JPH02209285A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To conduct printing while all the layers of transfer ink of a multi-time ribbon are consumed without reversing a ribbon cassette by a method wherein the ribbon is rewound during the interruption of a printing action according to a feed amount of the ribbon supplied during the printing action. CONSTITUTION:During a printing action, a control means C drives a ribbon take-up mechanism to wind a supplied multi-time ribbon 16 on a take-up spool 22 and detects a ribbon feed amount M on the basis of a ribbon take-up amount on the take-up spool 22 or a paper feed amount. Since the control means C drives a ribbon rewind mechanism after the interruption of a printing action, the multi-time ribbon 16 is rewound in a reverse supply direction to be wound on a supply spool 21. In a period of rewinding the ribbon, a detection means 30 successively detects marks 29 provided at predetermined intervals and outputs the detection signals thereof, and a counting means successively counts the detection signals from the detection means. Then, when the count value of the counting means reaches a numeric value corresponding to M (1-1/N), the control means C stops the drive of the ribbon rewind mechanism.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a printing device, and more particularly to one that prints while rewinding a multi-time ribbon by a predetermined amount depending on the ribbon feed amount each time printing is completed.

[Prior art]

BACKGROUND ART Printing devices, such as thermal printers, generally print characters or the like on thermal printing paper in a dot pattern using a plurality of heating elements provided in a thermal head or on ordinary printing paper via a transfer ribbon.

Conventionally, one-time ribbons have been commonly used as transfer ribbons, but recently, multi-time ribbons that can print multiple times have been commercialized due to the running cost of the transfer ribbon.

In a normal thermal printer, the transfer ribbon after printing is wound up on a take-up spool driven by a take-up mechanism, so when the multi-time ribbon is used to its end, the ribbon stored in the multi-time ribbon tray is I flip the cassette so I can use it multiple times.

Furthermore, since the number of printable times is set according to the type of multi-time ribbon, the operator can flip the ribbon cassette while managing the number of times it can be used.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

As mentioned above, when using a multi-time ribbon with a conventional printing device, the ribbon cassette must be reversed each time the ribbon is used until the end, which is very cumbersome, and the operator is forced to use the ribbon cassette every time the ribbon is reversed. The number of times the ribbon has been used must be constantly managed by writing down the number of times it has been used, making it cumbersome for the operator to manage the ribbon.If the operator mistakenly uses more than the maximum number of times the ribbon can be used, the printing performance may deteriorate significantly. There are problems such as having to print again.

It may be possible to configure the multi-time ribbon to be rewound onto the ribbon supply spool when it is used to the end, but it would take a long time to completely unwind the ribbon, and When rewinding the ribbon, there are problems such as a decrease in work efficiency.

A ninth aspect of the present invention is to provide a printing device that can print while consuming all layers of transfer ink on a multi-time ribbon without reversing the ribbon cassette.

[Means to solve the problem]

A printing device according to the present invention includes: a platen that is disposed in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the printing paper and supports the printing paper; a print head that prints on the printing paper on the platen;
A multi-time ribbon that can be printed multiple times is supplied between the platen and the print head in conjunction with the printing operation, and a take-up spool is driven to wind up the ribbon that is supplied in the feeding direction in conjunction with the printing operation. a ribbon rewinding mechanism that drives a ribbon supply spool to rewind the ribbon in the counter-feeding direction; a plurality of marks marked in a row in the ribbon feeding direction in a portion other than the ink portion of the ribbon, a detection means for sequentially detecting marks marked on the ribbon at least when the ribbon is unwinded, and a detection signal from the detection means is counted. and a counting means that drives the ribbon winding mechanism along with the printing operation and detects the ribbon feeding amount M, and after the printing operation is interrupted, the ribbon rewinding amount corresponds to M (1-1/N). and a control means for driving the ribbon rewinding mechanism until the numerical value is counted by the counting means.

The platen may be configured as a roller that is rotatable around an axis perpendicular to the paper feeding direction, or may be configured as a flat plate.

The print head may have a plurality of print elements arranged in a row in a direction perpendicular to the print direction and be configured to move in the print direction, and the print head has a width such as a width between the print paper and the path, and has a plurality of print elements arranged in a row in a direction perpendicular to the print direction. It may also be of a line type in which the rollers are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction.

The marks may be printed at intervals determined based on the number of times the multi-time ribbon can be printed and the length of the printable range of the printing paper in the paper feeding direction.

[Effect]

In the printing device according to the present invention, the multi-time ribbon loaded on the ribbon supply spool is fed between the platen and the print head in conjunction with the printing operation.

During this printing operation, the control means drives the ribbon winding mechanism to wind the supplied multi-time ribbon onto the take-up spool, and also adjusts the ribbon feed amount M based on the ribbon winding amount of the take-up spool or the paper feed amount. Detect.

After the printing operation is interrupted, the control means drives the ribbon rewinding mechanism so that the multi-time ribbon is rewound in a counter-feed direction onto the supply spool. During rewinding of the ribbon, the detection means sequentially detects marks at predetermined intervals and outputs detection signals, and the counting means sequentially counts the detection signals from the detection means.

Then, when the count value of the counting means reaches a value corresponding to M(1-1/N), the control means stops driving the ribbon rewinding mechanism.

For example, when equipped with a line-type print head, if the number of printable times N of the multi-time ribbon is 5, and the length M of the printable range of the print paper in the paper feeding direction is 25 cra, then the mark interval L = M /N, which is 5 cm. That is, marks are printed on the multi-time ribbon in rows at intervals of 5 cm.

The multi-time ribbon is fed in the feeding direction in conjunction with the printing operation for one sheet of printing paper, but since the paper feeding length M is equal to the ribbon feeding amount M, when rewinding, the counting means The control means rewinds the multi-time ribbon until "4" corresponding to 1115) cm is counted. As a result, each time the multi-time ribbon finishes printing one sheet, it is rewound until the count value reaches "4", so the transfer ink that can be printed from the printing operation after the maximum number of printings (that is, from the 5th sheet onwards) Printing is performed while all layers of the image are consumed.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the printing device according to the present invention, as explained in the [Function] section, the multi-time ribbon is rewound when the printing operation is interrupted according to the amount of ribbon feed supplied during the printing operation. The entire layer of the transfer ink of the multi-time ribbon is consumed from printing after the maximum number of prints, and there is no need to turn the ribbon cassette over multiple times depending on the number of times it can be used, and there is no need to manage the number of times it can be used.

Furthermore, since there is no mistake in the number of times the ribbon is used, it is possible to always print with a constant and good print quality. In addition, since the amount of ribbon unwinding is relatively small, the unwinding is completed before the start of the next printing, and unnecessary time is not wasted.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the printing device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. This embodiment is a case where the present invention is applied to a thermal printer capable of line printing.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, side walls (not shown) are provided on both left and right sides of the main body frame (not shown) of the thermal printer l, and a roller-like structure is provided between the pair of side walls. A platen 2 is provided, and the platen 2 is rotatably supported on the side wall at both left and right ends of the platen shaft 3.

This platen shaft 3 is connected to a platen motor 28, and the platen 2 is rotationally driven in the direction of the arrow shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 by this platen motor 28.

Immediately above the platen 2, a line-type thermal head (print head) 4 is arranged parallel to the platen 2 and having a width such as a gap between the print head and the platen 2. On the lower surface of the thermal head 4, a plurality of heating elements (not shown) are arranged adjacent to each other in a row in the length direction of the thermal head 4. The thermal head 4 is moved to a printing position (indicated by a two-dot chain line in Fig. 2) where it is pressed against the platen 2 by a thermal head pressure contact mechanism 5 (not shown) (see Fig. 5) and a non-printing position (indicated by a two-dot chain line in Fig. 2) which is separated from the platen 2. (shown as a solid line in FIG. 2).

In front of the platen 2, a pair of paper feed rollers 6 and 7 are provided parallel to the platen 2 and adjacent to each other in the vertical direction, and behind that, a pair of paper feed rollers 8 and 9 are provided parallel to the platen 2. They are arranged adjacent to each other in the vertical direction. At least one of paper feed rollers 6 and 7 and paper feed rollers 8 and 9
At least one of the printing paper 10 is driven by the platen motor 28 via a paper feed roller drive mechanism (not shown).
is sent in the paper feeding direction P. At this time, the peripheral speed of each of the paper feed rollers 6 to 9 is the same as the peripheral speed of the platen 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, a cut sheet feeder 1 (not shown)
1 (see FIG. 5) to the pair of paper feed rollers 6 and 7, the receiver is provided with a plurality of trays so that the printing paper 10 fed from the paper feed rollers 6 and 7 can be horizontally passed through the platen 2 to the pair of paper feed rollers 8 and 9. A paper guide 12 is provided. A paper detector 13 consisting of a photo ink printer for detecting the leading and trailing ends of the printing paper 10 is attached to one location of the paper guide 12 on the rear side of the platen 2 near the thermal head 4 .

A pair of guide shafts 15 are inserted through the ribbon cassette 14 and are disposed parallel to the thermal head 4 at a front position and a rear position immediately above the thermal head 4, respectively. The left end portions are respectively fixed to the left side wall.

The ribbon cassette 14 has a width slightly larger than the width of the thermal head 4, and the ribbon cassette 14 has a side surface along its entire width at the center in the front-rear direction to allow vertical movement of the thermal head 4. A recess 19 having a substantially trapezoidal shape in view is provided. A roller-shaped supply spool 21 extending in the left-right direction is disposed at the front end portion inside the ribbon force set 14, and a roller-shaped take-up spool 22 is disposed at the rear end thereof parallel to the supply spool 21. , the supply spool 21 and the take-up spool 22 are pivotally attached to the left and right side walls of the ribbon cassette 14, respectively. A multi-time ribbon 16 having a width such as that between the thermal head 4 and the track is wound around a supply spool 21.
The multi-time ribbon 16 supplied from the printer passes between the thermal head 4 and the platen 2 and is wound onto a take-up spool 22. This multi-time ribbon 1
As shown in FIG. 4, reference numeral 6 has a two-layer structure consisting of an anti-sticking layer 17 made of heat-resistant resin and a multilayer ink layer 18 that can be printed multiple times. Note that this ribbon cassette 14 can be attached and detached from the side.

The left end of the winding Lisbourg 22 is connected to a ribbon winding motor 24 via a slip clutch mechanism, and the left end of the supply spool 21 is connected to a ribbon rewinding motor 26 via a slip clutch mechanism. Then, the ribbon winding remoter 24 is driven to move the winding spool 22 to the second
When driven clockwise in the figure, the take-up spool 22 takes up the multi-time ribbon 16 fed in the feed direction A (see FIG. 3). On the other hand, the ribbon rewind motor 2
When the supply spool 21 is driven counterclockwise in FIG. At this time, the multi-time ribbon 16 moves in the opposite supply direction B.

Next, the mark 29 marked on the multi-time ribbon 16 will be explained.

Near the left end of the upper surface of the stain prevention layer 17 of the multi-time ribbon 16, there is a
A plurality of marks 29 are marked in a row. The marks 29 can be read by an optical sensor or the like, and are printed at intervals determined based on the number of printable times and a predetermined length of the printable range of the printing paper 10. For example, when the number of printable times N of the multi-time ribbon 16 is 5, and the printable length M of the printing paper 10 (A4 size) is approximately 25 cm (excluding margins of approximately 2.5 cm at both upper and lower ends), , the interval is determined by L=M/N, L=5c
m.

Therefore, a mark detector 30 consisting of an optical sensor for detecting this mark 29 is attached to a portion of the thermal head 4 corresponding to this mark 29.

Next, the overall configuration diagram of the control system of the thermal printer 1 will be explained based on the block diagram of FIG. 5.

The thermal printer 1 basically includes a mark detector 30,
The mark detector 30, the paper detector 13, and the printing mechanism PM are connected to the I10 port (input/output port) 40 of the control device C.
are connected to each other.

In the printing mechanism PM, the ribbon winding remoter 24 is connected to the drive circuit 31, the ribbon rewind motor 26 is connected to the drive circuit 32, the platen motor 28 is connected to the drive circuit 33, and the heating elements of the thermal head 4 are connected to each other. Each is connected to an I10 port 40 via a drive circuit 34. It should be noted that the thermal head pressure contact mechanism 5 is provided with a thermal head 4
An electric actuator such as a solenoid for driving the printer to the printing position is also connected to the I10 boat 40 via a drive circuit (not shown). Also, cut sheet feeder 1
A drive circuit for the electric motor 1 is also connected to the I10 boat 40, and the paper feeding operation of the cut sheet feeder 11 is executed in response to a command signal from an external device (the path shown) connected to the thermal printer 1.

The mark detector 30 outputs a mark signal (pulse signal) to the I10 port 40 every time it detects the mark 29.
The paper detector 13 outputs a paper signal that changes from the "L" level to the rHJ level when the leading edge of the printing paper 10 is detected, and also outputs a paper signal that changes from the rHJ level to the rLJ level when the trailing edge is detected. Output.

The control device C includes a CPU (central processing unit) 42 and its CP
I10 boat 40, ROM (read-only memory 1) connected to U42 via a bus 41 such as a data bus
Month 43 and RAM (Random Access Memory) 5
It is composed of 0.

The CPU 42 is connected to an electronic device such as a personal computer or a word processor via a bus 41, and receives print data and command data from this electronic device.

The following data and programs are stored in the ROM 43 in advance.

(1) A large number of dot pattern data for printing each character, symbol, etc. in a dot pattern. (2) Printing mechanism PM and cut sheet feeder 11 are configured in response to print data and command data input from external electronic equipment. Control program to control (3) Transfer ink of ink layer 18 of multi-time ribbon 16 to all layers 1
8a to 18e (see FIG. 7(a)).
(4) Control program for character printing control (5) Other necessary control programs The ribbon consumption control program includes a paper detector 13.
Based on the paper signal output from rL
Print paper 1 when changing from J level to rHJ level
The leading edge of 0 is detected and the paper signal changes from rHJ level to rLJ.
It also includes a detection subroutine that detects the trailing edge of the printing paper 10 when the level changes.

Here, when the ribbon consumption control program is executed and the multi-time ribbon 16 is rewound in the opposite feeding direction B,
A control signal CS is output from the I10 port 40 to the drive circuit 32, and a drive signal DS is output from the drive circuit 32 to the ribbon rewinding motor 26.

The RAM 50 includes a mark number counter 91 that counts mark signals input from the mark detector 30, and a CPU 42.
Various types of memories are provided to temporarily store the results of arithmetic processing.

Next, a ribbon consumption control routine performed by the control device C of the thermal printer 1 will be explained based on the flowchart shown in FIG. In addition, in the figure, Si (i=1.
2.3...) indicates each step.

When the thermal printer 1 is powered on and this control is started, initial settings are executed at Sl. Next, the CPU
42 has detected a paper feed command signal (S2
), when a paper feed command signal from an external electronic device is input to the CPU 42 via the bus 41, it is determined as Yes in S2. At this time, the CPU 42 stores the above (2) in the ROM 43.
) cut sheet feeder 11 based on the control program of
At the same time, the platen motor 28 is also driven, so that the printing paper 10 is transferred in the paper feeding direction P (see FIG. 2) via the paper feeding rollers 6 and 7.

Next, based on the paper signal from the paper detector 13 and the detection subroutine, the leading edge of the printing paper 10 is detected by the paper detector 13.
It is determined whether or not the tip has passed (S3), and when the tip is detected, it is determined Yes in S3, and then the CPU
42 has detected a print command signal (S4
), when a print command signal is input from an external electronic device to the CPU 42 via the bus 41, it is determined Yes in S4 and print control is started. At this time, based on the control programs (2) and (4) in the ROM 43, the I10 port 40 is connected to the thermal head pressure contact mechanism 5 and the drive circuit 31.
・Control signals are output to 33 and 34, respectively, and the drive circuit 31
from the ribbon winding remoter 24, from the drive circuit 33 to the platen motor 28, from the drive circuit 34 to the thermal head 4.
Since a drive signal is output to each heating element, the thermal head 4 moves to the printing position, the platen 2 and the paper feed rollers 6 to 9 rotate, and the printing paper 10 is sequentially transferred in the paper feeding direction P. At the same time, the ink on the multi-time ribbon 16 is transferred onto the printing paper 10 by the heating element. Therefore, since the multi-time ribbon 16 is pressed against the printing paper 10 by the thermal head 4, it is helipon-fed in the supply direction A in synchronization with the movement of the printing paper 10 in the paper feeding direction P.

Next, the count value ■ of the mark number counter 51 is reset (S5), it is determined whether or not the mark signal was input manually (S6), and when the mark signal is input, the count value ■ is incremented by one (S7). , it is determined whether or not the CPU 42 has detected a print end signal (S8), and if it has not detected it, steps 86 to S8 are repeated. For example, as shown in FIG. 7(a), the multi-time ribbon 1
6 starts printing from position P0 and is supplied in the supply direction, so the transfer ink 18a of the first layer of the ink layer 18
is sequentially consumed in the opposite supply direction B from position P0. Along with this, the mark detector 30 sequentially detects the marks 29 on the side opposite to the supply direction B from the position P0.

Then, when the CPU 42 detects the print end signal, it is determined as Yes in S8. At this time, since the thermal head 4 is moved to the non-printing position by the thermal head pressure contact mechanism 5, the movement of the multi-time ribbon 16 in the supply direction A is stopped. At the same time, when the CPU 42 detects a paper discharge signal, the platen motor 28 is continuously driven, so that the printing paper 10 is further fed in the paper feeding direction P. For example, as shown in FIG. 7(a), the transfer ink 18a is placed from position P0 to ? &P. Moreover, the length of the consumed transfer ink 18a is equivalent to the printable length M of the printing paper 10, that is, about 25 cm, and this corresponds to the ribbon feeding amount. Here, since the marks 29 are marked at the corners with a distance of 5 cm, the mark number counter 51 has a count value of 5 cm.
is stored.

Next, it is determined whether or not the trailing edge of the printing paper 10 is detected (S9), and when the trailing edge is detected, the count value l is decremented by one (SIO), and the ribbon rewinding motor 26 is driven (Sll). At this time, a control signal C8 is output from the I10 boat 40 to the drive circuit 32, and a drive signal DS is output from the drive circuit 32 to the ribbon rewinding motor 26. Therefore, the multi-time ribbon 16 is rewound in the counter-feeding direction B. Next, it is determined whether or not a mark signal is input (512
), the count value ■ becomes 1 when the mark signal is input.
is decremented by (S13>, the count value I is "0")
It is determined whether or not (314). For example, Fig. 7(a)
As shown in FIG.
The mark detector 30 sequentially detects the marks 29 in the supply direction A from the position P1.

Then, when the count value ■ becomes "0", the drive of the ribbon rewinding motor 26 is stopped (S15), and the process returns to S2. For example, as shown in FIG. 7(a), when the mark detector 30 detects "four" marks 29, the multi-time ribbon 16 is rewound to position P2.

Thereafter, when steps 82 to S9 are similarly executed, the second layer of transfer ink 18b is consumed from position P2 to position P1, as shown in FIG. 7(b), for example, and
Transfer ink 18a is consumed from position P to position P3. Similarly, when SIO to S15 are executed, the multi-time ribbon 16 is rewound to position P4, as shown in FIG. 7(b), for example.

Next, the state of consumption of each of the transfer inks 18a to 18e in the ink layer 18 when a plurality of printing papers 10 are sequentially printed will be explained based on FIG. 7(C).

The multi-time ribbon 16 moves from position P4 to position P during the third printing, and similarly moves from position P8 to position P during the fifth printing, so the transfer ink remains as a mark until the fifth printing. The transfer ink 18a to the transfer ink 18 is sequentially applied stepwise with a delay of 29 intervals.
After the fifth printing, each transfer ink 18a to 18e is sequentially consumed from transfer ink 18e to transfer ink 18a in a stepped manner delayed by the interval of mark 29, so that printing is possible. From the fifth printing corresponding to the number of times, printing is performed while consuming all layers of the transfer inks 18a to 18e.

As a result, the ribbon cassette 14 can be used according to the number of times it can be used.
There is no need to flip the ribbon or write notes on the number of times it has been used, eliminating the need for the operator to manage the ribbon.

Furthermore, since there is no mistake in the number of times the ribbon is used, printing can always be performed with a constant and good printing performance.

In addition, since the amount of ribbon unwinding is relatively small, the unwinding is completed before the start of the next printing, and unnecessary time is not wasted.

In addition to the marks 29 at the predetermined intervals, additional marks are printed at intervals determined based on the printable length and printable number of times of 85-size printing paper, and the marks to be detected are It is also possible to switch so that 85-size printing paper can also be used.

Note that the paper feed amount may be determined based on the number of driving steps of the platen motor 28 during the printing operation, and the ribbon feed amount may be determined from this feed amount.

Note that the marks 29 are printed at relatively short intervals, and a plurality of data memories (non-volatile memories) each corresponding to the same number of printing inks 18a to 18e are provided, and a mark at the end of printing is placed in these data memories. The 29 count values may be sequentially updated and stored, and the next printing may be started from the position of the smallest value among the count values stored in these data memories. In this case, the present invention can be similarly applied to a serial printing type thermal printer.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a thermal printer, and FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a thermal printer.
g sectional view, Figure 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the multi-time ribbon,
Fig. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the multi-time ribbon, Fig. 5 is a block diagram of the control system of the thermal printer, Fig. 6 is a flowchart of the ribbon consumption control routine, and Fig. 7 (a
) - (b) and (c) are explanatory diagrams each illustrating each stage of consuming the transfer ink of the multi-time ribbon. 1... Thermal printer, 2... Platen, 4... Thermal head, 16... Multi-time ribbon, 2
1... Supply spool, 22... Take-up spool, 2
4... Ribbon winding motor, 26... Ribbon rewinding motor, 29... Mark, 30... Mark detector, 4
2...CPU, 43...ROM, 50...RA
M, 51...Material number counter, printing mechanism. C...control device, PM...

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A platen that is disposed in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the printing paper and supports the printing paper, a print head that prints on the printing paper on the platen, and a link between the platen and the print head in conjunction with the printing operation. a multi-time ribbon that can be printed multiple times; a ribbon winding mechanism that drives a take-up spool to wind up the ribbon fed in the feeding direction in conjunction with the printing operation; a ribbon rewinding mechanism that drives a ribbon supply spool to rewind the ribbon in the opposite feeding direction; a plurality of marks marked in a row in the ribbon feeding direction; a detection means for sequentially detecting the marks marked on the ribbon at least during rewinding of the ribbon; and a counting means for counting detection signals from the detection means; The counting means drives the ribbon winding mechanism along with the printing operation, detects the ribbon feeding amount M, and after the printing operation is interrupted, calculates a numerical value corresponding to M (1-1/N) as the ribbon rewinding amount. and control means for driving the ribbon rewinding mechanism until counting is performed.