JP2011230333A - Cutting mechanism and printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cutting mechanism comprising a cutter for cutting a long printing medium such as a tape and a tube, a motor generating a predetermined drive force, and a drive force transmitting part transmitting the drive force from the motor to the cutter, which cuts a printing medium in a short period of time, and a printer.SOLUTION: The cutter 67 cuts a printing medium printed by a printing part 2. The motor 61 generates a predetermined drive force. The drive force transmitting part transmits the drive force from the motor 61 to the cutter 67. A second gear 64 includes a boss 64a in an eccentric position and is rotated by the drive force generated by the motor 61 via a first gear 63. A cutter lever 65 includes a curved cam groove 65a into which the boss 64a is inserted and is moved based on the curved shape of the cam groove 65a by the movement of the boss 64a when the second gear 64 rotates, to press the cutter 67. Thus, even when the drive speed of the motor 61 is increased, cutting time needed for cutting the printing medium can be secured. As a result, the printing medium can be cut in a shorter time than before, while improving working efficiency.

Description

  The present invention includes a cutter that cuts a long print medium such as a tape or a tube, a motor that generates a predetermined driving force, and a driving force transmission unit that transmits the driving force from the motor to the cutter. The present invention relates to a cutting mechanism and a printing apparatus.

  A printing apparatus such as a tape / tube printer that prints on a printing medium such as a long tape or tube and cuts the printed printing medium by half-cutting or full-cutting is disclosed (for example, Patent Documents). 1).

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an internal configuration example of a cutting mechanism 200 of a printing apparatus according to a conventional example. As shown in FIG. 11, the cutting mechanism 200 includes a motor 61, a first gear 63, a second gear 64, a cutter lever 90, a cutter holder 66, a cutter 67, and a cradle 68.

  A worm gear 62 is attached to the shaft of the motor 61. The worm gear 62 meshes with the first gear 63. The first gear 63 meshes with the second gear 64.

  The second gear 64 is provided with a boss 64a at an eccentric position. The cutter lever 90 has a long hole 90a, a rotating shaft 90b, and a holder pressing portion 90c. The boss 64 a is inserted into the elongated hole 90 a of the cutter lever 90. A cutter 67 is attached to the cutter holder 66.

  In the cutting mechanism 200 configured as described above, the driving force of the motor 61 is transmitted to the cutter lever 90 via the worm gear 62, the first gear 63, and the second gear 64, and the cutter lever 90 moves the rotating shaft 90b. Rotates counterclockwise about the center. Then, the holder pressing portion 90 c presses the cutter holder 66 and moves the cutter holder 66 and the cutter 67 in the left direction in FIG. 11, so that the cutter 67 contacts the cradle 68. When a print medium such as a tape or a tube is conveyed between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68, the print medium is cut (half cut).

  In the cutting mechanism 200, when the second gear 64 makes one rotation, the cutter lever 90 reciprocates in the left-right direction to half-cut the print medium only once. For this reason, when a predetermined number of half-cuts of the conveyed print medium are desired, the second gear 64 is rotated a predetermined number of times.

JP 2006-27241 A

  By the way, even if the printing speed that is the printing speed of the printing medium is increased, the printed printing medium cannot be produced in a short time unless the cutting speed that is the cutting speed of the printing medium is also increased.

  The cutting mechanism of the printing apparatus according to Patent Document 1 and the conventional example cuts the printing medium between the cutter and the cradle. However, if the rotation speed of the motor is increased to speed up the cutter operation, the cutter and the receiving mechanism are cut. The time in which the table is in contact is shortened, and it is difficult to cut the print medium. In particular, when a DC motor is used as the drive source, it has been difficult to increase the cutting speed and to secure time for the cutter and the cradle to contact each other.

  Accordingly, the present invention solves such a problem, and enables a print medium to be cut even when the number of rotations of the motor is increased, and a cutting mechanism that can cut the print medium in a shorter time than a conventional cutting mechanism. And a printing apparatus.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a cutting mechanism and a printing apparatus according to the present invention include a receiving base for receiving an object, a cutting portion including a cutting blade for cutting the object and a support member thereof, and a predetermined portion. The driving portion that generates the driving force, and the driving force transmission portion that transmits the driving force generated in the driving portion to the cutting portion by the cam gear having the shaft at an eccentric position and the cam groove into which the shaft is inserted. The cutting mechanism is characterized in that the cam groove is curved.

  In the cutting mechanism according to the present invention, the cradle receives the object. A cutting part consists of a cutting blade and a supporting member for cutting an object. The driving unit generates a predetermined driving force. The driving force transmission unit transmits the driving force generated in the driving unit to the cutting unit by a gear having a shaft at an eccentric position and a curved cam groove into which the shaft is inserted. Accordingly, the driving force transmission unit presses the cutting unit based on the curve shape of the cam groove by the movement of the shaft by the rotation of the cam gear, and the cutting unit can be held at the position where the object is cut.

  According to the cutting mechanism and the printing apparatus according to the present invention, since the cutting part can be held at the position where the object is cut, the cutting time required for cutting the object can be secured even if the driving speed of the driving part is increased. . As a result, the object can be cut in a shorter time than conventional cutting mechanisms and printing devices, and work efficiency can be improved. In particular, in a cutting mechanism using a DC motor for the drive unit, the driving speed is improved and the cutting time is shortened.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration example of a printing apparatus 1 according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an internal configuration example of the printing apparatus 1. FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating an internal configuration example of the printing apparatus 1. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 1) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 1) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 200. FIG. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 2) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 2) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 200. FIG. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 3) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 3) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 200. FIG. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 4) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 4) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 200. FIG. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 5) of the cutting mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 5) of the cutting mechanism 200. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 6) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 100, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the operation example (the 6) of the cutting | disconnection mechanism 200. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a characteristic of the cutting mechanism 100,200. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of an internal structure of the cutting mechanism 200 of the printing apparatus which concerns on a prior art example.

Hereinafter, the printing apparatus 1 and the cutting mechanism 100 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Configuration Example of Printing Apparatus 1]
As shown in FIG. 1, the printing apparatus 1 includes a main body unit 10, an input operation unit 20, and a display unit 30. The main body 10 incorporates a printing unit 2 and a cutting mechanism 100, which will be described later with reference to FIG.

  The input operation unit 20 includes character keys, numeric keys, a print start key, and the like. When a user inputs characters and numbers to be printed on a print medium that is a target object using character keys and number keys, the input content is displayed on a display unit 30 formed by an LCD or the like. When the user confirms the content displayed on the display unit 30 and then presses the print start key, the printing unit 2 starts printing on the print medium. For example, a long tape or tube is used as the print medium.

  When characters, numbers, or the like are printed on the printing medium by the printing unit 2, half cutting is performed by a cutter 67 described later with reference to FIG. 2 of the cutting mechanism 100. Half-cut means that when the print medium is tape, only the print tape on the front side of the seal-like tape with the release paper pasted on the back is cut, and a number of strip-like seals are connected In addition to being able to be transported, the release paper can be easily peeled off during use. In addition, when the printing medium is a tube, it can be cut while leaving a part of the tube so that it can be transported in a state in which the tube on which the printing has been performed is connected, and without using scissors or the like at the time of use. For example, the tube can be easily cut by pulling the tube with the user's hand. The cut tube is attached to an electric wiring cord or the like and used as a code identifying means.

  The print medium half-cut by the cutter 67 is discharged from the discharge port 40 provided in the side portion of the main body 10. When a desired number of print media are discharged from the discharge port 40, the user presses the full cut button 50 to separate the printed print medium from the print medium set in the printing apparatus 1 (full cut). The

  Next, an example of the internal configuration of the printing apparatus 1 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the printing apparatus 1 includes a printing unit 2 and a cutting mechanism 100. The printing unit 2 includes a cassette holder unit 4 in which a tape cassette or tube (not shown) is selectively set, and a ribbon holder unit 6 in which an ink ribbon cassette 5 is set. The cassette holder part 4 and the ribbon holder part 6 are, for example, integrally molded products of resin and are attached to the lower plate 7.

  Further, the printing unit 2 includes a platen roller 8 and a thermal head 9. The platen roller 8 is supported by a bearing 7a attached to the lower plate 7 or the like, and rotates by receiving a driving force of a motor (not shown).

  Here, the driving force of a motor (not shown) that drives the platen roller 8 is also transmitted to the take-up shaft that drives the reel that takes up the ink ribbon of the ink ribbon cassette 5, and the rotation of the platen roller 8 and the feeding of the ink ribbon are performed. Done synchronously.

  The thermal head 9 is disposed to face the platen roller 8. The thermal head 9 is supported by the lower plate 7 so as to be able to rotate about the shaft 9a, and moves in a direction approaching the platen roller 8 by a clockwise rotation operation about the shaft 9a. As a result, the thermal head 9 is in a printable state with the ink ribbon and the tape or tube sandwiched between the thermal head 9 and the platen roller 8. Further, the thermal head 9 moves away from the platen roller 8 by a counterclockwise rotation operation with the shaft 9a as a fulcrum.

  The print unit 2 is provided with a head moving mechanism 70. The head moving mechanism 70 operates the lever 70a to bring the thermal head 9 close to the platen roller 8 so that printing can be performed, or the thermal head 9 is retracted from the platen roller 8 so as not to perform printing.

  A cutting mechanism 100 is provided on the side of the printing apparatus 1. The cutting mechanism 100 includes a motor 61, a first gear 63, a second gear 64 that is an example of a cam gear, a cutter lever 65, a cutter holder 66, a cutter 67, and a pedestal 68. The 1st gear 63, the 2nd gear 64, and the cutter lever 65 are examples which comprise the driving force transmission part of this invention.

  A worm gear 62 is attached to the shaft of the motor 61. The worm gear 62 meshes with the first gear 63, and the first gear 63 meshes with the second gear 64.

  The second gear 64 is provided with a boss 64a serving as an axis of the second gear 64 at an eccentric position. The cutter lever 65 includes a curved (arc-shaped) cam groove 65a, a rotating shaft 65b, and a holder pressing portion 65c. The boss 64 a is inserted into the cam groove 65 a of the cutter lever 65. The holder pressing portion 65 c is provided in contact with the cutter holder 66. A cutter 67 is attached to the cutter holder 66.

  In the cutting mechanism 100 configured as described above, the driving force of the motor 61 is transmitted to the cutter lever 65 via the worm gear 62, the first gear 63 and the second gear 64. That is, the worm gear 62 is rotated by the driving force of the motor 61, and the first gear 63 and the second gear 64 are rotated to operate the cutter lever 65.

  At this time, the cutter lever 65 rotates counterclockwise around the rotation shaft 65b based on the curved shape of the cam groove 65a by the movement of the boss 64a by the rotation of the second gear 64. Then, the holder pressing portion 65 c presses the cutter holder 66 to move the cutter holder 66 and the cutter 67 toward the receiving stand 68, and the cutter 67 contacts the receiving stand 68. When the print medium is transported between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68, the print medium is cut (half cut).

  The cam groove 65 a has a section that substantially coincides with the locus of movement of the boss 64 a due to the rotation of the second gear 64. The cutter lever 65 holds the state in which the cutter holder 66 and the cutter 67 are pressed against the receiving base 68 in a section where the locus of movement of the boss 64a due to the rotation of the second gear 64 and the curved shape of the cam groove 65a substantially coincide. .

  Therefore, the cutter 67 can be held at the position where the print medium is cut. That is, the time during which the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are in contact with each other is longer than that of the conventional cutting mechanism 200. Thereby, even if the drive speed (rotation speed) of the motor is increased, the cutting time required for cutting the print medium (half cut) can be secured. As a result, the print medium can be cut in a shorter time than the conventional cutting mechanism 200, and the working efficiency can be improved. In particular, in a cutting mechanism using a DC motor for the drive unit, the driving speed is improved and the cutting time is shortened.

[Operation Example of Cutting Mechanism 100]
Next, the overall operation when the cutting mechanism 100 performs half-cutting will be described. When the rotation of the motor 61 is started at a predetermined timing and the second gear 64 rotates counterclockwise due to the rotation of the motor 61 as shown in FIG. 4A, the boss of the second gear 64 has. 64a moves in the cam groove 65a of the cutter lever 65, and the cutter lever 65 rotates counterclockwise around the rotating shaft 65b.

  Then, the holder pressing portion 65 c presses the cutter holder 66 while contacting the cutter holder 66. Thereby, the cutter holder 66 moves in the left direction (the direction in which the cradle 68 is located) together with the cutter 67.

  When the cutter 67 moves to a position where it abuts against the cradle 68, the cutter lever 65 rotates clockwise by the counterclockwise rotation of the second gear 64 due to the positional relationship between the cam groove 65a and the boss 64a. As a result, the cutter holder 66 moves to the right by the force of a spring (not shown), and the cutter 67 is separated from the cradle 68. In this way, the cutting mechanism 100 performs a half cut.

  Next, the operation of the cutting mechanism 100 according to the present invention will be described in comparison with the operation of the cutting mechanism 200 according to the conventional example. 4A and 4B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 starts to rotate, and the position of the boss 64a at this time is 0 degree. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 of the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 are in a state of being largely separated from each other.

  5A and 5B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 is rotated 60 degrees counterclockwise. When the distance between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 of the cutting mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 5A is compared with the distance between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 of the cutting mechanism 200 shown in FIG. In this case, the distance between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 is reduced. That is, the operating speed of the cutter lever 65 of the cutting mechanism 100 is faster than the operating speed of the cutter lever 90 of the cutting mechanism 200.

  FIGS. 6A and 6B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 is rotated 120 degrees counterclockwise. In the cutting mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 6A, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 abut. On the other hand, in the cutting mechanism 200 shown in FIG. 6B, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are not in contact with each other but are separated from each other.

  FIGS. 7A and 7B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 rotates 180 degrees counterclockwise. In the cutting mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 7A, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are kept in contact with each other. In the cutting mechanism 200 shown in FIG. 7B, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are gradually brought into contact with each other.

  8A and 8B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 rotates 240 degrees counterclockwise. In the cutting mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 8A, the contact between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 is still maintained. In the cutting mechanism 200 shown in FIG. 8B, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 begin to separate.

  9A and 9B show the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the second gear 64 is rotated 300 degrees counterclockwise. In the cutting mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 9A, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 begin to separate. In the cutting mechanism 200 shown in FIG. 9B, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are completely separated.

  The cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 repeatedly perform the above-described operation, and half-cuts the print medium conveyed between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68.

  In this way, the locus of the boss 64a when the second gear 64 of the cutting mechanism 100 rotates 120 to 240 degrees counterclockwise substantially matches the curved shape of the cam groove 65a, so that the boss 64a becomes the cam groove 65a. The cutter lever 65 does not rotate only by sliding inside.

  Thereby, the cutter lever 65 holds the state in which the cutter 67 is pressed (the state in which the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are in contact). That is, the cutting mechanism 100 has a longer contact time between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 than the cutting mechanism 200, and the cutting mechanism 100 requires cutting for half-cutting the print medium even when the rotation speed of the motor 61 is increased. Time can be secured. As a result, the cutting mechanism 100 can cut the print medium in a shorter time than the cutting mechanism 200, and work efficiency can be improved.

[Example of characteristics of half-cut cycle of cutting mechanisms 100 and 200]
Next, a characteristic example of the half-cut cycle of the cutting mechanism 100 will be described. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the characteristics of the half-cut cycle of the cutting mechanisms 100 and 200 when the vertical axis is the position (mm) of the cutter 67 and the horizontal axis is time (seconds). FIG. 10 shows that the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 abut when the position of the cutter 67 is −12 mm. Further, it is assumed that the rotation speed of the motor 61 is set so that it takes 10 seconds to rotate the second gear 64 once.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the characteristic T1 of the cutting mechanism 100 indicated by the solid line is compared with the characteristic T2 of the cutting mechanism 200 indicated by the dotted line, the inclination of the characteristic T1 is steeper than that of the characteristic T2. It can be seen that the moving speed of the cutter 67 of the cutting mechanism 100 is faster than the moving speed of the cutter 67 of the cutting mechanism 200.

  In the characteristic T1 of the cutting mechanism 100 shown by the solid line, the position of the cutter 67 becomes −12 mm about 7.1 seconds after about 5.5 seconds after the second gear 64 is rotated. That is, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are in contact with each other for about 1.6 seconds.

  In the characteristic T2 of the cutting mechanism 200 shown by the dotted line, the position of the cutter 67 becomes −12 mm after about 5.8 seconds after rotating the second gear 64 and about 6.2 seconds. That is, the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 are in contact with each other for about 0.4 seconds.

  For example, it is assumed that the contact time between the cutter 67 and the cradle 68, which is necessary for reliably half-cutting the cutting mechanism, is 0.4 seconds. In this case, the cutting mechanism 100 can abut the cutter 67 and the cradle 68 for about 0.4 seconds even if the rotational speed of the motor 61 (the cutting speed of the cutter 67) is about four times faster than the cutting mechanism 200. The print medium can be surely half cut.

  As described above, according to the cutting mechanism 100 according to the present invention, the printing unit 2 performs printing on the printing medium. The cutter 67 cuts the printing medium printed by the printing unit 2. The motor 61 generates a predetermined driving force. The driving force transmission unit transmits the driving force from the motor 61 to the cutter 67. On the premise of this, the second gear 64 has a boss 64 a at an eccentric position, and rotates via the first gear 63 by the driving force generated by the motor 61. The cutter lever 65 has a curved cam groove 65 a into which the boss 64 a is inserted, and is provided in contact with the cutter 67. Accordingly, the movement of the boss 64a due to the rotation of the second gear 64 moves based on the curved shape of the cam groove 65a to press the cutter 67.

  The cutter lever 65 holds the state in which the cutter 67 is pressed when the locus of movement of the boss 64a due to the rotation of the second gear 64 and the curved shape of the cam groove 65a substantially coincide. As a result, the cutter 67 can be held at the position where the print medium is cut.

  Thereby, the cutting mechanism 100 can ensure the cutting time necessary for cutting the print medium even if the driving speed of the motor 61 is increased. As a result, the print medium can be cut in a shorter time than the conventional cutting mechanism 200, and the working efficiency can be improved.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printing apparatus, 2 ... Printing part, 4 ... Cassette holder part, 5 ... Ink ribbon cassette, 6 ... Ribbon holder part, 7 ... Lower plate, 8 ... Platen roller , 9 ... thermal head, 10 ... main body, 20 ... input operation unit, 30 ... display unit, 40 ... discharge port, 50 ... full cut button, 61 ... motor (Driving unit), 62 ... worm gear, 63 ... first gear, 64 ... second gear, 65, 90 ... cutter lever, 66 ... cutter holder, 67 ... cutter ( Cutting blade), 68... Cradle, 70... Head moving mechanism, 70 a... Lever, 100, 200.

Claims (7)

A cradle for receiving the object;
A cutting portion composed of a cutting blade for cutting the object and its support member;
A driving unit that generates a predetermined driving force;
A cutting mechanism comprising a cam gear having a shaft at an eccentric position and a driving force transmitting portion for transmitting a driving force generated in the driving portion to the cutting portion by a cam groove into which the shaft is inserted;
The cutting mechanism, wherein the cam groove is curved.   The cutting mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cam groove includes a section that substantially coincides with a locus of movement of the shaft due to rotation of the cam gear.   The cutting mechanism according to claim 2, wherein a state in which the cutting blade is pressed against the cradle is maintained in a section substantially coincident with a locus of movement of the shaft due to rotation of the cam gear.   The cutting mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cam groove has an arc shape.   A printing apparatus comprising the cutting mechanism according to claim 1.   The printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the object is a long print medium such as a tape or a tube.   The printing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the long print medium is half-cut by the cutting mechanism.

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