Printer and roll paper holding mechanism

• US 8,328,443 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2009
• Issued: 12/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kawabe, Yuichiro, Watanabe, Osamu
• Primary Examiner(s): Yan, Ren
• Assistant Examiner(s): Samreth, Marissa Ferguson
• Application Number:
  US12/607,340
• Publication Number:
  US 20100111586A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,140 Days
• Field of Search: 400/613, 400/611, 400/614, 400/692, 400/693, 242/599, 242/597, 242/578, 242/597.1, 242/597.8
• US Class Current: 400/613
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 15/042 for loading rolled-up continuous copy material into printers, e.g. for replacing a used-up paper roll; Point-of-sale printers with openable casings allowing access to the rolled-up continuous copy material
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 15/046 for the guidance of continuous copy material, e.g. for preventing skewed conveyance of the continuous copy material
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/4075 Tape printers; Label printers
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 16/06 both-ends type
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 19/126 with both-ends supporting arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/41362 one of the supports for the roller axis being movable as auxiliary bearing
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2402/54 Springs, e.g. helical or leaf springs
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2801/12 Single-function printing machines, typically table-top machines

Abstract

A sidewall supports, in a cantilever state, a sheet holding shaft for holding a label sheet wound in a roll shape and positions a first end face, which is one end face, of the label sheet inserted over the sheet holding shaft. A roll paper holding mechanism that presses a second end face, which is the other end face, of the label sheet, has a first arm, a second arm, and a spring. The first arm projects from the sidewall and rotatably supports the second arm at an end thereof. The spring connects the first arm and the second arm and urges and pulls the second arm. The second arm comes into contact with the second end face of the label sheet in a process of being pulled to rotate and holds the label sheet in conjunction with the sidewall functioning as a reference plane.

Claims

1. A printer comprising:

a sheet holding unit configured to have a reference plane for positioning a first end face of roll paper and rotatably hold the roll paper according to an end face reference by the reference plane;

a conveying unit configured to draw out the roll paper held by the sheet holding unit and guide and convey the roll paper along a predetermined guide path;

a printing unit configured to apply printing based on print data to the roll paper guided and conveyed through the guide path;

a contact body configured to have a contact section and to be rotatably provided with the contact section located on a free end side, the contact section coming into contact with a second end face of the roll paper held by the sheet holding unit; and

an urging unit configured to urge the contact body in a first rotating direction for bringing the contact section close to the second end face of the roll paper and bring the contact section into contact with the second end face to bring the first end face of the roll paper into contact with the reference plane, wherein

the sheet holding unit includes;

a sheet holding shaft configured to project from the reference plane, cause a cylindrical paper pipe of the roll paper to be inserted thereover, and hold the roll paper; and

a slide holding mechanism configured to allow the sheet holding shaft to slide between an upper position and a lower position and hold the sheet holding shaft in one of the upper position and the lower position.

2. The printer of claim 1, wherein the contact body is attached to the free end side to be displaced by rotating in a first rotating direction and interfering with the second end face of the roll paper and has an interference body forming the contact section in an area set in contact with the second end face, wherein

the sheet holding unit includes a posture changing mechanism configured to set the interference body in a first posture for bringing the interference body into contact with an end face, which is at an opposite side of the reference plane, of the paper pipe of the roll paper held by the sheet holding shaft positioned in the upper position or a second posture for bringing the interference body into contact with the end face of the paper pipe of the roll paper held by the sheet holding shaft positioned in the lower position and hold the interference body on a free end side of the contact body.

3. The printer of claim 2, wherein the posture changing mechanism includes an attaching structure for detachably attaching the interference body to an area on the free end side of the contact body in a state in which the interference body is vertically reversed to be set in the first posture or the second posture.

4. The printer of claim 2, further comprising a first arm projecting from the reference plane to a side on which the roll paper is located by the sheet holding unit, wherein

the contact body is a second arm supported at a support point O rotatably with respect to the first arm,

the urging unit is a spring, one end of which is located at a predetermined point X and the other end of which is connected to the second arm at a connection point Y, and

the printer further comprises a holding mechanism provided in at least one of the first arm and the second arm and configured to hold, in a position where angle XOY=predetermined angle α

(α

>

180°

), the second arm rotationally displaced to a position where angle XOY>

180°

in a second rotating direction opposite to the first rotating direction by external force and further pulled in the second rotating direction by the spring.

5. The printer of claim 4, wherein the predetermined point X and the connection point Y are set in positions where the spring urges the second arm such that the contact section pushes the second end face of the roll paper with fixed pressing force.

6. The printer of claim 1, wherein the contact section is a distal end section on the free end side of the contact body formed with roundness for sliding the second end face of the roll paper.

7. The printer of claim 1, further comprising

a first arm projecting from the reference plane to a side on which the roll paper is located by the sheet holding unit, wherein

the contact body is a second arm supported at a support point O rotatably with respect to the first arm,

the urging unit is a spring, one end of which is located at a predetermined point X and the other end of which is connected to the second arm at a connection point Y, and

the printer further comprises a holding mechanism provided in at least one of the first arm and the second arm and configured to hold, in a position where angle XOY=predetermined angle α

(α

>

180°

), the second arm rotationally displaced to a position where angle XOY>

180°

in a second rotating direction opposite to a first rotating direction by external force and further pulled in the second rotating direction by the spring.

8. The printer of claim 7, further comprising:

a housing;

a roll-paper storing unit configured to include at least the sheet holding unit, the contact body, and the urging unit and to be supported to be freely drawn out from and housed in the housing, wherein

the holding mechanism causes, in a process for housing the roll-paper storing unit in the housing, the second arm to interfere with the housing, and locates and holds the second arm in a position rotating in the first rotating direction.

9. The printer of claim 8, wherein the predetermined point X and the connection point Y are set in positions where the spring urges the second arm such that the contact section pushes the second end face of the roll paper with fixed pressing force.

10. The printer of claim 7, wherein the predetermined point X and the connection point Y are set in positions where the spring urges the second arm such that the contact section pushes the second end face of the roll paper with fixed pressing force.

11. A printer comprising:

a sheet holding unit configured to have a reference plane for positioning a first end face of roll paper and rotatably hold the roll paper according to an end face reference by the reference plane;

a conveying unit configured to draw out the roll paper held by the sheet holding unit, and guide and convey the roll paper along a predetermined guide, path;

a printing unit configured to apply printing based on print data to the roll paper guided and conveyed through the predetermined guide path;

a contact body configured to have a contact section and to be rotatably provided with the contact section located on a free end side, the contact section coming into contact with a second end face of the roll paper held by the sheet holding unit;

an urging unit configured to urge the contact body in a first rotating direction for bringing the contact section close to the second end face of the roll paper and bring the contact section into contact with the second end face to bring the first end face of the roll paper into contact with the reference plane; and

a first arm projecting from the reference plane to a side on which the roll paper is located by the sheet holding unit, wherein

the contact body is a second arm supported at a support point O rotatably with respect to the first arm,

the urging unit is a spring, one end of which is located at a predetermined point X and the other end of which is connected to the second arm at a connection point Y, and

the printer further comprises a holding mechanism provided in at least one of the first arm and the second arm, and configured to hold, in a position where angle XOY=predetermined angle α

(α

>

180°

), the second arm rotationally displaced to a position where angle XOY>

180°

in a second rotating direction opposite to a first rotating direction by external force and further pulled in the second rotating direction by the spring.

12. The printer of claim 11, wherein the contact section is a distal end section on the free end side of the contact body formed with roundness for sliding the second end face of the roll paper.

13. The printer of claim 11, further comprising:

a housing;

a roll-paper storing unit configured to include at least the sheet holding unit, the contact body, and the urging unit and to be supported to be freely drawn out from and housed in the housing, wherein

the holding mechanism causes, in a process for housing the roll-paper storing unit in the housing, the second arm to interfere with the housing, and locates and holds the second arm in a position rotating in the first rotating direction.

14. The printer of claim 13, wherein the predetermined point X and the connection point Y are set in positions where the spring urges the second arm such that the contact section pushes the second end face of the roll paper with fixed pressing force.