JP6680164B2 - Printing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing device.

  Conventionally, a printing apparatus that prints on a printing medium is known. For example, a printer, which is an example of a printing device disclosed in Patent Document 1, performs printing by sandwiching a sheet and an ink ribbon between a thermal head and a platen. During printing, the platen is driven by the paper transport motor. At the same time, the supply-side reel driven by the ribbon supply motor supplies an unused ink ribbon to the thermal head, and the winding-side reel driven by the ribbon winding motor winds up the used ink ribbon. Before printing, the ribbon supply motor and the ribbon winding motor are rotationally driven in a direction to remove the looseness of the ink ribbon. As a result, the loosening operation for removing the looseness of the ink ribbon is executed.

JP, 2007-118282, A

  A printer that does not include a ribbon supply motor and that drives the platen and the take-up reel by the same motor is conceivable. Further, it is conceivable that this printer executes a cueing operation. The cueing operation is an operation of the printer that conveys the print medium upstream in the conveyance direction before printing. In the printer, the cueing operation is performed, so that the sheet on the downstream side of the thermal head in the transport direction becomes shorter.

  However, since the platen and the take-up reel are driven by the same motor, the above-described printer needs to adopt a configuration in which the platen conveys the print medium to the downstream side in the conveying direction when the loosening operation is executed. . In this case, when the loosening operation is performed after the indexing operation is performed, the paper on the downstream side of the thermal head is less likely to be shortened. Therefore, there is a possibility that optimization of the loosening operation of the ink ribbon and optimization of the cueing operation of the print medium are not compatible.

  An object of the present invention is to perform printing in which the conveyance of a print medium and the winding of an ink ribbon can be executed by the same motor, and the loosening operation of the ink ribbon and the cueing operation of the print medium can be appropriately executed. It is to provide a device.

In the printing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention , a motor that is rotationally driven in a forward rotation direction and a reverse rotation direction, a guide portion that forms a transport area that is a space in which a print medium is transported, and one end of an ink ribbon are connected. An ink ribbon cassette having a take-up spool is attached at a predetermined position, and the predetermined position is a position where a part of a passage area of the ink ribbon wound by the take-up spool is included in the transport area. Is a member on which the ribbon mounting portion and the take-up spool of the ink ribbon cassette at the predetermined position are mounted, and the winding is performed by a normal rotation driving force which is a driving force of the motor in the normal rotation direction. A rotating member that rotates in the winding direction that winds up the ink ribbon integrally with the take-up spool, the forward rotation driving force, and the reverse rotation driving force that is the driving force of the motor in the reverse rotation direction. Of these, a transfer mechanism that transfers only the normal rotation driving force to the rotating member and a conveyance unit that is connected to the motor, and that conveys the print medium in a predetermined conveyance direction by the normal rotation driving force, A conveyance unit that conveys the print medium in a direction opposite to the conveyance direction by a reverse driving force; a head that prints on the print medium with the ink ribbon at a position that has entered the conveyance area; A printing position, which is a position where printing is performed on the print medium by entering the transport area, and a moving unit, which moves the print position between a print position and a separation position, which is farther from the print position. The first detection means that is provided at the guide portion at a position that can detect the print medium, the reception means that receives a start instruction to start printing on the print medium, and the reception means. When an instruction is received, the rotation member is rotated in the normal rotation direction by a predetermined rotation amount to rotate the rotating member in the winding direction, and at the same time, the receiving unit starts the print medium. The forward rotation control means for carrying in the carrying direction starting from the arrangement position when the instruction is received, and the forward rotation control means for rotationally driving the motor, and then for rotationally driving the motor in the backward direction, A control unit that conveys the print medium to a cue position based on a detection result of one detection unit, wherein the cue position is such that an end portion of the print medium in the conveyance direction is the first detection unit and the first detection unit. After the reverse rotation control means, which is a position between the head and the reverse rotation control means, rotationally drives the motor, the drive means is drive-controlled to move the head from the separation position to the printing position. And a movement control means for moving the head to the printing position, the motor is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the head is driven to print on the print medium. The first detection means includes a light emitting body that emits light, and a light receiving body that is arranged to face the light emitting body with a gap therebetween and is capable of receiving the light. A first determination unit that determines whether or not the first detection unit detects the print medium when the print medium that is arranged and blocks the light is detected and the reception unit receives the start instruction. When the first determination unit determines that the first detection unit does not detect the print medium, a specific print medium, which is the print medium through which the light can pass, is arranged in the gap. Whether or not The second determination means, wherein the normal rotation control means determines that the first determination means detects the print medium by the first determination means, or the second determination means. When it is determined that the specific print medium is arranged, the motor is rotationally driven, and the reverse rotation control unit is determined by the second determination unit that the specific print medium is arranged. In this case, if the motor is not rotationally driven in the reverse direction and the print control unit determines by the first determination unit that the first detection unit detects the print medium, the normal rotation is performed. The control means and the reverse rotation control means rotate and drive the motor in sequence, the movement control means moves the head to the printing position, then performs printing, and the second determination means determines that the specific print medium is If it is determined to be location, it said after the forward control means the movement control means rotates the said motor to move said head to said printing position, and performs printing.

According to the above configuration, the forward rotation control unit rotationally drives the motor, so that the transport unit transports the print medium in the transport direction, and the rotating member winds the ink ribbon through the winding spool. As a result, the loosening operation of the ink ribbon is executed. After the loosening operation of the ink ribbon is performed, the reverse rotation control unit rotationally drives the motor, so that the transport unit transports the print medium in the reverse direction. As a result, the cueing operation of the print medium is executed. When the cueing operation is executed, the transmission mechanism does not transmit the reverse rotation driving force to the rotating member, so that the loosening operation of the ink ribbon is not executed. After the cueing operation is executed, the head is moved to the print position by the movement control means, and the printing operation is executed by the print control means. The print medium cueing operation is performed after the ink ribbon loosening operation. Therefore, the print medium is difficult to be transported in the transport direction after the cueing operation is performed until the printing operation is performed. Therefore, the loosening operation of the ink ribbon and the cueing operation of the print medium are optimized. Further, when the same motor is rotationally driven in the normal rotation direction, the conveying unit conveys the print medium, and the rotating member winds the ink ribbon through the take-up spool. Therefore, it is possible to realize a printing apparatus that can perform the conveyance of the printing medium and the winding of the ink ribbon by the same motor, and can appropriately perform the loosening operation of the ink ribbon and the cueing operation of the printing medium. It
In a printing apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention, a motor that is rotationally driven in a forward rotation direction and a reverse rotation direction, a guide portion that forms a transport area that is a space in which a print medium is transported, and one end of an ink ribbon are connected. An ink ribbon cassette having a take-up spool is attached at a predetermined position, and the predetermined position is a position where a part of a passage area of the ink ribbon wound by the take-up spool is included in the transport area. Is a member on which the ribbon mounting portion and the take-up spool of the ink ribbon cassette at the predetermined position are mounted, and the winding is performed by a normal rotation driving force which is a driving force of the motor in the normal rotation direction. A rotating member that rotates in the winding direction that winds up the ink ribbon integrally with the take-up spool, the forward rotation driving force, and the reverse rotation driving force that is the driving force of the motor in the reverse rotation direction. Of these, a transfer mechanism that transfers only the normal rotation driving force to the rotating member and a conveyance unit that is connected to the motor, and that conveys the print medium in a predetermined conveyance direction by the normal rotation driving force, A conveyance unit that conveys the print medium in a direction opposite to the conveyance direction by a reverse driving force; a head that prints on the print medium with the ink ribbon at a position that has entered the conveyance area; A printing position, which is a position where printing is performed on the print medium by entering the transport area, and a moving unit, which moves the print position between a print position and a separation position, which is farther from the print position. The first detection means that is provided at the guide portion at a position that can detect the print medium, the reception means that receives a start instruction to start printing on the print medium, and the reception means. When an instruction is received, the rotation member is rotated in the normal rotation direction by a predetermined rotation amount to rotate the rotating member in the winding direction, and at the same time, the receiving unit starts the print medium. The forward rotation control means for carrying in the carrying direction starting from the arrangement position when the instruction is received, and the forward rotation control means for rotationally driving the motor, and then for rotationally driving the motor in the backward direction, A control unit that conveys the print medium to a cue position based on a detection result of one detection unit, wherein the cue position is such that an end portion of the print medium in the conveyance direction is the first detection unit and the first detection unit. After the reverse rotation control means, which is a position between the head and the reverse rotation control means, rotationally drives the motor, the drive means is drive-controlled to move the head from the separation position to the printing position. And a movement control means for moving the head to the printing position, the motor is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the head is driven to print on the print medium. A control means, a main body case in which the ribbon mounting portion is arranged inside, a movable position provided in the main body case and covering the ribbon mounting portion, and an open position for opening the ink ribbon cassette. A lid member, a lid detection unit that detects the lid member in the closed position, and a first state in which the lid detection unit does not detect the lid member, to a second state in which the lid member is detected. A third determination unit that determines whether or not the switching has been performed when the reception unit receives the start instruction, and the predetermined rotation amount is greater than the first predetermined rotation amount and the first predetermined rotation amount. Including a predetermined rotation amount, the normal rotation control means, if the third determination means determines that the lid detection means has not been switched from the first state to the second state, When it is determined by the first forward rotation control unit that rotationally drives only the first predetermined rotation amount and the third determination unit that the lid detection unit has switched from the first state to the second state, the motor is And a second normal rotation control means for rotationally driving the second predetermined rotation amount.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the printing apparatus 1. It is sectional drawing of the ribbon cassette 90 in the AA line arrow direction of FIG. It is an enlarged view in the area | region enclosed by the dashed-two dotted line W1 of FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the printing mechanism 80. 3 is an electrical block diagram of the printing apparatus 1. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a printing process. It is a top view of the main body case 11 with which the tube 9 was attached. FIG. 9 is a plan view of the main body case 11 in which the loosening of the ink ribbon 95 has been performed by a first predetermined rotation amount. FIG. 11 is a plan view of the main body case 11 in which the cueing operation of the tube 9 has been executed. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the main body case 11 in which a head 60 has moved to a holding position. FIG. 7 is a plan view of the main body case 11 with the ribbon cassette 90 replaced. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the main body case 11 in which the loosening of the ink ribbon 95 has been performed by a second predetermined rotation amount. It is a top view of the main body case 11 with which the tube 98 was attached. FIG. 6 is a plan view of a gear 65, a first gear 191, and a second gear 192.

<1. Outline of configuration of printing apparatus 1>
A printing apparatus 1 which is an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Hereinafter, the upper side, the lower side, the upper left side, the lower right side, the lower left side, and the upper right side in FIG. 1 are defined as the upper side, the lower side, the left side, the right side, the front side, and the rear side of the printing apparatus 1, respectively. The printing apparatus 1 of this example is an apparatus that prints a tube 9 (see FIG. 7) that is a cylindrical print medium. The tube 9 of this example does not have translucency. In the following description, both clockwise and counterclockwise indicate directions of rotation in plan view.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 includes a housing 10 including a main body case 11 and a lid member 12. The main body case 11 is a rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped member that is long in the left-right direction. The main body case 11 includes a mounting surface 11A that faces upward. The lid member 12 is a plate-shaped member arranged on the upper side of the main body case 11. One end of the lid member 12 is rotatably supported above the rear end of the main body case 11. The lid member 12 is rotatable between a closed position (not shown) and an open position (see FIG. 1). The closed position is the rotational position of the lid member 12 that covers the mounting surface 11A. The open position is the rotational position of the lid member 12 that opens the mounting surface 11A upward. Hereinafter, the direction in which the lid member 12 moves from the open position to the closed position is referred to as the closing direction, and the direction opposite to the closing direction is referred to as the opening direction. The closing direction is the direction in which the arrow A1 faces. The opening direction is the direction to which the arrow A2 faces.

  The lid member 12 is provided with the protruding portion 4. The protruding portion 4 protrudes from the lid member 12 in the closing direction. A lid sensor 24 (see FIG. 5) is provided inside the body case 11. The lid sensor 24 detects the protrusion 4 when the lid member 12 is in the closed position. That is, the lid sensor 24 can detect the lid member 12 in the closed position. A display unit 5 (see FIG. 5) is provided on the end surface of the lid member 12 in the opening direction. The display unit 5 can display various types of information regarding the printing apparatus 1.

  A substrate 19 is provided on the right rear portion inside the body case 11. The substrate 19 is provided with a CPU 41, a ROM 42, a RAM 44, a flash memory 45 (see FIG. 5) and the like. The CPU 41 controls the operation of the printing apparatus 1.

  An operation unit 17, a tube insertion port 15, and a tube discharge port 16 are provided on the side surface of the housing 10. The operation unit 17 is a plurality of operation buttons including a power button and a start button. The operation unit 17 is provided on the upper right side of the front surface of the main body case 11. The tube insertion port 15 is an opening for guiding the tube 9 into the housing 10. The tube insertion port 15 is provided in the rear upper part of the right surface of the main body case 11 and has a rectangular shape that is slightly long in the vertical direction. The tube discharge port 16 is an opening for discharging the tube 9 to the outside of the housing 10. The tube outlet 16 is provided in the upper rear portion of the left side of the main body case 11 and has a rectangular shape that is slightly long in the vertical direction. The tube discharge port 16 is slightly forward of the tube insertion port 15.

  The mounting portion 7 including the tube mounting portion 40 and the ribbon mounting portion 30 is provided on the mounting surface 11A. The mounting portion 7 is a recess that opens upward. The bottom wall portion of the mounting portion 7 faces the bottom wall portion of the main body case 11 from above with the support plate 14 (see FIG. 4) interposed therebetween. The support plate 14 is a plate-shaped member that extends in the left-right direction and the front-rear direction above the bottom wall portion of the main body case 11.

  The tube mounting portion 40 extends linearly from the tube insertion port 15 to the vicinity of the right side of the tube discharge port 16. The tube mounting portion 40 has a transfer area 58, which is a space in which the tube 9 is transferred, formed therein. The tube 9 can be attached to and detached from the tube attachment portion 40. Hereinafter, the direction in which the tube mounting portion 40 extends from the tube insertion port 15 toward the tube discharge port 16 is referred to as the transport direction, and the direction opposite to the transport direction is referred to as the reverse direction. The transport direction is the direction in which the arrow B1 faces. The opposite direction is the direction in which the arrow B2 faces.

  The ribbon mounting portion 30 is a portion where the ribbon cassette 90 can be attached and detached. The ribbon mounting portion 30 is formed in an opening shape that substantially corresponds to the ribbon cassette 90 in a plan view. The ribbon loading portion 30 of this example is provided on the left front portion of the loading surface 11A. The ribbon loading portion 30 is located on the front side of the tube loading portion 40.

  The space formed at the front end of the central portion of the tube mounting portion 40 in the extending direction communicates with the space formed at the rear end of the ribbon mounting portion 30. A space that allows the tube mounting portion 40 and the ribbon mounting portion 30 to communicate with each other is referred to as a communication space 8. A communication port (not shown) is formed in a portion of the bottom wall portion of the mounting portion 7 below the communication space 8. The communication port has a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view and penetrates the bottom wall portion of the mounting portion 7 in the vertical direction. The communication port is located above the center of the support plate 14 (see FIG. 4) in the left-right direction and the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the ribbon cassette 90 is mounted on the ribbon mounting portion 30. The ribbon cassette 90 includes a case 101, a ribbon spool 81, and a take-up spool 300. The case 101 is a box-shaped body that houses the ribbon spool 81, the take-up spool 300, and the like. The ribbon spool 81 and the take-up spool 300 are substantially cylindrical members that extend in the vertical direction. The ribbon spool 81 is arranged to the right of the take-up spool 300. The take-up spool 300 and the ribbon spool 81 are respectively rotatably supported by a first support hole 111 and a second support hole 112 provided in the case 101 about an axis extending in the vertical direction. The first support hole 111 is supported by the ribbon winding shaft 63 extending upward from the bottom wall portion of the ribbon mounting portion 30. The ribbon winding shaft 63 is rotatable integrally with the winding spool 300. The second support hole 112 is supported by the detection rotation shaft 71 described below. The detection rotating shaft 71 can rotate integrally with the ribbon spool 81.

  The ink ribbon 95 is wound around the ribbon spool 81 and the take-up spool 300 such that the width direction thereof is substantially parallel to the vertical direction. A part of the ink ribbon 95 bridging the ribbon spool 81 and the take-up spool 300 is exposed to the outside of the case 101 and arranged in the communication space 8 (see FIG. 7). Hereinafter, the ink ribbon 95 exposed to the outside from the case 101 is referred to as a specific ink ribbon 95A (see FIG. 7). The specific ink ribbon 95A is arranged in a portion of the tube 9 arranged in the communication space 8.

<2. Configuration of printing mechanism 80>
The printing mechanism 80 will be described with reference to FIGS. The printing mechanism 80 is a mechanism for sandwiching the tube 9 and the specific ink ribbon 95A in an overlapping state and printing a character on the tube 9. The character is, for example, a character, a figure, a number, a symbol, or the like. The printing mechanism 80 includes a carry amount detection unit 70, a carry unit 20, a print unit 50, a head moving unit 200, and the like.

<2-1. Transport amount detection unit 70>
The carry amount detector 70 shown in FIG. 2 is a member for detecting the carry amount of the ink ribbon 95 during the printing operation. The carry amount detection unit 70 includes a ribbon winding shaft 63, a drive motor 88 (see FIG. 5), a detection rotation shaft 71, a detection plate 72, and a sensor 73.

  The ribbon winding shaft 63 is a shaft member that extends upward from the bottom wall portion of the ribbon mounting portion 30, and is rotatably provided. The upper end of the ribbon winding shaft 63 is mounted in the first support hole 111 of the ribbon cassette 90. Hereinafter, the axis of the ribbon winding shaft 63 will be referred to as the axis 63A. The axis 63A coincides with the rotation center of the take-up spool 300 in plan view.

  A gear 65 is provided on the ribbon winding shaft 63 via a one-way clutch 68. The gear 65 is rotatable about the axis 63A. The gear 65 is connected to the drive motor 88. The drive motor 88 is provided inside the main body case 11 and can be rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction. The forward rotation direction is one direction in which the motor is rotationally driven. The reverse rotation direction is opposite to the normal rotation direction. The gear 65 rotates in the first direction by the normal rotation driving force which is the driving force of the driving motor 88 in the normal rotation direction. The reverse rotation drive force, which is the drive force of the drive motor 88 in the reverse rotation direction, causes the gear 65 to rotate in the second direction. The first direction is counterclockwise around the axis 63A, and the second direction is opposite to the first direction.

  The one-way clutch 68 restricts the rotational force of the gear 65 rotating in the second direction from being transmitted to the ribbon winding shaft 63. Therefore, the gear 65 is driven to rotate the ribbon winding shaft 63 when rotating in the first direction, and idles with respect to the ribbon winding shaft 63 when rotating in the second direction.

  The detection rotary shaft 71 extends to the right of the ribbon winding shaft 63 and extends upward from the bottom wall portion of the ribbon mounting portion 30. The upper end of the detection rotating shaft 71 is mounted in the second support hole 112 of the ribbon cassette 90. The detection plate 72 has a disk shape that projects radially outward from the vicinity of the lower end of the detection rotation shaft 71. The center of the detection plate 72 coincides with the axis of the detection rotating shaft 71 in plan view. The detection plate 72 is provided with a plurality of detection holes (not shown). The plurality of detection holes are holes arranged radially around the center of the detection plate 72 in a plan view and at equal intervals, and penetrate the detection plate 72 in the vertical direction.

  The sensor 73 is a transmissive photosensor having a light emitter 73A and a light receiver 73B. The light emitting body 73A and the light receiving body 73B are arranged to face each other on both upper and lower sides with the detection plate 72 interposed therebetween. The light emitted from the light emitting body 73A is received by the light receiving body 73B when passing through any of the plurality of detection holes. At this time, the sensor 73 outputs an ON signal. On the other hand, the light emitted from the light emitting body 73A is not received by the light receiving body 73B when reflected by the detection plate 72. At this time, the sensor 73 outputs an OFF signal.

<2-2. Transport section 20>
As shown in FIG. 4, the transport unit 20 includes a platen roller 27, a first transport unit 21, a second transport unit 22, an upstream sensor 23 (see FIG. 7), and a downstream sensor 25 (see FIG. 7). . The platen roller 27 is provided in the transport area 58 at a position behind the communication space 8.

  The first transport unit 21 is provided in the transport area 58 on the side opposite to the platen roller 27. The first transport unit 21 includes a drive roller 21A and a driven roller 21B. Both the drive roller 21A and the driven roller 21B extend in the vertical direction. The driven roller 21B is rotatably provided in front of the drive roller 21A.

  The second transport unit 22 is provided in the transport area 58 on the transport direction side of the platen roller 27. The second transport unit 22 includes a drive roller 22A and a driven roller 22B. Both the drive roller 22A and the driven roller 22B extend in the vertical direction. The driven roller 22B is rotatably provided in front of the drive roller 22A.

  The platen roller 27 and the drive rollers 21A and 22A are all connected to a drive motor 88. When the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven in the normal rotation direction, the platen roller 27 and the drive rollers 21A and 22A respectively rotate clockwise. On the other hand, when the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven in the reverse direction, the platen roller 27 and the drive rollers 21A and 22A respectively rotate counterclockwise.

  The driven rollers 21B and 22B can be displaced between the retracted position and the operating position. In FIG. 3, the driven rollers 21B and 22B in the retracted position are shown by solid lines, and the driven rollers 21B and 22B in the operating position are shown by two-dot chain lines. When the driven rollers 21B and 22B are in the operating position, the driven rollers 21B and 22B closely face the drive rollers 21A and 22A from the front. In this case, the driven rollers 21B and 22B can sandwich the tube 9 with the drive rollers 21A and 22A, respectively. On the other hand, when the driven rollers 21B and 22B are in the retracted position, the driven rollers 21B and 22B are separated from the drive rollers 21A and 22A to the front. The driven rollers 21B and 22B in the retracted position are both separated from the tube 9 forward.

  The driven rollers 21B and 22B are displaced between the retracted position and the acting position as the lever 79 (see FIG. 1) changes in posture. The lever 79 is provided inside the main body case 11 and behind the tube mounting portion 40. The lever 79 is displaced between an open posture, which is a posture that extends upward from the main body case 11, and a closed posture, which is a posture that extends in the left-right direction inside the main body case 11. When the user moves the lever 79 from the open position to the closed position, the driven rollers 21B and 22B are respectively displaced from the retracted position to the working position.

  The upstream sensor 23 (see FIG. 7) is provided between the first transport unit 21 and the tube insertion port 15 in the direction parallel to the transport direction. The upstream sensor 23 is fixed to the bottom wall portion of the tube mounting portion 40 at a position retracted downward from the transport area 58. The upstream sensor 23 of this example is a transmissive photosensor including a light emitter (not shown) and a light receiver (not shown). A movable member 29 (see FIG. 7) can enter the gap formed between the light emitter and the light receiver. The movable member 29 is movable between an entry position that is a position that enters the transport area 58 and a retracted position that is a location that retracts from the transport area 58. The movable member 29 in the retracted position enters between the light emitter and the light receiver of the upstream sensor 23. The movable member 29 is biased by a biasing member (not shown) in the direction from the retracted position to the approached position. The print medium mounted on the tube mounting portion 40 moves the movable member 29 from the entry position to the retracted position against the urging force of the urging member. The upstream sensor 23 detects the print medium by detecting the movable member 29 in the retracted position.

  The downstream side sensor 25 is provided between the second transport unit 22 and the tube outlet 16 in the direction parallel to the transport direction. The downstream sensor 25 includes a light emitter 25A and a light receiver 25B. The light emitter 25A and the light receiver 25B face each other in the front-rear direction with the transport region 58 sandwiched therebetween. The print medium having a light-shielding property, which is arranged between the light emitter 25A and the light receiver 25B (that is, the transport region 58) blocks the light emitted from the light emitter 25A toward the light receiver 25B, so that the downstream sensor 25 detects a print medium.

<2-3. Printing section 50>
As shown in FIG. 4, the printing unit 50 includes a support member 52, an extending portion 62, and a head 60. The support member 52 is a plate-shaped member that is disposed between the bottom wall portion of the mounting portion 7 (see FIG. 1) and the support plate 14 and has a substantially rectangular shape in plan view. The right end of the support member 52 is rotatably supported by a support shaft 59 that stands upright from the support plate 14. A through hole 53 is provided at the clockwise end of the support member 52. The through hole 53 penetrates the support member 52 in the vertical direction.

  A shaft member 54 extending upward is provided at a substantially central portion in the longitudinal direction of the support member 52. The upper part of the shaft member 54 passes through the above-mentioned communication port (not shown) and enters the communication space 8 (see FIG. 3). A roller 55 is rotatably provided at the upper end of the shaft member 54.

  The extended portion 62 is provided on the left side of the support member 52. The extended portion 62 extends upward from the support member 52, passes through a communication port (not shown), and enters the communication space 8. The head 60 is supported by the upper end of the extension 62. The head 60 is a plate-shaped body including a heating element capable of generating heat. The head 60 faces the platen roller 27 in the front-rear direction with the specific ink ribbon 95A interposed therebetween.

  The head 60 can rotate between the separated position and the sandwiching position by rotating integrally with the support member 52. The nipping position is the rotational position of the head 60 that nips the specific ink ribbon 95A and the tube 9 with the platen roller 27. When the head 60 is at the holding position, the head 60 enters the transport area 58. The separated position is a rotational position of the head 60 that is separated rearward with respect to the specific ink ribbon 95A. In this example, when the head 60 is in the separated position, the head 60 exits the transport area 58. In FIG. 3, the head 60 in the separated position is shown by a solid line, and the head 60 in the sandwiched position is shown by a two-dot chain line.

  Hereinafter, the rotation position of the support member 52 that positions the head 60 at the holding position is referred to as a first rotation position (not shown), and the rotation position of the support member 52 that positions the head 60 at the separated position is the second rotation position (FIG. 4). See). The first rotation position is on the clockwise side with respect to the second rotation position. When the support member 52 is in the first rotation position, the roller 55 contacts the tube 9 between the platen roller 27 and the first transport unit 21 and bends the tube 9 backward (see FIG. 10).

<2-4. Head moving unit 200>
The head moving unit 200 will be described with reference to FIG. The head moving unit 200 is a mechanism that moves the support member 52 between a first rotation position and a second rotation position. The head moving unit 200 includes a head motor 89, a cam member 210, and a rotating member 230.

  The head motor 89 is fixed to the rear part of the lower surface of the support plate 14 at a substantially central portion in the left-right direction. The head motor 89 can be rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction. The cam member 210 is a plate-like member that is provided on the rear side of the lower surface of the support plate 14 on the right side of the head motor 89 and has a substantially circular shape in a plan view. The cam member 210 is rotatable about an axis line extending in the vertical direction (hereinafter referred to as the axis line 210A). The axis 210A passes through the right rear portion of the support plate 14 in the vertical direction. The rear portion of the cam member 210 is behind the rear end of the support plate 14 in plan view. The cam member 210 rotates clockwise as the head motor 89 rotates in the forward direction, and rotates counterclockwise as the head motor 89 rotates in the reverse direction.

  The cam member 210 has a sliding surface (not shown). The sliding surface extends along the rotational direction about the axis 210A so that the distance from the axis 210A changes. The rotating member 230 is a plate-shaped member having a thickness in the vertical direction, and is rotatably supported by the shaft member 229. The shaft member 229 extends upward from the support plate 14 at a position on the right front side of the axis 210A.

  The rotating member 230 is provided with a sliding pin (not shown) along the vertical direction. The sliding pin extends downward from the rear end of the rotating member 230. The sliding pin passes behind the support plate 14 and contacts the sliding surface of the cam member 210. Therefore, as the cam member 210 rotates, the rotating member 230 can rotate about the shaft member 229. More specifically, when the cam member 210 rotates clockwise, the rotating member 230 also rotates clockwise, and when the cam member 210 rotates counterclockwise, the rotating member 230 also rotates counterclockwise.

  The rotating member 230 is provided with a connecting portion 237. The connecting portion 237 is a cylindrical body extending upward from a portion of the rotating member 230 that is most distant from the shaft member 229. The connecting portion 237 is provided with one end of the tension spring 201. The other end of the tension spring 201 is connected to the through hole 53 of the support member 52. Therefore, the rotation member 230 can rotate the support member 52 clockwise by rotating clockwise.

  The rotating member 230 is provided with a protrusion 233 and a boss 235. The protruding portion 233 is a cylindrical body that protrudes upward from the rotating member 230 at a position coaxial with a sliding pin (not shown). The boss 235 is a columnar body protruding upward from the rotating member 230 at a position closer to the shaft member 229 than the protruding portion 233.

  The head moving unit 200 includes a connecting member 280. The connecting member 280 is a plate-shaped member having a thickness in the up-down direction and extends substantially in the front-rear direction. One end of the connecting member 280 is rotatably connected to the shaft member 54 of the support member 52. The other end of the connecting member 280 contacts the protrusion 233 or the boss 235 from the counterclockwise side around the shaft member 229. With the counterclockwise rotation of the rotating member 230, the protrusion 233 or the boss 235 can rotate the support member 52 counterclockwise via the connecting member 280. By having the above-described configuration, the head moving unit 200 can rotate the support member 52 between the first rotation position and the second rotation position as the head motor 89 is rotationally driven. That is, the head moving unit 200 can move the head 60 between the holding position and the separated position.

<3. Electrical Configuration of Printing Apparatus 1>
The electrical configuration of the printing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The printing apparatus 1 includes a CPU 41, a ROM 42, a RAM 44, a flash memory 45, an input / output interface 49, and the like on the substrate 19, which are connected via a data bus.

  The ROM 42 stores a program for the CPU 41 to execute a printing process (see FIG. 6) described later. The RAM 44 temporarily stores various data. The RAM 44 includes storage areas such as the first flag and the second flag. In the first flag of the RAM 44, “0” indicating that a print medium having a light shielding property is mounted on the tube mounting portion 40 or “1” indicating that a print medium having a light transmitting property is mounted is set. Remembered. The print medium having a light blocking property is a print medium capable of blocking the light emitted from the light emitting body 25A toward the light receiving body 25B. That is, the light-shielding print medium is a print medium having no light-transmitting property. The translucent print medium is a print medium through which the light emitted by the light emitter 25A can pass. The second flag of the RAM 44 stores "1" indicating that the lid sensor 24 has switched from the ON state to the OFF state, or "0" indicating that the lid sensor 24 has not switched from the ON state to the OFF state. To be done.

  The flash memory 45 includes a rotation amount storage area (not shown). A predetermined rotation amount is stored in the rotation amount storage area. The predetermined rotation amount is a rotation amount by which the drive motor 88 rotates in the forward rotation direction when the CPU 41 executes the printing process described later to remove the looseness of the ink ribbon 95. The predetermined rotation amount includes a first predetermined rotation amount and a second predetermined rotation amount. The second predetermined rotation amount is larger than the first predetermined rotation amount. The second predetermined rotation amount in this example is a rotation amount that is approximately 1.5 times the first predetermined rotation amount.

  The operation unit 17, the upstream sensor 23, the downstream sensor 25, the lid sensor 24, the sensor 73, and the drive circuits 91 to 94 are connected to the input / output interface 49. The operation unit 17 outputs various input information to the CPU 41. The upstream sensor 23 outputs an ON signal to the CPU 41 when detecting the movable member 29 in the retracted position, and outputs an OFF signal to the CPU 41 when not detecting the movable member 29. The downstream side sensor 25 outputs an ON signal to the CPU 41 when the light emitted from the light emitter 25A is not received by the light receiver 25B, while the downstream sensor 25 receives the light emitted from the light emitter 25A when the light receiver 25B receives the light. The OFF signal is output to. The lid sensor 24 outputs an ON signal to the CPU 41 when detecting the protruding portion 4, and outputs an OFF signal to the CPU 41 when not detecting the protruding portion 4. The sensor 73 outputs an ON signal to the CPU 41 when the light receiver 73B receives the light emitted from the light emitter 73A, while it turns off the CPU 41 when the light receiver 73B does not receive the light emitted from the light emitter 73A. Output a signal.

  The drive circuits 91 to 94 are connected to the display unit 5, the head 60, the drive motor 88, and the head motor 89, respectively. The CPU 41 drives and controls the driving circuit 91 to display various information on the display unit 5. The CPU 41 drives and controls the drive circuit 92 to heat the heating element of the head 60. The CPU 41 drives and controls the drive motor 88 and the head motor 89 by transmitting pulse signals to the drive circuits 93 and 94, respectively.

<4. How to attach tube 9 and ribbon cassette 90>
A method of mounting the tube 9 and the ribbon cassette 90 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 3, 4, and 7. The support member 52 is in the second rotation position. The user rotates the lid member 12 from the closed position to the open position to displace the lever 79 from the closed posture to the open posture. The driven rollers 21B and 22B are displaced to the retracted position. The user mounts the tube 9 on the tube mounting portion 40. At this time, the tube 9 is mounted on the tube mounting portion 40 across the tube insertion port 15 and the tube discharge port 16. After that, the user mounts the ribbon cassette 90 on the ribbon mounting unit 30. After that, the user displaces the lever 79 from the open posture to the closed posture. The driven rollers 21B and 22B are displaced to the working position. The user rotates the lid member 12 to the closed position. This completes the mounting of the tube 9 and the ribbon cassette 90. Hereinafter, the state of the printing apparatus 1 in which the tube 9 and the ribbon cassette 90 are completely attached is referred to as an initial state. The initial state is a state before the printing apparatus 1 starts the printing operation.

<5. Print processing>
The printing process executed by the CPU 41 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 13. The printer 1 is in the initial state, and the ink ribbon 95 is loose between the ribbon spool 81 (see FIG. 2) and the take-up spool 300 (see FIG. 2) (see FIG. 7). When the user operates the operation unit 17 to turn on the power of the printing apparatus 1, the CPU 41 reads a program for executing the print processing from the ROM 42 and starts the print processing.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 stores “0” in each of the first flag and the second flag of the RAM 44 (S1). The CPU 41 determines whether or not a start instruction for starting printing on the print medium (hereinafter, simply referred to as a start instruction) has been received (S2). The CPU 41 determines whether or not the start instruction is accepted depending on whether or not the operation unit 17 outputs the start instruction. The CPU 41 is in a standby state until the user inputs a start instruction to the operation unit 17 (S2: NO). When determining that the start instruction has been received (S2: YES), the CPU 41 determines whether or not the lid member 12 is in the closed position (S3). The CPU 41 determines whether or not the lid member 12 is in the closed position based on the output result of the lid sensor 24.

  When the lid sensor 24 outputs the OFF signal, the CPU 41 determines that the lid member 12 is not in the closed position (S3: NO), and advances the processing to S4. The CPU 41 notifies the error (S4) and ends the printing process. For example, the CPU 41 terminates the printing process after displaying "Cannot print" on the display unit 5 (S4).

  When the lid sensor 24 outputs the ON signal, the CPU 41 determines that the lid member 12 is in the closed position (S3: YES), and advances the processing to S5. The CPU 41 determines whether or not the upstream sensor 23 detects the print medium (S5). The CPU 41 determines whether or not the upstream sensor 23 detects the print medium based on the detection result of the upstream sensor 23. When the upstream sensor 23 outputs the OFF signal, the CPU 41 determines that the upstream sensor 23 does not detect the print medium (S5: NO), executes S4, and ends the printing process. For example, when the user does not properly mount the tube 9 on the tube mounting portion 40 (not shown), the tube 9 does not move the movable member 29 to the retracted position, so the upstream sensor 23 outputs an OFF signal. Therefore, when the tube 9 is not properly attached to the tube attachment portion 40, the printing apparatus 1 ends the printing process without executing the printing operation described below.

  As shown in FIG. 7, since the tube 9 properly mounted on the tube mounting portion 40 moves the movable member 29 to the retracted position, the upstream sensor 23 outputs an ON signal.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the CPU 41 determines that the upstream sensor 23 detects the print medium (S5: YES), the CPU 41 determines whether the downstream sensor 25 detects the print medium (S5: YES). S6). The CPU 41 determines whether or not the downstream sensor 25 detects the print medium based on the detection result of the downstream sensor 25.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the tube 9 properly mounted in the tube mounting portion 40 blocks the light emitted from the light emitter 25A to the light receiver 25B, so that the downstream sensor 25 outputs an ON signal. The CPU 41 determines that the downstream sensor 25 detects the print medium (S6: YES), and advances the processing to S9.

  Although not shown, if the tube 9 is not properly attached to the tube attachment portion 40, the tube 9 does not enter between the light emitter 25A and the light receiver 25B. Since the tube 9 does not block the light emitted from the light emitter 25A, the downstream sensor 25 outputs an OFF signal. In this case, the CPU 41 determines that the downstream sensor 25 has not detected the print medium (S6: NO), and advances the process to S7.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the print medium has translucency (S7). For example, the CPU 41 displays “Is a transparent tube attached?” On the display unit 5, and stands by until an input is made on the operation unit 17. When the operation unit 17 receives an input indicating that the print medium does not have translucency, the CPU 41 determines that the print medium does not have translucency (S7: NO), and the process proceeds to S4. Transition. Therefore, when the tube 9 is not properly attached to the tube attachment portion 40 (S6: NO, S7: NO), the printing apparatus 1 ends the printing process without executing the printing operation described below.

  When the CPU 41 determines that the downstream sensor 25 detects the print medium (S6: YES), the CPU 41 determines whether “0” is stored in the second flag (S9). Since the CPU 41 stores "0" in the second flag in S1, it determines that the second flag is "0" (S9: YES), and moves the process to S10.

  The CPU 41 rotationally drives the drive motor 88 in the forward rotation direction by the first predetermined rotation amount to execute the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 (S10). As shown in FIGS. 2, 7, and 8, the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven in the forward direction, so that the gear 65 (see FIG. 2) is rotated in the first direction. The one-way clutch 68 transmits the rotational force of the gear 65 rotating in the first direction to the ribbon winding shaft 63. The ribbon winding shaft 63 and the winding spool 300 integrally rotate in the first direction. Therefore, the ink ribbon 95 is taken up by the take-up spool 300, and the loosening of the ink ribbon 95 is executed (S10). The looseness of the ink ribbon 95 is removed (see FIG. 8). The platen roller 27 and the drive rollers 21A and 22A rotate clockwise when the drive motor 88 rotates in the normal direction. The driven rollers 21B and 22B in the operating position rotate following the drive rollers 21A and 22A, respectively. The first transport unit 21 and the second transport unit 22 transport the tube 9 in the transport direction starting from the arrangement position of the tube 9 when the CPU 41 receives the start instruction (S2) (S10). The CPU 41, which has executed the loosening operation, shifts the processing to S12.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 determines whether “0” is stored in the first flag (S12). Since the CPU 41 stores "0" in the first flag in S1, it determines that "0" is stored in the first flag (S12: YES), and executes the cueing operation (S13). The cueing operation is an operation of the printing apparatus 1 that moves the print medium mounted in the tube mounting portion 40 in the reverse direction to the cueing position. The cueing position in this example is the position where the print medium is located, with the end in the transport direction between the downstream sensor 25 and the second transport unit 22.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the CPU 41 rotationally drives the drive motor 88 in the reverse direction while monitoring the output result of the downstream sensor 25. When the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven in the reverse direction, the platen roller 27 and the drive rollers 21A and 22A rotate counterclockwise. The driven rollers 21B and 22B in the operating position rotate following the drive rollers 21A and 22A, respectively. The first transport unit 21 and the second transport unit 22 transport the tube 9 in opposite directions. When the end of the tube 9 in the transport direction moves in the direction opposite to the downstream sensor 25, the downstream sensor 25 outputs an OFF signal instead of the ON signal. At this time, the CPU 41 stops the rotation drive of the drive motor 88. The tube 9 stops at the cueing position.

  When the drive motor 88 drives in the reverse direction, the gear 65 (see FIG. 2) rotates in the second direction. The one-way clutch 68 restricts the torque of the gear 65 rotating in the second direction from being transmitted to the ribbon winding shaft 63. Therefore, the gear 65 idles in the second direction with respect to the ribbon winding shaft 63. Since the ribbon take-up shaft 63 does not rotate, the take-up spool 300 does not take up the ink ribbon 95.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 drives the head motor 89 to rotate the support member 52 from the second rotation position to the first rotation position, and moves the head 60 from the separated position to the sandwiching position (S14). As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the head 60 sandwiches the specific ink ribbon 95 </ b> A and the tube 9 between the platen roller 27 and the platen roller 27. The tube 9 between the first transport unit 21 and the second transport unit 22 has an elastically deformed and crushed shape. The specific ink ribbon 95A enters the transport area 58. Further, when the support member 52 moves to the first rotation position, the roller 55 bends the tube 9 between the platen roller 27 and the drive roller 21A backward.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 executes a printing operation (S15). For example, the CPU 41 drives the drive motor 88 in the normal direction. The platen roller 27, the first transport unit 21, and the second transport unit 22 transport the tube 9 in the transport direction, and the ribbon winding shaft 63 winds the ink ribbon 95 on the winding spool 300. The CPU 41 drives the drive motor 88 to rotate in the normal direction and, at the same time, causes the heating element (not shown) of the head 60 to generate heat. The heating element heats the specific ink ribbon 95A to print a character on the tube 9. The tube 9 on which the character is printed is transported in the transport direction. The used ink ribbon 95 is taken up by the take-up spool 300, and the unused ink ribbon 95 is paid out from the ribbon spool 81. After the character is printed on the tube 9, the CPU 41 stops the rotation drive of the drive motor 88 and stops the heat generation of the heating element. The CPU 41 ends the printing operation (S15), and shifts the processing to S16.

  The CPU 41 drives the head motor 89 to rotate the support member 52 from the first rotation position to the second rotation position, and moves the head 60 from the holding position to the separation position (S16). As a result, the specific ink ribbon 95A and the tube 9 are released (not shown).

  The CPU 41 rotationally drives the drive motor 88 in the forward rotation direction by the first predetermined rotation amount (S17). The first transport unit 21 and the second transport unit 22 transport the tube 9 in the transport direction, and the ribbon winding shaft 63 causes the winding spool 300 to wind the ink ribbon 95 (not shown). Accordingly, even when the ink ribbon 95 is loosened after the head 60 moves from the holding position to the separated position, the printing apparatus 1 can remove the looseness of the ink ribbon 95.

  The CPU 41 determines whether or not the lid member 12 is in the closed position (S18). For example, when the user replaces the ribbon cassette 90 mounted on the ribbon mounting portion 30 with another ribbon cassette 90, the lid member 12 is rotated from the closed position to the open position. In this case, since the lid sensor 24 outputs the OFF signal instead of the ON signal, the CPU 41 determines that the lid member 12 is not in the closed position (S18: NO) and stores “1” in the second flag ( S19), the process proceeds to S20.

  The CPU 41 determines whether or not an instruction to continue printing has been input (S20). For example, the CPU 41 determines whether or not an instruction to continue printing is input by determining whether or not an instruction to continue printing has been input to the operation unit 17. For example, the user replaces the ribbon cassette 90, rotates the lid member 12 from the open position to the closed position, and then inputs an instruction to continue printing to the operation unit 17. When the lid member 12 rotates from the open position to the closed position, the lid sensor 24 outputs the ON signal instead of the OFF signal. When determining that the instruction to continue printing has been input (S20: YES), the CPU 41 overwrites and stores "0" in the first flag (S21), and shifts the processing to S2. When determining that the instruction to continue printing has not been input (S20: NO), the CPU 41 ends the printing process.

  On the other hand, if the user does not move the lid member 12 in the closed position in the opening direction after the CPU 41 executes the loosening of the ink ribbon 95 (S17), the lid sensor 24 continuously outputs the ON signal. In this case, the CPU 41 determines that the lid member 12 is in the closed position (S18: YES), and moves the process to S20.

  The printing process when the ribbon cassette 90 mounted in the ribbon mounting unit 30 is replaced after the printing operation is performed will be described with reference to FIG. In this case, "1" is stored in the second flag (S19), and it is determined that an instruction to continue printing has been input (S20: YES). Note that the description of the steps overlapping with the above description will be omitted.

  After the user inputs the start instruction (S2: YES), the CPU 41 determines that the lid member 12 is in the closed position (S3: YES). The CPU 41 determines that the upstream side sensor 23 and the downstream side sensor 25 detect the print medium, respectively (S5: YES, S6: YES). The CPU 41 determines that “0” is not stored in the second flag (S9: NO), and advances the processing to S11.

  The CPU 41 rotationally drives the drive motor 88 in the forward rotation direction by the second predetermined rotation amount to execute the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 (S11). As shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, in this case, the ribbon take-up shaft 63 winds more ink ribbon 95 than in the case where the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven by the first predetermined rotation amount, and the first transport is performed. The section 21 and the second transport section 22 transport the tube 9 in the transport direction by a larger amount of movement. The tube 9 is transported in the transport direction starting from the arrangement position of the tube 9 when the CPU 41 receives the start instruction (S2: YES).

  As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 41 sequentially executes S12 to S20. When the user inputs a print end instruction to the operation unit 17 (S20: NO), the CPU 41 ends the print process.

  Next, the printing process when the tube 98 (see FIG. 13) is mounted in the tube mounting portion 40 instead of the tube 9 will be described. The tube 98 is a print medium having the same configuration as the tube 9 except that it has translucency. The user operates the operation unit 17 to turn on the power of the printing apparatus 1.

  After sequentially executing S1 to S3 and S5, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the downstream sensor 25 detects the print medium (S6). In this case, even if the tube 98 is arranged in the gap between the light emitter 25A and the light receiver 25B, the light emitted from the light emitter 25A passes through the tube 98 and is received by the light receiver 25B. Therefore, the downstream sensor 25 outputs an OFF signal. Therefore, the CPU 41 determines that the downstream sensor 25 has not detected the print medium (S6: NO).

  When the user inputs to the operation unit 17 that the print medium has translucency (S7: YES), the CPU 41 stores "1" in the first flag (S8). After executing S9 to S11, the CPU 41 determines that the first flag is not "0" (S12: NO). In this case, the CPU 41 sequentially executes S14 to S20 without executing S13. That is, the printing apparatus 1 performs the printing operation on the tube 98 without performing the cueing operation. When the user inputs a print end instruction to the operation unit 17 (S20: NO), the CPU 41 ends the print process.

<6. Example of operational effects of the present disclosure>
As described above, the CPU 41 performs the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 (S10, S11), then performs the cueing operation of the tube 9 (S13), and then performs the printing operation (S15). The cueing operation is executed after the loosening operation is executed. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 does not transport the tube 9 in the transport direction between the time when the indexing operation is performed and the time when the printing operation is performed. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 can optimize the slack removal operation and the cueing operation as compared with the case where the cueing operation is executed before the slack removal operation. When the drive motor 88 is rotationally driven in the normal direction, the first transport unit 21 and the second transport unit 22 transport the tube 9 in the transport direction, and the ribbon winding shaft 63 passes through the winding spool 300. The ink ribbon 95 is wound up. Therefore, it is possible to carry the tube 9 and the ink ribbon 95 by the same drive motor 88, and to appropriately perform the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 and the cueing operation of the tube 9. 1 is realized.

  Even when the downstream sensor 25 does not detect the tube 98 (S6: NO), when it is determined that the print medium having the light-transmitting property is arranged (S7: YES), the CPU 41 causes the ink ribbon After performing the loosening operation of 95 (S10, S11), the printing operation is performed without performing the cueing operation (S15). Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 can perform the printing operation even on the tube 98 having a light-transmitting property.

  When the upstream side sensor 23 and the downstream side sensor 25 detect the tubes 9, respectively, the CPU 41 executes the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 (S10, S11), and then executes the printing operation (S15). When at least one of the upstream sensor 23 and the downstream sensor 25 does not detect the tube 9, the CPU 41 does not execute the printing operation. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 can suppress the start of the printing operation when the tube 9 is not properly mounted in the tube mounting portion 40.

  When the ribbon cassette 90 is replaced after the printing operation is performed, the user rotates the lid member 12 from the closed position to the open position, and then rotates the lid member 12 again to the closed position. Since the lid sensor 24 switches from the ON state to the OFF state, the CPU 41 stores “1” in the second flag (S19). The ink ribbon 95 of the exchanged ribbon cassette 90 is highly likely to be loose due to, for example, the fact that the ink ribbon 95 of the replaced ribbon cassette 90 comes into contact with the user's hand when it is attached to the ribbon attachment portion 30. Even in this case, the CPU 41 winds the ink ribbon 95 by the second predetermined rotation amount which is larger than the first predetermined rotation amount (S11). Therefore, in the printing apparatus 1, even when the ribbon cassette 90 is replaced with another ribbon cassette 90, the printing apparatus 1 can optimize the loosening of the ink ribbon 95.

  The gear 65 and the one-way clutch 68 function as a transmission mechanism that transmits only the forward rotation driving force of the forward rotation driving force and the reverse rotation driving force of the drive motor 88 to the ribbon winding shaft 63. The transmission mechanism of this example employs a configuration in which the ribbon winding shaft 63 and the gear 65 are connected via a one-way clutch 68. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 can simplify the configuration of the transmission mechanism.

  After executing the loosening operation (S10, S11), the CPU 41 moves the head 60 from the separated position to the holding position (S14). That is, the CPU 41 executes the loosening operation of the ink ribbon 95 with the head 60 in the separated position (S10, S11). Therefore, the printer 1 can easily remove the looseness of the ink ribbon 95.

<7. Others>
In the above embodiment, the tube 9 is an example of the “print medium” in the present invention. The tubes 9 and 98 are examples of the “print medium” in the present invention. The tube 98 is an example of the "specific print medium" in the present invention. The tube mounting portion 40 is an example of the "guide portion" in the present invention. The drive motor 88 is an example of the "motor" in the present invention. The ribbon cassette 90 is an example of the “ink ribbon cassette” in the present invention. The 1st conveyance part 21 and the 2nd conveyance part 22 are examples of the "conveyance means" of this invention. The downstream sensor 25 is an example of the "first detecting means" in the present invention. The upstream sensor 23 is an example of the "second detecting means" in the present invention. The lid sensor 24 is an example of the “lid detecting means” in the present invention. The ribbon winding shaft 63 is an example of the “rotating member” in the present invention. The OFF state of the lid sensor 24 is an example of the “first state” in the present invention. The ON state of the lid sensor 24 is an example of the "second state" in the present invention. The head moving unit 200 is an example of the “moving means” in the present invention. The first direction is an example of the "winding direction" in the present invention. The nipping position is an example of the “printing position” in the present invention.

  The CPU 41 that executes S2 is an example of the “reception means” of the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S6 is an example of the "first determining means" in the present invention. CPU41 which performs S7 is an example of the "2nd judgment means" of the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S9 is an example of the "third determination means" in the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S10 is an example of the "first normal rotation control means" in the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S11 is an example of the "second normal rotation control means" in the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S13 is an example of the "reverse rotation control unit" in the present invention. CPU41 which performs S14 is an example of a "movement control means" of the present invention. The CPU 41 that executes S15 is an example of the “print control unit” in the present invention.

  The above embodiment can be variously modified. The printing apparatus 1 may be capable of printing a sheet-shaped tape or the like instead of the tube 9. The upstream sensor 23 may not be provided. The downstream sensor 25 may be a contact sensor. The lid member 12 may be linearly movable between a position where the ribbon mounting portion 30 is closed and a position where the ribbon mounting portion 30 is opened, instead of being rotatably mounted on the main body case 11. The downstream sensor 25 may be provided between the second transport unit 22 and the platen roller 27.

  As shown in FIG. 14, instead of the one-way clutch 68, a first gear 191, a second gear 192, a moving mechanism (not shown), and a moving motor (not shown) may be provided inside the main body case 11. Good. The first gear 191 is connected to the drive motor 88. The first gear 191 can rotate in any direction according to the rotational drive of the drive motor 88. The second gear 192 is provided in the moving mechanism. The moving mechanism can move the second gear 192 between the meshing position and the retracted position as the moving motor is driven. The meshing position is the arrangement position of the first gear 191 and the second gear 192 that meshes with the gear 65. The retracted position is the position where the first gear 191 and the second gear 192 separated from the gear 65 are arranged. The first gear 191 in the meshed position is illustrated by the solid line. The first gear 191 in the retracted position is shown by a chain double-dashed line. The moving mechanism moves the second gear 192 to the meshing position when the drive motor 88 is normally driven, and moves the second gear 192 to the retracted position when the drive motor 88 is reversely driven. As a result, of the normal rotation driving force and the reverse rotation driving force of the drive motor 88, only the normal rotation driving force is transmitted to the ribbon winding shaft 63 via the first gear 191, the second gear 192, and the gear 65. In this modification, the first gear 191, the second gear 192, the moving mechanism, the moving motor, and the gear 65 are examples of the “transmission mechanism” in the present invention.

1 Printer 9,98 Tube 21 1st conveyance part 22 2nd conveyance part 23 Upstream side sensor 24 Lid sensor 25 Downstream side sensor 25A Light emitter 25B Light receptor 30 Ribbon mounting part 40 Tube mounting part 41 CPU
58 transport area 60 head 63 ribbon winding shaft 65 gear 68 one-way clutch 88 drive motor 90 ribbon cassette 95 ink ribbon 191 first gear 192 second gear 200 head moving part 300 winding spool

Claims (4)

A motor that is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction,
A guide portion that forms a transport area that is a space in which the print medium is transported;
An ink ribbon cassette having a take-up spool to which one end of the ink ribbon is connected is attached at a predetermined position, and the predetermined position is a part of a passage area of the ink ribbon wound by the take-up spool. A ribbon mounting portion that is a position included in the transport area,
A member to which the take-up spool of the ink ribbon cassette at the predetermined position is mounted, and a forward rotation driving force that is a driving force of the motor in the forward rotation direction integrally with the take-up spool, A rotating member that rotates in a winding direction for winding the ink ribbon,
Of the normal rotation driving force and the reverse rotation driving force that is the driving force in the reverse rotation direction of the motor, a transmission mechanism that transmits only the normal rotation driving force to the rotating member,
Conveying means connected to the motor, wherein the normal rotation driving force conveys the print medium in a predetermined conveying direction along the conveying region, and the reverse rotation driving force conveys the print medium in a direction opposite to the conveying direction. Transporting means for transporting to
A head that prints on the print medium with the ink ribbon at a position that has entered the transport area,
Moving means for moving the head between a printing position which is a position where the head enters the transport area and prints on the print medium, and a separation position which is a position separated from the printing position;
A first detection unit that is provided on the guide unit at a position on the transport direction side of the head, and that can detect the print medium;
A receiving unit that receives a start instruction to start printing on the print medium;
When the accepting unit accepts the start instruction, the motor is rotationally driven by a predetermined rotation amount in the normal rotation direction to rotate the rotating member in the winding direction, and the print medium, Forward rotation control means for carrying in the carrying direction starting from the arrangement position when the receiving means receives the start instruction,
After the normal rotation control means rotationally drives the motor, the motor is rotationally driven in the reverse rotation direction, and based on the detection result of the first detection means, a control means that conveys the print medium to the indexing position. There, the cueing position is a reverse rotation control unit that is a position where the end of the print medium in the transport direction is between the first detection unit and the head,
Movement control means for driving and controlling the moving means to move the head from the separated position to the printing position after the reverse rotation control means rotationally drives the motor;
Print control means for performing printing on the print medium by rotating the motor in the forward rotation direction and driving the head after the movement control means moves the head to the printing position.
Equipped with
The first detection means includes a light emitting body that emits light, and a light receiving body that is arranged to face the light emitting body with a gap therebetween and is capable of receiving the light. Detecting the print medium to be blocked,
First determining means for determining whether or not the first detecting means detects the print medium when the receiving means receives the start instruction,
If the first determination means determines that the first detection means does not detect the print medium, is the specific print medium, which is the print medium capable of transmitting the light, disposed in the gap? Second judgment means to judge whether or not
Equipped with
The normal rotation control unit determines whether the specific print medium is arranged when the first determination unit determines that the first detection unit detects the print medium, or the second determination unit. If it is determined that, the motor is rotationally driven,
When the second determination means determines that the specific print medium is arranged, the reverse rotation control means does not rotationally drive the motor in the reverse rotation direction,
The print control means is
When the first determination unit determines that the first detection unit is detecting the print medium, the forward rotation control unit and the reverse rotation control unit sequentially rotate and drive the motor, and the movement control unit. Prints after moving the head to the print position,
When the second determination means determines that the specific print medium is placed, after the normal rotation control means rotationally drives the motor and the movement control means moves the head to the printing position. , A printing device characterized by performing printing. A motor that is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction,
A guide portion that forms a transport area that is a space in which the print medium is transported;
An ink ribbon cassette having a take-up spool to which one end of the ink ribbon is connected is attached at a predetermined position, and the predetermined position is a part of a passage area of the ink ribbon wound by the take-up spool. A ribbon mounting portion that is a position included in the transport area,
A member to which the take-up spool of the ink ribbon cassette at the predetermined position is mounted, and a forward rotation driving force that is a driving force of the motor in the forward rotation direction integrally with the take-up spool, A rotating member that rotates in a winding direction for winding the ink ribbon,
Of the normal rotation driving force and the reverse rotation driving force that is the driving force in the reverse rotation direction of the motor, a transmission mechanism that transmits only the normal rotation driving force to the rotating member,
Conveying means connected to the motor, wherein the normal rotation driving force conveys the print medium in a predetermined conveying direction along the conveying region, and the reverse rotation driving force conveys the print medium in a direction opposite to the conveying direction. Transporting means for transporting to
A head that prints on the print medium with the ink ribbon at a position that has entered the transport area,
Moving means for moving the head between a printing position which is a position where the head enters the transport area and prints on the print medium, and a separation position which is a position separated from the printing position;
A first detection unit that is provided on the guide unit at a position on the transport direction side of the head, and that can detect the print medium;
A receiving unit that receives a start instruction to start printing on the print medium;
When the accepting unit accepts the start instruction, the motor is rotationally driven by a predetermined rotation amount in the normal rotation direction to rotate the rotating member in the winding direction, and the print medium, Forward rotation control means for carrying in the carrying direction starting from the arrangement position when the receiving means receives the start instruction,
After the normal rotation control means rotationally drives the motor, the motor is rotationally driven in the reverse rotation direction, and based on the detection result of the first detection means, a control means that conveys the print medium to the indexing position. There, the cueing position is a reverse rotation control unit that is a position where the end of the print medium in the transport direction is between the first detection unit and the head,
Movement control means for driving and controlling the moving means to move the head from the separated position to the printing position after the reverse rotation control means rotationally drives the motor;
After the movement control means moves the head to the printing position, the motor is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the head is driven to perform printing on the print medium .
A main body case in which the ribbon mounting portion is arranged inside,
A lid member that is provided in the main body case and is movable between a closed position that covers the ribbon mounting portion and an open position that opens the ink ribbon cassette;
A lid detecting means for detecting the lid member in the closed position,
When the lid detecting unit receives the start instruction, it is determined whether or not the lid detecting unit has switched from the first state in which the lid member is not detected to the second state in which the lid member is being detected. Third judgment means
Equipped with
The predetermined rotation amount includes a first predetermined rotation amount and a second predetermined rotation amount larger than the first predetermined rotation amount,
The normal rotation control means,
When the third determination means determines that the lid detection means has not switched from the first state to the second state, first forward rotation control means for rotationally driving the motor by the first predetermined rotation amount. When,
When the third determination means determines that the lid detection means has switched from the first state to the second state, second forward rotation control means for rotationally driving the motor by the second predetermined rotation amount.
Printing apparatus according to claim <br/> further comprising a. A second detection unit that is provided on the guide unit at a position on the opposite side of the head and that can detect the print medium,
The normal rotation control means starts rotation driving of the motor in the normal rotation direction when the first detection means and the second detection means respectively detect the print medium. The printing device according to claim 1. The transmission mechanism,
A gear that is connected to the motor, rotates in a first direction by the forward drive force, and rotates in a second direction by the reverse drive force;
And connecting the rotary member and the gear, claims 1-3 in which the rotational force of the gear to rotate to said second direction, characterized in that a one-way clutch for restricting the being transmitted to the rotary member The printing device according to any one of 1.

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