HAND-HELD THERMAL TRANSFER PRINTER FOR LABELING

• US 20080080918A1
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Published: 04/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Panduit Corporation
• Original Assignee: Panduit Corporation
• Inventors: Adams, Michael, McConnell, Richard, Morrison, David, Obenshain, Marc, Rothfritz, Robert, Clayvon, Anthony, Caveney, Jack
• Application Number:
  US11/931,192
• Publication Number:
  US 20080080918A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 400/242
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 17/36 Alarms, indicators, or feed-disabling devices responsible to material breakage or exhaustion
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/325 by selective transfer of ink from ink carrier, e.g. from ink ribbon or sheet
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/36 for portability , i.e. hand-held printers or laptop printers B41J3/4075 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/4075 Tape printers; Label printers
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 5/10 Arrangements of keyboards , e.g. key button disposition
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/372 Ink ribbons
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 75/2413 adjustable by threaded means

Abstract

Various embodiments of a hand-held printer that includes an area for receiving a cassette carrying label material, a drive system for positioning the label material relative to a printhead, and a processing circuit for receiving inputs, producing outputs and controlling the drive system. In addition, a cassette having an ID circuit is described. The hand-held printer obtains information from the ID circuit when the cassette is inserted into the printer. The information may include, for example, a label type, label quantity, date information or information regarding printer settings for a print job previously printed from the cassette. In other embodiments, the hand-held printer may have a modular keyboard, such as a keyboard adapted for a particular application or language. The hand-held printer may include a latching mechanism that is capable of positioning a nip roller in relation to a printhead after a cassette is inserted and/or secure the cassette.

Claims

1. A cassette comprising:

a roll of label material,

an ink ribbon disposed between and supported by a pair of spools, wherein each spool includes an adjustable flange to accommodate ink ribbons of varying widths; and

mechanical guide elements that position the label material and the ink ribbon in relation to a printhead when the cassette is inserted into a printer.

2. In a hand-held printer that includes an area for receiving a cassette carrying label material, a drive system for positioning the label material relative to a print head, and a processing circuit for receiving inputs, producing outputs and controlling the drive system, a latching mechanism, comprising:

a radius arm having a pivot point at a first end and carrying a nip roller at a second end; and

a cassette latch, wherein movement of the cassette latch causes the radius arm to rotate about the pivot point.

3. The hand-held printer of claim 2, wherein the cassette latch is a sliding latch that is moved by a user after inserting a cassette into the printer.

4. The hand-held printer of claim 2, wherein movement of the cassette latch brings the nip roller into alignment with the printhead.

5. The hand-held printer of claim 2, wherein the radius arm includes a lock seat.

6. The hand-held printer of claim 5, further comprising a cassette lock that is positioned within the lock seat and a lock spring disposed between the radius arm and the cassette lock, whereby, when a cassette is inserted and the cassette latch is actuated, the cassette lock locks the cassette in place.