Printing apparatus

Abstract

The invention provides a printing apparatus which suppresses the generation of contamination caused by undried ink. A printing apparatus (1) includes: a printing unit (20) that prints an image based on print data on a print medium (M); a cutter unit (15) that cuts the printing medium (M) on which the image has been printed; a touch panel (70) that accepts an operation of a cutting permission button (240) that instructs cutting of the printing medium (M); at least one of a touch panel (70), a display lamp (80), and a speaker (95) that notifies the outside; and a control unit (100) that outputs a cutting instruction of the printing medium (M) to the cutter unit (15), the control unit (100) notifies the remaining time until the cutting instruction is output to the cutter unit (15) through at least one of the touch panel (70), the display lamp (80), and the speaker (95) during a period after the control unit (100) accepts an operation of the cutting permission button (240) until the cutting instruction is output, and the control unit (100) outputs the cutting instruction to the cutter unit (15) after the control unit (100) receives the operation of the cutting permission button (240). After the remaining time has elapsed, a cut-off instruction is output to the cutter unit (15).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a printing apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] Printing apparatuses having a shearing mechanism for cutting continuous printing media after printing has been known for a long time. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming apparatus having a shear for cutting thin sheets.

[0003] However, if the printing medium is sheared by the shearing mechanism before the ink is fully dried after printing, the printing medium may sometimes fall onto the floor, causing the floor or other surfaces to be contaminated with ink.

[0004] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2016-198988 Summary of the Invention

[0005] The printing apparatus disclosed herein includes: a printing unit that prints an image based on printing data onto a continuous medium; a cutting unit that performs an action of cutting the continuous medium on which the image has been printed by the printing unit, i.e., a cutting action; a receiving unit that receives a first operation instructing the cutting of the continuous medium; and a notification unit that, during the period from the receiving unit's receipt of the first operation to the execution of the cutting action, the notification unit notifies the remaining time, i.e., the time from the receipt of the first operation to the execution of the cutting action, and after the remaining time has elapsed, the cutting unit performs the cutting action. Attached Figure Description

[0006] Figure 1 A diagram illustrating the structure of a printing apparatus.

[0007] Figure 2 A diagram showing the structure of the control system of a printing apparatus.

[0008] Figure 3 This is an example diagram showing the first onboarding screen.

[0009] Figure 4 This is an example diagram illustrating the second onboarding screen.

[0010] Figure 5 This is an example diagram illustrating a third-party wizard screen.

[0011] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of a printing apparatus. Detailed Implementation

[0012] 1. Structure of the printing apparatus

[0013] Hereinafter, the structure of the printing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0014] Figure 1 A diagram showing the structure of printing apparatus 1. Figure 1 The X, Y, and Z axes shown are three mutually orthogonal axes, with the Z-axis representing the vertical direction. The X and Y axes are parallel to the horizontal direction; the X-axis represents the left-right direction, and the Y-axis represents the front-back direction.

[0015] The printing apparatus 1 ejects ink onto a continuous printing medium M, thereby printing text, photographs, and other images onto the printing medium M. The printing apparatus 1 includes a support frame 40 and a housing 10 supported on the support frame 40.

[0016] The housing 10 includes a media holding section 11, a roller pair 12 consisting of a driven roller 12A and a conveying roller 12B, a printing section 20, a media support section 13, a shear unit 15, and an ink collection section 30. Furthermore, the housing 10 is equipped with... Figure 1 The conveyor drive unit 50, communication interface 60, touch panel 70 and control unit 100 (not shown) are provided with an indicator light 80 on the upper part of the housing 10.

[0017] The media holding unit 11 includes an unwinding shaft 11A. A strip of printing medium M is wound in a cylindrical shape on the unwinding shaft 11A. The media holding unit 11 holds the printing medium M wound on the unwinding shaft 11A.

[0018] Driven roller 12A and conveyor roller 12B unwind the printing medium M from the medium holding section 11 towards... Figure 1 The printing medium M is conveyed in the conveying direction C shown to the printing position. The printing position is the position where the print head 23 of the printing unit 20 prints an image on the printing medium M supported by the medium support unit 13.

[0019] The printing unit 20 includes a carriage 21 configured to move in the main scanning direction X, and a print head 23 disposed on the carriage 21. The print head 23 has a plurality of nozzles 25 for printing on a printing medium M. Figure 1 As shown, the print head 23 is positioned at the lower part of the carriage 21 and faces the printing medium being transported to the printing position. The print head 23 can also be, for example, an inkjet print head. In this case, the print head 23 prints on the printing medium M by ejecting ink droplets onto the printing medium M.

[0020] The media support 13 and the printing section 20 are arranged opposite each other and function as a support for the printing medium M that is transported to the printing position.

[0021] The ink storage section 30 has multiple holding trays 31 for holding the ink. The printing apparatus 1 has a pump unit (not shown) that supplies the ink held on the holding trays 31 to the printing section 20 via the pump unit.

[0022] The printing medium M, on which an image has been formed by the printing section 20, is conveyed downstream in the transport direction C and then to the cutting position T. The cutting position T is the position where the continuous printing medium M is cut by the cutting unit 15.

[0023] The shearing unit 15 corresponds to the cutting section that performs the cutting action. The cutting action is the action of cutting the printing medium M after printing is performed by the printing section 20. The shearing unit 15 includes a fixed blade 16 and a movable blade 17, which is connected to a drive device such as a motor that drives the movable blade 17 via gears. In the shearing unit 15, if the motor is driven, the movable blade 17 moves toward the fixed blade 16 to cut the printing medium M that has been conveyed to the cutting position T. The printing device 1 cuts the printing medium M printed by the printing section 20 to a predetermined length by the shearing unit 15 and discharges it from the paper discharge port 19. However, the structure of the shearing unit 15 is not limited to this. As another example of the shearing unit, it can also be configured to have a shearing carriage that mounts the blade and can move in the X-axis direction. In this example, by moving the shearing carriage in the X-axis direction while the blade is in contact with the printing medium M, the printed medium M can be cut to a predetermined length. The shear unit 15 is also simply referred to as the shear.

[0024] Figure 2 A diagram showing the structure of the control system of printing apparatus 1.

[0025] Figure 2 The control unit 100 of the printing apparatus 1 shown is connected to the printing unit 20, the transport drive unit 50, the communication interface 60, the touch panel 70, the indicator light 80, the cutter unit 15, and the voice processing unit 90. A speaker 95 is connected to the voice processing unit 90. Hereinafter, the interface will be abbreviated as I / F.

[0026] The conveying drive unit 50 includes a drive source such as a motor, which operates under the control of the control unit 100 to drive the conveying roller 12B to rotate. As a result, the printing medium M is conveyed in the conveying direction C and delivered to the printing position.

[0027] The I / F60 communication device is equipped with a communication card such as a NIC (Network Interface Card) and communicates with control devices such as personal computers via a network not shown.

[0028] The touch panel 70 corresponds to the display unit and the receiving unit, or to the display unit, the receiving unit, and the notification unit. The touch panel 70 includes a display panel such as a liquid crystal panel or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) panel, i.e., a display, and a touch sensor that is overlapped with or integrated with the display panel. Various images are displayed on the display panel under the control of the control unit 100. The touch sensor detects touch operations on the display panel and outputs information indicating the position of the display panel where the touch operation was detected to the control unit 100. The control unit 100 performs processing corresponding to the touch operation based on the information input from the touch sensor.

[0029] The indicator light 80 corresponds to the alarm unit. The indicator light 80 is equipped with an LED (Light Emitting Diode) and emits an alarm signal through light. The indicator light 80 can be, for example, a Patlite warning light. Patlite is a registered trademark.

[0030] The voice processing unit 90 and the speaker 95 correspond to the notification unit. The voice processing unit 90 is configured, for example, by a voice processing processor. The speaker 95 is connected to the voice processing unit 90. The voice processing unit 90 performs digital-to-analog (D / A) conversion on the voice data input from the control unit 100, thereby converting it into an analog voice signal. The voice processing unit 90 amplifies the converted voice signal and outputs the amplified voice signal as voice from the speaker 95. In addition, an example of a notification unit is shown that includes a touch panel 70, an indicator light 80, and a voice processing unit 90, but it is not necessary to have all three; having at least one is sufficient.

[0031] The control unit 100 is a computer device that includes a storage unit 110 and a processor 130.

[0032] Storage unit 110 includes RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory). RAM is used for temporary storage of various data, and ROM stores control program 115 that controls the operation of processor 130 and various setting information.

[0033] The processor 130 is an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or MPU (Micro-Processing Unit). The processor 130 can be a single processor or multiple processors. Furthermore, the processor 130 can also be a SoC (System on Chip) integrated with part or all of the storage unit 110 and other circuitry. Additionally, the processor 130 can be a combination of a CPU that executes a program and a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) that performs predetermined arithmetic processing. Moreover, it can be configured with all the functions of the processor 130 installed in hardware, or it can be constructed using a programmable device. Furthermore, the various control functions implemented by the processor 130 executing the control program 115 stored in the storage unit 110 are sometimes described only as operations of the control unit 100 or the processor 130.

[0034] Figure 3 This diagram illustrates an example of a first boot screen 200. The first boot screen 200 corresponds to the operation screen.

[0035] When the control unit 100 receives printing data from the control device, it determines the degree of dryness of the ink in the printing process being performed based on the received printing data. That is, the control unit 100 functions as a determination unit. A low degree of ink dryness means that the ink is not in a relatively dry state, and when the printing medium M with the printed image comes into contact with a floor or other object immediately after printing, the ink adheres to the contacted floor or other object. Conversely, a high degree of ink dryness means that the ink is in a relatively dry state, and when the printing medium M with the printed image comes into contact with a floor or other object immediately after printing, the ink does not adhere to the contacted floor or other object.

[0036] The control unit 100 determines the degree of dryness based on the type of printing medium M used in the printing process. The printing medium M is set, for example, by a printer driver installed in the control device or by touch operation of the touch panel 70. For example, the control unit 100 determines that the degree of dryness is low if the printing medium M is a non-absorbent medium that is difficult for ink to penetrate. Examples of such printing medium M include, for instance, DTF (Direct to Film) films with an ink receiving layer formed on them.

[0037] Furthermore, the control unit 100 can also determine the degree of ink drying based on the printing duty cycle. The printing duty cycle represents the ratio of the area of ​​the image printed per unit area or the amount of ink when the image is printed on the printing medium M. That is, the printing duty cycle is the ratio of the area to which ink is applied per unit area, or the amount of ink applied per unit area. The control unit 100 calculates the printing duty cycle based on printing data.

[0038] Furthermore, the control unit 100 can also determine the degree of drying after the printing process has been completed. The control unit 100 counts the amount of ink ejected from the print head 23 and determines the degree of drying of the image printed on the printing medium M based on the count result.

[0039] Furthermore, the control unit 100 can also determine the degree of dryness of the ink used in the printing process performed by the printing unit 20 based on the type of ink used in the printing process. For example, if the ink is the type of ink that is applied to the printing medium M and then transferred to another medium, it is determined that the degree of dryness is low.

[0040] If the control unit 100 determines that the image printed on the printing medium M has a low degree of dryness, or if the printing apparatus 1 only performs printing with a low degree of dryness, the touch panel 70 will display the image after the printing process is completed. Figure 3 The first guide screen shown is 200.

[0041] The first guide screen 200 includes a first guide display unit 210, a switching display unit 220, a standby time setting unit 230, and a cut permission button 240.

[0042] On the first guidance display unit 210, guidance information is displayed using text. Figure 3 The first guidance display unit 210 shown displays the following three guidance messages.

[0043] The first guidance message includes instructions indicating that the standby time until the shear unit 15 begins cutting can be set by operating the first guidance screen 200. The standby time refers to the time from when the user presses the cutting permission button 240 until the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction to the shear unit 15. Upon receiving the cutting instruction, the shear unit 15 immediately executes the cutting action. Therefore, the situation where the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction to the shear unit 15 and the situation where the shear unit 15 executes the cutting action are essentially synonymous, except for a delay caused by control reasons.

[0044] The second guidance information includes a display of the time required from the start of the cutting action by the shearer unit 15 until the cutting of the printing medium M is completed.

[0045] The third guidance message includes a display instructing the user to quickly place and support their hand on the cut printing medium M. This third guidance message corresponds to the information guiding the support of the printing medium M printed by the printing unit 20.

[0046] The switching display unit 220 accepts operations to enable or disable the standby time setting until the shearing unit 15 begins the cutting operation. The switching display unit 220 displays a switch button 221 that enables or disables the standby time setting. Setting the switch button 221 to "on" enables the standby time, and setting it to "off" disables it. When the switch button 221 is off, pressing the cutting enable button 240 immediately initiates the cutting operation for the shearing unit 15. In other words, aside from a lag due to control reasons, almost no standby time is set.

[0047] The standby time setting unit 230 becomes active when the switch button 221 of the switching display unit 220 is turned on. The standby time setting unit 230 displays the standby time display 231, a plus button 233, and a minus button 235.

[0048] The standby time display 231 shows the current setting of the standby time from the pressing of the cut permission button 240 until the cutter unit 15 starts to perform the cutting action.

[0049] The plus button 233 is used to perform the operation of adding a predetermined time to the standby time displayed on the standby time display 231 to make the standby time longer.

[0050] The minus button 235 is a button that accepts the operation of subtracting a predetermined time from the standby time displayed on the standby time display 231 to change the standby time to a shorter time.

[0051] The operation of the plus button 233 and the minus button 235 corresponds to the second operation, which is to set the time from the acceptance to the operation of the cut permission button 240 until the control unit 100 outputs the cut instruction, that is, until the cut action is performed.

[0052] The cut enable button 240 is a button that allows the execution of a cutting action performed by the cutter unit 15. The operation of the cut enable button 240 corresponds to a first operation. That is, when the user presses the cut enable button 240, the control unit 100 determines that a first operation has been received indicating the cutting of the printing medium M.

[0053] The user operates the switching button 221 displayed on the switching display unit 220 to set the standby time until the shear unit 15 starts to perform the cutting action to be enabled or disabled.

[0054] Furthermore, with the standby time set to active, the user can press the plus button 233 or the minus button 235 to change the standby time displayed on the standby time display 231 to the user's desired standby time. Afterwards, the user presses the cut / allow button 240.

[0055] Figure 4 This is an example diagram showing the second guide screen 300 displayed when the cut permission button 240 is pressed.

[0056] When the control unit 100 receives a press operation of the cut permission button 240, it causes... Figure 4 The second guide screen 300 is displayed. The second guide screen 300 is displayed on the touch panel 70 from the time the user accepts the request until the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction. The second guide screen 300 informs the user of the remaining time until the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction to the cutter unit 15, i.e., the time until the cutting action is performed. The second guide screen 300 includes a second guide display unit 310, an image display unit 320, and a remaining time display unit 330.

[0057] On the second guidance display unit 310, guidance information is displayed using text. Specifically, similar to the first guidance screen 200, it includes a display guiding the user to quickly place their hand on the printing medium M cut by the cutter unit 15 to support the printing medium M. The guidance information displayed on the second guidance display unit 310 corresponds to the information guiding the support of the printing medium M printed by the printing unit 20.

[0058] The image display unit 320 displays an image showing a method of guiding the hand to support the printing medium M, which is being cut by the shear unit 15, by quickly placing the hand on it. The image displayed on the image display unit 320 corresponds to the information on guiding the support of the printing medium M printed by the printing unit 20.

[0059] The remaining time display unit 330 displays the remaining time until the shearing unit 15 begins the cutting operation. Figure 4 The example shows a remaining time of 5 seconds. This remaining time is updated every second to count down the remaining time. Furthermore, since the remaining time only needs to be displayed in a way that the user can roughly grasp, an error of a few seconds is acceptable. The main causes of this error are lag due to control reasons, the time required from the start of operation of the drive device such as the motor included in the shear unit 15 until the movable blade 17 comes into contact with the printing medium M, etc. Moreover, for the same reason, the remaining time can also be displayed without a numerical value. For example, it can be displayed like a progress bar by changing the color of the bar graphic according to the remaining time. Figure 4 In the example, in addition to the numerical value of the time (5 seconds), the remaining time is also indicated by the color change of the circular graphic surrounding it.

[0060] The control unit 100 may also display a cancel button (not shown) while the display unit shows the second guide screen 300. This cancel button is provided to cancel the cutting action in case of an unexpected situation during the execution of the countdown. When the user presses the cancel button, the touch panel 70 displays the first guide screen 200 again.

[0061] Furthermore, the control unit 100 can also illuminate or flash the indicator light 80 when the remaining time falls below a preset time during the display of the second guide screen 300, thereby notifying the user that the remaining time before the start of the cut is short. In this case, the indicator light 80 functions as a notification unit.

[0062] Figure 5 This is an example diagram representing the third guide screen 400.

[0063] When the remaining time displayed on the remaining time display unit 330 disappears, the control unit 100 allows the shear unit 15 to perform the cutting action. Furthermore, the control unit 100 causes the touch panel 70 to display... Figure 5 The third guide screen 400 shown is used to display information 405 indicating that a cutting action is being performed.

[0064] For the printing medium M, which has an image formed on it and has been cut by the cutter unit 15, the adhesive powder, which is a hot melt resin powder, is then attached to the ink layer that forms the image, and the image is transferred to a fabric made of natural fibers, synthetic fibers, etc. by pressing it together using a hot press. Here, since the adhesive powder can easily adhere if the ink is not dry, the cutting operation needs to be performed while the ink is still wet.

[0065] In the above description, the case where the touch panel 70 informs the control unit 100 of the remaining time before the cutting instruction is output to the cutter unit 15 is explained. However, the speaker 95 can also function as a notification unit. That is, the control unit 100 can also output voice guidance from the speaker 95, instructing the user to quickly place their hand on the printing medium M being cut by the cutter unit 15 to support the printing medium M. When the width of the printing medium M in the X-axis direction is large, the touch panel 70 is sometimes difficult for the user to recognize because it is positioned far from the center in the X-axis direction of the printing apparatus 1. In such cases, voice-based guidance becomes more effective.

[0066] 2. Operation of the printing equipment

[0067] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating the operation of printing apparatus 1.

[0068] Reference Figure 6 The operation of the printing apparatus 1, which is performed based on the control of the control unit 100, will be explained.

[0069] First, the control unit 100 determines whether printing data has been received from a control device such as a personal computer (step S1). If no printing data has been received (step S1 / No), the control unit 100 remains on standby until printing data is received.

[0070] When the control unit 100 receives the printing data (step S1 / Yes), it determines the degree of ink drying in the subsequent printing process, i.e., whether the printing process requires time to dry the ink (step S2). For example, the control unit 100 determines the degree of ink drying based on at least one of the following: information specifying the type of printing medium M contained in the printing data, printing setting information contained in the printing data, and printing duty cycle. Here, the printing setting information refers to, for example, whether the printing mode of the printing apparatus 1 is specified as a mode for adhesive powder adhesion, i.e., a mode in which the printing medium M is discharged when the ink is not sufficiently dried, or whether a normal mode for adhesive powder adhesion is specified, i.e., a mode in which the printing medium M is discharged when the ink is dried, etc.

[0071] In the case of printing with a low degree of ink drying (step S2 / no), the control unit 100 causes the printing unit 20 to perform the printing process (step S3) and causes the touch panel 70 to display the first guide screen 200 (step S4).

[0072] Next, the control unit 100 determines whether the operation of the cut permission button 240 has been accepted (step S5). If the operation of the cut permission button 240 has not been accepted (step S5 / No), the control unit 100 waits until the operation of the cut permission button 240 is accepted.

[0073] When the control unit 100 receives an operation from the cut-off permission button 240 (step S5 / Yes), it determines whether the standby time setting is valid (step S6). The control unit 100 determines whether the switch button 221 is turned on, thereby determining whether the standby time setting is valid.

[0074] When the control unit 100 determines that the switch button 221 is set to off and the standby time setting is invalid (step S6 / No), it outputs a cutting instruction to the shear unit 15 (step S9).

[0075] Furthermore, when the control unit 100 determines that the switch button 221 is set to be on and the standby time setting is valid (step S6 / Yes), the touch panel 70 displays the second guide screen 300 (step S7), which displays the remaining time until the start of the cut-off action.

[0076] Next, the control unit 100 determines whether the remaining time until the start of the cutting action is zero (step S8). If the remaining time is not zero (step S8 / No), the control unit 100 waits until the remaining time becomes zero. Furthermore, if the remaining time is zero (step S8 / Yes), the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction to the shear unit 15. That is, the cutting action is executed (step S9).

[0077] When the control unit 100 outputs a cutting instruction to the shearer unit 15 (step S9), it causes the touch panel 70 to display the third guide screen 400 (step S10).

[0078] Next, the control unit 100 determines whether the cutting action of the shear unit 15 has ended (step S11). The control unit 100 determines whether the cutting action of the shear unit 15 has ended, for example, based on the signal output by the shear unit 15 after the cutting action has ended.

[0079] If the cutting action of the shear unit 15 has not yet ended (step S11 / No), the control unit 100 waits until the cutting action ends. Furthermore, when the cutting action of the shear unit 15 ends (step S11 / Yes), the control unit 100 determines whether the printing process based on the printing data received in step S1 has been completely completed (step S12).

[0080] If the printing process based on the printing data has not been completely completed (step S12 / No), the control unit 100 causes the printing unit 20 to perform the printing process again (step S3). Furthermore, when the printing based on the printing data has been completely completed (step S12 / Yes), the control unit 100 terminates the process.

[0081] Furthermore, if it is determined in step S2 that the ink has a high degree of dryness (step S2 / No), the control unit 100 causes the printing unit 20 to perform the printing process (step S13), and after the printing process is completed, it outputs a cutting instruction to the shearing unit 15. That is, the cutting action is performed (step S14).

[0082] Next, the control unit 100 determines whether the cutting action of the shear unit 15 has ended (step S15). If the cutting action of the shear unit 15 has not ended (step S15 / No), the control unit 100 waits until the cutting action ends.

[0083] Furthermore, when the cutting action of the shear unit 15 ends (step S15 / Yes), the control unit 100 determines whether the printing process based on the printing data received in step S1 has been completely completed (step S16).

[0084] If the printing process based on the printing data has not been completely completed (step S16 / No), the control unit 100 causes the printing unit 20 to perform the printing process again (step S13). Furthermore, when the printing based on the printing data has been completely completed (step S16 / Yes), the control unit 100 terminates the process.

[0085] 3. Summary of this disclosure

[0086] The following is a summary of this disclosure.

[0087] Postscript 1

[0088] A printing apparatus includes: a printing unit that prints an image based on printing data onto a continuous medium; a cutting unit that performs an action to cut the continuous medium on which the image has been printed by the printing unit, i.e., a cutting action; a receiving unit that receives a first operation instructing the cutting of the continuous medium; and a notification unit that, during the period from the receiving unit's receipt of the first operation to the execution of the cutting action, the notification unit notifies the remaining time, i.e., the time from the receipt of the first operation to the execution of the cutting action, and after the remaining time has elapsed, the cutting unit performs the cutting action.

[0089] According to this structure, when the first operation is received, the notification unit informs the remaining time until a cutting instruction is output to the cutting unit. Therefore, the user can recognize the remaining time until the continuous medium is cut. Thus, it is possible to prevent the continuous medium, printed with an image and cut by the cutting unit, from falling onto the floor or other surfaces. For example, if the image printed on the continuous medium is not fully dry, by having the user support the cut continuous medium by hand, it is possible to prevent ink contamination of the floor surface.

[0090] Appendix 2

[0091] As described in Appendix 1, the printing apparatus wherein the notification unit notifies the support information guiding the continuous medium being printed by the printing unit during the period from acceptance to the first operation until the cutting operation is performed.

[0092] According to this structure, the notification unit notifies the user of information guiding the support of the continuous medium. Therefore, it enables the user to support the continuous medium.

[0093] Appendix 3

[0094] The printing apparatus as described in Appendix 1 or 2, wherein the reporting unit includes a voice output unit.

[0095] According to this structure, the remaining time before the cutting instruction is output to the cutting section, as well as information on guiding the support of the continuous medium, is communicated via voice. Therefore, it enables the user to support the continuous medium.

[0096] Appendix 4

[0097] The printing apparatus as described in any one of Appendices 1 to 3, wherein the notification unit includes a display unit.

[0098] According to this structure, the remaining time until the cutting instruction is output to the cutting unit, as well as information on guiding the support of the continuous medium, are displayed on the display unit. Therefore, it is possible to prompt the user to support the continuous medium.

[0099] Appendix 5

[0100] The printing apparatus as described in any one of Appendices 1 to 4, wherein the notification unit includes an indicator light that emits an alarm by means of light, and the indicator light is turned on or flashes when the remaining time is less than a predetermined time.

[0101] According to this structure, when the remaining time falls below a predetermined time, the indicator light is turned on or flashes. Therefore, it enables the user to support the continuous medium.

[0102] Appendix 6

[0103] The printing apparatus as described in any one of Appendices 1 to 5 includes a display unit that displays an operation screen for receiving a second operation to set the remaining time and a first operation. After the remaining time has elapsed after the first operation is received in the operation screen, the cutting unit performs the cutting action.

[0104] According to this structure, by displaying an operation screen showing the first operation and the second operation, and by operating the operation screen, it is possible to indicate the cutting off of the continuous medium or set the time until the output cutting off instruction.

[0105] Appendix 7

[0106] The printing apparatus as described in any one of Appendices 1 to 6 includes a determination unit that determines the degree of dryness of an image printed on the continuous medium based on the printing data. If the determination unit determines that the degree of dryness is low, the notification unit notifies the remaining time, and the cutting unit performs the cutting operation after the remaining time has elapsed. If the determination unit determines that the degree of dryness is high, when the first operation is received, the cutting unit performs the cutting operation after a shorter time has elapsed compared to the remaining time when the degree of dryness was determined to be low.

[0107] According to this structure, when the image printed on the continuous medium has a low degree of dryness, the continuous medium is cut after a waiting period before cutting; conversely, when the image printed on the continuous medium has a high degree of dryness, the continuous medium is cut immediately after printing without waiting. Therefore, the operation of the printing apparatus can be appropriately modified. Furthermore, unnecessary image display and waiting time can be reduced when the degree of dryness is high.

[0108] Symbol Explanation

[0109] 1…Printing apparatus; 10…Housing; 11…Media holding section; 11A…Unwinding shaft; 12…Roll pair; 12A…Driven roller; 12B…Conveyor roller; 13…Media support section; 15…Shearer unit; 16…Fixed blade; 17…Modible blade; 19…Paper outlet; 20…Printing section; 21…Carriage; 23…Print head; 25…Nozzle; 30…Ink collection section; 31…Holding tray; 40…Support frame; 50…Conveyor drive section; 60…Communication interface; 70…Touch panel; 90…Voice processing section; 95…Speaker; 100…Control Section; 110…Storage section; 115…Control program; 130…Processor; 200…First boot screen; 210…First boot display section; 220…Switch display section; 221…Switch button; 230…Standby time setting section; 231…Standby time display; 233…Plus button; 235…Minus button; 240…Cut allow button; 300…Second boot screen; 310…Second boot display section; 320…Image display section; 330…Remaining time display section; 400…Third boot screen; C…Transport direction; M…Printing medium.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus comprising: The printing department prints images based on printing data onto a continuous medium; The cutting section performs an action of cutting the continuous medium on which the image has been printed by the printing section, i.e., a cutting action. The receiving department receives the first operation that instructs the cutting off of the continuous medium; Reporting Department During the period from the acceptance of the application by the receiving department to the execution of the first operation and then to the execution of the cutting-off action, the reporting department reports the remaining time, i.e., the time elapsed from the acceptance of the application to the execution of the first operation and then to the execution of the cutting-off action. After the remaining time has elapsed, the cutting section performs the cutting action.

2. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein, The notification unit notifies the support information of the continuous medium that has been printed after being guided through the printing unit during the period from the acceptance of the first operation to the execution of the cutting action.

3. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein, The notification unit includes a voice output unit.

4. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein, The notification unit includes a display unit.

5. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein, The alarm unit includes an indicator light that emits an alarm. When the remaining time falls below a predetermined time, the indicator light is turned on or flashes.

6. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein, Equipped with a display unit, The display unit shows the operation screens for the second operation of setting the remaining time and the first operation. After the remaining time has elapsed since the first operation was received in the operation screen, the cutting unit performs the cutting action.

7. The printing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein, Possesses a judgment department, The determination unit determines the degree of dryness of the image printed on the continuous medium based on the printing data. If the determination unit determines that the degree of dryness is low... The notification unit notifies the remaining time. The cutting section performs the cutting action after the remaining time has elapsed. If the determination unit determines that the degree of dryness is high... When the first operation is received, the cutting section performs the cutting action after a shorter time has elapsed compared to the remaining time when the degree of dryness is determined to be low.

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