JPS60184870A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To print in both leftward and rightward directions clearly and at high speed, by a method wherein two (upper and lower) ink ribbons are separately moved by a ribbon mechanism provided in the exterior of a carriage, while selectively setting the ribbons. CONSTITUTION:When a motor 18 for moving the ink ribbons up and down is driven, a cam 19 is rotated through a rotary shaft 18a, thereby an ink ribbon supporting part 20 is moved upward or downward, and the ink ribbons 10, 11 are also moved upward or downward. When the lower ink ribbon 11 is set to a position in front of a printing head, an unused ink surface is set in position, and a leftward printing operation is immediately started. At this time, a lower ribbon take-up spool motor is not driven, so that the lower ink ribbon remains still. On the other hand, an upper ribbon take-up spool motor 14 is driven to take up the upper ink ribbon 10 around an upper ribbon take-up spool 12, thereby preparing for rightward printing. When the leftward printing operation is completed, the motor 18 is again driven to set the upper ink ribbon 10 to the position in front of the head 1. Accordingly, printing can be performed in both leftward and righward directions.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field] The present invention relates to a printer, and more particularly to a printer in which a ribbon mechanism is not mounted on the carriage but is installed outside the carriage and prints in both left and right directions. .

[Prior art]

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a ribbon mechanism of a conventional printer of this type.

That is, the print head 1 prints on a print paper 4 set between it and a platen 3 via an ink ribbon 2 by driving a wire pin (not shown).

The print head 1 is mounted on a carriage 6, and when the carriage 6 is driven by the operation of a carriage drive motor 5, it moves in the left and right direction along with the carriage 6, and prints when heading to the left or right.

At this time, if you try to print in the opposite direction immediately after printing in one direction, the ink surface that was used once immediately before will be used again when printing in the reverse direction, so make sure to print clearly. was difficult.

Therefore, for example, when printing in the right direction, the ribbon supply spool 7
Then, the ribbon take-up spool 8 is stopped, and when printing is completed to the right end and the print head 1 is returning to the left to print, the ribbon take-up spool motor 9 is driven 1 to operate the ribbon take-up spool 8. A structure has been proposed in which a new ink surface is caused to appear on the front surface of the print head 1.

In other words, after printing in one direction, the carriage is temporarily stopped, during which time the ink ribbon is wound up a predetermined length to expose a new ink surface, and then printing is performed in the opposite direction. .

However, printers with such a structure have a drawback in that printing is not performed while the ink ribbon is being wound up, resulting in an extremely slow average printing speed.

However, when using a one-time ribbon as an ink ribbon or when using a thermal transfer ribbon for thermal transfer printing, printing in the opposite direction after printing in one direction requires a speed that is at least twice the moving speed of the print head 1. The only method available was to move the ribbon in the same direction as the print head 1 at high speed.

〔the purpose〕

The present invention has been made in order to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional printer, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printer that can print clearly in both left and right directions at a high speed.

[Actual flow side]

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

Figures 2 to 4 illustrate one embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment, a wire dot head is used as the print head. Further, in this figure, the same or corresponding parts as in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and the explanation thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 2 explains the ribbon mechanism of the printer according to the present invention.

That is, this ribbon mechanism consists of two upper and lower ink ribbons 10 and 11, upper and lower ribbon take-up spools 12 and 13, upper and lower ribbon take-up spool motors 14 and 15 that drive these upper and lower ribbon take-up spools 12 and 13, and upper and lower ribbon take-up spools. It consists of supply spools 16 and 17.

Note that this spool portion is shown in an enlarged scale in FIG. Third
The figure is a sectional view of the spool portion located on the left side in FIG.

That is, the upper ribbon take-up spool 12 is engaged with the seventeenth ribbon take-up spool motor 14, and the lower ribbon supply spool 17 can operate completely separately from the upper ribbon take-up spool 12. .

Further, the reference numeral 18 indicates a ribbon up/down motor, and the tip of the rotating shaft 18a of the motor 18 is fixed to the eccentricity of a disc-shaped cam 19.

Reference numeral 20 denotes an ink ribbon holding section. This ink ribbon holding section 20 is a thin plate formed in a substantially E shape, and holds the upper and lower ink ribbons in a slidable manner. The upper end surface of the cam 1 is biased by the cam 1.
It is in contact with the 90 periphery.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as above will be explained.

First, for example, to print in the right direction, the upper ink ribbon 1 is moved while the print head 1 mounted on the carriage 6 is moved rightward by driving the carriage drive motor 5.
Printing is performed via 0.

At this time, since the upper ribbon take-up spool motor 14 for moving the upper ink ribbon 10 is stopped, the upper ribbon take-up spool 12 does not operate, and the upper ink ribbon 10 is stopped.

On the other hand, the lower ink ribbon 11 is used for printing in the left direction, and when the lower ribbon take-up spool 13 is operated by driving the lower ribbon take-up spool motor 15, the lower ribbon is taken up on the lower ribbon take-up spool 13. It will be done.

This winding operation is performed while the above-described rightward printing is being performed, that is, until the carriage reaches the right end.

Further, the length of the lower ink ribbon 11 wound around the lower ribbon take-up spool 13 is equal to the length used for printing during the previous printing in the left direction. That is, the lower ink ribbon 1
The used part of 1 is wound up, and the new unused ink surface is let out from the lower rib/supply spool 17.

When printing in the right direction is thus completed, the ink ribbon up/down motor 18° 18 is driven to set the lower ink ribbon 11 in front of the print head 1.

This ink ribbon up/down mechanism is shown in FIG.

That is, when the ink ribbon up/down motor 18 is driven, the cam 19 rotates via the rotating shaft 18a. At this time, since the rotating shaft 18a is fixed at a position offset from the center of the cam 19, the ink ribbon holder 20 moves up and down as the cam 19 rotates, and the ink ribbon held by the ink ribbon holder 20 moves up and down. 10.11 also moves up and down.

Therefore, depending on the position of the cam 19, the upper ink ribbon 10 or the lower ink ribbon 11 is set in front of the print head 11.

If the lower ink ribbon 11 is set in front of the print head as described above, the lower ink ribbon 11 already has an unused ink surface, so printing operation to the left can be started immediately. .

At this time, the lower ribbon take-up spool motor 15 is not driven and the lower ≧ ink ribbon is stopped, as in the case of printing in the right direction described above, while the up ribbon take-up spool motor 14 is driven to print the upper ink. The ribbon 10 is wound onto an upper ribbon take-up spool 12 in preparation for the next printing in the right direction.

When printing in the left direction is completed, the ink ribbon up/down motor 1B is driven again to move the upper ink ribbon 1.
0 on the front of the print head 1.

By repeating the above operations, printing in both left and right directions becomes possible.

It goes without saying that the present invention is applicable not only to the embodiments described above, but also to printers that use a ribbon cassette instead of a ribbon spool, for example.

However, instead of using a ribbon up/down motor and a cam to switch and set the two upper and lower ink ribbons, an electromagnetic solenoid may be used.

〔effect〕

As is clear from the above explanation, according to the present invention, two ink ribbons are provided, upper and lower, and a structure is adopted in which each can be operated completely separately, so that when printing in one direction, ink for printing in the opposite direction is used. The ribbon can be wound up to expose the unused ink surface, and a printer capable of bidirectional printing with high average printing speed and clear printing can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a ribbon mechanism and carriage in a conventional printer, Figs. 2 to 4 illustrate an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the ribbon mechanism adopted in the present invention. , Figure 3 is a partially enlarged longitudinal sectional front view of Figure 2, Figure 4 is
The figure is a perspective view of the ink ribbon up/down mechanism. 1... Print head 2... Ink ribbon 4... Print paper 6... Carriage 7... Ribbon supply spool 8... Ribbon take-up spool 10... Upper ink ribbon 11... Lower Ink ribbon 12... Upper ribbon take-up spool 13... Lower ribbon take-up spool 14... Upper ribbon take-up spool motor 15... Lower ribbon take-up spool motor 16... Upper ribbon supply spool 17. ...Lower ribbon supply spool 18.18...Ink ribbon up/down motor 19.19...Cam

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a printer in which a ribbon mechanism is not mounted on the carriage but is provided outside the carriage and prints in both the left and right directions, the ribbon mechanism includes two ink ribbons (upper and lower), means for operating these two ink ribbons separately, and an upper and lower ink ribbon. 2
1. A printer comprising means for switching and setting an ink ribbon for a book.