JP2009214504A - Portable printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a portable printer having a cutter for automatically cutting a sheet by externally attaching the cutter to a printer main body. <P>SOLUTION: A cutter main body 4 having a movable blade 7 and a fixed blade 8 is attached to a part near the output port 35 of a printer main body 2 including a thermal head 36 and a platen roller 5 for clamping and conveying a printing medium 34 supplied from a medium supply part 31 between them, and a one-way clutch 6 rotating in cooperation with the platen roller. When the cutter main body is attached to the printer main body, the movable blade of the cutter main body is engaged with the one-way clutch and moves forward to cut the printing medium in accordance with the rotation of an opposite direction to the conveying direction of the one-way clutch which rotates in cooperation with the rotation of the opposite direction B to the conveying direction of the platen roller. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable printer, and more particularly, to a portable printer with a cutting device provided with an external cutting device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are known portable printers that are carried down from the shoulder via a shoulder belt (for example, see Patent Document 1) or those that are supported by a waist belt and carried (for example, patents). Reference 2), printing and issuing desired information on recording paper (label) while being carried and supported by a shoulder belt or waist belt, and using a hand-cutting cutter formed at the issuing port The recording paper (label) is cut while pulling toward the front side of the (portable printer).
A “printer body” of a conventional portable printer will be described with reference to an enlarged schematic side view of FIG.
The portable printer 30 includes a medium supply unit 31, a printing unit 32, and a paper sensor 33. A print medium 34 wound in a roll shape is rotatably mounted on the medium supply unit 31 for printing. The medium 34 is fed out to the issuing port 35 through the printing unit 32. Further, a paper sensor 33 is provided between the medium supply unit 31 and the printing unit 32, and this paper sensor 33 is a mark (on the back surface) opposite to the printing surface of the printing medium 34 (back surface). A light emitting portion 33a that irradiates light toward (not shown) and a light receiving portion 33b that receives light reflected from the back surface, and detects a mark (not shown) based on a change in the amount of received light. Thus, the position of the print medium 34 is detected. The printing unit 32 includes a thermal head 36 and a platen roller 37 connected to a motor (not shown). A printing medium 34 is sandwiched between the platen roller 37 and the thermal head 36 and a motor (not shown) is interposed therebetween. By rotating the platen roller 37, the print medium 34 is fed to the issue port 35 while being printed by the thermal head 36. The printed print medium 34 fed to the issue port 35 is Cutting is performed by a hand-cutting cutter 38 formed on 35. The print medium 34 fed out to the issue port 35 and cut by the hand-cutting cutter 38 is positioned with its leading end being pulled back to the print unit 32 (referred to as “back feed”) to perform the next printing. It has become.
However, if the user of the portable printer pulls the print medium 34 fed out / issued from the issue port 35 toward the front side and “crushes” with the cutter 38 for manual cutting, the print medium 34 cannot resist the pulling force. There is a problem that not only a good cut end is formed by being pulled out in the pulling direction, but also the amount of the drawn out is not constant, and it takes time to control the alignment at the time of back feed.
In addition, when the portable printer 30 is used for meter reading of gas or electricity meters, the number of “pulling up” is large. There was a problem that the operator would be burdened, such as “striping”.

JP 2003-305920 A JP 2004-276490 A

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above problems, and provides a portable printer with a cutting device that automatically cuts paper by attaching a cutting device externally to the printer body. Is an issue.

  A portable printer with a cutting device according to the present invention includes a medium supply unit for mounting a roll-shaped print medium, and a print unit including a thermal head and a platen roller that sandwich and convey the print medium fed from the medium supply unit. A printer body including a one-way clutch that rotates in cooperation with the platen roller, and an issue port provided downstream of the printing unit, and is detachably provided near the issue port of the printer body. A portable printer comprising: a cutting device main body having a movable blade and a fixed blade, wherein when the cutting device main body is mounted in the vicinity of an issue port of the printer main body, the movable blade of the cutting device main body is the printer main body The one-way clutch rotates in cooperation with the one-way clutch of the platen roller and rotates in cooperation with the rotation of the platen roller in the reverse direction of conveyance. The movable blade is advanced by rotation, characterized in that cutting the printing medium

  In the portable printer with a cutting device according to the present invention, when the cutting device main body is mounted in the vicinity of the printing port of the printer main body, the movable blade of the cutting device main body is engaged with the one-way clutch of the printer main body, and the conveyance direction of the platen roller is reversed. Since the one-way clutch rotates in the reverse direction of conveyance in cooperation with the rotation of the one-way clutch and the movable blade advances through the rotation of the one-way clutch to cut the print medium, it is also necessary to supply power to the cutting device body side. Thus, there is no need to provide a power source, and the print medium can be automatically cut smoothly.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the portable printer of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
In the following description, the same parts as those in the background art are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an appearance of a portable printer 1 of the present invention.
The printer main body 2 of the portable printer 1 includes an issue port 35 and can be carried by a shoulder belt 39. In the vicinity of the issue port 35 from which the print medium 34 is issued, a “cutting device main body” described later is provided. The fitting hole 3 for mounting is provided.

Next, a portable printer with a cutting device will be described with reference to FIGS.
2 is a schematic perspective view corresponding to FIG. 1 showing a state in which an external cutting device main body 4 is attached to the printer main body 2, and FIG. 3 is equivalent to FIG. 4 viewed from the direction of arrow III in FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of an enlarged main part of the cutting device main body 4.
As shown in FIG. 1, a portable printer 1 with a cutting device includes the printer main body 2 and a cutting device main body 4 attached to the printer main body 2 externally.
As shown mainly in FIG. 3, the printer main body 2 includes a medium supply unit 31, a printing unit 32 including a thermal head 36 and a platen roller 5, and a paper sensor 33.
The platen roller 5 is provided with a one-way clutch 6 that rotates in cooperation with the platen roller 5, and the one-way clutch 6 issues the print medium 34 by the platen roller 5 that sandwiches the print medium 34 with the thermal head 36. It does not rotate when rotating in the transport direction (arrow F direction) to feed out to the mouth 35 side, and reversely transports to the print unit 32 side to position the leading end of the print medium 34 to the thermal head 36. When backfeeding (in the direction of arrow B), it rotates in cooperation. The one-way clutch 6 will be described using a “gear” of a ratchet mechanism as an example.

The cutting device main body 4 mainly includes a movable blade 7, a fixed blade 8, an urging means 9 such as a spring, and a cutting issuance port 10, and is covered with a cutting device housing 11.
As shown in FIG. 4, the movable blade 7 mainly includes a plate-shaped movable blade plate portion 7a on which a “cutting blade” is formed, and a pair of leg portions 7b and 7b. Of the fitting hole 3 for mounting (see FIG. 1), the leg portion is inserted into the fitting hole 3 on the shoulder belt 39 side and extends to the printer main body 2 side, and is inserted into the printer main body 2. The tip 7c of 7b is engaged with the tooth bottom of the gear of the one-way clutch 6. The tip 7c of the leg 7b is a “slope” that is obliquely cut out so as to follow the shape of the tooth bottom of the gear of the one-way clutch 6.
The fixed blade 8 is provided to be fixed to the cutting device casing 11 so as to face the movable blade 7, and the print medium 34 is cut by the movable blade 7 and the fixed blade 8 intersecting and meshing with each other. It has become.
The spring 9 is interposed between the leg portion 7b of the movable blade 7 and the cutting device casing 11, and is constantly urged in the direction separating the leg portion 7b from the fixed blade 8 (right side in FIGS. 3 and 4). In combination with the shape of the “slope portion” of the tip portion 7 c, the leg portion 7 b is pressed against and engaged with the tooth bottom and tooth surface of the gear of the one-way clutch 6, and printing is performed between the movable blade 7. A gap for feeding the medium 34 is generated.
A fitting projection 12 is formed on the cutting device body 4 side corresponding to the fitting hole 3 of the printer body 2, and the fitting hole 3 and the fitting projection 12 are fitted to each other. When the cutting device main body 4 can be attached to the printer main body 2 and the cutting device main body 4 is not necessary, the fitting hole 3 and the fitting protrusion 12 are released and the cutting device main body is removed from the printer main body 2. If 4 is removed, it can be carried and used as a “portable printer” with only the printer main body 2 as in the prior art.

The use state of the portable printer 1 with a cutting device as described above will be described.
As shown mainly in FIG. 3, the print medium 34 mounted on the medium supply unit 31 is pulled by hand and is sandwiched between the platen roller 5 and the thermal head 36 and fed out to the vicinity of the issue port 35 of the printer main body 2.
Next, when a power supply (not shown) is turned on to print / issue the print medium 34, the platen roller 5 rotates in the conveyance direction (in the direction indicated by arrow F) to convey the print medium 34 to one end, the cutting device body 4 side. That is, the print medium 34 is fed out in the transport direction (arrow F direction) while a mark (not shown) provided on the back surface of the print medium 34 is detected by the paper sensor 33. At this time, the cutting of the print medium 34 by the cutting device body 4 does not occur. That is, the one-way clutch 6 rotates in the conveyance direction (direction indicated by arrow F) in cooperation with the platen roller 5, but the leg portion 7 b of the movable blade 7 that engages with the one-way clutch 6 has a tip portion 7 c at the one-way clutch 6. Since it has a “slope portion” along the shape of the tooth bottom of the gear, and is biased by the spring 9 to the tooth base surface, it does not engage by sliding.
The print medium 34 fed out in the transport direction (arrow F direction) is controlled to be fed out from the cutting issue port 10 of the cutting device body 4.
When a mark (not shown) is detected by the paper sensor 33, the leading edge of the print medium 34 is positioned on the thermal head 36, so that the platen roller 5 is rotated in the reverse conveyance direction (arrow B direction). Due to the rotation of the platen roller 5 in the reverse conveyance direction, the print medium 34 sandwiched between the platen roller 5 and the thermal head 36 is in a conveyance state opposite to the conveyance direction, so-called back feed state. The one-way clutch 6 rotates in the conveyance reverse direction (in the direction of arrow B) in cooperation with the platen roller 5, and the leg portion 7b of the movable blade 7 engaged with the one-way clutch 6 is pushed by the tooth base surface. Since the sheet rotates in the reverse direction, the movable blade 7 advances toward the fixed blade 8 against the urging force of the spring 9 and cuts the print medium 34 by crossing the fixed blade 8 and engaging with it. The cut printing medium 34 that has not been printed is removed from the cutting issue port 10 by the operator's hand.
Further, the printing medium 34 positioned at the printing position is conveyed by a predetermined distance in the conveyance direction (arrow F direction) while being printed by the thermal head 36, and is fed out between the movable blade 7 and the fixed blade 8. Then, when the platen roller 5 is rotated in the reverse conveyance direction (arrow B direction) in order to position the leading end of the print medium 34 to the thermal head 36, the one-way clutch 6 that cooperates with the platen roller 5 is moved in the reverse conveyance direction (arrow). The movable blade 7 advances to the fixed blade 8 side through the leg portion 7b of the movable blade 7 that rotates in the direction (B) and engages with the one-way clutch 6, and the print medium 34 is cut. The printed print medium 34 that has been cut is removed from the cutting issue port 10 by the operator's hand.

  As described above, when the cutting device body 4 is mounted near the issue port 35 of the printer body 2, the leg portion 7b of the movable blade 7 of the cutting device body 4 engages with the one-way clutch 6 of the printer body 2, and the platen The one-way clutch 6 also rotates in the conveyance reverse direction B in cooperation with the rotation of the roller 5 in the reverse conveyance direction (arrow B direction), and the movable blade 7 advances through the rotation of the one-way clutch 6 to move the print medium 34. In order to cut, it is not necessary to supply power to the cutting device main body 4 side, and it is not necessary to provide a power source alone, and the print medium 34 can be smoothly cut at low cost.

  It should be noted that the configuration and operation of the above-described embodiment are examples, and it goes without saying that they can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In addition, the number, position, shape, and the like of the constituent members are not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be set to a number, position, shape, and the like that are suitable for implementing the present invention.

1 is a schematic perspective view showing an external appearance of a portable printer according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view corresponding to FIG. 1 showing a state where an external cutting device main body is attached. FIG. 3 is an enlarged schematic side view of the main part viewed from the direction of arrow III in FIG. It is a schematic perspective view of the principal part expansion of a cutting device main body same as the above. It is a schematic side view of the principal part expansion of the conventional portable printer.

Explanation of symbols

F Conveying direction B Conveying reverse direction 1 Portable printer 2 Printer main body 3 Fitting hole 4 Cutting device main body 5 Platen roller 6 One-way clutch 7 Movable blade 7a Movable blade plate portion 7b Leg portion 7c Tip portion (slope portion)
8 Fixed blade 9 Spring (biasing means)
10 Cutting Issuing Port 11 Cutting Device Housing 12 Fitting Projection 30 Mobile Printer (Conventional)
31 Medium supply unit 32 Printing unit 33 Paper sensor 33a Light emitting unit 33b Light receiving unit 34 Print medium 35 Issuing port 36 Thermal head 37 Platen roller 38 Hand cutting cutter 39 Shoulder belt

Claims (1)

A medium supply unit for mounting a roll-shaped print medium;
A printing unit comprising a thermal head and a platen roller for nipping and conveying the printing medium fed from the medium supply unit;
A one-way clutch that rotates in cooperation with the platen roller;
A printer body provided with an issue port provided downstream of the printing unit;
A portable printer comprising a cutting device main body provided with a movable blade and a fixed blade, which is detachably provided in the vicinity of an issue port of the printer main body,
When the cutting device main body is mounted near the printer outlet, the movable blade of the cutting device main body engages with the one-way clutch of the printer main body and cooperates with the rotation of the platen roller in the reverse conveyance direction. A portable printer, wherein the movable blade advances and cuts the print medium by rotation of the one-way clutch rotating in the reverse direction.

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