Thermal Print Head Placement for High-Speed Label Dispensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The demand for automatic, high-speed produce labelers that are both cost-effective and efficient in printing and applying labels to varying produce items at high speeds remains unmet by existing technologies.
Innovation Solution
An automatic direct thermal image printing system with a simplified gear drive mechanism for the rotary head and independent label carrier tape drive, featuring a label detection sensor, improved tape centering, and a novel print-head placement that minimizes distance between the print-head and label stripping point, allowing for efficient printing and application of variable labels on demand.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a traditional rotary head drive system with multiple moving parts is used, then the system can achieve rotational motion, but the device complexity increases and maintenance requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes unnecessary intermediate components from the drive system. The label carrier tape drive is decoupled from the rotary head drive, and the rotary head uses a simplified direct gear drive system with a dedicated stepper motor and three directly driven gears, eliminating more than half the moving parts of typical prior art rotary head drives.
Solution Approach 2:
The drive system is divided into independent modules: a dedicated stepper motor drives the rotary head through a simplified gear train, while a separate independent drive system controls the label carrier tape. This segmentation allows each subsystem to be optimized independently and reduces overall system complexity.
2Productivity
If the print-head is positioned far from the label stripping point, then there is more space for components, but the labeling speed decreases and productivity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions the print-head at a specific location relative to the label stripping point in three-dimensional space, optimizing the spatial arrangement to minimize the distance between these critical components while maintaining proper functional alignment. This optimized placement enables high-speed operation at 240 to 840 labels per minute per lane.
3Productivity
If labels are printed and applied in separate operations, then each operation can be optimized independently, but the overall labeling time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the printing and label application operations into a single integrated process. The print-head location is positioned relative to the label stripping location so that a label is printed and dispensed onto a bellow in one index of the rotary head, merging what were traditionally separate operations into a unified simultaneous process.
Solution Approach 2:
The label is printed in advance during the indexing process before it needs to be applied to the produce item. The print-head prints the label on the carrier tape as it moves through the indexing mechanism, so the printing is completed beforehand and the label is ready for immediate application without waiting time.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables high-speed labeling of up to 840 labels per minute with improved efficiency, extended bellow life, and enhanced print quality by printing labels before they are applied, reducing wear and tear on components.
Implementation Method 1
automatic direct thermal image printing system
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A
Figure 2B~2D
AI summary
An automatic, thermal print on demand labeler is provided. The thermal print head is placed above the axis of rotation of the rotary head, with a cylindrical platen mounted horizontally opposite the print head. A stripper pin is mounted below the platen; the pin is positioned very close to the print region of the print head. This positioning of components results in a label being printed and dispensed onto a bellow in one index of the multi-bellow rotary head. Independent direct gear drive trains are provided for the rotary head and label tape drive.