Printing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10226943-B2
Application number	US-201715716605-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 27, 2017
Priority date	Mar 30, 2017
Publication date	Mar 12, 2019
Grant date	Mar 12, 2019

Abstract

A printing apparatus includes: a main body; a cassette including a cassette case and a printing medium accommodated in the cassette case; an installing portion provided on the main body for installing the cassette detachably; a thermal head arranged on a substrate provided in the installing portion and having heating elements arranged along a predetermined arrangement direction; a conveyor which conveys the printing medium of the cassette installed in the installing portion along a conveyance path orthogonal to the arrangement direction; a first temperature sensor provided, in the installing portion, on a side of the thermal head with respect to the conveyance path; a second temperature sensor provided in the interior of the cassette case or the installing portion; and a processor which corrects an amount of applying energy to be applied to the heating elements, based on first and second temperatures detected by the first and second temperature sensors.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A printing apparatus, comprising:
a main body in a box shape;
a cassette including a cassette case in a box shape and a printing medium accommodated in the cassette case;
an installing portion provided on the main body, the cassette being detachably installed in the installing portion;
a thermal head arranged on a substrate provided in the installing portion, the thermal head having heating elements arranged along a predetermined arrangement direction;
a conveyor configured to convey the printing medium of the cassette installed in the installing portion along a conveyance path orthogonal to the predetermined arrangement direction;
a first temperature sensor provided, in the installing portion, on a side of the thermal head with respect to the conveyance path;
a second temperature sensor provided in any one of an interior of the cassette case and the installing portion; and
a processor configured to:
correct an amount of applying energy to be applied to the heating elements, based on a first temperature detected by the first temperature sensor and a second temperature detected by the second temperature sensor; and
apply the corrected amount of the applying energy selectively to the heating elements to cause the heating elements to generate heat, and carry out printing by heating the printing medium with the heat generated,

wherein the cassette case includes a head insertion wall portion,
the head insertion wall portion forms a head insertion opening which penetrates the cassette case in a direction in which the cassette is installed in the installing portion,
the substrate is inserted in the head insertion opening in an installed state in which the cassette is installed in the installing portion, and
in the installed state, the first temperature sensor is arranged inside the head insertion opening and the second temperature sensor is arranged inside the cassette case.

2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a heat sink provided on the substrate and configured to release the heat of the heating elements,
wherein the first temperature sensor is provided on one of the substrate and the heat sink.

3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the cassette case has a facing wall which faces the installing portion in the installed state, and a through hole which is formed in the facing wall,
the second temperature sensor is provided in the installing portion at a specific position corresponding to the through hole in the installed state, and
the second temperature sensor enters inside of the cassette case through the through hole when the cassette is installed in the installing portion.

4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a connecting section provided in the installing portion,
wherein the connecting section is configured to supply electric power to the second temperature sensor when the second temperature sensor is connected thereto,
the second temperature sensor is provided in the cassette at a position corresponding to the connecting section in the installed state, and
the second temperature sensor is connected to the connecting section in the installed state.

5. The printing apparatus according to claim 3 , further comprising an end-mark sensor provided at the specific position and being capable of detecting an end mark that is put on the printing medium,
wherein the end-mark sensor enters inside of the cassette case through the through hole when the cassette is installed in the installing portion.

6. The printing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the head insertion wall portion is formed of an opaque resin material.

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Kondo Tomohiro
• Torii Yasuhiro
• Terada Kohei

Classifications

• B41J35/04

  Ink-ribbon guides · CPC title

• B41J2202/30

  Embodiments of or processes related to thermal heads · CPC title

• B41J31/10

  Ink ribbons having arrangements to facilitate threading through a machine · CPC title

• B41J2/365 Primary

  by compensation for variation in temperature · CPC title