JPH04257472A - Recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To achieve cost down by reducing a number of parts by a method wherein a sheet guide which guides one side surface of a recording sheet, the other side surface is guided with a charged cassette case, and a pinch roller capable of coming in pressure contact with a platen roller is provided to the cassette case. CONSTITUTION:Sheet guides 6a, 9a which guide a lower surface of a recording sheet 4 are provided to a recorder body 3. When a cassette case 2 is loaded on the printer body 3, the lower surface of the case 2 guides an upper surface of the recording sheet 4, and a part of the case 2 becomes a conveying path. When the case 2 is dismantled from the printer boddy 3, the conveying paths 6, 9 are largely opened, and the sheet 4 jammed in the path can be easily removed. Further, though pinch rollers 8b, 8c come in pressure contact with the platen roller 8a which loads the cassette case 2 on the printer body 3, when the case 2 is dismantled from the printer body 3, the pitch rollers 8b, 8c are seperated from the platen roller 8a. In this case, jamming can be easily treated also, and it is not required to provide a pressure contact releasing mechanism of both rollers especially.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a recording device used as an output device for computer equipment, word processors, etc., and more specifically, a recording medium is housed in a cassette-shaped holder, and this recording medium is used to record data. The present invention relates to a recording device that records on a medium.

0002

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Today, various types of input information output devices have been developed, and among them, thermal transfer recording devices that record using recording media such as ink sheets use plain paper as the recording medium. It has become widely used because of its availability. The general configuration of the thermal transfer recording apparatus is as shown in FIG. It is transferred and recorded.

In the above configuration, the recording sheet 53 is conveyed by being held between a platen roller 50 and a pinch roller 54 that is in pressure contact with the platen roller 50, and is conveyed by the rotation of the platen roller 50. A guide plate 55 is provided along the transport route so that the transport is performed along the transport route.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the recording apparatus having the above configuration, when the recording sheet 53 is jammed during conveyance, the platen roller 50 and the pinch roller 54 are separated from each other in order to remove the jam. It is necessary to provide a mechanism for moving the guide plate 55, and it is also necessary to configure the guide plate 55 to be movable in order to open the conveyance path. Therefore, the mechanism becomes complicated, the number of parts increases, the cost increases, and additional space is required. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a recording device that can solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, reduce the number of parts to reduce costs, and downsize the device.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems] A typical means according to the present invention for solving the above problems includes a transport means for transporting a recording medium, a transport path for guiding the transport of the recording medium. , comprising a holder that holds a recording medium, and a recording means that acts on the recording medium to record on the recording medium, a part of the holder forming a part of the conveyance path,
The present invention is characterized in that the transport path is opened when the holding body is removed. Further, the present invention is characterized in that a part of the constituent elements of the conveying means is provided on the holding body.

[0006]

[Operation] In the above means, since the holder that holds the recording medium constitutes a part of the conveyance path of the recording medium, when the holder is removed, a part of the conveyance path is opened. Ru. Therefore, there is no need to provide a special mechanism for opening the transport path. Furthermore, by providing a pinch roller, for example, on the holder as a component of the conveyance means, the pinch roller is separated from the recording medium when the holder is removed. Therefore, there is no need to provide a special mechanism for separating the pinch rollers.

[0007]

Embodiments [First Embodiment] Next, the structure of a thermal transfer recording apparatus to which this embodiment is applied will be explained with reference to FIG. Incidentally, FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the entire line-type color thermal transfer recording apparatus.

(Overall Schematic Structure) First, the overall structure of the apparatus will be briefly explained. In FIG. 1, an ink sheet 1 which is a recording medium is stored in a cassette case 2 which is a holder. It is detachably attached to the device main body 3. On the other hand, a recording sheet 4 which is a recording medium
is supplied by the sheet supply means 5, and is supplied to the recording means 7 via the conveyance path 6. Supplied record sheet 4
is conveyed by the sheet conveying means 8, and predetermined recording is performed in the recording means 7 overlapping the ink sheet 1. The sheet 4 after recording is then discharged to a discharge tray 11 by a discharge means 10 via a conveyance path 9. Note that the cassette case 2 is connected to the transport path 6 of the recording sheet 4.
, 9, and inside the case 2 are pinch rollers 8a, 8b forming a part of the sheet conveying means 8.
is provided.

Next, the configuration of each of the above-mentioned parts will be explained in detail. (Cassette case) Cassette case 2 has supply reel 12
and a take-up reel 13 are rotatably housed, and the ink sheet 1 is wound between both reels 12 and 13. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a roller window 2a is formed on the bottom surface of the case 2, into which a platen roller (to be described later) can fit, and a head window 2b is formed in the top surface, into which a recording head can fit.

The cassette case 2 can be attached to the device body 3 by locking a locking portion (not shown) to a locking portion of the device body 3.
It can be attached and detached freely. When the cassette case 2 is loaded into the apparatus main body 3, the take-up reel 13 is connected to the ink sheet conveyance motor 14. This motor 1
4 rotates the take-up reel 13 in the direction of arrow a in FIG.
It is wound up onto a take-up reel 13. Incidentally, a mark is provided at a predetermined position on the cassette case 2, and a cassette detection sensor S1 is provided in the main body 3 of the apparatus to detect the mark. With this, when the cassette case 2 is loaded into the main body 3 of the apparatus, the mark is determined to determine the type of the cassette case 2, for example, whether the stored ink sheet 1 is for color recording or for monochrome recording. etc. are detected.

(Ink Sheet) The ink sheet 1 used in this example is for color recording, and as shown in FIG. It is constructed by sequentially applying heat-melting inks of M, cyan C, and black Bk to a base film. Further, a color identification mark 1a is provided at the tip of each color, and this mark 1a is detected by the color detection sensor S2.
By detecting this, the desired color ink is located.

(Sheet Supply Means) The recording sheets 1 in this embodiment are cut sheets, and as shown in FIG. They are in pressure contact. The supply roller 5
b is connected to the supply motor 5c, and this motor 5
When c is driven, the supply roller 5b rotates, and the cassette 5a
One recording sheet of the uppermost layer is separated by a separating claw 5d provided in the uppermost layer. The recording sheet 1 is supplied to a transport path 6 via a transport path 15. A flapper 16 is provided at the boundary between the conveyance path 15 and the conveyance path 6, and when a sheet is supplied, both conveyance paths 15 and 6 are connected as shown by the solid line in FIG.
, 6 are connected.

(Sheet Conveying Means) The sheet conveying means 8 in this embodiment is formed by pressing two pinch rollers 8b and 8c against a platen roller 8a. The platen roller 8a
A recording sheet conveying motor 8d is connected to the motor 8d, and when the motor 8d is driven to rotate the platen roller 8a, the fed recording sheet 4 is transferred to the platen roller 8a.
and is pinched and conveyed by pinch rollers 8b and 8c. In addition, on the upstream and downstream sides of the recording sheet 4 in the conveying direction with respect to the platen roller 8a, there is a sensor that detects the leading edge or trailing edge of the recording sheet 4 during sheet feeding, recording, and discharge. A first sheet edge detection sensor S3 and a second sheet edge detection sensor S4 are provided for confirming the location.

As shown in FIG. 1, the pinch rollers 8b and 8c are rotatably mounted near both sides of the roller window 2a of the cassette case 2, and their rotation axes are attached to the case 2.
It is rotatably locked in an elongated hole (not shown) formed in the inner wall of FIG. 1 and extending in the left-right direction in FIG. The rotating shaft is urged by a pressing spring 8e.

Therefore, when the cassette case 2 is loaded into the main body 3 of the apparatus, the pinch rollers 8b and 8c are connected to the platen roller 8.
However, as shown in FIG. 3, when the cassette case 2 is removed from the apparatus main body 3, it is separated from the platen roller 8a.

(Conveyance Path) The recording sheet 1 is conveyed by the sheet conveyance means 8 from the conveyance path 6 to the conveyance path 9. 9a and the lower surface of the cassette case 2. That is, although the apparatus main body 3 is provided with sheet guides 6a and 9a for guiding the lower surface of the recording sheet 4, a guide plate or the like for guiding the upper surface of the recording sheet 4 is not provided, and the cassette case 2 is not attached to the apparatus main body. When loaded in the recording sheet 3, the lower surface of the case 2 guides the upper surface of the recording sheet 4, and a part of the case 2 forms a conveyance path. Therefore, when the cassette case 2 is removed from the apparatus main body 3 as shown in FIG. 3, the transport paths 6 and 9 are left wide open.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the conveyance path 6 is connected with a conveyance path 17 in addition to the conveyance path 15. This conveyance path 17 is a return path for returning the recording sheet 4 to standby during color recording. In this embodiment, in order to carry out color recording, when one color recording is completed on the recording sheet 4, the flapper 16 is moved to the state shown in the dashed line in FIG. 1, and the platen roller 8a is reversely rotated. is guided to the return path 17 to wait for the next color recording. The return path 17 is also structured so that the lower surface of the recording sheet 4 is guided by sheet guides 17a and 17b, and the upper surface is guided by the lower surface of the loaded cassette case 2, similarly to the aforementioned transport path 6. Further, the sheet guide 17b is rotatably attached to the shaft 17c so as to reach the upper part of the cassette case 2. As a result, when attaching or detaching the cassette case 2, the sheet guide 17 as shown in FIG.
b is retracted and does not interfere with the attachment and detachment of the case 2.

(Recording means) Recording means 7 in this embodiment
The ink sheet 1 is heated by a line-type thermal recording head 7a to transfer molten ink onto the recording sheet 4. The recording head 7a is formed by arranging a large number of heating elements that generate heat when energized in a line in the longitudinal direction of the head substrate, and the recording head 7a is attached to the tip of the shift lever 7b. The base of the shift lever 7b is rotatably attached around a shaft 7c, and is constantly pulled upward by a tension spring 7d. Furthermore, a shift cam 7e is in contact with this shift lever 7b, and when the cam 7e rotates by the drive of a cam motor 7f connected to the cam 7e, the recording head 7a presses the platen roller 8a (head down) or moves the platen down. It is configured to be separated from the roller 8a (head up).

Recording head 7 relative to platen roller 8a
The pressing and separating states of a are controlled by the shift cam 7e as shown in FIG.
The recording head position sensor S5 detects the rotational state of the recording head.

(Ejecting means) The ejecting means 10 is for ejecting the recording sheet 4 recorded by the recording means 7 and conveyed through the conveyance path 9 onto the ejection tray 11. In this embodiment, the ejection means 10 includes an ejection roller 10a and a driven roller. 10b. As shown in FIG. 1, the discharge roller 10a is rotatably attached to a key-shaped lever 10d biased by a tension spring 10c. The lever 10d is rotatable about a shaft 10e, and is rotated by turning on and off the solenoid 10f, so that the discharge roller 10a is pressed against and separated from the driven roller 10b. Therefore, the rollers 10a, 10
The recording sheet 1 conveyed through the conveyance path 9 is discharged onto the discharge tray 11 by bringing the recording sheet 1 into a pressure-contact state and driving the discharge motor 10g connected to the discharge roller 10a.

(Recording Operation) Next, the recording operation when performing color recording using the recording apparatus having the above configuration will be described. First, the flapper 16 is moved to the state shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, and the supply roller 5b is rotated to supply the recording sheet 4 in the cassette 5a from the conveyance path 15 to the conveyance path 6. At this time, the take-up reel 13 rotates to locate the desired color of the ink sheet 1. Next, when the leading edge detection sensor S2 detects the leading edge of the recording sheet 4, the recording head 7a is moved down, and the platen roller 8a rotates forward (in the direction of arrow b in FIG. 1) to locate the beginning of the recording sheet 4. Recording for one sheet using the first color is started. At this time, the take-up reel 13 is driven and rotated to take up the ink sheet 1 after recording onto the take-up reel 13. When the first color recording is completed as described above, the ink sheet 1
At the same time, the recording head 7a is raised.

Next, when there is second color recording, flapper 1
6 to the state shown by the dashed line in FIG. 1, and at the same time, the platen roller 8a is reversely rotated to guide the recording sheet 4 to the return path 17 and wait therefor. Then, the take-up reel 13 is rotated in the direction of arrow a until the desired second color ink on the ink sheet 1 is located at the beginning by the color detection sensor S2, and the ink sheet 1 is wound up. Next, as in the first color recording described above, the recording head 7a is lowered and the platen roller 8a is rotated forward to perform second color recording. The above recording operation is repeated for desired colors.

Next, when the final color recording is completed, the platen roller 8 is moved with the recording head 7a in a head-up state.
A is rotated forward to convey the recording sheet 4 to the conveyance path 9, the solenoid 10f is turned off, and the recording sheet 4 is discharged to the discharge tray 11 by driving and rotating the discharge roller 10a in pressure contact with the driven roller 10b. As a result, a recording sheet 4 on which a color image is recorded is obtained.

If a so-called jam occurs, in which the conveyance of the recording sheet 4 is obstructed for some reason during the recording operation, as shown in FIG. , 17 are opened, and the sheet 4 jammed in the path can be easily removed. Also, the platen roller 8a and pinch rollers 8b, 8c
Even if a jam occurs with the recording sheet 4 caught between them, when the cassette case 2 is removed, both rollers 8a, 8b,
Since the restriction by 8c is eliminated, the jam can be easily cleared in this case as well.

[Other Embodiments] In the first embodiment described above, in order to press the recording sheet 4 against the platen roller 8a, pinch rollers 8b and 8c, which are components of the sheet conveying means, are used.
is provided in the cassette case 2, but it is not necessarily limited to a roller-shaped one. For example, as shown in FIG.
c, and a low friction material such as a tetrafluoride resin sheet is pasted on the surface of this cylindrical portion 2c. When the cassette case 2 is loaded into the apparatus main body 3, the cylindrical portion 2c is configured to come into pressure contact with the platen roller 8a. Even if the cylindrical portion 2c, which is a fixed object, is used instead of the pinch roller as described above, the recording sheet 4 can be moved by the platen roller 8.
a and the cylindrical portion 2c. In this case, the cylindrical portion 2c of the cassette case 2 and the platen roller 8
In order to ensure a contact area with the recording head 7a, it is preferable to use a narrow recording head 7a with a heating element provided at the end face of the head, as shown in FIG.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, a thermal transfer recording method was illustrated in which recording is performed by loading a cassette case 2 containing an ink sheet 1, but the present invention uses a holder containing a recording medium. It can be applied to various recording methods. For example, it can be applied to an electrophotographic recording method in which toner is stored in a cassette case and the cassette case is loaded to record, a dot impact recording method in which an ink ribbon is stored in a cassette case and recorded, and even an electric transfer recording method. It is possible. Therefore, the recording means is not limited to the above-mentioned thermal recording head, but may also be composed of, for example, a charging recording means or a recording means using a wire dot head.

Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, a line type recording system was used, but the recording head 7 is connected to the ink sheet 1.
It is also possible to apply the present invention to a serial type recording method in which recording is performed while moving a.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, an example was shown in which color recording is performed, but it is also possible to use an ink sheet coated with ink of only one color (for example, black) and apply it to a monochrome recording apparatus.

Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the recording sheet 4
Although the sheets are separated and fed one by one by the feeding means 5, the sheet feeding means 5 does not necessarily need to be used, and for example, the sheets may be fed manually.

[0030]

Effects of the Invention As described above, in the present invention, since the holder for holding the recording medium constitutes a part of the transport path of the recording medium, when the holder is removed, part of the transport path is removed. It will be released. Therefore, the number of members constituting the transport path is reduced, and there is no need to provide a special mechanism for opening the transport path, so the number of parts can be reduced and costs can be reduced. Furthermore, by providing a pinch roller, for example, on the holder as a component of the conveyance means, the pinch roller is separated from the recording medium when the holder is removed. Therefore, a special mechanism for separating the pinch rollers can be omitted. Furthermore, since no extra space is required to open the conveyance path for jam disposal, the apparatus can be made smaller.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional explanatory diagram of a line-type thermal transfer recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an ink sheet.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a state in which the cassette case is removed from the main body of the apparatus.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of an embodiment in which a cylindrical portion is provided in the cassette case instead of a pinch roller.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the prior art.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 is an ink sheet, 1a is a color identification mark, 2 is a cassette case, 2a is a roller window, 2b is a head window, 3 is an apparatus main body, 4 is a recording sheet, 5 is a sheet supply means, 5a
is a cassette, 5b is a supply roller, 5c is a supply motor,
5d is a separation claw, 6 is a conveyance path, 6a is a sheet guide, 7
7a is a recording head, 7b is a shift lever,
7c is the shaft, 7d is the tension spring, 7e is the shift cam,
7f is a cam motor, 8 is a sheet conveyance means, 8a is a platen roller, 8b, 8c are pinch rollers, 8d is a recording sheet conveyance motor, 8e is a pressing spring, 9 is a conveyance path, 9a is a sheet guide, 10 is a discharge means , 10a is a discharge roller, 10b is a driven roller, 10c is a tension spring, 10d is a lever, 10e is a shaft, 10f is a solenoid, 10g is a discharge motor, 11 is a discharge tray, 12
13 is a supply reel, 13 is a take-up reel, 14 is an ink sheet transport motor, 15 is a transport path, 16 is a flapper, 1
7 is a return path, 17a and 17b are sheet guides, 17c
is a shaft, S1 is a cassette detection sensor, S2 is a color detection sensor, S3 and S4 are sheet edge detection sensors, and S5 is a recording head position sensor.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A conveyance means for conveying a recording medium, a conveyance path for guiding the conveyance of the recording medium, a holder for holding the recording medium, and a conveying means for conveying the recording medium. 1. A recording device comprising: a recording means for recording on the holder, a part of the holder forming a part of the transport path, and the transport path being opened when the holder is removed. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conveyance path has a return path for returning and retracting the recording medium in a direction opposite to the conveyance direction during recording. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a part of the component of the conveying means is provided on the holding body. 4. The recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a part of the component of the conveyance means is a roller-like object that comes into pressure contact with the recording medium. 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a part of the component of the conveyance means is a fixed object that comes into pressure contact with the recording medium.