JP2018192709A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

To inhibit deterioration of the print quality caused by cutting of a medium.SOLUTION: A printer 1 includes: a print part 3 which makes prints on a medium 6 transported in a transport direction; a downstream side support part 29 having a support surface 80 which supports the medium 6; and a medium dry part 7 which is disposed facing the support surface 80 and heats and dries the printed medium 6. The downstream support part 29 has a cutting guide 90 which extends in a direction intersecting with the transport direction and guides a cutter for cutting the medium 6. The cutting guide 90 is disposed at the downstream side of the medium dry part 7 in the transport direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, printing apparatuses that convey a long sheet by a roll-to-roll conveyance system and print an image or the like are known. Some of such printing apparatuses include an auxiliary mechanism when a user cuts a long sheet with a cutter. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a printer (printing apparatus) that includes a cutter groove used when cutting paper and a paper pressing member for pressing the paper in the vicinity of the cutter groove.

JP 2009-113439 A

  However, the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 presses the medium with a paper pressing member against the support surface that supports the medium when cutting the medium (paper). In other words, since the printing surface of the medium immediately after printing is pressed by the paper pressing member, the ink before drying adheres to the paper pressing member, and the print quality of the image printed on the medium may be deteriorated.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

  Application Example 1 A printing apparatus according to this application example is disposed so as to face a support member, a printing unit that performs printing on a medium conveyed in a conveyance direction, a support member that has a support surface that supports the medium, and the support surface. And a medium drying section that heats and dries the printed medium, and the support member has a cutting guide that extends in a direction intersecting the transport direction and guides a cutter for cutting the medium. And the said cutting guide is provided in the downstream of the said conveyance direction rather than the said medium drying part, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to this application example, the printing apparatus includes the medium drying unit that heats and dries the printed medium. In addition, the support member that supports the medium is provided with a cutting guide that guides a cutter used when the user cuts the medium on the downstream side of the medium drying unit in the medium transport direction. In other words, when the medium is cut, since the printed medium is dried by the medium drying unit, it is possible to prevent the print quality from being deteriorated due to the cutting action of the medium by the user. Further, the medium can be easily cut by moving the cutter along the cutting guide.

  Application Example 2 In the printing apparatus described in the application example, it is preferable that the cutting guide has a flat surface that generates a magnetic force.

  According to this application example, since the cutting guide has a flat surface that generates magnetic force, the cutter is attracted to the flat surface by the magnetic force. As a result, the cutter can be moved along the flat surface of the cutting guide while being stabilized, so that the medium can be suitably cut.

  Application Example 3 In the printing apparatus according to the application example, it is preferable that the flat surface is formed separately from the support surface.

  According to this application example, the flat surface of the cutting guide is formed separately from the support surface. For example, when the support surface and the flat surface are integrally formed, the support surface is also magnetized by the magnetic force of the flat surface, so that metal powder adheres to the support surface and damages the medium or hinders the transport of the medium. May cause problems. In the printing apparatus of this application example, since the flat surface and the support surface are formed separately, the above problem can be prevented from occurring.

  Application Example 4 In the printing apparatus according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the cutting guide is provided on an end surface on the downstream side of the support member in the transport direction.

  According to this application example, since the cutting guide is provided on the end face on the downstream side of the support member that supports the medium, the cutting guide can be easily installed.

  Application Example 5 In the printing apparatus described in the application example, it is preferable that the flat surface is orthogonal to the transport direction.

  According to this application example, the flat surface is orthogonal to the transport direction. As a result, the medium can be cut at a substantially right angle with respect to the end portion in the width direction of the medium, so that it is possible to reduce the waste paper of the medium, which is an area that cannot be used for printing, caused by cutting.

  Application Example 6 In the printing apparatus according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the flat surface is subjected to a texture.

  According to this application example, the contact area between the flat surface and the cutter is reduced by applying a texture to the flat surface. As a result, the frictional resistance when the cutter is moved along the flat surface of the cutting guide is also reduced, thereby reducing the labor required when the user cuts the medium.

1 is a side view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment. The perspective view which shows the principal part of a printing apparatus. The side view which shows the structure of the downstream support part of a printing apparatus. FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of a printing apparatus according to a first modification. The side view which shows the structure of the downstream support part of a printing apparatus. FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of a printing apparatus according to a second modification. The side view which shows the structure of the downstream support part of a printing apparatus.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the scale of each member or the like is shown differently from the actual scale so as to make each member or the like recognizable.
1, 3, 5, and 7, for convenience of explanation, the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis are illustrated as three axes orthogonal to each other, and the tip end side of the arrow illustrating the axial direction is shown. The “+ side” and the base end side are “− side”. The direction parallel to the X axis is referred to as “X axis direction”, the direction parallel to the Y axis is referred to as “Y axis direction”, and the direction parallel to the Z axis is referred to as “Z axis direction”.

(Embodiment)
The printing apparatus described in the present embodiment is an ink jet printer that includes a medium drying unit that heats and dry an ink discharged medium. In the present embodiment, a roll-to-roll large format printer (LFP) that handles a relatively large medium will be described as a configuration example of a printing apparatus.

  FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the printing apparatus. The configuration of the printing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printing apparatus 1 is configured to apply ink as a liquid to a transport unit 2 that transports a medium 6 in a roll-to-roll manner, and to a medium 6 that is transported in a transport direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. It has a printing unit 3 that prints images and characters by discharging, a medium support unit 4 that supports the medium 6, a tension applying unit 5 that can apply tension to the medium 6, and the like. A control unit (not shown) for controlling is provided. Each of these components is supported by the main body frame 10. The medium 6 is, for example, a vinyl chloride film having a width of about 64 inches (Inch). In the present embodiment, the vertical direction along the direction of gravity is the Z axis. A direction crossing the Z axis and transporting the medium 6 in the printing unit 3 is defined as a Y axis. The width direction of the medium 6 that intersects both the Z axis and the Y axis is taken as the X axis.

  The transport unit 2 includes a feeding unit 21 that feeds the roll-shaped medium 6 to the printing unit 3 in the transport direction (the arrow direction in the figure), and a winding unit 22 that winds up the medium 6 printed and sent out by the printing unit. And have. The transport unit 2 includes transport roller pairs 23 and 24 that transport the medium 6 in a transport path between the feeding unit 21 and the winding unit 22. Note that, in the present embodiment, the printing apparatus 1 having the two conveyance roller pairs 23 and 24 is illustrated, but a printing apparatus having one conveyance roller pair or three or more conveyance roller pairs may be used.

  The feeding unit 21 holds a roll body in which the unused medium 6 is wound in a cylindrical shape. A plurality of sizes of roll bodies having different widths (lengths in the X-axis direction) and winding numbers of the medium 6 are exchangeably loaded in the feeding unit 21. Then, the feeding unit 21 rotates the roll body counterclockwise in FIG. 1, whereby the medium 6 is unwound from the roll body and fed to the printing unit 3. A roll body is formed on the winding unit 22 by winding the medium 6 printed by the printing unit 3 into a cylindrical shape. The winding unit 22 includes a pair of holders 22a that sandwich a core material for winding the medium 6 to form a roll body. One holder 22a is provided with a winding motor (not shown) for supplying rotational power to the core member. When the winding motor is driven to rotate the core material, the medium 6 is wound around the core material to form a roll body.

  The printing unit 3 includes a recording head (inkjet head) 31 that can eject ink onto the medium 6 and a carriage 32 that is mounted with the recording head 31 and can reciprocate in the width direction (X-axis direction) of the medium 6. Have. The recording head 31 includes a plurality of nozzles, and is configured to be able to eject ink that is selected in relation to the medium 6 and requires permeation drying or evaporation drying. Then, by ejecting ink from the recording head 31 while reciprocating the carriage 32 in the X-axis direction, images, characters, and the like can be printed on the medium 6. In this embodiment, the recording head 31 is exemplified by a serial head type mounted on the carriage 32 and ejecting ink while moving in the width direction (± X axis direction) of the medium 6. It may be a line head type extending in the X axis direction) and arranged in a fixed manner.

  The medium support unit 4 can support the medium 6 in the conveyance path of the medium 6. The medium support unit 4 includes a platen 28 disposed opposite to the printing unit 3, an upstream support unit 27 provided between the feeding unit 21 and the platen 28, and the platen 28 and the winding unit 22. And a downstream support portion 29 as a support member having a support surface 80 that supports the medium 6.

  The tension applying unit 5 applies tension to the medium 6 between the transport roller pair 24 and the winding unit 22. The tension applying unit 5 of the present embodiment is configured to be able to apply tension to the medium 6 between the downstream support unit 29 and the winding unit 22. The tension applying unit 5 includes a pair of rotatable arms 54, a tension bar 55 supported by one end of the pair of arms 54 and in contact with the medium 6, and a weight unit 52 supported by the other end of the pair of arms 54. It consists of The pair of arms 54 are connected by a tension bar 55 and a weight portion 52. As a result, the tension applying unit 5 rotates about the rotation shaft 53, whereby the tension bar 55 applies a predetermined tension to the medium 6 while displacing the contact position with the medium 6.

  A medium drying unit 7 for heating and drying the medium 6 printed by the printing unit 3 and conveyed on the support surface 80 is provided at a position facing the support surface 80 of the downstream support unit 29. The medium drying unit 7 opens in a rectangular casing toward the support surface 80 and communicates with two openings 71 and 72 arranged in the transport direction, and a communication path 73 that connects the two openings 71 and 72. A blower fan 74 that is provided in the path 73 and generates an airflow from one of the two openings 71 and 72 toward the other is provided.

  The medium drying unit 7 includes a heating unit 75 that evaporates ink attached to the printed medium 6. The heating unit 75 is provided at a position facing the support surface 80 between the two openings 71 and 72. For example, the heating unit 75 is an infrared heater that evaporates ink using electromagnetic waves. When the medium 6 is irradiated with infrared rays by the heating unit 75, the gas containing the vaporized ink is taken into the communication path 73 from one of the two openings 71 and 72 by the blower fan 74. And a vapor | steam is collect | recovered because gas passes through the collection | recovery part (not shown) which collect | recovers the vapor | steam provided in the communication path 73, and is exhausted from the other opening part. In this way, the ink of the medium 6 is dried by circulating the gas by the blower fan 74.

  FIG. 3 is a side view illustrating the configuration of the downstream support portion of the printing apparatus. Next, the cutting guide 90 provided in the downstream side support part 29 is demonstrated with reference to FIG.2 and FIG.3.

  The support surface 80 of the downstream support unit 29 includes a first support surface 81 that faces the medium drying unit 7 and a second support surface 82 that is located downstream of the first support surface 81 in the conveyance direction of the medium 6. doing. In addition, a pair of side surface members 29a are disposed at both ends intersecting the conveying direction of the first support surface 81 and the second support surface 82, and the first support surface 81 and the second support surface 82 are the side surface members. It is supported by 29a and constitutes a downstream support portion 29.

  The downstream support portion 29 as a support member extends in a direction (X-axis direction) intersecting the conveyance direction of the medium 6, and a cutting guide 90 that guides a cutter (not shown) for cutting the medium 6. Have. The cutting guide 90 has a flat surface 91. The cutter is used when the user manually cuts the medium 6. Specifically, the downstream support portion 29 is provided with a slit-like recess 92 extending in a direction intersecting the transport direction. A flat surface 91 that covers the side wall is provided on the downstream side wall of the slit-shaped recess 92. The cutting guide 90 is composed of the recess 92 and the flat surface 91.

  Note that the upstream side wall of the slit-shaped recess 92 is covered by the downstream end of the first support surface 81 facing the medium drying unit 7. That is, the cutting guide 90 is provided on the downstream side in the transport direction with respect to the medium drying unit 7. Further, the distance S1 between the first support surface 81 and the flat surface 91 is set to a dimension slightly wider than the blade thickness of the cutter. In the printing apparatus 1 configured as described above, when the medium 6 is cut, the printed medium 6 is dried by the medium drying unit 7, so that the print quality is deteriorated by the cutting action of the medium 6 by the user. Can be suppressed. Further, when the user moves the cutter along the flat surface 91 of the cutting guide 90, the medium 6 can be easily cut.

  Although the cutting guide 90, that is, the flat surface 91 has been described as extending in the direction intersecting the transport direction, it is more preferable that the flat surface 91 is orthogonal to the transport direction. By making the flat surface 91 orthogonal to the transport direction, the medium 6 is cut at a substantially right angle with respect to the end portion in the width direction (X-axis direction) of the medium 6. 6 waste paper can be reduced.

  Further, the flat surface 91 of the present embodiment is magnetized so as to generate a magnetic force. That is, the flat surface 91 generates a magnetic force by the permanent magnet. By using a cutter containing a ferromagnetic substance such as iron or nickel for cutting the medium 6, the cutter is attracted to the flat surface 91 by magnetic force. Accordingly, the user can move the cutter 6 along the flat surface 91 of the cutting guide 90 with the cutter being stabilized, so that the medium 6 can be suitably cut.

  The flat surface 91 is formed separately from the support surface 80 (first support surface 81, second support surface 82). The first support surface 81 and the flat surface 91 are arranged in a state of being separated from each other by a distance S1 between both inner wall surfaces of the slit-shaped recess 92 in the transport direction of the medium 6. The flat surface 91 and the second support surface 82 are arranged in a state of being separated from each other by an interval S2 in the conveyance direction of the medium 6. For example, when the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82 and the flat surface 91 are formed in an integrated or connected state, the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82 are also magnetized by the magnetic force of the flat surface 91. As a result, metal powder or the like may adhere to the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82, which may cause problems such as damage to the medium 6 or hindering the conveyance of the medium 6. In the printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the flat surface 91 and the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82 are arranged in a state of being separated from each other, so that the above problem can be prevented from occurring. Although the flat surface 91 of the cutting guide 90 has been described as having a magnetic force generated by a permanent magnet, the flat surface 91 has an electromagnet, and the electromagnet generates a magnetic force on the flat surface 91. Also good.

  In addition, the flat surface 91 of the present embodiment is subjected to a texture process. By providing a pattern having fine irregularities on the surface of the flat surface 91 by embossing, the contact area between the flat surface 91 and the cutter is reduced. Thereby, since the frictional resistance when the cutter adsorbed by the magnetic force generated on the flat surface 91 is moved along the flat surface 91 is reduced, the labor when the user cuts the medium 6 is reduced.

In the present embodiment, as an example of a printing apparatus, a configuration in which a long medium 6 is supplied by a roll method has been described as an example. However, for example, a long medium 6 that has been cut into a predetermined length in advance. May be configured to be supplied in a single wafer mode.
In the present embodiment, as an example of the printing apparatus, the configuration in which the medium 6 is wound in a roll shape has been described as an example. However, for example, the discharge basket attached by replacing the medium 6 after printing with the winding unit 22. The structure accommodated in may be sufficient.

As described above, according to the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
The printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a medium drying unit 7 that heats and dries the medium 6 at a position facing the first support surface 81 of the downstream support unit 29. In addition, a cutting guide 90 that extends in a direction intersecting the transport direction and guides a cutter used when the user cuts the medium 6 is provided downstream of the medium drying unit 7 in the transport direction. Thereby, when the medium 6 is cut, since the printed medium 6 is dried by the medium drying unit 7, it is possible to prevent the print quality from being lowered due to the cutting action of the medium 6 by the user. Further, the medium 6 can be easily cut by moving the cutter along the flat surface 91 of the cutting guide 90.

  The cutting guide 90 has a flat surface 91 that generates a magnetic force. By using a cutter containing a ferromagnetic substance such as iron or nickel for cutting the medium 6, the cutter is attracted to the flat surface 91 by magnetic force. Accordingly, the cutter 6 can be moved along the flat surface 91 of the cutting guide 90 while being stabilized, so that the medium 6 can be suitably cut.

  The flat surface 91 is formed separately from the first support surface 81 and the second support surface 82. As a result, the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82 are magnetized by the magnetic force of the flat surface 91, so that metal powder or the like adheres to the first and second support surfaces 81 and 82 and damages the medium 6. Further, it is possible to prevent the possibility of hindering the conveyance of the medium 6.

The flat surface 91 is orthogonal to the transport direction. As a result, the medium 6 is cut at a substantially right angle with respect to the end portion in the width direction (X-axis direction) of the medium 6, so that the waste paper of the medium 6 that is an unprintable region caused by the cutting can be reduced. it can.
Since the flat surface 91 is textured, the contact area between the flat surface 91 and the cutter is reduced. Thereby, since the frictional resistance when the cutter adsorbed by the magnetic force generated on the flat surface 91 is moved along the flat surface 91 is reduced, the labor when the user cuts the medium 6 is reduced.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and improvements can be added to the above-described embodiment. A modification will be described below.

(Modification 1)
FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the printing apparatus according to the first modification. FIG. 5 is a side view showing the configuration of the downstream support portion of the printing apparatus. Next, the cutting guide 190 provided in the downstream support portion 129 of the printing apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. In addition, about the component same as embodiment, the same number is attached | subjected and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The printing apparatus 100 includes a downstream support portion 129 that is provided between the platen 28 and the winding unit 22 and has a support surface 180 that supports the medium 6. A pair of side surface members 29 a are disposed at both ends of the support surface 180 intersecting the transport direction, and the support surface 180 is supported by the side surface members 29 a and constitutes a downstream side support portion 129.

  The cutting guide 190 is provided on the downstream end face of the downstream support portion 129 as a support member in the transport direction. The cutting guide 190 extends in a direction (X-axis direction) that intersects the conveyance direction of the medium 6. The cutting guide 190 extends from the flat surface 191 provided along the downstream end surface of the downstream support portion 129 and the lower side (−Z axis side) of the downstream support portion 129 to the downstream side in the transport direction. A cutter guide 193 that is bent in an L-shape so as to face the flat surface 191 and further extends. That is, the flat surface 191 and the cutter guide 193 have a bottomed slit shape.

  The support surface 180 and the flat surface 191 are substantially orthogonal. Further, the flat surface 191 generates a magnetic force by a permanent magnet. By using a cutter containing a ferromagnetic substance such as iron or nickel for cutting the medium 6, the cutter is attracted to the flat surface 191 by a magnetic force. Accordingly, the cutter 6 can be moved along the flat surface 191 of the cutting guide 190 while being stabilized, so that the medium 6 can be suitably cut. Further, since the cutting guide 190 includes the cutter guide 193 that covers the cutter blade, the medium 6 can be safely cut. Although the flat surface 191 of the cutting guide 190 has been described as having a magnetic force generated by a permanent magnet, the flat surface 191 has an electromagnet, and the electromagnet generates a magnetic force on the flat surface 191. Also good.

(Modification 2)
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the printing apparatus according to the second modification. FIG. 7 is a side view illustrating the configuration of the downstream support portion of the printing apparatus. Next, the cutting guide 290 provided in the downstream support portion 129 of the printing apparatus 200 will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, about the component same as embodiment or the modification 1, the same number is attached | subjected and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The cutting guide 290 is provided on the downstream end face of the downstream support portion 129 as a support member in the transport direction. The cutting guide 290 extends from the lower surface (the −Z-axis side surface) of the rectangular parallelepiped 294 having a flat surface 291 substantially orthogonal to the support surface 180 to the downstream side in the conveying direction, and further faces the flat surface 291. And a cutter guide 293 extending in an L shape. That is, the flat surface 291 is formed on the downstream surface of the rectangular parallelepiped 294, and the flat surface 291 and the cutter guide 293 have a bottomed slit shape.

  In a side view shown in FIG. 7, a hammerhead-shaped locking portion that protrudes in a T-shape toward the inside of the downstream end surface of the downstream support portion 129 is provided on the surface opposite to the flat surface 291 of the rectangular parallelepiped 294. 295 is provided. Further, on the downstream end face of the downstream support portion 129, a groove portion 296 that follows the hammer head shape of the locking portion 295 extends in a direction (X-axis direction) intersecting the conveyance direction of the medium 6. That is, the rectangular parallelepiped 294 having the flat surface 291 is locked to the groove portion 296 by the locking portion 295 and is configured to be movable in the width direction of the medium 6.

  The flat surface 291 generates a magnetic force by a permanent magnet. As a result, by using a cutter containing a ferromagnetic substance such as iron or nickel for cutting the medium 6, the cutter sticks to the flat surface 291 by a magnetic force. Since the cutter attached to the flat surface 291 can be moved along the groove 296 along with the rectangular parallelepiped 294 in the X-axis direction, the medium 6 can be suitably cut. Further, since the cutting guide 290 includes the cutter guide 293 that covers the cutter blade, the medium 6 can be safely cut. The flat surface 291 of the cutting guide 290 has been described as having a magnetic force generated by a permanent magnet. Also good.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,100,200 ... Printing apparatus, 2 ... Conveyance part, 3 ... Printing part, 4 ... Medium support part, 5 ... Tension provision part, 6 ... Medium, 7 ... Medium drying part, 10 ... Main body frame, 21 ... Feed Part 22, winding part 23, 24, transport roller pair, 27 upstream support part, 28 platen 29 129 downstream support part 31 recording head 32 carriage 80, 180 support 81, first support surface, 82 ... second support surface, 90, 190, 290 ... cutting guide, 91, 191, 291 ... flat surface, 193, 293 ... cutter guide.

Claims (6)

A printing unit for printing on a medium conveyed in the conveying direction;
A support member having a support surface for supporting the medium;
A medium drying section that is disposed to face the support surface and heat-drys the printed medium,
The support member has a cutting guide that extends in a direction intersecting the transport direction and guides a cutter for cutting the medium,
The printing apparatus, wherein the cutting guide is provided on a downstream side of the medium drying unit in the transport direction.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutting guide has a flat surface that generates a magnetic force.   The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the flat surface is formed separately from the support surface.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutting guide is provided on an end face on the downstream side of the support member in the transport direction.   The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the flat surface is orthogonal to the transport direction.   The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the flat surface is textured.

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