JP7134042B2 - printer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to printers.

In Patent Document 1, a roll body in which strip-shaped paper sheets are wound around a core tube is rotatably supported, the roll body is rotated to let out the paper sheets, and a unit amount of an object to be wrapped is attached to the paper sheets. Disclosed is a packing machine that packs by subdividing each item.

The packaging machine includes a detectable body provided on a roll body and a detector for detecting the detectable body, and simply by setting paper sheets in the packing machine, the packaging paper written on the detectable body is detected. information can be obtained.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-248752

It is conceivable to apply the above technique to a printer in order to obtain information on a roll-shaped print medium (roll body) set in the printer.

However, in printers, there are various roll bodies with different inner diameters. Therefore, even if the above technology is simply applied to a printer, the relative position of the object to be detected with respect to the detector changes depending on the inner diameter of the roll body used. difficult to do properly.

The present invention has been made in view of such technical problems, and even in a printer that can use various roll bodies with different inner diameters, print medium information can be acquired simply by setting the roll body in the printer. It aims to make it possible.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a media holding portion that holds a roll body formed by winding a belt-shaped print medium, and a wall portion that guides one side surface of the roll body, and the inside of the roll body A plurality of annular loop antennas for communicating with the communication tag attached to the medium holder have different diameters and are eccentric to each other along a plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the roll held by the medium holding unit. A printer mounted on the wall is provided.

According to this, since the printer is provided with a plurality of antennas, each of the plurality of antennas can be configured so as to correspond to various roll bodies having different inner diameters. Therefore, even with a printer that can use various rolls with different inner diameters, simply by setting the roll in the printer, the antenna corresponding to the roll can be used to communicate with the communication tag attached to the roll. can be performed appropriately, and information on the print medium can be obtained.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1 when the first roll body is set in the printer; FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1 when the second roll body is set in the printer; FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a medium supply unit viewed from the antenna side; 4 is a flowchart showing a process of energizing an antenna executed by a controller;

A printer 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG.

The printer 100 is a thermochromic printer that prints on a print medium M that is thermal paper. As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 100 includes a printing mechanism 1, an antenna 2 (see FIGS. 2A to 3), a medium supply section 4, a cutter 5, a controller 7, and a medium position detection sensor 9. Prepare. Note that the printer 100 may be of a thermal transfer method, an inkjet method, or the like, for example.

The printing mechanism 1 includes a head unit 11, a platen roller 12, a platen driving motor 14, and a head position detection sensor 17, and is a mechanism for printing on the printing medium M and conveying the printing medium M.

The head unit 11 holds the thermal head 16 with a plurality of heating elements (not shown) of the thermal head 16 exposed from the bottom surface. The platen roller 12 is arranged directly below the thermal head 16 and constitutes a printing section 15 for printing on the printing medium M together with the thermal head 16 .

The head unit 11 is supported by a support shaft 13 so as to be able to swing in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The head unit 11 has a head open position, indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, where the thermal head 16 is separated from the platen roller 12, and a head closed position, indicated by a solid line in FIG. can be moved.

A platen drive motor 14 drives the platen roller 12 via belts, gears, and the like.

The head position detection sensor 17 is, for example, a reflective photoelectric sensor for detecting that the head unit 11 is at the head closed position.

The medium supply unit 4 holds a roll body T formed by winding a strip-shaped print medium M supplied to the print unit 15 around a cylindrical paper tube 6 . The print medium M is guided to the printing section 15 by the guide shaft 10 and sandwiched between the thermal head 16 and the platen roller 12 .

As the roll body T, for example, roll paper, a roll label in which a plurality of labels are temporarily attached to a band-shaped backing paper continuously at predetermined intervals and wound into a roll shape, and a strip-shaped label provided with a release agent on the surface. There is a label without a liner that is wound in a roll.

When the heat generating element of the thermal head 16 is energized while the print medium M is sandwiched between the thermal head 16 and the platen roller 12, the print medium M develops color due to the heat of the heat generating element. is printed.

When the platen roller 12 rotates forward (counterclockwise) by the platen drive motor 14 , the print medium M is transported downstream in the transport direction and discharged from the discharge port 8 to the outside of the printer 100 . A cutter 5 is provided in the vicinity of the discharge port 8, and can cut the continuous print medium M into single sheets.

The medium position detection sensor 9 is, for example, a reflective photoelectric sensor, and detects timing marks (not shown) pre-printed on the print medium M at a predetermined pitch. , the relative position of the printing medium M with respect to the printing unit 15 is detected.

The controller 7 is composed of a microprocessor, storage devices such as ROM and RAM, an input/output interface, a bus connecting them, and the like. Print data from an external computer (not shown), detection signals from the medium position detection sensor 9, detection signals from the head position detection sensor 17, and the like are input to the controller 7 via an input/output interface.

Further, in this embodiment, the controller 7 functions as a tag reader that reads information written in the communication tag 63 for short-range wireless communication attached to the inside (inner peripheral surface) of the paper tube 6 of the roll body T. have The controller 7 uses the antenna 2 to communicate with the communication tag 63 .

In the communication tag 63, as information about the print medium M, for example, the date of production of the print medium M, production lot, material, width (size), order number, base material code, number of label rolls per roll, lot number, lot The total number of turns, row number, etc. are written. The controller 7 can automatically change the print settings of the printer 100 based on the information acquired from the communication tag 63 . As a result, optimization of print control, expiration date management, automatic order placement, prevention of operational errors, adjustment of defects, and the like are achieved.

The controller 7 executes various programs stored in the storage device by means of a microprocessor, and controls power supply to the heat generator of the thermal head 16, power supply to the platen drive motor 14, power supply to the antenna 2, and the like. The controller 7 may be composed of a plurality of microcomputers.

The printer 100 of this embodiment can use, as the roll body T, a first roll body T1 and a second roll body T2 having different inner diameters. Correspondingly, the antenna 2 includes a first loop antenna 21 for communicating with the communication tag 64 attached to the first roll T1 and a second loop antenna 21 to the second roll T2 as shown in FIGS. and a second loop antenna 22 for communicating with the attached communication tag 65 . Note that the first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 are provided independently.

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the medium supply unit 4 includes a medium supply shaft 42 (medium holding unit) extending in the horizontal direction to hold the roll body T (T1, T2), and a medium supply shaft 42 (medium holding unit) extending in the vertical direction. and a regulating portion 43 provided on the medium supply shaft 42 to prevent the roll body T from coming off the medium supply shaft 42 . Note that the wall portion 41 and the restricting portion 43 are omitted in FIG. 1 .

The wall portion 41 guides one side surface of the roll body T held by the medium supply shaft 42 .

The medium supply shaft 42 as the medium holding section is fixed to the wall section 41 so that its proximal end is connected to the wall section 41 , but is not limited to this. It may be molded.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the first roll body T1 includes a cylindrical paper tube 61, a roll-shaped print medium M1 wound around the paper tube 61, and attached to the inside (inner peripheral surface) of the paper tube 61. and a communication tag 64 attached. The first roll body T1 has an inner diameter d1.

The communication tag 64 includes an IC chip 64a in which information about the print medium M1 is written, and a loop antenna 64b connected to the IC chip 64a.

In this embodiment, the loop antenna 64b as the antenna of the communication tag has a square shape, and is arranged so that one side thereof is along a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the first roll body T1.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the second roll body T2 includes a cylindrical paper tube 62, a roll-shaped print medium M2 wound around the paper tube 62, and attached to the inside (inner peripheral surface) of the paper tube 62. and a communication tag 65 attached to it. The second roll body T2 has an inner diameter d2 that is larger than the inner diameter d1 of the first roll body T1.

The communication tag 65 includes an IC chip 65a in which information about the print medium M2 is written, and a loop antenna 65b connected to the IC chip 65a.

In this embodiment, the loop antenna 65b as the antenna of the communication tag has a square shape, and is arranged so that one side thereof is along a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the second roll body T2.

1 to 2B, the communication tags 63, 64, and 65 are shown to be thick for the sake of convenience, so that they are embedded in the paper tubes 6, 61, and 62, respectively. However, the communication tags 63 , 64 , 65 may be attached to the inner peripheral surfaces of the paper tubes 6 , 61 , 62 .

The regulating portion 43 is provided so as to extend upward from the vertex A of the medium supply shaft 42 in the up-down direction. to prevent That is, the regulation portion 43 guides the other side surface of the roll body T held by the medium supply shaft 42 so that the roll body T is positioned between the wall portion 41 and the regulation portion 43 .

The restricting portion 43 can move its position according to the width of the roll body T to be used, as indicated by the white arrows in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Further, when it is moved to the tip of the medium supply shaft 42 , it can be tilted until it becomes parallel to the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42 .

On the side (back side) of the wall portion 41 opposite to the medium supply shaft 42, there is a surface perpendicular to the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42 (that is, the axial direction of the roll body T held by the medium supply shaft 42). Antenna 2 (a first loop antenna 21 and a second loop antenna 22) are provided in the .

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 3, the first loop antenna 21 is formed in an annular shape surrounding the medium supply shaft 42 when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42, and has the same inner diameter d1 as the first roll body T1. have.

As shown in FIGS. 2B and 3, the second loop antenna 22 is formed in an annular shape surrounding the medium supply shaft 42 when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42, and has the same inner diameter d2 as the second roll body T2. have.

The first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 have vertical vertices positioned near the vertical apex A of the medium supply shaft 42 as a reference point when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42. are arranged to

The first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 are arranged so that their vertical vertices coincide with the vertical apex A (reference point) of the medium supply shaft 42 when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42 . preferably.

In this embodiment, the first loop antenna 21 has the same inner diameter d1 as the first roll body T1. Therefore, when the first roll body T1 is held by the medium supply shaft 42, that is, when the first roll body T1 is set in the printer 100, when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42, the first roll body T1 overlaps the first loop antenna 21 . As a result, the locus of motion of the communication tag 64 when the first roll body T1 rotates around the axis coincides with the shape of the first loop antenna 21 . That is, the locus of movement of the communication tag 64 when the first roll body T1 rotates around the axis draws the same locus as the shape of the first loop antenna 21 .

According to the above configuration, when the first roll body T1 is set in the printer 100, the antenna of the communication tag 64 and the first loop antenna 21 can be detected regardless of the direction of the communication tag 64 on the inner peripheral surface of the paper tube 61. The distance from the line becomes constant.

Therefore, when the first roll body T1 is set in the printer 100, the controller 7 can appropriately communicate with the communication tag 64 of the first roll body T1 by using the first loop antenna 21. FIG.

That is, according to the above configuration, when setting the first roll body T1 in the printer 100, it is not necessary to perform complicated work such as positioning the communication tag 64 in a specific direction. Thus, the first loop antenna 21 corresponds to the first roll body T1.

In this embodiment, the loop antenna 64b of the communication tag 64 and the first loop antenna 21 are provided not in parallel (opposed) but perpendicularly. That is, the planes on which the loop antenna 64b of the communication tag 64 and the first loop antenna 21 are provided are perpendicular to each other. However, by arranging the communication tag 64 on the wall portion 41 side of the inner peripheral surface of the paper tube 61 and bringing the loop antenna 64b closer to the first loop antenna 21, a good communication state can be obtained.

Further, in this embodiment, the second loop antenna 22 has the same inner diameter d2 as the second roll body T2. Therefore, when the second roll body T2 is held by the medium supply shaft 42, that is, when the second roll body T2 is set in the printer 100, when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42, the second roll body T2 overlaps the second loop antenna 22 . As a result, the motion locus of the communication tag 65 when the second roll body T2 rotates around the central axis matches the shape of the second loop antenna 22. FIG. That is, the locus of motion of the communication tag 65 when the second roll body T2 rotates around the axis draws the same locus as the shape of the second loop antenna 22 .

According to the above configuration, when the second roll body T2 is set in the printer 100, the antenna of the communication tag 65 and the second loop antenna 22 can be detected regardless of the direction of the communication tag 65 on the inner peripheral surface of the paper tube 62. The distance from the line becomes constant.

Therefore, when the second roll body T2 is set in the printer 100, the controller 7 can appropriately communicate with the communication tag 65 of the second roll body T2 by using the second loop antenna 22. FIG.

That is, according to the above configuration, when setting the second roll body T2 in the printer 100, it is not necessary to perform complicated work such as positioning the communication tag 65 in a specific direction. Thus, the second loop antenna 22 corresponds to the second roll body T2.

In this embodiment, the loop antenna 65b of the communication tag 65 and the second loop antenna 22 are provided not in parallel (opposed) but perpendicularly. That is, the planes on which the loop antenna 65b of the communication tag 65 and the second loop antenna 22 are provided are perpendicular to each other. However, by arranging the communication tag 65 on the wall portion 41 side of the inner peripheral surface of the paper tube 62 and bringing the loop antenna 65b close to the second loop antenna 22, a good communication state can be obtained.

As described above, each of the first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 has its vertical vertices with the vertical vertex A of the medium supply shaft 42 as a reference point when viewed from the axial direction of the medium supply shaft 42. , are arranged in the vicinity thereof. In other words, the first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 can communicate with the communication tags 63 (64, 65) of the roll bodies T (T1, T2) corresponding to each medium. As viewed from the axial direction of the supply shaft 42, it is sufficient that the vertices in the vertical direction are positioned within a predetermined range with respect to the reference point.

The controller 7 can perform control such that the timing of energizing the first loop antenna 21 and the timing of energizing the second loop antenna 22 are shifted. That is, it is possible to perform control so that the timing of energizing the first loop antenna 21 and the timing of energizing the second loop antenna 22 do not overlap.

According to this, radio wave interference between the first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22 can be prevented. , 65).

Next, the process of energizing the antenna 2 executed by the controller 7 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the power of the printer 100 is turned on, the controller 7 is activated and the process proceeds to step S1.

In step S<b>1 , the controller 7 energizes the antenna 2 . When the antenna 2 is energized, the controller 7 can read information on the print medium M from the communication tag 63 via the antenna 2 .

In step S<b>2 , the controller 7 determines whether the head unit 11 has moved from the head open position to the head closed position based on the detection signal input from the head position detection sensor 17 .

When the controller 7 determines that the head unit 11 has moved from the head open position to the head closed position, the process proceeds to step S1 and the antenna 2 is energized. Further, when it is determined that the head unit 11 has not moved from the head open position to the head closed position, the process of step S2 is repeatedly executed.

Thus, the antenna 2 is not energized all the time, but at a specific timing. That is, it is optimal to perform this when the power of the printer 100 is turned on and when the head unit 11 moves from the head open position to the head closed position. The antenna 2 may be energized during printing, that is, while the roll body T is rotating (while the printer is in operation).

The reason why the antenna 2 is energized when the power of the printer 100 is turned on is that the roll body T may have been replaced while the power was off. Similarly, when the head unit 11 moves from the head-open position to the head-close position, there is a possibility that the roll body T is being replaced while the head unit 11 is at the head-open position. be.

As a result, the antenna 2 is energized at the timing when there is a possibility that the roll body T has been replaced with the printer 100, that is, at the timing when the information on the print medium M needs to be read. As a result, power consumption due to energization of the antenna 2 can be effectively suppressed, and the processing cost of the controller 7 can be reduced.

Note that the processing according to the flowchart of FIG. 4 is continuously executed until the power of the printer 100 is turned off.

As described above, the printer 100 according to the present embodiment includes the medium supply shaft 42 that holds the roll body T (T1, T2) formed by winding the strip-shaped print medium M (M1, M2), and the roll body T a plurality of antennas for communicating with communication tags 63 (64, 65) attached inside the roll body T (T1, T2), and a wall portion 41 that guides one side surface of the roll body T (T1, T2). (Loop antennas 21 and 22) are provided on the wall portion 41 along a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the roll body T (T1 and T2) held by the medium supply shaft .

According to this, each of the plurality of loop antennas 21 and 22 can be configured to correspond to each of the roll bodies T (T1 and T2) having different inner diameters. Therefore, even if the printer 100 can use various rolls T (T1, T2) with different inner diameters, simply by setting the rolls T (T1, T2) in the printer 100, the rolls T (T1, T2) can be used. T2) can be appropriately communicated with the communication tags 63 (64, 65) attached to the roll body T (T1, T2) using the loop antennas 21, 22 corresponding to the print media M (M1, T2). M2) information can be obtained.

The antenna 2 is the loop antennas 21 and 22, and when viewed from the axial direction of the roll body T (T1, T2), the vertical vertices of the loop antennas 21 and 22 correspond to the vertical vertices A of the medium supply shaft 42. is positioned within a predetermined range as a reference point.

When the roll body T (T1, T2) is held by the medium supply shaft 42 , the roll body T (T1, T2) is suspended from the medium supply shaft 42 . Therefore, when the roll body T (T1, T2) is set in the printer 100 so that the communication tags 63 (64, 65) are positioned upward, the antenna wires of the loop antennas 21, 22 and the communication tags 63 (64, 65) 65) becomes closer. Thereby, communication with the communication tag 63 (64, 65) can be performed appropriately.

Moreover, the loop antennas 21 and 22 are formed in an annular shape.

According to this, when the roll body T (T1, T2) is held by the medium supply shaft 42, the direction of the communication tag 63 (64, 65) inside the roll body T (T1, T2) is Also, the distances between the loop antennas 21, 22 and the communication tags 63 (64, 65) attached to the corresponding roll bodies T (T1, T2) fall within a certain range. Therefore, by using the loop antennas 21 and 22 corresponding to the roll body T (T1 and T2) set in the printer 100, appropriate communication with the communication tags 63 (64 and 65) of the roll body T (T1 and T2) can be achieved. can do.

Further, each of the plurality of loop antennas 21 and 22 corresponds to each of the plurality of roll bodies T (T1 and T2) having different inner diameters, and the communication tag 63 (64) when the roll body T (T1 and T2) rotates. , 65) draws the same trajectory as the shape of the corresponding loop antennas 21 and 22 .

According to this, when the roll body T (T1, T2) is held by the medium supply shaft 42, the direction of the communication tag 63 (64, 65) inside the roll body T (T1, T2) is Also, the distances between the loop antennas 21 and 22 and the communication tags 63 (64 and 65) attached to the corresponding roll bodies T (T1 and T2) are the shortest. Therefore, by using the loop antennas 21 and 22 corresponding to the roll bodies T (T1 and T2) set in the printer 100, the communication tags 63 (64 and 65) of the roll bodies T (T1 and T2) can be more appropriately can communicate.

Also, the communication tags 63 (64, 65) are attached to the cylindrical paper tubes 6 (61, 62) of the roll body T (T1, T2).

In addition, the medium supply shaft 42 is provided with a regulating portion 43 that guides the other side surface of the roll body T (T1, T2). The communication tags 63 (64, 65) are positioned on the wall portion 41 side of the roll body T (T1, T2).

According to this, the distance between the antenna wires of the loop antennas 21 and 22 and the communication tags 63 (64 and 65) can be shortened. Thereby, communication with the communication tag 63 (64, 65) can be performed appropriately.

The planes of the loop antennas 21 and 22 provided on the wall 41 and the loop antennas 64b and 65b of the communication tags 63 (64 and 65) are perpendicular to each other.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments merely show one application example of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention is limited to the specific configurations of the above embodiments. is not.

In the above embodiment, the communication tags 63 (64, 65) are attached inside the paper tubes 6 (61, 62) of the roll body T (T1, T2). However, for example, when the roll body T (T1, T2) does not have the paper tube 6 (61, 62), it can be attached directly to the inside (inner peripheral surface) of the roll-shaped print medium M (M1, M2). good.

Further, in the above embodiment, the antenna 2 has the first loop antenna 21 and the second loop antenna 22, but the number of loop antennas forming the antenna 2 may be three or more.

Further, the printer 100 may be able to use three or more types of roll bodies T with different inner diameters.

Further, in the above embodiment, the controller 7 has a function as a tag reader that communicates with the communication tags 63 (64, 65), but a tag reader capable of communicating with the controller 7 may be provided separately from the controller 7.

Moreover, the shape of the loop antennas 64b and 65b may be a shape other than a square shape.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 printing mechanism 2 antenna 4 medium supply unit 5 cutter 6 paper tube 7 controller 8 discharge port 9 medium position detection sensor 10 guide shaft 11 head unit 12 platen roller 13 support shaft 14 platen drive motor 15 printing unit 16 thermal head 17 head position detection Sensor 21 first loop antenna 22 second loop antenna 41 wall portion 42 medium supply shaft (medium holding portion)
43 Regulator 61 Paper tube 62 Paper tube 63 Communication tag 64 Communication tag 64a IC chip 64b Loop antenna (antenna of communication tag)
65 communication tag 65a IC chip 65b loop antenna (communication tag antenna)
100 printer M print medium M1 print medium M2 print medium T roll body T1 roll body T2 roll body

Claims (6)

a medium holding unit that holds a roll formed by winding a belt-shaped print medium;
a wall portion that guides one side surface of the roll body;
with
A plurality of annular loop antennas for communicating with a communication tag attached inside the roll body have different diameters and are eccentrically aligned with each other in the axial direction of the roll body held by the medium holding section. Provided on the wall along orthogonal planes,
printer. a medium holding unit that holds a roll formed by winding a belt-shaped print medium;
a wall portion that guides one side surface of the roll body;
with
A plurality of annular loop antennas for communicating with a communication tag attached inside the roll are mounted on the wall along a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the roll held by the medium holding section. provided,
The plurality of annular loop antennas have different diameters from each other, and the vertical apexes of the plurality of annular loop antennas are located in the vertical direction of the medium holding section when viewed from the axial direction of the roll body. positioned to coincide with the vertices,
printer. 3. The printer of claim 2 , wherein
each of the plurality of loop antennas corresponds to each of the plurality of roll bodies having different inner diameters,
The motion trajectory of the communication tag when the roll body rotates draws the same trajectory as the shape of the corresponding loop antenna,
printer. The printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The communication tag is attached to a cylindrical paper tube of the roll body,
printer. The printer according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
The medium holding portion is provided with a regulating portion that guides the other side surface of the roll body,
When the roll body is held by the medium holding unit, the communication tag is positioned on the wall side of the roll body,
printer. A printer according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The loop antenna provided on the wall and the antenna of the communication tag are provided with respective surfaces orthogonal to each other,
printer.

Images