Printing device

Abstract

The present invention provides a printing device capable of preventing the quality of printed content from being degraded after printing. The printing device (1) comprises: a loading portion (32) for loading a finger (U) corresponding to a nail (T) as a printing object; and a tongue (30) as a pressing member, which can at least move to a position that restricts the movement of the finger (U) loaded on the loading portion (32), namely a "first position", and a position that is relatively farther from the loading portion (32) than the "first position" and releases the restriction on the finger (U), namely a "second position".

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a printing device. Background Art

[0002] In the past, there is a known printing device (nail printer) for printing a design on the nail of a finger. In the nail printer, a finger corresponding to the nail to be printed is placed on a finger placement table, and the nail is printed using, for example, an inkjet method.

[0003] When performing nail art printing, if the finger corresponding to the nail to be printed moves during the printing process, high-precision printing cannot be performed.

[0004] Regarding this point, for example, Japanese Patent Gazette No. 2020-031670 describes a nail printer that clamps the finger placed on a placing plate (placing portion) and a pressing plate (pressing member) provided above the finger, thereby fixing the finger corresponding to the nail to be printed.

[0005] If printing can be performed on nails while the fingers are appropriately fixed, the quality of printing can be maintained. Summary of the invention

[0006] Problem that the invention aims to solve

[0007] However, if the nail coated with ink or the like comes into contact with surrounding members, the printed pattern or the like, the coating agent or the like may peel off or be damaged.

[0008] In this regard, as in the structure described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-031670, when a finger is clamped between a loading plate (loading portion) and a pressing plate (pressing member) in order to restrict movement during printing, the distance between the loading portion and the pressing member cannot be too large. Therefore, when the finger is removed from the device after printing, the nail may come into contact with surrounding members, and reprinting may be required.

[0009] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a printing device capable of preventing the quality of printed content from being degraded after printing.

[0010] Means of solving the problem

[0011] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the printing device disclosed herein is characterized by comprising:

[0012] a placing portion for placing a finger corresponding to a nail to be printed; and

[0013] The pressing member can be moved to at least a first position and a second position, wherein the first position is a position for restricting the movement of a finger placed on the placing portion, and the second position is a position at a relatively larger distance from the placing portion than the first position and releases the restriction on the finger.

[0014] Effects of the Invention

[0015] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to prevent the quality of printed content from being degraded after printing. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of the main parts showing the external structure of the printing device according to the present embodiment, and shows a state in which the front cover is closed.

[0017] Figure 2 It is a perspective view of the main parts showing the external structure of the printing device according to the present embodiment, and shows a state in which the front cover is opened.

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A cross-sectional view along line III-III of the printing device in the closed state is shown.

[0019] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 The printing device is shown in a closed state in a sectional perspective view along line III-III.

[0020] Figure 5 yes Figure 2 A cross-sectional perspective view of the printing device along line VV is shown in an open state.

[0021] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between a side view of a finger rest with a finger placed thereon and a cross section of a modified example of a tongue piece.

[0022] Fig. 7A and Figure 7B It is a cross-sectional view of a modified example of the tongue.

[0023] Figure 8 This is a side view showing a modified example of the finger rest in a state where a finger is placed.

[0024] Fig. 9 It is a perspective view of the main parts showing the external structure of a printing device according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Reference Figures 1 to 5, an embodiment of the printing device of the present disclosure is described. In addition, in the embodiment described below, various technically preferred limitations are added to implement the present disclosure, but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiment and the illustrated examples.

[0026] In addition, in the following embodiments, a printing device that prints on fingernails as printing objects is described as an example, but the printing objects of the printing device in the present disclosure are not limited to fingernails, for example, toe nails can also be used as printing objects.

[0027] Figure 1 and Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance structure of the main parts of the printing device in this embodiment. Figure 1 The front cover is shown closed. Figure 2 The state in which the front cover is opened is shown.

[0028] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of the printing device in the closed state along line III-III, Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A sectional stereoscopic view of the printing device along line III-III in FIG. Figure 5 for Figure 2 A sectional perspective view along line VV of the printing device in the open state is shown.

[0029] In addition, Figure 1 and Figure 2 The state in which the finger is not placed on the finger placement table is shown in FIG. Figures 3 to 5 FIG. 1 shows a state where a finger is placed on a finger placement table. Figures 3 to 5 Part of the structure inside the frame is omitted in the illustration.

[0030] In the following embodiments, up and down, left and right, and front and back refer to Figure 1 In addition, the X direction and the Y direction refer to Figure 1 direction shown.

[0031] like Figure 1 As shown in FIGS. 1 and 1B , the printing device 1 includes a housing 2 formed in a substantially box shape.

[0032] On the front surface side of the housing 2 (housing main body 20) (front side of the printing device 1, Figure 1 The lower side portion of the printing device 1 is the front side, and the left and right directions (the lateral direction, Figure 1An opening 21 is formed on substantially the entire surface (in the left-right direction, X direction) of the frame 2. In addition, the upper side portion of the front surface side of the frame 2 (frame body 20) becomes a front wall 22, and a cutout 23 is formed continuously on the upper side of the opening 21 in the substantially central portion of the left-right direction of the frame 2 in the front wall 22. The cutout 23 functions as an entrance and exit when a print head 41 described later is loaded and unloaded relative to the device.

[0033] Furthermore, the frame body 2 includes a front cover 25 that covers the cutout portion 23 .

[0034] The front cover 25 is rotatably connected to the housing body 20 via a hinge mechanism 26 provided at an upper end of the front wall portion 22 or a front end of an upper surface (ceiling) of the housing body 20 .

[0035] Specifically, the front cover 25 can be opened and closed about the rotation axis 261 of the hinge mechanism 26 from the closed state ( Figure 1 , 3 4) to the open state ( Figure 2 , 5 status shown).

[0036] A window portion 251 is provided in the substantially central portion of the frame body 2 in the left-right direction in the front cover 25. A window member 252 formed of a transparent or translucent resin or the like is mounted in the window portion 251. Thus, the user can visually check the condition inside the device from the outside through the window member 252 even when the front cover 25 is closed.

[0037] In the present embodiment, the tongue piece 30 formed in a substantially L-shape and having its front end side (free end side) extending toward the inside of the device is connected to the window member 252 .

[0038] The tongue piece 30 functions as a pressing member capable of moving at least to a "first position" and a "second position", wherein the "first position" is a position for restricting the movement of the finger U, and the "second position" is a position that is relatively farther away from the loading portion 32 described later than the "first position" and releases the restriction on the finger U.

[0039] In the present embodiment, when the front cover 25 is in the closed state, the tongue piece 30 is arranged in a "first position" where it contacts the upper surface of the finger U placed on the finger placement table 3 described later, and presses the upper surface of the finger U from above to restrict the height direction position of the finger U. When the front cover 25 is in the open state, the tongue piece 30 is separated from the upper surface of the finger U and arranged in a "second position" where the restriction on the finger U is released.

[0040] The tongue 30, which functions as a pressing member, limits the height of the finger U by being arranged at a height position suitable for printing of the nail T (i.e., a position where the distance between the surface of the nail T and the ink ejection surface (not shown) of the print head 41 is neither too close nor too far. When arranged in the "first position", the tongue 30, which functions as a pressing member, prevents the finger U from floating up from an appropriate height position by abutting against the upper surface of the finger U, and is set to be able to maintain an appropriate height.

[0041] The tongue piece 30 may be formed integrally with the window member 252 by the same material, or may be installed at the lower end of the window member 252 as a separate member.

[0042] In addition, in this embodiment, Figure 2 In the examples, the tongue piece 30 is also a transparent or translucent component like the window component 252, but when the tongue piece 30 is formed as a component separate from the window component 252, the tongue piece 30 is not limited to transparent or translucent, and can also be an opaque resin plate, etc.

[0043] In addition, as long as the tongue piece 30 can abut against the upper surface of the finger U placed on the finger placement table 3 to determine its position (mainly the position in the height direction and the Z-axis direction), the size in the width direction, the thickness, etc. are not particularly limited. However, if the width is too small, it is difficult to stably contact the upper surface of the finger U with the surface. On the other hand, if the width is too wide, it is possible to interfere with surrounding structures when moving from the "first position" to the "second position" or from the "second position" to the "first position". Therefore, the tongue piece 30 is preferably the same as the width dimension of the finger placement table 3.

[0044] In addition, if the front end (free end) of the tongue piece 30 is too long, when the front cover 25 is rotated, before the front cover 25 is completely closed, the front end of the tongue piece 30 collides with the finger U placed on the finger placement table 3, and the tongue piece 30 cannot be lowered to a sufficient height position.

[0045] Therefore, in the present embodiment, the length of the tongue piece 30 is set to be greater than the length of the tongue piece 30 just below the rotation axis 261 (the rotation axis when the front cover 25 rotates) of the hinge mechanism 26 that rotates the front cover 25. Figure 3 The length of the front side of the finger insertion direction (indicated by a single dotted line) is not longer than that and does not reach the inner side of the device. Thus, when the front cover 25 is rotated and the front cover 25 is closed, the front end of the tongue piece 30 is prevented from colliding with the finger U.

[0046] An operating unit 27 of the printing device 1 is provided on the upper surface (top plate) of the frame 2. The operating unit 27 is, for example, an operating button (power switch button) for turning the power of the printing device 1 on and off. When the operating unit 27 is operated, an operating signal is output to a control unit (not shown), and the control unit performs control based on the operating signal to operate each unit of the printing device 1. For example, in the case where the operating unit 27 is a power switch button, the power of the printing device 1 is turned on and off according to the button operation. In addition, in the case where the printing device 1 operates in cooperation with various external portable terminal devices (hereinafter referred to as "external devices"), the various units of the printing device 1 may be operated in accordance with an operating signal input from the operating unit of the external device, instead of the operating unit 27 or together with the operating unit 27.

[0047] In addition, the appearance structure of the printing device 1, the shape of each part of the frame 2, and the arrangement of each part are not limited to the example shown in the figure, and can be set appropriately. For example, the operation unit 27 may be provided on the side or back surface instead of the upper surface of the frame 2. In addition, the frame 2 may be provided with various other operation buttons as the operation unit 27, and may also be provided with various display units, indicators, etc.

[0048] A device main body 10 including a base 11 and the like is accommodated in the housing 2 .

[0049] The finger placement table 3 is disposed at a substantially central portion of the base 11 on the front side of the device in the left-right direction (X direction).

[0050] The finger placement table 3 of this embodiment includes a housing 31 and a placement portion 32 disposed in the housing 31. The placement portion 32 pushes up and supports the finger U disposed on the finger placement table 3 from the lower side (i.e., the finger web side of the finger U). It is preferred that at least the portion of the placement portion 32 that directly contacts the finger U is formed of a flexible material such as various resins.

[0051] The top of the finger placement table 3 (the placement portion 32 of the finger placement table 3) is open. Figure 3 As shown in the figures, the tongue piece 30 is also arranged only to the front side of the finger U in the insertion direction of the nail T, so the nail T of the finger U arranged on the placement portion 32 is exposed. Thus, the nail T of the finger U arranged on the placement portion 32 is maintained in a state where the camera (not shown) of the imaging unit 5 and the printing unit 4 can be photographed.

[0052] The placing portion 32 of the present embodiment is configured to include a plurality of members (a first member 321, a second member 322, and a third member 323) that are connected to each other and arranged along the insertion direction of the finger U and are movable up and down (see Figure 3 ).

[0053] Specifically, the first member 321 is relatively arranged at the near front side in the finger insertion direction (front-back direction), the second member 322 is relatively arranged at the inner side (the innermost side in this embodiment) in the finger insertion direction, and the third member 323 is arranged between the first member 321 and the second member 322.

[0054] The first member 321 includes a member body 321 a and a biasing member 321 b that biases the member body 321 a upward.

[0055] The upper surface of the member body 321 a is a substantially V-shaped inclined surface that becomes lower from both sides toward the center along the left-right direction, thereby preventing the finger U from shaking left-right when placed.

[0056] The second member 322 is integrated with the third member 323 so as to sandwich the third member 323. The second member 322 includes a member body 322a and a biasing member 322b that biases the member body 322a upward.

[0057] The member body 322a is engaged with the member body 321a of the first member 321, and when the first member 321 is pressed down, the position of the member body 322a of the second member 322 (and the member body 323a of the third member 323) is also lowered.

[0058] The third member 323 includes a member body 323 a and a biasing member 323 b that biases the member body 323 a upward.

[0059] The component body 323a is inclined in a manner that gradually increases from the front side of the finger insertion direction to the inner side, and the innermost part becomes the nail support portion 33 that supports the nail tip (or fingertip). In addition, the urging member 321b of the first component 321, the urging member 322b of the second component 322, and the urging member 323b of the third component 323 are all applied with, for example, a coil spring, but are not limited to this.

[0060] In addition, a printing unit 4 (see Figure 2 )、Photographing unit 5 (refer to Figure 1 )wait.

[0061] The printing unit 4 performs printing on the nail T as a printing object, and includes a printing head 41 as a printing unit, a moving mechanism (not shown) for appropriately moving the printing head 41 , and the like.

[0062] The structure of the print head 41 is not particularly limited, and it may be a cartridge-integrated head having a storage unit (ink cartridge) storing ink and a discharge unit (neither shown) integrally formed. The specific structure for discharging ink from the discharge unit may be any method and is not particularly limited.

[0063] In this embodiment, a discharge surface (ink discharge surface, not shown) having discharge ports of nozzles for discharging ink (liquid agent) is formed on the lower surface of the print head 41 (the surface opposite to the surface of the nail T arranged on the mounting portion 32). The print head 41 is an inkjet head that prints by blowing the ink in micro-droplets from the discharge surface to the printing target surface (the surface of the nail) for printing.

[0064] The ink stored in the print head 41 is, for example, various color inks such as indigo (C: CYAN), magenta (M: MAGENTA), and yellow (Y: YELLOW) (hereinafter referred to as "color inks"). In addition, the ink ejected from the print head 41 is not limited to this, and other color inks may be ejected. In addition, the print head 41 is not limited to ejecting color inks, and for example, a liquid agent (white or other base ink) that becomes a base before printing a design may be ejected. The printing device 1 may have any one print head 41, or may have a plurality of print heads 41.

[0065] The print head 41 is detachably held by the holder 42 (see Figure 2 wait).

[0066] In the present embodiment, the print head 41 is mounted on a carriage (not shown) extending in the X direction of the device while being held by a holder 42 , and is movable in the XY directions on the base 11 .

[0067] Specifically, the moving mechanism (not shown) that moves the print head 41 includes: an X-direction moving mechanism, which has an X-direction moving motor (not shown) and moves the print head 41 in the X direction within the slide; and a Y-direction moving mechanism, which has a Y-direction moving motor (not shown) and moves the slide carrying the print head 41 in the Y direction.

[0068] The imaging unit 5 includes a camera, a light source, etc. (all not shown), and is installed on the inner side of the top surface of the frame 2, or on a supporting member (not shown) vertically disposed on the device body. Figure 1 As shown, the imaging unit 5 is disposed above the finger placement table 3 and can capture an image of the nail T of the finger U placed on the placement unit 32 .

[0069] Although not shown, a control device including a control unit and a storage unit is mounted in the printing device 1. The control unit is mounted on a substrate (not shown) disposed inside (lower surface side) of the upper surface (top plate) of the housing 2.

[0070] The control unit is composed of at least one processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) not shown, and the storage unit is composed of a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory) (neither of which are shown).

[0071] The storage unit stores, for example, a printing program for printing processing and various programs for operating the printing device 1. The control unit develops these programs in a working area such as a RAM, and by executing the programs in the control unit, various parts of the printing device 1 are controlled in a unified manner. A control device including a control unit and a storage unit is a computer that realizes various functions by the cooperation of the control unit and the programs stored in the storage unit.

[0072] Next, the operation of the printing device in this embodiment will be described.

[0073] When the printing device 1 is stored in the device, Figure 1 As shown, the front cover 25 is in a “closed state” where the front wall portion 22 is covered.

[0074] When printing on the nail T using the printing device 1, Figure 1 The closed state shown causes the front cover 25 to rotate to become Figure 2 The "open state" is shown.

[0075] The structure for moving the front cover 25 from the "closed state" to the "opened state" is not particularly limited. For example, the front cover 25 may be rotated manually by the user. However, in the case where a motor is provided for rotating the hinge mechanism 26, for example, when the power of the device is turned on by operating the operating unit 27, the front cover 25 may be automatically turned upward ( Figure 2 In the case where there is an operation button for opening the front cover 25, the user can be prompted to operate the button by display or sound.

[0076] When the front cover 25 is in the “open state”, the user places a finger U corresponding to the nail T to be printed on the placement portion 32 of the finger placement table 3 .

[0077] In addition, for example, when the printing device 1 cooperates with an external device (not shown), an instruction screen, a guidance screen, etc. that prompts the user to place the finger U on the placement portion 32 of the finger placement table 3 may be displayed on the display unit of the cooperating external device (e.g., a portable terminal device, etc.). In addition, when the printing device 1 or the external device has a speaker, etc., a message that prompts the user to place the finger U on the placement portion 32 may be provided through voice guidance.

[0078] For example, when applying a base coat on the nail T and printing various designs after drying, the user places the finger U corresponding to the nail T on which the base coat is applied on the placement portion 32 of the finger placement table 3. The finger placement table 3 of this embodiment is open at the top, so the user does not need to particularly press the placement portion 32, and can just place the corresponding finger U on the placement portion 32.

[0079] When the finger U is placed on the placement portion 32 (see Figure 5 ), the front cover 25 is rotated again about the rotation axis 261 of the hinge mechanism 26 (toward the same direction as Figure 2 The front cover 25 is turned in the opposite direction of the arrow shown in FIG. Figure 3 and Figure 4 ).

[0080] The timing for bringing the front cover 25 into the "closed state" is, for example, when the user places the finger U on the placement portion 32 and inputs an instruction to start printing from the operation portion 27 or the like. The front cover 25 may be rotated manually or automatically.

[0081] In addition, when the front cover 25 is automatically rotated, for example, it is also possible to identify that the finger U (the nail T of the finger U) is placed on the loading portion 32 by performing image analysis on the image obtained by the camera of the shooting portion 5, etc., and receive the recognition result to activate the driving portion (such as a motor not shown in the figure), which rotates the rotating shaft 261 of the hinge mechanism 26 in the direction of closing the front cover 25.

[0082] Thus, the tongue piece 30 functioning as a pressing member is arranged at the “first position” where the movement of the finger U (particularly, upward lifting) is restricted.

[0083] In addition, since the finger U placed on the placement portion 32 is forced upward by the force applying member 321b of the first member 321, the force applying member 322b of the second member 322, and the force applying member 323b of the third member 323, the upper surface of the finger U may be located at a position higher than the position originally suitable for printing (i.e., a position not too close or too far from the ink ejection surface of the print head 41). In particular, in the case of a user with an extremely high finger height (thickness), the tendency of the upper surface of the finger U to be too high becomes significant.

[0084] Even in such a case, when the front cover 25 is set to the "closed state", the tongue piece 30 that functions as a pressing member moves while slightly pressing the upper surface of the finger U (while slightly pressing the placement portion 32 together with the finger U). Thus, when the tongue piece 30 is arranged in the "first position", the upper surface of the finger U is arranged at a height position such that the nail T is arranged at a position suitable for printing, and the lower surface of the tongue piece 30 is maintained in contact with the upper surface of the finger U at this position, thereby defining the height position of the finger U.

[0085] Then, the printing process on the nail T is performed in a state where the tongue piece 30 is arranged in the "first position" and the front cover 25 is in the "closed state".

[0086] As a printing process, first, the finger U including the nail T is imaged by the camera of the imaging unit 5 to obtain a nail image, and the nail outline of the region where the nail T is drawn is detected from the nail image.

[0087] When the nail outline is detected, the control unit etc. integrates the user's desired design into the range of the nail outline, performs necessary corrections etc., and generates printing data (printing data). Then, the printing unit 4 is operated according to the printing data to print the design on the nail T.

[0088] In addition, when the print head 41 of the printing device 1 is not a structure for printing a design but a structure for printing a base using a liquid agent (base ink) such as white, the process from the detection of the nail outline to the generation of print data and the printing operation based on the print data is the same. The processing from the detection of the nail outline to the generation of print data can be performed by the control unit of the printing device 1 or by the control unit of a cooperating external device.

[0089] When the printing operation is finished, the front cover 25 is rotated again about the rotation axis 261 of the hinge mechanism 26 (towards Figure 2 Turn in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2), set the front cover 25 to the "open state" (refer to FIG. Figure 2 and Figure 5 ).

[0090] The timing for setting the front cover 25 to the “open state” is, for example, when the control unit determines that printing on the nail T is completed. When the hinge mechanism 26 includes a motor for rotating, the control unit automatically opens the front cover 25 when it is determined that printing is completed.

[0091] In addition, in this case, it is also possible to identify the completion of printing on the nail T of the finger U on the loading portion 32 by performing image analysis on an image obtained by, for example, a camera of the shooting portion 5, and receive the recognition result to activate the motor to rotate the rotating shaft 261 of the hinge mechanism 26 in the direction of opening the front cover 25.

[0092] In addition, the opening of the front cover 25 is not limited to the case where it is performed automatically.

[0093] For example, when the printing device 1 cooperates with an external device not shown in the figure, an instruction screen prompting the user to open the front cover 25 may be displayed on a display unit of a cooperating terminal device, etc., or a sound-based message may be output to prompt the user to manually open the front cover 25, or if there is an operation button for opening the front cover 25, the button may be operated.

[0094] Furthermore, when the front cover 25 is opened, this fact may be displayed in advance on a display unit of a cooperating external device (eg, a terminal device) to prompt the user to be careful not to move the finger U until the front cover 25 is opened.

[0095] Furthermore, a configuration may be provided in which the front cover 25 is locked during the printing process so as not to be opened.

[0096] In addition, the front cover 25 may be opened while rotating so that the finger U is removed from the finger placement table 3 in coordination with the movement of the front cover 25, and the action of pulling out the finger U may be displayed on the display unit, etc. Specifically, after printing, when the finger U is moved in the upward direction, the nail T may come into contact with the front cover 25 and the tongue piece 30, so, for example, it is possible to indicate by a diagram, etc., that the finger U is pulled to the front side of the upper direction in a manner along the track of the movement of the front cover 25.

[0097] In this way, when the front cover 25 is opened, the tongue piece 30 that functions as a pressing member also changes from a state of pressing the upper surface of the finger U (i.e., a state configured in the "first position") to a state of releasing the restriction on the finger U (i.e., a state configured in the "second position"), thereby leaving a larger space above the finger U and the nail T.

[0098] Therefore, the printed nail T does not come into contact with or rub against surrounding members, and can be removed from the device while maintaining high-quality printing.

[0099] As described above, the printing device 1 of the present embodiment comprises: a printing head 41 as a printing unit, which prints on a nail T as a printing object; a loading portion 32, which carries a finger U corresponding to the nail T; and a tongue piece 30 as a pressing member, which can be moved to at least a "first position" and a "second position", wherein the "first position" is a position that restricts the movement of the finger U, and the "second position" is a position that is relatively far away from the loading portion 32 compared to the "first position" and releases the restriction on the finger U. The tongue piece 30 is configured in the "first position" at least when the printing head 41 performs a printing action.

[0100] Thus, after printing, when the front cover 25 is opened and the tongue piece 30 as the pressing member is arranged in the "second position", a large space is left above the finger U and the nail T. Therefore, the printed nail T does not contact or rub against surrounding members, and can be taken out of the device while maintaining high-quality printing.

[0101] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the tongue piece 30 as a pressing member presses the upper surface of the finger U from above when arranged in the "first position", and has a biasing member (biasing member 321b, biasing member 322b, biasing member 323b) that biases the placement portion 32 upward.

[0102] Thus, when the user places the finger U on the placement portion 32, the user does not need to perform a pressing action or the like, but only needs to place the finger, and the finger U can be prevented from sinking excessively due to the force-applying portion. In addition, at the time when the user places the finger U on the placement portion 32, since there is no pressing member or the like covering the finger U, even in the case where, for example, the user wants to place the nail coated with the base on the printing device 1 and print the design, the surface of the nail will not be damaged compared to the case where the finger is inserted into a space surrounded by a frame. Moreover, when the tongue piece 30 is configured in the "first position", the finger U is restricted to an appropriate height position by pressing the upper surface of the finger U from above, and the nail T is maintained in a state of being kept at a height position suitable for printing during the printing action. Therefore, high-quality printing can be performed.

[0103] In the present embodiment, the housing 2 including the storage device body 10 and the tongue piece 30 as the pressing member are provided on the front cover 25 which is a rotating member in the housing 2, and the front cover 25 is configured to be movable to the "first position" and the "second position" by rotating.

[0104] In this way, by merely providing the tongue piece 30 as a pressing member on the rotating front cover 25, the printing operation can be performed, and when the front cover 25 is closed, the height of the finger U is restricted by the tongue piece 30, and when the front cover 25 is opened, the finger U can be freely inserted and removed. Therefore, the finger U can be held in an appropriate position during printing, and the nail T can be prevented from contacting surrounding members before and after printing.

[0105] In addition, the pressing member can also be configured to automatically move between the "first position" and the "second position" by a motor or the like as a driving unit. In this case, the camera of the photographing unit 5 or the like can function as a detection unit capable of detecting the state of the nail T and the finger U. Based on the detection result of the detection unit (for example, an image captured by the camera, etc.), the driving unit such as the motor automatically moves the pressing member.

[0106] In this case, even if the user does not change the position of the pressing member according to the state in which the finger U or the nail T is arranged, the position can be automatically switched to an appropriate state.

[0107] In addition, although the embodiment of the present disclosure has been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present disclosure.

[0108] For example, the shape, structure, etc. of the tongue piece 30 as the pressing member are not limited to the illustrated example.

[0109] In the tongue piece 30 as the pressing member, a cushioning member 302 may be provided on a surface that comes into contact with the finger U at least when the tongue piece 30 is located at the “first position”.

[0110] For example, in Figure 6 As shown in the figure, the tongue 30a is shown to have a tongue body 301 connected to the window member 252, and a buffer member 302 disposed on the lower side of the tongue body 301 (i.e., the side that contacts the finger U). In addition, the method of arranging the buffer member 302 on the lower side of the tongue body 301 is not particularly limited. For example, it can be performed by various methods such as pasting with various adhesives or double-sided tapes, screw fixing, etc.

[0111] As the buffer member 302 , for example, polyurethane resin or the like can be applied, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and various resins or the like can be used.

[0112] Thus, when the tongue piece 30 a comes into contact with the upper surface of the finger U, the impact or the like applied to the finger U can be suppressed, thereby reducing the burden applied to the finger U of the user.

[0113] In addition, in the tongue piece 30 b as the pressing member, at least the portion arranged on the finger U when the tongue piece 30 b is in the “first position” may be a cushioning portion 303 formed of a flexible material.

[0114] For example, in Fig. 7A , the tongue piece 30b is shown as a buffer portion 303 formed of a flexible material such as various resin materials different from the material forming the window member 252. Thus, when the tongue piece 30b contacts the upper surface of the finger U, the impact applied to the finger U can be suppressed, and the burden applied to the user's finger U can be reduced.

[0115] And, if Figure 7B As shown, the end portion 305 on the free end side of the tongue piece main body 304 in the tongue piece 30c as the pressing member may be formed in a circular shape.

[0116] In this case, the shape of the end portion 305 is not limited to the example shown in the figure, as long as it is a shape that is not easy to collide or rub against the upper surface of the finger U when the tongue piece 30c moves from the "first position" to the "second position" and from the "second position" to the "first position".

[0117] In the case of such a shape, the burden on the finger U of the user can be reduced.

[0118] In the present embodiment, the tongue piece 30 as the pressing member is provided in connection with the window member 252 provided on the front cover 25 of the housing 2 , but the pressing member is not limited to the case where it is provided on the housing 2 side.

[0119] The pressing member only needs to be able to move so as to take a "first position" and a "second position", wherein the "first position" is a position that limits the movement of the finger U, and the distance of the "second position" relative to the loading portion 32 is relatively larger than the distance of the "first position" relative to the loading portion 32.

[0120] For example, Figure 8 As shown in FIG. 1 , a pressing member 35 provided so as to be movable up and down may be provided on the finger placement platform 3 b including the placement portion 32 .

[0121] In this case, the pressing member 35 is, for example, a frame-shaped member provided so as to surround the finger U placed on the placing portion 32, and the inner side of the top surface abuts against the upper surface of the finger U to restrict its height position. The state in which the pressing member 35 abuts against the upper surface of the finger U is the state configured in the "first position" ( Figure 8 The portion in contact with the upper surface of the finger U at least rises from the "first position" to become the state configured in the "second position" ( Figure 8 The state shown by the single dotted line in the figure).

[0122] According to such a configuration, it is possible to realize a configuration in which the pressing member takes the “first position” and the “second position” where the distance from the placement portion 32 is relatively larger than the “first position” without changing the shape of the frame 2 .

[0123] In this case, when the pressing member is in the "second position", a large space is left above the finger U and the nail T, and the printed nail T does not collide or rub against surrounding members, so the printed nail T can be removed from the device while maintaining high-quality printing.

[0124] Although not shown, a pressing member may be provided on the side of the frame 2 so as to be movable up and down. In this case, it is not necessary to provide the frame 2 with a rotatable front cover 25 and a hinge mechanism 26, etc. Instead, a mechanism for moving the pressing member up and down is provided.

[0125] In addition, whether the pressing member 35 is provided on the finger rest 3b having the placement portion 32 so as to be movable up and down, or the pressing member is provided on the frame 2 so as to be movable up and down, the pressing member can be moved up and down manually or automatically.

[0126] When the pressing member is manually moved up and down, for example, a knob or a handle is provided on the pressing member, and the member is grasped with fingers U, etc. to slide up and down like a gate. In addition, the specific structure and the details of the action are not limited to the case illustrated here.

[0127] In addition, when the pressing member is automatically moved up and down, for example, by performing image analysis on an image obtained by a camera of the photographing unit 5, etc., it is possible to recognize that a finger U (a nail T of the finger U) is placed on the loading portion 32, and upon receiving the recognition result, the driving portion (for example, a motor not shown in the figure) is moved in a direction in which the pressing member is lowered. For example, when it is recognized that printing on the nail T of the finger U on the loading portion 32 is completed by performing image analysis on an image obtained by a camera of the photographing unit 5, etc., the recognition result is received and the motor is moved in a direction in which the pressing member is raised.

[0128] In addition, for example Fig. 9 As shown, in the printing device 1a, the housing 2a of the housing device body 10 may include a housing body 20a and a cover 20b detachable from the housing body 20a, and the tongue 30 as the pressing member may be provided on the cover 20b.

[0129] In this case, when the cover 20b is mounted on the frame body 20a (ie Fig. 9 When the cover 20b is removed from the frame body 20a in the direction indicated by the hollow arrow in the figure, the tongue piece 30 is arranged in the "second position".

[0130] Thus, simply by attaching and detaching the cover portion 20 b , it is possible to obtain a state in which the height of the finger U is restricted by the tongue piece 30 , and a state in which the finger U can be freely inserted and removed.

[0131] In this case, when the pressing member is in the "second position", a large space is left above the finger U and the nail T, and the printed nail T does not contact or rub against surrounding members, and can be removed from the device while maintaining high-quality printing.

[0132] In the present embodiment, the print head 41 of the printing device 1 is configured to include an inkjet print head 41 , but the configuration of the print head 41 is not limited thereto.

[0133] A head having a structure different from the inkjet print head 41 such as a syringe-type head or a pen-type head may be provided.

[0134] In the present embodiment, the printing device 1 is exemplified as printing on nails in cooperation with an external device such as a terminal device. However, the printing device 1 is not limited to the printing device shown here, and may be configured to perform printing operations alone.

[0135] For example, in this embodiment, various instruction screens are displayed on the display unit of the external device, but the printing device 1 may also include a display unit, and in this case, a touch panel may be provided integrally with the display unit. When the printing device 1 includes a touch panel, the touch panel may also function as the operation unit 27.

[0136] Several embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and the scope equivalent thereto.

Claims

1. A printing device, characterized in that: have: a placing portion for placing a finger or toe corresponding to a nail to be printed; and The pressing member is movable to at least a first position and a second position, wherein the first position is a position where the movement of the finger or toe placed on the placing portion is restricted, and the second position is a position where the distance from the placing portion is relatively greater than the first position and the restriction on the finger or toe is released. The printing device comprises a frame for accommodating a main body of the device. The pressing member can be moved to the first position and the second position by rotating a rotating portion provided on the frame.

2. The printing device according to claim 1, characterized in that It also has a printing unit for printing on nails. The pressing member is disposed at the first position at least when the printing unit performs a printing operation.

3. The printing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The placing portion includes a force applying portion for applying force to the placing portion upward. The pressing member presses down the finger or toe and the placing portion from above when moving from the second position to the first position, and the urging portion urges the placing portion upward, thereby restricting movement of the finger or toe.

4. The printing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The frame has a cover that can be attached to and detached from the device itself. The pressing member is provided on the front cover portion, and is located at the first position when the cover portion is attached to the frame body, and is located at the second position when the cover portion is removed from the frame body.

5. The printing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The pressing member is vertically movably provided on a finger or toe placing stand or a frame having the placing portion, and is positioned at the second position by rising from the state in which it is arranged at the first position.

6. The printing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: Also available: a driving unit capable of moving the pressing member between the first position and the second position; and a detection unit capable of detecting the state of the nail and the finger or toe, The driving unit moves the pressing member based on the detection result of the detecting unit.

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