JPH03178456A - Thermal head device of electronic labeller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To accurately maintain parallel of a thermal head to a platen roller by swing of a fulcrum when the thermal head comes in contact with the platen roller by a method wherein a journal which supports releasably a rear part of a fulcrum supports the fulcrum at its center swing supporting point. CONSTITUTION:A releasably supporting mechanism 46 is so installed as to composed a pivot of a fulcrum 42, which is equipped with a bearing hole part 461 formed to a rear part of the fulcrum 42, a journal 462 inserted into this hole part 461, and a swing supporting point provided to eather of the journal 462 or an inner wall of the hole part 461, for instance, an annular projection 463 provided to the inner wall of the hole part, and is so constructed that the bearing hole part 461 can swing by the swing supporting point, i.e. the fulcrum 42 can swing in the arrow direction to the journal 462. Therefore, since the fulcrum 42 can bring a thermal head 45 which it has accurately fast in contact with a platen roller 51, uniform density printing can be accurately performed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION <Industrial Application Field> The present invention relates to a thermal head device provided to print on a label in an electronic labeler.

<Prior art> This type of thermal head device is known, for example, from the special
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 76, the label is configured to print a required print, for example, a bar code, on the label in response to an input signal from a keyboard, and the labels are sequentially pasted onto a transfer tape. The transfer tape is configured to sequentially contact the thermal head by moving the transfer tape.

The label tape, in which labels are successively attached to the transfer tape, is spread on a heat-resistant platen roller, and is printed by a thermal head using this platen roller as a support, and this label tape is placed between the thermal head and the platen roller. It is transferred by the rotation of the platen roller while being pinched by the rollers.

<Problem to be solved by the invention> In such a thermal head device, it is necessary for the thermal head to be in full contact with the platen roller with uniform pressure. There is a problem in that it is difficult to accurately maintain parallelism between the head and the platen roller, and the printing on the label often becomes partially unclear.

Means for Solving the Problems> As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the device of the present invention includes a support mechanism 4 at the rear of a support frame 42 to which a thermal head 45 is attached.
6.

This support mechanism 46 includes a bearing hole 461 formed at the rear of the support frame 42 and a support shaft 46 inserted into the hole 461.
2 and either one of this support shaft 462 and the inner wall of the hole,
It consists of an annular projection located at the axial center of the support shaft.

Function> In the device of the present invention, since the support shaft 46 supporting the rear part of the support frame 42 supports the support frame at the swinging fulcrum 463 in the center, both ends of the support frame 42 are It becomes possible to swing in the direction of the arrow in Figure 7.

Therefore, even if the platen roller 51 is not exactly parallel to the support shaft 462, the parallelism of the thermal head 45 to the platen roller 51 can be accurately maintained by swinging the support frame 42 when the thermal head 45 makes contact. .

Embodiment Example A labeler using the device of the present invention has an operating section IO, a converting section 20, and a mechanism section 30, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. 30 constitutes a housing.

The operation section 10 is provided with an input keyboard section 11 and a display section 12 for displaying input signals from the keyboard section 11, such as a liquid crystal panel.The keyboard section 11 and the display section 12 have a rectangular shape. It is arranged on the surface side of the operation unit exterior body 13.

The converting section 20 is provided on the back side of the operation section exterior body 13 so as to extend rearward from one end of the exterior body 13, for example, in a right angle direction, and a power source 21 such as a dry battery is installed inside. It is accommodated.

The mechanism section 30 is arranged in parallel with the converting section 20 and the operating section 1.
0, and its extending end side is removably connected to the extending end of the curved part 20, so that below the curved part 20, the part and operation section 10
A finger-rest window 22 is formed by the mechanism portion 30 and the mechanism portion 30 .

The mechanism section 30 has a case 31 integrally molded with the exterior body 13 of the operation section 10, and the case 31 includes opening/closing means for opening and closing the bottom frame, for example, a push button 32, a main switch piece 33, A cut window 311 for checking the remaining amount of labels and a pressing roll 34 for pasting the label are provided, and this pressing roll 34 is provided below the proximal end of the case 31 in contact with the exterior body 13.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the operation unit 10 includes a printed circuit board 141 behind the front panel 131 of the exterior body 13.
An electric circuit 14 consisting of 142 etc. is built-in,
By operating the keys on the keyboard section 11, an input signal is given to the electric circuit 14, and a printed symbol 1 obtained by this input signal, for example, a number indicating a bar code to be printed, is displayed on the display section 12 and is provided on the operation section IO. The starting switch 15 is configured to print on the label as described later.

The converting section 20 has a support shaft provided at the extending end of the case 31 constituting the mechanism section 30, for example, as shown by the chain line in FIG. 3, so that the internal battery can be charged or the internal battery can be replaced. The inner end is configured to be able to rotate outward using 312 as a fulcrum.

In the embodiment, the connecting part 20 is configured to be replaceable as a whole, and therefore the locking part 2 formed at the extending end is
3 is made to be detachable from the support shaft 312.

For this purpose, a starting switch 15 is provided in the operating section 10 along the conversion section 20, and this starting switch 15
is combined with a terminal holder 151 and fixed to the operating section 10, and connected to the electric circuit 1 via the terminal holder 151.
It is configured to operate 4.

On the other hand, the converting section 20 is provided with a connector 24, so that when the converting section 20 is connected to the operating section 10, the connector 24 and the terminal holder 151 are connected and the power source 21 is connected to the electric circuit 14. It is configured to be connected to.

In the above, the power source 21 may be an external power source that the user carries by attaching it to his or her waist, and in this case, the electric circuit 14 is connected to a cord by means of a connecting means provided in the conversion section 20, for example. It is connected to an external power supply via the

The converting portion 20 is provided with a locking mechanism 25 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and the locking piece 2 of this locking mechanism 25 is
51 is engaged with a retaining portion of the exterior body 13, for example, an engagement hole 152 provided in the terminal holder 151, whereby the grip s20 is fixed using the support shaft 312 as a fulcrum.

The mechanism section 30 includes a printing section 40, a bottom frame 50° label tape holder 60, and a drive mechanism 70.
The printing unit 4 has a label tape holder 60 wrapped with a transfer tape 80 on which a large number of labels 81 are sequentially attached.
0 is the pressing roll 34 as shown in FIGS. 3 to 7.
A cam piece 41 is provided in the case 31 close to the main switch piece 33 and is connected to the main switch piece 33.The cam piece 41 releases the cam piece 41 during printing, but when printing is stopped, the cam piece 41 moves in the direction away from the label 81, that is, upward in FIG. a support frame 42 that is rotated toward the label 81; a spring 43 that constantly presses the support frame 42 toward the label 81;
When the supporting frame 42 is rotated toward the cam piece 41, that is, when the supporting frame 42 is released from the cam piece 41, the supporting frame 42 is activated and closes the electric circuit 14 in an operating state. a microswitch 44 which is operated by the support frame 42 to open the electric circuit 14 to an inoperable state when the support frame 42 is rotated against the spring 43, that is, when the support frame 42 is separated from the label 81; The above electric circuit 14
a thermal head 45 that prints a bar code corresponding to the input signal from the keyboard switch 11 on the label 81 when the start switch 15 is operated, and a support mechanism that further supports the support frame 42. 46.

As mentioned above, the cam piece 41 is made to interlock with the main switch piece 33, and when the main switch piece 33 is in the operating position as shown by the chain line in FIG. 5, it releases the support frame 42 as shown. When the main switch piece 33 rotates in the direction of the arrow and moves to the non-operating position, it rotates counterclockwise in the figure to rotate the support frame 42 against the spring 43.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the thermal head 45 of the support frame 42 is activated by the platen roller 50 on the bottom frame 50 side only during printing.
Since the platen roller 51 is in pressure contact with the platen roller 51, it is possible to prevent the surface of the platen roller 51 from being constantly deformed due to the pressure received.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the supporting frame 42 is connected to an outer frame 421.
and a frame plate 422 that is fitted into the outer frame 421, and the thermal plate 45 is attached to the surface of the frame plate 422 facing the label, and the frame plate 4
22 and the outer frame 421 are connected to a pair of coupling screws 423 and 42 screwed perpendicularly to the axis of the platen roller 51.
3, and this pair of screws 423.42
By adjusting the degree of screw engagement of 3, it is possible to adjust the heat generating portion of the thermal head 45 to be located on the axis of the platen roller 51.

Furthermore, the frame plate 422 is made of a material with good heat conductivity and has a heat sink 424, which is designed to dissipate the heat generated from the thermal head 45.

The support mechanism 46 is provided so as to constitute a pivot point for the support frame 42, and in the embodiment, the support mechanism 46 is inserted into a bearing hole 461 formed at the rear of the support frame 42 and inserted into the hole 461. The supporting shaft 462 and the supporting shaft 462 or the hole 461
A swing fulcrum provided on one of the inner walls of the hole, for example, an annular protrusion 46 provided on the inner wall of the hole as shown in FIG.
3, and the bearing hole 4 is provided with the swing fulcrum.
61, therefore, the support frame 42 is configured to be able to swing in the direction of the arrow with respect to the support shaft 462.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the support frame 42 supports the thermal head 4 against the platen roller 51.
5 can be placed in close contact with each other, it is possible to accurately print with uniform density.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the bottom frame 50 is provided with a platen roller 51 on the rotating end side that presses against the thermal head 45 via the label 81, and a transfer tape on the tip side of the platen roller 51. For example, a small-diameter pin 52 is provided on the peeling member 1 for folding back the pin 5.
A space 501 for inserting the transfer tape 80 is provided in front of the case 2, and a protrusion 53 for a label guide forming a rotation end of the bottom frame is provided in front of the space 501. 31, the rotating end having the protrusion 53 can be rotated as shown by the chain line in FIG. 3 to open the bottom of the case 31, or close the bottom of the case 31 as shown in the solid line. This is a structure that will allow him to make a comeback.

The bottom frame 50 is configured to be locked or released by the push button 32, and for this reason, the bottom frame 50
An engagement piece 502 is provided on the engagement piece 502, and the engagement piece 321 of the push button 32 engages with this engagement piece 502 when the push button is operated.
It is designed to escape.

In the embodiment, the locking piece 321 is fixed to the push button 32,
When the bottom frame 50 is closed, the locking piece 321 retreats along the inclined edge of the engaging piece 502 and is urged toward the retaining piece 502 by a spring (not shown) to engage.
Therefore, the bottom frame 50 is released by pressing the push button and sliding it in a direction against the spring.

The bottom frame 50 further includes a sensor means for detecting the position of the label, such as a position sensor 55 using a photoelectric conversion element.
is supported by a support plate 551, and this sensor 5
5, the label 81 is accurately positioned in the thermal head 4.
The operation of the drive mechanism 70 is controlled so that the drive mechanism 70 is in contact with the drive mechanism 5.

For this purpose, detection marks 82 are printed at regular intervals on the back side of the transfer tape 80 as shown in FIG. 8, and when the sensor 55 detects the marks 82, the electric circuit
It is designed to send drive control signals to 4.

After the transfer tape 80 is folded back by the pin 52, it is run along the outer surface of the bottom frame 50, and then
It is fed into the frame through a cut window 503 formed in the frame and is intermittently transported by the drive mechanism 70.

Furthermore, the bottom frame 50 has an appropriate number of guide rollers 56 that can adjust the width of the guide surface according to the label width, a guide roller 561 provided near the cut window 503 of the bottom frame, and a guide roller 561 provided on the top side of the bottom frame. Guide means such as a tape presser 562 are provided, and a detection switch 57 for confirming the closed state of the bottom frame 50 is attached to the case 31 side.

The detection switch 57 is connected, for example, in series with the microswitch 44, and is designed so that the electric circuit 14 does not operate when the bottom frame 50 is not completely closed.

The bottom frame 50 is provided with a label tape guide 58 as shown in FIGS. 4, 9 to 11. Rotors 581, 581 are respectively provided inside both sides of the rotor 581, and each rotor 581 is provided with two stop pieces 5B2,
583 are provided so that these stop pieces are positioned at predetermined intervals, and when the outer stop pieces 582 stand upright, the width W between the stop pieces increases as shown in FIG. 9, and the inner stop pieces 583 As shown in Fig. 11, when the stop pieces stand upright, the width W between the stop pieces is small. A matching notch 581a is provided, and an elastic locking piece 581b extending from the bottom frame 50 side is engaged with this as shown in FIG. 10.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the label tape guide 58 can be adjusted to suit two types of labels having different widths.

Furthermore, the bottom frame 50 is provided with a label tape holder 60 as shown in FIGS. 4, 12 to 15, and a transfer tape 80 on which labels 81 are sequentially pasted is attached to the label tape holder 60. While being wound, this transfer tape 80 is passed through the label guide 58, folded back at the bottle 52, stretched along the outer surface of the bottom frame 50, and fed into the case through the cut window 503.

This label tape holder 60 is attached to the above label guide 58.
Similarly, it is designed so that the holder width can be changed to accommodate two types of labels with different widths.

For this purpose, the label tape holder 60 is fixed to the bottom frame 50 and has a support frame 61 with a receiver 611 projecting in a direction transverse to the bottom frame 50, and is fitted onto the outer side of the receiver of the support frame 61. It is composed of an outer sleeve 62 and an inner sleeve 63 that is fitted inside the receiver tube of the support frame 61.
11 has two locking holes 812 and 813 arranged in parallel in its axial direction.

Further, the outer sleeve 62 is provided with a tape retainer 621 on the outside and a projection 622 on the inner surface that selectively engages with the locking holes 612 and 613. A tape presser 631 is provided on the outside, and a protrusion 632 that selectively engages with the locking holes 612 and 613 is provided on the outer surface.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the protrusion 622 of the outer sleeve 62 engages with the outer locking hole 612, and the protrusion 632 of the inner sleeve 63 engages with the inner locking hole 612.
3, a pair of label pressers 621,
631 becomes wider, and conversely, as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the protrusion 622 of the outer sleeve 62 engages with the inner locking hole 613, and the protrusion 632 of the inner sleeve 63 engages with the outer locking hole 613. When it is attached to the hole 612, a pair of label pressers 62
The width W between 1.631 and 1.631 becomes narrower.

Therefore, in this embodiment, both the inner and outer sleeves 62 and 63
Since the width W between the label presses changes by moving in the cross direction to the same size, the center of this width W & the position of the IC remain unchanged.
Therefore, there is an effect that the printing center on the label 81 is always constant.

The label tape holder 60 has an outer sleeve 62
Since the label transfer tape 80 is wrapped around the
Normally, the label presser 631 of the inner sleeve 63 is rotated outward as shown by the chain line in FIG. 15 to insert the rolled transfer tape 80.

Inside the case 31 of the mechanism section 30, a motor 71 driven by the electric circuit 14 and a feed roll 72 rotated by the motor 71 are provided. A drive mechanism 70 composed of a roll 72 and a pressure roll 73 provided in pressure contact with each other is built in, and the drive mechanism 70 moves the transfer tape 80 inserted through the cut window 503.

In the embodiment, a reduction gear 74 is provided between the feed roll 72 of the drive mechanism 70 and the motor 71, and this gear 74 is connected to the gear 721 of the feed roll 72 and the drive gear 7 of the motor 71.
The spindle 722 of the feed roll 72 is connected to an external attachment through a connection hole formed in the case 31.

Furthermore, the pressing roll 73 is applied with a pressing force by a spring 75 provided on the bottom frame 50, and this spring 75 is also used to urge the bottom frame 50 in the opening direction. When the bottom frame 50 is released by operating the push button 32, the bottom frame 5
0 protrudes outside the case 31 with a spring 75.

Furthermore, a discharge guide 76 for the transfer tape 80 is provided in the case 31, and the transfer tape 80 is disposed on the feed roll 72.
While being sent out by the pressure roll 73, the paper is discharged to the outside from the discharge window 313 of the case 31 via the discharge guide 76, and is cut at any time by a cutter 314 provided in the discharge window 313.

The transfer tape 80 has a detection mark 82 on the back side as described above.
is printed and a large number of labels 81 made of, for example, heat-sensitive paper are successively pasted on the front side, and a motor 71 is driven by a control signal obtained from the detection mark 82 to display a predetermined number of labels. Thermal head 4 while being sent to the length
5, the barcode selected using the keyboard 11, for example, is printed.

Support shaft 722 of the feed roll 72 in the drive mechanism 70
As an external attachment to connect with.

For example, a printer attachment 90 as shown in FIGS. 16 to 20 can be considered.

As shown in FIGS. 18 to 20, this attachment 90 includes a receiving shaft 91 coupled to the support shaft 722 of the feed roll 72, a toothed pulley 92 coupled to the receiving shaft 91,
A toothed belt 93 rotated by this pulley 92,
A toothed pulley 9 on the receiving side rotated by this belt 93
4, a feed roll 95 that is rotated by the rotation of the pulley 94, and a feed roll 95 that incorporates each of the above components.
5 is brought into pressure contact with the pressing roll 34.
The mounting case 96 includes, for example, a support piece 97 that is inserted into the case 31 of the mechanism section 30 and is locked by the bottom frame 50, thereby being fixed to the case 31. It is structured like this.

Therefore, when installing the attachment (attachment) 90,
As shown by the chain line in the figure, rotate the bottom frame 50 to attach the mounting case 96.
The support pieces 97 may be received in the case 31.

In this attachment 90, the feed roll 95 is in pressure contact with the pressing roll 34, and the label 81 can be sent out together with the transfer tape 80 as shown in FIG. If the attached state is inserted between the feed roll 95 and the presser roll 34, a printed label having the transfer tape 80 as a mount can be obtained.In other words, if this attachment 90 is used,
There is an advantage that the labeler of the present invention can be used as a printer.

Note that the cover 96 of the above attachment 90 has a locking part 96.
1 is provided, and it is desirable to configure it so that it is locked in the connecting hole 315 of the case 31, as shown in FIG.

<Effects of the Invention> In this way, the device of the present invention has the supporting frame 42 that supports the thermal head 45 swingably attached to the supporting shaft 462.
Since the parallelism of the thermal head 45 to the platen roller 51 can be accurately obtained, it is possible to automatically obtain full contact between the thermal head 45 and the platen roller 51, so that printing on the label 81 can always be clearly performed. It is possible to maintain the parallelism between the platen roller 51 and the thermal head 45, and the troublesome work of adjusting the relative parallelism between the platen roller 51 and the thermal head 45 can be eliminated.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a labeler using the device of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a rear view thereof; Fig. 3 is a partially cutaway side view showing the main parts of the labeler; Fig. 4 shows parts of the labeler of the present invention. An exploded perspective view, FIG. 5 is an enlarged side view showing the printing section of the above labeler, FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the support frame of the above printing section, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view illustrating the support mechanism of the above printing section. Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the back side of the transfer tape used in the labeler of the present invention, Fig. 9 is a cutaway front view of the essential parts of the bottom frame used in the same labeler, showing the label tape guide provided in the bottom frame; Figure 1θ shows the essential parts of the upper bottom frame, and is a sectional view taken along line io-io in Figure 9. Figure 11 is a sectional view showing a deformed state of the label tape guide shown in Figure 9. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the label tape holder of the labeler, FIG. 13 is a front view thereof, FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the label tape holder in a deformed state, and FIG. 15 is a front view thereof. FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing another usage example of the above labeler,
Fig. 7 is a side view of the labeler shown in Fig. 16, Fig. 18 is a vertical sectional view showing the main parts of the labeler shown in Fig. 16, Fig. 19 is a perspective view of an attachment used in the labeler shown in Fig. 16, and Fig. 20. is an exploded perspective view of the same attachment. In the figure, 42 is a support frame, 43 is a spring, 45 is a thermal head,
46 is a support mechanism, 461 is a bearing hole, 462 is a support shaft, 4
Reference numeral 63 indicates an annular projection as a swinging fulcrum, 51 a platen roller, 80 a transfer tape, and 81 a label. Fig. 5 44 1 Fig. 6 24 1st Ogang 1I Fig. 1, □'' 15

Claims (1)

[Claims] The support mechanism includes a thermal head driven by an electric circuit, a support frame to which the thermal head is attached, a spring that biases the support frame toward the platen roller, and a support mechanism that supports the support frame. The rear part of the supporting frame is pivotally supported by the thermal head device, and the thermal head is rotatably supported so as to move toward and away from the platen roller, and the supporting mechanism is formed in the rear part of the supporting frame. a bearing hole, a support shaft inserted into the hole, and a swinging fulcrum provided on either the support shaft or an inner wall of the hole, and the swinging fulcrum is arranged in the support shaft. The frame is configured to contact the axial center of the support shaft so that both ends of the frame can swing, and the attitude of the thermal head with respect to the platen roller is adjusted by the swing of the support frame. Thermal head device of electronic labeler features.