Printer Ribbon Roller Disengaging Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing printers face challenges in accurately connecting the rotating shaft of the ribbon roller to its driving unit without breaking, due to complex mechanisms and dimensional inaccuracies when installing or removing the ribbon roller.
Innovation Solution
A printer design featuring a moving member with a protruding portion and a disengaging member with a sloping face, allowing the driving unit to be easily connected and disconnected from the rotating shaft, ensuring accurate alignment and preventing breakage during installation and removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a pressing member is used to connect the rotating shaft to the driving unit when the drawer unit is loaded, then the connection is achieved, but the connecting portion may break due to pressing force if the ribbon roller is not correctly installed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cushioning member (elastic element) between the pressing member and the rotating shaft to absorb excessive pressing force. This cushioning mechanism prevents breakage of the connecting portion while still enabling reliable connection when the drawer unit is properly loaded, thus resolving the contradiction between ease of connection and connection reliability
2Ease of operation
If the mechanism for relatively moving the ribbon roller is provided on both the cabinet and the drawer unit, then the movement capability is achieved, but the structure becomes complex and movement accuracy is difficult to enhance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the relative movement function from the cabinet side and concentrates it solely on the drawer unit side. The moving member is provided only on the drawer unit, while the driving unit remains fixed on the cabinet. This simplifies the overall mechanism structure while maintaining the necessary movement capability, and improves movement accuracy by having a single source of movement control
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the connection mechanism into a fixed driving unit portion and a movable moving member portion. The moving member is designed as a separate component that can slide relative to the driving unit, enabling the rotating shaft to be connected or disconnected as needed. This segmentation achieves movement capability with a simple, modular structure
Data Source
Figure 1(A)~1(B)
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Provided is a printer in which the rotating shaft of a ribbon roller can be connected to its driving unit with high accuracy by using a mechanism simple in structure, while preventing breakage that may occur when connecting the rotating shaft to the driving unit. The printer (1) includes a cabinet (7), a drawer unit (11) which can be drawn out of the cabinet, a ribbon roller (4A, 4B) on which a belt-like ink ribbon used for transferring to a recording sheet is wound, a driving unit (31A, 31B) which drives the ribbon roller for rotation by being connected to a rotating shaft (14A, 14B) of the ribbon roller when the drawer unit is loaded in the cabinet, and a disengaging member (40) which is provided on the cabinet and which disengages the driving unit from the rotating shaft when the drawer unit is drawn out of the cabinet.