18 and a right side frame 19 are erected and fixed to substantially both ends of the base frame 15, the front frame 16, and the rear frame 17. A carriage shaft 31 is bridged between the left side frame 18 and the right side frame 19 and is pivotally supported. Further, a platen 23 is bridged between the left side frame 18 and the right side frame 19 so as to be rotatable, and a seat guide 24 is fixedly disposed on the rear frame 17.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the first sheet transport mechanism 27 including the platen 23 includes a first driven roller 25 and a second driven roller 26 disposed below the platen 23, and the sheet transport on the rear side of the printer main body 11. Configured as a mechanism. The first driven roller 25 and the second driven roller 26 are pivotally supported by the driven roller holder 32. The driven roller holder 32 is urged toward the platen 23 by an urging spring 33 having one end fixed to the rear frame 17, so that the first driven roller 25 and the second driven roller 26 abut against the platen 23 from below. In contact with the platen 23, the platen 23 is rotated and driven.

  The second sheet conveying mechanism 30 is configured as a sheet conveying mechanism on the front side of the printer main body 11 with the third driven roller 28 and the driving roller 29 arranged in contact with each other.

  The platen 23 and the drive roller 29 are rotationally driven in the forward or reverse direction by the drive wheel train 34. The drive wheel train 34 is installed on one of the left side frame 18 and the right side frame 19, for example, the right side frame 19. The drive wheel train 34 includes a sheet conveyance motor 35 (FIG. 2) that can be rotated forward or reverse, a motor pinion that is rotationally and integrally fixed to a drive shaft of the sheet conveyance motor 35, and a driving force from the motor pinion. A plurality of reduction gears that transmit to the platen 23 and a plurality of reduction gears that transmit to the drive roller 29 are configured. With this configuration, the platen 23 and the driving roller 29 are rotated in opposite directions, so that a cut sheet or a continuous sheet can be conveyed from the front to the rear of the printer main body 11 or can be conveyed from the rear to the front of the printer main body 11. To do. Therefore, the cut sheet and the continuous sheet are conveyed in the sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the later-described main scanning direction of the carriage 21.

  Tractor unit mounting portions 40A and 40B are formed on the front side and the rear side of the printer main body 11 of the left side frame 18 and the right side frame 19, respectively, and the push tractor unit 12 is detachably mounted on each. FIG. 3 shows a state where the push tractor unit 12 is mounted only on the front side of the printer main body 11.

  The push tractor unit 12 mounted on the rear side of the printer main body 11 supplies a continuous sheet (for example, continuous paper) to the first sheet conveying mechanism 27 on the rear side, and is a push mounted on the front side. The tractor unit 12 supplies the second sheet conveying mechanism 30 on the front side. The push tractor units 12 mounted on the front side and the rear side of the printer main body 11 have substantially the same configuration, and have a pair of tractors 36 on the left and right. These tractors 36 are supported by a tractor drive pulley (not shown) that is rotatably and axially slidably supported on a tractor drive shaft 37 and a tractor guide shaft 38 that is rotatably and axially slidable. A tractor belt 39 is wound around a tractor driven drive pulley (not shown), and a sheet pressing lid (not shown) is provided.

  The distance between the pair of tractors 36 can be adjusted according to the width dimension of the continuous sheet (continuous paper) to be conveyed. A plurality of pins protrude from the entire outer periphery of the tractor belt 39 and can be engaged with holes formed on both sides of the continuous sheet in the width direction. The tractor belt 39 is also driven by the drive wheel train 34 described above.

  The carriage 21 is slidably inserted into the carriage shaft 31 and is slidably contacted with the upper end portion of the front frame 16. Further, the recording head 20 is mounted. Since the carriage shaft 31 is arranged in parallel with the platen 23, the carriage 21 is provided so as to be able to travel (scan) in a main scanning direction that coincides with the axial directions of the platen 23 and the carriage shaft 31.

  The carriage 21 is connected to a timing belt 42 (FIG. 5) that is reciprocated by forward rotation or reverse rotation of a carriage drive motor 41. Accordingly, the carriage 21 is guided to the carriage shaft 31 via the timing belt 42 by the forward or reverse rotation of the carriage drive motor 41, and is scanned leftward or rightward in FIGS. 1 to 3 in the main scanning direction. Here, the carriage drive motor 41 is configured by a stepping motor, for example, together with the sheet conveyance motor 35. A connection structure between the carriage 21 and the timing belt 42 will be described later.

  A ribbon drive shaft 43 is provided on the front left side of the carriage shaft 31. The ribbon drive shaft 43 moves an ink ribbon (not shown) in a ribbon cassette 44 mounted on the left side frame 18 and the right side frame 19. The ink ribbon is drawn between the recording head 20 and the platen 23 and is movably provided by a ribbon drive shaft 43.

  The recording head 20 includes a large number of recording wires (not shown), and an ink ribbon is positioned in front of the recording wires in the protruding direction. While the recording head 20 travels in the main scanning direction together with the carriage 21, the recording wire protrudes and strikes the ink ribbon, and the ink on the ink ribbon is transported between the platen 23 and the recording head 20. An image including characters is recorded on the sheet by being attached to the sheet.

  In the recording operation by the recording head 20, one line is recorded by the recording wire of the recording head 20 while the carriage 21 travels leftward or rightward in the main scanning direction of FIGS. 1 to 3, and this one line is recorded. Each time the first sheet transport mechanism unit 27 or the second sheet transport mechanism unit 30 transports a sheet by a predetermined length (for a normal line interval), these operations are repeated.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the discharge unit 13 includes a discharge roller 46 that is rotatably integrated with a roller shaft 45, and the sheet recorded by the recording head 20 is moved out of the printer 10 by the rotation of the discharge roller 46. Discharged.

  A release lever 47 is provided outside the right side frame 19, and a transmission gear (not shown) that transmits the driving force of the sheet conveying motor 35 by the operation of the release lever 47 is provided on the rear side of the printer body 11. The push tractor unit 12 is mounted so that it can mesh with or disengage from a tractor drive gear (not shown) that drives the tractor drive shaft 37 of the push tractor unit 12. When the transmission gear is engaged with the tractor drive gear, the first driven roller 25 of the first sheet transport mechanism 27 is separated from the platen 23 by the action of the cam 49 formed on the release shaft 48 shown in FIG. A continuous sheet as a sheet is supplied from the push tractor unit 12 mounted on the rear side of the printer main body 11 to the platen 23 and conveyed.

  Further, when the transmission gear is separated from the tractor drive gear by the operation of the release lever 47, the first driven roller 25 of the first sheet transport mechanism 27 is brought into contact with the platen 23 and rotates by the action of the cam 49, A sheet as a sheet is supplied from a sheet guide 24 of the first sheet transport mechanism 27 to the platen 23 from a sheet supply guide or the like (not shown).

  An adjustment lever 50 is provided outside the left side frame 18, and when the adjustment lever 50 is operated, the carriage shaft 31 is configured to be separated or approachable from the platen 23 by an amount corresponding to the operation amount. . Accordingly, the manual operation of the adjustment lever 50 makes it possible to adjust the platen gap between the recording head 20 mounted on the carriage 21 supported by the carriage shaft 31 and the platen 23 according to the sheet thickness and the like.

  Here, the printer 10 according to the present embodiment is configured such that the delay of the carriage 21 with respect to the movement of the timing belt 42 can be suppressed when the carriage 21 travels in the digit direction (main scanning direction). This configuration will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the upper portion of the carriage 21 in a state where the recording head 20 is not mounted, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the lower portion thereof. As shown in these drawings, the carriage 21 is roughly divided into a base portion 60 on which the recording head 20 is placed, a connecting portion 61 connected to the timing belt 42, and a sliding contact with the upper end portion of the front frame 16. And a contact portion 62.

  The base portion 60 is provided with two bearing portions 60 a and 60 b that support the carriage shaft 31, and the sliding contact portion 62 has a structure that sandwiches the upper end of the front frame 16. The carriage 21 has a structure that is supported by the printer main body 11 by the bearing portions 60 a and 60 b and the sliding contact portion 62.

  A timing belt 42 to be described later is connected to the connecting portion 61, and the carriage 21 travels along the carriage shaft 31 in the digit direction as the timing belt 42 reciprocates.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the timing belt 42 is provided with two connecting pieces 63 connected to the connecting portion 61 of the carriage 21 by integral molding. More specifically, the timing belt 42 is molded from a resin such as rubber, and the connection piece 63 is molded from a resin such as a relatively hard plastic, and these are integrally molded by, for example, two-color molding. Yes.

  In addition, a pair of insertion pieces 64 that are flexibly deformed are formed on the connection piece 63, and a drop prevention claw 64 a is formed at the tip of each insertion piece 64. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the connecting portion 61 of the carriage 21 is provided with an insertion hole 65, and the insertion piece 64 of the connecting piece 63 is fitted into the insertion hole 65 from below the carriage 21. The timing belt 42 and the carriage 21 are connected, and the carriage 21 is fixed to the timing belt 42.

  More specifically, when the insertion piece 64 is inserted into the insertion hole 65 from below, the insertion piece 64 is temporarily displaced so as to guide the removal prevention claw 64a to the insertion hole 65, and the removal prevention claw 64a is inserted. When the pair of insertion pieces 64 are spring-displaced in the direction of opening each other when they are pulled out above the holes 65, the inner pieces of the insertion holes 65 are strongly pressed, so that the insertion pieces 64 and the connecting portion 61 are fixed. The prevention claw 64 a is hooked on the upper edge of the insertion hole 65 to prevent the insertion piece 64 from falling out of the insertion hole 65.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the connecting piece 63 is integrally formed with the timing belt 42 and the connecting piece 63 is connected to the carriage 21, the fixing portion having an uneven shape is provided on the carriage 21. Compared to the conventional structure in which the carriage 21 and the timing belt 42 are fixed by meshing with the projections and depressions 42, the carriage 21 is fixed to the timing belt 42 without backlash without being affected by the molding accuracy of the projections and depressions of the timing belt 42. be able to. Further, since the movement amount of the timing belt 42 is almost directly transmitted to the carriage 21, it is possible to suppress the delay of the carriage with respect to the movement of the timing belt, and as a result, it is possible to prevent the print position defect in the digit direction. Become.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the connection piece 63 is formed in a shape having the removal prevention claw 64 a for preventing the carriage 21 from coming off from the connection portion 61, so that the timing belt 42 is separated from the carriage 21. This prevents the printing function from being disturbed.

  The embodiment described above is merely one aspect of the present invention, and can be arbitrarily modified and applied within the scope of the present invention.

  For example, it is possible to prevent the carriage 21 from tilting with respect to the timing belt 42 by making the dimensions of the connecting piece 63 integrally formed with the timing belt 42 as follows. That is, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the connecting piece 63 has a shape extending from the surface 63 a on which the unevenness of the timing belt 42 is formed by a length L larger than the width W of the timing belt 42, The holding force with which the connecting piece 63 holds the carriage 21 is increased, and thus the tilt of the carriage 21 with respect to the timing belt 42 can be prevented.

Further, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the connection piece 63 is integrally formed with the timing belt 42 and the connection piece 63 is connected to the carriage 21. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the carriage 21, the timing belt 42, It is good also as a structure which integrally molds. The timing belt 42 and the carriage 21 may be integrally formed by two-color molding such as molding the timing belt 42 from a resin such as rubber and then molding the carriage 21 from a resin such as plastic on the timing belt 42. According to this configuration, it is possible to completely remove the play between the timing belt 42 and the carriage 21.
The

  Further, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the two connecting pieces 63 are integrally formed with the timing belt 42 is illustrated. However, the number of the connecting pieces 63 is not limited to this, and the number of the connecting pieces 63 is between the carriage 21 and the timing bell 42. As long as sufficient connection strength is obtained, an appropriate number may be used.

1 is a perspective view showing a dot impact printer to which an embodiment of a recording apparatus according to the present invention is applied. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a printer main body. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a printer main body. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a printer main body. FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the upper part of the carriage in a state where no recording head is mounted. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a lower portion of a carriage in a state where a recording head is not mounted. It is a figure which shows the structure of a timing belt and the connection piece integrally molded by this timing belt. FIG. 6 is a view showing a modification of the present invention, and is a perspective view showing an upper part of a carriage in a state where a recording head is not mounted. FIG. 6 is a view showing a modification of the present invention, and is a perspective view showing a lower portion of a carriage in a state where a recording head is not mounted.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Dot impact printer (printing apparatus), 11 ... Printer main body, 20 ... Recording head, 21 ... Carriage, 23 ... Platen, 31 ... Carriage shaft, 42 ... Timing belt, 61 ... Connection part, 63 ... Connection piece, 64 ... Insertion piece, 64a .. removal prevention claw, 65 .. insertion hole.

Claims (4)

In a recording apparatus in which a carriage equipped with a recording head is driven by a timing belt and an image is recorded on recording paper by the recording head.
A recording apparatus, wherein a connecting piece is integrally formed on the timing belt, and the connecting piece is connected to the carriage. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the connection piece has a claw shape for preventing the connection piece from coming off from the carriage. The length of the connection piece from the surface of the timing belt is formed larger than the width of the timing belt so as to suppress tilting of the carriage with respect to the timing belt. Or the recording apparatus of 2. In a recording apparatus in which a carriage equipped with a recording head is driven by a timing belt and an image is recorded on recording paper by the recording head.
The recording apparatus, wherein the carriage and the timing belt are integrally formed.

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