Printing apparatus

Details Printing apparatus Printing apparatus

1997-08-04

2002-07-16

Barlow, John (Department: 2853)

Incremental printing of symbolic information

Ink jet

Housing

Reexamination Certificate

active

06419357

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a printing apparatus having a housing formed with a containing portion in which a power source unit for effecting printing on a printing medium is removably contained.
2. Related Background Art
Printing apparatuses for forming images such as characters on a printing medium are widely used for individual use and business purposes. It has generally often been the case that plain paper is used as the printing medium, but with the recent development of the printing technique, metal plates, fabrics, etc. have also come to be used as the printing mediums. In order to cope with such many kinds of printing mediums, there is also known a printing apparatus having a plurality of medium conveying paths, one of which is made straight.
FIG. 13
of the accompanying drawings is a cross-sectional view of the essential portions of an ink jet printing apparatus having such two conveying paths as described above.
Arrow P
A
indicates an automatic conveying path, and arrow P
M
indicates a manual conveying path. A printing medium conveyed from the automatic conveying path P
A
or the manual conveying path P
M
is conveyed onto a platen
101
and is printed there, and is conveyed out in the direction of arrow A. The reference numeral
102
designates a head cartridge, the reference numeral
103
denotes an ink tank for storing ink therein, and the reference numeral
104
designates a printing head for receiving the supply of the ink from the ink tank
103
and effecting printing. That is, the ink is discharged from the printing head
104
toward the platen
101
, whereby printing is effected on the printing medium. In this case, printing is effected with the printing medium which has been guided onto the platen
101
via the automatic conveying path P
A
or the manual conveying path P
M
being held by and between a pair of guide rollers
105
and a pair of pinch rollers
106
provided forwardly and rearwardly of the platen
101
.
The printing mediums to pass along the automatic conveying path P
A
are placed as a paper stack
109
on a receiving plate
108
disposed on a paper supply tray
107
. The uppermost sheet of the paper stack
109
is picked up by a paper supply roller
110
and is conveyed onto the platen
101
via the automatic conveying route P
A
.
The paper supply roller
110
is supported on the paper supply tray
107
through a paper supply roller shaft
111
, and during paper supply, it is rotated by a drive force obtained from drive means, not shown. Also, the receiving plate
108
is supported on the paper supply tray
107
through a pin
112
, and during paper supply, it is elevated so as to approach the paper supply roller
110
by drive means, not shown, and the uppermost sheet of the paper stack
109
is adapted to resiliently contact with the paper supply roller
110
.
On the other hand, the printing medium to pass along the manual conveying path P
M
is inserted from between a medium conveying path forming surface
114
provided on an outer case
113
as a housing and the medium conveying path auxiliary forming surface
116
of a side guide
115
for manual insertion, and passes along the manual conveying path P
M
and is guided onto the platen
101
. The side guide
115
for manual insertion is provided in opposed relationship with a fixed side guide, not shown, in order to cooperate with this fixed sideguide to regulate the position of the printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the direction of conveyance of the printing medium passing along the manual conveying path P
M
. The side guide
115
for manual insertion is slidably mounted on a pair of side guide restraining portions
117
provided upstream and downstream of the medium conveying path forming surface
114
, and is movable in accordance with the width of the printing medium.
A power source unit
119
formed with a connector
118
to be connected to an AC power source, not shown, is disposed in the outer case
113
located under the manual conveying path P
M
. Further, a circuit substrate including an element for converting an AC power source into a direct current of a predetermined voltage is contained in the power source unit
119
.
In the printing apparatus as shown in
FIG. 13
, the manual conveying path P
M
is located between the paper supply tray
107
and the power source unit
119
and therefore, the total height of the printing apparatus is great, and this has led to the tendency that the installation space for the printing apparatus necessarily increases or the costs of the materials of the printing apparatus body becomes higher.
Also, there is a case where printing is effected on a printing medium of a short sheet length such as a postcard for lateral printing by way of the manual conveying path P
M
. When at such time, improper conveyance occurs due to some or other cause, it has been difficult to take the printing medium which has caused the improper conveyance out of the apparatus.
On the other hand, in a compact apparatus wherein particular importance is attached to portability, the mounting and dismounting of the power source unit
119
with respect to the outer case
113
are possible, and if design is made such that this can be done simply, there is the possibility of a user removing the power source unit
119
from the outer case
113
during the printing operation by mistake and causing failure of the printing operation or imparting serious damage to the printing apparatus. Therefore, generally, the printing apparatuses are designed such that a user cannot simply remove the power source unit
119
from the outer case
113
.
Accordingly, when a trouble occurs to the power source unit
119
or a trouble such as jam regarding the conveyance of the printing medium occurs, there is a case where a user cannot quickly cope with the trouble, and each time a trouble occurs, the repair work by a serviceman becomes necessary, and this has led to the possibility that the convenience of use of the printing apparatus becomes very poor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus of which the total height can be made small to thereby reduce the installation space and the cost of the material of a housing and in which the position of a printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the direction of conveyance of the printing medium can be stabilized to thereby improve the conveying performance therefor and moreover improve the maintenance property.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus with respect to which a user can simply mount and dismount a power source unit and moreover in which various troubles attributable to the power source unit being removed during the printing work by mistake can be obviated.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus which has a housing formed with a containing portion in which a power source unit for effecting printing on a printing medium is removably contained and in which the power source unit has a power source portion forming a path for the printing medium.
It is yet still another object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus which has a housing formed with a containing portion in which a power source unit for effecting printing on a printing medium is removably contained and which is provided with an opening portion formed in the housing so as to face the containing portion for putting the power source unit into and out of the apparatus therethrough, and at least a pair of restraining means formed on the housing and the power source unit for fixing the power source unit in its restrained state in the containing portion, the restrained state being manually releasable.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus in which a power source unit is fixed in its restrained state in the containing portion of a housing by the engagement of restraining means and the power source unit cannot be taken out of the

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