WO2011064965A1

WO2011064965A1 - Automatic cutter device

Info

Publication number: WO2011064965A1
Application number: PCT/JP2010/006736
Authority: WO
Inventors: 智行近藤
Original assignee: スター精密株式会社
Priority date: 2009-11-30
Filing date: 2010-11-17
Publication date: 2011-06-03
Also published as: JP2011115861A

Abstract

An automatic cutter device provided with a stationary blade which is disposed on one surface side of a paper sheet to be cut, and also with a movable blade which is disposed on the other surface side of the paper sheet so as to face the stationary blade across the paper sheet. When cutting the paper sheet in the widthwise direction thereof, the automatic cutter device cuts the paper sheet by a small cutting force while leaving the center portion of the paper sheet in the widthwise direction uncut. The automatic cutter device is provided with a movement means (18) for moving the movable blade (12). The movement means (18) is configured in such a manner that, after moving the movable blade (12) so that a cutting position moves from one end toward the center of the paper sheet (P) in the widthwise direction thereof, the movement means (18) moves the movable blade (12) so that the cutting position moves from the other end toward the center of the paper sheet (P) in the widthwise direction thereof, the cutting position being that at which the edge (120) of the movable blade (12) and the edge (110) of the stationary blade (11) are in contact with each other to cut the paper sheet (P).

Description

Auto cutter device

The present invention includes a fixed blade disposed on one surface side of a sheet to be cut and a movable blade disposed on the other surface side of the sheet so as to face the fixed blade across the sheet. The present invention relates to an auto cutter device.

2. Description of the Related Art There are printers that store belt-shaped paper in a roll shape and print on the paper while feeding the stored paper. Such a printer is used for issuing a receipt. When a credit card is used, in addition to a receipt paper piece, a store side copy and a customer copy are also issued. These are continuously printed on a roll of paper, and a store clerk cuts a series of paper discharged from the printer into pieces of paper so that there is no mistake. Some of the above printers are equipped with an auto cutter device so that the discharged paper is not printed and can be easily separated from the paper on which printing will be performed, or so that each piece of paper can be easily separated. . This auto cutter device cuts the paper in the width direction, leaving a part in the paper width direction so that the paper can be easily separated by slightly pulling the paper. For example, as an auto-cutter device that cuts a sheet in the width direction while leaving one end side in the sheet width direction, a so-called scissors including a movable blade and a fixed blade that rotate about the other end side in the sheet width direction as a rotation fulcrum. A type of auto-cutter device is known (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

However, when cutting the paper in the width direction, leaving one end side in the paper width direction, if the paper pieces are output in a state where the paper pieces are connected to each other in the width direction without cutting the paper pieces, they are cut off. On the other end side, the paper pieces are open and difficult to handle. Therefore, an auto cutter device that cuts the paper in the width direction while leaving the central portion in the paper width direction is preferred. As this auto cutter device, a so-called guillotine type auto cutter device having a fixed blade and a movable blade that linearly moves back and forth with respect to the fixed blade is known (for example, see Patent Document 3). . The movable blade of the auto-cutter device described in Patent Document 3 is provided with a blade edge portion on each of one end side and the other end side in the width direction across the central portion in the width direction, and the movable blade advances once. Thus, the width direction one end side portion and the other end side portion of the sheet are simultaneously cut.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No.7-11996 JP 2001-30558 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-296681

In the above-mentioned scissor type auto cutter device, the paper located between the movable blade and the fixed blade is cut by the contact between the movable blade and the blade edge of the fixed blade. A contact position (hereinafter referred to as a cutting position) between the movable blade for cutting the paper and the blade edge of the fixed blade is one place. On the other hand, in the auto cutter device described in Patent Document 3, the cutting positions are on one end side and the other end side in the width direction. Therefore, a large force is required as a cutting force for moving the movable blade to cut the paper as compared with the scissor type auto cutter device. As a result, the apparatus may be increased in size or increased in cost. Further, even with the scissor type auto-cutter device, if two movable blades are prepared, it is possible to cut the paper in the width direction while leaving the central portion in the paper width direction. However, since two movable blades are required, the cost increases. In the above description, the example in which the auto cutter device is mounted on the printer has been used. However, the auto cutter device is not limited to the printer, and may be mounted on various devices such as a device that stores paper and a device that transports paper. There is. Even in these devices, when cutting the paper in the width direction, it may be preferable to cut the sheet leaving the central portion in the width direction. Further, downsizing or cost reduction of the auto cutter device is desired.

In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an auto-cutter device that can cut a sheet with a small cutting force while leaving the central portion in the width direction when cutting the sheet in the width direction.

The auto-cutter device of the present invention that solves the above-described object is provided with a fixed blade disposed on one surface side of a sheet to be cut, and on the other surface side of the sheet so as to face the fixed blade with the sheet interposed therebetween. A movable blade disposed, and a moving means for moving the movable blade, wherein the moving means is configured such that the cutting position of the paper by the movable blade and the fixed blade is in the width direction from one end in the width direction of the paper. After the movable blade is moved so as to move toward the center side, the movable blade is moved so that the cutting position moves from the other end in the width direction of the paper toward the center side in the width direction. It is characterized by that.

According to the auto cutter device of the present invention, it is possible to move the movable blade so that the cutting position does not move to the center in the width direction. As a result, the sheet can be cut in the width direction while leaving the center portion in the width direction. In addition, the movable blade cuts one end portion in the width direction of the paper first, and then cuts the other end portion. Therefore, the paper can be cut with a smaller cutting force than when the width direction one end side portion and the other end side portion are cut simultaneously.

Here, the moving means rotates the movable blade so that the cutting position of the paper by the movable blade and the fixed blade moves from one end in the width direction of the paper toward the center in the width direction. You may have the rotation mechanism which rotates the movable blade so that the cutting position may move toward the width direction center side from the width direction other end of the paper.

Further, the rotating mechanism may rotate the movable blade so that the blade edge of the movable blade is inclined with respect to the blade edge of the fixed blade. That is, the cutting edge of the movable blade has a shear angle larger than 0 degree with respect to the cutting edge of the fixed blade. The rotating mechanism may be an imparting unit that imparts a shear angle to the movable blade, and further, the shear angle increases toward the center in the width direction from one end or the other end of the sheet in the width direction. You may rotate the said movable blade so that it may become large.

Further, in the auto-cutter device of the present invention, the moving means includes a rotation mechanism that rotates the movable blade, and a slide mechanism that moves the movable blade in a posture rotated by the rotation mechanism relative to the fixed blade. It is preferable that it has.

¡The larger the shear angle at the beginning of cutting the paper, the more the paper is pushed in the width direction by the movable blade. This makes it difficult to cut the paper cleanly. However, by providing the slide mechanism, the shear angle of the movable blade can be suppressed to a small angle. As a result, the paper can be cut cleanly. By providing the slide mechanism, it is possible to cut the sheet in the width direction while keeping the shear angle constant or only changing the shear angle within a predetermined angle range that is not so large. In other words, the slide mechanism may move the movable blade after rotating (movable blade in a rotated posture), or the movable blade that rotates (movable blade in the rotated posture). ) May be advanced or retracted. Further, when cutting a narrow sheet, the shear angle at the beginning of cutting the sheet becomes larger than when cutting a wide sheet. However, by providing the slide mechanism, even narrow paper can be cut cleanly without increasing the shear angle more than necessary.

Further, in the auto cutter device of the present invention, it is more preferable that the rotation mechanism and the slide mechanism are driven by a common driving means.

By doing so, the timing of rotation and advance / retreat of the movable blade is not shifted, and the apparatus is also downsized. Also, the use of a common driving means makes the device inexpensive. Further, the movable blade can be advanced and retracted while rotating, and the paper can be cut quickly.

Also, in the auto cutter apparatus according to the present invention, it is also one of preferred embodiments that the driving means is a motor, and the slide mechanism is a link arm that transmits the rotational motion of the motor to the movable blade.

According to this aspect, in order to transmit the rotational motion of the motor to the movable blade, it is not necessary to provide a long hole and insert a slider pin in the long hole. As a result, the problem that the edge forming the long hole and the slider pin are worn away is eliminated. Therefore, the paper can be cut stably over a long period of time. *

Furthermore, in the auto-cutter device of the present invention, the slide mechanism may be capable of adjusting an advancement amount by which the movable blade advances with respect to the fixed blade.

By making the advance amount adjustable, the width of the central portion in the width direction where the paper is not cut can be adjusted.

Further, in the auto cutter device of the present invention, the fixed blade and the movable blade may have a single straight blade edge.

Even if both the fixed blade and the movable blade have a single straight blade edge, the movable blade is rotated by the rotation mechanism, so that the paper is cut in the width direction, leaving the central portion in the width direction. can do. Moreover, the manufacturing cost of the said fixed blade and the said movable blade falls by using a single straight blade edge.

Here, the fixed blade and the movable blade may have blade edges parallel to each other.

According to the auto-cutter device of the present invention, when cutting the paper in the width direction, the paper can be cut with a small cutting force leaving the central portion in the width direction.

It is a figure which shows the auto cutter apparatus mounted in the thermal printer. It is a figure which shows the auto cutter apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 from upper direction. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing in a stepwise manner how a movable blade in a basic position located at a home position advances while rotating in a predetermined direction and cuts one end portion in the width direction of the paper. It is the figure which showed a mode that the movable blade of the basic posture which returned to the home position advanced, rotating in the direction opposite to a predetermined direction, and cut | disconnecting the other end side part of a paper. (A) is a figure which shows the 1st modification of a slide mechanism, (b) is a figure for demonstrating the partial cut width | variety in the auto cutter apparatus provided with the slide mechanism shown to (a). (c) is a figure for demonstrating the partial cut width | variety when lengthening an advance / retreat arm and enlarging the amount of advancement of a movable blade. It is a figure which shows the 2nd modification of a slide mechanism. It is a figure which shows the 3rd modification of a slide mechanism. It is a figure which shows 2nd Embodiment of the auto cutter apparatus of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, an auto-cutter device according to an embodiment of the present invention stores a belt-like heat-sensitive paper sheet in a roll shape, and prints on the paper while feeding out the stored paper. It can be mounted on a device that contains paper or a device that transports paper.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an auto cutter device mounted on a thermal printer. In FIG. 1, the left side of the figure is the front side of the thermal printer, and the right side is the rear side of the thermal printer.

In the thermal printer 9 shown in FIG. 1, the paper P wound up in a roll is opened and stored in the paper storage portion 92 covered with the cover 91. If the cover 91 is closed with the leading edge of the paper P pulled out of the thermal printer 9, the setting of the paper P is completed. The cover 91 is pivotally supported on the rear end side of the printer main body 90 so as to be pivotable and is opened upward with respect to the printer main body 90 and rotated rearward. The front end edge 911 of the cover 91 constitutes a part of the edge forming the paper discharge port 93 of the thermal printer 9 when the cover 91 is closed. In the thermal printer 9, a path connecting the paper storage unit 92 and the paper discharge port 93 is a paper conveyance path. In FIG. 1, a sheet being conveyed on the sheet conveyance path is virtually indicated by a dotted line, and the conveyance direction is indicated by an arrow.

The thermal printer 9 shown in FIG. 1 has a platen roller 94 and a thermal head 95 as a printing mechanism. The platen roller 94 extends in the paper width direction (in FIG. 1, the direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet) and is rotated by a motor (not shown). The platen roller 94 is provided at a position facing the above-described sheet conveyance path, and is positioned on the back side of the sheet that is drawn out from the sheet storage unit 92 and directed toward the sheet discharge port 93. The thermal head 95 is also provided at a position facing the paper conveyance path, and extends in the paper width direction. The thermal head 95 is pulled out from the paper storage unit 92 and positioned on the front side of the paper discharged from the paper discharge port 93. The thermal head 95 is urged toward the direction in which the platen roller 94 is disposed. In a state where the paper P is stored in the paper storage unit 92 and the leading end of the paper P is pulled out of the printer from the paper discharge port 93, the portion passing through the paper transport path is sandwiched between the thermal head 95 and the platen roller 94. Therefore, the front surface of the paper contacts the thermal head 95 and the back surface of the paper contacts the platen roller 94. The thermal head 95 has a plurality of heating elements arranged in the paper width direction, and the heating elements generate heat when the plurality of heating elements are selectively energized. Then, printing is performed on the paper P in contact with the heat generating element that has generated heat. Further, when the platen roller 94 rotates in contact with the back side of the paper, the paper is sent out from the portion of the paper P wound up in a roll shape, and the paper P is transported along the paper transport path.

The auto cutter device 1 of this embodiment is mounted in the vicinity of the paper discharge port 93 of the thermal printer 9 described above. The auto-cutter device 1 cuts the paper P drawn from the paper storage unit 92 and going to the paper discharge port 93 in the paper width direction before the paper discharge port 93.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the auto cutter device 1 shown in FIG. 1 from above. In FIG. 2, the horizontal direction in the figure is the width direction of the paper to be cut. Hereinafter, one end side in the paper width direction may be referred to as the left side, and the other end side may be referred to as the right side. Also, the lower side of the figure is the front side and the front side of the paper to be cut, and the upper side is the back side and the rear side of the paper to be cut.

The auto cutter device 1 includes a fixed blade 11 and a movable blade 12. The fixed blade 11 is disposed on the front surface side of the paper P to be cut. The movable blade 12 is disposed on the back side of the paper P so as to face the fixed blade 11 with the paper P interposed therebetween. When viewed from the thermal printer 9, the fixed blade 11 is arranged on the front side of the printer. The movable blade 12 is arranged on the rear side of the printer so as to face the fixed blade 11 with the paper conveyance path interposed therebetween. The fixed blade 11 is fixed to a fixed blade frame 13 attached to the main body 90. The fixed blade 11 is provided with guide portions 111 protruding toward the movable blade 12 at both ends in the paper width direction. A portion between the guide portions 111 provided at both ends of the fixed blade 11 is a blade edge 110. The blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 is a single straight blade extending in the paper width direction.

The movable blade 12 also has a single straight blade edge 120 extending in the paper width direction. By the way, in the conventional so-called guillotine type auto-cutter device, the cutting edge of the movable blade is often an inverted V-shaped cutting edge. Such an inverted V-shaped cutting edge is difficult to polish and the number of processing steps increases. Furthermore, in a movable blade having an inverted V-shaped cutting edge, it is necessary to warp the entire movable blade in order to make the sharpness at the time of cutting right and left the same or to make the wear of the cutting edge uniform. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to manage the warpage. On the other hand, when the cutting edge is a single straight cutting edge like the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12, polishing is facilitated and the number of steps is reduced. Furthermore, it is not necessary to use nerves to manage the warpage of the entire movable blade. As a result, in the manufacture of the movable blade 12, specialized processing techniques and unnecessarily dimensional accuracy become unnecessary, and mass productivity and cost reduction can be realized.

Further, the movable blade 12 is movable forward and backward with respect to the fixed blade 11 and further rotatable around the rotation fulcrum 121. In FIG. 2, the movable blade 12 is shown by a solid line, a one-dot chain line, and a two-dot chain line. The movable blade 12 indicated by a solid line is at a position retracted from the fixed blade 11 and has a posture in which the blade edge 120 is parallel to the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. As shown in FIG. 1, the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a paper transport path 14 that matches the paper transport path of the thermal printer 9. The movable blade 12 indicated by a solid line in FIG. 2 is at a position where the blade edge 120 is retracted from the paper conveyance path 14, and this position is hereinafter referred to as a home position. Further, the posture of the movable blade 12 in the home position (the posture in which the blade edge 120 is parallel to the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11) is hereinafter referred to as a basic posture. The home position is a position that does not hinder the conveyance of the paper P. However, the home position is not limited to the position of the movable blade 12 indicated by the solid line in FIG. 2, and the position where the user cannot touch the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 in consideration of safety or the like, or the position serving as a control reference It is sufficient if it is a predetermined position. The basic posture is not limited to the posture in which the blade edge 120 is parallel to the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11, and may be a predetermined posture. The movable blade 12 indicated by the one-dot chain line and the movable blade 12 indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2 are in positions advanced from the home position toward the fixed blade 11. The movable blade 12 indicated by the one-dot chain line is in a posture rotated clockwise from the basic posture around the rotation fulcrum 121, whereas the movable blade 12 indicated by the two-dot chain line indicates the rotation fulcrum 121 from the basic posture. The posture is rotated counterclockwise about the center. When the movable blade 12 advances from the home position toward the fixed blade 11, it is guided by the guide 111 of the fixed blade 11. Then, it overlaps with the fixed blade 11 on the downstream side in the paper transport direction from the fixed blade 11. Further detailed description of the rotation and advance / retreat of the movable blade 12 will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 1, in addition to the fixed blade 11 and the movable blade 12, the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment also includes a pressurizing spring 15, a cutter frame 16, a paper pressing plate 17, and a moving means 18. . The pressure spring 15 is attached to the fixed blade frame 13 and biases the fixed blade 11 downstream in the paper transport direction. Therefore, the fixed blade 11 is uniformly pressed by the pressurizing spring 15 against the movable blade 12 that is overlapped on the downstream side in the paper conveyance direction. Then, the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 and the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 overlap. In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, a pressing force may be uniformly applied to the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 by the pressurizing spring 15. In addition, the pressing force can be reduced as compared with a conventional so-called guillotine type auto-cutter device. As described above, in the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, the light pressure contact force of the blade edge is increased, leading to a long life of the blade edge. Further, when cutting thin paper, which is preferred from the viewpoint of recent environmental conservation, particularly good sharpness is required. In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, a good sharpness can be maintained for a long time by extending the life of the cutting edge.

The cutter frame 16 is screwed to the cover 91 of the thermal printer 9. The cutter frame 16 houses the movable blade 12 and the moving mechanism 18. A paper pressing plate 17 is attached to the front side of the cutter frame 16. The sheet pressing plate 17 extends in the sheet width direction on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction than between the fixed blade 11 and the movable blade 12. The sheet pressing plate 17 is urged by a spring member 171 toward the wall 131 on the sheet conveying path side of the fixed blade frame 13. The paper P passing through the paper transport path 14 is pushed by the paper pressing plate 17 from the back side of the paper toward the wall 131 of the fixed blade frame 13. As a result, the portion of the paper P that reaches between the fixed blade 11 and the movable blade 12 is flat.

The moving means 18 includes a motor 180, a rotation mechanism 181 and a slide mechanism 182. A worm gear 1801 is attached to the rotating shaft 1800 of the motor 180. The rotation mechanism 181 includes a drive gear 1811, a connecting arm 1812, and a rotation arm 1813. The slide mechanism 182 includes a link gear 1821 and an advance / retreat arm 1822. The drive gear 1811 of the rotation mechanism 181 is a two-stage gear. The upper gear portion 1811a (see FIG. 2) of the drive gear 1811 is meshed with a worm gear 1801 attached to the rotating shaft 1800 of the motor 180. The lower gear portion 1811b (see FIG. 2) of the drive gear 1811 and the link gear 1821 of the slide mechanism 182 mesh with each other. The link gear 1821 has a gear ratio of making two turns while the lower gear portion of the drive gear 1811 makes one turn. One end of the connecting arm 1812 of the rotating mechanism 181 is rotatably connected to the drive gear 1811. Further, the other end is rotatably connected to the arm portion 122 of the movable blade 12 to form a link mechanism. One end of the rotation arm 1813 is rotatably connected to the rotation fulcrum 121 of the movable blade 12. Also, the other end is pivotally connected to the cutter frame 16 so that a link mechanism is also formed here. One end of the advance / retreat arm 1822 of the slide mechanism 182 is rotatably connected to the link gear 1821. Further, the other end is rotatably connected to the rotation fulcrum 121 of the movable blade 12, so that a link mechanism is formed here as well. The description of these link mechanisms will be described later together with a detailed description of the rotation and advance / retreat of the movable blade 12. The auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment does not employ a configuration in which a long hole is provided and a slider pin is inserted into the long hole. This eliminates the problem that the edge forming the long hole and the slider pin are worn. As a result, the paper can be cut stably over a long period of time.

Furthermore, the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment includes an HP detection sensor 190. As shown in FIG. 2, a rotating body 195 that rotates together with the drive gear 1811 is provided on the rotation shaft of the drive gear 1811 that meshes with the worm gear 1801 of the motor 180. The rotating body 195 has a cutout portion 1951, and the outer peripheral shape excluding the cutout portion 1951 is an arc shape. On the other hand, the cutout portion 1951 is linear. The HP detection sensor 190 is provided with a switch piece 191. The rotating body 195 shown in FIG. 2, that is, the cutout portion 1951 is not in contact with the switch piece 191. When the rotating body 195 rotates, an arc-shaped portion of the rotating body 195 different from the cutout portion 1951 comes into contact with the switch piece 191. As a result, the switch piece 191 is pushed down. When the switch piece 191 is not in contact with the rotating body 195, the movable blade 12 is located at the home position. Therefore, a predetermined detection signal is output from the HP detection sensor 190. On the other hand, in a state where the switch piece 191 is pushed down by the arc-shaped portion of the rotating body 195, the movable blade 12 is not positioned at the home position. Accordingly, the HP detection sensor 190 outputs a signal different from the predetermined detection signal. In the present embodiment, the determination as to whether or not the movable blade 12 is in the home position using the signal from the HP detection sensor 190 and the rotation control of the motor 180 based on the determination are performed by the control unit of the thermal printer 9. Although it is performed, a control unit may be provided in the auto cutter device 1 and the control unit may perform the control. In this embodiment, the detection of the home position of the movable blade 12 is based on a change in the position of the switch piece 191 by the rotating body 195. However, the configuration for detecting the home position is not particularly limited. It may be based on detecting the 12 positions themselves.

Next, a paper cutting operation in the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment will be described.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing in a stepwise manner how the movable blade in the basic posture located at the home position advances while rotating in a predetermined direction and cuts one end portion in the width direction of the paper. In FIG. 3 as well, the horizontal direction in the figure is the width direction of the sheet (not shown) to be cut. In FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 to be used next, the positional relationship of each component is shown differently from the positional relationship shown in FIG. 2 so that each component shown in FIG. 2 is easy to see.

FIG. 3A shows the movable blade 12 positioned at the home position, and the posture of the movable blade 12 is a basic posture. A connecting point 1812a of the connecting arm 1812 and the driving gear 1811 in the rotating mechanism 181 shown in FIG. 9A is at the 12 o'clock position on the clock face of the driving gear 1811. The rotating arm 1813 is in a horizontal posture parallel to the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. Further, the connecting point 1822a of the forward / backward arm 1822 with the link gear 1821 in the slide mechanism 182 is at the 12 o'clock position of the link gear 1821.

In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, first, a sheet is cut from one end in the width direction (here, the right end) toward the center in the width direction. FIG. 2B shows a state in which the motor 180 rotates in a predetermined direction and starts cutting the right end portion of the sheet (not shown). The drive gear 1811 of the rotation mechanism 181 begins to rotate clockwise, and the link gear 1821 of the slide mechanism 182 begins to rotate counterclockwise (see the arrow in the figure). Then, the movable blade 12 starts to rotate in a predetermined direction (clockwise in this figure) around the rotation fulcrum 121 from the basic posture by the action of the link mechanism in the rotation mechanism 181. At the same time, the movable blade 12 starts to advance from the home position toward the fixed blade 11 by the action of the link mechanism in the slide mechanism 182. The right side of the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. 4B is inclined in the direction of the fixed blade. Further, the right end portion of the blade edge 120 is in contact with the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 and cuts a sheet (not shown) here. In the auto cutter device 1 according to the present embodiment, the paper disposed between the movable blade 12 and the fixed blade 11 is cut by the contact between the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 and the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. The position where the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 and the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 are in contact with each other is the sheet cutting position. The angle (shear angle) of the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 with respect to the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. Therefore, in the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, the initial shear angle at which the paper starts to be cut is about 10 degrees. At this time, when the shear angle is 0 degree, the contact position between the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 and the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 is not one. As a result, the paper may be bent by the fixed blade 11 and the movable blade 12. At this time, the sheet is not cut. On the other hand, when the shear angle is about 10 degrees as in the present embodiment, the paper P is pushed to the left side by the movable blade 12 without being folded or being cut. The paper is cut.

FIG. 4C shows a state in which the motor 180 further rotates in a predetermined direction and a sheet (not shown) is cut from the right end side to the front in the width direction. That is, the cutting position at which the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 and the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 come into contact with each other and cuts the paper as shown in FIG. The connection point 1812a of the connection arm 1812 and the drive gear 1811 in the rotation mechanism 181 shown in FIG. 10C is at the 3 o'clock position of the drive gear 1811. The rotation arm 1813 is in a posture in which the side connected to the rotation fulcrum 121 of the movable blade 12 is lowered. Further, the connecting point 1822a of the forward / backward arm 1822 with the link gear 1821 in the slide mechanism 182 is at the 6 o'clock position of the link gear 1821. In the movable blade 12 shown here, the right side is inclined in the direction of the fixed blade and the fixed blade 11 is advanced as compared with the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. In the auto cutter device 1, the posture of the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. Therefore, the position of the advance / retreat arm 1822 of the slide mechanism 182 shown in FIG. The shear angle shown in this figure is about 15 degrees, and the change in the shear angle after starting to cut the paper is as small as about +5 degrees.

When the motor 180 continues to rotate in a predetermined direction when the advance / retreat arm 1822 reaches the maximum advance position and the motor 180 continues to rotate in a predetermined direction, the movable blade 12 is centered on the rotation fulcrum 121 by the action of the link mechanism in the rotation mechanism 181. This time, it rotates in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction (here, counterclockwise). Then, the movable blade 12 starts to change its posture toward the basic posture and starts to move back toward the home position by the action of the link mechanism in the slide mechanism 182.

Thus, in the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, the slide mechanism 182 moves the movable blade 12 rotated by the rotation mechanism 181 forward and backward with respect to the fixed blade 11. More specifically, the slide mechanism 182 advances and retracts the rotating movable blade 12.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing in a stepwise manner how the movable blade 12 in the basic posture that has returned to the home position advances while rotating in the direction opposite to the predetermined direction and cuts the other end portion of the paper. . Also in FIG. 4, the left-right direction in the figure is the width direction of the sheet (not shown) to be cut, and FIG. 4 shows the movement of the movable blade 12 following FIG.

FIG. 4 (a) shows the movable blade 12 returned to the home position. The posture of the movable blade 12 is a basic posture. Similar to FIG. 3A, the rotating arm 1813 in the rotating mechanism 181 shown in FIG. 4A is in a horizontal posture. Further, the connecting point 1822a of the forward / backward arm 1822 with the link gear 1821 in the slide mechanism 182 is at the 12 o'clock position of the link gear 1821. On the other hand, unlike FIG. 3A, the connecting point 1812a of the connecting arm 1812 and the drive gear 1811 in the rotating mechanism 181 shown in FIG. 4A is at the 6 o'clock position of the drive gear 1811.

In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, after cutting the paper from the one end in the width direction (right end) toward the center in the width direction, the paper is then cut from the other end in the width direction (left end) toward the center in the width direction. Begin to. FIG. 4B shows a state in which the motor 180 further rotates in a predetermined direction and starts cutting the left end portion of the sheet (not shown). The drive gear 1811 of the rotation mechanism 181 further rotates clockwise, and the link gear 1821 of the slide mechanism 182 starts to rotate again counterclockwise (see the arrow in the figure). Then, the movable blade 12 starts to rotate in the direction opposite to the predetermined direction (counterclockwise in this figure) from the basic posture by the action of the link mechanism in the rotation mechanism 181. At the same time, the link mechanism in the slide mechanism 182 starts to advance again from the home position toward the fixed blade 11. The movable blade 12 shown in FIG. 5B is inclined on the left side in the direction of the fixed blade. The left end portion of the blade edge 120 of the movable blade 12 is in contact with the blade edge 110 of the fixed blade 11, and again cuts a sheet (not shown). The cutting position is the left end portion of the paper. The shear angle shown in FIG. 4B is about 10 degrees as in the case shown in FIG. If the shear angle at this time is about 10 degrees, the sheet is cut without bending the sheet and without pressing the sheet P to the right by the movable blade 12.

FIG. 4 (c) shows a state in which the motor 180 further rotates in a predetermined direction and a sheet (not shown) is cut from the left end side to the front in the width direction. In this figure, the cutting position where the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 and the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11 come into contact with each other to cut the paper is left in front of the central portion in the width direction, leaving a central portion in the width direction of the paper (not shown). (Left side) Further, the connecting point 1812a of the connecting arm 1812 in the rotating mechanism 181 shown here and the drive gear 1811 is at the 9 o'clock position of the drive gear 1811. On the other hand, the posture of the rotating arm 1813 and the position of the connecting point 1822a of the advance / retreat arm 1822 with the link gear 1821 in the slide mechanism 182 are the same as those shown in FIG. The movable blade 12 shown in FIG. 4C is tilted to the left and advanced toward the fixed blade 11 than the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. In the auto cutter device 1, the posture of the movable blade 12 shown in FIG. Further, the position of the advance / retreat arm 1822 of the slide mechanism 182 is the maximum advance position where the position is the same as the advance / retreat arm 1822 shown in FIG. The shear angle shown in this figure is about 15 degrees, and the change of the shear angle after starting to cut the left side portion of the paper is only about +5 degrees.

When the motor 180 continues to rotate in a predetermined direction when the advance / retreat arm 1822 reaches the maximum advance position and the motor 180 continues to rotate in a predetermined direction, the movable blade 12 is centered on the rotation fulcrum 121 by the action of the link mechanism in the rotation mechanism 181. It rotates in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction (here, counterclockwise). Then, the movable blade 12 starts to change its posture again toward the basic posture and starts to move back toward the home position again by the action of the link mechanism in the slide mechanism 182. Eventually, the movable blade 12 returns to the home position, and a predetermined detection signal is output from the HP detection sensor 190. Moreover, the movable blade 12 which has returned to the home position takes a basic posture. Thus, a single cutting operation of the paper is completed.

According to the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, by moving the movable blade 12 so that the cutting position does not move to the center in the width direction, the sheet can be cut in the width direction while leaving the center portion in the width direction. . Moreover, the movable blade 12 cut | disconnects the width direction one end side part of a paper first, and then cuts the other end side part. Therefore, the paper can be cut with a small cutting force as compared with the case where the one end side portion and the other end side portion of the paper in the width direction are cut simultaneously as in a so-called guillotine type auto cutter device. As a result, the torque of the motor 180 can be small, and by adopting a small motor, it is possible to reduce the size or cost of the apparatus. Further, the reduction of the cutting torque leads to the high speed driving of the movable blade 12. Furthermore, the cutting sound of the paper is lower than that of a guillotine type auto cutter device.

In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, both the rotation mechanism 181 and the slide mechanism 182 are driven by a common motor 180. For this reason, the timing of rotation and advance / retreat of the movable blade 12 is not shifted, and the apparatus is also downsized. Further, the movable blade 12 can be advanced and retracted while being rotated, and the paper can be cut quickly.

In addition, according to the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, the shear angle when cutting the paper is about 10 degrees to about 15 degrees, and the shear angle is always suppressed to a small angle. The paper can be cut cleanly. Further, since the movable blade 12 not only rotates but also advances and retreats, even when cutting a narrow paper, the shear angle can be kept small and the paper can be cut cleanly.

In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, the movable blade 12 is rotated and advanced simultaneously. However, after the movable blade 12 is rotated to a predetermined angle, the rotation angle is maintained. The movable blade 12 may be advanced. That is, the slide mechanism may advance and retract the movable blade after rotating. In this way, the paper can be cut while keeping the shear angle constant.

Next, the partial cut width will be described. The partial cut width here refers to the width of an uncut portion left in the paper width direction in the auto-cutter device. In the auto cutter device 1 of the present embodiment, an uncut portion is left at the center portion in the paper width direction.

Here, if the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 by the slide mechanism 182 can be adjusted, the partial cut width is changed. That is, if the advance amount is reduced, the partial cut width is increased, and if the advance amount is increased, the partial cut width is reduced.

FIG. 5A is a diagram showing a first modification of the slide mechanism. In the following description, constituent elements having the same names as constituent elements described so far are given the same reference numerals as those used so far, and their characteristic points will be mainly described.

The advance / retreat arm 1822 in the slide mechanism 182 shown in FIG. 5A is divided into two in the advance direction. That is, the advance / retreat arm 1822 of the first modification is rotatably connected to the first arm 185 that is rotatably connected to the link gear 1821 of the slide mechanism 182 and the rotation fulcrum 121 of the movable blade 12. A second arm 186 is provided. The second arm 186 is provided with three long holes 1861 to 1863 along the extending direction of the arm. Each of the long holes 1861 to 1863 is a hole that is long in the extending direction of the arm. On the other hand, the first arm 185 is provided with a pair of bosses 1851. A fixing screw 187 is inserted into the middle long hole 1862 among the three long holes 1861 to 1863 of the second arm 186. The second arm 186 and the first arm 185 are connected by the fixing screw 187. A pair of bosses 1851 provided on the first arm 185 are respectively inserted into the

long holes

1861 and 1863 located on both sides of the long hole 1862 into which the fixing screw 187 is inserted. In the advance / retreat arm 1822 in the first modification, the length of the advance / retreat arm 1822 is adjusted using the three long holes 1861 to 1863. If the advance / retreat arm 1822 is lengthened, the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 is increased, and the partial cut width is narrowed. On the other hand, if the advance / retreat arm 1822 is shortened, the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 is reduced, and the partial cut width is increased.

FIG. 5 (b) is a diagram for explaining the partial cut width in the auto-cutter device provided with the slide mechanism shown in FIG. 5 (a).

On the left side of FIG. 5 (b), the auto-cutter device provided with the slide mechanism shown in FIG. 5 (a) is shown with the positional relationship of each component slightly changed so that each component can be easily seen. In the auto cutter device 1 shown in FIG. 5B, the length of the advance / retreat arm 1822 is adjusted to the same length as the advance / retreat arm shown in FIG. In FIG. 5B, the movable blade 12 having the maximum right inclination posture described above (see FIG. 3C) is represented by a one-dot chain line, and the movable blade 12 having the maximum left inclination posture described above by a two-dot chain line. (See FIG. 4C). As shown here, in the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 indicated by a one-dot chain line and the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 indicated by a two-dot chain line, the fixed blade 11 has a central portion in the width direction of the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. There is a region that does not overlap the cutting edge 110. This area becomes an uncut portion left in the width direction of the paper. The length in the width direction of this region is the partial cut width W. On the right side of FIG. 5B, a part of the paper P cut by the single cutting operation of the paper described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 is shown. The sheet P shown here is formed with a right cut line CR extending from one end (right end) in the width direction of the sheet P toward the center in the width direction. At the same time, a left cut line CL extending from the other end in the width direction (left end) toward the center in the width direction is also formed. Further, the partial cut portion PC remains between the right cut line CR and the left cut line CL. This partial cut portion PC corresponds to an uncut portion left in the paper width direction. In the paper P shown on the right side of FIG. 5B, if the paper piece P1 at the upper part and the paper piece P2 at the lower part are pulled up and down with respect to the cut line, the remaining partial cut part PC is torn, and the upper part is cut. The paper piece P1 and the paper piece P2 in the lower part are separated. Thus, according to the auto cutter device 1 to which the present invention is applied, the partial cut portion PC can be provided in the central portion in the paper width direction. It is highly demanded by the market to provide the partial cut portion PC at the central portion in the paper width direction.

FIG. 5C is a diagram for explaining the partial cut width when the advance / retreat arm 1822 is lengthened to increase the advancement amount of the movable blade 12.

Also on the left side of FIG. 5 (c), the auto-cutter device provided with the slide mechanism shown in FIG. 5 (a) is shown with the positional relationship of each component slightly changed so that each component is easy to see. Here, the movable blade 12 having the maximum right inclination posture is represented by a one-dot chain line, and the movable blade 12 having the maximum left inclination posture is represented by a two-dot chain line.

5C, the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 overlaps the cutting edge of the fixed blade 11 even in the center portion in the width direction of the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. In the auto cutter device 1 shown in FIG. That is, in the center portion in the width direction of the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11, the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 in the maximum right inclination posture indicated by the one-dot chain line overlaps the cutting edge 120 of the movable blade 12 in the maximum left inclination posture indicated by the two-dot chain line. Thus, it overlaps the cutting edge 110 of the fixed blade 11. The area when the sheet is cut from the right end toward the center in the width direction by the movable blade 12 overlaps the area when the sheet is cut from the left end toward the center in the width direction. By doing so, the partial cut width can be surely made zero. A part of the paper P when the partial cut width is set to zero is shown on the right side of FIG. Here, one cut line C connected from one end (right end) in the width direction to the other end (left end) in the width direction is shown, and the paper piece P1 in the upper part and the paper piece P2 in the lower part are already divided.

FIG. 6 is a view showing a second modification of the slide mechanism.

The advance / retreat arm 1822 in the slide mechanism 182 shown in FIG. 6 is attached to the link gear 1821 via a T-shaped attachment 183. The T-shaped attachment 183 is rotatably connected to the link gear 1821. The T-shaped attachment 183 is provided with an arc-shaped long hole 1831, and a fixing screw 184 is inserted into the arc-shaped long hole 1831. The T-shaped attachment 183 is fixed to the advance / retreat arm 1822 by the fixing screw 184. In the second modified example, the fixed position of the advance / retreat arm 1822 to the T-shaped attachment 183 can be changed along the arc-shaped long hole 1831 with the attachment fulcrum 1830 as the center. By changing the fixed position of the advance / retreat arm 1822 to the T-shaped attachment 183, the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 can be adjusted steplessly.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a third modification of the slide mechanism.

FIG. 7A shows a slide mechanism in which the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 is adjusted to a reference value, and FIG. 7B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ of FIG. Yes.

The slide mechanism 182 of the third modification has a link gear 1821, an advance / retreat arm 1822, an attachment 188 with a locking groove, and an eccentric bush 189. The engagement grooved attachment 188 is rotatably connected to the link gear 1821. An eccentric bushing 189 is rotatably fitted in the attachment 188 with the locking groove. One end of the advance / retreat arm 1822 is rotatably connected to the eccentric bush 189 by a connection pin 1890. The other end is pivotally connected to a pivot fulcrum 121 of the movable blade 12 (not shown). The advance / retreat arm 1822 is provided with a long hole 1822c extending in the arm extending direction. The advancing / retreating arm 1822 is also locked to the attachment 188 with the locking groove by the slide pin 1885 inserted in the long hole 1822c. As shown in FIG. 7A, a locking groove 1881 is provided on a part of the outer peripheral edge of the attachment 188 with a locking groove, and the eccentric bushing 189 is locked into the locking groove 1881. A nail 1891 is provided. The latching claw 1891 shown in FIG. 7A enters the latching groove 1881 at an exactly middle position of the latching groove 1881. As a result, the eccentric bushing 189 is prevented from freely rotating with respect to the attachment 188 with the locking groove.

FIG. 7 (c) shows a slide mechanism in which the amount of advancement of the movable blade 12 is increased.

When the protrusion 1892 provided with the locking claw 1891 of the eccentric bush 189 is pushed in the direction of the arrow in the figure, the locking claw 1891 moves over the peak of the locking groove 1881 to the adjacent locking groove 1881. From the state of the slide mechanism 182 shown in FIG. 7A, the eccentric bush 189 is rotated counterclockwise with respect to the attachment 188 with the locking groove by pushing the projection 1892 in the direction of the arrow in the drawing. Then, the locking claw 1891 is reinserted into the locking groove 1881 at a desired position to prevent the eccentric bushing 189 from rotating. As a result, the advance / retreat arm 1822 fixed to the eccentric bush 189 approaches the fixed blade 11 (not shown) as a whole, and as a result, the amount of advancement of the movable blade 12 increases. In the third modification, the advancement amount of the movable blade 12 can be adjusted without using a fixing screw.

As described above, according to the auto cutter device 1 to which the present invention is applied, the partial cut width of the partial cut portion PC formed in the central portion in the sheet width direction, which is impossible with the so-called scissor type auto cutter device. W can be easily adjusted.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a second embodiment of the auto-cutter device of the present invention.

The auto cutter device 1 shown in FIG. 8 is obtained by omitting the slide mechanism from the auto cutter device shown in FIG. Also in FIG. 8, the movable blade 12 in the maximum right inclination posture is represented by a one-dot chain line. Further, the movable blade 12 having the maximum left inclined posture is represented by a two-dot chain line. In the auto-cutter device 1 of the second embodiment, the shear angle becomes large, but when cutting the paper in the width direction, it is possible to cut the paper with a small cutting force leaving the central portion in the width direction.

The auto-cutter device 1 described here is mounted on a printer. However, the auto-cutter device of the present invention is not limited to a printer, but includes various devices such as a device that accommodates paper and a device that transports paper. It is mounted on various equipment.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Auto cutter apparatus 11 Fixed blade 110 Cutting edge 12 Movable blade 120 Cutting edge 14 Paper conveyance path 15 Pressure spring 17 Paper pressing plate 18 Moving means 180 Motor 181 Rotation mechanism 1811 Drive gear 1812 Connection arm 1813 Rotation arm 182 Slide mechanism 1821 Link Gear 1822 Advance / Retreat Arm

Claims

A fixed blade disposed on one side of the paper to be cut;
A movable blade disposed on the other surface side of the paper so as to face the fixed blade across the paper;
A moving means for moving the movable blade,
The moving means moves the movable blade so that the cutting position of the paper by the movable blade and the fixed blade moves from one end in the width direction of the paper toward the center in the width direction, and then the cutting position. An automatic cutter device, wherein the movable blade is moved so as to move from the other widthwise end of the paper toward the widthwise center.
The moving means includes a rotating mechanism for rotating the movable blade, and a slide mechanism for moving the movable blade in a posture rotated by the rotating mechanism relative to the fixed blade. The auto cutter device according to claim 1.
The auto-cutter device according to claim 2, wherein the rotation mechanism and the slide mechanism are driven by a common driving means.
The driving means is a motor;
The auto-cutter device according to claim 3, wherein the slide mechanism is a link arm that transmits the rotational motion of the motor to the movable blade.
The auto-cutter device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the slide mechanism is capable of adjusting an advancement amount by which the movable blade advances with respect to the fixed blade. *
The auto cutter device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the fixed blade and the movable blade have a single straight blade edge.