Conveyor roller mechanism and printer

Abstract

To easily adjust a pinching force of two rollers to an appropriate pinching force.SOLUTION: A conveyance roller mechanism that conveys continuous paper while pinching it between a first roller and a second roller that face each other includes a plate shaped first support member that supports the first roller and a plate shaped second support member that supports the first support member, the first roller pinches the continuous paper with the second roller by flexible reaction force of the first support member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a transport roller mechanism and a printer. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a printer equipped with a liner pulling roller that feeds the liner of a continuous label strip turned by a peeling plate backward while clamping it between an opposing roller. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2015-223704 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a mechanism for transporting continuous paper using two rollers, such as the printer described above, it is necessary to appropriately clamp the continuous paper between the two rollers.

[0005] For example, if the clamping force between the two rollers becomes excessively high due to an assembly error or the like, slippage between the two rollers and the continuous paper will be difficult to occur, and the continuous paper will be subjected to a large tension during transport, which may cause it to break. Also, if slippage between the two rollers and the continuous paper is difficult to occur, distortion will be more likely to occur in the continuous paper, which may cause it to break due to stress concentration.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of such technical problems, and has an object to make it possible to easily adjust the clamping force of two rollers to an appropriate clamping force. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transport roller mechanism for transporting continuous paper while sandwiching it between a first roller and a second roller opposed to each other, the transport roller mechanism including a plate-shaped first support member supporting the first roller, and a plate-shaped second support member supporting the first support member, the first roller sandwiching the continuous paper between the first roller and the second roller by a deflection reaction force of the first support member. the first support member supports the first roller at a roller support portion, and is changeable between a first assembly state in which the second support member supports the roller support portion of the first support member and a second assembly state in which the second support member does not support the roller support portion of the first support member. , a transport roller mechanism is provided. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the above aspect, the clamping force between the first roller and the second roller is determined by the deflection reaction force of the first support member, which makes it possible to suppress variations in the clamping force due to assembly errors and the like, and to easily adjust the clamping force between the first roller and the second roller to an appropriate clamping force. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printer equipped with a conveying roller mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the printer with the print unit cover, the control unit cover, and the power supply unit cover open. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of the printer with the print unit cover removed. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the conveying roller mechanism and its surroundings. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the roller unit in the first setting. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the roller unit in the first setting. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a view taken along line VII of FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the roller unit in the second setting. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, a printer 1 equipped with a transport roller mechanism 70 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] 1 is a perspective view of a printer 1 equipped with a transport roller mechanism 70. The printer 1 includes a central main unit 2, a printing unit 3, a drive unit (not shown) that drives the printing unit 3, a control unit 4, and a power supply unit 5. The printing unit 3 is located on one side (front) of the central main unit 2. The drive unit, the control unit 4, and the power supply unit 5 are located on the other (opposite) side (rear) of the central main unit 2.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the printer 1 with the print unit cover 6, the control unit cover 7, and the power supply unit cover 8 open.

[0013] The print unit cover 6 can be opened and closed around a print unit cover opening / closing shaft 10 provided on a support case 9 of the central main unit 2 .

[0014] The control unit cover 7 can be opened and closed around a control unit cover opening and closing shaft (not shown) provided at one end of the central main unit 2.

[0015] The power supply unit cover 8 can be opened and closed around a power supply unit cover opening and closing shaft 11 provided at the other end of the central main unit 2.

[0016] A support link 12 is provided between the print unit cover 6 and the support case 9, which bends as the print unit cover 6 opens and closes. This makes it possible to maintain the print unit cover 6 in an open state. In addition, by providing a cover-side magnet 13 and a case-side magnet 14, it is possible to maintain the print unit cover 6 in a closed state.

[0017] The central main unit 2 is a rectangular, board-like unit having a certain mechanical strength. The central main unit 2 is located in the center of the printer 1, and has a print unit 3, a drive unit (not shown), a control unit 4, and a power supply unit 5 mounted therein.

[0018] FIG. 3 is a front view of the printer 1 with the print unit cover 6 removed.

[0019] The central main unit 2 is provided with a mounting portion 15 for mounting the printer 1 to a labelling machine (not shown).

[0020] 3, the mounting portion 15 is provided on the periphery of the central main unit 2. Specifically, the mounting portion 15 in this embodiment is five mounting holes (upper central mounting hole 15A, upper left end mounting hole 15B, upper right end mounting hole 15C, lower left end mounting hole 15D, and lower right end mounting hole 15E) formed on the periphery of the central main unit 2.

[0021] The printing unit 3 has a printing section 16 that prints on a print paper (for example, a label or a continuous label strip).

[0022] When the print unit cover 6 of the print unit 3 is opened, the print section 16 is exposed to the outside.

[0023] The printing unit 3 is capable of printing predetermined information on the continuous label web 17 (print paper) along a conveying path 20 between an inlet 18 and an outlet 19 of the continuous label web 17.

[0024] 3, the continuous label strip 17 has a belt-shaped backing 21 as a continuous paper, and a plurality of labels 22 temporarily attached onto the backing 21. A position detection mark (not shown) is printed in advance on the back side of the backing 21.

[0025] The continuous label strip 17 may be a fanfold label or a roll label having perforations 17a formed at predetermined intervals as shown in Fig. 3, or may be a roll label without perforations 17a. The perforations 17a may be provided so as to penetrate the labels 22 and the backing paper 21, or may be provided only on the backing paper 21. The continuous label strip 17 may be configured such that a plurality of labels 22 are temporarily attached onto the backing paper 21 so as not to overlap the perforations 17a provided on the backing paper 21.

[0026] The printing unit 16 has, from the upstream side of the conveying path 20 (the left side in Figure 3), a width regulating shaft 23, a pair of upper and lower auxiliary conveying rollers 24, a position detection sensor 25, two guide rollers 26, a conveying roller mechanism 70, a platen roller 28, a thermal head 29, and a peeling plate 30.

[0027] The printing unit 16 also has a ribbon supply shaft 32 that supplies an unused thermal transfer ink ribbon 31 between the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29, and a ribbon take-up shaft 33 that takes up the used thermal transfer ink ribbon 31.

[0028] 2, the width regulating shaft 23 is provided with a first width regulating fixed wall 34 and a width regulating movable ring 35. The positions of both left and right edges of the continuous label web 17 are regulated by the first width regulating fixed wall 34, the width regulating movable ring 35, and a second width regulating fixed wall 36 (see FIG. 3) provided upstream of the platen roller 28. This allows the conveying position of the continuous label web 17 to be properly regulated along the conveying path 20.

[0029] The auxiliary transport roller 24 is driven in synchronization with the platen roller 28, and assists the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29 in forward and reverse transport of the continuous label web 17. The forward transport is downstream transport, and the reverse transport is upstream transport.

[0030] The position detection sensor 25 detects the position detection mark on the backing paper 21 , thereby making it possible to detect the relative positional relationship between the continuous label web 17 and the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29 .

[0031] The transport roller mechanism 70 clamps the backing paper 21 that has been turned by the peeling plate 30 and sends it to the rear side of the printer 1 (left side in FIG. 3). The backing paper 21 is discharged to the outside of the printer 1 via a backing paper guide roller 37. The transport roller mechanism 70 will be described in detail later. In the following, the front side of the printer 1 will be simply referred to as the "front side", and the rear side of the printer 1 will be simply referred to as the "rear side".

[0032] The platen roller 28 holds the continuous label web 17 and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 31 between itself and the thermal head 29 with a predetermined printing pressure applied by a pressure spring 38. The printing unit 3 supplies printing data to the thermal head 29 and rotates the platen roller 28 to print predetermined information on the continuous label web 17 (labels 22).

[0033] The thermal transfer ink ribbon 31 is supplied from a ribbon supply shaft 32 through a first ribbon guide roller 39 to between the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29 , and then passed through a second ribbon guide roller 40 to be taken up by a ribbon take-up shaft 33 .

[0034] 2, by rotating the opening / closing lever 41 clockwise, the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29 can be separated from each other. This makes it possible to load the continuous label strip 17 and the thermal transfer ink ribbon 31 between the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29.

[0035] When the opening / closing lever 41 is rotated counterclockwise to engage the tip of the opening / closing lever 41 with a lever engagement pin 42 attached to the frame 71, the platen roller 28 and the thermal head 29 are placed in the printing position shown in FIG.

[0036] The peeling plate 30 deflects only the liner 21 of the continuous label strip 17 at the leading end. As a result, the label 22 is peeled off from the liner 21 and discharged (issued) from the discharge port 19.

[0037] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, above the support case 9 in the central main unit 2, a power switch 43, an operation section 44 having various operation keys, a display 45, and the like are provided.

[0038] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the central main unit 2 is provided with a non-volatile memory mounting structure 46. As shown in FIG.

[0039] The non-volatile memory mounting structure 46 has a USB connection port 48 on the front side of the support case 9, in an upper corner of the printing section space 47 formed between the printing unit cover 6 and the central main body unit 2. A USB memory 49 can be connected to the USB connection port 48.

[0040] The USB memory 49 can store print information. With the USB memory 49 connected to the USB connection port 48, the printer 1 can execute printing on print paper by the printing unit 16. The print information is, for example, print data supplied to the control unit 4. The USB memory 49 can also store various commands, application software, firmware, and other various software.

[0041] The control unit 4 controls the drive unit, the printing unit 3, and the power supply unit 5. The control unit 4 transmits and receives print information to and from a USB memory 49 connected to a USB connection port 48 as necessary.

[0042] 2, the power supply unit 5 receives power from an external source via a socket 50, and supplies the power to the control unit 4, the drive unit, and the printing unit 3. An air conditioning fan 51 is provided in the power supply unit cover 8.

[0043] Next, the transport roller mechanism 70 will be described.

[0044] Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the periphery of the transport roller mechanism 70. As shown in Fig. 4, the transport roller mechanism 70 includes a roller unit 80 having a first roller 81, and a second roller 82. The transport roller mechanism 70 transports the backing paper 21 while sandwiching it between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 that face each other.

[0045] The second roller 82 is rotatably supported by the frame 71 of the printing unit 3. The second roller 82 is driven by a drive unit via a drive gear (not shown) provided at the end of the second roller 82 on the central main unit 2 side. In other words, the second roller 82 is a drive roller, and the first roller 81 is a driven roller. The roller surface of the second roller 82 is made of a rubber material.

[0046] The roller unit 80 is attached to the frame 71 of the printing unit 3 so that the first roller 81 is pressed against the second roller 82.

[0047] Specifically, the roller unit 80 is fixed to the frame 71 through a first step of fitting a pin 72 attached to the frame 71 into a hole 87e (see Figure 6) provided on the front side of the roller unit 80 from the bottom side of the printer 1 (lower side in Figure 3), a second step of attaching a mounting screw 73 from the front side of the printer 1 through a hole 71a of the frame 71 into a screw hole 87h (see Figure 6) provided on the front side of the roller unit 80, and a third step of engaging pins 87f, 87i (see Figure 6) provided on the rear side of the roller unit 80 with two engaging portions (not shown) of the locking mechanism 90.

[0048] The locking mechanism 90 is freely movable between an engagement position in which the two engagement portions engage the pins 87f, 87i and an unengaged position in which the two engagement portions do not engage the pins 87f, 87i, and is constantly biased toward the engagement position by a torsion spring 91.

[0049] In the third step, when the roller unit 80 is rotated about the pin 72 and the mounting screw 73 as a rotation axis to press the pins 87f, 87i against the two locking portions of the locking mechanism 90, the locking mechanism 90 moves to the unlocked position against the biasing force of the torsion spring 91. Then, when the roller unit 80 is rotated to a predetermined mounting position, the locking mechanism 90 returns to the locked position and the pins 87f, 87i are locked by the two locking portions. This fixes the roller unit 80 to the frame 71.

[0050] When removing the roller unit 80 from the printer 1, first, the release lever 92 of the locking mechanism 90 is operated to place the locking mechanism 90 in the locked position, and the locking of the pins 87f, 87i by the two locking portions is released. Next, the mounting screw 73 is removed, and finally, the roller unit 80 is removed from the pins 72.

[0051] When the roller unit 80 is attached to the frame 71, the first roller 81 is pressed against the roller surface of the second roller 82. This generates a clamping force that clamps the backing paper 21 between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82.

[0052] Incidentally, in a mechanism for transporting the continuous paper using two rollers, such as the transport roller mechanism 70, it is necessary to appropriately clamp the continuous paper with the two rollers.

[0053] For example, if the clamping force between the two rollers becomes excessively high due to an assembly error or the like, slippage between the two rollers and the continuous paper will be difficult to occur, and the continuous paper will be subjected to a large tension during transport, which may cause it to break. Also, if slippage between the two rollers and the continuous paper is difficult to occur, distortion will be more likely to occur in the continuous paper, which may cause it to break due to stress concentration.

[0054] In contrast, in the conveying roller mechanism 70 of the present embodiment, the roller unit 80 is configured to easily adjust the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 to an appropriate clamping force. The roller unit 80 will be described in detail below.

[0055] By changing the assembly state of the components, the roller unit 80 can change between a first setting in which the clamping force is a predetermined first clamping force, and a second setting in which the clamping force is a predetermined second clamping force that is smaller than the first clamping force.

[0056] First, the roller unit 80 in the first setting will be described.

[0057] Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the roller unit 80 in the first setting. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the roller unit 80 in the first setting. Fig. 7 is a view taken along line VII in Fig. 6.

[0058] As shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the roller unit 80 includes a first roller 81, flanged bearings 83 mounted on both ends of the first roller 81, first support members 84 and 85 supporting the first roller 81 via the bearings 83, a second support member 86 supporting the first support members 84 and 85, a mounting member 87 to which the second support member 86 is attached, four screws 88 for fixing the first support members 84 and 85 to the second support member 86, and three screws 89 for fixing the second support member 86 to the mounting member 87. In this embodiment, the first support member 84 and the first support member 85 are symmetrical in shape. Therefore, in the following, the first support member 84 will be mainly described, and a description of the first support member 85 will be omitted as appropriate.

[0059] The first support members 84, 85 are plate-shaped members made of metal. As shown in Fig. 5, the first support member 84 has a base portion 84a and a roller support portion 84b formed by bending in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the first roller 81. As shown in Fig. 6, the axial direction of the first roller 81 in the roller unit 80 is perpendicular to the roller support portion 84b.

[0060] 5, the base portion 84a is provided with two holes 84c through which the screws 88 are inserted, and two notches 84d formed on the rear side edge. The roller support portion 84b is provided with a hole 84e into which the bearing 83 fits.

[0061] The two holes 84c are located on the rear side of the first support member 84, and the hole 84e is located on the front side of the first support member 84.

[0062] Similarly, the first support member 85 has a base portion 85a, a roller support portion 85b, two holes 85c, two cutout portions 85d, and a hole 85e.

[0063] The second support member 86 is made of metal and is a flat plate-like member that is flat as a whole. The second support member 86 has a protrusion 86a provided at one end in the axial direction of the first roller 81 and protruding in the axial direction of the first roller 81, a protrusion 86b provided at the other end and protruding in the axial direction of the first roller 81, four screw holes 86c into which screws 88 are screwed, four cutout portions 86d formed in the rear side edge, and three screw holes 86e into which screws 89 are screwed.

[0064] The four screw holes 86c and the three screw holes 86e are aligned on a straight line L that is parallel to the axial direction of the first roller 81. In addition, the positions of the protrusions 86a and 86b are offset from the straight line L toward the front side.

[0065] The mounting member 87 is a metal plate-like member and has a base portion 87a, a mounting portion 87b formed by bending one end in the axial direction of the first roller 81 in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the first roller 81, and a mounting portion 87c formed by bending the other end in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the first roller 81.

[0066] The base portion 87a is provided with three holes 87d through which screws 89 are inserted. The mounting portion 87b is provided with a hole 87e into which the pin 72 attached to the frame 71 fits, a pin 87f that is engaged with an engaging portion of the locking mechanism 90, and a square hole 87g that is used to adjust the position of the first roller 81.

[0067] The mounting portion 87c is provided with a screw hole 87h into which the mounting screw 73 is screwed, a pin 87i that is locked to a locking portion of the lock mechanism 90, and a square hole 87j that is used to adjust the position of the first roller 81.

[0068] The first support members 84, 85 are each fixed to the second support member 86 by two screws 88, with the hole 84e of the first support member 84 being attached to one end of the first roller 81 via a bearing 83 and the hole 85e of the first support member 85 being attached to the other end of the first roller 81 via a bearing 83.

[0069] When fastening the screws 88, the two notches 84d of the first support member 84 and the two notches 86d of the second support member 86 can be made flush with each other using a jig or the like, thereby improving the accuracy of assembly between the first support member 84 and the second support member 86. The same applies to the first support member 85.

[0070] The reason why the first support member 84 and the first support member 85 are provided as separate parts is to enable the first roller 81 to be incorporated into the roller unit 80 while realizing a configuration in which the axial movement of the first roller 81 is restricted by utilizing the flange of the bearing 83. In other words, the bearing 83 is assembled to the roller unit 80 so that the flange is located between the first support member 84 and the first support member 85.

[0071] However, various known structures can be adopted as the structure for restricting the axial movement of the first roller 81. Furthermore, as long as the first roller 81 can be incorporated into the roller unit 80, the first support members 84 and 85 may be formed integrally.

[0072] The second support member 86 to which the first roller 81 and other components are attached is fixed to a mounting member 87 by three screws 89 .

[0073] 5, the three holes 87d of the base portion 87a are elongated holes extending in the front-rear direction. Therefore, when the screws 89 are fastened, the position of the second support member 86, i.e., the position of the first roller 81, can be adjusted in the front-rear direction.

[0074] As described above, mounting portion 87b is provided with square hole 87g, and mounting portion 87c is provided with square hole 87j. Square holes 87g, 87j are rectangular in shape with a width in the front-to-rear direction greater than the diameter of the end of first roller 81. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 7, when roller unit 80 is viewed from the axial direction of first roller 81, the position of the end of first roller 81 can be confirmed from square hole 87j (87g).

[0075] Since the first roller 81 is fitted with a bearing 83, the inner and outer peripheries of the inner ring 83a of the bearing 83 and the inner and outer peripheries of the outer ring 83b of the bearing 83 are visually recognized as four concentric circles with the first roller 81. Thus, when fastening the three screws 89, the roller unit 80 of this embodiment allows the position of the first roller 81 to be adjusted in the front-to-rear direction while checking how the four concentric circles formed by the bearings 83 appear from the square holes 87g, 87j.

[0076] In other words, the four concentric circles formed by the bearings 83 function as indicators (scales) when adjusting the position of the first roller 81.

[0077] 6 and 7, in the roller unit 80 in the first setting, the second support member 86 supports the rear sides of the first support members 84, 85, but does not support the front sides. In other words, the first support members 84, 85 are cantilevers with the rear sides as fixed ends and the front sides as free ends.

[0078] As described above, when the roller unit 80 is attached to the frame 71, the first roller 81 is pressed against the second roller 82. Therefore, when the roller unit 80 is attached to the frame 71, the first support members 84, 85 that support the first roller 81 are deflected (bent) as shown by the solid arrows in Fig. 7. As a result, the first roller 81 holds the backing paper 21 between itself and the second roller 82 due to the deflection reaction force of the first support members 84, 85. In other words, the first support members 84, 85 function as leaf springs.

[0079] According to this, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 is determined by the deflection reaction force of the first support members 84, 85. Therefore, it is possible to suppress variation in the clamping force due to assembly errors and the like, and the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be easily adjusted to an appropriate clamping force.

[0080] Specifically, the smaller the spring constant of the first support members 84, 85, the smaller the variation in the deflection reaction force of the first support members 84, 85 caused by assembly errors and the like. Therefore, by reducing the spring constant of the first support members 84, 85 to a level that allows for the variation in the deflection reaction force, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be generated stably as desired.

[0081] Next, the roller unit 80 in the second setting will be described.

[0082] Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the second-setting roller unit 80. As shown in Fig. 8, the second-setting roller unit 80 differs from the first-setting roller unit 80 in the assembled state of the second support member 86.

[0083] Specifically, in the second setting, the second support member 86 is assembled to the roller unit 80 so that the protrusions 86a, 86b are positioned on the rear side.

[0084] 6 and 7, in the roller unit 80 in the first setting, the convex portions 86a, 86b are in positions that support the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85. In contrast, in the roller unit 80 in the second setting, as shown in FIG. 8, the convex portions 86a, 86b are in positions that do not support the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85.

[0085] Because the position of the first roller 81 does not change between roller unit 80 in the first setting and roller unit 80 in the second setting, there is no change in the load input point (position) to the free ends of first support members 84, 85 acting as cantilevers. On the other hand, in roller unit 80 in the second setting, the fixed ends of first support members 84, 85 are positioned farther away from the load input point than in roller unit 80 in the first setting.

[0086] This means that in the roller unit 80 in the second setting, the spring constant of the first support members 84, 85 as leaf springs is smaller than the spring constant of the first support members 84, 85 in the roller unit 80 in the first setting.

[0087] Therefore, in the conveyor roller mechanism 70 in the assembled state (second assembled state) in which the roller unit 80 is set to the second setting, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be set to a clamping force (predetermined second clamping force) smaller than the clamping force (predetermined first clamping force) of the conveyor roller mechanism 70 in the assembled state (first assembled state) in which the roller unit 80 is set to the first setting. Also, in the conveyor roller mechanism 70 in the second assembled state, the clamping force can be stably generated as desired, similar to the conveyor roller mechanism 70 in the first assembled state.

[0088] The clamping force can also be changed by adjusting the position of the first roller 81. However, the range of position adjustment of the first roller 81 is limited by the hole 87d, so the clamping force cannot be changed significantly. In contrast, when the assembly state of the conveying roller mechanism 70 is changed from the first assembly state to the second assembly state, the clamping force can be reduced beyond the range of change in the clamping force caused by adjusting the position of the first roller 81.

[0089] As described above, the printer 1 of this embodiment may print on the continuous label web 17 that includes the backing paper 21 on which perforations 17a are formed at predetermined intervals. When the backing paper 21 has the perforations 17a, it is more likely to break than when it does not have the perforations 17a. Therefore, by setting the transport roller mechanism 70 in the second assembly state to facilitate slippage between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 and the backing paper 21 to a certain extent, it is possible to prevent the backing paper 21 from being broken due to a large tension being applied during transport, or from being broken due to stress concentration caused by distortion of the backing paper 21.

[0090] If the backing paper 21 does not have perforations 17a, more stable transport can be achieved by setting the transport roller mechanism 70 in the first assembly state and setting the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 to a predetermined first clamping force.

[0091] The user can appropriately select whether the transport roller mechanism 70 is in the first assembly state or the second assembly state depending on the continuous paper being transported. Therefore, when the continuous paper has perforations, the transport roller mechanism 70 may be in the first assembly state, and when the continuous paper does not have perforations, the transport roller mechanism 70 may be in the second assembly state.

[0092] The main functions and effects of the transport roller mechanism 70 and the printer 1 configured as above will now be described.

[0093] The conveying roller mechanism 70, which conveys the backing paper 21 while clamping it between opposing first and second rollers 81 and 82, includes plate-shaped first support members 84, 85 that support the first roller 81, and a plate-shaped second support member 86 that supports the first support members 84, 85, and the first roller 81 clamps the backing paper 21 between it and the second roller 82 due to the bending reaction force of the first support members 84, 85.

[0094] According to this, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 is determined by the deflection reaction force of the first support members 84, 85. Therefore, it is possible to suppress variation in the clamping force due to assembly errors and the like, and the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be easily adjusted to an appropriate clamping force.

[0095] The first support members 84 and 85 support the first roller 81 at roller support portions 84b and 85b that are formed by bending the first roller 81 in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction thereof.

[0096] According to this, by manufacturing the first support members 84 and 85 by press molding, a configuration for supporting the first roller 81 can be easily realized.

[0097] The conveying roller mechanism 70 is changeable between a first assembly state in which the second support member 86 supports the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85, and a second assembly state in which the second support member 86 does not support the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85.

[0098] According to this, by setting the transport roller mechanism 70 in the second assembly state, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be made smaller than that in the first assembly state. In other words, the clamping force between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 can be selected from a predetermined first clamping force and a predetermined second clamping force depending on the continuous paper to be transported.

[0099] The second support member 86 has convex portions 86a, 86b provided at the end portion in the axial direction of the first roller 81 and protruding in the axial direction of the first roller 81, and in the first assembly state, the convex portions 86a, 86b support the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85, and in the second assembly state, the convex portions 86a, 86b do not support the roller support portions 84b, 85b of the first support members 84, 85.

[0100] According to this, a configuration capable of changing the predetermined first clamping force and the predetermined second clamping force can be realized simply by providing the convex portions 86a, 86b on the second support member 86. In other words, a configuration capable of changing the predetermined first clamping force and the predetermined second clamping force can be realized without increasing the number of components or the cost.

[0101] The second support member 86 has a plurality of screw holes 86c into which screws 88 that fix the first support members 84, 85 to the second support member 86 are each screwed. The multiple screw holes 86c are aligned on a straight line L, and the positions of the protrusions 86a, 86b are offset with respect to the straight line L.

[0102] According to this, by a simple operation of merely switching the second support member 86 over, the first assembled state and the second assembled state can be changed.

[0103] The first support members 84, 85 are leaf springs.

[0104] This ensures the strength and durability of the first support members 84, 85.

[0105] The mount 21 may have perforations 17a formed at predetermined intervals.

[0106] Even if the backing paper 21 has perforations 17a, by setting the conveying roller mechanism 70 in the second assembly state to facilitate slippage between the first roller 81 and the second roller 82 and the backing paper 21 to a certain extent, it is possible to prevent the backing paper 21 from being subjected to large tension during conveyance and breaking, or to prevent distortion of the backing paper 21 and breaking due to stress concentration.

[0107] The printer 1 includes a transport roller mechanism 70 .

[0108] This allows the clamping force of the two rollers that transport the continuous paper in the printer 1 to be easily adjusted to an appropriate clamping force.

[0109] An embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the above embodiment merely illustrates one application example of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the specific configuration of the above embodiment.

[0110] For example, in the above embodiment, the printer 1 is described that includes the transport roller mechanism 70. However, the transport roller mechanism according to the present invention can be incorporated into various devices and equipment. In addition, any configuration can be appropriately selected for mounting the transport roller mechanism in various devices and equipment.

[0111] In the above embodiment, the notch 86d of the second support member 86 is provided on one side edge (the side edge on the rear side in FIG. 5). However, a notch may also be provided on the other side edge (the side edge on the rear side in FIG. 5). This can improve the assembly accuracy between the first support members 84, 85 and the second support member 86 in the roller unit 80 in the second setting.

[0112] In the above embodiment, the quadruple circles formed by the bearings 83 are used as an indicator when adjusting the position of the first roller 81. However, a component having an indicator function may be provided separately, or an indicator may be formed on the end face of the first roller 81. Also, the multiple circles as an indicator may be three or less, or five or more.

[0113] In the above embodiment, the first support members 84 and 85, the second support member 86, and the mounting member 87 are made of metal. However, the first support members 84 and 85, the second support member 86, and the mounting member 87 may be made of a material other than metal, for example, a synthetic resin.

[0114] In the above embodiment, when the roller unit 80 is in the first setting, the convex portions 86a and 86b are in positions to support the roller support portions 84b and 85b of the first support members 84 and 85. However, the shape of the second support member 86 and the position at which the second support member 86 supports the first support members 84 and 85 are not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the second support member 86 may not support the roller support portions 84b and 85b in both the first and second settings of the roller unit 80. In other words, the second support member 86 can adopt various shapes that can change the spring constant of the first support members 84 and 85 as leaf springs by changing the assembly state.

[0115] In the above embodiment, the first support members 84, 85 are each fixed to the second support member 86 by two screws 88, and the second support member 86 is fixed to the mounting member 87 by three screws 89. However, the numbers of the screws 88, 89 can be changed as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0116] 1. Printer 2 Central main unit 3 Printing unit 4. Control Unit 5 Power supply unit 6 Print unit cover 7 Control unit cover 8 Power supply unit cover 9 Support Case 10 Print unit cover opening / closing shaft 11 Power supply unit cover opening / closing shaft 12 Support Links 13 Cover side magnet 14 Case side magnet 15 Mounting part 15A Upper center mounting hole 15B Upper left end mounting hole 15C Upper right end mounting hole 15D Lower left end mounting hole 15E Lower right end mounting hole 16 Printing section 17 Label Continuum 17a Perforation 18 Introduction 19 Outlet 20 Transport Path 21 Mount (continuous paper) 22 Label 23 Width regulation shaft 24 Auxiliary conveyor roller 25 Position detection sensor 26 Guide roller 28 Platen roller 29 Thermal Head 30 Peeling plate 31 Thermal transfer ink ribbon 32 Ribbon supply shaft 33 Ribbon winding shaft 34 First width restriction fixed wall 35 Width restriction movable ring 36 Second width restriction fixed wall 37 Backing paper guide roller 38 Pressure spring 39 First ribbon guide roller 40 Second ribbon guide roller 41 Opening / Closing Lever 42 Lever engagement pin 43 Power Switch 44 Control section 45 Display 46 Non-volatile memory mounting structure 47 Print space 48 USB ports 49 USB memory 50 outlets 51 Air conditioning fan 70 Conveyor roller mechanism 71 Frames 71a hole 72 pin 73 Mounting screw 80 Roller unit 81 First Roller 82 Second Roller 83 Bearing 83a Inner Ring 83b Outer ring 84 First support member 84a Base 84b Roller support 84c hole 84d Notch 84e hole 85 First support member 85a Base 85b Roller support part 85c hole 85d Notch 85e hole 86 Second support member 86a Convex 86b Convex 86c screw hole 86d Notch 86e Screw hole 87 Mounting material 87a Base 87b Mounting part 87c Mounting part 87d hole 87e hole 87f Pin 87g square hole 87h Screw hole 87i Pin 87j square hole 88 Screw 89 Screw 90 Locking mechanism 91 Torsion spring 92 Release lever L straight line

Claims

1. A conveying roller mechanism that conveys continuous paper while sandwiching it between a first roller and a second roller that face each other, a plate-shaped first support member that supports the first roller; A plate-shaped second support member that supports the first support member; Equipped with the first roller holds the continuous paper between itself and the second roller by a deflection reaction force of the first support member, the first support member supports the first roller at a roller support portion, a first assembly state in which the second support member supports the roller support portion of the first support member and a second assembly state in which the second support member does not support the roller support portion of the first support member are changeable. Conveyor roller mechanism.

2. 2. The conveying roller mechanism according to claim 1, The roller support portion is formed by bending the first support member in a direction perpendicular to an axial direction of the first roller. Conveyor roller mechanism.

3. 3. The conveying roller mechanism according to claim 2, the second support member has a protrusion provided at an end of the first roller in the axial direction and protruding in the axial direction of the first roller, In the first assembled state, the protrusion supports the roller support portion of the first support member, In the second assembled state, the protrusion does not support the roller support portion of the first support member. Conveyor roller mechanism.

4. 4. The conveying roller mechanism according to claim 3, the second support member has a plurality of screw holes into which screws for fixing the first support member to the second support member are screwed, The plurality of screw holes are aligned in a straight line, The position of the convex portion is offset with respect to the straight line. Conveyor roller mechanism.

5. 5. A conveying roller mechanism according to claim 1, The first support member is a leaf spring. Conveyor roller mechanism.

6. 6. A conveying roller mechanism according to claim 1, The continuous paper has perforations formed at predetermined intervals. Conveyor roller mechanism.

7. A printer comprising the transport roller mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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