JP2020142450A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a printer capable of suppressing a medium piece coming off from a holding portion by its weight.SOLUTION: A CPU of a printer obtains a medium kind (S12). The CPU specifies first medium piece amount that is medium piece amount according to the obtained medium kind, on the basis of a first medium piece amount specifying table (S21). The CPU determines whether a second medium piece amount that is medium piece amount based on printed information exceeds the specified first medium piece amount or not(S23). When the CPU determines that the second medium piece amount does not exceed the first medium piece amount (S23:NO), printing processing is executed (S24). The CPU determines that the second medium piece amount exceeds the first medium piece amount (S23:YES), excess time processing is executed (S25).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

The present invention relates to a printer.

In the printer described in Patent Document 1, printing is performed on a medium. The printed medium is conveyed to the sandwiching portion and sandwiched by the sandwiching portion. The sandwiched medium is cut by the cutting portion. The medium created by cutting (hereinafter referred to as "medium piece") is maintained in a state of being sandwiched by the sandwiching portion until the next printing is executed. After removing the medium piece from the holding portion, the user executes the next printing.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-43480

For example, if the length of the medium to be printed is long before it is cut, the length of the medium piece becomes long. In this case, the medium piece may come off from the holding portion due to its own weight by the time the user removes it from the holding portion.

An object of the present invention is to provide a printer capable of suppressing the medium piece from coming off from the holding portion due to its own weight.

The printer according to the first aspect of the present invention is provided with a printing unit that prints on a medium, a transport unit that transports the medium along the transport direction, and a print section and a transport section downstream of the transport section. A full cutter that fully cuts the medium, a sandwiching portion that is provided downstream of the full cutter in the transport direction and sandwiches the medium, an acquisition means for acquiring the type of the medium, and the full cutter. Based on a table in which the amount of the medium piece, which is the amount based on the medium piece which is the medium produced in, is determined for each type of the medium, the medium piece corresponding to the type of the medium acquired by the acquisition means. The specific means for specifying the amount of the first medium piece, which is the amount, and the amount of the second medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece based on the print information for printing on the medium by the printing unit, are specified by the specific means. When the determination means for determining whether or not the amount of the first medium piece is exceeded and the determination means for determining whether the amount of the second medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece, the first process is performed. It includes a first executing means for executing, and a second executing means for executing the second processing when the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece.

According to the first aspect, the printer can perform different processes depending on whether the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. Therefore, the printer can prevent the medium piece from coming off from the holding portion due to its own weight.

The printer according to the second aspect of the present invention is provided with a printing unit that prints on a medium, a transport unit that transports the medium along the transport direction, and a print section and a transport section downstream of the transport section. , A full cutter that fully cuts the medium, a sandwiching portion that is provided downstream of the full cutter in the transport direction and holds the medium, an acquisition means for acquiring the type of the medium, and the full cut by the full cutter. Based on the calculation formula for calculating the amount of the medium piece, which is the amount based on the medium piece which is the medium, according to the type of the medium, the amount of the medium piece according to the type of the medium acquired by the acquisition means. The calculation means for calculating the amount of a certain first medium piece and the amount of the second medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece based on the printing information for printing on the medium by the printing unit, were calculated by the calculation means. When the determination means for determining whether or not the amount of the first medium piece is exceeded and the determination means for determining whether the amount of the second medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece, the first process is executed. It includes a first executing means and a second executing means for executing a second process when the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. The second aspect can have the same effect as the first aspect.

In the printer according to the first aspect and the second aspect of the present invention, in the second process, based on the print information, the delimiter position indicating between each of the plurality of images arranged in the print order is the amount of the first medium piece. If it is determined whether or not the printer is within the reference position corresponding to the above, and if it is determined that the partition position is within the reference position, the printing unit prints on the medium based on the print information. Later, of at least one of the above-mentioned division positions up to the reference position, the position corresponding to the specific division position, which is the division position closest to the reference position, is sandwiched by the sandwiching portion, and the medium is held at the specific division position. It may be fully cut by the full cutter. In this case, when the medium piece is fully cut at the specific dividing position and the medium piece is created, the medium piece amount does not exceed the first medium piece amount. The amount of medium piece of the medium piece actually created is planned to be created more than when the medium is fully cut at a partition position other than the partition position closest to the reference position among the plurality of partition positions up to the reference position. It becomes close to the medium piece amount (second medium piece amount) of the medium piece. Therefore, the printer can prevent the medium piece from coming off from the holding portion due to its own weight while bringing the amount of the medium piece of the medium piece actually produced close to the amount of the medium piece of the medium piece to be produced.

The printer according to the first aspect and the second aspect of the present invention is provided on the downstream side in the transport direction from the printing section and upstream in the transport direction from the sandwiching section, and halves the medium sandwiched by the sandwiching section. A half cutter for cutting is provided, and the dividing position may be a position where the half cutter cuts in half. In this case, when the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece, the printer makes a full cut at the position where the half cut was planned. Therefore, the printer can prevent the medium piece from coming off from the holding portion due to its own weight while eliminating the influence on the portion where printing is performed.

In the printer according to the first aspect and the second aspect of the present invention, the notification by the notification unit may be performed in the second processing. In this case, the printer can make the user know that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece.

It is a perspective view of the printer 1. It is sectional drawing in the direction of arrow AA of FIG. 1 excluding a part of the housing 2. It is an enlarged view of the region W of FIG. 2 when the discharge roller 22 is in a nip position. It is an enlarged view of the region W of FIG. 2 when the discharge roller 22 is in a release position. It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structure of the printer 1. It is a flowchart of a main process. It is a figure for demonstrating an example of print information. It is a conceptual diagram of the 1st medium piece amount specification table 831. It is a flowchart of the excess processing.

Hereinafter, the printer 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The reference drawings are used to illustrate the technical features that can be adopted by the present invention. The configuration of the device described in the drawings is not intended to be limited thereto, but is merely an example of explanation.

The printer 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. In the following, the lower left side, upper right side, lower right side, upper left side, upper side, and lower side of FIG. 1 are defined as the left side, right side, front side, rear side, upper side, and lower side of the printer 1, respectively. The printer 1 can be connected to an external terminal (not shown) via a network, a cable (not shown), or the like. The external terminal is a personal computer, a smartphone, or the like. The printer 1 acquires print information from, for example, an external terminal. The printer 1 can print an image on the medium 5 based on the acquired print information.

As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 includes a housing 2 and a cover 3. The cover 3 is rotatably supported by the housing 2 and can be opened and closed with respect to the upper surface of the housing 2. An input unit 4 is provided at the upper left corner of the front surface of the housing 2. The user can input various information into the printer 1 by operating the input unit 4. A display unit 9 is provided below the input unit 4. The display unit 9 can display various types of information. A medium piece discharge port 11 is provided on the right side of the input unit 4. The medium piece discharge port 11 is an opening and extends in the vertical direction. The medium piece discharge port 11 discharges the medium piece 51, which will be described later, to the outside of the housing 2. A mounting portion 6 is provided on the upper surface of the housing 2. The mounting portion 6 is recessed downward from the upper surface of the housing 2. The cassette 7 is detachably mounted on the mounting portion 6.

As shown in FIG. 2, the mounting portion 6 is provided with a thermal head 60, a drive shaft 61, and a ribbon winding shaft 62. The thermal head 60 is provided on the left surface of the head holder 69. The head holder 69 is provided on the left side of the mounting portion 6. The drive shaft 61 is provided on the front side of the head holder 69 and extends in the vertical direction. The ribbon winding shaft 62 is provided on the right rear side of the head holder 69 and extends in the vertical direction.

A shaft 64 is provided on the left rear side of the mounting portion 6. The shaft 64 extends in the vertical direction and rotatably supports the rear end portion of the platen holder 63. The platen holder 63 rotatably supports the platen roller 65 and the transport roller 66, respectively. The platen roller 65 faces the thermal head 60 from the left side. The transfer roller 66 is provided on the front side of the platen roller 65 and faces the drive shaft 61 from the left side. The front end of the platen holder 63 swings substantially in the left-right direction about the shaft 64, so that the platen roller 65 and the transport roller 66 are located close to the thermal head 60 and the drive shaft 61, respectively (FIG. 2). (See) and move to a position (not shown) away from it.

The drive shaft 61, the ribbon take-up shaft 62, the platen roller 65, and the transfer roller 66 are each connected to the transfer motor 91 (see FIG. 5) via a gear (not shown). When the transfer motor 91 is driven, the drive shaft 61, the platen roller 65, and the transfer roller 66 rotate so as to convey the medium 5 downstream (forward) in the transfer direction, and the ribbon take-up shaft 62 winds the ink ribbon 8. Rotate to take.

As shown in FIG. 3, inside the housing 2, a cutting unit 10 and a discharge unit 20 are provided in the vicinity of the rear side of the medium piece discharge port 11. The cutting unit 10 includes a full cutter 12 and a half cutter 13. The full cutter 12 is provided downstream of the thermal head 60 and the transport roller 66 in the transport direction, and can fully cut the medium 5. The full cut of the medium 5 is an operation of completely separating the medium 5 into two. The half cutter 13 is provided downstream of the full cutter 12 in the transport direction, and can cut the medium 5 in half. The half-cut of the medium 5 is an operation of cutting the medium 5 along the width direction (vertical direction of FIG. 3), leaving a part of the medium 5 in the thickness direction (horizontal direction of FIG. 3).

The full cutter 12 and the half cutter 13 are respectively connected to the cutting motor 92 (see FIG. 5) via a gear (not shown). The cutting motor 92 is capable of forward rotation drive and reverse rotation drive. When the cutting motor 92 is driven in reverse, the half cutter 13 cuts the medium 5 in half. When the cutting motor 92 is driven in the forward rotation, the full cutter 12 fully cuts the medium 5. In the following, the medium 5 created by full cutting is referred to as a “medium piece 51”. That is, the medium piece 51 indicates a portion of the medium 5 that is separated when it is fully cut.

The discharge unit 20 includes a discharge roller 22, an opposing roller 23, a roller holder 25, and a moving mechanism 27. The discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 are provided downstream of the full cutter 12 and the half cutter 13 in the transport direction. The discharge roller 22 extends in the vertical direction on the left side of the medium 5. The opposing roller 23 extends in the vertical direction on the right side of the medium 5. The discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 face each other in the left-right direction with the medium 5 interposed therebetween. The discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 are elastic bodies.

The roller holder 25 supports the discharge roller 22. The roller holder 25 is provided with an elongated hole 26. The moving mechanism 27 includes a rotating body 28 and an eccentric shaft 29. The eccentric shaft 29 extends upward from the rotating body 28 and is inserted into the elongated hole 26. The eccentric shaft 29 is eccentric with respect to the rotating body 28. The rotating body 28 is connected to the discharge motor 93 (see FIG. 5) via a gear (not shown).

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the discharge motor 93 is driven, the rotating body 28 rotates via the gear. As a result, the eccentric shaft 29 moves the roller holder 25 in the left-right direction. In this way, the moving mechanism 27 moves the discharge roller 22 in the direction of approaching or separating from the opposing roller 23. In the following, the position where the discharge roller 22 is close to the opposing roller 23 is referred to as a “nip position” (see FIG. 3). The position where the discharge roller 22 is separated from the opposing roller 23 to the left is referred to as a "release position" (see FIG. 4). As shown in FIG. 3, the discharge roller 22 comes into contact with the opposing roller 23 when it is in the nip position. Therefore, when the discharge roller 22 is in the nip position, the discharge roller 22 sandwiches the medium 5 with the opposing roller 23. As shown in FIG. 4, when the discharge roller 22 is in the release position, the discharge roller 22 is separated from the opposing roller 23 at a distance larger than the thickness of the medium 5. Therefore, the discharge roller 22 is separated from the medium 5 when it is in the release position.

The cassette 7 will be described with reference to FIG. Hereinafter, the configuration of the cassette 7 will be described with reference to the posture when the cassette 7 is mounted on the mounting portion 6. The cassette 7 can be used as a receptor type, a thermal type, a laminate type, or the like. FIG. 2 shows a receptor type cassette 7 as an example.

The cassette 7 includes a case 70. A head opening 71 and a medium discharge port 73 are provided in the left front portion of the case 70. The head opening 71 penetrates the case 70 in the vertical direction and opens to the left between the medium discharge port 73 and the drive roller 72. The head holder 69 and the thermal head 60 are inserted into the head opening 71. The medium discharge port 73 is provided on the left side of the head opening 71 and opens forward.

The case 70 is provided with a drive roller 72 and support holes 75 to 78. The drive roller 72 is provided at the left front corner of the case 70 and extends in the vertical direction. The drive roller 72 is a cylinder and is rotatably supported by the case 70. A drive shaft 61 is inserted into the drive roller 72. The left end portion of the drive roller 72 is exposed to the outside from the case 70, and the medium 5 is sandwiched between the drive roller 72 and the transport roller 66.

The support hole 75 penetrates the case 70 in the vertical direction and rotatably supports the first medium spool 41. The first medium is wound around the first medium spool 41. The support hole 76 penetrates the case 70 in the vertical direction and rotatably supports the second medium spool (not shown). The second medium is wound around the second medium spool. The support hole 77 penetrates the case 70 in the vertical direction and rotatably supports the ribbon supply spool 43. The ink ribbon 8 before being used for printing is wound around the ribbon supply spool 43. The support hole 78 penetrates the case 70 in the vertical direction and rotatably supports the ribbon take-up spool 45. The ink ribbon 8 after being used for printing is wound and wound around the ribbon winding spool 45. The ribbon take-up spool 45 has a cylindrical shape. The ribbon winding shaft 62 is inserted into the ribbon winding spool 45.

In the receptor type, the cassette 7 does not include the second medium spool, but includes the first medium spool 41, the ribbon supply spool 43, and the ribbon take-up spool 45. The medium 5 is wound around the first medium spool 41 as the first medium. As the medium 5, a non-laminated tape, a fabric tape, a satin tape, a heat shrink tube, or the like is used. In the thermal type, the cassette 7 does not include the second medium spool, the ribbon supply spool 43, and the ribbon take-up spool 45, but includes the first medium spool 41 (not shown). A thermal tape is used as the first medium. In the laminated type, the cassette 7 includes a first medium spool 41, a second medium spool, a ribbon supply spool 43, and a ribbon take-up spool 45 (not shown). A double-sided adhesive tape is used as the first medium. A film tape is used as the second medium. In the laminated type, the film tape is superposed on the double-sided adhesive tape between the transport roller 66 and the drive roller 72, and is discharged as the laminated tape.

According to the above configuration, when the cover 3 (see FIG. 1) is closed, the platen roller 65 and the transport roller 66 move to positions closer to the thermal head 60 and the drive shaft 61 from the left side, respectively. As a result, the platen roller 65 superimposes the medium 5 and the ink ribbon 8 and presses them against the thermal head 60. The transport roller 66 presses the medium 5 against the drive roller 72.

When the ribbon take-up shaft 62 is rotated by driving the transfer motor 91 (see FIG. 5), the ink ribbon 8 is taken up by the ribbon take-up spool 45 and is unwound from the ribbon supply spool 43. The drawn ink ribbon 8 is pulled out from the medium discharge port 73 to the left front portion of the head opening 71. The drawn ink ribbon 8 is conveyed toward the ribbon take-up spool 45 via the platen roller 65 and the thermal head 60.

When the drive shaft 61, the platen roller 65, and the transfer roller 66 are rotated by the drive of the transfer motor 91, the medium 5 is unwound from the first medium spool 41. The delivered medium 5 is pulled out from the medium discharge port 73 to the left front portion of the head opening 71. The drawn medium 5 is conveyed toward the cutting unit 10 via the platen roller 65 and the thermal head 60, and between the transfer roller 66 and the drive roller 72.

The electrical configuration of the printer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The printer 1 includes a CPU 81. The CPU 81 functions as a processor that executes a main process (see FIG. 6) described later, and controls the printer 1 in an integrated manner. A flash memory 82, a ROM 83, a RAM 84, a thermal head 60, a transfer motor 91, a cutting motor 92, an discharge motor 93, an input unit 4, and a display unit 9 are connected to the CPU 81. The flash memory 82 is a non-temporary storage medium, and stores a program or the like for causing the CPU 81 to execute the main process. The ROM 83 is a non-temporary storage medium, and stores various parameters required by the CPU 81 when executing various programs. The first medium piece amount specifying table 831 (see FIG. 8), which will be described later, is stored in the ROM 83. The RAM 84 is a temporary storage medium, and stores temporary information such as timers, counters, and flags.

The main process will be described with reference to FIG. The user mounts the cassette 7 on the mounting portion 6 and turns on the power of the printer 1 with the cover 3 closed. When the power of the printer 1 is turned on, the CPU 81 starts the main process by expanding the program stored in the flash memory 82 in the RAM 84.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the main process is started, the CPU 81 performs a mode setting process (S11). The user selects whether or not to set the automatic full cut mode by operating the input unit 4. In the mode setting process, the CPU 81 sets the automatic full cut mode in the RAM 84 in response to the operation of the input unit 4 by the user.

The CPU 81 performs a medium type acquisition process (S12). The medium 5 accommodated in the cassette 7 has various types (hereinafter, various types) depending on the material of the medium (non-laminated tape, fabric tape, satin tape, heat shrink tube, heat sensitive tape, laminated tape, etc.), the width of the medium, and the like. There is a "medium type"). The user inputs the medium type to the printer 1 by operating the external terminal. In the medium type acquisition process, the CPU 81 acquires the medium type from an external terminal via a network, a cable, or the like. The CPU 81 stores the acquired medium type in the RAM 84.

The CPU 81 performs a print information acquisition process (S13). By operating the external terminal, the user inputs print information for printing on the medium 5 by the thermal head 60 into the printer 1. In the print information acquisition process, the CPU 81 acquires print information from an external terminal via a network, a cable, or the like. The CPU 81 stores the acquired print information in the RAM 84.

The print information includes image information, full-cut position information, half-cut position information, medium piece amount information, and the like. The image information indicates an image to be printed on the medium 5, and when there are a plurality of images, the image information indicates a plurality of images arranged in the printing order. The full-cut position information indicates the transport direction position (hereinafter, referred to as “full-cut position”) of the medium 5 to be fully cut. When there are a plurality of full-cut positions, the unit of one or more images between two adjacent full-cut positions is referred to as an "image group". That is, when there are a plurality of image groups, the full cut position indicates between each of the plurality of image groups arranged in the printing order. The half-cut position information indicates a transport direction position (hereinafter, referred to as “half-cut position”) of the medium 5 to be half-cut. When there are multiple images in the image group, the half-cut position indicates between each of the plurality of images arranged in the printing order. If half-cut is not performed, the half-cut position information is not included in the print information. The medium piece amount information indicates an amount based on the medium piece 51 (hereinafter, referred to as “medium piece amount”). The amount of the medium piece of the present embodiment is the position in the transport direction of the medium 5 sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 when the medium piece 51 is fully cut from the downstream end in the transport direction (hereinafter, “medium”). The length of the medium piece 51 in the transport direction up to the nip position) is shown. The medium nip position corresponds to the full cut position. That is, the medium nip position is always located downstream in the transport direction by the same distance with respect to the full cut position in the medium 5.

In the following, a case where print information for printing the image shown in FIG. 7A on the medium 5 is acquired will be described as an appropriate example. In FIG. 7, the position of the medium 5 to be fully cut is indicated by a broken line, and the position of the medium 5 to be half-cut is indicated by a chain line. As shown in FIG. 7A, the image information indicates a plurality of images A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, and so on. The full cut position information indicates the position C4. The half-cut position information indicates positions C1, C2, C3, and C5. The medium piece amount information indicates the length L2. The position B1 is a medium nip position corresponding to the position C4 (that is, a position in the transport direction of the medium 5 sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 when the position C4 is fully cut). A plurality of images A1, A2, A3, and A4 are one image group.

As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 81 performs a print instruction acquisition process (S14). By operating the input unit 4, the user inputs a print instruction for printing on the medium 5 into the printer 1. In the print instruction acquisition process, the CPU 81 acquires the print instruction input by the user.

The CPU 81 refers to the first medium piece amount specifying table 831 (see FIG. 8), and specifies the medium piece amount (hereinafter, referred to as “first medium piece amount”) according to the acquired medium type (S21). .. As shown in FIG. 8, in the first medium piece amount specifying table 831, the medium piece amount is determined for each medium type. Specifically, in the first medium piece amount specifying table 831, the material of the medium 5 (laminated tape, heat shrink tube, non-laminated tape, satin tape, fabric tape, heat sensitive tape) and the width of the medium 5 (18 mm, 24 mm, The amount of medium piece is determined for each 48 mm). In the medium type of the example of FIG. 7A, the length L1 is defined as the first medium piece amount. In the first medium piece amount specifying table 831, for example, in the design stage of the printer 1, the medium piece amount is determined according to the results of experiments, simulations, and the like. In the first medium piece amount specifying table 831 of the present embodiment, the maximum amount of medium pieces capable of maintaining the state in which the printer 1 holds the medium piece 51 between the ejection roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 is determined.

As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 81 specifies a medium piece amount (hereinafter, referred to as “second medium piece amount”) based on the print information stored in the RAM 84 (S22). The second medium piece amount is the medium piece amount indicated by the medium piece amount information. In the example of FIG. 7A, the length L2 is the amount of the second medium piece. The CPU 81 determines whether or not the amount of the second medium piece specified in S22 is larger than the amount of the first medium piece specified in S21 (S23).

When the amount of the second medium piece is less than or equal to the amount of the first medium piece (S23: NO), the CPU 81 performs the printing process based on the print information stored in the RAM 84 (S24). The CPU 81 prints one image group and performs one full cut in one printing process. Specifically, in the printing process, the CPU 81 moves the discharge roller 22 to the release position (see FIG. 4) by driving the discharge motor 93. As a result, the printer 1 can prevent the discharge roller 22 from hindering the transfer of the medium 5 during the printing process. The CPU 81 controls the transfer motor 91 and the thermal head 60 based on the print information. As a result, the image is printed on the medium 5 by the thermal head 60 while the medium 5 is conveyed by the transfer roller 66. When each half-cut position of the medium 5 is located at the position of the half cutter 13, the CPU 81 moves the discharge roller 22 to the nip position (see FIG. 3) by driving the discharge motor 93. The CPU 81 reversely drives the cutting motor 92 while the transport of the medium 5 is stopped, thereby half-cutting the medium 5 at the half-cut position. That is, in the printer 1, half-cutting is performed for each image. The CPU 81 drives the discharge motor 93 to move the discharge roller 22 to the release position (see FIG. 4). The CPU 81 repeats printing the image on the medium 5 and half-cutting until the printing of the image group is completed. When the full cut position of the medium 5 is located at the position of the full cutter 12, the CPU 81 drives the discharge motor 93 to move the discharge roller 22 to the nip position (see FIG. 3). The CPU 81 fully cuts the medium 5 by driving the cutting motor 92 in the forward rotation. As a result, the medium piece 51 is created. Since the amount of the second medium piece is less than or equal to the amount of the first medium piece, the printer 1 can maintain the state in which the medium piece 51 is sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. The user removes the medium piece 51 from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. Therefore, the printer 1 can prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off due to its own weight from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. The CPU 81 shifts the process to S26.

When the amount of the second medium piece is larger than the amount of the first medium piece (S23: YES), the CPU 81 performs the excess processing (see FIG. 9) (S25). In the example of FIG. 7A, since the length L2 is longer than the length L1, the CPU 81 performs the excess processing. The process shifts to S26.

The excess processing will be described with reference to FIG. Based on the print information stored in the RAM 84, the CPU 81 has a half-cut position from the downstream end of the medium piece 51 in the transport direction to a position corresponding to the amount of the first medium piece (hereinafter, referred to as “reference position”). It is determined whether or not there is (S31). The reference position is a position where the length between the medium piece 51 and the downstream end in the transport direction is the length corresponding to the amount of the first medium piece. In the example of FIG. 7A, the reference position is the position B2 where the length between the medium piece 51 and the downstream end in the transport direction is the length L1.

If there is no half-cut position up to the reference position (S31: NO), the CPU 81 shifts the process to S33. When there is a half-cut position up to the reference position (S31: YES), the CPU 81 determines whether or not the automatic full-cut mode is set in the RAM 84 (S32). When the automatic full cut mode is not set in the RAM 84 (S32: NO), the CPU 81 shifts the process to S33. When the automatic full cut mode is set in the RAM 84 (S32: YES), the CPU 81 shifts the process to S35.

In S33, the CPU 81 gives a warning notification that the created medium piece 51 may not be able to maintain the state of being sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 (S33). In the present embodiment, the CPU 81 displays a warning display on the display unit 9 to give a warning notification. The warning display is, for example, a display such as "Please note that the label may not be nipable." The CPU 81 performs a print process based on the print information stored in the RAM 84 (S34). Since the process of S34 is the same as the process of S24 (see FIG. 6), the description thereof will be omitted. Since the amount of the second medium piece is larger than the amount of the first medium piece, the printer 1 may not be able to maintain the state in which the medium piece 51 is sandwiched between the ejection roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. In this case, since the warning notification is given in advance in S33, even if the medium piece 51 comes off from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 due to its own weight, the user responds to the removed medium piece 51. it can. The CPU 81 returns the process to the main process (see FIG. 6).

In S35, in the print information stored in the RAM 84, the CPU 81 is the half cut position closest to (that is, immediately before) the reference position among at least one half cut position up to the reference position (hereinafter, “specific half cut”). "Position") is set to the full cut position (S35). In the example of FIG. 7A, there are positions C1 to C3 up to position B2. Of the positions C1 to C3, the position C3 closest to the reference position is the specific half-cut position. As shown in FIG. 7B, the position C3 is set to the full cut position. In this case, a plurality of images A1, A2, and A3 form one image group. The position B3 is a medium nip position corresponding to the position C3 (that is, a position in the transport direction of the medium 5 sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 when the position C3 is fully cut). Therefore, the amount of the medium piece 51 to be created is the length L3. Therefore, the length L3 is shorter than the length L1.

The CPU 81 performs a print process based on the changed print information stored in the RAM 84 (S36). In this case, the CPU 81 fully cuts the medium 5 at the specific half-cut position by driving the cutting motor 92 in the forward rotation. Since the other points in the process of S36 are the same as those of the process of S24, the description thereof will be omitted. In the example of FIG. 7B, the medium 5 is sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 at the position B3, and is fully cut at the position C3. Since the medium piece amount (length L3) of the created medium piece 51 is equal to or less than the first medium piece amount (length L1), the medium piece 51 is sandwiched between the ejection roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 in the printer 1. Can be maintained. The user removes the medium piece 51 from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. Therefore, the printer 1 can prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off due to its own weight from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. The CPU 81 returns the process to the main process.

As shown in FIG. 6, after the processing of S24 or the processing of S25, the CPU 81 determines whether or not there is remaining printing based on the print information stored in the RAM 84 (S26). If there is image information indicating an image group that has not been printed yet, the CPU 81 determines that there is remaining printing (S26: YES). In this case, the CPU 81 returns the process to S21. When the printing of all the image groups is completed, the CPU 81 determines that there is no remaining printing (S26: NO). In this case, the CPU 81 ends the main process.

As described above, when the amount of the second medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece (S23: NO), the CPU 81 executes the printing process (S25). When the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece (S23: YES), the CPU 81 executes the excess processing (S25). In this way, the printer 1 can execute different processes depending on whether or not the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. Therefore, the printer 1 can prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 due to its own weight.

The medium 5 is fully cut by the full cutter 12 at a specific half-cut position. The specific half-cut position is the half-cut position closest to the reference position among at least one half-cut position up to the reference position. Therefore, when the medium piece 51 is fully cut at the specific half-cut position (S35, S36), the amount of the medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece. The amount of the medium piece of the medium piece 51 actually created is larger than that of the case where the medium 5 is fully cut at a half cut position other than the half cut position closest to the reference position among the plurality of half cut positions up to the reference position. , It becomes close to the medium piece amount (second medium piece amount) of the medium piece 51 that was planned to be created. Therefore, the printer 1 brings the amount of the medium piece 51 of the medium piece 51 actually created close to the amount of the medium piece 51 of the medium piece 51 that was planned to be created, and the medium piece 51 is caused by its own weight to be opposed to the discharge roller 22. It is possible to suppress the deviation from the 23.

When the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece (S23: YES), the printer 1 fully cuts the medium 5 at the position where the half-cut was planned (specific half-cut position) (S35, S36). .. Therefore, the printer 1 can prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 due to its own weight, while eliminating the influence on the portion of the medium 5 where printing is performed.

In the excess processing, a warning display is displayed on the display unit 9 (S33). Therefore, the printer 1 can make the user know that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. That is, the user can grasp that the created medium piece 51 may come off between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23.

In the above embodiment, the thermal head 60 corresponds to the "printing unit" of the present invention. The transport roller 66 corresponds to the "conveyor portion" of the present invention. The discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 correspond to the "holding portion" of the present invention. The CPU 81 that executes the process of S12 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "acquisition means" of the present invention. The first medium piece amount specifying table 831 corresponds to the "table" of the present invention. The CPU 81 that executes the process of S21 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "specific means" of the present invention. The CPU 81 that executes the process of S23 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "determination means" of the present invention. The process of S24 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "first process" of the present invention. The CPU 81 that executes the process of S24 of FIG. 6 corresponds to the "first execution means" of the present invention. The process of S25 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "second process" of the present invention. The CPU 81 that executes the process of S25 in FIG. 6 corresponds to the "second execution means" of the present invention. The half-cut position of the present invention corresponds to the "separation position" of the present invention. The display unit 9 corresponds to the "notification unit" of the present invention.

The present invention can be variously modified from the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, in the process of S21, the CPU 81 specifies the amount of the first medium piece based on the first medium piece amount specifying table 831. On the other hand, in the process of S21, the CPU 81 may calculate the amount of the first medium piece based on the calculation formula for calculating the amount of the medium piece according to the medium type. The following formula (1) is an example of the calculation formula. An equation other than the equation (1) may be used as the calculation equation.
L = fN / dWT ・ ・ ・ (1)
L: Amount of first medium piece (unit: mm)
N: Fixed value regardless of medium type (unit: mm ³ )
f: Friction coefficient of medium 5 (unit:-)
W: Width of medium 5 (unit: mm)
T: Thickness of medium 5 (unit: mm)
d: Specific gravity of medium 5 (unit:-)

In the formula (1), the fixed value (N) is predetermined by experiments, simulations, etc., for example, at the design stage of the printer 1. For example, the thickness (T) of the medium 5 and the specific gravity (d) of the medium 5 may be regarded as constant regardless of the medium type. In this case, the printer 1 can calculate the amount of the first medium piece by acquiring the width (W) of the medium 5 and the friction coefficient (f) of the medium 5 in the process of S12. According to this modification, the printer 1 has the same effect as that of the above embodiment, and can handle more media types. In this case, the CPU 81 that executes the process of S21 corresponds to the "calculation means" of the present invention. A table in which the width and the coefficient of friction according to the medium type are determined may be stored in the ROM 83 in advance. In this case, if the printer 1 acquires the medium type in the process of S12, the printer 1 specifies the width (W) of the medium 5 and the friction coefficient (f) of the medium 5 according to the acquired medium type by referring to the table. Then, the amount of the first medium piece can be calculated. In the formula (1), at least one of the thickness (T) of the medium 5 and the specific density (d) of the medium 5 may be considered depending on the medium type, and the specific gravity (d) of the medium 5 is determined by the medium type. It may be considered constant regardless.

In the above embodiment, the user inputs the medium type and the print information to the printer 1 by operating the external terminal. On the other hand, the user may input the medium type and the print information into the printer 1 by operating the input unit 4. In the above embodiment, the user operates the input unit 4 to set the automatic full-cut mode and input the print instruction to the printer 1. On the other hand, the user may set the automatic full cut mode and input the print instruction to the printer 1 by operating the external terminal.

One or both of the case 70 and the medium 5 may be provided with a storage unit (not shown) such as a QR code (registered trademark), a barcode, and an RF (Radio Frequency) tag. When the storage unit is provided on the medium 5, specifically, the storage unit may be provided on the core of the medium 5 (for example, the first medium spool 41). In the storage unit, information indicating the medium type corresponding to the medium 5 housed in the case 70 is stored. The case 70 may be provided with an identification unit (not shown). The identification portion is a convex portion or a concave portion formed in a pattern indicating the medium type according to the medium 5 housed in the case 70. The cassette 7 may include one or both of a storage unit and an identification unit. The printer 1 may include a reading unit (not shown) corresponding to each storage unit and identification unit. The reading unit may read information indicating the medium type from the storage unit or the identification unit. As a result, the CPU 81 may acquire the medium type in the process of S12.

The elements that determine the medium type are not limited to the material of the medium 5 and the width of the medium 5. The medium type may be determined according to, for example, either the material of the medium 5 or the width of the medium 5, the thickness of the medium 5 may be taken into consideration, or the specific gravity of the medium 5 and the width of the medium 5 may be used. It may be determined accordingly, or it may be determined according to the mass per unit transport direction length.

The cutting unit 10 may have a configuration in which the medium 5 can be fully cut or half-cut with one cutter. In this case, one cutter corresponds to the "full cutter" and "half cutter" of the present invention. That is, the "half cutter" of the present invention may be the same member as the "full cutter" of the present invention. The printer 1 may be configured not to include a cutting motor 92 and to perform full cut and half cut by operating the full cutter 12 and the half cutter 13. The half cutter 13 may cut the medium 5 in half by forming perforations extending in the width direction on the medium 5.

The printer 1 does not have to include the half cutter 13. That is, the printer 1 does not have to half-cut the medium 5 at the half-cut position. Hereinafter, the position corresponding to the half cut of the above embodiment is referred to as a “separation position”. The printer 1 may print, for example, a mark indicating the division position at the division position of the medium 5. The delimiter position of the medium 5 may be previously marked as a delimiter position. A margin may be provided at the dividing position of the medium 5. In these cases, the user can recognize the dividing position in the created medium piece 51.

At the nip position, the discharge roller 22 may face the opposing roller 23 at a distance smaller than the thickness of the medium 5. At the release position, the discharge roller 22 may face the opposing roller 23 at a distance smaller than the thickness of the opposing roller 23 and the medium 5. The load that the discharge roller 22 presses the medium 5 against the opposing roller 23 may be smaller at the release position than at the nip position. The discharge roller 22 does not have to be movable between the nip position and the release position. The discharge roller 22 may always be located at a position where it comes into contact with the opposing roller 23, or may always be located at a position facing the opposing roller 23 at a distance smaller than the thickness of the medium 5. The opposing roller 23 may move with respect to the discharging roller 22. Both the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 may move.

One or both of the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 may be non-rotatable (ie, not necessarily rollers), for example plate-shaped. In this case, the printer 1 can sandwich the medium piece 51 with a simple structure. One or both of the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 may not be elastic bodies.

When the automatic full cut mode is not set in the excess processing (S32: NO), the CPU 81 may perform only the warning notification (S33) without performing the printing processing. In this case, the printer 1 does not create the medium piece 51 when the medium piece 51 may come off from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. Therefore, the printer 1 can prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off due to its own weight from between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. When the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece (S23: YES), the CPU 81 may perform, for example, a warning notification and perform a process of not executing the print process instead of the excess time process. In this case, the printer 1 may not be provided with the automatic full cut mode.

When the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece (S23: YES), the printer 1 may perform a full cut so that at least the amount of the medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece. For example, the CPU 81 may set the full cut position so that the amount of the medium piece becomes the amount of the second medium piece in the process of S35 without executing the process of S31.

In the above embodiment, the CPU 81 gives a warning by displaying a warning on the display unit 9. On the other hand, the printer 1 may include an LED, a speaker, and the like, and the CPU 81 may give a warning notification by lighting / blinking by the LED, voice output from the speaker, and the like. The CPU 81 may transmit an instruction for giving a warning notification to an external terminal via a network, a cable, or the like. When the control unit of the external terminal receives an instruction for performing the warning notification from the printer 1, the control unit of the external terminal may perform the warning notification on the display unit or the like of the external terminal.

In the above embodiment, the amount of the medium piece is the length of the medium piece 51 in the transport direction from the downstream end of the produced medium piece 51 in the transport direction to the position of the medium nip. On the other hand, the amount of the medium piece is the length of the medium piece 51 in the transport direction from the downstream end in the transport direction of the created medium piece 51 to the full cut position (that is, the total length of the medium piece 51 in the transport direction). It may be. The amount of the medium piece may be the mass of the medium piece 51 from the downstream end in the transport direction of the medium piece 51 to the full cut position, or may be the total mass of the medium piece 51. In the above embodiment, the maximum medium piece amount that allows the printer 1 to maintain the medium piece 51 sandwiched between the ejection roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 is set in the first medium piece amount specifying table 831. On the other hand, the medium piece amount set in the first medium piece amount specifying table 831 is the maximum medium piece amount that allows the printer 1 to maintain the medium piece 51 sandwiched between the ejection roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. For example, the amount of the medium piece may be smaller than the maximum amount that the printer 1 can maintain the state in which the medium piece 51 is sandwiched between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23. In this case, the printer 1 can more reliably prevent the medium piece 51 from coming off between the discharge roller 22 and the opposing roller 23 due to its own weight.

Instead of the CPU 81, a microcomputer, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or the like may be used as a processor. The main processing may be distributed processing by a plurality of processors. The non-temporary storage medium may be any storage medium capable of storing information regardless of the period for storing the information. The non-temporary storage medium may not include a temporary storage medium (eg, a signal to be transmitted). The program may be, for example, downloaded from a server connected to the network (that is, transmitted as a transmission signal) and stored in the flash memory 82. In this case, the program may be stored in a non-temporary storage medium such as a hard disk drive provided in the server. The above-mentioned modifications may be combined with each other as long as there is no contradiction.

1 Printer 4 Input unit 5 Media 9 Display unit 12 Full cutter 13 Half cutter 22 Discharge roller 23 Opposing roller 51 Media piece 60 Thermal head 66 Conveying roller 81 CPU
82 Flash memory 83 ROM
84 RAM
831 First medium piece amount specification table

Claims (5)

A printing unit that prints on media and
A transport unit that transports the medium along the transport direction,
A full cutter provided downstream of the printing unit and the transport unit in the transport direction to fully cut the medium,
A holding portion provided downstream of the full cutter in the transport direction and holding the medium, and a holding portion.
An acquisition means for acquiring the type of the medium, and
The medium acquired by the acquisition means based on a table in which the amount of the medium piece, which is the amount based on the medium piece which is the medium produced by being fully cut by the full cutter, is determined for each type of the medium. A specific means for specifying the amount of the first medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece according to the type of
It is determined whether or not the amount of the second medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece based on the print information for printing on the medium by the printing unit, exceeds the amount of the first medium piece specified by the specific means. Judgment means to do
When the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece, the first execution means for executing the first process and the first execution means.
A printer including a second execution means for executing a second process when the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. A printing unit that prints on media and
A transport unit that transports the medium along the transport direction,
A full cutter provided downstream of the printing unit in the transport direction to fully cut the medium,
A holding portion provided downstream of the full cutter in the transport direction and holding the medium, and a holding portion.
An acquisition means for acquiring the type of the medium, and
Acquired by the acquisition means based on a calculation formula for calculating the amount of a medium piece, which is an amount based on the medium piece, which is the medium produced by being fully cut by the full cutter, according to the type of the medium. A calculation means for calculating the amount of the first medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece according to the type of the medium.
It is determined whether or not the amount of the second medium piece, which is the amount of the medium piece based on the print information for printing on the medium by the printing unit, exceeds the amount of the first medium piece calculated by the calculation means. Judgment means to do
When the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece does not exceed the amount of the first medium piece, the first execution means for executing the first process and the first execution means.
A printer including a second execution means for executing a second process when the determination means determines that the amount of the second medium piece exceeds the amount of the first medium piece. In the second process,
Based on the print information, it is determined whether or not the delimiter position indicating between each of the plurality of images arranged in the print order is within the reference position corresponding to the amount of the first medium piece.
When it is determined that the dividing position is up to the reference position, at least one of the dividing positions up to the reference position after printing on the medium by the printing unit based on the print information. Among them, the position corresponding to the specific division position, which is the division position closest to the reference position, is sandwiched by the sandwiching portion.
The printer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the medium is fully cut by the full cutter at the specific delimiter position. A half cutter provided downstream of the printing portion in the transport direction and upstream of the sandwiching portion in the transport direction and half-cutting the medium sandwiched by the sandwiching portion is provided.
The printer according to claim 3, wherein the dividing position is a position that is half-cut by the half cutter. The printer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein in the second process, notification is performed by the notification unit.

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