WO1984001743A1 - Enregistreur de donnees - Google Patents

Enregistreur de donnees Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1984001743A1
WO1984001743A1 PCT/US1983/001764 US8301764W WO8401743A1 WO 1984001743 A1 WO1984001743 A1 WO 1984001743A1 US 8301764 W US8301764 W US 8301764W WO 8401743 A1 WO8401743 A1 WO 8401743A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
platen
form set
cavity
printing
imprinter
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US1983/001764
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Anthony J Caporaso
Dana W Mox
Original Assignee
Venture Vii Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Venture Vii Ltd filed Critical Venture Vii Ltd
Priority to JP50017983A priority Critical patent/JPS59501978A/ja
Publication of WO1984001743A1 publication Critical patent/WO1984001743A1/fr
Priority to DK331084A priority patent/DK331084A/da

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41L—APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR MANIFOLDING, DUPLICATING OR PRINTING FOR OFFICE OR OTHER COMMERCIAL PURPOSES; ADDRESSING MACHINES OR LIKE SERIES-PRINTING MACHINES
    • B41L19/00—Duplicating or printing apparatus or machines for office or other commercial purposes, of special types or for particular purposes and not otherwise provided for

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a portable data recorder or an imprinter for pressure-transfer printing of embossed data from a relatively rigid substrate onto visually and/or machine readable data sheets. More specifically, the present invention relates to roller-platen imprinters for imprinting by rolling a platen across or over an embossed card or plate with a form set inserted between the platen and the card or plate during operation.
  • An imprinter is typically used to record information fnorn embossed cards or plates of customers and others at many separate locations, such as retail merchants, service stations and hospitals. Imprinters may be automatic or manually operated for imprinting information embossed on one or more cards or plates onto multipart data sheets known as "form sets". Each form set has sheets of paper interleaved with carbon paper sheets. Information from the cards or plates is transferred by imprinting pressure applied through the form set to the embossed characters on these cards or plates by one or more platen rollers in the imprinter during one or more strokes of the imprinter carriage.
  • OMPI documents was high. Introduction of mechanical data recorders for use with embossed charge plates helped to avoid the problems of illegible handwriting and inaccurate entry of information in, for instance, retail credit transactions. The resulting sales slips were readily, although manually, processed also reducing the period of time the retail establishment was required to float the transaction.
  • the major disadvantages found in current imprinter design is that the machines are required to be centrally located, not being readily portable.
  • the major advantage of these designs is the overall low rejection rate of scanned documents, which is generally less than 5% due to machine imprint error. While portability of the machine has obvious advantages, such as elimination of a central imprinter location and the lost time associated therewith, a simple reduction in size and weight of the machine is not possible because of the critical interrelationship between size, weight, and function which has developed over the long history of imprinter design.
  • the imprinter design is required to provide a pressure force between the platen and embossed card or plate sufficient to generate a clear, distinct impression of the transferred information so that machine scanning is possible.
  • the machine components must be rigid enough that during imprinting the relationship between the platen, the card or plate, and the base supporting the card or plate remains relatively fixed to guarantee a fairly constant imprinting pressure.
  • the design must permit the application of imprinting pressure by rolling the platen or platens across the form set and cards with a small enough motive force that it can be easily operated by the average user, i.e., a retail sales clerk. Over the years, a relatively fixed design constant has developed which is not readily translated into a down-sized and portable model.
  • the present invention balances all of the above-mentioned opposing design criteria, including rigidity, size and ease of operation, to provide a small, portable, lightweight imprinter which requires a motive force approximating that of its larger predecessors and which provides an imprint having approximately the same scannability as the recognized standards of the current designs even with credit cards of different thicknesses. No other portable imprinting device has even approximated these goals.
  • the present invention is, therefore, directed to a portable, handheld data recorder for imprinting from cards and plates the embossed information contained on such cards or plates.
  • the embossed information is pressure-transfer imprinted onto a typical form set by moving the roller platen assembly of the imprinter across its bed or base plate to apply pressure to the embossed cards and or plates and the form set disposed therebetween.
  • the imprinter is designed to be readily portable, weighing less than approximately one pound and having outer dimensions of approximately 6.5x3x1 inches. This compact
  • OMP design is uniquely adapted for easy operation, requiring approximately the same platen pull force, i.e., about less than 3 pounds, as its larger predecessors, while still being able to provide sufficient imprint pressure to produce a quality print and readily scannable documents.
  • the unique design features of the present invention preserve and enhance the rigidity of the machine, permitting overall weight and size to be substantially reduced from the imprinters of the prior art, without sacrificing operability or function.
  • the design of the present invention also includes a unique platen arrangement which permits reduction in platen size to approximately one-quarter of heretofore accepted standards.
  • the imprint quality produced by this design is equal to and often exceeds the imprint quality produced by many larger machines.
  • the platen arrangement permits each scannable line of information to be imprinted independently of all other data lines by providing an independent, dedicated platen roller which engages only the particular scannable data line.
  • unique form set hold-down means are provided which eliminate or reduce the size and number of form stops on the bed or base plate of the machine. This permits a reduction in overall size and further, increases the flexibility of the imprinter by allowing both 51 and 80 column forms to be used in a single machine.
  • Additional features include special ribbing in the imprinter components to provide greater rigidity without increased weight or density, and a unique credit card holder which positively holds the embossed printing element in place during imprinting.
  • the present invention includes a unique biasing means which permits the use of the data recorder with different thickness credit cards, but without increasing either the size or weight of the apparatus in any significant manner.
  • FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a portable data recorder designed in accord with the teachings of the present invention, and showing, in phantom, the movement of the platen assembly pull bar and handle between a first, retracted position and a second, fully extended position.
  • FIGURE 2 is an exploded perspective view of the data recorder of the present invention shown in FIGURE 1.
  • FIGURE 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the data recorder shown in FIGURE 1, further illustrating the operation of the unique form set hold down mechanism and with the platen assembly in its first position.
  • FIGURE 4 is a partial cross-sectional view similar to that of FIGURE 3, but illustrating the platen assembly midway along its path of travel from the first, retracted position to the second, extended position during the imprinting operation.
  • FIGURE 5 is again a partial cross-sectional view similar to that of FIGURE 3, but in this view illustrating the platen assembly in its fully extended position after completion of the imprinting operation.
  • FIGURE 6 is a plan view showing the structure of the unique hold down means employed in the present invention.
  • FIGURE 7 is a side elevational view of the hold down means illustrated in FIGURE 6.
  • FIGURE 8 is a plan view showing the inside of the upper housing of the portable data recorder, having pressure-applying rails constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.
  • FIGURE 9 is a perspective cross-sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIGURE 2.
  • C FI FIGURE 10 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 10-10 of FIGURE
  • FIGURE 11 is also a partial cross-sectional view, similar to that of FIGURE 10, but taken along line 11-11 of FIGURE 4 and showing the unique biasing means when stressed to accommodate a credit card during the imprinting operation.
  • the portable recorder of the present invention designated generally as 20, is illustrated in FIGURE 1, and includes a base plate 22 and upper housing 24 secured to the base plate.
  • the upper housing includes a cut away portion along one side and one end to define the form set insert slot 26.
  • the base plate 22 includes recesses 28 and 30 for receiving a standard station plate and credit card, respectively.
  • a plurality of slotted retainers 32 are mounted on the base plate around the perimeter of the recess 30, whereby the credit card, when positioned in the recess, is securely held during imprinting. After the plate and card have been inserted, they form with the upper surface 25 of the base plate a relatively flat surface for supporting a typical form set to be imprinted.
  • the data recorder includes a form set hold-down structure 34, including a pivotable axis 36, and a biasing arm 38, two hold-down pads 40 and an activator button 42, each of which is integrally formed with axis 36.
  • the hold-down structure 34 is disposed within a complimentary recess 44 in the base plate with compression spring 46 disposed therebetween. The biasing force of spring 46 causes the hold- down structure to pivot about axis 36, with the pads 40 urged into contact with surface 25 of the base plate.
  • the data recorder utilizes a platen assembly including a roller platen assembly 50 mounted, via shaft 52, on a yoke 54.
  • the yoke 54 is disposed at one end of an
  • roller platen assembly 50 includes roller platens 51 and rail rollers 53 of greater and lesser outside diameters, respectively, which define on said roller platen assembly an outer land area for imprinting purposes and an inner, recessed land area for trans ittal of imprinting pressure to the form set and e bosed printing elements.
  • the outer and inner lands also define a stepped surface on the roller platen assembly 50 which cooperates with complimentary rails, described below, to facilitate proper tracking of the platen assembly.
  • the upper housing 24 is secured to base plate 22 by means of at least one, and preferably a plurality of, fastening means such as screws 62.
  • the fastening means also includes a resilient component, such as elastromeric o-rings at 64, whose function will be described in greater detail below.
  • pull bar 56 includes opposed notches 66 which are dimensioned to slide over tabs 68 (see FIGURES 4, 5 and 8) when the pull bar is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of housing 24 during assembly, but which are too small to permit removal over tabs 68 when the pull bar is in its operative, parallel orientation within housing 24.
  • the upper housing 24 includes an internal cavity 69 and at least one and preferably a plurality of elongated raised rails 70, which are dispos- ⁇ d within cavity 69 and directly engage roller platen 50 during the imprinting operation.
  • the cavity 69 has recessed areas 71 and the rails 70 have inclined end portions 72 which permit the roller platen assembly 50 to raise or lift from the form set 74 and base plate 22 when at either the first, retracted position (FIGURE 3) or the second, extended position (FIGURE 5).
  • roller platen assembly 50 The lifting action of the roller platen assembly 50 is accomplished at the first position by ramps 56 (see FIGURE 2 as well) and at its second position by the offset neck 78 of pull bar 56 in operative engagement with tabs 68.
  • the unique hold-down structure of the present invention is further illustrated in FIGURES 3, 6 and 7.
  • the hold-down structure 34 is positioned such that its activator buttom 42 is disposed within aperture 80 (see FIGURE 2) and is biased outwardly by spring 46.
  • the aperture 80 makes the buttom 42 accessible from the outside of the data recorder, and by manually depressing the button as shwon in FIGURE 3, the hold-down pads 40 are raised from upper surface 25 of base plate 22 to permit insertion of the form set. After the form set is properly positioned, the buttom 42 is released and the biasing force of spring 46 will urge the pads 40 into holding contact with the form set.
  • Button 42 includes a stop tab 82 which cooperates with a shoulder 84 on aperture 80 to insure that the upper surface 43 of button 42 does not interfere with the full and proper insertion and positioning of the form set.
  • the pads 40 have inclined leading edges 45 to minimize the interference of the pads with proper insertion of the form set 74.
  • base plate 22 includes a recess 28 for receipt of a conventional station plate and a recess 30 for receipt of a credit card.
  • OM?I recesses therefore, define two printing areas that extend across the data recorder — areas that must be traversed by the roller platen assembly 50. Because of the relatively small diamater of the roller platen assembly, it is desirable to uniformly distribute the imprinting forces across these printing areas, and, to that end, the rails 70 are positioned as shown in FIGURE 8 such that one rail is located between the two printing areas and the other rails are each located adjacent an opposite outside edge of the printing areas.
  • Rails 70 also provide necessary rigidity to the upper housing 24 which is necessary in view of its relatively smaE size. Moreover, the rails also act as tracks which properly orient the roller platen assembly as it travels to and from retracted and extended positions.
  • FIGURES 10 and 11 illustrate in greater detail the operation of the resilient housing assembly components that facilitate the use of the data recorder with cards of different thickness.
  • the upper housing 24 is secured to the base plate 22 by means of screws 62 with a resilient, elastomeric o-ring 64 disposed between the head of the screw and the base plate.
  • the housing 24 and base plate 22 will remain essentially contiguous as shown in FIGURE 10.
  • the o-ring 64 will compress allowing movement of the base plate 22 relative to the housing 24 as shown in FIGURE 11.
  • This unique resilient assembly technique requries no increase in size of the data recorder and virtually no increase in weight and thereby greatly enhances the portability of the machine.
  • the entire portable data recorder 20 is made of smaE, lightweight components.
  • the base plate, upper housing, hold-down structure, platen yoke, pull bar and handle may all be injection molded from lightweight plastics with the result that the entire machine will weigh less than approximately one pound.
  • its size, approximately 6.5x3x1 inches permits its easy storage in a attache case, purse or pocket.
  • the form set and credit cards can be easily inserted and removed from the recorder without disassembly of any component of the apparatus, and clean, machine-readable imprints can be made with a single stroke of the platen assembly using a motive force weE within industry-accepted standards.

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  • Handling Of Sheets (AREA)

Abstract

Un enregistreur de données portatif, pouvant tenir dans une main (20) permet d'imprimer par transfert de pression des informations en relief sur un formulaire (74) à partir d'une carte de crédit ou autre et comprend un assemblage à plateau "pousser-tirer" (50) contenu dans une enceinte fermée (24) mais pouvant être actionné manuellement de l'extérieur du dispositif. Un organe de retenue libérable (34) également inclu dans l'enceinte (24) est prévu pour tenir le formulaire (74) en place pendant l'impression et est également manipulé de l'extérieur du dispositif. L'enregistreur (20) comprend également des moyens élastiques (64) pour permettre la réception de cartes de crédit d'épaisseurs différentes.
PCT/US1983/001764 1982-11-08 1983-11-08 Enregistreur de donnees WO1984001743A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP50017983A JPS59501978A (ja) 1982-11-08 1983-11-08 デ−タレコ−ダ
DK331084A DK331084A (da) 1982-11-08 1984-07-05 Dataoptegningsapparat

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US44008982A 1982-11-08 1982-11-08

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO1984001743A1 true WO1984001743A1 (fr) 1984-05-10

Family

ID=23747392

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/US1983/001764 WO1984001743A1 (fr) 1982-11-08 1983-11-08 Enregistreur de donnees

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0124609A4 (fr)
AU (1) AU2333184A (fr)
WO (1) WO1984001743A1 (fr)

Citations (10)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3608485A (en) * 1969-01-13 1971-09-28 Addressograph Multigraph Clipboard data recorder
US3739718A (en) * 1972-02-23 1973-06-19 Addressograph Multigraph Imprinting device
US3800700A (en) * 1972-09-18 1974-04-02 Sheldon Industries Multiple sheet imprinting apparatus
DE2447714A1 (de) * 1974-10-07 1976-04-08 Adrema Pitney Bowes Gmbh Druckvorrichtung
DE2504018A1 (de) * 1975-01-31 1976-08-05 Adrema Pitney Bowes Gmbh Drucker
US4078491A (en) * 1976-01-26 1978-03-14 Schweers Karl D Portable credit card imprinter
JPS54133557A (en) * 1978-04-07 1979-10-17 Omron Tateisi Electronics Co Inprint machine
US4262589A (en) * 1979-01-08 1981-04-21 Gebhardt Robert G Apparatus for embossing and printing information on charge sales slip
US4324178A (en) * 1980-05-02 1982-04-13 Security Imprinter Corporation Imprinting machine with wheel setting rack mechanism
US4346657A (en) * 1979-06-18 1982-08-31 Pilot Man-Nen-Hitsu Kabushiki Kaisha Duplication printer

Patent Citations (10)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3608485A (en) * 1969-01-13 1971-09-28 Addressograph Multigraph Clipboard data recorder
US3739718A (en) * 1972-02-23 1973-06-19 Addressograph Multigraph Imprinting device
US3800700A (en) * 1972-09-18 1974-04-02 Sheldon Industries Multiple sheet imprinting apparatus
DE2447714A1 (de) * 1974-10-07 1976-04-08 Adrema Pitney Bowes Gmbh Druckvorrichtung
DE2504018A1 (de) * 1975-01-31 1976-08-05 Adrema Pitney Bowes Gmbh Drucker
US4078491A (en) * 1976-01-26 1978-03-14 Schweers Karl D Portable credit card imprinter
JPS54133557A (en) * 1978-04-07 1979-10-17 Omron Tateisi Electronics Co Inprint machine
US4262589A (en) * 1979-01-08 1981-04-21 Gebhardt Robert G Apparatus for embossing and printing information on charge sales slip
US4346657A (en) * 1979-06-18 1982-08-31 Pilot Man-Nen-Hitsu Kabushiki Kaisha Duplication printer
US4324178A (en) * 1980-05-02 1982-04-13 Security Imprinter Corporation Imprinting machine with wheel setting rack mechanism

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, "Imprinter having a Belt Driven Imprint Roller" by HAGIWARA Vol. 22 No. 7, 12-79 Cl. 101/269 page 2794-2795 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP0124609A4 (fr) 1985-04-25
AU2333184A (en) 1984-05-22
EP0124609A1 (fr) 1984-11-14

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