JP7142896B2 - Ticket issuing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a ticket issuing device that prints on long paper such as roll paper and cuts it to issue receipts, tickets, etc., and more particularly to a technology for clearing a paper jam that occurs when issuing a ticket.

In a ticket issuing device that issues receipts, tickets, etc., if the ejection port is blocked by hand during ticket issuance, or if the tip of the ticket ejected from the ejection port is caught by hand and ejection is hindered, High probability of paper jams. Continuing the printing operation in a state where a paper jam has occurred will worsen the jam state, causing failure or damage to the ticket issuing device.

In order to prevent malfunctions and damage due to paper jams, a method is known in which a jam detection sensor is provided, the printing operation is stopped when a paper jam is detected, and printing is restarted after the paper jam is cleared. Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200002 describes a configuration in which a sheet is looped through an opening formed in a part of a sheet conveying path to absorb a sheet jam. Moreover, in order to prevent paper jams, the paper is temporarily stored in the device until printing and cutting of the paper are completed, and after the cutting is completed, the leading edge of the paper is exposed from the ticket issuing port. A paper ejection device (presenter) is described.

Further, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-100002, in a printer device that issues bills and the like, when a paper jam detection means determines an abnormality again even though the user has cleared the paper jam and restored the device after detecting the paper jam, It is described that it is determined that the sensor is abnormal. Further, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200000, paper jam is detected only when the rotation of the paper feed roller is stopped. This document describes a recording apparatus that eliminates the need for detecting means for detecting the rotation of the paper feed rollers to reduce costs and eliminates the need to detect the state of the paper feed rollers to simplify the control program. there is

JP-A-2008-68950 JP-A-10-273260 Japanese Patent No. 5909357 Japanese Patent No. 3276778

However, the conventional ticket issuing device detects a paper jam and stops the printing operation, and then needs to manually clear the paper jam.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a ticket issuing device capable of automatically clearing a paper jam.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the ticket issuing apparatus according to the present invention includes a print head that prints on paper fed out from a roll paper, a platen roller that feeds the paper printed by the print head in a ticket issuing direction, and a print head. A jam detection sensor that detects occurrence of a paper jam in a paper transport path toward a ticket issuing port, a cutter that cuts the paper, and the print head, the platen roller, and the cutter based on the output of the jam detection sensor. When the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam during the printing operation of the print head, the printing operation and the paper feeding operation of the platen roller are stopped, and the platen roller is rotated in reverse. paper jam clearing operation is performed, the paper is cut, and the paper is discharged from the ticket issuing port.

According to the present invention, when a paper jam occurs during a printing operation, the printing operation can be stopped to automatically clear the paper jam.

The ticket issuing device according to the present invention performs the paper jam clearing operation when the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam after a predetermined time has passed since the printing operation was stopped, and the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam after the predetermined time has passed. It is preferable to omit the paper jam clearing operation when the controller does not detect the paper jam. According to this, it is possible to prevent the paper jam clearing operation from being performed again even though the paper jam has already been cleared by the user's operation or the like.

The ticket issuing device according to the present invention preferably prints an error message on the paper after clearing the paper jam and before cutting the paper. According to this, it is possible to clearly indicate that the ticket or the like ejected after the occurrence of the paper jam is not authorized.

It is preferable that the ticket issuing device according to the present invention counts the number of consecutive times of the paper jam clearing operation, and stops the paper jam clearing operation when the consecutive number of times exceeds a threshold value. According to this, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the paper jam clearing operation loops.

The ticket issuing device according to the present invention further comprises a paper ejection guide for guiding the paper printed by the print head to the ticket issuing opening, the paper ejection guide having a paper insertion opening and a paper ejection opening, and the paper transportation path. and a shutter that is provided on the paper transport path, permits passage of paper from the paper insertion port toward the paper discharge port, and prevents foreign matter inserted from the paper discharge port from entering. Preferably, the jam detection sensor detects a displacement of the shutter that receives a pressing force from the paper when a paper jam occurs in the paper transport path. According to this configuration, the shutter can also serve as jam detecting means, and it is possible to realize a paper discharge guide having a paper jam detecting function and a very small size and simple structure. Also, the jam detection signal can be used to stop the printing operation and the paper feed operation to prevent paper jams. Therefore, it is possible to inexpensively and selectively implement paper jam countermeasures with a simple configuration without incorporating a paper jam detection function into the printer unit or installing a presenter.

In the present invention, the shutter is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft, and when the paper passes through the paper transport path, the shutter is rotated upward by the pressing force from the paper and the paper is transported. is allowed to pass therethrough, and when a foreign object is inserted from the paper discharge port, the shutter is rotated downward by a pressing force from the foreign object to reinforce the closed state of the paper transport path. According to this configuration, a shutter having a jam detection function can be realized with a simple structure.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the bottom surface of the shutter constitutes the upper surface of the paper transport path, and also constitutes a downward slope from the paper insertion port of the paper transport path toward the paper discharge port. According to this configuration, it is possible to smoothly feed the printed paper and to reliably detect paper jam using the shutter.

The ticket issuing device according to the present invention preferably further includes a jam detection lever provided integrally with the shutter, and the jam detection sensor preferably detects displacement of the shutter via the jam detection lever. According to this configuration, a paper jam can be detected using a jam detection sensor provided at an arbitrary position. Further, the small displacement of the shutter can be increased, and the paper jam detection accuracy of the jam detection sensor can be improved.

The ticket issuing device according to the present invention further includes a paper presence sensor for detecting the presence or absence of paper on the paper transport path, and a circuit board on which the paper presence sensor is mounted, and the jam detection sensor is connected to the paper presence sensor and the circuit. It is preferably mounted on a substrate. According to this configuration, the board for mounting the jam detection sensor can be shared with the paper presence/absence sensor, and space saving and cost reduction can be achieved.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the shutter is provided above the paper transport path, and the jam detection sensor is provided below the paper transport path together with the paper presence/absence sensor and the circuit board. With this configuration, the shutter and sensor components can be efficiently laid out. In this case, the jam detection sensor is installed at a location away from the shutter. By using the jam detection lever, it is possible not only to detect the displacement of the shutter at a location away from the jam detection sensor, Paper jam detection accuracy can be improved.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a ticket issuing device capable of automatically clearing a paper jam.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a ticket issuing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view showing the detailed configuration of the paper discharge guide of the ticket issuing device. 3A to 3C are side cross-sectional views for explaining the operation of the paper discharge guide. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the paper jam clearing operation of the ticket issuing device. 5A and 5B are side cross-sectional views for explaining the paper jam clearing operation.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a ticket issuing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the ticket issuing device 100 according to this embodiment has a paper ejection guide 1, a printer section 2, and a roll paper storage section 3. As shown in FIG. The paper ejection guide 1 is attached to the paper ejection port of the printer unit 2 that prints on the continuous paper drawn out from the roll paper R, and is a component for guiding the paper P printed and cut by the printer unit 2 to the ticket issuing port 100a. , and has a configuration that is detachable from the printer unit 2 . A roll paper storage unit 3 is provided behind the printer unit 2, and the paper P continuously fed out from the roll paper R stored in the roll paper storage unit 3 is sent to the print head 4 of the printer unit 2 and After being printed by the platen roller 5 and cut by the cutter 6, it passes through the paper discharge guide 1 and is discharged from the ticket issuing port 100a. The control unit 7 controls the printing operation of the print head 4, the rotating operation of the platen roller 5, and the cutting operation of the cutter 6 according to a printing request from the outside. The platen roller 5 is driven by a motor (not shown).

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view showing the detailed configuration of the paper discharge guide 1. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the paper discharge guide 1 has a paper insertion port 10a and a paper discharge port 10b, and is provided so as to close a guide body 10 that constitutes the paper transport path 10c and the middle of the paper transport path 10c. a jam detection lever 12 provided integrally with the shutter 11; a jam detection sensor 13 for detecting the tilted attitude of the shutter 11 via the jam detection lever 12; A paper presence/absence sensor 14 for detecting presence/absence, a circuit board 15 on which the jam detection sensor 13 and the paper presence/absence sensor 14 are mounted, and an LED light emitting unit 16 provided near the paper discharge port 10b for notifying the position and state thereof. ing.

The circuit board 15 is connected to the control section 7 of the printer section 2 , and the outputs of the jam detection sensor 13 and the paper presence/absence sensor 14 are transferred to the control section 7 via the circuit board 15 . The controller 7 controls the operations of the print head 4 , the platen roller 5 and the cutter 6 based on outputs from the jam detection sensor 13 and the paper presence/absence sensor 14 . The control unit 7 also controls the ON/OFF operation of the LED light emitting unit 16 .

The paper ejection port 10b of the guide body 10 has a very narrow vertical width in order to prevent foreign matter from being inserted from the outside. On the other hand, the paper insertion port 10a is formed by a gap having a wider vertical width than the paper discharge port 10b, and the vertical width (height) of the paper transport path 10c is gradually or stepwise from the paper insertion port 10a to the paper discharge port 10b. relatively narrow. In this embodiment, the paper discharge port 10b coincides with the ticket issuing port 100a of the ticket issuing device 100, but the ticket issuing port 100a may be installed further downstream than the paper discharging port 10b.

The shutter 11 is a movable member provided above the paper transport path 10c so as to cover the entire width direction of the paper transport path 10c, and is provided near the paper insertion opening 10a of the paper transport path 10c. . A rear end portion 11d of the shutter 11 is rotatably supported by a rotary shaft 11a arranged above the paper insertion port 10a side of the paper transport path 10c, and a bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 is located on the paper transport path 10c. It constitutes the upper surface and faces the bottom surface of the paper transport path 10c. Furthermore, the bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 forms a gently downward slope from the upstream side (paper insertion port 10a side) of the paper transport path 10c to the downstream side (paper discharge port 10b side). The forward (downstream) side surface of the is forming a vertical surface in the normal state shown. The bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 may be a flat inclined surface or a gently curved inclined surface.

Normally, the front end portion 11f of the shutter 11 receives force in a downward rotating direction due to its own weight, and is in contact with the bottom surface of the paper transport path 10c. The coil spring 11c urges the shutter 11 downward. By adjusting the strength of the elastic force of the coil spring 11c, the pressing force with which the shutter 11 closes the paper transport path 10c and the detection sensitivity of paper jam are adjusted. can do.

The jam detection lever 12 plays a role of transmitting displacement of the shutter 11 due to paper jam to the jam detection sensor 13 . The jam detection lever 12 is a substantially L-shaped plate-shaped member extending downward from the rear end 11d of the shutter 11, and the tip 12a of the jam detection lever 12 extends below the sheet conveying path 10c so that the jam detection sensor 13 can be detected. The installation position has been reached. The jam detection lever 12 rotates about the rotary shaft 11a together with the shutter 11, and the tip 12a of the jam detection lever 12 covers the jam detection sensor 13, thereby turning the jam detection sensor 13 on, thereby preventing a paper jam. is detected.

In this embodiment, the jam detection sensor 13 is a transmissive photo sensor, and the paper presence/absence sensor 14 is a reflective photo sensor. It is preferable that the jam detection sensor 13 is mounted on the circuit board 15 on which the paper presence/absence sensor 14 is mounted. Space saving and cost reduction can be achieved by sharing the substrate for mounting the jam detection sensor 13 with the paper presence/absence sensor 14 .

3A to 3C are side cross-sectional views for explaining the operation of the paper ejection guide 1. (a) is for normal paper ejection, (b) is for paper jam occurrence, and (c) is for paper jam occurrence. ) indicate the time when a foreign object is inserted.

As shown in FIG. 3A, while the print head 4 is printing, the platen roller 5 rotates forward to feed the paper in the billing direction. The paper P transported from the printer section 2 to the paper insertion opening 10a of the paper discharge guide 1 is guided further along the inclined bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 into the paper transport path 10c, and the shutter 11 is slightly upward. While being displaced, it passes through the paper transport path 10c and is discharged from the paper discharge port 10b. At this time, the lower end portion 11e of the shutter 11 is slightly lifted and the jam detection lever 12 is also rotated slightly. 13 remain off.

As shown in FIG. 3B, when the paper discharge port 10b of the paper discharge guide 1 is blocked and a paper jam occurs, the paper P is jammed in the area near the paper insertion port 10a where the inclined bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 exists. is bent, and the pressing force of the bent sheet P pushes the bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 obliquely upward to rotate about the rotary shaft 11a. The jam detection lever 12 also rotates together with the shutter 11, and the tip 12a of the jam detection lever 12 covers the jam detection sensor 13 in a wide range, so that the jam detection sensor 13 is turned on. When the jam detection sensor 13 is turned on, the print head 4 and the platen roller 5 immediately stop the printing operation and the paper feed operation, so that the failure of the apparatus due to paper jam can be prevented.

As shown in FIG. 3(c), when a foreign object F such as a card is inserted from the paper ejection port 10b, the foreign matter F is placed on the side surface (front end surface) of the lower end portion 11e in front of the shutter 11 (on the side of the paper ejection port 10b). abuts against it and prevents it from advancing further. Even if the foreign object F is strongly pushed in, the side surface of the shutter 11 is pushed, and a force is applied to the shutter 11 to rotate it downward. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent foreign matter F from entering the apparatus.

Next, the automatic paper jam clearing operation shown in FIG. 3B will be described in detail.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the paper jam clearing operation of the ticket issuing device 100 . 5(a) and 5(b) are side cross-sectional views for explaining the paper jam clearing operation.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the jam detection sensor 13 does not detect a paper jam (step S2N) from the start of printing (step S1) to the end of printing (step S3), the issuing operation is normally performed. Terminate the ticket issuing operation.

On the other hand, when the jam detection sensor 13 detects a paper jam (step S2Y) between the start of printing (step S1) and the end of printing (step S3), the printing operation of the print head 4 is stopped and the platen roller 5 rotates. is stopped (step S4). Then, a timer is set to ensure a predetermined waiting time (for example, 3 seconds) (step S5).

If the jam detection sensor 13 still detects a paper jam after the predetermined waiting time has passed (steps S6 and S7Y), the count value n of the number of consecutive paper jam clearing operations is counted up (step S8), as shown in FIG. 5A, the platen roller 5 is reversely rotated for a predetermined period of time to perform a paper jam clearing operation (steps S9Y, S10). The jam detection sensor 13 continues to monitor the state of the paper jam even during the reverse rotation of the platen roller 5, and when the wrinkles of the paper P are smoothed out and the force pushing the shutter 11 obliquely upward disappears, the jam detection sensor 13 detects the paper jam. is no longer detected (step S7N).

When the paper jam is cleared after the paper jam clearing operation, an error message is printed on the wrinkled paper P (step S11), and the paper P is cut and discharged (step S12). Thus, the paper jam clearing operation is completed (step S13).

On the other hand, if the paper jam is not cleared even when the platen roller 5 is reversely rotated (S10, S7Y), the count value n of the number of consecutive paper jam clearing operations is counted up (step S8), and the paper jam clearing operation is performed again. (Steps S9Y, S10). If the paper jam clearing operation is repeated a predetermined number of times (for example, 3 times) and the paper jam is still not cleared (n>3), the paper jam clearing operation is stopped and the jam error is indicated by an LED display or a warning sound. (Steps S9N, S14). After this, the user must manually clear the paper jam.

The paper jam detection means according to the present embodiment is configured using the shutter 11, and the bottom surface 11b of the shutter 11 constituting the upper surface of the paper transport path 10c is gently downward toward the downstream side of the paper transport path 10c. form an inclined plane. The rotating motion of the shutter 11 due to its own weight acts in the direction of assisting the wrinkle-smoothing motion of the paper P due to the reverse rotation of the platen roller 5. Therefore, the paper jam can be easily released simply by rotating the platen roller 5 in the reverse direction. can do.

As shown in FIG. 5(b), when the paper jam has been resolved by, for example, pulling the leading edge of the paper P during the predetermined waiting time (step S6), the jam detection sensor 13 detects a predetermined Since the paper jam is not detected after the waiting time has passed (step S7N), the paper jam clearing operation (steps S8 to S10) for smoothing the wrinkles of the paper P is not performed, and the error message printing operation is started (step S11). Thus, the paper jam clearing operation is completed (step S13).

As described above, the ticket issuing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment stops the printing operation and the paper feeding operation when the jam detection sensor 13 detects a paper jam during the printing operation, rotates the platen roller 5 in the reverse direction, and rotates the paper P. After smoothing the wrinkles, the paper P is cut and discharged from the ticket issuing port 100a, so recovery from a paper jam can be automatically performed.

Further, in the ticket issuing device 100 according to the present embodiment, the shutter 11 that permits passage of the printed paper P and prevents foreign matter from being inserted from the ticket issuing opening 100a also serves as paper jam detection means. can be realized at low cost with a simple configuration. Therefore, the printer section 2 does not have a built-in paper jam detection function or a presenter that loops the paper and suspends its ejection until the printing is completed, and the paper jam countermeasure can be handled with a simple structure and at a low cost. and can be selectively realized.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Needless to say, it is included within the scope.

For example, in the above embodiment, the jam detection sensor 13 is installed below the sheet conveying path 10c, and the displacement of the shutter 11 is transmitted via the jam detection lever 12. However, the present invention has such a configuration. Alternatively, the jam detection sensor 13 may be installed above the paper transport path 10 c to directly detect the displacement of the shutter 11 without the jam detection lever 12 . Further, as a mounting board for the jam detection sensor 13, a board different from that for the paper presence/absence sensor 14 may be used.

1 Paper discharge guide 2 Printer unit 3 Roll paper storage unit 4 Print head 5 Platen roller 6 Cutter 7 Control unit 10 Guide body 10a Paper insertion port 10b Paper discharge port 10c Paper transport path 11 Shutter 11a Rotation shaft 11b Shutter bottom surface 11c Coil spring 11d Shutter rear end 11e Shutter lower end 11f Shutter front end 12 Jam detection lever 12a Jam detection lever tip 13 Jam detection sensor 14 Paper existence sensor 15 Circuit board (printed circuit board)
16 LED light emitting unit 100 ticket issuing device 100a ticket issuing slot F foreign matter P paper R roll paper

Claims (10)

a print head that prints on paper fed out from roll paper;
a platen roller for feeding the paper printed by the print head in a ticket issuing direction;
a paper discharge guide that guides the paper printed by the print head to the ticket issuing port;
a jam detection sensor that detects occurrence of a paper jam in the paper transport path from the print head to the ticket issuing port;
a cutter for cutting the paper;
a control unit that controls the print head, the platen roller and the cutter based on the output of the jam detection sensor;
The paper discharge guide is
a guide body having a paper insertion port and a paper discharge port and constituting the paper transport path;
a shutter that is provided on the paper transport path, permits passage of the paper from the paper insertion port toward the paper discharge port, and prevents foreign matter inserted from the paper discharge port from entering;
stopping the printing operation and the paper feeding operation of the platen roller when the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam during the printing operation of the print head;
reverse rotation of the platen roller to perform a paper jam clearing operation;
cutting the paper and ejecting it from the ticket issuing port;
The shutter is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft, and when the paper passes through the paper transport path, the shutter is rotated upward by the pressure from the paper to permit passage of the paper. and when a foreign object is inserted from the paper discharge port, the shutter tends to rotate downward due to the pressing force from the foreign object, thereby strengthening the closed state of the paper transport path,
A ticket issuing apparatus , wherein the jam detection sensor detects a displacement of the shutter that receives a pressing force from the paper when a paper jam occurs in the paper transport path . performing the paper jam clearing operation when the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam after a predetermined time has passed since the printing operation was stopped;
2. The ticket issuing device according to claim 1, wherein said paper jam clearing operation is omitted when said jam detection sensor does not detect said paper jam after said predetermined time has elapsed. 3. The ticket issuing device according to claim 1, wherein an error message is printed on the paper after the paper jam is cleared and before the paper is cut. 4. The ticket issuing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the number of consecutive times of said paper jam clearing operation is counted, and said paper jam clearing operation is forcibly terminated when said consecutive number of times exceeds a threshold value. 5. The shutter according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a bottom surface of said shutter constitutes an upper surface of said paper conveying path, and constitutes a downward inclined surface from said paper insertion opening of said paper conveying path toward said paper discharge opening. or the ticket issuing device according to item 1 . further comprising a jam detection lever provided integrally with the shutter;
The ticket issuing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the jam detection sensor detects displacement of the shutter via the jam detection lever. a paper presence/absence sensor for detecting the presence/absence of paper on the paper transport path;
a circuit board on which the paper presence/absence sensor is mounted;
7. The ticket issuing device according to claim 1 , wherein said jam detection sensor is mounted on said circuit board together with said paper presence/absence sensor. The shutter is provided above the paper transport path,
8. The ticket issuing device according to claim 7 , wherein said jam detection sensor is provided below said paper transport path together with said paper presence/absence sensor and said circuit board. a print head that prints on paper fed out from roll paper;
a platen roller for feeding the paper printed by the print head in a ticket issuing direction;
a paper discharge guide that guides the paper printed by the print head to the ticket issuing port;
a jam detection sensor that detects occurrence of a paper jam in the paper transport path from the print head to the ticket issuing port;
a paper presence/absence sensor for detecting the presence/absence of paper on the paper transport path;
a circuit board on which the paper presence/absence sensor is mounted;
a cutter for cutting the paper;
a control unit that controls the print head, the platen roller and the cutter based on the output of the jam detection sensor;
The jam detection sensor is mounted on the circuit board together with the paper presence/absence sensor,
The paper discharge guide is
a guide body having a paper insertion port and a paper discharge port and constituting the paper transport path;
a shutter that is provided on the paper transport path, permits passage of the paper from the paper insertion port toward the paper discharge port, and prevents foreign matter inserted from the paper discharge port from entering;
stopping the printing operation and the paper feeding operation of the platen roller when the jam detection sensor detects the paper jam during the printing operation of the print head;
reverse rotation of the platen roller to perform a paper jam clearing operation;
cutting the paper and ejecting it from the ticket issuing port;
A ticket issuing apparatus , wherein the jam detection sensor detects a displacement of the shutter that receives a pressing force from the paper when a paper jam occurs in the paper transport path . The shutter is provided above the paper transport path,
10. The ticket issuing device according to claim 9 , wherein said jam detection sensor is provided below said paper transport path together with said paper presence/absence sensor and said circuit board.

Images