JPS59133085A - Heat-sensitive recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the replacement of a heat-sensitive paper and maintenance of a recording head, by a method wherein a movable unit for containing a recording head of a heat-sensitive recorder can be opened on the upper side through a link mechanism, and feeding mechanisms are provided in a lateral row. CONSTITUTION:When a push-button provided on the front face of a main body 9 is depressed, engagement between a lock pin 22 and a lock lever 21 is released, and a front part of the movable unit 11 is lifted up by an energizing force of a movable spring 11 provided in the link mechanism. Next, when the movable unit 11 is manually rotated by about 90 deg., levers 33, 34 are pushed open by an energizing force of a stopper spring 35, and the link mechanism is fixed in the condition wherein the levers 33, 34 are on a straight line. On the other hand, the main body 9 is provided with the feeding mechanisms such as a rubber roller 14, a cutter 15 and a pulse motor 16 in a lateral line, and a rolled form heat- sensitive paper 10 is fed to a tray 39 through the head 13. To close the movable unit 11, a V-shaped upper surface of the lever 34 is pulled toward the operator by an index finger 43, and then the unit 11 is pushed downward.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to a thermal recording device, and particularly to a thermal recording device that is compact and allows easy exchange of thermal paper and maintenance of the recording head.

[Prior art]

Since the thermal recording method is easy to record, it is widely used in facsimile machines, printers, etc. FIG. 1 shows an example of a conventional thermal recording device, in which a recording head 2, a rubber roller 3, a cutter 4, and other recording and paper feeding mechanisms are arranged above a roll of thermal paper 1. The disadvantage was that the height of the device was high, creating wasted space in various parts. In addition, because the thermal paper 1 is stored deep at the bottom of the main body 5.

It was difficult to replace the thermal paper 1. Furthermore, two types of detectors are provided in the movable unit 7: a microswitch 6 for detecting a paper break in the thermal paper 1, and a head position detection switch 8 for detecting the entire lock state of the movable unit 70 main body 5. As a result, the movable unit 7 has a complicated structure, which makes maintenance and maintenance of the area around the recording head 2 difficult.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned points, and an object thereof is to provide a thermal recording apparatus 1 having a compact and simple structure, in which exchange of thermal paper and maintenance of the recording head are easy.

[Overview of the Invention] The present invention has a movable unit that houses all the recording heads of a thermal recording device that opens upward via a link mechanism, thermal paper is disposed directly below the movable unit, and rubber rollers are arranged in a row next to the thermal paper. By disposing a cutter and a cutter, the intended purpose is achieved.

[Embodiments of the invention]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a thermal recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to all the drawings.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention. A thermal paper 10 is housed inside the front of the main body 9 of the apparatus. A movable unit 11 is disposed above the thermal paper 10, and is rotatably supported by the upper body 9 at the front via a fulcrum screw 12. This movable unit 11
A recording head 13 is fixedly installed via a VCid support structure. A rubber roller 14 is provided at the center of the main body 9. Paper feeding mechanisms such as a cutter 15 and a pulse motor 16 are arranged in a horizontal line. 1) At the rear of the main body 9 described in 1■, there is a tungen 17. Drive board 18. A device i assistant control section such as a control board 19 is provided.

The frame 20 constituting the movable unit 11 includes a lock bin 22 that engages with lock levers 21 fixed at both front ends of the main body 9, and a paper force lever 23 for smooth feeding of the thermal paper 10. is permanently installed. This paper guide 23 is configured to come into contact with an actuator 26 of a microswitch 25 fixed to a substrate 24 in the main body 9 via the thermal paper 10.

Further, the recording head 13, the heat sink 27. The recording section constituted by the head support fitting 28 is elastically supported by the movable frame 20 via four head pushing springs 29.

The movable unit 11 and one end of the link mechanism 30 are rotatably connected via a quad spring 31. The other end of this link mechanism 30 is rotatably connected to a frame 32 within the main body 9.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, this link mechanism 30 includes a stopper lever A33. ! : A stopper lever B34 is rotatably connected via a stopper spring 35.

Next, a paper feeding mechanism for the thermal paper 10 will be explained. A roll of thermal paper 10 is connected to the recording head 13 and the rubber roller 1.
4 and are pressed together. The rotation of the rubber roller 140 is driven by the pulley 36. Timing belt 37. Motor drive IJ 38f: This is performed by a pulse motor 16 that is fixedly installed in the main body 9 through a motor drive IJ 38f. The thermal paper 10, which is pressed against the rubber roller 14 by the recording head 13, moves together due to the frictional force with the rubber roller 14.

Thermal paper 10 passes through the cutter 15 and is discharged onto a tray 39 disposed above the wave force of the main body 1, and is cut into a predetermined size by operating the cutter 15 with a cutter rail 40. A cut paper is obtained.

In the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above, the height of the device can be significantly reduced compared to the conventional example shown in FIG.

In the device IU at the rear of main body 1 (in the control section, 'component 1
7. Drive board 18. Since all of the control boards 19 are placed horizontally and are stacked in a three-layer structure, wasteful space can be eliminated and the length of the device can be shortened.

Next, the opening/closing mechanism of the movable unit 11 of the present invention will be explained.

During recording, a lock bin 22 fixed to the movable frame 2o and a lock lever 2 fixed to the main body 9 are used to maintain pressure contact between the recording head 13 and the rubber roller 14.
1 is fitted. When the thermal paper 10 runs out, the tip of the actuator 26 enters the opening 41 formed in the paper guide 23, and the microswitch 25 is turned off. In this case, the recording operation becomes impossible and the paper must be replaced frequently.

When the push button 42 disposed on the front side of the main body 9 is pressed, the lock bin 22 and the lock lever 21 (7) are fitted together 75E, and the quad spring disposed between the movable frame 20 and the stopper lever A33 is activated. Due to the biasing force 31, the front of the movable unit 11 floats up. Next, when the oT [+ unit] 11 is rotated by hand about 90 degrees around the fulcrum screw 12, the stopper spring B3 provided in the link mechanism 30
Due to the biasing force of A33.5, the stopper lever A33. ! :The stopper lever B34 is pushed apart. When these levers are aligned, a curved U is formed on the stopper lever B34.
9iii of the stopper lever A33 is still in contact with the inner surface of the letter, and the link mechanism is fixed. In other words, the movable unit 11 (approximately 90°131") is semi-automatically fixed at the released position. FIG. By providing the screw C42 as close as possible to the fulcrum screw 12, the entire link mechanism 30 can be moved away from the photosensitive paper 10.

As a result, the link mechanism 30 does not get in the way when replacing one sheet of thermal paper, and the thermal paper 10 can be easily replaced.

When closing the movable unit) 11, use the stopper lever B34.
The user pulls the U-shaped upper surface of the user toward the user with the index finger 43, releases the lock of the link mechanism 30, and then pushes down the entire movable unit 11. The link mechanism 30 is folded forward and stored compactly in a space next to the thermal paper io on the side of the main body 9. Since the stop spring 35 is housed inside the U-shape, it does not interfere with the operation of the index finger 43 and has the effect of allowing smooth operation. Further, since the U-shaped end surface allows the link mechanism 30 to be folded and folded, there is an effect that the index finger 43 can be operated safely without being caught between the stopper lever A33 and the stopper lever B540. Note that 44 is a hinge screw A that supports the quad spring 31, and 45 is a hinge screw B that supports the stopper spring 35.

If the recording head 13 is energized while the recording head 13 and the rubber roller 14 are not in complete pressure contact, the recording head 1 will instantly turn off.
3 will burn out, so a means to prevent this is required. According to the uninvented embodiment, if the lock bin 22 and the lock lever 21 are not fully fitted, the movable unit 11 will definitely float due to the biasing force of the corner spring 31.

Therefore, the paper guide 2 fixedly attached to the movable unit 11
3 floats up, the suppression on the actuator 26 is released, and the microswitch 25 is turned off. As described above, the pressure contact state of the recording head 13 can be detected by the microswitch 25, and the presence or absence of the thermal paper 1° and the pressure contact state of the recording head 13 can be detected by the single microswitch 25. According to this embodiment, the reliability of the sensor is improved, and the structure is simple and maintenance is easy.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the movable unit that houses the recording head of the thermal recording device is opened upward via a link mechanism, and the paper feeding mechanism is arranged in a horizontal line, making the device thin and compact. This has the effect of reducing costs and saving space. Furthermore, since the thermal paper can be replaced and the recording head and rubber rollers can be maintained while visually checking the entire paper feeding system, the system is extremely effective in terms of operation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a conventional thermal recording device, Fig. 2 is an overall perspective view showing an embodiment of the thermal recording device according to the undiscovered invention, Fig. 81!3 is a vertical cross-sectional view thereof, and Fig. 4 FIG. 2 is a detailed perspective view of the link mechanism of the present invention. 1.10... Thermal paper, 2.13... Recording head, 3
゜14...Rubber roller, 4.15...Cutter, 5.
9... Device body, 6, 8. 25... Micro switch, 7゜11... Movable unit, 20... Movable frame, 23... Paper power unit, 30... Link mechanism, 3
3, 34-...Sth, 3 m

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A thermal paper storage unit that stores thermal paper wound into a roll, a rubber roller that pulls out the thermal paper, a motor that drives this rubber roller, and a drawer unit for thermal paper marked M. In a thermal recording device comprising a recording head that presses against the rubber roller and a cutter that cuts the drawn-out thermal paper, the roll-shaped thermal paper, the rubber roller, and the flickering motor are arranged in a line in a substantially horizontal direction. placed in
A thermal recording device characterized in that a movable unit housing the recording head is rotatably mounted above the roll-shaped thermal paper. 2. A thermal paper storage unit that stores thermal paper wound into a roll, a rubber roller that pulls out the thermal paper, a motor that drives the rubber roller, and a recording head that presses the pulled-out portion of the thermal paper against the rubber roller. In a thermal recording device, the link mechanism includes a movable unit that forms the recording head, and a link mechanism that opens and closes the movable unit. a first lever formed into a substantially U-shape; and a second lever, one end of which is rotatably connected to the other end of the first lever, and the other end rotatably connected to the movable unit. and IH between this second lever and the first lever.
A thermal recording device characterized by comprising a coil spring interposed in a coil spring.