JP2022100890A - Printer and thermal head - Google Patents

Abstract

To attach or detach a thermal head easily and make reliable electric connection of the thermal head at the same time.SOLUTION: A printer of the invention performs printing on a conveyed sheet. The printer has: a holding part which holds a thermal head; a first restriction part which restricts an orientation of the thermal head attached to the holding part; and a second restriction part which restricts a position of the thermal head in a sheet width direction. Further, the holding part includes: a body pivotally supported by a lid part of the printer; and a door which is pivotally supported by the body and rotated between an open position in which the thermal head is attached or detached and a closed position in which the thermal head is held. The thermal head is sandwiched by the door rotated to the closed position and the body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to a printer and a thermal head which have a plurality of heat generating elements arranged in the width direction of the paper to be conveyed and print on the paper by heat generated by any of the heat generating elements of the plurality of heat generating elements.

A thermal printer that prints using a thermal head on a printing medium such as a strip-shaped label material or a paper material is generally provided. The thermal head is a consumable item, and it is necessary to replace the thermal head when the thermal head has reached the end of its life or has failed. Since the replacement of the thermal head is carried out by sending it to the factory owned by the seller of the thermal printer or by a maintenance company, the owner who owns the thermal printer is burdened with the replacement of the thermal head.

In recent years, a thermal printer has been proposed that allows the owner to easily replace the thermal head (see Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2). In Patent Document 1, the thermal head is held inside the printer in a state where one end side of the thermal head in the lateral direction is fitted to the print head base and one end is engaged with the print head holder. In Patent Document 1, the thermal head is removed from the print head holder by deforming the print head holder to disengage the engagement on one end side of the thermal head.

Further, in Patent Document 2, the thermal head is fixed to the head unit by fitting a protrusion provided on the claw into a groove provided on the side surface of the thermal head. Patent Document 2 discloses that the connector is connected to the connection portion of the thermal head by rotating the shielding member toward the head unit. Therefore, in Patent Document 2, the work of removing the thermal head from the head unit includes the work of rotating the shielding member in a direction away from the head unit to disconnect the connector and the connection portion of the thermal head, and the inside of the claw. It is necessary to release the fitting between the protrusion provided in the above and the groove of the thermal head.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-133364 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2019-147347

As described above, in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, the thermal head is attached and detached by elastically deforming the claws of the print head holder and the head unit. Therefore, when an unfamiliar user replaces the thermal head, there is a problem that the thermal head is damaged in addition to the print head holder and the claws of the head unit.

Further, in Patent Document 2, the connection or disconnection between the connector and the connection portion of the thermal head is performed by opening and closing the shielding member. To attach the thermal head to the head unit, for example, after inserting the convex portion of the head unit into the concave portion of the thermal head, the protrusion provided on the claw is fitted into the groove provided on the side surface of the thermal head. Therefore, if the accuracy of assembling the connector to the head unit is poor, there is a problem that the connector is not reliably connected to the connection portion of the thermal head.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of easily attaching and detaching a thermal head and at the same time reliably making an electrical connection of the thermal head. Is.

In order to solve the above problems, according to the first aspect, in a printer that prints on conveyed paper, the orientation of the holding portion that holds the thermal head and the thermal head that is attached to the holding portion is restricted. It is characterized by having a first regulation unit and a second regulation unit that regulates the position of the thermal head in the width direction of the paper.

Further, from another viewpoint, in the thermal head which is held by the holding portion provided in the printer and prints in a state where the conveyed paper is pressed against the platen roller, a plurality of heat generating elements and the plurality of heat generating elements are generated. It is located on the back side of the heat radiating member, the first surface in which the plurality of heat generating elements are arranged along the width direction of the paper, and the back side of the first surface, and is provided on the heat radiating member and the holding portion. The substrate includes a second surface having a contact portion that is in contact with the terminal portion, and the substrate includes the holding portion when the thermal head in the first orientation is attached to the holding portion. By disabling the reception of the guide portion when the thermal head having a second orientation different from the first orientation is attached to the holding portion while receiving the guide portion provided in the above. It is characterized by having a regulating portion that regulates the orientation of the thermal head mounted on the holding portion.

According to the present invention, the thermal head can be easily attached and detached, and at the same time, the electrical connection of the thermal head can be reliably performed.

It is a perspective view which shows an example of the appearance of the printer in 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the main configuration which concerns on printing among the internal configurations of a printer. FIG. 3A is a perspective view showing an example of the appearance of the roller holding portion when the protective cover is in the closed position, and FIG. 3B is an example of the appearance of the roller holding portion when the protective cover is in the closed position. It is a perspective view which shows. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the structure of a head holding part and a thermal head. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when a thermal head is attached to an opening / closing door. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when the opening / closing door is rotated to a closed position. (A) A cross-sectional view showing the positional relationship between the head holding portion and the roller holding portion when the lid is open, and (b) the positional relationship between the head holding portion and the roller holding portion when the lid is closed. be. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the structure of the head holding part and the thermal head in 2nd Embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when the thermal head is attached to the main body. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when the opening / closing door is rotated to a closed position. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the structure of the head holding part and the thermal head in 3rd Embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when the thermal head is attached to the main body. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the head holding part when the opening / closing door is rotated to a closed position.

Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the printer to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the printer of the present embodiment. Further, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a main configuration related to printing among the configurations inside the printer.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the printer 10 performs thermal head printing in the process of transporting the paper 21a unwound from the paper roll 21 housed therein, and prints the printed paper from, for example, from the front surface of the printer 10. It is a device for discharging. The information printed on the paper is, for example, information based on the operation of the display panel 22 by the user.

The printer 10 includes a printer main body 15, a lid portion 16, and a handle 17. The lid portion 16 is pivotally supported on the back side of the printer main body 15, and is opened and closed, for example, when the paper roll 21 is loaded or the thermal head 85, which will be described later, is replaced. The lid portion 16 arranges the display panel 22 on the upper surface.

The handle 17 is rotatably supported on both side surfaces of the printer body 15. The handle 17 is gripped by the user when transporting the printer 10.

The printer 10 has a roller holding portion 23 in the printer main body 15. Further, the printer 10 pivotally supports the head holding portion 26 on the lid main body 25 of the lid portion 16. The roller holding portion 23 and the head holding portion 26 are arranged so that when the lid portion 16 is closed, the heat generating element row 90 of the thermal head 85 can be pressed against the platen roller 28 described later. ..

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the roller holding portion 23 pivotally supports the transport roller 27 and the platen roller 28.

The roller holding portion 23 has side plates 31, 32, a connecting plate 33, and a holding cover 34. The side plates 31 and 32 are arranged at regular intervals in the y direction in FIG. 3 (b). The connecting plate 33 is arranged between the side plates 31 and 32 arranged at regular intervals.

The side plates 31 and 32 detachably hold the platen roller 28 on one end side in the x direction in FIGS. 3A or 3B. Further, the side plates 31 and 32 pivotally support the holding cover 34 on the other end side in the x direction in FIGS. 3A or 3B.

The side plates 31 and 32 pivotally support the connecting shaft 35. Both ends of the connecting shaft 35 in the axial direction (y direction in FIG. 3) are projected outward from the side plates 31 and 32, respectively. The connecting shaft 35 fixes the locking pieces 36 and 37 to the outwardly protruding portions of the side plates 31 and 32, respectively.

Although not shown, the locking pieces 36 and 37 are urged in the A direction shown in FIG. 3A and held at the locking position shown in FIG. 3A. The locking position is the position of the locking pieces 36, 37 when the lid portion 16 is closed and is locked to the connecting shaft 63, which will be described later. The engaging portion provided on the lid main body 25 of the lid portion 16 is provided corresponding to each of the locking pieces 36 and 37. Further, the locking pieces 36 and 37 rotate in the B direction in FIG. 3A by being operated by an opening / closing lever (not shown) or being pressed by the connecting shaft 63.

Of the side plates 31 and 32, the side plate 31 is provided with a drive mechanism (not shown) for rotating the transport roller 27 and the platen roller 28, respectively. The drive mechanism may be, for example, a mechanism composed of a plurality of gears, or a mechanism composed of a belt and a pulley.

The connecting plate 33 is an L-shaped member arranged so as to straddle the rear surface of the roller holding portion 23 from the upper surface of the roller holding portion 23. The connecting plate 33 has bearing portions 41, 42 on the upper surface and in the vicinity of the bent portion of the connecting plate 33. The bearing portions 41 and 42 hold the transport roller 27.

Further, the connecting plate 33 has openings 43 and 44 along the axial direction (y direction in FIG. 3A or FIG. 3B) of the transport roller 27 held by the bearing portions 41 and 42. The opening 43 inserts the locking piece 50 provided on the lower surface side of the holding cover 34 when the holding cover 34 is moved to the closed position. The opening 44 inserts the locking piece 51 provided on the lower surface side of the holding cover 34 when the holding cover 34 is moved to the closed position.

The holding cover 34 is pivotally supported around the vicinity of the transport roller 27 held by the roller holding portion 23 as a rotation center. The holding cover 34 rotates between the closed position shown in FIG. 3 (a) and the open position shown in FIG. 3 (b).

When the holding cover 34 is in the closed position, the holding cover 34 is located above the connecting plate 33. In this state, the transport roller 27 held by the roller holding portion 23 is pivotally supported by the connecting plate 33 and the holding cover 34. Further, the platen roller 28 is pivotally supported by the side plates 31, 32 and the holding cover 34.

On the other hand, when the holding cover 34 is in the open position, the holding cover 34 retracts from above the connecting plate 33. In this state, the transport roller 27 is in a state of being held by the connecting plate 33 after the shaft support by the connecting plate 33 and the holding cover 34 is released. At the same time, the platen roller 28 is in a state in which the shaft support by the side plates 31, 32 and the holding cover 34 is released and is held across the side plates 31, 32. Therefore, when the holding cover 34 is in the open position, the transport roller 27 can be attached to and detached from the connecting plate 33. Further, the platen roller 28 can also be attached to and detached from the side plates 31 and 32.

The holding cover 34 is an end portion that is the center of rotation of the holding cover 34, and both ends in the width direction of the holding cover 34, that is, in the axial direction of the transport roller 27 (in FIGS. 3A or 3B). A guide piece 34a and a shaft insertion portion 34b are provided at one end in the y direction), and a guide piece 34c and a shaft insertion portion 34d are provided at the other end. The guide piece 34a enters between the side plate 31 and the bearing portion 41 of the connecting plate 33 when the holding cover 34 is rotated from the open position to the closed position. Further, the guide piece 34c enters between the side plate 32 and the bearing portion 42 of the connecting plate 33 when the holding cover 34 is rotated from the open position to the closed position.

When the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position, the shaft insertion portion 34b has one end portion in the axial direction of the transport roller 27 (the left end portion in FIG. 3A or FIG. 3B). Get in. The shaft insertion portion 34d is the other end portion in the axial direction of the transport roller 27 (the right end portion in FIG. 3A or FIG. 3B) when the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position. Enters.

The holding cover 34 has shaft holding portions 45, 46 at both ends on the free end side and at both ends in the width direction of the holding cover 34, that is, at both ends in the axial direction of the transport roller 27. The shaft holding portion 45 has a shaft inserting portion 45a and a positioning protrusion 45b. When the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position, the shaft insertion portion 45a has one end portion in the axial direction of the platen roller 28 (the left end portion in FIGS. 3A or 3B). Get in. Further, the positioning protrusion 45b is centered on the rotation center of the lid portion 16 on the regulation piece 65 provided on the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 pivotally supported by the lid main body 25 of the lid portion 16 when the lid portion 16 is closed. It is abutted from the side (see FIGS. 7 (a) and 7 (b)).

The shaft holding portion 46 has a shaft inserting portion 46a and a positioning protrusion 46b. The shaft insertion portion 46a is the other end portion in the axial direction of the platen roller 28 (the right end portion in FIG. 3A or FIG. 3B) when the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position. Enters. Further, the positioning protrusion 46b is centered on the rotation center of the lid portion 16 on the regulation piece 66 provided on the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 pivotally supported by the lid main body 25 of the lid portion 16 when the lid portion 16 is closed. It is abutted from the side (see FIGS. 7 (a) and 7 (b)).

Therefore, when the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position, the transport roller 27 is pivotally supported between the connecting plate 33 and the holding cover 34, and at the same time, the platen roller 28 is pivotally supported between the side plates 31 and 32 and the holding cover 34. do. Further, when the lid portion 16 is closed while the holding cover 34 is in the closed position, the positioning protrusion 45b is attached to the regulation piece 65 provided on the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26, and the positioning protrusion 46b is the main body of the head holding portion 26. The head holding portion 26 is positioned with respect to the roller holding portion 23 by being brought into contact with each of the regulation pieces 66 provided on the 61.

The holding cover 34 has openings 47, 48 along the width direction (FIG. 3 (a) or FIG. 3 (b) y direction). The holding cover 34 has locking pieces 50, 51 protruding downward from the peripheral edges of the openings 47, 48, respectively. The locking pieces 50 and 51 have a substantially V-shape that is convex downward. One end of the locking piece 50 is fixed to the peripheral edge of the opening 47 on the lower surface of the holding cover 34. The locking piece 50 has a locking projection 50a at the free end. When the locking piece 50 is inserted into the opening 43 of the connecting plate 33 when the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position, the locking projection 50a engages with the peripheral edge of the opening 43 on the lower surface of the connecting plate 33. Be stopped. Similarly, one end of the locking piece 51 is fixed to the peripheral edge of the opening 48 on the lower surface of the holding cover 34. The locking piece 51 has a locking projection 51a at its free end. When the locking piece 51 is inserted into the opening 44 of the connecting plate 33 when the holding cover 34 is rotated to the closed position, the locking projection 51a engages with the peripheral edge of the opening 44 on the lower surface of the connecting plate 33. Be stopped.

For locking to the connecting plate 33 by the locking pieces 50 and 51, for example, a finger is inserted through each of the openings 47 and 48 provided in the holding cover 34 to fix the free end side of the locking pieces 50 and 51. It is released by pressing it sideways and elastically deforming the locking pieces 50 and 51, respectively.

The transport roller 27 is held on the upper surface of the connecting plate 33 of the roller holding portion 23. The transport roller 27 rotates while sandwiching the paper 22a sent out from the paper roll 21 with the transport roller 55 pivotally supported by the lid main body 25 of the lid portion 16, and rotates the strip-shaped paper 21a on the downstream side in the transport direction. That is, it is sent toward the platen roller 28.

The platen roller 28 is held on the downstream side of the transport roller 27, straddling the side plates 31 and 32 of the roller holding portion 23. When the lid portion 16 is closed, the platen roller 28 rotates while receiving the back surface of the paper 21a against which the heat generating element row 90 of the thermal head 85 is pressed. The paper 21a sent out from the paper roll 21 is sandwiched by the transport roller 27 and the transport roller 55, and at the same time, is sandwiched by the thermal head 85 and the platen roller 28. In this state, the paper 21a located between the transport roller 27 and the platen roller 28 is held in a state of floating from the upper surface of the connecting plate 33.

Returning to FIG. 2, the lid portion 16 is pivotally supported on the rear end side of the printer body 15 described above. The lid portion 16 has a lid body 25. The lid body 25 holds the head holding portion 26 on the front side of the printer 10.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the head holding portion 26 has a main body 61 and an opening / closing door 62. The main body 61 is pivotally supported by, for example, the lid main body 25. By pivotally supporting the main body 61 to the lid main body 25, the heat generating element row 90 of the thermal head 85 can be reliably pressed against the platen roller 28.

The main body 61 pivotally supports the opening / closing door 62 on the lower end side in the z direction in FIG. Therefore, the axial direction of the opening / closing door 62 is the y direction in FIG. The main body 61 is pivotally supported by the lid main body 25 by the connecting shaft 63 on the back surface side opposite to the side on which the opening / closing door 62 opens / closes. The connecting shaft 63 is held with both ends protruding from the main body 61. When the lid portion 16 is closed, the locking pieces 36, 37 provided on the roller holding portion 23 are locked to both ends of the connecting shaft 63.

The main body 61 has the restricting pieces 65 and 66 on the upper end side in the z direction in FIG. 4 and at both ends in the y direction. The length (interval) from the inner wall surface of the restricting piece 65 to the inner wall surface of the restricting piece 66 is set to be substantially the same as the length of the thermal head 85. The restricting pieces 65 and 66 restrict the movement of the thermal head 85 mounted on the head holding portion 26 in the width direction when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position. Further, when the lid portion 16 is closed, the restricting piece 65 is attached to the positioning protrusion 45b of the shaft holding portion 45 of the holding cover 34 of the printer main body 15, and the restricting piece 66 is attached to the shaft holding portion 46 of the holding cover 34 of the printer main body 15. Each of the positioning protrusions 46b is abutted from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. By these abutments, the head holding portion 26 is positioned on the roller holding portion 23.

The main body 61 has positioning protrusions 67 and 68 between the regulation pieces 65 and 66. The positioning protrusion 67 is inserted into the insertion hole 97 of the thermal head 85 mounted on the opening / closing door 62 when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position. The positioning protrusion 68 is inserted into the insertion hole 98 of the thermal head 85 mounted on the opening / closing door 62 when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position. As a result, the thermal head 85 is positioned with respect to the main body 61.

The main body 61 has bosses 69 and 70 below the positioning protrusions 67 and 68. The boss 69 has a recess 69a at the tip end portion. The recess 69a comes into contact with the positioning protrusion 81 provided on the opening / closing door 62 when the opening / closing door 62 rotates to the closed position. The boss 70 has a recess 70a at the tip end portion. The recess 70a comes into contact with the positioning protrusion 82 provided on the opening / closing door 62 when the opening / closing door 62 rotates to the closed position.

The main body 61 has an opening (not shown) between the bosses 69 and 70 (not shown). The opening is arranged on the lower end side where the opening / closing door 62 is pivotally supported. A terminal portion 71 is inserted through the opening. The terminal portion 71 has a plurality of connection terminals 72 that are in contact with the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85.

The main body 61 has engaging portions 73 and 74 at both ends in the y direction in FIG. The engaging portion 73 engages with the recess 77a provided in the locking piece 77 of the opening / closing door 62. Further, the engaging portion 74 engages with the recess 78a provided in the locking piece 78 of the opening / closing door 62.

The opening / closing door 62 is, for example, a substantially rectangular member. The opening / closing door 62 is pivotally supported on the lower end side of the main body 61 with one end side in the lateral direction as the center of rotation. The opening / closing door 62 rotates with the thermal head 85 attached, with the y direction in FIG. 4 as the rotation center line between the closed position (see FIG. 6) and the open position (see FIG. 4). When the opening / closing door 62 is in the closed position, the thermal head 85 is held in a state where the contact portion 88 is pressed against a plurality of connection terminals 72 provided in the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61.

On the other hand, when the opening / closing door 62 is in the open position, the thermal head 85 rotates together with the opening / closing door 62. As a result, the pressure contact between the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 and the plurality of connection terminals 72 provided in the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61 is released.

The opening / closing door 62 has locking pieces 77 and 78 at both ends in the lateral direction, which are opposite to the one end side which is the center of rotation, and at both ends in the longitudinal direction. The locking pieces 77 and 78 are substantially V-shaped members having one end connected to the opening / closing door 62. The locking piece 77 has a recess 77a on the free end side. The recess 77a engages with the engaging portion 73 provided in the main body 61. The locking piece 78 has a recess 78a on the free end side. The recess 78a engages with the engaging portion 74 provided in the main body 61. The opening / closing door 62 is held in the closed position by engaging the recess 77a of the locking piece 77 with the engaging portion 73 of the main body 61 and the recess 78a of the locking piece 78 with the engaging portion 74 of the main body 61. Will be done.

The opening / closing door 62 has positioning protrusions 81, 82 and a guide piece 83 on a surface facing the main body 61 when it is in the closed position. The positioning protrusion 81 is inserted into the insertion hole 91 of the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 when the thermal head 85 is mounted. Further, the positioning protrusion 82 is inserted into the insertion hole 92 of the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 when the thermal head 85 is mounted.

The guide piece 83 can be attached to the opening / closing door 62 in the correct direction by inserting the guide piece 83 into the notch portion 93 provided in the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85. When the thermal head 85 is mounted in the correct orientation, the thermal head 85 holds the contact portion 88 of the substrate 86 on the upper surface side.

The thermal head 85 includes a substrate 86 and a heat sink 87. The substrate 86 has a contact portion 88 having a plurality of contacts on one side to which the heat sink 87 is fixed. The contact portion 88 is pressed against a plurality of connection terminals 72 protruding from the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61 when the thermal head 85 is attached to the head holding portion 26. As shown in FIG. 6, the substrate 86 has a heat generating element row 90 extending in the width direction (y direction in FIG. 6) of the paper 22a on a surface opposite to the surface on which the contact portion 88 is provided. The heat generating element row 90 is formed by arranging a plurality of heat generating elements.

The substrate 86 has insertion holes 91 and 92 on the outer side of the contact portion 88. The insertion hole 91 inserts the positioning protrusion 81 of the opening / closing door 62, and the insertion hole 92 inserts the positioning protrusion 82 of the opening / closing door 62. Further, the substrate 86 has a notch portion 93 on one end side in the width direction. The notch 86a receives the guide piece 83 of the opening / closing door 62 when the thermal head 85 is attached to the opening / closing door 62.

The heat radiating plate 87 dissipates heat generated by the heat generating element row 90. The heat sink 87 has insertion holes 95 and 96. The insertion hole 95 is inserted with the positioning protrusion 67 when the opening / closing door 62 is moved to the closed position. The insertion hole 96 is inserted with the positioning protrusion 68 when the opening / closing door 62 is moved to the closed position.

Next, a procedure for attaching the thermal head 85 to the head holding portion 26 will be described. The lid 16 of the printer 10 is opened to expose the head holding portion 26 pivotally supported by the lid body 25. At this time, the opening / closing door 62 of the head holding portion 26 is in the closed position. Therefore, the free end of the locking piece 77 of the opening / closing door 62 and the free end of the locking piece 78 are pressed downward (in the C direction in FIG. 6). When the free end of the locking piece 77 and the free end of the locking piece 78 are pressed downward, the locking piece 77 and the locking piece 78 are elastically deformed. As a result, the engagement between the recess 77a of the locking piece 77 and the engaging portion 73 of the main body 61 and the engagement between the recess 78a of the locking piece 78 and the engaging portion 74 of the main body 61 are released. In this state, the opening / closing door 62 is rotated from the closed position to the open position. The opening / closing door 62 holds the thermal head 85. Therefore, when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the opening position, the connection between the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 held by the opening / closing door 62 and the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61 is released.

After the opening / closing door 62 rotates to the opening position, the thermal head 85 is removed from the opening / closing door 62, and a new thermal head 85 is attached to the opening / closing door 62. At this time, the thermal head 85 is attached to the opening / closing door 62 so that the contact portion 88 of the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 is located on the upper surface side.

When the thermal head 85 is attached to the opening / closing door 62, the thermal head 85 inserts the positioning protrusion 81 of the opening / closing door 62 into the insertion hole 91 and the positioning protrusion 82 of the opening / closing door 62 through the insertion hole 92. At this time, the notch 93 of the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 receives the guide piece 83 of the opening / closing door 62. This allows the thermal head 85 to be mounted in the correct orientation.

In this state, the opening / closing door 62 is rotated from the open position to the closed position. When the opening / closing door 62 is rotated from the open position to the closed position, the engaging portion 73 of the main body 61 comes into contact with the guide surface 77b provided near the recess 77a of the locking piece 77 of the opening / closing door 62, and the locking piece The 77 is elastically deformed. At the same time, the engaging portion 74 of the main body 61 abuts on the guide surface 78b provided in the vicinity of the recess 78a of the locking piece 78 of the opening / closing door 62, and the locking piece 78 is elastically deformed.

Then, when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position, the engaging portion 73 of the main body 61 engages with the recess 77a of the locking piece 77. At the same time, the engaging portion 74 of the main body 61 engages with the recess 78a of the locking piece 78. As a result, the opening / closing door 62 is held in the closed position.

When the opening / closing door 62 is in the closed position, the positioning protrusion 67 of the main body 61 is inserted into the insertion hole 95 of the thermal head 85 mounted on the opening / closing door 62. At the same time, the positioning protrusion 68 of the main body 61 is inserted into the insertion hole 96 of the thermal head 85 mounted on the opening / closing door 62. As a result, the thermal head 85 is positioned with respect to the main body 61. In this state, the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 is held in a state of being pressed against each connection terminal 72 of the terminal portion 71 provided on the main body 61. At this time, the terminal portion 71 provided on the main body 61 is arranged on the rotation center side of the opening / closing door 62, so that the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 is connected to each connection terminal 72 of the terminal portion 71 provided on the main body 61. It is surely pressed.

Further, the positioning protrusion 81 of the opening / closing door 62 is in contact with the recess 69a of the boss 69 of the main body 61, and the positioning protrusion 82 of the opening / closing door 62 is in contact with the recess 70a of the boss 70 of the main body 61. As a result, the opening / closing door 62 is positioned with respect to the main body 61.

When the lid portion 16 is closed in this state, one end of the connecting shaft 63 of the head holding portion 26 pivotally supported by the lid main body 25 is the locking claw 36a of the locking piece 36, and the other end is the locking piece 37. Each of the locking claws 37a is pressed. As a result, the locking piece 36 and the locking piece 37 rotate in the B direction in FIG. 4A. Then, when the lid portion 16 is completely closed, the locking pieces 36 and 37 rotate in the direction A in FIG. 4A and return from the retracted position to the locked position. As a result, the locking pieces 36 and 37 are locked to the connecting shaft 63.

Here, when the holding cover 34 of the roller holding portion 23 is in the closed position, the positioning projection 45b of the shaft holding portion 45 of the holding cover 34 regulates the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 when the lid portion 16 rotates. It is located outside the movement locus of the piece 65. Similarly, the positioning protrusion 46b of the shaft holding portion 46 of the holding cover 34 is located outside the movement locus of the regulation piece 66 of the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 when the lid portion 16 rotates. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the lid portion 16 is closed while the holding cover 34 of the roller holding portion 23 is in the closed position (in the D direction in FIG. 7A). The regulation piece 65 of the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 is brought into contact with the positioning protrusion 45b of the shaft holding portion 45 of the holding cover 34 from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. At the same time, the regulation piece 66 of the main body 61 of the head holding portion 26 is brought into contact with the positioning projection 46b of the shaft holding portion 46 of the holding cover 34 from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. As a result, the head holding portion 26 is positioned with respect to the roller holding portion 23 in the front-rear direction of the printer 10. When the lid portion 16 is closed, the heat generating element row 90 of the thermal head 85 held by the head holding portion 26 is in a state of being pressed against the platen roller 28. Further, in a state where the thermal head 85 is mounted on the head holding portion 26, the heat generating element row 90 provided on the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 is exposed from the opening / closing door 62.

After attaching the thermal head 85 to the opening / closing door 62, the thermal head 85 can be easily attached to the head holding portion 26 by rotating the opening / closing door 62 to the closed position. Further, by rotating the opening / closing door 62 to the closed position, the contact portion 88 of the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 and the plurality of connection terminals 72 provided in the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61 can be pressed into contact with each other. Therefore, it is not necessary to use the connector configuration for the thermal head 85 and the head holding portion 26, and the configuration of the thermal head 85 and the head holding portion 26 can be simplified.

In this embodiment, the open / close door 62 is rotated from the open position to the closed position while the thermal head 85 is positioned and held by the open / close door 62. When the opening / closing door 62 rotates to the closed position, the contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 comes into contact with each connection terminal 72 of the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61. The contact portion 88 of the thermal head 85 is held by the opening / closing door 62 by the positioning protrusions 81 and 82 provided on the opening / closing door 62 in order to ensure the contact state between the contact portion 88 of the main body 61 and the connection terminal 72 of the terminal portion 71 of the main body 61. In addition to the function of positioning the thermal head 85, when the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position, the vicinity of the insertion holes 91 and 92 provided in the substrate 86 of the thermal head 85 is pressed toward the main body 61. It is also possible to have a function.

In the above-described embodiment, in the head holding portion 26, the thermal head 85 is attached to the head holding portion 26 by attaching the thermal head 85 to the opening / closing door 62 and then rotating the opening / closing door 62 to the closed position. Although the case is illustrated, the method of mounting the thermal head on the head holding portion is not limited to this. For example, the thermal head can be attached to the head holding portion by attaching the opening / closing door to the main body instead of the opening / closing door and then rotating the opening / closing door to the closed position.

<Second Embodiment>
As shown in FIG. 8, the head holding portion 100 has a main body 101 and an opening / closing door 102, similarly to the head holding portion 26 exemplified in the first embodiment. The main body 101 has a regulation piece 103 and an engagement portion 104 at one end in the width direction (y direction in FIG. 8), and a regulation piece 105 and an engagement portion 106 at the other end. The length (interval) from the inner wall surface of the regulation piece 103 to the inner wall surface of the regulation piece 105 is set to be substantially the same as the length of the thermal head 120. The main body 101 has a terminal portion 107 at the lower end portion that is the center of rotation of the opening / closing door 102 and at the lower center portion in the width direction. The terminal portion 107 has a plurality of connection terminals 108. The plurality of connection terminals 108 are pressed against the contact portion 123 of the thermal head 120 when the opening / closing door 102 is in the closed position.

The main body 101 has magnets 111 and 112 between the regulation pieces 103 and 105 in the y direction in FIG. The magnets 111 and 112 may be electromagnets or permanent magnets. The magnets 111 and 112 adsorb the ferromagnets 127 and 128 provided on the thermal head 120.

The main body 101 has bosses 113 and 114 for positioning below the magnets 111 and 112 in the z direction in FIG. The positioning bosses 113 and 114 have convex portions 113a and 114a at their tips. The convex portion 113a is inserted into the opening 124 provided in the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120. The convex portion 114a is inserted through an opening 125 provided in the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120. As a result, the thermal head 120 is positioned with respect to the main body 101.

Further, the main body 101 has a guide protrusion 115 below the regulation piece 103 in the z direction in FIG. When the thermal head 120 is attracted to the magnets 111 and 112 of the main body 101, the guide protrusion 115 enters the notch 126 provided in the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120.

The opening / closing door 102 has the same basic configuration as the opening / closing door exemplified in the first embodiment. That is, the opening / closing door 102 has a rectangular shape, and is pivotally supported on the lower end side of the main body 101 with one end side in the lateral direction as the center of rotation. The opening / closing door 102 is locked to both ends in the longitudinal direction (y direction in FIG. 8) at both ends in the lateral direction, which are opposite to the one end side pivotally supported by the main body 101. It has pieces 116 and 117.

The opening / closing door 102 is a pressing protrusion 118 on the surface facing the main body 101 when rotated to the closed position and at a position shifted from the center in the lateral direction toward the end side which is the rotation center of the opening / closing door 102. , 119. The pressing protrusions 118 and 119 press the thermal head 120 attracted to the main body 101 toward the main body 101 when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position. By this pressing, the contact portion 123 of the thermal head 120 and each connection terminal 108 of the terminal portion 107 of the main body 101 are pressed against each other.

The thermal head 120 has a substrate 121 and a heat sink 122. The substrate 121 has a contact portion 123 on a surface facing the main body 101. Further, the openings 124 and 125 are provided in the vicinity of the contact portion 123. When the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101, the opening 124 is inserted with a convex portion 113a provided at the tip of the boss 113 of the main body 101. When the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101, the opening 125 is inserted with a convex portion 114a provided at the tip of the boss 114 of the main body 101. Further, the substrate 121 has a notch 126 at the left end portion in FIG. 8 in the width direction. The notch 126 receives the guide protrusion 115 provided on the main body 101 when the thermal head 120 is attracted to the main body 101. As a result, the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101 in the correct orientation.

The heat sink 122 has ferromagnets 127 and 128. Ferromagnets 127 and 128 are metals such as iron. When the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101, the ferromagnet 127 is attracted to the magnet 111 of the main body 101, and the ferromagnet 128 is attracted to the magnet 112 of the main body 101.

As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, when the thermal head 120 is attached to the head holding portion 100 described above, the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the open position. Then, the thermal head 120 before replacement is removed, and a new thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101. At this time, the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101 with the contact portion 123 of the substrate 121 facing the main body 101. When the thermal head 120 is attached to the main body 101, the ferromagnet 127 provided on the heat sink 122 is attracted to the magnet 111 of the main body 101, and the ferromagnet 128 is attracted to the magnet 112 of the main body 101. At this time, the convex portion 113a of the boss 113 is inserted into the opening 124 of the thermal head 120, and the convex portion 114a of the boss 114 is inserted into the opening 125 of the thermal head 120. At the same time, the guide protrusion 115 provided on the main body 101 enters the notch 126 provided on the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120. As a result, the thermal head 120 is positioned with respect to the main body 101. In this state, since the thermal head 120 is located between the regulation pieces 103 and 105 of the main body 101, the positional deviation of the thermal head 120 in the width direction is prevented.

After that, when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated from the opening position to the closing position, the pressing projections 118 and 119 of the opening / closing door 102 press the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120. As a result, the contact portion 123 of the thermal head 120 is pressed against the plurality of connection terminals 108 of the terminal portion 107 of the main body 101. At this time, since the terminal portion 107 of the main body 101 is arranged on the rotation center side of the opening / closing door 102, the contact portion 123 of the thermal head 120 is surely connected to each connection terminal 108 of the terminal portion 107 provided in the main body 101. It is pressed.

When the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the engaging portion 104 of the main body 101 engages with the concave portion 116a of the locking piece 116 of the opening / closing door 102, and the main body 101 engages with the concave portion 117a of the locking piece 117 of the opening / closing door 102. Each of the portions 106 is engaged. As a result, the opening / closing door 102 is held in the closed position. As a result, the thermal head 120 is attached to the head holding portion 100. In the state where the thermal head 120 is mounted on the head holding portion 100, the heat generating element row 129 provided on the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 is exposed from the opening / closing door 102.

Although not shown, when the lid 16 is closed after the thermal head 120 is attached, the regulation piece 103 of the main body 101 is the shaft of the holding cover 34 of the roller holding portion 23, as in the first embodiment. The positioning protrusion 45b of the holding portion 45 is abutted from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. At the same time, the regulation piece 105 of the main body 101 is brought into contact with the positioning protrusion 46b of the shaft holding portion 46 of the holding cover 34 of the roller holding portion 23 from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. As a result, the head holding portion 26 is positioned with respect to the roller holding portion 23.

In this case, the thermal head 120 can be easily attached to the head holding portion 100 by adsorbing the thermal head 120 to the main body 101 and then rotating the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position. Further, by rotating the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position, the contact portion 123 of the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 and the plurality of connection terminals 108 provided on the main body 101 can be pressed into contact with each other. Therefore, it is not necessary to use the connector configuration for the thermal head 120 and the head holding portion 100, and the configuration of the thermal head 120 and the head holding portion 100 can be simplified.

In this embodiment, the magnets 111 and 112 provided on the main body 101 attract and hold the ferromagnets 127 and 128 provided on the heat sink 122 of the thermal head 120, and then rotate the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position. When the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the pressing protrusions 118 and 119 provided on the opening / closing door 102 press the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 adsorbed on the main body 101. When the pressing protrusions 118 and 119 provided on the opening / closing door 102 press the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120, the contact portion 123 of the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 and the plurality of connection terminals 108 provided on the main body 101 are pressed against each other. .. The contact portion 123 of the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 may be pressed against a plurality of connection terminals 108 provided on the main body 101 when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, and is provided on the opening / closing door 102. It is also possible that the pressing projection 118 presses the opening 124 of the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 and its vicinity, and the pressing projection 119 presses the opening 125 of the substrate 121 of the thermal head 120 and its vicinity thereof.

In the head holding portion 100 shown in the second embodiment, the magnets 111 and 112 provided in the main body 101 attract the ferromagnets 127 and 128 provided in the heat sink 122 of the thermal head 120, and then close the open / close door 102. The thermal head 120 is attached to the head holding portion 100 by rotating it to the position. However, the method of mounting the thermal head on the head holding portion is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to provide a holding member for holding the thermal head in the main body of the head holding portion, which will be described below as the third embodiment. Since the opening / closing door configuration of the head holding portion shown in the third embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment, the description of the opening / closing door is omitted in the following description, and the opening / closing door Each configuration will be described with the same reference numerals as those in the second embodiment.

<Third Embodiment>
As shown in FIG. 11, the head holding portion 130 shown in the third embodiment has the main body 131 and the opening / closing door 102, similarly to the head holding portion 26 shown in the first embodiment and the head holding portion 100 shown in the second embodiment. Has.

The main body 131 has a regulation piece 135 and an engagement portion 136 at one end in the y direction in FIG. 11, and a regulation piece 137 and an engagement portion 138 at the other end. The length (interval) from the inner wall surface of the regulation piece 135 to the inner wall surface of the regulation piece 137 is set to substantially the same length as the length of the thermal head 150. The main body 131 has a terminal portion 139 at the lower center in the y direction in FIG. The terminal portion 139 has a plurality of connection terminals. In FIG. 11, since it is located on the back side of the holding member, the reference numerals are omitted for the plurality of connection terminals.

The main body 131 has positioning protrusions 140 and 141 between the regulation pieces 135 and 137 in the y direction in FIG. The positioning protrusions 140 and 141 are inserted into recesses (not shown) provided in the thermal head 150.

The main body 131 has bosses 142 and 143 for positioning below the positioning protrusions 140 and 141 in the z direction in FIG. 11. The positioning bosses 142 and 143 have convex portions 142a and 143a at their tips. The convex portion 142a is inserted through an opening 153 provided in the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150. Similarly, the convex portion 143a is inserted into the opening 154 provided in the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150. As a result, the thermal head 120 is positioned with respect to the main body 131.

Further, the main body 131 has a guide protrusion 144 below the regulation piece 135 in the z direction in FIG. 11. When the thermal head 150 is held by the main body 131, the guide protrusion 144 enters the notch portion 155 provided in the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150.

The main body 131 has a support portion 145 on the front surface of the terminal portion 38. The support portion 145 is an L-shaped plate member that extends forward from the lower portion of the terminal portion 139 and then bends upward. The support portion 145 holds the thermal head 150 inserted between the support portion 145 and the main body 131.

The thermal head 150 has a substrate 151 and a heat sink 152. The substrate 151 has a contact portion on a surface facing the main body 131. Further, the substrate 151 has openings 153 and 154 in the vicinity of the contact portion. When the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the opening 153 is inserted with the convex portion 142a provided at the tip of the boss 142 of the main body 131. When the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the opening 154 is inserted with the convex portion 143a provided at the tip of the boss 143 of the main body 131. Further, the substrate 151 has a notch portion 155 at one end portion (left end portion in FIG. 11) in the y direction in FIG. The notch portion 155 receives the guide protrusion 144 provided on the main body 131 when the thermal head 150 is held on the main body 131. As a result, the thermal head 150 is held in the main body 131 in the correct orientation.

As shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, when the thermal head 150 is attached to the head holding portion 130 described above, the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the opening position. Then, the thermal head 150 before replacement is removed, and a new thermal head 150 is inserted between the main body 131 and the support portion 145. At this time, the notch portion 155 of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 receives the guide protrusion 144 of the main body 131. As a result, the thermal head 150 is held in the correct orientation with respect to the main body 131. In this state, the convex portion 142a of the boss 142 of the main body 131 is inserted into the opening 153 of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150, and the convex portion 143a of the boss 143 of the main body 131 is inserted into the opening 154 of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150. Further, since the thermal head 150 is located between the restricted pieces 135 and 137 of the main body 131, the positional deviation of the thermal head 150 in the width direction is prevented.

After that, when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated from the opening position to the closing position, the pressing projections 118 and 119 of the opening / closing door 102 press the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150. In response to this pressure, the positioning protrusions 140 and 141 of the main body 131 enter the recesses of the heat sink 152 of the thermal head 150. As a result, the thermal head 150 is positioned on the main body 131. At the same time, the contact portion of the thermal head 150 is pressed against the terminal portion 139 of the main body 131. At this time, the terminal portion 139 provided on the main body 131 is arranged on the rotation center side of the opening / closing door 102, so that the contact portion of the thermal head 150 is reliably connected to each connection terminal of the terminal portion 139 provided on the main body 131. It is pressed.

When the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the concave portion 116a of the locking piece 116 of the opening / closing door 102 and the engaging portion 136 of the main body 131 are engaged with each other, and at the same time, the concave portion 117a of the locking piece 117 of the opening / closing door 102 is engaged. And the engaging portion 138 of the main body 131 are engaged with each other. As a result, the opening / closing door 102 is held in the closed position. As a result, the thermal head 150 is attached to the head holding portion 130. In this state, the heat generating element row 156 provided on the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 is exposed from the opening / closing door 102.

Although not shown, when the lid 16 is closed after the thermal head 150 is attached, the regulation piece 135 of the main body 101 is the roller holding portion 23 as in the first embodiment and the second embodiment. The positioning protrusion 45b of the shaft holding portion 45 of the holding cover 34 is abutted from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. At the same time, the regulation piece 137 of the main body 101 is brought into contact with the positioning protrusion 46b of the shaft holding portion 46 of the holding cover 34 of the roller holding portion 23 from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16. As a result, the head holding portion 130 is positioned with respect to the roller holding portion 23.

Also in this case, the thermal head 150 can be easily attached to the head holding portion 130 by holding the thermal head 150 in the main body 131 and then rotating the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position. Further, by rotating the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position, the contact portion of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 and the terminal portion provided on the main body 131 can be brought into pressure contact with each other. Therefore, it is not necessary to use a connector configuration for the thermal head 150 and the head holding portion 130, and the configuration of the thermal head 150 and the head holding portion 130 can be simplified.

In this embodiment, when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 in which the pressing protrusions 118 and 119 provided on the opening / closing door 102 are supported by the support portion 145 of the main body 131 is attached to the main body 131. Press toward. The pressing protrusions 118 and 119 provided on the opening / closing door 102 press the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 toward the main body 131, so that the contact portion of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 and the plurality of connection terminals provided on the main body 131 can be connected to each other. It is pressed. The contact portion of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 may be pressed against a plurality of connection terminals provided on the main body 131 when the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position, and the contact portion may be pressed against the opening / closing door 102. It is also possible that the protrusion 118 presses the opening 124 of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 and its vicinity, and the pressing projection 119 presses the opening 125 of the substrate 151 of the thermal head 150 and its vicinity thereof.

<Summary of embodiments>
The present invention relates to a holding structure of a thermal head having a plurality of heat generating elements arranged in the width direction of the paper to be conveyed, and printing on the paper by heat generated by any of the heat generating elements of the plurality of heat generating elements. ..

When the thermal head is attached or detached by elastically deforming the claws of the print head holder or head unit, if an inexperienced user replaces the thermal head, the claws of the print head holder or head unit as well as the thermal head may be damaged. There is a problem that it will end up.

In addition, when connecting or disconnecting the connector and the connection part of the thermal head by opening and closing the shielding member, if the assembly accuracy of the connector to the head unit is poor, the connector will not be securely connected to the connection part of the thermal head. There's a problem.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal head holding structure and a thermal head in which the thermal head can be easily attached and detached, and at the same time, the electrical connection of the thermal head can be reliably performed.

One aspect of the present invention is a printer that prints on the conveyed paper 21a, which is mounted on the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 for holding the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 and the head holding portions 26, 100, 130. Guide pieces 83 or guide protrusions 115, 144 that regulate the orientation of the thermal heads 85, 120, 150, and control pieces 65, 66, 103, that regulate the positions of the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 in the width direction of the paper 21a. It is characterized by having 105, 135, 137 and so on.

According to this configuration, the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are mounted on the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 in the correct orientation, so that the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are oriented in the wrong orientation, and the head holding portions 26, 100. , 130 can be suppressed. Further, by providing the guide piece 83 or the guide protrusions 115, 144, when the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are attached to the head holding portions 26, 100, 130, the thermal heads 85, 120, with respect to the width direction of the paper 21a, It is possible to prevent the occurrence of misalignment of 150.

Further, the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 are pivotally supported by the main bodies 61, 101, 131, which are pivotally supported by the lid portion 16 of the printer 10, and the thermal heads 85, 120, 150, which are pivotally supported by the main bodies 61, 101, 131. The thermal heads 85, 120, 150 include an opening / closing door 62, 102 that is rotated between an open position to be attached / detached and a closed position that holds the thermal heads 85, 120, 150, and the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 rotate to the closed position. It is characterized in that it is sandwiched between the opening / closing doors 62, 102 and the main bodies 61, 101, 131.

According to this configuration, after the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are attached to either the main body 61, 101, 131 or the opening / closing doors 62, 102, the opening / closing doors 62, 102 are simply rotated to the closed position. Therefore, the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 can be easily held by the head holding portions 26, 100, 130. Further, the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 can be easily removed from the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 by rotating the opening / closing doors 62, 102 to the opening position.

Further, the opening / closing door 62 is characterized by having positioning protrusions 81 and 82 that are inserted into the insertion holes 91 and 92 provided in the thermal head 85 to position the thermal head 85 on the door.

According to this configuration, when the thermal head 85 is positioned on the opening / closing door 62 and then the opening / closing door 62 is rotated to the closed position, the opening / closing door 62 in the closed position is positioned on the main body 61. Since the thermal head 85 is positioned with respect to the opening / closing door 62, the thermal head 85 can be held at an accurate position with respect to the main body 61 by closing the opening / closing door 62.

Further, the main body 101 has magnets 111 and 112 that attract and hold the thermal head 120, and the opening / closing door 102 is rotated to the closed position while the thermal head 120 is attracted and held by the main body 101. ..

According to this configuration, the thermal head 120 is mounted on the main body 101 in a state of being positioned on the main body 101 by the magnets 111 and 112, and then the thermal head 120 is positioned and held by the magnets 111 and 112. Since the opening / closing door 102 is closed in this state, the thermal head 85 can be held at an accurate position with respect to the main body 61.

Further, the main body 131 has a support portion 145 that supports the thermal head 150 attached to the main body 131 downward, and positioning protrusions 140, 141 and a boss that position the thermal head 150 supported by the support portion 145 on the main body 131. It has the convex portions 142a and 143a of 142 and 143.

According to this configuration, the thermal head 150 can be positioned with respect to the main body 131 by simply rotating the opening / closing door 102 to the closed position after attaching the thermal head 150 to the support portion 145 of the main body 131. It can be attached to the head holding portion 130.

Further, the terminal portions 107 and 139 which are in contact with the contact portions 123 of the thermal heads 120 and 150 and supply electric power to the thermal heads 120 and 150, and the contact portions 123 and the thermal heads 120 and 150 of the thermal heads 120 and 150. It has pressing projections 118 and 119 that maintain a connection with terminal portions 107 and 139 that supply electric power toward.

According to this configuration, the contact portions 123 of the boards 121 and 151 of the thermal heads 120 and 150 and the terminal portions 107 and 139 of the main bodies 101 and 131 are simply attached to the head holding portions 100 and 130. And, are pressure-welded, so that it is not necessary to arrange connectors on the thermal heads 120, 150 and the main bodies 101, 131. As a result, the thermal heads 120 and 150 can be simplified.

Further, the head holding portions 26, 100, and 130 are held by the lid portion 16 rotatably supported by the printer main body 15, and the printer main body 15 has the thermal heads 85, 120, when the lid portion 16 is closed. It has a roller holding portion 23 that pivotally supports the platen roller 28 that is pressed against the 150, and the regulation pieces 65, 66, 103, 105, 135, and 137 are provided on the roller holding portion 23 when the lid portion 16 is closed. It abuts on the positioning protrusions 45b and 46b from the rotation center side of the lid portion 16.

According to this configuration, the regulation pieces 65, 66, 103, 105, 135, 137 have a function of preventing the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 from being displaced, and the roller holding portions of the head holding portions 26, 100, 130. It is possible to use one member for the function of positioning the 23.

Further, in the thermal heads 85, 120, 150, which are held by the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 provided in the printer 10 and perform printing in a state where the conveyed paper 21a is pressed against the platen roller 28, the heat generating element row 90, The 129,156, the heat sinks 87, 122, 152 that dissipate the heat generated by the heat generating element rows 90, 129, 156, and the heat generating element rows 90, 129, 156 are arranged along the width direction of the paper 21a. It has one surface and contact portions 88, 123 located on the back side of the first surface and in contact with the heat sinks 87, 122, 152 and the terminal portions 71, 107, 139 provided on the head holding portions 26, 100, 130. The substrates 86, 121, 151 include the substrates 86, 121, 151 having the second surface, and the substrates 86, 121, 151 mount the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 in the first orientation to the head holding portions 26, 100, 130. While receiving the guide pieces 83 or the guide protrusions 115, 144 provided in the head holding portions 26, 100, 130, the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 have a second orientation different from the first orientation. The thermal heads 85, 120 mounted on the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 by disabling the reception of the guide piece 83 or the guide protrusions 115, 144 when the head holding portions 26, 100, 130 are mounted. , 150 has notches 93, 126, 155 that regulate the orientation.

According to this configuration, when the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are attached to the head holding portions 26, 100, 130, the thermal heads 85, 120, 120 only when the orientations of the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are correct. , 150 can be attached to the head holding portions 26, 94, 130. That is, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of an event in which the thermal heads 85, 120, 150 are attached to the head holding portions 26, 94, 130 in the wrong direction.

10 ... Printer 15 ... Printer main body 16 ... Cover part 23 ... Roller holding part 26, 100, 130 ... Head holding part 61, 101, 131 ... Main body 62, 102 ... Opening and closing door 65, 66, 103, 105, 135, 137 ... Restriction piece 71,107,139 ... Terminal part 81,82 ... Positioning protrusion 83 ... Guide piece 85,120,150 ... Thermal head 88,123 ... Contact part 90,129,156 ... Heat generation element train 93,126,155 ... Off Notch 111, 112 ... Magnet 115, 144 ... Guide protrusion 118, 119 ... Pressing protrusion 127, 128 ... Ferromagnetic material 142, 143 ... Boss 145 ... Support

Claims (8)

In a printer that prints on conveyed paper
A holding part that holds the thermal head,
A first regulating portion that regulates the orientation of the thermal head mounted on the holding portion, and
A second regulating unit that regulates the position of the thermal head in the width direction of the paper, and
A printer characterized by having. In the printer according to claim 1,
The holding part is
The main body that is pivotally supported by the printer lid and
A door that is pivotally supported by the main body and is rotated between an open position for attaching and detaching the thermal head and a closed position for holding the thermal head.
Including
The printer is characterized in that the thermal head is sandwiched between the door rotated to the closed position and the main body. In the printer according to claim 2,
The printer is characterized in that the door has a positioning protrusion that is inserted into an insertion hole provided in the thermal head to position the thermal head on the door. In the printer according to claim 2,
The main body has a suction means for sucking and holding the thermal head.
The printer is characterized in that the door is rotated to the closed position while the thermal head is attracted and held on the main body. In the printer according to claim 2,
The main body is
A support portion that lowerly supports the thermal head attached to the main body,
A printer comprising a positioning portion for positioning the thermal head supported by the support portion with respect to the main body. In the printer according to claim 4 or 5.
A connection portion that is in contact with the contact point of the thermal head and supplies electric power to the thermal head.
A printer provided on the door and comprising a maintenance portion that maintains a connection between the contact point of the thermal head and the connection portion when the door is closed. The printer according to any one of claims 1 to 6.
The holding portion is held by a lid rotatably supported by the printer body.
The printer body has a roller holding portion that pivotally supports a platen roller that is pressed against the thermal head when the lid is closed.
The second restricting portion is a printer characterized in that when the lid is closed, it comes into contact with a positioning portion provided on the roller holding portion from the rotation center side of the lid. In a thermal head that prints while the paper that is held and conveyed by the holding unit provided in the printer is pressed against the platen roller.
With multiple heat generating elements
A heat-dissipating member that dissipates heat generated by the plurality of heat-generating elements, and
A contact portion located on the back side of the first surface in which the plurality of heat generating elements are arranged along the width direction of the paper and in contact with the heat radiating member and the terminal portion provided on the holding portion. A second surface having, and a substrate having
Including
The substrate is
When the thermal head having the first orientation is attached to the holding portion, the thermal head having a second orientation different from the first orientation while receiving the guide portion provided in the holding portion. The thermal head is characterized by having a regulating portion that regulates the direction of the thermal head mounted on the holding portion by making it impossible to receive the guide portion when the holding portion is mounted.

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