Printing cassette

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11932011-B2
Application number	US-202217700359-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 21, 2022
Priority date	Sep 30, 2019
Publication date	Mar 19, 2024
Grant date	Mar 19, 2024

Abstract

A printing cassette that is to be attached to and detached from a printing apparatus main body is provided. The printing cassette includes: a first roll in which a first tape is wound around a winding center axis parallel to a first direction; and an input gear that is disposed at a different position from the first roll in the first direction, engaging another gear, and configured to transmit a driving force of a drive shaft of the printing apparatus to the another gear. The first roll has a cylindrical shape in which a hollow portion is defined by an inner peripheral surface. The drive shaft is inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll and the input gear is engaged with the drive shaft in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A printing cassette that is to be attached to and detached from a printing apparatus main body, the printing apparatus main body including a drive shaft that rotates around an axis, the printing cassette comprising:
a first roll in which a first tape is wound around a winding center axis parallel to a first direction; and
an input gear that is disposed at a different position from the first roll in the first direction, engaging another gear, and configured to transmit a driving force of the drive shaft to the another gear,
wherein the first roll has a cylindrical shape in which a hollow portion is defined by an inner peripheral surface,
wherein the drive shaft is inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body, and
wherein the input gear is engaged with the drive shaft in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body.

2. The printing cassette according to claim 1 ,
wherein the input gear includes an engaging portion disposed radially inside a pitch circle of the input gear,
wherein a rotational axis of the input gear overlaps the hollow portion of the first roll in the first direction, and
wherein the engaging portion is engaged with the drive shaft in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body.

3. The printing cassette according to claim 2 ,
wherein the input gear includes a wall portion disposed radially inside the pitch circle of the input gear, extending in the first direction, and being inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll, and
wherein the engaging portion is a gear-side spline tooth that is disposed at the wall portion and protrudes toward the rotational axis of the input gear.

4. The printing cassette according to claim 3 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a first isolation wall that is disposed between a part of the input gear and the first roll in the first direction and extends a direction intersecting with the first direction; and
a hole that penetrates the first isolation wall in the first direction, and

wherein the wall portion is configured to pass through the hole to be inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll.

5. The printing cassette according to claim 1 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises a spool that is rotatable,
wherein the first roll is configured by winding the first tape around the spool,
wherein the spool has a cylindrical shape in which a hollow portion is defined by an inner peripheral surface, and
wherein the drive shaft is inserted into the hollow portion of the spool in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body.

6. The printing cassette according to claim 5 ,
wherein the spool includes a spool-side spline tooth disposed at the inner peripheral surface, and
wherein the spool-side spline tooth is engaged with the drive shaft in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body.

7. The printing cassette according to claim 6 ,
wherein the input gear includes:
a wall portion disposed radially inside a pitch circle of the input gear, extending in the first direction, and being inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll; and
a gear-side spline tooth disposed at the wall portion and protruding toward a rotational axis of the input gear,

wherein the gear-side spline tooth is engaged with the drive shaft in a state where the printing cassette is attached to the printing apparatus main body, and
wherein in a projection drawing in which the spool and the input gear are projected onto a surface virtually orthogonal to the rotational axis, a diameter of an inscribed circle of the spool-side spline tooth is more than a diameter of an inscribed circle of the gear-side spline tooth.

8. The printing cassette according to claim 5 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a printing tape; and
a supply spool around which the first tape is wound,

wherein the first tape is an ink ribbon that is used for printing the printing tape, and
wherein the spool is a take-up spool configured to take up the ink ribbon.

9. The printing cassette according to claim 1 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a printing tape;
a supply spool around which an ink ribbon is wound, the ink ribbon being used for printing the printing tape;
a take-up spool configured to take up the ink ribbon unwound from the supply spool; and
a take-up gear configured to rotate the take-up spool,

wherein the first tape is a laminate tape that is laminated on the printing tape that has been printed, and
wherein the another gear transmits, to the take-up gear, the driving force input to the input gear.

10. The printing cassette according to claim 1 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a second roll being a roll of a second tape; and
a second isolation wall that separates the input gear and the second roll in the first direction, and

wherein the second isolation wall includes:
a gear axis that is inserted into the input gear; and
a support surface configured to support the second roll from a side of the input gear.

11. A printing cassette comprising:
a first roll in which a first tape is wound around a winding center axis parallel to a first direction; and
an input gear that is disposed at a different position from the first roll in the first direction, engaging another gear, and configured to transmit a driving force input from an external to the another gear,
wherein the first roll has a cylindrical shape in which a hollow portion is defined by an inner peripheral surface, and
wherein a rotational axis of the input gear overlaps the hollow portion of the first roll in the first direction.

12. The printing cassette according to claim 11 ,
wherein the input gear includes:
a wall portion disposed radially inside a pitch circle of the input gear, extending in the first direction, and being inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll; and
a gear-side spline tooth disposed at the wall portion and protruding toward the rotational axis of the input gear.

13. The printing cassette according to claim 12 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a first isolation wall that is disposed between a part of the input gear and the first roll in the first direction and extends a direction intersecting with the first direction; and
a hole that penetrates the first isolation wall in the first direction, and

wherein the wall portion is configured to pass through the hole to be inserted into the hollow portion of the first roll.

14. The printing cassette according to claim 11 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises a spool that is rotatable,
wherein the first roll is configured by winding the first tape around the spool,
wherein the spool includes a spool-side spline tooth disposed at an inner peripheral surface of the spool.

15. The printing cassette according to claim 14 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a printing tape; and
a supply spool around which the first tape is wound,

wherein the first tape is an ink ribbon that is used for printing the printing tape, and
wherein the spool is a take-up spool configured to take up the ink ribbon.

16. The printing cassette according to claim 11 ,
wherein the printing cassette further comprises:
a printing tape;
a supply spool around which an ink ribbon is wound, the ink ribbon being used for

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Ukai Shinji

Classifications

• B41J33/22

  by gears or pulleys · CPC title

• B41J32/00

  Ink-ribbon cartridges · CPC title

• B41J15/046

  for the guidance of continuous copy material, e.g. for preventing skewed conveyance of the continuous copy material · CPC title

• B41J15/042 Primary

  for loading rolled-up continuous copy material into printers, e.g. for replacing a used-up paper roll; Point-of-sale printers with openable casings allowing access to the rolled-up continuous copy material · CPC title

• B41J11/00

  Devices or arrangements  {of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers,} for supporting or handling copy material in sheet or web form (script supports connected to the typewriter or printer B41J29/15) · CPC title