JPH09267520A - Manual printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: In a manual printer, it is possible to detect whether or not a recording medium is at an appropriate position without contaminating or scratching the recording medium. SOLUTION: The light emitting element 31 detects the amount of movement of the manual printer on the recording medium detected by a position detection circuit 26 and whether or not the recording medium is at a printable position facing the recording head 5. The CPU 16 generates a print timing signal based on the light-receiving element 32 and the non-contact detection result by the paper surface detection circuit 30. As a result, the printing operation of the recording head 5 can be controlled depending on whether or not the recording medium is present at a printable position, and the recording medium is not damaged when the recording medium is detected.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a manual printer, and more particularly to a technique for controlling execution / stop of a printing operation depending on whether or not a recording medium exists.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a manual printing apparatus has been proposed as an apparatus for printing on various recording media at desired locations. In the printing by the printing device, when the user manually scans the printing device on the recording medium at an arbitrary speed, a printing timing is generated from a roller portion which rotates in contact with the recording medium in association with the manual running. By ejecting ink based on However, this roller portion may rotate due to inertia even when it is in a non-contact state with the recording medium. In that case, when there is no recording medium at a position facing the recording head, or when the recording medium is the recording head. The ink was ejected even when it was greatly separated from the recording medium and the surrounding objects of the recording medium and the printing device were soiled. Therefore, in order to suppress the printing operation when there is no recording medium at the position facing the recording head, there has been proposed a manual printing device provided with means for detecting contact with the recording medium (Japanese Patent Publication No. 27948, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 2-1
No. 50252).

[0003]

However, according to the conventional manual printing apparatus as described above, the means for detecting the contact with the recording medium is such that the means itself comes into contact with the recording medium during printing. Contact between printing device and recording medium
Since the non-contact is detected, the recording medium may be damaged, and when the printing apparatus is an inkjet method, the non-dry ink may come into contact with the detection means, The recording medium may become dirty.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and detects whether or not the recording medium is at the proper position without making the recording medium or the like dirty or scratched, and makes it appropriate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a manual printing device capable of printing on a paper.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a manual printer according to the invention of claim 1 is a recording means for printing on a recording medium by manually scanning the recording medium. A manual type printing device comprising: a moving amount detecting means for detecting a moving amount when the device is run on a recording medium; and a recording method for determining whether or not there is a recording medium facing the recording means. A recording medium detecting means for detecting the medium in a non-contact manner, and a print timing signal generating means for generating a print timing signal by the recording means based on the detection signal from the recording medium detecting means and the detection signal from the movement amount detecting means. It is equipped with.

In the above arrangement, the recording medium detection means does not contact the recording medium with the amount of movement of the apparatus on the recording medium detected by the movement amount detection means and whether or not there is a recording medium facing the recording means. Since the print timing generation means generates the print timing signal by the recording means based on the result detected in step 1, the print operation by the recording means is performed depending on whether the recording medium is at the position facing the recording means. Can be controlled. Further, since the recording medium detecting means does not come into contact with the recording medium, the recording medium is not damaged or soiled at the time of detection.

The manual printer according to a second aspect of the present invention is the manual printer according to the first aspect, wherein the movement amount detecting means includes a roller portion that rotates on the recording medium. And a signal generation unit that generates a movement amount signal based on the number of rotations of the roller unit.

In the above arrangement, the movement amount detecting means is
A signal generation unit generates a movement amount signal based on the number of rotations of the roller unit. Since the roller portion rotates as the printing apparatus travels, it is possible to reliably obtain the data necessary for detecting the movement amount as the printing apparatus travels. This makes it possible to accurately detect the movement amount of the device.

A third aspect of the present invention is the manual type printing device according to the first or second aspect, wherein the recording medium detecting means emits light. And a light receiving portion for receiving the reflected light of the light on the recording medium.

In the above structure, the recording medium detection means determines whether or not the recording medium is at a position facing the recording means by receiving the reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting portion on the recording medium. Since detection is performed, this detection can be performed accurately and quickly.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a manual printing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the recording means comprises an ink jet recording means. It was done.

In the above structure, since the recording means is an ink jet type recording means, the structure is simpler than that of the wire dot type recording means using a printing ribbon or the like, and the entire apparatus can be downsized. Moreover, the printing can be performed more clearly.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a manual printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an external view of a manual printing apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, the body 1b of the manual printer 1 has a rectangular shape and is configured so that the user can easily support it by hand. A roller 2 (running means) is rotatably provided at the lower end of the body 1b. At the upper end of the body 1b, an interface unit 3 for infrared communication for transmitting and receiving various data such as print data to and from an external device is provided. In addition, the power supply to the body 1b is turned on and off,
Moreover, a switch 4 for selecting the print mode of the manual printer 1 is provided.

An ink jet type recording head (recording means) 5 is provided as recording means near the roller 2 of the body 1b. The roller 2 is configured to be supported by a frame 1c, and a projection 1d is formed on the frame 1c. The protrusion 1d is made of a material such as a resin having good slidability.

Then, the user supports the body 1b with his / her hand and rolls the roller 2 and the projection 1d on the recording medium (recording paper or the like) P.
Is scanned in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1 while contacting the print data, so that print data and the like input from the host computer are printed on the recording medium P. At the time of printing, the roller 2 and the projection 1d maintain the posture of the body 1 so that the position of the recording head 5 and the recording medium P is maintained at a constant position, and the roller 2 rotates by this scanning. Based on the rotation of the roller 2, the relative position between the recording head 5 and the recording medium P is detected, and predetermined printing is performed.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the internal structure of the manual type printing apparatus 1. At the lower end of the body 1b, a roller 2 is configured to be rotatable about a shaft 7. A recording head 5 is disposed behind the roller 2 in the scanning direction. Above the recording head 5, an ink tank 8 for supplying ink to the recording head 5 is arranged.

A pulley 9 is mounted on the shaft 7 of the roller 2.
It is arranged to rotate with the rotation of. Pulley 9
, A belt 10 is arranged to transmit the rotational force of the pulley 9 that rotates with the rotation of the roller 2 to the rotating disk 12 of the encoder 11. The encoder 11 is provided substantially near the center of the body 1b. The rotating disk 12 is provided with slits on the circumference at a predetermined interval, and the rotation number of the roller 2 (the recording head 5 and the recording medium 5 is changed by the photo interrupter 13 of the encoder 11 which is turned on / off by the rotation of the rotating disk 12). (Relative position with respect to P) is converted into an interval of the electric pulse signal and is input to the control device described later. The photo interrupter 13 is also configured to detect the rotation direction of the roller 2, thereby detecting the traveling direction of the manual printing device 1.

Above the inside of the body 1b, a CPU 16 (described later) for controlling the recording operation by the recording head 5, the detection operation by the photo interrupter 13, and the interface section 3 and the like provided for receiving print data. A control unit 14 including the above is arranged. A power supply 15 for supplying power to each of the functional blocks described later is arranged in the vicinity of the side. The power supply 15 includes a small power supply unit such as a dry battery and a device for stabilizing the power.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the recording head 5 and the roller 2 portion of the body 1b as seen from above. Hereinafter, the positional relationship between the recording head 5 and the roller 2 will be described with reference to FIG. At the tip of the recording head 5, a plurality of nozzles 5a are provided. The width is formed at a maximum L width (maximum recording width) in a direction perpendicular to the printing direction X (scanning direction) of the printing area. The roller 2 is disposed forward of the recording head 5 in the printing direction X. This roller 2 is, as described above,
The side portion is rotatably supported by the shaft 7. The portion M where the roller 2 comes into contact with the recording medium P is set so as to be within the area of the above-mentioned width L, and the protrusion 1d is set so as to maintain the same relationship. A light emitting element 31 and a light receiving element 32 (described later) are provided between the roller 2 and the recording head 5 as means for detecting the presence / absence of a recording medium.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the control system of the manual printer 1. CPU that controls the entire manual printing device 1
A host computer 21 is connected to 16 (print timing generation means) via the interface unit 3, and a ROM 22 storing a control program for controlling each functional block according to a predetermined program and an interface unit 3 RAM 2 for storing print data from the host computer 21 input via the
3 and an operation panel 24 including the switch 4 and the like
Is connected. Further, a pulse from the encoder 11 for measuring the number of rotations, the rotation speed, and the rotation direction of the roller 2 is input to a speed detection circuit 25 and a position detection circuit (movement amount detection means) 26, and the manual detection device is operated by these circuits. The speed and the relative position with respect to the recording medium P are detected, and this detection signal is input to the CPU 16. further,
The print head 5 and a head driver 33 for driving the print head 5 are connected to the CPU 16.

A paper surface detection circuit 30, a light emitting element (light emitting section) 31, which functions as a recording medium detecting means for detecting whether or not the recording medium P is located at a position facing the recording head 5.
The light receiving element (light receiving portion) 32 is also connected to the CPU 16. The light emitting element 31 projects light onto the recording medium, and the light receiving element 32 receives the light reflected on the recording medium P. The paper surface detection circuit 30 controls the light emitting element 31 and the light receiving element 32, and judges based on a signal from the light receiving element 32 whether the recording medium P is at a position facing the recording head 5. Output to the CPU 16.

The operation of the manual printing apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described. The manual type printing device 1 includes a ROM 22
Is operated in accordance with a predetermined program stored in the. The input of print data is performed by the CPU 16 when the mode for printing is selected by the switch 4.
The print data is input from the host computer 21 via the interface unit 3 by an infrared signal, and the input print data is temporarily stored in the RAM 23. CPU16
When the print start signal is received by operating the switch 4, after confirming that the print data is stored in the RAM 23, the manual printer 1 is set to the print standby state.

Next, when the CPU 16 determines that the manual printing device 1 is manually scanned by the user and the rotary disk 12 of the encoder 11 has rotated, the signals from the position detection circuit 26 and the paper surface detection circuit 30 are detected. When the recording medium P (paper surface) is detected based on the above, a print timing signal is generated. As a result, output control of print data is performed, and printing is performed on the recording medium P by driving the recording head 5. Therefore, even if the traveling speed of the body 1b on the recording medium P is not uniform, it is possible to always perform uniform printing on the recording medium P.

The control of the printing operation by the CPU 16 depending on whether the recording medium P is at the position facing the recording head 5 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing detection of the presence or absence of the recording medium P by the light emitting element 31 and the light receiving element 32. When printing is started by the manual printer 1, light is emitted from the light emitting element 31 according to an instruction from the paper surface detection circuit 30. When the recording medium P exists, the light is reflected by the recording medium P and reaches the light receiving element 32 (see FIG. 5A). When the recording medium P does not exist, the light emitted from the light emitting element 31 does not reach the light receiving element 32 (see FIG. 5B). The light receiving element 32 outputs the reflected light to the paper surface detection circuit 30 by a signal depending on whether or not the reflected light is received, and the paper surface detection circuit 30 detects the presence or absence of the recording medium P based on this signal. The position of the light receiving element 32 is
The reflected light is set to be received only when the recording medium P is within a printable distance from the recording head 5. Accordingly, it is possible to detect that the recording medium P is within the printable distance from the recording head 5 by the reception of the reflected light by the light receiving element 32, and the CPU 1
6 generates a print timing signal based on this detection signal.

Next, the print control performed in the manual printer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing for this print control. Manual printer 1 in which the user is trying to start printing
Is output (YES in S1), and then the recording medium P is within the printable distance from the recording head 5 based on the detection signal from the paper surface detection circuit 30. (YES at S2), a print timing signal is generated and output to the head driver 33 (S).
3). When there is no output from the encoder 11 in S1,
That is, when the traveling of the manual printer 1 is stopped (S1
NO), and the recording medium P is the recording head 5 in S2.
When it is detected that the print timing signal is not within the printable distance range (NO in S2), the output of the print timing signal is stopped and is not output to the head driver 33 (S4).

As described above, according to the manual printer 1 of this embodiment, the encoder 11 and the position detection circuit 26 detect the manual printer 1 based on the rotation amount of the roller 2.
Of the recording medium P and the detection signal of the paper surface detection circuit 30 indicating whether or not the recording medium P is within the printable distance from the recording head 5, the recording timing signal is generated. The printing operation of the recording head 5 can be controlled depending on whether or not is within the printable distance range. Therefore, even if the roller 2 rotates due to inertia, the printing operation is not performed in the state where the recording medium P does not exist.
The recording medium P (paper surface) is not soiled. Further, since the light emitting element 31 and the light receiving element 32 functioning as the recording medium detecting means do not come into contact with the recording medium P, the recording medium P is not damaged or soiled at the time of the above detection.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the recording medium display means is composed of the light emitting element 31, the light receiving element 32, and the paper surface detection circuit 30, but the recording medium display means is not necessarily limited to this structure, and recording is performed in a non-contact manner. Any structure may be used as long as it can detect the medium P. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the ink-jet system is used for the manual printing device 1, but the invention is not necessarily limited to the ink-jet system, and another printing system may be used.

[0028]

As described above, according to the manual printing apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, the movement amount on the recording medium of the apparatus detected by the movement amount detection means and the movement amount of the apparatus facing the recording means are opposite to each other. Since the print timing generating means generates the print timing by the recording means based on the result of whether the recording medium is detected by the recording medium detecting means without contacting the recording medium, the recording medium faces the recording means. The printing operation by the recording means can be controlled depending on whether or not the printing position is set. As a result, wasteful ink ejection can be eliminated and the surroundings of the printing device can be prevented from becoming dirty. Further, since the recording medium detecting means does not come into contact with the recording medium, it does not damage or stain the recording medium when detecting the recording medium.

According to the second aspect of the manual printer, the movement amount detecting means causes the signal generating portion to generate the movement amount signal based on the rotation speed of the roller portion.
Since this roller part rotates as the printing device runs,
The amount of movement of the printing device can be accurately detected.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the recording medium detecting means, the light receiving portion of the recording medium detecting means receives the light emitted from the light emitting portion and reflected by the recording medium. By detecting whether or not the recording medium is at a position facing the recording means, this detection can be performed accurately and quickly.

According to the manual type printing apparatus of the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the recording means is an ink jet type recording means, it is more preferable than the wire dot type recording means using a printing ribbon or the like. The configuration is simple, the entire apparatus can be downsized, and moreover, printing can be performed more clearly.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view of a manual printing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal configuration of the manual printing device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the recording head and the roller portion of the body of the manual printer as seen from above.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control system of the manual type printing apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state of detection of the presence / absence of a recording medium by a light emitting element and a light receiving element which function as a recording medium detecting unit.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing for controlling a printing operation in the manual printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Manual type printer 2 Roller 5 Recording head 11 Encoder (movement amount detection means) 16 CPU (print timing generation means) 26 Position detection circuit 30 Paper surface detection circuit (recording medium detection means) 31 Light emitting element (light emitting part) 32 Light receiving element (Light receiving part) 33 Head driver P Recording medium

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A manual printer comprising a recording means for printing on a recording medium by manually scanning the recording medium, wherein the amount of movement when the device is run on the recording medium is detected. A moving amount detecting means, a recording medium detecting means for detecting whether or not the recording medium exists facing the recording means without contacting the recording medium, a detection signal from the recording medium detecting means, and the movement And a print timing signal generating means for generating a print timing signal by the recording means based on a detection signal from the quantity detecting means. 2. The moving amount detecting means comprises a roller unit that rotates on the recording medium, and a signal generating unit that generates a moving amount signal based on the number of rotations of the roller unit. Item 2. The manual printer according to Item 1. 3. The recording medium detecting means comprises a light emitting section for emitting light and a light receiving section for receiving reflected light of the light on the recording medium. The manual printer according to any of the above. 4. The manual printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording means is an ink jet recording means.