Ticketing device, ticketing method, and program

Abstract

To prevent printing defects. [Solution] The ticket issuing device comprises a ticket issuing unit that issues tickets and a control unit that controls the ticket issuing unit. When a ticket issuing standby instruction signal output from the control unit is input to the ticket issuing unit, the ticket issuing unit transports the long printing medium in the forward direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in the standby position. If the state in which the leading edge of the printing medium is in the standby position continues for a predetermined time or longer, the ticket issuing unit transports the printing medium in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in the retracted position.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a ticket issuing device, a ticket issuing method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as devices for printing on a printing medium using a thermal head, printers described in Patent Document 1, ticket issuing devices for issuing tickets, etc. are known.

[0003] A ticket issuing device issues tickets, for example, as follows. First, the ticket issuing device pulls out and conveys a long printing medium (e.g., thermal paper) wound in a roll until the leading end of the printing medium is positioned at a standby position. After that, when the ticket issuing device receives a ticket issuing instruction from a user, it cuts the printing medium with a cutter, prints information with a thermal head while conveying the cut printing medium, and discharges it as a ticket.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the ticket issuing device described above, when the leading edge of the rolled-up, elongated printable medium is in the standby position, a portion of the printable area of ​​the medium is pressed by the transport roller (see, for example, Figure 3 below). If this condition persists for a long period of time, a dent will form in a portion of the printable area of ​​the medium due to the pressure of the transport roller. If printing is performed in this state, the thermal head may not be able to properly contact a portion of the printable area of ​​the medium, potentially resulting in printing defects such as missing prints (see, for example, Figure 7 below).

[0006] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a ticket issuing device, a ticket issuing method, and a program that prevent the occurrence of printing defects. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] One aspect of the device is a ticket issuing unit that issues tickets and a control unit that controls the ticket issuing unit, wherein when a ticket issuing standby instruction signal output from the control unit is input, the ticket issuing unit transports the long printing medium in the forward direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in a standby position, and if the state in which the leading edge of the printing medium is in the standby position continues for a predetermined time or longer, the ticket issuing unit transports the printing medium in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in a retracted position.

[0008] One aspect of the method is a ticketing method characterized in that, when a ticketing unit receives a ticketing standby instruction signal output from a control unit that controls the ticketing unit, the ticketing unit transports the elongated printing medium in the forward direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in a standby position, and if the state in which the leading edge of the printing medium is in the standby position continues for a predetermined time or longer, the ticketing unit transports the printing medium in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in a retracted position.

[0009] One aspect of the program is characterized by causing the processor to transport the long printing medium forward until its leading edge is in a waiting position when a ticket issuance standby instruction signal is input, and if the state in which the leading edge of the printing medium is in the waiting position continues for a predetermined time or longer, to transport the printing medium in the reverse direction until its leading edge is in a retracted position. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of printing defects. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This diagram illustrates the configuration of a system including a ticket issuing device. [Figure 2] This diagram illustrates the hardware configuration of a ticket issuing device. [Figure 3] This diagram illustrates the general configuration of a ticketing unit. [Figure 4] This diagram shows an example of the state transitions between the ticketing unit and the control unit. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates a ticket issuing unit in a retracted state. [Figure 6] This diagram illustrates a ticketing unit in the ticketing process. [Figure 7] This diagram illustrates printing defects in a printed medium. [Figure 8] This is a flowchart illustrating the flow of operations performed by the ticketing unit. [Figure 9] This is a flowchart illustrating the flow of operations performed by the control unit. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0013] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a system including a ticket issuing device.

[0014] The system 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a ticket issuing device 2, which is an example of a ticket issuing apparatus, and a server 3. The ticket issuing device 2 and the server 3 are connected to a communication network 4 by wire or wirelessly and can communicate with each other via the communication network 4. In FIG. 1, for the sake of convenience of explanation, only one ticket issuing device 2 is shown. In reality, there are a plurality of ticket issuing devices 2, each of which is connected to the communication network 4 and can communicate with the server 3 via the communication network 4.

[0015] The ticket issuing device 2 is provided, for example, in a store. The ticket issuing device 2 issues tickets according to the content of a mark sheet (mark card) filled in by a customer or issues tickets according to the content input by a store clerk according to the customer's request. In addition, the ticket issuing device 2 transmits ticket issuing information regarding the content of the issued tickets to the server 3. The server 3 manages the ticket issuing information transmitted from the ticket issuing device 2. The communication network 4 is, for example, a WAN (Wide Area Network) or the Internet.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of the ticket issuing device.

[0017] The ticket issuing device 2 illustrated in FIG. 2 includes a control unit 21, a display input unit 22, a mark sheet reading unit 23, and a ticket issuing unit 24.

[0018] The control unit 21 includes a processor 211, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 212, a communication interface 213, a graphic processing unit 214, a storage device 215, and an input / output interface 216, which are interconnected by a bus 217.

[0019] Processor 211 may be, for example, a single processor, a multi-processor, or a multi-core processor. Processor 211 controls each part of the ticket issuing device 2 by executing various programs such as an operating system (OS) program and an application program.

[0020] RAM 212 temporarily stores a part of the program executed by processor 211 and is used as a working storage area for processor 211.

[0021] Communication interface 213 is connected to communication network 4 and communicates with an external device (e.g., server 3) via the communication network 4.

[0022] Graphics processing unit 214 is connected to display device 221 of display input unit 22 and causes various screens to be displayed on display device 221 according to control signals from processor 211.

[0023] Storage device 215 is, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and stores various programs executed by processor 211 and various data necessary for program execution.

[0024] Input / output interface 216 is connected to touch panel 222 of display input unit 22, mark sheet reading unit 23, and ticket issuing unit 24, and performs signal input / output between touch panel 222, mark sheet reading unit 23, and ticket issuing unit 24 and processor 211. Note that input / output interface 216 may be further connected to a portable storage medium interface capable of writing and reading information to and from a portable storage medium.

[0025] The display input unit 22 is a touch panel display comprising a display device 221 and a touch panel 222 positioned on the display device 221. The display device 221 is, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and displays various screens. The touch panel 222 detects input operations to the touch panel 222 and outputs a signal to the processor 211 according to the detection result.

[0026] The mark sheet reading unit 23 reads the contents of the completed mark sheet inserted into the ticket issuing device 2.

[0027] The ticketing unit 24 prints information onto the printing medium and dispenses it as a ticket. Details of the ticketing unit 24 will be described later.

[0028] In the ticket issuing device 2 illustrated in Figure 2, the functions provided by the ticket issuing unit 24 include the function of a ticket issuing unit that issues tickets, and the functions provided by the control unit 21 (processor 211) include the function of a control unit that controls the ticket issuing unit.

[0029] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of a ticketing unit.

[0030] The ticket issuing unit 24 illustrated in Figure 3 includes a roll shaft 241, a pair of first conveying rollers 242a, 242b, a pair of second conveying rollers 243a, 243b, a cutter 244, a platen roller 245, a thermal head 246, and a pair of discharge rollers 247a, 247b.

[0031] The roll shaft portion 241 rotatably supports a long, roll-shaped printing medium M. The printing medium M is, for example, thermal paper.

[0032] A pair of first conveyor rollers 242a and 242b are arranged facing each other. The first conveyor roller 242a is a driven roller, and the first conveyor roller 242b is a driven roller. The pair of first conveyor rollers 242a and 242b convey the printing medium M by the rotation of the first conveyor roller 242a. Two pairs of first conveyor rollers 242a and 242b are provided in the width direction of the printing medium M.

[0033] A pair of second conveyor rollers 243a and 243b are arranged facing each other. The second conveyor roller 243a is a driven roller, and the second conveyor roller 243b is a driven roller. The pair of second conveyor rollers 243a and 243b convey the printing medium M by the rotation of the second conveyor roller 243a. Two pairs of second conveyor rollers 243a and 243b are provided in the width direction of the printing medium M.

[0034] The cutter 244 cuts the printing medium M.

[0035] The platen roller 245 is positioned opposite the thermal head 246 and rotates to transport the printing medium M (the cut printing medium Ma described later).

[0036] The thermal head 246 prints on the printing medium M (printing medium Ma described later) sandwiched between it and the platen roller 245. The thermal head 246 prints on the printing medium M (printing medium Ma described later), which is, for example, thermal paper, using a thermal printing method.

[0037] A pair of discharge rollers 247a and 247b are arranged facing each other. Discharge roller 247a is a driven roller, and discharge roller 247b is a driven roller. The pair of discharge rollers 247a and 247b transport the printed medium M (printed medium Ma described later) that is held between them as discharge roller 247a rotates, and discharge it from the ticket issuing unit 24 (ticket issuing device 2). Like the pair of first transport rollers 242a and 242b, two of the discharge rollers 247a and 247b are provided in the width direction of the printed medium M.

[0038] The state of the ticketing unit 24 illustrated in Figure 3 is the ticketing standby state, which will be described later. In the ticketing standby state, the leading edge of the printing medium M is positioned in the standby position. The portion Mp shown by the dashed rectangular frame of the printing medium M indicates the portion of the printing area of ​​the printing medium M that will be issued as a single ticket. In the ticketing standby state, a portion of portion Mp1 of the printing medium M is held by a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b, and a portion of portion Mp2 of the printing medium M is held by a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b.

[0039] Next, the state transitions of the ticket issuing unit 24 and the control unit 21 in the ticket issuing device 2 will be explained in detail using Figure 3 and Figures 4 to 7. Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of the state transitions of the ticket issuing unit and the control unit. Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the ticket issuing unit in the retracted state. Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the ticket issuing unit in the ticket issuing state. Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating a printing defect in the printed medium on which printing has been performed. As mentioned above, Figure 3 is also a diagram illustrating the ticket issuing unit in the ticket issuing standby state.

[0040] In the state transition example shown in Figure 4, when power is turned on to the ticket issuing device 2 and the ticket issuing device 2 starts up, the ticket issuing unit 24, as illustrated in Figure 5, pulls out and transports the printable medium M using a transport mechanism (not shown) until the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the retracted position, and transitions to the retracted state (ST11). In this example, it is assumed that a new rolled printable medium M was set in the ticket issuing unit 24 before power was turned on to the ticket issuing device 2. The ticket issuing unit 24 is also equipped with a medium detection sensor (not shown) in the retracted position, and can determine whether or not the leading edge of the printable medium M is in the retracted position based on the detection result. The medium detection sensor, for example, comprises a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element, and detects the presence or absence of the printable medium M between the light-emitting element and the light-receiving element. As a result, the ticket issuing unit 24 can determine that the leading edge of the printable medium M is in the retracted position when the detection result of the medium detection sensor changes from a state without printable medium M to a state with printable medium M.

[0041] Meanwhile, when the ticket issuing device 2 is started, the control unit 21 transitions to the ticketing data reception state (ST21). When the control unit 21 transitions to the ticketing data reception state (ST21), it accepts mark sheets or accepts input of ticketing data. Here, mark sheet acceptance is performed when the customer or a store employee inserts a mark sheet filled out by the customer into the ticket issuing device 2. Input of ticketing data is performed by a store employee via the display input unit 22 according to the customer's request. When the control unit 21 in the ticketing data reception state (ST21) accepts a mark sheet or inputs ticketing data, it outputs a ticketing standby instruction signal to the ticket issuing unit 24 and transitions to the ticketing instruction reception state (ST22).

[0042] When the ticket issuing unit 24 in the retracted state (ST11) receives a ticket issuing standby instruction signal output from the control unit 21, it transports the printed medium M, which is wound into a roll, in the forward direction (direction for discharging the printed medium M) using a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b until the leading edge of the printed medium M is in the standby position, as illustrated in Figure 3, and then transitions to the ticket issuing standby state (ST12). The ticket issuing unit 24 is also equipped with a medium detection sensor (not shown) in the standby position, and can determine whether or not the leading edge of the printed medium M is in the standby position based on the detection result.

[0043] The control unit 21 in the ticketing instruction reception state (ST22) receives input of a ticketing instruction or ticketing cancellation instruction from a customer or store clerk. These instructions are input via the display input unit 22. When the control unit 21 in the ticketing instruction reception state (ST22) receives input of a ticketing cancellation instruction, it transitions to the ticketing data reception state (ST21). On the other hand, when the control unit 21 in the ticketing instruction reception state (ST22) receives input of a ticketing instruction, it outputs a ticketing instruction signal to the ticketing unit 24 and transitions to the waiting state for ticketing completion (ST23). The ticketing instruction signal includes information corresponding to the contents of the completed mark sheet received in the ticketing data reception state (ST21), or information corresponding to the contents of the ticketing data input in the ticketing data reception state (ST21). The contents of the completed mark sheet received in the ticketing data reception state (ST21) are read by the mark sheet reading unit 23.

[0044] When the ticketing unit 24, which is in the ticketing standby state (ST12), receives a ticketing instruction signal output from the control unit 21, it transitions to the ticketing state (ST13). When the ticketing unit 24 transitions to the ticketing state (ST13), the cutter 244 cuts the printing medium M, and as illustrated in Figure 6, the cut printing medium Ma is transported in the forward direction by the platen roller 245 while printing is performed by the thermal head 246, and then the printing medium Ma is transported in the forward direction by a pair of discharge rollers 247a and 247b and discharged from the ticketing unit 24 (ticket issuing device 2). The content printed on the printing medium Ma at this time is information corresponding to the contents of the completed mark sheet included in the ticketing instruction signal, or information corresponding to the contents of the input ticketing data. As a result, a ticket corresponding to the contents of the completed mark sheet or a ticket corresponding to the contents of the input ticketing data is issued. Furthermore, the ticketing unit 24, simultaneously with the transport of the cut printing medium Ma, transports the printing medium M in the forward direction using a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b until the leading edge of the printing medium M is in the standby position, as illustrated in Figure 3. Once a ticket is issued and the printing medium M is transported in the forward direction, the ticketing unit 24, which is in the ticketing in progress state (ST13), outputs a ticketing completion notification signal to the control unit 21 and transitions to the ticketing standby state (ST12).

[0045] When the control unit 21, which is in the waiting state for ticket issuance completion (ST23), receives a ticket issuance completion notification signal output from the ticket issuance unit 24, it transitions to the ticket issuance data reception state (ST21).

[0046] As described above, the ticketing unit 24 in the ticketing standby state (ST12) transitions to the ticketing in progress state (ST13) when a ticketing instruction signal is input from the control unit 21. However, if the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M remains in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer without a ticketing instruction signal being input, a timeout occurs. When the ticketing unit 24 in the ticketing standby state (ST12) times out, as illustrated in Figure 5, the ticketing unit 24 transports the printing medium M in the reverse direction (opposite to the direction in which the printing medium M is discharged) using a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b until the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M is in the retracted position, and then transitions to the retracted state (ST11). In this case, the ticket issuing unit 24 can determine that the leading edge of the printing medium M is in the retracted position when the detection result of a medium detection sensor (not shown) located in the retracted position changes from a state where the printing medium M is present to a state where the printing medium M is absent.

[0047] Thus, in the ticketing standby state (ST12), if the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M remains in the standby position for a predetermined time or longer, the reason why the printing medium M is transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M is in the retracted position, and the system transitions to the retracted state (ST11), is as follows.

[0048] In the ticket issuance standby state (ST12), as illustrated in Figure 3, the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is positioned in the standby position. In this state, as described above, a portion of the printable area Mp1 of the printable medium M is held between the pair of first transport rollers 242a and 242b, and a portion of the printable area Mp2 of the printable medium M is held between the pair of second transport rollers 243a and 243b. That is, a portion of the printable area Mp1 of the printable medium M is pressed by the pair of first transport rollers 242a and 242b, and a portion of the printable area Mp2 of the printable medium M is pressed by the pair of second transport rollers 243a and 243b. Therefore, if this state continues for a long period of time, indentations will occur in a portion of the printable medium M, specifically in a portion of the Mp1 portion and a portion of the Mp2 portion. If printing is performed in this state, the thermal head 246 will not be able to properly contact a portion of the printable medium Ma cut by the cutter 244 (for example, Mp2), resulting in printing defects such as missing prints in a portion of the print result (the portion where "23" is printed), as illustrated in Figure 7. Therefore, in order to prevent such printing defects, if the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M remains in the standby position for a predetermined time or longer in the ticket issuance standby state (ST12), the printable medium M is transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the retracted position, as illustrated in Figure 5, and the system transitions to the retracted state (ST11). When the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the retracted position, no pressing force is applied to the printable area Mp of the printable medium M, so there is no risk of indentation occurring in the printable area Mp. The predetermined time threshold for such operation is at least a time such that the pressing force from the pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and the pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b does not cause any indentations in the printing medium M that could result in printing defects.

[0049] In the retracted state (ST11), the ticket issuing unit 24 may receive a ticket issuing instruction signal from the control unit 21. In this case, the ticket issuing unit 24 transports the printed medium M in the forward direction until the leading edge of the rolled printed medium M is in the standby position, then transitions to the ticket issuing standby state (ST12), and then quickly transitions to the ticket issuing state (ST13).

[0050] The ticketing unit 24, in the ticketing standby state (ST12), may receive a ticketing standby instruction signal from the control unit 21. In this case, the ticketing unit 24 maintains the ticketing standby state (ST12) without transitioning to any other state.

[0051] Next, the operations performed by the ticketing unit 24 and the control unit 21 in the state transition example shown in Figure 4 above will be explained in detail using Figures 8 and 9. Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of operations performed by the ticketing unit. Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of operations performed by the control unit. The operations illustrated in Figures 8 and 9 are operations that begin when power is turned on to the ticketing device 2 and the ticketing device 2 starts up.

[0052] When the ticketing unit 24 starts the operation illustrated in Figure 8, it first pulls out and transports the printed medium M, which is wound in a roll shape, using a transport mechanism (not shown) as illustrated in Figure 5, until the leading edge of the printed medium M is in the retracted position (S101).

[0053] Next, the ticketing unit 24 determines whether or not a ticketing standby instruction signal or a ticketing instruction signal output from the control unit 21 has been received (S102). If the result of the determination in S102 is NO, this determination is repeated.

[0054] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S102 is YES, the ticketing unit 24 determines whether the input instruction signal is a ticketing standby instruction signal (S103).

[0055] If the result of the determination in S103 is NO (i.e., the input instruction signal is a ticket issuance instruction signal), the ticket issuance unit 24 transports the printable medium M in the forward direction until the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the standby position (S104), as illustrated in Figure 3, and issues a ticket (S112). More specifically in S112, the ticket issuance unit 24 cuts the printable medium M with the cutter 244, and as illustrated in Figure 6, prints on the cut printable medium Ma with the thermal head 246 while transporting it in the forward direction with the platen roller 245, and then transports the printable medium Ma in the forward direction with a pair of discharge rollers 247a and 247b to discharge it from the ticket issuance unit 24 (ticket issuance device 2). The content printed on the printable medium Ma at this time is information corresponding to the contents of the completed mark sheet included in the ticket issuance instruction signal, or information corresponding to the contents of the input ticket issuance data. As a result, a ticket corresponding to the contents of the completed mark sheet, or a ticket corresponding to the contents of the entered ticketing data, is issued. In addition, the ticketing unit 24 transports the cut printing medium Ma and, as illustrated in Figure 3, transports the printing medium M in the forward direction using a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b until the leading edge of the printing medium M is in a waiting position. Once the ticketing and forward transport of the printing medium M are completed, the ticketing unit 24 outputs a ticketing completion notification signal to the control unit 21 (S113), and the process proceeds to S106.

[0056] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S103 is YES (i.e., the input instruction signal is a ticket issuance standby instruction signal), the ticket issuance unit 24 transports the printable medium M in the forward direction until the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the standby position, as illustrated in Figure 3 (S105).

[0057] Once the transport of S105 is complete, the ticketing unit 24 starts its built-in timer (S106), and then determines whether a timeout has occurred (S107). Here, a timeout refers to the timer value (count value) exceeding a threshold. The timer value exceeding the threshold corresponds to the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M remaining in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer.

[0058] If the result of the determination in S107 is YES, the ticketing unit 24 resets the timer (S108), and then, as illustrated in Figure 5, transports the printable medium M in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the rolled printable medium M is in the retracted position (S109). Once the transport in S109 is complete, the process returns to S102.

[0059] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S107 is NO, the ticketing unit 24 determines whether or not a ticketing instruction signal output from the control unit 21 has been input (S110). If the result of the determination in S110 is NO, the process returns to S107.

[0060] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S110 is YES, the ticketing unit 24 resets the timer (S111). After the timer reset in S111, the ticket is issued (S112), a ticketing completion notification signal is output (S113), and the process returns to S106. Details of S112 and S113 have already been described.

[0061] In the operation illustrated in Figure 8, S102 to S105 are operations performed in the retraction state (ST11), S106 to S111 are operations performed in the ticket issuance waiting state (ST12), and S112 and S113 are operations performed in the ticket issuance state (ST13).

[0062] When the control unit 21 starts the operation illustrated in Figure 9, it first determines whether or not there is an operation to be performed on the ticket issuing device 2 (S201). An operation to the ticket issuing device 2 refers to inserting a completed mark sheet into the ticket issuing device 2 or an operation performed via the display input unit 22. If the result of the determination in S201 is NO, this determination is repeated.

[0063] On the other hand, if the result of S201 is YES, the control unit 21 determines whether the operation is related to receiving ticketing data (S202). An operation related to receiving ticketing data is the insertion of a completed mark sheet or the input of ticketing data via the display input unit 22. These operations are also operations that are expected to occur when the timing for receiving a ticketing instruction is approaching.

[0064] If the result of the S202 judgment is NO, the process returns to S201. In this case, although not shown in the diagram, a process corresponding to that operation is performed (for example, displaying a menu screen in response to a menu screen display instruction input via the display input unit 22), and the process returns to S201.

[0065] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S202 is YES, the control unit 21 outputs a ticket issuance standby instruction signal to the ticket issuance unit 24 (S203). In this case, outputting the ticket issuance standby instruction signal to the ticket issuance unit 24 corresponds to outputting the ticket issuance standby instruction signal to the ticket issuance unit 24 when it is predicted that the timing for receiving a ticket issuance instruction is approaching.

[0066] Next, the control unit 21 determines whether or not it has received a ticket issuance instruction or a ticket cancellation instruction via the display input unit 22 (S204). If the result of the determination in S204 is NO, this determination is repeated.

[0067] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in S204 is YES, the control unit 21 determines whether the received instruction is a ticket issuance instruction or not (S205). If the result of the determination in S205 is NO (i.e., the received instruction is a ticket cancellation instruction), the process returns to S201.

[0068] On the other hand, if the result of the S205 judgment is YES (i.e., the received instruction is a ticket issuance instruction), the control unit 21 outputs a ticket issuance instruction signal to the ticket issuance unit 24 (S206). The ticket issuance instruction signal includes information corresponding to the contents of the inserted completed mark sheet, or information corresponding to the contents of the input ticket issuance data. The contents of the inserted completed mark sheet are read by the mark sheet reading unit 23.

[0069] Next, the control unit 21 determines whether or not a ticket issuance completion notification signal output from the ticket issuance unit 24 has been received (S207). If the result of the determination in S207 is NO, this determination is repeated.

[0070] On the other hand, if the result of the judgment in S207 is YES, the process returns to S201.

[0071] In the operation illustrated in Figure 9, S201 to S203 are operations performed in the ticketing data reception state (ST21), S204 to S206 are operations performed in the ticketing instruction reception state (ST22), and S207 is an operation performed in the ticketing instruction reception state (ST23).

[0072] As described above, with the ticket issuing device 2, if the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M remains in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer, the printing medium M will be transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the rolled printing medium M is in the retracted position. As illustrated in Figure 3, this prevents a prolonged period of time during which a portion of the printing area Mp (e.g., portions Mp1, Mp2) of the printing medium M is pressed by a pair of first transport rollers 242a, 242b and a pair of second transport rollers 243a, 243b. This prevents indentations from occurring in the printing area Mp of the printing medium M due to the pressure of the transport rollers, thus preventing printing defects such as missing prints during printing. Furthermore, after the printing medium M, which is wound into a roll, has been transported until its leading edge is in the retracted position, when it is predicted that the timing for receiving a ticket issuance instruction is approaching (when an operation is performed that suggests the timing for receiving a ticket issuance instruction is approaching), the control unit 21 outputs a ticket issuance standby instruction signal to the ticket issuance unit 24, and the printing medium M is transported in the forward direction until its leading edge is in the standby position. As a result, when a ticket issuance instruction is received thereafter, it is no longer necessary to transport the printing medium M from the retracted position to the standby position, and the ticket issuance can be performed more quickly.

[0073] In addition, in the ticket issuing device 2, the ticket issuing unit 24 may include, for example, a processor and memory (RAM and ROM (Read Only Memory)), and the processor may execute a program stored in memory to perform the operations illustrated in Figure 8.

[0074] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various improvements and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0075] 1 System 2 Ticket issuing machine 3 servers 4. Communication Network 21 Control Unit 22 Display Input Unit 23 Mark Sheet Reading Unit 24 ticketing units 211 processors 212 RAM 213 Communication Interface 214 Graphics Processing Units 215 Storage device 216 Input / Output Interfaces 217 Bus 221 Display device 222 Touch Panel 241 Roll shaft section 242a, 242b First conveyor roller 243a, 243b Second conveyor roller 244 cutters 245 Platen Roller 246 Thermal Head 247a, 247b Discharge roller M, Ma Printing medium Mp, Mp1, Mp2 part

Claims

1. The ticketing department that issues tickets, Control unit that controls the ticket issuing unit and Equipped with, The aforementioned ticketing section is, When a ticket issuance standby instruction signal is received from the control unit, the printing medium is transported in the forward direction until the leading edge of the long printing medium is in the standby position. If the leading edge of the printing medium remains in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer, the printing medium is transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in the retracted position. A ticket issuing device characterized by the following features.

2. The control unit outputs the ticketing standby instruction signal to the ticketing unit when it predicts that the timing for receiving a ticketing instruction is approaching. The ticket issuing device according to claim 1, characterized in that it is a ticket issuing device.

3. When the leading edge of the printing medium is in the retracted position, no pressing force is applied to the printing area of ​​the printing medium. The ticket issuing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is a ticket issuing device.

4. The ticketing department is, When a ticket issuance standby instruction signal is received from the control unit that controls the ticket issuing unit, the printable medium is transported in the forward direction until the leading edge of the long printable medium is in the standby position. If the leading edge of the printing medium remains in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer, the printing medium is transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in the retracted position. A ticketing method characterized by the following features.

5. When a ticket issuance standby instruction signal is input, the printing medium is transported in the forward direction until the leading edge of the long printing medium is in the standby position. If the leading edge of the printing medium remains in the standby position for a predetermined period of time or longer, the printing medium will be transported in the reverse direction until the leading edge of the printing medium is in the retracted position. A program characterized by having a processor execute a process.

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