JP2015193475A - image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it easy to take out even a short label piece from the ejection port without consuming printing medium wastefully.SOLUTION: Holding means 300 is arranged downstream of a cutter unit 31 in a medium transport direction, the holding means 300 being comprised of holding members 301, 302 which are arranged rotatably around a shaft center in a direction intersecting a label piece 200 while holding an end part of the label piece 200 vertically. The holding members 301, 302 rotate to rotate the label piece 200 while holding the end part of the label piece 200 vertically, and then change from a laterally lengthy attitude which is lengthy in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction to a vertically lengthy attitude which is lengthy in the transport direction, to make a part of the label piece 200 projecting outward from an ejecting port 105.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

  A roll body (“a linerless label paper”) that has an adhesive surface and has no adhesive paper on the adhesive surface (hereinafter also referred to as “linerless label paper”), such as a tape or a non-mounting label paper. A printing medium piece (hereinafter also referred to as a “label piece”) is printed on a printing medium drawn from a roll body and cut to a required length after printing. An image forming apparatus such as a label printer that discharges from a discharge port is known.

  Conventionally, in order to improve the ease of grasping and visibility of a medium piece by a user even when the discharged medium piece is short, when the discharged medium piece is short, the print medium is cut longer than usual. What was made into is known (patent document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 5309974

  As described above, when the print medium is cut into a label piece, it is preferable for safety that the cutting means is arranged inside the apparatus main body. Further, when using linerless label paper with the adhesive surface exposed, the cut label piece cannot be thrown out of the apparatus body as it is.

  Therefore, it is preferable to have a configuration in which a part of the label piece is held in the apparatus main body while protruding from the discharge port.

  However, when the length of the label piece is short, a part of the label piece cannot be held in a state of protruding from the discharge port, and the label piece cannot be taken out.

  Therefore, there is a configuration of cutting with an extra length as disclosed in Patent Document 1, but this not only wastes the print medium but also obtains a label piece of a desired length. There is a problem that it becomes impossible.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to make it easy to take out even a short piece of media without wasting print media wastefully.

In order to solve the above problems, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention provides:
Image forming means for forming an image on a print medium;
Conveying means for conveying the print medium;
Cutting means for cutting the print medium on which the image is formed into a medium piece, and
A holding means for holding an end portion of the medium piece in a direction orthogonal to the medium conveying direction is disposed downstream of the cutting means in the medium conveying direction,
The holding means is configured to be able to rotate the medium piece along the discharge direction while holding the medium piece.

  According to the present invention, even a short medium piece can be easily taken out without wastefully consuming the print medium.

1 is an explanatory front view of an example of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. It is principal part front explanatory drawing with which it uses for description of a printing medium. It is a block explanatory drawing with which the control part of the apparatus is provided. It is front explanatory drawing of the discharge part vicinity used for description of 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. It is front explanatory drawing of the discharge part vicinity used for description of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. It is front explanatory drawing of the discharge part vicinity used for description of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. It is front explanatory drawing of the discharge part vicinity used for description of 4th Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. It is front explanatory drawing of the discharge part vicinity used for description of 5th Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. It is explanatory drawing with which it uses for description of the 1st example of a holding means. It is explanatory drawing with which it uses for operation | movement description of the holding means. It is explanatory drawing similarly provided for operation | movement description of a holding means. It is explanatory drawing with which it uses for description of the 2nd example of a holding means. It is a flowchart with which it uses for description of 6th Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart with which it uses for description of 7th Embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. First, an example of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is an explanatory front view of the image forming apparatus, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory front view of essential parts for explaining a print medium.

  In the image forming apparatus, a sheet feeding unit 101 serving as a sheet feeding device, an image forming unit 102 serving as an image forming unit, a transport unit 103 serving as a transport unit, and a discharge unit serving as a paper discharge transport unit are included in the apparatus main body 100. A paper portion 104. In addition, a discharge port 105 that is a discharge port portion that discharges the print medium 2 on which an image is formed to the outside of the apparatus main body 100 is provided.

  A roll body 4 in which the print medium 2 is wound in a roll shape is loaded in the paper supply unit 101.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the printing medium 2 has an adhesive layer (hereinafter referred to as “adhesive surface”) 2b on one surface of a medium (hereinafter also referred to as “printing surface”) 2a capable of forming an image. It is a continuum formed. And this printing medium 2 is the linerless label paper made into the roll shape in the state which has not affixed the mount (release paper, separator) on the adhesive surface 2b.

  The roll body 4 is fitted into a spool 5, and the spool 5 is a first roller 111, a second roller 112, and a third roller 113, which are first to third rotating bodies arranged at both ends on the roll holder member 6. It is held rotatably at three points.

  The “spool” is not limited to a member that is provided separately from the core member and is used by being fitted into the core member. The core member of the roll body 4 may be any part that is held by the roll holder members 6 and 6. It may be formed integrally with. Further, when the core member of the roll body 4 is directly held, such a core member is also included in the “spool”.

  The image forming unit 102 includes a carriage 12 on which a recording head 11 including a liquid discharge head that discharges droplets onto the print medium 2 is mounted. The carriage 12 is movably held by the main guide member 13 and the sub-guide member 14 and is reciprocated in a direction (main scanning direction) perpendicular to the transport direction of the print medium 2.

  Here, the recording head 11 is a liquid ejection head having two nozzle rows, and the two recording heads 11 are mounted on the carriage 12. The four nozzle rows of the two recording heads 11 eject ink droplets of black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y), respectively. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a line-type head can also be used.

  In addition, ink is supplied to the recording head 11 from an ink cartridge 15 that is replaceably attached to the apparatus main body 100 through a supply tube 16 to supply ink of a required color to a head tank (not shown) mounted on the carriage 12. . The ink is supplied from the head tank to the recording head 11.

  Further, ink waste liquid generated by a maintenance operation for maintaining and recovering the performance of the recording head 11 is discharged and stored in a waste liquid tank 17 that is replaceably attached to the apparatus main body 100.

  The image forming unit 102 is not limited to the form of the liquid ejection head, and various image forming units that form an image in contact and non-contact can be used.

  In the transport unit 103, an endless protective belt 21 is disposed below the recording head 11. The protection belt 21 is wound around a conveyance roller 22 and a driven roller 23 to which tension is applied so as to be able to move around.

  At this time, it is preferable that the protective belt 21 does not have adhesiveness to the adhesive surface 2b. However, the protective belt 21 can be re-detached from the adhesive surface 2b in order to prevent the printing medium 2 from floating from the protective belt 21 during transportation. It may have a weak adherence. By applying the protective belt 21 to the adhesive surface 2b, the adhesive surface 2b is protected, and at the same time, the adhesive surface 2b is prevented from coming into contact with the inside of the apparatus. Therefore, only the print medium 2 can be discharged.

  That is, in the present embodiment, the protection belt 21 protects the adhesive surface 2 b of the print medium 2 and is conveyed to the front of the paper discharge unit 104 together with the print medium 2.

  A counter roller 24 is disposed so as to face the conveying roller 22. Conveying means for sandwiching the print medium 2 and the protective belt 21 together by a conveying roller pair (rotating member pair) composed of the conveying roller 22 and the counter roller 24 and conveying the image to the image forming area by the recording head 11 is configured. doing.

  The counter roller 24 is rotatably held by the holder member 45. The holder member 45 is disposed so as to be rotatable about the shaft portion 46 as a rotation center. The holder member 45 is positioned so that the opposing roller 24 faces the conveying roller 22, and the opposing roller 24 is separated from the conveying roller 22. It is possible to displace between the open positions.

  When the roll body 4 is loaded and the printing medium 2 is set on the protective belt 21, the gap between the opposing roller 24 and the conveying roller 22 is opened, and when the printing medium 2 is conveyed, the opposing roller 24 is moved to the conveying roller 22 side. Press on. Therefore, the opposing roller 24 is pressurized toward the conveying roller 22 by a pressing means such as a spring.

  The protective belt 21 has a number of suction holes. A suction fan 27 that sucks the print medium 2 toward the surface of the protection belt 21 through a suction hole is disposed inside the protection belt 21 so as to face the recording head 11 of the image forming unit 102. .

  Note that, here, the print medium 2 is sucked to the protective belt 21 by suction. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the print medium 2 can be sucked by electrostatic force. Alternatively, the adhesive surface 2b of the print medium 2 may be fixed so as not to float from the protective belt 21 using the adhesiveness of the adhesive surface 2b.

  In addition, spur roller groups 28a, 28b, and 28c are disposed on the driven roller 23 side. The spur roller groups 28a to 28c are configured by arranging a plurality of spur rollers in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction. The upstream spur roller groups 28 a and 28 b face the protective belt 21, and the most downstream spur roller group 28 c faces the receiving member 30 of the paper discharge unit 104.

  The paper discharge unit 104 cuts the print medium 2 to a desired length on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the receiving member 30 that guides the print medium sent from between the protective belt 21 and the spur roller group 28b. A cutter unit 31 which is a cutting means to be a piece (label piece) 200 is disposed.

  The cutter unit 31 has a lower blade 31b formed on the downstream end surface of the receiving member 30 that receives the print medium 2, and a cutting blade (upper blade: cutter) 31a that cuts the print medium 2 between the lower blade. Then, the cutter 31a moves in a direction orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction to cut the print medium 2.

  A paper discharge roller 32 is disposed on the downstream side of the cutter unit 31. A spur roller 33 is disposed facing the paper discharge roller 32. By these paper discharge roller 32 and spur roller 33, the leading end of the label piece 200 cut by the cutter unit 31 is held in a state of being sent to a discharge port 105 which is a discharge port portion of the apparatus main body 100.

  Here, the surface holding the label piece 200 of the paper discharge roller 32 is subjected to, for example, non-adhesive processing (processing in which the adhesive surface does not adhere) so that the adhesive surface 2b of the label piece 200 can be peeled off. In this case, the discharge roller 32 itself can be formed of a peelable material. Further, a medium sensor 34 that detects the presence or absence of the print medium 2 is disposed.

  Further, an end of the label piece 200 in the direction (width direction) perpendicular to the medium conveying direction is sandwiched and held in the vicinity of the paper discharge roller 32 on the downstream side of the cutter unit 31, and the label is held in this state. A holding means 300 for rotating the piece 200 in the in-plane direction is disposed.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the image forming is described with the adhesive surface 2b of the print medium 2 facing the protective belt 21, but the image is formed on the adhesive surface 2b of the print medium 2. It can also be configured. In this case, it is preferable to perform a non-adhesive process (a process in which the adhesive surface does not adhere) on the surface of the counter roller 24 described above.

  In the image forming apparatus configured as described above, the printing medium 2 drawn out from the roll body 4 loaded in the paper feeding unit 101 and the protective belt 21 are sandwiched together between the conveying roller 22 and the opposing roller 24. .

  Then, the conveyance roller 22 is rotationally driven to intermittently convey the print surface 2 by a predetermined amount while the adhesive surface 2 b of the print medium 2 is protected by the protective belt 21, and to the print medium 2, the recording head of the image forming unit 102. 11, a desired image is formed.

  The protective belt 21 is peeled off from the print medium 2 on which the image is formed, and only the print medium 2 is sent to the paper discharge unit 104, and is cut at a required position by the cutter unit 31 to become a label piece 200. The label piece 200 is held between the paper discharge roller 32 and the spur roller 32 and is partially protruded from the discharge port 105 of the apparatus main body 100.

  At this time, when the length of the label piece 200 is short and cannot be protruded from the discharge port 105, the label piece 200 is rotated in-plane by the holding means 300, and a part of the label piece 200 is discharged to the discharge port. A state of protruding from 105 is made.

  Next, an outline of the control unit of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

  The control unit includes a main control unit 501 that also functions as a holding unit control unit in the present invention, a head drive control unit 502, a main scanning drive unit 503, a transport roller drive unit 505, a suction fan drive unit 507, a cutter drive unit 509, A holding means driving unit 512 and the like are provided.

  The main control unit 501 includes a CPU, a ROM and a RAM, a microcomputer such as an I / O, a VRAM, an ASIC (specific application integrated circuit), and the like.

  The main control unit 501 receives print information 500 given from the host side.

  The main control unit 501 drives and controls the conveyance motor 506 via the conveyance roller drive unit 505 and rotates the conveyance roller 22 to form the print medium 2 in order to form an image corresponding to the print information 500 on the print medium 2. While being pulled out from the roll body 4, it is conveyed intermittently. On the other hand, the main scanning motor 504 is driven and controlled via the main scanning driving unit 503, and the recording head 11 is driven and controlled via the head driving control unit 502 while moving and scanning the carriage 12 in the main scanning direction. A required droplet is ejected from the head 11.

  Here, the drive control of the transport motor 506 is performed by detecting the position (rotation amount) and speed of the transport roller 22 from the detection signal from the sub-scanning encoder (medium feed encoder) 532 and determining the target transport amount and the target transport speed. This is performed by PID (or PI) control based on the deviation. The sub-scanning encoder 532 includes an encoder wheel attached to the shaft of the transport roller 22 and an encoder sensor disposed on the apparatus main body side that reads the encoder wheel.

  Similarly, the drive control of the main scanning motor 504 is performed by detecting the position (movement amount) and speed of the carriage 12 from the detection signal from the main scanning encoder (carriage movement encoder) 531 to determine the target movement amount and the target movement speed. This is performed by PID (or PI) control based on the deviation. The main scanning encoder 531 includes an encoder scale arranged along the main scanning direction and an encoder sensor mounted on the carriage 12 that reads the encoder scale.

  When the print medium 2 is fed by rotating the transport roller 22, the suction fan motor 508 is driven and controlled via the suction fan drive unit 507, the suction fan 27 is rotated, and the print medium 2 is transferred to the protective belt 21. Adsorb on top.

  Further, the paper discharge roller 32 is driven and transmitted from the transport roller 22 and rotates the transport motor 506, so that the paper discharge roller 32 also rotates.

  Then, the main control unit 501 drives the cutter motor 510 that moves the cutter 31a of the cutter unit 31 in the main scanning direction via the cutter driving unit 509, and requires the print medium 2 on which the image by the recording head 11 is formed. The print medium piece (label piece) 200 is cut by a length of.

  The main control unit 501 is connected to an operation panel (operation unit) 520. Further, detection signals (detection signals) from various sensors in the various sensor groups 321 are input.

  The main control unit 501 holds the holding unit via the holding unit driving unit 512 when instructed by the user or when the length of the label piece 200 to be formed (the length in the transport direction) is equal to or less than a predetermined value. A motor 513 (which may be other than the motor) for driving 300 is driven to hold the end of the label piece 200 and rotate it.

  Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a front view for explaining the vicinity of the paper discharge unit, and FIG. 5 is a plan view for explaining the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. In addition, each (a) has shown the state when it cut | disconnects into a label piece, (b) has each shown the state which rotated the label piece and protruded the front-end | tip part from the discharge port (the same also in description of the following embodiment) And).

  In the present embodiment, the holding unit 300 is disposed on the downstream side of the cutter unit 31 in the medium conveyance direction, that is, on the downstream side of the paper discharge roller 32 here.

  The holding means 300 is configured by pinching members 301 and 302 that hold the end of the label piece 200 from above and below, and are rotatably arranged with the direction intersecting the label piece 200 as an axis.

  The sandwiching members 301 and 302 are opposed to each other in the vertical direction and are relatively movable in the vertical direction.

  In this embodiment configured as described above, until the cutter unit 31 cuts the label piece 200, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 5A, the holding members 301 and 302 of the holding means 300 are separated from each other. Is in a state.

  Therefore, the printing medium 2 is cut by the cutter unit 31 in a state where the printing medium 2 enters between the sandwiching members 301 and 302, and the cut label piece 200 is held at the nip between the paper discharge roller 32 and the spur roller 33. The

  At this time, since the length of the label piece 200 is short, the leading end of the label piece 200 is located on the inner side of the exterior 100 </ b> A of the apparatus main body 100 than the discharge port 105.

  Here, as shown in FIGS. 4B and 5B, the sandwiching members 301 and 302 are end portions in the direction perpendicular to the medium conveyance direction of the label piece 200 from the vertical direction and downstream in the medium conveyance direction. The end portion (that is, the “downstream corner portion”) is sandwiched and held.

  Then, with the sandwiching members 301 and 302 sandwiching (holding) the end of the label piece 200, the label piece 200 is rotated by, for example, 90 degrees in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

  As a result, the posture of the label piece 200 is changed from a posture that is long in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction to a posture that is long in the direction along the transport direction, and the label piece 200 is held in a state where a part of the label piece 200 protrudes outward from the discharge port 105. Is done.

  Therefore, the user can easily take out the label piece 200.

  In this way, even a short piece of media can be easily taken out without wasting the print medium wastefully.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is an explanatory front view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit for explaining the embodiment, and FIG. 7 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit. The description of the same configuration and action as in the first embodiment will be omitted (the same applies below).

  In the present embodiment, the spur roller 33 is disposed so as to be movable between a position where it comes into contact with the paper discharge roller 32 and a position where it is separated.

  Therefore, when the label piece 200 is rotated between the pinching members 301 and 302, the spur roller 33 is moved in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. Like to do.

  By doing so, the label piece 200 can be easily rotated, and the label surface is not damaged during the rotation.

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is an explanatory front view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit for explaining the embodiment, and FIG. 9 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit.

  In the present embodiment, the lower sandwiching member 302 includes a support portion 303 that is a member that supports the lower surface of the label piece 200 in the width direction.

  Since it comprised in this way, it can rotate in the state which supported the lower surface of the label piece 200 with the support part 303, and even if it is a wide label piece 200, it rotates the label piece 200 reliably, without dripping. A part of it can be taken out of the outlet 105.

  At this time, the length of the region supported by the support portion 303 does not have to extend over the entire width direction, and may be long enough that the tip of the support portion 303 reaches at least the discharge port 105 when rotated.

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 10 is an explanatory front view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit for explaining the embodiment, and FIG. 11 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11A, the label piece 200 is transported in a state where one end portion in the width direction is removed from the end portion of the paper discharge roller 32. The pinching members 301 and 302 of the holding unit 300 are arranged in the vicinity of an extension line in the axial direction of the paper discharge roller 32. That is, the holding unit 300 is arranged at a position aligned with the paper discharge roller 32 that is a rotating body arranged on the downstream side of the cutter unit 31 in the medium conveyance direction in a direction orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction.

  By comprising in this way, the distance with the cutter unit 31 becomes shorter than each said embodiment, and the holding | maintenance and rotation of a label piece shorter than each said embodiment can be performed.

  Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12 is an explanatory front view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit for explaining the embodiment, and FIG. 13 is an explanatory plan view of the vicinity of the paper discharge unit.

  In the present embodiment, a medium sensor 308 such as a reflective photosensor that detects the label piece 200 is disposed inside the discharge port 105.

  With this configuration, it is possible to detect that the user has taken out the label piece 200 rotated toward the discharge port 105. Then, when the label piece 200 is taken out, the next label piece forming operation (printing, conveying, cutting, etc.) can be performed.

  At this time, the arrangement position of the medium sensor 308 is preferably arranged closer to the holding unit 300 than the center of the print medium 2 in the width direction, and more preferably closer to the holding unit 300. Accordingly, even when the label piece 200 is short, the label piece 200 can be disposed at the detection position of the medium sensor 308 when the holding unit 300 is rotated. Can do.

  Next, different usage methods of the medium sensor 308 will be described. When the label piece 200 is held and rotated by the holding means 300, the medium sensor 308 detects the label piece 200, and when the label piece 200 is detected, the rotation of the holding means 300 is stopped. By doing in this way, the label piece 200 is hold | maintained in the position inclined diagonally as shown in FIG.

  By stopping at such a position, since even a label piece having a wide medium width remains in the apparatus, it can be prevented from hanging down outside the apparatus and sticking to the exterior of the apparatus. On the other hand, since the label piece is rotated until it is detected by the medium sensor 208, the corner of the label piece (the lower right corner of the label piece 200 in FIG. 13) is surely carried out of the apparatus. For this reason, the ease of taking out the label piece 200 can be reliably maintained.

  Next, a first example of the holding means will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the holding means. (A) is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram along the medium conveying direction, (b) is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram along a direction orthogonal to the medium conveying direction, and (c) is a description for explaining the guide mechanism of the shaft constituting the pinching member. FIG.

  The lower sandwiching member 302 has a shaft 314 fixed to a fixed portion in the apparatus main body 100, and a turntable 315 provided at the tip of the shaft 314 so as to be rotatable in a plane along the conveyance surface. ing.

  The upper sandwiching member 301 has a shaft 311 having a roller 310 rotatably at the lower end portion, a shaft 312 housing the shaft 311 so as to be movable therein, and a shaft 313 fitted on the outer periphery of the shaft 312. doing.

  A boss 321 is provided on the side surface of the shaft 311, and the boss 321 is movably fitted in a groove 322 formed on the side surface of the shaft 312. The shaft 311 is pushed downward by a compression coil spring 316 disposed inside the shaft 312, and the boss 321 is held in contact with the lower end of the groove 322.

  A boss 323 is provided on the side surface of the shaft 312, and the boss 323 is movably fitted in a groove 324 provided on the side surface of the shaft 313. The shaft 312 is pushed upward by a tension coil spring 317 disposed between the shaft 313 and the boss 323 is held in contact with the upper end of the groove 324.

  The shaft 313 is fixed to a fixing portion inside the apparatus main body 100. The groove 324 of the shaft 313 includes a groove portion 324a in the vertical direction (axial direction) and a groove portion 324b that is continuously inclined from the lower end portion of the groove portion 324a.

  Accordingly, the upper surface of the shaft 312 is pushed downward by a cam or the like, so that the label piece 200 can be rotated while being sandwiched, and the rotation angle of the shaft 311 can be controlled by the pushing condition.

  Next, the operation of the holding means configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, as shown in FIG. 15, by pressing the upper surface of the shaft 312 downward (arrow direction), the roller 310 at the tip of the shaft 312 comes into contact with the turntable 315 at the tip of the shaft 314. At this time, the spring 316 is not compressed, and no pressure is generated between the roller 310 and the turntable 315.

  When the shaft 312 is further pushed down from this state as shown in FIG. 16, pressure is generated between the roller 310 and the turntable 315 by the spring 316, and the shaft 312 guided by the groove 324 on the side surface of the shaft 313. The boss 323 rotates the shaft 311 by 90 degrees.

  In this state, the roller 310 is in a direction parallel to the transport direction, so that the label piece 200 held between the roller 310 and the turntable 315 can be easily taken out.

  In this first example, the roller 310 is provided at the tip of the upper shaft 311 and the turntable 315 is disposed at the tip of the lower shaft 314. However, the turntable 315 is provided at the tip of the upper shaft 311. It is also possible to arrange the roller 310 at the tip of the lower shaft 314.

  Further, by applying a non-adhesive coating to the surface of the turntable at the tip of the shaft, the resistance when the label piece 200 is taken out can be reduced even when the adhesive surface 2b side of the label piece 200 contacts. Further, the roller at the tip of the shaft can be a spur, and even when the adhesive surface 2b side of the label piece 200 is in contact, the resistance when the label piece 200 is taken out can be reduced.

  In this first example, the upper shaft 311 is moved and pressed against the fixed lower shaft 314. Conversely, the lower shaft 313 is driven to fix the upper shaft. It can also be set as the structure pressed against 311, or it can also be set as the structure which moves and presses both the shafts 314 and 311 together.

  For example, when using linerless label paper without release paper, the upper shaft 311 is fixed, the tip is moved to the turntable 315, and the lower shaft 314 is moved to make the tip spur. be able to. Thereby, the resistance at the time of taking out the label piece 200 can be reduced.

  For example, when the configuration of the third embodiment is adopted, the lower shaft 312 is moved. Thereby, the angle of the support part 303 can be controlled by the degree of pressing of the lower shaft 312.

  Next, a second example of the holding means will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the holding means. (A) is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram along the medium conveying direction, (b) is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram along a direction orthogonal to the medium conveying direction, and (c) is a description for explaining the guide mechanism of the shaft constituting the pinching member. FIG.

  The shaft 314 is a member that receives the label piece 200 from below, and can be rotated by a motor 332 via a gear 331 and a motor gear 333 formed at a lower portion.

  A rotary table 315 is provided at the tip (lower end) of the shaft 311, and the rotary table 315 can freely rotate.

  A boss 321 is provided on the side surface of the shaft 311, and the boss 321 is movably fitted in a groove 322 formed on the side surface of the shaft 312. The shaft 311 is pushed downward by a spring 316 disposed inside the shaft 312, and the boss 321 is held in contact with the lower end of the groove 322.

  A boss 323 is provided on the side surface of the shaft 312, and the boss 323 is movably fitted in a groove 324 provided on the side surface of the shaft 313. The shaft 312 is pushed upward by a spring 317 arranged between the shaft 313 and the boss 323 is held in contact with the upper end of the groove 324.

  The shaft 313 is fixed to a fixing portion inside the apparatus main body. Unlike the first example, the groove 324 of the shaft 313 has only a vertical groove.

  Thus, the label piece 200 can be sandwiched by pushing the upper surface of the shaft 312 downward with a cam or the like, but the shaft 311 does not rotate because the groove 324 on the side surface of the shaft 313 is only in the vertical direction. Depending on how the shaft 312 is pushed, the force for sandwiching the label piece 200 can be increased or decreased.

  Since it comprised in this way, the operation | movement which pinches | interposes the label piece 200 and the operation | movement which rotates the pinched label piece 200 can be performed independently.

  Therefore, after the label piece 200 is rotated, the force for pinching the label piece 200 can be reduced without rotating the label piece 200 so that the user can easily take out the label.

  Here, the upper shaft 311 is pressed and the lower shaft 314 is rotated, but conversely, the upper shaft 311 is rotated and the lower shaft 314 is pressed. .

  As in the case of the first example, a non-adhesive coating can be applied to the surface of the turntable and the rotating shaft. In addition, the tip of the shaft on the pressing side may be a roller or a spur.

  In each of the above embodiments, as described above, the holding unit 300 can perform an operation of rotating the label piece 200 in response to an instruction from the user.

  As a result, the user can rotate the label piece 200 to a state in which the label piece 200 can be taken out only when the label piece 200 cannot be taken out, thereby eliminating unnecessary rotation.

  Alternatively, the holding means 300 rotates the label piece 200 when the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or shorter than a predetermined length, that is, when the length cannot be easily ejected from the discharge port 105. The operation to be performed can be performed.

  As a result, the label piece 200 can be rotated to a state where it can be taken out only when it is not easy for the user to take out the label piece 200, and it is not necessary to perform a useless rotation operation.

  Next, a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, in the mode setting, an automatic mode or a manual mode is set by the user. The automatic mode is a mode in which it is determined whether the label piece is rotated based on the length of the image to be printed, and the label piece is rotated according to the determination result. The manual mode is a mode in which the label piece is rotated by an instruction from the user.

  Thereafter, in response to a printing instruction, printing is started. After printing is completed, the cutter unit 31 cuts the label piece 200.

  Then, the set mode is determined.

  At this time, in the automatic mode, it is determined whether or not the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or less than a threshold value.

  Here, if the length of the label piece 200 is less than or equal to the threshold value, the label piece 200 is rotated. If the length of the label piece 200 is not less than or equal to the threshold value, the process ends without rotating the label piece 200.

  In this case, the length of the label piece 200 does not have to be actually measured by a sensor or the like, and can be calculated from the transport amount of the print medium 2 at the time of printing. Further, the threshold value is a length of contact with the end of the discharge port 105 when the cut label piece 200 is rotated. The threshold value can be determined from layout information such as the length of the cut label piece 200, the distance from the cutter unit 31 to the discharge port 105, and the length of the discharge port 105 in the width direction.

  In the manual mode, it is determined whether or not the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or less than a threshold value.

  Here, if the length of the label piece 200 is less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined whether or not there is a rotation command from the user. Then, if there is a rotation command from the user, the label piece 200 is rotated. Further, if there is no rotation command from the user, the label piece 200 is terminated without rotating.

  If the length of the label piece 200 is not less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined whether or not there is a rotation command from the user. If there is no rotation command from the user, the process is terminated as it is. On the other hand, if there is a rotation command from the user, a message indicating that the label piece 200 cannot be rotated because it is long is displayed or a warning sound is emitted to notify the user that the label piece 200 cannot be rotated. finish.

  Next, a seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, as in the sixth embodiment, the user performs mode setting for setting the automatic mode or the manual mode. Thereafter, in response to a printing instruction, printing is started. After printing is completed, the cutter unit 31 cuts the label piece 200.

  Then, the set mode is determined.

  At this time, in the automatic mode, it is determined whether or not the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or less than a threshold value.

  Here, if the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or less than the threshold value, as described in the second embodiment, after the spur roller 33 is separated from the paper discharge roller 32, the label piece 200 is rotated, and then the label Decrease the holding pressure of the piece 200.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the label piece 200 is held. When the label piece 200 is extracted and no longer held, it is determined whether or not there is a next print job. If there is a print job, the process returns to the print start process. If there is no print job, the process ends.

  If the length of the label piece 200 is not less than or equal to the threshold value, the label piece 200 is not rotated, and the process proceeds to a determination process as to whether or not the label piece 200 is held as it is.

  In the manual mode, it is determined whether or not the length of the label piece 200 is equal to or less than a threshold value.

  Here, if the length of the label piece 200 is less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined whether or not there is a rotation command from the user. And if there exists a rotation command from a user, the spur roller 33 will be spaced apart and the label piece 200 will be rotated, and the process which weakens holding pressure will be performed. Further, if there is no rotation command from the user, the label piece 200 is not rotated.

  If the length of the label piece 200 is not less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined whether or not there is a rotation command from the user. If there is no rotation command from the user, if there is a rotation command from the user, an error notification indicating that the label piece 200 cannot be rotated because of the long label piece 200 is sent.

  Then, after any of these processes, the process proceeds to a process for determining whether or not the above-described label piece 200 is held.

  In this manner, the label piece can be easily rotated by separating the spur roller facing the most downstream sheet discharge roller from the sheet discharge roller before the label piece is rotated. And after rotating a label piece, it becomes easy to take out a label piece by weakening the holding pressure of the label piece by a label piece clamping member (holding means). Furthermore, by determining whether or not the label piece has been taken out, it is possible to move to the next control using the removal of the label piece as a trigger.

  “Image formation” in the present application not only applies an image having a meaning such as a character or a figure to a medium, but also applies an image having no meaning such as a pattern to the medium (for example, simply a droplet To land on a medium).

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Print medium 4 Roll body 5 Spool 11 Recording head 21 Protective belt 22 Conveyance roller 24 Opposed roller 31 Cutter unit 100 Apparatus main body 101 Paper feed part 102 Image formation part 103 Conveyance part 104 Paper discharge part 105 Output port 300 Holding means 301, 302 Clipping member

Claims (6)

Image forming means for forming an image on a print medium;
Conveying means for conveying the print medium;
Cutting means for cutting the print medium on which the image is formed into a medium piece, and
Holding means disposed rotatably on the downstream side of the cutting means in the medium conveying direction, with the end of the medium piece held in a direction intersecting the surface of the medium piece, and being rotatable about an axis.
An image forming apparatus comprising: rotating the medium piece while changing the direction while holding the medium piece by the holding unit. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the holding unit performs an operation of rotating the medium piece in response to an instruction from a user. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the holding unit performs an operation of rotating the medium piece when the length of the medium piece is equal to or less than a predetermined length. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for detecting that the medium piece is held by the holding means. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the holding unit includes a member that supports a lower surface of the medium piece in a width direction. 2. The image formation according to claim 1, wherein the holding unit is arranged at a position aligned with a rotating body arranged downstream of the cutting unit in a medium conveyance direction in a direction orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction. apparatus.

Images