JP2010228834A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer to a tape member, attaining detection of a leading end and detection of jam of the tape member by a single sensor. <P>SOLUTION: The printer is constituted such that a direction of an optical sensor 15 is changed interlocked with driving in both normal and reverse directions of a platen roller 8, and when a printing tape 31 is conveyed to an upstream side, the optical sensor 15 is directed to the direction of a printing tape 31 to attain detection of the leading end. When the printing tape 31 is conveyed to a downstream side, the optical sensor 15 is directed to a direction of the platen roller 8 to attain detection of jam. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus that performs printing on a tape member.

  A unique label is created by printing characters, symbols, logos, characters, marks, etc., input from a keyboard or other input means on a tape member as a print medium. There is a printing device that can. In such a printing apparatus, by providing a sensor in the tape conveyance path in the apparatus, the leading end of the tape member is detected and positioned and printed based on the information, or a jam occurs in the conveyance path of the tape member. Is detected.

  For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-6579 (Patent Document 1), a reflection type optical sensor is provided for a platen roller that conveys a tape member, and tape clogging that occurs when the tape member being conveyed is wound around the platen roller. I try to detect it. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-320993 (Patent Document 2) includes a paper tip sensor for detecting the tip of a tape member, and performs printing from the tip of the tape member to a predetermined position based on information from the sensor. I am doing so.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-6579 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-320993

  As described above, in the conventional printing apparatus, a sensor is provided in the apparatus to detect a tape feeding trouble when the tape member is transported, or to detect the leading end of the tape member in order to determine a printing start position or the like. However, it is necessary to provide a sensor separately for each purpose of jam detection and tip detection, which increases the number of components and complicates the configuration of the apparatus.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the prior art, and has a simple structure so that a single sensor can perform jam detection and tip detection of a tape member. An object is to provide a printing apparatus.

  A printing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a conveying unit configured to convey a tape member as a printing medium toward a downstream side and an upstream side of a conveyance path by rotationally driving a roller in both forward and reverse directions, and the conveyance Printing means for printing on the tape member conveyed toward the downstream side by the means, a first detection direction facing the direction of the tape member arranged in the conveyance path, and a first direction facing the direction of the roller A single optical sensor that can be changed in direction in two detection directions, and the direction of the optical sensor when the tape member is conveyed toward the upstream side of the conveyance path in conjunction with the operation of the conveyance means. , The detection direction changing means for changing the direction of the optical sensor to the second detection direction when the tape member is conveyed toward the downstream side of the conveyance path, and the optical Sensor First detection means for determining the leading end of the tape member based on detection information when in the first detection direction and jamming of the tape member based on detection information when the optical sensor is in the second detection direction A second judging means for judging, and a control means for controlling the conveying means and the printing means, wherein the control means controls the conveying means and the printing means so that the tape member is moved along the conveying path at the start of printing. After the tape member is conveyed toward the upstream side and the leading edge of the tape member is determined by the first determination means, printing is performed while the tape member is conveyed toward the downstream side of the conveyance path. When occurrence of a jam is determined by the second determination unit, predetermined control corresponding to the occurrence of the jam is performed on the transport unit and the printing unit.

  Further, the invention of claim 2 is provided with the printing means and the optical sensor in order toward the downstream side of the transport path, and further comprising a cutting means for cutting the tape member on the downstream side of the optical sensor, After the printing on the tape member is completed, the control means controls the cutting means to cut the printed portion of the tape member, and then directs the tape member toward the upstream side of the conveyance path and the cutting means and the optical sensor. The optical sensor is transported by a predetermined distance smaller than the distance between and the direction of the optical sensor is directed from the second detection direction to the first detection direction via the detection direction changing means.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the optical sensor is a reflective optical sensor.

  The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the control means notifies the occurrence of a jam when the second judgment means judges the occurrence of a jam.

  The invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that the control means stops the driving of the conveying means and the printing means when the occurrence of a jam is judged by the second judgment means.

  According to the present invention, by changing the direction of the optical sensor, it is possible to perform jam detection and tip detection of a tape member on a single sensor, and provide a printing apparatus having a simple structure. be able to.

1 is a plan view of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the inside of the printing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention and a perspective view of the tape cassette. It is a functional block diagram of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the printing process of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is the arrow view seen from the arrow A of FIG. FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 5. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an appearance of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a tape cassette used in the printing apparatus and a part of the internal structure of the printing apparatus. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the printing apparatus 1 includes an input unit 3, a display unit 4, and an opening / closing lid 5 on the upper surface of the apparatus body 2. Inside the opening / closing lid 5, a cassette loading portion 6 for loading a tape cassette 21 containing a printing tape (tape member) 31 and an ink ribbon 35 is formed.

  The input unit 3 includes character input keys such as a character key for inputting character information, a numeric key, and a symbol key, and further includes a power key, a cursor key for moving a cursor displayed on the display unit 4, Print mode setting key for setting the print mode, registration key operated when registering document information created from the input character information, confirmation of various input information and selection data, start of predetermined function An execution key that is operated when giving an instruction or the like, and a print key that is operated when executing a printing process of document information created from input character information are provided. The display unit 4 is a liquid crystal display device that displays input character information, a selection menu screen for various settings, messages about processing, and the like, as well as various types of labels such as the length of a label to be created and the state of a print mode. Information is displayed.

  In the cassette loading section 6, the printing element is arranged in the vertical direction corresponding to the width direction of the printing tape 31, and the printing tape (thermal head) 7 that prints on the printing tape 31 and the printing head 31 is the printing tape. A tape printing mechanism is provided that includes a platen roller 8 that sandwiches the ink ribbon 35 and the ink ribbon 35 and conveys the ink ribbon 35 and a ribbon take-up shaft 9 that winds the ink ribbon 35 used for printing into the tape cassette 21. The platen roller 8 is rotationally driven in both forward and reverse directions by a tape transport motor, and can transport the print tape 31 toward the downstream side (forward direction) or upstream (reverse direction) of the transport path. Further, a cassette receiving unit 10 for supporting the tape cassette 21 at a predetermined position in the cassette loading unit 6 is provided. In addition, a discharge port 12 communicating with the outside of the apparatus main body 2 is formed at one end of the cassette loading unit 6. The discharge port 12 includes a fixed blade 13 a and a movable blade 13 b, and cuts the print tape 31. A cutter 13 is provided. Further, an optical sensor unit (optical sensor) 15 for detecting a jam and a leading edge of the print tape 31 is provided adjacent to the platen roller 8 on the downstream side of the thermal head 7 that is the print position.

  The optical sensor 15 is a reflection type composed of a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and is provided so as to be rotatable in an angle range of about 90 degrees, and is opposite to the printing surface of the printing tape 31 disposed in the conveyance path. The detection direction can be changed between a first detection direction facing the surface side and a second detection direction facing the direction of the platen roller 8. When the optical sensor 15 faces the first detection direction, it functions as a tip detection sensor that detects the tip of the print tape 31, and when the optical sensor 15 faces the second detection direction, the print tape 31 is wound around the platen roller 8. Serves as a tape clogging sensor. That is, the platen roller 8 is made of a rubber material, and the surface color is black. Since the amount of reflected light is different from the printing surface of the printing tape 31 other than black and the opposite surface, the printing tape 31 is changed by the change in the amount of received light. It is possible to detect that the platen roller 8 has been caught. Similarly, the front end of the print tape 31 can also be detected based on the change in the amount of received light when the front edge of the print tape 31 passes through the detection area of the sensor.

  On the other hand, the tape cassette 21 is provided with a cassette case 22. Inside the cassette case 22, a tape core 23 around which a printing tape 31 is wound, a ribbon supply core 24 around which an unused ink ribbon 35 is wound, and used for printing. Ribbon take-up cores 25 for taking up the finished ink ribbon 35 are accommodated. The printing tape 31 has a laminated structure of a printing tape layer on which printing is performed, an adhesive layer, and a release tape layer. Further, the cassette case 22 is formed with a head arrangement portion 27 in which the thermal head 7 is arranged when the tape cassette 21 is loaded in the cassette loading portion 6. An engaged portion 29 that is engaged with and supported by the cassette receiving portion 10 of the cassette loading portion 6 is formed.

  5 to 7 are explanatory views of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus. As will be described with reference to this figure, in the printing apparatus 1, the detection direction of the optical sensor 15 is changed in conjunction with the tape conveyance of the tape printing mechanism. 5 to 7, reference numerals 7, 8, 9, and 13 denote a thermal head, a platen roller, a ribbon take-up shaft, and a cutter, respectively. Reference numeral 40 denotes a tape transport motor composed of a step motor for transporting the printing tape 31. 41 is a motor gear provided on the output shaft of the tape transport motor 40, 42 is a reduction gear, 43 is a platen gear provided with a platen shaft 43a provided with a platen roller 8 at the center and provided with a platen roller 8, and 44 is a ribbon winding gear. , 45 is a planetary connection gear, 15 is an optical sensor unit, 50 is a sensor gear, and 51 is a sensor unit stopper.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the optical sensor unit 15 includes a sensor unit 15a formed of a reflective optical sensor including a light emitting element and a light receiving element, a sensor gear 50 that meshes with the platen gear 43, and a rotating shaft unit 52. A support portion 15b for supporting the sensor portion 15a, and a clutch portion 15c is provided between the sensor portion 15a and the support portion 15b. In a state where the sensor unit 15a does not contact the sensor stopper 51, the sensor unit 15a is supported by the support unit 15b and rotates together. However, when the sensor unit 15a contacts the sensor stopper 51 and its rotation is restricted. The clutch member 15c slips between the sensor portion 15a and the support portion 15b so that only the support portion 15b rotates.

  In the printing apparatus 1 of the present invention, when the printing is started, the tape conveying motor is rotated in the reverse direction to drive the platen roller 8 in the reverse direction to convey the printing tape 31 toward the upstream side of the conveying path. The front end of 31 is detected by the optical sensor 15, and after detecting the front end, the tape transport motor is rotated forward to drive the platen roller 8 to rotate forward to transport the print tape 31 toward the downstream side of the transport path. While printing is carried out in the forward direction, the direction of the optical sensor 15 provided so as to be rotatable is set to the first state toward the print tape 31 when carrying the reverse direction for detecting the leading end of the print tape 31 in the initial state. And a second detection direction toward the platen roller 8 for jam detection during a printing operation when the printing tape 31 is conveyed in the forward direction.

  Next, the operation of the tape printing mechanism of the printing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 8-12. FIG. 5 shows a standby state (initial state) immediately before the tape printing mechanism starts printing. FIG. 8 shows an operation for detecting the leading end of the printing tape immediately after the tape printing mechanism starts printing. 9 and 10 show the start of the printing operation of the tape printing mechanism and the state during the printing operation. FIG. 11 shows a state at the end of printing of the tape printing mechanism. FIG. 12 shows how the tape printing mechanism returns to the standby state after printing is completed.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 8, when the tape transport motor 40 is driven in reverse rotation from the standby state (initial state) shown in FIG. 5, the drive of the tape transport motor 40 is driven via the motor gear 41 and the reduction gear 42. 43, the platen roller 8 rotates clockwise, and the print tape 31 is conveyed toward the upstream side of the conveyance path. At this time, the sensor gear 50 meshing with the platen gear 43 rotates counterclockwise, and the optical sensor unit 15 tries to rotate counterclockwise, but the right end portion of the sensor portion 15a is in contact with the sensor stopper 51, and the sensor Since the rotation is prevented by the stopper 51, only the support portion 15a connected via the sensor portion 15a and the clutch portion 15c rotates counterclockwise, and the sensor portion 15a is the first that faces the direction of the print tape 31. It is held in the state of facing the detection direction. The leading edge of the printing tape 31 is detected by passing the position of the optical sensor 15 from the downstream side to the upstream side.

  After the leading end of the printing tape 31 is detected, printing on the printing tape 31 is performed as shown in FIGS. That is, when the tape transport motor 40 is driven to rotate forward as printing starts, the platen roller 8 rotates counterclockwise and the print tape 31 is transported toward the downstream side of the transport path. Further, the planetary connection gear 45 connects the platen gear 43 and the ribbon take-up gear 44 by the counterclockwise rotation of the platen gear 43, and the drive of the tape transport motor 40 is transmitted to the ribbon take-up shaft 9 to take up the ink ribbon. Is done. At this time, the sensor gear 50 meshing with the platen gear 43 rotates in the clockwise direction, and the support portion 15b and the sensor portion 15a of the optical sensor unit 15 rotate together in the clockwise direction. As shown in FIG. 10, when the sensor unit 15a rotates to a predetermined position in the direction facing the platen roller 8 (second detection direction), the other left end of the sensor unit 15a contacts the sensor stopper 51 and the sensor Further clockwise rotation of the portion 15a is restricted. When the printing tape 31 is being conveyed toward the downstream side of the conveyance path, the optical sensor 15 is held in a state in which it faces the second detection direction shown in FIG.

  When printing on the printing tape 31 is completed, the printed part of the printing tape 31 is cut by the cutter 13 and the created label is cut off. Thereafter, the tape transport motor 40 is further driven in reverse to transport the print tape 31 toward the upstream side of the transport path by a predetermined distance, and the optical sensor 15 is in the first detection direction toward the print tape 31 ( As shown in FIG. 5, a series of printing operations are terminated. It should be noted that the transport distance to the upstream side of the printing tape 31 after the printing is finished is less than the distance between the cutter 13 and the optical sensor 15, and the leading end of the printing tape 31 is on the downstream side of the optical sensor 15. Distance. Hereinafter, when additional label printing is performed, the operations of FIGS. 5 and 8 to 12 are repeated in the same manner.

  In this printing apparatus 1, information to be printed such as character data is input from the input unit 3, and when printing is instructed, the printing tape 31 and the ink ribbon 35 are pulled out from the tape cassette 21, and are placed in a superposed state. The roller 8 and the thermal head 7 are sandwiched and conveyed together, and the thermal head 7 is driven to generate heat based on the print data of the document information to be printed and the ink on the ink ribbon 35 is applied to the print tape 31. Heat transfer is performed and printing is performed on the printing tape 31. When printing is completed, the cutter 13 is operated to cut the print tape 31 to produce one label.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the electronic circuit of this printing apparatus. The electronic circuit of the printing apparatus 1 includes a control unit 60 that includes a CPU that is a computer. The control unit 60 activates a system program stored in advance in the ROM 61 in response to a key operation signal from the input unit 3, and controls the operation of each circuit unit using the RAM 62 as a work memory. The control unit 60 is connected to the input unit 3 and the display unit 4, and is connected to a ROM 61 and a RAM 62. Further, it is connected to the thermal head 7, the tape transport motor 40, and the cutter motor 66 through drive circuits 63, 64 and 65. The control unit 60 is connected to the optical sensor unit 15 provided in the cassette loading unit 6.

  The ROM 61 stores a program for printing document information input from the input unit 3. The RAM 42 stores an input data memory for storing input document information, a print data memory for storing print pattern data (print data) of document information to be printed, and pattern data to be displayed on the display unit 4. Each area of the display data memory is secured, and a register, a counter, etc. are provided for temporarily storing data necessary for the printing process.

  Next, the printing process of the printing apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 8 to 12 according to the flowchart of FIG. First, in the printing apparatus in the standby state shown in FIG. 5, when the printing key of the input unit 3 is operated to start printing of predetermined printing data, the tape transport motor 40 of the printing apparatus 1 is moved one step. Then, the platen roller 8 is driven in reverse to transport the printing tape 31 toward the upstream side of the transport path (step S1). At that time, the detection of the leading end of the print tape 31 is determined based on the detection information of the optical sensor 15 (step S2). If it is not determined in step S2 that the front end of the print tape 31 is detected, the print tape 31 is transported toward the upstream side of the transport path until the front end is detected. When it is determined that the leading end of the print tape 31 has been detected (YES in step S2), the tape transport motor 40 is stopped (step S3), and then the print data is transferred to the thermal head 7 for one line to drive the heating element. Then, the ink on the ink ribbon 35 is transferred to the printing tape 31 (step S4), the tape transport motor 40 is driven forward by one step (step S5), and the platen roller 8 is driven forward to drive the printing tape 31. Transport toward the downstream side of the transport path. Further, the occurrence of a jam is determined based on the detection information of the optical sensor 15 (step S6). If it is not determined that a jam has occurred (NO in step S6), it is determined whether or not all the print data to be printed has been completed (step S7). If printing has not been completed (NO in step S7). When the printing is completed (YES in step S7), the tape transport motor 40 is stopped (step S8), and the cutter motor 66 is driven to operate the cutter 13. Thus, the printed portion of the printing tape 31 is cut (step S9). Thereafter, the tape transport motor 40 is reversely driven by a predetermined number of steps to transport the tape transport motor upstream by a predetermined distance (step S10), and the processing is ended (END). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S6 that a jam has occurred, a jam occurrence error is displayed on the display unit 4 (step S11), the drive of the tape transport motor 40 and the thermal head 7 is stopped (step S12), and the process is terminated. (End)

  According to this embodiment, the print tape 31 is changed by changing the direction of the optical sensor 15 in accordance with the transport direction of the print tape 31 in conjunction with the forward / reverse drive of the tape transport motor 40 (platen roller 8). Therefore, it is possible to provide a printing apparatus having a simple structure.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printing device 3 ... Input part 4 ... Display part 6 ... Cassette loading part 7 ... Thermal head 8 ... Platen roller 13 ... Cutter 15 ... Optical sensor 15a ... Sensor part 15b ... Support part 15c ... Clutch part 21 ... Tape cassette 31 ... Printing tape 60 ... Control unit 61 ... ROM 62 ... RAM

Claims (5)

Conveying means for conveying the tape member as a printing medium toward the downstream side and the upstream side of the conveying path by rotationally driving the roller in both forward and reverse directions;
A printing unit that performs printing on a tape member that is conveyed toward the downstream side of the conveyance path by the conveyance unit;
A single optical sensor provided so that the direction can be changed between a first detection direction facing the direction of the tape member disposed in the transport path and a second detection direction facing the direction of the roller;
In conjunction with the operation of the transport means, the direction of the optical sensor is set to the first detection direction when the tape member is transported toward the upstream side of the transport path, and the tape member is positioned downstream of the transport path. Detection direction changing means for changing the direction of the optical sensor to the second detection direction when being conveyed toward
First determination means for determining the tip of the tape member based on detection information when the optical sensor is in the first detection direction;
Second judging means for judging the occurrence of jamming of the tape member based on detection information when the optical sensor is in the second detection direction;
Control means for controlling the conveying means and the printing means;
The control unit controls the transport unit and the printing unit to transport the tape member toward the upstream side of the transport path at the start of printing, and after the leading end of the tape member is determined by the first determination unit , Printing is performed while transporting the tape member toward the downstream side of the transport path, and when the occurrence of a jam is determined by the second determination means during printing, the transport means and the printing means are A printing apparatus that performs predetermined control corresponding to occurrence of a jam. The printing means and the optical sensor are arranged in order toward the downstream side of the transport path, and includes a cutting means for cutting the tape member on the downstream side of the optical sensor,
After the printing on the tape member is completed, the control means controls the cutting means to cut the printed portion of the tape member, and thereafter, the tape member is directed toward the upstream side of the transport path, and the cutting means and the optical device. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor is transported by a predetermined distance less than a distance between the sensors, and the direction of the optical sensor is directed from the second detection direction to the first detection direction via a detection direction changing unit. The printing device described.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor is a reflective optical sensor.   4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit notifies the occurrence of a jam when the second determination unit determines that a jam has occurred.   4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stops driving the transport unit and the printing unit when the occurrence of a jam is determined by the second determination unit. 5.

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