JP4981545B2 - Printer - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printer that prints information on long continuous paper and performs post-processing such as cutting or peeling after printing.

  A continuous roll of labels, each of which is a plurality of labels of a predetermined length on a long mount, is held in a roll shape so that the roll can be rotated, and the label continuous is conveyed and predetermined information is given to the labels. Printers that print are known. Further, the printer is provided with a cutter device, and is configured to cut when a mount portion (scheduled cut position) between the label and the next label is conveyed to the cutter device. In addition, an operation of conveying the label continuous body in the reverse direction in order to start printing on the next label after the label is cut is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2000-296634 A JP 05-294221 A

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the schematic configuration of the printer and the conveying operation of the label continuum after printing. As shown in FIG. 8, a printing unit 90 including a platen roller 91 and a thermal head 92, a fixed blade 93, A cutter device 95 including a movable blade 94 is provided. As shown in FIG. 8A, after the print information 96 has been printed on the first label 71, the label continuous body 97 is conveyed until the planned cut position 98 reaches the cut position (downstream). As shown in FIG. 8B, the movable blade 94 is rotated to cut the continuous label body. At this time, as shown in FIG. 8B, the leading edge of the second label (printing start position) passes through the printing position where the printing unit 90 is disposed, so that the leading edge of the second label is the printing position. As shown in FIG. 8C, the label continuum is conveyed upstream (in the reverse direction) as shown in FIG. 8C, and a head feeding conveyance operation for the next printing is performed. In such an operation, each time a single label is printed, the label continuum must be transported upstream, so there is a problem that the number of labels to be issued per unit time is small and the issuing processing capability is reduced.
As a method for solving this problem, there is known a printer control method in which when a sheet is conveyed to a cutting position, the printing and conveyance are temporarily interrupted to perform a cutting operation, and then the printing and conveyance are resumed (see Patent Document 2). . However, in this control method, there is a problem that the printing quality is deteriorated due to a cause such as the temperature of the thermal head being lowered due to the interruption of printing.
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printer that enables efficient issuance processing without degrading label issuance processing capability and print quality.

The printer according to the present invention includes a printing unit that conveys continuous paper and performs printing, a cutting unit that cuts the continuous paper printed by the printing unit, a stacker provided on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the cutting unit, And a moving mechanism that allows the cutting unit and the stacker to move toward the upstream side and the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the continuous paper.
Further, the moving mechanism includes a rail supported by a housing of the printer, and a guide hole that is inserted through the rail and provided in the cutting portion .
Further, the moving mechanism includes a long hole provided in the printer casing, and a protrusion that engages with the long hole and is provided in the cutting portion .
Moreover, the fixing part which fixes the said cutting part was provided.
Further, a magnet is provided as a fixing part for fixing the cutting part.

  The cutting unit that cuts the printed continuous paper can be moved by the moving mechanism toward the upstream and downstream sides of the continuous paper conveyance direction, and the continuous paper is cut when the planned cut position of the continuous paper is conveyed to the position of the cutting unit. The distance between the print section and the cutting section can be set arbitrarily so that the print start position of the printer is at the position of the print section, so that continuous paper is moved upstream for the next print head after cutting at the cutting section. There is no need to convey the label, and even if the label has any pitch, the issuing process can be performed efficiently without reducing the issuing processing capability.

  The best mode for carrying out the invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the printer, and FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a configuration of a cutting unit.
As shown in FIG. 1 or 2, the printer 1 includes a housing 8 and a cover 9 that can be opened and closed with respect to the housing 8, and rolls a continuous sheet 61 that is mainly long on the housing 8 side. A feed unit 2 that rotatably supports the roll paper 60 wound in a shape, a sensor 3 that detects the position of the continuous paper 61 drawn from the roll paper 60, and a printing unit 4 that prints and conveys the continuous paper 61. And a cutting unit 5 that cuts the continuous paper 61 into pieces of paper of a predetermined length, an input unit 6 that performs an input operation of various settings, and a display unit 7 that displays information input by the input unit 6. The continuous paper 61 is composed of a long board 62 having a release agent provided on the surface thereof, and a plurality of labels 63 temporarily attached to the surface of the board 62 at a predetermined interval 64 in the longitudinal direction. A thermosensitive coloring layer is provided on the surface.

  The supply unit 2 is configured to be slidable along the supply shaft 11 that rotatably holds the roll paper 60 and the long hole 12 of the supply shaft 11, and guides the side surface of the roll paper 60 loaded on the supply shaft 11. A side guide 13 is provided.

  The sensor 3 is a light transmissive sensor, and is provided at a position facing the light emitting unit 3a and a light emitting unit 3a that emits light toward the continuous paper 61. The light emitted from the light emitting unit 3a is transmitted through the continuous paper 61. The light receiving portion 3b is configured to receive light through. Further, an identification mark (not shown) may be provided on the continuous paper 61 so as to be a light reflection type sensor that detects the identification mark.

  The printing unit 4 includes a thermal head 14 having a heating element that prints by applying heat to the thermosensitive coloring layer of the label 63, and is disposed opposite to the thermal head 14, and is connected to a motor (not shown) so as to rotate and drive to form a continuous paper 61. Is fed from the upstream side (where the supply unit 2 is located) toward the downstream side (where the cutting unit 5 is located). The platen roller 15 is rotatably supported by the platen support portion 10 that constitutes the conveyance path of the continuous paper 61.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the cutting unit 5 is mainly provided in the cutter body 18, the fixed blade 16 fixed to the cutter body 18, the movable blade 17 that rotates with respect to the cutter body 18, and the cutter body 18. The rotary cutter having a motor 19 and a belt 22 that connects the gear 20 of the motor 19 and the gear 21 of the movable blade 17 so as to be rotationally driven, and cuts the printed continuous paper 61 into pieces of paper of a predetermined length. To do. Further, the cutter body 18 is provided with a pair of guide holes 23 and a fixing portion 24, and a pair of rails 25 to be described later is inserted into the pair of guide holes 23 so that the cutting portion 5 can be placed at an arbitrary position along the rails 25. It is possible to move to. Further, by rotating the fixing part 24, the fixing part 24 is brought into contact with the rail 25 so that the cutting part 5 can be fixed. Note that FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram in a state in which the front and rear covers are removed for the explanation of the internal configuration of the cutting portion 5.

The cutting unit 5 is configured to be movable upstream and downstream in the conveyance direction of the continuous paper 61. A moving mechanism for moving the cutting unit 5 will be described with reference to FIG.
The moving mechanism includes a pair of rails 25 planted from the front surface of the platen support 10 toward the downstream side where the cutting part 5 is disposed, and a guide hole 23 of the cutting part 5 into which the rail 25 is inserted. . The pair of rails 25 are supported by a pair of projecting pieces 26 having one end supported by the platen support portion 10 and the other end projecting from the housing 8. With this moving mechanism, for example, the cutting part 5 located on the upstream side in the transport direction in FIG. 1 can be slid along the rail 25 toward the downstream side in the transport direction, and fixed at an arbitrary position by the fixing part 24. Can do. The casing 8 is provided with a scale 27, and a label indicating label pitch information and an optimal position so that the label 63 can be positioned at an optimal position according to the length (label pitch) of the label 63 in the transport direction. Are shown in a state of being associated with each other.

FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of the printer. The control unit 30 of the printer 1 includes a ROM 31 that stores a predetermined control program, a CPU 32 that operates according to the control program stored in the ROM 31, and controls each unit. A RAM 33 that stores various data necessary for operation, a pulse signal to the stepping motor, a conveyance control unit 34 that controls the conveyance of the continuous paper 61 by the platen roller 15, and printing to be supplied from the CPU 32 A control signal corresponding to print data such as characters and figures is generated and supplied to the thermal head 14 to control the light emission part 3a of the sensor 3 under the control of the print control part 35 and the CPU 32 under the control of the CPU 32. The light is emitted toward the paper 61, and the electric signal output from the light receiving unit 3b is received, A detection unit 36 that converts the data into the data of the barrel and supplies it to the CPU 32; a cutting control unit 37 that supplies a pulse signal to the motor 19 to control the cutting of the continuous paper 61 by the movable blade 17; and a calendar that measures the current date and time. An IC 38, a flash ROM 39 for storing various setting information of the printer 1, an interface 40 for connecting the input unit 6 and the display unit 7, and an external interface 41 for connecting and communicating with an external device such as a host computer. Have.
These units are connected to the CPU 32 via the data bus 42, print on the continuous paper 61 by the thermal head 14 in accordance with the print data received from the external interface 41 under the control of the CPU 32, and the continuous paper 61 is predetermined by the cutting unit 5. Cut as long piece of paper.

  FIGS. 5A and 5B are explanatory diagrams for explaining the cutting operation in the printer. FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams for continuous paper having labels with a pitch A having a short length in the conveyance direction of the label (hereinafter referred to as pitch). FIGS. 5C, 5D, and 5E are diagrams showing a printing cutting operation on continuous paper having a label with a pitch B longer than the pitch A. FIGS. In FIG. 5, the printing position is a position where printing starts at the position where the heat generating element of the thermal head 14 is provided. The cutting position is the position where the movable blade 17 contacts the fixed blade 16 and cuts the continuous paper 61. It is a position to do.

  When cutting the continuous paper 61 having a short pitch A label, first, based on the pitch A length information, the cutting part 5 is moved to an optimal position while looking at the scale 27, and the first cutting position is fixed by the fixing part 24. Secure to. With reference to FIG. 5A as an example, the first cut position is a state in which the leading end (interval 64b) of the label 63c with the pitch A arranged on the upstream side on the continuous paper 61 is at the printing position. The position which can be cut | disconnected by the rear end (space | interval 64a) of the label 63a arrange | positioned in the upper downstream is shown. When the cutting portion 5 is positioned at the first cut position and printing is finished on the leading label 63a and the subsequent label 63b as shown in FIG. 5A, an interval 64a is printed at the first cutting position. The space 64b is located at the position, and the movable blade 17 is operated at this position as shown in FIG. 5B to separate the label 63a. Next, the continuous paper 61 is printed on the label 63c without being conveyed upstream, and the above-described operation is repeated.

Next, in the case of cutting the continuous paper 67 having the label of the pitch B longer than the pitch A, the cutting unit 5 is moved while looking at the scale 27 based on the length information of the pitch B as shown in FIG. The first cut position is moved to the second cut position, and the fixing portion 24 fixes the second cut position. The second cut position will be described with reference to FIG. 5C as an example. In the state where the leading end (interval 69b) of the label 68c with the pitch B arranged on the upstream side on the continuous paper 67 is at the print position, the continuous paper 61 The position which can be cut | disconnected by the rear end (space | interval 69a) of the label 68a arrange | positioned in the upper downstream is shown. With the cutting part 5 positioned at the second cut position, printing is continuously performed on the label 68a and the label 68b as shown in FIG. With the conveyance temporarily stopped, the movable blade 17 is operated as shown in FIG. 5E to separate the label 68a. Next, the continuous paper 67 is printed on the label 68c without being conveyed upstream, and the above-described operation is repeated. As described above, since the cutting portion 5 can be moved to an optimal position according to the label pitch, a head-feeding reverse conveying operation for printing is not required at any pitch label. The issue processing capacity is not reduced.
In the example shown in FIG. 5, the interval 64 between the label and the next label is adjusted to the printing position and the cutting position. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a printing blank portion from the leading end of the label to the actual printing start. You may make it match | combine (the part which does not print) with a printing position and a cutting position.

Further, the moving mechanism for sliding the cutting portion 5 with respect to the housing 8 and the fixing portion for fixing the cutting portion may have other structures, for example, a structure as shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a printer according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the structure same as the structure mentioned above, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
The moving mechanism for moving the cutting unit 50 of the printer 70 includes a pair of protrusions 51 provided on the bottom surface of the cutting unit 50 and a pair of long holes 52 provided in the metal casing 8. Further, a magnet 53 as a fixed portion is provided at a position between the pair of protrusions 51. In the above configuration, by engaging the protrusion 51 of the cutting part 50 with the long hole 52 of the housing 8, the sliding operation to the upstream side and the downstream side in the transport direction along the long hole 52 becomes possible. It can be positioned and fixed at an arbitrary position with respect to the casing 8 by a magnet 53. The magnetic force of the magnet 53 is adjusted so that it can slide and be fixed. Further, since the fixing part is the magnet 53, the cutting part 50 can be attached and detached, and maintenance and replacement of the cutting part 50 can be facilitated.

Further, a stacker may be provided in the cutting part, and the cutting part and the stacker may be moved together by a moving mechanism. FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a cutting portion according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the structure same as the structure mentioned above, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
The cutting unit 50 is provided with a stacker 80 for sequentially stacking the paper pieces 65 cut by the cutting unit 50. The stacker 80 regulates the bottom plate 81 on which the paper pieces 65 are stacked, the side plate 82 that guides one end portion of the paper pieces 65, and the front end of the paper piece 65 that is conveyed to the bottom plate 81 (the front end on the downstream side in the conveyance direction). The stopper 83 is slidable downstream and upstream in the transport direction with respect to the side plate 82. The stopper 83 is fixed at a position moved according to the pitch of the label, and the paper pieces 65 are sequentially stacked on the bottom plate 81 in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. The moving mechanism of the stacker 80 has the same configuration as described above, and a description thereof will be omitted.

In the present embodiment, the continuous paper has been described using the label as an example, but a tag having no adhesive may be used.
Moreover, although the cutting part 5 was demonstrated with the rotary cutter in this Embodiment, it has a circle cutter which has a movable blade which moves forward / backward along the blade edge of a fixed blade, and a movable blade which moves forward / backward toward the blade edge of a fixed blade. A known cutter such as a guillotine cutter may be used. Moreover, it is good also as a peeling part which peels the label 61 from the base_sheet | mounting_paper 62 instead of a cutting | disconnection part, and makes a peeling part movable by the moving mechanism mentioned above.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic side view of a printer. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the structure of a cutting part. It is a control block diagram of a printer. It is explanatory drawing explaining the cutting | disconnection operation | movement with a printer. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the printer of 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the cutting part of 3rd embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer 2 Supply part 3 Sensor 4 Printing part 5 Cutting part 6 Input part 7 Display part 8 Case 9 Cover 10 Platen support part 11 Supply shaft 12 Long hole 13 Side guide 14 Thermal head 15 Platen roller 16 Fixed blade 17 Movable blade 18 Cutter body 19 Motor 20, 21 Gear 22 Belt 23 Guide hole 24 Fixing part 25 Rail 26 Projection part 27 Scale 30 Control part 31 ROM
32 CPU
33 RAM
34 transport control unit 35 print control unit 36 detection unit 37 cutting control unit 38 calendar IC
39 Flash ROM
40 Interface 41 External interface 42 Data bus 50 Cutting part 51 Protrusion 52 Long hole 53 Magnet 60 Roll paper 61 Continuous paper 62 Base paper 63 Label 64 Space 65 Paper piece 67 Continuous paper 70 Printer 80 Stacker 81 Bottom plate 82 Side plate 83 Stopper 90 Printing unit 91 Platen roller 92 Thermal head 93 Fixed blade 94 Movable blade 95 Cutter device 96 Print information 97 Label continuum

Claims (5)

A printing section that conveys continuous paper and performs printing;
A cutting unit for cutting continuous paper printed by the printing unit;
A stacker provided on the downstream side in the transport direction of the cutting unit;
A moving mechanism that allows the cutting unit and the stacker to move toward the upstream side and the downstream side in the conveying direction of continuous paper;
A printer comprising: The moving mechanism is
Rails supported by the printer housing;
The printer according to claim 1, further comprising a guide hole that is inserted through the rail and provided in the cutting portion . The moving mechanism includes a long hole provided in the printer housing,
The printer according to claim 1, further comprising: a protrusion that engages with the long hole and is provided on the cutting portion . The printer according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing unit that fixes the cutting unit . The printer according to claim 3, further comprising a magnet as a fixing portion that fixes the cutting portion.

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