JP2006035525A - Label printer and its label state notification method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely confirm that a printed label is transferred to a label removal position even when printing is carried out to labels of different lengths. <P>SOLUTION: The label printer prints by a printing head to the labels pasted continuously to a mount, and transfers the mount and the printed labels to the label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. The label printer is equipped with a notifying means which issues (S56) to a host computer information that indicates that the label printer becomes a state in which the printing object label is transferred to the label removal position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a label printing apparatus for printing on a label affixed to a mount and a label status notification method thereof, and more particularly to a label printing apparatus equipped with a label peeling mechanism for peeling a label from the mount and a label status notification method thereof. .

  A label printer that prints on a label affixed to a long mount is equipped with a label peeling mechanism that peels off a printed label from the mount, for example, as described in Patent Document 1 below. is there.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 9A, the label peeling mechanism places the mount 52 in the middle of the transport path of the mount 52 transported between the platen roller 50 and the print head 51 in accordance with the clockwise rotation of the platen roller 50. A curved portion 53 that conveys while curving at an acute angle is provided on the back side of the mount, and in this curved portion 53, the stiff label 54a attached to the surface of the mount 52 is peeled off from the mount 52, and the peeled label 54a is The label is discharged from the label discharge port 55 to the outside of the printing apparatus.

  When the printed label 54a is discharged to the label discharge port 55 while peeling the label 54a from the mount 52 using this label peeling mechanism, the mount portion on which the label 54a is pasted after printing one label 54a The label 54a is peeled from the front in the transport direction by passing through the curved portion 53, and the transport of the mount 52 is temporarily stopped with only the rear edge of the label 54a attached to the mount 52.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 9 (b), when the operator waits for the label 54a to be removed from the mount 52 with a finger, and when the removal is detected by the label sensor 56, FIG. 9 (c). As shown, the platen roller 50 is rotated counterclockwise to return the mount 52 in the reverse direction so that the leading position of the next label 54 b on the mount 52 matches the position of the print head 51. The reason why the mount 52 is returned in the reverse direction is that when the mount is transported to the position where the printed label is removed by the operator (the position shown in FIG. 9A), the leading position of the next label 54b is the position of the print head 51. Because it has passed through.

JP-A-8-295323 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-200806 JP-A-11-20254

  As described above, a label printing apparatus equipped with a label peeling mechanism (peeler) can print on labels having various lengths. For this reason, when a short label is printed and the mount is conveyed to the position shown in FIG. 9A (hereinafter, this position is referred to as a label removal position), the protruding length from the label discharge port 55 at the leading end of the label is long. It differs from the protruding length when the label is printed. For this reason, an unskilled operator cannot determine when the label 54a protruding from the label discharge port 55 should be peeled off, and may fail to peel off and damage the label.

  In addition, when the printed label does not come out from the label discharge port, the operator cannot know whether this state is during printing or due to the occurrence of an abnormality in the printing apparatus. Then, there is also a problem that printing on the next label cannot be performed and printing efficiency is lowered.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a label printing apparatus capable of surely performing a work for removing a label even by an unskilled person, and allowing an operator to immediately know the occurrence of an abnormality in the printing apparatus, and a label state notification method thereof Is to provide.

  The label printing apparatus of the present invention is a label printing apparatus for printing on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head, and transporting the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. Is provided with notifying means for issuing information indicating the state to the host computer when it is detected that the label has been transported to the label removal position and the printed label has not yet been peeled off.

  With this configuration, the host computer can prompt the operator to remove the label, for example, “please remove the label”, and the operator can know that the label is ready to be removed.

  The informing means of the label printing apparatus of the present invention obtains the carrying amount of the mount after the time point when the leading passage of the label peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected, and the length information of the printed label and the printed label From the above, it is calculated whether the printed label has reached the label removal position.

  With this configuration, it is not necessary to provide a sensor that can directly detect that the label has reached the label removal position, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  In the label printing apparatus of the present invention, the carry amount is obtained from the number of driving steps of the carrying stepping motor, and the carry amount is obtained by counting the rotation amount of the carrying DC motor with an encoder. It is characterized by that.

With this configuration, the transport amount can be easily calculated.
With this configuration, it is not necessary to provide a sensor that can directly detect that the label has reached the label removal position, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  The label printing apparatus of the present invention is a label printing apparatus for printing on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head, and transporting the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. A jam condition detecting means for detecting that the jam condition is detected, and a jam information notifying means for issuing information indicating that the jam condition detecting means has detected a jam condition to the host computer.

  With this configuration, the host computer can notify the operator that a jam has occurred in the label printing apparatus, and the operator can immediately remove the jammed label.

  The jam state detection means of the label printing apparatus of the present invention is configured such that the amount of transport of the mount, the length information of the printed label, and the label after the point when the leading passage of the print label peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected. The occurrence of a jam condition is detected by information from a detector provided on the discharge side that detects the presence or absence of a label.

  With this configuration, it is possible to easily determine that a jam has occurred when the detector does not detect the presence of a label even though the label has been conveyed by a length that allows the printed label to be discharged from the label discharge port. .

  The label printing apparatus of the present invention is a label printing apparatus for printing on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head, and transporting the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. Is provided with control means for issuing information indicating the state to the host computer when it is detected that the label is not peeled by the label peeling mechanism and is conveyed while being attached to the mount.

  With this configuration, the host computer can notify the operator that an abnormality has occurred in the label printing apparatus, and the operator can immediately remove the abnormality.

  A label status notification method for a label printing apparatus according to the present invention is a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. In the label status notification method, when it is detected that the printed label is conveyed to the label removal position and the printed label is not yet peeled off, information indicating the status is notified to the host computer. To do.

  With this configuration, the host computer can prompt the operator to remove the label, for example, “please remove the label”, and the operator can know that the label is ready to be removed.

  The label status notification method of the label printing apparatus of the present invention obtains the transport amount of the mount after the time point when the leading of the label peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected, and determines the transport amount and the length of the printed label. From the information, it is determined whether the printed label has reached the label removal position.

  With this configuration, it is not necessary to provide a sensor that can directly detect that the label has reached the label removal position, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  A label status notification method for a label printing apparatus according to the present invention is a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. In the label state notification method, when it is detected that the printed label is in a jam state, information indicating that the jam state is detected is notified to the host computer. With this configuration, the host computer can notify the operator that a jam has occurred in the label printing apparatus, and the operator can immediately remove the jammed label.

  The label status notification method of the label printing apparatus of the present invention includes a transport amount of the mount after the time point when a head passage of the printed label peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected, length information of the printed label, The occurrence of a jam condition is determined based on information from a detector that is provided on the label discharge side and detects the presence or absence of a label.

  With this configuration, it is possible to easily determine that a jam has occurred when the detector does not detect the presence of a label even though the label has been conveyed by a length that allows the printed label to be discharged from the label discharge port. .

  A label status notification method for a label printing apparatus according to the present invention is a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism. In the label status notification method, when it is detected that the printed label is transported in a state where it is not peeled off by the label peeling mechanism and is stuck on the mount, information indicating the state is notified to the host computer. Features.

  With this configuration, the host computer can notify the operator that an abnormality has occurred in the label printing apparatus, and the operator can immediately remove the abnormality.

  According to the present invention, since the state of the printed label on the label printer side is notified to the host computer, the host computer can perform various services for the operator based on the notification information. .

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a label printing apparatus equipped with a label peeling mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an internal configuration thereof. The label printing apparatus 1 includes a case 2 having a vertically long rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole, and a label discharge port 3 and a mount discharge port 4 are provided on the front surface portion 2a separately from each other with a peeler cover 15 interposed therebetween. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 2, roll paper 6 is stored in the case 2. The roll paper 6 is configured by winding a continuous long number of labels 7 on a surface of a long mount 8 in a roll shape. The roll paper 6 is pulled out in the case 2, passed between the print head 12 and the platen roller 13, and is bent at an acute angle on the back side of the mount 8 by an acute curved portion 14 constituting a label peeling mechanism. Then, it is discharged from the mount discharge port 4 to the outside.

  In the label printing apparatus 1, a label detection sensor 18 is provided at a lower position on the inner side than the print head 12, and a peeling label detector 19 is provided at an upper position slightly separated from the distal end portion of the bending portion 14. It has been. The label detection sensor 18 and the peeling label detector 19 detect, for example, the presence / absence of reflected light from the label 7 to detect the presence / absence of the label 7, and notify a CPU for printing apparatus control described later.

  FIG. 3 is an external view of the label printing apparatus 1 showing that the roll paper 6 is pulled out inside the case 2 and set so as to be pulled out from the mount discharge port 4. A peeler cover 15 provided between the label discharge port 3 and the mount discharge port 4 of the front surface 2a of the case 2 is pivotally attached to the front surface 2a of the case 2 so as to be opened and closed. The peeler cover 15 is opened, the leading end of the roll paper 6 is passed through the mount discharge port 4, and the peeler cover 15 is closed.

  In this way, by pulling out the leading end of the roll paper 6 from the mount discharge port 4, the label peeling mechanism functions, and the label 7 printed by the print head 12 is sent to the curved portion 14 together with the mount 8, and the mount 8 Is bent at an acute angle toward the back side of the mount 8 at the front end of the curved portion 14 and further conveyed, the label 7 peels off from the mount 8 at the front end portion of the curved portion 14, and as shown in FIG. It is discharged from the discharge port 3.

  Instead of pulling out the leading end of the roll paper 6 from the mount discharge port 4, the leading end of the roll paper 6 is pulled out from the label discharge port 3, that is, together with the label 7 shown in FIG. When the mount 8 is set so as to be pulled out, the label 7 can be continuously printed with the label 7 attached to the mount 8, and the label 7 can be discharged together with the mount 8, and then manually. Each label 7 is peeled off from the mount 8. This is called a continuous printing mode. A mode in which the mount 8 is discharged from the mount discharge port 4 and the label peeling mechanism functions to discharge the label 7 from the label discharge port 3 every time one label 7 is printed is called a label peeling mechanism (peeler) use mode.

  FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the electric control system of the label printing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. A CPU 20 that controls the label printing apparatus 1 is connected via a bus 21 to a ROM 22 on which a printing control program is mounted and a RAM 23 that functions as a main memory.

  A communication I / F 25 is connected to the bus 21, and a personal computer (PC) 27 serving as a host computer of the printing apparatus 1 is connected via a communication cable 26 connected to the communication I / F 25.

  Further, an input / output unit (I / O unit) 29 is connected to the bus 21, and through this I / O unit 29, a label detection sensor 18, a peeled label detector 19, a print head 12, a platen roller 13, and the like. A drive motor (stepping motor) 30 and various switches and sensors 31 are connected.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the execution procedure of the print control program executed by the CPU 20. When the power is turned on, first, information on the length of the label to be printed is acquired (step S1). The label length information can be obtained from a value (label type information) manually input to the printing apparatus 1 by the operator, or the printing apparatus 1 can automatically read the type information of the loaded roll paper 6. It may be acquired.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the peeler usage mode (label peeling mechanism usage mode) is set (step S2). When not in the peeler use mode, the above-described continuous printing mode is executed (step S3). Whether or not it is in the peeler use mode can be automatically discriminated by providing a mount detection switch in the middle of the mount conveyance path on the mount discharge port 4 side and collecting the on / off state of this switch by the CPU 20. However, manual input by an operator such as a mechanical switch or a command may be used.

  If the result of determination in step S2 is that the peeler usage mode is in effect, then printing processing (step S4) is entered. In the printing process S4, as shown in detail in FIG. 6, first, data communication is performed with the host computer 27, and data to be printed is acquired from the host computer 27 (step S41). Next, the print data is transferred to the print head 12 to perform printing (step S42), and it is determined whether or not printing has been completed (step S43). If printing has not been completed, the process returns to step S42 to continue printing. If printing has been completed, the process proceeds to the next mount feeding process (step S5: FIG. 5).

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a detailed procedure of the mount feed process. First, a drive pulse train for instructing forward rotation is output to the stepping motor that drives the platen roller 13, and the mount 8 is conveyed in the forward direction (step S51). Then, it waits for whether or not the label detection sensor 18 detects the passage of the leading position of the label (step S52), and when the label leading position passes, the number of drive pulses supplied to the stepping motor that drives the platen roller 13 Is started (step S53).

  As shown in FIG. 9, the printed label and mount are transported in the forward direction, and the label is peeled off with the label peeling mechanism, for example, leaving only the trailing edge of the label 5 mm. The transport of the backing sheet is temporarily stopped at a position where it can be peeled off (label removal position). Whether or not the label removal position has been reached depends on the transport length of one drive pulse of the stepping motor, label length information, and label leading edge detection. It can be obtained from the number of driving pulses of the stepping motor that has elapsed since the time point.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, counting is started in step S53 and the predetermined pulse number a determined based on the conveyance length of one driving pulse of the stepping motor, which is known information, and the label length information acquired in step S1. The drive pulse number p is compared (step S54), and when the counted drive pulse number p reaches the predetermined pulse number a, the stepping motor is stopped (step S55).

  Then, label removal instruction information indicating that the printed label has reached the label removal position is issued from the communication I / F 25 to the host computer 27 via the communication cable 26 (step S56). At this time, the detection information of the label detection sensor 18 (information indicating the presence / absence of a label) is also notified to the host computer, the mount feed process (step S5) is terminated, and the next label removal standby process (step S6: FIG. 5) Enter. These pieces of information may be stored as a flag value in a predetermined area in the RAM 23 and notified to the host computer in response to a request from the host computer 27.

  In this embodiment, in order to simplify the description, the printing process in step S4 and the mount feed process in step S5 are separated. However, the print process is performed while feeding the mount, that is, the label in the forward direction. The label detection sensor 18 may detect the label head position.

  When entering the label removal standby process (step S6), as shown in detail in FIG. 8, first, it is determined whether or not the peeled label detector 19 has detected the presence of a label (step S61). If so, the process returns to step S61 to wait for no label.

  When the operator removes the printed label as shown in FIG. 9B, the peeled label detector 19 detects that there is no label, so the process proceeds from step S61 to step S62, and reversely rotates with respect to the drive motor of the platen roller 13. A command is output, the board feed position is fed back to the label cueing position (the position shown in FIG. 9C), and the process returns to the printing process (step S4) in FIG. Since the distance from the label removal position to the label cueing position is determined according to the label interval length or the like, the reverse feed amount, that is, the number of drive pulses is determined by information such as the label interval length.

  In the label printing apparatus according to the above-described embodiment, even if the label length is different, the host computer is accurately notified when the mount feeding position reaches the label removal position. Can display, for example, “Please remove label” on the monitor screen based on this notification.

  In the above-described embodiment, the host computer is notified of the information that the mount is conveyed to the label removal position. For example, the peeling label detector 19 detects the presence of a label, but the leading end of the label. Is caught on the label discharge port 3 and jammed inside the label discharge port 3, the reflected light from the label is different from the reflected light from the label in the normal state. Information indicating "jamming" can be notified to the computer.

  Similarly, the second peeling label detector is provided outside the label discharge port 3 and the second peeling label detector is detected even though the label detection sensor inside the label discharge port 3 detects the presence of the label. When no label is detected, information indicating “jamming” may be notified to the host computer.

  Alternatively, when the printed label is not peeled off by the label peeling mechanism and is transported to the mount discharge port 4 while adhering to the mount, the peeled label detector 19 detects the absence of the label. Information indicating "abnormality occurrence" can also be notified.

  As described above, the status of the printed label of the label printing apparatus is automatically returned to the host computer, so that the host computer can perform various controls based on this notification.

  Further, since the status of the printed label is notified to the host computer and the label status is displayed on the display screen on the host computer side, it is not necessary to provide a light emitting element or the like on the label printing device side to display the label status. It is also possible to reduce the manufacturing cost of the printing apparatus.

  In the above-described embodiment, the drive motor is described as a stepping motor. However, the drive motor is not limited to a stepping motor, and another motor, for example, a direct current (DC) motor is used as a drive motor. It may be configured to detect with an encoder.

  In the present invention, since the host computer is notified of the state of the printed label in the label printing apparatus, various services for the operator can be processed on the host computer side, and a label printing apparatus with high utility value can be provided.

1 is an external perspective view of a label printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the label printing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the mounting method of the mount in the label printing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a block diagram of the electric control system of the label printing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the printing control procedure which CPU of the label printing apparatus shown in FIG. 4 performs. It is a flowchart which shows the detailed procedure of the printing process shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detailed procedure of the mount feed process shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detailed procedure of the label removal waiting | standby process shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the conventional label peeling mechanism.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Label printer, 2 ... Case, 3 ... Label discharge port, 4 ... Mount discharge port, 7 ... Label, 8 ... Mount, 12 ... Print head, 13 ... Platen roller, 15 ... Peeler cover, 18 ... Label detection sensor, 19 ... peel label detector, 20 ... CPU, 27 ... host computer, 30 ... drive motor.

Claims (12)

In a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and a printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism.
A label comprising an informing means for issuing information indicating the state to the host computer when it is detected that the printed label is conveyed to the label removal position and the printed label is not yet peeled off. Printing device. The informing means obtains the transport amount of the mount after the time point when the leading edge of the label peeled off by the label peeling mechanism is detected, and the printed label is determined from the transport amount and the length information of the printed label. The label printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein it is calculated whether or not the label removal position has been reached. The label printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the carry amount is obtained from the number of driving steps of a carrying stepping motor. The label printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the carry amount is obtained by counting a rotation amount of a carrying DC motor with an encoder. In a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and a printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism.
A jam state detecting means for detecting that the printed label is in a jam state;
A label printing apparatus comprising: jam information notifying means for issuing information indicating that the jam state detecting means has detected a jam state to a host computer. The jam state detecting means includes
A detector that detects the amount of transport of the mount, the length information of the printed label, and the presence / absence of a label provided on the label discharge side after the leading passage of the label to be printed peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected. 6. The label printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein occurrence of a jam condition is detected based on information from. In a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and transports the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism, the printed label is peeled off by the label peeling mechanism. A label printing apparatus comprising: notifying means for issuing information indicating the state to the host computer when it is detected that the sheet is conveyed while being attached to the mount. In a label status notification method of a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and a printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism.
A label of a label printing apparatus, wherein when a state where the printed label is conveyed to the label removal position and the state where the printed label is not yet peeled is detected, information indicating the state is notified to a host computer. Status notification method. Obtaining the transport amount of the mount after the time point when the head of the label peeled off by the label peeling mechanism is detected, and the printed label is the label removal position from the transport amount and the length information of the printed label. 9. The label status notification method for a label printing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein it is determined whether or not the value has been reached. In a label status notification method of a label printing apparatus that prints on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and conveys the mount and a printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism.
A label status notification method for a label printing apparatus, comprising: notifying a host computer of information indicating that the jam status has been detected when it is detected that the printed label is in a jam status. Detects the transport amount of the mount after the point when the leading passage of the printed label peeled by the label peeling mechanism is detected, the length information of the printed label, and the presence or absence of a label provided on the label discharge side. 11. The label status notification method for a label printer according to claim 10, wherein occurrence of a jam condition is determined based on information from a detector. In a label status notification method of a label printing apparatus for printing on a label continuously attached to a mount with a print head and transporting the mount and the printed label to a label removal position through a label peeling mechanism, the printed label is the label A label status notifying method for a label printing apparatus, comprising: notifying a host computer of information indicating the state when it is detected that the sheet is not peeled by the peeling mechanism and is conveyed on the mount.

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