JPS6114953B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an electronic typewriter.

Conventional typewriters include manual typewriters in which all mechanical parts are mechanically connected and the manual pressing force of each key on the keyboard is directly connected to the type bar's stamping operation, and typewriters that have a drive motor. There are electric typewriters in which the type bar corresponding to the key is driven by a directly connected ratchet wheel, but both of these mechanical typewriters have an independent key lever, bell crank type, corresponding to each key. With bar wire and type bar, etc.
Overall, an extremely large number of parts are required, the structure is inevitably complex, advanced manufacturing technology is required, and it is difficult to realize something that is lightweight and has many additional functions, all of which contribute to increased costs. was.

In contrast to such conventional mechanical typewriters, the present invention includes a single type wheel with a large number of printing elements arranged around the periphery, electronically processes keyboard key operations, and generates electrical signals corresponding to each key. By converting signals into mechanical operations to perform various operations, the number of parts is greatly reduced, and the simple structure makes assembly extremely easy, as well as making maintenance and inspection easy. The present invention relates to a new electronic typewriter that is lightweight, has improved all the drawbacks of conventional mechanical typewriters, and is superior in quality.

The character selection operation and subsequent printing operation of this electronic typewriter are omitted since they are detailed in Japanese Patent Application No. 53-25856, which was already filed by the same applicant as the present application. The following describes in detail the devices related to the reciprocating movement of a carriage on which a cartridge is placed, namely a carriage advancing device, a carriage return device, a high-speed carriage back device, and a margin device. The details of the present invention will be explained below with reference to the drawings.

Reference numeral 1 designates a printing head, which includes a type wheel 3 having a large number of printing elements 2 arranged in a petal shape, and a pulse motor 5 directly connected to the type wheel 3 to drive the type wheel 3 to rotate in a plane parallel to the platen 4.
and a detection mechanism (not shown) for detecting the rotational position of the type wheel 3. The type wheel 3 is divided into 88 parts in the circumferential direction, and a type is formed at the tip of each printing element 2.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a carriage on which the printing head 1 is placed, and a guide rod 7 supported by the machine frame F (only one part is shown).
8 and supported for reciprocating movement parallel to the platen 4. A printing hammer 9 is rotatably supported by the carriage 6 like the printing head, and is driven by a solenoid (not shown) activated based on a hammer trigger signal, and is driven by a solenoid (not shown) that activates the printing element selected at the time. 2 is struck onto the printing paper P via the ink ribbon R, and printing is performed on the printing paper P.

The keyboard 10 is composed of a group of alphanumeric keys and a group of function keys as shown in FIG. It is possible to input so-called uppercase letters and lowercase letters) or numbers and symbol information. Function keys include a shift key 12, a repeat key 13, a space key 14, a backspace key 15, a return key 16, a high speed back key 17, and a line feed key 18. Pressing of each key on the keyboard 10 is converted into an electrical signal, which partially operates a control circuit which will be described later.

Electronic character selection operation performed based on the operation of the character and number keys 11, and the associated ink ribbon R
The lifting operation and feeding operation of the printing hammer 9, as well as the driving operation of the printing hammer 9, are described in the above-mentioned patent application filed in 1983-
Since it is detailed in No. 25856, it will be omitted here, and the explanation will be omitted here. device, carriage 6 based on operation of return key 16
A series of devices associated with the return operation of the carriage 6 and a high-speed back device for high-speed back movement of the carriage 6 based on the operation of the high-speed back key 17 will be described in detail below.

A stepping device that always moves the carriage 6 in steps will be described.

Reference numeral 20 is a spring drum fixed to the machine frame F, and is similar to that used in ordinary typewriters.
A support shaft 21, which is rotatably supported by the support shaft 21, passes through the support shaft 21. A spring 22 is housed in the spring drum 20, and its outer end is fixed to the spring drum 20 and its inner end is fixed to the support shaft 21.
A first gear 23 adjacent to the spring drum 20 and a take-up pulley 24, which is a stepping pulley, are fixed to the support shaft 21, and the biasing force of the spring 22 is applied to the first gear 23 through the support shaft 21. 1 gear 23 and stepping pulley 24 as a rotational force in the direction of arrow A.

25 and 26 are two wires that operatively connect the take-up pulley 24 and the carriage 6; one end of one wire 25 is fixed to the machine frame F on the right in FIG. After the carriage pulley 27 rotatably supported on the lower surface of the first guide pulley 2 is wound half a turn around the lower groove 27a and the direction is reversed, the first guide pulley 2 is rotatably supported on the machine frame F.
At 8, the direction is changed and guided to the take-up pulley 24, where it is wound counterclockwise by an appropriate amount and fixed. One end of the other wire 26 is fixed to the machine frame F on the left side in FIG.
After the other end is wound around the upper groove 27b of the carriage pulley 27 for half a turn and the direction is reversed, the second and third guide pulleys 29 are rotatably supported by the machine frame F,
At 30, the direction is changed and the take-up pulley 24
, and is wound around the take-up pulley 24 by an appropriate amount in a clockwise direction and fixed thereto. Therefore, the biasing force from the spring 22 always acts in the direction of winding up the wire 25 and in the direction of feeding out the wire 26, so the carriage 6 is biased in the character feeding direction (arrow B direction) via the carriage pulley 27. .

Reference numeral 31 denotes a support shaft rotatably supported on the machine frame, with a ratchet wheel 32 at one end and a second gear 33 meshing with the first gear 23 at the other end.
is fixed. 34 is a control mechanism for controlling the rotation of the support shaft 21 in the direction of arrow A by the spring 22, and includes the ratchet wheel 32, a space ratchet 35 and a half ratchet 36 that can be engaged with the ratchet wheel 32, and a stepping solenoid. It is composed of 37. As shown in FIG. 1, the space ratchet 35 and the half ratchet 36 are configured to operate integrally by a spring 38 stretched between them and a protruding pin 39 fixed to the half ratchet 36. , the space latch 35 is normally engaged with the ratchet wheel 32 by the biasing spring 40 to prevent rotation of the ratchet wheel 32 and the half latch 36
is not engaged with the ratchet wheel 32.

That is, the space latchet 35 engages with the latchet wheel 32 and prevents the rotation of the latchet wheel 32, thereby preventing the spring 22 from rotating the take-up pulley 24 in the direction of arrow A. When the stepping solenoid 37 is excited by a space signal generated in synchronization with the printing operation described above or a space signal generated by pressing the space key 14, the half latch 36 resists the biasing spring 40. 1, and the space ratchet 35 is also rotated in the direction of arrow C via the protruding pin 39. As a result, the rotation of the space ratchet 35 and the ratchet wheel 32, i.e., the rotation of the take-up pulley 24.
is allowed to rotate in the direction of arrow A, and the ratchet wheel 32 rotates half a pitch in the direction of arrow D until it engages the half latch 36. When the stepping solenoid 37 is released from the energized state, the half ratchet 36 is rotated in the opposite direction of arrow C by the biasing force of the biasing spring 40, and is disengaged from the ratchet wheel 32. The space ratchet 35 is rotated in the opposite direction of arrow C,
It becomes possible to engage with the ratchet wheel 32 and rotates another half pitch in the direction of arrow D until it engages with the ratchet 35.

In this way, the space latch 35 and the half latch 36 integrally reciprocate based on the operation of the stepping solenoid 37, and the ratchet wheel 30 is rotated by one pitch in the direction of the arrow D. As a result, the first and second The winding pulley 24 rotates in the direction of winding up the wire 25 and the direction of feeding out the wire 26 via the gears 23 and 33, and the carriage 6 is moved in the direction of arrow B by one character, that is, by one step l. .

The accuracy of the step amount of the carriage 6 based on the operation of the step solenoid 37 is determined by the ratchet wheel 3.
Although it depends on the manufacturing accuracy of the two-car ratchets 35, 36 and the first and second gears 23, 33, and their assembly accuracy, both have simple shapes that make it easy to manufacture and assemble them. Since the structure is simple and it can be easily taken out, the printing quality of the typewriter can be maintained at high quality.

Next, the left and right margin detection device will be explained.

45 is a margin rack, and 46 is a support plate fixed to the left and right ends of the margin rack 45 (only the left side is shown in FIG. 1), and is supported movably along the moving direction of the carriage 6 with respect to the machine frame F. has been done. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the support plate 46 shown on the left in FIG.
0 and a pin 51, the positioning plate 47 is supported so as to be movable by 1/2 of the advance pitch l of the carriage 6, and the positioning plate 47 is stretched between the positioning plate 47 and the right machine frame F. The relationship between the first spring 48 and the second spring 49, which is stretched between the positioning plate 47 and the first hanging portion 46a of the support plate 46 and has a smaller spring constant than the first spring 48. Therefore, the right end of the elongated hole 50 shown in FIG. 3 and the pin 51 are always held in an engaged state.

When the positioning plate 47 is positioned, the support plate 46
is always maintained in the state shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 in which the second hanging portion 46b is engaged with the bent portion 47a of the positioning plate 47 by the biasing force of the second spring 49. 5
2 is a rubber stop member fixed to the left machine frame F, and is provided so as to be able to collide with the second hanging part 46b, and when the second hanging part 46b is in the state shown in FIG.
The gap between the rubber stop member 52 and the rubber stop member 52 corresponds to 1.5 times the advance pitch l of the carriage 6. Therefore, the margin rack 45 can always be moved 1.5l to the left and 1/2l to the right from the first position shown in FIG.
is supported.

Left and right margin stops 53 and 54 are selectively positioned relative to the margin rack 45, respectively, and are used to determine the printing width for the printing paper P. Reference numerals 55 and 56 denote first and second permanent magnets fixed near the right machine frame F of the margin rack 45, and are spaced a predetermined distance apart in the longitudinal direction of the margin rack 45 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5. It is provided. 57 and 58 are first and second permanent magnets 5
5 and 56, respectively. The first and second reed switches 57, 58 are closed when the margin rack 45 is in the first position shown in FIGS. 3l
When moved (see FIG. 6), only the second reed switch 58 becomes open under the influence of the second permanent magnet 56, and the margin rack 45 moves approximately 1/2 l to the left from the first position. When the reed switch 57 is moved to the second position shown by the solid line in FIG.
moves further 1l to the left from the second position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG.
Only the first reed switch 57 is fixed to the machine frame F so as to maintain the open state as long as the reed switch 57 is located between the third position and the engaged third position with the hanging portion 46b of the reed switch 57.

That is, due to the stepwise movement of the carriage 6 associated with the above-described printing operation or the stepwise movement based on the depression of the space key 14, the cartridge 6 is fixed to the carriage stop 6a and the right margin stop 5.
When the margin rack 45 is moved approximately 1/3 l to the right from the first position as shown in FIG.
The reed switch 58 is opened and a right margin operation signal is sent to notify that the right margin has been operated. With this right margin operation signal,
Subsequent letters, number key 11 and space key 1
All signals based on pressing 4 will be ignored. This allows the operator to know that the right margin has been activated. When the carriage 6 is then returned in the printing start direction by pressing the return key 16 or the like, the engagement between the right margin stop 54 and the carriage stop 6a is released, and the margin rack 45 returns to the first position. By returning, the typewriter becomes ready to print like a normal typewriter.

When the return key 16 is pressed down, the carriage 6 starts a return operation by a carriage return device to be described later, and as a result of the return operation, the carriage stop 6a of the carriage 6 engages with the left margin stop 53. margin rack 45
When the reed switch 57 is moved to the left by 1/2l to the state shown by the solid line in FIG. 7, the first reed switch 57 is opened by the first permanent magnet 55, and it is notified that the left margin has been operated. A left margin operation signal is sent. This left margin operation signal acts as a return operation end signal, as will be described later, and the return operation of the carriage 6 is ended. When the return operation of the carriage 6 is completed, the carriage 6 is positioned at the printing start position as described later, thereby the margin rack 45 returns to the first position shown in FIG. 5, and the first reed switch 57 is closed. state.

Next, a return device for the carriage 6 and a series of operations related thereto will be explained.

60 is a drive shaft that constantly rotates in the direction of arrow E;
A third gear 61 is rotatably supported by the drive shaft 60 via a spring clutch 62 and meshes with the first gear 23 as shown in FIG. 6
3 is an operating lever for controlling a spring clutch 62;
4 is a coil spring that holds the operating lever 63 out of engagement with the spring clutch 62, and 65 is a carriage return solenoid (referred to as CR solenoid).

When the return key 16 is pressed down, a carriage return signal (referred to as CR signal) is sent and inputted to a control circuit shown in FIG. ) is output,
CR solenoid 65 is energized. The actuating lever 63 is thereby pivoted against the coil spring 64 to bring the spring clutch 62 into the engaged state. The CR solenoid drive signal is the return key 1 as described later.
Once the push-down operation of 6 is performed, the output continues until the return is completed even if the operation is canceled.

When the spring clutch 62 is in the engaged state, the third gear 61 is rotated in the direction of arrow E, and the first gear 23 meshing therewith is rotated in the opposite direction of arrow A. The rotation of the first tooth 23 in the opposite direction of arrow A is caused by the rotation of the spring drum 2 via the support shaft 21.
0 spring 22 is unwound, and the take-up pulley 24 is rotated in the opposite direction of arrow A to let out the wire 25 while winding up the wire 26. As a result, the carriage 6 starts moving in the opposite direction of arrow B toward the printing start position. On the other hand, the rotation of the first gear 23 in the direction opposite to the arrow A causes the support shaft 31 and the ratchet wheel 32 to rotate in the direction opposite to the arrow D via the second gear 33. The rotation of the support shaft 31 in the opposite direction of arrow D is caused by the support shaft 3
The space ratchet 35 is rotated against the spring 38 out of the rotation locus of the ratchet wheel 32 by operating the ratchet removal piece 66 provided at the spacer 1. Therefore, the ratchet wheel 3
2 can rotate without engaging the space ratchet 35. This ratchet removal piece 6
A detailed explanation of the operation and structure of 6 is provided in the Utility Model Publication No. 39-1999, which has already been filed and published by the same applicant as the present application.
Since it is the same as that disclosed in No. 22322, it will be omitted. Therefore, since the carriage advancing device is constructed by a combination of gear connections and ratchet wheels that are easy to achieve mechanical processing accuracy, it operates reliably, has high stepping accuracy, and can be manufactured at low cost.

Now, as the return operation of the carriage 6 progresses, the carriage stop 6a and the left margin stop 53 engage, and the margin rack 45 is moved to the fifth position.
From the state shown in the figure, the state shown by the solid line in FIG.
When the reed switch 57 is moved from the position to the second position, the first reed switch 57 becomes open as described above.
A left margin operation signal (referred to as LHM signal) is sent. As will be described later, this LMH signal acts as a release signal for the return operation at the time of its transmission, stopping the transmission of the CR solenoid drive signal, which will be described later, and operates a timer circuit, which will be described later. By stopping the sending of the CR solenoid drive signal, the spring clutch 62 becomes disengaged, and the rotational drive of the take-up pulley 24 in the opposite direction of arrow A is stopped.

In this embodiment, the margin rack 45 is provided so as to be movable further to the left in order to soften the impact force when the carriage stop 6a and the left margin stop 53 engage with each other. Move further to the left. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the margin rack 45 is at a third position (FIG. 7) where the second hanging portion 46b engages with the stop member 52 against the biasing force of the second spring 49. This third position is a position moved 1.5 l to the left from the first position as described above, and the margin rack 45 can be moved to this position. As a result, the leftward movement of the margin rack 45 and the leftward movement of the carriage 6 based on the inertial force of the carriage 6 are forcibly stopped.

When the leftward movement of the carriage 6 is stopped, the rotation of the take-up pulley 24 in the opposite direction of arrow A is stopped.
The take-up pulley 24 rotates in the direction of arrow A in accordance with the biasing force of the spring 22 and attempts to move the carriage 6 in the character feeding direction. Take-up pulley 24
Rotation in the direction of arrow A is performed by the ratchet wheel 3.
2 in the direction of arrow D, and remove the ratchet removal piece 6.
6 is released, and the space ratchet 35 and the ratchet wheel 32 are immediately engaged. The position where the space ratchet 35 and the ratchet wheel 32 are engaged is the position where the margin rack 45 shown in FIG. and third
It is a position that has been moved to a position intermediate between the position of
This corresponds to the carriage 6 moving 1l before the printing start position. Therefore, the margin rack can be moved further to the left from the printing start position by a distance equivalent to 1.5 times the carriage advance pitch, thereby reducing the impact on the carriage and the typewriter body due to the high-speed carriage return operation. I can do it.

Therefore, as mentioned above, the first reed switch 5
7 remains open and continues to send out the LHM signal.

On the other hand, a timer circuit T, which will be described later, starts operating when the LHM signal is sent, and detects the presence or absence of the LHM signal after a predetermined time (130 msec in the example).
When the LHM signal is present, the circuit is configured so that a 1-space signal is sent out as shown in the circuit of FIG. Therefore, in the above-mentioned state, that is, in the state where the carriage 6 is at a position 1 l before the print start position and the margin rack 45 is at a position intermediate between the second position and the third position, the LHM signal continues to be output. The circuit shown in FIG. 8 outputs one space signal. When the space signal is output, the stepping solenoid 37 operates, the stepping device described above is activated, and the carriage 6 moves 1 l to the right.
It is advanced by a minute. As a result, the carriage 6 is moved to a predetermined printing start position and stopped, the margin rack 45 is also returned to the first position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, and the first read switch 57 is also moved. Return to closed state. In this way, the carriage 6 is accurately positioned at the predetermined printing start position.

Now, the next high-speed backup device will be explained.

The high-speed back device shares most of the same features as the previously described carriage return device, and therefore, a description of the mechanical structure will be omitted and only the operations that occur when the high-speed back key 17 is pressed will be described.

When the high-speed back key 17 is pressed, a high-speed back signal (referred to as an HSB signal) is input to a control circuit, which will be described later, and the CR solenoid drive signal is output from that circuit. This energizes the CR solenoid 65 and the spring clutch 62.
are in the coupled state, and the carriage 6 begins to move in the opposite direction of arrow B as described above. This high-speed back movement is performed when the high-speed back key 17 is released.
When the HSB signal is no longer output, the CR solenoid drive signal output immediately disappears and the spring clutch 6
Since position 2 is in a dissociated state, the process ends immediately at that position. In other words, the carriage 6 is controlled by a control circuit, which will be described later, to perform high-speed backward movement only while the high-speed backward key 17 is pressed down.

By continuing to press the high-speed back key 17 to continue the high-speed back movement of the carriage 6,
Carriage stop 6a and left margin stop 5
3 is engaged, the high-speed backward movement is terminated by the LHM signal, similar to the return operation described above. The subsequent operations of the carriage 6 and margin rack 45 are as explained in the return operation.

That is, this high-speed back movement effectively utilizes the carriage return device to perform high-speed back movement, and moreover, the high-speed back movement is performed only while the high-speed back key 17 is pressed down. Therefore, by using the carriage return device, the carriage can be moved back at high speed, and new functions can be added to the typewriter, while the typewriters can be consolidated at low cost and compactly.

Next, the configuration and operation of the control circuit shown in FIG. 8 will be explained with reference to the signal waveform diagram in FIG. 9.

FIG. 8 shows the LHM signal sent from the keyboard 10 or the left and right margin detection device described above;
A control circuit that generates a CR solenoid drive signal or space signal from the HSB signal and CR signal,
Its control circuit consists of two flip-flops (FF
1, FF2), timer circuit T, two OR gates (referred to as OR1, OR2), one AND gate AND, and two inverters (INV1, INV2).
). Its FF1 and FF
The D terminals of the two terminals are both grounded, and the clear terminals are both connected to the power supply voltage VCC via a resistor.

In FIG. 8, the HSB signal is a signal that is continuously output while the high-speed back key 17 is pressed down, and is connected to the clock terminal of FF1 via INV1.
It is input to CK and also to OR1. When the HSB signal goes from high level to low level, as shown in Figure 9a, the signal waveform is shown, FF1 is triggered at the falling edge, and the output signal of FF1, whose signal waveform is shown in Figure 9c, changes from high level to low level. becomes low level. The HSB signal and the output signal of FF1 are input to OR1, and the output signal of OR1 is
As shown in Figure d, the signal waveform changes from low level to high level and is input to OR2. That OR2
The CR solenoid drive signal which is the output signal changes from low level to high level as the signal waveform is shown in FIG. 9, and drives the CR solenoid. When the HSB signal becomes high level, the output signal of OR1 becomes low level, and the CR solenoid drive signal becomes low level.

When the carriage 6 continues to move back at high speed and the operation of the left margin is detected, the LHM signal becomes low level as the signal waveform shown in FIG. Input to timer circuit T and AND.
As a result, the output signal of FF1 becomes high level.
The output signal of FF2 becomes low level, and as described above, the CR solenoid drive signal becomes low level. The operation of the timer circuit T will be explained in the following operation during carriage return.

The CR signal whose signal waveform is shown in FIG. 9e is input to the clock terminal CK of FF2. When the return key 16 is now pressed and the CR signal goes high, the output signal of the FF2 goes high, causing the CR solenoid drive signal to go high. This state is maintained even if the CR signal changes to low level. When the operation of the left margin is detected as in the case of the high-speed back movement described above, the LHM signal becomes low level, and the output signal of FF2 becomes low level, thereby causing the CR solenoid drive signal to become low level. The timer circuit T is triggered by the falling edge of the LHM signal and starts its timer operation, and its output signal remains at a low level for a predetermined time t (130 msec in the example), as the signal waveform is shown in Fig. 9h. It is held and input to AND via INV2. After time t, the output signal becomes high level, and at that time
If the LHM signal is at a low level, the AND output signal whose signal waveform is shown in FIG. 9j is at a high level, and the above-mentioned space signal is output.

In this way, the control circuit shown in Figure 8 is as described above.
It performs predetermined control in response to the LHM signal, HSB signal, and CR signal.

As detailed above, the present invention embodies a device that ensures the operative connection between the electronic part and the mechanical part of an electronic typewriter.
Since the left and right margin detection device is formed by a combination of at least one permanent magnet fixed to the margin rack and two reed switches fixed to the machine frame, it is possible to manufacture a detection device with a simple structure and low cost. In addition, it is possible to reliably detect both the left and right margin positions, and the movement of the carriage can be controlled reliably and efficiently using the detection signals, which is extremely effective.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the main parts showing an embodiment of the electronic typewriter according to the present application, Fig. 2 is a plan view of the keyboard, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the main parts showing the supporting state of the margin rack, and Fig. 4 is a front view of Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is a plan view showing the relative position of the permanent magnet fixed to the margin rack and the reed switch fixed to the machine frame, and Figs. 6 and 7 are the same as Fig. 5. Operation diagram,
FIG. 8 is a control circuit, FIG. 9 is a waveform diagram of each signal, and FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing the area around the take-up pulley. In the figure, 1 is the print head, 4 is the platen, 6 is the carriage, 6a is the carriage stop, 10 is the keyboard, 16 is the return key, 17 is the high speed back key, 20 is the spring drum, 24 is the take-up pulley, 25, 26 is a wire, 28 is a carriage pulley, 28, 29, 30 are guide pulleys, 45 is a margin rack, 53 is a left margin stop, 54
is the right margin stop, 55 and 56 are permanent magnets,
57 and 58 are reed switches, 66 is a carriage return solenoid, P is printing paper, F is a machine frame, l is a step pitch, and T is a timer circuit.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A platen supported by a machine frame and on which printing paper is placed; a carriage on which a printing head is placed and moves back and forth along the platen; a margin rack that is provided so as to be movable back and forth by a predetermined amount and is always held at a predetermined position; left and right margin stops that are selectively positioned on the margin rack and determine the printing width on the printing paper; and a carriage stop that engages with the left and right margin stops selectively positioned based on the reciprocating movement of the carriage, two reed switches fixed to the machine frame; at least one permanent magnet fixed to an end of the margin rack so as not to affect the two reed switches at all times, and causing opening and closing operations of the reed switch based on movement of the margin rack; Preparation: When the margin rack is moved by a predetermined amount to the right or left due to the engagement between the margin stop and the carriage stop based on the reciprocating movement of the carriage, both the reed switches are configured to open and close. A left and right margin movement detection device for a typewriter, characterized in that the left and right margin movement detection device is arranged in a typewriter.