Image forming device

Abstract

To reduce a rewinding amount of a sheet-like medium and reduce time required for rewinding.SOLUTION: A printer 100 includes: a roll paper storage part 11 capable of storing roll paper R; a head 5 for forming an image on paper P unwound from the roll paper R; a conveyance mechanism 3 for conveying the paper P from the roll paper storage part 11 in a conveyance direction A along a conveyance path C; and a cutter 4a for cutting a sheet-like medium at a predetermined position Cx of the conveyance path C. The conveyance mechanism 3 includes a feeding roller 3a for feeding the paper P from the roll paper storage part 11, an intermediate roller pair 3b arranged between the feeding roller 3a and the head 5 on the conveyance path C, and a conveyance roller pair 3c arranged between the intermediate roller pair 3b and the head 5 on the conveyance path C. The predetermined position Cx is arranged between the feeding roller 3a and the intermediate roller pair 3b on the conveyance path C.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus equipped with a cutter that cuts a sheet medium. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet-like medium such as paper, cloth, or a label while conveying the sheet-like medium in a conveying direction along a conveying path from a roll of the sheet-like medium. In general, such an image forming apparatus is provided with a cutter that cuts the sheet-like medium. For example, Patent Document 1 shows an image forming apparatus that includes a roll paper storage section, an image forming section, and a cutter that cuts the sheet-like medium downstream of the image forming section on the conveying path. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-86235 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For example, when attaching or detaching a tray (storage section) that stores a roll to or from the housing of an image forming device, in order to prevent the leading edge of the sheet medium that has been unwound from the roll and cut by a cutter from coming into contact with the housing and bending, the leading edge may be rewound into the storage section before the attachment or detachment. In this case, in a configuration in which the cutter is disposed on the downstream side of the transport path of the image forming unit (at a predetermined position on the transport path), as in Patent Document 1, the length from the storage section to the predetermined position is relatively long, so the amount of rewinding is large and rewinding takes a long time.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that can reduce the amount of sheet medium rewound and shorten the time required for rewinding. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The image forming device of the present invention comprises a storage section capable of storing sheet-like medium, an image forming section which forms an image on the sheet-like medium, a transport mechanism which transports the sheet-like medium from the storage section in a transport direction along a transport path, and a cutter which cuts the sheet-like medium at a predetermined position on the transport path, wherein the storage section is capable of storing a roll of sheet-like medium wound in a roll, and the transport mechanism includes a feed roller which sends out the sheet-like medium from the storage section, an intermediate roller arranged between the feed roller and the image forming section on the transport path, and a transport roller arranged between the intermediate roller and the image forming section on the transport path, and wherein the predetermined position is between the feed roller and the intermediate roller on the transport path. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, the cutter is configured to cut the sheet medium at a predetermined position between the feed roller and the intermediate roller in the transport path. In this case, since the length from the storage section to the predetermined position is relatively short, the amount of sheet medium that needs to be rewound can be reduced, and the time required for rewinding can be reduced. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating the overall configuration of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a schematic diagram showing a cutter mechanism and a scanning mechanism included in the printer of FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of region III shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] <Overall printer configuration> First, the overall configuration of a printer 100 (image forming apparatus) according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1. The up-down and front-rear directions shown in Fig. 1 are the up-down and front-rear directions of the printer 100.

[0010] The printer 100 includes a housing 100a, a paper feed tray 1, a transport mechanism 3, a cutter mechanism 4, a head 5, a paper discharge tray 6, and a control unit 10. The paper feed tray 1 corresponds to the "tray" of the present invention, has a box shape that opens upward, and is detachable from the lower part of the housing 100a. The paper discharge tray 6 is formed by a side wall at the front of the upper part of the housing 100a, and can be opened and closed relative to the housing 100a.

[0011] The paper feed tray 1 is provided with a roll paper storage section 11 capable of storing roll paper R. The roll paper storage section 11 corresponds to the "storage section" of the present invention.

[0012] The roll paper R is a long piece of paper P ("sheet-like medium" of the present invention) wound in a roll shape around the outer circumferential surface of a cylindrical core member Rc, and corresponds to the "roll body" of the present invention. The roll paper R is stored in the roll paper storage section 11 with its rotation axis Rx (the central axis of the core member Rc) aligned in a direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the front-rear direction (the "scanning direction" described below, which is the width direction of the paper P).

[0013] The roll paper compartment 11 has a recess 11x that accommodates the roll paper R. Two rollers 14 and 15 are provided at the bottom of the recess 11x. The two rollers 14 and 15 are rotatable about shafts 14a and 15a, respectively, that extend in the scanning direction. Roll Paper R When the roller 14 is accommodated in the recess 11x, the outer peripheral surface of the lower portion of the roller 14 is supported by the two rollers 14 and 15.

[0014] The roll paper storage section 11 further has a hole 11y that communicates with the recess 11x and extends in the vertical direction, and a groove 11z that communicates with the hole 11y and extends in the front-rear direction. Both the hole 11y and the groove 11z open to the bottom surface of the roll paper storage section 11. Paper P unwound from the roll paper R passes through the hole 11y and the groove 11z and is transported toward the head 5.

[0015] The transport mechanism 3 is configured to transport paper P from the roll paper storage unit 11, and includes a feed roller 3a, a pair of intermediate rollers 3b, a pair of transport rollers 3c, a pair of discharge rollers 3d, and guides 7 and 9. The transport mechanism 3 transports the paper P in the transport direction A along a transport path C that passes below the head 5 from the roll paper storage unit 11 toward the discharge tray 6.

[0016] The feed roller 3a is disposed between the roll paper storage unit 11 and the head 5 on the transport path C. The intermediate roller pair 3b is disposed between the feed roller 3a and the head 5 on the transport path C. The transport roller pair 3c is disposed between the intermediate roller pair 3b and the head 5 on the transport path C. The discharge roller pair 3d is disposed between the head 5 and the paper discharge tray 6 on the transport path C.

[0017] The feed roller 3a is supported at the tip of an arm 3y. The arm 3y is rotatably supported on a support shaft 3x, and is biased so that the feed roller 3a approaches the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 1. As shown in Fig. 1, when the roll paper R is stored in the roll paper storage section 11, a paper feed motor (not shown) is driven under the control of the control section 10 to rotate the feed roller 3a, which rotates the roll paper R in the direction of the arrow B, and paper P unwound from the roll paper R is fed toward the pair of intermediate rollers 3b.

[0018] The intermediate roller pair 3b, the conveying roller pair 3c, and the paper discharge roller pair 3d each include a drive roller that rotates by being driven by a conveying motor (not shown), and a driven roller that rotates along with the drive roller. The conveying motor (not shown) is driven under the control of the control unit 10, and the intermediate roller pair 3b, the conveying roller pair 3c, and the paper discharge roller pair 3d rotate while holding the paper P, whereby the paper P is conveyed in the conveying direction A along the conveying path C.

[0019] The transport direction A is configured to reverse between the intermediate roller pair 3b and the transport roller pair 3c. In this embodiment, the front-to-rear component of the transport direction A is opposite in the portion of the transport path C from the roll paper storage unit 11 to the intermediate roller pair 3b and the portion of the transport path C from the transport roller pair 3c to the paper output tray 6.

[0020] The guide 7 is disposed between the feed roller 3a and the pair of intermediate rollers 3b on the transport path C, and guides the paper P fed by the feed roller 3a to the pair of intermediate rollers 3b. The guide 7 is formed from the rear side wall of the paper feed tray 1, and is inclined so as to be positioned upward from the front to the rear.

[0021] The guide 9 is disposed between the intermediate roller pair 3b and the conveying roller pair 3c on the conveying path C, and guides the paper P conveyed by the intermediate roller pair 3b to the conveying roller pair 3c. The guide 9 is composed of a pair of path members 9a, 9b disposed so as to sandwich the conveying path C therebetween.

[0022] The cutter mechanism 4 is configured to cut the paper P (paper P unwound from the roll paper R) between the guide 7 and the pair of intermediate rollers 3b on the conveying path C (a specified position Cx), and includes a cutter 4a, a cutter unit 4b to which the cutter 4a is attached, and a holder 4c that holds the cutter unit 4b, and can be moved back and forth in the scanning direction (a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction A at the specified position Cx) by the scanning mechanism 2 (see Figure 2).

[0023] The conveying path C includes a straight portion Cs between the feeding roller 3a and the pair of intermediate rollers 3b. A predetermined position Cx where the cutter mechanism 4 is disposed is provided in the straight portion Cs.

[0024] The cutter 4a is composed of a pair of rotary blades 4a1, 4a2 arranged to sandwich the conveying path C. The pair of rotary blades 4a1, 4a2 are perpendicular to the conveying path C and have overlapping portions. Specifically, of the pair of rotary blades 4a1, 4a2, the rotary blade 4a1 is arranged on the downstream side of the conveying direction A and the rotary blade 4a2 is arranged on the upstream side of the conveying direction A, and the pair of rotary blades 4a1, 4a2 have overlapping portions in the conveying direction A.

[0025] The cutter unit 4b rotatably supports a pair of rotary blades 4a1 and 4a2. The holder 4c is a case-like member that holds the cutter unit 4b from the outside.

[0026] 2, the scanning mechanism 2 includes a pair of pulleys 2a, 2b spaced apart from each other in the scanning direction, a belt 2c wound around the pair of pulleys 2a, 2b and having a holder 4c fixed thereto, and a cutting motor (not shown). When the cutting motor is driven under the control of the control unit 10, the belt 2c runs in the scanning direction, and the holder 4c and the cutter unit 4b held thereby (i.e., the entire cutter mechanism 4 including the cutter 4a) are moved from a standby position D outside the conveying path C into the conveying path C. At this time, the rotary blades 4a1, 4a2 are rotated by the driving of the cutting motor. The paper P unwound from the roll paper R is cut in the width direction of the paper P by the cutter 4a at a predetermined position Cx.

[0027] The head 5 is disposed between the pair of transport rollers 3c and the pair of paper discharge rollers 3d on the transport path C. The head 5 corresponds to the "image forming unit" of the present invention, and includes a plurality of nozzles (not shown) formed on the bottom surface, and a driver IC. When the driver IC is driven under the control of the control unit 10, ink is ejected from the nozzles, and an image is formed on the paper P when the paper P transported by the transport mechanism 3 passes a position facing the bottom surface of the head 5. The head 5 may be either a line type that ejects ink from nozzles while being fixed in position, or a serial type that ejects ink from nozzles while moving in the scanning direction.

[0028] The paper P on which the image has been formed by the head 5 is received in a paper discharge tray 6 that is in an open state relative to the housing 100a.

[0029] The control unit 10 is connected to the feed motor, the transport motor, the cutting motor, and the driver IC via an internal bus (not shown). The control unit 10 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The ROM stores programs and data for the CPU to perform various controls. The RAM temporarily stores data used when the CPU executes a program.

[0030] <Configuration and Effects of This Embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, the cutter 4a is configured to cut the paper P at a predetermined position Cx between the feed roller 3a and the pair of intermediate rollers 3b on the transport path C (see FIG. 1). In this case, because the distance from the roll paper compartment 11 to the predetermined position Cx is relatively short, the amount of paper P that needs to be rewound can be reduced, thereby shortening the time it takes to rewind the paper.

[0031] The printer 100 includes a paper feed tray 1 including a roll paper storage section 11, and a housing 100a to which the paper feed tray 1 can be attached and detached (see FIG. 1). In this case, when attaching or detaching the paper feed tray 1 to or from the housing 100a, the leading edge of the paper P that has been unwound from the roll paper R and cut by the cutter 4a is prevented from coming into contact with the housing 100a and being bent, so that when the leading edge is rewound into the paper feed tray 1 before the above attachment or detachment, the rewinding amount is small, and the time required for rewinding can be reduced. This in turn reduces the user's waiting time (the time spent waiting until rewinding is complete without performing the attachment or detachment work).

[0032] The conveying direction A is reversed between the intermediate roller pair 3b and the conveying roller pair 3c (see FIG. 1). In the conveying path C, the position between the feed roller 3a and the intermediate roller pair 3b is a position where the load on the paper P is relatively small before the conveying direction A is reversed. By cutting the paper P with the cutter 4a at this position Cx, cutting accuracy can be ensured.

[0033] The conveying path C includes a straight portion Cs between the feed roller 3a and the pair of intermediate rollers 3b. The predetermined position Cx is provided in the straight portion Cs (see FIG. 1). The straight portion Cs imposes a smaller load on the paper P than a curved portion. By cutting the paper P with the cutter 4a at the position Cx, cutting accuracy can be ensured more reliably.

[0034] The cutter 4a includes blades (rotary blades 4a1, 4a2) (see FIG. 3) that are arranged perpendicular to the conveying path C. In this case, cutting accuracy can be more reliably ensured.

[0035] The predetermined position Cx where the cutter 4a is provided is a position where the printer 100 is unlikely to become large even if the cutter 4a and a mechanism for driving it (in this embodiment, the scanning mechanism 2) are disposed before the transport direction A reverses. For example, if the cutter 4a is provided near the head 5 after the transport direction A reverses, various members (not shown in FIG. 1 and the like) are disposed around the head 5, and therefore it is necessary to provide a dedicated space (a space in which the various members are not disposed) for disposing the cutter 4a and the mechanism for driving it, which would result in the printer 100 becoming large. In this regard, in this embodiment, by providing the cutter 4a at the predetermined position Cx before the transport direction A reverses, it is possible to prevent the printer 100 from becoming large.

[0036] <Modification> Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various design modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

[0037] Although the cutter is configured with a pair of rotary blades in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this and may be configured with, for example, one rotary blade and one fixed blade.

[0038] A guide does not need to be provided between the feed roller and the predetermined position on the transport path.

[0039] In the above-described embodiment, the front-rear component of the transport direction is reversed between the intermediate roller and the transport roller, but the up-down component of the transport direction may also be reversed.

[0040] The conveying direction does not need to be reversed between the intermediate rollers and the conveying rollers.

[0041] The cutter may be provided on a curved portion of the conveying path, rather than on a straight portion.

[0042] The storage unit is not limited to being provided on a tray that is detachable from the housing, and may be provided on the housing, for example. Even in this case, the leading end of the sheet medium that has been unwound from the roll and cut by the cutter may be rewound into the storage unit. In such a case, application of the present invention can reduce the amount of sheet medium that is rewound, and shorten the time it takes to rewind.

[0043] The sheet-like medium is not limited to paper, but may be, for example, cloth, a resin material, or the like.

[0044] The image forming unit may eject a liquid other than ink (for example, a treatment liquid that aggregates or precipitates the components in the ink). Furthermore, the image forming unit is not limited to a liquid ejection type, and may be a laser type, a thermal transfer type, or the like.

[0045] The present invention is not limited to printers, but can also be applied to facsimiles, copiers, multifunction machines, and the like. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1 Paper feed tray (tray) 3. Conveyor mechanism 3a Feeding roller 3b Intermediate roller pair 3c Transport roller pair 4a Cutter 4a1,4a2 Rotary blade 5 Head (image forming section) 7 Guide 11 Roll paper storage section (storage section) 100 Printers (image forming devices) 100a housing A Conveying direction C. Transport route Cs Linear section Cx in place P Paper (sheet media) R Roll paper (roll body)

Claims

1. A storage section capable of storing a sheet-like medium; an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet-like medium; a conveying mechanism that conveys the sheet medium from the storage unit along a conveying path in a conveying direction; a cutter that cuts the sheet medium at a predetermined position on the transport path; A tray including the storage portion; a housing to which the tray is detachable, the storage unit is capable of storing a roll of sheet-like medium wound in a roll shape, The transport mechanism includes: a feed roller for feeding the sheet medium from the storage section; a guide disposed between the feed roller and the image forming unit in the transport path; an intermediate roller disposed between the guide and the image forming unit in the transport path; a conveying roller disposed between the intermediate roller and the image forming unit in the conveying path, the predetermined position is between the guide and the intermediate roller on the conveying path, the guide is formed on one side wall in a direction perpendicular to a vertical direction of the tray, and is inclined so as to be positioned upward as it moves from the other side wall to the one side in the perpendicular direction, The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutter is inclined in a direction intersecting with the guide so as to be positioned lower from the other side toward the one side in the orthogonal direction.

2. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conveying direction is reversed between the intermediate roller and the conveying roller.

3. the conveying path includes a linear portion between the feed roller and the intermediate roller, 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined position is provided in the linear portion.

4. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutter includes a blade that is disposed perpendicular to the conveying path.

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