Slitter device and printer
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2023118020
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2023-07-20
- Publication Date
- 2026-03-06
AI Technical Summary
Existing slitter devices struggle to accurately cut paper along the border between images, leading to protruding images and reduced appearance quality, especially with thick paper used in sublimated printers.
The slitter device incorporates a slitter unit with a slitter portion that includes an outer blade and an inner blade, both rotating on separate axes, to cut paper into three parts, discarding the intermediate scrap to ensure clean cuts on both sides of the image border.
The solution allows for precise cutting of paper into two parts without jagged edges, maintaining the appearance quality of the printed images, even with thick paper.
Smart Images
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Abstract
Description
[Technical field]
[0001] The present invention relates to a slitter device and a printer. [Background technology]
[0002] Printers equipped with a slitter device are known, which cuts paper to a specified width by passing the paper, which is transported in a specified direction, through a blade provided at a specified position in the width direction of the paper.
[0003] A slitter device has been proposed that cuts a sheet of paper, on which two images are printed side by side in the width direction of the sheet, into two pieces of paper. This slitter device can obtain two images with one transport stroke, which contributes to efficient use of consumer goods such as paper and electricity.
[0004] However, it is difficult for a slitter device to cut the paper into two pieces precisely along the boundary line between the two images, and one of the pieces of paper may be cut with part of the image printed on the other piece of paper protruding from it.
[0005] Therefore, the slitter device cuts off a specified width, including the boundary line, as a strip-shaped intermediate scrap, thereby preventing either of the two sheets of paper from outputting an image in which part of the adjacent image extends beyond the boundary line (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]
[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2015-136750 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2013-129001 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]
[0007] Incidentally, as shown in Patent Document 2, a slitter device is equipped with two inner blades and two outer blades, with the two inner blades positioned above the paper and the two outer blades positioned below the paper, and is configured to cut off intermediate scraps by shearing between the outer blades and the inner blades.The intermediate scraps are pushed downward by the inner blades and easily guided into a trash can for collecting intermediate scraps that is positioned below the slitter device.
[0008] On the other hand, the paper portions on both sides of the intermediate scrap formed by the cutting are lifted upward by the outer blade, but these paper portions hang down due to their own weight. Therefore, at the hanging position, each paper portion on both sides is pushed outward in the width direction by the thickness of the outer blade and spread out. Therefore, a stress that pulls the cut edge is generated at the cutting starting point where each paper portion on both sides is in contact with the cutting blade of the slitter device.
[0009] In particular, when the paper is thick, such as that used in dye-sublimation printers in which sublimation dyes are diffusely transferred, the stress pulling the side edges (cut edges) of both sides of the paper causes the cut edges of both sides to become jagged and finely wavy and wrinkled, resulting in a decrease in the appearance quality (good looks).
[0010] To solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention aims to provide a slitter device and a printer equipped with a slitter device that can cut the paper portions on both sides of the intermediate scrap neatly in a straight line without causing the cut edges to become jagged and finely wavy or wrinkled. [Means for solving the problem]
[0011] The first aspect of the present invention is a slitter device comprising a base and a slitter unit attached to the base, the slitter unit comprising an outer cutter body having two rotary blades spaced apart on a first axis extending in the width direction of the paper, an inner cutter body having two rotary blades spaced apart on a second axis extending in the width direction, and a motor for rotating the first axis or the second axis about its axis, the outer cutter and the inner cutter body being arranged on the outside in the width direction relative to the inner cutter body, the outer cutter body being arranged above the paper, and the inner cutter body being arranged below the paper, so that the paper is sandwiched and cut by one of the rotary blades of the outer cutter body and one of the rotary blades of the inner cutter body, and the paper is sandwiched and cut by the other rotary blade of the outer cutter body and the other rotary blade of the inner cutter body.
[0012] A second aspect of the present invention is a printer comprising a printing unit that prints on paper, and a slitter device according to the present invention that cuts the paper printed by the printing unit at a predetermined position in the width direction of the paper. Effect of the Invention
[0013] The slitter and printer according to the present invention can cut the paper portions on both sides of the intermediate scrap neatly in a straight line, without the cut edges becoming jagged and finely wavy or wrinkled. [Brief description of the drawings]
[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of the printer. [Diagram 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along a vertical plane that passes through the center of the printer in the width direction and includes the front-rear direction. [Diagram 3] 13 is a perspective view showing an upper unit in which a cutter unit, a slitter unit, a discharge path, and a part of a print standby path are integrally formed; FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of the upper unit shown in FIG. 3 taken at approximately the center in the width direction W along a vertical plane including the front-rear direction. [Diagram 5] 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of the upper unit taken along line AA in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] 6 is a perspective view showing a slitter section in the slitter unit shown in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section taken along a vertical plane including the shaft of a slitting motor in the slitter section. FIG. [Figure 8] 1 is a schematic diagram showing cutting lines that divide the paper into both side portions and a central portion, and the starting points of the cutting lines, in a plan view. FIG. [Figure 9] 9 is a schematic diagram showing the state of FIG. 8 as viewed from the front to the rear in the conveying direction. [Figure 10] 9 is a schematic diagram corresponding to FIG. 8, showing a slitter unit of a comparative example to which the present invention is not applied. [Figure 11] 10 is a schematic diagram corresponding to FIG. 9, showing a slitter unit of a comparative example to which the present invention is not applied. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing a cutting line when the paper is obliquely fed. [Figure 13] 13 is a schematic plan view showing a cutting line when the slitter unit (slit blade set) is moved so as to offset the amount of skew. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0015] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a slitter device and a printer according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0016] <Overall composition> FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of a printer 100, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along a vertical plane that passes through the center of the printer 100 in a width direction W and includes a front-rear direction L.
[0017] A printer 100 shown in Figures 1 and 2 is one embodiment of a printer according to the present invention. One example of the printer 100 is a dye-sublimation thermal printer 100 (hereinafter referred to as printer 100). As shown in Figure 1, the printer 100 has a defined width direction W, front-rear direction L, and height direction H, and is formed into a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole. The printer 100 includes a main body 10, a print unit 20, a creaser unit 30, a cutter unit 40, a slitter unit 50, a paper transport unit 60, a control unit 90, and the like.
[0018] [Main body] The main body 10 is formed by covering the outside of a metal frame with a metal exterior cover 11, and an upper front case 12, a middle front case 13, and a lower front case 14, all of which are made of resin.
[0019] 2, formed inside the main body 10 are a roll paper storage chamber 15, a sheet storage chamber 16, and a ribbon storage chamber 17. Also arranged inside the main body 10 are a print section 20 equipped with a thermal head 21, a platen roller 22, and an ink ribbon unit 23, a creaser unit 30, a cutter unit 40, a slitter unit 50, a paper transport section 60, a control section 90, a power supply, etc.
[0020] Here, a portion of the conveying path P in which the platen roller 22, the ink ribbon unit 23, the cutter unit 40, the slitter unit 50, and the paper conveying section 60 are provided (part or all of the sheet paper delivery path P1, the sheet paper feed path P2, the roll paper feed path P8, the print standby path P4, the discharge path P7, etc.) can be pulled out forward in the front-to-rear direction L as an integrated pull-out unit 70.
[0021] (Roll paper storage compartment) The roll paper storage chamber 15 is a cylindrical space with an axis along the width direction W, and stores roll paper R (hereinafter referred to as paper R), which is a long strip of paper wound into a cylindrical shape. Paper R is, for example, thick paper onto which sublimation dyes are diffusion transferred. The roll paper storage chamber 15 is exposed by pulling out the drawer unit 70 connected to the middle front case 13 forward as shown by the arrow in FIG. 2 with the upper front case 12 flipped up as shown by the arrow in FIG. 2. When exposed, the roll paper storage chamber 15 can store and remove the roll paper R.
[0022] (Sheet Containment Room) As shown in Fig. 2, the sheet storage chamber 16 is provided at the bottom of the printer 100, below the drawer unit 70. The sheet storage chamber 16 is a rectangular parallelepiped space formed in a tray, and stores a large number of rectangular sheets S (hereinafter referred to as paper S) that have been cut to a predetermined size in advance, stacked in the thickness direction in the tray. The paper S is, for example, thick paper onto both sides of which sublimation dye is diffusion-transferred. Note that the papers S and R are not limited to papers onto which sublimation dye is diffusion-transferred.
[0023] The front of the sheet storage chamber 16 is covered by the lower front case 14. A finger hook 14a is formed on the upper part of the lower front case 14. The sheet storage chamber 16 is exposed by being pulled forward as shown by the arrow in Fig. 2 with a finger hooked on the finger hook 14a. With the tray exposed, the sheet storage chamber 16 can store and remove sheets S.
[0024] The upper front case 12 is disposed at the upper front part of the main body 10. The upper front case 12 covers the cutter unit 40 and the slitter unit 50 disposed at the upper front part of the main body 10.
[0025] A discharge opening 12a is formed on the front surface of the upper front case 12, through which the sheets S and R conveyed from inside the main body 10 are discharged to the outside. The discharge opening 12a is formed with a dimension longer than the width of the sheets S and R.
[0026] [Control Unit] The control unit 90 controls the operations of the printing unit 20, the creaser unit 30, the cutter unit 40, the slitter unit 50, the paper transport unit 60, and the power supply.
[0027] [Paper transport section] The paper transport section 60 transports the papers S and R along the transport path P. The paper transport section 60 includes a motor, a drive roller driven by the motor, a driven roller that rotates without being driven, and a switching member for switching the transport path P. The transport path P includes a sheet feed path P1, a sheet feed path P2, a print path P3, a print standby path P4, a print downstream path P5, a creasing path P6, a discharge path P7, and a roll paper feed path P8.
[0028] The paper transport section 60 feeds the topmost paper S among the papers (sheets) S stored in the sheet storage chamber 16 to the sheet feed path P1, and sends it to the print standby path P4 via the sheet feed path P2 and the print path P3. At this time, the paper S passes through the print path P3, but no printing is performed on the paper S.
[0029] The paper transport section 60 transports the paper S sent to the print standby path P4 back to the print path P3. While the paper S is being transported along the print path P3, the thermal head 21 prints on the front side of the paper S, as described below.
[0030] The paper transport section 60 sends the paper S printed on the printing path P3 to the printing downstream path P5, and when creasing is to be performed on the paper S, the paper transport section 60 sends the paper S from the printing downstream path P5 to the creasing path P6, and a creaser unit 30 provided on the creasing path P6 forms a crease on the paper S. The paper transport section 60 pulls the paper S on which the crease has been formed (the crease has been made) back from the creasing path P6 to the printing downstream path P5.
[0031] The paper transport unit 60 sends the paper S sent to the printing downstream path P5 to the sheet feed path P2. The paper S sent from the printing downstream path P5 to the sheet feed path P2 is in an inverted state with the front and back sides reversed compared to the state when the paper S was first sent to the sheet feed path P2 from the sheet storage chamber 16 through the sheet delivery path P1. In other words, the printing downstream path P5 and the sheet feed path P2 form a reversing path that turns the paper S over.
[0032] The paper transport section 60 sends the paper S, which has been turned over and passed through the sheet feed path P2, to the print standby path P4 through the print path P3 in the same manner as described above, and then pulls it back to the print path P3, where the thermal head 21 prints on the back side of the paper S.
[0033] The paper transport section 60 passes the paper S, which has been printed on its back side and sent to the printing downstream path P5, through the sheet feed path P2, the printing path P3, and the discharge path P7 in that order, and discharges it from the discharge opening 12a to the outside of the printer 100.
[0034] In the discharge path P7, a part of the paper S is cut off in the width direction by the cutter unit 40 according to the output conditions of the paper S, and the paper S is cut to a predetermined width by the slitter unit 50.
[0035] The paper transport unit 60 sends the paper (roll paper) R stored in the roll paper storage chamber 15 from its leading edge side from the roll paper feed path P8 through the print path P3 to the print standby path P4. At this time, the paper R passes through the print path P3, but no printing is performed on the paper R.
[0036] Then, the paper transport unit 60 transports the paper R sent to the print standby path P4 back to the print path P3, in the same manner as for the paper S. Then, while the paper R is being transported along the print path P3, the thermal head 21 prints on the paper R. By the operation of the paper transport unit 60 to return the paper R along the print path P3, the printed portion of the paper R is returned to the roll paper feed path P8.
[0037] The paper transport section 60 passes the paper R that has been pulled back into the roll paper feed path P8 through the print path P3 and then the discharge path P7, and discharges it from the printer 100 to the outside through the discharge opening 12a.
[0038] Depending on the conditions for outputting the paper R, the paper R is cut along the width direction W by the cutter unit 40 in the discharge path P7, separated from the part connected to the roll, and also cut to a predetermined width by the slitter unit 50.
[0039] [Printing section] The ink ribbon unit 23 is accommodated in the ribbon accommodating chamber 17. The ink ribbon unit 23 transports a long, band-shaped ink ribbon wound around a pay-out roller 23a while winding the ink ribbon around a wind-up roller 23b. The ink ribbon is coated with a sublimation dye.
[0040] The thermal head 21 generates heat under the control of the control unit 90. Between the thermal head 21 and the platen roller 22, the sheets S and R passing through the print path P3 and the ink ribbon stretched between the feed roller 23a and the take-up roller 23b are sandwiched in an overlapping state.
[0041] Then, the thermal head 21 generates heat to diffuse and transfer the sublimation dye applied to the ink ribbon onto the papers S and R. While the control unit 90 synchronously transports the papers S and R and the ink ribbon on the print path P3, the thermal head 21 performs the above-mentioned diffusion transfer, thereby performing a predetermined print on the papers S and R.
[0042] [Creaser Unit] The creaser unit 30 is disposed behind the roll paper storage chamber 15 in the front-to-rear direction L, and between the take-up roller 23b of the ink ribbon unit 23 and the sheet storage chamber 16 in the height direction H. The creaser unit 30 forms creases, which are depressions extending along the width direction W, on the paper S that has been transported to the creasing path P6 that extends in the front-to-rear direction L below the roll paper storage chamber 15. By forming creases in the paper S, the creaser unit 30 makes it easier to fold the paper S along the creases.
[0043] [Cutter unit] Figure 3 is an oblique view showing an upper unit 80 in which the cutter unit 40, the slitter unit 50, the discharge path P7 and a portion of the print waiting path P4 are integrally formed, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-section taken at approximately the center of the width direction W of the upper unit 80 shown in Figure 3, cut by a vertical plane including the front-to-rear direction L, and Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-section taken along line AA of the upper unit 80 in Figure 4.
[0044] The cutter unit 40 is provided on the discharge path P7. The cutter unit 40 has a rotary blade that moves along the width direction W, and cuts the paper sheets S and R along the width direction W by rotating around the center of the rotary blade and moving in the width direction W relative to the paper sheets S and R passing through the discharge path P7. When cutting a sheet of paper S, the cutter unit 40 cuts off unnecessary margins and the like in the length direction of the sheet of paper S. When cutting a roll of paper R, the cutter unit 40 separates the printed paper portion from the paper portion connected to the roll in the roll paper storage chamber 15. The cutter unit 40 can also cut off unnecessary margins and the like in the length direction of the roll of paper R. The cut-off margins and the like are collected in a trash can (not shown) provided in the printer 100.
[0045] [Slitter unit] The slitter unit 50, like the cutter unit 40, is provided on the discharge path P7 and is disposed downstream in the conveying direction closer to the discharge port 12a than the cutter unit 40. The slitter unit 50 is one embodiment of a slitter device according to the present invention.
[0046] The slitter unit 50 includes a slit blade set 54 disposed at a predetermined position in the width direction W. The slitter unit 50 cuts the sheets S, R at the predetermined position in the width direction W along the conveying direction by contacting the slit blade set 54 with the sheets S, R at a predetermined position in the width direction W while feeding the sheets S, R downstream in the conveying direction along the discharge path P7.
[0047] Here, images are printed separately on paper portion S1 and paper portion S2 on both sides in the width direction W. Paper portion S3 in the center in the width direction W is a portion where the image printed on paper portion S1 and the image printed on paper portion S2 are adjacent to each other and have a border line.
[0048] If the slitter unit 50 cuts a single sheet of paper S into two paper portions in the width direction W in order to separate the sheet of paper S into two images aligned in the width direction W, the slitter unit 50 needs to cut precisely along the boundary between the image printed on one paper portion and the image printed on the other paper portion.
[0049] However, in the conveying path P of the printer 100, the paper S may be conveyed shifted to one side in the width direction W, or the paper S may be conveyed skewed, tilted with respect to the conveying direction, making it difficult for the slitter unit 50 to cut along the boundary line with precision. If the cut line is misaligned with the boundary line, in addition to the image printed on one portion of the paper, a part of the image printed on the other portion of the paper will protrude from that portion of the paper, resulting in a deterioration in the quality of the paper portions obtained by cutting.
[0050] Therefore, the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment cuts out a strip of paper portion S3 of a specified width that includes the boundary between the two images, and cuts this paper portion S3 into three paper portions S1, S2, and S3 as described above to be discarded as intermediate waste.
[0051] In addition, when the printer 100 prints by forming a margin of a specified width between the image to be printed on the paper portion S1 and the image to be printed on the paper portion S2, the slitter unit 50 may cut off the portion including this margin as the paper portion S3 that becomes intermediate waste.
[0052] 3 and 4, the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment cuts one sheet of paper S to divide it into three paper portions S1, S2, and S3 in the width direction W, and as an example, the slitter unit 50 is arranged such that the slit blade set 54 in the slitter section 51 is positioned at a position where the width of the paper portion S1 is equal to the width of the paper portion S2. However, the slit blade set 54 may be arranged at a position where the width of the paper portion S1 is different from the width of the paper portion S2.
[0053] Since the central paper portion S3 that becomes the intermediate waste is discarded as the intermediate waste, it has a width that is extremely narrow (for example, about 5 mm) compared to the paper portions S1 and S2 on either side on which images are printed.
[0054] In the following detailed description of the slitter unit 50, the sheet S is the object to be cut; however, the slitter unit 50 can be applied to not only the sheet S but also the sheet R as the object to be cut.
[0055] Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the slitter section 51 in the slitter unit 50 shown in Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section taken along a vertical plane including a rotating shaft 55a of a slitting motor 55 in the slitter section 51. As shown in Fig. 5, the slitter unit 50 has a unit base 59 (base), the slitter section 51, and a slitter section moving means 58.
[0056] The unit base 59 is a skeleton including a metal frame. The slitter section 51 and the slitter section moving means 58 are attached to the unit base 59. The unit base 59 is configured to attach the slitter unit 50 to the upper unit 80, and the slitter unit 50 can be removed by removing the unit base 59 from the upper unit 80.
[0057] The slitter unit moving means 58 moves the slitter unit 51 along the width direction W. The slitter unit moving means includes, for example, a rotating moving motor, a guide rail extending in a straight line along the width direction W, and a transmission mechanism that moves the slitter unit 51 in a straight line along the extension direction of the guide rail (width direction W) in response to the rotation of the moving motor. The moving motor is preferably, for example, a linear step motor suitable for feedforward control.
[0058] The operation of the slitter unit moving means 58 is controlled by the control unit 90. The slitter unit moving means 58 moves the slitter unit 51 to any position along the width direction W, so that the slitter unit 51 can be positioned at any position in the width direction W of the paper S.
[0059] 7, the slitter unit 51 includes a slitting motor 55 and a slitting blade set 54. The slitting blade set 54 includes an outer blade body 53 and an inner blade body 52. The operation of driving and stopping the slitting motor 55 is controlled by a control unit 90.
[0060] The outer blade body 53 includes two rotary blades 53a and 53b and a friction body 53c. The two rotary blades 53a and 53b are formed in the same shape. Each of the two rotary blades 53a and 53b has a blade formed on the circular outer periphery.
[0061] The two rotary blades 53a, 53b are arranged coaxially with a rotating shaft 55a (first shaft) of a slitting motor 55 fitted into a through hole provided at the center of the rotary blades 53a, 53b. The two rotary blades 53a, 53b rotate integrally with the rotating shaft 55a in response to the rotation of the slitting motor 55. The rotating shaft 55a extends along the width direction W of the paper S.
[0062] The two rotary blades 53a, 53b are arranged at a predetermined interval along the rotation shaft 55a. Each of the two rotary blades 53a, 53b has a blade formed on a circular outer periphery, and the cutting edges formed on the outer periphery of the two rotary blades 53a, 53b are formed on the inner surfaces of the two rotary blades 53a, 53b that face each other.
[0063] The friction body 53c is, for example, an elastic member such as an O-ring. The friction body 53c is disposed so as to span between the two rotary blades 53a and 53b of the outer blade body 53. When the two rotary blades 53a and 53b rotate, the friction body 53c rotates integrally with the rotary blades 53a and 53b.
[0064] The outer periphery of the friction body 53c is shaped and positioned so as not to protrude beyond the blade tips formed at the radial ends of the two rotary blades 53a, 53b. When the friction body 53c comes into contact with the paper S, it generates a considerable amount of frictional force between the paper S and the friction body 53c, so that when the friction body 53c rotates, the paper S is transported in the tangential direction of the friction body 53c without slipping against the friction body 53c.
[0065] The inner blade body 52 includes two rotary blades 52a and 52b and a driven shaft 52c (second shaft). The two rotary blades 52a and 52b are formed in the same shape. Each of the two rotary blades 52a and 52b has a blade formed on the circular outer periphery.
[0066] The two rotary blades 52a, 52b are arranged coaxially with a driven shaft 52c fitted into a through hole provided at the center of the rotary blades 52a, 52b. The two rotary blades 52a, 52b rotate together with the driven shaft 52c. The driven shaft 52c is arranged parallel to the rotation shaft 55a, and therefore extends along the width direction W of the paper S, similar to the rotation shaft 55a.
[0067] The driven shaft 52c is disposed below the rotating shaft 55a in the height direction H. In other words, the rotary blades 53a and 53b of the outer blade body 53 are disposed above the paper S passing through the slitter section 51, and the rotary blades 52a and 52b of the inner blade body 52 are disposed below the paper S passing through the slitter section 51.
[0068] The two rotary blades 52a, 52b are arranged at a predetermined interval along the driven shaft 52c. Each of the two rotary blades 52a, 52b has a blade formed on a circular outer periphery, and the blade tip formed on the outer periphery of the two rotary blades 52a, 52b is formed on the outer surface opposite to the inner surface where the two rotary blades 52a, 52b face each other.
[0069] As shown in FIG. 7, the two rotary blades 52a, 52b are positioned such that the blade formed on the outer surface of the rotary blade 52a comes into contact with the blade formed on the inner surface of the rotary blade 53a of the outer blade body 53, cutting the clamped paper S by shearing between the two rotary blades 52a, 53a, and the blade formed on the outer surface of the rotary blade 52b comes into contact with the blade formed on the inner surface of the rotary blade 53b of the outer blade body 53, cutting the clamped paper S by shearing between the two rotary blades 52b, 53b.
[0070] The slitter unit 51 rotates by contacting the rotary blade 53a of the outer cutter body 53 rotated by the slitting motor 55 with the rotary blade 52a, and cuts the paper S by shearing with the blades of the two rotating rotary blades 52a, 53a. At the same time, the slitter unit 51 rotates by contacting the rotary blade 53b of the outer cutter body 53 rotated by the slitting motor 55 with the rotary blade 52b, and cuts the paper S by shearing with the blades of the two rotary blades 52b, 53b.
[0071] In this manner, in the slitter unit 50, as shown in FIG. 3, the paper S is transported in the transport direction indicated by the white arrow, and as shown in FIG. 7, the paper S passes between the outer blade body 53 arranged relatively above in the height direction H and the inner blade body 52 arranged relatively below in the height direction H, whereby the paper S is cut in the width direction W into three paper portions S1, S2, and S3 as shown in FIG. 3.
[0072] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a cutting line N3 that divides the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides from the paper portion S3 in the center, and a starting point M of the cutting line N3 in a plan view, and Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of the state in Fig. 8, as viewed from the front to the rear in the transport direction. Note that the symbol N1 in Figs. 8 and 9 and Figs. 10 and 11 described below indicates a line on the top surface of the paper S that runs along the width direction W and passes through the starting point M of the cutting line N3.
[0073] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, the slitter unit 51 divides the paper S into a right-side paper portion S1 in the width direction W and a central paper portion S3 that will become intermediate scraps by shearing with rotary blades 53a and 52a arranged on the right side in the width direction W, and divides the paper S into a left-side paper portion S2 in the width direction W and the central paper portion S3 that will become intermediate scraps by shearing with rotary blades 53b and 52b arranged on the left side in the width direction W.
[0074] Here, when the slitter unit 51 cuts the paper S into three paper parts S1, S2, and S3, the position of the inner surfaces of the rotary blades 53a and 53b of the outer cutter body 53 in the width direction W becomes the starting point M of the cutting line N3 that cuts the paper S into three paper parts S1, S2, and S3, as shown in Figure 8.
[0075] In the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment, the outer cutter body 53 is positioned above the inner cutter body 52 in the height direction H, so that the paper portions S1 and S2 on both sides cut along the cutting line N3 have their portions outside the starting point M pressed downward by the thickness of each of the rotary blades 53a and 53b that constitute the outer cutter body 53, and the paper portions S1 and S2 on both sides also sag downward due to gravity.
[0076] In other words, the portions of the paper S1, S2 on both sides that are outside the starting point M do not ride up onto the rotary blades 53a, 53b of the outer cutter body 53 and are not pressed outward in the width direction W by the thickness of the rotary blades 53a, 53b.
[0077] Therefore, the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment and the printer 100 equipped with this slitter unit 50 can form the side edges S1a, S2a corresponding to the cutting line N3 in the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides, which are the areas where the image is printed, into a neat straight line, even if the paper S is thick, without causing the side edges to become jagged, finely wavy, or finely wrinkled.
[0078] <Slitter unit of comparative example> Here, in order to facilitate understanding of the action and effect of the slitter unit of the above-mentioned embodiment, a slitter unit of a comparative example to which the present invention is not applied will be described. Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of a slitter unit of a comparative example to which the present invention is not applied, corresponding to Fig. 8, and Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of a slitter unit of a comparative example to which the present invention is not applied, corresponding to Fig. 9.
[0079] 10 and 11, in the slitter unit of the comparative example, the inner blade body 52 is disposed above the outer blade body 53 in the height direction H. Therefore, the portions of the paper S1 and S2 on both sides cut along the cutting line N3 that are outside the starting point M are pressed upward by the region of the thickness of each of the rotary blades 53a and 53b constituting the outer blade body 53 disposed below the paper S.
[0080] However, since downward gravity acts on the paper portions S1, S2 pressed upward by each rotary blade 53a, 53b, the side edges S1a, S2a of the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides corresponding to the cutting line N3 move outside the thickness of each rotary blade 53a, 53b.
[0081] In other words, the side edges S1a, S2a corresponding to the cutting line N3 of the paper portions S1, S2 are displaced outward in the width direction W from the side edges S3a corresponding to the cutting line N3 on both sides of the paper portion S3 that becomes the intermediate scrap, ahead of the starting point M in the conveying direction, and as a result of the side edges S1a, S2a being displaced outward at the cutting starting point M, stress is generated at the cutting starting points where the cutting blades of the slitter device are in contact with each of the paper portions on both sides, pulling the cut edges.
[0082] In the slitter unit of the comparative example, the stress generated at this starting point M adversely affects the formation of the side edges S1a, S2a of the paper portions S1, S2 corresponding to the cutting line N3 subsequently formed from the starting point M, and particularly when the paper S is a thick paper used in a dye-sublimation thermal printer 100, the side edges S1a, S2a of the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides are not neatly formed in a straight line, but rather become finely wavy and jagged and wrinkled.
[0083] As a result, in the printer of the comparative example, the paper portions S1 and S2 on both sides are not neatly straight, which leads to a decrease in the appearance quality (appearance).
[0084] In contrast, the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment can form the side edges S1a, S2a corresponding to the cutting line N3 in the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides on which an image is printed into a neat straight line, without causing them to become jagged, wavy, or wrinkled, as is the case with the slitter unit of the comparative example.
[0085] In the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment, the inner blade body 52 pushes upward the central paper portion S3, which becomes intermediate waste, and the paper portion S3 hangs downward at its tip. Therefore, both side edges S3a, S3a of the paper portion S3 corresponding to the cutting line N3 may become jagged and finely wavy and finely wrinkled, but since the paper portion S3 is a portion that is discarded as intermediate waste, even if both side edges S3a, S3a are wavy or disordered, there is no effect on the quality of the output paper portions S1, S2.
[0086] 7, in the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment, the paper portion S3 that becomes intermediate waste is pushed upward in the height direction H by the inner blade body 52 arranged below the paper S, and is pressed against the friction body 53c of the outer blade body 53. Since the outer blade body 53 is started and rotated by the slitting motor 55, the friction body 53c is also rotating. Since the paper portion S3 is pressed against the friction body 53c, it does not slip relative to the friction body 53c.
[0087] It should be noted that, when the paper portion S3 is pressed against the friction body 53c, there is a possibility that pressure marks or pressure scratches may occur on its surface. However, since the paper portion S3 is a portion that is discarded as intermediate waste, this does not affect the quality of the output paper portions S1 and S2.
[0088] Therefore, the slitter unit 50 can guide the central paper portion S3, which is separated from the paper portions S1, S2 on both sides, forward in the discharge direction while in contact with the friction body 53c, thereby preventing the paper portion S3 from being swept out in an unintended direction or wrapped around the outer cutter body 53.
[0089] FIG. 12 is a schematic plan view showing the cutting line N3 when the paper S is skewed, and FIG. 13 is a schematic plan view showing the cutting line N3 when the slitter section 51 (slit blade set 54) is moved to offset the amount of skew.
[0090] Here, printer 100 may cause paper S passing through transport path P to be slightly skewed due to the accumulation of individual differences in its components, and the amount of skew also differs for each printer 100. If paper S is cut by slitter unit 51 while remaining skewed when it passes through discharge path P7, side edges Sa, Sb on both sides N0 of paper S before cutting will not be parallel to side edges S1a, S2a corresponding to cutting line N3 cut by slitter unit 51, which may result in a deterioration in the quality of paper portions S1, S2.
[0091] However, the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment includes a slitter section moving means 58, which can move the slitter section 51 along the width direction W, as shown in Fig. 12. In the printer 100 of this embodiment, the control unit 90 stores the amount of skew caused by individual differences between printers 100 that are measured in advance, and while transporting the paper S in the transport direction (front-rear direction L), the control unit 90 controls the slitter section moving means 58 to move the slitter section 51 in a direction that offsets the skew, according to the amount of skew that has been stored.
[0092] As a result, in the printer 100 of this embodiment, even if the paper S is skewed as shown in Figure 13, the printer 100 cuts the paper S by moving the slitter unit 51 while transporting the paper S in the transport direction (front-to-back direction L) to offset the amount of skew, thereby making the side edges S1a, S2a corresponding to the cutting line N3 cut by the slitter unit 51 parallel to the side edges Sa, Sb on both sides N0 of the paper S before cutting, and thereby capable of cutting the paper S in a manner that cancels out the skew.
[0093] That is, even if the printer 100 transports the paper S at an angle, it can output a paper portion S1 in which both side edges Sa, S1a are parallel, and a paper portion S2 in which both side edges Sb, S2a are parallel.
[0094] In addition, the amount of skewing caused by individual differences between printers 100 can be measured by cutting the paper S in advance for measurement purposes in each printer 100 without moving the slitter section 51 (slit blade set 54), as shown in Figure 12, comparing the dimension of edge S1c (edge S2c in the case of paper part S2) corresponding to the leading end N2 of paper part S1 (or paper part S2) with the dimension of edge S1d (edge S2d in the case of paper part S2) corresponding to the trailing end N4, and calculating the difference between the dimension of edge S1c and the dimension of edge S1d (or the difference between the dimension of edge S2c and the dimension of edge S2d).
[0095] Then, the control unit 90 of the printer 100 controls the slitter unit moving means 58 to move the slitter unit 51 (slit blade set 54) at a constant speed along the width direction W by a dimension equivalent to the amount of skew measured in advance by the example method described above, during the period in which the paper S is fed along the transport direction (corresponding to the front-to-rear direction L) (the length from the edge Sc of the leading end N2 to the edge Sd of the trailing end N4), as shown in Figure 13.
[0096] In this embodiment, the slitter unit 50 has been described as having a slitter section moving means 58 that moves the slitter section 51 to offset the amount of skew of the paper S, but the slitter section moving means 58 may also move the slitter section 51 along the width direction W to change the width dimensional ratio between paper portion S1 and paper portion S2.
[0097] In this way, when slitter unit moving means 58 is operated to change the width dimensional ratio between paper portion S1 and paper portion S2, slitter unit moving means 58 may move slitter unit 51 in the width direction W before the edge Sc of leading end N2 of paper S reaches slitter unit 51. Then, during the period from when edge Sc of leading end N2 of paper S starts to pass through slitter unit 51 to when edge Sc of trailing end N4 passes slitter unit 51, slitter unit moving means 58 may fix slitter unit 51 in a certain position without moving it.
[0098] However, even in this case, when moving the slitter section 51 to offset the skewing of the paper S as described above, the slitter section moving means 58 can move the slitter section 51 during the period from when the edge Sc of the leading end N2 of the paper S begins to pass through the slitter section 51 to when the edge Sd of the trailing end N4 passes through the slitter section 51.
[0099] Although the slitter unit 50 of this embodiment is provided with a slitter section moving means 58, the slitter device and printer according to the present invention do not necessarily have to be provided with a slitter section moving means.
[0100] The slitter unit 50 of this embodiment is configured such that the rotating shaft 55a of the slitting motor 55 is inserted into the rotary blades 53a, 53b of the outer blade body 53, but the rotating shaft 55a of the slitting motor 55 may also be inserted into the rotary blades 52a, 52b of the inner blade body 52. [Explanation of symbols]
[0101] 50 Slitter unit (Slitter device) 51 Slitter Section 52 Inner blade 52a, 52b, 53a, 53b Rotary blade 52c Driven shaft 53 Outer blade 55 Slit motor 55a Rotation axis 59 Unit Base 100 Printers S paper H Height direction L Anteroposterior direction W Width direction
Claims
1. An outer blade body having two rotary blades arranged at a predetermined interval, and an inner blade body having two rotary blades arranged so as to face each of the rotary blades on the inside, are supported on a shaft so as to be freely rotatable and driven, The outer blade is disposed above the paper being ejected from the printer, and the inner blade is disposed below the paper. A slitter device that sandwiches the paper between the opposing rotary blades and cuts the paper along the conveyance direction.
2. A friction body is provided between the rotary blades of the outer cutter body, 2. The slitter device according to claim 1, wherein the friction body contacts a central portion of the paper in the width direction of the paper that is pushed upward by the inner blade between the rotary blades of the inner blade body, out of three paper portions obtained by cutting the paper.
3. a slitter unit moving means for moving the slitter unit having the outer cutter body and the inner cutter body along the width direction, 3. The slitter device according to claim 2, wherein the slitter unit moving means moves the slitter unit in the width direction according to an amount of skew of the paper when the paper is cut by the slitter unit.
4. a printing unit that prints on paper; The slitter device according to claim 1 , which cuts the paper printed by the printing unit at a predetermined position in the width direction of the paper; A printer equipped with