JP3615199B2 - Intermediate connector - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is for use in an image forming apparatus such as a printer or a facsimile apparatus, and a structure of the intermediate connector that is applied to the ink sheet set.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When printing on recording paper such as plain paper using a thermal printer, an ink ribbon cartridge is usually used because of easy replacement and easy handling. When the thermal printer is a line printer, a wide ink sheet is used. In this type of conventional ink sheet cartridge, for example, as shown in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-81749, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-193732, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-141987, etc., the ink sheet is exchanged with respect to the cartridge body. Therefore, the supply side spool and the take-up side spool of the ink sheet can be rotatably supported and are detachable.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, if the user makes a mistake in attaching the supply-side spool and the take-up-side spool to the cartridge main body or the right and left positions of the spools, the front and back surfaces of the new ink sheet will not be properly set with respect to the cartridge main body. Therefore, there is a problem that the printing operation becomes impossible.
[0004]
In general, one side of the supply-side spool and the take-up-side spool is provided with a gear portion for transmitting power from the main body side of the image forming apparatus to rotate each spool. In this case, if the mounting side of the gear portion is mistaken, the ink sheet cannot be supplied. Therefore, it is necessary to dispose the gear portion on the correct side surface of the cartridge main body and set it in the main body of the apparatus in the correct orientation.
[0005]
Therefore, there is a problem that a normal user is confused or troublesome to attach the supply spool and the take-up spool to the correct position and orientation.
[0006]
Furthermore, if a core tube around which the other company's ink sheet is wound can be fitted to the spool, the other company's ink sheet will be used by mistake. There has been a problem that the image forming apparatus does not operate normally, such as being unable to exhibit a satisfactory printing performance.
[0007]
The present invention, said was proposed in view of the conventional problems, can be applied improves the replacement of the ink sheet set, the ink sheet set which is adapted wrong ink sheet sets is not installed The object is to provide an intermediate connector.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To achieve the above object, the base intermediate connector of the invention described in claim 1 is mounted to one end of the take-up core tube where the ink sheet is wound, fitted to the inside diameter portion of the core tube A plurality of cam portions of the same shape that are radially divided from the rotation center of the core tube, and provided on the ink sheet cartridge for transmitting power from the main body side. One latching claw provided on the spool and any one of the plurality of cam portions engage with each other so that power can be transmitted, so that power from the main body side is transmitted through the spool, be between connecting member within that will be rotated integrally with the core tube, wherein each of the cam portions, said locking pawl and be able to transmit power engagement surface for engaging said engagement of said locking claw cam portion and a guide surface for guiding to engage mating surface, respectively Than it is.
[0009]
The invention according to claim 2 is the intermediate coupling body according to claim 1, wherein each of the cam portions is the guide surface of the other cam portion adjacent to the engaging surface of the adjacent cam portion. And the engaging claw engages with the engaging surface by fitting the engaging claw into any one of the gaps .
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the intermediate coupling body according to the second aspect, the spool receives a rotational drive in the winding direction from the main body side in a state where the locking claw is fitted in the gap. In this case, the locking claw maintains the engagement with the engagement surface of the adjacent one cam portion, and when the spool receives a rotational drive in a direction opposite to the winding, the engagement claw The pawl is disengaged from the engagement surface, guided by the guide surface of the other adjacent cam portion, and cam surfaces of the cam portions so as to be fitted into the next gap. Is formed .
[0011]
[0012]
[0013]
[0014]
[0015]
[0016]
[0017]
[0018]
[0019]
[0020]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
[0021]
1 is a side cross-sectional view of the facsimile apparatus 1 with the ink sheet cartridge 20 mounted thereon, FIG. 2 is an enlarged side cross-sectional view of the main part of the set portion of the ink sheet cartridge 20, FIG. 3 is a plan view of the ink sheet cartridge 20, and FIG. FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of parts of the ink sheet cartridge, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a spool connecting portion on the take-up side.
[0022]
First, the structure of the facsimile machine 1 as an image forming apparatus of the present invention will be outlined. The facsimile apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment reads an image or the like from the document 8 and transmits the image data as facsimile data to another facsimile apparatus via a communication line such as a telephone line and a communication line such as a telephone line. In addition to the function as a normal facsimile machine that receives facsimile data transmitted from other facsimile machines via the printer and forms the image on the recording paper 4, it can be connected to a printer such as a printer cable or infrared from a personal computer or word processor. The printer functions as a printer that receives print data transmitted through the printer and forms an image in accordance with the received data.
[0023]
A handset (not shown) is disposed on one side of the main body case 2 of the facsimile apparatus 1. The upper cover body 6 that covers the upper surface of the main body case 2 having an open upper surface is pivotally attached to the upper rear end of the main body case 2 so as to be vertically rotatable around a rotation fulcrum 6a at the rear end. An operation panel 3 having a key switch 3a, a liquid crystal display device 3b, and the like is provided on the upper front side of the upper cover body 6. The operation panel 3 is also configured so that the front side can be opened and rotated in order to remove the document 8 when the document 8 is poorly fed. In addition, a paper feed base 5 for stacking and placing the recording paper 4 in an inclined downward state is provided on the rear upper surface of the main body case 2 so as to be rotatable with respect to the rear part of the upper cover body 6. A document table 7 is detachably attached to the middle of the upper surface of the main body case 2.
[0024]
In the main body case 2, a feed roller pair 9 for conveying the document 8 from the document table 7, a contact image scanner unit (CIS) 10, and an upper side of the reading unit are located below the operation panel 3. A document pressing body 11 and a paper discharge roller pair 12 are disposed.
[0025]
In the main body case 2 below the paper feed table 5, a paper feed roller 15 for conveying the recording paper 4 from the paper feed table 5 one by one and the upper peripheral surface thereof are urged by a spring. A paper feed unit 14 including a pad 16 and the like is provided.
[0026]
Below the paper feeding unit 14, a roller-shaped platen 17 as a printing unit, a thermal head 22 on a printing table 19 urged by a spring 18 toward the lower surface of the platen 17, and the printing table 19 A storage portion 13 for the ink sheet cartridge 20 is disposed so as to straddle in the front-rear direction (see FIG. 1).
[0027]
In the ink sheet cartridge 20 in the storage unit 13, the supply side sheet spool 25 of the ink sheet 21 is disposed on the rear side of the main body case 2, the take-up side sheet spool 26 is on the front side of the main body case 2, and the supply side sheet It is arranged in a forwardly inclined shape (hip-up shape) so that the spool 25 side is at a high position and the take-up side sheet spool 26 side is at a low position. Accordingly, the lower portion of the storage portion 13 is located on the rear side of the lower surface of the main body case 2, and, in combination with the forward inclined arrangement of the ink sheet cartridge 20, a large space is provided on the rear surface of the lower surface of the main body case 2. It is formed. Therefore, a control board 29 for performing operations of the facsimile machine 1 and the like is disposed in this space, that is, below the storage unit 13.
[0028]
The ink sheet 21 wound from the supply side sheet spool 25 to the front winding side sheet spool 26 passes through the top surface of the thermal head 22 and the tension member 23 made of a spring plate, and the lower circumference of the winding side sheet spool 26. It reaches the surface side. At this time, the ink surface of the ink sheet 21 is on the upper surface. The recording paper 4 that overlaps the upper surface (ink surface) of the ink sheet 21 is printed by the printing unit where the platen 17 and the thermal head 22 are superposed, and then is placed on the upper side of the ink sheet cartridge 20 on the take-up side sheet spool 26 side. The sheet passes through the upper surface of the formed partition plate 24 having the function of the conveyance chute, and is discharged to the front of the main body case 2 via the pair of discharge rollers 28. An upper chute portion 27 of a plurality of rib-like conveyance chutes protruding downward is arranged on the lower surface of the upper cover body 6 so as to extend from the conveyance upstream side to the downstream side with the platen 17 interposed therebetween, and the ink sheet The recording paper 4 can pass between the partition plate 24 in the cartridge 20.
[0029]
On the other hand, the ink sheet 21 is bent downward at the top surface of the tension member 23, passes through the lower surface side of the partition plate 24, and is wound up on the lower peripheral side of the winding side sheet spool 26. .
[0030]
Next, the configuration of the ink sheet cartridge 20 according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
[0031]
The ink sheet cartridge 20 includes a cartridge main body 30, an ink sheet 21, a pair of left and right supply side spools 36 and 37 as a supply side sheet spool 25, and a pair of left and right winding side spools as a winding side sheet spool 26. 38, 39.
[0032]
The spools 36, 37, 39 are flanged shaft portions that are detachably fitted to both ends of the core tubes 40, 41 for winding the ink sheet 21, for example, for injection molding of a synthetic resin material. The single spool 38 is formed by combining a plurality of parts.
[0033]
Next, the configuration of the cartridge body 30 as the cartridge body will be described with reference to FIGS. The cartridge body 30 includes a pair of left and right side plates 31a and 31b extending from the sheet supply side to the take-up side so as to surround the left and right outer sides of the ink sheet 21, and a winding on the supply side of the ink sheet 21 around the pair of side plates 31a and 31b. The upper cover piece 32 which is connected to cover the upper side of the left and right sides, and a partition plate 24 which covers a pair of side plates 31a and 31b and covers the upper part on the winding side of the ink sheet 21, are combined. It was produced integrally by injection molding with resin material. Accordingly, a portion surrounded by the left and right longitudinal supply-side upper cover piece 32, the winding-side partition plate 24, and the left and right side plate connecting pieces 31a and 31b becomes a window hole portion from which the ink sheet 21 is exposed. The roller-shaped platen 17 faces from the upper side of the printing section, and the printing table 19, the thermal head 22 and the tension body 23 face from the lower side of the window hole (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Further, hook portions 35, 35 such as hooks are provided so as to project upward from the left and right end portions of the partition plate 24 or the pair of left and right side plates 31a, 31b.
[0034]
The side plates 31a and 31b are provided with support shafts in the outer shafts 44 of the supply side right spool 37 and the winding side right spool 39 and in the supply side left spool 36 except for the location of the winding side left spool 38. A shaft support groove 33 of an open end type in which each is loosely fitted is formed (see FIGS. 6 and 8). The outer shaft 44 (support shaft portion) is connected to the shaft support groove portion 33 and is formed in the side plates 31a and 31b so as to extend radially outward. When pushing upward in a state of substantially crossing the support groove 33, the width dimension between the lower open groove edges of each shaft support groove 33 is elastically expanded, but each outer shaft 44 (support shaft) in the free state. Is configured so as not to drop off with respect to each shaft support groove 33.
[0035]
The ink sheet 21 is formed by forming an ink layer on one side of a wide resin film, and is wound around a pair of paper-made cylindrical core tubes 40 and 41 as shown in FIG. . The recording paper 4 faces the ink layer of the ink sheet 21 and is sandwiched between the platen 17 and the recording surface of the thermal head 22 which is a line printer, and the heating resistor of the thermal head 22 is energized according to the image data. Thus, an image is formed on the recording paper 4 line by line.
[0036]
The supply-side right spool 37 and the winding-side right spool 39 that are fitted to the right ends (right side as viewed from the discharge side of the recording paper 4) of the supply-side core tube 40 and the winding-side core tube 41 are shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the inner cylinder part 42 fitted into the inner diameter of the right end part of the core tube 40 (41), the large-diameter flange part 43, and a cartridge body 30 to be described later are rotatably arranged. And a small-diameter cylindrical outer shaft 44 as a support shaft portion.
[0037]
A supply-side left spool 36 that fits to the left end of the supply-side core tube 40 fits into the inner diameter of the left end portion of the core tube 40 and has an inner cylinder portion 42 with an engaging claw 42a that engages with a notch groove; A large-diameter flange portion 43, a support shaft portion (not shown) provided outside the flange portion 43 and rotatably arranged with respect to a cartridge body 30 described later, and a gear portion 45 provided outside the support shaft portion (See FIG. 8).
[0038]
On the other hand, the winding-side left spool 38 fitted to the left end of the winding-side core tube 41 is mounted in the shaft hole 50 of the one side plate 31a of the cartridge body 30 so as not to be detached, and the one side plate 31a. The first rotating member 46 with the transmission gear 47 disposed on the outer side, and the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a connected to the first rotating member 46 from the inside of the one side plate 31a. And while the intermediate coupling body 56 is detachably fitted to the flanged shaft portion 48, the intermediate coupling body 56 is fitted to the inner diameter portion of the left end of the core tube 41 on the winding side, It is formed by injection molding of a synthetic resin material.
[0039]
10 (a), 10 (b), 10 (c), and 10 (d) show the first rotating member 46. The inner cylindrical portion 46a is provided along the axis on the inner diameter portion of the transmission gear 47. FIG. A rod-shaped elastic body 51 extending along the axial direction is integrally formed in one cutout portion 46c of the inner cylinder portion 46a. On the free end side of the elastic body 51, a locking claw 51a is integrally formed radially outward. On the radially outer side of the inner cylindrical portion 46a, a fan-shaped base portion 46b divided into three parts is provided along the circumference. Further, a substantially rectangular fitting hole 53 into which the front end claw portions 52a of the three engaging bodies 52 in the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a are fitted is formed between the three divided base portions 46b. A step portion 53a as an engaging portion is formed on the outer peripheral side of each fitting hole 53. In addition, a positioning projection 54 that protrudes on a side surface facing the shaft portion 48 and extends in the radial direction is integrally formed on the base portion 46b divided in three.
[0040]
11 (a), 11 (b) and 11 (c) show the configuration of the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a, and the disk-like flange 48a protrudes radially outward from the cylindrical base portion 48b. At one end of the base portion 48b, a guide portion 48c having an arc shape with a slightly smaller radius extends in the axial direction, and the elastic body 51 and its distal end locking claw 51a axially connect the inner diameter portions of the base portion 48a and the guide portion 48c. Can penetrate in the direction. Three engaging bodies 52 project from the midway portion of the flange 48a in the direction opposite to the base portion 48b. Further, a positioning hole 55 into which each positioning projection 54 of the first rotating member 46 is fitted is formed at the base portion of the base portion 48b and the flange 48a.
[0041]
With the above configuration, the elastic body of the first rotating member 46 with respect to the shaft hole 50 as shown in FIG. 9 from the outside of the left side plate 31a shown in FIG. 51 is inserted, the flange 48a of the shaft portion 48 is approached from the inside of the side plate 31a, and the three engaging bodies 52 are inserted into the shaft hole 50. And each front-end | tip claw part 52a of each engagement body 52 is engage | inserted to each fitting hole 53 by the side of the internal diameter of the transmission gear 47 in the said 1st rotation member 46. As shown in FIG. As a result, each tip claw portion 52a engages with the stepped portion 53a on the outer peripheral side of each fitting hole 53, and is integrated as the winding side left spool 38, and cannot be removed from the shaft hole 50 and thus the cartridge body 30. It is. In this case, the rod-like elastic body 51 is phase-matched with the guide groove 48d of the notch guide portion 48c in the shaft portion 48, so that the positioning protrusions 54 in the first rotating member 46 and the positioning holes in the shaft portion 4 are aligned. The shape with 55 is made different for each phase. Further, in an integrated state as the winding-side left spool 38, the outer periphery of the joint portion between the base portion 48b of the shaft portion 48 and the base portion 46b divided into three in the first rotating member 46 is cylindrical, and the shaft hole 50 It becomes a positioning part of the rotation center axis line of transmission gear 47 and winding side spool 38 with respect to (refer to Drawing 14 (a) and Drawing 14 (b)).
[0042]
Furthermore, in this embodiment, the cylindrical intermediate | middle coupling body 56 inserted between the edge part of the core tube 41 by the side of winding, and the said axial part 48 is provided. 12 (a), 12 (b) and 12 (c), and FIGS. 13 (a) and 13 (b) show the intermediate coupling body 56, and an inner diameter portion on the proximal end side of the cylindrical base portion 57. 57a is formed with the same diameter D1 so that the base portion 48b of the shaft portion 48 fits tightly and rotatably, and the distal end side of the base portion 57 is integrally provided with a cam portion 58 that is divided into three in the circumferential direction. The guide portion 48c of the shaft portion 48 is rotatably fitted on the inner diameter side surrounded by the three cam portions 58.
[0043]
When the intermediate coupling body 56 is rotated relative to the base portion 48 b of the shaft portion 48, the distal end locking claw 51 a is a flat inner diameter portion of the cam portion 58 against the elasticity of the elastic body 51. It is pressed and can rotate only in one direction (in the direction opposite to the winding direction (when the intermediate coupling body 56 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 13B)) and in the winding direction (in FIG. 13B) When the coupling body 56 is rotated counterclockwise), the tip locking claws 51a urged outward in the radial direction by the elastic force of the elastic body 51 are the two adjacent cam portions 58, 58. The outermost diameter portion 57b of the base 57 of the intermediate coupling body 56 is the same as the outer diameter of the core tube 41. The two-shaped stop projection 61 having a diameter and projecting in the axial direction from the outermost diameter portion 57 b is formed on the core tube 41. (See FIG. 12B.) As a result, the transmission torque from the main body side of the image forming apparatus to the transmission gear 47 is reliably transmitted to the take-up spool 26. It can be done.
[0044]
Further, a pair of elastic claws 59, 59 project from the outermost diameter portion 57b so as to extend along the axis from the outermost diameter portion 57b. Accordingly, when the base portion 57 of the intermediate coupling body 56 is inserted from the end portion of the core tube 41 on the winding side, each elastic claw 59 is cut out at the end portion of the core tube 41 and a pair of non-rotating plan views. It latches in the L-shaped stop groove 60 (only one is shown by FIG.12 (b)). As a result, a take-up spool made by another company that does not have the stop groove 60 in the core tube 41 cannot be mounted on the ink sheet cartridge 20 of the present invention, and erroneously applied to an image forming apparatus such as a facsimile machine manufactured by the present applicant. Misuse that the ink sheets 21 of other companies having different qualities are mounted is eliminated, and troubles such as deterioration of printing quality and defective printing due to not using the regular ink sheet 21 can be prevented. It is preferable that the first rotating member 46, the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a, and the intermediate coupling body 56 of the present invention are each formed of a synthetic resin material.
[0045]
With the above-described configuration, the winding-side left spool 38 is configured in advance by mounting the first rotating member 46 and the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a in a predetermined shaft hole 50 of the cartridge body 30 so as not to be detached. On the other hand, the intermediate coupling body 56 is attached to the end portion (left end) of the winding-side core tube 41 so as not to be detached.
[0046]
A mode in which a replacement ink sheet set is mounted on the cartridge body 30 will be described. The replacement ink sheet set is a set of a new ink sheet 21 wound around the supply-side core tube 40 and a take-up side core tube 41. If desired, the replacement ink sheet set is preliminarily attached to a predetermined end of the core tube 41. The intermediate coupling body 56 may be attached. In these cases, the width dimension of the ink sheet 21 is preferably the dimension from the outer end portion of the outermost diameter portion 57 b of the intermediate coupling body 56 connected to one end of the core tube 41 to the other end of the core tube 41. . Further, the end of the new ink sheet 21 is attached to the outer periphery of the core tube 41 with an adhesive tape or the like. A winding-side right spool 39 is inserted and attached to the right end of the core tube 41. As shown in FIG. 8, the supply-side left spool 36 and the supply-side right spool 37 are respectively inserted and attached to both ends of the supply-side core tube 40. Next, when the base portion 48b of the shaft portion 48 is inserted into the inner diameter portion 57a of the intermediate coupling body 56 and the intermediate coupling body 56 is relatively rotated, the distal end locking claw 51a resists the elasticity of the elastic body 51. Is pressed by the flat inner diameter portion of the cam portion 58 and can rotate only in one direction (the direction opposite to the winding (when the intermediate coupling body 56 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 13B)) (FIG. 15). As described above, one of the four spools 36, 37, 38, 39 (winding side left spool 38) is attached to the cartridge body 30 so as not to be detached. In the above embodiment, it becomes clear that the arrangement side of the transmission gear 47 is either the left or right side of the cartridge body 30, and both ends of the core tubes 40 and 41 are attached to each spool when the user replaces the ink sheet 21 with a new one. Error direction and the like of Rutoki is reduced, but they can quickly and easily replace the ink sheet 21.
[0047]
In the above state, the take-up right spool 39, the supply left spool 36, and the supply right spool 37 are fitted into the shaft support grooves 33, 33, 33 in the cartridge main body 30, respectively, so as not to loosen the ink sheet 21. The core tube 41 on the winding side is rotated.
[0048]
When the ink sheet cartridge 20 having the above configuration is set in the storage unit 13 of the facsimile apparatus 1, the left and right side plates 31a and 31b of the cartridge body 30 as the cartridge body are supported in a predetermined posture. The inner diameter portions of the outer cylinders 44 in the right spool 39 and the supply-side right spool 37 are fitted on a shaft portion (not shown) protruding from the main body frame (not shown), while the supply-side left spool 36 and the winding are wound. The gear portion 45 and the transmission gear 47 in the take-up left spool 38 are respectively engaged with a power transmission gear (not shown), and the inner diameter portion of the outer shaft in the supply-side left spool 36 and the take-up left spool 38 is It fits on a shaft portion (not shown) that is elastically projected in the axial direction from the main body frame side. As a result, the supply side sheet spool 25 and the take-up side sheet spool 26 can rotate smoothly.
[0049]
The control board 29 is actuated by the output of a print command on the operation panel 3 or a print command command from an external computer (not shown) or reception of facsimile data from another facsimile machine, and printing (recording) work is started. Then, first, the paper feed roller 15 rotates to start paper feeding. When the leading edge of the recording paper 4 is conveyed by a predetermined distance after detecting a paper sensor (not shown) and approaches the platen 17, power is transmitted to the gear portion 45 and the transmission gear 47 in the platen 17 and the ink sheet cartridge 20, and the first rotation. Since the engaging claw 51a at the tip of the elastic body 51 of the member 46 is fitted between the two adjacent cam portions 58 of the intermediate coupling body 56, the transmission gear in the winding direction of the predetermined ink sheet 21 The rotational force of 47 can be transmitted to the core tube 41 (see FIG. 15). As a result, the conveyance of the ink sheet 21 and the feeding of the recording paper 4 are started, and printing is performed by the thermal head 22 which is a printing unit.
[0050]
Immediately after printing with the ink sheet 21 and the recording paper 4 sandwiched between the platen 17 and the thermal head 22, the ink on the ink sheet 21 is printed by the heat generated by the heating resistor of the thermal head 22 (characters). ) And is reflected on the recording paper 4, and then the ink is cooled and the ink sheet 21 continues to adhere to the surface of the recording paper 4. At the position of the top surface 23a of the tension member 23, the ink sheet 21 is largely bent downward to be wound around the lower peripheral side of the winding side sheet spool 26, as shown in FIG. The sticking caused by the ink is released. On the other hand, the recording paper 4 whose lower surface serves as the printing surface is placed on the upper surface of the partition plate 24 and conveyed, so that the conveyance path between the recording paper 4 and the ink sheet 21 can be reliably separated. In addition, by bending downward at the front end of the partition plate 24 (the side close to the top surface 23a of the tension body 23), the front end (downstream side of the recording paper 4) in the free state is scooped up so that the recording paper 4 is It can be prevented from moving downward.
[0051]
As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, if a large number of protrusions 24 a are formed on the upper surface of the partition plate 24 in the longitudinal direction along the conveying direction, the recording paper 4 with the printing surface facing downward is provided. When the ink passes, the print surface is not rubbed widely, and the contamination of the recording paper 4 due to ink adhesion can be reduced.
[0052]
The partition plate 24 serves as a lower chute for the chute portion that serves as a guide portion for the conveyance path of the recording paper 4, and is between a rib-shaped upper chute portion 27 that extends across the platen 17 and the upper surface of the partition plate 24. Thus, the recording paper 4 can be reliably guided. Further, when a paper jam (paper jam) occurs, the gap between the partition plate 24 and the upper chute 27 in the ink sheet cartridge 20 arranged on the main body case 2 side simply by opening the upper cover 6 upward is increased. Since it can be opened, the paper jam of the recording paper 4 can be removed very easily.
[0053]
In the above-described embodiment, the present invention is applied to a facsimile machine. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be used in various image forming apparatuses such as a printer, a copying machine, or a device having a plurality of functions thereof.
[0054]
As described above, the ink sheet cartridge according to the present embodiment has the ink sheet supply side core tube and the take-up side core tube detachably attached to the left and right ends of the left and right sides of the cartridge main body. An ink sheet cartridge that is rotatably mounted on a plate, comprising: a cylindrical intermediate coupling body that is inserted and coupled between the at least one spool and one end of the one core tube, the intermediate coupling body Is provided with a cam portion that engages with and disengages from a locking claw protruding from the spool. Thus, when a cylindrical intermediate coupling body is attached to one end of the core tube in advance and a spool is inserted into the intermediate coupling body, the latching claw protruding from the spool engages with the intermediate coupling body. The core tube of another company's ink sheet that does not have a connector cannot be installed in the ink sheet cartridge of this embodiment, and there is no misuse that another company's ink sheet of a different quality is installed. As a result, it is possible to prevent troubles such as deterioration of printing quality and printing defects.
[0055]
The take-up spool is configured so that the flanged shaft portion and the first rotating member with the transmission gear are engaged with each other through a shaft hole formed in the side plate of the cartridge body so as not to be removed from the inside and outside. On the other hand, the locking claw is provided at the tip of a rod-shaped elastic body protruding from the first rotating member, and the locking claw faces the inner diameter side of the cam portion of the intermediate coupling body.
[0056]
Therefore, since the engaging claw at the tip of the elastic body can be engaged with the cam portion only by inserting it into the inner diameter portion of the intermediate coupling body, the attaching / detaching operation becomes extremely easy. In addition, an ordinary user can easily replace the ink sheet and rotate each spool without bothering and laboriously attaching the supply spool and the take-up spool to the correct position and orientation. Therefore, the mounting side of the ink sheet cartridge on the side provided with the transmission gear is not mistaken, and the power can be normally transmitted from the main body side of the image forming apparatus.
[0057]
The cam portion in the intermediate coupling body is radially divided from the rotation center of the winding side core tube, and only when the first rotating member is driven to rotate in the winding direction of the core tube. Therefore, the slack of the attached ink sheet can be taken very easily.
[0058]
Further, the outermost diameter portion of the intermediate coupling body is formed to have the same diameter as the outer diameter portion of the core tube, and the intermediate coupling body includes an elastic claw and / or a stopper that engages / disengages with a retaining groove formed in the core tube. Protrusions are provided.
[0059]
With this configuration, the intermediate coupling body can be mounted in advance on the core tube, and since this intermediate coupling body is mounted only at a predetermined end of the core tube, there is no mounting error of the winding side spool, Since it is mounted on the take-up spool via the intermediate coupling body, it is not possible to mount a core tube of another company that does not include this intermediate coupling body, and there is no risk of erroneously mounting an irregular ink sheet. .
[0060]
Furthermore, the ink sheet set of the present embodiment includes an ink sheet, a supply side core tube of the ink sheet, and a winding side core tube, and an intermediate connector is provided at one end of the winding side core tube. Is. In this way, if the intermediate connector is mounted on the core tube in advance as a replacement ink sheet set, there is no mounting error of the take-up spool when replacing the ink sheet, and the ink sheet can be easily replaced. Has the effect of becoming.
[0061]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the intermediate connector of the present invention is attached to one end of the winding side core tube around which the ink sheet is wound, and is rotated integrally with the core tube by the power transmitted from the main body side. The core tube of the other company's ink sheet that does not have an intermediate connector cannot be installed in a specific ink sheet cartridge, etc., and there is no misuse that another company's ink sheet of different quality is installed. By doing so, it is possible to prevent problems such as deterioration of printing quality and printing defects.
[0062]
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a facsimile machine.
FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating paths of recording paper and an ink sheet in the vicinity of a printing unit.
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the ink sheet cartridge.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge as viewed from the front left side.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge as viewed from the front right side.
FIG. 6 is a right side view of the ink sheet cartridge.
FIG. 7 is a left side view of the ink sheet cartridge.
FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge with its components turned upside down.
9 is an exploded perspective view of a first rotating member 46, a flanged shaft portion 48, an intermediate coupling body, and the like. FIG.
10A is a front view of the first rotating member 46, FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view taken along line Xb-Xb in FIG. 10A, and FIG. 10C is a left side view of FIG. FIG. 10D is a right side view of FIG.
11A is a front view of the flanged shaft portion 48, FIG. 11B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XIb-XIb of FIG. 11A, and FIG. 11C is a right side view of FIG. is there.
12A is a cross-sectional view of the intermediate coupling body 56, FIG. 12B is a front view of the end portions of the intermediate coupling body 56 and the core tube 41, and FIG. 12C is a bottom view of the intermediate coupling body 56;
13A is a perspective view of the intermediate coupling body 56, and FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIIIb-XIIIb in FIG. 13A.
14A is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a connection state between the first rotating member 46 and the flanged shaft portion 48, and FIG. 14B is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a connection state with the intermediate connection body 56;
15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XV-XV in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
20 Ink sheet cartridge 21 Ink sheet 24 Partition plate 25 Supply side sheet spool 26 Take-up side sheet spool 30 Cartridge body 31a, 31b Side plate 32 Upper cover pieces 36-39 Spool 40, 41 Core tube 42 Inner cylinder part 43, 48a Flange part 45 Gear portion 46 First rotating member 47 Transmission gear 48 Shaft portion 48b Base portion 50 Shaft hole 51 Elastic body 51a Locking claw 52 Engaging body 52a Tip claw portion 53 Fitting hole 53a Step portion 54 Positioning projection 55 Positioning hole 56 Intermediate coupling body 59 Elastic claw 60, 62 Stop groove 61 Stop projection

Claims (3)

It is attached to one end of the winding side core tube around which the ink sheet is wound ,
On the distal end side of the base portion fitted to the inner diameter portion of the core tube, there are a plurality of cam portions of the same shape formed by being radially divided from the rotation center of the core tube,
One latching claw provided on the ink sheet cartridge and provided on a spool for transmitting power from the main body side , and any one of the plurality of cam portions engage with each other so that power can be transmitted. Accordingly, the transmitted power via the spool from the body side, be between connecting member within that will be rotated the integrally with the core tube,
Each of the cam portions has an engaging surface that engages with the locking claw so as to transmit power, and a guide surface that guides the locking claw to engage with the engaging surface of the cam portion. intermediate connector, characterized in that it comprises. Each of the cam portions has a gap between the engagement surface of one adjacent cam portion and the guide surface of the other adjacent cam portion, and the locking claw is fitted into any one of the gaps. The intermediate coupling body according to claim 1 , wherein the engagement claw engages with the engagement surface by combining . When the spool is subjected to rotational driving in the winding direction from the main body side in a state where the locking claw is fitted in the gap, the locking claw is an engagement surface of the adjacent one cam portion. When the spool is rotated in the direction opposite to the winding direction, the engaging claw is disengaged from the engaging surface and the other adjacent The intermediate coupling body according to claim 2 , wherein the cam surface of each of the cam portions is formed so as to be guided by the guide surface of the cam portion and to be fitted into the next gap .

Images