Cutter blade drive mechanism, cutter, and printer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9487036-B2
Application number	US-201514968105-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 14, 2015
Priority date	Dec 25, 2014
Publication date	Nov 8, 2016
Grant date	Nov 8, 2016

Abstract

A cutter blade drive mechanism reliably returns a cutter blade from a forward position to a retracted position. A rotation transfer mechanism 34 , which transfers rotation of a drive motor 31 to a drive gear 32 , has a cutter blade return gear 50 that meshes with the drive gear 32 , a compound gear 40 to which rotation from the drive motor 31 is transferred, and a transfer gear 51 that meshes with the compound gear 40 and the cutter blade return gear 50 . While an intermittent teeth part 43 a of the compound gear 40 and the transfer gear 51 are meshed, the cutter blade 21 moves to the forward position 21 A. When the intermittent teeth part 43 a and the transfer gear 51 are not meshed and the compound gear-side protrusion 44 b of the compound gear 40 is in contact with a cutter blade return protrusion 50 b of a cutter blade return gear 50 , the cutter blade return gear 50 rotates in unison with the compound gear 40 , the drive gear 32 turns in the opposite direction, and the cutter blade 21 returns to the retracted position 21 B.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A cutter blade drive mechanism that moves a cutter blade reciprocally between a forward position where a sheet medium is cut and a retracted position separated from the forward position, comprising:
a drive gear;
a rotary-to-linear-motion conversion mechanism that converts rotation of the drive gear to linear motion moving the cutter blade forward and back;
a drive motor; and
a rotation transfer mechanism that transfers rotation in a driving direction from the drive motor to the drive gear to selectively rotate the drive gear in a first direction of rotation, and transfers rotation in the same driving direction from the drive motor to the drive gear to selectively rotate the drive gear in a second direction of rotation opposite the first direction of rotation;
wherein the cutter blade moves from the retracted position to the forward position by the drive motor rotating in the driving direction to drive rotation of the drive gear, via the rotation transfer mechanism, by a first specific rotational angle in the first direction of rotation, and the cutter blade moves from the forward position to the retracted position by the drive motor rotating in the same driving direction to drive rotation of the drive gear, via the rotation transfer mechanism, by a second specific rotational angle in the second direction of rotation opposite the first direction of rotation.

2. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 , wherein:
the rotation transfer mechanism includes a cutter blade return gear that meshes with the drive gear, an intermittent gear to which rotation from the drive motor is transferred, and a transfer gear that transfers rotation of the intermittent gear to the cutter blade return gear;
the cutter blade return gear has a non-tooth protrusion at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation; and
the intermittent gear has a non-tooth contact part at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation and that can contact the protrusion.

3. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 2 , wherein:
the drive gear is also the transfer gear.

4. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 , wherein:
the rotary-to-linear-motion conversion mechanism is a rack and pinion mechanism.

5. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 , further comprising:
an urging member attached to the cutter blade and that directly urges the cutter blade from the forward position to the retracted position.

6. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 , wherein a magnitude of the first specific rotational angle is substantially equal to a magnitude of second specific rotation angle.

7. A printer comprising:
the cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 6 ;
a printhead; and
a conveyance mechanism that conveys sheet media through a conveyance path passing the printing position of the printhead and the cutting position of the cutter.

8. A cutter comprising:
the cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 ;
a first cutter blade that is moved between the forward position and the retracted position by the cutter blade drive mechanism; and
a second cutter blade that contacts the first cutter blade at the forward position.

9. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 1 , wherein:
the rotation transfer mechanism includes a cutter blade return gear that meshes with the drive gear, an intermittent gear to which rotation from the drive motor is transferred, and a transfer gear positioned to mesh with the intermittent gear and to selectively transfer rotation of the intermittent gear to the cutter blade return gear;
the cutter blade return gear has a first non-tooth protrusion at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation;
the intermittent gear has a second non-tooth protrusion at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation, the second non-tooth protrusion being positioned to contact the first non-tooth protrusion of the cutter blade return gear;
wherein:
when the transfer gear meshes with the intermittent gear, the transfer gear transfers rotation of the intermittent gear to the cutter blade return gear to rotate the drive gear in the first direction; and
when the first non-tooth protrusion of the cutter blade return gear contacts the second non-tooth protrusion of the intermittent gear, the transfer gear is disengaged from the intermittent gear and the cutter blade return gear rotates the drive gear in the second direction.

10. A cutter blade drive mechanism that moves a cutter blade reciprocally between a forward position where a sheet medium is cut and a retracted position separated from the forward position, comprising:
a drive gear;
a rotary-to-linear-motion conversion mechanism that converts rotation of the drive gear to linear motion moving the cutter blade forward and back;
a drive motor; and
a rotation transfer mechanism that transfers rotation from the drive motor to the drive gear;
wherein the cutter blade moves from the retracted position to the forward position by rotation of the drive gear by a first specific rotational angle in a first direction of rotation, and moves from the forward position to the retracted position by rotation of the drive gear by a second specific rotational angle in a second direction of rotation opposite the first direction of rotation;
wherein:
the rotation transfer mechanism includes a cutter blade return gear that meshes with the drive gear, an intermittent gear to which rotation from the drive motor is transferred, and a transfer gear that transfers rotation of the intermittent gear to the cutter blade return gear;
the cutter blade return gear has a protrusion at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation; and
the intermittent gear has a contact part at a position separated radially from its axis of rotation and that can contact the protrusion; and

wherein:
the intermittent gear is not continuously meshed with the transfer gear, and the intermittent gear has a toothed part that intermittently meshes with a toothed part of the transfer gear;
the drive gear turns the first specific rotational angle in the first direction of rotation in conjunction with rotation of the intermittent gear while the toothed parts of the intermittent gear and the transfer gear are meshed, and
when the toothed parts of the intermittent gear and the transfer gear are not meshed and the contact part of the intermittent gear is in contact with the protrusion of the cutter blade return gear, the drive gear turns the second specific rotational angle in the second direction of rotation by the intermittent gear turning the cutter blade return gear.

11. The cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 10 , wherein:
the protrusion is disposed closer to the outside circumference of the intermittent gear than the toothed part.

12. A cutter comprising:
the cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 10 ;
a first cutter blade that is moved between the forward position and the retracted position by the cutter blade drive mechanism; and
a second cutter blade that contacts the first cutter blade at the forward position.

13. A printer comprising:
the cutter blade drive mechanism described in claim 10 ;
a printhead; and
a conveyance mechanism that conveys sheet media through a conveyance path passing the printing position of the printhead and the cutting position of the cutter.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Ishida Tetsugo

Classifications

• B26D5/083

  Rack-and-pinion means · CPC title

• B26D1/065

  for thin material, e.g. for sheets, strips or the like · CPC title

• B41J11/70 Primary

  cutting perpendicular to the direction of paper feed · CPC title

• B41J29/387 Primary

  Automatic cut-off devices · CPC title

• B41J11/663 Primary

  Controlling cutting, cutting resulting in special shapes of the cutting line, e.g. controlling cutting positions, e.g. for cutting in the immediate vicinity of a printed image · CPC title