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Notch-finding mechanism and method of using the same

a notch-finding and notch-finding technology, applied in the direction of thin material handling, transportation and packaging, filament handling, etc., can solve the problem that the loading operation can be cumbersome for the operator

Inactive Publication Date: 2007-03-22
ZIH CORP
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

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Problems solved by technology

This loading operation can be cumbersome for the operator, especially when the core 20 is carrying a large printer media roll.

Method used

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  • Notch-finding mechanism and method of using the same
  • Notch-finding mechanism and method of using the same
  • Notch-finding mechanism and method of using the same

Examples

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Embodiment Construction

[0044] Various embodiments of the present invention address one or more of the above needs and achieve other advantages by providing a notch finding mechanism for radially coupling the rotation of a drive shaft to a hollow cylindrical core. For example, certain embodiments of the notch finding mechanism include a notch finding spring mounted to an end of the drive shaft and having a plurality of fingers that are radially outwardly biased so as to seat within a notch defined in the media supply core with a relatively small amount of rotation between the spring and the core. This is enabled by the large number of fingers, such as twelve fingers, that are circumferentially positioned and configured to insert as a group into the core. And, in various embodiments, the outward bias of the fingers allows them to automatically seat in the notch or notches of the core, enabling single-handed loading of the core without attention or regard to the relative rotational position between the drive...

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Abstract

One embodiment of the invention is a notch finding mechanism that at least partially supports and drives a core carrying printer media. The notch finding mechanism includes a notch finding spring and a plurality of support posts that extend from a support disk. The notch finding spring includes a plurality of fingers constructed of a flexible sheet material, and the fingers are positioned circumferentially and adjacent each other to define a plurality of spaces between the fingers. In addition, the fingers are biased radially outwardly, and each of the fingers has a free end that has a width that is approximately matched to a width of a notch in an end of the core. The bias of one of the fingers urges the free end of the finger into the notch aligned with the finger when the core is placed over the fingers and is rotated a small amount.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 719,411, filed Sep. 21, 2005, which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.FIELD OF INVENTION [0002] The present invention involves a notch finding mechanism for coupling a drive assembly to a hollow cylindrical core and, more particularly, the use of a notch finding mechanism to couple a printer media roll to a drive assembly. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Hollow cylindrical cores are used in the printing industry to carry rolls of printer media, such as paper, labels, or ink ribbon. The cores can be driven to rotate in a forward or backward direction by coupling a drive assembly to the core. One method of coupling a drive assembly to a core includes engaging keys on a drive disk into notches in the end of the core. More specifically, in the example shown in FIG. 1, the drive disk 10 extends in a radially outward direction from the drive sha...

Claims

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Application Information

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IPC IPC(8): B65H16/06
CPCB65H16/06B65H19/126B65H75/185B65H2801/36B65H2301/41369B65H2801/12B65H75/30
Inventor ZEVIN, THOMAS MICHAELENGEL, JAMES WILLIAM
Owner ZIH CORP