JP2009255458A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

An ink ribbon having a proper tension can be maintained.
A sensor A14 measures the radius of an ink ribbon 5 wound around an ink ribbon winding shaft 8, and a sensor B15 measures the width of the ink ribbon 5. The control unit 100 estimates the total weight of the ink ribbon 5 based on the radius and width of the ink ribbon 5 wound on the ink ribbon winding shaft 8, and based on the total weight of the ink ribbon 5, The magnitude of the rotational driving force of the ribbon winding motor that winds the ink ribbon winding shaft 8 is adjusted so that the tension is appropriate.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a printer, and more particularly to a printer that performs printing using an ink ribbon.

  Conventionally, in the case of a printer that performs thermal transfer printing, it is necessary to take up the thermal transfer ribbon so as not to affect the printing and label conveyance, and furthermore, there is no printing defect due to ribbon wrinkles caused by the winding side. It is necessary to take up with appropriate tension so as not to occur.

  A method of adjusting the current amount of the motor attached to the winding shaft so as to obtain an appropriate tension, a method of adjusting the torque by changing the on-pulse ratio by applying a voltage in a pulsed manner, and further on the winding shaft There is a method of adjusting the pressure by pressing a felt or the like in order to cause resistance to the rotation of the interlocked disk.

  In addition, the tension applied on the ink ribbon to the print head is controlled to be constant, and the tension that applies torque to the ribbon feed roller in the direction opposite to the ink ribbon transport direction in order to prevent the printing disturbance caused by the ink ribbon. Side DC motor, winding side DC motor for rotationally driving the ribbon winding roller, tension side and winding side slit gears and sensors for detecting the rotational speeds of the ribbon feeding roller and ribbon winding roller, respectively The application voltage of the tension side DC motor corresponding to the rotation speed of the ribbon feeding roller and the application voltage of the winding side DC motor corresponding to the rotation speed of the ribbon winding roller are set for each printing speed and width of the ink ribbon. There is one provided with a tension side table 12a and a winding side table (see Patent Document 1).

  Also, in order to be able to detect and display the remaining number of labels, the outer circumference and outer diameter of the paper are calculated from the paper conveyance distance when the slit plate fixed to the label paper winding shaft rotates 360/16 degrees. The paper can be printed on the basis of the outer diameter of the label paper winding shaft, the outer diameter of the paper wound around the label paper winding shaft, the thickness of the paper, and the label pitch when the paper is separated into labels. There is one in which the number of labels is calculated and displayed (see Patent Document 2).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 06-31568 JP 2003-73001 A

  In the background art, the radius of the ribbon wound around the take-up shaft gradually increases as the ribbon is taken up, and the weight of the ribbon increases accordingly, increasing the driving force of the motor that takes up the take-up shaft, It is necessary to keep the tension applied to the ribbon constant.

  However, at present, the radius of the ribbon wound around the take-up shaft is estimated based on the amount of rotation of the take-up shaft, and is obtained only after performing a certain amount of take-up (printing operation by the printer). I couldn't. Further, the ribbon width cannot be detected by the amount of rotation of the winding shaft.

  In the invention of Patent Document 1, the rotational speeds of the ribbon feed roller and the ribbon take-up roller are detected, and the tension-side DC motor corresponding to the rotational speed of the ribbon feed roller is detected for each printing speed and width of the ink ribbon. The applied voltage of the winding side DC motor corresponding to the applied voltage and the number of revolutions of the ribbon take-up roller is adjusted, but because the control is based on the number of revolutions, the tension of the ribbon cannot be made constant with high accuracy. was there.

  In the invention of Patent Document 2, the outer periphery and outer diameter of the paper are calculated from the transport distance of the paper when the slit plate fixed to the label paper winding shaft rotates 360/16 degrees, and the outer diameter of the label paper winding shaft is calculated. The number of labels that can be printed on the paper is calculated and displayed based on the outer diameter of the paper wound around the label paper winding shaft, the thickness of the paper, and the label pitch when the paper is separated into labels. However, there was a problem that the tension of the ribbon could not be adjusted.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object thereof is to provide a printer capable of solving the above-described problems.

  The printer according to claim 1 is a printer having a ribbon supply unit around which a ribbon of ribbon is wound, and a ribbon winding unit that winds up the ribbon, wherein the ribbon winding unit winds up the ribbon. A winding radius measuring means for measuring a winding radius of the ribbon; and a tension adjusting means for adjusting a tension on the ribbon according to the winding radius measured by the winding radius measuring means. To do.

  Further, the winding radius measuring means may include a plurality of optical sensors arranged at a predetermined interval in the radial direction of the ribbon that has been wound.

  Further, based on the width measuring means for measuring the width of the ribbon, the width of the ribbon measured by the width measuring means, and the winding radius of the ribbon measured by the winding radius measuring means. Ribbon weight estimating means for estimating the weight of the taken ribbon, and the tension adjusting means adjusts the tension on the ribbon according to the weight of the ribbon measured by the ribbon weight estimating means. Can be.

  The width measuring means may include a plurality of optical sensors arranged at predetermined intervals in the ribbon width direction.

  According to the printer of the present invention, the tension can be adjusted according to the ribbon winding radius, so that the tension can be adjusted more appropriately. Moreover, tension adjustment can be performed more appropriately by estimating the weight of the wound ribbon.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of an embodiment of a printer to which the present invention is applied. As shown in the figure, the present embodiment includes a label supply shaft 3 that rotatably supports a label continuous body 4 around which a strip-like material having a label 1 detachably attached on a belt-like mount 2 is wound. The thermal head 9 that prints the label 1 supplied from the label supply shaft 3 by thermal transfer via the ink ribbon 5, and the thermal head 9 and the label 1 with the ink ribbon 5 sandwiched between the thermal head 9 and the label 1. A platen roller 10 that presses against the plate 9, a stepping motor 12, a gear 11 that transmits the rotational driving force of the stepping motor 12 to the platen roller 10, an ink ribbon supply shaft 6 that supplies the ink ribbon 5, and an ink ribbon supply shaft 6 After the thermal transfer process is performed on the thermal head 9, the roller 7 that guides the ink ribbon 5 supplied from the direction of the thermal head 9. An ink ribbon take-up shaft 8 for taking up the used ink ribbon 5, a ribbon take-up motor 119 for rotating the ink ribbon take-up shaft 8, and the ink ribbon 5 taken up by the ink ribbon take-up shaft 8 A sensor A14 for measuring the radius, a sensor B15 for measuring the width of the ink ribbon 5, a peeling plate 16 for turning the transport direction of the mount 2 to peel the label 1 from the mount 2, and after the label 1 is peeled It is composed of a mount winding shaft 13 for winding the mount 2, a control unit 100 for controlling each unit, an operation unit 300 for inputting various commands and data, and a display unit 200 for displaying various information. . The ribbon winding motor 119 can be configured by a stepping motor or the like, and is driven and controlled by the motor control unit 113.

  FIG. 2 shows an arrangement of each part when the printer of FIG. 1 is viewed from above. The sensor A14 is arranged so that the light receiving elements are arranged linearly in the radial direction of the ink ribbon 5 wound around the ink ribbon winding shaft 8. The sensor B15 is arranged so that the light receiving elements are arranged in a straight line parallel to the width direction of the ink ribbon 5.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the control unit 100 of FIG. As shown in the figure, the control unit 100 executes various processes and executes a control program that controls each unit, a ROM 111 that stores a control program executed by the CPU 110, and is necessary for the CPU 110 to operate. A RAM 112 that temporarily stores various data, a motor control unit 113 that drives and controls the stepping motor 12 under the control of the CPU 110, a thermal head control unit 114 that controls the thermal head 9 under the control of the CPU 110, and a sensor A14. And a sensor control unit 115 that drives and controls the sensor B15 and supplies detection data corresponding to detection signals supplied from the sensor A14 and the sensor B15 to the CPU 110 via the bus 120, and an external device such as a host computer. To send and receive data A CPU interface 110 (I / F) 116, a flash memory 117 for holding various data such as ribbon type information, and operation data corresponding to commands and data input by operating the operation unit 300 via the bus 120. And an interface 118 that supplies a display control signal corresponding to display data supplied from the CPU 110 via the bus 120 to the display unit 200, and a bus 120 that connects each unit to enable exchange of data and commands. Etc.

  Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in step S1, the CPU 110 instructs the sensor B15 to measure the width of the ink ribbon 5 wound around the ink ribbon winding shaft 8.

  The sensor B15 receives a light emitting element that emits light and reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting element, and outputs a current having a magnitude corresponding to the intensity of the received light (the amount of light received per unit time). These light emitting elements and light receiving elements are arranged in a line.

  When the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the ink ribbon 5, the light receiving element of the sensor B15 receives the reflected light and supplies a signal corresponding to the received light intensity to the sensor control unit 115. The width of the ink ribbon 5 can be measured from the number of light receiving elements that have received light.

  Next, in step S <b> 2, the CPU 110 instructs the sensor A <b> 14 to measure the radius of the ink ribbon 5 wound on the ink ribbon winding shaft 8.

  The sensor A14 receives a light emitting element that emits light and reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting element, and outputs a current having a magnitude corresponding to the intensity of the received light (the amount of light received per unit time). These light emitting elements and light receiving elements are arranged in a line.

  When the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the ink ribbon 5, the light receiving element of the sensor A 14 receives the reflected light and supplies a signal corresponding to the received light intensity to the sensor control unit 115. The radius of the ink ribbon 5 can be measured from the number of light receiving elements that have received light.

  Next, in step S3, the weight of the ink ribbon 5 is estimated. As shown in the following formula 1, if the weight per unit area (g / m 2 (gram / square meter)) of the ink ribbon 5 is known, the width (m (meter)) and length (m (meter) of the ink ribbon 5 are determined. )) And the weight per unit area (g / m 2), the weight (g) of the ink ribbon 5 can be obtained.

  Weight of ink ribbon 5 (g) = width (m) × length (m) × weight per unit area (g / m 2) (Formula 1)

  Next, in step S <b> 4, the CPU 110 adjusts the magnitude of the rotational driving force of the stepping motor 12 based on the weight of the ink ribbon 5 so that the tension applied to the ink ribbon 5 is constant.

  For example, when the weight of the ink ribbon 5 is large, the inertia force of the entire ink ribbon 5 wound around the ink ribbon take-up shaft 8 becomes large, and therefore, when the rotation starts, a rotational driving force having a magnitude corresponding to the weight is given. It is done. That is, the heavier the weight, the stronger the rotational driving force is applied.

  In step S5, the CPU 110 determines whether the printing is finished or the ribbon is finished. If neither the printing is finished nor the ribbon is finished, the process returns to step S1 and the processes of steps S1 to S5 are repeated. Executed. On the other hand, when it is determined that the printing is finished or the ribbon is finished, this processing is finished.

  The appropriate strength of the driving force in accordance with the weight can be determined by trial and error in advance through experiments and the like, a correspondence table can be created, stored in the flash memory 117, and referred to appropriately. .

  The magnitude of the rotational driving force of the ribbon take-up motor 119 can be adjusted by changing the pulse period when the stepping motor is used. Or when comprised with a servomotor, the magnitude | size of rotational drive force can be adjusted by changing a voltage.

  Further, since the width of the ink ribbon 5 is determined for each type of the ink ribbon 5, a table including an identification symbol indicating the type of the ink ribbon 5 and the width of the ink ribbon 5 is stored in the flash memory 117 and operated. The CPU 110 may recognize the width of the ink ribbon 5 based on the identification symbol input from the unit 300.

  As described above, the radius and width of the ink ribbon 5 wound around the ink ribbon winding shaft 8 are recognized in advance before the start of the printer operation, and the rotational driving force of the ribbon winding motor 119 is started from the beginning of the operation. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate unnecessary work for adjusting the tension and increase work efficiency.

  Further, since the total weight of the ink ribbon 5 can be accurately estimated by measuring the width of the ink ribbon 5, the magnitude of the rotational driving force of the ribbon take-up motor 119 is determined based on the total weight of the ink ribbon 5. By appropriately adjusting, the magnitude of the tension of the ink ribbon 5 can be set to an appropriate value.

  In the above embodiment, the radius and width of the ink ribbon 5 are measured. However, when the width of the ink ribbon 5 to be used is constant, only the radius of the ink ribbon 5 is measured and the ink ribbon 5 is measured. The weight of the ink ribbon 5 may be estimated based on the radius of 5.

  It goes without saying that the configuration and operation of the above embodiment are examples, and can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  The present invention can be applied, for example, to tension adjustment when winding not only the ink ribbon but also other strips.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a printer to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of each unit when the printer of FIG. 1 is viewed from above. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of a control part. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of a printer.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Label 2 Mount 3 Label supply shaft 4 Label continuous body 5 Ink ribbon 6 Ink ribbon supply shaft 7 Roller 8 Ink ribbon take-up shaft 9 Thermal head 10 Platen roller 11 Gear 12 Stepping motor 13 Take-up shaft 14 Sensor A
15 Sensor B
16 Peeling plate 100 Control unit 110 CPU
112 RAM
113 Motor control unit 114 Thermal head control unit 115 Sensor control unit 116 External interface (I / F)
117 Flash memory 118 Interface 119 Ribbon winding motor 120 Bus 200 Display unit 300 Operation unit

Claims (4)

A printer having a ribbon supply unit around which a ribbon of ribbon is wound, and a ribbon winding unit that winds up the ribbon,
A winding radius measuring means for measuring a winding radius of the ribbon wound by the ribbon winding unit;
A printer comprising: tension adjusting means for adjusting tension on the ribbon according to the winding radius measured by the winding radius measuring means. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the winding radius measuring unit includes a plurality of optical sensors arranged at predetermined intervals in a radial direction of the wound ribbon. Width measuring means for measuring the width of the ribbon;
Ribbon weight estimating means for estimating the weight of the ribbon wound up based on the width of the ribbon measured by the width measuring means and the winding radius of the ribbon measured by the winding radius measuring means. And further comprising
The printer according to claim 1, wherein the tension adjusting unit adjusts a tension applied to the ribbon according to the weight of the ribbon measured by the ribbon weight estimating unit. The printer according to claim 3, wherein the width measuring unit includes a plurality of optical sensors arranged at predetermined intervals in the width direction of the ribbon.

Images