JP5390142B2 - Thermal printer for single leaf tag and method for supplying the single leaf tag - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a thermal printer for a single leaf tag and a method for supplying the single leaf tag, and particularly to a thermal printer for a single leaf tag that can be manufactured at low cost with a simple configuration and a method for supplying the single leaf tag.

Conventionally, when performing thermal printing on single-sheet printing paper (sheet paper, hereinafter referred to as “single-sheet tag”) that has been cut one by one, the single-sheet tag is supplied (supplied) between the thermal head and the platen roller. When paper is used, the edge (tip portion) of the single-leaf tag fed out from the supply unit hits the heating element of the thermal head, and there is a problem that the heating element may be damaged.
Therefore, by adopting a means (position detection sensor) for detecting the position of the leading end of the single-leaf tag that is fed out, the thermal head is removed from the platen roller until the tip position of the single-leaf tag exceeds the position where it contacts the heating element of the thermal head. There is a problem that the tip of the single-leaf tag is located at a predetermined position and printing can be started. When printing can be started, the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force to start printing. Become).

    However, since a position detection sensor is required as a means for detecting the tip position of the single-leaf tag in the vicinity of the thermal head, it is necessary to perform electrical interlocking or control for the single-leaf tag feeding operation. However, there are various problems such as increasing complexity and increasing manufacturing costs.

JP-A-8-73061

    The present invention has been considered in view of the above problems, and provides a thermal printer for a single leaf tag that can omit the position detection sensor as a means for detecting the position of the tip portion of the single leaf tag and a method for supplying the single leaf tag. This is the issue.

    It is another object of the present invention to provide a single-leaf tag thermal printer and a method for supplying the single-leaf tag that have a simple configuration and can be manufactured at low cost.

    Another object of the present invention is to provide a thermal printer for a single-leaf tag and a method for supplying the single-leaf tag that do not damage the heating element of the thermal head by the leading end when feeding the single-leaf tag to the printing section.

    In addition, the present invention provides a thermal printer for a single leaf tag that realizes contact and separation of the thermal head to and from the platen roller by mechanical interlocking, and eliminates the need for electrical control for feeding the single leaf tag, and a method for supplying the single leaf tag. The task is to do.

That is, the present invention performs contact or separation of the thermal head according to the rotation amount of the paper feed roller in the feeding portion of the single-leaf tag, that is, mechanically detects or sets the rotation amount of the paper feed roller, or machine Focusing on the interlocking of the paper feed roller and the thermal head so as to detect that the single-leaf tag has reached the printing start position in the printing unit by controlling and adjusting automatically. A supply unit that stacks a single leaf tag, a feeding unit that feeds the single leaf tag from the feeding unit one by one, a printing unit that prints on the single leaf tag that is fed from the feeding unit, and a printing unit that prints And a discharge unit for discharging the single leaf tag, wherein the feeding portion feeds the single leaf tag from the supply portion one by one. A thermal head capable of printing on the single-leaf tag, and having a paper feed roller capable of releasing the transfer after the single-leaf tag has been transferred to the printing section by a predetermined length. And a platen roller that sandwiches the single-leaf tag and is capable of being transferred toward the discharge unit facing the thermal head, and the thermal head is moved to the platen roller according to the rotational position of the paper feed roller. An interlocking portion that can contact and separate is provided, and the interlocking portion is provided between the paper feed roller and the thermal head, and sequentially moves in the circumferential length direction to the platen roller of the thermal head. A cam having a region corresponding to a period, an approach period, a printing period, and a separation period, and the sheet feeding roller is moved by sliding the cam on the thermal head. The thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force at the timing of releasing the transfer of the single leaf tag by the printer, so that printing by the printing unit can be started, and further, at the timing of completion of printing on the single leaf tag, A thermal printer for a single-leaf tag, wherein a thermal head is separated from the platen roller .

The second invention includes a supply unit that stacks a plurality of single leaf tags, a feeding unit that feeds the single leaf tags one by one from the supply unit, and a printing unit that prints on the single leaf tag fed from the feeding unit, A single-leaf tag supply method for a single-leaf tag thermal printer having a discharge section for discharging the single-leaf tag printed by the printing section, wherein the single-leaf tag is supplied from the supply section to the feeding section. The single-leaf tag can be fed out one by one, and after feeding the single-leaf tag toward the printing portion by a predetermined length, a paper feed roller that can release the transfer is provided, and the printing portion can print on the single-leaf tag. a thermal head, a transportable platen roller toward said discharge portion sandwiching the monoplane tag to face the thermal head, the provided in accordance with the rotational position of the paper feed roller, An interlocking part that enables the thermal head to contact and separate from the platen roller is provided, and the interlocking part is provided between the paper feed roller and the thermal head, and the thermal heads are sequentially arranged in the circumferential length direction. The cam has a region corresponding to the transition period or approach period, the printing period, and the separation period to the platen roller, and the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the sheet feeding roller by sliding the cam on the thermal head. The thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force at a timing so that printing by the printing unit can be started, and further, the thermal head is separated from the platen roller at the timing of completion of printing on the single-leaf tag. A method for supplying a single leaf tag of a thermal printer for a single leaf tag.

    The paper feed roller has a large-diameter paper feed circumferential portion capable of coming out of contact with the single leaf tag as it rotates, and other circumferential portions than the paper feed circumferential portion It can be set as the small diameter cancellation | release circumference part which does not supply the said single leaf tag.

    When the tip of the single leaf tag is positioned closer to the discharge portion than between the thermal head and the platen roller (i.e., the tip of the single leaf tag exceeds the portion of the heating element of the thermal head) When the printing start position of the single-leaf tag reaches the position), the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the paper feed roller can be canceled.

    In the thermal printer for a single-leaf tag and the single-leaf tag supply method according to the present invention, when the single-leaf tag in the supply section is fed out toward the thermal head in the printing section, the thermal head is placed on the platen until the transfer is completed up to the print start position. Since the single-leaf tag is fed out and fed, the front end of the single-leaf tag does not collide with the thermal head heating element, and the predetermined print start position on the single-leaf tag is the heating element of the thermal head. Since the paper feeding can be completed to reach the part of the thermal head, the heating element of the thermal head is not damaged and the electric position detection sensor and its control device are not required, that is, the configuration is complicated. A low-cost thermal printer for single-leaf tags can be manufactured without

    In particular, according to the first invention, the printing of the printing unit can be started by pressing the thermal head against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force with the release of the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the paper feed roller. The thermal head can be opened and closed by mechanical interlocking with the thermal head, and electrical switching control is unnecessary, and a simple and inexpensive thermal printer can be obtained.

In particular, according to the second invention, when the leading edge of the single-leaf tag is positioned closer to the discharge portion than between the thermal head and the platen roller after starting the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the paper feed roller, the single leaf by the paper feed roller When the transfer of the tag is released and the single-leaf tag is released by the paper feed roller, the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with the specified pressing force to start printing by the printing unit. Accordingly, the contact / separation posture of the thermal head to the platen roller can be controlled, and mechanical opening / closing control of the thermal head can be realized with a simple configuration.

    In the present invention, since the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller after the feeding of the single-leaf tag to the proper print start position in the direction of the thermal head by the paper feed roller is completed, the heating element of the thermal head is damaged. A simple configuration and low cost thermal printer for a single leaf tag and a method for supplying the single leaf tag are realized.

Next, a single-leaf tag thermal printer 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention and a method for supplying the single-leaf tag will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a side view of a thermal printer 1 for a single-leaf tag. The thermal printer 1 for a single-leaf tag includes a planar base 2, a housing portion 3 that stands on the base 2, a supply portion 4, The feeding unit 5, the interlocking unit 6, the printing unit 7, the discharge unit 8, and the stacking unit 9.

    The supply unit 4 is fixed to the base 2 and the housing unit 3 and stands upright, and a holding frame that can move up and down with respect to the standup frame 10 and holds a plurality of single-leaf tags 11 in a stacked manner. 12, the upper limit stopper 13 fixed at a predetermined position of the housing portion 3, and the holding frame 12 is always urged upward in the direction of the upper limit stopper 13 as the single leaf tag 11 is extended from the uppermost layer of the holding frame 12. And an urging motor 14 for the purpose.

The feeding unit 5 feeds the single-leaf tags 11 from the supply unit 4 one by one in the direction of the printing unit 7, and includes a paper feed roller 15.
The paper feed roller 15 can feed the single-leaf tags 11 from the supply unit 4 one by one, and the single-leaf tags 11 have a predetermined length toward the printing unit 7 (that is, the tip 11A of the single-leaf tag 11 is a thermal head). 16 (to be described later) is transferred to the position of the heating element 16A beyond the position of the heating element 16A), and then the transfer can be released.
That is, the paper feed roller 15 has a large-diameter paper feed circumferential portion 15A that can contact and feed out the single leaf tag 11 as it rotates, and the circumferential portions other than the paper feed circumferential portion 15A Is a small-diameter release circumferential portion 15B where the single-leaf tag 11 is not supplied. Note that the paper feed circumferential portion 15A is made of, for example, a friction material.

    The printing unit 7 prints on the single leaf tag 11 fed out from the feeding unit 5, and has a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements 16 </ b> A that can be printed on the single leaf tag 11 are arranged vertically in the transfer direction of the single leaf tag 11. 16 and a platen roller 17 that faces the thermal head 16 and sandwiches the single-leaf tag 11 and can move toward the discharge unit 8.

The interlocking unit 6 is provided between the paper feed roller 15 and the thermal head 16 so that the thermal head 16 can be brought into contact with and separated from the platen roller 17 according to the rotation amount of the paper feed roller 15. The paper feed roller 15 and the thermal head 16 are interlocked.
That is, FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking portion 6, and the interlocking portion 6 includes a contact / separation motor 18, a cam 19, and a sliding plate 20.

The output gear 21 of the contact / separation motor 18 is engaged with the cam gear 22 of the cam 19, the cam gear 22 is engaged with the roller gear 23 of the paper feed roller 15, and the cam 19 is slid on the sliding plate 20. It is possible.
The thermal head 16 is fixed to the sliding plate 20, and the return spring 24 constantly urges the thermal head 16 around the rotation shaft 25 of the sliding plate 20 in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 17 is always energized in the direction away from the thermal head 17 (the opening direction of the thermal head 16).
Thus, the cam 19 enables the thermal head 16 to contact and separate from the platen roller 17 in accordance with the feeding state of the single-leaf tag 11 from the supply unit 4 toward the printing unit 7. Specifically, the circumferential length of the feed circumferential portion 15A of the feed roller 15 corresponds to the transfer distance or transfer period of the single leaf tag 11, and the circumferential length of the release circumferential portion 15B to the single leaf tag 11. This corresponds to the printing distance or printing period. The circumferential length of the cam 19 corresponds to a transition period or an approach period, a printing period, and a separation period of the thermal head 16 to the platen roller 17.

    A pressure winding spring 27 is attached to the mounting shaft 26 of the thermal head 16 to the sliding plate 20, and when the thermal head 16 is rotated in the direction of the platen roller 17, the thermal head 16 is pressed with a predetermined pressing force. Is in contact with the platen roller 17.

    Returning to FIG. 1, the discharge unit 8 discharges the single-leaf tag 11 printed by the printing unit 7, and has one pair of upper and lower discharge rollers 28 that are driven or driven.

    The stacking unit 9 sequentially stacks the printed single-leaf tags 11 that have been ejected, and has a stacker frame 29.

    As indicated by the phantom line in FIG. 1, if necessary, a guide plate 30 is attached from the feeding portion 5 to the printing portion 7 and a guide plate 31 is attached from the printing portion 7 to the discharge portion 8 so that the upstream side The single leaf tag 11 can be reliably transferred from the downstream side to the downstream side.

In the single-leaf tag thermal printer 1 having such a configuration, particularly when the print start drive signal is received from the print stop state (print standby state) of the single-leaf tag thermal printer 1 shown in FIGS. By driving the contact / separation motor 18 in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2, the cam 19 starts to rotate in the clockwise direction and the paper feed roller 15 starts to rotate in the counterclockwise direction. Further, the rotation driving motor (not shown) The platen roller 17 and the discharge roller 28 are started to rotate.
3 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking unit 6 showing a state in which the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 are slightly rotated from the state of FIG. 2, and the paper feed roller 15 exerts a frictional force on the single leaf tag 11 of the supply unit 4. Thus, the uppermost single-leaf tag 11 starts to be fed out toward the printing unit 7 and the cam 19 starts to rotate the sliding plate 20 (thermal head 16) in the clockwise direction.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking unit 6 showing a state where the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 are further rotated from the state of FIG. 3, and the paper feed roller 15 finishes transferring the single-leaf tag 11 toward the printing unit 7. The heating element 16A is positioned at the print start position across the tip 11A of the single-leaf tag 11 between the thermal head 16 and the platen roller 17, and the thermal head 16 is pressed against the platen roller 17 by the cam 19. In the meantime, the single-leaf tag 11 is pressed with a predetermined printing pressing force to show a printable state.
That is, as the circumferential portion shifts from the feeding circumferential portion 15A of the feeding roller 15 to the releasing circumferential portion 15B, as shown in FIG. 4, the leading end portion 11A of the single leaf tag 11 is connected to the thermal head 16 and the platen roller. When the paper tag 11 is located on the discharge unit 8 side, the printing unit 7 performs printing by releasing the transfer of the single-leaf tag 11 by the paper feed roller 15 and pressing the thermal head 16 against the platen roller 17 with a predetermined pressing force. Can be started.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the single-leaf tag thermal printer 1 similar to FIG. 1, showing a state in which the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 are further rotated from the state of FIG. 4. The thermal head 16 that has finished the printing operation on the single-leaf tag 11 begins to return to the original position around the rotating shaft 25 in the counterclockwise direction by the urging force of the return spring 24, and the paper is fed. Stop immediately before the feed circumferential portion 15A of the roller 15 starts to contact the next single leaf tag 11, and start feeding the next single leaf tag 11 (in preparation for the next print command) to enter a standby state (the state shown in FIG. 1). .
That is, the thermal head 16 is moved away from the platen roller 17 with the end of printing on the single-leaf tag 11, and the next paper feeding and printing standby state is set.

Thus, when the transfer of the single leaf tag 11 by the rotation of the paper feed roller 15 is started and the leading end portion 11A of the single leaf tag 11 is positioned on the discharge portion 8 side from between the thermal head 16 and the platen roller 17, the paper feed roller 15, the transfer of the single-leaf tag 11 is released, and the thermal head 16 is pressed against the platen roller 17 with a predetermined pressing force in accordance with the release of the transfer of the single-leaf tag 11 by the paper feed roller 15 so that printing by the printing unit 7 can be started. In addition, since the thermal head 16 is separated from the platen roller 17 when printing on the single-leaf tag 11 is completed, the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 via the interlocking unit 6 are linked to the printing unit 7. The paper feed set at the printing start position of the single leaf tag 11 can be mechanically performed.
Therefore, by appropriately designing the amount of rotation of the paper feed roller 15 or the amount of movement of the paper feed circumferential portion 15A, and the shape and length of the circumferential portion of the cam 19, the timing for starting and ending the transfer of the single leaf tag 11, In addition, it is possible to adjust the timing of printing start and end by the thermal head 16.

It is a side view of the thermal printer 1 for single-leaf tags by the Example of this invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking unit 6. FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking unit 6 showing a state where the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 are slightly rotated from the state of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of the interlocking unit 6 showing a state where the paper feeding roller 15 and the cam 19 are further rotated from the state of FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a side view of the single-leaf tag thermal printer 1 similar to FIG. 1, showing a state in which the paper feed roller 15 and the cam 19 are further rotated from the state of FIG. 4.

Explanation of symbols

1 Thermal printer for single leaf tag (Example, FIG. 1, FIG. 5)
2 Base 3 Housing portion 4 Supply portion 5 Feeding portion 6 Interlocking portion 7 Printing portion 8 Discharging portion 9 Laminating portion 10 Standing frame 11 Single leaf tag 11A Tip portion of single leaf tag 12 Holding frame 13 Upper limit stopper 14 Energizing motor 15 Supply Paper roller 15A Paper feed roller 15 feed circumference 15B Paper feed roller 15 release circumference 16 Thermal head 16A Thermal head 16 heating element 17 Platen roller 18 Contact / separation motor (FIG. 2)
19 Cam 20 of interlocking portion 6 Sliding plate 21 Output gear 22 of contact / separation motor 18 Cam gear 23 of cam 19 Roller gear 24 of feed roller 15 Return spring 25 Rotating shaft 26 of sliding plate 20 Mounting of thermal head 16 Shaft 27 Pressure winding spring 28 Discharge roller 29 Stacker frame 30 Guide plate 31 Guide plate

Claims (4)

A supply unit for stacking a plurality of single-leaf tags;
A feeding unit that feeds the single-leaf tags one by one from the supply unit;
A printing unit for printing on the single leaf tag fed out from the feeding unit;
A discharge unit for discharging the single-leaf tag printed by the printing unit, and a thermal printer for a single-leaf tag,
The feeding unit is capable of feeding the single leaf tag from the supply unit one by one, and after feeding the single leaf tag by a predetermined length toward the printing unit, a feeding roller capable of releasing the transfer. Have
The printing unit includes a thermal head capable of printing on the single-leaf tag, and a platen roller that sandwiches the single-leaf tag so as to face the thermal head and can be transferred toward the discharge unit,
In accordance with the rotation position of the paper feed roller, an interlocking unit is provided that enables the thermal head to contact and separate from the platen roller,
The interlocking unit is provided between the paper feed roller and the thermal head, and sequentially corresponds to a transition period or an approach period, a printing period, and a separation period of the thermal head to the platen roller in a circumferential length direction. Having a cam with a region,
By sliding the cam on the thermal head, the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force at the timing of releasing the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the paper feeding roller, and printing by the printing unit can be started. Furthermore, the thermal printer for a single-leaf tag is characterized in that the thermal head is separated from the platen roller at the timing of completion of printing on the single-leaf tag. The paper feed roller is
Along with its rotation, it has a large-diameter feed circumference that can contact and feed out the single-leaf tag,
2. The thermal printer for a single leaf tag according to claim 1, wherein the circumferential portion other than the paper feeding circumferential portion is a small-diameter release circumferential portion that does not supply the single leaf tag. 2. The transfer of the single leaf tag by the paper feed roller is canceled when a tip portion of the single leaf tag is positioned closer to the discharge portion than between the thermal head and the platen roller. Thermal printer for single leaf tag A supply unit for stacking a plurality of single-leaf tags;
A feeding unit that feeds the single-leaf tags one by one from the supply unit;
A printing unit for printing on the single leaf tag fed out from the feeding unit;
A discharge unit that discharges the single leaf tag printed by the printing unit, and a single leaf tag supply method for a thermal printer for single leaf tag,
The feeding unit can feed the single leaf tag from the supply unit one by one, and can feed the single leaf tag by a predetermined length toward the printing unit and then release the feeding roller. Provided,
The printing unit includes a thermal head that can print on the single-leaf tag, and a platen roller that can be moved toward the discharge unit while sandwiching the single-leaf tag so as to face the thermal head.
In accordance with the rotation position of the paper feed roller, an interlocking unit is provided that enables the thermal head to contact and separate from the platen roller,
The interlocking unit is provided between the paper feed roller and the thermal head, and sequentially corresponds to a transition period or an approach period, a printing period, and a separation period of the thermal head to the platen roller in a circumferential length direction. Having a cam with a region,
By sliding the cam on the thermal head, the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller with a predetermined pressing force at the timing of releasing the transfer of the single-leaf tag by the paper feeding roller, and printing by the printing unit can be started. Furthermore, the method for supplying a single-leaf tag of a thermal printer for a single-leaf tag, characterized in that the thermal head is separated from the platen roller at the timing of completion of printing on the single-leaf tag.

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