JPH08276626A - Small-size printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reduce the causes of failures, such as paper jam, by using cut sheets of paper instead of a roll, eliminating the space in a printer casing for housing a paper roll, and simplifying the cut-sheet conveyance path to a straight path. CONSTITUTION: A mechanism cover 13 corresponding to a main frame 10 of a printer mechanism and a battery cover 14 forming a paper insert portion 14e are provided on the same plane as an upper surface of a printer casing. The mechanism cover 13 and the battery cover 14 are arranged in a very simple construction such that the mechanism cover 13 is locked depending on the open-close position of the battery cover 14, thus simplifying the construction of the casing and reducing its size. A pinch spring 15 is disposed on the reverse side of the mechanism cover 13 so that when the mechanism cover 13 is closed, the pinch spring 15 causes a pinch roller 17a to be elastically pressed against a feed roller 19. By opening the mechanism cover 13, the elastic pressing against the pinch roller 17a is removed. Thus, even if a recording paper discharge failure occurs, it is very easy to remove the paper sheet causing the failure.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an arrangement structure of a printing mechanism of a small printer used as a data output device for small information equipment and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, there have been active movements for further miniaturization of portable information equipment and the like, and in the current market, various sizes from a size that can be put in a bag to a size that can be put in a jacket pocket. Information equipment is lined up. Moreover, since these portable information devices are relatively inexpensive in price, the number of users is increasing, especially among young office workers.

On the other hand, when the data input to these information devices is to be output on paper, the data is usually transferred once to a terminal device such as a personal computer to which a printer is connected and then output to the printer via the terminal device, or It was common to connect a portable information device directly to a desktop printer and output it on paper.

In view of this, there is a strong demand for a user-friendly portable printer that can output the input information on the spot from the user. To answer this, several portable printers have recently been commercialized. However, these printers are not necessarily portable, so that all of them are satisfactory in terms of size, weight, price, performance and the like.

A conventional example of a general small-sized printer will be described with reference to the sectional view shown in FIG. In the drawing, the printing mechanism of the printer is constructed based on a frame 43 housed in an enclosure case composed of an upper case 41 and a bottom case 42, and normally uses roll paper 44 as recording paper. For this reason, a roll paper storage unit 45 is formed in the housing case, and the leading end of the roll paper 44 is a roll paper insertion opening 43 formed in the housing case.
The printer mechanism main body is inserted from a paper insertion port 43a provided in a part of the frame 43 while the presence or absence of roll paper is detected by the paper detection sensor 46 provided in the paper conveyance path inside the housing case. Is fed to. The roll paper 44 is a paper guide A43b provided on the frame 43.
And the elasticity of the paper retainer 43d provided on the paper guide B43c when the paper is conveyed to the paper conveyance roller 47 along the paper conveyance path formed by the paper guide B43c and the paper conveyance roller 47 is rotationally driven by the motor 48. It is urged by the force and is conveyed to the print head 49a by the frictional force with the paper conveying roller. The print head 49a is guided by the guide shaft A50 and the head feed screw 51, and when the head feed screw 51 is rotationally driven by the motor 48, the print head 49a reciprocates left and right along a feed groove (not shown) formed in the head feed screw 51. Is configured. A platen rubber 52a provided on the platen frame 52 is arranged at a position relative to the print head 49a. When the leading end of the roll paper 44 is conveyed to the print head position by the paper conveying roller 47, the head carrier 49 is rotated in the platen direction about the guide shaft B53 by the elasticity of the spring 49b, and the gap between the head carrier 49 and the platen rubber 52a. The roll paper 44 is pinched by. At the same time, the printing operation is performed, and each time the printing for each line is completed, the roll paper 44 is sequentially conveyed and ejected from the paper ejection port 41a provided in the housing case.

The mechanical cover 13 is formed in the vicinity of the paper discharge port 41a, and the paper cover 54 is formed corresponding to the roll paper accommodating portion. These covers are used, for example, during roll paper replacement or during roll paper conveyance. If a paper jam occurs, open it to clear the paper jam.

[0007]

In a small-sized printer having a conventional structure, since roll paper is used as recording paper, it is necessary to form a roll paper storage portion in the housing case. Due to this storage space, the printer housing is There is a problem that the size becomes large, which hinders miniaturization.

Further, since the recording paper is conveyed by the curl path, there is a problem that the paper is jammed in the middle of the path to the paper discharge port formed in the housing case and the paper cannot be discharged well. In addition, when a paper jam occurs, it is necessary to open the mechanical cover or the paper cover to restore the paper position or remove the jammed paper.The mechanical cover or the paper cover must be attached to the housing case, respectively. Since they are provided separately, there are problems such as poor operability when opening and closing each cover.

Further, a driver I for driving the print head
Since C is provided on the substrate 55 connected to the print head via the FPC, there is a limit to the miniaturization of the substrate, which is an obstacle to the miniaturization of the printer.
In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, an object of the present invention is to make the conveyance path for recording paper a straight path and to simplify the arrangement of each component around the recording paper conveyance path to prevent paper jams and the like. is there. Another object of the present invention is to provide a more compact printer by using a cut sheet as a recording sheet and eliminating the roll sheet storage section of the housing case. Still another object of the present invention is to reduce the signals sent from the I / F board to the print head by mounting the driver IC together with the print head on the head board, and as a result, reduce the signal lines formed on the FPC. The FPC space is made small and the inexpensive printer is provided accordingly.

[0010]

In view of the above problems, in the present invention, a driver IC for driving the print head is provided on the head substrate to simplify and downsize the I / F substrate.
By using a straight path for the recording paper discharge path and simplifying the paper transport path, and by using cut paper as the recording paper, the roll paper storage unit that was previously required can be eliminated, and the printer housing can be made smaller. is there. Further, the present invention provides a small-sized, lightweight and inexpensive printer by changing the arrangement structure and shape of the printer components including the arrangement position of the print head and the like.

[0011]

According to the present invention, by using cut paper instead of roll paper, the space for storing roll paper in the housing case can be eliminated, and the cut paper transport path can be changed to a straight path. By simplifying
It is possible to reduce the cause of trouble such as paper jam. Further, a first cover corresponding to a main frame constituting the printer mechanism and a second cover forming a paper insertion portion are provided on the same plane of the upper surface of the printer housing, and the first cover is connected to the second cover. Since it is arranged so as to be locked depending on the open / close position, the structure of the housing case is simplified, and as a result, the housing case can be formed small. Further, since the elastic member is provided on the back surface of the first cover and the pinch roller is elastically pressed to the conveying roller via the elastic member in the state where the first cover is closed, the first cover is opened. Then, the elastic pressure of the pinch roller is released, and as a result, if there is a defective discharge of the recording paper, it is possible to very easily remove the defective recording paper, and it is possible to realize a small printer having an extremely simple structure. .

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a printer according to the present invention. An upper case 11 forming a part of a housing of the printer has a battery cover which is a second cover for slidingly opening and closing the upper case 11. 14 is provided, and a claw 14a for facilitating a sliding operation is formed at an appropriate place on the surface of the battery cover 14. At the same time, the mechanical cover 1 which is the first cover is provided in the upper case 11 so as to face one side of the battery cover 14.
3 is provided, and the mechanical cover 13 has a rotation center for opening and closing in the vicinity of a paper discharge port provided in a part of the housing case.

The mechanical cover 13 is normally carried while being carried.
Is locked by the battery cover 14 and cannot be opened or closed. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the battery cover 14 is slid by a predetermined amount, and a paper insertion port 14e is formed between the battery cover 14 and the mechanical cover 13 arranged opposite thereto.

The main frame 10 forms a paper guide portion 10a between the paper insertion opening 14e and the paper ejection opening, and the pinch frame 1 faces the paper guide portion 10a.
7 is arranged, and a conveyance path for recording paper is formed between the paper guide portion 10a and the pinch frame 17. The paper detection sensor 20 is provided in a part of the paper guide portion 10a that forms the conveyance path, and detects whether or not the recording paper is arranged in the conveyance path. Further, a paper carrying roller 19 which is rotated by a drive source (not shown) is provided on a part of the paper guide portion 10a, and is rotatably provided on the pinch frame 17 opposite to the paper carrying roller 19. A pinch roller 17a is arranged. When the mechanical cover 13 is in the closed state, the pinch roller 17a is pressed against the paper transport roller 19 by a pinch spring 15 fixed to the mechanical cover 13 via a reinforcing plate 15a with an appropriate elastic force, so that the paper transport The recording paper is conveyed in cooperation with the roller 19.

A heat radiating plate 23b is provided behind the paper carrying roller 19.
A head carrier 23 having a print head 23a provided on the main frame 10 is swingably positioned on the main frame 10 in a portion facing the print head 23a. Further, an FPC whose one end is electrically joined to an I / F board 31 is electrically connected to the end portion of the print head 23a, and the FPC is movably positioned and guided by the heat dissipation plate 23b and the FPC guide 28. There is.

On the other hand, the head carrier 23 is supported by a guide shaft A25 and a guide shaft B26 provided on the main frame 10 so as to be slidable on the guide shaft, and a part of the motor is not shown. It is reciprocally moved in the left-right direction by engaging with a groove formed in the head feed screw 27 that is rotated in a horizontal direction. Further, the platen spring 16 provided on the head carrier 23 causes the print head 23a to move to the platen when the paper leading edge detection sensor 21 provided near the platen of the paper guide portion formed by the main frame 10 detects the recording paper. It is an elastic member for elastically pressing the 24. Further, a driver IC 30 for selectively driving the print head is provided at an appropriate position on the surface of the non-printing portion of the print head, and the paper guide portion of the main frame corresponding to the driver IC is The driver IC forms a slope or a step portion 10d for escaping the convex portion formed on the head substrate, and the recording paper after printing is discharged between the bottom case 12 and the mechanical cover 13 in the vicinity rear thereof. A paper discharge port 12a is formed. 11a is an upper case 11
It is a battery storage portion formed in.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the sectional view of FIG. In the drawing, a cut sheet 1 which is a recording sheet is manually inserted into a printer from a sheet insertion port 14e formed by sliding a battery cover 14 arranged at a position facing the mechanical cover 13 by a predetermined amount. The leading end of the inserted recording paper is guided by the paper detection sensor 20 along the paper guide portion 10a of the main frame 10.
When the paper conveyance roller 19 reaches the position, the paper conveyance roller 19 starts to rotate for conveying the recording paper in cooperation with the pinch roller 17a elastically pressed by the pinch spring 15 fixed to the mechanical cover 13, and the leading end of the recording paper is moved to the paper conveyance roller. When you reach 19,
After that, the recording paper is sent to the print head position by the paper carrying roller 19. The recording paper 1 is further conveyed by the paper conveying roller 19, and the front end of the recording paper 1 is a paper front end detection sensor 21.
Then, the paper conveying roller 19 is temporarily stopped by a signal from the sensor 21 which has detected this, and at the same time, the print head 23a elastically presses against the platen 24 to sandwich the recording paper. After that, the print head 2 guided by the guide shafts 25 and 26 is operated by the action of the head feed screw 27 rotated by a motor (not shown).
3a starts the printing operation while reciprocating left and right in the paper width direction of the recording paper.

When the printing of one line is completed, the recording paper is discharged by the paper conveying roller 19 which is rotated in association with the printing timing, at the end of the housing case.
Is conveyed in the direction. At this time, the main frame 1 facing the driver IC 30 provided in the print head 23a
No. 0 paper guide portion is formed with an inclined surface or a step portion 10d for escaping the convex portion formed on the head substrate by the driver IC, and the recording paper is formed along the shape of the paper guide portion 10a. Since the sheet is conveyed so as to avoid the convex portion of the driver IC, the paper jam due to the collision between the convex portion and the recording paper does not occur.

A heat radiating plate 2 holding the print head
The joint portion of 3b with the FPC is located in the vicinity of the paper discharge port of the housing case, and at the same time, the FPC guide 28 for supporting the FPC in a fixed position guides the paper discharge to the vicinity of the paper discharge port of the housing case. The recording paper is ejected from the paper ejection port 12a while being guided by the inclined surface 28a of the FPC guide 28.

When all the printing is completed in this way, the paper carrying roller carries the recording paper until the meshing with the recording paper is released, and the series of printing operations is completed. Also,
If a paper jam or the like occurs during conveyance during printing, at least the battery cover 14 is slid to the position where the paper insertion opening 14e is formed, that is, the mechanical cover 13 is unlocked by the battery cover, By opening the mechanical cover 13, the elastic force of the pinch frame by the pinch spring 15 provided on the back surface of the mechanical cover is released, and by removing the pinch frame from the paper guide portion 10a, the jammed recording paper can be easily removed and conveyed. The defect can be canceled.

[0021]

According to the present invention, by manually using a cut sheet as a recording sheet, it is not necessary to form an accommodating portion for accommodating roll paper, which is used in the conventional example, in the case, and the case is There is an effect that it can be formed small. In addition, the recording paper conveyance path in the printing unit is a straight path, and the recording paper motor-driven conveyance unit is simplified, and the distance from the conveyance unit to the discharge port of the housing case is not wasted and the recording paper is discharged in the shortest distance. Since paper is made available, problems such as paper jams can be alleviated. Further, the mechanical cover is arranged so as to face the printer mechanical portion, and the mechanical cover supports the components of the printer mechanical. By opening and closing the cover, printer malfunctions such as paper jams can be easily eliminated. , Has various effects.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a printer of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a paper feeding state of the printer of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional small printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Main Frame 10a Paper Guide Part 11 Upper Case 12 Bottom Case 12a Paper Ejection Port 13 Mechanical Cover 14 Battery Cover 14e Paper Insertion Port 15 Pinch Spring 16 Platen Spring 17 Pinch Frame 17a Pinch Roller 19 Paper Conveying Roller 20 Paper Detection Sensor 21 Paper Edge Detection Sensor 23 Head carrier 23a Print head 24 Platen 25, 26 Guide shaft 27 Head feed screw 28 FPC guide 30 Driver IC

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A housing case, a main frame that forms a transport path for recording paper in the housing case, a paper transport roller that is driven to rotate in the transport path, and to transport the recording paper,
A pinch frame having a pinch roller that cooperates with the paper carrying roller, a head carrier having a print head provided in the vicinity of the paper carrying roller, and a swingable head carrier on the carrying path of the main frame relative to the head carrier. Relative position of a platen provided, an FPC that supplies print data from the I / F substrate to the print head, an FPC guide that movably supports the FPC in a fixed position, and the main frame on the top surface of the housing case. A first cover provided on the first cover and a second cover that forms a paper feed opening between the first cover and the first cover. An elastic member is provided on the back surface of the first cover, and the elastic member is interposed therebetween. The pinch roller provided on the pinch frame is elastically pressed against the paper conveying roller, and the recording paper is conveyed by the paper conveying roller and the pinch roller. Te, housing structure for a small printer which is characterized in that so as to induce a recording paper to the paper discharge port. 2. The pinch frame is detachably mounted on the main frame, and can be detached from the main frame when the first cover is opened. Small printer as described. 3. The small size printer according to claim 1, wherein the print head is formed on a head substrate, and a driver IC for driving the print head is provided in the vicinity of the print head on the head substrate. Printer. 4. An inclined surface or a step portion is formed in a portion of the main frame facing the driver IC, and the recording paper is conveyed by the inclined surface or the step portion while avoiding a collision with the driver IC. The small printer according to claim 3. 5. The small printer according to claim 1, wherein a part of the FPC guide is formed with an inclined surface portion for guiding the recording paper to the paper discharge port.