JPH0761067A - Printer device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a printer device capable of printing stably by dispersing axial pressure and preventing deterioration of precision of bearing due to deformation. CONSTITUTION:In a printer device, thermal transfer or sublimation printing is performed by conveying sheets one by one. The printer device is equipped with a bearing holder 90 for axially supporting a recording section having a platen roller 40 which abuts against a line thermal head 11 from the lower side so as to make a pressing state, a sheet grip section which conveys the sheets to be conveyed to the recording section in the upstream direction or in the downstream direction and has an axis of rotation different from that of the platen roller 40. The sheet grip section comprises a grip roller 80 for conveying the sheets and a pinch roller 60 axially supported such that it abuts against the upper part of the grip roller so as to be driven.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer device such as a thermal transfer or sublimation type printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, many printer apparatuses such as a thermal transfer printer having a recording portion and a sheet grip portion for conveying a sheet to the recording portion have been proposed. For example, as is commonly done, the method of pivotally supporting the platen roller of the recording unit or the grip roller or the pinch roller of the sheet grip unit is a method of supporting the platen roller, the grip roller or the pinch roller on the side member made of sheet metal or the like. It is a method of processing so that the bearings are fixed so that the above can be directly supported, and a printer device having a recording unit incorporating these methods and a sheet grip unit for conveying a sheet to the recording unit has been proposed.

[0003]

However, in the conventional example configured as described above, since the bearing is directly fixed to the side surface member manufactured by the sheet metal, the side surface member is caused by the problem of strength of the sheet metal member or the like. However, there is a problem that the roller deforms and seriously affects the rotation performance of the transport roller.

Further, in the sheet metal working, there is a problem that a sufficient working accuracy cannot be expected in the position of the hole for fixing the bearing and the accuracy of the hole. Therefore, the printer device of the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to apply a shaft pressure applied to a bearing to a side member etc. by receiving a bearing holder made of aluminum casting. It is an object of the present invention to provide a printer device that disperses the axial pressure of the printer and prevents the accuracy of the hole in the bearing fixing portion from being deteriorated due to the deformation and enables stable print recording. Further, the machining accuracy of the hole position and the like is higher than that of sheet metal processing because it is mechanical processing.

[0005]

In order to solve the above problems and to achieve the object, a printer device of the present invention is a printer device which conveys sheets one by one and performs thermal transfer or sublimation recording. A recording unit having a platen roller that is in pressure contact with the thermal head from below, and a sheet grip unit that conveys a sheet conveyed to the recording unit in an upstream or downstream direction and has a rotation axis different from that of the platen roller. It is characterized in that it is provided with bearing holders for respectively supporting.

Further, the sheet grip portion is characterized by comprising a grip roller for conveying a sheet and a pinch roller which is axially supported so as to come into contact with the upper portion of the grip roller.

[0007]

As described above, since the printer device according to the present invention is configured, the bearings and the like are provided by using the bearing holders that independently support the platen roller shaft, the grip roller shaft, and the pinch roller shaft. It is possible to realize a highly accurate print recording state even if the fixing position of is held in a highly accurate state and is repeatedly conveyed and printed.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a sublimation type printer device of this embodiment, and shows a state in which a cover 3 of the printer device 1 is opened. The printer device 1 includes a left side surface member 2, a cover 3, a right side surface member 4,
The sheet supply cassette guide 5, the base 39, and the inner frame 18 are configured.

A thermal head 11 composed of a heat sink 10 and a guide lever pressing pin 12 is fixed by a thermal head support member 32. Further, the cover 3 can be opened and closed as a cover of a printer device by two arms 6 fixed to a thermal head fulcrum shaft 7 pivotally supported by a thermal head fulcrum bearing 15 mounted at positions where the side members 2 and 4 face each other. Is working. Coil springs 8 are attached to both ends of the thermal head fulcrum shaft 7. The torsion reaction force of the spring 8 allows the cover 3 to be held in an open state.

A fixed hook support shaft 13 is pivotally supported at a position where front portions of the side members 2 and 4 face each other. A coil spring 34 and a rotating fixed hook 14 hooked on the spring 34 are annularly attached to both ends of the support shaft 13. The torsional reaction force of the coil spring 34 allows the cover 3 to be maintained in the closed state.

The left side member 2 and the right side member 4 are
Ribbon bearing block 16 and
The guide lever 17 and the bearing holder 90 are attached respectively. A grip roller bearing 98 and a platen roller bearing 99 are attached to the bearing holder 90. Platen roller 40 and grip roller 8
0 is rotatably supported by the bearing holder 90.

The pinch roller 60 is fixed to an inner frame 18, which will be described later, and is extended and provided with a shaft pressure adjusting means 7.
In addition to 0, the pinch roller support portion provided on the bearing holder 90 is hooked by a leaf spring-like spring, and is rotatably supported so as to follow the grip roller 80. The surface portions of the pinch roller 60 and the platen roller 40 are made of rubber-like resin to prevent the sheet from slipping.

Further, the surface of the grip roller 80 is provided with fine needle-like projections on the entire surface, and the pinch roller 60 is provided.
When the grip roller 80 and the grip roller 80 come into contact with each other, the needle-like protrusion slightly bites into the pinch roller surface. With the above configuration, the sheet can be gripped with a stronger pressure. The sheet supply cassette guide 5 is screwed to the side members 2 and 4, the base 39, and the inner frame 18, and is integrally configured as a printer device.
In such a state, the sheet supply cassette 19 that supplies the sheet is set in the sheet supply cassette guide 5 so that it can be inserted into and removed from the sheet supply cassette guide 5.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the cover 3 of FIG. 1 in a closed state as viewed from the right side. As described in FIG. 1, the fixed hook 14 holds the cover 3 in the closed state by utilizing the reaction force of the spring. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a thermal head 11 having a heat sink 10 is provided.
Are fixed to the thermal head support plate 32 with mounting screws. The thermal head support plate 32 is fixed to the thermal head fulcrum shaft 7 rotatably supported by the thermal head fulcrum bearing 15.

Next, a method of attaching the ribbon 9 will be described. First, the ribbon 9 supplied from the supply-side ribbon reel 25 is attached to the ribbon supply roller 37. After that, the ribbon is passed between the platen roller 40 and the thermal head 11 and is tightly attached to the ribbon winding roller 33, and is wound and stored as a used ribbon on the winding-side ribbon reel 26. Actually, this work is performed with the cover 3 open. Therefore, when the cover 3 is closed, the ribbon 9 is pressed against the thermal head 11.

When the cover 3 is closed, the supply side ribbon rotating shaft 25a is pressed from the upper side and the lower side by the ribbon rotating shaft pressing arm 6a and the ribbon bearing block 16a. Similarly, the take-up ribbon rotation shaft 26a is pressed by the ribbon rotation shaft pressing arm 6b (not shown) and the ribbon bearing block 16b (not shown) so as to be sandwiched from the upper side and the lower side.

Next, when the sheet supply cassette 19 is inserted into the sheet supply cassette guide 5, it is pushed up by the pressing plate 38. Therefore, the sheet 20 is pressed against the pickup roller 29. Seat 20
Are separated into one sheet by the rotation of the pickup roller 29, and the upper separation roller 27 and the lower separation roller 28 are separated.
Will be guided during. After that, the upper back guide 21 and the lower back guide 22 are gripped by the grip roller 80 and the pinch roller 60 and guided by the guide 50.
It is temporarily stored in the area between and.

In the above state, the thermal head 11
Is a platen roller 40 with the sheet 20 and the ribbon 9 interposed therebetween.
It is in the first state where it is not in contact with. From this position, the cam 3 having the rotating shaft 40 by the positioning motor 30
The protrusion 3 attached to the thermal head 11 by rotating 1
1a is pushed down. After that, by sandwiching the sheet 20 and the ribbon 9 between the thermal head 11 and the platen roller 40, the second state becomes possible in which printing can be performed.

The pinch roller 60, which freely rotates while being driven by the grip roller 80, has a shaft pressure adjusting means 70 by a coil spring for adjusting the pressure to the grip roller 80 and feeding the sheet with high accuracy. is doing. The shaft pressure adjusting means 70 adjusts the pinch roller shaft pressure. When the second state is reached, the grip roller shaft connected by the motor 35 and the pulley outside the side member 4 is rotationally controlled to print the sheet while feeding the sheet.

Usually, when printing in color, the images are first printed in yellow, then in magenta, and finally in cyan. Next, a sheet conveying procedure by the printer device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a sheet conveying method and a sheet conveying procedure of the printer device of the present invention. In FIG. 3, when the sheet supply cassette 19 is first inserted into the sheet cassette guide 5, the sheet 20 becomes
When the pressing plate 38 is pushed up, the pressing plate 38 is pressed against the pickup roller 29.

After that, the motor 36 is driven, and the pickup roller 29 connected by the belt is rotated. The sheet 20 is separated into one sheet by the pickup roller 29, and is conveyed between the upper separation roller 27 and the lower separation roller 28. Upper separation roller 27 and lower separation roller 28
Is driven by a motor 36 as a driving source and is belt driven. Thereafter, the sheet 20 passes between the upper separation guide 27 and the lower separation guide 28, and the leading end of the sheet 20 reaches the contact portion between the grip roller 80 and the pinch roller 60 (arrow D1 in FIG. 3).

The sheet 20 is gripped by pressing the grip roller 80 and the pinch roller 60, passes between the platen roller 40 and the thermal head 11, and is guided by the guide 50 between the upper back guide 21 and the lower back guide 22. You will be guided (arrow D2 in FIG. 3). At this time, sheet 2
The end portion of 0 is detected by a sensor (not shown) installed in the printer, and the grip roller 80 and the pinch roller 60 are stopped by stopping the rotation of the grip roller 80 controlled by a signal from this sensor. It is gripped at a position where it does not shift when sandwiched between them (arrow D3 in FIG. 3).

As described above, the thermal head 11 is in the first state where it is not in contact with the platen roller 40. From this state, the cam 31 having the rotating shaft 40 pivotally supported by the positioning motor 30 rotates, and the thermal head 1
The protrusion attached to No. 1 is pushed down, and the thermal head 11 enters the second state in which printing can be performed. When the second state is reached, printing is performed while the sheet is fed by the grip roller driving motor 35 that is connected to the pulley attached to the portion of the grip roller shaft that projects outward from the side member. When the printing is completed, the printed paper is guided between the upper paper ejection guide 23 and the lower paper ejection guide 24. (Arrow D4 in FIG. 3). The printing paper 20 is conveyed by the procedure described above.

4 and 5 are side views showing the essential parts of the bearing holder of the present invention. Further, it also serves as a cross-sectional view of an essential part showing the positional relationship among the grip roller, the pinch roller, and the platen roller. Bearing holder 90
Are fixed to the left side member 2 and the right side member 4 of the printer device by fixing screws 94, 95 and 96 at positions facing each other.

Further, the bearing holder 90 is provided with reference pins 97a and 97b, which are configured so that they can be accurately aligned with the fixing position by matching with the reference holes provided in each side member. Further, the bearing holder 90 includes a grip roller bearing 98 that supports the grip roller rotating shaft 92, a pinch roller shaft support portion that supports the pinch roller rotating shaft 91, and a platen roller that supports the platen roller rotating shaft 93. A bearing 99 is provided.

In FIG. 4, the grip roller 80 and the pinch roller 60, which are axially supported by the bearing holder 90, are arranged so as to abut each other. The sheet 20 is conveyed by being caught in the contact portion. Also, FIG.
In the grip roller 80, the rotary shaft 92 of the grip roller 80 is extended outward and the pulley 100 is fixed. A belt 101 is stretched around the circumference of the pulley 100, and is driven by a grip roller driving motor 35 provided below the bearing holder 90.

FIG. 6 is a partial external view of FIG. The bearing holder 90 is fixed to the facing portions of the side members 2 and 4 and pivotally supports the above-mentioned rollers. (Other Embodiment) FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the bearing holder according to the present invention. 7, in the bearing holder 130, the grip roller bearing 138 and the platen roller bearing 139 are fixed, and the elongated hole 142 is provided. Further, a pinch roller shaft pressure spring 141 is supported by an extension portion at one end so as to be directed upward by a pinch roller shaft pressure spring shaft 143.

A pinch roller bearing 153 is fixed to one end of the pinch roller axial pressure adjusting arm 150, and the other end is fixed to the other end.
A pinch roller axial pressure adjusting screw 151 is provided so as to extend downward. The pinch roller axial pressure adjusting arm 150 is axially supported by a pinch roller axial pressure adjusting arm shaft 140 that extends inwardly at approximately the center of the bearing holder 130.

The pinch roller shaft pressure adjusting screw 151 penetrating downward is screwed to the pinch roller shaft pressure spring shaft 143. The screw 151 and the spring 141 are configured to adjust the axial pressure of the pinch roller axially supported at the other end against the grip roller. In addition, the bearing holder 130 has mounting holes 134 and 13
It is fixed to the side member 4 with screws via 5 and 136.

The pinch roller shaft 131 is rotatably supported by a bearing 153 so as to follow the rotation of the grip roller. The bearing holder of this embodiment is
It is made by casting aluminum, which is relatively inexpensive, lightweight and highly rigid. Usually, in order to stabilize the transportability of the sheet, it is necessary to apply a load of about 20 kg to the pinch roller. Therefore, the total pressure on the grip roller is about 20k.
A shaft pressure of g or more is applied.

Similarly, in order to maintain high quality printing, it is necessary to apply a load of about 8 to 10 kg to the thermal head. Therefore, the platen roller has a total pressure of about 8 to 10
A shaft pressure of kg or more will be applied. Therefore, reaction force against each axial pressure is applied to the side surface member, which causes the side surface member to be distorted.

Since the bearing holder of the present invention integrally supports the axial pressure applied to the platen roller shaft, the grip roller shaft, and the pinch roller shaft, one side member is provided on each side member made of sheet metal. Thus, by dispersing the reaction force applied to the side surface member and preventing the strain, stable and highly accurate sheet conveyance can be performed. As described above, according to the bearing holder of the present invention, high-quality print recording can be performed.

The present invention can be applied to modifications and variations of the above embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0034]

As described above, according to the printer apparatus of the present invention, the platen roller shaft, the grip roller shaft, and the pinch roller shaft are independently supported, so that the sheet is repeatedly conveyed with high accuracy. Therefore, there is an effect that it is possible to provide a printer device that can use sheets of several widths and can be downsized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a printer device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of FIG. 1 as viewed from the right side surface.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a sheet conveying procedure.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a main part of the bearing holder of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a main part of the bearing holder of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a partial external view of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the bearing holder of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 printer device; 2 left side member; 3 cover; 4
Right side member; 5 sheet feeding cassette guide; 9 printing ribbon; 11 thermal head (recording unit); 19 paper cassette; 20 sheets; 23 upper back guide; 24
Lower back guide; 25 Supply side ribbon reel; 26
Winding side ribbon reel; 27 Upper separation roller; 27a
Upper separation guide; 28 Lower separation roller; 28a Lower separation guide; 30 Positioning motor; 31 Cam; 35
Grip roller drive motor; 36 Sheet transport motor; 39 Base; 40 Platen roller (recording section); 50 Guide mechanism; 60 Pinch roller (grip section); 70 Axial pressure adjusting means (grip section); 80
Grip roller (grip part); 90 Bearing holder (recording part, grip part).

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A printer apparatus for carrying out thermal transfer or sublimation recording by conveying sheets one by one, the recording section having a platen roller which is in contact with a line thermal head from below and is in a pressure contact state, and the sheet is conveyed to the recording section. A printer apparatus, comprising: a bearing holder that conveys a sheet to be conveyed in an upstream or downstream direction and that supports a sheet grip portion having a rotation shaft different from that of the platen roller. 2. The sheet grip section comprises a grip roller for conveying a sheet and a pinch roller which is axially supported and driven so as to abut on an upper portion of the grip roller. Printer device.