JP2007076803A - Printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing device capable of reciprocating and conveying a recording medium, overlapping a plurality of heat transfer type ink for color printing on the medium to be recorded for color printing, in particular, miniaturizing the printing device for reciprocating the recording medium, and preventing an obstacle to conveyance of the recording medium. <P>SOLUTION: A CPU 111 feeds a paper 10 from a paper tray 11 and conveys it along a guide member 54 via upper faces of a paper feeding roller 56 and a platen roller 37. At this time, it reads a distinguishing mark 12 indicating type of paper 10 by a tip detection switch 58. When an end part of the paper 10 conveyed along the guide member 54 is detected by a sensor 39 for driving belt, a motor 102 for driving belt is driven at conveyance speed based on type of paper 10 to convey the paper 10 to a printing start position by converting the direction of conveyance by 180° while nipping and holding the paper 10 by a guide belt 101 and a guide roller 104. After that, printing is performed while conveying the paper 10 into the reverse direction from the printing start position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus that performs color printing by printing a plurality of types of thermal transfer type color printing inks arranged on an ink ribbon housed in a ribbon cassette via a thermal head on a recording medium. The present invention relates to a printing apparatus that enables downsizing of a printing apparatus that reciprocates a recording medium and that prevents a conveyance failure of the recording medium.

  Currently, digital cameras and the like are widely used, and along with this, printing apparatuses capable of printing colorful images such as photographs as peripheral devices have also become popular. As such a printing apparatus, there is a printing apparatus that uses an ink ribbon on which a plurality of types of ink are arranged, and heats the ink ribbon to a recording medium by heating the ink ribbon with a thermal head.

  In such a printing apparatus, it is possible to perform color printing with a plurality of types of ink on a recording medium by performing a process of printing for each single ink and repeating this multiple times. In order to repeat printing with this ink a plurality of times, it is necessary to reciprocate the recording medium a plurality of times. Accordingly, in order to secure a transport path for transporting the recording medium, the recording medium becomes larger in the transport direction of the recording medium or when the recording medium is transported, Once exposed from the housing. As a result, contrary to the current situation where miniaturization is desired, the printing device itself becomes large, and the paper is exposed to the outside of the printing device. There has been a problem such as a drop in the quality.

Here, in a printing apparatus that performs full color printing by overlapping and printing a plurality of types of ink, as a printing apparatus that solves the problems caused by reciprocating conveyance of the recording medium described above, Patent Documents 1 and 2 are disclosed. Is known.
In the printing apparatuses described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, full-color printing is realized by overlapping and printing a plurality of types of ink as in the printing apparatus described above. The recording medium is transported from the printing start position to the printing end position, printing with a certain ink is performed, and the recording medium is transported from the printing end position to the printing start position in order to print with the next ink.
At this time, in the printing apparatuses described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, a curl guide portion having a substantially ¼ arc shape is formed on the printing start position side. The recording medium is guided upward along the curl guide portion. Therefore, the printing apparatus main body does not increase in the transport direction.
Further, in the printing apparatuses described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, a sufficient conveyance path can be secured in the printing apparatus by guiding the recording medium along the curl guide portion. It is not exposed outside the device. Thereby, it is possible to prevent a decrease in print quality due to adhesion of dust or the like to the print surface.
Japanese Patent No. 2937645 Japanese Patent No. 3189595

However, in the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 1, there is a possibility that the paper is jammed in the transport path when the transport path of the paper that is the recording medium is changed from the horizontal direction to the vertical direction. In this respect, in the printing apparatus, the paper conveyance direction is changed by the curl guide portion formed in a substantially arc shape when viewed from the side, but the edge of the paper conveyed first when the paper is conveyed Is at a position away from the roller member that conveys the paper and is in a freely movable state.
Therefore, when the paper transport direction is changed from the horizontal direction to the vertical direction, the force applied by the roller member cannot be changed from the horizontal direction to the vertical upward force, but along the contact surface of the curl guide portion. The case where it cannot be made to occur will arise.
For example, when a sheet is conveyed by a roller member, the sheet abuts against the curl guide portion at a position away from the roller member, so that the sheet conveyance accuracy is greatly reduced based on the sheet conveyance load. As a result, there is a case where the force applied by the roller member does not act along the sheet conveyance direction, and there is a possibility that the sheet is bent or bent at the contact surface between the curl guide portion and the sheet end. is there. Further, when the paper is bent or bent, the paper is jammed on the conveyance path, and printing with the printing apparatus cannot be comfortably performed.

In this respect, in the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 2, a guide roller having an outer peripheral surface facing the surface formed in the arc shape is provided for the curl guide portion formed in an approximately 1/4 arc shape. It is arranged. This guide roller is in contact with the conveyed paper and rotates following the conveyance of the paper. Therefore, the sliding frictional force generated between the curl guide portion and the paper can be reduced.
However, in the case of the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 2 as well, the change in the transport direction is performed by a curl guide portion that is away from the roller member that transports the paper, and the paper end upstream of the transport direction is freely movable. Since this is possible, the sheet conveyance accuracy in the curl guide portion is lowered. Further, by providing a guide roller that abuts on the paper and rotates along with the conveyance of the paper to guide it along the curl guide portion, there is a possibility that a paper jam such as a so-called entanglement jam occurs.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and a plurality of types of thermal transfer type color printing inks arranged on an ink ribbon stored in a ribbon cassette via a thermal head are stacked on a recording medium. It is an object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus that performs printing and color printing, and in particular, to provide a printing apparatus that enables downsizing of a printing apparatus that reciprocates a recording medium and that prevents a conveyance failure of the recording medium.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 includes a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged, printing means capable of printing on a recording medium, and a transparent long shape. Supports the base film and a substantially rectangular ribbon cassette containing a plurality of types of thermal transfer type color printing inks that are repeatedly arranged in a predetermined order in the transport direction on the base film in a detachable state. Cassette supporting means, sheet conveying means for reciprocally conveying the recording medium, ribbon conveying means capable of conveying an ink ribbon stored in the ribbon cassette, and the sheet conveying means and the ribbon conveying means A printing apparatus comprising: a plurality of types of color printing inks stacked on a recording medium; and a printing control unit that performs color printing, and is formed inside the printing apparatus, A first conveying path through which the recording medium is conveyed by the sheet conveying means, a second conveying path formed inside the printing apparatus and through which the recording medium passes, and the printing. Connected between the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path inside the apparatus, press-contacted with the recording medium, and can be driven to guide from one to the other while changing the conveyance direction of the recording medium by 180 degrees. It has a belt member and a belt drive means for driving the belt member.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the printing apparatus according to the first aspect, the printing apparatus includes a determination unit that determines a type of the recording medium, and the print control unit includes: The conveyance speed of the recording medium by the sheet conveying unit and the belt driving unit is determined based on the determination result.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the printing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the print control unit is configured to print the belt driving unit when printing on the recording medium by the printing unit. The recording medium conveyance speed is synchronized with the conveyance speed of the sheet conveyance means during printing.

  Furthermore, the invention according to claim 4 is the printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the printing apparatus is disposed on a conveyance path that connects the end portion of the first conveyance path and the belt member. And an edge detecting means for detecting the edge of the recording medium, wherein the printing control means controls the start and stop of driving of the belt driving means based on the detection result of the edge detecting means. And

That is, the printing apparatus of the invention according to claim 1 is configured to reciprocate the recording medium by the sheet conveying unit while conveying the ink ribbon having a plurality of types of thermal transfer type color printing ink by the ribbon conveying unit, A plurality of types of color printing inks are stacked on the recording medium to perform color printing.
Here, the conveyance path along which the recording medium is conveyed is a path in which a belt member is connected between the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path inside the printing apparatus, and the conveyance direction of the recording medium is performed by the belt member. Is guided from one side to the other while turning 180 degrees. Accordingly, since the recording medium is reciprocated along a substantially U-shaped conveyance path formed in the side view in the printing apparatus, the recording medium jumps out of the printing apparatus without increasing the size of the printing apparatus. Therefore, the print quality is not deteriorated.
Further, the belt member that guides the recording medium from one side to the other while changing the conveyance direction of the recording medium between the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path by 180 degrees is in pressure contact with the recording medium. The recording medium is conveyed while being guided. As a result, the direction of conveyance is changed while pressing the entire recording medium, so that the recording medium is not bent even at the portion where the conveyance direction is changed, and the recording medium is smoothly conveyed. be able to.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the printing apparatus includes a determination unit that determines a type of the recording medium, and based on a determination result of the determination unit, determines a conveyance speed of the recording medium by the sheet conveyance unit and the belt driving unit. decide.
That is, since the recording medium is transported at a transporting speed corresponding to the type of the recording medium, it is possible to prevent the recording medium from being bent and to transport the recording medium quickly. As a result, in a printing apparatus that performs printing by reciprocating the recording medium, it is possible to reduce the time required for printing while maintaining print quality.

  In the printing apparatus according to claim 3, when printing is performed on the recording medium by the printing unit, the conveyance speed of the recording medium by the belt driving unit is set to the conveyance speed of the sheet conveyance unit during printing. Synchronize with. As a result, during printing, there is no difference in speed between the conveyance speed of the recording medium by the belt driving unit and the conveyance speed of the sheet conveyance unit during printing. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the recording medium from being bent based on the speed difference.

  The printing apparatus according to claim 4 includes an end detection unit that is disposed on a transport path that connects the first transport path end and the belt member, and that detects an end of the recording medium. The printing control unit controls the start and stop of driving of the belt driving unit based on the detection result of the end detection unit. As a result, it is possible to detect whether or not the recording medium is in contact with the belt member, so that the belt drive unit can be started and stopped at appropriate timing.

  Hereinafter, a printing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings based on a specific embodiment.

First, a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus according to this embodiment and a ribbon cassette used in the printing apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.
A printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a main body case 2 including a frame 5 having side walls 3 and 4 disposed on both left and right sides, a main body case 7 in which the main body case 2 is incorporated, A ribbon cassette 8 that is detachably mounted in the frame 5 by being fitted into a horizontally long ribbon cassette hole 6 penetrating the side wall 3 and a sheet 10 as a recording medium are stored in a stacked state. The sheet tray 11 is inserted into the lower part of the front side of the main body housing 2 from the front side (see FIG. 4).
As shown in FIG. 4, the main body housing 2 is disposed inside a main body case 7 formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The main body case 7 is formed with an opening to which the ribbon cassette 8 and the paper tray 11 are attached, corresponding to the position where the ribbon cassette 8 and the paper tray 11 are attached in the main body housing 2 (not shown). ) The main body case 7 has a discharge opening (not shown) through which the paper 10 printed by the thermal head 15 and conveyed in the discharge direction (left side in FIG. 4) passes (not shown). The sheet 10 subjected to the above is discharged outside the printing apparatus 1 through the discharge opening.

Here, the main body housing 2 will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the main body housing 2, a head unit 16 is disposed on the upper side facing the ribbon cassette 8. The head unit 16 is provided with a long thermal head 15 in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged in a row at the front lower edge.
A ribbon cassette detection sensor 38 that detects presence / absence of the ribbon cassette 8 is disposed below the head unit 16. That is, the ribbon cassette detection sensor 38 is configured to output an OFF signal when the ribbon cassette 8 is not mounted, and to output an ON signal when the ribbon cassette 8 is mounted.
The rear end portion of the head unit 16 is attached to the side walls 3 and 4 of the frame 5 so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft 17 on which each end edge portion is pivotally supported. A torsion spring 18 is attached to the rotating shaft 17, and one end of the torsion spring 18 is locked to the side wall 4, and the other end is hooked on the rear end of the side wall of the head unit 16. The head unit 16 is biased clockwise in FIG. 4 about the rotation shaft 17 by the torsion spring 18 attached to the rotation shaft 17.
In addition, a reflective photosensor 36 in which an infrared light emitting diode and a phototransistor are incorporated is provided on the front side surface portion of the central portion in the longitudinal direction of the head unit 16.

A pair of cam members 21, 22 fixed to a rotating shaft 20 that is pivotally supported at the upper end edges of the side walls 3, 4 of the frame 5 are provided above the both end edges in the longitudinal direction of the head unit 16. ing. The cam members 21 and 22 are formed in a substantially rectangular shape in a side view (see FIG. 4), one end edge portion is fixed to the rotary shaft 20, and the other end edge portion is formed in an arc shape so as to be smooth. The head unit 16 is formed so as to slide in contact with the upper end surface portion.
Here, a cam gear 21 </ b> A having a substantially arc shape is formed on the outer side surface of one cam member 21 in the front direction from the rear side edge. The cam gear 21 </ b> A is forward / reverse via a head motor 24 constituted by a stepping motor or the like disposed outside the rear edge of the side wall 4 and a first gear train 25 disposed on the inner surface of the side wall 4. Driven by rotation. Therefore, the posture control of the head unit 16 is performed based on the rotational drive of the head motor 24.
More specifically, when the ribbon cassette 8 is attached / detached, the head unit 16 is positioned above the ribbon cassette 8 by driving the cam members 21 and 22 by rotating the head motor 24 in the reverse direction. It is turned upward. On the other hand, when printing on the paper 10, the head unit 16 is rotated downward according to the transport state of the paper 10 by driving the head motor 24 to rotate forward.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the lower end portion of the head unit 16 has a substantially triangular side cross-section projecting downward from the thermal head 15 along the rear end edge facing the thermal head 15. A resin-made ribbon guide member 28 is provided. The ribbon guide member 28 is formed to have substantially the same length as the thermal head 15 and is inserted into the opening 46 of the ribbon cassette 8 (see FIGS. 1 and 5). Further, the upper side of the thermal head 15 is fixed to the lower surface of the front side portion of the top plate 33 having a crank shape as viewed from the side, which is horizontally mounted between the side walls of the head unit 16. The thermal head 15 is configured to be pressed against the platen roller 37 by a head spring 35 with a predetermined pressing force during printing.

Here, the ribbon cassette 8 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 4, and 5.
The ribbon cassette 8 connects a substantially cylindrical ribbon storage portion 41, a substantially cylindrical winding storage portion 42 provided to face the ribbon storage portion 41, the ribbon storage portion 41, and the winding storage portion 42. It is configured in a substantially rectangular shape integrated by a pair of left and right connecting portions 43 and 44. In the center of the ribbon cassette 8, a running path for the ink ribbon 45 having substantially the same width as the thermal head 15 is formed, and an opening through which the long thermal head 15 and the horizontally long ribbon guide member 28 are inserted from above. A portion 46 is formed.
A ribbon spool 48 that is wound so that the printing surface of the ink ribbon 45 faces outward is rotatably accommodated in the ribbon accommodating portion 41, and the ink ribbon feeding portion opened at the lower edge on the opening 46 side is accommodated. From the outlet 41 </ b> A, the ink ribbon 45 can be pulled out in the direction of the traveling path and the winding storage portion 42.
On the other hand, in the winding storage portion 42, an ink ribbon inlet 42A through which the ink ribbon 45 from the ribbon storage portion 41 via the travel path is drawn at the time of printing is opened at the lower end edge on the opening 46 side. A ribbon take-up spool 49 around which the ink ribbon 45 is taken up is rotatably accommodated in the take-up storage portion 42, and the ink drawn into the outer peripheral surface of the ribbon take-up spool 49 from the ink ribbon inlet 42A. The tip of the ribbon 45 is fixed. Accordingly, in the take-up storage unit 42, the ink ribbon 45 drawn from the ink ribbon drawing port 42A is wound and stored on the ribbon take-up spool 49.

Here, the ink ribbon drawing opening 42A of the take-up storage portion 42 is formed with a cutout portion 42C that is cut out in a substantially square shape at the center in the width direction of the side wall portion on the opening 46 side. In addition, an aluminum tape 42D as a reflecting member is attached to the back side wall portion facing the notch portion 42C of the ink ribbon drawing opening 42A.
A ribbon feed motor 65 constituted by a stepping motor or the like is disposed on the side wall 4, and the ribbon feed motor 65 powers the ribbon spool 48 and the ribbon take-up spool 49 via the third gear train 53. Can act. That is, by driving the ribbon feed motor 65 forward and backward, the ribbon spool 48 and the ribbon take-up spool 49 can be driven forward and backward via the third gear train 53, and the ink ribbon 45 can be reciprocated. Become.

  In addition, the ribbon cassette 8 is fitted into the ribbon cassette hole 6 opened in the side wall 3, so that the connecting portions 43 and 44 are disposed in proximity to the platen roller 37. At this time, the ink ribbon delivery port 41A of the ribbon storage unit 41, that is, the end edge of the opening 46 on the ribbon storage unit 41 side is positioned below the upper edge of the platen roller 37 in the vertical direction. In FIG. 4, it is disposed in the main body housing 2 downwardly to the right.

Next, a schematic configuration of the ink ribbon 45 built in the ribbon cassette 8 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the ink ribbon 45 is repeated on the long transparent base film 71 in a predetermined order based on the transport direction during printing of the ink used for color printing on one sheet 10. Has been placed.
More specifically, the base film 71 is provided with three primary color inks for use in printing an image or the like in full color. That is, in the order conveyed in printing, the color primary color ink Y that exhibits “yellow”, the color primary color ink M that exhibits “magenta”, the color primary color ink C that exhibits “cyan”, the color primary color ink Y, The primary color ink M and the primary color ink C are arranged in this order.
Further, after the color primary color inks Y, M, and C, an overcoat ink OP that is colorless and transparent and that protects a printing surface such as an image printed with the color primary color inks Y, M, and C is disposed. The overcoat ink OP contains a predetermined amount of an ultraviolet absorber, and the ultraviolet light contained in natural light by the ultraviolet absorber is covered by covering the printing surface of the color primary color inks Y, M, and C with the overcoat ink OP. Can be absorbed. As a result, it is possible to prevent image deterioration (for example, color change or fading) caused by ultraviolet rays included in natural light.

  Then, a predetermined gap is provided in the vicinity of the end edge portion in the transport direction during printing of the color primary color ink Y, the color primary color ink M, the color primary color ink C, and the overcoat ink OP. The positioning mark 72 is 2 to 3 mm. Further, a print end position detection mark 81 is provided between the rear end side edge portion in the transport direction of the overcoat ink OP and the positioning mark 72 positioned on the front end side of the color primary color ink Y. It is arranged with a gap.

Thus, as described later, when the positioning mark 72 passes the front side of the aluminum tape 42D, the passage can be detected by the reflection type photosensor 36, so that each color primary color ink Y, M, C is detected. The cueing of the overcoat ink OP can be performed.
Further, as will be described later, when the print end position detection mark 81 passes the front side of the aluminum tape 42D, the reflection photosensor 36 can detect the passage. As a result, the ink ribbon 45 for one sheet 10, that is, one set of ink composed of the color primary color ink Y, the color primary color ink M, the color primary color ink C, and the overcoat ink OP shown in FIG. Can be detected.

Here, the configuration of the main body housing 2 will be described again in detail. As shown in FIG. 4, the main body housing 2 is rotated above the front end of the paper tray 11 while pressing the uppermost portion of the paper 10 stored in the paper tray 11, so that the paper 10 is fed one by one. A paper feed roller 55 for conveyance is provided. On the downstream side of the paper feed roller 55 in the transport direction, the paper 10 is rotated to a position near the platen roller 37 and the paper 10 is transported to the printing start position. And a pinch roller 57 provided on the head. A leading edge detection switch 58 for detecting the leading edge of the sheet 10 supplied by the sheet feeding roller 55 is provided in the vicinity of the upstream side in the transport direction of the sheet feeding roller 56.
Therefore, in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, when printing on the paper 10, first of all the paper 10 stored in the paper tray 11 by the paper feed roller 55, one sheet positioned on the uppermost surface. The paper 10 is conveyed to the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57. When the leading edge detection switch 58 detects the leading edge of the sheet 10 conveyed by the sheet feeding roller 55, rotation driving of the sheet feeding roller 56 is started based on a detection signal from the leading edge detection switch 58.
As a result, the paper 10 conveyed toward the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57 by the paper feed roller 55 is moved toward the printing mechanism such as the platen roller 37 and the thermal head 15 based on the rotation of the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57. It is conveyed.

  In the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of types of paper 10 can be used. Here, the paper 10 can be identified by the leading edge detection switch 58 on the upstream side in the transport direction on the back surface of the printing surface that is printed in full color with the respective primary color inks Y, M, and C, and the type of the paper 10 (for example, The identification mark 12 corresponding to the thickness, weight, paper quality, and size of the paper 10 is attached (see FIG. 13). As will be described in detail later, the type of paper used for printing is determined by reading the identification mark 12 with the leading edge detection switch 58.

A guide piece 59 for guiding the printed paper in the discharge direction is provided above the paper feed roller 55. A discharge roller 61 that rotates and conveys the sheet 10 that has been conveyed along the guide piece 59 and a discharge roller 61 that is pressed against the discharge roller 61 and rotatably provided on the oblique upper side of the sheet feed roller 55 in the discharge direction. A pinch roller 62 is provided.
Then, by rotating the sheet feed motor 51 in a predetermined direction, the sheet feed roller 55 and the sheet feed roller 56 are rotated via the second gear train 52, and the sheet 10 is conveyed to the print start position. Further, the platen roller 37, the paper feed roller 56, and the discharge roller 61 are rotated through the second gear train 52 by rotating the paper feed motor 51 in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction, and printing is performed by the thermal head 15. The paper 10 is conveyed in the discharge direction (left side in FIG. 4) and discharged to the outside.

The main body housing 2 is provided with a plate-shaped guide member 54 that guides the paper 10 that has passed between the thermal head 15 and the platen roller 37 below the head unit 16 and the ribbon spool 48. . The sheet 10 that has passed between the thermal head 15 and the platen roller 37 is guided to the print start position along the upper surface of the guide member 54.
The guide member 54 is provided with a belt driving sensor 39 that detects an end of the paper 10 that is conveyed based on the rotation of the paper feed roller 56 and the like. The belt driving sensor 39 is disposed below the rotation shaft 17 of the head unit 16, that is, on the back side (right side in FIG. 4) of the main body housing 2 and below the conveyance path of the paper 10. ing.
Therefore, when the paper 10 is transported to the printing start position or when the paper 10 is printed and transported in the discharge direction (left direction in FIG. 4), the end of the paper 10 transported by the paper feed roller 56 is moved. Can be detected.

Here, as shown in FIGS. 4, 7, and 9, a paper guide mechanism 100 is disposed on the back side of the main body housing 2. The paper guide mechanism 100 guides the paper 10 guided along the upper surface of the guide member 54 to the upper surface of the frame 5 inside the printing apparatus 1 and drives the guide belt 101 in the forward and reverse directions. The belt driving motor 102, the belt driving roller 103 that drives the guide belt 101 based on the rotation of the belt driving motor 102, and the paper 10 guided along the guide belt 101. It is comprised with the guide roller 104 arrange | positioned rotatably with the movement of this.
The guide belt 101 is formed of a rubber sheet having a high surface friction, and a belt-like rubber sheet wider than the width of the paper 10 is formed in a loop shape. The guide belt 101 forms a substantially semicircular conveying path in side view by the belt driving roller 103 and the guide roller 104.
The belt driving roller 103 is in contact with the inner surface of the guide belt 101 formed in a loop shape, and is rotatably arranged based on the driving of the belt driving motor 102. Accordingly, when the belt driving roller 103 rotates based on the driving of the belt driving motor 102, the guide belt 101 is driven accordingly.
Further, since the guide roller 104 is rotatably arranged while pressing the guide belt 101, the movement of the guide belt 101 is not hindered when the guide belt 101 is driven. Further, when the sheet 10 conveyed from the guide member 54 reaches the sheet guide mechanism 100, the guide roller 104 rotates while pressing the sheet 10 conveyed along the guide belt 101 toward the guide belt 101. . Thus, when the paper 10 moves on a substantially semicircular conveyance path when viewed from the side, the paper 10 can be reliably conveyed along the guide belt 101. Even in this case, since the guide roller 104 rotates, the movement of the paper 10 and the guide belt 101 is not hindered.

Next, the positional relationship between the reflective photosensor 36 and the aluminum tape 42D when the head motor 24 is rotationally driven and the head unit 16 is rotated downward will be described.
As shown in FIG. 8, the head motor 24 is driven to rotate in the forward direction for a predetermined time (predetermined number of steps), and the cam gear 21A is rotated through the first gear train 25 in the clockwise direction by a rotation angle of about 55 degrees. When the members 21 and 22 are slid on the head unit 16, the head unit 16 is rotated downward by a predetermined angle. As a result, the thermal head 15 is lowered to a position near the platen roller 37, and the reflective photosensor 36 provided on the front surface portion of the head unit 16 is provided with an aluminum tape provided in the take-up storage portion 42 of the ribbon cassette 8. It faces 42D.

Therefore, when the head motor 24 is driven and the head unit 16 is rotated to this position and stopped, the ribbon feeding motor 65 is driven to convey the ink ribbon 45 at a constant speed, thereby the reflection type. A positioning mark 72 and a print end position detection mark 81 corresponding to each ink (color primary color ink Y, color primary color ink M, color primary color ink C, overcoat ink OP) can be detected via the photosensor 36. It becomes.
At this time, the front end portion of the paper 10 that has been transported horizontally through the platen roller 37 is obliquely viewed from the side by the thermal head 15 that has moved downward as the head unit 16 rotates and the lower end surface of the ribbon guide member 28. It abuts on the ink ribbon 45 pressed downward. Accordingly, the leading end portion of the paper 10 is guided obliquely downward to the right along the lower surface of the ink ribbon 45, and is guided downward from the ribbon delivery port of the ribbon storage portion 41. As a result, the paper 10 can be prevented from coming into contact with the ink ribbon delivery port 41A of the ribbon cassette 8, and jamming of the paper 10 can be reliably prevented.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the paper 10 is conveyed along the lower surface of the ink ribbon 45 by the rotation of the paper supply roller 55 and the paper feed roller 56, so that the conveyance failure occurs at the ink ribbon delivery port 41 </ b> A of the ribbon storage unit 41. Without being generated, it is transported to the print start position.
Then, when the paper 10 is transported to the printing start position, the paper feed motor 51 is stopped, and the head motor 24 is further rotated in the forward direction for a predetermined time (a predetermined number of steps) to thereby pass through the first gear train 25. When the cam gear 21A is rotated clockwise by a rotation angle of about 95 degrees and the cam members 21 and 22 are slid on the head unit 16, the cam members 21 and 22 are perpendicular to each other in a side view. At this time, the thermal head 15 presses the ink ribbon 45 and the paper 10 against the platen roller 37, and the thermal head 15 faces the printing start position of the paper 10. At this time, the reflective photosensor 36 provided on the front surface of the head unit 16 is positioned slightly below the aluminum tape 42D provided in the take-up storage portion 42 of the ribbon cassette 8.

Next, the movement of the paper 10 in the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4, 7, and 9.
First, the case where the paper 10 is fed from the paper tray 11 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. Here, when the paper tray 11 is attached to the printing apparatus 1, the end of the paper 10 stacked on the inside of the paper tray 11 that is transported to the top of the paper 10 positioned on the top surface thereof. The portion (hereinafter referred to as the first end portion) is in pressure contact with the paper feed roller 55 (see FIG. 4). Accordingly, by driving the paper feed motor 51 in this state, the paper feed roller 55 rotates, and the paper 10 positioned on the uppermost surface can be conveyed toward the paper feed roller 56.
When the paper is conveyed in the direction of the paper feed roller 56, the leading edge detection switch 58 detects the first end of the paper 10 and reads the identification mark 12 attached to the paper 10. After the identification mark 12 is read, the first end portion of the paper 10 is guided between the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57 and is sandwiched between the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57 while the thermal head 15 and the platen. Guided in the direction of the roller 37.
Here, in this embodiment, the position where the second end facing the first end of the paper 10 is sandwiched between the thermal head 15 and the platen roller 37 is the printing start position. Accordingly, the paper 10 fed from the paper tray 11 is once transported to the printing start position along the upper surface of the guide member 54, and thereafter printing with the color primary inks Y, M, C, and the overcoat ink OP is performed. Is called.

Here, the movement of the paper 10 and each mechanism when the paper 10 that has passed between the platen roller 37 and the thermal head 15 is moved to the print start position will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The paper 10 that has passed between the thermal head 15 and the platen roller 37 is conveyed along the upper surface of the guide member 54 based on the rotation of the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57. At this time, the sheet 10 is transported on the guide member 54 with the first end as the head, and the first end passes above the belt driving sensor 39 provided at the end of the guide member 54. (See FIG. 7).
At this time, when the belt driving sensor 39 detects the first end of the paper 10, the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is started so that the paper guide mechanism 100 disposed on the back side of the main body housing 2 functions. Is done. Accordingly, the first end portion of the sheet 10 is guided to the upper portion of the frame 5 along the guide belt 101. At this time, the sheet 10 moves along the guide belt 101 while being pressed toward the guide belt 101 by the guide roller 104, so that the sheet 10 is reliably guided to the upper surface of the frame 5.
Further, the guide belt 101 is formed of a rubber sheet and the guide roller 104 is formed to be rotatable, so that the first end portion of the paper 10 can be surely secured when the paper 10 is guided to the upper surface of the frame 5 by the paper guide mechanism 100. Can be held between. Then, the nipped paper 10 is positively conveyed by the guide belt 101 to the upper surface of the frame 5 starting from the first end based on the driving of the belt driving motor 102. The paper 10 is not bent or bent.

Thus, when the first end of the sheet 10 is guided to the upper surface of the frame 5 by the sheet guide mechanism 100, the second end, which is the other end side of the sheet 10, is pulled out from the sheet tray 11 and fed. It moves to the vicinity of the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57 via the lower end of the roller 55.
In this regard, in this embodiment, the paper feed motor 51 and the belt drive motor 102 are driven for a predetermined time (a predetermined number of steps) from the start of driving of the belt drive motor 102, so that the paper is fed by the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57. The second end of 10 is transported to the print start position.

After the paper 10 is conveyed to the printing start position (see FIG. 9), the head motor 24 is driven and the head unit 16 is moved downward, whereby the ink ribbon 45 and the thermal head 15 are pressed against the paper 10. Accordingly, the sheet 10 is sandwiched between the platen roller 37 positioned below the sheet 10, the thermal head 15 positioned above the sheet 10, and the ink ribbon 45.
Thereafter, the paper feed motor 51 and the belt driving motor 102 are driven in reverse rotation to convey the paper 10 in the discharge direction (left side in FIG. 4), and at the same time, a plurality of heating elements arranged on the lower surface of the thermal head 15 are individually provided. By performing the heat generation control, the color primary color ink Y is thermally transferred to the paper 10. The paper 10 is transported in the discharge direction along with the printing operation, but is not transported in the direction of returning to the paper tray 11 and is directed toward the discharge roller 61 and the pinch roller 62 by the guide piece 59. When the first end of the sheet 10 conveyed in the discharge direction is detected by the belt driving sensor 39, the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is stopped (see FIG. 7).
In this regard, as shown in FIG. 7, in a state where the first end portion of the paper 10 can be detected by the belt driving sensor 39, the paper 10 does not exist in the paper guide mechanism 100, and the paper 10 is conveyed. However, the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is not involved. Therefore, wasteful power consumption can be prevented by stopping the driving of the belt driving motor 102 at this time.

Thereafter, the sheet 10 is further conveyed in the discharge direction until the printing related to the color primary color ink Y based on the print data is completed. When the printing for the primary color ink Y is completed (the position of the paper 10 at this time is referred to as a printing end position), the driving of the paper feed motor 51 is stopped and the paper 10 is held between the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57. It becomes a state.
At this point, since the printing with the color primary color ink Y has only been completed on the paper 10 and the full color printing has not been completed, the paper 10 is conveyed again from the printing end position to the printing start position. To do. Since this is the same operation as that described above, detailed description thereof is omitted.
Subsequently, printing with the primary color ink M is performed on the paper 10 at the printing start position. Also in this case, as in the printing operation described above, the printing is performed on the paper 10 while being transported to the printing end position, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.
In this way, by repeating the reciprocation between the print start position and the print end position, printing is also performed for the other color primary color ink C and the overcoat ink OP. Here, after the printing related to the overcoat ink OP is performed, the sheet 10 is discharged from the discharge opening portion opened in the main body case 7 without stopping at the printing end position.

Next, a control system of the printing apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 10, the control system of the printing apparatus 1 is configured with a control circuit unit 110 as a core. The control circuit unit 110 includes a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a CGROM 113, a RAM 114, and an input / output circuit (I / O) 115, which are connected to each other via a bus line 116.

Here, the ROM 112 stores various programs, such as a program for conveying a sheet 10 (to be described later) to a printing start position and controlling the head motor 24 to rotate and controlling the head unit 16 to rotate up and down. Various programs necessary for controlling the printing apparatus 1 such as a print control program to be described later, a data table for specifying the type of the paper 10 from an identification mark 12 attached to the paper 10 to be described later, and paper conveyance based on the type of the paper 10 A data table for determining the speed is stored.
The CPU 111 performs various calculations based on various programs stored in the ROM 112.

Further, dot pattern data corresponding to each character is stored in the CGROM 113, and the dot pattern data is read from the CGROM 113 as necessary, and is transferred onto the paper 10 via the thermal head 15 based on the dot pattern data. A dot pattern is printed.
The RAM 114 temporarily stores various calculation results calculated by the CPU 111, and is provided with various memory areas such as a text memory, an image buffer, and a print buffer.

The input / output circuit (I / 0) 115 includes a host PC 117 as an external control unit, a head drive circuit 119 that drives the thermal head 15, and a motor drive circuit that drives a paper feed motor 51 that carries the paper 10 and the like. 120, a motor drive circuit 121 that drives a head motor 24 that performs pressure bonding and release of the thermal head 15 by rotating the head unit 16 in the vertical direction, and a motor that drives a ribbon feed motor 65 that reciprocates the ink ribbon 45 A driving circuit 122 and a motor driving circuit 123 for driving a belt driving motor 102 for moving the guide belt 101 are connected.
In the input / output circuit (I / 0) 115, the leading end detection switch 58 for detecting the leading end of the paper 10 fed by the paper feeding roller 55 and the identification mark 12 indicating the paper type, and the positioning of the ink ribbon 45 are arranged. A reflection type photo sensor 36 for detecting a mark 72 for printing or a mark 81 for detecting a print end position, a ribbon cassette detection sensor 38 for detecting whether or not the ribbon cassette 8 is mounted, and a belt driving motor 102 in the paper guide mechanism 100. A belt driving sensor 39 that detects the leading edge of the paper 10 and is used for control is connected.

Next, the print processing program of the printing apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12. FIG. 11 is a flowchart of the print processing program in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment.
Here, when the print processing program is started, print data to be printed on the paper 10 is already stored in the RAM 114. That is, the RAM 114 stores image data corresponding to each color of “yellow”, “magenta”, and “cyan” constituting the image printed on the paper 10.

Here, when a print start instruction is input from the host PC 117 and the print processing program is started, the CPU 111 pulls out the paper 10 from the paper tray 11 and conveys it to the vicinity of the paper feed roller 56 and the pinch roller 57 in S1. I do.
Therefore, in S1, the CPU 111 first moves the front side portion of the head unit 16 upward by driving the head motor 24 in the reverse rotation direction. Thereafter, the CPU 111 starts the conveyance of the paper 10 by rotating the paper feed motor 51 in a predetermined direction to rotate the paper feed roller 55. The paper feed roller 55 is driven to rotate until the paper 10 is conveyed in the vicinity of the paper feed roller 56, that is, above the leading edge detection switch 58.

Subsequently, in S2, the type of the paper 10 (for example, the type based on the thickness, weight, paper quality, and size of the paper 10) is determined by reading the identification mark attached to the conveyed paper 10 with the leading edge detection switch 58. A paper type detection process is performed.
Here, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, three types of paper, that is, paper (A), paper (B), and paper (C) having different paper thickness and paper weight, are used in the printing apparatus 1. Can be used in Accordingly, on the back surface of the paper (A), the paper (B), and the paper (C), the identification mark 12 is configured by arranging three rectangular bit marks drawn in two colors of black and white, respectively. Is attached to a position corresponding to the tip detection switch 58 (see FIG. 13).
Here, the type of the paper 10 and the mode of the identification mark 12 corresponding to the type will be described with reference to FIG. In the identification mark 12, three rectangular bit marks are arranged in the first end portion of the paper 10 in the transport direction, and the bit marks are shown in two colors of black and white.
In addition, the identification mark 12 is arranged in the form of a combination of two bit marks indicating the type of the paper 10 and the downstream side of the type identification mark in the transport direction, and indicates the reading start position of the identification mark 12. It consists of a head mark 13. The identification mark 12 is attached by forming a margin of about 3 mm from the first end of the paper 10.

Of the identification marks 12, the leading mark 13 is formed as a black bit mark on any sheet 10, and when the leading mark 13 is read by the leading edge detection switch 58, the bit mark to be read later becomes the sheet 10. It can be recognized that it is the type identification mark 14 determined based on the type of the.
After the leading mark 13 is read by the leading edge detection switch 58, the type specifying mark 14 is read to specify the type of the paper 10 currently used in the printing apparatus 1.
Here, the types of paper 10 (paper (A), paper (B), paper (C)) that can be used in the printing apparatus in this embodiment, and the mode of the type identification mark 14 are described. Of the two bit marks constituting the type specifying mark 14, the bit mark that is located downstream in the transport direction and is read after the head mark is referred to as a first type specifying mark 14A. A bit mark that is read after the reading is finished and is positioned at the most upstream in the transport direction among the identification marks 12 is referred to as a second type specific mark 14B.

Among the sheets 10 that can be used in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the sheet (A) is a sheet having a sheet thickness of 0.3 (mm) and a basis weight of 310 (g / m ² ). This paper (A) is provided with an identification mark 12 at a predetermined interval from the first end, followed by a white bit mark, black color, following a head mark 13 indicated by a black bit mark. The type identification marks 14 are arranged in the order of the bit marks. Accordingly, when the leading edge detection switch 58 reads the first type specific mark 14A as “white” and the second type specific mark 14B as “black”, the type of the paper 10 is “paper (A)”. Can be specified.
For a paper (B) having a paper thickness of 0.25 (mm) and a basis weight of 250 (g / m ² ), a black bit mark and a white bit mark are provided after the head mark 13 shown in black. The kind specifying marks 14 arranged in the order of are attached. Therefore, when the leading edge detection switch 58 reads the first type identification mark 14A as “black” and the second type identification mark 14B as “white”, the sheet 10 is identified as “sheet (B)”. be able to.
Furthermore, the paper (C) usable in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is a paper having a paper thickness of 0.18 (mm) and a basis weight of 175 (g / m ² ). A type specifying mark 14 in which two black bit marks are arranged is added to the head mark 13 indicated by a black bit mark. Accordingly, when the identification mark 12 is read by the leading edge detection switch 58 and both the first type specific mark 14A and the second type specific mark 14B are “black”, the paper used in the printing apparatus 1 is used. 10 can be specified as “paper (C)”.

Therefore, in the paper type detection process (S2), the CPU 111 first drives the platen roller 37, the paper feed roller 56, and the like to carry the paper 10, and is attached to the paper 10 by the leading edge detection switch 58. Read the first mark.
Thereafter, the sheet 10 is conveyed by a predetermined amount (a width with respect to the bit mark conveyance direction), and the first type specific mark 14 </ b> A is read by the leading edge detection switch 58. Further, after the reading of the first type specific mark 14A is completed, the paper 10 is conveyed by a predetermined amount, and the second type specific mark 14B is read by the tip detection switch 58. In this way, by reading the identification mark 12 with the leading edge detection switch 58 while transporting the paper 10, the type (paper ((paper)) of the first type specific mark 14A and the second type specific mark 14B is displayed. A), paper (B), or paper (C)) can be specified.

Then, after storing the type of the paper 10 determined based on the identification mark 12 read by the leading edge detection switch 58 in the RAM 114, the conveyance speed of the paper 10 is set based on the type of the paper 10 stored in the RAM 114. decide. This point will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
As described above, in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, when printing on the paper 10 is performed, the paper 10 is once transported to the print start position (see FIG. 9). Thereafter, printing on the paper 10 is performed while the paper 10 is conveyed in the discharge direction from the printing start position. The printing apparatus 1 can use three types of paper, that is, paper (A), paper (B), and paper (C) having different paper thicknesses and basis weights.
Here, since the types of the paper (A), the paper (B), and the paper (C) are different, the stiffness of the paper is different depending on the type of the paper. Affects transport failures (eg clogging or bending). In particular, in a portion where the conveyance path of the paper 10 is bent (for example, in the vicinity of the paper guide mechanism 100), the stiffness of the paper 10 greatly affects the conveyance of the paper 10, so that the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment. 1, by setting the conveyance speed according to the type of the paper 10, smooth conveyance is realized while preventing the paper 10 from being jammed.

As shown in FIG. 12, the conveyance speed in the paper guide mechanism 100 portion is set to an appropriate value according to the type of the paper 10 specified by the identification mark 12 read by the leading edge detection switch 58.
When the paper type data stored in the RAM 114 is “paper (B)”, the print start position (see FIG. 9) from the time when the first end of the paper 10 reaches the paper guide mechanism 100 (see FIG. 7). The transport speed (hereinafter referred to as “transport speed at the time of printing preparation”) for moving the paper 10 to “reference” is set to “medium speed”. In this regard, the sheet (B) has the second strength among the three types of sheets, and can be conveyed at “medium speed”.
When the paper type data stored in the RAM 114 is “paper (A)”, the conveyance speed at the time of printing preparation is set to “low speed”. In this respect, the paper (A) is the paper having the strongest stiffness among the three types of paper, as can be seen from the thick paper and the large basis weight. Therefore, if the transport speed is increased too much, bending or the like is likely to occur in the transport path, causing a transport failure of the paper 10. Therefore, when this sheet (A) is used, “low speed” that conveys more slowly than “sheet (B)” is set as the conveyance speed at the time of printing preparation.
Further, when the paper type data stored in the RAM 114 is “paper (C)”, the conveyance speed at the time of printing preparation is set to “high speed”. As shown in FIG. 12, the paper (C) is the paper that has the smallest stiffness among the paper that can be used in the printing apparatus 1, both of which are small in thickness and basis weight. Therefore, even when the paper is transported earlier than “paper (B)”, the paper 10 is not clogged in the vicinity of the paper guide mechanism 100, so the transport speed at the time of printing preparation can be set to “high speed”.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 12, the speed (hereinafter referred to as a transport speed during printing) when transporting from the print start position to the print end position while performing printing on the paper 10 is to maintain print quality. Any type of paper 10 is performed at a speed synchronized with the moving speed associated with the rotational driving of the platen roller 37 and the paper feed roller 56 based on the execution of printing.
As described above, by varying the sheet conveyance speed in accordance with the type of the sheet 10, the printing process can be executed smoothly and quickly while preventing the occurrence of a sheet conveyance failure.
After the identification mark 12 attached to the paper 10 is read by the ribbon cassette detection sensor 38, the type of the paper 10 is specified, and the printing preparation transport speed determined based on the specified paper type is stored in the RAM 114. The paper type detection process (S2) is terminated, and the process proceeds to S3.

Next, in S3, a paper transport process for transporting the paper 10 to the print start position is performed. Accordingly, the CPU 111 starts the conveyance of the paper feed roller 56 by rotationally driving the paper feed roller 56, the pinch roller 57, and the platen roller 37, and proceeds to S4.
In S4, it is determined whether or not the first end portion of the conveyed paper 10 is detected by the belt driving sensor 39 as the paper feed roller 56, the platen roller 37, and the like are driven to rotate. The conveyance of the paper 10 is continued until the first end of the paper 10 is detected (S4: NO), and the paper 10 is conveyed to the position shown in FIG. 7 when the first edge of the paper 10 is detected. At that time, the CPU 111 moves the process to S5.

Subsequently, in S5, the CPU 111 sets the belt driving motor 102 to the print preparation determined in the paper type detection process (S2) in order to actively guide the paper 10 to the upper part of the frame 5 by the paper guide mechanism 100. Drive based on the hourly conveyance speed.
Here, since the first end of the sheet 10 is detected by the belt drive sensor 39 at the time of shifting to S5 (S4: YES), the first end of the sheet 10 is in the vicinity of the guide belt 101. Located (see FIG. 7). Even at this time, since the conveyance of the sheet 10 by the sheet feeding motor 51 is continued, the first end portion of the sheet 10 is guided between the guide belt 101 and the guide roller 104. Accordingly, the sheet 10 that has reached the sheet guide mechanism 100 is conveyed to the print start position at the print preparation conveyance speed stored in the RAM 114 while being pressed by the guide roller 104. At this time, the belt driving motor 102 is driven at the conveyance speed at the time of preparation for printing, so that the guide belt 101 guides to the printing start position while pressing the paper 10, so that the paper guide mechanism 100 bends the paper 10. Therefore, it is possible to smoothly convey the printing start position.

Here, the drive of the guide belt 101 in the paper guide mechanism 100 is performed by the belt driving motor 102 as described above, and the platen roller 37 and the paper feed roller 56 are driven by the paper feed motor 51.
That is, the conveyance of the paper 10 may be performed based on two driving means, but when the belt driving motor 102 is driven, the driving of the paper feeding motor 51 corresponds to the driving of the belt driving motor 102. Become.
In this case, it is desirable that the conveyance speed of the paper feed roller 56 is slightly slower than the conveyance speed of the guide belt 101. By setting the conveyance speed on the guide belt 101 side to a slightly high state, it is possible to guide the paper 10 by always pulling it in the conveyance direction, and it is possible to prevent the paper 10 from being bent.

  In S6, the CPU 111 determines whether or not the paper 10 has reached the print start position. Specifically, the CPU 111 detects the first end of the sheet 10 from the time when the belt driving sensor 39 detects the first end of the sheet 10 based on the transport speed at the time of preparation stored in the RAM 114. Based on the time required to reach the print start position (or the number of steps of the belt driving motor 102), it is determined whether or not the paper 10 has reached the print start position. Until the sheet 10 reaches the print start position, the sheet conveyance by the sheet guide mechanism 100 and the sheet feed roller 56 is continued (S6: NO), and the process proceeds to S7 when the sheet 10 reaches the print start position.

After transporting the paper 10 to the printing start position, in S7, the CPU 111 once stops driving the paper feed motor 51 and the belt driving motor 102 (see FIG. 9).
Thereafter, in S8, printing of print data is started while the sheet 10 at the print start position is conveyed in the discharge direction.
At this time, first, by driving the head motor 24, the head unit 16 is rotated downward, and the ink ribbon 45 and the paper 10 are pressed by the thermal head 15 and the platen roller 37. Then, the print data stored in the RAM 114 is read, and the heat generation mode of the thermal head 15 is controlled.

In S9, by controlling the heat generation mode of the thermal head 15, printing of print data on the paper 10 is performed, and the paper 10 is ejected in the discharge direction (FIG. 5) by the paper guide mechanism 100, the paper feed roller 56, and the like. 9 in the left direction).
That is, the rotational drive of the paper feed motor 51 and the belt driving motor 102 is started in the direction opposite to the rotation direction when the paper 10 is conveyed to the printing start position. Here, the conveyance speed of the paper 10 at the time of printing is based on the driving speed of the paper feed motor 51 and is a conveyance speed that can maintain an appropriate print quality regardless of which paper is used.
At this time, since the paper 10 is located in the paper guide mechanism 100, the belt driving motor 102 is driven together with the paper feed motor 51, and the paper guide mechanism 100 together with the paper transport mechanism such as the paper feed roller 56. The sheet 10 is also conveyed by driving the guide belt 101.
Here, the driving speed of the belt driving motor 102 in this case is synchronized with the driving speed of the paper feed motor 51. As described above, by synchronizing the driving speeds of the belt driving motor 102 and the paper feeding motor 51, it is possible to prevent the conveyance speed from being different for each portion of the paper 10, and to prevent the conveyance trouble such as the folding of the paper 10. can do.

Subsequently, in S <b> 10, the CPU 111 determines whether or not the first end of the paper 10 is detected by the belt driving sensor 39. Here, in S10, since the paper 10 is transported in the discharge direction, the second end of the paper 10 is positioned at the top with respect to the transport direction, and the first end is the rear end in the transport direction. become.
Therefore, when the belt driving sensor 39 located outside the paper guide mechanism 100 detects the first end, which is the rear end in the transport direction of the paper 10 that is transported in the discharge direction, the paper 10 is the paper guide mechanism. 100 does not exist inside.
In other words, while the sheet 10 is present in the sheet guide mechanism 100, the belt driving motor 102 is driven to continue the conveyance in the discharge direction (S10: NO), and the leading edge detection switch 58 causes the sheet 10 to be conveyed. When the first end is detected, that is, when the paper 10 no longer exists in the paper guide mechanism 100, the process proceeds to S11.

In S11, the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is stopped based on the fact that the sheet 10 does not exist in the sheet guide mechanism 100 (S10: YES). At this time, the sheet guide mechanism 100 cannot be involved in the conveyance of the sheet 10 in the discharge direction. Therefore, by stopping the driving of the belt driving motor 102, wasteful power consumption can be prevented.
After the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is stopped in S11, the paper 10 is conveyed in the discharge direction by the platen roller 37 and the paper feeding roller 56 being driven to rotate based on the driving of the paper feeding motor 51. The When the paper 10 reaches the print end position as a result of transporting the paper 10 in the discharge direction, the process proceeds to S12.
In addition, while the processes of S9 to S11 described above are being performed, the printing process based on the print data stored in the RAM 114 is continued along with the conveyance of the paper 10 in the discharge direction.

  In S12, a determination is made as to whether printing using the overcoat ink OP is completed based on the print data related to the overcoat ink OP among the print data corresponding to each ink stored in the RAM 114. .

Here, in the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the primary color inks Y, M, and C and the overcoat ink OP are sequentially disposed on the ink ribbon 45, and the RAM 114 performs printing corresponding to each ink. Data is stored. Further, the printing start position and the printing end position are reciprocated once to perform printing with a single ink on the paper 10 based on the print data corresponding to the single ink.
Therefore, the paper 10 pulled out from the paper tray 11 is first transported to the printing end position while performing a printing process based on the printing data of the primary color ink Y. The “color primary color ink M” is printed by the reciprocation between the next print start position and the print end position, and the “color primary color ink C” is printed by the reciprocation between the next print start position and the print end position. Then, overcoat printing with the overcoat ink OP is performed on the paper 10 on which full color printing has been performed with the color primary inks Y, M, and C.

That is, in S12, full color printing using the primary color inks Y, M, and C is completed, and whether overcoat printing with the overcoat ink OP is completed on the printing surface on which full color printing has been performed. Judgment is made. When the overcoat printing has been completed (S12: YES), full-color printing has been completed for all print data stored in the RAM 114 for the paper 10, and the print surface is not printed. -Since the bar coat printing is also completed, the printed paper 10 is further conveyed in the discharge direction, and discharged from the discharge opening to the outside of the printing apparatus 1 via the discharge roller 61 and the pinch roller 62. After the paper 10 is discharged to the outside, the print processing program is terminated. Thereby, the user can have the paper 10 on which desired printing is performed.
On the other hand, when the overcoat printing with the overcoat ink OP is not completed, that is, when the printing of the color primary color ink Y is completed, the printing of the color primary color ink M is completed, or the printing of the color primary color ink C is completed. If so, the process returns to S3, and the conveyance of the paper 10 to the printing start position is started to perform printing with the next ink (color primary color ink M, color primary color ink C, overcoat ink OP).

As described in detail above, the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs full-color printing by printing the primary color inks Y, M, and C and the overcoat ink OP in an overlapping manner. At this time, every time printing using each ink is performed, the paper 10 is reciprocated between the print start position and the print end position.
At this time, the paper 10 fed from the paper tray 11 by the paper feed roller 55 is guided to the guide member 54 via the paper feed roller 56, the pinch roller 57 and the platen roller 37. Then, the paper 10 guided along the upper surface of the guide member 54 is guided to the upper surface of the frame 5 by the paper guide mechanism 100 while changing the transport direction by 180 °, and is transported to the printing start position. At the time of printing, the paper 10 positioned at the print start position is printed while being conveyed in the reverse direction.
That is, in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the conveyance path of the paper 10 that is reciprocally conveyed between the printing start position and the printing end position is a U-shaped path in a side view, and thus the main body dimensions of the printing apparatus 1. Therefore, it is possible to provide a printing apparatus having a size suitable for the current situation in which downsizing of the apparatus is desired.
The conveyance path that is reciprocally conveyed between the print start position and the print stop position is always inside the printing apparatus 1, and the paper 10 is exposed to the outside of the printing apparatus 1 even when it is in the print start position and the print stop position. Never do. Accordingly, dust or the like does not adhere to the printing surface of the paper 10, and high print quality can be maintained.

Further, in the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, when the paper 10 is reciprocated between the print start position and the print end position, the paper guide mechanism 100 changes the conveyance direction by 180 °. In this respect, in the paper guide mechanism 100, the paper 10 is conveyed by pressing the paper 10 against the guide belt 101 by the guide roller 104 and driving the guide belt 101 by the belt driving motor 102. It can be smoothly transported without causing bending or bending.
Furthermore, when the paper 10 is transported using the paper guide mechanism 100, the paper feed motor 51 and the belt driving motor 102 are driven at a print preparation transport speed set according to the type of the paper 10 to start printing. Transport to position. Accordingly, by responding to conditions such as the stiffness of the paper 10, the paper 10 can be quickly conveyed to the print start position while preventing the paper 10 from being bent or bent. As a result, the sheet 10 is reciprocated at an appropriate and rapid conveyance speed, and rapid printing is possible while maintaining the print quality on the sheet 10.

In the printing apparatus 1, when the paper 10 is transported from the printing start position and printing is performed, the belt is adjusted so that the transport speed corresponding to the transport speed by the paper feed motor is obtained for any type of paper. Carrying is performed by the drive motor 102. Therefore, the printing is performed at an appropriate printing speed without causing bending or bending of the paper 10 at the time of printing, so that the print quality can be maintained regardless of the type of paper 10 used. .
The guide belt 101 of the paper guide mechanism 100 is controlled to start and stop driving by the belt driving motor 102 by detecting the end of the paper 10 with the belt driving sensor 39. That is, when the paper 10 exists in the paper guide mechanism 100, the transport operation of the paper 10 is performed based on the driving by the belt driving motor 102. Therefore, when the paper 10 is not present in the paper guide mechanism 100, the driving of the belt driving motor 102 is stopped, so that useless power is not consumed.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, Of course, various improvement and deformation | transformation are possible within the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the guide belt 101 constituting the paper guide mechanism 100 is formed in a loop shape with a rubber sheet having a width wider than the width of the paper 10. The mode which arrange | positions the guide belt to guide in two places may be sufficient. In this case, when the paper 10 is transported, by transporting both ends in the width direction of the paper 10, the paper 10 can be transported in a predetermined transport direction without causing the paper 10 to be bent.
In this embodiment, the paper 10 is classified based on the “paper thickness” and the “basis weight”, and the type of the paper 10 is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In other words, the classification may be made according to the difference in the material of the paper and the configuration of the paper (for example, a single sheet of paper, a label sheet with release paper). In this case, in the identification mark 12, various types of paper can be obtained by adding a third type specific mark, a fourth type specific mark, etc. in addition to the first type specific mark 14A and the second type specific mark 14B. 10 can be accommodated.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus and a ribbon cassette according to the present embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the state which mounted | wore the ribbon cassette with the printing apparatus. It is a top view which shows the state which mounted | wore the ribbon cassette with the printing apparatus. FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view taken along the line AA when feeding paper in the printing apparatus. It is a lower side perspective view which shows schematic structure of a ribbon cassette. It is a top view which shows an example of the ink ribbon accommodated in a ribbon cassette. FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state when a leading end of a sheet reaches a belt driving sensor. It is a principal part expanded sectional side view which shows a head unit part. FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state where a sheet is conveyed to a printing start position. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control configuration of the printing apparatus. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a print processing program of the printing apparatus. 6 is a data table showing a relationship between a paper type and a paper conveyance speed. It is explanatory drawing regarding the identification mark corresponding to the paper used for a printing apparatus, and the kind of paper.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printing apparatus 2 Main body housing | casing 3, 4 Side wall 5 Frame 6 Ribbon cassette hole 7 Main body case 8 Ribbon cassette 10 Paper 12 Identification mark 15 Thermal head 16 Head unit 37 Platen roller 39 Belt drive sensor 45 Ink ribbon 51 Paper feed motor 54 Guide Member 55 Paper feed roller 56 Paper feed roller 57, 62 Pinch roller 65 Ribbon feed motor 71 Base film 100 Paper guide mechanism 101 Guide belt 102 Belt drive motor 110 Control circuit unit 111 CPU
112 ROM
114 RAM
Y, M, C color primary ink OP overcoat ink

Claims (4)

A printing unit having a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged, and capable of printing on a recording medium;
A substantially rectangular ribbon cassette containing a transparent long base film and ink ribbons having a plurality of types of thermal transfer type color printing inks repeatedly arranged in a predetermined order in the transport direction on the base film. Cassette support means for supporting in a removable state;
Sheet conveying means for reciprocally conveying the recording medium;
Ribbon transport means capable of transporting an ink ribbon stored in the ribbon cassette;
In a printing apparatus comprising: a print control unit that performs color printing by stacking a plurality of types of color printing inks on a recording medium via the sheet conveyance unit and the ribbon conveyance unit;
A first conveyance path formed inside the printing apparatus and through which the recording medium is conveyed by the sheet conveyance unit;
A second transport path formed inside the printing apparatus and transported by the recording medium that has passed through the first transport path;
Drive that connects between the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path inside the printing apparatus, presses against the recording medium, and guides the recording medium from one to the other while changing the conveyance direction of the recording medium by 180 degrees. A possible belt member;
And a belt driving means for driving the belt member. The printing apparatus according to claim 1,
The printing apparatus includes a determination unit that determines a type of the recording medium,
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing control unit determines a conveyance speed of the recording medium by the sheet conveyance unit and the belt driving unit based on a determination result of the determination unit. In the printing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The printing control unit synchronizes the conveyance speed of the recording medium by the belt driving unit with the conveyance speed of the sheet conveyance unit during printing when the printing unit performs printing on the recording medium. Characteristic printing device. The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein
The printing apparatus includes:
An end detection unit disposed on a transport path connecting the first transport path end and the belt member, and detecting an end of the recording medium;
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing control unit controls driving start and stop of the belt driving unit based on a detection result of the end detection unit.

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