JP2820833B2 - Label printer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a label printer having a function of separating a label from a label sheet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A label printer that prints an image on a label to be attached to a product is, for example, press-contacted a line head on a platen roller via a conveyance path of a label sheet in which a number of labels are attached on a sheet of continuous paper. The line head is provided with a label peeling section that bends the sheet on which the image is printed on the label at an acute angle, and a pinch roller is placed on the platen roller via the conveyance path of the sheet from which the label has been peeled off at the label peeling section. It has a pressed structure.

[0003] Such a label printer is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-95068 by the present applicant. The first half of a label on which product information or the like is printed by a line head is separated from a sheet by a label peeling section. Because it can be peeled,
The user can easily attach the label to the product.
Then, since the sheet from which the label has been peeled in this way is conveyed by the platen roller and the pinch roller, the above-described label can be continuously issued.

[0004]

In the above-described label printer, the first half of the label on which the predetermined image has been printed can be peeled off from the sheet and made to protrude, which contributes to an improvement in the efficiency of the operation of attaching the label to the product. be able to.

In the above-described label printer, the line head and the pinch roller are generally swingably supported, and are pressed against the platen roller by the resilience of a spring. In this case, the line head and the pinch roller are separated from the platen roller against the elastic force of the spring.

However, in this case, it is necessary to set the label sheet with the other hand while holding the position of the line head or the pinch roller with one hand, and the operation is complicated, and the workability when setting the label sheet is reduced. doing.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A rotatable platen roller provided with a sheet supply unit for holding a label sheet in which a number of labels are stuck on a sheet of continuous paper, and fixedly held on a conveying path of the label sheet held by the sheet supply unit A line head opposed to the platen roller via the label sheet is provided. The line head is movably supported and selectively located at a position where the line head comes into contact with the platen roller and a position where the line head is separated from the platen roller. Providing a head support mechanism for positioning and holding, providing a label peeling member that bends the sheet on which the image has been printed on the label at the line head at an acute angle, through the sheet from which the label has been peeled off with this label peeling member the platen roller rotatable pinch roller facing provided, before being peeled off the pinch roller Te A position in contact with the platen roller supported on freely slide <br/> de along a conveying direction of the label
A roller support mechanism is provided for selectively positioning and holding the label at a position separated from the platen roller when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the label transport direction . The invention according to claim 2 is
When the pinch roller that comes into contact with and separates from the platen roller is separated from the platen roller, the pinch roller is located outside the main body housing.

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head support mechanism for selectively positioning a line head which opposes and separates from a platen roller so as to selectively contact a position contacting the platen roller and a position separating from the platen roller. A method for transporting the label with the pinch roller peeled off so as to freely contact and separate the platen roller via the sheet with the label peeled off
Slidably supported along the direction of the label and the direction perpendicular to the label transport direction and the position that contacts the platen roller .
By providing a roller support mechanism for selectively positioning and holding the position away from the platen roller as viewed from above , both the line head and the pinch roller can be positioned and held at the position separated from the platen roller. the easier it der to gap through the sheet in the gap between the line head and the platen roller after inserting the label sheet and the platen roller and the pinch roller, in particular, Puratenro
Roller slides along the label transport direction.
More, Ru can be carried out through the label sheet easily.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the pinch roller separated from the platen roller is located outside the main body housing, the space around the platen roller can be increased when the label sheet is inserted, and the insertion operation can be performed. Can be performed very easily.

[0009]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
First, in the label printer 1, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, a label printing section 3 and a sheet supply section 4 are provided at the front and rear inside the main body housing 2, respectively. The part 4 has a structure that rotatably supports the label sheet 5 wound in a roll shape. The label printing unit 3 for printing an image on the label sheet 5 has a structure in which a line head 7 supported by a swingable bracket 6 is pressed and held on a platen roller 8 so as to be able to come and go. A label peeling member 9 is provided in front of the label printing section 3 having a simple structure. Here, the main body housing 2 has a structure in which an opening / closing cover 11 and a mechanical cover 12 are juxtaposed on a main body base 10.
The opening / closing cover 11 is pivotally supported at the rear edge so as to be openable and closable, and covers the label printing section 3 and the sheet supply section 4. A drive mechanism (not shown) such as a platen roller 8 is provided in the mechanical cover 12, and a drive circuit (not shown) such as the drive mechanism and the line head 7 is provided in the main body base 10. Zu) etc. are provided.

Then, the label 1 is removed by the label peeling member 9.
As illustrated in FIG. 9, the sheet transport unit 15 that transports the sheet 14 from which the sheet 3 has been peeled and discharges the sheet 14 to the outside is pinched via a coil spring 18 into a concave hole 17 formed on the upper surface of both sides of the slide frame 16. Roller 19 bearing 2
0 is slidably press-fitted, and these bearings 20 are held by the holding plate 21 mounted on the slide frame 16 against the elastic force of the coil spring 18 so that the recesses 1 are formed.
7. Here, the slide frame 16 is integrally connected to the pinch roller 1.
The support shaft 23 is formed in a U-shape protruding from both side portions of the frame main body 22 parallel to the support shaft 9.
An enlarged portion 24 is formed at the end of the frame main body 22, and three holder holes 25 each having an open top are formed on the front surface of the frame main body 22.

In the label printer 1, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 10, an opening groove 27 is formed at the bottom of a pair of support frames 26 that pivotally support the bracket 6 of the line head 7 and, as illustrated in FIG. The support shaft 23 of the slide frame 16 is slidably supported between the opening groove 27 and the upper surface of the main body base 10. Then, the coil spring 28 is press-fitted between the slide frame 16 and the support frame 26 on the support shaft 23, so that the pinch roller 19 is urged in the direction away from the platen roller 8. It can be freely moved.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 12, the main body base 10 has concave holes 30 on both sides of a sheet discharge port 29 formed with an inclined surface at the front edge.
A frame stopper 32 is slidably mounted in these concave holes 30 via a coil spring 31 in a vertical direction. Here, the front surface of the frame stopper 32 protruding outside the label printer 1 is a manual operation unit 33, and when the manual operation unit 33 is pressed, the frame stopper 32 resists the elastic force of the coil spring 31. To descend. Therefore, such a frame stopper 32
Engages with the front surface of the slide frame 16 of the sheet transport unit 15 in a releasable manner against the elastic force of the coil spring 28, so that the pinch roller 19 is pressed against the platen roller 8. And at a position separated from it.

The bracket 6 of the line head 7 supported between the support frames 26 is urged upward by a spring 6a.
A head stopper 34 urged outwardly (not shown) is slidably mounted. The head stoppers 34 are engaged with the through holes 35 of the support frame 26 so as to be detachably engaged with each other, so that the line head 7 is brought into pressure contact with the platen roller 8 so as to be able to come and go. Further, a label issuing port 36 is formed in the front surface of the opening / closing cover 11 facing the label peeling member 9 of the label printing section 3 by an opening groove.

That is, in the label printer 1, a head supporting mechanism for movably supporting the line head 7 and positioning and holding the line head 7 at a position where the line head 7 is pressed against the platen roller 8 and at a position where the line head 7 is separated from the platen roller 8 is provided. A roller support mechanism formed of a support frame 26, the head stopper 34, and the like, slidably supports the pinch roller 19, and positions and holds the pinch roller 19 at a position pressed against the platen roller 8 and at a position separated therefrom, It is formed by the sheet transport unit 15, the frame stopper 32, and the like.

Further, in this label printer 1, FIG.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, a prism 37,
A light emitting element 39 and a light receiving element 40 which form an optical path through these prisms 37 and 38 are mounted on the main body base 10. Therefore, when the bracket 6 swings upward or the slide frame 16 slides forward to separate the line head 7 and the pinch roller 19 from the platen roller 8,
Since the optical path from the light emitting element 39 to the light receiving element 40 via the prisms 37 and 38 is cut off, the light path is
When a control circuit (not shown) detects from the output of 0, the drive of the line head 7, the platen roller 8, and the like is stopped. In addition, since the optical path located between the prisms 37 and 38 intersects with the transport path of the label 13, the optical path also functions as a sensor for detecting the position of the label 13. Such contents have been filed in the past by the present applicant as Japanese Utility Model Application No. Hei 4-7207 or Japanese Patent Application No. Hei 4-106676.

In this label printer 1, FIG.
As illustrated in, for example, the holder unit 42 of the roller unit 41 is detachably attached to each of the three holder holes 25 formed on the front surface of the slide frame 16,
The label 13 protruding forward is prevented from being bent by the support by the label support roller 43 rotatably supported by the holder portion 42. Moreover, in the label printer 1, by mounting one roller unit 41 in the holder hole 25 at the center of the slide frame 16, it is possible to cope with the narrow label 13, and the two roller units 41 A wide label 1 is attached to each of the holder holes 25 on both sides of the slide frame 16.
3 can be handled. The label support roller 43 has a shape in which disk portions 45 are provided on both sides of a rotatably supported cylindrical portion 44. Labels are prevented while preventing unnecessary adhesion at the outer peripheral portion of the disk portion 45. 13 is supported. In addition, the slide frame 16
A locking claw 46 protrudes below the front surface of the roller unit 41, and a through hole 47 with which the locking claw 46 is removably engaged is formed in the lower edge of the holder portion 42 of the roller unit 41. .

In this configuration, the label printer 1 prints a predetermined image on the label 13 of the label sheet 5 conveyed on the platen roller 8 by the heating scan of the line head 7, and thus prints the image on the label 13. The printed sheet 14 is bent sharply by the label peeling member 9 so that the front half of the label 13 projects outside. Further, in the label printer 1, the sheet 14 from which the label 13 has been peeled by the label peeling member 9 as described above is conveyed between the platen roller 8 and the pinch roller 19 and discharged to the outside. The label 13 is issued continuously.

In this manner, in the label printer 1, the first half of the label 13 on which the product information or the like is printed is peeled off from the sheet 14 and protrudes, so that, for example, the user can easily put the label 13 on the product ( (Not shown).

The process of setting the label sheet 5 on the label printer 1 will be described below in detail with reference to FIGS. First, as illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 2, in the label printer 1, since the open / close cover 11 on the main body base 10 is normally closed on the main body base 10, as illustrated in FIG. The cover 11 is rotated upward to expose the label printing unit 3 and the sheet supply unit 4, and in this state, the head stopper 34 on the bracket 6 is displaced inward and the frame stopper on the front surface of the main body base 10. 32 is pressed downward. Then, the positioning and holding by the stoppers 32 and 34 are released, so that the bracket 6 swings upward by the elastic force of the spring and the line head 7 as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 1B.
Is separated from the platen roller 8 and the slide frame 16 is slid forward by the elastic force of the coil spring 28, and the pinch roller 19 is separated from the platen roller 8.

By doing so, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the label sheet 5 is inserted into the gap between the separated line head 7 and the platen roller 8 while visually recognizing the sheet, and only the sheet 14 of the label sheet 5 is removed. The label can be inserted into the gap between the platen roller 8 and the pinch roller 19 while being visually recognized from above the label peeling member 9. After the label sheet 5 is set in this manner, when the slide frame 16 is pressed backward to the initial position against the elastic force of the coil spring 28, the slide frame 16 projects upward to the initial position by the elastic force of the coil spring 31. When the frame stopper 32 engages with the front surface of the slide frame 16, the pinch roller 19 is pressed and held by the platen roller 8 via the sheet 14 as illustrated in FIG. 6. Further, when the bracket 6 is pressed downward to the initial position against the elastic force of the spring, the head stopper 32 protrudes outward to the initial position.
Is engaged with the through hole 35 of the support frame 26, so that the line head 7 is pressed and held by the platen roller 8 via the label sheet 5. Then, by rotating the open / close cover 11 downward and closing it on the main body base 10, the label 13 and the sheet 14 project from the label issuing port 36 and the sheet discharge port 29, respectively, as illustrated in FIG. The label sheet 5 is set in the state as described above.

That is, in the label printer 1, the line head 7 and the pinch roller 1 urged in the direction away from the platen roller 8 by the spring 28 and the like as described above.
9 are movably supported by the bracket 6, the slide frame 16, and the like, and are pressed and held on the platen roller 8 by the stoppers 32, 34, etc., so that the line head 7 is released by releasing these stoppers 32, 34. The pinch roller 19 and the pinch roller 19 are both positioned and held at positions separated from the platen roller 8. Since the line head 7 rotatably supported by the bracket 6 and the pinch roller 19 slidably supported by the slide frame 16 toward the outside of the main body housing 2 are both moved by a large amount, the platen Can largely separate from the roller 8,
It is easy to insert the label sheet 5 into the gap between the line head 7 and the platen roller 8 and then insert the sheet 14 into the gap between the platen roller 8 and the pinch roller 19. In addition, in this label printer 1, the stopper 3
When the brackets 6 and the slide frame 16 are displaced, the bracket 6 and the slide frame 16 automatically protrude upward and forward by the resilient force of the coil spring 28 and the like. Since the stoppers 32 and 34 automatically return to the initial position with the resilience of 31 or the like, the operation for setting the label sheet 5 is simple and the workability is good.

[0022]

As described above, the present invention relates to a platen roller.
Separable freely provided opposing the line head and a position in contact with the platen roller head support mechanism for selectively positioning and holding the position away from the platen roller, up through the sheet over bets the label was peeled off Contact and separation with Latin roller
Transport of the label from which the pinch roller facing the
It is slidably supported along the feeding direction and is orthogonal to the position in contact with the platen roller and the label conveying direction.
A roller support mechanism for selectively positioning and holding at a position separated from the platen roller as viewed from the direction , so that both the line head and the pinch roller can be positioned and held at a position separated from the platen roller, It is easy to insert the label sheet into the gap between the platen roller and the pinch roller after inserting the label sheet into the gap between the line head and the platen roller, and the workability when setting the label sheet is good, especially If the pinch roller separated from the platen roller is located outside the main body housing, the space around the platen roller when inserting the label sheet can be enlarged, and the insertion work can be performed very easily . In particular, platen low
The paper slides along the label transport direction.
Ri, those having the effect of such Ru can be easily performed through the label sheet.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional side view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a normal state.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state where an opening / closing cover is released.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state where a line head and a slide frame are released.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where a label sheet is inserted.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state where the line head and the slide frame are closed.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which an opening / closing cover is closed.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing an internal structure.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a slide frame and the like.

FIG. 10 is a plan view.

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a label supporting roller and the like.

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a frame stopper and the like.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Label printer 5 Label sheet 6, 26, 34 Head support mechanism 7 Line head 8 Platen roller 9 Label peeling member 13 Label 14 Sheet 15, 32 Roller support mechanism 19 Pinch roller

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-3-289434 (JP, A) JP-A-3-155954 (JP, A) Japanese Utility Model Showa 61-164110 (JP, U) (58) Field (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) B65C 1/00-11/06

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A sheet supply unit for holding a label sheet in which a number of labels are attached on a sheet of continuous paper, and a rotation fixedly held on a conveyance path of the label sheet held by the sheet supply unit. A free platen roller,
A line head opposed to the platen roller via the label sheet, and a head for movably supporting the line head and selectively positioning and holding the line head at a position in contact with the platen roller and a position away from the platen roller. A support mechanism, a label peeling member that bends the sheet on which the image has been printed on the label with the line head at an acute angle, and faces the platen roller via the sheet from which the label has been peeled by the label peeling member And a rotatable pinch roller that separates
The position of the label that is slidably supported along the transport direction of the label and contacts the platen roller.
And a roller support mechanism for selectively positioning and holding the platen roller at a position separated from the platen roller when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the label printer. 2. A pinch roller which comes into contact with and separates from a platen roller.
In the state where it is separated from the platen roller,
Characterized by being located outside the ring
Item 1. The label printer according to Item 1.