JPS6235867A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a lightweight portable printer having the function for direct visual confirmation of printed characters and reduced in machine height, by a construction wherein one housing can be turned relative to the other, and a selected type of a print element is located at a position facing a platen through a ribbon, at a turning position during operation. CONSTITUTION:A front housing 10 and a rear housing 12 are so fitted that they can be turned with a shaft 52 of a platen 20 as a center under the condition where casing-form open surfaces thereof are opposed to each other. A type wheel 34 and a printing hammer turn on the shaft 52 while maintaining the same positional relationship, and a selected type 32 of the type wheel 34 is located in a space 53 provided in a ribbon cassette 24 so as to stretch the ribbon 22, and is so disposed as to face the platen 20 through the ribbon 22. Accordingly, the type 32 is so positioned that it can strike the ribbon 22 orthogonally to the surface of the ribbon 22, so that the printed character is not hidden by the type wheel 34, and typist can look direct at the printed character.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a printing device such as a typewriter.

In particular, the present invention relates to a printing device in which a housing is divided into two parts and these housings are rotatably attached.

[Prior Art and Problems to be Solved by the Invention 1 In printing devices such as typewriters, it is required that printed characters can be viewed directly after key-in. A type wheel having a configuration in which a plurality of type characters are arranged around a flat outer periphery is also considered to have this function.

For example, as shown in a partial cross-sectional view of a conventional printing device in FIG.
2 had to be mounted at an angle nearly perpendicular to the bottom surface of the housing 84. For this reason, the mechanical height of the printing device must be higher than the diameter of the type wheel 82, and as a result, the mechanical height increases, making it inconvenient for storage and transport. A problem arises in that the weight of the housing increases.

As a solution to this problem, it has been considered to tilt the type 86 side of the type wheel 82 toward the bottom of the housing 84', as shown in FIG. 9, thereby lowering the height of the machine. Utsukai No. 60-8072)
However, in this case, the printed characters would be hidden behind the type wheel 82 and the ribbon (not shown), making it impossible to see them directly. In this configuration, printing can be confirmed by turning the platen 88 to temporarily shift the printed character position, and then returning it to the original position when printing the next time, or by checking the printed character using an LCD, etc. There are several possible methods. but,
The former method causes a time lag, which slows down the typing speed and may cause the printing position to shift for each character.The latter method has the drawbacks of increased costs and the inability to see the printed characters directly.

In addition, in a type of printing device that prints using an ink ribbon, a type wheel 82 is used as shown in FIG.
The type wheel 82 and the ribbon cassette 90 must be arranged at a nearly perpendicular angle so that the type 86 of the ribbon cassette 90 can be struck perpendicularly to the surface of the ribbon 92 of the ribbon cassette 90. As shown in
Even if the mounting angle of the type wheel 82 to the housing 84' is devised, the ribbon drive device t (not shown), which is in a predetermined positional relationship with the type wheel 82, will become taller, making it difficult to reduce the height of the machine. There was a limit.

As described above, in conventional printing devices, there is a restriction that not only the angle when mounting the type wheel but also the ribbon drive device placed in a predetermined relationship with the type wheel must be taken into consideration. It was impossible to combine the features of Ja-sei, which allows the text to be viewed directly, and the ability to lower the height of the machine.

[Objective of the Invention 1] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is a printing device of the type that prints using an ink ribbon, in which the housing of the printing device is divided into two parts, and these housings are made rotatable. This is a lightweight, portable printer that maintains a predetermined positional relationship between the printing element and ribbon only during installation and use, and has an II fl that allows the printed characters to be seen directly, as well as a lower machine height than before. The purpose is to provide a printing device.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a housing of a printing device including a front housing having a keyboard and a ribbon drive device, and a printing element and its drive means. It consists of two housings, one housing is rotatable relative to the other housing, and in the rotational position in use, the selected characters of the printing element are transferred to the plantain through the ribbon. They are located in opposite locations.

[Function] With the above configuration, when in use, the positional relationship between the printing element and the ribbon is maintained in a predetermined positional relationship where printed characters can be seen directly and the printing element can print on the platen via the ribbon, and when not in use. In some cases, the positional relationship between the printing element and the ribbon can be set to be independent. By arranging the length of the printing element and the length of the ribbon cassette so that they do not affect the height of the housing when not in use, the height of the machine can be made lower than in the past.

[First example] Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

1 and 2 are longitudinal sectional views of an embodiment of the printing device according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows the flat state when not in use.
FIG. 2 shows the folded state during use. Also,
FIGS. 3 and 4 show perspective views corresponding to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. The housing of the printing device is composed of two bodies: a box-shaped front housing 10 and a shell-shaped rear housing 12. A keyboard 16 having a plurality of keys 14 such as character keys and symbol keys is attached to the front of the upper surface of the front housing IO. Further, inside the front housing IO, there is a cylindrical platen 2 that guides the printing paper 18.
0, a ribbon cassette 24 containing a ribbon 22 facing the platen 20, and a ribbon drive device 26 for winding up the ribbon 22. This ribbon kayak
24 and the ribbon drive device 26 are connected to the ribbon carriage 28
The ribbon carriage 28 is held in a known transport means (
(not shown).

On the other hand, inside the rear housing 12, a type wheel 34 having type letters 32 at the tips of a plurality of radially arranged spokes is provided substantially parallel to the bottom surface of the rear housing 12, and the type wheels 34 are provided with type letters 32 at the tips of a plurality of radially arranged spokes. It faces the platen 20. Further, on the side of the platen 20 of the type wheel 34, a character selection motor 36 is provided via an intermediate gear 38 for selectively moving the type 32 to a printing position according to the operation of the keys 14 of the keyboard 16. There is. Further, a printing hammer 40 is provided so as to face the platen 20 via the selected type 32 of the type wheel 34. The printing hammer 40 is driven by a hammer driving device (not shown) comprising a solenoid or the like. This hammer drive device operates in response to the operation of the key 14,
This is for swinging the printing hammer 40 in the printing direction.

The type wheel 34, character selection motor 36, and print hammer 40 are mounted on a head carriage 42. Further, a paper meter 44 for guiding the printing paper 18 and a ribbon guide 46 for guiding and supporting the ribbon 22 of the ribbon cassette 24 are integrally attached to the helad carriage 42.

The paper meter 44 is always formed along the outer periphery of the platen 20. And head carriage 4
2 is reciprocated along a guide shaft 48 and a guide plate 50, which are horizontally suspended between the sides of the rear housing 12 in parallel with the platen 20, by known transport means, such as a step motor and a belt (not shown). .

Further, both guide shafts 30.48 are installed parallel to each other, and both carriages 28.42 guided by the respective guide shafts 30.48 are synchronously moved by the same distance in the same direction by the transport means. It is set as follows. That is, the ribbon cassette 24 and the type wheel 34 are set so that they always move in the same positional relationship when printing is possible (see FIG. 2).

The front housing 10 and the rear housing 12 are rotatably mounted around a platen shaft 52 of the platen 20 with their open housing surfaces facing each other. The means for rotatably attaching these housings may include attaching the front housing lO and the rear housing 12 to the platen shaft 52 through bearings (not shown), or using other known means. Good too.

The end position of one side of the rotation of the front housing lO and the rear housing 12 is such that their upper and lower surfaces are on the same plane (Fig. 3 of the 11th fist), and the end position of the other side of rotation is The housings are folded into a dogleg shape with their lower surfaces close to each other (Figures 2 and 4).The range of rotation of these housings is from the horizontal position in Figure 1 to the rear housing 12 is rotated to the side opposite to the keyboard 16, and the state shown in FIG. 2 is obtained. These rotational stops are
This is done by bringing the front housing 10 and the rear housing 12 into contact at appropriate locations.

When not in use, the type wheel 34 mounted within the rear housing 12 is spaced apart from the ribbon cassette 24 mounted within the front housing. That is, the type wheel 34 is connected to the ribbon cassette 24 and the ribbon 2.
It is said that there is no special positional relationship with 2.

Next, when in use, the type wheel 34 and the print hammer 40 rotate around the platen shaft 52 of the platen 20 while maintaining the same positional relationship, and as shown in FIG. The type 32 extends through the space 53 formed in the ribbon cassette 24 for overhanging the ribbon 22.
The ribbon cassette 24 is located at a position facing the platen 20 via the ribbon 22 of the ribbon cassette 24, and is set so that the printed characters 32 can be struck perpendicularly to the surface of the ribbon 22 during printing. position. Moreover, when the type wheel 34 is in this position, the inclination angle of the type wheel 34 is set so that the printed characters are not hidden by the type wheel 34 and can be viewed directly by the typist.

A paper guide 54 that guides and supports the printing paper 18 is rotatably attached to the upper surface of the rear housing 12 near the bending position. When not in use, the paper guide 54 connects the front housing 10 and the rear housing 1.
2 and protects the type wheel 34, ribbon cassette 24, platen 20, etc. from adhesion of dust and the like.

Further, a shutter 56 that slides along the bottom surface of the front housing IO is attached to the bottom surface of the front housing IO. A compression spring 58 is provided between the shutter 56 and the inside of the bottom surface of the front housing 10, and the shutter 56 is always urged toward the rear housing 12 by the compression spring 58.

This shutter 56 is attached to the rear housing 12 when not in use.
It contacts the open end of the housing and covers the lower side of the bending position between the front housing 10 and the rear housing 12. When the housings are folded from the unused state to the used state, the shutter 56 is pushed and slid on the bottom surface of the rear housing 12 toward the front end of the front housing 10 against the compression spring 58. Even in this bent state, the shutter 5
6 covers the lower side of the bending position between the front housing 10 and the rear housing 12.

Next, a printing operation in the printing apparatus configured as described above will be explained.

First, when the rear housing 12 is bent downward with respect to the housing 10, the ribbon 22 is guided by the ribbon guide 52 and positioned between the platen 20 and the type wheel 34, as shown in FIG. 0 becomes possible state
Next, when the printing paper 18 is inserted from the paper guide 54 side and the paper feed key (not shown) on the key or board 16 is operated, the platen 20 is rotated by the paper feeding motor (not shown), and the printing paper 18 is rotated by the paper feeding motor (not shown). is guided by the paper pan 59 and paper meter 44, and the platen 2
0 and the ribbon 22. Print preparation is now complete.

When a key 14 such as a character key is pressed, the input signal corresponding to that key is transmitted to a control means such as a central processing unit (CPU).
(not shown), the character selection motor 36 is rotated by a signal from the control means, rotates the type wheel 34 via the intermediate gear 38, and moves the type 32 corresponding to the key 14 to the printing position. At the same time, the hammer drive device operates to move the printing hammer 40 toward the platen 20.

Hit the back of the selected type 32. Then, the struck type 32 comes into contact with the printing paper 18 on the platen 20 via the ribbon 22, and printing is performed. This completes the printing operation for one character.

When the next key 14 is pressed, the ribbon carriage 28 and the pad carriage 42 are moved laterally by the transport means, and the same printing operation as described above is performed.

[Second Embodiment] Next, another embodiment of the printing device according to the present invention is shown in longitudinal sectional views in FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 6 shows a flat state when not in use, and FIG. The figure shows the folded state during use. In this embodiment, the same reference numerals as in the previous embodiment indicate the same parts, and the same functions are omitted. The housing of the printing device is composed of two bodies: a front housing 60 and a rear housing 62. On both open sides of the front housing 60 and rear housing 62, protrusions 64 and 66 are integrally formed at the center in the height direction, and a shaft 68 is attached to the protrusions 64 and 66 on both sides. The front housing 60 and the rear housing 62 are rotatably attached around this shaft 68 .

Inside the front housing 60, a flat platen 70 with a substantially rectangular cross section and a pair of rollers 72 and 74 for feeding the printing paper 18 above and below the platen 70 are installed between both sides of the front housing 60. They are hung parallel to each other. Further, a guide plate 75 for guiding the printing paper 18 is provided between the platen 70 and the roller 74. The ribbon 22 and platen 70 are mounted in close and opposing positions. A printing hammer 78 made of lenoid or the like is attached to a ribbon carriage 76 that holds the ribbon cassette 24 and a ribbon drive device 26 that winds up the ribbon 22. This printing hammer 7
8, via the ribbon 22 of the ribbon cassette 24,
It is attached at a position facing the platen 70. The ribbon carriage 76 is reciprocated by a known transfer means (not shown) along a guide shaft 30 that extends parallel to the platen 70 between the sides of the front housing 60.

On the other hand, inside the rear housing 62, there are printed characters 32 at the tip.
A type wheel 34 with a type wheel 34 is provided generally parallel to the bottom surface of the rear housing 62. Note that, as shown in FIG. 6, a portion of the type wheel 34 protrudes toward the front housing 60 side. The type wheel 34, the type selection motor 36, and the intermediate gear 38 are mounted on the helad carriage 42. The head carriage 4'2 is moved along a guide shaft 48 and a guide plate 50, which are horizontally suspended between the side surfaces of the rear housing 62 in parallel with the platen 70, using known conveying means such as a step motor and a belt (not shown). It is moved back and forth by.

Further, both the guide shafts 30.48 are installed parallel to each other, and both the carry 2 shifts 6.42 guided by the respective guide shafts 30.48 are synchronously moved in the same direction and the same distance by the transport means. set to move.

That is, the ribbon cassette 24 and the type wheel 34 are set so that they always move in the same position during printing.

In the above configuration, when not in use (Figure 6),
Type wheel 34 mounted within rear housing 62
is remote from the ribbon 22 mounted within the front housing 60. That is, the type wheel 34 is not in any special positional relationship with the ribbon cassette 24 or ribbon 22.

Next, in use (FIG. 7), the selected type 32 of the type wheel 34 rotated about the shaft 68 is placed in the ribbon cassette 24 so that the selected type 32 faces the ribbon 22 of the ribbon cassette 24. The positional relationship between the type wheel 34 and the type wheel 34 is set. In addition, when in use, the printed characters are not hidden behind the type wheel 34, and the type wheel 34 allows the typist to see the printed characters directly.
4 inclination angles are set. In this state, the print hammer 78 is in position to strike a selected type 32 on the type wheel 34. Furthermore, this printing hammer 78
and type wheel 34, the rear housing 62 is connected to the shaft 68.
Their mountings are positioned so that they do not touch each other when rotating around the center.

In the above embodiment, a type wheel was used as the printing element, but a type belt (chain-type type) used in a line printer etc.
7 ↓, outside 1) Although not described in detail, it goes without saying that the present invention can be practiced with various modifications based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

Also, as in the above embodiment, if the characters of the printing element can face the platen with the ribbon sandwiched between them during printing,
The center of rotation of both housings may be a bump.

[Effects of the Invention] In the present invention configured as described above, the housing of the printing device is divided into two parts, the front housing to which the ribbon drive device is attached and the rear housing to which the type wheel is attached. Since the housing is rotatably mounted, 1. For example, in special cases where a flat type wheel is installed approximately parallel to the bottom of the rear housing and a ribbon cassette is installed approximately parallel to the front housing, the type wheel can be rotated when folded during use. in position facing the ribbon,
Moreover, it is important that the typist can see the characters directly.

As described above, in the present invention, if the type wheel and ribbon can be placed in a predetermined positional relationship when in use, the type wheel and ribbon may be placed in unrelated positions when not in use.
If both the ribbon cassette and the type wheel are mounted approximately parallel to the bottom of each housing so that such conditions can be met, the height of each housing will be related to the length of the type wheel and the length of the ribbon cassette. Moreover, it is no longer restricted by the special positional relationship between the type wheel and the ribbon cassette, as was the case in the past.

Therefore, it has the function of allowing the characters to be viewed directly during use, and the height of the housing can be made significantly lower than in the past. As a result, the volume of the machine can be reduced, making it convenient to store and carry, and also light in weight.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 and 2 are longitudinal cross-sectional views of one embodiment of the printing device according to the present invention, and Figure wS1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the state when not in use.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the state in use, Figures 3 and 4 are perspective views corresponding to Figures 1 and 2, respectively, and Figure 5 is the type wheel, ribbon, and platen in use. FIGS. 6 and 7 are longitudinal sectional views of other embodiments of the printing device according to the present invention, FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the state when not in use, and FIG. The figure is a longitudinal sectional view showing the state in use, and FIGS. 8 and 9 are partial sectional views showing the conventional printing device. 10.60...Front housing, 12.62.
...Rear housing. 16... Keyboard, 20, 70... Platen, 22... Ribbon, 26... Ribbon drive device, 32... Type, 34・・・・・・
・Type wheel. 36...Selection motor. Patent applicant Brother Industries, Ltd. Agent Patent attorney Keiichi Yashima"'・'2",,1 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Procedural amendment September 7, 1985 Mr. Michibe Uga, Commissioner of the Patent Office 1. Indication of the case 1985 Patent Application No. 174974 2. Name printing device for the invention 3. Person making the amendment Relationship to the case Patent applicant Address 9-35, Hotta-dori, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture Name Brother Industries, Ltd. Representative Masaru Kawashima 24, Agent 107 Phone: 03-582-0944
Address: 1-17-7 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Subject of amendment: Specification 8, Contents of amendment

Claims (1)

[Claims] A keyboard having a plurality of keys, a ribbon and a ribbon drive device for winding the ribbon, a printing element having a plurality of characters corresponding to character keys of the keyboard, and printing the characters. and a driving means for selectively moving the printing device to a position, the housing of the printing device comprising: a front housing having the keyboard, a ribbon, and a ribbon driving device; and the printing element and the driving means thereof. A location where the selected characters of the printing element face the platen with the ribbon sandwiched between the two housings, one housing being rotatably attached to the other housing, and a rear housing. A printing device characterized by being located at.