Printing device and program

Abstract

To allow easy removal of the medium to be printed remaining inside a printing device after deviating from a conveying path.SOLUTION: A printing device 1 comprises a pair of discharge rollers 10, 11 that feed a medium 20 to be printed toward a discharge port 301 at a discharge roller position in a conveying path of the medium 20 to be printed, and an electrification processing unit that electrifies at least one of the medium 20 to be printed and the discharge roller 11, which is one of the pair of discharge rollers 10, 11 to induce a Coulomb force in a direction of attraction between the medium 20 to be printed and one of the discharge rollers 11. The medium to be printed (medium piece T) that has deviated from the conveying path is adsorbed to one of the discharge rollers 11 by the Coulomb force and discharged to the outside of the device by the rotation of the pair of discharge rollers 10, 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The disclosure herein relates to a printing device , and and programs. [Background technology]

[0002] Some printing devices that print on print media are equipped with discharge rollers that discharge the print media that has been printed (printed) based on print data out of the device. For example, some inkjet printers that print by ejecting ink toward the print media have discharge rollers that are equipped with suction means that suck the print media on the side of the transport path opposite the print surface side, in order to discharge the print media without soiling the print surface of the print media (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Furthermore, some printing devices equipped with discharge rollers are capable of cutting long print media and discharging the cut print media outside the device using the discharge rollers. In this type of printing device, for example, a transport roller for transporting the print media is disposed at or near the position on the transport path of the print media where printing is performed on the print media, and a separate discharge roller is disposed between the position where the transport roller is disposed and the position of the discharge opening. In addition, a cutter for cutting the print media is disposed between the position where the transport roller is disposed and the position where the discharge roller is disposed on the transport path. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-196536 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In a printing device that prints on long print media, the remaining amount of print media available for subsequent printing decreases with each printing. For example, the remaining amount of print media after cutting the print media may be shorter than the distance between the position on the transport path where the transport rollers feed the print media and the position where the discharge rollers feed the print media. If the next printing is performed on the print media in this state, one end of the print media may separate from the transport rollers before the other end reaches the discharge rollers, causing the print media to leave the transport path midway through printing. If the print media that has left the transport path remains in the printing device, it may cause problems such as poor transport of the print media during subsequent printing.

[0006] However, some printing devices have protective members arranged to cover the cutter and discharge rollers at locations within the device where the printing media that has left the transport path remains (stagnates), making it difficult to notice that the printing media is remaining, and it is also time-consuming to remove the remaining printing media.

[0007] In view of the above-described circumstances, an object according to one aspect of the present invention is to provide a technique that makes it possible to easily remove a print medium that has left the transport path and remains in a printing device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A printing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a transport unit that transports a print medium, a pair of discharge rollers that send the print medium toward a discharge outlet at a discharge roller position in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit, and a charging processing unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force in an attractive direction between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers; the one discharge roller has a metal layer on at least a surface that contacts the print medium, and the metal layer is grounded; the charging processing unit is a charging device that charges the print medium by emitting a corona discharge to a retention portion where the print medium that has been separated from the transport path is retained; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. Another printing device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a transport unit that transports a print medium, a pair of discharge rollers that send the print medium toward an outlet at the discharge roller position on a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit, and a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce an attractive Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers, wherein the charging unit is an electrostatic generating member that contacts the one of the discharge rollers at a position different from the path that leads the print medium that has left the transport path between the pair of discharge rollers and charges the one of the discharge rollers through friction with the rotating one of the discharge rollers, and the print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to the one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force and is discharged outside the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate.

[0010] A program according to one aspect of the present invention includes a transport unit that transports a print medium, a pair of discharge rollers that send the print medium toward a discharge outlet at a discharge roller position in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit, and a charging processing unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force in an attractive direction between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers. The one discharge roller has a metal layer on at least the surface that contacts the print medium, and the metal layer is grounded, and the charging processing unit is a charging device that charges the print medium by emitting a corona discharge to a retention portion where the print medium that has been separated from the transport path is retained. The printing device is caused to perform a process in which the charging processing unit charges at least one of the printing medium and one of the discharge rollers, and the printing medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged outside the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. Another program according to one aspect of the present invention includes a transport unit that transports a print medium, a pair of discharge rollers that send the print medium toward an outlet at a discharge roller position on a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit, and a charging processing unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce an attractive Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers, wherein the charging processing unit contacts the one discharge roller at a position different from the path that leads the print medium that has left the transport path to between the pair of discharge rollers, and is a static electricity generating member that charges the one discharge roller through friction with the rotating one discharge roller, and the charging processing unit charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller, and the print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to the one discharge roller by the Coulomb force and is discharged outside the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the above aspect, the print medium that has left the transport path and remains in the printing device can be easily removed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of the external configuration of a printing apparatus. [Figure 2] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a portion of the left side surface of the main body of the printing device in FIG. 1 that is related to the storage and transport of print media. FIG. [Figure 3] 2 is a left side cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a portion of a transport path for a print medium in the printing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of a cause of a medium piece being retained in a retaining portion. [Figure 7]FIG. 10 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of a cause of a medium piece being retained in a retaining portion. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of processing performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of processing performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a left-side cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a portion of a transport path for a print medium in a printing device according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, a thermal printing device that prints on a long print medium including a thermal material layer based on print data created using an information processing device such as a smartphone or tablet PC will be used as an example of a printing device according to the present invention. Note that this specification will omit detailed descriptions of the known configurations, functions, operations, processes, etc. of this type of printing device.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the external configuration of a printing device. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a portion of the left side of the main body of the printing device in FIG. 1 that is related to storing and transporting print media. In FIG. 1, "upper," "lower," "right," "left," "front," and "rear" respectively represent the directions of the printing device 1 installed in the recommended orientation for printing on the print medium 20, as viewed from a user facing the surface onto which the print medium 20 is ejected (hereinafter referred to as the "front"). In FIG. 2, "upper," "lower," "front," and "rear" respectively correspond to "upper," "lower," "front," and "rear" in FIG. 1. The recommended orientation of the printing device 1 is, for example, an orientation in which the width direction of the printing surface of the print medium 20 (the axial direction of the platen roller 7, etc., described later) is approximately horizontal when placed on an upward-facing horizontal surface 50, such as on a table or desk top or on a floor, as illustrated in FIG. 2.

[0015] 1 and 2, the printing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 contains a media roll 21, which is a long print medium 20 wound into a roll, and various components such as electronic circuits (not shown), in the internal space of a device housing 2 including a main body 3 and a detachable lid 4. The print medium 20 inside the device housing 2 can be discharged to the outside of the device housing 2 through a discharge port 301 provided on the front surface of the main body 3. Also, on the front surface of the main body 3, there are provided a plurality of button switches 5 that receive various inputs related to the operation of the printing device 1, and a plurality of LED (Light Emitting Diode) indicators 6 that display various information related to the operating status of the printing device 1.

[0016] 2, the main body 3 is provided with a concave adapter mounting section 302 into which is mounted a media adapter 22 capable of accommodating a media roll 21. The media adapter 22 is provided with a pull-out opening (not shown) through which the print medium 20 unwound from the accommodated media roll 21 is pulled out. The print medium 20 pulled out from the media adapter 22 can move along a predetermined transport path from the adapter mounting section 302 of the main body 3 to the ejection opening 301. The underlined number "18" on the media roll 21 and the media adapter 22 indicates the width of the print medium 20 supplied by the media adapter 22.

[0017] The main body 3 is provided with a platen roller 7, a print processing unit 8, a cutting processing unit 9, and a pair of discharge rollers (upper discharge roller 10 and lower discharge roller 11) arranged along the transport path of the print medium 20. The platen roller 7 is a transport roller that transports the print medium 20. The print processing unit 8 prints on the print medium 20 using a thermal head 801. The cutting processing unit 9 cuts the print medium 20. The discharge rollers (upper discharge roller 10 and lower discharge roller 11) are rollers that send the print medium 20, etc. cut by the cutting processing unit 9, towards the discharge outlet 301.

[0018] The printing device 1 illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 can receive printing data created by a user using an information processing device 30 such as a smartphone or tablet computer, and can print on or cut the printing medium 20 based on the received printing data.

[0019] 1 and 2 is merely one example of a recommended installation direction when printing on the print medium 20. The recommended installation direction of the printing device 1 when printing on the print medium 20 may be selectable between the orientation shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 or an orientation in which the axial direction of the platen roller 7 is in the up-down direction and the lid unit 4 is located above the main body unit 3, for example.

[0020] [First embodiment] FIG. 3 is a left-side cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a portion of the transport path for the print medium in the printing device according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 3, the portion of the transport path for the print medium 20 in the printing device 1 according to this embodiment, within the area AR indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2, is illustrated as a straight line. The terms "upper," "lower," "front," and "rear" in FIG. 3 correspond to the terms "upper," "lower," "front," and "rear" in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively. The print position, full cut position, half cut position, discharge roller position, and discharge position shown in FIG. 3 represent representative positions on the transport path for the print medium 20. The forward and reverse directions shown in FIG. 3 represent the transport direction of the print medium 20. Furthermore, the terms "downstream" and "upstream" in FIG. 3 represent the relative positional relationships on the transport path and on the print medium 20 along the transport direction.

[0021] The printing position is a position where printing is performed on the print medium 20 by the thermal head 801. At the printing position, the print medium 20 is clamped between the platen roller 7 and the heating elements 801a of the thermal head 801. The platen roller 7 is coupled to a motor (not shown), and is capable of rotating (forward) in a rotation direction that sends the print medium 20 in a first direction (forward direction) from the printing position toward the discharge position (the position of the discharge port 301 in the transport path), and rotating (reverse) in a rotation direction that returns the print medium 20 in a direction opposite to the first direction (reverse direction).

[0022] The full cut position is a position where the print medium 20 is cut by the first cutter 901, and the half cut position is a position where the print medium 20 is cut by the second cutter 902. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the full cut position and the half cut position are located between the print position and the discharge position, and the half cut position is located between the full cut position and the discharge position. In this specification, as illustrated in FIG. 3, a position in a first direction as viewed from a certain position on the transport path and the print medium 20 is referred to as a downstream position, and a position in a second direction as an upstream position. In other words, on the transport path illustrated in FIG. 3, the full cut position is located downstream of the print position, and the half cut position is located further downstream of the full cut position.

[0023] The first cutter 901 is a cutter that cuts the entire print medium 20 along a line at a full-cut position on the print medium 20 to separate it into two pieces. The second cutter 902 is a cutter that cuts the print medium 20 along a line at a half-cut position on the print medium 20 so that a portion of the print medium 20 located upstream of the line and a portion of the print medium 20 located downstream of the line remain continuous through a portion of the print medium 20. For example, the second cutter 902 cuts only the adhesive tape layer of a multi-layer print medium 20 that has an adhesive tape layer including a heat-sensitive material layer and an adhesive material layer, and a protective layer that protects the adhesive material layer. The second cutter 902 may be a cutter that perforates the print medium 20, for example. The first cutter 901 and the second cutter 902 are examples of cutters that cut the print medium 20 provided in the cutting processing unit 9. The cutting processing unit 9 may include only the first cutter 901.

[0024] The discharge roller position is a position where the print medium 20 is discharged by the discharge rollers (upper discharge roller 10 and lower discharge roller 11), and is located downstream of the half-cut position. In the printing device 1 of this embodiment, for example, the upper discharge roller 10 is a driven roller that rotates in a rotation direction by the power of a motor to send the print medium 20 to the discharge opening 301, and the lower discharge roller 11 is a driven roller.

[0025] In the transport path illustrated in FIG. 3, the print medium 20 can be transported in either the forward or reverse direction when it is clamped at at least one of the two positions, the printing position and the discharge roller position. That is, if the length of the print medium 20 in the transport direction is less than the distance L0 between the printing position and the discharge roller position on the transport path, the print medium 20 may drop off downward from the transport path between the printing position and the discharge roller position. For this reason, the printing device 1 of this embodiment is provided with a retention section 40 between the printing position and the discharge roller position that retains a piece of medium T (print medium 20) that has dropped off from the discharge path of the print medium 20 in a state where it can move toward the lower discharge roller 11 (downstream). The printing device 1 of this embodiment is also provided with a charging device 41 that induces a Coulomb force between the piece of medium T (print medium 20) retained in the retention section 40 and the lower discharge roller 11. The printing medium 20 is made of, for example, paper (release paper) on one main surface and polyethylene terephthalate resin (protective film) on the other main surface. In the printing apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the charging device 41 is a device that emits corona discharge, which negatively charges the printing medium 20, toward the retention section 40, and the lower discharge roller 11 is a grounded metal roller. The lower discharge roller 11 may, for example, have a circumferential surface (surface) made of a metal layer that is grounded. The charging device 41 that emits corona discharge includes a DC high-voltage power supply 4101 and an electrode needle 4102.

[0026] That is, in the printing device 1 of this embodiment, a piece of medium T that has left the transport path and is retained in the retention section 40 is attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 by Coulomb force (electrostatic force), and one end of the piece of medium T is guided between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11, and is sent toward the discharge outlet 301. At this time, a roller guard 305 is provided on a portion of the inner surface 303 of the main body 3 facing the lower discharge roller 11 so that the piece of medium T attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 is separated from the lower discharge roller 11 and discharged from the discharge outlet 301 to the outside of the printing device 1. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 3 , the roller guard 305 is provided by forming a concave surface 304 along the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 on the portion of the inner surface 303 of the main body 3 facing the lower discharge roller 11 so that the distance G from the lower discharge roller 11 is shorter than the distance corresponding to the thickness of the print medium 20. The piece of media T that is attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 and sent downstream of the discharge roller position separates from the lower discharge roller 11 when its starting end abuts the roller guard 305, and is discharged outside the main body 3 (printing device 1) through the discharge outlet 301.

[0027] 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a printing device according to the first embodiment. The printing device 1 of this embodiment includes a control unit 100, a storage unit 120, an input unit 130, a display unit 135, a conveyance processing unit 140, a print processing unit 8, a cutting processing unit 9, a discharge processing unit 145, a charging processing unit 150, a sensor 180, and a communication unit 190.

[0028] The input unit 130 is an input device for inputting various information to the printing device 1, and includes, for example, the above-mentioned button switch 5. The display unit 135 is a display device for displaying various information to the user of the printing device 1, and includes, for example, the above-mentioned LED indicator 6.

[0029] The transport processing unit 140 performs a transport process (transport operation) of the print medium 20 under the control of the control unit 100. The transport processing unit 140 includes, for example, a platen roller 7, a motor connected to the platen roller 7, a drive circuit for driving the motor, and an encoder for detecting the number of rotations (rotation angle) of the platen roller 7. The print processing unit 8 performs a print process (print operation) on the print medium 20 under the control of the control unit 100. The print processing unit 8 includes, for example, a thermal head 801, a drive circuit for driving the heating elements 801a of the thermal head 801, and a thermistor for detecting the temperature of the thermal head 801. The cut processing unit 9 performs a cut process (cut operation) to cut the print medium 20 under the control of the control unit 100. The cut processing unit 9 includes, for example, a first cutter 801, a second cutter 802, motors connected to each cutter, and a drive circuit for driving the motor. The discharge processing unit 145 performs a discharge process (discharge operation) of the print medium 20 under the control of the control unit 100. The discharge processing unit 145 includes, for example, upper discharge rollers 10, lower discharge rollers 11, a motor connected to the upper discharge rollers 10, and a drive circuit that drives the motor. The discharge processing unit 145 may be configured to perform a conveyance process (discharge operation) in conjunction with the conveyance processing unit 140, for example.

[0030] The charging unit 150 performs a charging process that induces a Coulomb force in an attractive direction between the discharge roller 11 and the piece of medium T (printed medium 20) retained in the retention unit 40. The charging unit 150 in the printing device of this embodiment is, for example, a charging device 41 that emits a corona discharge that negatively charges the piece of medium T.

[0031] The control unit 100 controls various operations of the printing device 1, including controlling the operations of each processing unit: the conveyance processing unit 140, the print processing unit 8, the cutting processing unit 9, the discharge processing unit 145, and the charging processing unit 150. The control unit 100 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment includes a charge discharge control unit 101. The charge discharge control unit 101 causes the charge processing unit 150 (charging device 41) to perform charging processing when printing is performed on the print medium 13 after the print medium 20 has been cut by the first cutter 901.

[0032] The control by the control unit 100 is performed by, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program stored in the storage unit 120. The control unit 100 may be a FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or the like.

[0033] The storage unit 120 stores various programs executed by the processor serving as the control unit 100, various data used when executing the programs, etc. The storage unit 120 includes a RAM (Random Access Memory) 121 and a ROM (Read Only Memory) 122. The storage unit 120 includes an internal memory such as a cache built into hardware such as the processor serving as the control unit 100.

[0034] The sensor 180 detects, for example, whether or not a medium adapter 22 is attached, and the width of the print medium 20 supplied from the attached medium adapter 22. The communication unit 190 is a communication interface that communicates with an external device (information processing device 30), such as a smartphone or tablet computer. The communication unit 190 can perform at least one of wireless communication according to a known short-range wireless communication standard and wired communication using a transmission cable such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable.

[0035] When using the printing device 1 of this embodiment, the user creates a print layout using, for example, an information processing device 30 with a specific application installed, and sets settings such as margins, number of copies to be printed, and cutting. When the user then inputs a command to start printing into the information processing device 30, print data is transferred from the information processing device 30 to the printing device 1, and the printing device 1 performs printing on the print medium 20 based on the print data to create a label. When the printing device 1 of this embodiment receives the print data, it performs processing such as that illustrated in FIG. 5.

[0036] FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment.

[0037] When the printing device 1 of this embodiment receives print data, it first determines whether the print data includes a half-cut instruction (step S1). The determination in step S1 is made by the control unit 100. The control unit 100 determines whether the print data includes an instruction to perform a cut (half-cut) using the second cutter 902 on a portion downstream of the area to be printed before printing on the print medium 20. If there is a half-cut instruction (step S1; YES), the printing device 1 half-cuts the print medium 20 (step S2) and then prints on the print medium 20 based on the print data (step S3). If there is no half-cut instruction (step S1; NO), the printing device 1 omits the half-cut in step S2 and performs printing on the print medium 20 (step S3). In step S3, the printing device 1 transports the print medium 20 in the reverse direction so that the print start line, which is a predetermined distance from the starting end (downstream end) of the print medium 20, moves to the printing position on the transport path, and then prints on the print medium 20 using the thermal head 801 while transporting the print medium 20 in the forward direction.

[0038] When printing on the print medium 20 is completed, the printer 1 determines whether the previous full cut end flag is on (step S4). The determination in step S4 is made by the control unit 100 (more specifically, the charge discharge control unit 101). The previous full cut end flag is a flag that indicates whether a cut (full cut) was performed by the first cutter 901 in the process performed before starting the currently performed process from step S1 onwards, and in this embodiment, it is set to on if a full cut was performed. If the previous full cut end flag is on (step S4; YES), the printer 1 performs a process to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11 in a direction that attracts them to each other (step S5), and turns off the previous full cut end flag (step S6).

[0039] In step S5, the printing apparatus 1 of this embodiment operates the charging device 41 to negatively charge the print medium 20 by corona discharge. For example, under the control of the charge discharge control unit 101, the charging device 41 applies a voltage from the DC high-voltage power supply 4101 to the electrode needle 4102 for a short period of about 500 msec. At this time, a weak discharge called corona discharge occurs from the tip of the electrode needle 4102, and the air around the electrode needle 4102 (the retention section 40) is negatively ionized, so that the piece of medium T (print medium 20) retained in the retention section 40 is negatively charged. Therefore, if the lower discharge roller 11 is a grounded metal roller, the surface of the lower discharge roller 11 becomes charged with static electricity of the opposite polarity to the piece of medium T, and the piece of medium T is attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 by electrostatic induction.

[0040] If the previous full cut end flag is off (step S4; NO), or if steps S5 and S6 have been performed, the printing device 1 next determines whether or not there is an instruction to perform a full cut (step S7). The determination in step S7 is made by the control unit 100. The control unit 100 determines whether or not the print data includes an instruction to perform a cut (full cut) with the first cutter 901 on a line upstream of the area where printing has been performed on the printing medium 20. If there is a full cut instruction (step S7; YES), the printing device 1 fully cuts the printing medium 20 (step S8) and sets the previous full cut end flag to on (step S9).

[0041] If there is no full cut instruction (step S7; NO), or if steps S8 and S9 have been processed, the printing device 1 activates the discharge rollers (upper discharge roller 10 and lower discharge roller 11) (step S10) and transports the print medium 20 in the forward direction. At this time, the piece of medium T that has accumulated in the accumulation section 40 and has been negatively charged in the above-mentioned step S5 is attracted to the lower discharge roller 11, and is guided between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 by the rotation of the lower discharge roller 11, and is discharged to the outside of the printing device 1 from the discharge port 301 together with the print medium 20 that is transported in the forward direction along the transport path.

[0042] After operating the discharge rollers, the printer 1 determines whether or not there is an instruction for continuous printing (step S11). The determination in step S11 is made by the control unit 100. The control unit 100 determines that there is an instruction for continuous printing if the print data includes an instruction to perform the printing in step S3 multiple times and there is printing that has not yet been performed. If there is an instruction for continuous printing (step S11; YES), the printer 1 repeats the processing from step S1 onwards. If there is no instruction for continuous printing (step S11; NO), the printer 1 ends the series of processes based on the print data.

[0043] In this way, when printing on the print medium 20 after the print medium 20 has been fully cut, the printing device 1 of this embodiment performs a process of inducing an attractive Coulomb force between the print medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11, and then operates the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 to perform a transport process of transporting the print medium 20 in the forward direction on the transport path. By performing this process, if a piece of medium T is retained in the retention section 40, the piece of medium can be automatically discharged together with the print medium 20 on the transport path.

[0044] FIG. 6 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of a reason why a piece of medium gets stuck in the stagnating section. FIG. 7 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of a reason why a piece of medium gets stuck in the stagnating section. FIG. 8 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of a process performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of a process performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. Note that the stagnating section 40 is not shown in each of FIGS. 6 to 9. The "up" and "down" directions in each of FIGS. 6 to 9 correspond to the directions illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, respectively.

[0045] Figs. 6(a1) and (a2) show an example of the state of the conveyance path when printing is performed on the printing medium 20 in the printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment. As illustrated in (a1), when the remaining length LT of the printing medium 20 is shorter than the length corresponding to the distance L0 from the printing position to the discharge roller position (LT < L0) and longer than the length corresponding to the distance (not shown) from the printing position to the full cut position, the printing apparatus 1 rotates the platen roller 7 forward and performs printing on the printing medium 20 while conveying the printing medium 20 in the forward direction. However, in this case, before the start end 20s of the printing medium 20 conveyed in the forward direction reaches the discharge roller position, the end 20e of the printing medium 20 moves from the upstream side to the downstream side of the printing position. Therefore, as illustrated in (a2), the printing medium 20 detaches from the conveyance path and drops below the conveyance path, and stays in a stay portion 40 not shown as a medium piece T.

[0046] At this time, if there is an instruction to fully cut the printing medium 20 after printing on the printing medium 20, the printing apparatus 1 operates the first cutter 901 in a state where the printing medium 20 has detached from the conveyance path, for example, as illustrated in Fig. 7(a3). Therefore, the printing medium 20 cannot be cut. Moreover, even if the discharge rollers (the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11) are operated, the printing medium 20 is not discharged from the discharge port 301.

[0047] When the printing medium 20 is not discharged from the discharge port 301 in this way, the user of the printing apparatus 1 determines that the printing medium 20 in the media adapter 22 has run out (paper out), and replenishes the printing medium 20 (the media roll 21), for example, as illustrated in Fig. 7(a4). However, as illustrated in Fig. 3, since there is a section covered by a part of the main body 3 between the printing position and the discharge position, the user may not notice the medium piece T in the stay portion 40 when replenishing the printing medium 20. If the user does not notice the presence of the medium piece T, in a conventional printing apparatus, since the medium piece T continues to stay, there is a high possibility of adversely affecting the conveyance and cutting of the printing medium 20.

[0048] In contrast, in the printing device 1 of this embodiment, when printing is performed on the print medium 20 after the first cutter 801 has fully cut the print medium 20, a process is performed to induce an attractive Coulomb force between the print medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11 (step S5), as described above with reference to FIG. 8. Specifically, as illustrated in (a5) and (a6) of FIG. 8, a corona discharge is emitted from the electrode needle 4102 of the charging device 41 toward the retention section 40 (not shown), negatively charging the piece of medium T retained in the retention section 40. At this time, if the lower discharge roller 11, which is located downstream of the retention section 40 and below the conveyance path, is a grounded metal roller, an attractive Coulomb force is induced between the negatively charged piece of medium T (print medium 20) and the lower discharge roller 11. This Coulomb force attracts the piece of medium T to the lower discharge roller 11, which is rotatably attached to the main body 3.

[0049] Therefore, after operating the charging device 41 (charging unit 150), a transport operation is performed to transport the print medium 20 in the forward direction along the transport path, and when the lower discharge roller 11 rotates in a rotational direction that sends the print medium 20 forward, the piece of medium T is attracted to the lower discharge roller 11, and one end of the piece of medium T is guided between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 (i.e., the transport path), as illustrated in (a7) of FIG. 9 . In the printing device 1 of the type illustrated in this embodiment, for example, the distance between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 at the discharge roller position can be changed within a predetermined range to accommodate the discharge of multiple types of print media 20 with different thicknesses. Furthermore, because the thickness of the print media 20 is very thin, for example, even if the print media 20 are overlapping, the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 can be operated (rotated) to discharge the overlapping print media 20. Therefore, after the print medium 20 on the transport path is fully cut by the first cutter 901, the upper discharge rollers 10 and lower discharge rollers 11 are operated to discharge the print medium 20 downstream of the full cut position, and the piece of medium T attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 is caught between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11 and is sent downstream of the discharge roller position together with the fully cut print medium 20. After passing the discharge roller position, the piece of medium T attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 abuts against the roller guard 305 provided on the main body 3 and is separated from the lower discharge roller 11, and is discharged together with the print medium 20 (piece of medium T2) from the discharge opening 301 to the outside of the printing device 1. In other words, providing the roller guard 305 on the main body 3 prevents the piece of medium T attracted to the lower discharge roller 11 and passing the discharge roller position from returning to the retention section 40 while still attracted to the lower discharge roller 11. Furthermore, since the thickness of the printing medium 20 is very thin, there is almost no clogging (discharge error) when the overlapping printing medium 20 (medium pieces T1 and T2) passes between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11, and there is almost no plastic deformation of the printing medium 20 due to pressure from the rollers.Furthermore, since the print medium 20 (media pieces T1 and T2) that are discharged in an overlapping state have been discharged for a sufficient amount of time since printing was completed, there is almost no deterioration in the print quality of the print medium 20 due to the print medium 20 (media pieces T1 and T2) being discharged in an overlapping state.

[0050] Note that FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a retention of the print medium 20 (medium piece T) in which the remaining length LT of the print medium 20 is shorter than the distance L0 from the printing position to the discharge roller position. However, even when the medium piece T is retained due to other factors, the printing device 1 of this embodiment can quickly discharge the retained medium piece T. For example, as the print medium 20 is consumed, the portion of the print medium 20 used for printing becomes closer to the central axis of the medium roll 21, increasing its curvature. Therefore, as the remaining print medium 20 decreases, the print medium 20 conveyed along the conveyance path tends to bend more, and the leading end of the print medium 20 conveyed forward may deviate from the path between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11. In such a case, if the print medium 20 is fully cut by the first cutter 901, the print medium 20 downstream of the full cut position may remain in the retention section 40 even if the upper discharge roller 10 is operated (rotated) after cutting. Furthermore, for example, if printing and cutting are performed while the installation direction of the printing device 1 is different from the recommended direction, the print medium 20 may become separated from the transport path and become stuck. Even if ejection of the cut print medium 20 fails in this way, the printing device 1 of this embodiment can eject the print medium 20 (medium piece T) that failed to be ejected to the outside when the next printing is performed.

[0051] As described above, in the printing device 1 of this embodiment, when printing on the print medium 20 after performing the operation of fully cutting the print medium 20, the charging unit 150 (charging device 41) performs a process of inducing a Coulomb force between the print medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11 in an attractive direction (step S5), and then operates the discharge rollers so that the lower discharge roller 11 rotates in the direction of discharging the print medium 20. By controlling the operation of the printing device 1 to perform this process, if the print medium 20 (piece of medium T) that has left the transport path becomes stuck, the stuck piece of medium T can be automatically and promptly discharged outside the printing device 1 without the user being aware of it.

[0052] The charging processing unit 150 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment is not limited to the charging device 41 that negatively charges the printing medium 20 (medium piece T) by the corona discharge described above, but may be any device that is capable of electrically performing a charging process that induces a Coulomb force in the attracting direction between the printing medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11.

[0053] [Second embodiment] In this embodiment, referring to Figure 10, we will explain an example configuration of a charging processing unit 150 that performs charging processing to induce Coulomb forces in the attracting direction between the printing medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11 by charging the lower discharge roller 11.

[0054] Fig. 10 is a left-side cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a portion of the transport path for the print medium in a printing device according to the second embodiment. Similar to Fig. 3, Fig. 10 illustrates a linear transport path for the print medium 20 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment. "Top," "bottom," "front," and "back" in Fig. 10 correspond to "top," "bottom," "front," and "back" in Figs. 1 and 2, respectively.

[0055] In the printing apparatus 1 of this embodiment, instead of the charging device 41 illustrated in the first embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 10 , a static electricity generating member 12 is used, which is attached to a recessed surface 304 on the inner surface 303 of the main body 3 facing the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 and contacts the lower discharge roller 11. The material used for the static electricity generating member 12 and the material of the portion including the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 are combined so that friction between the lower discharge roller 11 and the static electricity generating member 12 when the lower discharge roller 11 rotates generates static electricity of a polarity that attracts the print medium 20 to the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11. One example of such a combination is a combination in which the static electricity generating member 12 is made of fur or wool fabric, which is relatively easily charged positively, and the portion including the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 is made of a resin material, such as polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene, which is relatively easily charged negatively. Note that the combination of materials for the static electricity generating member 12 and the lower discharge roller 11 is not limited to the above and can be changed as appropriate. For example, it can be selected based on a known triboelectric series.

[0056] 10 , the printing device 1 of this embodiment is provided with an inclined surface 4001 in the retention section 40, the distance from which increases toward the downstream side of the conveyance path. When the printing device 1 is installed and used with such an inclined surface 4001 and the retention section 40 positioned below the conveyance path, the print medium 20 (piece of medium T) that has left the conveyance path slides along the inclined surface 4001 toward the lower discharge roller 11. At this time, the retention section 40 is configured so that the distance between the downstream end of the inclined surface 4001 and the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 is shorter than the distance corresponding to the thickness of the print medium 20, preventing the print medium 20 (piece of medium T) from moving further downward through the gap between the retention section 40 and the lower discharge roller 11.

[0057] In the printing device 1 of this embodiment, when the print medium 20 passes between the upper and lower discharge rollers 10 and 11, the discharge rollers are operated to rotate the lower discharge roller 11, causing the lower discharge roller 11 to become electrically charged due to friction between the lower discharge roller 11 and the static electricity generating member 12. As described above, if the static electricity generating member 12 is made of fur or wool fabric and the portion including the circumferential surface of the lower discharge roller 11 is made of a resin material such as polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene, the lower discharge roller 11 will be negatively charged. In this case, if the print medium 20 has paper (release paper) on one main surface and polyethylene terephthalate resin (protective film) on the other main surface, as exemplified in the first embodiment, the electrical state of the print medium 20 can be considered to be positively charged relative to the lower discharge roller 11. Therefore, for example, if the lower discharge roller 11 is negatively charged, a Coulomb force will be generated in the direction in which the print medium 20 and the lower discharge roller 11 attract each other. Therefore, like the printing device 1 of the first embodiment, when a print medium 20 (medium piece T) that has left the transport path becomes stuck, the printing device 1 of this embodiment can automatically eject the stuck medium piece T outside the printing device 1 at an early stage without the user being aware of it.

[0058] Furthermore, the printing device 1 of this embodiment can quickly eject the accumulated print medium 20 (medium piece T) without electrical control, thereby suppressing increases in power consumption. Also, the device can be configured at a relatively low cost.

[0059] The static electricity generating member 12 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment only needs to come into contact with the lower discharge roller 11 at a position different from the path that leads the print medium 20 (medium piece T) retained in the retention section 40 to between the upper discharge roller 10 and the lower discharge roller 11, and be able to charge the lower discharge roller 11 through friction with the rotating lower discharge roller 11. For this reason, the shape of the static electricity generating member 12 and the method of attaching it to the inner surface 303 of the main body 3 are not limited to the form exemplified in Figure 10, and other forms are also possible.

[0060] 10, the lower discharge roller 11 and static electricity generating member 12 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment are not limited to being in constant contact, but may be configured so that the position of the static electricity generating member 12 can be changed between being in contact with the lower discharge roller 11 and being spaced apart from the lower discharge roller 11. With such a configuration, the static electricity generating member 12 can be brought into contact with the lower discharge roller 11 to charge the lower discharge roller 11 only when, for example, a transport operation is performed to transport the print medium 20 in the forward direction after printing, and the occurrence of poor charging due to wear of the static electricity generating member 12 can be delayed.

[0061] The above-described embodiment is a specific example shown to facilitate understanding of the invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The printing device, control method, and program can be modified and changed in various ways without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0062] The retention section 40 is not limited to the box shape illustrated in FIG. 3 or the shape having an inclined surface 4001 illustrated in FIG. 10, and may have other shapes. For example, the inclined surface 4001 may be provided on the retention section 40 in the first embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 3. Furthermore, for example, when a box-shaped retention section 40 such as that illustrated in FIG. 3 is provided, the bottom surface that receives the print medium 20 (medium piece T) that has left the transport path may be oriented at an angle with respect to the transport path. Furthermore, the retention section 40 may be, for example, a part of the main body section 3, or may be a component that covers the periphery of the cutting processing section 9 as illustrated in FIG. 2 and is detachable from the main body section 3.

[0063] Furthermore, the operation for discharging the print medium 20 (medium piece T) that has left the transport path may be performed, for example, when the printer 1 is turned on or when the lid unit 4 is attached to the main body unit 3, in addition to or instead of being performed after printing as described above with reference to FIG. 5 . For example, when the printer 1 is turned on, the print medium 20 (medium piece T) or the lower discharge roller 11 may be charged to transport the print medium 20 on the transport path in the forward direction by a predetermined transport distance, and then the print medium 20 may be transported in the reverse direction by the same transport distance. A printer 1 that performs the operation for discharging the print medium 20 (medium piece T) that has left the transport path when the printer 1 is turned on or when the lid unit 4 is attached to the main body unit 3 may, for example, be one that does not include the cutting unit 9. Even in a printer 1 that does not include the cutting unit 9, if the remaining amount of print medium 20 is small, the print medium 20 transported in the forward direction may leave the transport path and become stuck in the printer 1. Therefore, even when the present invention is applied to a printing device 1 in which the cutting processing unit 9 is omitted, the accumulated pieces of media T can be automatically discharged outside the printing device 1 at an early stage without the user being aware of it.

[0064] 1 and 4, the printing device 1 is not limited to a device that prints based on print data transferred from the information processing device 30, but may also be provided with a keyboard that can be used for creating a print layout, etc., and a display that displays information such as the print layout. Furthermore, the printing device 1 is not limited to the thermal type device described above, but may be a device using other printing methods such as a thermal transfer type or an inkjet type.

[0065] The inventions described in the claims of the present application as originally filed are as follows: [Appendix 1] a conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; Equipped with The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A printing device characterized by: [Appendix 2] a cutting unit that cuts the print medium, The discharge roller position is set between a cut position where the cutter cuts the print medium and the position of the discharge port where the print medium is discharged to the outside of the device, on the conveyance path. 2. The printing device according to claim 1, [Appendix 3] A roller guard is provided between the discharge roller position and the discharge port position on the transport path to separate the print medium, which has been attracted to the one discharge roller and has been released from the transport path, from the one discharge roller. 3. The printing device according to claim 1 or 2. [Appendix 4] the one discharge roller has a metal layer on at least the surface that comes into contact with the print medium, and the metal layer is grounded; The charging unit is a charging device that charges the print medium by emitting a corona discharge to a retention portion where the print medium that has left the transport path is retained. 4. The printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. [Appendix 5] Further, a printing unit that prints on the print medium is provided. a control unit that charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller with the charging processing unit when the print medium is printed on by the printing unit after the print medium is cut by the cutting unit; 5. The printing device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising: [Appendix 6] The charging unit is a static electricity generating member that contacts one of the discharge rollers at a position different from the path that guides the print medium that has separated from the transport path between the pair of discharge rollers, and charges the one of the discharge rollers by friction with the rotating one of the discharge rollers. 4. The printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. [Appendix 7] The one discharge roller is a discharge roller that is disposed below the transport path in the installation direction when the printing device is operated. 7. The printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6. [Appendix 8] a conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; A printing device comprising: the charging unit charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A control method comprising: [Appendix 9] a conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; A printing device comprising: the charging unit charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A program characterized by executing a process. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1 Printing device 100 control section 101 Charge discharge control section 120 Storage section 121 RAM 122 ROM 130 Input section 135 Display section 140 Transport processing section 145 Discharge processing unit 150 Charging processing unit 180 sensors 190 Communications Department 2. Device housing 3 Main body 301 Outlet 302 Adapter mounting part 303 Inner surface 304 Concave 305 Roller Guard 4 Lid 5-button switch 6 Indicators 7 Platen roller 8 Print processing unit 801 Thermal Head 9 Cut processing section 901 First Cutter 902 Second Cutter 10 Upper discharge roller 11 Lower discharge roller 12 Static electricity generating materials 20 Printing media 20s beginning 20e termination 21 Media Roll 22 Media Adapter 30 Information processing equipment 40 Retention part 4001 Slope 41 Charging device 4101 DC high voltage power supply 4102 Electrode needle T, T2 media piece

Claims

1. a conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; Equipped with the one discharge roller has a metal layer on at least the surface that comes into contact with the print medium, and the metal layer is grounded; the charging unit is a charging device that charges the print medium by emitting a corona discharge to a retention portion where the print medium that has been separated from the transport path is retained, The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A printing device characterized by:

2. A conveying unit that conveys a print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; Equipped with the charging unit is a static electricity generating member that contacts one of the discharge rollers at a position different from a path that guides the print medium that has separated from the transport path between the pair of discharge rollers, and charges the one of the discharge rollers by friction with the rotating one of the discharge rollers; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A printing device characterized by:

3. Further, a cutting unit that cuts the print medium is provided. The discharge roller position is set between a cut position where the cutter cuts the print medium and the position of the discharge port where the print medium is discharged to the outside of the device, on the conveyance path.

3. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the printing device is a printer.

4. a printing unit that prints on the print medium; a control unit that charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller using the charging processing unit when the print medium is cut by the cutting unit and then printed on by the printing unit; 4. The printing device according to claim 3, further comprising:

5. The one discharge roller is a discharge roller that is disposed below the transport path in the installation direction when the printing device is operated.

5. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the printing device is a printer.

6. a conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; Equipped with the one discharge roller has a metal layer on at least the surface that comes into contact with the print medium, and the metal layer is grounded; The charging unit is a charging device that charges the print medium by emitting a corona discharge to a retention portion where the print medium that has been separated from the transport path is retained. the charging unit charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A program characterized by executing a process.

7. A conveying unit that conveys the print medium; a pair of discharge rollers that are positioned in a transport path of the print medium transported by the transport unit and that feed the print medium toward a discharge outlet; a charging unit that charges at least one of the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers so as to induce a Coulomb force between the print medium and one of the pair of discharge rollers in an attractive direction; Equipped with The charging unit contacts one of the discharge rollers at a position different from the path along which the print medium that has been separated from the transport path is guided between the pair of discharge rollers, and is a static electricity generating member that charges the one of the discharge rollers by friction with the rotating one of the discharge rollers. the charging unit charges at least one of the print medium and the one discharge roller; The print medium that has left the transport path is attracted to one of the discharge rollers by the Coulomb force, and is discharged to the outside of the device as the pair of discharge rollers rotate. A program characterized by executing a process.

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