JPS63125382A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable an ink ribbon to be repeatedly used plural times, by taking up an ink ribbon onto a feed spool by the difference between the ribbon length by which the ribbon is taken up in a printing operation just conducted and a preset length, when a carriage return signal is generated upon completion of the printing operation. CONSTITUTION:When a predetermined key operation is made at a printing- starting position of a carriage 4, a CPU reads a printing operation program from a ROM, and operates a thermal printing head 6, a carriage-feeding motor 5 and a ribbon take-up motor 11, whereby an ink on an ink ribbon 10 is transferred to a printing paper P. When a printing operation for one line is completed, the CPU generates a carriage return signal to reversely rotate the motor 5, and the head 6 is separated from the surface of a platen. Simultaneously, a ribbon take-up motor 12 operated to take up the ribbon onto a feed spool 9 by the difference between the ribbon length by which the ribbon is taken up onto a take-up spool 8 according to the printing operation just conducted for one line and a preset ribbon length. Thus, the entire length of the ink ribbon 10 including the rewound part can be efficiently used for printing plural times.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention Purpose of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) This invention brings an ink ribbon into pressure contact with printing paper on a platen using a thermal print head, and prints via the printing ribbon by the heat generated by the thermal print head. The present invention relates to a printing device that prints on paper, and particularly to a configuration that allows the ink ribbon to be used multiple times.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, in a printing device equipped with a dot print head, an endless ink ribbon consisting of a printer is folded and stored in an ink ribbon cassette, and the ink ribbon is transported in only one direction for multiple consecutive printings. The ink ribbon is made of film material and the feeding distance for one character is narrower than the digit width.
It is known that the ink ribbon can be used multiple times at the same position by gradually shifting the printing position on the ink ribbon.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, in the former configuration, since a take-up spool is not provided in the ink ribbon cassette, the ink ribbon is randomly fed and stored in the ink ribbon cassette. In addition, since the ink ribbon is made of fabric and is thick, the length of the ink ribbon cannot be made large compared to the volume of the ink ribbon cassette, which is uneconomical.

In addition, in the latter configuration, since relative movement occurs between the ink ribbon and the printing paper, a thermal print head is provided that requires the relative speed between the ink ribbon and the printing paper that are in pressure contact to be reduced to zero. However, there was a problem in that it could not be implemented with other printing devices.

In other words, in a thermal print type printing device, the ink ribbon is pressed against the printing paper by the print head, and the head is moved and printing is performed, so the relative movement between the ink ribbon and the printing paper is If this happens, the molten ink will flow sideways. Therefore, in this thermal printing type printing device,
For example, in the case where the ink ribbon moves together with the print head, it is necessary to wind the ink ribbon in the direction opposite to the feed direction by the amount of feed when printing.

This invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and in a thermal printing type printing device, the ink ribbon can be efficiently used multiple times for printing, and the volume of the cassette can be used effectively. An object of the present invention is to provide a printing device capable of accommodating an ink ribbon having a long ribbon length.

Structure of the Invention (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention has been made by focusing on the above-mentioned problems, and includes a platen that supports printing paper, and a platen that supports printing paper along the length of the platen. A carriage supported so as to be reciprocally movable and equipped with a thermal print head pressed against a platen surface, a take-up spool and a supply spool supported on the carriage, and an ink ribbon wound around both spools. An ink ribbon cassette equipped with
The ink ribbon is pressed against the printing paper by the thermal print head at a portion between both spools,
A ribbon winding mechanism that enables printing on printing paper multiple times by generating heat from a thermal print head; and a ribbon winding mechanism that engages with the take-up spool and the supply spool and winds the ink ribbon in both forward and reverse directions; Normally, the ribbon winding mechanism is controlled so that the ink ribbon is wound onto the take-up spool along with the printing operation, and when the current printing operation is completed and a carriage return signal is generated, the ribbon winding mechanism is controlled so that the ink ribbon is wound up on the take-up spool along with the current printing operation. The present invention includes a control member that controls the ribbon winding mechanism so that the ink ribbon is wound on the supply spool by the difference between the length of the ribbon wound on the spool and a preset length.

(Function) That is, in the printing device of the present invention, during printing, the ink on the ink ribbon is thermally transferred onto the printing paper by the thermal print head, the carriage moves to one side, printing for one line is performed, and the ink ribbon is is wound onto the take-up spool. When the current printing operation for one line is completed and a carriage return signal is generated, the length of the ribbon wound on the take-up spool is set in advance based on the control of the control member. The ink ribbon is rewound onto the supply spool by the difference from the set length. Therefore, the ink ribbon on the supply spool side, including the ink ribbon rewound onto the supply spool, is
It is used in the printing operation for the next line and is wound onto a take-up spool.

In this way, each time the printing operation for -line is completed, the ink ribbon in the area that is partially common to the area already used for printing is used for printing for the next line.

As a result, when the ink ribbon on the supply spool side is all wound up on the take-up spool due to the printing operation of multiple lines, the ink ribbon is used multiple times almost evenly over its entire length.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example embodying the present invention will be described in detail based on FIGS. 1 to 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, a platen 1 that supports printing paper P in rotation is rotatably attached to a frame (not shown), and a guide rod 2 and a guide rail 3 are extended in parallel in front of the platen 1. The carriage 4 is supported on a guide rod 2 and a guide rail 3, and is reciprocated along the longitudinal direction of the platen 1 by a carriage moving motor 5 shown in FIG. The thermal print handle is mounted on the carriage 4 so that it can be moved back and forth, and is always placed at a position away from the platen surface as shown by the solid line in Figure 1.
It is placed in pressure contact with the platen surface as shown by the dotted chain line.

The ink ribbon cassette 7 is supported on the carriage 4 so that a film can be deposited therein, and a take-up spool 8 and a supply spool 9 are rotatably accommodated therein. The ink ribbon 10 made of a film material is wound around the spools 8 and 9 at both ends thereof, and is exposed outside the ink ribbon cassette 7 at a portion between the spools 8 and 9 and extends along the platen surface. And this ink ribbon 10
As shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, is pressed against the printing paper P on the platen 1 by the thermal print head 6, so that printing can be performed on the printing paper P multiple times by the output i of the thermal print head 6. It has become.

A pair of ribbon winding motors 11 and 12 constituting the ribbon winding mechanism are arranged on the carriage 4, and with the ink ribbon cassette 7 mounted on the carriage 4, the motor shafts of each motor 11 and 12 are The spools 8, 9
are engaged with each other. The spools 8 and 9 are selectively rotated by the ribbon winding motors 11 and 12, so that the ink ribbon 10 is wound in the forward or reverse direction.

Next, in the printing apparatus configured as described above, the configuration of a control circuit particularly related to winding of the ink ribbon 10 will be explained with reference to FIG.

Now, the central processing unit (CPU) 21 that constitutes the control member
A read only memory (ROM) 22 and a random access memory (RAM) 23 are connected to the memory. The ROM 22 stores programs and the like for controlling the operation of the entire printing apparatus, and the RAM 23 has an area for storing print data and the like.

A keyboard section 29 is connected to the CPU 21 via an input interface 24. The thermal print head 6, carriage moving motor 5, and ribbon winding motors 11 and 12 are connected to the CPU 21 via an output interface 25 and drive circuits 26, 27, and 28, and drive and stop signals are sent to them from the CPU 21. is output.

Then, when the printing operation for one line is completed and the carriage moving motor 5, ribbon winding motor 11, and thermal print head 6 are stopped, the CPU 21 generates a carriage return signal, and the CPU 21 generates a carriage return signal. Under the control of the CPU 21, the carriage moving motor 5 is reversely operated, and the ribbon winding motor 12 is also operated. As a result, the ribbon length (X
cm), subtract the set ribbon length that is equal to the length (Y/Z cm) obtained by dividing the longest ribbon length (Y cm) required to print the - line by the maximum number of printable times (2 times) of the ink ribbon 10 (2 times). The ink ribbon 10 is rewound onto the supply spool 9 by the difference (X cm - Y/Z cm). In this embodiment, the ink ribbon 10 is rewound onto the supply spool 9 by the length of the difference Xca.
n-Y/Z cn+) is a positive value, and is not rewound when it is a negative value.

Next, the operation of the printing device configured as described above will be explained.

Now, in the printing device of this embodiment, when the keyboard section 29 is operated with the carriage 4 placed at the printing start position, the CPU 21 reads a predetermined printing operation program from the ROM 22, and based on the program, the thermal print head 6. Operate the carriage moving motor 5 and the ribbon winding motor 11. As a result,
As shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, the thermal print head 6 is pressed against the platen surface via the ink ribbon lO and the printing paper P, and the carriage 4 is moved in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The heat generated by the spatula 6 transfers the ink on the ink ribbon 10 to the printing paper P, forming dot matrix characters. Further, the ink ribbon 10 is pulled out from the supply spool 9 based on the operation of the ribbon winding motor 11, and is pulled out from the take-up spool 8.
It is wound up.

Then, the printing operation for - lines is completed, the carriage 4 stops at a predetermined position, and the thermal print head 6
And when the operation of the take-up spool 8 stops, the CPU 21
generates a carriage return signal to operate the carriage moving motor 5 in reverse, and also operates the ribbon winding motor 12. As a result, the thermal print head 6 is placed at a position away from the platen surface as shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, and the carriage 4 is moved in the opposite direction of the arrow in FIG.

Further, when the ribbon winding motor 12 is activated, the winding spool 8
IICDI is the length of the ribbon wound on.

If the set ribbon length is 6c11, the difference in length between them is 5.
The ink ribbon 10 is rewound onto the supply spool 9 by cm.

Thereafter, when the carriage 4 returns to the printing start position and the keyboard section 29 is operated, one-way printing operation is started in the same manner as described above.

As described above, in the printing device of this embodiment, each time the printing operation for -lines is completed, a portion of the ink ribbon 10 wound around the take-up spool 8 is The area is rewound onto the supply spool 9, and the ink ribbon 10 on the side of the supply spool 9 including the rewound area is used for the printing operation of the next line. As a result, as schematically shown in FIG.
The area A1 used for printing the first line to the area A6 used for printing the sixth line overlap, and the ink ribbon 1
The same part of 0 will be used for printing approximately 2 to 3 times. Then, along with the printing operation of multiple lines, the supply spool 9
When all the side ink ribbons 10 are wound up on the take-up spool 8, the ink ribbons 10 are used two or three times almost equally over the entire length. Therefore, there is no need to configure the ink ribbon jO endlessly or to reduce the feeding amount of the ink ribbon 10, and the long ink ribbon 10 can be effectively wound and stored in the ink ribbon cassette 7, and the entire length of the ink ribbon 10 can be It can be used for printing multiple times efficiently.

(Another Embodiment) Next, another embodiment embodying this invention is shown in FIGS. 4 to 6.
A description will be given focusing on the configuration different from the previous embodiment based on the drawings.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4.5, an endless drive heald 31 with ridges is connected to the carriage 30. As shown in FIG.

The drive belt 31 is hung between drive pulleys and driven bobbies (not shown) disposed on both left and right sides of the frame, and the drive pulley is connected to a carriage moving motor 5 (
(shown in FIG. 6) are connected. Then, by rotating the drive pulley based on the operation of the motor 5,
The carriage 30 is reciprocated along the longitudinal direction of the platen 1.

On the carriage 30 there is a thermal print 7 de 6.
and a pressing member 32 are mounted so as to be movable back and forth based on the operations of a head driving motor 33 and a pressing member driving motor 34 (shown in FIG. 6), respectively.

As shown in FIG. 5, a pair of support shafts 35 and 36 are provided protrudingly on the carriage 30, and the drive belt 3
A driving gear 37, 38 that engages with gear 1 is supported, and a first intermediate gear 39, 40 is supported on both gears 37, 38 so that they can rotate together. Similarly, carriage 30
A pair of support shafts 41, 42 are protruded from the top, on which swing levers 43, 44 are supported, and both levers 4
3.44, a second intermediate gear 45.46 is supported. A third intermediate gear 49.50 is supported on the swing lever 43.44, and both 49.50 are always engaged with the second intermediate gear 45.46, as shown by solid lines and two-dot chain lines in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the first intermediate float 39.40 can be engaged with the swinging lever 43.44. or,
The fifth swing lever 43, 44 and spring 47, 48
They are urged to rotate counterclockwise in the figure, and the tips 43a, 44a of both 43, 44 are always in contact with the thermal print handle and the pressing member 32, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 4, an ink ribbon cassette 51 is removably supported on the carriage 30, and a take-up spool 8 and a supply spool 9 are accommodated therein. The ink ribbon 10 is wound around both the spools 8 and 9 at both ends thereof, and is exposed outside the ink ribbon cassette 51 at a portion between the two spools 8 and 9, and is placed between the thermal print head 6, the pressing member 32, and the platen surface. Guides are arranged.

A pair of winding shafts 52 and 53 forming a ribbon winding mechanism
are rotatably supported on the carriage 30 and include a driven gear 5 which engages the second intermediate gear 45,46.
4.55 is fixed, and spool engaging members 56.57 are fixed on both gears 54.55. The spool engaging members 56 and 57 are respectively engaged with the spools 8 and 9 when the ink ribbon cassette 51 is mounted on the carriage 30. Then, the winding shaft 5
Based on 2.53 rotations, the ink ribbon 10 is wound in the forward direction or reverse direction via the spools 8 and 9.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the head drive motor 33 and the pressing member drive motor 34 are connected to the CPU 21 via a drive circuit 58 and an output interface 25.

In the printing apparatus of this embodiment, when a printing operation is started, the CPU 21 operates the head drive motor 33, the thermal print head 6, and the carriage movement motor 5. As a result, the thermal print head 6 is the fourth
As shown by the solid line in the figure, the ink ribbon 10 is pressed against the printing paper to perform printing. Also, the swing lever 43
is swung from the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 5 to the position shown by the solid line in the same figure following the movement of the thermal print handle, and based on the oscillation, the third intermediate gear 49 is moved to the drive gear. 37. When the drive belt 31 is rotated in the forward direction by the carriage moke 5 upon completion of printing each line, the carriage 30 is moved in the direction of the arrow in FIG. Based on the pressing against the printing paper, the ink ribbon 10 is pulled out from the supply spool 9 according to the amount of movement of the carriage 30. Further, the drive gear 37 is rotated by engagement with the drive belt 31, and the first intermediate gear 39. Third intermediate gear 49. The take-up shaft 52 is rotated via the second intermediate gear 45° and the driven float 54, and the ink ribbon 10 pulled out from the supply spool 9 is wound onto the take-up spool 8.

Then, when a portion of the printing operation is completed and the carriage 30 stops at a predetermined position and the operation of the thermal print head 6 stops, the CPU 21 generates a carriage return signal to operate the carriage moving motor 5 in reverse, The head drive motor 33 and the pressing member drive motor 34 are operated. As a result, the thermal print head 6 is placed in a position away from the platen surface as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The platen surface is moved to a position where it comes into pressure contact with the platen surface. Therefore, the swing lever 43 returns to the position shown by the two-dot chain line and the engagement between the drive gear 37 and the third intermediate gear 49 is released, and the swing lever 44 moves from the position shown by the solid line in FIG. Pushing member 3 to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in the same figure.
2, and the third intermediate gear 50 is engaged with the drive gear 38 based on the rocking. Then, based on the operation of the carriage moving motor 5, the drive belt 31
The carriage 30 is rotated in the opposite direction.
is moved in the opposite direction of the arrow in FIGS. 4 and 5, and based on this movement and the pressing member 32 pressing against the printing paper, the ink ribbon 10 is pulled out from the take-up spool 8 according to the amount of movement of the carriage 30. . Further, the drive gear 38 is rotated based on the engagement with the drive belt 31, and the first intermediate gear 40. Third intermediate gear 50. Second intermediate gear 46. The take-up shaft 53 is rotated via the driven gear 55, and the ink ribbon 10 pulled out from the take-up spool 8 is rewound onto the supply spool 9. In this embodiment, the pressing member 32 returns to the solid line position and the rewinding of the ink ribbon 10 is stopped before the carriage 30 reaches the printing start position. That is, the take-up spool 8 is moved according to the amount of movement of the carriage 30 during the current one-way printing operation that was performed immediately before.
The returning movement of the pressing member 32 is controlled by the CPU 21 so that the unwinding is stopped when the ribbon length has been rewound by the difference between the length of the ribbon wound up and the preset ribbon length. Ru. Therefore, in this embodiment as well, the entire length of the ink ribbon 10 can be efficiently used for printing multiple times as in the previous embodiment.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments; for example, an energizing head having a plurality of electrodes is pressed against an ink ribbon whose back surface is coated with a heating element, and the electrodes are selectively energized. In an energized printer that performs printing, it may be configured to use an ink ribbon that can print multiple times, or configured to generate a carriage return signal based on a predetermined key operation, or the reverse of the above embodiment. Even if the value of the difference obtained by subtracting the set ribbon length from the ribbon length wound during printing operation is negative, the configuration can be configured to rewind by that difference, or the length of the ribbon wound from the set ribbon length can be adjusted. Within the scope of the invention, for example, the ink ribbon 10 may be rewound by the amount by which the pressing member 32 is pressed, or the timing for pressing the ink ribbon 10 by the pressing member 32 may be set in the middle or at the end of the carriage return movement. It can be changed as appropriate.

Effects of the Invention As detailed above, the present invention enables a thermal printing type printing device to effectively store an ink ribbon with a long ribbon length in an ink ribbon cassette, and also allows the ink ribbon to be efficiently used for printing multiple times. It has an excellent effect.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 3 show an embodiment embodying the present invention, FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a printing device with an ink ribbon cassette installed, and FIG. 2 shows a control circuit of the printing device. The block diagram shown in FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the printing area of the ink ribbon. 4 to 6 show another embodiment embodying the present invention, FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway plan view of the printing device, and FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway plan view of the printing device with an ink ribbon cassette installed. 6 are block diagrams showing the control circuit of the printing device. 1...Platen, 4.30...Carriage, 6...
- Thermal print head, 7, 51... Ink ribbon cassette, 8... Winding spool, 9... Supply spool, 10... Ink ribbon, 11.12... Ribbon winding motor, 52. 53... Winding shaft (1,
1, 12 and 52, 53 each constitute a ribbon winding mechanism), 21... CPU as a control member,
P...Printing paper.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A platen (1) that supports printing paper (P), and a thermal print head (1) that is supported so as to be reciprocally movable along the longitudinal direction of the platen (1) and that is in pressure contact with the platen surface. a carriage (4, 30) carrying a winding spool (4, 30) supported on the carriage (4, 30), and a take-up spool (8) and a supply spool (9); an ink ribbon cassette (7, 51) equipped with an ink ribbon (10) that has been printed, and the ink ribbon (10) is printed by the thermal print head (6) in a portion between both spools (8, 9); P) is pressed into contact with the thermal print head (6) to enable multiple printing on the printing paper (P) by heat generation, and is engaged with the take-up spool (8) and the supply spool (9); A ribbon winding mechanism (11, 1) for winding the ink ribbon (10) in both forward and reverse directions.
2, 52, 53), and the ribbon winding mechanism (11) is normally operated so as to wind the ink ribbon (10) onto the winding spool (8) along with the printing operation.
, 12, 52, 53), and when the current printing operation is completed and a carriage return signal is generated, the length of the ribbon wound on the take-up spool (8) and the previously set length are determined according to the current printing operation. The ink ribbon (
10) on a supply spool (9). 2. Printing according to claim 1, wherein the set length is a ribbon length equal to the longest ribbon length necessary for printing one line divided by the maximum number of printable times of the ink ribbon (10). Device.