JP3322483B2 - Cover device for cassette storage section in printing tape making device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a cassette in which at least a tape for printing is built in a cassette storage section in a case, and the tape is inputted beforehand while the tape is being sent out from the cassette storage section. The present invention relates to a printing tape producing apparatus for printing an image such as a character or a figure according to the data, and relates to a structure of a cover device of the cassette storage section.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The present applicant has previously filed Japanese Utility Model Application No. Hei 5-22142.
In No. 6, a printing tape producing device was proposed for label display and the like. That is, a cassette containing a print tape and an ink ribbon as a print-receiving medium is configured to be removably attachable to a cassette storage portion of a case in a printing tape making device, and the cassette storage portion has a thermal storage. A print head such as a head, a platen that comes in contact with and separate from the print head, a winding means for the ink ribbon, and the like. The tape is pulled out of the cassette at an appropriate speed based on data input in advance to a print tape producing device. In the middle of printing, an image such as a character string is printed on the tape, a cover body that can be opened and closed to cover the cassette storage unit, and a platen holder that moves the platen toward and away from the print head. When the cover is closed, the platen is moved in a direction to press against the print head. It was those that you have configured.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art device, the flange portion projecting downward from the upper plate of the plate-like cover body is used as a hinge for the case, and the edge of the flange portion is formed on the platen. Since the configuration is such that the mechanism is brought into contact with the interlocking mechanism with the holder, there is a problem that the arrangement position of the interlocking mechanism and the hinge is limited.

In order to maintain the state where the platen is pressed against the print head, a considerable load is applied to the flange portion. However, since the flange portion protrudes from the upper plate of the plate-shaped cover body, the upper plate itself is Is easily distorted, the position of the flange portion is displaced due to the distortion, the print head cannot press the platen at a constant pressure, and the print quality on the tape becomes poor (deterioration), such as blurring of the print on the tape. was there.

Further, according to the above-mentioned prior art device, when the cover is opened at a large angle to release the cassette accommodating portion, the concave groove-shaped hinge portion of the flange portion of the cover has a pivot pin portion of the case. And the handling of the cover body is inconvenient. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and has been made to reduce the distortion of a plate-like cover body, and to make it difficult for the cover body to come off from a case, thereby facilitating the handling, and to produce a printing tape. It is an object of the present invention to provide a cover device for a cassette storage section in the device.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a print tape producing apparatus, comprising: a cover unit for a cassette accommodating unit; In a printing tape producing apparatus comprising a transport unit, a print head for printing on the tape, and a platen holder for moving a platen into and out of the print head, a cover body covers a cassette housing section. The upper plate portion and a vertical plate portion covering the outside of the end of the case are formed in an L-shaped cross section, and a hook rotatably fitted on a hinge shaft at the end of the case is provided on the vertical plate portion of the cover body. On the other hand, on the inner surface of the cover body, reinforcing ribs are provided continuously over the upper plate portion and the vertical plate portion, and the reinforcing ribs are provided to press the platen against the print head when closing the cover body. Move platen holder It is obtained by forming a guide groove that engages the release lever for.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, a stopper piece protrudes from the reinforcing rib of the cover body, and the cover body is provided in the case with the cassette housing portion. And a stopper portion which comes into contact with the stopper piece when it is rotated by an appropriate angle.

[0008]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a printing tape making device 1. One side of the upper surface of an upper case 3 that fits into a lower case 2 in the printing tape making device 1 is for detachably storing a cassette 4 described later. A cover body 6 that covers the cassette storage section 5 is provided to be freely opened and closed. The upper and lower cases 3, 2 and the cover body 6 are both injection molded products made of synthetic resin. On the upper surface of the upper case 3, a keyboard unit 7 for inputting characters and the like, a switch panel 8 for various operations, a liquid crystal display unit 9 for displaying the input characters and operation instructions, and the like are arranged. A mechanical mechanism (to be described later) and a microcomputer (not shown) for control are incorporated between the upper and lower cases 3 and 2.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a state in which the cover 6 is opened at about 90 degrees with respect to the upper case 3. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cassette 4 of the present invention without a cover. The cassette 4 has a printing tape 10 and an ink ribbon 11 mounted thereon, and is a receptor type wound around a tape spool 12. The printing tape 10 is configured to be guided by four rollers 13 by a tape conveying means described later and conveyed from a discharge unit 14 via a printing unit 15 having a print head 15a such as a thermal head. The ink ribbon 11 wound around the ribbon spool 16 is attached substantially parallel to the tape 10 at the position of the printing unit 15, and is configured to be wound by the ribbon winding spool 17.

The cassette 4 includes the ink color of the ink ribbon 11 mounted thereon, the type of tape 10 for printing (a receptor type for normal image printing and a laminate type for mirror image printing), and a tape 10 for printing. There are six detected parts 18 set in advance in accordance with the width dimension and the like, so that the detection part 19 provided in the cassette storage part 5 can detect the detected parts. Further, the cassette 4 is provided with a tape feed roller 20 as one component of the tape transport means.

Next, referring to FIGS. 2 and 4, a description will be given of the structure of an interlocking mechanism such as a tape conveying means and an ink ribbon winding means provided in the printing tape producing apparatus 1. FIG. In the receptor type tape 10, the ink ribbon 1
An adhesive layer is applied in advance on the back surface of the tape 10, and a release tape is temporarily adhered to the adhesive layer.

First, the construction of the means for transporting the printing tape 10 and the means for winding the ink ribbon 11 will be described. A frame 21 disposed on the lower surface side of the cassette storage unit 5 in the printing tape producing device 1 has a ribbon drive cam 22 fitted to the inner diameter portion of the ribbon take-up spool 17,
A tape drive cam 23 fitted to the inner diameter portion of the tape feed roller 20 and a printing unit 15 such as a thermal head are provided upright. The rotational force of the tape drive motor 24 is transmitted via a gear train 25 to the ribbon drive cam 22. And transmitted to the tape drive cam 23.

Next, the print head 15a of the printing unit 15
The interlocking mechanism of the platen 26 facing the paper feed roller 20 and the pressing roller 27 facing the tape feed roller 20 will be described. The platen holder 28 mounted with the platen 26 and the pressing roller 27 supports the printing unit 15 attached to the frame 21. A spring (see FIG. 1) is pivotally supported by a pivot shaft 30 erected from the plate 29 so that the back surface of the platen holder 28 abuts on a guide plate 21a bent upward from one side of the frame 21. (Not shown).

A pressing holder 31 for pressing the rear surface of the platen holder 28 to press the passing tape 10 against the surface of the printing head 15a of the printing unit 15 by the platen 26 slides on the guide plate 21a. The roller 34 is provided. The other end of the pressing holder 31 is
Is connected to one end of an interlocking link 33 that is rotatably provided around a pivot shaft 32 that stands upright. A pin 36 that fits into the guide groove 35 at the other end of the interlocking link 33 is attached to a platen release lever 37 that is disposed on the back surface (lower surface) of the frame 21 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction of the upper case 3. . An engagement pin 38 is provided on a rising end piece 37a of the platen release lever 37. The end piece 37a and the engagement pin 38 are formed in a rear open frame portion projecting upward at the rear end side of the upper case 3. It is located in the space below 39.

Next, the structure of the cover body 6, the opening and closing rotation of the cover body 6, the operation of the platen release lever 37, and the like will be described with reference to FIGS. A cover body 6 made of synthetic resin includes an upper plate part 6a that covers the cassette storage part 5 and a vertical plate part 6b that covers the outside of the rear end of the upper case 3.
Thus, an L-shaped cross section is formed. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a cassette pusher 40 for pressing the upper surface of the cassette 4 housed in the cassette housing 5 without looseness is provided on the inner surface of the upper plate portion 6a at 41 points. Is mounted so as to be rotatable around the center, and is urged by a coil spring 50 mounted between the upper plate 6a and the inner surface of the upper plate 6a.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 6 and 8,
A rearward-facing horizontal rib 3b is projected from the rear end wall 3a of the upper case 3, and a through hole 5
A horizontal hinge shaft 52 is integrally formed on the outside through 1. At the lower end edge of the vertical plate portion 6b of the cover body 6, a hook 53 whose tip is fitted into the through hole 52 and is rotatably fitted to the hinge shaft 52 is integrally formed.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 6, 9 and 11, a substantially plate-shaped reinforcing rib 54 is continuously provided on the inner surface of the cover body 6 over the upper plate 6a and the vertical plate 6b. The reinforcing rib 54 is formed integrally with the upper case 3.
Guide groove 56 pierced in the rear open frame portion 39 in FIG.
Is provided at a position corresponding to. Then, on one wide side surface of the reinforcing rib 54, a substantially arc shape is seen in a side view,
A guide groove 55 having a U-shaped cross section is formed. Cover body 6
The engagement pin 38 of the rising tip 37a of the platen release lever 37 is engaged with and disengaged from the guide groove 55 in accordance with the opening and closing rotation of the platen release lever 37.

As a mechanism for suppressing rotation of the cover body, a stopper piece 57 having a substantially L-shape in side view is provided on the wide surface of the reinforcing rib 54 opposite to the surface on which the guide groove 55 is formed. On the other hand, a locking portion 58 protruding upward from the rib 3b is provided on a rear surface release portion of the frame portion 39 so that the cover body 6 can be appropriately angled (60 degrees to 120 degrees). At the time of opening rotation, the lower edge of the stopper piece 57 abuts on the upper edge of the locking portion 58 so that the rotation of the cover body 6 can be temporarily prevented. When a large force is applied to the cover body 6 in this state, the stopper piece 5
7 is configured so that the lower edge of the lock member 7 can ride over the upper edge of the locking portion 58 and can be unlocked.

With this configuration, as shown in FIG. 9, when the cover body 6 is closed and rotated so as to cover the cassette accommodating portion 5, the reinforcing ribs 54 are formed in the rear opening frame portion 39 of the upper case 3. It enters below through the guide groove 56 that has been formed. The guide groove 5 in the reinforcing rib 54
5, the platen release lever 3
7, the engagement pin 38 of the rising tip 37a enters,
The engaging pin 38 is pushed by the reinforcing rib 54 via the engaging guide groove 55, and the platen release lever 37 is pushed by an arrow A.
In the printing direction, the leading end of the platen holder 28 is
5 in the direction of the print head 15a.
6 is pressed against the print head 15a. Almost at the same time, the pressing roller 27 is pressed against the surface of the tape feed roller 20, and printing is performed while the tape 10 is sent out from the cassette 4 placed in the cassette storage section 5.

Since the reinforcing rib 54 is provided continuously from the upper plate 6a of the cover body 6 to the vertical plate 6b, a guide groove 55 having a U-shaped cross section is provided on the free edge side of the reinforcing rib 54. The rigidity of the reinforcing ribs 54, and thus the rigidity of the cover 6 as a whole, is increased due to the fact that the platen 26 is integrally formed. It is possible to eliminate the phenomenon that the portion 6b is deformed by pushing and bending outward, resulting in insufficient pressing force on the print head 15a.

Contrary to the above, when the cover body 6 is turned upward, the engaging pin 38 is pulled backward by the guide groove 55 in the reinforcing rib 54, and the platen 26 is Move away from the surface of 15a. Then, when the cover body 6 is greatly opened to about 180 degrees and stopped at a stroke without the rotation suppressing mechanism as described above, a large impact force acts between the hinge shaft 52 and the hook 53. , The hook 53 and the like may be damaged.
10 (see the direction of arrow B in FIG. 10), the lower end edge of the stopper piece 57 in the reinforcing rib 54 is
By contacting the upper edge of the cover 8, the free rotation of the cover body 6 can be temporarily prevented, so that a large impact force does not act on the hinge shaft 52, the hook 53 and the like, and these components are not damaged.

Next, the cover 6 is rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 10 so that the lower edge of the stopper piece 57 rides over the upper edge of the locking portion 58, and the vertical plate 6b of the cover 6 is rotated. When the lower end edge abuts on the rear surface of the lower case 2 or the lower surface of the rib 3b of the upper case 3, the cover body 6 is also located at that position.
Can be prevented (see FIG. 11). From this state, when the cover body 6 is further rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG.
The hook 53 comes off the hinge shaft 52.

The cutting device 42 for cutting the tape 10 sent out from the cassette 4 includes a fixed blade 33.
And a movable blade 44, and an operation lever 45 as an L-shaped connecting member in side view for manually rotating the movable blade 44
And a rotation support shaft 46 and the like. 1 and 5
As shown in FIG. 5, an upper and lower longitudinal outlet groove 49 is formed on one side of the case over the lower case 2 and the upper case 3 so that the tape 10 can be sent out. One of the rotating blades
The base of the operation lever 45 is arranged as a connecting member for connecting the rotating blade 46 to the inner surfaces of the cases 2 and 3, and the rotating blade is provided on the other side with the outlet groove 51 interposed therebetween. A fixed blade 43 facing 44 is arranged.

Also, at one longitudinal end of the operating lever 45,
A push button 48 made of synthetic resin is mounted, and the cutting blade surface of the fixed blade 43 is moved by the spring force of an unillustrated urging spring mounted between the other end of the operation lever 45 and the frame 21. Thus, the cutting blade surface of the rotary blade 44 is urged to greatly expand. When the rotary blade 44 moves in the closing direction, a relief switch (not shown) abuts on a sensor arm portion of a synthetic resin operating body that rotates integrally with the operation lever 45, and the tape 10 of the cassette 4 The tape drive motor 24 is configured to stop rotating so as to prohibit feeding.

[0025]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
The cover device of the cassette storage section in the printing tape producing apparatus according to the invention described in the above, the cassette storage section in the case, at least a printing tape transport means, a print head for printing on the tape, and the print head A print tape producing apparatus comprising a platen holder for moving a platen toward and away from the cover, wherein a cross section of the cover body is formed by an upper plate portion covering the cassette storage portion and a vertical plate portion covering the outside of the end of the case. The cover is formed in an L-shape, and the vertical plate portion of the cover body is provided with a hook rotatably fitted to a hinge shaft at the end of the case, while the upper plate portion and the vertical plate are provided on the inner surface of the cover body. And a guide groove engaged with a release lever for moving the platen holder to press the platen against the print head when the cover is closed. Form It is intended.

Therefore, when the cover body is closed and rotated so as to cover the cassette storage portion, the release lever is engaged with the guide groove of the reinforcing rib, and the release lever is pushed by the reinforcing rib to forcibly move the release lever. The platen provided on the platen holder is pressed against the print head. In this case, the reinforcing ribs are continuously provided from the upper plate portion of the cover body to the vertical plate portion, and furthermore, the guide grooves are integrally formed with the reinforcing ribs. The rigidity of the entire cover body is increased, and the vertical plate portion of the cover body is pushed outward and bent through the reinforcing ribs by the reaction force of the press of the platen against the print head, and as a result, the push against the print head is performed. This has the effect of eliminating the phenomenon that print quality is degraded due to insufficient pressure.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, a stopper piece protrudes from a reinforcing rib of the cover body, while the cover body is provided with the cassette in the case. A locking portion is provided which comes into contact with the stopper piece when it is pivotally opened at an angle with respect to the storage portion. Therefore, in addition to the operation and effect of the invention described in claim 1, when the cover body is opened by being appropriately scratched and pivoted,
The stopper piece comes into contact with the locking piece, so that the rotation of the cover body can be temporarily prevented. As a result, the cover body is opened at a large angle at a stretch, so that a large impact force is not applied to the hinge shaft and the hook, and an effect such as damage to the above-mentioned portion can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printing tape producing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the printing tape producing apparatus with a cover opened.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cassette without a lid.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a mechanical mechanism in the apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a partially cut-away enlarged plane of the cassette storage unit.

FIG. 6 is an inner view of the cover body.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line VII-VII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a hinge shaft and a hook.

FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of the cover body in a closed state, which is indicated by a line IX-IX in FIG. 2;

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view showing a state in which a cover body shown by a line XX in FIG. 2 is opened by approximately 90 degrees.

FIG. 11 is a side sectional view showing a state where a cover body is widely opened.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 printing tape making device 2 lower case 3 upper case 4 cassette 5 cassette housing 6 cover body 6a upper plate 6b vertical plate 15a print head 37 platen release lever 38 locking pin 52 hinge shaft 53 hook 54 reinforcing rib 55 guide groove 57 Stopper piece 58 Lock piece

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-92650 (JP, A) JP-A-4-226375 (JP, A) JP-A-4-269573 (JP, A) 9752 (JP, U) Hira 2-86753 (JP, U) (58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 29/13 B41J 3/36

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cassette accommodating portion in a case includes at least a conveying means for a printing tape, a printing head for printing on the tape, and a platen holder for moving a platen into and out of the printing head. In the printing tape forming apparatus provided with, a cover body is formed in an L-shaped cross section by an upper plate portion covering the cassette storage portion and a vertical plate portion covering the outside of the end of the case, and the vertical plate portion of the cover body has A hook rotatably fitted on a hinge shaft at an end of the case, and a reinforcing rib straddling the upper plate and the vertical plate on the inner surface of the cover body; A guide groove for engaging a release lever for moving the platen holder to press the platen against the print head when the cover body is closed; Department Cover device. 2. A stopper piece protrudes from a reinforcing rib of the cover body, and the case contacts the stopper piece when the cover body is opened to an appropriate angle with respect to the cassette storage portion. 2. A cover device for a cassette accommodating portion in a printing tape producing device according to claim 1, further comprising an engaging portion which is in contact with the device.