Printing apparatus

Abstract

The user burden associated with opening and closing the cover is reduced with a simple design. [Solution] A printing device 1 comprising a printing unit 5 for printing on a medium, a housing 100 having an opening 400 that houses the printing unit 5 and is configured to be partially openable, and an opening / closing cover 200 that covers the opening 400 and opens and closes in the vertical direction, wherein the opening / closing cover 200 has a side wall that extends in the vertical direction when closed, and at least one of the lower end 202B of the side wall and the edge 110 of the opening 400 that faces the lower end 202B when closed is deformable in the vertical direction.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, various printing apparatuses have been used. Among these, there is a printing apparatus configured to include an opening / closing cover that opens and closes in the vertical direction with respect to a housing. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a liquid ejection apparatus including a maintenance cover that can be opened and closed in the vertical direction.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In a conventional printing apparatus provided with an opening / closing cover that can be opened and closed in the vertical direction, when closing the opening / closing cover, due to gravity, the opening / closing cover closes forcefully, so there is a risk that the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing collide forcefully, or a user's finger or the like is sandwiched between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing. That is, the user has to be careful when opening and closing the opening / closing cover, and opening and closing the opening / closing cover may be a burden on the user. On the other hand, if a damper mechanism or a spring mechanism with a strong spring force is provided so that the opening / closing cover closes slowly when closing the opening / closing cover, there may be cases where the cost increases or the space inside the opening / closing cover becomes small.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The present invention, which solves the above problems, comprises a printing unit for printing on a medium, a housing for housing the printing unit and having an opening configured to be partially openable, and an opening / closing cover that covers the opening and opens and closes in the vertical direction, wherein the opening / closing cover has a side wall that extends in the vertical direction when closed, and at least one of the lower end of the side wall and the edge of the opening facing the lower end when closed is deformable in the vertical direction. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0006] [Figure 1] A schematic perspective view of a printing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of the printing device, representing the state in which the opening / closing cover is fully open. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of the printing apparatus in Figure 1, viewed from a different angle than Figure 2, and represents a state where the opening / closing cover is moved in the closing direction compared to the state shown in Figure 2. [Figure 4] This is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of the printing device shown in Figure 1, and represents a state where the opening / closing cover is moved in the closing direction compared to the state shown in Figure 3. [Figure 5] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of the printing device. It shows a state where the opening / closing cover is closed by moving it in the closing direction compared to the state shown in Figure 3, and a user's finger is caught between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing. [Figure 6] This is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of a printing apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and illustrates a state in which a user's finger is caught between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing. [Figure 7] This is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of a printing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. [Figure 8] This is a perspective view showing the area around the opening / closing cover of a printing apparatus according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention, and illustrates a state in which a user's finger is caught between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing. [Figure 9] Side view of a reference example printing device. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0007] First, the present invention will be described in general terms. A printing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention for solving the above problems comprises a printing unit for printing on a medium, a housing for housing the printing unit and having an opening configured to be partially openable, and an opening / closing cover that covers the opening and opens and closes in the vertical direction, wherein the opening / closing cover has a side wall that extends in the vertical direction when closed, and at least one of the lower end of the side wall and the edge of the opening facing the lower end when closed is deformable in the vertical direction.

[0008] According to this embodiment, at least one of the lower end of the side wall of the opening / closing cover, which opens and closes in the vertical direction, and the edge of the opening of the housing that faces the lower end when closed, is deformable in the vertical direction. By allowing at least one of the lower end of the side wall and the edge of the opening of the housing to deform in the vertical direction in this way, the collision force between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing can be reduced when closing the opening / closing cover without the need for a damper mechanism or the like. For example, even if a user's fingers or other body parts are caught between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing, the impact can be mitigated. In other words, the burden on the user associated with opening and closing the opening / closing cover can be reduced with a simple configuration.

[0009] A printing apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the first aspect, wherein the side wall has an upper wall and a lower wall positioned lower than the upper wall in the vertical direction, and the lower wall includes the lower end and is configured to be deformable relative to the upper wall.

[0010] According to this embodiment, the side wall of the opening / closing cover has an upper wall and a lower wall positioned lower than the upper wall in the vertical direction, and the lower wall includes a lower end and is configured to be deformable relative to the upper wall. With this configuration, the collision force between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing when closing the opening / closing cover can be effectively reduced.

[0011] The printing apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention is an aspect that depends on the second aspect, wherein the lower wall is configured to be variable in a direction toward the upper wall.

[0012] According to this aspect, the lower wall is configured to be variable in a direction toward the upper wall. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to particularly effectively reduce the impact force between the opening / closing cover and the opening of the housing when closing the opening / closing cover.

[0013] The printing apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention is an aspect that depends on the third aspect, wherein the lower wall is biased in a direction away from the upper wall and supported by the upper wall.

[0014] According to this aspect, the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover is biased in a direction away from the upper wall and supported by the upper wall. By adopting such a configuration, even when the shape of the opening / closing cover is deformed as the opening / closing cover is opened / closed, it is possible to easily restore the shape of the opening / closing cover.

[0015] The printing apparatus according to the fifth aspect of the present invention is an aspect that depends on any one of the second to fourth aspects, wherein the lower wall has lower rigidity than the upper wall.

[0016] According to this aspect, the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover has lower rigidity than the upper wall. By adopting such a configuration, even if the rigidity of the upper wall is increased, it is possible to reduce the load on the user associated with the opening / closing of the opening / closing cover, and at the same time, the rigidity of the entire opening / closing cover is increased, and the gap with respect to the opening can be reduced, so that the functions of the opening / closing cover such as preventing the intrusion of foreign matter can be preferably maintained.

[0017] The printing apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention is an aspect that depends on any one of the second to fifth aspects, wherein the lower wall is formed of a material different from that of the upper wall.

[0018] According to this aspect, the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover is formed of a material different from that of the upper wall. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to easily change the functions of the lower wall and the upper wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover, for example, to configure the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover to have lower rigidity than the upper wall.

[0019] The printing apparatus according to the seventh aspect of the present invention is an aspect dependent on any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the lower end portion is deformable in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps the lower end portion in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the length of the stepped portion in the vertical direction is smaller than the deformation amount of the lower end portion.

[0020] According to this aspect, the lower end portion of the side wall is deformable in the vertical direction, the edge of the opening of the housing has a stepped portion that overlaps the lower end portion in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the length of the stepped portion in the vertical direction is smaller than the deformation amount of the lower end portion. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to particularly mitigate the impact when a finger or the like is sandwiched between the housing and the opening / closing cover.

[0021] The printing apparatus according to the eighth aspect of the present invention is an aspect dependent on any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein the lower end portion is deformable in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps the lower end portion in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the length of the stepped portion in the vertical direction is larger than the deformation amount of the lower end portion.

[0022] According to this aspect, the lower end portion of the side wall is deformable in the vertical direction, the edge of the opening of the housing has a stepped portion that overlaps the lower end portion in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the length of the stepped portion in the vertical direction is larger than the deformation amount of the lower end portion. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the gap between the opening / closing cover and the opening, and particularly preferably suppress the intrusion of foreign matter when the opening / closing cover is closed.

[0023] A printing apparatus according to the ninth aspect of the present invention is an aspect dependent on any one of the first to eighth aspects, characterized in that the edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps with the lower end in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the stepped portion is movable in the vertical direction.

[0024] According to this embodiment, the edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps with the lower end in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed, and the stepped portion is movable in the vertical direction. This configuration makes it possible to particularly mitigate the impact when fingers or other objects are caught between the housing and the opening / closing cover.

[0025] [Example 1] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, a printing apparatus 1A of Embodiment 1, which is an example of the printing apparatus 1 according to the present invention, will be specifically described. In each figure, the X-axis direction is horizontal and is the width direction of the printing apparatus 1A, the Y-axis direction is horizontal and is the front-to-back direction of the printing apparatus 1A and is perpendicular to the X-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction is vertical. Furthermore, in the following, the direction in which the arrow points will be considered the + direction, and the direction opposite to the direction in which the arrow points will be considered the - direction. For example, the vertically upward direction is the +Z direction, the vertically downward direction is the -Z direction, the front direction of the printing apparatus 1A is the +Y direction, and the back direction of the printing apparatus 1A is the -Y direction.

[0026] As shown in Figure 1, the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment includes a housing 100, and leg frames 7 are attached to the vicinity of both ends of the housing 100 in the X-axis direction. Casters 13 are provided below the leg frames 7, and the printing apparatus 1A can be easily moved using the casters 13. The printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment also includes a media supply unit (not shown) that holds a rolled medium inside the housing 100. The media supply unit supplies the medium to a position facing the ink ejection surface 5A of the head 5, which is the printing unit.

[0027] Furthermore, at the point where the wall 100A on the first direction side (+Z direction side) of the housing 100, the wall 100B on the second direction side (-X direction side) of the housing 100, and the wall 100C on the third direction side (+Y direction side) of the housing 100 connect, an opening / closing cover 200 is provided, which constitutes part of wall 100A and part of wall 100B. The configuration of the opening / closing cover 200 will be described later. In addition, an operation panel 300 is provided near the opening / closing cover 200, and the operating surface of the operation panel 300 and wall 100A are located at approximately the same height. The operating surface of the operation panel 300 is mainly oriented in the +Z direction, but the orientation of the operating surface may be changed. Note that the operation panel 300 in this embodiment is a display device equipped with a touch panel. Therefore, the operating surface of the operation panel 300 is also a display surface, and various information is displayed on it.

[0028] The printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment includes a head 5, which is a printing unit that forms an image by ejecting liquid ink from an ink ejection surface 5A provided with a plurality of nozzles, and a carriage 4 on which the head 5 is mounted and which is capable of reciprocating movement in the width direction B. That is, the width direction B corresponds to the scanning direction of the carriage 4. A liquid supply passage (not shown), consisting of a tube or the like, is connected to the head 5, and ink is supplied to the head 5 from a plurality of ink cartridges (not shown) mounted in the ink cartridge mounting section 9 via the liquid supply passage (not shown). In the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment, the transport direction of the medium at a position facing the ink ejection surface 5A is the +Y direction, the movement direction of the head 5, i.e., the scanning direction of the carriage 4, which is the width direction B, is along the X axis direction, and the ink ejection direction is the -Z direction.

[0029] With the above configuration, the head 5 can form an image by ejecting liquid ink from nozzles (not shown) onto the transported medium while reciprocating in the width direction B, which is a direction intersecting the transport direction of the medium. The printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment can form a desired image on the medium by repeatedly transporting the medium at a predetermined transport amount and ejecting ink while moving the head 5 in the width direction B with the medium stopped. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and a so-called line head configuration in which nozzles that eject ink along the width direction B are arranged over the entire width of the medium may also be used.

[0030] As described above, the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment includes a head 5 for printing on a medium and a housing 100 for housing the head 5. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 1, it includes an opening / closing cover 200 that opens and closes a portion of the housing 100. The configuration of the opening / closing cover 200 and the internal configuration of the opening / closing cover 200 will be described in detail below.

[0031] As shown in Figures 1 to 5, the opening / closing cover 200 of the printing apparatus 1A in this embodiment has a first wall 201 which is part of the wall 100A on the first direction side (+Z direction side) of the housing 100, and a second wall 202 which is part of the wall 100B that extends in a direction intersecting the first wall 201 of the housing 100 and is provided on the second direction side (-X direction side) of the operation panel 300 in the width direction B. The second wall 202 has an upper end 202A and a lower end 202B. The opening / closing cover 200 in this embodiment opens and closes by rotating in the rotation direction R by a pivot shaft 203 provided on the first wall 201 and extending in the width direction B.

[0032] From another perspective, the opening / closing cover 200 of this embodiment has a second wall 202 as a side wall that extends vertically when closed. In the following, unless otherwise specified, "vertical direction" refers to the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed. The lower end portion 202B of the second wall 202, and the lower end portion 202B when closed, can be deformed in the upward direction D1 and the downward direction D2 when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, as shown in Figure 5. Hereinafter, both upward direction D1 and downward direction D2 refer to the upward and downward directions when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed.

[0033] In the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment, it is preferable that at least one of the lower end portion 202B of the second wall 202 of the opening / closing cover 200, which opens and closes vertically when closed, and the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100, which faces the lower end portion 202B when closed, is deformable in the vertical direction. By allowing at least one of the lower end portion 202B of the second wall 202 and the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100 to deform in the vertical direction, the collision force between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100 can be reduced when closing the opening / closing cover 200 without the need for a damper mechanism or the like. For example, even if a user gets their finger F caught between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100, the impact can be mitigated. In other words, the user's burden associated with opening and closing the opening / closing cover 200 can be reduced with a simple configuration.

[0034] In this embodiment, when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, the entire lower end portion 202B of the second wall 202, which serves as a side wall, is configured to be deformable in the upward direction D1 and downward direction D2 relative to the upper end portion 202A. However, the embodiment is not limited to this configuration, and for example, at least a portion of the lower end of the lower end portion 202B of the side wall may be configured to be deformable in the upward direction D1 and downward direction D2. Furthermore, when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, at least a portion of the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100, rather than the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200, may be configured to be deformable in the vertical direction. In addition, although the description, including other embodiments, has focused on the lower end portion 202B being located on the -X direction side of the second wall 202, the embodiment is not limited to this position, and for example, it may be located on the +Y direction side of the second wall 202.

[0035] To describe the lower end portion 202B in detail, in this embodiment, when the printing apparatus 1A goes from the state in Figure 2 to the state in Figure 3 and Figure 4 and then to the state in Figure 5, if a user's finger F gets caught between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100, the lower end portion 202B moves upward D1 relative to the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100. Therefore, even if a user's finger F gets caught between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100, the impact can be mitigated.

[0036] On the other hand, the printing apparatus 1E shown in Figure 9, which is a reference example, does not have side walls on the opening / closing cover 200 that can be deformed upward D1 and downward D2. Therefore, if a user's finger F gets caught between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100, the impact cannot be mitigated. As a result, the user has to be careful not to get their finger F caught between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100, and the user has to be careful when opening and closing the opening / closing cover 200.

[0037] In the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment, the second wall 202, which serves as a side wall, has an upper end portion 202A, which is an upper wall, and a lower end portion 202B, which is a lower wall positioned lower than the upper end portion 202A in the vertical direction. In other words, the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200 includes the lower end portion 202B and is configured to be deformable in the vertical direction relative to the upper end portion 202A, which is the upper wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200. With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment can effectively reduce the collision force between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100 when closing the opening / closing cover 200.

[0038] To put it another way, in the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment, the lower end portion 202B of the lower side wall of the opening / closing cover 200 is configured to be movable in the upward direction D1, which is toward the upper end portion 202A, which is the upper side wall of the opening / closing cover 200. With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment can particularly effectively reduce the collision force between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100 when closing the opening / closing cover 200.

[0039] In this specification, "variation" of the lower end portion 202B relative to the upper end portion 202A means that at least a part of the lower end portion 202B moves relative to the upper end portion 202A. On the other hand, in this specification, "deformation" of the lower end portion 202B relative to the upper end portion 202A means that, in addition to "variation" of the lower end portion 202B relative to the upper end portion 202A, the shape of at least a part of the lower end portion 202B changes, such as by bending.

[0040] More specifically, in the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment, the lower end portion 202B is supported by the upper end portion 202A while being biased downward in direction D2, away from the upper end portion 202A, by a biasing portion (not shown). With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1A of this embodiment makes it easier to restore the shape of the opening / closing cover 200 even if its shape is deformed when the opening and closing of the opening / closing cover 200 occurs. This is because when closing the opening / closing cover 200, the force applied to the upper end portion 202A from the outside via the lower end portion 202B can be reduced.

[0041] [Example 2] Next, the printing apparatus 1B of Example 2 will be described with reference to Figure 6. In Figure 6, components common to Example 1 are indicated by the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations will be omitted. Note that Figure 6 corresponds to Figure 5 in the printing apparatus 1A of Example 1. Here, the printing apparatus 1B of this example has the same configuration as the printing apparatus 1A of Example 1, except for the part of the opening / closing cover 200 that will be described below. Therefore, with respect to parts other than those described below, the printing apparatus 1B of this example has the same characteristics as the printing apparatus 1A of Example 1.

[0042] As described above, in the printing apparatus 1A of Embodiment 1, the entire lower end portion 202B, which is the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200, was configured to be movable upward D1 relative to the upper end portion 202A, which is the upper wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200. On the other hand, in the printing apparatus 1B of this embodiment, the entire lower end portion 202B, which is the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200, is made of a more flexible material than the upper end portion 202A. Figure 6 shows the state in which the lower end portion 202B is bent and deformed when a user places their finger F between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100.

[0043] From another perspective, the lower end portion 202B of the printing apparatus 1B in this embodiment has lower rigidity than the upper end portion 202A. With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1B in this embodiment can reduce the user's burden when opening and closing the opening / closing cover 200, even if the rigidity of the upper end portion 202A is increased. In addition, the overall rigidity of the opening / closing cover 200 is also increased, reducing the gap with respect to the opening 400, which helps to suppress the entry of foreign objects when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, and thus maintains the function of the opening / closing cover 200 favorably. In this embodiment, the lower end portion 202B and the upper end portion 202A are formed from separate components, but the lower end portion 202B and the upper end portion 202A may be integrally formed by making the wall thickness of the lower end portion 202B thinner than that of the upper end portion 202A.

[0044] In this embodiment, the printing apparatus 1B is formed of a different material from the upper end portion 202A. This configuration makes it particularly easy to change the function of the lower and upper walls of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200, such as by configuring the lower wall of the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200 to have lower rigidity than the upper wall.

[0045] Furthermore, by combining the configuration of Embodiment 1, in which the lower end portion 202B fluctuates relative to the upper end portion 202A, with the configuration of this embodiment, in which the lower end portion 202B is formed of a soft, flexible material, the collision force between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 of the housing 100 when closing the opening / closing cover 200 can be reduced particularly effectively.

[0046] [Example 3] Next, the printing apparatus 1C of Example 3 will be described with reference to Figure 7. In Figure 7, components common to Example 1 are indicated by the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations will be omitted. Note that Figure 7 corresponds to Figure 3 of the printing apparatus 1A of Example 1. Here, the printing apparatus 1C of this example has the same configuration as the printing apparatus 1 of Examples 1 and 2, except for the part of the opening / closing cover 200 that will be described below. Therefore, with respect to parts other than those described below, the printing apparatus 1C of this example has the same characteristics as the printing apparatus 1 of Examples 1 and 2.

[0047] As described above, in the printing apparatus 1 of Examples 1 and 2, the side wall of the opening / closing cover 200 was configured to be deformable. On the other hand, in the printing apparatus 1C of this embodiment, the lower end portion 202B is made of the same material as the upper end portion 202A, and the lower end portion 202B is fixed to the upper end portion 202A. Instead of this configuration, the printing apparatus 1C of this embodiment has a stepped portion 111, which is part of the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100, that is deformable in the upward direction D3 and downward direction D4. The stepped portion 111 is configured to contact the lower end portion 202B when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed and is pushed downward in the direction D4, and is configured to be pushed down even further downward in the direction D4 than that state.

[0048] From another perspective, in the printing apparatus 1C of this embodiment, the edge 110 of the opening 400 of the housing 100 has a stepped portion 111 that overlaps vertically with the lower end portion 202B when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, and the stepped portion 111 is movable vertically. With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1C of this embodiment can particularly mitigate the impact when a user's finger F or the like gets caught between the housing 100 and the opening / closing cover 200. Furthermore, if, for example, the opening / closing cover 200 is large and there is a risk that the opening / closing cover 200 will bend and deform during opening and closing operations, there is a possibility that the deformed part may collide with other components during opening and closing operations. However, by having a stepped portion 111 on the edge 110 of the opening 400, as in the printing apparatus 1C of this embodiment, interference with other component structures can be suppressed.

[0049] [Example 4] Next, the printing apparatus 1D of Example 4 will be described with reference to Figure 8. In Figure 8, components common to Example 1 are indicated by the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations will be omitted. Note that Figure 8 corresponds to Figure 5 in the printing apparatus 1A of Example 1. Here, the printing apparatus 1D of this example has the same configuration as the printing apparatus 1 of Examples 1 to 3, except for the part of the opening / closing cover 200 that will be described below. Therefore, with respect to parts other than those described below, the printing apparatus 1D of this example has the same characteristics as the printing apparatus 1 of Examples 1 to 3.

[0050] As described above, in the printing apparatus 1B of Example 2, the lower end portion 202B was formed of a flexible material with lower rigidity than the upper end portion 202A. In the printing apparatus 1D of this embodiment as well, the lower end portion 202B is formed of a flexible material with lower rigidity than the upper end portion 202A. Furthermore, in the printing apparatus 1C of Example 3, when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, there is a stepped portion 111 that overlaps with the lower end portion 202B in the vertical direction. On the other hand, in the printing apparatus 1D of this embodiment, when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, there is a stepped portion 111 that overlaps with the lower end portion 202B in the X-axis direction, which is a direction intersecting the vertical direction. However, unlike the stepped portion 111 of the printing apparatus 1C of Example 3, the stepped portion 111 in this embodiment does not move in the vertical direction. In other words, in the printing apparatus 1D of this embodiment, the lower end portion 202B of the side wall is deformable in the vertical direction, and the stepped portion 111, which is located in a position that overlaps with the lower end portion 202B in the X-axis direction but does not overlap in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed, does not move in the vertical direction.

[0051] Here, the vertical length of the stepped portion 111 is greater than the amount of deformation of the lower end portion 202B. With this configuration, the printing apparatus 1D of this embodiment can reduce the gap between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400, and can particularly effectively suppress the intrusion of foreign matter when the opening / closing cover 200 is closed. For example, it can prevent a user from inserting their finger F into the gap between the opening / closing cover 200 and the opening 400 and bringing the user's finger F into contact with the carriage 4 while the printing operation of the printing apparatus 1D is being performed.

[0052] However, the configuration is not limited to that of the printing apparatus 1D in this embodiment; the vertical length of the stepped portion 111 may be made smaller than the amount of deformation of the lower end portion 202B. By making the vertical length of the stepped portion 111 smaller than the amount of deformation of the lower end portion 202B, the impact when fingers or other objects are caught between the housing 100 and the opening / closing cover 200 can be particularly mitigated.

[0053] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be realized in various configurations without departing from its spirit. Furthermore, the technical features in the embodiments corresponding to the technical features in each embodiment described in the summary of the invention can be replaced or combined as appropriate in order to solve some or all of the above-described problems, or to achieve some or all of the above-described effects. In addition, if a technical feature is not described as essential in this specification, it can be deleted as appropriate. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0054] 1…Printing device, 1A…Printing device, 1B…Printing device, 1C…Printing device, 1D…Printing device, 1E…Printing device, 4…Carriage, 5…Head (printing section), 5A…Ink ejection surface, 7…Leg frame, 9…Ink cartridge mounting section, 13…Caster, 100…Housing, 100A…Wall, 100B…Wall, 100C…Wall, 110…Edge, 111…Stepped section, 200…Opening / closing cover, 201…First wall, 202…Second wall, 202A…Upper end, 202B…Lower end, 203…Rotating shaft, 300…Operation panel, 400…Opening, F…Finger

Claims

1. The printing section that prints onto the medium, A housing that houses the printing section and has an opening that is partially openable, An opening / closing cover that covers the aforementioned opening and opens and closes in the vertical direction, Equipped with, The opening and closing cover has side walls that extend in the vertical direction when closed, A printing apparatus characterized in that at least one of the lower end of the side wall and the edge of the opening facing the lower end when closed is deformable in the vertical direction.

2. In the printing apparatus described in claim 1, The side wall comprises an upper wall and a lower wall positioned lower than the upper wall in the vertical direction. The printing apparatus is characterized in that the lower wall includes the lower end portion and is configured to be deformable relative to the upper wall.

3. In the printing apparatus described in claim 2, The printing apparatus is characterized in that the lower wall is configured to be movable in the direction toward the upper wall.

4. In the printing apparatus described in claim 3, A printing apparatus characterized in that the lower wall is biased away from the upper wall and supported by the upper wall.

5. In the printing apparatus described in claim 2, A printing apparatus characterized in that the lower wall has lower rigidity than the upper wall.

6. In the printing apparatus described in claim 5, A printing apparatus characterized in that the lower wall is formed of a different material from the upper wall.

7. In the printing apparatus described in claim 1, The lower end portion is deformable in the vertical direction, The edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps with the lower end in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed. A printing apparatus characterized in that the vertical length of the stepped portion is smaller than the amount of deformation of the lower end.

8. In the printing apparatus described in claim 1, The lower end portion is deformable in the vertical direction, The edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps with the lower end in a direction intersecting the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed. A printing apparatus characterized in that the vertical length of the stepped portion is greater than the amount of deformation of the lower end.

9. In the printing apparatus described in claim 1, The edge of the opening has a stepped portion that overlaps with the lower end in the vertical direction when the opening / closing cover is closed. The printing apparatus is characterized in that the stepped portion is movable in the vertical direction.

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