Printing system

Abstract

To provide a printing system provided with a printing device that performs printing on a medium and a conveying robot that coveys the medium, in which when an error occurs in the printing device, a hand of the conveying robot moves and then stops.SOLUTION: A printing system 1 is provided with a printing device 3 that performs printing on a medium 2, and a conveying robot 6 that performs at least either of carrying of the medium 2 into the printing device 3 and carrying-out of the medium 2 from the printing device 3. The conveying robot 6 comprises a hand 21 for holding the medium 2. In the printing system 1, a prohibition area that is an area where the hand 21 is prohibited from staying when an error occurs in the printing device 3 is set. When an error occurs in the printing device 3 and when the hand 21 is arranged in the prohibition area, the hand 21 moves up to a safe stop position 21A that is a predetermined position out of the prohibition area and then stops there.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing system that includes a printing device that prints on a medium and a transport robot that transports the medium. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a printing system that performs printing on a semiconductor substrate (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The printing system described in Patent Document 1 includes an inkjet printer (applicator) that performs printing by ejecting droplets onto a semiconductor substrate, and a transport robot (transporter) that transports the semiconductor substrate in the printing system. The transport robot is a SCARA type robot that includes an arm from two arms and a hand (gripping part) attached to the tip of the arm. The transport robot performs tasks such as transporting the semiconductor substrate to the inkjet printer and transporting the semiconductor substrate from the inkjet printer. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-183595 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the printing system described in Patent Document 1, no specific operation of the transfer robot is proposed when an error occurs in the inkjet printer.

[0005] Therefore, the objective of the present invention is to propose specific operations of a transport robot when an error occurs in a printing device in a printing system that includes a printing device that prints on a medium and a transport robot that transports the medium. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the printing system of the present invention comprises a printing device that prints on a medium, and a transport robot that performs at least one of transporting the medium into the printing device and transporting the medium out of the printing device, the transport robot having a hand that holds the medium, and a prohibited area that is an area where the hand is prohibited from remaining when an error occurs in the printing device is set in advance, and when an error occurs in the printing device, if the hand is positioned within the prohibited area, the hand moves to a safety stop position that is a predetermined position outside the prohibited area and then stops.

[0007] In the printing system of the present invention, if an error occurs in the printing device and the hand is located within the prohibited area, the hand moves to a safe stop position, which is a predetermined position outside the prohibited area, and then stops. Therefore, in the present invention, by setting the position of the hand that is unlikely to cause interference with the operation of the printing device or maintenance work on the printing device as the safe stop position, when an error occurs in the printing device, it is possible to move the hand that is located within the prohibited area to a position where it is unlikely to cause interference with the operation of the printing device or maintenance work on the printing device, and stop it there. Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible for an operator to easily perform recovery work on the printing device after an error occurs in the printing device.

[0008] In the present invention, for example, a printing device includes an inkjet head that ejects ink, a carriage on which the inkjet head is mounted, a carriage drive mechanism that moves the carriage in a main scanning direction, a table on which a medium is placed, and a table drive mechanism that moves the table in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the main scanning direction, and the prohibited area includes the operation area of ​​the table in the sub-scanning direction. In this case, since the hand located at the safety stop position is located outside the operation area of ​​the table in the sub-scanning direction, it becomes possible for an operator to easily perform recovery work around the table after an error occurs in the printing device.

[0009] In the present invention, for example, a printing device includes an inkjet head that ejects ink, a carriage on which the inkjet head is mounted, a Y bar that holds the carriage so that it can move in the main scanning direction, a carriage drive mechanism that moves the carriage in the main scanning direction, a table on which the medium is placed, and a Y bar drive mechanism that moves the Y bar in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the main scanning direction, and the prohibited area includes the motion area of ​​the Y bar in the sub-scanning direction. In this case, since the hand located at the safety stop position is located outside the motion area of ​​the Y bar in the sub-scanning direction, it becomes possible for an operator to easily perform recovery work around the Y bar after an error occurs in the printing device.

[0010] In the present invention, for example, the prohibited area includes a maintenance work area, which is an area for performing maintenance work on the printing device. In this case, since the hand placed at the safety stop position is placed outside the maintenance work area, it becomes possible for the operator to easily perform recovery work after an error occurs in the printing device.

[0011] In the present invention, for example, if an error occurs in the printing device and the hand is positioned outside the prohibited area, the hand moves to the safe stop position and stops there. In this case, when an error occurs in the printing device, no matter what area the hand is positioned in, the hand moves to the safe stop position and stops there. Therefore, no matter what area the hand is positioned in when an error occurs in the printing device, it is possible to restart the transport robot in the same way after the printing device has been restored. Therefore, it is possible to easily restart the transport robot after the printing device has been restored.

[0012] In the present invention, for example, if an error occurs in the printing device and the hand is positioned outside the prohibited area, the hand may stop at the position where it was positioned at the time the error occurred in the printing device. In this case, since the hand stops immediately (i.e., the transport robot stops immediately), the operator can immediately begin work on restoring the printing device after the error occurs in the printing device.

[0013] In the present invention, for example, the printing device includes a table on which the medium is placed, and the safety stop position is higher than the top surface of the table. In this case, the hand placed at the safety stop position is less likely to interfere with recovery work around the table. Therefore, when an error occurs in the printing device, the hand moves to the safety stop position and stops there, making it possible for an operator to easily perform recovery work around the table after an error occurs in the printing device.

[0014] In the present invention, for example, the printing device is provided with an emergency stop button for emergency stopping the printing device, and the safety stop position is higher than the upper end of the emergency stop button. In this case, the hand placed at the safety stop position is less likely to interfere with the operator pressing the emergency stop button of the printing device.

[0015] In the present invention, for example, when viewed from above and below, the safety stop position is a position different from the printing device. In this case, the hand placed at the safety stop position is less likely to interfere with the recovery work of the printing device. Therefore, by moving and stopping the hand at the safety stop position when an error occurs in the printing device, it becomes possible for an operator to easily perform recovery work for the printing device after an error occurs in the printing device. Effect of the Invention

[0016] As described above, in a printing system equipped with a printing device that prints on a medium and a transport robot that transports the medium, the present invention enables an operator to easily perform recovery work for the printing device after an error occurs in the printing device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the printing system shown in FIG. [Diagram 3]FIG. 2 is a side view of the printing system shown in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the printing system shown in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the printing apparatus shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0019] (Overall configuration of the printing system) FIG 1 is a perspective view of a printing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG 2 is a plan view of the printing system 1 shown in FIG 1. FIG 3 is a side view of the printing system 1 shown in FIG 1. FIG 4 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the printing system 1 shown in FIG 1. FIG 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the printing device 3 shown in FIG 1.

[0020] The printing system 1 of this embodiment is a system for printing on a medium 2. The printing system 1 includes a printing device 3 that prints on the medium 2, a pre-printed medium placement section 4 where the medium 2 before printing is placed, a printed medium placement section 5 where the medium 2 after printing is placed, a transport robot 6 that transports the medium 2 from the pre-printed medium placement section 4 to the printing device 3 and transports the medium 2 from the printing device 3 to the printed medium placement section 5, and a control device 7 for controlling the printing device 3 and the transport robot 6. The medium 2 is formed in a flat plate shape. Specifically, it is formed in a quadrangular flat plate shape. The medium 2 of this embodiment is formed in a rectangular or square flat plate shape. The medium 2 is also formed of a resin such as an acrylic resin. The control device 7 is, for example, a PC (personal computer).

[0021] The printing device 3 is an inkjet printer for commercial use. Therefore, in the following description, the printing device 3 will be referred to as the "printer 3." As shown in FIG. 5, the printer 3 includes an inkjet head 9 (hereinafter referred to as the "head 9") that ejects ink toward the medium 2, a carriage 10 on which the head 9 is mounted, a carriage drive mechanism 11 that moves the carriage 10 in the main scanning direction (Y direction in FIG. 5, etc.), and a Y bar 12 that holds the carriage 10 so that it can move in the main scanning direction. A guide rail 18 is fixed to the Y bar 12 to guide the carriage 10 in the main scanning direction. The carriage 10, the carriage drive mechanism 11, and the Y bar 12 are covered by a cover 17.

[0022] The printer 3 also includes a table 13 on which the medium 2 is placed, a table drive mechanism 14 for moving the table 13 in a sub-scanning direction (X direction in FIG. 1, etc.) perpendicular to the main scanning direction and the up-down direction (vertical direction, Z direction in FIG. 1, etc.), a guide mechanism for guiding the table 13 in the sub-scanning direction, an emergency stop button 15 for emergency stopping the printer 3, and a printer control unit 16 for controlling the printer 3. In the following description, the main scanning direction is the left-right direction, and the sub-scanning direction is the front-rear direction. Also, the Y1 direction side in FIG. 1, etc., which is one side of the left-right direction, is the "right" side, the Y2 direction side in FIG. 1, etc., which is the opposite side of the right side, is the "left" side, the X1 direction side in FIG. 1, etc., which is one side of the front-rear direction, is the "front" side, and the X2 direction side in FIG. 1, etc., which is the opposite side of the front side, is the "rear" side.

[0023] The upper surface of the table 13 is a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. One or more sheets of media 2 are placed on the upper surface of the table 13 depending on the size of the media 2, etc. The carriage 10 is disposed above the table 13. The head 9 ejects ink from above toward the medium 2 placed on the upper surface of the table 13. The carriage drive mechanism 11 includes, for example, a motor, a drive pulley that rotates by the power of the motor, a driven pulley, and a belt that is stretched between the drive pulley and the driven pulley. A portion of the belt is fixed to the carriage 10.

[0024] The table drive mechanism 14 includes, for example, a motor and a ball screw, etc. In this embodiment, when the transport robot 6 transports the medium 2 from the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 to the printer 3, and when the transport robot 6 transports the medium 2 from the printer 3 to the post-printing medium placement unit 5, the table 13 moves to a position forward of the cover 17 and stops so that the medium 2 transported by the transport robot 6 does not interfere with the cover 17.

[0025] The emergency stop button 15 is located at the front end of the printer 3. The emergency stop button 15 is also located on the right side of the table 13, which has moved forward and stopped. The emergency stop button 15 is electrically connected to the printer control unit 16. An operator of the printing system 1 presses the emergency stop button 15 from above. When the emergency stop button 15 is pressed, the printer 3 is brought to an emergency stop. The upper end of the emergency stop button 15 is located above the top surface of the table 13. The printer control unit 16 is electrically connected to the control device 7.

[0026] The pre-printed medium placement unit 4 places the medium 2 before printing by the printer 3. The pre-printed medium placement unit 4 is disposed in front of the printer 3. The pre-printed medium placement unit 4 is disposed to the right of the table 13. The pre-printed medium placement unit 4 is formed with a medium placement surface 4a on which the medium 2 is placed. The medium placement surface 4a is a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The height of the medium placement surface 4a is lower than the height of the upper surface of the table 13. The pre-printed medium placement unit 4 allows multiple sheets of the medium 2 to be placed. Specifically, the pre-printed medium placement unit 4 allows multiple sheets of the medium 2 to be placed in a stacked manner. That is, the pre-printed medium placement unit 4 allows multiple sheets of the medium 2 to be placed in a stacked manner. The multiple sheets of the medium 2 are placed in a stacked manner on the medium placement surface 4a. In this embodiment, an operator of the printing system 1 places multiple sheets of the medium 2 on the medium placement surface 4a.

[0027] The printed medium placing section 5 places the medium 2 after printing by the printer 3. The printed medium placing section 5 is located in front of the unprinted medium placing section 4. The printed medium placing section 5 has a medium placing surface 5a on which the medium 2 is placed. The medium placing surface 5a is a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The height of the medium placing surface 5a is lower than the height of the upper surface of the table 13. The printed medium placing section 5 can place multiple sheets of medium 2. Specifically, the printed medium placing section 5 can place multiple sheets of medium 2 in a stacked manner.

[0028] (Configuration of the transport robot and the operation of the transport robot when a printer error occurs) The transport robot 6 is a vertical articulated robot. Specifically, the transport robot 6 is a six-axis vertical articulated robot. The transport robot 6 includes a hand 21 that holds the medium 2, an arm 22 to which the hand 21 is connected at its tip, and a robot controller 24 that controls the transport robot 6. The hand 21 in this embodiment suctions and grips the top surface of the medium 2. The hand 21 includes a plurality of suction pads 25 that suctions the top surface of the medium 2. The robot controller 24 is electrically connected to the control device 7.

[0029] The hand 21 constitutes the tip of the transport robot 6. The base end of the transport robot 6 is fixed to the upper surface of a table 26. The table 26 is disposed in front of the table 13 of the printer 3. The table 26 is also disposed to the left of the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5. The height of the upper surface of the table 26 is higher than the height of the medium placement surfaces 4a, 5a. The height of the upper surface of the table 26 is also lower than the height of the upper surface of the table 13.

[0030] As described above, the transport robot 6 transports the medium 2 from the pre-printing medium placement section 4 to the printer 3, and transports the medium 2 from the printer 3 to the post-printing medium placement section 5. That is, the transport robot 6 loads the medium 2 into the printer 3 and unloads the medium 2 from the printer 3. The hand 21 holding the medium 2 moves from the pre-printing medium placement section 4 to the printer 3, and moves from the printer 3 to the post-printing medium placement section 5. Specifically, the hand 21 holding the medium 2 moves from the pre-printing medium placement section 4 to the table 13, and moves from the table 13 to the post-printing medium placement section 5. The hand 21 accesses the pre-printing medium placement section 4, the post-printing medium placement section 5, and the table 13 from above.

[0031] If the hand 21 remains within a predetermined area when an error such as running out of ink occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 and the arm 22 may get in the way of recovery work of the printer 3 after the error occurs, which may hinder the recovery work of the printer 3 after the error occurs in the printer 3. Therefore, in this embodiment, a prohibited area is set in advance, which is an area where the hand 21 is prohibited from staying (maintaining a stopped state) when an error occurs in the printer 3. The prohibited area is set by the operator in the control device 7, for example. Data related to the prohibited area set in the control device 7 is transmitted from the control device 7 to the robot control unit 24 and stored.

[0032] The prohibited area includes an operation area of ​​the table 13 in the front-rear direction (space required for the table 13 to operate) and a maintenance work area for performing maintenance work on the printer 3 (space required for the operator to perform maintenance work). That is, the table 13 moves in the front-rear direction within the prohibited area, and the operator performs maintenance work on the printer 3 within the prohibited area. In this embodiment, the prohibited area is defined by the operation area of ​​the table 13 in the front-rear direction and the maintenance work area. Since the prohibited area includes the operation area of ​​the table 13 in the front-rear direction and the maintenance work area, if the hand 21 is placed within the prohibited area, it is likely to cause problems in recovery work on the printer 3 after an error occurs in the printer 3.

[0033] In this embodiment, if the hand 21 is located within the prohibited area when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A, which is a predetermined position outside the prohibited area (i.e., an area outside the prohibited area), and then stops. Also, in this embodiment, even if the hand 21 is located outside the prohibited area when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A and then stops. In other words, in this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, regardless of whether the hand 21 is located within or outside the prohibited area, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A and then stops.

[0034] In this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, the printer control unit 16 sends an error signal to the control device 7, and the control device 7 sends a command to move the hand 21 to the robot control unit 24. The robot control unit 24, which receives the command to move the hand 21, moves the hand 21 to the safe stop position 21A and stops it there. When an error occurs in the printer 3, the robot control unit 24 determines whether the hand 21 is located within a prohibited area.

[0035] The safety stop position 21A is a position of the hand 21 within an area outside the operation area and maintenance work area in the front-rear direction of the table 13. The safety stop position 21A is higher than the upper surface of the table 13 (see FIG. 3). The safety stop position 21A is also higher than the upper end of the emergency stop button 15. In other words, the hand 21 positioned at the safety stop position 21A is positioned above the upper surface of the table 13 and the upper end of the emergency stop button 15.

[0036] Furthermore, the safety stop position 21A is in a different position from the printer 3 when viewed from the top-bottom direction (see FIG. 2). Furthermore, the safety stop position 21A is in a different position from the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5 when viewed from the top-bottom direction. In other words, the safety stop position 21A is shifted from the printer 3, the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5 when viewed from the top-bottom direction, and the hand 21 positioned at the safety stop position 21A does not overlap with the printer 3, the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5 when viewed from the top-bottom direction.

[0037] In this embodiment, the safety stop position 21A is, for example, located in front of the base end of the transport robot 6 when viewed from above, and is located to the left of the center of the table 13 in the left-right direction. In other words, the hand 21 placed at the safety stop position 21A is located in front of the base end of the transport robot 6 when viewed from above, and is located to the left of the center of the table 13 in the left-right direction. The bottom surface of the medium 2 held by the hand 21 placed at the safety stop position 21A is located above the top surface of the table 13 and the top end of the emergency stop button 15.

[0038] (Main effects of this form) As described above, in this embodiment, if an error occurs in the printer 3 and the hand 21 is located within the prohibited area, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A outside the prohibited area and then stops. Also, in this embodiment, the prohibited area includes the operation area of ​​the table 13 in the front-rear direction and the maintenance work area, which is an area for performing maintenance work on the printer 3, and the safe stop position 21A is outside the operation area of ​​the table 13 and the maintenance work area.

[0039] That is, in this embodiment, the safe stop position 21A is a position of the hand 21 that is unlikely to interfere with the operation of the table 13 or the maintenance work of the printer 3, and when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 that is positioned in the prohibited area moves to and stops at a position that is unlikely to interfere with the operation of the table 13 or the maintenance work of the printer 3. Therefore, in this embodiment, it becomes possible for the operator to easily perform recovery work for the printer 3 after an error occurs in the printer 3.

[0040] In this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, even if the hand 21 is positioned outside the prohibited area, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A and stops there. That is, in this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, regardless of the area in which the hand 21 is positioned, the hand 21 moves to the safe stop position 21A and stops there. Therefore, in this embodiment, regardless of the area in which the hand 21 is positioned when an error occurs in the printer 3, it is possible to restart the transport robot 6 in the same manner after the recovery work of the printer 3. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to easily restart the transport robot 6 after the recovery work of the printer 3.

[0041] In this embodiment, the safety stop position 21A is higher than the upper surface of the table 13. Therefore, in this embodiment, the hand 21 positioned at the safety stop position 21A is less likely to interfere with recovery work around the table 13. Also, in this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 moves to and stops at the safety stop position 21A regardless of the area in which the hand 21 is positioned. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible for the operator to easily perform recovery work around the table 13 after an error occurs in the printer 3.

[0042] In this embodiment, the safety stop position 21A is at a different position from the printer 3 when viewed from above and below. Therefore, in this embodiment, the hand 21 located at the safety stop position 21A is less likely to interfere with the recovery work of the printer 3. Also, in this embodiment, when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 moves to the safety stop position 21A and stops there, regardless of the area in which the hand 21 is located. Therefore, in this embodiment, it becomes possible for the operator to easily perform recovery work of the printer 3 after an error occurs in the printer 3.

[0043] (Example of changing the printing system) In the embodiment described above, the printing system 1 may include two or more printers 3. For example, the printing system 1 may include three printers 3: a printer 3 arranged behind the table 26, a printer 3 arranged to the right of the table 26, and a printer 3 arranged to the left of the table 26. In this case, the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5 are arranged in front of the table 26. The pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the post-printing medium placement unit 5 are adjacent to each other in the left-right direction.

[0044] In this modified example, the main scanning direction of the printer 3 arranged behind the table 26 coincides with the left-right direction. The main scanning direction of the printer 3 arranged to the right of the table 26 and the main scanning direction of the printer 3 arranged to the left of the table 26 coincide with the front-rear direction. When the medium 2 is transported to the printer 3 arranged behind the table 26, the table 13 of this printer 3 moves to the front and stops. When the medium 2 is transported to the printer 3 arranged to the right of the table 26, the table 13 of this printer 3 moves to the left and stops. When the medium 2 is transported to the printer 3 arranged to the left of the table 26, the table 13 of this printer 3 moves to the right and stops.

[0045] In this modified example, when an error occurs in any of the three printers 3, the hand 21 moves to the safety stop position 21A and then stops. The safety stop position 21A is higher than the upper surface of the table 13 and the upper end of the emergency stop button 15, and is at a different position from the three printers 3 when viewed from the top. The safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 arranged behind the table 26, the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 arranged to the right of the table 26, and the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 arranged to the left of the table 26 are at the same position. For example, when viewed from above, the safety stop position 21A is located in front of the base end of the transport robot 6 and to the right of the center in the left-right direction of the table 13 of the printer 3 arranged behind the table 26.

[0046] The safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 located behind the table 26, the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 located to the right of the table 26, and the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 for the printer 3 located to the left of the table 26 may be in different positions. In other words, the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 may be in a different position for each of the three printers 3. In this case, the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 changes depending on the printer 3 in which the error has occurred.

[0047] (Example of changing the printer) In the above-described embodiment, the printer 3 may be provided with a Y-bar drive mechanism 31 (see FIG. 5) that moves the Y-bar 12 in the front-rear direction instead of the table drive mechanism 14. In this case, the table 13 is fixed and does not move in the front-rear direction. In addition, in this case, the prohibited area includes the operation area of ​​the Y-bar 12 in the front-rear direction (the space required for the Y-bar 12 to operate). In this case, the hand 21 arranged at the safety stop position 21A is arranged outside the operation area of ​​the Y-bar 12 in the front-rear direction, so that the operator can easily perform recovery work around the Y-bar 12 after an error occurs in the printer 3.

[0048] (Example of changing the hand safety stop position) In the above-described embodiment, the safety stop position 21A of the hand 21 may overlap with the printer 3, the pre-printing medium placement unit 4, or the post-printing medium placement unit 5 when viewed from the top-down direction. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the safety stop position 21A may be lower than the upper end of the emergency stop button 15, or may be at the same position in the top-down direction as the upper end of the emergency stop button 15. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the safety stop position 21A may be lower than the upper surface of the table 13, or may be at the same position in the top-down direction as the upper surface of the table 13.

[0049] If the safety stop position 21A overlaps with the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 when viewed from the top-bottom direction and the hand 21 positioned at the safety stop position 21A is positioned above the pre-printing medium placement unit 4, then after the printer 3 is restored, when the medium 2 is transported from the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 to the printer 3, it becomes possible to grip the medium 2 in a short time at the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 after the transport robot 6 resumes operation. Also, if the safety stop position 21A overlaps with the printer 3 when viewed from the top-bottom direction and the hand 21 positioned at the safety stop position 21A is positioned above the printer 3, then after the printer 3 is restored, when the medium 2 is transported from the printer 3 to the post-printing medium placement unit 5, it becomes possible to grip the medium 2 in a short time at the table 13 after the transport robot 6 resumes operation.

[0050] (Example of changing hand movements) In the embodiment described above, if the hand 21 is located outside the prohibited area when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 may stop at that location. In other words, if the hand 21 is located outside the prohibited area when an error occurs in the printer 3, the hand 21 may stop at the position where it was located at the time the error occurred in the printer 3. In this case, the hand 21 stops immediately (i.e., the transport robot 6 stops immediately), so the operator can immediately begin work on restoring the printer 3.

[0051] (Other embodiments) The above-described embodiment is one example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0052] In the embodiment described above, the hand 21 may hold the medium 2 by a method other than suction. For example, the hand 21 may have a gripping portion that contacts the upper surface of the medium 2 and a gripping portion that contacts the lower surface of the medium 2. In this case, the medium 2 is held by the hand 21 by being sandwiched between the two gripping portions from both sides in the top-bottom direction. The medium 2 may also be held by the hand 21 by being sandwiched between the two gripping portions from both sides in the front-back direction or the left-right direction. The medium 2 may also be held by the hand 21 by being placed on the hand 21.

[0053] In the embodiment described above, when the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 and the table 13 are adjacent to each other, the hand 21 may push the medium 2 from the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 toward the table 13, thereby transporting the medium 2 from the pre-printing medium placement unit 4 to the table 13. In this case, the height of the medium placement surface 4a is slightly higher than the height of the upper surface of the table 13. Similarly, when the post-printing medium placement unit 5 and the table 13 are adjacent to each other, the hand 21 may push the medium 2 from the table 13 toward the post-printing medium placement unit 5, thereby transporting the medium 2 from the table 13 to the post-printing medium placement unit 5.

[0054] In the above-described embodiment, multiple sheets of media 2 that are not overlapping with each other (i.e., not stacked) may be placed in the pre-print medium placement section 4. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the pre-print medium placement section 4 may be a conveyor such as a belt conveyor. In this case, for example, multiple sheets of media 2 that are not overlapping with each other are placed in the pre-print medium placement section 4.

[0055] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the medium 2 may be a quadrilateral flat plate shape other than a rectangular shape and a square shape. For example, the medium 2 may be a flat plate shape such as a trapezoid, a rhombus, or a parallelogram. The medium 2 may also be a quadrilateral flat plate shape with a curved or flat chamfer (R chamfer or C chamfer) on at least one of the four corners. Furthermore, the medium 2 may be formed into a flat plate shape other than a rectangular shape and a square shape. For example, the medium 2 may be formed into a disk shape. The medium 2 may not be formed into a flat plate shape. For example, the medium 2 may be a ballpoint pen or the like formed into a cylindrical shape. In this case, the non-flat medium 2 may be stacked and arranged in the pre-printing medium arrangement unit 4. The medium 2 may also be a medium that is prone to sagging, such as paper or fabric.

[0056] In the embodiment described above, one transport robot 6 carries the medium 2 into the printer 3 and carries the medium 2 out of the printer 3, but the printing system 1 may be provided with multiple transport robots 6, including at least one transport robot 6 that carries the medium 2 into the printer 3 and at least one transport robot 6 that carries the medium 2 out of the printer 3. In other words, the transport robot 6 may only carry the medium 2 into the printer 3, or only carry the medium 2 out of the printer 3.

[0057] In the above-described embodiment, the transport robot 6 may be a vertical articulated robot other than a six-axis robot. The transport robot 6 may also be a robot other than a vertical articulated robot. For example, the transport robot 6 may be a horizontal articulated robot, an orthogonal robot, or a parallel link type robot. In the above-described embodiment, the printing system 1 may also include various devices such as a cutting device that cuts the medium 2 after printing or before printing, and a coating device that coats the medium 2 after printing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1 Printing System 2 medium 3 Printer (printing device) 6. Transport Robot 9 head (inkjet head) 10 Carriage 11 Carriage drive mechanism 12 Y-Bar 13 Tables 14 Table drive mechanism 15 Emergency stop button 21 Hands 21A Safe stop position 31 Y-bar drive mechanism X sub-scanning direction Y Main scanning direction Z vertical direction

Claims

1. a printing device that prints on a medium; and a transport robot that carries out at least one of carrying the medium into the printing device and carrying the medium out of the printing device; the transport robot includes a hand for holding the medium, A prohibited area is set in advance as an area where the hand is prohibited from staying when an error occurs in the printing device; A printing system characterized in that when an error occurs in the printing device and the hand is positioned within the prohibited area, the hand moves to a safety stop position, which is a predetermined position outside the prohibited area, and then stops.

2. the printing device includes an inkjet head that ejects ink, a carriage on which the inkjet head is mounted, a carriage drive mechanism that moves the carriage in a main scanning direction, a table on which the medium is placed, and a table drive mechanism that moves the table in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to a vertical direction and the main scanning direction; 2. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the prohibited area includes an operating area of ​​the table in the sub-scanning direction.

3. the printing device includes an inkjet head that ejects ink, a carriage on which the inkjet head is mounted, a Y bar that holds the carriage so as to enable movement in a main scanning direction, a carriage drive mechanism that moves the carriage in the main scanning direction, a table on which the medium is placed, and a Y bar drive mechanism that moves the Y bar in a sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the main scanning direction; 2. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the prohibited area includes a motion area of ​​the Y bar in the sub-scanning direction.

4. 4. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the prohibited area includes a maintenance work area for performing maintenance work on the printing device.

5. 4. A printing system according to claim 1, wherein if an error occurs in the printing device and the hand is positioned outside the prohibited area, the hand moves to the safe stop position and stops there.

6. A printing system as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that if the hand is positioned outside the prohibited area when an error occurs in the printing device, the hand stops at the position where it was positioned at the time the error occurred in the printing device.

7. the printing device includes a table on which the medium is placed, 4. A printing system according to claim 1, wherein the safety stop position is higher than an upper surface of the table.

8. the printing device includes an emergency stop button for causing an emergency stop of the printing device, 4. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the safety stop position is higher than an upper end of the emergency stop button.

9. 4. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the safety stop position is a position different from that of the printing device when viewed from above and below.

Images