JP2014166705A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer capable of keeping the quality of a roll-shaped printing medium good, and capable of increasing a diameter of the roll-shaped printing medium possible to be set up.SOLUTION: A printer 10 includes: a printer casing; a drawer part 12 which is housed inside the casing so as to be drawn from the casing, and on which paper 11 wound in a roll shape is placed; a printing part 21 which performs prescribed printing on the paper 11; a cutter part 24 which cuts the paper 11 where the prescribed printing is finished; and paper separation mechanisms 29, 33 which separate the paper 11 from the bottom surface of the drawer part 12 as the drawer part 12 is pushed into the casing.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a printer device that prints and issues paper.

  In a printer device used as an issuer for receipts or the like, after printing predetermined items on a long paper drawn from a roll paper wound in a roll, the paper is cut into a paper piece of a predetermined length and discharged. It is carried out.

  There are cases where the installation location of the printer apparatus is limited, and roll paper cannot be loaded from the rear of the printer apparatus or from the upper side of the printer apparatus. In that case, a shape is known in which a box-shaped drawer is provided in the printer device, and roll paper is loaded inside the drawer.

  If the roll paper is installed so that the lower end of the roll paper is in contact with the bottom surface of the drawer, the following problem occurs, for example. First, due to the rotation of the roll paper, heat is generated by friction between the lower end of the roll paper and the bottom surface of the drawer, and the roll paper is heated and darkened by this frictional heat. Second, the roll paper is damaged by friction between the lower end of the roll paper and the bottom surface of the drawer. That is, when the roll paper is installed so that the lower end of the roll paper is in contact with the bottom surface of the drawer, it is difficult to keep the quality of the roll paper good.

  In order to keep the quality of the roll paper good, in the conventional printing apparatus, the hopper is installed so that the lower end of the roll paper is spaced upward from the bottom surface of the drawer. That is, in the conventional printing apparatus, the hopper is provided such that the lower end of the roll paper is disposed at a position spaced upward from the bottom surface of the drawer.

  However, in this type of printing apparatus, when roll paper having a large diameter that protrudes upward from the drawer portion is disposed in the hopper, when the drawer portion is stored in the housing, the roll paper that protrudes upward from the drawer portion The problem of interference with the housing arises. That is, in the conventional printing apparatus, only roll paper having a small diameter that does not protrude upward from the drawer portion can be installed in the hopper, so that the roll paper is consumed early and the frequency of roll paper replacement increases. There is a problem.

JP 2011-255681 A

  Embodiments of the present invention provide a printer device that can maintain good quality of a roll-shaped print medium and can increase the diameter of a roll-shaped print medium that can be installed.

  To achieve the above object, a printer housing, a drawer portion that is housed in the housing so as to be able to be pulled out from the housing, and on which a paper wound in a roll shape is placed, and a predetermined paper A printer includes a printing unit that performs printing, a cutter unit that cuts the paper on which predetermined printing has been completed, and a paper separation mechanism that separates the paper from the bottom surface of the drawer when the drawer unit is pushed into the housing. Provided in the apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a main part configuration diagram of a printer apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a main part configuration diagram when loading paper into the printer apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a control circuit configuration of the printer apparatus according to the embodiment.

  Hereinafter, a printer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a main configuration of the printer apparatus 10. In this printer apparatus, the paper 11 wound in a roll shape is conveyed from the right side to the left side in the drawing. Therefore, in the following description, the right side in the drawing is the upstream side and the left side is the downstream side.

  The printer device 10 is provided with a drawer 12 which is a box-shaped drawer portion opened upward, and a hopper 13 having a shape opened upward is provided in the drawer 12.

  The drawer 12 is attached to a rail mechanism or the like (not shown), and can move in the A direction and the B direction shown in FIG.

  The paper 11 is mounted and held in the printer device 10 by being placed on the hopper 13, and then the paper 11 is set in the printer device 10 by being pushed in the A direction (FIG. 1).

  The hopper 13 has a paper separation mechanism, which will be described later. The holding posture of the paper 11 on the hopper 13 is different between the state where the drawer 12 is pushed in (FIG. 1) and the state where the drawer 12 is pulled out (FIG. 2).

  The printing surface 14 of the paper 11 is provided with a heat-sensitive layer that develops color when heated.

  A damper roller cam 17 having a damper roller support long hole 18 is provided at one end of the hopper 13, and the damper roller 15 can move the damper roller shaft 16, which is the central axis thereof, in the damper roller support long hole 18. It is attached.

  A platen roller 19 that can be rotated by a motor (not shown) and a thermal print head 20 that faces the platen roller 19 with the paper 11 interposed therebetween are disposed downstream of the damper roller 15 in the paper conveyance direction. The platen roller 19 and the thermal print head 20 constitute a print unit 21.

  The thermal print head 20 prints line by line on the paper 11 as the paper 11 is conveyed downstream.

  The thermal print head 20 is pressed by the platen roller 19, and the paper 11 is sent downstream by the cooperation of the thermal print head 20 and the platen roller 19.

  A cutter 24 is provided on the downstream side of the printing unit 21. The cutter 24 has a fixed blade 22 and a movable blade 23, and the sheet 11 inserted into a slit (not shown) of the cutter is slid toward the fixed blade 22 by driving the movable blade 23 by a motor (not shown). Disconnect by moving.

  Here, the cutter 24 has been described as a so-called slide type cutter in which the movable blade 23 slides toward the fixed blade 22. However, the cutter 24 is not limited to this, and the movable blade rotates and contacts the fixed blade. A so-called rotary cutter or the like for cutting may be used.

  On the downstream side of the cutter 24, a feed roller 25 that can be rotated by a motor (not shown) and an idler roller 26 that is opposed to the feed roller 25 with the paper 11 interposed therebetween are disposed.

  A discharge port 27 is provided on the downstream side of the feed roller 25, and the paper 11 on which predetermined printing has been completed is cut by the cutter 24. Thereafter, the paper is discharged from the discharge port 27 to the outside of the printer device 10 in cooperation with the feed roller 25 and the idler roller 26.

  In addition, the printer device 10 is provided with a display unit 28 for displaying error conditions such as out of paper 11 and paper jam and various information of the printer device 10.

  Further, as a hopper rotating mechanism, a drawer stopper 29, a drawer long hole A30, a drawer long hole B31, a hopper roller 32, a hopper support shaft 33 and a hopper rotation support shaft 34 are provided. The long hole A30 and the drawer long hole B31 are provided in the drawer 12, and the hopper roller 32, the hopper support shaft 33, and the hopper rotation support shaft 34 are provided in the hopper 13, respectively.

  FIG. 3 shows the control unit 50 of the printer 10 described above. The control unit 50 has means for controlling each of sheet conveyance, printing, sheet ejection, and printer status display.

  The control unit 50 is composed of, for example, a microcomputer that links with the host computer 51 and executes various controls. A central processing unit (MPU) 52 of the control unit 50 performs sheet conveyance control, printing control, sheet discharge control, printer status display control, and the like according to a program. The MPU 52 includes a timer 53 as means for performing time setting and time control.

  A ROM 54 and a RAM 55 are installed as main storage means for storing a control program executed by the MPU 52 and data in the process of control or calculation. The ROM 54 is a read-only memory having a control program and the like, and the RAM 55 is an occasional write memory for storing data and the like during calculation.

  Further, the control unit 50 is provided with an input / output unit (I / O) 56 for taking in various input data from the host computer 51 and taking out the control output of the control unit 50 to the host computer 51. . In the I / O 56, an MPU 52, a ROM 54, and a RAM 55 are linked through a bus.

  The I / O 56 is connected with first, second, third and fourth drivers 57, 58, 59 and 60 as means for taking out the control output.

  The driver 57 supplies necessary drive output to the printing unit 21. The driver 58 supplies a drive output to the cutter 24. The driver 59 supplies a driving output to the feed roller 25. The driver 60 supplies the display unit 28 with a display drive output for performing various displays.

  The printing unit 21 includes a thermal print head 20 and a platen roller 19 as shown in FIG. The platen roller 19 is driven to rotate in synchronization with the printing operation by a motor (not shown) based on the control output as the command means of the MPU 52. The thermal print head 20 prints on the paper 11 based on print data from the host computer 51.

  The MPU 52 of the control unit 50 drives the cutter 24 via the driver 58 to cut the paper 11 on which printing has been completed.

  The MPU 52 of the control unit 50 drives the feed roller 25 through the driver 59 and discharges the paper 11 from the discharge port 27 to the outside of the printer device 10.

  In addition, the MPU 52 of the control unit 50 displays various information of the printer device 10 on the display unit 28 via the driver 60.

  Next, the operation of the printer apparatus 10 will be described. The controller 50 carries the paper 11 and prints on the paper 11 in accordance with a program stored in the ROM 54.

  First, an operator who uses the printer device 10 loads the paper 11 wound around the printer device 10 in a roll shape.

  When loading the paper 11 wound in a roll shape on the printer 10, the operator pulls the drawer 12 in the direction B in FIG. 1. The drawer 12 is moved in the direction B by a stopper (not shown) until the drawer 12 does not move, and then the wound paper 11 is placed on the hopper 13 provided in the drawer 12 in the state shown in FIG.

  After that, the operator pulls out the paper 11 that has been wound until the leading end of the paper 11 comes to the downstream side from the discharge port 27 (FIG. 2).

  The operator pushes the drawer 12 in the A direction with the paper 11 placed on the hopper 13 shown in FIG.

  In the state shown in FIG. 2, the wound paper 11 is in a state where the printing surface is in contact with the hopper 13. When the drawer 12 is pushed in the A direction in this state, the drawer stopper 29 and the hopper support shaft 33 come into contact with each other. When the paper 11 is loaded (FIG. 2), the hopper support shaft 33 is at the right end of the drawer long hole B31, but when pushed in the direction A as it is, the hopper support shaft 33 moves through the drawer long hole B31 in the left direction in FIG. Move to.

  When the hopper support shaft 33 moves to the left end of the drawer slot B31, the hopper 13 starts rotating in the X direction shown in FIG.

  The hopper 13 is located at the position of the left end of the drawer long hole A30 (FIG. 2) in a state before starting to rotate, but moves toward the right end of the drawer long hole A30 along with the rotation in the X direction.

  The hopper 13 rotates in the X direction, and when the hopper rotation support shaft 34 eventually moves to the vicinity of the right end of the drawer slot A30, the rotation of the hopper 13 is stopped by a stopper mechanism (not shown).

  The state shown in FIG. 1 is a state in which the paper 11 is loaded and printing is possible. 2, the rolled paper 11 is in a state in which its printed surface is in contact with the hopper 13 in the state where the paper 11 starts to be loaded. However, as the hopper 13 rotates in the X direction, It rides on a plurality of hopper rollers 32 provided. As a result, the sheet 11 and the bottom surface of the drawer 12 are not in contact with each other.

  In addition, a damper roller cam 17 is provided at one end of the hopper 13, and a damper roller support long hole 18 is provided in the damper roller cam 17. The damper roller shaft 16 of the damper roller 15 is always tensioned in the Y direction in FIG. 1 by a tension applying mechanism (not shown).

  The sheet 11 is moved to one end side of the damper roller support long hole 18 by the tension applying mechanism when the sheet is loaded in a state where it is not hung on the damper roller 15 (FIG. 2). Under the situation where the hopper 13 rotates and the paper 11 is hung on the damper roller 15 (FIG. 1), the damper roller 15 is moved by the paper 11 in the direction opposite to the Y direction in FIG. As a result, the paper 11 is conveyed with an appropriate tension.

  In this state, the print data from the host computer 51 is received, and the thermal print head 20 of the print unit 21 is driven to perform a predetermined print on the print surface 14 of the paper 11. Thereafter, the paper 11 is cut by the cutter 24, and the cut paper 11 is discharged from the discharge port 27 to the outside of the printer device 10 in cooperation with the feed roller 25 and the idler roller 26.

  As described above, the drawer 10 which is a box-shaped drawer portion is provided in the printer apparatus 10, the paper separation mechanism is provided in the drawer 12, and the paper 11 wound in a roll shape when the drawer 12 is pushed into the printer body. Is separated upward from the bottom surface of the drawer 12 to prevent the paper from becoming dark due to friction between the lower end of the paper 11 and the bottom surface of the drawer 12 due to the rotation of the paper 11 wound in a roll. It is possible to increase the size of the paper wound into a roll to be loaded in No. 10.

  In the present embodiment, the hopper 13 is provided with the thermal printing head 20, the movable blade 23 of the cutter 24, and the idler roller 26 in the state in which the drawer 12 is pulled out. 22 and the feed roller 25 are provided, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the printing unit 21 and the cutter 24 are not provided separately in the printer device 10 and the drawer 12, and are provided on either the printer device 10 or the drawer 12. It may be provided. In that case, a mechanism for guiding the leading end of the paper 11 to the printing unit 21 in a state where the drawer 12 is pushed into the printer device 10 may be provided.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

10: Printer device 11: Paper 12: Drawer 13: Hopper
15: Damper roller
19: Platen roller
20: Thermal print head 24: Cutter

Claims (3)

A printer housing;
Inside this housing, a drawer portion that is housed so as to be able to be pulled out from the housing and places a sheet wound in a roll shape, and
A printing unit for performing predetermined printing on the paper;
A cutter unit for cutting the paper on which predetermined printing has been completed;
A printer apparatus comprising: a paper separation mechanism that separates the paper from the bottom surface of the drawer when the drawer is pushed into the housing.   The printer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the paper separation mechanism is provided in the drawer and rotates a hopper on which the paper is placed.   The printer device according to claim 1, wherein the printing unit and the cutter unit are provided separately in the housing and the drawer.

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