Printer with control cam shaft

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6499895
  • Patent Number
    6,499,895
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, March 7, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, December 31, 2002
    22 years ago
Abstract
In a printer for printing on individual printing media such as receipts, savings books and the like, a control shaft activated by the printer control system has a plurality of control cams for activation of a transport device, a printing medium alignment means, and a printing medium stop, the cams being designed such that the activation zone of the alignment means and of the printing medium stop are located substantially in the deactivation zone of the transport device.
Description




The invention relates to a printer for printing on individual printing media according to the preamble of claim 1. It is based on WO-A-96/01742.




A printer of the type mentioned is marketed under the designation “HighPrint 4905” by Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme AG, Paderborn, Germany.




In such a printer, various functions for handling and processing the individual printing medium have to be controlled. Although these functions proceed in a specific sequence, they do not have to be activated in the case of all individual printing media. For example, when processing savings books, functions are activated which are not needed when printing on receipts.




In WO-A-96/01742, it has already been proposed to mount a control shaft such that it can rotate in a printer frame, said shaft being capable of being driven by a motor that can be activated by a printer control system and bearing a control curve which controls at least the activation of the transport device, the activation of the alignment means and the adjustment of the printing-medium stop.




The invention is based on the object of designing a printer of the type mentioned at the beginning in such a way that the individual units for handling a printing medium in the printer can also be operated reliably and in a straightforward manner without hampering one another.




According to the invention, in a printer of the type mentioned at the beginning this object is achieved by the features specified in the characterizing part of claim 1.




Using the control shaft provided in accordance with the invention, it is possible to ensure in a straightforward way that a printing medium inserted into the printer is firstly aligned against the printing-medium stop and brought into a starting position which is suitable for the printing operation, before the transport device is set into operation. By means of the arrangement of the control cams on the control shaft relative to one another, the desired trouble-free progress of the functions is ensured.




The transport device can be controlled in a straightforward way by its comprising at least one driven transport shaft bearing transport rollers and pressure rollers which are associated with the transport rollers and can be adjusted between a pressure or activation position close to the transport rollers and a rest or deactivation position away from the transport rollers. In this case, the motor driving the transport shaft does not need to be switched, so that a control system for controlling the starting and braking of the motor can be dispensed with.




According to a further function, provision is made for the printing bar to be adjustable in relation to the printing head by a control cam on the control shaft between a printing position close to said printing head and a rest position away from the latter, and by the controlled curve of the printing-bar control cam being designed such that the rest position of the printing bar is located in the activation zone of the transport device. On the other hand, that angular range of the control curve of the printing-bar control cam which corresponds to the printing position of the printing bar extends over the deactivation zone and preferably an adjacent part of the activation zone of the transport device.




In order to press the printing medium against the printing bar and therefore to permit clean printing, there is arranged parallel to the printing bar a protective film strip on a film carrier, which can be adjusted between a position close to the printing bar and a position away from the printing bar. According to the invention, in this case the adjustment of the film carrier can be controlled by a film carrier control cam on the control shaft, whose control curve is designed such that there is correspondence between the printing position of the printing bar and the position of the film carrier close to the printing bar, on the one hand, and the rest position of the printing bar and the position of the film carrier away from the printing bar, on the other hand. In the rest position of the printing bar, the receipt can therefore be transported into the printer without hindrance while it is pressed against the printing bar by the film strip in the printing position of the printing bar, and is therefore held in a position ensuring clean printing.




In the case of specific printing media, it is necessary to obtain information about the type of printing medium before the printing operation. For this purpose, the printer has a reading device which, for example, is designed for reading characters produced on the printing medium with magnetic ink, and has at least one magnetic head and a first printing-medium pressure device which, according to the invention, can be activated by a control cam on the control shaft, the control curve of this control cam being designed such that the activation zone of the first printing-medium pressure device is located in the zone corresponding to the rest position of the printing bar.




Furthermore, in the printer there can be provided a reading/writing device for reading and writing on a magnetic strip on a printing medium, which has a magnetic head arrangement and a second printing-medium pressure device. According to the invention, this can likewise be activated by a control cam on the control shaft, the control curve of this control cam being designed such that the activation zone of the second printing-medium pressure device is located within the activation zone of the first printing-medium pressure device.




It is expedient for the start position and end position of the control shaft, between which the latter can be rotated to and fro, to be defined by a switching flag arranged on the control shaft.











Further features and advantages of the invention emerge from the following description, which explains the invention using an exemplary embodiment in conjunction with the appended drawings, in which:





FIG. 1

shows a perspective overall view of a printer according to the invention without the upper part of the printer housing,





FIG. 2

shows a perspective partial view of a side wall of the printer chassis with the drive for the transport shafts and the control shaft,





FIG. 3

shows a perspective view of the control shaft in a first angular position,





FIG. 4

shows a perspective view of the control shaft in a second angular position,





FIG. 5

shows a perspective illustration of the control shaft, the receipt stop and the pressure rollers in a first position of these elements,





FIG. 6

shows an illustration corresponding to

FIG. 5

in a second position of the said elements,





FIG. 7

shows a perspective illustration of the control shaft and of the alignment mechanism in an activated position of the latter,





FIG. 8

shows an illustration corresponding to

FIG. 7

of the alignment mechanism in its deactivated position,





FIG. 9

shows a perspective view of the printing bar and of the film carrier,





FIG. 10

shows a schematic side view of a magnetic-strip reading arrangement and a reading arrangement for reading characters produced on the printing medium with magnetic ink, in a first position of these elements,





FIG. 11

shows an illustration corresponding to

FIG. 10

with the elements in a second position, and





FIG. 12

shows a timing diagram of the functional sequences of the printer units as a function of rotational angle and direction of rotation of the control shaft.











The printer illustrated in

FIG. 1

is used for printing individual printing media such as receipts, savings books and the like. It comprises a chassis designated generally by


10


and having a base


12


, an outer frame


14


with frame walls


16


and an inner frame


18


with side walls


20


.




Between the side walls


16


of the outer frame


14


there extends a guide rod


22


, on which a carriage


26


bearing a dot-matrix printing head


24


is guided such that it can be displaced to and fro. The carriage is driven via a toothed belt


28


.




The dot-matrix printing head


24


is arranged in such a way that its needles are displaced substantially vertically and the tips of the needles are oriented downward. The printing head


24


is assigned, as a printing abutment, a printing bar


30


which extends between the two side walls


20


of the inner frame


18


, parallel to the guide rod


22


. The design and arrangement of the printing bar


30


will be explained in more detail further below.




The printing media are moved between a lower cover


32


, which has been partially removed in

FIG. 1

; and an upper covering (not illustrated) formed on a housing hood. The movement is carried out with the aid of a transport device, which can be seen better in FIG.


2


. It comprises two transport shafts


34


,


36


which are aligned parallel to the guide rod


22


, which are at a distance from each other in the transport direction of the printing medium indicated by the double arrow A in

FIG. 1

, and each bear transport rollers


38


spaced apart axially. The transport shafts


34


and


36


are rotatably mounted in the side walls


20


of the inner frame


18


and, at their one end projecting beyond the side wall


20


, each bear a drive roller


40


and


42


, respectively. In addition, a drive motor


44


, whose shaft


46


bears a drive pinion


48


, is flange-mounted on the side wall


20


of the inner frame. Said drive pinion drives the transport shafts


34


and


36


via a drive belt


50


, which is led over the drive rollers


42


and


40


and a tensioning roller


52


.




The transport rollers


38


are additionally each assigned pressure rollers


54


, which are mounted above the transport rollers


38


,in each case in pairs, on a carrier


56


. The rear pressure rollers


54


associated with the rear transport shaft


36


are mounted, with their respective carrier


56


, on a transverse strut


58


such that their height can be adjusted. The carriers


56


of the front pressure rollers


54


are mounted on the upper covering (not illustrated) such that their height can be adjusted so that they can be lifted off the transport rollers


38


or set down onto the latter, as will be explained in more detail further below.




Also mounted in the side walls


20


of the inner frame


18


is a control shaft


60


which is oriented parallel to the transport shafts


34


and


36


and which, at its one end, bears a gear wheel


62


(FIGS.


2


and


3


), via which it can be driven by a toothed belt


64


, which also runs over a drive pinion


66


of a motor


68


. As

FIG. 3

shows, the control shaft


60


bears a large number of cams for controlling mechanical functions in the printer, as will be further discussed in detail below.





FIG. 9

shows the printing bar


30


in greater detail. It comprises a flat, rule-like carrier


70


, which is stamped from a metal sheet, for example, and a top rail


72


, which consists of plastic and is connected to the carrier


70


along a longitudinal edge of the latter. The top rail has a flat top side


74


, which serves as a rest for the printing medium, and on both long sides, guide noses


76


which fall away downwards and are intended to ensure that the printing medium is guided onto the surface


74


of the printing bar


30


as it is transported into the printer.




The printing bar


30


is mounted between the side walls


20


of the inner frame


18


such that it can be adjusted vertically, and is biased into an upper position by a helical compression spring


78


at its long ends in each case. The helical compression spring


78


is supported on a pin element


80


which is fixed to the frame and is fastened to the outside of the respective side wall


20


(FIG.


1


). Associated with the printing bar


30


, at each of its long ends, is an actuating lever


82


, which is mounted such that it can be pivoted about a pivot axis


84


on the respective side wall


20


. The actuating lever


82


has a fork-like lever arm


86


which, between the limbs of the fork, holds a lug


88


projecting from the carrier


70


of the printing bar


30


. A second lever arm


90


, projecting approximately at right angles in relation to the fork arm


86


, in each case rests with its free end


92


on two cam discs


94


, which are provided close to the long ends of the control shaft (FIG.


3


). With the aid of the actuating lever


82


, the printing bar


30


can be adjusted downwards, counter to the bias of the helical compression springs


78


, by the cam discs


94


on the control shaft


60


.




Provided parallel to the printing bar


30


is a pressure device


96


, which is used to press the respective printing medium against the surface


74


of the printing bar


30


, and therefore to ensure a predefined distance between the printing-medium surface and the printing head


24


. The pressure device comprises a film carrier


98


and a film strip


100


fixed to the latter (FIG.


9


). The film carrier


98


can be clipped in on a rod on the upper covering (not illustrated) with the aid of clips


102


, so that it can be pivoted about the axis


104


of this rod. At its respective long end, the foil carrier


98


has a lever


106


, on which a helical compression spring


108


acts, which is supported by its other end on a part fixed to the frame and biases the film carrier


98


in the counterclockwise direction in

FIG. 9

, against the upper side


74


of the printing bar


30


. In addition, the film carrier


98


has, at each of its long ends, an extension


110


which projects downward and on which a first lever arm


112


of an actuating lever designated generally by


114


rests. This actuating lever


114


is mounted such that it can rotate about an axis


116


on the respective side wall


20


of the frame


18


and has a second lever arm


118


, which is intended to rest on a cam disc


120


of the control shaft


60


. Therefore, in the event of rotation of the control shaft


60


, the pressure device


96


can be rotated in the clockwise direction in

FIG. 9

counter to the bias of the springs


108


, and therefore lifted off the printing bar


30


.





FIGS. 5 and 6

show a receipt stop, generally designated by


122


, and also the front pressure rollers in two different positions. The receipt stop comprises an elongate carrier


124


, which engages over the control shaft


60


and bears a row of stop elements


126


,


128


on its upper edge. If the receipt stop


122


is in its lower position illustrated in

FIG. 5

, a receipt can be pushed into the printer onto the printing bar


30


. In this position, the roller carriers


56


are lowered, so that the pressure rollers


54


rest on the transport rollers


38


. If the receipt stop


122


is in the upper position, illustrated in

FIG. 6

, then the stop elements


126


and


128


block the path of the printing media and prevent the latter being pushed onto the printing bar


30


. In this position, the longer stop elements


128


which can be seen in

FIGS. 5 and 6

in each case press against extensions


130


on the roller carriers


56


and lift the latter, so that the pressure rollers


54


no longer have any contact with the transport rollers


38


. The adjustment of the receipt stop


122


is provided by cam discs


132


, on which the carrier


124


of the receipt stop


122


rests.




The printer further comprises an alignment device, designated generally by


133


, in order to align the printing medium against the receipt stop. This alignment device


133


is illustrated in

FIGS. 7 and 8

. It comprises a shaft


136


which is mounted on the chassis base


12


in bearing blocks


134


and on which a first coupling sleeve


138


is rotatably mounted, the latter being capable of being driven by the front transport shaft


34


via a drive belt


140


(FIG.


1


). In addition, a second coupling sleeve


142


is mounted on the shaft


136


such that it can be rotated and displaced axially; said sleeve can be engaged with the first coupling sleeve


138


so as to transmit torque via coupling claws


144


with corresponding coupling claws


146


on the first coupling sleeve


138


. Fixed to the second coupling sleeve


142


are approximately triangular alignment rollers


148


, which can reach through openings which are formed in the lower covering


32


, in order to engage with a printing medium lying on the lower covering


32


. In addition, at its end facing away from the first coupling sleeve


138


, the second coupling sleeve


142


bears a bevel gear wheel


150


, which interacts with a bevel gear wheel


152


aligned at right angles to it in order to drive a further alignment roller


154


, whose shaft


155


is oriented at right angles to the shaft


136


.




The triangular shape of the rollers


148


and


154


has the effect that the printing medium lying on the lower covering


32


is lifted up abruptly and, on the one hand is transported in the direction of the stop elements


126


,


128


, but on the other hand is transported by the roller


154


in the direction of one of the side walls


20


of the frame


18


. As a result, relative to the receipt stop


122


, the printing medium is brought into a defined starting position for a printing operation.




The alignment device can be switched on and off by the coupling engagement between the two coupling sleeves


138


,


142


being made or broken as desired. For this purpose, use is made of a coupling lever


156


, which is mounted on the chassis base (in a manner not illustrated) such that it can be rotated about a shaft


158


substantially perpendicular to the chassis base


12


. A first lever arm


160


of the coupling lever


156


rests with its free end on the second coupling sleeve


142


and is biased by a helical spring


162


with the effect of disengaging the coupling engagement between the two coupling sleeves


138


,


142


. At the same time, as a result, a second lever arm


164


of the coupling lever


156


is urged against an axial cam disc


166


on the control shaft


60


. If, as a result of a rotation of the control shaft


60


, the coupling lever


156


is pivoted in the counterclockwise direction out of the position illustrated in

FIG. 7

into the position illustrated in

FIG. 8

, the result is that the coupling engagement between the two coupling sleeves


138


and


142


is released, and therefore the drive to the alignment rollers


148


,


154


is interrupted.




Printing media such as savings books or the like generally bear a magnetic strip on which specific information about the holding of the savings book, account number, account balance and the like are stored. In order to read and write on this magnetic strip, use is made of a reading/writing device generally designated by


168


, which is arranged under the lower covering


32


in such a way that the magnetic gap in the magnetic head lies in the surface of the lower covering


32


and can be displaced in the printer transversely with respect to the insertion direction of the printing medium. Such a reading/writing device is known per se and therefore does not need to be explained in detail. The reading/writing device


168


is assigned a pressure device


170


in order to press the printing medium against the magnetic head of the reading/writing device


168


. The reading/writing device


168


and the pressure device


170


associated with it are illustrated in

FIGS. 10 and 11

.




The pressure device


170


is arranged on the upper covering of the printer in a manner not specifically illustrated and is biased in the direction of the lower covering


32


by compression springs


172


(FIG.


1


).

FIG. 11

shows the pressure device


170


in its upper position. In this position, it is held by an actuating lever


174


, which is guided displaceably on one side wall


20


of the frame


18


, in the direction of the double arrow B in

FIG. 11

, with the aid of pins


176


which engage in slots


178


in the actuating lever


174


. The actuating lever


174


is biased obliquely upward in

FIG. 11

by a compression spring


180


, which is supported at one end by an actuating lever


174


and at the other end on a part fixed to the frame, the top end


182


of said lever striking a pivoting lever


184


belonging to the pressure device


170


and holding the latter in its lifted position.




At its lower end


186


, facing away from the top end


182


, the actuating lever


174


has a pin


188


on which a driver lever


190


can act, said driver lever being connected to the control shaft


60


so as to rotate with it and, according to

FIG. 10

, in the event of rotation of the control shaft


60


in the counterclockwise direction, striking the pin


188


and, in so doing, pulling the actuating lever


174


obliquely downward counter to the stress of the spring


180


. As a result, the pressure device


170


is also lowered, so that it can press a printing medium lying on the lower covering


32


against the reading/writing device


168


.





FIGS. 10 and 11

also show a reading device, generally designated by


192


, for reading characters written with magnetizable ink on a printing medium. The reading device


192


comprises, in a manner known per se, a magnetization head


194


and a reading head


196


. The magnetization head


194


has the task of magnetizing the characters printed with magnetizable ink on the printing medium so that they can be read by the reading head


196


. This reading head


196


is in turn assigned a pressure device


198


in order to press the printing medium against the reading head


196


when the characters are to be read. This pressing device


198


has a swinging arm


200


which is mounted on the outer frame


14


such that it can be pivoted about an axis


202


in a manner not illustrated, and bears a pressure roller


204


. The swinging arm


200


is biased into its position illustrated in

FIG. 10

, in which the pressure roller


204


is lifted off the reading head


196


, by a helical compression spring


206


, which is supported at one end on a section (not illustrated) fixed to the frame and at the other end on an end of the swinging arm


200


that faces away from the pressure roller


204


.




In order to adjust the swinging arm


200


into its pressure position illustrated in

FIG. 11

, use is made of a pressure lever


208


, which is mounted such that it can be pivoted about an axis


210


and presses onto the swinging arm


200


with its one lever arm


212


, while its other lever arm


214


is connected via a hinge


216


to the one end of an actuating lever


218


. The latter is mounted on the outside of the side wall


20


of the frame


18


such that it can be displaced translationally in the direction of the double arrow C in FIG.


11


. Its end facing away from the hinge


216


rests on a cam disc


220


of the control shaft


60


, with the aid of which the swinging arm


200


can be pivoted, via the linkage


218


,


208


, between the positions illustrated in

FIGS. 10 and 11

.




As the above description shows, the pressure rollers


54


interacting with the transport rollers


38


, the receipt stop


122


, the printing bar


30


, the foil carrier


98


with the foil strips


100


, the coupling sleeve


142


of the alignment device, the pressure device


170


for the magnetic-strip reading and writing device


168


, and the pressure device


198


for the reading device


192


can all be adjusted by means of the control shaft


60


. The essential factor here is that the cams are arranged on the control shaft


60


in such a way that the functions of the above-described parts of the printer do not hamper one another.





FIG. 12

shows the functional sequences of the above-described devices as a function of the rotational angle and of the direction of rotation of the control shaft


60


.




The control shaft


60


can be pivoted about a normalization position, which is assigned to the angle 0 up to −73° in one direction of rotation and up to +266° in the other direction of rotation. These limits of the pivoting range of the control shaft


60


are defined by a switching flag


222


on the control shaft


60


(FIGS.


3


and


4


), which engages in a forked light barrier (not illustrated).




The first line of

FIG. 12

shows the switching range of the forked light barrier. The hatched region to the left of the zero line indicates the region in which the forked light barrier outputs the signal “light”, that is to say in which it is not interrupted by the switching flag


222


. The region lying to the right of the zero line indicates the angular range of the control shaft


60


in which the switching flag


222


interrupts to beam in the forked light barrier, so that the latter outputs its signal “dark”.




The second line of

FIG. 12

relates to the function of the receipt stop


122


. Between −73° and −65° the receipt stop is located in its upper position (hatched region). In this position, the receipt stop blocks the insertion of a printing medium over the printing bar


30


. Between −65° and +52°, the receipt stop is lowered continuously. Once the receipt stop has been lowered completely, the printing medium can be moved as desired in the printer.




The third line relates to the pressure rollers


54


interacting with the transport rollers


38


. Between −73° and −65°, the pressure rollers assume their upper position (hatched region). Between −65° and 0°, the pressure rollers are lowered together with the receipt stop until they rest on the transport rollers


38


. Between 0° and 266°, a printing medium can be gripped and transported by the transport rollers


38


.




The fourth line of

FIG. 12

relates to the alignment device. In the hatched region, the alignment device is switched on, that is to say the alignment rollers


148


and


154


are rotated in order to align the printing medium against the receipt stop


122


. Lines


2


,


3


and


4


therefore relate to measures which are used to prepare a print.




Line


5


shows the regions in which the printing bar is lifted and lowered (hatched region from −73° to +155°) and in which the printing bar is completely lowered (+155° to 266°). The sixth line, which reproduces the positions of the pressure film, corresponds to this region. As long as the printing bar


30


is in its upper position, in which printing can also be carried out, the pressure film is in its lower position, in which it presses the printing medium against the printing bar


30


. This region extends from −73° to +155°. On the other hand, when the printing bar


30


is lowered completely, the pressure film


100


is lifted (hatched region from +155° to 266°). When the printing bar


30


is lowered and the pressure film


100


is lifted, printing media can be moved through between the printing bar and the pressure film.




The seventh line reproduces the position of the pressure device


198


associated with the reading device


192


. The hatched region from −73° to +210° corresponds to the lifted position and the transition of the pressure device


198


into its pressure position. The non-hatched region from 210° to 266° corresponds to the pressure position of the pressure device


198


, in which the magnetized characters on the printing medium can be read.




The eighth line relates to the position of the pressure device


170


of the magnetic strip reading/writing device. In the hatched region from −73° to +262°, the pressure device


170


is in its lifted state and changes into the lowered state. Only in the narrow region between 262° and 266° of the control shaft


60


does the pressure device


170


rest on the magnetic head of the reading/writing device


168


.




If a printing medium is inserted into the printer, then the receipt stop


122


is initially located in its upper position. The printing medium is aligned against the receipt stop


122


with the aid of the alignment device


133


. The control shaft


60


is then rotated until the receipt stop


122


is lowered, the alignment device


133


is switched off and the pressure rollers


54


can engage with the transport rollers


38


.




In order to insert the printing medium between the printing bar


30


and the pressure film


100


, first of all the printing bar


30


has to be lowered and the pressure film


100


lifted. This means that the control shaft


60


has first of all to be rotated onward to 205°. In this position of the printing bar


30


and of the pressure film


100


, the printing medium can be moved freely within the printer, so that it can also be brought into a position suitable for the reading device


192


or the reading/writing device


168


. The pressure devices


198


and


170


, which correspond to these reading devices can be operated without the printing bar


30


having to be adjusted first for this purpose, or without the transport of the printing medium in the printer being hampered.




For the purpose of printing, the printing medium then has to be brought first into a position suitable for printing, between the printing bar


30


and the printing head


24


. Then, by means of a rotation of the control shaft


60


into the 90° position, the printing bar


30


is lifted and the pressure film


100


is lowered, whereupon a print can then be made.















List of reference symbols




























10




Chassis




78




Helical compression










spring







12




Base




80




Pin







14




Outer frame




82




Actuating lever







16




Frame wall




84




Pivot axis







18




Inner frame




86




Lever arm (forked arm)







20




Side wall




88




Lug







22




Guide rod




90




Lever arm







24




Dot-matrix printing




92




Free end








head







26




Carriage




94




Cam discs







28




Toothed belt




96




Pressure device







30




Printing bar




98




Film carrier







32




Lower covering




100




Film strip







34




Transport shaft




102




Clip







36




Transport shaft




104




Axis







38




Transport rollers




106




Lever







40




Drive roller




108




Helical compression










spring







42




Drive roller




110




Extension







44




Drive motor




112




First lever arm







46




Shaft




114




Actuating lever







48




Drive pinion




116




Axis







50




Drive belt




118




Second lever arm







52




Tensioning roller




120




Cam disc







54




Pressure roller




122




Receipt stop







56




Carrier




124




Carrier







58




Transverse strut




126




Stop elements







60




Control shaft




128




Stop elements







62




Gear wheel




130




Extension







64




Toothed belt




132




Cam disc







66




Drive pinion




133




Alignment device







68




Motor




134




Bearing block







70




Carrier




136




Shaft







72




Top rail




138




First coupling sleeve







74




Top side




140




Drive belt







76




Guide nose




142




Second coupling sleeve







144




Coupling claws




212




Lever arm







146




Coupling claws




214




Lever arm







148




Alignment roller




216




Hinge







150




Bevel gear wheel




218




Actuating lever







152




Bevel gear wheel




220




Cam disc







154




Alignment roller




222




Switching flag







155




Axis







156




Coupling lever







158




Axis







160




First lever arm







162




Helical spring







164




Second lever arm







166




Axial cam disc







168




Reading/writing








device







170




Pressure device







172




Compression spring







174




Actuating lever







176




Pin







178




Slot







180




Compression spring







182




Top end







184




Pivoting lever







186




Lower end







188




Pin







190




Driver lever







192




Reading device







194




Magnetization head







196




Reading head







198




Pressure device







200




Swinging arm







202




Shaft







204




Pressure roller







206




Helical compression








spring







208




Pressure lever







210




Shaft














Claims
  • 1. A printer for printing on a printing medium, said printer comprising a printer frame, a transport device for moving a printing medium along a transport path in a transport direction relative to the printer frame, a printing head, which printing head is adjustably guided transversely with respect to the transport direction of the printing medium on a printing head guide, a printing head drive, a printing bar assigned to the printing head, a printing medium stop which can be adjusted between a blocking position, in which it projects into the transport path of the printing medium, and a release position, means for aligning the printing medium relative to the printer frame both in said transport direction and in a direction transverse to the transport direction while the printing medium stop is in the blocking position, and a printing control system, wherein a control shaft is rotatably mounted in the printer frame, is driven by a motor controlled by a printer control system, and bears a plurality of control cams, of which cams respectively at least one controls the activation of the transport device, at least one controls the activation of the alignment means, and at least one controls the adjustment of the printing medium stop, control curves of the control cams being designed such that an activation zone of the alignment means and an activation zone of the printing medium stop are located substantially in a deactivation zone of the transport device.
  • 2. The printer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the transport device comprises at least one driven transport shaft having transport rollers, and pressure rollers which are associated with the transport rollers, the pressure rollers being adjustable between a pressure position close to the transport rollers and a rest position away from the transport rollers.
  • 3. The printer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printing bar can be adjusted in relation to the printing head, by a control cam on the control shaft, between a printing position close to said printing head and a rest position away from the latter, and in that the control curve of the printing bar control cam is designed such that the rest position of the printing bar is located in the activation zone of the transport device.
  • 4. The printer as claimed in claim 3, wherein an angular range of the control curve of the printing-bar control cam which corresponds to the printing position of the printing bar extends over the deactivation zone and an adjacent part of the activation zone of the transport device.
  • 5. The printer as claimed in claim 3, wherein in that parallel to the printing bar there is arranged a pressure-film strip on a film carrier, which film carrier is adjustable between a position close to the printing bar and a position away from the printing bar, and in that the adjustment of the film carrier is controlled by a film carrier control cam on the control shaft a control curve of which cam is designed such that when the printing bar is located in the printing position the film carrier is located close to the printing bar, and when the film carrier is in the rest position the film carrier is located away from the printing bar.
  • 6. The printer as claimed in claim 3, wherein the printer has a reading device for reading characters printed with magnetic ink on the printing medium, and the reading device has at least one magnetic head and a printing medium pressure device, which printing medium pressure device is activated by a control cam on the control shaft, a control curve of which control cam being designed such that the activation zone of the printing medium pressure device is located in a zone corresponding to the rest position of the printing bar.
  • 7. The printer as claimed in claim 3, wherein the printer has a reading/writing device for reading and writing on a magnetic strip on the printing medium, and in that the reading/writing device has a magnetic head arrangement and a printing medium pressure device, which can be activated by a control cam on the control shaft, a control curve of this control cam being designed such that the activation zone of the printing medium pressure device is located within the activation zone of the printing medium pressure device.
  • 8. The printer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control shaft has a switching flag which defines a start position and an end position and an end position of the control shaft, between which start and end positions the control shaft can be rotated to and fro.
Priority Claims (1)
Number Date Country Kind
198 40 997 Sep 1998 DE
PCT Information
Filing Document Filing Date Country Kind
PCT/DE99/02469 WO 00
Publishing Document Publishing Date Country Kind
WO00/13909 3/16/2000 WO A
US Referenced Citations (5)
Number Name Date Kind
4232217 Juziuk et al. Nov 1980 A
4237466 Scranton Dec 1980 A
5139353 Ota Aug 1992 A
5277507 Garcia-Cano et al. Jan 1994 A
6092949 Koyabu et al. Jul 2000 A
Foreign Referenced Citations (5)
Number Date Country
2 243 922 Apr 1974 DE
2424144 Nov 1975 DE
25 34 439 Apr 1976 DE
31 44 388 May 1983 DE
WO9601742 Jan 1996 WO