JP2008284846A - Thermal printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermal printer that automatically recognizes the type of a recording medium and automatically sets the print head division number, print density and print speed for each type of recording medium and each print head temperature. To do.
SOLUTION: A medium mounting portion 3 for mounting a long recording medium 2, a recording medium type input means 14 for inputting the type of the recording medium, a plurality of dot heating elements, and a desired recording medium. Printing section 5 provided with printing head 8 and platen roller 9 for applying the applied energy, head temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the printing head, printing division for each type of recording medium and for each printing head temperature Set value storage means in which set values of number, density value and speed value are set and stored, the type of recording medium input by the recording medium type input means, and the print head detected by the head temperature detecting means And a control means 6 for extracting and setting the corresponding set value from the set value storage means based on the temperature.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

In particular, the present invention relates to a portable thermal printer that automatically sets the print division number, density value, speed value, and the like of a print head corresponding to a corresponding recording medium depending on the type of recording medium.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, thermal printers that print labels or the like to be displayed on products are known in department stores, supermarkets, retail stores, and the like.
In the thermal printer, printing is performed on a “recording medium” such as a label using a thermal head. In a small thermal printer in which portability is emphasized, the printer apparatus main body is connected via a battery with a small supply voltage. Since there is a limit to the current that can be passed through the thermal head during driving, the thermal head is divided to reduce the peak current (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
According to the thermal printer disclosed in Patent Document 1, the optimum number of divisions of the thermal head is determined based on the average resistance value of the heating element, and the amount of current supplied is optimized by controlling the current flowing through the heating element. ing.
By the way, in a department store or the like, the thermal printer is used in various forms. In other words, fresh food such as meat, seafood, vegetables and fruits is processed behind the backyard, and a label printed on the date of manufacture and processing time is printed on the processed food by the thermal printer as described above. Issued, or carried on a clothing store and printed on a cardboard called a tag, attached with a fastener such as a thread and lowered to a product such as clothes or shirt, or carried to a store for time service Printing stickers such as “Yen discount” stickers and promotional labels such as “Discount” that are pasted on the target products are printed and issued, and the type varies depending on the “recording medium” used depending on the sales floor. In addition, there is a “recording medium” such as whether the object of printing is a tag or label, or whether the label is for food display or for promotion. Since the color development energy applied to the thermal head due to the difference in properties of "(applied energy) is different each time the replacement bridged the" recording medium ", it is necessary to change the color energy through the setting of the concentration.
However, as shown in Patent Document 1, although the thermal head is divided and controlled to the optimum current value in order to cope with the limitation on the current value flowing to the thermal head, the “printer-specific” The adjustment of the print density and the like for each “recording medium” is left to the user. In other words, every time it is switched to a different “recording medium”, the printing speed, printing density, etc. are input and set, and fine adjustment is made to the optimum printing density visually while performing test printing, which places a heavy burden on the user. In addition, there is a problem that printing / issuance of “recording medium” may not be possible when there is no skilled person, and an appropriate print density can be obtained without being aware of the type of “recording medium” used by the user. Therefore, it is desired to develop a thermal printer that can output in an optimal printing state.

JP 2002-347267 A

The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-mentioned problems, and automatically recognizes the type of the recording medium, and print division of the print head for each type of recording medium and for each print head temperature. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal printer that automatically sets the number, print density, and print speed.

A thermal printer according to the present invention includes a medium mounting unit for mounting a long recording medium, a recording medium type input unit for inputting the type of the recording medium mounted on the medium mounting unit, A print section having a plurality of dot heating elements in the width direction and applying a desired applied energy to the recording medium and a platen roller; and a head temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the print head; For each type of the recording medium and for each print head temperature, the setting values storage means for setting and storing the print division number, density value, and speed value are input by the recording medium type input means. Based on the type of the recording medium and the temperature of the print head detected by the head temperature detecting means, the control means for extracting and setting the corresponding set value from the set value storage means Characterized in that it comprises a and.

In the thermal printer of the present invention, the setting value storage means sets and stores setting values for the number of print divisions, density value, and speed value for each type of print medium and for each print head temperature, and control. Since each setting value is set via a means, the user does not need to make troublesome settings, and an appropriate print density that matches the recording medium to be used can be obtained without being conscious of the type of the recording medium. There is an effect that optimum printing can be obtained.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view showing a configuration example of an embodiment of a thermal printer of the present invention.
Mainly, as shown in the figure, the thermal printer 1 includes a medium mounting unit 3 for mounting a long recording medium 2, a reflection sensor 4 as a position detecting unit, a printing unit 5 as a printing unit, And a control unit 6 as a control means, and is small and portable driven by a battery 7.
The recording medium 2 is a “continuous label” in which a plurality of unillustrated labels having a thermosensitive coloring layer on the front surface and an adhesive layer on the back surface are temporarily attached to the mount, or a continuous so-called adhesive that is exposed. In addition, a “continuous body without backing paper” and a “tag” of cardboard having a thermosensitive coloring layer on the surface can be employed. On the back side of the recording medium 2, identification marks (not shown) for use in positioning the recording medium 2 are printed in advance at equal intervals.
The reflection sensor 4 includes a light emitting unit 4a that emits predetermined light and a light receiving unit 4b that receives the light. The light emitting unit 4a and the light receiving unit 4b are configured to identify the identification mark (not shown) on the back surface of the recording medium 2. ) Is detected between the medium mounting unit 3 and the printing unit 5.
The printing unit 5 includes a thermal printing head (hereinafter, simply referred to as a printing head) 8 and a platen roller (hereinafter, simply referred to as a platen) 9 as a printing head. Hereinafter, it is simply connected via a belt 11 to a motor 10). The print head 8 includes a plurality of dot heating elements (not shown) arranged in the width direction of the recording medium 2.
The control unit 6 is connected to the respective units, and can control the operations of the respective units.
The recording medium 2 mounted on the medium mounting unit 3 is pulled out toward the printing unit 5, sandwiched between the print head 8 and the platen 9 through the reflection sensor 4, and pulled out to the issue port 12. When the motor 10 is rotated by being pressed by the print head 8, the rotation of the motor 10 is transmitted to the platen 9 via the belt 11, and the sandwiched recording medium 2 is conveyed to the issue port 12 side while being printed. Desired information is printed by the heat of the dot heating element (not shown).

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the medium mounting unit 3. The medium mounting unit 3 includes a supply shaft 14 that protrudes from the housing 13 and rotatably mounts the recording medium 2. The supply shaft 14 is provided with an identification ID reader 15 as a recording medium type input means for reading a barcode or RFID.
On the other hand, the recording medium 2 has a recording medium identification label 16 in which a “recording medium identification ID” (not shown) indicating the paper type (paper type) of the recording medium 2 is recorded with a barcode or RFID. Is provided.
When the recording medium 2 is mounted on the supply shaft 14 of the medium mounting unit 3 and is fed to the printing unit 5 side, the “recording medium identification ID” ( The sheet type of the recording medium 2 can be automatically identified. The paper type will be described later.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the embodiment of FIG. As shown in the figure, a central processing unit (CPU) 20 that controls each unit, a control program that controls the operation of the CPU 20 and a ROM (read only memory) 21 that stores various data, and temporarily store data and the like. A RAM (Random Access Memory) 22, a print head controller 23 for controlling the print head 8 for executing a printing process, and a first temperature detecting means provided in the print head 8 for measuring the temperature of the print head 8. A head temperature sensor 26, a sensor control unit 24 for controlling the signal of the reflection sensor 4, a motor control unit 25 for controlling the motor 10, and a second temperature for measuring the ambient temperature of the place where the apparatus is installed. An environmental temperature detection sensor 27 as a detection means, and the head temperature sensor 26 And a temperature control unit 28 for controlling signals from the environmental temperature detection sensor 27, a paper type setting control unit 29 for controlling signals from the identification ID reader 15, and various data to be retained even when the power is turned off. An EEPROM (electrically erasable and programmable read only memory) 36 to be stored, an external interface unit 30, an input interface unit 31, and the like are provided. Each unit is connected by a bus 32 so that data and commands can be transmitted and received.
Also, various data and commands can be transmitted / received to / from various external devices such as a personal computer (PC) 33 connected to the outside via the external interface unit 30.
Further, various data and commands input from the input unit 34 are supplied to the CPU 20 via the bus 32 via the input interface unit 31. The display unit 35 displays display data supplied from the CPU 20 via the bus 32 via the input interface 31 unit.

Here, the set value storage means will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view showing a setting value storage table 36 as “setting value storage means” stored in the EEPROM 36, and this setting value storage table (EEPROM) 36 includes a recording medium type (paper type) 40 and a recording medium type (paper type) 40. , And a set value 41 for each print head temperature.
The recording medium type 40 indicates the type (paper type) of the recording medium 2 to be used. In the illustrated example, “recording medium A”, “recording medium B”, “recording medium C”,. Each paper type of “medium X” is set and stored.
Further, the print head temperature setting value 41 is set for each temperature of the print head 8, and in the illustrated example, “˜0 ° C.”, “1 ° C.-5 ° C.”,... “41 ° C.-45 ° C. ”,“ 45 ° C. to ”and temperature increments of 5 ° C. are set over a plurality of stages.
For each print medium type 40, “print division number”, “density value”, and “speed value” are set and stored for each set value 41 for each print head temperature. The “number of print divisions” is the number of groups when the dot heating elements of the print head 8 are divided into a desired number of groups, the “density value” is the applied energy value applied to the print head 8, and “ The “speed value” is the number of motor revolutions indicating how many steps the motor 10 is operated per second. For example, when the paper type of the recording medium type 40 is “recording medium A” and the temperature of the print head 8 is 24 ° C., the setting value 41 for each print head temperature is “21 ° C. to 25 ° C.”. Since the temperature stage corresponds, “the number of print divisions i−1”, “temperature value i−1”, and “speed value i−1” are “set values”.

Next, the use state of the thermal printer 1 will be described mainly based on the flowchart of FIG.
In step S01, it is determined whether or not the recording medium is automatically recognized. That is, it is determined whether or not the recording medium identification label 16 attached to the inside of the core of the recording medium 2 mounted on the supply shaft 14 of the medium mounting unit 3 has been read by the identification ID reader 15. If it is recognized (read), the process goes to step S02, and the recording medium 2 is automatically identified, that is, the paper type of “recording medium identification ID” (not shown) recorded on the recording medium identification label 16 is selected. Read and temporarily store in RAM 22.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S01 that the recording medium identification label 16 of the recording medium 2 has not been automatically recognized, the process proceeds to step S03, where manual setting of the recording medium, that is, the recording medium identification label 16 with human characters. A written paper type (not shown) is visually read and input from the input unit 34, and the input paper type (not shown) is temporarily stored in the RAM 22.
In step S04, preparation for printing is performed. That is, the platen 9 is rotated via the motor 10 and the belt 11, and the identification mark (not shown) of the recording medium 2 is detected by the reflection sensor 4 to position the recording medium 2 at the print start position.
In step S05, environmental temperature acquisition and paper type information acquisition are performed. That is, the ambient temperature at which the thermal printer 1 is installed is measured by the ambient temperature detection sensor 27, and the acquired temperature is temporarily stored in the RAM 22 via the temperature control unit 28. First, the paper type (not shown) stored in the RAM 22 is acquired (confirmed).
In step S06, the temperature of the print head 8 is measured by the head temperature sensor 26, and the acquired temperature is temporarily stored in the RAM 22 via the temperature control unit 28.
In step S07, the number of print divisions, the print density value, and the print speed value are set. That is, referring to the set value storage table (EEPROM) 36 based on “paper type” (not shown) and “temperature of the print head 8” temporarily stored in the RAM 22, the recording medium type 40 and the print head temperature setting are referred to. From the value 41, the “set value” of the temperature of the corresponding print head 8 of the corresponding print medium 2 is extracted, and the print head 8 is divided into the “number of print divisions” set by the “set value”. In addition, an applied energy value (not shown) corresponding to the “density value” is applied to the print head 8, and further, a rotation speed per second corresponding to the “speed value” is applied to the motor 10. Each “setting value” is set for each corresponding recording medium type 40 and at a stage corresponding to the corresponding temperature of the setting value 41 for each print head temperature of the print head 8.
Next, printing is performed on the recording medium 2 in step S08. That is, desired print information is given to the print head 8 via the print head control unit 23 to print desired information on the recording medium 2.
Next, in step S09, it is determined whether or not printing for one sheet such as a label or tag (not shown) of the recording medium 2 has been completed, and if it is determined that printing for one sheet has not been completed. Returning to step S08, printing on the recording medium 2 is repeated.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S09 that printing for one sheet has been completed, the process returns to step S06, and the temperature of the print head 8 is measured and acquired.
The following processes described above are performed via the CPU 20 by starting a program (not shown) stored in the ROM 21 (control means).
1) Reading of the recording medium identification label 16 by the identification ID reader 15;
2) Temporary storage of the paper type in the RAM 22;
3) Acquisition of ambient temperature and print head temperature, and temporary storage in RAM 22
4) Positioning of the recording medium 2 to the print start position through rotation of the motor 10;
5) Extraction from the set value storage table (EEPROM) 36 of each “set value” of the print division number, density value, and speed value corresponding to the corresponding paper type and the temperature of the print head 8;
6) Setting of each part to the corresponding “number of print divisions”, “density value”, “speed value”,
7) Print desired information on the recording medium 2 via the print head 8;
8) Determination of whether or not printing for one sheet on the recording medium 2 has been completed, and so on.

  As described above, in the set value storage table (EEPROM) 36, the “print division number”, “density value”, and “speed value” are set for each print medium type 40 and for each print head temperature set value 41. “Setting values” are set and stored, and each part such as the print head 8 is set to each “setting value” via the CPU 20, and the user makes troublesome settings depending on the type of the printing medium 2. Since it is not necessary, the user can obtain an appropriate print density without being aware of the type of the recording medium 2.

It should be noted that the configuration and operation of the above-described embodiment are examples, and it goes without saying that they can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

1 is a schematic side view illustrating an entire thermal printer of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a part of the medium mounting portion. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of FIG. 1. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows a setting value memory | storage means similarly. 3 is a flowchart showing a use state of the thermal printer.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Thermal printer 2 Recording medium 3 Medium mounting part 4 Reflection sensor 5 Printing part (printing means)
6 Control unit (control means)
7 Battery 8 Thermal print head (print head)
9 Platen roller (platen)
10 Stepping motor (motor)
11 Belt 12 Issuing port 13 Housing 14 Supply shaft 15 Identification ID reader (recording medium type input means)
16 Recording medium identification label 20 CPU
21 ROM
22 RAM
23 print head control unit 24 sensor control unit 25 motor control unit 26 head temperature sensor (first temperature detection means)
27 Environmental temperature detection sensor (second temperature detection means)
28 Temperature Control Unit 29 Paper Type Setting Control Unit 30 External Interface Unit 31 Input Interface Unit 32 Bus 33 External Device (Personal Computer; PC)
34 Input unit 35 Display unit 36 EEPROM (setting value storage means, setting value storage table)
40 Recording medium type 41 Print head temperature setting value

Claims (1)

A medium mounting portion for mounting a long recording medium;
Recording medium type input means for inputting the type of the recording medium mounted on the medium mounting unit;
A printing unit having a plurality of dot heating elements in the width direction of the recording medium and having a print head and a platen roller for applying desired application energy to the recording medium;
Head temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the print head;
Setting value storage means in which setting values for the number of print divisions, density value, and speed value are set and stored for each type of the recording medium and for each print head temperature;
Based on the type of the recording medium input by the recording medium type input means and the temperature of the print head detected by the head temperature detecting means, the corresponding set value is extracted and set from the set value storage means. Control means;
A thermal printer comprising:

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