Claims
- 1. A serial character printer, comprising in combination: at least two substantially flat printing cards having different sets of characters and signs thereon arranged in rows and columns, means for storing said printing cards including at least one cartridge for holding cards in stacked flat parallel condition, the cartridge having an opening at the bottom thereof, the cartridge having an opening at the top thereof to permit the insertion of cards into the cartridge and the withdrawal of cards through the opening in the top of the cartridge, means for the step-wise driving and positioning of a selected card in a lateral direction parallel to a line being printed and means for the step-wise driving and positioning of said selected card vertically perpendicular to said lateral direction in a plane parallel to the planes of said printing cards in the cartridge, said last named means including a card positioning manipulator having card clamping and aligning means on the top thereof which interfits with the bottom of a selected printing card, means for driving the manipulator upon command to place the manipulator with its top beneath the selected card in the cartridge and in alignment with the opening in the bottom of the cartridge, means for thereafter raising the manipulator through the opening in the bottom of the cartridge and then through the cartridge and out through the opening in the top of the cartridge to carry with it said selected printing card during successive printing operations and the respective positioning of the card at the printing station, means for lowering the manipulator to return the selected printing card into said cartridge through the opening in the top of the cartridge when the selected printing card is to be replaced by another printing card which is present in said cartridge, or when the printing operation is stopped, the means for driving the positioning manipulator laterally being a step-wise driven carriage upon which the manipulator is mounted, and the means for positioning the manipulator vertically being a step-wise driven driving means on said carriage, and comprising means for controlling said storage means and said positioning manipulator in cooperation with the respective step-wise driving means during the printing operation.
- 2. A serial character printer according to claim 1, wherein each printing card comprises: a flat rectangular frame therefor, printing characters arranged in rows and columns parallel to the sides, top, and bottom, respectively, of said frame and elastically attached to said frame, said frame having a bearing part at the bottom thereof containing means for selective interaction with said cartridge releasably to hold said printing cards therein and selectively to effect a connection between the clamping and aligning means on the top of the manipulator and a selected printing card, the clamping and aligning means on the manipulator and the means on the bottom of the cards for selective interaction with said clamping and aligning means on the top of the manipulator including at least one recess on one of the members comprising the top of the manipulator and the bottom of the cards and a pin selectively received in such recess on the other of said members comprising the top of the manipulator and the bottom of the card, the top of the manipulator and the bottom of the card also including a magnet on one of them and a magnet armature on the other of them, said magnet and armature constituting selectively releasable means connecting the card to the manipulator.
- 3. A serial character printer according to claim 2, wherein said means on said cartridge for holding and aligning said printing cards within said cartridge includes magnetic means.
- 4. A serial character printer according to claim 1, wherein said means for the lateral step-wise driving and positioning of said carriage comprises a first linear stepping electric motor acting to drive said carriage in a horizontal, lateral direction, and the means for the vertical step-wise driving and positioning said manipulator comprises a second linear stepping electric motor mounted on the carriage and driving the manipulator in a vertical direction.
- 5. A serial character printer according to claim 4, comprising a third linear stepping motor for the step-wise driving of the cartridge in a direction normal to the plane defined by the lateral movement of the carriage and the vertical movement of the manipulator whereby selectively to present the cartridge above the upper end of the manipulator for interaction between the manipulator and a selected card.
- 6. A serial character printer according to claim 5, wherein the primary parts of said first and second stepping electric motors are contained by and secured to said carriage, the secondary part of said first linear stepping electric motor providing motion of said carriage and positioning manipulator thereon in a lateral direction, parallel to the line being printed, and the primary part of said second linear stepping electric motor insuring motion of said manipulator in a vertical direction transverse relative to the line being printed.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
37 228 |
Aug 1977 |
BGX |
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Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 936,598, filed Aug. 24, 1978, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (8)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
Hunt, IBM Tech. Discl. Bulletin, vol. 22, No. 10, 3/80, pp. 4349-4350. |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
936598 |
Aug 1978 |
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