KR100907312B1 - Printer for Mobile Device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a printer using a photo paper wound in a roll form, which is not provided with a cutter that occupies a considerable weight in an existing printer, and relates to a printer in which a weight and a weight are greatly reduced.

The printer of the present invention comprises: a paper roll wound in a roll form and wound with photo paper which has been partially cut in the transverse direction for each predetermined printing direction length; A recording head for printing on the photo paper by thermal transfer; A platen assembly for selectively adhering the photo paper to the recording head; Conveying means for conveying the photo paper in the front-rear direction; And a housing having an outlet. The printer prints one photo on photo paper and then discharges the printed photo paper portion through the outlet to allow the user to remove the printed photo paper portion, thereby enabling photo paper cutting without a cutter.

Printer, photo paper, paper roll, roll, mobile, digital camera

Description

Printer for Mobile Device {Printer for Mobile Device}

1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a printer according to the present invention;

2 is a cross-sectional view of the printer shown in FIG.

Figure 3 is a view showing the form of photo paper according to the present invention.

4A and 4B are perspective views of one embodiment of the paper case shown in FIG.

5A and 5B are perspective views showing one embodiment of a slip and power transmission device for driving the paper case shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

FIG. 5C is a side view of the slip and power train of FIG. 5A; FIG.

Fig. 6 is a view showing the lower side of the rear housing of the cartridge in which the paper case is installed;

7 is a view for explaining a phenomenon that the paper roll is unfolded and rewound in the paper case assembly process.

Figures 8a and 8b is a view for explaining the process of unwinding and winding the paper roll in the state that the cartridge is installed in the printer.

9 is a view for explaining the brake operation of the brake protrusion of the paper case and the locking jaw of the cartridge.

10 is a view showing the electrical configuration of the printer shown in FIG. 1 and FIG.

11A to 11E are views for explaining the operation of the printer shown in Figs.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

2: printer housing, 4: recording paper outlet, 6: printer frame

10: cartridge, 16: cartridge opening, 20: paper case

21: paper opening, 22: photo paper, 24: ribbon feed reel

26: ink ribbon, 28: ribbon winding reel 30: rib

32: rib opening, 34: crown, 36: idling gear

38: head receiving groove, 40: heat sink, 42: heat sink,

50: capstan, 52: pinch roller, 58: platen

70: discharge roller, 72: discharge driven roller

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer apparatus, and more particularly, to a printer apparatus for printing onto a recording paper wound in a roll form.

As the resolution of imaging devices such as charge-coupled devices (CCD) and CMOS image sensors has increased dramatically, comparable to films, the spread of digital cameras for taking pictures by such imaging devices has rapidly expanded to almost All homes have digital cameras. In particular, in recent years, it has become common to employ a digital camera in a portable telephone, and the digital camera of such a portable telephone is also rapidly increasing in resolution.

Digital cameras can instantly check the image after taking a picture, have no maintenance costs for film purchase and development, store large amounts of data in the camera, transfer the captured picture data to a computer and store it semi-permanently. Images can be easily edited using a computer, and only a desired image can be selected and selectively output through a printer. On the other hand, a high resolution color printer is required for printing.

In order to meet the printing demand, there are many websites that accept and print photographic data online and print and deliver them in order to meet the demand of printing. When used, there is a problem that it takes a lot of time for printing and delivery. On the other hand, a method of printing a picture through a vending machine has also been proposed, for example, as described in Korean Patent Publication No. 2005-17435. However, this method requires a visit to the vending machine installation site in order to print. In this case, there is a disadvantage in that it is difficult to receive a mechanism for charging. Therefore, in the mid to long term, it is expected that owners of digital cameras who want to directly print photographs taken by themselves will purchase and retain a high-resolution color printer for printing a photo.

At the time of the present application, a high-resolution color printer for photo printing typically adopts a thermal transfer method that realizes full color by printing three colors of ink on a paper in a plane-sequential manner. Printing paper cassettes are required because the printing paper is used, and since the printing paper cassettes protrude out of the printer, a large installation area is required.

In this regard, Applicant has reduced the size and installation area of the printer itself by making the transfer paper cassette unnecessary in patent application 2005-77076 filed on August 23, 2005 (name of the invention: a printer using a roll-type recording medium). In order to reduce the time required for feeding and feeding, a printer using a transfer paper wound in a roll form has been proposed. The printer described in the above patent application prints by transferring the dyes of a plurality of colors applied to the ink ribbon in a plane-sequential manner while repeating the unwinding and winding of the transfer paper wound on the paper roll, and recovers the used ink ribbon and wound it on the winding reel. On the other hand, the printed recording paper portion is cut by the cutter and then discharged through the outlet.

The inventor of the present invention further reduces the installation space by further reducing the size of the high-resolution color printer for photo printing, and especially when a user using a mobile device such as a digital camera or a portable telephone carries the printer together at the desired time and at the desired place. A printer capable of printing photographs has been devised, which has led to the necessity of further reducing the volume and weight of the printer.

The present invention has been made in accordance with the above needs, as a printer using a photo paper rolled in the form of a roll, which does not have a separate cutter that occupies a considerable weight in the existing printer to provide a printer that is significantly reduced in volume and weight Let that be the technical problem.

In addition, the present invention provides a printer for a mobile device that can cause a slip when the rotational force of the capstan for transporting the photo paper and the rotational force of the drive motor for rotating the paper case containing the photo paper to prevent the damage of the photo paper. It is another technical problem.

The printer of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem is a paper case (20) is wound in the form of a roll and the photo paper 22, which is partially cut in the transverse direction for each predetermined printing direction length is wound; The paper case 20 is accommodated in the rear accommodating portion 12, the ribbon winding reel 28 for collecting the ink ribbon 26 is received, and in front of the rear accommodating portion 12 is connected to the ink ribbon ( A cartridge 10 having a front accommodating portion 14 in which a ribbon supply reel 24 for supplying 26 is received; A thermal recording head 56 printing on the photo paper 22 by thermal transfer; A platen 58 for selectively adhering the photo paper 22 to the thermal recording head 56 to promote heat transfer and transfer; A capstan 50 and a pinch roller 52 contacting the upper and lower surfaces of the photo paper 22 so as to transfer the photo paper 22 in the front and rear directions; A recording paper discharge port 4 through which the photo paper 22 is discharged is provided, and the cartridge 10, the paper case 20, the thermal recording head 56, the platen 58, the capstan 50, and the pinch roller are provided. A printer housing 2 to which 52 is installed to be interlocked; A paper sensor 212 for detecting an end portion of the photo on which the photo paper 22 is printed; A discharge roller 70 for discharging the photo paper 22 through the recording paper outlet 4 until after the end of the photo detected by the paper sensor 212 each time the printing of each photo is completed; A motor drive unit 208 for driving the paper case 20, the ribbon supply reel 24, the ribbon winding reel 28, the capstan 50, the platen 58, and the discharge roller 70; A control unit 202 for controlling the motor driving unit 208; A mobile device interface unit 200 connected to the mobile device to transmit print data of the mobile device to the control unit 202; In the printer for a mobile device comprising a,

A support shaft 129 provided on one side of the cartridge 10 to support rotation of the paper case 20; A drive shaft accommodating part 110 having a cylindrical sleeve shape provided on the other side of the paper case 20 and having a plurality of drive shaft blades 112 formed at predetermined intervals therein; A clutch 148 received and coupled to the drive shaft accommodating part 110 and having a plurality of clutch vanes 149 rotating the drive shaft blades 112 at regular intervals on the outside; A rotating shaft 131 having one end of the clutch 148 installed thereon; A first compression spring 146 disposed on the rotation shaft 131 to elastically support the clutch 148; A first stopper (144) for fixing the rear of the first compression spring (146); A power transmission gear 136 inserted into the other end of the rotation shaft 131 to receive the power of the motor driver 208; The first disk 132 and the second disk 140 are arranged to be compressed in front and rear of the power transmission gear 136 and transmit the rotational force to the rotation shaft 131 by the rotational force of the power transmission gear 136. ; Is disposed between the first disk 132 and the second disk 140, and receives the power of the capstan 50, the rotational direction and rotational force of the capstan 50 and the rotation of the power transmission gear 136 If the direction and the rotation force are different, the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad 138 to block the rotational force of the power transmission gear 136 transmitted to the first disk 132 and the second disk 140. ; A sleeve 133 which supports the first disk 132, the first slip pad 134, the power transmission gear 136, the second slip pad 138, and the second disk 140 to be compressed; A second compression spring 142 elastically supporting the sleeve 133; It includes a second stopper 143 for fixing the rear of the second compression spring 142.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

1 shows an embodiment of a printer to be employed according to the present invention. The printer according to the present embodiment is a sublimation type thermal transfer printer, and a recording paper discharge port 4 for discharging a portion of the photo paper on which printing is completed is formed on the front of the printer housing 2. One side plate 6 of the housing can be opened and closed by pivoting around a hinge (not shown) at the bottom to perform a work such as cartridge replacement.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the printer shown in FIG. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, the right side of FIG. 2 is referred to as 'front' and the left side is referred to as 'back'.

In this embodiment, the cartridge 10 is configured to accommodate the photo paper and the ink ribbon as one body, and has a rear accommodating portion 12 having an outer circumferential surface having a substantially cylindrical shape, and a front side from the rear accommodating portion 12. And a front receiving portion 14 which is extended toward the side. The area where the rear housing portion 12 and the front housing portion 14 meet at the bottom of the cartridge 10 is recessed upwardly 18 to accommodate the capstan 50 and / or pinch roller 52 of the printer. It is indented and formed from this lower side. A photo paper cartridge opening 16 for penetrating the photo paper 22 is formed on the bottom of the rear accommodating part 12 in the horizontal direction.

Inside the rear housing 12, a paper case 20 in which the photo paper 22 is wound therein is rotatably installed. On the outer circumferential surface of the paper case 20, a paper opening 21 is formed in the left and right directions so that the photo paper 22 can be penetrated out. In the present invention, the photo paper for printing is wound in a roll form in the paper case 20, and in particular, is in close contact with the inner circumferential surface of the paper case and is wound inward from the inner circumferential surface.

3 shows the form of the photo paper 22 wound inside the paper case 20. The photo paper 22 is made of a thick material suitable for storing photographs as well as printing photographs, and the upper surface, that is, the printing surface is polished. In particular, in the present invention, the photo paper 22 has a perforation 22a formed or cut in a transverse direction at a predetermined length, ie, every photograph length, from the front end thereof. The user can easily cut by simply bending and folding the micropore pattern. In the following description and the utility model registration claims, the micropore patterns or sheaths formed in this way for easy photo paper cutting will be referred to as partial cutting processing portions. On the other hand, in one embodiment, a mark indicating the leading edge of the paper may be displayed on the rear surface of the photo paper 22 or at a portion immediately after the partial cutting processing portion.

Referring again to FIG. 2, an unused ink ribbon 26 is wound inside the front housing portion 14, and a ribbon supply reel 24 for releasing and supplying the ink ribbon 26 during the printing process is rotatably installed. Above the 18, a ribbon winding reel 28 which winds and collects the used ink ribbon 26 is rotatably provided. Between the ribbon supply reel 24 and the ribbon winding reel 28, ribs 30 for structurally supporting the cartridge 10 are formed in the form of partition walls that are connected to the left and right, and at the lower end of the ribs 30, an ink ribbon ( A rib opening 32 for passing 26 is provided. The ribs 30 are preferably integrally formed with the ribs 30 to the cartridge frame at the upper end of the rear surface of the rib opening 32 so as to unfold the link ribbon 26 from side to side.

On the other hand, in the front of the rib 30, a head receiving groove 38 for accommodating the thermal recording head 56 of the printer penetrates in the left and right direction at the bottom of the cartridge 10. As shown in FIG. Above the head receiving groove 38, a heat dissipation plate 40 for dissipating heat generated from the thermal recording head 56 to the heat dissipation fan 42 of the printer is provided. A partition 44 is formed in front of and above the head receiving groove 38 to thermally isolate the ribbon supply reel 24 from the thermal recording head 56 and the heat sink 40, and the heat sink 40 and the partition wall 44. The space between) acts as a vent. A partition opening 46 is provided at the bottom of the partition 44 to allow the ink ribbon 26 to pass therethrough. As a result, the ink ribbon 26 wound around the ribbon supply reel 24 has a partition opening 46 at the bottom of the partition 44, a lower side of the head receiving groove 38, and a rib opening 32 at the bottom of the rib 30. After passing through it is wound on the ribbon winding reel (28) via the idling gear (36).

On the other hand, in the printer, the lower side of the groove 18 in the bottom of the cartridge 10 is rotated by a power source (not shown) to apply a friction force to the back surface of the photo paper 22 so that the photo paper 22 can be conveyed without sliding. The capstan 50 is installed. The pinch roller 52 is supported by a spring, not shown, and is installed to be in contact with the capstan 50 in the lateral direction. In front of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52, a cutter assembly 54 for cutting a portion of the photo paper (hereinafter referred to as 'recording paper') where printing is completed is installed.

Inside the head receiving groove 38 of the cartridge 10, the thermal recording head 56 is disposed in the left and right direction and fixed to the printer frame 6. In the thermal recording head 56, fine heat generating elements are arranged in a line, and each heat generating element can individually generate heat in response to a signal from the printer control unit. Below the thermal recording head 56, a platen 58 is provided to press the photo paper 22 and the ink ribbon 26 onto the thermal recording head 56 to promote heat transfer and transfer.

A discharge roller 70 and a discharge driven roller 72 are connected to each other between the platen 58 and the recording paper discharge port 4. On the outer circumferential surface of the discharge roller 70, a plurality of guide protrusions are formed to flatten the photo paper and to prevent the photo paper from slipping. In order to prevent the photo paper from creasing inside the printer in the process of ejecting the photo paper, the eject roller 70 rotates at a slightly faster speed (for example, at 1.1 times the speed) than the capstan 50, and thus It is desirable to have a slip device that causes slip to occur when a tensile force of a certain magnitude or more is applied to prevent excessive tensile force from being applied. Such a slip device itself can be easily implemented by those skilled in the art using, for example, felt and spring, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

4A and 4B show an embodiment of the paper case 20 shown in FIG.

In the present embodiment, the paper case 20 has a cylindrical shape in an assembled state, and includes a first cover 102 and a second cover 104 formed by being cut along a plane including a rotation center axis. A plurality of hooks 106 are formed on both sides of one of the first cover 102 and the second cover 104, and the hook engaging jaw 108 is formed on the other side of the first cover 102 in correspondence with the hooks 106. It is. Accordingly, after the paper roll is inserted into the first cover 102 or the second cover 104, the hooks 106 are fitted to the hook hooking jaw 108 corresponding to the first cover 102. 102 and the second cover 104 are combined. In order to facilitate insertion and fastening of the paper roll, grooves 102a and 104a are preferably formed at the front edge portions of the first cover 102 or the second cover 104, respectively.

The paper case 20 is installed inside the printer housing 2 and may be driven by a power transmission device having a slip function (hereinafter, referred to as a 'slip and power transmission device'). For driving, one side of the paper case 20 has a drive shaft accommodating portion 110 for accommodating the clutch of the slip and power transmission device (148 of FIG. 5A) in the form of a cylindrical sleeve, drive shaft accommodating portion 110 One or more drive shaft blades 112 are formed on the inner circumferential surface thereof. On the other hand, a support shaft 129 which is installed in the cartridge 10 and freely rotatable is provided on the side opposite to the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 in the paper case 20.

On the other hand, a plurality of first locking projections 114 are formed to protrude laterally along the outer circumferential surface of the drive shaft accommodating part 110 on the side surface on which the drive shaft accommodating part 110 is formed in the paper case 20. In addition, a plurality of second locking protrusions 116 protrude in the circumferential direction at one edge of the outer circumferential surface of the paper case 20. And, on one side of the paper case 20, for example, a rectangular protrusion has a brake protrusion 120 is formed to protrude in the form of a blade. On the other hand, one side of the paper case 20 is formed with at least one elastic support plate 122, the side panel is cut in the form of 'dimple' and its end is semi-cylindrically convex in the case, the paper case (20) The edges of the roll of paper being rolled up inside are aligned.

5A-5C show one embodiment of a slip and power train. In the illustrated embodiment, the slip and power transmission device 130 has a rotating shaft 131, the upper and lower sides except the center portion of the rotating shaft 131, the outer peripheral surface of the D-shaped cut parallel to the axis D -Cut is formed.

In the upper D-cut portion, a first disk 132, a first slip pad 134, a power transmission gear 136, a second slip pad 138, and a second disk 140 are sequentially installed from above. . The first disk 132 is provided with a sleeve 133 upwards, and the second compression spring 142 is inserted into the sleeve 133 and then fixed by the second stopper 143. In the center of the first disk 132 and the second disk 140, an insertion hole having the same shape as the cross section of the rotating shaft 131 having the D-cut is formed, so that the first disk 132 and the second disk 140 ) Rotates the same as the rotating shaft 131. On the other hand, in the center of the power transmission gear 136, the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad 138 is formed an insertion hole having an inner diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the rotation shaft 131, the external force is applied If not, it is possible to rotate freely outside the rotary shaft (131).

The first stopper 144, the first compression spring 146, and the clutch 148 are inserted into the lower D-cut portion of the rotation shaft 131 sequentially from below. One or more clutch blades 149 are formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148 to correspond to the drive shaft blades 112 of the drive shaft accommodating part 110.

Each drive shaft blade 112 formed in the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 of the paper case 20 and the clutch blades 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148 have a larger gap between the blades than the thickness, so that the clutch The clutch blade 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of 148 is preferably applied to the drive shaft blade 112 of the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 so that the backlash is imparted in rotation. In a preferred embodiment, the drive shaft blades 112 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 and the clutch blades 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148 are two or three, respectively. The angle is close to about 120 ° or about 180 °. The operation of the backlash in the printer operation will be described later.

The slip and power transmission device 130 as described above acts as follows. In the upper D-cut portion of the rotary shaft 131, the first disk 132 and the second disk 140 have the same shape as the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 131 having the D-cut and the rotational shaft ( Make the same rotary motion as 131). On the other hand, the power transmission gear 136 may be rotated by a motor (not shown) in the state fitted to the rotary shaft 131. On the other hand, the clutch 148 performs the same rotational movement as the rotation shaft 131. With the slip and power transmission device 130 assembled therein, the first disk 132, the first slip pad 134, the power transmission gear 136, the second slip pad 138, and the second disk. 140 is compressed by the restoring force of the second compression spring 142. Therefore, when rotational force is applied from the motor (not shown) to the power transmission gear 136, if the rotational resistance is not large, the power transmission gear 136 is compressed in the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad. The first disk 132 and the second disk 140 are rotated by the media 138, respectively, and the rotational force of the first disk 132 and the second disk 140 is transmitted to the clutch 148 through the rotation shaft 131. ), The clutch 148 is able to rotate the paper case (20). On the other hand, due to the operation of the printer capstan 50, as described later, when the rotation direction or rotation speed of the rotation shaft 131 and the power transmission gear 136 is different, the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad ( 138) On both sides, the compression force of the second compression spring 142 is overcome and slip is generated so that the rotational force of the power transmission gear 136 is transmitted to the first disk 132, the second disk 140, and the rotating shaft 131 intact. Will not be.

6 shows the inside of the lower side of the rear housing 12 of the cartridge 10 in which the paper case 20 is installed. On the side of the cartridge 10, a third locking projection 152 is formed to protrude inward from the bottom of the through hole 150 for installing the drive shaft accommodating part 110 of the paper case 20. The four locking projections 154 are integrally formed with the elastic piece 156 and provided. On the other hand, on the bottom of the cartridge 10, a brake engaging jaw 158, for example, having a rectangular plate shape is formed to protrude upward in the form of a blade.

This paper case 20 is assembled as follows. First, the paper roll is inserted into the second cover 104, and then the paper tip is drawn out of the paper opening 21. In this state, when the pressure for releasing the roll of the paper roll is released, the paper roll is unfolded inside the second cover 104 due to the physical property of the stiff photo paper due to its thick thickness, as shown in FIG. It adheres to the inner circumferential surface of the second cover 104 and is wound inward from the inner circumferential surface of the second cover 104 to a diameter larger than before. In such a state, when the first cover 102 is covered and the hooks 106 are fitted to the hook stoppers 108, the assembly of the paper case 20 is completed.

When the assembled paper case 20 is installed in the cartridge 10, two adjacent protrusions of the plurality of first locking protrusions 114 formed along the outer circumferential surface of the drive shaft accommodating part 110 of the paper case 20 are provided. The third locking protrusion 152 of the inner circumferential surface of the cartridge 10 is pinched therebetween, and between two adjacent protrusions of the plurality of second locking protrusions 116 formed at one edge of the outer circumferential surface of the paper case 20. The fourth locking protrusion 154 of the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 10 is pinched. Accordingly, the paper case 20 is rotated in the cartridge 10 due to vibrations generated during the cartridge transport or other handling, thereby preventing the paper roll line end from entering the paper case 20 or coming out excessively. It is also possible to prevent the user from arbitrarily pushing or pulling the paper roll tip.

On the other hand, when the cartridge 10 as described above is installed inside the printer, the clutch 148 of the slip and power transmission device 130 installed inside the printer housing 2 is the drive shaft receiving portion 110 of the paper case 20. ), The paper roll connecting portion 138 of the paper case 20 is pushed while being supported by the spring 136, and thus the first locking protrusion 114 of the paper case 20 and the cartridge 10 are pushed. The lock between the third locking protrusions 152 is released. To this end, the support shaft 129 provided on the side opposite to the drive shaft receiving portion 110 in the paper case 20 is preferably spring-supported on the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 10 or the printer housing (2). In addition, during the installation process, a protrusion (not shown) installed inside the side of the printer housing pushes the fourth locking protrusion 154 of the cartridge 10 outward, that is, in a direction away from the center of the paper case. The lock between the second locking protrusion 116 of the paper case 20 and the fourth locking protrusion 154 of the cartridge 10 is released. Therefore, in the state in which the cartridge 10 is installed inside the printer, the paper case 20 can rotate according to the rotation of the motor regardless of the first to fourth locking protrusions 114, 116, 152, and 154.

In the preferred embodiment of the printer shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the photo paper 22 is drawn out to the thermal recording head 56 side in preparation for printing and the paper case 20 in the process of printing for any color. Is transported to the side. The capstan 50 and the clutch 148 are driven by the same motor. Here, each time a new print is made, the conveyance of the photo paper 22 is slipped by the slip and power transmission device 130 until the photo paper 22 is pinched between the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 at the start of printing. Although made, the transfer of the photo paper 22 is then governed by the capstan 50. To this end, as described above, the slip and power transmission device 130 is provided with slip devices 132 to 143, and the drive shaft blades 112 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the drive shaft accommodating part 110 of the paper case 20. And a backlash between the clutch blades 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148 and the clutch 148 rotates the paper case 20 than the speed at which the capstan 50 rotates the paper case 20. By setting it large, after the photo paper 22 is bitten between the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 at the start of printing, the clutch 148 is no-load operation, that is, the clutch is applied without applying rotational force to the paper case 20. The clutch blade 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of 148 is allowed to idle between the drive shaft blades 112 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the drive shaft receiving portion 110 of the paper case 20.

The specific rotation speed ratio of the capstan 50 and the clutch 148 for this purpose is the backlash angle given between the drive shaft blade 112 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the coaxial receiving portion 110 and the clutch blade 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148. It is decided according to. The following table exemplarily shows a ratio relationship between the rotation speed of the paper case 20 by the capstan 50 and the rotation speed of the paper case 20 by the clutch 148.

Backlash angle Paper Case Rotational Speed by Capstan Speed of Paper Case Rotation by Clutch Speedboat 180 ㅀ 360 ㅀ / standard time 540 ㅀ / standard time 1: 1.50 120 ㅀ 360 ㅀ / standard time 480 ㅀ / standard time 1: 1.33 90 ㅀ 360 ㅀ / standard time 450 ㅀ / standard time 1: 1.25 60 ㅀ 360 ㅀ / standard time 420 ㅀ / reference time 1: 1.17 30 ㅀ 360 ㅀ / standard time 390 ㅀ / reference time 1: 1.08

That is, for example, when the backlash angle is 120 DEG, the speed at which the clutch 148 attempts to rotate the paper case 20 is set to be 1.33 times higher than the speed at which the capstan 50 tries to rotate the paper case 20. It is preferable.

The printing process of the printer will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B centering on the process of unwinding and winding the paper roll.

When the cartridge 10 is mounted in the printer and just before the start of a new printing, the paper roll is in a state where the tip is exposed out of a portion of the paper case 20 (step (1) in Fig. 8A). In this state, when the print button is pressed, the paper case 20 is rotated by the rotational power transmitted from the clutch 148 of the slip and power transmission device 130 to the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 of the paper case 20. In the drawing, it rotates counterclockwise, whereby the portion of the photo paper 22 exposed to the outside of the paper case 20 is transported along the inner wall of the cartridge 10, and the tip thereof is the photo paper cartridge opening 16 of the cartridge 10. ) Is transferred toward the capstan 50 (step (2) of FIG. 8A). When the transfer of the photo paper 22 continues, the photo paper tip reaches the capstan 50 and is pinched between the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52, and immediately afterwards, the brake protrusion 120 of the paper case 20 The brake catching jaw 158 of the cartridge 10 is caught (step (3) of Fig. 8A).

From this time, the conveyance of the photo paper 22 is controlled by the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52. That is, since the brake protrusion 120 of the paper case 20 cannot be caught and rotated by the brake engaging jaw 158 of the cartridge 10, the rotary shaft 131 and the clutch 148 in the slip and power transmission device 130. ) Cannot rotate, and the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad 138 are disposed between the power transmission gear 136 and the first disk 132 and the second disk 140 due to the rotational resistance. Slip occurs between them. Then, in the state where the paper case 20 is stopped, the paper roll is rotated while being slid from the inner circumferential surface of the paper case 20 to be pulled out by the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 (step (4) of FIG. 8A). ). This photo paper conveyance is continued until the photo paper leading end passes by the print length from the thermal recording head 56 (step (5) in Fig. 8B).

Printing by the thermal recording head 56 is started at the position where the photo paper 22 has reached step (5) of FIG. 8B. From this time, the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 rotate in the reverse direction, and thus the photo paper 22 is transferred toward the paper case 20. Here, due to the stiff physical properties of the photo paper 22, the photo paper 22 pushed by the capstan 50 rotates the paper case 20 counterclockwise in the drawing (step (6) of FIG. 8B). At this time, the clutch 148 of the slip and power transmission device 130 also rotates, but the paper case 20 itself is rotating and the clutch 148 is rotating faster than the capstan 50 and the paper case 20. Since the backlash is provided between the drive shaft blade 112 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the drive shaft accommodating portion 110 and the clutch blade 149 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the clutch 148, the clutch blade 149 of the clutch 148 is a sheet of paper. The load shaft rotates without contacting the drive shaft blades 112 of the case 20. The capstan 50 can rotate the paper case 20 while transferring the photo paper 22 with the minimum load. Photo paper transfer and printing are continued until the photo paper tip reaches the thermal recording head 56 (step (7) in Fig. 8B).

When the photo paper 22 reaches the position of the step (7) of Fig. 8B, the direction of rotation of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 is changed for printing of the next color until it reaches the step (5) of Fig. 8B again. Photo paper is conveyed, wherein the clutch blade 149 of the clutch 148 is rotated without load without contacting the drive shaft blade 112 of the paper case 20, and as the capstan 50 pulls the photo paper 22, The paper case 20 rotates counterclockwise, and within the cartridge 10, the photo paper 22 is conveyed along the inner wall of the cartridge 10, and the feed is continued until its tip reaches the position in step (5) of FIG. 8B. Continues.

The next color printing by the thermal recording head 56 is started at the position where the photo paper 22 reaches the step (5) of Fig. 8B, and steps (5) to (7) of Fig. 8B until the printing of all the colors are completed. The photo paper transfer process of step) is repeated. When the printing for all colors is completed, the capstan 50, the discharge roller 70, and the discharge driven roller 72 rotate to discharge the photo paper front end through the recording paper discharge port 4. When the user folds off the printed portion of the photo paper, the paper case 20 is rotated by the capstan 50, and the paper case 20 returns to step (1) of FIG. 7A.

Meanwhile, in the process of transferring the photo paper 22, the brake protrusion 120 of the paper case 20 is caught by the brake latching jaw 158 of the cartridge 10 as in step (3) of FIG. Due to excessive rotation of the 20, it is possible to prevent a problem in the photo paper 22 in the paper opening 21. That is, if the brake protrusion 120 is not present, the paper case 20 is rotated more than shown in step (3) of FIG. 7A to reach a state as shown in FIG. 9A, and thus the photo paper 22 May be sharply refracted at the paper opening 21 of the paper case 20, thereby making it difficult to discharge. However, when the brake protrusion 120 is provided as in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9B, the photo paper side shape becomes smooth and can be smoothly transferred. In addition, this type of brake facilitates printing even when printing panoramas or other wide photos (the size of the photo paper in the longitudinal direction).

FIG. 10 shows the electrical configuration of the printer shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In a preferred embodiment, the printer is directly connected to, for example, a mobile device such as a digital camera or a portable telephone to receive print data and perform printing. The mobile device interface unit 200 is a connection port for connecting a mobile device. In one embodiment, the mobile device interface 200 is connected to the mobile device via a USB cable. The controller 202 controls the overall operation of the printer. In particular, the control unit 202 requests to transmit the picture list or the picture data to the mobile device through the mobile device interface unit 200 in response to the manipulation of the keypad 204 of the user, and displays the received picture list or the picture data ( 206). To this end, the printer according to the preferred embodiment receives a picture data from the mobile device, and a program capable of displaying the corresponding picture on the display 206 is loaded and executed.

When the user applies a print command through the keypad 204, the control unit 202 controls the thermal recording head 56 and the motor drive unit 208 to cause the printing operation to proceed. That is, the controller 202 controls the heat generation of the thermal recording head 56 by applying a thermal control signal to the thermal recording head 56 in accordance with the print data. In addition, the control unit 202 is a paper case 20, ribbon supply reel 24, ribbon winding reel 28, capstan 50, platen 58, discharge roller 70 through the motor drive unit 208 To control the rotation. The memory 210 stores a program for the operation of the controller 202 and stores and buffers print data received from the mobile device.

On the other hand, the paper sensor 212 detects the mark of the partially cut processing portion on the back side of the photo paper 22 and provides the detection signal to the control unit 202 so that the control unit 202 can recognize the photo paper leading position accurately. do. The ribbon sensor 214 detects the tip of each color in the ink ribbon.

Such a printer operates as follows.

As mentioned above, the printer of the present invention stands by in the state where the leading edge of the photo paper 22 has been transferred from the thermal recording head 56 to the position that is past the print length, that is, the position shown in Fig. 11A. In this state, after the user operates the keypad 204 to display the list of pictures stored in the mobile device on the display 206, the printing is started when one of the pictures is selected and a print command is issued.

First, as shown in FIG. 11B, the platen 58 is raised to be pressed to the thermal recording head 56 at an appropriate pressure with the ink ribbon 26 and the photo paper 22 interposed therebetween. The photo paper 22 is conveyed backward by being caught between the capstan 50 that rotates counterclockwise and the pinch roller 52 that rotates clockwise correspondingly. Due to the stiffness of the photo paper 22, the photo paper 22 pushed by the capstan 50 causes the paper case 20 to rotate counterclockwise in the drawing, and the photo paper 22 in the cartridge 10 The outer peripheral surface of the case 20 is in close contact with the winding. On the other hand, the ribbon winding reel 28 is rotated counterclockwise to allow the ink ribbon 26 to proceed at the same speed as the photo paper, the platen 58 also rotates counterclockwise to the photo paper 22 by the friction force And the ink ribbon 26 to proceed at a constant speed. In this state, the yellow (Y) color dye on the ink ribbon 26 is transferred to the photo paper by subliming or melting the ink ribbon 26 by applying heat to the thermal recording head 56 in contact with the ink ribbon 99. Printing work is in progress.

As shown in Fig. 11C, when the photo paper tip reaches the printing point between the thermal recording head 56 and the platen 58 and the printing of the yellow (Y) color is finished, the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 Rotation is stopped and platen 58 is lowered as shown in FIG. 11D. At this time, the ribbon reel 28 may be detected by a ribbon sensor (not shown) such that the tip portion of the magenta (M) color of the ink ribbon reaches a printing point between the thermal recording head 56 and the platen 58. Can be rotated additionally.

Then, the rotation direction of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 is changed again to print the magenta (M) color so that the paper case 20 is rotated counterclockwise and the photo paper 22 is conveyed forward again. . Here, the clutch blade 149 of the clutch 148 is rotated without contact with the drive shaft blade 112 of the paper case 20, the paper case 20 is the capstan 50 is pulled the photo paper 22. The force rotates counterclockwise. When the tip of the photo paper 22 is conveyed toward the capstan 50 of the cartridge 10 and returned to the state shown in FIG. 11A, the platen 58 is raised as shown in FIG. 11B to raise the ink ribbon 26 and the photo paper. The thermosensitive recording head 56 is heat-generated as the capstan 50, the paper case 20, and the ribbon winding reel 28 are rotated by pressing the thermosensitive recording head 56 at an appropriate pressure with the interposed portion 22 therebetween. (M) Color printing is done.

When the printing of the magenta (M) color is finished, the rotation of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 is stopped, and the platen 58 is lowered as shown in Fig. 11D. Then, the rotation direction of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 is changed again to print the cyan color, so that the paper case 20 rotates counterclockwise and the photo paper 22 is moved forward again. do. Here, the clutch blade 149 of the clutch 148 is rotated without contact with the drive shaft blade 112 of the paper case 20, the paper case 20 is the capstan 50 is pulled the photo paper 22. The force rotates counterclockwise. When the tip of the photo paper 22 is conveyed toward the capstan 50 of the cartridge 10 and returned to the state shown in FIG. 11A, the platen 58 is raised as shown in FIG. 11B to raise the ink ribbon 26 and the photo paper. The thermal recording head 56 heats up while the capstan 50, the paper case 20, and the ribbon winding reel 28 are rotated while pressing the thermosensitive recording head 56 at an appropriate pressure. Printing of the inner (C) color is achieved. When the ink ribbon is provided with an overcoating (OC) dye layer for preventing black (B) or print layer deterioration, the dye layer is printed in the same manner as above.

When the printing for all the dye layers is finished, the rotation of the capstan 50 and the pinch roller 52 and the paper case 20 is stopped and the platen 58 is lowered as shown in Fig. 11E. Thereafter, the paper case 20 is rotated counterclockwise by the capstan 50 and the photo paper is conveyed forward. Photo paper transfer continues and the leading end reaches the discharge roller 70 and the discharge driven roller 72. The photo paper is transferred by the discharge roller 70 and the discharge driven roller 72 so that the leading end is moved outward through the recording paper discharge port 4. Discharged. In this state, the printer notifies the end of printing through a beep sound or a guide voice. Accordingly, the user can fold and detach the printed portion of the photo paper. After a predetermined time has elapsed after the end of printing, the paper case 20 is rotated by the capstan 50, and the paper case 20 returns to the state of FIG. 11A.

Those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains will understand that the present invention can be implemented in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features. For example, in the above description, the printer is directly connected to, for example, a mobile device such as a digital camera or a portable telephone to receive print data and perform printing, but in the modified embodiment, the printer is connected to an information device such as a PC to receive print data. It may be.

On the other hand, in the above description, the paper sensor 212 is described as detecting the leading end of the photo paper roll, but in another embodiment of the present invention, the paper sensor 212 is immediately before the recording paper discharge port 4 or the discharge roller 70 and discharge. It may be provided near the driven roller 72 to perform a function of detecting whether the recording sheet is completely discharged. It goes without saying that a plurality of paper sensors may be provided to detect both the leading end portion of the photo paper roll and the printed photo paper portion, that is, the end portion of the recording paper.

On the other hand, while the photo paper, the ribbon supply reel and the ribbon take-up reel is described centering on a printer installed in one cartridge, the present invention is not limited to this, but the ribbon supply reel and ribbon take-up reel is made of a separate cartridge and prints. The same may be applied to the case provided in the cartridge.

Furthermore, instead of installing in the form of a cartridge having a separate independent housing, the paper case 20 may be installed directly in the printer. In such a case, among the members described as being formed in the cartridge in the above description, for example, the third locking protrusion 152, the fourth locking protrusion 154, the brake engaging jaw 158, and the like may be used as the paper case ( 20) may be provided at the site for receiving.

Therefore, the above-described embodiments are to be understood as illustrative in all respects and not as restrictive. The scope of the present invention is shown by the following claims rather than the detailed description, and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention. do.

As seen from above, the printer according to the present invention uses photo paper wound in the form of a roll, wherein the photo paper is provided with a partial cutting processing portion periodically for a certain length corresponding to the photo length. Accordingly, the printer of the present invention does not have a cutter that occupies a considerable weight in the existing printer, thereby reducing the volume and weight. In particular, a printer according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention may be directly connected to a mobile device to receive photo data to be printed. Therefore, it can be used as a desktop photo printer, of course, there is an advantage that can be carried out with a mobile device such as a digital camera or a portable phone to print photos immediately at a desired time and a desired place.

In addition, the present invention has the advantage of preventing the breakage of the photo paper by generating a slip when the rotational force of the capstan for transferring the photo paper and the rotational force of the drive motor for rotating the paper case containing the photo paper is different from each other.

Claims (1)

A paper case 20 wound in a roll form and having the photo paper 22 partially cut in the transverse direction for each predetermined printing direction length; The paper case 20 is accommodated in the rear accommodating portion 12, the ribbon winding reel 28 for collecting the ink ribbon 26 is received, and in front of the rear accommodating portion 12 is connected to the ink ribbon ( A cartridge 10 having a front accommodating portion 14 in which a ribbon supply reel 24 for supplying 26 is received; A thermal recording head 56 printing on the photo paper 22 by thermal transfer; A platen 58 for selectively adhering the photo paper 22 to the thermal recording head 56 to promote heat transfer and transfer; A capstan 50 and a pinch roller 52 contacting the upper and lower surfaces of the photo paper 22 so as to transfer the photo paper 22 in the front and rear directions; A recording paper discharge port 4 through which the photo paper 22 is discharged is provided, and the cartridge 10, the paper case 20, the thermal recording head 56, the platen 58, the capstan 50, and the pinch roller ( A printer housing 2 to which 52 is installed to be interlocked; A paper sensor 212 for detecting an end portion of the photo on which the photo paper 22 is printed; A discharge roller 70 for discharging the photo paper 22 through the recording paper outlet 4 until after the end of the photo detected by the paper sensor 212 each time the printing of each photo is completed; A motor drive unit 208 for driving the paper case 20, the ribbon supply reel 24, the ribbon winding reel 28, the capstan 50, the platen 58, and the discharge roller 70; A control unit 202 for controlling the motor driving unit 208; In the printer for a mobile device comprising a mobile device interface unit 200 connected to the mobile device to transmit the print data of the mobile device to the control unit 202, A support shaft 129 provided on one side of the cartridge 10 to support rotation of the paper case 20; A drive shaft accommodating part 110 having a cylindrical sleeve shape provided on the other side of the paper case 20 and having a plurality of drive shaft blades 112 formed at predetermined intervals therein; A clutch 148 received and coupled to the drive shaft accommodating part 110 and having a plurality of clutch vanes 149 rotating the drive shaft blades 112 at regular intervals on the outside; A rotating shaft 131 having one end of the clutch 148 installed thereon; A first compression spring 146 disposed on the rotation shaft 131 to elastically support the clutch 148; A first stopper (144) for fixing the rear of the first compression spring (146); A power transmission gear 136 inserted into the other end of the rotation shaft 131 to receive the power of the motor driver 208; The first disk 132 and the second disk 140 are arranged to be compressed in front and rear of the power transmission gear 136 and transmit the rotational force to the rotation shaft 131 by the rotational force of the power transmission gear 136. ; Is disposed between the first disk 132 and the second disk 140, and receives the power of the capstan 50, the rotational direction and rotational force of the capstan 50 and the rotation of the power transmission gear 136 If the direction and rotational force are different, the first slip pad 134 and the second slip pad 138 to block the rotational force of the power transmission gear 136 transmitted to the first disk 132 and the second disk 140. ); A sleeve 133 which supports the first disk 132, the first slip pad 134, the power transmission gear 136, the second slip pad 138, and the second disk 140 to be compressed; A second compression spring 142 elastically supporting the sleeve 133; Printer for a mobile device comprising a second stopper (143) for fixing the rear of the second compression spring (142).

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