GB2264926A - Ink ribbon cartridge: ribbon guides - Google Patents

Description

2264926 INKING RIBBON CARTRIDGE This invention relates to an inking ribbon

cartridge for an endless inking ribbon and especially to an inking ribbon bar cartridge.

European Patent Application 0158963 describes an inking ribbon cartridge for an endless ribbon with a cartridge housing in which a ribbon drive is arranged on the ribbon lead-in side, which ribbon drive is actuated by a printer drive. Such cartridge housings, especially when constructed as inking ribbon bar cartridges, comprise webshaped guide channels at the ends, the inking ribbon being inserted through the ribbon lead-in side between two rollers. Inside the cartridge housing meandering loop formation occurs, loop being positioned next to loop to produce a tightly packed element which is formed on the ribbon lead-in side and is constantly dismantled on the ribbon delivery side.

Such inking ribbon cartridges lie flat in the operating position, i.e. horizontally in a printer. The inking ribbon therefore runs in parallel with a printer counter head or abutment. The ribbon stands on its edge inside the cartridge housing in a ribbon storage space. When leaving the guide channel on the inking ribbon delivery side or entering the guide channel on the ribbon lead-in side it retains its edgewise position. This construction is employed with a cylindrical print abutment, i.e. a roller, or to an upright beam. Therefore, on one side of the inking ribbon there is located the print abutment and on the other side the print head with the print elements. It is, therefore, necessary for the inking ribbon cartridge to be swivelled inwards and downwards when being replaced and for the (loose) ribbon running between the guide channels to be fed into the gap between print abutment and print head. In addition, the known inking ribbon system requires a ribbon guide in the f orm of a shield attached to the print head. Feeding-in between print abutment and ribbon guide shield is thereby made even more dif f icult. However, replacement of a used ribbon cartridge should be possible for any apparatus user.

2 It is an object of the invention to overcome these problems of difficult feedingin of the ribbon and fundamentally to simplify insertion of a new inking ribbon cartridge.

An inking ribbon cartridge f or an endless inking ribbon, in accordance with the invention, comprises a cartridge housing in which there is provided a ribbon drive on the ribbon lead-inside and a ribbon storage space in which the ribbon lies in an edgewise position on a support base, the inking ribbon on the ribbon delivery side being moved out of the edgewise position by means of a f irst deflection device at an inclined angle to the axis of the first deflection device and being deflected to an operating position by a second deflection device perpendicularly to the axis thereof and, on the ribbon lead-in side, being drawn in, in reverse sequence, by like deflection devices.

The advantages of this include the fact that, owing to the flat running of the ribbon (in parallel with the support base), the ribbon cartridge may be used as both a flat and an upright ribbon cartridge, axial running of the print head merely having to be arranged perpendicularly to the ribbon surface, which generally requires a print head which can be swivelled away. However, of particular advantage is the fact that insertion of the ribbon cartridge may be effected by positioning the ribbon in front of the print elements of the print head and only then clamping a ribbon guide over the ribbon onto the print head. In this way, viewing of the printer units is ergonomically optimal.

The ribbon cartridge lies in an approximately horizontal plane in the operating position in the printer, the inking ribbon being deflected on the ribbon delivery side in the direction of a print abutment or counter surface of the printer running parallel in the operating position.

Advantageously, deflection rollers are provided between which the ribbon lies outside the ribbon storage k 3 space in a plane parallel to or slightly inclined with respect to the support base plane of the support base, the arrangement being such that, in the operating position, the ribbon runs horizontally and flat, i.e. in parallel with the printing face of a print abutment of a printer with which the cartridge is used. In addition to reducing friction, the rollers serve to ensure parallelism, to obtain precise directional running.

The housing may include guidance channels on the ribbon leadin delivery side, the deflection devices being provided at the end of the guide channel.

According to a further embodiment, arms are arranged on the ribbon leadin side and on the ribbon delivery side, which arms form a guide connection for the ribbon with a plane at a distance from the cartridge housing, this plane and the support base plane of the ribbon storage space running parallel with each other or at an acute angle to each other. The advantage of this lies in the fact that by means of the arms the ribbon is positioned in front of the orifice of the prin.L head, the latter being capable of movement to and fro between the arms. The printing elements of the print head therefore lie against the inside of the ribbon surface, whereby a considerable saving in space is achieved in the construction of the printer. The print head in effect lies inside the space between the front of the cartridge housing and the plane of the ribbon.

on the ribbon delivery side, the ribbon may be guided between a deflection roller and the first deflection device to turn the ribbon through a slit opening running parallel with the support base. In this way, the ribbon may be turned after each passage through the ribbon storage space and acted on from the other side.

Advantageously, taut guidance of the ribbon between the ribbon delivery side and the ribbon lead-in side is produced by a brake spring lying flat against the ribbon on the ribbon delivery side in the area between the first and second deflection devices.

4 Corresponding tensile forces, which may differ on the ribbon delivery side from the ribbon lead-in side, may be generated by the first inclined deflection devices running at approximately the same angle on the ribbon delivery side and the ribbon lead-in side.

Suitably, to supply ribbon with fresh ink after each run-through, the ribbon is guided in the guide channel on the ribbon lead-in side along an end wall of the cartridge housing and about a corner roll. The corner roll is in contact with an ink supply roll and transmits the ink therefrom, onto the ribbon running over the corner roll.

On the ribbon lead-in side the corner roll is advantageously driveable by the ribbon itself and the corner roll interacts with a roll-shaped ink storage member and acts simultaneously as a rotary drive for the ink storage member.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of an inking ribbon cartridge in accordance with the invention, the cover of which is partially broken away; Figure 2 is a side view of the side wall of the ribbon cartridge of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an end view of the ribbon cartridge of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the ribbon cartridge of Figure 1 without cover and without other further parts; Figure 5 is a plan view of the left-hand area of the housing of the cartridge of Figure 1 without cover and without additional component parts; Figure 6 is an enlarged representation of a detail of Figure 4, relating to the arm; Figure 7 is a plan view corresponding to Figure 6; Figure 8 is a side view corresponding to Figure 6; and Figure 9 shows a printer incorporating the inking ribbon cartridge of Figure 1.

The inking ribbon cartridge 1 shown in the Figures is constructed as an inking ribbon bar cartridge la. The inking ribbon cartridge 1 comprises a cartridge housing 2 with a cover 2a. The ribbon cartridge 1 has a ribbon leadin side 3 (on the right in Figure 1) and a ribbon delivery side 5 (on the left in Figure 1). on the ribbon lead-in side 3 there is arranged a ribbon drive 4, which draws in a ribbon 11. On a ribbon drive roller 4a the ribbon drive 4 comprises a small handwheel 4b on the top 2b of the cover 2a, which is arranged on the through ribbon drive shaft 4c. The cover 4d is open over half its periphery so that the handwheel 4b is half covered. Upon insertion of the ribbon cartridge 1, the ribbon drive shaft 4c is received in a corresponding printer coupling, as shown in Figure 9. The ribbon 11 then lies flat against a print abutment or counter head and is then located in the operating position 7, which is finally reached by swivelling a housing part 46 c.f. Figure 9.

Web-shaped guide channels 18 are constructed on the ribbon housing 2 on both the ribbon lead-in side 3 and the ribbon delivery side 5, in which guide channels 18 the ribbon 11 does not, however, lie perpendicularly as in the inside 8 of the cartridge housing 2. In the inside 8 there is provided a ribbon storage space 9 with a support base 10, on which stands the narrow side edge lia of the ribbon 11. This edgewise position 12 can be clearly seen in Figure 1.

The ribbon 11 is then drawn on the ribbon delivery side 5 out of its edgewise position 12 on the support base 10 via a first deflection device in the form of a profile 13 with an inclined axis 14 (Figure 3) and conveyed by a second deflection device in the form of a profile 15 round the same, the ribbon 11 being deflected into a ribbon transport direction 11b - c.f. Figure 1 - and being driven 6 and guided by the ribbon drive 4, a tensile force being maintained. The arrangement of the first deflection profiles is parallel on both sides, at the same acute angle as shown. The deflection profiles 15 run in parallel, as shown, on the ribbon delivery side 5 and the ribbon lead-in side 3.

Friction over the deflection profiles 13 and 15 is reduced by rollers 19 arranged on the axis 14 of the first deflection prof ile 13 and on an axis 16 of the second deflection profile 15. The rollers 19 are supported by means of roller journals 40' or in short guide journals 40 at both ends. Such rollers 19 are provided both on the inclined axis 14 and at the end 17 of the guide channel 18. The ribbon 11 conveyed around the rollers 19 forms a ribbon plane 20 from the ribbon delivery side 5 as far as the ribbon lead-in side 3.

This plane 20 either runs parallel to or slightly inclined (by only a few degrees) with respect to a support base plane 21, which is practically identical to the support base 10. Thus, in the operating position 7 the ribbon 11 lies flat on a print face 22 of the print abutment 6 (Figure 9).

The distance between the ribbon 11 and the cartridge housing 2 (Figure 1) is variable and depends on the structural features of a printer (Figure 9). The distance depends, for example, on the form of dimensions of a print head 48. For this reason, arms 23 are formed of guide channels 18 of approximately conical outline at the ribbon lead-in side 3 and the ribbon delivery side 5, which arms 23 are present symmetrically at both ends of the cartridge housing. The arms 23 form a guide connection 24 for the ribbon 11 for maintaining the plane 20. The plane 20 permits the print head 48 to be immersed in the ribbon cartridge 1 by the spacing dimension, such that a considerable a-mount of structural space can be saved. The print head 48 does not have to be precisely perpendicular; it could also be arranged at an acute angle to the support 7 1 base plane 21, whereby the accessibility and visibility of the print face 22 of the print abutment 6 becomes ergonomically more favourable.

on the ribbon delivery side 5, a slit opening 26 (Figure 4) is formed between the cartridge housing 2 and the cover 2a, which opening 26 consists of two ribs 26a on the side of the cartridge housing 2. The ribbon 11, as may be seen from Figure 1, is turned between a deflection roll 25 and the first deflection profile 13. Turning is effected for the purpose of better ink use on both broadside faces of the ribbon 11. The necessary tensile stress in the ribbon transport direction 11b is generated by a brake spring 27 lying flat against the ribbon 11 on the ribbon delivery side 5 in the area between the first and second deflection profiles 13 and 15 respectively. In the exemplary embodiment, the first, inclined deflection profiles 13 run at the same acute angles on both the ribbon delivery side 5 and the ribbon lead-in side 3.

Figures 4 and 5 show the inking ribbon cartridge 2 without the ribbon 11 and with the cover 2a removed. A bearing journal 25a is injection moulded thereon for the deflection roll 25. The ribbon 11 passes through an opening 9a out of the ribbon storage space 9 and past a ribbed wall 9b, guided through a gap 9c at the deflection roll 25, into the slit opening 26.

A wobble support 34 and a pair of suspension journals 35 are formed on both the ribbon lead-in side 3 and the ribbon delivery side 5.

Furthermore, the cover 2a is connected to the cartridge housing 2 via fastening means 2C.

The arms 23 (Figures 6 to 8) are constructed of thin-walled webs, ribs or walls 36 and comprise, for the first deflection profile 13, a fastening journal 37 for a bearing member (not shown) which accommodates the roller 19. Accordingly, the roller 19 lies in a saucertype trough 38. At the point of the second deflection profile 15 there is formed a recess 39, at whose edge 8 (Figure 7) two bearing journals 40 are injection moulded on, on which bearing journals 40 each of the rollers 19 is mounted rotatably.

On the ribbon lead-in side 3, the ribbon 11 lies in the guide channel 18 against an end wall 30 of the cartridge housing 2 and is guided around a corner roll 31. The corner roll 31 is driven at the same time. Moreover, the corner roll 31 transmits ink from an ink storage roll 33 to the ribbon 11. The ribbon 11 is conveyed further around a guide roll 32, which interacts with the ribbon drive roller 4a. The ribbon 11 thereafter arrives between the ribbon drive roller 4a and a guide roll 44 mounted rotatably on a spring arm 43. The frictional conditions are such that a loop llb is firstly formed and deposited between the guide roll 44 and the ribbon drive roller 4a on the side of the guide roll 44 and the next loop is formed and deposited on the side of the guide roll 32. The corner roll 31 acts at the same time as a drive for the ink storage roll 33 (Figure 1).

The inking ribbon cartridge 1 is inserted in the assembled state into a printer, such as, for example, that shown in Figure 9. Due to its construction as an inking ribbon bar cartridge la, the inking ribbon cartridge 1 is inserted with its outside 45 in the swivellable housing portion 46 via guides for the pairs of suspension journals 35 in such a way that the ribbon 11 comes to lie with its inner surface 47 visible in Figure 1 against the swivelled print head 48. Thereafter, the optionally swivelled-up upper rollers 49, which are mounted rotatably on a swivellable arm 50, are swivelled in the position 49f, such that when the housing portion 46 is closed, the inking ribbon 11 comes to lie on the print face 22 of the print abutment 6.

In addition to the inking ribbon bar cartridge la and the print head 48, the printer shown carries in the swivellable housing portion 46 a print head guide 51 in a printer frame 52, a scanner device 53 being additionally 9 accommodated behind the inking ribbon cartridge 1. In the rear area of the printer there are located roller pairs 54 and 56 as well as a paper ejection channel 56 and a control board 57. Next to the inking ribbon cartridge 1 there is also located a ribbon guide 59.

Claims (10)

1. An inking ribbon cartridge for an endless inking ribbon comprising a cartridge housing in which there is provided a ribbon drive on the ribbon lead-inside and a ribbon storage space in which the ribbon lies in an edgewise position on a support base, the inking ribbon on the ribbon delivery side being moved out of the edgewise position by means of a first deflection device at an inclined angle to the axis of the first deflection device and being deflected to an operating position by a second deflection device perpendicularly to the axis thereof and, on the ribbon lead-in side, being drawn in, in reverse sequence, by like deflection devices.

2. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in Clain 1, wherein deflection rollers are provided between which the inking ribbon lies outside the ribbon storage space in a plane parallel or slightly inclined to the plane of the support base.

An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in claim 2, wherein the housing includes guide channels on the ribbon lead-in and delivery sides, the deflection devices being provided at the ends of the guide channels.

4. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in any preceding Claim, wherein arms are arranged on the inking ribbon lead-in side and the inking ribbon delivery side, which arms form a guide connection for the ribbon with a plane at a distance from the cartridge housing and parallel or at an acute angle to the plane of the support base.

5. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the ribbon is guided on the delivery side between a deflection roller and the first deflection device through a slit opening running parallel to the support base.

11

6. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in any preceding Claim, wherein a brake spring is provided on the ribbon delivery side between the first and second deflection devices which lies flat against the ribbon.

7. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the first deflecting devices on the ribbon delivery side and on the ribbon lead-in side run at approximately the same angle.

8. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein, on the ribbon leadin side, the ribbon is guided along an end wall of the cartridge housing and around a corner roll.

9. An inking ribbon cartridge as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the corner roll can be driven by means of the ribbon, the corner roll interacting with a roller-shaped ink storage member and acting as rotary drive for the ink storage member.

10. An inking ribbon cartridge substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.