JP3837997B2 - Recording apparatus and control method thereof - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus capable of executing recording and writing on cut sheets such as cut sheets and copy sheets, and a control method therefor.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a recording apparatus such as a dot impact printer that prints by printing a recording wire of a print head supported by a carriage on a cut sheet on a platen via an ink ribbon is known.
[0003]
With this type, if the paper width of the cut sheet fed onto the platen is narrower than the paper width set in advance by the host computer, etc., the recording wire of the print head will come out of the cut sheet and drive directly into the platen. It is.
[0004]
In this case, when the print head is supported by the carriage and moves in the axial direction of the platen, the recording wire of the print head driven into the platen returns to the print head side and is stored before the paper edge of the cut sheet. And the recording wire breaks.
[0005]
In order to solve this problem, conventionally, paper width detecting means for detecting the paper width of the cut sheet fed from the paper feeder is provided, and printing is performed on the printer side according to the paper width of the cut sheet detected by the paper width detecting means. A dot impact printer that automatically sets the area has been proposed.
[0006]
In this conventional paper width detecting means, an optical sensor is mounted on the lower surface of the carriage, and the carriage is moved in the axial direction of the platen (idle feeding), and the paper width of the cut sheet is detected by the optical sensor. .
[0007]
Conventionally, this paper width detection is detected each time a cut sheet is supplied to the recording unit, or the cut sheet is replaced in the paper feeding device by using a paper remaining amount detector provided in the paper feeding device. Only when this is detected, paper width detection is executed.
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when paper width detection is performed each time, there is a problem that the detection time is long and throughput is lowered.
[0009]
In addition, when it is detected that the cut sheet has been replaced, and when this is detected, a paper remaining amount detector must be provided in the paper feeding device, and the cost is reduced accordingly. There is a problem of becoming high.
[0010]
The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and provides a recording apparatus and a recording apparatus control method capable of performing paper width detection without reducing throughput and without increasing costs. There is to do.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the sheet width of the cut sheet fed from the sheet feeding device is detected at a predetermined timing, the print area is set according to the detected sheet width of the cut sheet, and the cut sheet is recorded. In the recording apparatus for performing the operation, a means for detecting a state without print data, and when the state without print data continues for a predetermined time, the paper width of the first cut sheet fed from the paper feed device after that is detected. Means.
[0014]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the sheet width of the cut sheet fed from the sheet feeding device is detected at a predetermined timing, the print area is set according to the detected sheet width of the cut sheet, and the recording operation is performed on the cut sheet. In the control method for executing the above, a state in which no print data is detected is detected, and when the state in which no print data is continued for a predetermined time, the paper width of the first cut sheet fed from the paper feeder is detected. It is what.
[0017]
In the present invention, the paper width detection is not always performed on the cut sheet fed from the paper feeding device. If the state of no print data does not continue for a predetermined time, the paper width detection of the cut sheet is not executed and printing is performed suddenly.
[0018]
When the state without print data does not continue for a predetermined time, it is estimated that the cut sheet accommodated in the paper feeding device has not been replaced. Therefore, it is presumed that cut sheets having the same width are fed, and only in this case, the paper width detection of the cut sheets is not executed. According to this, the throughput is improved as compared with the case where the paper width detection is executed every time.
[0019]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0020]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a dot impact printer to which an embodiment of a recording apparatus according to the present invention is applied. The printer 10 is a printer that prints an image including characters by hitting a large number of recording wires onto a sheet via an ink ribbon (both not shown) to record dots.
[0021]
The printer 10 includes a printer main body 11 as a recording apparatus main body, a sheet supply guide 43 that is installed on the front side of the printer main body 11 and configured to allow the manual insertion of the cut sheet K, and is installed on the rear side of the printer main body 11. The sheet feeding device (cut sheet feeder) CSF for automatically feeding the cut sheet K to the recording unit is provided.
[0022]
FIG. 2 shows the printer main body 11 with the paper feeding device CSF removed. A push tractor unit (continuous sheet conveying device) 12 that supplies continuous sheets to the recording unit is disposed substantially directly below the sheet feeding device CSF.
[0023]
The sheet includes the cut sheet K cut to a predetermined length and a continuous sheet in which a plurality of sheets are connected. Examples of the cut sheet K include cut films such as cut sheet paper, copy paper, and OHP (overhead projector) sheets, and continuous sheets include continuous sheets.
[0024]
FIG. 3 shows a sheet conveying mechanism section of the printer main body 11. The sheet transport mechanism 30 includes a paper feed roller 13, a platen 20, and a transport roller unit 21 that are connected to the push tractor unit 12.
[0025]
As shown in FIG. 4, a carriage 31 is provided above the platen 20, and a ribbon cartridge 35 and a print head 36 are mounted on the carriage 31. The carriage 31 is supported by a carriage guide shaft 32 and is moved by scanning the platen 20 in the axial direction of the platen 20 by driving a drive belt (not shown).
[0026]
The carriage guide shaft 32 is rotatably supported between the side frames 33 and 34. As shown in FIG. 5, the carriage guide shaft 32 includes an eccentric shaft 32A having an eccentric central axis at an end thereof, and a gear 37 is fixed to the eccentric shaft 32A. The amount of eccentricity of the eccentric shaft 32A with respect to the carriage guide shaft 32 is, for example, about L = 1 mm. Reference numeral 40 denotes a lead wire.
[0027]
As shown in FIG. 6, the gear 37 is engaged with the gear 37, and the output gear 39 </ b> A of the stepping motor 39 is engaged with the gear 38. A slit plate 41 is mounted coaxially with the output gear 39A, and a rotary encoder 42 is mounted opposite to the slit plate 41. The rotary encoder 42 detects the rotation angle of the slit plate 41.
[0028]
When the stepping motor 39 is driven, the eccentric shaft 32A rotates via the output gear 39A, the gear 38, and the gear 37, and the carriage guide shaft 32 rotates integrally therewith. Then, the carriage guide shaft 32 moves up and down in the vertical direction by an eccentric amount (2 mm if L = 1 mm). According to this, the carriage 31 supported by the carriage guide shaft 32 and the integral part thereof are integrated. The print head 36 moves toward and away from the platen 20.
[0029]
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, a ribbon guide holder 81 is attached to the lower surface of the carriage 31, and a paper end detection sensor 82 is installed in the ribbon guide holder 81. The paper edge detection sensors 82 are installed on the left and right sides of the carriage 31 in the scanning direction of the carriage 31 in the ribbon guide holder 81. These paper edge detection sensors 82 include, for example, a light emitting / receiving optical element, and detect the presence / absence of a sheet by detecting the ratio (reflectance) of the intensity of reflected light to the intensity of incident light. is there.
[0030]
Next, the operation of this recording apparatus will be described.
[0031]
When a cut sheet K such as a cut sheet or a copy sheet is manually fed, first, the cut sheet K is manually fed from the front side of the printer body 11 in FIG. By the rotation of the paper feed roller 13, the paper is conveyed from the front to the rear of the printer main body 11. Then, it is reversed by the rotation of the transport roller unit 21, the platen 20, and the paper feed roller 13, transported from the rear to the front of the printer body 11, and supplied to the recording unit including the print head 36 facing the platen 20. Printing is executed.
[0032]
As shown in FIG. 2, a continuous sheet such as continuous paper is fed from the rear side of the printer body 11 by the push tractor 12 and then conveyed in the same direction by the paper feed roller 13 and the conveyance roller unit 21. 20 is supplied to a recording unit including a print head 36 facing 20 and printing is performed.
[0033]
Next, automatic paper feeding using the paper feeding device CSF will be described.
[0034]
7 to 9, the sheet feeding device CSF picks up and feeds a hopper 91 that holds a plurality of cut sheets K and the uppermost cut sheet K of the hopper 91 one by one. A sheet feeding roller 92 and a separation pad 93 for separating the cut sheet K that is double-fed together with the uppermost cut sheet K are provided. The paper feed roller 92 has a D-shaped cross section having a circular arc portion 92a that contacts the cut sheet K and a linear portion 92b that is separated from the cut sheet K, and at least the surface is made of a high wear material such as rubber. ing.
[0035]
One cut sheet K is fed to the paper feed roller 13 through the paper guide 98 during one rotation while the arcuate portion 92 a of the paper feed roller 92 is in contact with the separation pad 93. The paper guide 98 is provided with a paper detector PE that detects the leading edge of the cut sheet K to be fed.
[0036]
During the automatic sheet feeding, so-called skew removal of the cut sheet K is performed by the cooperative operation of the driving roller 13A and the driven roller 13B constituting the paper feeding roller 13.
[0037]
In this skew removal, as shown in FIG. 8, the driving roller 13A is illustrated in a state where the leading edge of the cut sheet K bites between the driving roller 13A and the driven roller 13B by a predetermined length L1, and then the paper feeding roller 92 is stopped. This is performed by rotating (reversely rotating) in the direction opposite to the sheet feeding direction, that is, the direction opposite to the paper feeding direction.
[0038]
After completing the skew removal, as shown in FIG. 9, the driving roller 13A and the driven roller 13B are rotated forward to perform a cueing operation with a fixed length L, and then the cut sheet K is transferred to the recording head in accordance with the recording timing. The data is sent to area 36 and recorded. The cut sheet K recorded here is discharged through the transport roller unit 21 (FIG. 3).
[0039]
In the present embodiment, the paper width of the cut sheet K is detected at the following timing during the automatic paper feeding. The print area is automatically set on the printer body 11 side according to the paper width.
[0040]
For example, if the paper width of the cut sheet K detected by the paper edge detection sensor 82 is narrower than the preset paper width, a print area is set on the printer body 11 side, and characters and the like that are out of the set area are cut. Alternatively, a control such as a line feed and a transition to the next line and printing is executed.
[0041]
Next, the automatic setting of the print area will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
[0042]
First, as shown in FIG. 8, the cut sheet K is separated and conveyed (S1), and skew is removed (S2). Next, the cut sheet K is conveyed to a position just above the platen (cueing) (S3). Next, it is determined whether or not it is the first paper feed after the occurrence of a paper out error (S4), and if it is not the first paper feed after the occurrence of a "paper out error", the process proceeds to step S5.
[0043]
“No paper error” refers to an error that is output when a paper feed operation is performed and the paper detector PE should change to “paper present” but does not change to “paper present” with reference to FIG. This occurs when the sheet feeding operation is performed in a state where the cut sheet K is not set in the sheet feeding device CSF.
[0044]
In step S5, on the premise that the bin is the same as the previous paper feed (in this embodiment, two hoppers 91 are provided), the state where there is no print data is a predetermined time (for example, 5 It is determined whether it has continued for a second).
[0045]
Which bin is to be printed on the cut sheet K is configured to be selected by the user by operating a display panel operation button of the printer main body 11 or the like. The state without print data means, for example, that all tasks are in an idle state, more specifically, the reception buffer of the printer main body 11 is emptied, and jobs of all motors and the print head 36 are stopped. Means.
[0046]
When the print data absence state is reached, a print data absence state signal is output through a microcomputer (means for detecting a print data absence state). Therefore, the output state of this signal is monitored, and when the state without print data continues for a predetermined time, the paper width of the cut sheet K is detected. This predetermined time is, for example, 5 seconds. This is because the cut sheet K of the sheet feeding device CSF may have been replaced after the elapse of 5 seconds.
[0047]
The paper width of the cut sheet K is detected by using the paper edge detection sensor 82 attached to the ribbon guide holder 81 by moving the carriage 31 in the axial direction of the platen 20 (idle feeding).
[0048]
As described above, the carriage 31 is driven by the drive belt, and the drive belt is driven by a stepping motor (not shown). First, one end of the cut sheet K is detected by detecting the ratio (reflectance) of the intensity of the reflected light to the intensity of the incident light using the paper edge detection sensor 82, and after this is detected, the carriage 31 is moved. In the same manner as described above, the other end of the cut sheet K is detected, and the number of pulses driven by the stepping motor is stored while the other end is detected from this one end. Based on the number of drive pulses of the stepping motor, the paper width of the cut sheet K is calculated (S6).
[0049]
When the paper width is measured, one line printing is performed (S7), and it is determined whether or not a page break command is output (S8). If no page break command is output, a line feed is performed (S9). Repeat one line printing.
[0050]
When the page break command is output, the cut sheet K is discharged (S10), and it is determined whether there is print data (S11). If there is print data, the process returns to the first step S1, If the cut sheet K is separated and conveyed and there is no print data, the process ends.
[0051]
In the present embodiment, the paper width detection in S6 is not performed on the fed cut sheet K every time.
[0052]
In S5, assuming that the bin is the same as the previous paper feed, if the print data absence state does not continue for a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds), that is, if it does not continue for 5 seconds, the paper width detection of the cut sheet K is executed. First, one line printing (S7) is performed suddenly. That is, if it does not continue for 5 seconds, it is presumed that the cut sheet K accommodated in the hopper 91 of the paper feeding device CSF has not been replaced, and the paper width detection of the cut sheet K is not executed, and one line is printed suddenly.
[0053]
According to this, compared with the case where paper width detection is performed every time, the detection time can be shortened and the throughput can be improved.
[0054]
Also, paper width detection can be performed at an appropriate timing by monitoring the absence of print data. Therefore, compared to the case where a paper remaining amount detector is provided in the paper feeder, the remaining amount of paper is detected. Costs can be reduced by the amount of equipment.
[0055]
In the present embodiment, when the cut sheet K fed from the sheet feeding device CSF is from a different bin, the sheet width is always set to S5 regardless of whether or not the print data absence state has continued for a predetermined time. In addition, when it is the first paper feed immediately after the occurrence of a paper out error (S4), the paper width is always detected regardless of whether or not the state of no print data continues for a predetermined time.
[0056]
According to this, when the possibility that the paper width of the cut sheet K changes is predicted in advance, the paper width detection is always performed.
[0057]
As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on the said embodiment, this invention is not limited to this.
[0058]
【The invention's effect】
In the present invention, paper width detection can be executed without reducing the throughput and without increasing the cost.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a printer main body of a dot impact printer to which an embodiment of a recording apparatus according to the invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a printer main body from which a paper feeding device CSF is removed.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a sheet conveying mechanism unit of the printer main body.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a carriage.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a platen gap adjusting mechanism.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a carriage and a platen gap adjusting mechanism.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a cut sheet conveyance procedure.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a cut sheet conveyance procedure.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a cut sheet conveyance procedure.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Printer (recording device)
11 Printer Main Body 12 Push Tractor Unit (Continuous Sheet Conveying Device)
13 Paper feed roller 20 Platen 21 Transport roller unit 31 Carriage 36 Print head 39 Stepping motor CSF Paper feed device K Cut sheet

Claims (2)

In a recording apparatus that detects the sheet width of a cut sheet fed from a sheet feeding device at a predetermined timing, sets a print area according to the detected sheet width of the cut sheet, and executes a recording operation on the cut sheet.
And a means for detecting a state without print data and a means for detecting a paper width of the first cut sheet fed from the paper feeding device when the state without print data continues for a predetermined time. A recording device. In a control method for detecting a sheet width of a cut sheet fed from a sheet feeding device at a predetermined timing, setting a print area according to the detected sheet width of the cut sheet, and executing a recording operation on the cut sheet.
A method for controlling a recording apparatus, comprising: detecting a state in which no print data is detected, and detecting a paper width of the first cut sheet fed from the paper feeding device after the absence of the print data for a predetermined time. .

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