Printer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019001703-A1
Application number	US-201815926388-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 20, 2018
Priority date	Jun 28, 2017
Publication date	Jan 3, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

The disclosure discloses a printer includes a controller. The controller performs a first feed control process, a temperature-difference calculation process, and a first printing speed determination process. In the first feed control process, in a state where an energizing device does not perform energization to the heating element, the driving device is controlled to perform non-energization feeding while causing a thermal head to contact a print-receiving medium. In the temperature-difference calculation process, during execution of the non-energization feeding, a first deviation between two of the head temperatures which are respectively detected by the first temperature detecting device at different timings is calculated. In the first printing speed determination process, the printing speed is determined on the basis of the first deviation.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A printer comprising:
a feeder configured to feed a print-receiving medium at a desired feeding speed; a thermal head including a plurality of heating elements; an energizing device configured to energize said plurality of heating elements; a driving device configured to drive said feeder; a first temperature detecting device disposed on said thermal head and configured to detect a head temperature of said thermal head; and a controller, said controller performing: a coordination control process for coordinating and controlling said energizing device and said driving device and for forming a print onto said print-receiving medium by said thermal head at a printing speed synchronized with said feeding speed; a first feed control process for, in a state where said energizing device does not perform energization to said heating element, controlling said driving device to perform non-energization feeding while causing said thermal head to contact said print-receiving medium; a temperature-difference calculation process for calculating, during execution of said non-energization feeding in said first feed control process, a first deviation between two of said head temperatures which are respectively detected by said first temperature detecting device at different timings; and a first printing speed determination process for determining said printing speed on the basis of said first deviation calculated in said temperature-difference calculation process.

2 . The printer according to claim 1 , further comprising a first memory that stores a first correlation between a medium temperature of said print-receiving medium and a printing speed, wherein
in said first printing speed determination process, the medium temperature is determined on the basis of said first deviation calculated in said temperature-difference calculation process, and said printing speed corresponding to the determined medium temperature is determined with reference to said first correlation stored in said first memory.

3 . The printer according to claim 2 , wherein:
said controller further performs a first determination process for determining whether or not said first deviation chronologically and sequentially calculated in said temperature-difference calculation process on the basis of said head temperature chronologically and sequentially detected in said first temperature detection process during execution of said non-energization feeding falls within a predetermined value; and wherein in said first printing speed determination process, triggered by a determination in said first determination process that said first deviation falls within said predetermined value, said head temperature which is a latest one detected by said first temperature detecting device is determined as said medium temperature.

4 . The printer according to claim 3 , wherein:
said controller further performs a second determination process for determining whether or not a state, where it is determined in said first determination process that said first deviation falls within said predetermined value, has continued for a predetermined time or for over said predetermined time; and wherein in said first printing speed determination process, in the case that it is determined in said second determination process that a determination state where said first deviation in said first determination process falls within said predetermined value has continued for said predetermined time or for over said predetermined time, said latest head temperature is determined as said medium temperature.

5 . The printer according to claim 2 , wherein:
said controller further performs: an estimation process for estimating a change behavior of said head temperature using said first deviation chronologically and sequentially calculated in said temperature-difference calculation process on the basis of said head temperature chronologically and sequentially detected by said first temperature detecting device during execution of said non-energization feeding; and a predicted-value determination process for determining, on the basis of said change behavior estimated in said estimation process, a predicted value of said medium temperature in the case that said first deviation falls within a predetermined value, and wherein in said first printing speed determination process, said printing speed corresponding to the determined predicted value is determined with reference to said first correlation stored in said first memory.

6 . A printer comprising:
a feeder configured to feed a print-receiving medium at a desired feeding speed; a thermal head including a plurality of heating elements; an energizing device configured to energize said plurality of heating elements; a driving device configured to drive said feeder; and a controller, said controller performing: a coordination control process for coordinating and controlling said energizing device and said driving device and for forming a print onto said print-receiving medium at a printing speed synchronized with said feeding speed; an instruction receiving process for receiving an input of a predetermined specified feeding amount; a second feed control process for controlling said driving device to perform a feeding of said print-receiving medium by said specified feeding amount received in said instruction receiving process; a feeding amount detection process for detecting an actual feeding amount of said print-receiving medium, said actual feeding amount being fed by said feeder by controlling said driving device in said second feed control process; and a second printing speed determination process for determining said printing speed on the basis of a second deviation between said actual feeding amount detected in said feeding amount detection process and said specified feeding amount.

7 . The printer according to claim 6 , wherein:
said feeder is configured to feed said print-receiving medium in a forward direction along a predetermined feeding path and in a direction opposite to said forward direction, respectively; in said second feed control process, said driving device is controlled to perform a feeding of said print-receiving medium in said opposite direction by said specified feeding amount; and in said feeding amount detection process, said actual feeding amount when fed in said opposite direction by said feeder is detected.

8 . The printer according to claim 6 , further comprising:
a second temperature detecting device disposed inside said printer and configured to detect an atmospheric temperature therearound; and a second memory that stores a second correlation between an atmospheric temperature and a printing speed, wherein in said second printing speed determination process, with respect to said atmospheric temperature detected by said second temperature detecting device, a correction is made on the basis of said second deviation between said actual feeding amount and said specified feeding amount to determine a post-correction temperature, and said printing speed corresponding to the determined post-correction temperature is determined with reference to said second correlation stored in said second memory.

9 . The printer according to claim 8 , wherein
in said second printing speed determination process, with respect to said atmospheric temperature detected by said second temperature detecting device: in the case that said actual feeding amount is smaller than said specified feeding amount, a correction toward a minus side is made with respect to said atmospheric temperature to determine said post-correction temperature; and in the case that said actual feeding amount is larger t

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Nampo Hiromichi

Classifications

• B41J15/042

  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

• B41J2/3555 Primary

  Historical control · CPC title

• B41J11/425 Primary

  for a variable printing material feed amount · CPC title

• B41J15/06

  characterised by being applied to printers having stationary carriages · CPC title

• B41J11/42

  Controlling {printing material conveyance for accurate alignment of the printing material with the printhead; Print registering} · CPC title