JP2018047943A - Label attaching device and control method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a label attaching device that can accurately attach a label to a test tube while being compatible with a variety of shapes and sizes.SOLUTION: A label attaching device is configured to be capable of tilting pinch rollers 182, 183 for urging a test tube T toward a drive roller 181 for rotatably driving the loaded test tube T so as to follow an external shape of the loaded test tube T relative to a rotation shaft of the drive roller 181.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a label attaching device and a control method.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a label attaching apparatus that automatically attaches a label to a test tube is known. For example, in the label applicator disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the label is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube by supplying the label while rotating the set test tube with a roller in contact with the outer peripheral surface. ing.

JP-A-10-59336 JP 2014-76827 A

  However, the test tubes used have various shapes and sizes, and the shapes and sizes are not uniform. In the label affixing devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, a label can be affixed to a test tube of a specific shape and size, but other shapes, particularly for test tubes with a thin tip. As a result, it cannot be stably held, and as a result, it cannot be accurately attached to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, and it aims at providing the label sticking apparatus which can affix a label correctly corresponding to the test tube of various shapes and sizes.

  The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following means.

  A label sticking device that peels off the label from a long label sheet that is lined and pasted to a test tube, and a label sheet transport unit that transports the label sheet; and the label sheet A peeling part that peels the label from the label sheet by bending it at an acute angle with a peeling plate, a loading part in which a test tube is loaded, a driving roller that rotationally drives the test tube loaded in the loading part, and the drive A pinch roller for urging the test tube toward the roller, and supplying the label peeled by the peeling portion between the test tube rotated by the drive roller and the drive roller, An affixing part for affixing a label to the test tube, and the pinch roller can be inclined with respect to the rotational axis of the drive roller following the outer shape of the loaded test tube Some, labeling machine.

  According to the present invention, the pinch roller that urges the test tube toward the drive roller that rotationally drives the loaded test tube follows the outer shape of the loaded test tube with respect to the rotation axis of the drive roller. By adopting a configuration that can be tilted, a label applying device that can accurately apply labels to test tubes of various shapes and sizes can be provided.

It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of the label sticking apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of a label sticking apparatus. It is a top view which shows the internal structure of a label sticking apparatus. It is an enlarged view of FIG. 3 which shows the structure around a printing part and a label sticking part. It is a figure which shows the structure of a label sticking part. It is a top view which shows the structure of a label sticking part upper part. It is a figure explaining the holding | maintenance state of a test tube. It is a flowchart which shows the control method of the label sticking apparatus which a control part performs. It is a figure which shows the procedure of label sticking. It is a figure which shows the procedure of label sticking following FIG. It is a figure which shows the state of the test tube which affixed the label in Fig.10 (a).

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. In addition, the dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for convenience of explanation, and may be different from the actual ratios.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an appearance of a label sticking device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the label sticking device 10. Hereinafter, in the accompanying drawings, the vertical direction is the Z direction, the front and back directions of the label sticking apparatus 10 are the Y direction, and the direction orthogonal to these Y and Z directions is the X direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the label sticking device 10 includes a control unit 11, a communication I / F 12, a display unit 13, an input unit 14, a label sheet transport unit 15, a printing unit 16, an RFID writing unit 17, and A label attaching unit 18 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an insertion port h1 for inserting the test tube T is provided on the upper surface of the housing 101 on the front side. The user inserts the test tube T from the insertion port h1. In the normal mode, with the user's operation on the operation button 141 as a trigger, the label sticking device 10 prints the label by the printing unit 16 and automatically sticks the label to the test tube T. When the automatic pasting is repeated, the user operates the operation button 141 after inserting a new test tube T into the insertion port h1. The user can switch various modes of the label sticking apparatus 10 by operating the operation buttons 142 and the like while viewing the screen of the display unit 13 on the front side. As a mode, in addition to the normal mode (first mode) in which the data is updated according to the set predetermined condition, the updated data is printed on the label, and this is pasted, it is embedded in the label by the RFID writing unit 17 There is a second mode for rewriting information of the passive IC tag and a third mode for performing both printing and rewriting of the IC tag. Furthermore, in these 1st-3rd modes, it can also set so that automatic sticking may be started by having received the information printed from the communication I / F12 or the information to write. Alternatively, as described above, print data for a plurality of sheets can be stored in advance, and the stored data can be output by FIFO and printed each time the operation button 141 is operated.

  When exchanging the label sheet and the ink ribbon, the inside of the label applicator 10 can be accessed by opening the top panel 102 with the hinge on the back side as the center of rotation.

  The control unit 11 includes a CPU, RAM, ROM, and an auxiliary storage device such as an IC memory or HD. The control unit 11 performs control in each mode of each unit of the device and various arithmetic processes according to a program stored in the auxiliary storage device or the ROM.

  The communication I / F 12 is an interface for transmitting and receiving data to and from other devices such as a PC (personal computer). In the communication I / F 12, standards such as USB standard and Ethernet (registered trademark) are used.

  The display unit 13 displays the mode state and various data. The display unit 13 employs a liquid crystal display, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence), or the like.

  The input unit 14 inputs various data according to user operations. The input unit 14 includes operation buttons 141 and 142, and can be connected to a foot switch through a terminal (not shown). When it is difficult to press the operation button 141, for example, when wearing thick gloves, a label is automatically attached to the test tube T using a foot switch as a trigger. Further, the input unit 14 may employ a keyboard and a pointing device such as a mouse. It is also possible to input information on the label sheet loaded in the label sheet transport unit 15. Here, the information on the label sheet includes the width (Z direction) of the label sheet, the width and length of the label 201, the interval (gap) between adjacent labels, whether or not printing is performed, and the presence or absence of an IC tag. Information about. The input label sheet information is stored in the storage device of the control unit 11.

  The label sheet transport unit 15 transports a label sheet 20 composed of a long release sheet 202 and a label 201 arranged continuously on the release sheet 202 at a predetermined interval. A detailed configuration will be described later.

  The printing unit 16 is, for example, a thermal transfer type printing unit, and a long ink ribbon that has been conveyed is brought into contact with the label 201 by a thermal head 163a (see FIG. 3 and the like), and is heated locally according to the heating position. The ink on the ink ribbon is transferred to the surface of the label 201.

  An RFID (radio frequency identifier) writing unit 17 performs short-range wireless communication using NFC (Near Field Communication) or the like. If the label 201 in the third mode described above is a label that incorporates an IC tag including an IC chip and an antenna, the RFID writing unit 17 reads the information of the IC tag of the label 201 conveyed to the proximity position, and Write. The IC tag is, for example, a passive IC tag, and performs power supply to the IC tag and reading / writing of information by electromagnetic induction through the antenna of the IC tag by radio waves emitted from the RFID writing unit 17. The RFID writing unit 17 corresponds to a UHF band (ultra-high frequency) and / or an HF band (short wave band).

  The label attaching unit 18 holds and rotates the test tube T loaded in the insertion port h1. The control unit 11 controls the label sheet transport unit 15 and the label pasting unit 18 so that the label 201 is peeled from the release paper 202 and supplied by the label sheet transport unit 15 and the peeling unit 19 (see FIG. 3 described later). Is affixed to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube T.

(Configuration of label sheet transport unit 15, printing unit 16, and peeling unit 19)
Hereinafter, the label sheet conveyance unit 15, the printing unit 16, and the peeling unit 19 will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 3 is a top view showing an internal configuration of the label sticking apparatus 10. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration around the label pasting unit 18 and the printing unit 16.

(Label sheet transport unit 15)
As shown in FIG. 3, the label sheet transport unit 15 is loaded with the original roll of the roll-shaped label sheet 20 and unwinds after the label 201 is peeled from the label set unit 151 for unwinding and the label sheet 20. A winding unit 152 that winds the paper 202 into a roll is provided. The label setting unit 151 includes a rotating shaft 151a and a turntable 151b formed integrally therewith. The original roll of the label sheet 20 is placed on the turntable 151b. Similarly, the winding unit 152 also includes a rotating shaft 152a provided with a clip for pressing the tip of the release paper 202, and a turntable 152b formed integrally therewith. The label sheet transport unit 15 corresponds to labels 201 having various widths (Z direction (loading time) in the drawing) and lengths (transport direction). For example, as a label 201. The thing of width 10-25mm and length 30mm-50mm can be used.

  The label sheet transport unit 15 transports the label sheet 20 spanned between the label setting unit 151 and the winding unit 152 along a transport path parallel to the XY plane. The label sheet transport unit 15 includes a support roller 153, a feed roller 154, a platen roller 155, and a peeling roller 156 in order from the upstream side along the transport path. Further, a peeling blade 191 is disposed between the platen roller 155 and the peeling roller 156.

  The label sheet transport unit 15 includes one drive motor as a drive system and one endless drive belt (none of which is shown) connected to the drive motor. This drive system drives the feed roller 154, the platen roller 155, the peeling roller 156, and the rotating shafts 151a and 152a. Each roller 154, 155, and 156 has a rotating shaft that rotates at the same rotational speed at a predetermined ratio with respect to the rotational speed of the drive motor. Each of the rollers 154, 155, and 156 is increased in outer diameter by several percent in this order. This is for preventing the slack of the label sheet 20 by increasing the rotation amount (linear velocity) of the roller on the downstream side. Note that the support roller 153 is not connected to a drive source, and is driven to rotate when the label sheet 20 is conveyed. Further, the backup roller 154b composed of a small-diameter roller is urged at a predetermined pressure toward the feed roller 154 so as to be movable by an urging means (not shown), and holds the label sheet 20 with the feed roller 154. To do. A backup plate 159 is disposed on the upstream side of the platen roller 155 in order to prevent vibration of the label sheet 20 at the printing position.

  In addition, after the label sheet 20 printed by the printing unit 16 is conveyed by the first predetermined amount in the forward direction as described later, the label 201 is peeled off by the peeling unit 19, fed out, and attached to the test tube T. By rotating in the reverse direction, the label sheet 20 is conveyed in the reverse direction by a second predetermined amount. This is because the label 201 after the peeled and pasted label 201 is returned to the printing position (thermal head position) of the printing unit 16. The lengths of the first and second predetermined amounts in the forward direction and the reverse direction conveyed when automatically attaching one test tube T are the length of one label 201, the distance between labels (gap ), As appropriate, depending on the distance from the printing position to the peeling position of the peeling blade 191. The transport amount in the forward direction and the reverse direction may be determined from the detection result by arranging an optical sensor for detecting the leading and trailing edges of the label 201 on the transport path. Alternatively, the conveyance in the forward direction and the reverse direction may be performed by operating the label sheet conveyance unit 15 for a predetermined amount of time (operation amount) based on the label information input via the input unit 14.

  Further, at the time of the reverse rotation, the label setting unit 151, the winding unit 152, the feed roller 154, and the platen roller 155 are rotated in reverse by the reverse rotation of the drive motor of the label sheet conveying unit 15. At this time, the most downstream peeling roller 156 is configured to apply a load (tension) to the label sheet 20 so that slack does not occur during reverse rotation. Specifically, a one-way clutch is connected to the rotating shaft of the peeling roller 156 and does not rotate in the reverse direction until a predetermined load or more is applied. During reverse rotation, the thermal head 163a is in a retracted state, and the label sheet 20 is not in contact with the thermal head 163a.

(Printing part 16)
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the printing unit 16 loads a roll-shaped ink ribbon 30 and prints on a ribbon set unit 161 that unwinds, a winding unit 162 that winds up the ink ribbon 30, and a label 201. The head part 163 which performs is provided. Both the ribbon setting part 161 and the winding part 162 have a turntable integrated with the rotating shaft.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the head portion 163 includes a thermal head 163a, a head holding portion 163b that holds the thermal head 163a, an elastic body 163c that biases the head holding portion 163b, and a housing 163d that supports the elastic body 163c. Prepare. The housing 163d is fixed to the apparatus main body. The head holding portion 163b rotates on the XY plane around the rotation axis r1 extending in the Z direction, and biases the thermal head 163a toward the platen roller 155 with a predetermined pressure by the elastic body 163c.

  A region between the thermal head 163a and the platen roller 155 is a printing position. The thermal head 163a is provided with a plurality of minute heating elements, and a part of the ink of the ink ribbon 30 is locally labeled at a printing position by causing a current to selectively flow according to image data to generate heat. Then, the image is formed on the label 201.

  The head holding portion 163b is swung clockwise in FIG. 4 by a drive motor and an actuator connected to the drive motor (not shown). By swinging, the thermal head 163a is in a retracted state and is not in contact with the label sheet 20.

(RFID writing unit 17)
The RFID writing unit 17 is disposed in the vicinity of the peeling unit 19. In the example shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the RFID writing unit 17 is arranged beside the backup plate 159 upstream of the printing position. The RFID writing unit 17 reads and writes information on the IC tag when the label 201 includes an IC tag. For example, the data received from the PC by the communication I / F 12 is written in the IC tag of the corresponding label 201.

(Peeling part 19)
As shown in FIG. 4, the peeling portion 19 includes a peeling blade 191 (peeling plate) and a small diameter regulating roller 192. The peeling blade 191 abuts the label sheet 20 so as to be bent at an acute angle from the surface where the label is not adhered, and the label 201 is peeled off from the label sheet 20 by bending the label sheet 20 at an acute angle at the tip of the peeling blade 191. To do.

  The angle of the tip of the peeling blade 191 is set to an acute angle so as not to cut the label sheet 20. A regulating roller 192 is disposed beside the tip of the peeling blade 191. The restriction roller 192 is a rigid body having a smooth cylindrical surface, for example. The regulating roller 192 may be driven to rotate or may be fixed.

  By disposing the regulating roller 192 in the vicinity of the tip of the peeling blade 191, in the case where the label sheet 20 swells due to its rigidity, the bulge is regulated. This prevents the label sheet 20 from bulging, thereby increasing the bending angle of the label sheet 20 at the tip of the peeling blade 191 and preventing the peeling performance from deteriorating.

  Further, the imaginary line extending the surface of the peeling blade 191 that contacts the label sheet 20 is a tangent line of the driving roller 181 passing through the tip of the peeling blade 191 (a tangent line on the contact side of the test tube T) and the driving roller 181. It is preferable to face the center of rotation. Further, it is more preferable that this imaginary line passes through the rotation center of the drive roller 181. Since the peeled label 201 is peeled off while being bent slightly toward the test tube T due to the adhesive force, the peeled label 201 can be stably supplied to the test tube T by setting the direction of the imaginary line in this way.

(Label sticking part 18)
Next, the configuration of the label pasting unit 18 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5A is a side view showing the configuration of the label sticking portion 18, and FIG. 5B is a top view.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the label sticking unit 18 includes a drive roller 181, a pair of pinch rollers 182 and 183, a pinch roller holding unit 184, a slide mechanism 185, a placement plate 186, a holding block 187, and an exchange plate 188. .

  The drive roller 181 is rotated about a rotation axis extending substantially in the vertical direction (Z direction) by the drive motor M1. Here, “substantially extending in the vertical direction” means that, by design, the rotating shaft is configured to be perpendicular to the mounting surface when the apparatus body is installed on a horizontal mounting surface. In addition to the case, the term includes a case of tilting several degrees (for example, tilting 5 degrees). The pinch rollers 182 and 183 are smaller in diameter than the drive roller 181 and have a shorter length (axial direction). Further, the heights of the upper ends of the pinch rollers 182 and 183 are set to be substantially the same as the height of the upper end of the drive roller 181. As will be described later, the pinch rollers 182 and 183 swing following the outer shape of the test tube T1 (details will be described later). Here, “substantially the same height” means that the heights of the upper ends of both rollers are the same at any position in the swing range when holding a test tube with the minimum to maximum diameter applicable. In addition, it is a term including the case where one side is lower than the other by about several mm (for example, 2 to 3 mm).

  In the Z direction, the positional relationship between the driving roller 181 and the conveyed label sheet 20 (that is, the upper surface position of the turntables 151b and 152b) is set as follows. Although it is preferable to set the width and position of the driving roller 181 so that the entire area of the label 201 of the label sheet 20 having the maximum width can be in contact with the driving roller 181, the lower half of the label 201 having the maximum width is in contact with it. Such a width and position may be set.

  The pinch rollers 182 and 183 are driven to rotate around the rotation axes r2 and r3 in accordance with the rotation of the test tube that comes into contact therewith. The rotation axes r2 and r3 are parallel to each other. The rotation shafts r2 and r3 are held by a pinch roller holding unit 184. The pinch roller holding portion 184 can swing on the XZ plane around a rotation axis r4 extending in the Y direction. An arrow a1 in FIG. 5A represents the swinging direction. As the pinch roller holding portion 184 swings following the outer shape of the test tube T, the pinch rollers 182 and 183 held thereby are tilted on the XZ plane with respect to the rotation axis (Z direction) of the drive roller 181. Do (tilt).

  The pinch roller holding portion 184 that holds the pinch rollers 182 and 183 is further held by the slide mechanism 185 and slides in the arrow a2 direction.

  The slide mechanism 185 includes a plurality of slide rails 185a, a slide member 185b, an elastic body 185c, a connecting member 185d, and an arm 185e. The connecting member 185d and the arm 185e are integrally formed. A slide member 185b and a connecting member 185d are held movably in the X direction on two parallel slide rails 185a extending in the X direction.

  A connecting member 185d is connected to the slide member 185b via an elastic body 185c, and the slide member 185b is moved in the left direction (positive X direction) in FIG. 5A by the driving force of the drive motor M2. Accordingly, the connecting member 185d, the arm 185e, and the pinch roller holding portion 184 are also moved leftward by being pulled by the slide member 185b. As the pinch roller holding portion 184 moves, the pinch rollers 182 and 183 abut against the test tube T and urge the test tube T toward the drive roller 181. In this case, by appropriately selecting the elastic body 185c, the pressure at the time of contact is urged toward the drive roller 181 with a pressure within a predetermined range that can be stably held without damaging the test tube T.

(Loading part)
Next, the loading unit will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 5, and 6. It is a top view which shows the structure of the label sticking part 18 upper part.

  The loading unit in which the test tube T is loaded by the user includes a placement plate 186, a holding block 187, and an exchange plate 188 attached to the holding block 187.

  The exchange plate 188 is provided with a circular insertion port h1 into which the test tube T is inserted. The lower side of the test tube T inserted from the insertion port h1 is supported by the mounting plate 186.

  The loading unit can accommodate test tubes T of various shapes and sizes. A lever 189 connected to the mounting plate 186 is provided on the front surface of the apparatus main body (see FIG. 1). The user can adjust the height of the mounting plate 186 according to the length of the test tube T to be used by moving the lever 189 up and down.

  The exchange plate 188 can be exchanged with a plurality of other exchange plates provided with insertion holes h1 having different inner diameters. The exchange plate 188 is, for example, a magnetic metal plate having uneven planes as shown in FIG. The replacement plate 188 is attached to the replacement plate 188 by abutting the front end of the replacement plate 188 on the recess of the abutting block 187a and placing the rear end on the mounting block 187b (see FIG. 6). A magnet 187c is embedded in the mounting block 187b, and the exchange plate 188 is held by the mounting block 187b by a magnetic force. In addition, the exchange plate 188 can be exchanged with other exchange plates 188 having a plurality of different inner diameters corresponding to the outer diameters of various test tubes, for example, 5 mm to 20 mm.

  The exchange plates 188 having different inner diameters are all set to have the same distance L1 (see FIG. 6) from the tip to the insertion port h1. As a result, the distance L2 between the inner peripheral surface p1 of the insertion port h1 and the outer peripheral surface p2 of the drive roller 181 when viewed from the axial direction of the drive roller 181 is the same regardless of which inner diameter replacement plate 188 is used. (See FIG. 5). As the setting of the distance L2, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the inner peripheral surface p1 is located on the left side of the outer peripheral surface p2 by about +1 mm in the X direction. Not limited to this, the distance L2 may be zero, or may be set to a predetermined value within a range of ± several mm. In this way, even when test tubes having different outer diameters are loaded in the loading unit, the relative distance between the outer peripheral surface of the test tube and the outer peripheral surface of the drive roller 181 can be made substantially constant. .

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a holding state when test tubes T1 and T2 of different sizes are loaded. FIG. 7A is a diagram showing a state in which a large-sized test tube T1 is loaded and held by the drive roller 181 and the pinch rollers 182 and 183. FIG. FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a state in which a test tube T2 having a size smaller than that of the test tube T1 is loaded and similarly held by the driving roller 181 and the pinch rollers 182 and 183. The large-diameter replacement plate 188a used in FIG. 7A has a larger inner diameter at the insertion port h1 than the small-diameter replacement plate 188b used in FIG. 7B, but the distances L1 and L2 (FIG. 5). , See FIG. 6). Further, as apparent from the comparison of these figures, in FIG. 7B, the rotation shafts of the pinch rollers 182 and 183 follow the outer shape of the test tube T2 as compared with FIG. It is greatly inclined with respect to the axis (Z direction). By tilting the pinch rollers 182 and 183 in this manner, even test tubes T having different sizes and shapes can be stably held.

(Control method)
Hereinafter, the control method of the label sticking apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a control method of the label sticking apparatus 10 mainly executed by the control unit 11. This figure shows a control method in the first mode in which a label is printed each time the operation button 141 is operated and this is attached to the test tube T. 9 and 10 are top views showing the operation around the sticking portion 18.

  First, the user loads the test tube T from the insertion port h1 on the front surface of the apparatus main body (S101). FIG. 9A is a diagram showing a state in which the test tube T is loaded. Then, after loading the test tube T, the user operates the operation button 141.

  In response to the operation button 141 being operated (S102: YES), the control unit 11 operates the slide mechanism 185 to hold the loaded test tube T by the drive roller 181 and the pinch rollers 182 and 183. (S103).

  Next, the label sheet conveying section 15 is operated to start conveying the label sheet 20 in the label forward direction, and printing on the label 201 is performed based on the print data at a predetermined timing (S104, S105).

  Then, the label 201 is peeled from the label sheet 20 by transporting the printed label 201 to the peeling part 19 while continuing the transport of the label sheet (S106). The peeled label 201 is supplied between the test tube T1 held by the label sticking unit 18 and the driving roller 181. Before the label 201 starts to peel or when it starts to peel, the drive roller 181 starts to rotate at almost the same timing (S107).

  FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the label 201 is supplied to the label pasting unit 18. The surface of the label 201 to which the adhesive material is not attached is supplied while being in contact with the driving roller 181. FIG. 9C is a diagram showing a state following FIG. 9B, in which the label 201 is completely separated from the label sheet 20.

  On the label sheet 20, a plurality of labels 201 are arranged side by side at a predetermined interval (gap). From the start of conveyance in step S104 so that the operation of the label sheet conveyance unit 15 is stopped before the next label 201 printed and affixed to the label 201 attached to the test tube T is peeled off by the peeling unit 19. When the first predetermined amount has been conveyed, it stops, and the second predetermined amount of conveyance in the reverse direction is started (S108). As a result, the next label 201 is returned to the print position or slightly before this print position.

  On the other hand, the drive roller 181 continues to rotate while the label sheet 20 is being conveyed in the reverse direction, and the rotation of the drive roller 181 is completed after the label application to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube T1 is completed. Is stopped (S109). FIG. 10A shows a state where labeling on the test tube T1 is completed and the rotation of the drive roller 181 is stopped. FIG. 11 is a side view corresponding to FIG.

  Thereafter, by operating the slide mechanism 185, the pinch rollers 182 and 183 are retracted to the initial position, and the process ends (S110, end). FIG. 10D shows a state in which the pinch rollers 182 and 183 are retracted to the initial position.

  The above is the operation for printing on a label and attaching this to one sample tube T1. When the automatic sticking is continuously performed on the plurality of sample tubes T1, the control shown in FIG. 11 is repeated. Thus, by controlling, when automatically attaching the label 201 to the sample tube T1 one by one, the label can be appropriately attached to the test tube T1.

  In addition, the configuration of the label sticking device 10 described above is the main configuration in describing the features of the above embodiment, and is not limited to the above configuration, and a part of the printing unit, the RFID writing unit, and the like. The configuration may be omitted or another configuration may be added. Moreover, the structure with which the general label sticking apparatus 10 is provided is not excluded.

  The label affixing device 10 according to the present invention and the control method for controlling the label affixing device 10 are realized by a dedicated hardware circuit for executing each of the above procedures, and also by a CPU executing a program describing each of the above procedures. can do. When the present invention is realized by the latter, the program for operating the image forming apparatus may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk or a CD-ROM, or a network such as the Internet. May be provided online.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Label sticking apparatus 11 Control part 12 Communication I / F
13 Display unit 14 Input unit 141, 142 Operation button 15 Label sheet transport unit 151 Label set unit 152 Winding unit 153 Support roller 154 Feed roller 154b Backup roller 155 Platen roller 156 Peeling roller 159 Backup plate 16 Printing unit 161 Ribbon set unit 162 Winding part 163 Head part 163a Thermal head 163b Head holding part 163c Elastic body 163d Housing 17 RFID writing part 18 Label sticking part 181 Driving roller 182, 183 Pinch roller 184 Pinch roller holding part 185 Slide mechanism 185a Slide rail 185b Slide member 185c Elastic body 185d Connecting member 185e Arm 186 Mounting plate 187 Holding block 188 Replacement plate h1 Insert port 189 Lever 19 Separating part 1 1 peeling blade (release plate)
192 Regulating roller 20 Label sheet 201 Label 202 Release paper 30 Ink ribbon T, T1, T2 Test tube

Claims (8)

A label sticking device that peels off the label from a long label sheet attached in a detachable manner by arranging a plurality of labels, and sticks it to a test tube,
A label sheet transport unit for transporting the label sheet;
A peeling plate that abuts the label sheet so as to be bent at an acute angle from the surface to which the label is not attached, and peels the label from the label sheet;
A loading section in which the test tube is loaded;
A driving roller that contacts and rotates the test tube loaded in the loading unit;
A pinch roller for urging the test tube toward the drive roller,
The peeled label is supplied between the driving roller and the test tube that is urged by the pinch roller and rotated by the driving roller, so that the label is attached to the test tube. I,
The labeling device, wherein the pinch roller can be inclined with respect to a rotation axis of the drive roller following the outer shape of the loaded test tube.   Furthermore, the holding part which hold | maintains the said pinch roller so that rocking | fluctuation within the plane parallel to the rotating shaft of the said driving roller is provided, and the slide mechanism which slides the said holding part toward the said driving roller. Labeling device.   The label sticking device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pinch roller is a pair of rollers having a smaller diameter than the drive roller and parallel rotation axes. The rotational axis of the drive roller extends in a substantially vertical direction,
The length of the pinch roller is shorter than the length of the drive roller, and the heights of the upper ends of the pinch roller and the drive roller are set to substantially the same height. 4. The label sticking device according to any one of 3. The loading unit includes an exchange plate provided with an insertion port of a predetermined inner diameter into which a test tube is inserted at the top,
The exchange plate can be exchanged with another exchange plate provided with an insertion port with a different inner diameter according to the outer diameter of the test tube,
The replacement plate and the other replacement plate are distances between the outer peripheral surface of the drive roller and the inner peripheral surface of the insertion port when viewed from the axial direction of the drive roller in a state of being attached to the loading unit. The label sticking device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the labeling devices are set to be equal to each other.   The label according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a printing unit that prints on the label of the label sheet, or an RFID writing unit that rewrites information on an IC tag built in the label. Pasting device. A label sheet transport unit that transports a long label sheet in which a plurality of labels are arranged and adhered in a peelable manner, a printing unit that prints the label of the transported label sheet, and a surface on which the label is not adhered The label sheet is abutted so as to be bent at an acute angle, and comes into contact with the peeling plate for peeling the label from the label sheet, the loading section loaded with the test tube, and the test tube loaded in the loading section And a control method of a labeling device comprising: a driving roller that is rotationally driven; and a pinch roller that biases the test tube toward the driving roller to hold the test tube,
Conveying the label sheet in the forward direction by the label sheet conveying unit;
Printing on the label of the label sheet by the printing unit;
Peeling the printed label with the release plate, holding the pinch roller, and supplying the test tube rotated by the drive roller between the drive roller;
Affixing the supplied label to the test tube;
By transporting the label sheet by a predetermined amount in the direction opposite to the forward direction by the label sheet transport unit, the next label arranged on the label attached to the test tube is moved to the print position of the print unit. Steps,
Control method.   The control method according to claim 7, wherein the pinch roller can be tilted with respect to a rotation axis of the drive roller following the outer shape of the loaded test tube.