JPH0224180A - Pressure fixing device of printer head - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make supply of paper and operation of a printer in exchange easy by a method wherein a part of a support arm provided to an opening and closing cover is prepared in an opening and closing free manner, and this part is linked to an operation lever by which a thermal head is fixed by pressure and is separated from a platen. CONSTITUTION:A support arm 42 is provided to a base part of an opening and closing cover 40, and this support arm 42 is in a rotation free manner fixed to an operation panel part 44 composing a part of a printer storage casing via a support axle 46. Further, a pin 48 is projected to a part of the support arm 42, and one end of a swing lever 50 is engaged with this pin 48. Furthermore, one end of a coil spring 56 is connected to almost a middle part of this swing lever 56, and the other part of this coil spring 56 is made to keep a required tensile force to the printer storage casing. One part of the swing lever 50 is connected to the support axle 58 of an operation lever 30 via link levers 60, 62. In that case, when the opening and closing cover 40 is closed, the operation lever 30 presses the thermal head fast to a platen.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an assembly structure of a printer head of a thermal printer, and in particular, to an assembly structure of a printer head of a thermal printer, and in particular, to a platen in conjunction with an opening/closing lid of a roll paper storage section constituting a portable printer. The present invention relates to a crimping device for a printer head that performs a crimping operation.

[Conventional technology]

Today, many types of printers have been developed and put into practical use as data output means for computer processing devices. especially,
Thermal printers equipped with a thermal head such as a thermal type or a thermal transfer type are widely used because they have a simple mechanism and can be constructed in a small size. Therefore, for example, this type of thermal printer is suitably employed in a portable computer processing device (terminal device, etc.).

However, this type of thermal printer can print out by pressing a thermal head onto the print paper against a platen that sequentially sends out a roll of print paper. Therefore, in this type of printer, when replenishing or replacing print paper, it is necessary to move the printer head away from the platen so as not to TR (&) the head surface of the printer. The head is provided with an operating lever that can press the head against or separate it from the platen at any time, and is configured to be manually operated by an operator.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a typical conventional thermal printer. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 10 indicates a printer frame, and a platen 1 is attached to this printer frame 10.
2 is rotatably supported via a support shaft 14, and a thermal head 16 is pivotably supported via a support shaft 18 so as to be able to press against the platen 12.

On the opposite side of the thermal head 16 from the side that contacts the platen 12, a support plate 22 is provided with a spring 20 for elastically pressing the thermal head 16 into contact with the platen 12.
are provided, and both ends of the support plate 22 are fixed to the printer frame 10, respectively. Further, an electric motor 24 is provided on one side of the printer frame 10, and a drive shaft of the electric motor 24 is coupled to a support shaft b4 of the platen 12 via a gear mechanism 26 as appropriate. Therefore, print paper is supplied from the side between the platen 12 and the thermal head 16 configured as described above, and the printed paper is sequentially sent upward.

In this case, when replenishing or replacing print paper, in order to separate the thermal head 16, which is in contact with the platen 12, against the elasticity of the spring 20, the protrusion 28 connected to a part of the thermal head 16 is attached to the printer. frame 1
The protrusion 28 is movably protruded from one side of the printer frame 10 and is configured to be operated via an operating lever 30 and a link lever 32 that are pivotally connected to the printer frame 10. In this case, the switch 34 operated by the operating lever 30
It is preferable to provide a configuration in which a state in which the thermal cover 16 is separated from the platen 12 (that is, a head-up state! 3) is detected by operating the operating lever 30 in the direction of the arrow. Note that the thermal head 16 is further provided with a connector 36, a temperature sensor 38, and a paper sensor (not shown).

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional thermal printer, after replenishing or replacing print paper, the user often forgets to press the thermal head using the operating lever 30, resulting in a situation where the print paper does not print out.

In particular, this type of situation often occurs in portable terminal devices that have a built-in printer and paper, and such operations only complicate the task of replenishing or replacing print paper. There is a drawback that the handling of the seeding device is troublesome.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, when a printer is integrated with a computer processing device in a required casing, an object of the present invention is to provide a printer that is connected to the opening/closing operation of an opening/closing lid provided in a part of the casing, especially when replenishing and replacing printing paper. An object of the present invention is to provide a press-bonding device for a printer head that can simply and reliably press and release the print head from a platen.

[Means to solve the problem]

The printer head crimping device according to the present invention consists of a thermal printer installed inside a casing equipped with an opening/closing lid for replenishing or replacing print paper, and connects the thermal head of the thermal printer to a platen that supplies the print paper. Pivotally held so that it can be elastically crimped,
In the printer head crimping device, the thermal head is configured to be pressed against or separated from the platen by displacing a part of the thermal head via an operating lever, wherein a support arm is provided on the opening/closing lid, and a part of the support arm is moved. It is configured to be pivoted on a support shaft so that it can be opened and closed, and a pin is provided protruding from a part of the support arm, and this pin is engaged with the other end of a swinging rod whose one end is pivotally supported. It is characterized in that the operating lever is interlockably coupled to the operating lever by a link lever.

In the printer head crimping device described above, if a coil spring is coupled to the swinging rod so as to have tensile elasticity in the opening direction of the opening/closing lid, the opening/closing operation of the opening/closing lid can be smoothly performed.

In addition, a sliding groove is carved on the other end of the swinging rod to slidably lock a pin protruding from the support arm, and a pin engagement recess is provided in a part of this sliding groove, It is preferable that the pin be held in pressure contact with the pin engagement recess by a spring force acting on the moving rod to hold the opening/closing lid open.

Furthermore, it is preferable to provide a part of the opening/closing lid with an opening for leading out the printed paper from the back side to the front side.

[Effect]

According to the printer head crimping device of the present invention, in a thermal printer installed inside a casing equipped with an opening/closing lid for replenishing or replacing print paper, a supporting arm is provided on the opening/closing lid, and one of the supporting arms is provided with the opening/closing lid. A part of the support arm is pivotally connected to a support shaft so as to be openable and closable, and a part of the support arm is coupled to an operating lever that presses or separates a thermal head of the thermal printer from a platen that supplies printing paper. By doing so, when opening the opening/closing lid to replenish or replace print paper, the operating lever can be automatically operated to move the thermal head away from the platen, and when closing the opening/closing lid, the operating lever can be automatically operated. The operating lever can be automatically operated to press the thermal head against the platen, thereby facilitating the operation of the printer when replenishing or replacing print paper.

〔Example〕

Next, embodiments of a printer head crimping device according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 and 2 are side views of main parts showing an embodiment of the printer head crimping device according to the present invention, in which an opening/closing lid for replenishing or replacing printing paper is provided adjacent to the operation panel section. The printer is housed inside the required casing. For convenience of explanation, the same reference numerals are given to the same components as those of the printer shown in FIG. 4, and the detailed invention will be omitted. Note that FIG. 1, which shows one embodiment of the present invention, shows a state in which the opening/closing lid 40 is closed, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which the opening/closing lid 40 is opened.

In this embodiment, platens 12. The configuration and arrangement of the thermal head 16, the support plate 22 that supports it, the electric motor 24 and the gear mechanism 26, and the deep work lever 30 and link lever 32 for pressing and separating the thermal head 16 from the platen 12 are as follows.
This is the same printer as shown in the figure. Therefore, since the operations of each of the above-mentioned components of the printer are the same as those of the printer shown in FIG. 4, their explanation will be omitted.

However, in the present invention, a support B42 is provided at the base of the opening/closing lid 40, and this support arm 42 is rotatably attached to the operation panel section 44 that constitutes a part of the printer storage casing via a support shaft 46. The opening/closing lid 40 is configured to be openable and closable. Further, a pin 4 is attached to a part of the support arm 42.
8 is provided in a protruding manner, and one end of a swinging rod 50 is engaged with this pin 48. That is, this swinging rod 50 has one end pivotally connected to the printer storage casing via a support shaft 52, and has a sliding groove 54 cut in the other end, and the bin 48 is inserted into the sliding groove 54. Fit and engage. Further, one end of a coil spring 56 is coupled to the swinging rod 50 at a substantially middle portion thereof, and the other end of the coil spring 56 is engaged with the printer storage casing by maintaining a required tensile force. Stop. As a result, when opening the opening/closing lid 40, as shown in FIG.
The tension of the coil spring 56 can facilitate the operation. Then, a part of the swinging rod 50 configured in this manner and the support shaft 58 of the operating lever 30 are connected to the link lever 6.
Connect via 0,62.

In this case, the link levers 60 and 62 are positioned so that the operating lever 30 presses the thermal head against the platen when the opening/closing lid 40 is closed.
Also, when the opening/closing lid 40 is opened, the operation lever 30 functions to position the thermal head away from the platen by the displacement of the swinging rod 50 (see figure).
(See Figure 2).

Note that the operation of the operating lever 30 is as shown in FIG.
When the opening/closing lid 40 is closed, the link lever 32 coupled to the operating lever 30 can be moved to the right to press the thermal head against the platen. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, when the opening/closing lid 40 is opened, the link lever 32 coupled to the operating lever 30 can be moved to the left to move the thermal head away from the platen. Furthermore, in this embodiment, a bottle engaging recess 64 is provided in the sliding groove 54 provided in the swinging rod 50 at a contact portion with the bottle 48 that engages with the sliding groove 54, as shown in FIG. As shown, when the opening/closing lid 40 is opened to a predetermined position, the sliding rod 50 is brought into contact with the bottle 48 by the bottle engaging recess 64 under the action of the coil spring 56 with sufficient pressing force, thereby opening/closing the lid. It becomes possible to hold the lid 40 in the open state with the required spring elasticity.

As described above, in the present invention, the opening/closing I40 is held openable/closable by the support arm 42, but in this case, the third
As shown in the figure, an opening 66 is provided at the pivoting base of the opening/closing lid 40, and a guide plate 68 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) is protruded from the back side of the opening/closing lid 40 provided with this opening 66. The opening 66 is configured to lead out the print paper printed out by the printer to the front side of the opening/closing lid 40. Furthermore, in order to facilitate the removal of the print paper, a hood 70 is appropriately provided around the opening 66 of the opening/closing lid 40, and a hood 70 is provided at the end of the opening/closing lid 40 to facilitate the opening/closing operation of the opening/closing lid 40. It is preferable to provide a handle 72 as appropriate.

Although the switch operated by the operation lever 30 is not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the switch 3 is operated in this embodiment as well as in the conventional printer shown in FIG.
4 can be provided so that the state in which the thermal guide 7 is pressed against or separated from the platen can be detected by operating the operating lever 30.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various design changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. .

〔Effect of the invention〕

As is clear from the embodiments described above, according to the present invention,
An operating lever for crimping and separating the printer head and a supporting arm that is linked to the opening/closing operation of the opening/closing lid are oscillated with respect to the opening/closing lid for replenishing or replacing printing paper provided in the casing housing the printer. By being configured to work together via the moving rod and link lever, the printer head can be pressed against or separated from the platen at the same time by opening and closing the opening/closing lid, making it easy to handle and operate this type of printer. and can be achieved reliably.

Further, according to the device of the present invention, by providing a required recess in the portion of the swinging rod that connects the support arm of the opening/closing lid and the operating lever in an interlocking manner to the part that engages the coil spring with the pin,
When the opening/closing lid is opened to a predetermined angle, the pin engagement state is maintained due to the elasticity of the coil spring, which makes it possible to maintain the opening/closing lid in the open state and facilitate the work of replenishing or replacing printing paper. .

Furthermore, the device of the present invention has a simple configuration and can be easily manufactured by simply adding component parts without making any structural changes to an existing printer, so it can not only be manufactured at low cost, but also It has many advantages such as being easy to apply to existing printers.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view of the main parts showing an embodiment of the printer head crimping device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view of the main parts showing the operating state of the printer head shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 1 and 2 are top perspective views of an opening/closing lid that is interlocked with the crimping device, and FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a conventional thermal printer. 10, Printer frame 14, Support shaft 18, Support shaft 22, Support plate 26, Gear mechanism 30, Operation lever 34, Switch 38, Temperature sensor 42, , Support arm 46, , Support shaft 50, , Swinging rod 54, , Sliding groove 58, , Support shaft 64, , Pin engagement recess 68, , Guide plate 72, , Handle link. 12 showing the helad part, , , platen 16, , thermal head 20, , spring 24, , electric motor 2B, , protrusion 32, , link lever 36, , connector 40, , opening/closing lid 44 , , Operation panel section 48 , , Pin 52 , , Support shaft 56 , , Coil spring 60, 62 . ,,link lever 66,,,opening 70,,,hood FIG,1

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) It consists of a thermal printer installed inside a casing with an opening/closing lid for replenishing or replacing print paper, and the thermal head of the thermal printer is pivoted so that it can be elastically pressed against the platen that supplies the print paper. In the printer head crimping device, the printer head is configured to be crimped to or separated from the platen by displacing a part of the thermal head via an operating lever, wherein a support arm is provided on the opening/closing lid; A part of the support arm is pivotally connected to a support shaft so that it can be opened and closed, a pin is provided protruding from a part of the support arm, and this pin is engaged with the other end of a swinging rod whose one end is pivotally supported. A crimping device for a printer head, characterized in that a swinging rod and an operating lever are linked together by a link lever. (2) A printer head crimping device according to claim 1, wherein a coil spring is coupled to the swinging rod so as to have tensile elasticity in the opening direction of the opening/closing lid. (3) A sliding groove is carved on the other end of the swinging rod to slidably lock a pin protruding from the support arm, and a pin engaging recess is provided in a part of this sliding groove, 3. The printer head crimping device according to claim 2, wherein the pin is held in pressure contact with the pin engagement recess by a spring force acting on the swinging rod to hold the opening/closing lid open. (4) The press-bonding device for a printer head according to claim 1, wherein a part of the opening/closing lid is provided with an opening for leading out the printed paper from the back side to the front side.