JPH032738B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Application of the Invention) The present invention relates to a portable label printing and pasting unit that allows labels printed by a thermal recording method to be easily pasted onto articles.

(Prior art) Conventionally, a tabletop type uses a heat-sensitive recording method to print on a label that is temporarily attached to a releasable mount via a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer, and then peels the label from the mount and sends it to a takeout port. A label issuing device is known.

However, in this label issuing device, the delivered labels are picked up one by one with one's fingers and affixed to the article, or the article is carried to the above-mentioned outlet and applied to the label, and the label is affixed to the article. Therefore, label pasting work was difficult to do, and the pasting speed was slow and extremely inefficient. This is particularly inconvenient in supermarkets and the like where it is necessary to attach labels to a large number of items in a short period of time.

On the other hand, manual and portable label printing and pasting machines (so-called hand labelers) for printing on this type of labels and pasting them on articles are widely used.
This hand labeler is configured so that label printing and feeding are performed by switching between the locking and releasing operations of the hand lever, which causes great fatigue for the operator and also makes the stamping noise between the printing head and the platen. There was also a major problem with noise generation. Furthermore, especially in print heads that print barcodes for POS, the barcodes are read by optical readers, which requires strict accuracy in the width of the barcode and the spacing between them. Due to structural errors or insufficient or excessive amount of ink applied to the typeface, barcodes were often not printed accurately and could not be read correctly.

Furthermore, as an example of this type of device, there is a label pasting machine (Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 54-34800), but this label pasting machine is equipped with a print input device with a keyboard, a power supply device, etc., so it is heavy. Moreover, this machine is difficult to operate because it generally requires one-handed operation to affix labels to products, etc. Furthermore, since all of the electrical devices are installed inside the machine, if the machine falls due to operational errors, it is inevitable that the electrical devices will be damaged, and specifications may need to be changed. Even when changing the electrical control system circuit or software, it is troublesome.
Another problem is that it is unable to accurately respond to user needs and their changes, and lacks flexibility.

(Objective of the Invention) In view of the above points, the present invention enables accurate printing at all times, reduces worker fatigue and noise during operation, and greatly improves the efficiency of label pasting work. In addition to preventing electrical problems from occurring in the event of a fall accident due to a labeling machine operation error, it also provides flexibility so that the electrical control system can be changed as needed to meet changing user needs. An object of the present invention is to provide a portable label printing and pasting unit characterized by the following structure.

(Summary of the Invention) That is, the present invention combines a printing and pasting unit that prints on labels and affixes them to articles, a control unit that performs various controls for printing the labels, and a control unit that has a keyboard for inputting data, etc. The control unit and the label pasting unit can be freely connected and disconnected by electricity and communication means, and the printing and pasting unit can transfer the labels based on data input from the control unit. This is a portable label printing and pasting unit that is characterized by being able to print and paste labels.

(Example) Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of the first embodiment of the present invention, and the device is roughly divided into a printing and pasting unit 1 that can be held and operated with one hand, and a printing and pasting unit 1 that is constructed separately and connected to a cable 3. and a control unit 2 connected together. This control unit 2 includes a control section for controlling label transfer and printing, a power supply device, a keyboard 32 for inputting print data, and a display section 32a.
etc., and is set at a position apart from the printing and pasting unit 1. For example, the control unit 2
It is installed in the operator's room or work room, and transmits the signal to the printing and pasting unit 1 from there.

For details, this control unit 2 has a cable 91.
The cable 91 is connected to a connector 92 set at each corner of each store 90. The printing and pasting unit 1 (FIG. 2 and FIGS. 7 to 10), which will be explained in detail later, inserts the plug 93 connected to the cable 3 into the connector 93 and receives the signal from the control unit 2. Based on this signal,
Alternatively, a desired thermal print can be obtained on the label by performing appropriate signal processing.

Next, in FIG. 11, which is an overall schematic diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention, basically the printing and pasting unit 100 and the control unit 200 are constructed as separate bodies, similarly to the first embodiment. The control unit 200 is set in a remote location such as an operator's room or a work room, and transmits and receives information to and from the printing and pasting unit 100 wirelessly.

This control unit 200 includes a control section for controlling label transfer and printing, a power supply device, a keyboard 32 for inputting print data, a display section 32a, etc., as well as an antenna installed in the front of the printing and pasting unit 100 shown in FIG. 94, an antenna, a receiver, and a transmitter (not shown) corresponding to the receiver 95 and transmitter 96 are provided.

The printing and pasting unit 100 wirelessly receives a signal from the control unit 200 and obtains desired thermal printing on a label in the same manner as the printing and pasting unit 1 described above.

As shown in detail in FIG.
However, a grip 7 for grasping and holding with one hand is formed at the rear (right end in the figure), and inside the machine frame 5 there is a label transfer section 8, a printing section 9, a pasting section 10 at the front end, and a front section. A display section 11 on the top surface is installed,
Furthermore, a micro switch 12 operated by a push button 26 is provided inside the grip 7.

As shown in FIG. 6, the label roll holding unit 6 has a continuous label body 15 in which labels 14 made of heat-sensitive recording paper are sequentially temporarily attached to one side of a releasable mount 13 via a pressure-sensitive adhesive. A label roll 16 wound into a roll is rotatably held, and the continuous label 15 unwound from the label roll 16 enters the machine frame 5, passes through a guide 17 and a guide roller 18, and then reaches a platen 19. After passing through the transfer sensor 20 installed at the front end of the platen, and then passing between the platen roller 21 at the front end of the platen and the thermal print head 22 of the printing section 9, only the mount 13 is reversed by the platen roller 21 and transferred to the platen. 19, is pulled by the rear transfer roller 23 and the auxiliary roller 24, and is discharged to the outside of the machine.

On the other hand, the label 14 peeled off from the mount 13 is sent out below the application roller 26 at the front end of the machine body, and becomes ready to be applied to the article.

The transfer sensor 20 optically detects notches 27 formed at each end of the label 14 as shown in FIG. 6, and stops the transfer of the continuous label body 15 by a control device to be described later. be. Further, a pasting sensor 28 is installed in front of the thermal print head 22 to detect whether the label 14 is pasted to an article.

A stepping motor 29 connected to a control device is installed at the center of the machine, and the rotation of the stepping motor 29 is transmitted to the transfer roller 23 by a drive belt 30.

The display section 11 is provided with, for example, a light emitting diode display 31, and is configured to display information input to the control device.

Note that the micro switch 12, stepping motor 29, thermal print head 22,
The transfer sensor 20, the application sensor 28 and the light emitting diode display 31 are each connected to the control part of the control unit 2 by a cable 3 extending to the rear of the grip 7.

Next, the control unit 2 will be explained.

This control unit 2 is provided with a control section, a power supply section, a keyboard 32, etc., and the circuit configuration of the control section will be described with reference to FIG. A storage device (ROM) 52 and an input data storage device (RAM) 53 are connected. Further, the bus line 51 is connected to a keyboard 32 and a display section 32a and a display section 11 of the control unit 2 and the printing and pasting unit 1, respectively. Further, the bus line 51 is connected to the thermal print head 22 via the printer control circuit 54, to the stepping motor 29 via the stepping motor drive circuit 55, to the transfer sensor 20, the pasting sensor 28, and the micro switch via the buffer circuit 56. 12, respectively. Note that a weighing scale 58 or the like can also be connected to the bus line 51 via an interface 57.

The operation of this embodiment will be explained using printing of a bar code as an example with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

First, data to be printed is input by operating keys on the keyboard 32 of the control unit 2. Specifically, the information includes product code, price, check digit, etc. Once this data entry has been completed for all digits, enter the number of copies to be issued.

The above data are displayed on the display sections 32a and 11 of the control unit 2 and the printing and pasting unit 1, respectively.

Next, in FIG. 2, the pasting roller 26 of the printing pasting unit 1 is pushed to turn the micro switch 12
When turned on, a predetermined heating element of the thermal print head 22 generates heat in response to a command signal from the control section, and the label 14 made of heat-sensitive recording paper develops color and one-step printing is performed.

Next, the stepping motor 29 rotates one step to rotate the transfer roller 23 by a predetermined angle via the drive belt 30, and in cooperation with the auxiliary roller 24, pulls the mount 13 by a predetermined distance.
The label continuum 15 above is also moved a predetermined distance.
Then, when the thermal print head 22 acts again in the same manner as described above to perform the next step of printing on the label 14, the stepping motor 29 rotates one step to move the label continuous body 15, and this printing When the movement is repeated and printing for one label is completed, the continuous label body 15 is fed until the conveyance sensor 20 detects the notch 27 of the label 14 and then stopped.

The label 14 printed by the above transfer is peeled off from the mount 13 by the platen roller 21 and sent to the pasting section 10, that is, below the pasting roller 25. Therefore, the label 14 is attached by rubbing the lower surface of the label 14 against the article. When the pasting of this label 14 is detected by the pasting sensor 28 and the pasting roller 26 is pressed again by the operator, printing by the thermal print head 22 and transport by the stepping motor 29 are performed in the same manner as described above. This is done alternately, and the next label 14 is printed and sent to the pasting section 10. When all the labels corresponding to the preset number of labels have been issued in this way, the operation of the apparatus is stopped.

In order to position the first sheet (heading), when the micro switch 12 is turned on, the stepping motor 29 rotates until the transfer sensor 20 detects the pasting roller 26 of the label 14 and transfers the label continuous body 15. It is configured such that the label 14 is aligned in a predetermined position.

Next, a modification example (1) of the printing and pasting unit 1 of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. In this modification, the printing and pasting unit 1 is changed to a thermal transfer type, and the other parts are the same as those in FIG. 2, so the same numbers are given.

That is, a holding part 35 for a ribbon roll 34 around which a thermal transfer ribbon 33 is wound is provided in front of the label roll holding part 6, and a take-up reel for the thermal transfer ribbon 33 is provided above the shafted roll 25 at the front end of the machine. 36 are provided. The take-up reel 36 is connected to the stepping motor 29 by a transmission belt 37, and is configured to rotate together with the stepping motor 29 to take up the thermal transfer ribbon 33.

Note that the thermal transfer ribbon 33 is mounted on the take-up reel 36.
An appropriate slip mechanism (not shown) is used to keep the winding amount constant according to changes in the winding diameter.
It is equipped with

Further, since the labels 14 of the label continuous body 15 do not need to be thermal recording paper, they are made of plain paper.

To explain the operation of this embodiment, the thermal transfer ribbon 33 pulled out from the ribbon roll holding section 35 is
It passes through the guide 38 inside the machine, overlaps the label continuous body 15 at the guide roller 18, is transported at the same speed as the label continuous body 15 while remaining superimposed, and passes through the transport sensor 20 and the printing section 9 to the pasting sensor 28.
Thermal transfer ribbon 33 is attached to the front guide pin 39.
The chisel is turned upward and wound onto the take-up reel 36.

Therefore, when the heating element of the thermal print head 22 generates heat in the printing section 9, the transfer recording agent (for example, carbon wax) of the thermal transfer ribbon 33 is transferred to the printing surface of the label 14, and printing is performed. Incidentally, since the overall operation order is exactly the same as that shown in FIG. 2, the explanation will be omitted.

Next, a second modification of the printing and pasting unit 1 of the present invention will be explained. This modification is shown in Figures 8 to 10.
As shown in the figure, this is an improved version of the pasting section 10 located at the front end of the printing and pasting unit 1, and is characterized by the fact that the printed label 14 is automatically pasted onto the article using a pasting pad 81.

Specifically, a first gear 43 meshes with a driving gear 42 connected to a stepping motor 29 via a transmission belt 41;
A second gear 45 to which a crank arm 44 is attached is engaged with the second gear 45 .

A sliding body 47 is pivotally attached to the upper end of the crank arm 44 by a mounting pin 48 and is capable of vertically sliding in a guide hole 46 formed in a front cover 5a attached to the machine frame 5. A rotating body 59 having a hook 49 is pivotally attached to the hole 47a formed in the hole 47 by the mounting pin 48. Note that the rotating body 59 is always biased clockwise by a spring 60 wound around the mounting pin 48.

On the other hand, in front of the sliding body 47, a hammer 71 having a U-shaped horizontal section is arranged so as to be movable up and down. A locking portion 72 that can engage with the hook 49 of the rotating body 59 is formed on the rear surface of the hammer 71;
Guide pins 73 protrude from both sides. This guide pin 73 and the shaft 63 of the lever 62 described later
A striking spring 74 is stretched between.

In addition, in the recess 75 on the front surface of the hammer 71,
A pair of guide walls 77 are formed on both sides of a box 76 for a part holder formed on the front cover 5a, and a vertically elongated guide hole 78 is formed in each of the guide walls 77 and the side wall of the box 76 for a part holder.
(4 locations in total) have been drilled.

A pad holder 79 is housed in the pad holder box 76 so as to be vertically movable. A mounting plate 80 having a bent portion 80a projecting rearward is integrally formed at the lower end of the parts holder 79.
Furthermore, a sticking pad 81 made of an elastic material such as rubber is attached to the lower end of the bent portion 80a. Further, guide holes 82 are bored in both side walls of the parts holder 79.
Guide pins 73 attached to the hammer 71 are inserted through the four guide holes 78 of the front cover 5a. Inside the pad holder 79, a return spring 83 is interposed between the inner surface of the upper wall of the pad holder 79 and the guide pin 73.

Note that a tapered surface 84 is formed on the front cover 5a so that the hook 49 can come into contact with it when the rotating body 59 is raised (FIG. 8).

Further, below the pasting patch 81, a pedestal 83a is attached to the machine frame, in which a pasting opening 82a through which the pasting pad 81 can move up and down is formed, and at the upper end of this pedestal 83a, a part is sent out from the printing section. A receiving plate 84a for receiving the label 14 is formed.

Next, an issuance switch 61 is provided on the side of the pasting opening 82a, and this issuance switch 61 is operated by rotation of a lever 62 provided below it (FIG. 10). That is, the lower end of the lever 62, whose one end is pivotally connected to the shaft 63 and always biased clockwise by a spring 64, is provided so as to slightly protrude from the lower surface of the pedestal 83a, and the label is attached to the lower end of the lever 62. When the pedestal 83a is placed against the article to be processed, the lever 62 rotates upward and presses the protrusion 65 on the lower surface of the issue switch 61, turning the issue switch 61 ON.

In addition, there is a spare switch 66 at the bottom of the grip 7.
has been installed. Specifically, a hand lever 68 whose rear end is pivotally connected to the grip 7 and always biased counterclockwise by a return spring 67 is rotatably attached, and the hand lever 68 is grasped and moved upward. When the hand lever 68 is rotated,
The upper surface of presses the protrusion 69 of the backup switch 66, turning the backup switch 66 ON.

In addition. The thermal print head 22 has a vertically elongated shape, and is pressed against the platen roller 21 by a spring 70. The other configurations are the same as in FIG. 2 above.

To explain the operation of the second modified example of such a configuration, first, the keyboard 32 of the control unit 2
When the user inputs the necessary data and then grasps the grip 7 of the printing and pasting unit 1 and rotates the hand lever 68 upward, the reserve switch 66 is turned on. Next, the holder 83a is placed on the article to which the label is attached.
When the pasting opening 82a is pressed, the lever 62 rotates upward and the issuing switch 61 is turned on, and the thermal print head 22 prints and prints in accordance with a command from the control section as in the first modification. , transport by the rotation of the stepping motor 29 are repeated until printing for one label is completed, and when the transport sensor 20 detects the notch 27 at the end of the label, the stepping motor 29 is stopped and the label transport is stopped. . At this time, the printed label 14 peeled off from the mount 13, which is reversed and pulled backward by the platen roller 21, is delivered to the receiving plate 84a below the pasting pad 81.

Further, during the above-described printing/transferring process, the pasting pad 81 has risen to the upper limit position. That is, the rotation of the stepping motor 29 causes the sliding body 47 to rise via the transmission belt 41, the drive gear 42, the first gear 43, the second gear 45, and the crank 44. At this time, the hook 49 of the rotating body 59 attached to the sliding body 47 is engaged with the locking part 72 of the hammer 71 and the hammer 71 is also raised, so that the guide pin 73 attached to the hammer 71 is Push up the patch holder 79 while compressing the return spring 83. Next, the upper surface of the part holder 79 is connected to the inner wall upper surface 85 of the front cover 5a.
The part holder 79 stops upon contact with the hammer 71, but the hammer 71 further rises.

Since the hook 49 comes into contact with the tapered surface 84, the rotating body 59 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. It falls rapidly due to the action of the striking spring 74, and its lower surface strongly strikes the upper surface of the mounting plate 80 of the part holder 79. As a result, the patch holder 79 is strongly pressed, and the sticking patch 81 pops out from the sticking opening 82a together with the label 14 on the receiving plate 84a, and sticks the label 14 on the article.

It goes without saying that the tanoming is set so that the hook 49 and the hammer 71 are disengaged and the sticking pad 81 falls at the same time as the label transfer is stopped as detected by the transfer sensor 20.

After pasting one label as described above, lift up the printing pasting unit 1 and use the hand lever 68.
If you turn on the standby switch 66 by holding the button and press the pedestal 83a against another item, the issuing switch 61 will turn on again and print/print in the same way as above.
Pasting is performed and the sheets are cut out to a preset number.

In addition, in this embodiment, the backup switch 66
Therefore, even if the printing and pasting unit 1 is placed on an object and the issuing switch 61 is pressed when not in use, a label will not be issued unless the hand lever 68 is grasped and the reserve switch 66 is turned ON.

Note that the control unit 2 of the first embodiment (Fig. 1)
These are the basics (Fig. 2), modification example (1) (Fig. 7), and modification example (2) of the printing and pasting unit 1.
It can be adapted to any of the configurations of the unit (FIGS. 8 to 10). On the other hand, the printing and pasting units 1, 100 can be connected to any control circuit or control unit equipped with software, and the internal circuits etc. are designed according to each control unit.

Next, the control unit 200 shown in the second embodiment (FIG. 11) is compatible with the printing and pasting unit 100 shown in FIG. In addition to the transmitter 95 and the transmitter 96, the grip 7 is provided with a charging battery 97, a charging outlet 98, and a transformer 99. Since it is the same as pasting unit 1, only the reference numerals are given and the explanation thereof will be omitted.

(Effects) As described above, the present invention is a printing and pasting unit configured to have at least a thermal printing means, a label transporting means, and a label pasting means,
It is configured to be connectable to a control unit which is constructed separately from this unit and has at least a control section, a keyboard, etc., using electrical connection means, that is, wired or wireless.

Therefore, a particularly heavy power supply device can be mounted on a fixed control unit.
The printing and pasting unit is lighter in weight and can be easily operated with one hand for label pasting, greatly improving work efficiency.

Furthermore, the control unit equipped with an input device with a keyboard, a power supply, etc. can be installed in the operator's room or work room, making it possible to install the control unit in the operator's room or work room. It has the advantage that there is no damage to the equipment.

In addition, since only the mechanism for directly printing and pasting labels can be separated from other mechanisms, the control circuit and software can be designed as appropriate according to the user's needs, and it can be used with various data input devices. It is possible to make a printing and pasting unit that is highly flexible as it can also be connected.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of a first embodiment of a portable label printing and pasting unit in which the printing and pasting unit and the control unit are separate units, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the circuit configuration, FIG. 4 is a flow chart, FIG. 5 is a timing chart, FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a label roll and a continuous label body, and FIG. The figure is a cross-sectional view of a modified example (1) of the print pasting unit, FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a modified example (2) of the print pasting unit, FIG. The figure is a side view of the issuing switch part, FIG. 11 is an overall schematic diagram of a second embodiment of the printing and pasting unit and control unit according to the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a sectional view of the printing and pasting unit 100. . In the figure, 1...Printing and pasting unit, 2...Control unit, 3...Cable, 8...Label transfer unit,
9...Label printing section, 10...Label pasting section, 1
4...Label, 22...Thermal print head, 32...Keyboard, 90...In-store sales floor,
91...cable, 92...connector, 93...
Plug, 94...Antenna, 95...Receiver, 9
6...Transmitter, 100...Print pasting unit, 2
00...Control unit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Means for supplying and transporting labels to be printed;
means for printing on the label using a thermal recording method;
means for attaching the printed label to the article;
A receiver that receives signals from a control unit that is configured separately from the print pasting unit, has a control section and a data input means, and is set at a position apart from the print pasting unit, using electricity and communication means. A portable label printing and pasting unit having means and. 2. The receiving means includes a plug that is connected to the control unit and is connectable to and detachable from a connector wired in each store, and a cable that connects this plug to the label printing and pasting unit. A portable label printing and pasting unit according to claim 1. 3. The portable label printing and pasting unit according to claim 1, wherein the receiving means includes an antenna, a receiver, and a transmitter.