JPH033030A - Printer device with scanner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain space saving to improve handleability by storing a printing- out part, a carrying means, a printing control means, and an interface circuit in a housing, providing an image scanner independently of the housing and attachably/detachably connecting the image scanner to the housing through a wire harness. CONSTITUTION:A placing recessed part 3c for placing a scanner part 2 is formed on the side of the printer device 3, a printing paper insertion port 3a is formed on the upper end face side and a discharge port 3d is formed on the lower end face side. The side part of the printer device 3 is attachably/ detachably fitted to a disk side 99a through a magnet or the like. On the other hand, the scanner part 2 attachably/detachably fitted on the recessed part 3 is connected independently of the printer device 3 through the wire harness 101 and an image sensor 2a is provided in the housing B to optionally scan the surface of original paper X. Consequently, the compact constitution and space saving of the printer device 3 can be attained and the handleability can be improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of the Invention) The present invention relates to a printer device equipped with an image scanner, and in particular to a printer device with a scanner that is made as compact as possible so that it can be mounted on a desk side or the like. Regarding equipment.

(Summary of the Invention) The present invention is directed to making the main body of the printer device as compact as possible by accommodating a printer device including a print output section, a paper conveying means, a print control means, an interface circuit, etc. in one housing. , the image scanner section is connected separately from the printer main body via a wire harness, which allows the printer main body to be easily installed on a desk side, etc., thereby saving space and making it possible for personal use. This makes it possible to use it in this way.

(Prior art and its problems) Conventional offices, laboratories, etc. can also make copies using a copy machine that can be used by several people together, a fax machine that can also make copies, or even a system that combines a computer with a scanner and printer. There are ways to take it.

In the method of making copies using a copy machine, the copy machine is bulky (takes up a lot of space, and is expensive, so it is often shared by several people, and when a copy is needed, you have to stop work and go to the copy site. As a result, there was a problem with work efficiency.

In addition, faxes also have the problem of being able to only read sheets (sheet-feed type), as mentioned above, and in addition, when building an OA equipment system using a computer technician image scanner, a large installation space is required. There was a problem.

As shown in FIG. 8, drive rollers 71.
is driven via the belt 72 and the drive roller 7
A driven roller 73° 73 is disposed on the roller 1.71, and the original paper X is sandwiched between both rollers and the paper is conveyed by frictional force.

However, according to such a configuration, at least the motor 70. Since the driving roller 71 and the driven roller 73 are required, it is inevitable that the transport mechanism becomes larger and heavier, and therefore, it is impossible to mount the copy machine on the desk side.

Further, according to the conveyance mechanism as shown in FIG. 8, since the document paper is fed by the frictional force between the driving roller 71 and the driven roller 73, dirt on the document paper X is removed from the roller 71.
．． 73, the frictional force decreases and a slipping phenomenon occurs, making reliable conveyance impossible and having an adverse effect on reading accuracy.

(Object of the Invention) This invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to make the printer device as compact as possible, and to make it separate from the printer device. The scanner is equipped with an image scanner on the body, and is configured so that it can be easily installed on the side of a desk, etc., saving space and improving usability, as well as improving reading accuracy. The company provides printer devices.

(Structure and Effects of the Invention) In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 includes: an image scanner unit that reads an image signal and converts it into an electrical signal; and a signal read by the image scanner unit. a print output section for printing on paper; a conveyance means for conveying the paper in the conveyance direction via a carrier wave; and a print control means for controlling printing timing between the print output section and the conveyed paper. an interface circuit connected to the print control means and capable of exchanging input data of the image scanner section with an external data person/output means; the print output section, the conveyance means, the print control means and the interface circuit; In the invention according to claim 2, wherein the image scanner is housed in one housing, and the image scanner is provided separately from the housing, and is detachably connected to the image scanner via a wire harness, the conveying means is , a base plate formed of an insulator, a diaphragm disposed on the base plate and made of a good conductor, and a plurality of piezoelectric elements installed between the base plate and the diaphragm via electrode layers. and an AC generator that applies an AC voltage to the electrode layer of the piezoelectric element and generates a carrier wave on the sheet of paper placed on the diaphragm. , the above interface circuit is I
The invention according to claim 4, characterized in that the interface circuit is configured to be connectable to an interface circuit of a C card, wherein the interface circuit is configured to be connectable to an interface circuit of a host computer such as a personal computer. do.

According to the invention as set forth in claim 1 configured in this manner, the printer device consisting of the print output section, paper conveyance means, print control means, interface circuit, etc. is housed in one housing, and the printer device itself can be made flexible. The image scanner section can be configured as compact as possible, and the image scanner section is connected to the printer device separately via a wire harness.
As a result, the printer device can be made smaller, lighter, and space-saving, making it portable, and the scanner-equipped printer device can be easily and easily attached to a desk side or the like.

Moreover, since the image scanner unit is provided separately from the printer device, you can freely input image data from documents on your desk and print out the images from the desk-side printer device. It can be used close to you without leaving your seat, just like a personal computer, which expands its usability and improves work efficiency.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the conveying means is not conveyed by the frictional force of rollers as in the conventional case, but the paper on the vibrating plate is conveyed by a vibrating plate consisting of an electrode layer, a piezoelectric element, and a flat plate, and an alternating current generator. Since the printer is configured to be transported by an electric carrier wave, accurate and reliable transport can be performed, thereby improving printing accuracy.

Further, according to the invention as claimed in claim 3, since an interface circuit that enables data exchange with an IC card is provided in the main body of the printer device, data can be exchanged with an IC card, thereby expanding versatility. be able to.

Furthermore, according to the invention set forth in claim 4, since an interface circuit that enables data exchange with a host computer such as a personal computer is provided within the main body of the printer device, data can be exchanged with the host computer. This has the effect of further expanding versatility.

(Embodiment) Hereinafter, one embodiment of the scanner-equipped printer device of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

1 to 7 show an embodiment of a printer with a scanner according to the present invention, and FIGS. 1 to 3 are perspective views showing how the printer with a scanner is used.

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a printer device with a scanner according to the present invention, and shows a case where image data is read using a scanner section at a location remote from the printer device.

As shown in FIG. 1, on the side surface of the housing A of the printer device 3 constituting the printer device with scanner 1, there is a placement recess 3C in which the scanner section 2 is placed, and on the upper end side thereof. A printing paper insertion port 3a and a printing paper discharge port 3b are formed on the lower end side thereof, and a document insertion port for inserting manuscript paper X is provided adjacent to the insertion port 3a and the print paper discharge port 3b. A port 5 and a document discharge port 6 are formed. Furthermore, a sensor hole 4 for the image sensor 2a attached to the scanner section 2 is bored in the mounting recess 3C in which the scanner section 2 is disposed.

On the side of the housing A of the printer device 3 formed in this way, there is a desk side 99 of the desk 99 as shown in the figure.
It is removably attached to a by a magnet or the like.

On the other hand, the four parts 3C for mounting on the housing of the printer device 3
The scanner unit 2, which is removably mounted on the scanner unit 2, is connected separately to the printer device 3 via a wire harness 101, and an image sensor 2a is provided in the housing B of the scanner unit 2. The scanner section 2 is configured to be able to freely operate on the manuscript paper X placed on the desk top surface 99b.

3d in the figure is a tC card insertion slot formed in the housing A, which is connected to an interface circuit built in the housing A, which will be described later, and an interface circuit built in the IC card 100 shown in FIG. It is set up so that data can be exchanged.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of a printer device with a scanner according to the present invention, and is a perspective view showing how to use it as a type of copying device, with the scanner section disposed in the four mounting parts of the printer device. It is a diagram.

That is, in this case, the scanner section 2 is connected to the printer device 3.
When the original paper X is inserted into the original insertion slot 5, the original paper X is transported by a transporting means (to be described later) in the printer device 3. The image sensor 2a of the scanner section 2 is configured to read image data from the original document paper X.

FIG. 3 shows a case where a host computer is connected to a printer with a scanner to enable data exchange, which is a third embodiment of the printer with a scanner according to the present invention, and a case where an IC card is connected to the printer according to a fourth embodiment. 3 is a perspective view of the card inserted into the card insertion slot 3b of No. 3 to enable data exchange. FIG.

The case of the third embodiment will be explained based on FIG. 3. In this case, a host computer 103 such as a laptop type personal computer is placed on the top surface 99a of a desk, and the host computer 103 and the scanner-equipped printer device 1 are connected to each other. 23
2C table 102, host computer 1
The fourth embodiment is an example of data exchange with an IC card 100. Image data is stored in the memory of this IC card 100, and
By inserting the C card 100 into the card insertion slot 103b of the host computer 103, the IC card 100
The image data stored in the host computer 10
It is configured such that it can be read out from the screen 3a of No. 3 and printed out from a printer device 3, which will be described later.

Further, in the fourth embodiment, when the card 100 is inserted into the card insertion section 3d of the printer device 3, the IC card 100
The interface circuit of IC card 100 and the interface circuit of printer device 3 are connected to each other so that image data stored in IC card 100 can be printed out via printer device 3.

Next, the circuit configuration of the scanner-equipped printer device 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 will be explained in detail with reference to the circuit block diagram shown in FIG. 4.

Inside the housing A of the printer device 3, as shown within the broken line, a detection means 7 is disposed and connected to detect the printing paper P and input the detection signal to the PIA circuit 8, which is a control circuit. Further, the PIA circuit 8 is connected so as to drive and control the first transport means Z based on the input detection signal.

That is, when the printing paper P is inserted into the insertion slot 3 a of the printer device 3 , the detection means 7 detects the leading end of the printing paper P on the insertion side and outputs the detection signal to the PIA circuit 8 .

Then, the PIA circuit 8 issues a command to the conveyance means Z1 based on the detection signal, the conveyance means Z is driven, and the printing paper P is conveyed in the conveyance direction toward the printer head 9 side, which is the print output section. It is set as follows.

Further, the detection signal of the printing paper P input manually to the PIA circuit 8 is connected to be outputted to the MPU10, which is a control means that also serves as a print control means, via the BUS13.
The MPU10 is connected to a thermal printer head 9 via a printer interface circuit 11.

14 in the figure is a RAM connected to BUS13, and this R
AM14 stores the image data input from the separately provided scanner section 2 (15 is the data BU).
This is a program ROM connected to S13.

The above is compactly housed in the housing A of the printer device 3, and the interface circuit 12 is connected to the scanner section 2.
This interface circuit 12 can be connected to both the interface circuit of the IC card 100 and the interface circuit of the host computer 103 in addition to the image scanner 2a. It is provided.

That is, if the IC card 100 is inserted into the card insertion track 3d of the housing A of the printer device 3, the IC card 1
The interface circuit 00 and the interface circuit 12 are connected, and the host computer 103
The interface circuit and the interface circuit 12 of the printer device 3 are connected via the R3-232C 102, and the interface circuit 12 of the printer device 3 is connected to the IC card 100 inserted into the card insertion section 103b of the host computer 103. It is also connected to an interface circuit.

Furthermore, the internal structure of the scanner-equipped printer device 1 will be explained based on FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a state in which the scanner section 2 is attached to the printer device 3 shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG.

In this figure, a first conveying means Z1 for conveying printing paper P is provided at a predetermined interval from the bottom side of a housing A of a printer device 3, and this conveying means 2. The upper surface is formed to be flush with the lower surface of the insertion port 3a and the lower surface of the discharge port 3b for printing paper P formed in the housing A, and when the printing paper P is inserted from the insertion port 3a. , detected by the detection means 7 disposed above it,
The detection signal is input to the PIA circuit 8 shown in FIG. 4, and the first conveying means ZI is driven to convey the printing paper P toward the printer head 9.
0.21 is a driven roller that presses the printing paper P to prevent the printing paper P from bending.

Furthermore, a second conveyance means Z2 for conveying the manuscript paper is provided above the first conveyance means Z, and its upper surface is flush with the lower surface of the insertion port 5 and the lower surface of the discharge port 6 for the manuscript paper X. The sensor opening 4 shown in FIG. 1 is formed in the placement recess 3C of the housing A above the intermediate portion of the second conveyance means Z2.

Further, the sensor opening 4a communicates with a sensor opening 2b bored in the lower part of the housing B of the scanner section 2 to form a sensor hole 4, and a light source disposed diagonally above the sensor opening 2b. The LED array 53 is set so that the light from the LED array 53 passes through the sensor hole 4 and is irradiated onto the manuscript paper X placed on the second conveyance means Z2 and conveyed.
image data is read by an image scanner 2a disposed directly above the sensor hole 4.

In the figure, reference numerals 20b and 21b are parts of driven rollers that are disposed at the lower part of the housing of the scanner section 2 and also serve as operation rollers. Parts of the rollers 20 and 21 are exposed, and their axes are positioned and fixed by the housing B so as to lightly press the document paper X on the second conveyance means Z2 from above.

The second conveying means Z2 is set to rotate so that the document paper X is conveyed in the direction of the arrow, and the - side driven roller 21 moves the rotary encoder 54 to the belt
a, the photosensor 40 disposed opposite the rotary encoder 54 detects the rotation, and upon receiving the detection signal, the above-mentioned light source LED array 53 turns on.
It is designed to do N.

Here, the operating principles of the first conveyance means Z and the second conveyance means Z2 will be explained based on FIG. 6.

Note that since the first conveying means Z1 and the second conveying means Z2 have the same configuration, the explanation will be based on the second conveying means Z2, and the explanation of the configuration and operating principle of the first conveying means ZI will be omitted.

That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the second conveying means Z2 includes a base plate 29 formed thinly and flatly from an insulator, and a diaphragm disposed on the base plate 29 and made of a good conductor. 28, piezoelectric elements 22 to 24 located between the base plate 29 and the diaphragm 28 and attached via the upper electrode layers 25a, 26a, 27a and the lower electrode layers 25b, 26b, 27b, and the piezoelectric elements Electrode layers 22 to 24 25a and 25b, 26a and 26b, 27a and 27b
an AC generator 3 that applies an AC voltage to the diaphragm 28 and generates a carrier wave on the manuscript paper X placed on the diaphragm 28;
It is composed of 0.

Further, the AC generator 30 is set to send sine waves and Cos waves to the piezoelectric elements 22 and 24 so that the polarization directions of the piezoelectric elements 22 and 24 are opposite to each other.

Therefore, according to this second conveyance means Z2, when the AC generator 30 applies a Cos wave to the piezoelectric elements 22 and 24 and a sine wave to the piezoelectric element 23, the piezoelectric elements 22 and 24
Since the polarization direction is opposite to that of the piezoelectric element 22, the timing of expansion and contraction of each piezoelectric element is delayed by 90 degrees in the order of piezoelectric elements 22, 23, and 24, and a traveling wave is generated in the diaphragm 28 from left to right. It turns out. Then, each pair of driven rollers 20, 21 in contact with the diaphragm 28 rotate clockwise, thereby transporting the original X in the transport direction.

Although not shown, the AC generating device 30 is provided within the housing A of the printer device 3 with each conveying means ZI.
*The AC generating device 30, which is provided corresponding to Z2 and is on the side of the first conveyance means Zl, is controlled to be turned on and off by the PIA control means 8 shown in FIG. The means Z2 is controlled by a PIA circuit 55 in a housing B of the scanner section 2, which will be described later.

Next, the circuit configuration of the scanner section 2 will be explained based on FIG. 7.

54 is a rotary encoder also shown in FIG.
5, and this PIA circuit 55 is connected to the fifth
It is connected to the LED array 53 shown in the figure.

Further, the PIAu path 55 is connected to the start 5W 57 and also to a DIPSW 59 for setting color resolution and the like.

In the figure, 2a is an image sensor, and this image sensor 2a
is connected to an A/D shooting control circuit 50 that converts the analog signal into a digital signal via an amplifier circuit 49 that amplifies the analog signal of the image data input from the manuscript paper X, and halftone which is a binarization means. It is connected via a processor circuit 51 to an MPU 52 which is a control means. The MPU 52 is the interface circuit 12
and data BUS 69, and the interface circuit 12 is connected to the IC card 1 as shown in FIG.
00. It is connected to the host computer 103 and the interface circuit of the scanner section 2.

In the figure, 6-5 is a RAM connected to the A/D shooting control circuit, and a program OR0M 63 and a D-RAM 62 are connected to the data BUS 69.

Note that 66 in the figure is a line memory 66 connected to the halftone processor circuit 51, which stores an image signal for each line of the image data binarized by the halftone processor circuit 51.

Further, 67 is a pattern memory 67 connected to the halftone processor circuit 51, and is a storage memory for storing image data binarized by the halftone processor circuit 51 for each pattern. Note that since the circuit configuration of the scanner section 2 is the same as the conventional one, only a brief explanation of its operation will be provided.

This scanner section 2, when the start 5W57 is turned on,
As shown in FIG. 7, an image drawn on a handwritten picture or drawing is read by an image sensor 2a, and a halftone processor circuit 51, which is a binarization means, processes the image by an MPU and 52. Data is stored and accumulated in a memory in a host computer 103 such as a personal computer or a word processor, and is displayed on its display 103a.

Next, the main operations of each embodiment of the device of the present application will be explained.

A first embodiment, that is, a case where the image data of the document paper X on the desk top surface 99b is read using the scanner unit 2 and printed out by the printer device 3 attached to the desk side 99a will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, when inputting image data from manuscript paper X placed on the desk top surface 99b using the scanner section 2, the printing paper P is inserted into the insertion slot 3 of the printer device 3.
When the scanner unit 2 is inserted from the position a, placed on the document paper X, and operated as shown by the arrow, the driven rollers 20 and 21 of the scanner unit 2 will rotate as shown in FIG. The rotary encoder 54 rotates, the photosensor 40 detects it, and the detection signal is P as shown in FIG.
The input is input to the IA circuit 55, the light source LED array 53 irradiates desired image data on the manuscript paper X, and the image sensor 2a converts the irradiated image into analog signal image data via the amplifier circuit 49. The signal is input to the D-shooting control circuit 50.

In the A/D shooting control circuit 50,
The input image data is processed by the halftone processor circuit 5.
1 to the MPU 52.

The image data thus input to the MPU 52 is transmitted to the MPU 52 via the interface circuit 12 as shown in FIG.
The MPU 10 drives the printer head 9 via the printer interface circuit 11 under human power from the printer 10.

On the other hand, the printing paper P inserted into the insertion port 3a of the printer device 3 is detected by the detection means 7 before being conveyed by the first conveyance means Z, and the above-mentioned drive command for the printer head 9 of the MPU10 is sent. The printer head 9 is controlled so that it is conveyed directly below the printer head 9. Then, the printer head 9 sequentially prints out the image data inputted from the image sensor 2a onto the printing paper P, and when the printing is completed, the printed printing paper P is sent to the output port 3b of the printer device 3. It is discharged via the first conveying means Z1 and the series of operations is completed.

Therefore, in this case, the second conveying means Z2 is not driven.

In the second embodiment, the scanner section 2 is connected to the printer device 3.
A case will be described in which the device is used while being attached to the placement recess 3c.

In this case, since the original paper X and the printing paper P are inserted into the printer device 3, both the first transport means Z1 and the second transport means Z2 are driven, and the copying apparatus Can be used for purposes.

That is, in the state shown in FIG. 2, the desk side 9
A printer device 1 with a scanner is attached to 9a,
As shown in FIG. 5, when the original paper X and the printing paper P are inserted through the respective insertion slots 5 and 3a, the
, and the detection means 7, 7 of both conveyance means of the second conveyance means Z2.
detects the original paper P represents the image sensor 2a and the printer head 9
being carried to the side.

Therefore, in the scanner unit 2, when the photo sensor 40 detects the document paper X via the low-resolution encoder 54, the LED array 53 for the light source shown in FIG. The image data of is read by the image sensor 2a, and the image data of the MPU 52. The signal is input to MPU10 on the printer device 3 side via the interface circuit 12.

Then, the MPU 10, which is a timing control means, drives the printer head 9, and the printer head 9 prints out the manually inputted image data onto the printing paper P conveyed by the first conveyance means Z. It will be done.

In this way, the image sensor 1 of the image data of the manuscript paper
When reading by a is completed, the manuscript paper Then, it is transported to the discharge port 3b.

As described above, according to the scanner-equipped printer device 1 of this embodiment, while sitting at the desk 99, you can freely insert the document paper X you wish to copy into the insertion slot 5 of the printer device 3, and insert the printing paper P. By inserting it into the insertion slot 3a, it is possible to print out from the printer device 3 simply and easily.

That is, the scanner-equipped printer device 1 here is used like a copying device.

The main operations of the scanner-equipped printer device 1 in the third and fourth embodiments are the same as those in the first embodiment, so the explanation thereof will be omitted.

As is clear from the above description, according to the printer device with a scanner according to the present invention, the electric transport means is used as the transport means for the manuscript paper and printing paper, so that the printer main body can be made as small as possible. , it is lightweight and space-saving, so it can be easily placed on your desk, etc.
In addition to being easy to install, you can freely print out image data from manuscript paper while sitting at your desk, and you can use the scanner-equipped printer as if it were your own, improving office efficiency. In addition, since the paper is configured to be transported by electric carrier waves as a means of transporting the paper, it is possible to perform accurate and reliable transport, thereby improving printing accuracy. Since the main body is equipped with an interface circuit that can exchange data with an external data person/output means, it has the effect of increasing versatility.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the operation state of the scanner unit on the desk while attaching the main body of the printer device according to the present invention to a desk, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the state in which the scanner-equipped printer device according to the present invention is used.
3-232C cable, a perspective view showing the state of use with a host computer or an IC card attached, No. 4
The figure is a circuit block diagram showing the overall outline of the printer device with a scanner according to the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation principle of the conveying means according to the present invention in a partial cross section, and FIG. 7 is a circuit block diagram showing the internal circuit configuration of the scanner section according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional conveying means. 1... Printer device with scanner 2... Scanner section 2a... Image sensor 3... Printer device 9... Printer head (print output section) 10... MP
U (Printing control means) 12... Interface circuits 22-24... Piezoelectric elements 25a, 25b, 26a, 26b. 27a, 27b... Electrode 28... Vibration plate 29... Base plate 30... AC generator Zl... First conveying means (N feeding means) Z2... Second
Transport means (transport means) 100...IC card 101...Wire harness 103...Host computer

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image scanner unit that reads an image signal and converts it into an electrical signal; a print output unit that prints the signal read by the image scanner unit on paper; a conveyance means that conveys the paper in the conveyance direction; a print control means that controls the timing of printing between the print output unit and the conveyed paper; An interface circuit capable of exchanging data with data input/output means is provided, and the print output unit, conveyance means, print control means, and interface circuit are housed in one housing, and the image scanner is separate from the housing. A printer device with a scanner, which is installed on the body and is detachably connected to the body via a wire harness. 2. The conveyance means includes a base plate made of an insulator, a diaphragm disposed on the base plate and made of a good conductor, and attached via an electrode layer between the base plate and the diaphragm. applying an alternating current voltage to a plurality of piezoelectric elements and an electrode layer of the piezoelectric elements;
The scanner-equipped printer device according to claim 1, further comprising: an alternating current generating device that generates a carrier wave on a sheet of paper placed on the diaphragm. 3. A printer device with a scanner, wherein the interface circuit is configured to be connectable to an interface circuit of an IC card. 4. A printer device with a scanner, wherein the interface circuit is configured to be connectable to an interface circuit of a host computer such as a personal computer.