WO2013129269A1

WO2013129269A1 - Thermal printer

Info

Publication number: WO2013129269A1
Application number: PCT/JP2013/054624
Authority: WO
Inventors: 小野寺　仁
Original assignee: サトーホールディングス株式会社
Priority date: 2012-03-01
Filing date: 2013-02-22
Publication date: 2013-09-06
Also published as: JP2013209218A; JP6077283B2

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a thermal printer that can be reduced in size in the scanning direction. [Solution] A thermal printer (10) provided with a pair of paper guides (18a, 18b) that are capable of operating in the paper width direction, wherein the pair of paper guides (18a, 18b) are made to be capable of operating in the paper width direction by means of a rack and pinion mechanism, said rack and pinion mechanism being provided perpendicular to the bottom surface of the printer main body (16). A paper width direction guide member (45) that guides the bottom surface of lower guide plates (22a, 22b) for guiding beneath paper from the paper guides (18a, 18b) is provided to the printer main body (16). With regards to the bottom surface of the lower guide plates (22a, 22b) and the paper width direction guide member (45), a groove (48) in the paper width direction is formed on one of these components, and convex sections (46a, 46b) that fit in the groove (48) are formed on the other component.

Description

Thermal printer

The present invention relates to a thermal printer that prints on a sheet by using a thermal head, and more particularly to a thermal printer provided with a pair of sheet guides by a rack and pinion mechanism.

Conventionally, there are thermal printers that print using a thermal head. The thermal head is a so-called line thermal head in which a large number of heating elements are arranged in a line on a substrate, and is arranged with the arrangement direction of the heating elements orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction.

A platen roller is disposed opposite to the thermal head, and the thermal head is urged against and pressed against the platen roller. A paper conveyance path through which the paper is conveyed is formed between the thermal head and the platen roller.
The paper is conveyed by rotating the platen roller while being guided by the guide plate, and is printed by the thermal head.

By the way, as shown in Patent Document 1 (particularly, see FIG. 2, [0014] to [0016] in Patent Document 1), the thermal printer is for restricting the position in the width direction (axial direction) of the paper. In addition, two paper guides are provided, and the positions of the two paper guides can be changed according to the width of the paper. The two paper guides are each provided with two racks on the bottom side of the printer body. And in the position where those racks oppose, the pinion which meshes with these racks is rotatably provided. With this rack and pinion mechanism, the positions of the two paper guides can be varied according to the width of the paper.

JP 2008-174360 A

However, the thermal printer provided with the paper guide by the rack and pinion mechanism as in Patent Document 1 requires a depth, so that there is a problem that the printer becomes longer in the paper transport direction and becomes larger.
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a thermal printer that can be reduced in size by shortening the length in the sheet conveyance direction.

A thermal printer according to the present invention includes a printer main body, a rotatable platen roller, a thermal head disposed opposite to the platen roller, a width guide plate for guiding the paper width, and a lower guide plate for guiding the bottom of the paper. A pair of sheet guides operable in the sheet width direction, and provided perpendicular to the bottom surface of the printer body, one rack for each of the pair of sheet guides And a rack and pinion mechanism that can be operated in the paper width direction by one pinion, and a paper width direction guide member that guides the bottom surface of the lower guide plate.
According to the present invention, the scanning direction of the thermal printer can be reduced in size by changing the position of the pair of paper guides by the rack and pinion mechanism provided perpendicular to the bottom surface of the printer body.
In the present invention, a paper width direction guide member that guides the bottom surface of the lower guide plate that guides the bottom of the paper guide is provided, and the bottom surface of the lower guide plate and the paper width direction guide member are provided in one side in the paper width direction. It is preferable to form a convex part which fits into this groove | channel and this groove | channel on the other.
As a result, it is possible to prevent the paper guide from rattling due to the weight of the paper guide or the force involved during paper conveyance, and the length of the thermal printer in the paper conveyance direction can be shortened and downsized.
In the present invention, it is preferable that a thin paper lower guide member having a predetermined width in the paper width direction is provided in the center where the pair of paper guides face each other.
According to the present invention, since the thin paper lower guide member having a predetermined width in the paper width direction is further provided, a part of the force relating to the paper conveyance can be received by the paper lower guide member. Is alleviated. Accordingly, it is possible to further prevent the paper guide from rattling.
The predetermined width of the sheet lower guide member has a width of the sheet lower guide capable of guiding a sheet of 25 mm when a pair of sheet guides abut from the sheet lower guide member. The thickness is preferably 2 mm to 5 mm.

The thermal printer according to the present invention can provide a thermal printer that can be downsized in the scanning direction.

1 is a schematic side view of a thermal printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view of the thermal printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention Schematic diagram of the back side of a thermal printer according to an embodiment of the present invention Schematic diagram of the back side of a thermal printer according to an embodiment of the present invention

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a thermal printer according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a thermal printer 10 according to the present invention. The thermal printer 10 is a printer that prints and issues predetermined information on the surface of the paper 12.

The thermal printer 10 according to the present invention includes an upper guide plate 20, a lower guide plate 22, a fixed guide plate 23, a thermal head 26, and a platen roller 28. The sheet 12 is guided by a sheet guide including an upper guide plate 20, a lower guide plate 22, and a fixed guide plate 23, and is fed to a printing unit 30 including a thermal head 26 and a platen roller 28. A rotation shaft of the platen roller 28 is connected to a drive shaft of a motor that can rotate forward and backward via a gear 34 (see FIG. 2). When the drive shaft is rotated, the rotational force is transmitted to the platen roller 28 via the gear, and the paper 12 is conveyed in the direction of arrow A (from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveyance direction) in the figure.

The printer main body 16 of the thermal printer 10 generally includes a printer lower part 16a and a printer upper part 16b, and the printer upper part 16b can be opened and closed. An upper guide plate 20, a lower guide plate 22, a fixed guide plate 23, and a platen roller 28 are provided in the printer lower portion 16a, and a thermal head 26 is provided in the printer upper portion 16b.
The printing unit 30 is formed by a thermal head 26 and a platen roller 28 that are opposed to each other with a paper conveyance path 32 therebetween.

The thermal head 26 is a so-called line thermal head in which a large number of heating elements (not shown) are arranged in a line on a substrate (not shown), and is arranged with the arrangement direction of the heating elements orthogonal to the paper transport direction. Is done. A heat radiating plate made of metal and having conductivity is attached to the surface of the substrate opposite to the surface on which the heating element is formed. Further, the thermal head 26 is provided with a power supply and print signal connector (not shown), and a wiring connector (not shown) from the printer main body 16 is connected to the connector.

FIG. 2 shows a printer lower portion 16a in which the printer upper portion 16b is removed from the thermal printer 10 according to the present invention. 3 and 4 show the printer lower part 16a of FIG. 2 as viewed from the back. Note that the paper 12 is not shown in FIGS.

In the thermal printer 10 according to the present invention, the upper guide plate 20 and the lower guide plate 22 are provided on a pair of

paper guides

18a and 18b as shown in FIG.

The

paper guides

18a, 18b are width guide plates for guiding the paper width by a pair of

paper guides

18a, 18b in addition to the

upper guide plates

20a, 20b for guiding the top of the paper and the

lower guide plates

22a, 22b for guiding the bottom of the paper. 21a and 21b.

A pair of

paper guides

18a and 18b, that is,

upper guide plates

20a and 20b,

width guide plates

21a and 21b, and

lower guide plates

22a and 22b form a part of the paper transport path 32.
In the paper guide 18b, a reflective sensor 56 and a transmissive sensor 58 are sequentially arranged along the paper transport direction.
The reflective sensor 56 can detect a mark (not shown) formed on the back side of the paper 12, and can use it as a reference position for starting printing based on the detected data. The reflective sensor 56 can mainly detect marks (not shown) formed on the continuous paper at a predetermined interval.
Further, the transmission sensor 58 can detect the leading edge of the paper 12 inserted from the back side of the paper 12. The platen roller can be driven by detecting the leading edge of the paper. The transmission sensor 58 mainly detects the leading edge of the single sheet 12.
Thus, since the reflective sensor 56 and the transmissive sensor 58 are sequentially arranged along the paper transport direction, the width of the upper guide plate 20b (length in the paper width direction) can be shortened. The quality of the print side of the paper is not degraded.

The

paper guides

18a and 18b are held movably in the width direction of the paper 12 by a rack and pinion

mechanism including racks

40a and 40b and a pinion 42.

Racks

40a and 40b are attached to the

paper guides

18a and 18b, respectively. The

racks

40a and 40b mesh with the pinion 42 and move in opposite directions.

In the thermal printer 10 according to the present invention, the rack and pinion mechanism including the

racks

40a and 40b and the pinion 42 is provided perpendicular to the bottom surface of the printer lower part 16a of the printer body. As a result, the length of the thermal printer in the paper transport direction can be shortened.

In the thermal printer 10 according to the present invention, a paper width direction guide member 45 that guides the bottom surfaces of the

lower guide plates

22a and 22b is provided in the printer lower portion 16a of the printer body to guide the

paper guides

18a and 18b. Yes. Further, on the bottom surface of the lower guide plate and the sheet width direction guide member 45, a groove 48 in the sheet width direction is formed on one side, and

convex portions

46a and 46b that fit into the groove 48 are formed on the other side.

3 and 4, the sheet width direction guide member 45 has a groove 48 and

convex portions

46a and 46b formed on the bottom surfaces of the

lower guide plates

22a and 22b.
Further, the sheet width direction guide member 45 and the fixed guide plate 23 can be integrally formed.
The sheet width direction guide member 45 is provided at a position lower than the sheet guide surface, and a rack and pinion mechanism is disposed below the sheet width direction guide member 45.

If the rack and pinion mechanism that changes the width (interval) of the pair of paper guides 18a and 18b is installed vertically as described above, the length of the thermal printer in the paper conveyance direction can be shortened. The paper guide rattles due to its own weight and the force involved during paper conveyance.

Therefore, the rack and pinion mechanism is installed vertically, and a sheet width direction guide member 45 for guiding the bottom surfaces of the

lower guide plates

22a and 22b for guiding the bottom of the sheet guides 18a and 18b is provided, and the lower guide plate 22a. , 22b and the paper width direction guide member 45 are formed with a groove in the paper width direction on one side and a convex portion that fits in the groove on the other side. Accordingly, the rail mechanism is provided, and it is possible to prevent the paper guide from rattling due to the weight of the paper guide or the force involved during paper conveyance, and to reduce the scanning direction of the thermal printer.

FIG. 3 shows a widened pair of paper guides 18a and 18b, and FIG. 4 shows a narrowed pair of paper guides 18a and 18b. The gap between the pair of paper guides 18a and 18b can be changed stably without causing the rattling. The thermal printer 10 according to the present invention preferably includes a fixing mechanism 44 that fixes the width of the pair of paper guides 18a and 18b.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a thin paper lower guide member 50 having a predetermined width in the paper width direction is provided at the center where the pair of paper guides 18a and 18b face each other. Preferably it is. The lower sheet guide member 50 can have an upper surface having the same height as or substantially the same height as the sheet contact surface of the fixed guide plate 23.

The sheet lower guide member 50 serves as a guide for preventing the sheet from drooping on the lower surface at the center in the width direction of the sheet and for sliding the upper surface of the rack 40a to prevent the rack 40a from being lifted. The rack 40a can move in the horizontal direction by slidingly contacting the sheet lower guide member 50. Further, the sheet lower guide member 50 can be provided so as to protrude from the fixed guide plate 23 toward the sheet supply side.

By providing the thin sheet lower guide member 50 having a predetermined width in the sheet width direction, a part of the force relating to the sheet conveyance can be received by the sheet lower guide member, so that the force on the sheet guide is relieved. Accordingly, it is possible to further prevent the paper guide from rattling. The predetermined width of the sheet lower guide member has a width of the sheet lower guide capable of guiding a sheet of 25 mm when a pair of sheet guides abut from the sheet lower guide member. The thickness is preferably 2 mm to 5 mm.
With the thermal printer according to the present invention, the scanning direction of the thermal printer can be reduced, and the distance between the pair of paper guides can be varied stably.

Note that the configuration of the thermal printer shown in the embodiment as described above is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the paper width direction guide member has a groove and a convex portion formed on the bottom surface of the lower guide plate. However, the paper width direction guide member has a convex portion on the bottom surface of the lower guide plate. A groove may be formed.

In the present embodiment, the thermal printer is described as an example in which paper is fed from outside the thermal printer. However, the application of the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a paper roll is supported by the thermal printer main body. Of course, it may have been made.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Thermal printer, 12 ... Paper, 16 ... Printer main body, 16a ... Printer lower part, 16b ... Printer upper part, 18a, 18b ... Paper guide, 20 ... Upper guide plate, 21a, 21b ... Width guide plate, 22, 22a, 22b ... Lower guide plate, 23 ... Fixed guide plate, 26 ... Thermal head, 28 ... Platen roller, 30 ... Printing section, 32 ... Paper transport path, 40a, 40b ... Rack, 42 ... Pinion, 44 ... Fixing mechanism, 45 ... Paper Width direction guide member, 46a, 46b ... convex portion, 48 ... groove, 50 ... paper lower guide member, 56 ... reflection sensor, 58 ... transmission sensor

Claims

The printer itself,
A rotatable platen roller,
A thermal head disposed opposite to the platen roller;
A pair of paper guides operable in the paper width direction, comprising: a width guide plate that guides the paper width; a lower guide plate that guides the bottom of the paper; and an upper guide plate that guides the top of the paper;
A rack and pinion mechanism that is provided perpendicular to the bottom surface of the printer main body, has one rack attached to each of the pair of paper guides, and can be operated in the paper width direction by one pinion;
A paper width direction guide member for guiding the bottom surface of the lower guide plate;
A thermal printer characterized by comprising:
2. The thermal printer according to claim 1, wherein a thin paper lower guide member having a predetermined width in the paper width direction is provided at a center where the pair of paper guides are opposed to each other.
2. The rail mechanism according to claim 1, comprising a bottom surface of the lower guide plate and the sheet width direction guide member, and having a rail mechanism including a groove in the sheet width direction on one side and a convex portion that fits in the groove on the other side. Thermal printer.