JP2533031Y2 - Print head pressurizing device for card printer - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The invention relates to a card printer that prints out characters with a thermal print head on the surface of an inserted card, and particularly presses the thermal print head against a platen with a specified pressure. The present invention relates to a print head pressurizing device for a card printer.

[Prior Art] In general, a magnetic stripe is formed on a prepaid card, and a card balance is magnetically recorded in the magnetic stripe. Then, when the prepaid card is inserted into the card reader / writer and the payment amount is entered by key, the payment amount is subtracted from the card balance. However, since the card balance cannot be checked visually, a card reader / writer that incorporates a card printer into the card reader / writer, updates the card balance, and prints out the card payment every time on the front of the card has been proposed. ing.

FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view showing a card reader / writer in which a card printer is incorporated. Inlet roller 1, magnetic head 2, card printer 3, discharge roller 4 along card transport path
And so on. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the card printer 3 comprises a platen 5, a thermal print head 6, and a print head pressing device 8 for pressing the thermal print head 6 to the platen 5 via the card 7. Have been.

As shown in the drawing, the print head pressurizing device 8 includes a pressing spring 9 for urging the thermal print head 6 downward, that is, in the direction of the platen 5, a guide frame 10, and a guide frame 10.
It comprises a latching solenoid 12 having a plunger 11 attached to 10. The triangular guide window 13 formed on the side of the guide frame 10 has a thermal print head 6.
A guide pin 14 attached to the side surface of is locked.

When the printing operation on the card 7 is started, when the latching solenoid 12 is energized in the reverse direction to release the latched state, the plunger 11 is moved to the left by the spring 16 and the urging force of the pressing spring 9 ,
Since the thermal print head 6 is urged downward, when the guide window 13 moves to the left,
14 moves down. As a result, the thermal print head 6 is pressed against the platen 5 via the card 7 by the elastic force of the pressing spring 9. In this state, while rotating the platen 5 to feed the card 7, the thermal print head 6
When the power is supplied to the card 7, the character 15 is thermally printed on the upper surface of the card 7 as shown in FIG.

Then, when the printing operation on the card 7 is completed, the latching solenoid 12 is energized in the forward direction. Then, the plunger 11 moves rightward. The guide window 13 moves rightward with the movement of the plunger 11, and the guide pin
Since the 14 is lifted, the thermal print head 6 moves upward against the pressing spring 9 as shown in FIG.
When the thermal print head 6 moves upward by a predetermined distance and the plunger 11 retreats to the right end position, the plunger
11 is latched. Once latched, the latched state is maintained as long as power is not supplied to the latching solenoid 12 in the opposite direction, even if power is cut off. Thus, a predetermined gap is generated between the thermal print head 6 and the platen 5.

The guide frame 10 and the thermal print head 6 are supported by respective guide mechanisms (not shown) so as to be movable in the horizontal and vertical directions.

As described above, during the period in which the printing operation on the card 7 is not performed, the card 7 can be easily moved in the forward or reverse direction along the card transport path by moving the thermal print head 6 to the upper position. ing. That is, in the prepaid card, a process of reading the card balance recorded on the magnetic stripe and writing a new card balance is performed. At the time of writing, a verifying process for confirming that the data has been written correctly is performed. Therefore, the card 7 reciprocates the position of the magnetic head 2 many times. Therefore, in order to easily perform the reciprocating operation, a certain gap is provided between the thermal print head 6 and the platen 5, and the card 7 is freely moved.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, the card printer as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 has the following problems to be solved.

In order to obtain a print quality above a certain level, the pressure applied to the thermal print head 6 during the printing operation on the card 7 to be printed needs to be about 1 kg. This pressure is obtained by the downward biasing force of the pressing spring 9 described above.

Therefore, in order to raise the thermal print head 6 upward against the urging force of 1 kg of the pressing spring 9 after the printing operation is completed, the force for retracting (sucking) the plunger 11 in the latching solenoid 12 is required. Needs to increase significantly. As a result, there is a problem that the size of the latching solenoid 12 is increased and a large amount of current needs to flow, resulting in high power consumption and an increase in manufacturing cost.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the specified pressure required for printing can be applied to the thermal print head only during the holding state of the solenoid, and the specified pressure is maintained during the holding release period and immediately before shifting to the holding state. Card printing that can control the movement of the thermal print head with a much weaker spring, greatly reduce the suction force of the solenoid, and make the solenoid smaller and lighter, thus reducing the overall size and weight of the device and saving power. It is an object to provide a head pressurizing device.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention disposes a platen and a thermal print head opposed to each other with a card transport path interposed therebetween, and performs thermal printing at a specified pressure necessary during a printing operation on the card. In a print head pressurizing device of a card printer for urging a print head to a platen, a mounting plate disposed in parallel with a card conveyance path and having a rotating shaft at one end and disposed above the mounting plate. And one end is rotatably supported on a rotation shaft of the mounting plate,
The other end is pivotally supported on both side surfaces of the thermal print head, and a lever plate for moving the thermal print head in the direction of the platen is disposed above the lever plate. A movable member that is freely supported and has a convex portion formed at the other end to selectively contact the upper surface of the mounting plate, and is inserted between the movable member and the mounting plate, and the convex portion is A pressurizing spring member for urging the movable member toward the mounting plate with a specified pressure in a state of contacting the upper surface, and the movable member is mounted on the movable member so that the moving direction of the plunger is in the direction of the thermal print head, and printing is started. A plunger is retracted and held by a signal, and the solenoid is released from the holding state by a print end signal, and a substantially central portion is pivotally supported by a movable member.
The upper end is pivotally supported by the tip of the plunger. In response to the retreating operation of the plunger, the lower end urges the lever plate downward at the lower end to move the thermal print head in the direction of the platen. The plunger is advanced during the holding state release period, the pivot lever is pivoted, and the protrusion formed on the lever plate is urged upward at the lower end of the pivot lever to thereby raise the platen of the thermal print head. And a plunger spring separated from the plunger.

In another invention, the solenoid is constituted by a latching solenoid utilizing the attraction force of a permanent magnet, and the lever is urged upward by the urging force of a plunger spring during the holding state releasing period by the permanent magnet. The projection of the plate is held by suction.

[Operation] In the print head pressurizing device of the card printer thus configured, the thermal print head is moved up and down (in the direction of the platen) on the rotation axis of the mounting plate arranged in parallel with the card transport path. One end of a lever plate to be driven and one end of a movable member to which a solenoid is attached are rotatably supported. The movable member is pressed against the mounting plate by a pressure spring member. Further, the correlation between the movable member and the lever plate is determined by the turning operation of the turning lever. The turning position of the turning lever corresponds to the moving position of the plunger of the solenoid.

Then, when the holding state of the plunger in the solenoid is released, the plunger is moved forward by the plunger spring. Therefore, the pivot lever pivots, and the lower end of the pivot lever urges the protrusion formed on the lever plate upward. Therefore, since the lever plate rotates upward, the thermal print head pivotally supported by the tip of the lever plate also moves upward. That is, the Searle print head is separated from the platen. In this state, since the movable member is pressed against the mounting plate by the pressure spring member, the movable member does not rotate with respect to the mounting plate.

Next, when a print start command is input, the solenoid is energized in the forward direction, and the plunger starts retreating.In this movement process, the plunger is almost constrained by a very weak plunger spring. Because there is no plunger, the plunger moves easily. When the plunger is retracted, the pivot lever pivots and urges the lever plate downward at the lower end of the pivot lever. When the lever plate rotates downward, the upward movement of the thermal print head pivotally supported by the tip of the lever plate is prohibited, and the thermal print head comes into contact with the thermal print head.

When the plunger retracts to the predetermined position and enters the holding state, the movement of the plunger is fixed at this position. Therefore, the position of the thermal print head is almost fixed in a state of being in contact with the platen. In this state,
When a card to be printed is inserted between the thermal print head and the platen, the thermal print head needs to move upward by the thickness of the card. In this case, the relative relationship between the movable member and the lever plate is Since it is fixed by the solenoid in the holding state, the correlation between the movable member and the mounting plate changes. That is, the movable member rotates upward against the pressure spring member. Since the pressure spring member has an urging force corresponding to a specified pressure required for a printing operation, the thermal print head is pressed to the platen via the card at the specified pressure.

When the solenoid is energized in the reverse direction by the print end signal, the holding state of the plunger is released, and the thermal print head moves upward as described above, forming a gap between the thermal print head and the platen. Is done.

Further, in another invention, a latching solenoid using a permanent magnet is used as a solenoid, and in a holding (latch) state releasing period, the protrusion of the lever plate is sucked and held to move the lever plate toward the upper movable member. As a result, a gap can be more easily provided between the thermal print head and the platen. Since the attractive force of the permanent magnet has a sufficient holding force for holding the thermal print head, it is not necessary to increase the force when the plunger of the latching solenoid is retracted and latched.

Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a print head pressurizing device of a card printer according to an embodiment, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part taken out, and FIG. 3 is a top view. The overall configuration of the card reader / writer in which the card printer is incorporated is almost the same as that shown in FIG.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, a platen 21 that is driven to rotate by a motor (not shown) in a direction perpendicular to the card transport direction is provided, and a plate-like thermal print head 22 is provided at a position facing the platen 21. Has been established. A mounting plate 23 is fixed to a frame (not shown) in parallel with the card transport path. The mounting plate 23 is formed by bending a single plate, and includes one bottom plate 23a and two side plates 23b and 23c. A cut 23d is formed at the end of each of the side plates 23b and 23c, and the cut 23d is engaged with a pin 22a attached to the side surface of the thermal print head 22. Further, a rotation shaft 24 is mounted between the two side plates 23b and 23c.

A lever plate 25 shown in FIG. 2 is disposed between the side plates 23a and 23b of the mounting plate 23. The rotating shaft 24 passes through through holes formed in the bent portions 25a and 25b on both sides of the lever plate 25. The distal ends of the bent portions 25a and 25b on both sides are pivotally supported by pins 22b attached to the lower side of the side surface of the thermal print head 22. A large window 25c is formed in the center of the lever plate 25, and a projection 25d is formed in the center by bending. Therefore, the lever plate 25 freely rotates around the rotation shaft 24. With this rotation operation, the thermal print head 22 moves up and down.

Further, a movable member 26 is disposed above the lever plate 25. The movable member 26 is composed of two side plates 26a, 26b and an upper plate 26c, and one end of each of the side plates 26a, 26b is rotatably supported by the rotation shaft 24 through a through hole. Also,
The other end of each side plate 26a, 26b has a protruding portion 26c, 26d projecting downward.
Are formed. Then, when the movable member 26 rotates downward, the convex portions 26c and 26d penetrate the window 25c of the lever plate 25 and abut on the upper surface of the bottom plate 23a of the mounting plate 23. Further, pressure spring members 27a and 27b are interposed between both ends of the upper plate 26c of the movable member 26 and the bottom plate 23a of the mounting plate 23. Usually, the movable member 26 is provided with the pressure spring members 27a and 27a. It is biased downward by 27b. The biasing force of the pressure spring members 27a and 27b is set by the thermal print head 22 to a value corresponding to a specified pressure required to print out characters on the card 7 with good print quality.

A latching solenoid 28 is fixed to both side plates 26a, 26b and the upper plate 26c of the movable member 26 in such a manner that the plunger 28b faces the thermal print head 22. As is well known, when the coil 28a is energized in the forward direction, the latching solenoid 28
Moves backward into the coil 28a and retreats to the specified position, and is attracted to the permanent magnet 32 shown in FIG. 4, and the position is latched. Once in the latched state, the latched state is maintained even when the current to coil 28a is cut off. When the coil 28a is energized in the reverse direction, the latched state is released, and the plunger 28b can move freely.

The upper end of the movable lever 29 is pivotally supported at the tip of the plunger 28b. The movable lever 29 has a substantially L-shaped cross section as shown in the figure, and has a central portion pivotally supported by a shaft 30 provided at a position near the convex portions 26c, 26d of the side plates 26a, 26b of the movable member 26. Have been. Further, rollers 29a and 29b which are in contact with the upper surface of the lower lever plate 25 are attached to the lower end of the movable lever 29. Therefore, when the plunger 28b moves, the turning lever 29 turns around the shaft 30 with this movement. A plunger spring 31 is wound around the plunger 28b. When the latching solenoid 28 releases the latched state, the plunger 28
b is urged forward by the plunger spring 31.

On the lower surface of the latching solenoid 28, the above-described permanent magnet 32 having a sufficient attraction force to hold the thermal print head 22 attracted to the projection 25d of the lever plate 25 is attached.

Next, the operation of the print head pressurizing device of the card printer thus configured will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 shows a state where the printing operation on the card is not performed. That is, in this state, the latching solenoid 28 is in the unlatched state. Therefore, the plunger 28b is movable in the front-rear direction, and is located at the most advanced position by the repulsive force of the plunger spring 31. As a result, the rotating lever 29 is rotated counterclockwise about the shaft 30, and the tip of the rotating lever 29 on the roller 29a side is located at the uppermost position. Therefore, the protrusion 25d of the lever plate 25 is urged upward by the tip on the roller 29a side. As a result, the projection 25d of the lever plate 25 located below the roller 29a
Attraction force acts between the projection 25 d and the permanent magnet 3 attached to the lower surface of the latching solenoid 28.
2 and adsorb. As a result, the lever plate 25 rotates upward around the rotation shaft 24, and lifts the thermal print head 22 pivotally supported at the tip of the lever plate 25. Thus, a predetermined gap is generated between the thermal print head 22 and the platen 21.

When a print start signal is input in this state, the coil 28a of the latching solenoid 28 is energized in the forward direction. As a result, the plunger 28b starts retreating as shown in FIG. When the plunger 28b starts retreating, the rotation lever 29 rotates clockwise about the shaft 30 attached to the movable member 26. As a result, the roller 29 at the lower end of the rotating lever 29
“a” moves downward to rotate the lever plate 25 downward.
Therefore, the thermal print head 22 pivotally supported by the tip of the lever plate 25 moves downward. Then, the thermal print head 22 comes into contact with the platen 21.

When the plunger 28b is retracted to the specified position, the plunger 28b is latched by the permanent magnet 32, and the position is fixed. Once the position of the plunger 28b is latched, the rotation angle of the rotation lever 29 is fixed, so that the distance between the movable member 26 and the lever plate 25 is not further reduced.

In this state, when the platen 21 is rotated as shown in FIG.
However, the thermal print head 22 needs to move upward by the thickness of the card 7. At this time, since the plunger 28b is in the latched state, the distance between the movable member 26 and the lever plate 25 is not further reduced as described above. Accordingly, the pressure spring members 27a and 27b are extended, and the movable member 26 is rotated clockwise about the rotation shaft 24, so that the angle between the movable member 26 and the mounting plate 23 is increased. When the movable member 26 rotates upward, the lever plate 25 pressed against the movable member 26 via the rotation lever 29 also rotates upward together. As a result, the thermal print head 22 moves upward.

In this case, the pressing pressure of the thermal print head 22 against the card 7 becomes the urging force of the pressure spring members 27a and 27b. The urging force of the pressure spring members 27a and 27b is, for example, about 1 kg at which characters can be printed on the card 7 with good print quality.

When the printing operation is completed and a printing end signal is input, the coil 28a is energized in the reverse direction and the latching solenoid 2 is turned on.
The latched state of 8 is released. When the latched state is released, the plunger 28b is moved forward by the plunger spring 31, so that the state shown in FIG. 4 is restored.

According to the print head pressurizing device of the card printer configured as described above, when the print start signal is not input, the latching solenoid 28 is in the unlatched state, and the plunger 28a is a weak plunger spring 31. The lever plate 25 is urged upward by a weak permanent magnet. As a result, the thermal print head 22 is urged upward with a suction force sufficient to hold the thermal print head 22.

Then, when a print start signal is input in this state, the latching solenoid 28 is driven to retract the plunger 28b, but since only the very weak plunger spring 31 and the permanent magnet 32 act on the plunger 28b,
It can be retracted to the latch position with very little force.

Further, once latched, a pressure spring member 27 is provided between the thermal print head 22 and the platen 21 via the card 7.
A regular pressure required for printing, for example, 1 kg, by a, 27b is applied.

As described above, since the latching solenoid 28 can move the plunger 28b with a small force, the latching solenoid 28 can be made smaller and lighter than the conventional device shown in FIG. Also, power consumption can be reduced.

Further, during the latch release period in which the printing operation is not performed, the plunger spring 31 wound around the plunger 28a is used.
The thermal print head 22 is lifted upward by the elastic force of the permanent magnet 32 and the attractive force of the permanent magnet 32 to provide a certain gap between the thermal print head 22 and the platen 21.
Transport becomes easier. Further, since the permanent magnets 32 are used, the lifting state can be further stabilized.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the print head pressurizing device of the card printer of the present invention, the specified pressure required for printing can be applied to the thermal print head only during the holding state of the solenoid, and the holding release period The movement of the thermal print head is controlled by a spring that is much weaker than the specified pressure until immediately before shifting to the holding state. Therefore, the attraction force of the solenoid can be significantly reduced, and the solenoid can be formed small and lightweight with low power consumption, thereby making it possible to reduce the size and weight of the entire card printer in which this device is incorporated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 to 6 show a print head pressurizing device of a card printer according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the whole, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view, FIG. 4 to FIG. 6 are side views for explaining the operation, FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view showing a general card reader / writer, and FIG. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a conventional print head pressing device, and FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a print format of a card. 21 ... Platen, 22 ... Thermal print head, 23 ... Mounting plate, 24 ... Rotating shaft, 25 ... Lever plate, 26 ... Movable member, 27a, 27b ... Pressure spring member, 28 ... Latching solenoid, 28b …… Plunger, 29 …… Rotating lever, 30
... shaft, 31 ... plunger spring, 32 ... permanent magnet.

Claims (2)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] A platen (21) and a thermal print head (22) are arranged opposite to each other with a card transport path interposed therebetween, and the thermal print head is attached to the platen at a specified pressure required during a printing operation on the card. And a mounting plate (23) disposed parallel to the card transport path and having a rotating shaft (24) at one end, and disposed above the mounting plate. A lever plate for pivotally supporting one end of the mounting plate on the rotation axis of the mounting plate, and the other end pivotally supported on both sides of the thermal print head, and moving the thermal print head in the direction of the platen. 25), a convex portion is provided above the lever plate, one end of which is rotatably supported by a rotation shaft of the mounting plate, and the other end of which is selectively in contact with the upper surface of the mounting plate. Movable member (26) and this movable member A pressurizing spring member interposed between a member and the mounting plate and biasing the movable member toward the mounting plate at the specified pressure in a state where the convex portion is in contact with the upper surface of the mounting plate ( 27a, 27b)
Attached to the movable member so that the moving direction of the plunger (28b) is in the direction of the thermal print head.
The solenoid (28), which is retracted and held by a print start signal and released from the holding state by a print end signal, has a substantially central portion pivotally supported by the movable member and an upper end provided with the plunger. A pivoting lever (29) pivotally supported by the tip of the jar and for urging the lever plate downward at the lower end to move the thermal print head toward the platen in response to the retreating operation of the plunger; The plunger is wound around the plunger, and the plunger is advanced during the holding state releasing period, and the rotating lever is rotated to attach a protrusion formed on the lever plate at a lower end of the rotating lever upward. A print head pressurizing device for a card printer, comprising: a plunger spring (31) for urging the print head away from the platen. 2. The solenoid comprises a latching solenoid in which a permanent magnet (32) is incorporated, and is urged upward by the urging force of the plunger spring during the holding state releasing period by the permanent magnet. 2. A print head pressurizing device for a card printer according to claim 1, wherein said projection of said lever plate is held by suction.