Apparatus of a printer for detecting termination of printing medium

• US 6,629,666 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2001
• Issued: 10/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Shin Heung Precision Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Jung-yong, Lee, Hong-gil
• Primary Examiner(s): Jillions, John M.
• Application Number:
  US09/901,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20020023983A1
• Time in Patent Office: 818 Days
• Field of Search: 242/563-563, 242/591, 242/595, 836/49, 839/49, 250/559.24, 250/559.27
• US Class Current: 242/563
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 16/02 Supporting web roll
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/4137 on its outer circumference
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/41522 Detecting residual amount of web
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2402/442 with openings for introducing material to be handled, e.g. for inserting web rolls
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 26/00 Warning or safety devices, e.g. automatic fault detectors, stop-motions, for web-advancing mechanisms safety devices in general F16P; investigating chemical or physical properties of materials in general G01N; indicating devices in general G08B

Abstract

An apparatus of a printer for detecting a termination or near-termination of a printing medium includes a frame for housing and supporting a roll of the printing medium and capable of being set in a first position and a second position; a first printing medium detecting portion and a second printing medium detecting portion for non-contact detection of the termination or near-termination of the printing medium according to a varying diameter of the roll of the printing medium when the frame is in the first position and the second position; and a position adjusting portion for adjusting an initial set position of the first and the second printing medium detecting means according to an initial diameter of the roll of the printing medium.

Claims

1. An apparatus of a printer for detecting a termination of a printing medium, comprising:

a frame, the frame housing and supporting a roll of the printing medium;

printing medium detecting means for non-contact detecting of the termination or a near-termination of the printing medium according to a varying diameter of the roll of the printing medium; and

position adjusting means for adjusting an initial set position of the printing medium detecting means according to an initial diameter of the roll of the printing medium;

wherein the position adjusting means comprises;

a cam pin formed on a housing; and

a rotary knob rotatably mounted on the frame, and having a cam groove for linearly reciprocating the housing in cooperation with the cam pin which is contained in the cam groove and movable along the cam groove.

2. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printing medium detecting means comprises:

a window in the frame and capable of passing light therethrough;

a photo sensor module for emitting light to the window, detecting light reflected back through the window, and outputting a result of said detecting in the form of an electrical signal; and

a housing movably mounted on the frame for supporting the photo sensor module.

3. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a positioning device provided to the frame and the rotary knob, for locking and unlocking a rotational movement of the rotary knob by a predetermined unit, and identifying a moved location of the housing.

4. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 3, wherein the positioning device comprises:

a tab protrusion formed on an elastic rib which is movably formed on the rotary knob; and

a plurality of tab grooves formed on the frame in a predetermined pattern, to which the tab protrusion is selectively seated according to the rotational movement of the rotary knob.

5. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the frame has a guiding portion stepped on an inner surface of the frame, the guiding portion guiding the roll of the printing medium to a lower portion of the frame when the diameter of the printing medium decreases below a predetermined threshold defining the near-termination of the printing medium.

6. An apparatus of a printer for detecting a termination of a printing medium, comprising:

a frame, the frame housing and supporting a roll of the printing medium and having a first position and a second position;

first printing medium detecting means and second printing medium detecting means for non-contact detecting of the termination or a near-termination of the printing medium according to a varying diameter of the roll of the printing medium when the frame is in the first position or the second position; and

position adjusting means for adjusting an initial set position of the first and the second printing medium detecting means according to an initial diameter of the roll of the printing medium.

7. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein an angle between the first and the second positions of the frame is 90°

, and the frame is selectively turned to the first position and the second position.

8. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein the frame is arranged in a horizontal plane in the first position and in a vertical plane in the second position, and the frame is selectively turned to the first position and the second position.

9. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein the frame has guiding means formed on an inner surface of the frame, the guiding means guiding the roll of the printing medium to a lower portion of the frame in the first and the second positions when the diameter of the printing medium decreases below a predetermined threshold defining the near-termination of the printing medium.

10. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein the first and the second printing medium detecting means comprise:

a pair of windows in the frame at said lower portions in the first and second positions, the pair of windows capable of passing light therethrough;

a pair of photo sensor modules for emitting light to the windows, detecting light reflected back through the windows, and outputting a result of said detecting in the form of an electrical signal; and

a pair of housings movably mounted on the frame for supporting the photo sensor modules.

11. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 10, wherein the pair of housings have an aperture through which the light from the photo sensor modules is passed in a limited width.

12. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 11, wherein the aperture has a width in a range from 30% to 50% of a diameter of a light spot emitted from the photo sensor modules.

13. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 10, wherein the housings have a shutter member slidably mounted on an aperture for adjusting a width of the aperture and thereby adjusting a size of a light spot of light passed through the aperture.

14. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein the position adjusting means comprises:

a housing;

a first cam pin and a second cam pin formed on the housing; and

a rotary knob rotatably mounted on the frame, and having a first cam groove and a second cam groove for linearly reciprocating the housing in cooperation with the first cam pin and the second cam pin which are contained in the first and the second cam grooves and movable along the first and the second cam grooves.

15. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 14, wherein a distance between a rotational shaft of the rotary knob and an end of the first cam groove is longer than a distance between the rotational shaft of the rotary knob and an end of the second cam groove opposing the end of the first cam groove.

16. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 14, further comprising a positioning device provided to the frame and the rotary knob, for locking and unlocking a rotational movement of the rotary knob by a predetermined unit, and identifying a moved location of the housings.

17. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 16, wherein the positioning device comprises:

a tab protrusion formed on an elastic rib which is movably formed on the rotary knob; and

a plurality of tab grooves formed on the frame in a predetermined pattern, to which the tab protrusion is selectively seated according to the rotational movement of the rotary knob.

18. The apparatus of a printer as claimed in claim 6, wherein the first and the second printing medium detecting means indicate the termination or near-termination of the printing medium when any one of the first and the second printing medium detecting means detects the termination or near-termination of the printing medium.