JP2012056201A - Image forming apparatus, chip storage method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus, a chip storage method, and a program that can sufficiently prevent chip from leaking from a container, or entering other parts other than the container.SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus includes: a cutting mechanism 70 cutting an end part of a printing paper P as chips Ps; a box-shaped or cylindrical container 20 having a bottom surface 21 of a prescribed shape, and housing the chips Ps; a press 30 having a pressing surface 31 with an almost the same shape as the bottom surface 21 of the container 20 and pressing the chips Ps in the container 20 via the pressing surface 31; and a moving arm 40 moving the press 30 held in a substantially horizontal state in the pressing direction in the container 20.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a chip accommodating method, and a program.

  At present, printers using a sublimation method, a thermal transfer method, a thermal method, etc. are mainly known as printers using a thermal head. By the way, the thermal head performs printing in a state where the printing paper is nipped with the platen roller. Here, if the platen roller is heated at a portion of the thermal head that protrudes from the photographic paper, the platen roller is thermally deformed or its life is deteriorated.

  For this reason, a margin is provided at the end of the photographic paper to prevent the thermal head from protruding from the photographic paper. Then, printing is performed in an area of the photographic paper excluding the blank portion, and when the printing is completed, the blank portion is cut by a cutter provided on the downstream side of the thermal head.

  By the way, the cut blank part is accommodated as chips in a container disposed below the cutter. Here, the chips are not necessarily stored in layers on the bottom surface of the container, but may be caught by the container or other chips. In this case, chips may overflow from the container, or chips may enter the vicinity of the cutter, leading to printer failure.

JP 2006-192654 A

  For this reason, the following Patent Document 1 discloses a printer having a chip accommodation mechanism that can prevent overflow and intrusion of chips to some extent. In this mechanism, a pressing bar is provided on a rotating plate that rotates with respect to the container, and the position of the pressing bar is made variable in the container in accordance with the rotation operation of the rotating plate, so that the peripheral surface of the pressing bar cuts chips. Is pressed. However, in this mechanism, the range in which the chips can be pressed is limited to a part of the container, and the stored chips cannot be reliably pressed. As a result, it was not possible to sufficiently prevent the overflow and intrusion of chips caused by chip catching.

  Accordingly, the present invention is intended to provide an image forming apparatus, a chip storage method, and a program capable of sufficiently preventing the overflow of chips from inside the container and the entry of chips outside the container.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, a cutting mechanism that cuts an end portion of photographic paper as chips, a box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface with a predetermined shape, a container that stores chips, and a container Movement that has a pressing surface that has substantially the same shape as the bottom surface and that moves the pressing plate that presses chips in the container through the pressing surface and the pressing plate held in a substantially horizontal state in the pressing direction in the container. An image forming apparatus including an arm is provided.

  The container is provided with an opening surface serving as a chip storage port, and the moving arm moves the pressing plate to a position where the opening surface is opened to store the chip, and then moves the pressing plate in the pressing direction to move the chip. May be pressed.

  The moving arm may move the pressing plate to a position where the opening surface is closed in a direction opposite to the pressing direction after pressing the chips.

  The moving arm has a support part and a pressurizing part that pressurizes the chip against the reaction force from the chips, and the pressurizing part is movably supported at one end of the support part, regardless of the amount of chips contained. The moving amount with respect to the support portion may be adjusted according to the amount of chips accommodated so that the moving arm moves to a predetermined angular position.

  The pressurizing unit may be movably supported at one end of the support unit via an elastic member, and may press the chips with a greater force as the amount of the stored chips increases.

  The guide plate further includes a guide plate that holds the pressing plate at a position that closes the opening surface of the container, and the guide plate is held between the held state and the released state according to the contact with the pressing plate. The state of the pressing plate may be changed with.

  The pressing plate may move up and down in the container along the guide groove provided in the vertical direction of the container in accordance with the rotational drive of the moving arm.

  Even if the pressing plate moves between a position where the opening surface of the container is opened and a position where it is closed by moving along the guide groove provided in the guiding plate according to the rotational drive of the moving arm. Good.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, the edge of the photographic paper is cut as chips by a cutting mechanism, and the chips are stored in a container that is a box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface with a predetermined shape. A chip including holding a pressing plate having a pressing surface having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface in a substantially horizontal state, moving the pressing plate in the container in the pressing direction, and pressing the chip in the container through the pressing surface. A containment method is provided.

  Moreover, according to another viewpoint of this invention, the program for making a computer perform the said chip accommodation method is provided. Here, the program may be provided using a computer-readable recording medium, or may be provided via a communication unit or the like.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus, a chip storage method, and a program capable of sufficiently preventing the overflow of chips from inside the container and the entry of chips outside the container. .

It is a figure which shows an example of the printer which can apply the chip accommodation mechanism which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a partial appearance of a discharge side end portion of the printer. It is a cutaway view showing the situation of chip storage and final printed matter discharge. It is a perspective view which shows the whole structure of a chip accommodation mechanism. It is a perspective view which shows a container. It is a perspective view which shows a press plate. It is a perspective view which shows a moving mechanism. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a moving mechanism. It is a perspective view which shows a guide plate. It is a side view which shows the periphery structure of a guide plate. It is a perspective view which shows the closed state of an opening surface. It is a perspective view which shows the open state of an opening surface. It is a perspective view which shows the fall start state of a guide plate. It is a perspective view which shows the fall state of a press board. It is a perspective view which shows the press state by a support part. It is a perspective view which shows the press state by a support part. It is a perspective view which shows the descent | fall completion | finish state (1/2) of a guide plate. It is a perspective view which shows the descent | fall completion | finish state (2/2) of a guide plate. It is a side view which shows the rotation condition of the movement arm in the state of FIG. 17 and FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the raising state of a press plate. It is a perspective view which shows the raising completion state of a guide plate.

  Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in this specification and drawing, about the component which has the substantially same function structure, duplication description is abbreviate | omitted by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

[1. Printer configuration]
First, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, a printer to which a chip accommodating mechanism 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention can be applied will be described. FIG. 1 shows a main configuration of a sublimation printer as an example of a printer.

  The printer includes a thermal head 2, a photographic paper transport unit 3, a transfer sheet transport unit 4, a cutting mechanism 70, and a chip storage mechanism 10 controlled by the controller 1. In the printer, printing is performed using a transfer sheet S in which yellow, magenta, and cyan ink layers (not shown) and a protective material layer (not shown) are formed on a base material layer (not shown).

  The thermal head 2 nips the printing paper P and the transfer sheet S between the thermal head 2 and the platen roller 5 during printing. The thermal head 2 transfers the ink layer on the transfer sheet S to the photographic paper P to form an image layer (not shown), and further transfers the protective material layer on the transfer sheet S onto the image layer. (Not shown).

  The photographic paper transport means 3 includes a pinch roller 3a, a capstan 3b, and the like, and transports the photographic paper P sandwiched between the pinch roller 3a and the capstan 3b from the upstream side to the downstream side in the forward or reverse direction. The photographic paper transport unit 3 includes a paper discharge mechanism 80 described later. The photographic paper P is usually drawn out from the photographic paper roll, passes between the thermal head 2 and the platen roller 5, and then discharged to the paper discharge tray 6 through the cutting mechanism 70.

  The transfer sheet conveying unit 4 includes a supply reel 4a, a take-up reel 4b, and the like, and conveys the transfer sheet S in the forward direction. The transfer sheet S is pulled out from the supply reel 4a, passes between the thermal head 2 and the platen roller 5, and is then wound around the take-up reel 4b.

  As will be described in detail later, the cutting mechanism 70 cuts a blank portion which is an end portion of the photographic paper P with a cutter 71 (see FIG. 3), and cuts the printed photographic paper P into a predetermined size to obtain a final printed matter. Separate as Pf. The cutting mechanism 70 is provided with a cutter driving mechanism (not shown) that drives the cutter 71 under the control of the controller 1.

  Although the details will be described later, the chip storage mechanism 10 stores the cut blank portion as the chip Ps by pressing. The chip accommodation mechanism 10 is provided with an arm drive mechanism (not shown) that drives the moving arm 40 (see FIG. 4) under the control of the controller 1.

  FIG. 2 shows a partial appearance of an end portion on the paper discharge side of the printer. FIG. 3 shows how the chips Ps are accommodated and the final printed matter Pf is discharged. As shown in FIG. 2, a cutting mechanism 70, a paper discharge mechanism 80, and a rear end cover 90 are provided at the paper discharge side end of the printer.

  The cutting mechanism 70 cuts the end of the photographic paper P. The cutting mechanism 70 includes a cutter 71, a cutter rail 72, a plurality of drive gears (not shown), a cutter drive unit 73, and a cutter cover 74. The cutting mechanism 70 rotates the plurality of drive gears by the cutter driving unit 73 and moves the cutter 71 on the cutter rail 72 in the width direction of the photographic paper P, thereby cutting the end of the photographic paper P. The cutter cover 74 is a member that covers the cutting mechanism 70, and a passage port 75 through which the photographic paper P passes is provided at the center thereof.

  The paper discharge mechanism 80 conveys the photographic paper P to the paper discharge tray 6. The paper discharge mechanism 80 includes a paper discharge plate 81 and a paper discharge roller 82. The paper discharge mechanism 80 conveys the photographic paper P on the paper discharge plate 81 by the rotational drive of the capstan 3 b of the photographic paper conveyance means 3.

  The rear end cover 90 is a member that covers the rear end portion on the paper discharge side of the printer, including the chip accommodating mechanism 10. An accommodation area 91 for accommodating the container 20 is provided in the center of the rear end cover 90.

  The container 20 is a member that stores the chip Ps, and is configured as a box having an opening surface 22 in the present embodiment. The container 20 is detachably accommodated in the accommodation area 91 of the rear end cover 90. The container 20 is disposed below the cutting mechanism 70 while being accommodated in the accommodation area 91.

  FIG. 3 shows a state in which the paper discharge side rear end portion of the printer is virtually cut along the paper discharge direction in a state where the container 20 is stored in the storage area 91. As shown in FIG. 3, the photographic paper P passes through the passage port 75 by the paper discharge mechanism 80 and is conveyed to the paper discharge tray 6. The front end portion and / or the rear end portion of the photographic paper P is cut by a cutter 71 (see FIG. 4) as a blank portion. The cut blank portion falls freely into the container 20 disposed below the cutting mechanism 70 and is accommodated as chips Ps. On the other hand, the photographic paper P whose margin has been cut is discharged to the paper discharge tray 6 as the final printed matter Pf.

[2. Configuration of Chip Housing Mechanism 10]
Next, the configuration of the chip accommodation mechanism 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 10. FIG. 4 shows the overall configuration of the chip accommodation mechanism 10. 5 to 10 show each component of the chip accommodation mechanism 10.

  FIG. 4 shows a chip storage mechanism 10 including a container 20, a pressing plate 30, a moving arm 40, an arm shaft 50, and a guide plate 60, and a cutting mechanism 70. As shown in FIG. 4, the chip accommodation mechanism 10 is disposed below the cutting mechanism 70. In the container 20, a guide plate 60 is disposed at an upper portion thereof, and a pair of moving arms 40 connected by arm shafts 50 are disposed on left and right side portions thereof. Further, in the state shown in FIG. 4, the pressing plate 30 is disposed so as to close the opening surface 22 of the container 20.

  The moving arm 40 is rotationally driven by an arm driving unit (not shown) under the control of the controller 1. The arm drive unit is configured as a motor mechanism or the like, for example, and rotates the arm shaft 50 by a predetermined amount in accordance with a control signal supplied from the controller 1. In the chip storage mechanism 10, the movement of the pressing plate 30 is controlled according to the rotation of the moving arm 40 through the rotation of the arm shaft 50.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the container 20 is a box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface 21 having a predetermined shape, and is configured as a container for storing the chips Ps. In this embodiment, the container 20 is configured as a hexahedral box-shaped container having a rectangular bottom surface 21, but is configured as a cylindrical container having a bottom surface 21 having an arbitrary shape such as a triangle, a quadrangle, a trapezoid, or a circle. May be. An opening surface 22 is provided on the upper surface of the container 20.

  On the left and right side surfaces of the container 20, first and second linear grooves 23, 24 extending from a bottom surface 21 of the container 20 to a top surface of the container 20 from a predetermined height are provided. The first and second linear grooves 23 and 24 are provided as a pair of grooves facing each other on the left and right side surfaces of the container 20. The first linear groove 23 has a width substantially the same as the cross-sectional width of a first guide protrusion 33 of the pressing plate 30 to be described later, and the second linear groove 24 is a second guide of the pressing plate 30. The protrusion 34 has a width substantially the same as the cross-sectional width. The first linear groove 23 is formed as a concave groove on the inner surface of the container 20, but may be formed as an opening groove.

  The left and right side surfaces of the container 20 correspond to surfaces parallel to the conveyance direction of the photographic paper P. The substantially same width means a width in which the protrusions 33 and 34 can smoothly move in the grooves 23 and 24.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the pressing plate 30 has a pressing surface 31 having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface 21 of the container 20, and is configured as a member that presses the chips Ps in the container 20. In the present embodiment, the pressing plate 30 is configured as a plate having the same rectangular pressing surface 31 as the container 20. However, the pressing plate 30 is not limited to a rectangle, and may be configured as a plate having a pressing surface 31 having an arbitrary shape such as a triangle, a quadrangle, a trapezoid, or a circle. Further, the pressing member may be configured as a member having another shape such as a box-like member instead of the plate-like member.

  In addition, in FIG. 6, although the surface of the press board 30 is shown, the back surface used as the press surface 31 is formed similarly to the surface. In addition, the substantially same shape means a shape in which the pressing plate 30 can keep a substantially horizontal state and can move smoothly in the container 20.

  A first guide protrusion 33 is provided at the front end of the pressing plate 30 as a pair of protrusions that are opposed to the left and right side surfaces of the pressing plate 30. Similarly, a second guide protrusion 34 is provided at the rear end of the pressing plate 30 as a pair of protrusions that are opposed to the left and right side surfaces of the pressing plate 30. The first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34 may be provided with sliding assist means such as a bearing. The front end / rear end of the pressing plate 30 corresponds to an end surface orthogonal to the transport direction of the photographic paper P, and the left and right side surfaces of the pressing plate 30 correspond to end surfaces parallel to the transport direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the moving arm 40 is configured as a member that moves the pressing plate 30 in the pressing direction at least in the container 20. In the present embodiment, the moving arm 40 is configured as a bifurcated arm including a first leg portion 40a, second leg portions 40b and 40c, and a trunk portion 40d, but is configured as a member having another shape. May be.

  The moving arm 40 includes a support part 41 and a pressure part 42. The support portion 41 constitutes a first leg portion 40a, a base portion 40c and a trunk portion 40d of the second leg portion, and the pressurizing portion 42 constitutes an end portion 40b of the second leg portion. The end 40b and the base 40c of the second leg are provided with a shaft hole 44 and a spring accommodating region 45, respectively. A shaft hole 46 for inserting the end of the arm shaft 50 is provided in the body portion 40d. Between the first leg portion 40a and the second leg portions 40b and 40c, a space having a width substantially the same as the cross-sectional width of the second guide protrusion 34 of the guide plate 60 described later is formed. . This space becomes a moving space 47 in which the second guide protrusion 34 reciprocates. Note that the substantially same width means a width in which the second guide protrusion 34 can smoothly move in the moving space 47.

  In the moving arm 40, the support portion 41 and the pressure portion 42 are connected by inserting an axial core (not shown) into the shaft hole 44 of the end portion 40b of the second leg portion and the base portion 40c. Further, the torsion spring 43 is accommodated in the spring accommodating region 45 of the end portion 40b of the second leg portion and the base portion 40c with the shaft core inserted. In the moving arm 40, the pressurizing part 42 moves so as to open with respect to the support part 41 against the restoring force of the torsion spring 43. That is, the end portion 40b of the second leg portion is movable between a state parallel to the base portion 40c and a state inclined to the side opposite to the first leg portion 40a with respect to the base portion 40c.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the guide plate 60 is configured as a member that guides the movement of the pressing plate 30. In the present embodiment, the guide plate 60 is configured as a substantially rectangular plate having two spring support protrusions 61 at the rear end portion, but may be configured as a member having another shape.

  The guide plate 60 is provided with a rotation support groove 63, a curved groove 64, and a horizontal groove 65. The rotation support groove 63 is a groove slightly larger than the cross section of the first guide protrusion 33 of the guide plate 60. The curved groove 64 is an arc-shaped groove having a width substantially the same as the cross-sectional width of the second guide protrusion 34 and having a position of the rotation support groove 63 of about 60 °. The horizontal groove 65 is an oval groove having a width substantially the same as the cross-sectional width of the arm shaft 50. The substantially same width means a width in which the protrusions 33 and 34 and the shaft 50 can smoothly move in the grooves 63, 64 and 65.

  The rotation support groove 63 is a groove for supporting the rotation of the pressing plate 30 around the first guide protrusion 33 and selectively locking the first guide protrusion 33. The curved groove 64 is a groove for guiding the movement of the pressing plate 30 via the second guide protrusion 34 and selectively locking the second guide protrusion 34. The horizontal groove 65 is a groove for guiding the horizontal movement of the guide plate 60 via the arm shaft 50.

  The rotation support groove 63 is formed with a locking protrusion 63 a that can lock the first guide protrusion 33. The locking protrusion 63a is formed by projecting the lower right end portion of the rotation support groove 63 to the left side and expanding the left lower end portion to the left side while maintaining the width of the rotation support groove 63. Similarly, a locking protrusion 64 a that can lock the second guide protrusion 34 is formed at the start end of the curved groove 64.

  With reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. 10, the assembly procedure of the chip accommodation mechanism 10 is demonstrated. First, the pressing plate 30 is attached between the pair of guide plates 60. Specifically, the first guide protrusion 33 of the pressing plate 30 is engaged with the rotation support groove 63 of the guide plate 60, and the second guide protrusion 34 of the pressing plate 30 is connected to the start end of the curved groove 64 of the guide plate 60. Engage. Accordingly, the pressing plate 30 is attached to the guide plate 60 in a state where the first and second guide projections 33 and 34 are locked to the locking projections 63 a and 64 a of the guide plate 60.

  Next, the moving arm 40 and the pair of arm shafts 50 are attached to the pair of guide plates 60. Specifically, the arm shaft 50 is inserted into the horizontal groove 65 of the guide plate 60. Then, with the second guide protrusion 34 inserted into the moving space 47 of the moving arm 40, the end of the arm shaft 50 is inserted into the shaft hole 46 of the moving arm 40 and fixed. Here, the moving arm 40 is disposed such that the pressure unit 42 side is the downstream side.

  Next, an assembly including the pressing plate 30, the guide plate 60, and the moving arm 40 is attached to the printer body. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, with the spring 66 attached to the spring support protrusion 61 of the guide plate 60, the rear end portion of the guide plate 60 is inserted into the slide groove 92 provided in the printer body. The slide groove 92 is formed as a recess having a depth substantially the same as the thickness of the guide plate 60, and supports the guide plate 60 in the vertical and horizontal directions (two directions orthogonal to the paper discharge direction of the photographic paper P). . The guide plate 60 is inserted into the slide groove 92 in a state where almost no restoring force is generated in the spring 66. As a result, the assembly is supported by the printer main body in a state in which it can move horizontally in the front-rear direction (up-downstream direction).

  Finally, the container 20 is housed in the housing area 91 located below the cutting mechanism 70. As a result, the opening surface 22 of the container 20 is positioned directly below the pressing plate 30 attached to the guide plate 60. In addition, since the pressing plate 30 is supported above the accommodation area 91 by the guide plate 60, it does not hinder the removal of the container 20.

[3. Operation of Chip Housing Mechanism 10]
Next, the operation of the chip storage mechanism 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 21 show a series of operation states of the chip accommodation mechanism 10.

  In FIG. 11, the guide plate 60 closes the opening surface 22 of the container 20. This corresponds to, for example, a state where the printer is not operating or a state waiting for printing. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the chips Ps from overflowing from the container 20 or from entering the vicinity of the cutter 71. Here, the movable arm 40 is in an initial state at the time of assembly. The first guide protrusion 33 of the pressing plate 30 is locked by the locking protrusion 63a on the rotation support groove 63, and the second guide protrusion 34 of the pressing plate 30 is locked by the locking protrusion 64a on the curved groove 64. It has been stopped.

  In FIG. 12, the guide plate 60 opens the opening surface 22 of the container 20. This corresponds to, for example, a state where the printer is performing the printing operation or a state immediately before the cutting mechanism 70 starts the operation. Thereby, the blank part cut | disconnected by the cutter 71 can be accommodated in the container 20 as the chip | tip Ps. Here, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate clockwise about the arm shaft 50. In response to the rotation of the moving arm 40, the second guide protrusion 34 moves to the end of the curved groove 64 while moving in the moving space 47 of the moving arm 40. In accordance with the movement of the second guide protrusion 34, the pressing plate 30 rotates counterclockwise around the position of the rotation support groove 63. Thereby, the opening surface 22 of the container 20 is opened.

  In FIG. 13, the guide plate 60 is just before closing the opening surface 22 of the container 20 and starting to descend in the container 20. This corresponds to a state in which the cutting mechanism 70 has finished the operation and the chip housing mechanism 10 has started the pressing operation of the chip Ps. The pressing operation may be performed every time both the front end and the rear end of the photographic paper P are cut, or may be performed every time one is cut. Here, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate counterclockwise about the arm shaft 50. In response to the rotation of the moving arm 40, the second guide protrusion 34 moves to the locking protrusion 64 a of the curved groove 64 while moving in the moving space 47. In accordance with the movement of the second guide protrusion 34, the pressing plate 30 rotates clockwise around the position of the rotation support groove 63. Thereby, the opening surface 22 of the container 20 is closed.

  Further, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate counterclockwise about the arm shaft 50. In accordance with the rotation of the moving arm 40, the second guide projection 34 pushes the locking projection 64a downward, and the force pushing the guide plate 60 backward acts on the guide plate 60. In response to this force, the guide plate 60 moves backward relative to the pressing plate 30 while resisting the restoring force of the spring 66. In accordance with the movement of the guide plate 60, the locked state of the first and second guide protrusions 33, 34 is released, and the first and second guide protrusions 33, 34 are moved to the first and second linear grooves 23, Move to the beginning of 24. In response to the movement of the guide protrusions 33 and 34, the guide plate 60 moves forward relative to the pressing plate 30 by the restoring force of the spring 66.

  14 and 15, the guide plate 60 descends in the container 20. Here, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate counterclockwise about the arm shaft 50. In response to the rotation of the moving arm 40, the second guide projection 34 moves to a certain extent in the second linear groove 24 while moving in the moving space 47 within the range of the base 40c of the second leg, that is, the support 41. Move to the height of. In response to the movement of the second guide protrusion 34, the first guide protrusion 33 also moves to a certain height of the first linear groove 23. In accordance with the movement of the first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34, the pressing plate 30 descends in the container 20 while maintaining a substantially horizontal state.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the pressing plate 30 presses the chips Ps by the pressing surface 31 mainly by its own weight while descending the container 20. Accordingly, the pressing plate 30 having the pressing surface 31 having a shape corresponding to the bottom surface of the container 20 is lowered in the container 20, so that the container 20 and the chips Ps are caught or the chips Ps are generated in the container 20. The standing state can be reliably removed.

  In FIG. 16, the guide plate 60 further descends in the container 20. Here, the movable arm 40 is driven to rotate to a predetermined position counterclockwise around the arm shaft 50. In response to the rotation of the moving arm 40, the second guide protrusion 34 moves in the moving space 47 within the range of the end 40c of the second leg, that is, the range of the pressurizing unit 42. It moves along the groove 24. In response to the movement of the second guide protrusion 34, the first guide protrusion 33 also moves along the first linear groove 23. In accordance with the movement of the first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34, the pressing plate 30 descends in the container 20 while maintaining a substantially horizontal state.

  Here, first, it is assumed that the amount of the chip Ps is large and the chip Ps cannot be sufficiently pressed by the weight of the pressing plate 30. In this case, the movement of the pressing plate 30 is inhibited by the reaction force from the chips Ps, and the movement of the second guide protrusion 34 is also inhibited. For this reason, the movable arm 40 cannot be rotationally driven to a predetermined position.

  However, as described above, the pressing portion 42 is configured to open with respect to the support portion 41 against the restoring force of the torsion spring 43. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 17, even if the movement of the second guide protrusion 34 is hindered, the second guide protrusion 34 is pressurized by the pressurizing portion 42 opened according to the reaction force from the chips Ps. By moving the arm 40 while moving, the movable arm 40 can be rotationally driven to a predetermined position. Thereby, the catch between the chips Ps can be reliably removed.

  Next, it is assumed that the amount of the chip Ps is small and the chip Ps can be sufficiently obtained by the weight of the pressing plate 30. In this case, the movement of the pressing plate 30 is not inhibited by the reaction force from the chips Ps, and the movement of the second guide protrusion 34 is not inhibited. For this reason, the movable arm 40 can be rotationally driven to a predetermined position. In this case, as shown in FIG. 18, the pressurizing unit 42 moves the second guide protrusion 34 to the end of the second linear groove 24 without opening in accordance with the reaction force from the chips Ps.

  FIG. 19 shows the rotation state of the moving arm 40 in the state shown in FIGS. 17 and 18. In FIG. 19, states 1 and 2 correspond to the states of FIGS. 17 and 18, respectively. As shown in FIG. 19, the moving arm 40 is rotationally driven to a predetermined angular position θ as a whole with the arm shaft 50 as the center regardless of the amount of chips Ps accommodated. However, the larger the amount of chips Ps accommodated, the larger the opening of the pressurizing portion 42, and the second guide protrusion 34 is positioned higher than the end of the second linear groove 24 (with respect to the height h2 in the state 2). The movement ends at the height h1) of state 1. Thereby, even if the rotation amount of the moving arm 40 is the same, the amount of lowering of the pressing plate 30 can be adjusted according to the amount of chips Ps accommodated.

  Moreover, the opening of the pressurization part 42 is adjusted according to the accommodation amount of the chip Ps, and the restoring force of the torsion spring 43 is also adjusted, so that the pressing force against the chip Ps can be adjusted. In other words, the larger the amount of the chip Ps is stored, the stronger the force is applied to the chip Ps, and the smaller the amount of the stored chip Ps is, the more force the chip Ps is pressed.

  In FIG. 20, the guide plate 60 moves up in the container 20. This is a state in which the chip storage mechanism 10 ends the pressing operation of the chip Ps and starts the operation of closing the opening surface 22 of the container 20. Here, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate clockwise about the arm shaft 50. In response to the rotation of the moving arm 40, the first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34 move to the start ends of the first and second linear grooves 23 and 24, respectively. As the first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34 move, the pressing plate 30 moves up in the container 20 while maintaining a substantially horizontal state. If the pressure unit 42 is opened during the pressing operation, the pressure unit 42 returns to the original state by the restoring force of the torsion spring 43 according to the movement of the second guide protrusion 34.

  In FIG. 21, the guide plate 60 is in a state of completing the ascent in the container 20. Here, the moving arm 40 is driven to rotate clockwise about the arm shaft 50. As the moving arm 40 rotates, the second guide projection 34 pushes the locking projection 64 a upward, and a force pushing the guide plate 60 backward acts on the guide plate 60. In response to this force, the guide plate 60 moves backward with respect to the pressing plate 30 while resisting the restoring force of the spring 66. As the guide plate 60 moves, the first and second guide protrusions 33 and 34 are locked to the locking protrusion 63 a of the rotation support groove 63 and the locking protrusion 64 a of the curved groove 64. In response to the movement of the guide protrusions 33 and 34, the guide plate 60 moves forward relative to the pressing plate 30 by the restoring force of the spring 66.

  Thus, the first guide protrusion 33 is locked to the locking protrusion 63a on the rotation support groove 63, and the second guide protrusion 34 is locked to the locking groove 64a on the curved groove 64. Therefore, the guide plate 60 can close the opening surface 22 of the container 20.

[4. Summary]
As described above, according to the chip accommodating mechanism 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the pressing plate 30 having the pressing surface 31 having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface 21 of the container 20 is held in a substantially horizontal state. The chip Ps in the container 20 is pressed through the pressing surface 31 by moving the container 20 in the pressing direction. Thereby, overflow of the chip | tip Ps from the inside of the container 20 and the penetration | invasion of the chip | tip Ps out of the container 20 can fully be prevented.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can come up with various changes or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. Of course, it is understood that these also belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the above description, the case where the present invention is applied to a sublimation printer has been described. However, the present invention is also applicable to a thermal transfer printer, a thermal printer, and the like.

  In addition, a part of the chip accommodation method according to the present invention may be implemented using a software configuration. In this case, the chip accommodation method is implemented by a program executed on a processor functioning as the controller 1 or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Chip accommodation mechanism 20 Container 30 Press plate 40 Moving arm 50 Arm axis | shaft 60 Guide plate 70 Cutting mechanism P Printing paper Ps Chip

Claims (10)

A cutting blade for cutting the edge of the photographic paper as chips,
A box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface of a predetermined shape, a container for storing the chips,
A pressing plate having a pressing surface having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface of the container, and pressing the chips in the container through the pressing surface;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a moving arm that moves the pressing plate held in a substantially horizontal state in the container in the pressing direction. The container is provided with an opening surface that serves as a chip storage port,
The image according to claim 1, wherein the moving arm moves the pressing plate to a position where the opening surface is opened to accommodate the chips, and then moves the pressing plate in a pressing direction to press the chips. Forming equipment.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the moving arm moves the pressing plate to a position for closing the opening surface in a direction opposite to the pressing direction after pressing the chips. The moving arm has a support part and a pressurizing part that pressurizes the chips against a reaction force from the chips,
The pressurizing part is movably supported at one end of the support part, and the support part according to the amount of chips accommodated so that the moving arm moves to a predetermined angular position regardless of the amount of chips contained. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an amount of movement with respect to is adjusted.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the pressurizing unit is movably supported by one end of the support unit via an elastic member, and presses the chips with a larger force as the amount of the stored chips increases. A guide plate for holding the pressing plate at a position for closing the opening surface of the container;
The image according to claim 1, wherein the guide plate transitions the state of the pressing plate between the held state and the released state according to contact with the pressing plate. Forming equipment.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pressing plate moves up and down in the container along a guide groove provided in a vertical direction of the container in response to rotational driving of the moving arm.   The pressing plate moves along the guide groove provided in the guide plate according to the rotational drive of the moving arm, so that the opening surface of the container is opened and closed. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the image forming apparatus moves between them. Cut the edges of the photographic paper as chips with a cutting mechanism,
Storing the chips in a container which is a box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface of a predetermined shape;
A pressing plate having a pressing surface having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface of the container is held in a substantially horizontal state and moved in the pressing direction within the container, and the inside of the container is moved through the pressing surface. A method for containing chips, comprising pressing the chips. Cut the edges of the photographic paper as chips with a cutting mechanism,
Storing the chips in a container which is a box-shaped or cylindrical container having a bottom surface of a predetermined shape;
A pressing plate having a pressing surface having substantially the same shape as the bottom surface of the container is held in a substantially horizontal state and moved in the pressing direction within the container, and the inside of the container is moved through the pressing surface. A program for causing a computer to execute a chip accommodation method including pressing the chips.

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