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Printer and cartridge assembly therefor

1. 4 743 133 5 1988 Karns 4 789 258 12 1988 Gomoll et al scessssessscssesees 400 605 4 854 757 8 1989 Kikuchi a 4 896 979 1 1990 Nolte et al 4 927 277 5 1990 Niikawa err FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS 0185283 10 1983 Japan scscscssssssssssseseeseeneneee 400 605 0191175 8 1987 Japan vee 400 616 2 0249772 10 1987 Japan es 400 616 2 OTHER PUBLICATIONS Epson DFX 5000 User s Manual Epson America Inc Generic 05 87 copyright date 1988 Primary Examiner Eugene H Eickholt Attorney Agent or Firm Nixon amp Vanderhye 57 ABSTRACT A printer has one or more tractor sets for continuously feeding paper along first and second paper paths One tractor set may be pivoted between positions for feeding paper from the front or bottom of the printer along the first paper path Where one tractor set is used it may be removed from the first feed path and disposed along the second paper path to feed paper along the second paper path for printing Where two tractor sets are provided the second set is disposed along the second paper path to feed the paper along the second path for printing The tractor sets are detachable and usable in each of the three tractor set feed positions Other features include eccentric bearings resilient roller assemblies an inte grally molded mainframe and a cartridge assembly hav ing a one way ribbon advance clutch and a tensioning device before the mobius loop 42 Claims 12
2. ing paper along the paths means for releasably mount ing the tractor set in the frame for movement thereof between positions for feeding paper along the first and second paper paths respectively and means for driving the tractor set in each of the positions In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a paper han dling apparatus for a printer comprising a roller formed of an elastic material and having a hub a rim radially spaced from the hub and a plurality of spokes circum ferentially spaced one from the other about the roller and extending between the hub and the rim each spoke being joined at its ends to the hub and the rim respec tively at circumferentially different locations about the roller whereby at least one of the spokes exerts a gener ally radially outwardly directed force against the rim upon inward deflection of a portion of the rim adjacent the one spoke In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer main frame comprising end plates and a platform spanning between the end plates the platform and the end plates being integrally molded one with the other the end plates having printer carriage rail holes and striker bar mounting surfaces dimensioned to eliminate striker bar position adjustments In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a ribbon car tridge
3. As illustrated in FIG 9 there is provided a main driveshaft 80 connected to an electric motor M Extending about a pulley 82 on motor driveshaft 80 is an endless cog belt 84 Belt 84 extends about an idler pulley 86 and about a rear tractor set drive pulley 88 which forms part of a rear clutch as sembly generally designated 99 for driving a tractor drive gear gO FIG 10 on the inside of the end frame plate 74 in a manner which will be described hereinaf ter Belt 84 extends from the rear tractor drive pulley 88 about a pulley 92 mounted on a shaft 94 for driving exit rollers 42 Belt 84 extends about a main drive roller 96 an idler 98 and about a front or bottom tractor set drive pulley 100 forming part of a front or bottom clutch assembly generally designated 102 Belt 84 extends from the front or bottom tractor drive pulley 100 back to the main drive pulley 82 Clutch assemblies 99 and 102 are substantially identi cal and a description of one will suffice as a description of the other Each clutch assembly includes a solenoid 104 which when actuated axially displaces an idler gear 106 in engagement with a drive gear 108 mounted on a shaft 110 on which the tractor drive gear 90 is mounted The pulley 100 also carries a gear 112 be tween it and gear 108 Thus pulley 100 and gear 112 idle about shaft 110 when the solenoid is in an unactu ated position with gear 106 engaging solely drive gear 108 When the solenoid is actuated ge
4. In FIG 6 there is illustrated an automatic sheet feeder generally designated 50 which constitutes a separate attachment to the printer The automatic sheet feeder attachment 50 is per se old and conventional except for the pivoted tray which catches the cut sheet paper fed through the printer along path P3 during automatic sheet feeding and pivots out of way for con tinuous paper feed operations along path P1 The auto matic sheet feeder includes a pair of cut sheet paper 15 20 25 40 45 50 55 60 65 14 feed bins 52 and 54 for feeding cut sheets along guides to the main drive roller 36 The automatic sheet feeder includes a catch tray 56 pivoted about an axis A be tween the illustrated full and dashed line positions In the illustrated full line position of tray 56 cut sheet paper exits between pinch rollers 42 and through exit opening 28 between a fixed paper guide 58 and a flange 60 formed on the lower part of tray 56 The paper is directed between a pair of rollers 61 and 62 at least one of which is splined to kick the exiting paper upwardly and away from the nip of the rollers for gravity fall against the inclined back 63 of tray 56 and the inside of flange 60 Consequently cut sheets are automatically fed from one or the other of bins 52 and 54 along paper path P3 for printing and exit the printer for collection in a stack of printed cut sheets in tray 56 When a continuous paper feed is desirable with th
5. illustrated to the left in FIG 2 so that paper received through the front feed opening may be fed along path P1 Thus the tractor set TR may be positioned to ad vance paper received through the bottom feed opening and along path P1b or to advance paper received through the front feed opening and along path Pla for feeding the paper along feed path P1 Stated differently the single tractor set may be pivoted between alternate positions for either front or bottom loading of paper for continuous feeding thereof along paper path P1 or it may be removed and repositioned for rear loading of paper for continuous feeding thereof along path P2 For purposes of further description herein paper fed along path P1 may be designated from time to time as paper fed along the bottom or front feed paths and paper fed along path P2 may be designated as paper fed along the rear feed path It will also be appreciated that when employing a single tractor set the paper in the tractor set may be parked in any one of the three feed positions of the tractor set illustrated in FIG 2 while cut sheet paper is fed along paper path P3 for printing In FIGS 3 5 two tractor sets TR1 and TR2 are employed in a single printer Thus paper may be fed alternately along paper paths P1 and P2 depending upon the paper feed inlet opening chosen without repo sitioning either tractor set It will be appreciated that the lower tractor set may be pivoted between a bottom paper fe
6. main frame includes a platform 72 extending between two upstanding end frame plates 74 These end plates 74 are provided with various openings for supporting vari ous component parts not shown of the printer assem bly and these will be alluded to as necessary as the description continues Importantly various components of the end plates 74 are precisely located relative to one another to ensure precision without adjustment For example the striker bar 32 is precisely mounted and positioned relative to the print carriage support rails The striker bar 32 is of rectangular cross section and has a short side thereof for flush mounting against a precisely located and con figured flat surface 73 at each of the opposite ends of the frame The flat surface 73 is provided with a slot for receiving a screw not shown for securing the striker bar 32 in place with no further adjustment End plates 74 have two carriage rail support openings 75 and 77 which are precisely located relative to one another and flat surface 73 This is provided by side mold parts not shown precisely located relative to one another to form those openings The flat surfaces 73 have zero draft and thus lie exactly parallel one to the other the openings 77 being tapered outwardly Referring now to FIG 9 there is illustrated in side elevation the external surface of the side frame plate 74 showing the drive mechanism for the tractor sets and various printer components
7. positions The detent includes a bulbous end and a re cess on that end of the cap A fixed pin and an axially biased pin are mounted in the printer main frame on respective opposite sides of the paper feed paths in each of the three tractor set feed positions When the hooks of the tractor set are engaged over the tractor support shaft the caps are retained by detenting engagement with the pins associated with the selected path The axially biased pin thus enables the tractor set to pivot into its retained position The caps also serve as protec tion for printer operators so that articles of clothing or fingers may not be caught up in the gearing intercon necting the tractor set and printer drive assemblies Another feature of the present invention resides in the accurate and stable alignment and adjustment of the printhead Any instability of the printhead causes the _ print quality to be inconsistent A principal source of 55 65 inconsistent print quality is the radial play in the print head support shaft and associated bearings in the printer frame The present invention provides a bearing design which eliminates radial play in the printhead support shaft or other shafts used in the printer without substan tial increase in cost According to this aspect of the present invention a generally circular bearing is pro vided with an eccentrically mounted bore for example a D shaped bore A pair of circumferentially extending sprin
8. 30 31 32 and 33 are enlarged cross sectional views thereof taken generally about on lines 30 30 31 31 32 32 and 33 33 respectively in FIG 29 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment of the invention an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings 35 45 50 55 60 65 12 Referring now to FIG 1 there is illustrated a printer generally designated 10 constructed in accordance with the present invention and comprising a printer housing 12 having discrete faces For example printer 10 has opposite end faces 14 a front face 16 a rear face 18 a top face 20 and a bottom face 22 As will be appre ciated from a review of FIG 1 the front face 16 in cludes an inclined face 24 carrying a control panel hav ing various printer operating controls more particu larly illustrated in FIG 7 The front face also includes a front panel 26 which can be removed to form part of a paper feed inlet opening for feeding paper from the front of the printer along a first paper path As schemat ically illustrated in FIGS 2 3 and 6 there is also a paper feed inlet opening in the bottom face 22 of the printer housing for feeding paper along the first path The rear face 18 also defines as schematically illus trated in FIGS 2 4 a paper feed inlet opening for feed ing paper along a second paper path The top face 20 of the
9. Drawing Sheets U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 1 of 12 5 037 222 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 2 of 12 5 037 222 FIG 3 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 3 of 12 5 037 222 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 4 of 12 5 037 222 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 5 of 12 5 037 222 Y PROGAM CD i FORMAT FAULT C TEST CLEAR FIRST FORMAT i EEA FIG 7 4 Ka 2239 i TIG 0 5 5 69 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 6 of 12 5 037 222 US Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 7 of 12 5 037 222 US Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 8 of 12 5 037 222 US Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 9 of 12 5 037 222 FIG 18 218 212 202 US Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 10 of 12 5 037 222 218 IN N Ml N FIG 24 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 11 of 12 5 037 222 U S Patent Aug 6 1991 Sheet 12 of 12 5 037 222 FIG 29 5 037 222 1 PRINTER AND CARTRIDGE ASSEMBLY THEREFOR BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a printer and car tridge assembly and particularly relates to improved apparatus and methods for constructing and operating a high speed printer and an improved printer ribbon car tridge High speed printers are of course well known Due to evolving customer needs it has become desirable in many instances to increase the paper handling capability of printers while simultaneously affording flexibility in handling the pap
10. a print head comprising the steps of providing first and second discrete paper paths in said printer for supplying paper to said printhead providing first and second tractor sets for engaging and feeding the paper along said first and second paths respectively providing drive means for each of said tractor sets selectively actuating said drive means for actuating one of said tractor sets for feeding paper along a corresponding one of said feed paths and said printer including a housing having a plurality of discrete faces having respective first second and third discrete paper feed openings and including the steps of mounting said first tractor set in said first path for movement between alternate posi tions for feeding paper received through said first and second paper feed openings respectively along said first paper path moving said first tractor set between said alternate positions and mounting said second tractor set for feeding paper received through said third paper feed opening along said second path 29 A method according to claim 28 including the steps of deactuating the driven means for one of said first and second paths parking the paper along said one of said first and second paths actuating the drive means for the other of said first and second paper paths to feed paper along said other of said first and second paper paths into position relative to said printhead for print ing 30 A method according to c
11. are provided on eccentric bearing 200 Two springs 212 form part of the outside diameter of the bearing More particularly each cantilevered spring 212 has an outer surface which substantially conforms to the curvature of the outer surface of the bearing and terminates at its distal end in a radially directed bearing surface 214 Cantilevered spring 212 is of course spaced from an interior portion 216 of the bearing The two cantilevered springs 212 extend in opposite circum ferential directions The bearing surfaces 214 thus tend to force the bearing to a contact area within the housing or end plate bore This eliminates radial play between the outside diameter of the bearing and the end plate bore The springs 212 are also split axially from the main portion of the bearing That is the springs 212 are dis posed on one axial side of the bearing and not the other The third cantilevered spring 218 is located within the bearing bore flat 219 and extends in an axial direc tion from one side of the bearing toward the opposite side This spring forces the shaft 206 to a contact area within the bore of the bearing and eliminates radial play between the bearing bore and the shaft Preferably the bearing material is an electrically conductive polycarbonate useful for static discharge If static discharge is unimportant any suitable thermoplas tic material may be used It will be appreciated that the cantilevered springs used for elimination o
12. discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead means carried by said frame for continuously feeding paper along each of the respective paper paths to locate the paper fed along one or the other of said paths in position relative to said printhead for print ing including at least one tractor set for engaging and feeding the paper means for releasably mount ing said tractor set in said frame for movement between first and second positions for feeding paper along said first and second paper paths re spectively and means carried by said frame for driving said tractor set when located in position for feeding paper along said first and second paper paths means for selectively actuating said feed means for feeding paper along one of said feed paths includ ing means carried by said frame for driving said tractor set when located in a corresponding posi tion for feeding paper along said one paper path said printer including a housing having a plurality of discrete faces having respective first second and third discrete paper feed openings means carried by said frame for mounting said tractor set when in said first position thereof for movement between alternate positions for feeding paper received through said first and second paper feed openings respectively along said first paper path and means carried by said frame for mounting said tractor set in said second position thereof for feeding paper received through said thir
13. have the capa bility of handling cut sheet paper manually fed to the printer as well as cut sheet paper automatically fed to the printer Further many prior printers have various construc tional features which substantially increase the cost of manufacture not only in terms of the cost of the parts necessary to fabricate the printer but also in terms of the labor necessary to adjust the printer for its designed operations once assembled For example the roller drives on the printer shafts are conventionally formed of a rather expensive material and there has been a need to reduce the expense of those rollers without sacrific ing performance Additionally printer mainframes have previously been built up from a substantial number of parts certain of which require adjustment if the printer head in association with the striker bar is to print cor rectly Lack of proper initial adjustment and parts com ing out of adjustment with use have been continuing problems Various improvements in the design of the ribbon cartridge itself are possible to reduce the costs of the manufacture of the cartridge as well as to enhance the performance of the printer For example not infre quently the mobius loop of the printer cartridge is inef fective to invert the printer ribbon The ribbon then extends between the exit and entrance arms of the car 5 20 40 45 50 60 65 2 tridge in a twisted state resulting in defective prin
14. means defining a pivotal connection between said frame and said tractor set for pivotal movement of 60 said tractor set about an axis between said alternate positions means for detenting said tractor set in each of said alternate positions said detent means 65 30 including a socket carried by one of said frame and said tractor set and a spring biased pin carried by the other of said frame and said tractor set whereby on movement of said tractor set into each of said alternate positions said pin engages in said socket and upon movement of said tractor set out of said alternate positions the pin is retracted against its bias to release said tractor set 40 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining first and second paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and advancing paper along said paths means for releasably mounting said tractor set on said frame housing for movement thereof between posi tions for feeding paper along said first and second paper paths respectively means for driving said tractor set in each of said posi tions and said tractor set including a pair of drive gears said frame carrying a pair of drive gears one of said tractor set drive gears engaging one of said frame carried drive gears when said tractor set is in posi tion f
15. mounting mem bers including a pair of tractors each including a plural ity of drive pins for engaging the paper Means are carried by the mounting members for releasably con necting the tractor set to the printer including means at opposite ends of the tractor set in part defining detents Also provided are means for driving the paper advanc ing means including a gear carried by the tractor set adjacent one end thereof In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer com 5 037 222 9 prising a printer frame and a printhead carried by the frame for printing on paper and means carried by the housing to define alternate paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and ad vancing paper along the paths toward the print position Means are provided for mounting the tractor set for movement between positions for feeding paper along the alternate paper paths and for driving the tractor set in each of the tractor set positions In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer com prising a printer frame a printhead carried by the frame for printing on paper means carried by the frame for defining first and second paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and advanc
16. next paper movement com mand the clutch solenoid for the previously selected path is deactivated and the solenoid for the clutch as sembly of the newly selected path is actuated This enables the tractor set in the selected paper path to advance the paper therein to the print position where normal print commands may follow for printing on the selected paper All of the above control panel com mands can also be obtained remotely from a data source using escape codes It will be appreciated that with one tractor set dis posed along either of the first and second paper feed paths or with two tractor sets disposed in the first and second paper feed paths respectively both first and second paper feed paths can be deselected and cut sheet paper may be manually fed along a third path Thus the continuous paper form in the one tractor set or both continuous paper forms in the two tractor sets may be parked when the manual paper feed path switch is se lected on the control panel This selection deactivates the clutch assemblies Cut sheets are then loaded through a guide slot at the top of the printer for manual feed into the nip of the main drive roller and nip rollers When the load switch is pressed the sheet will load and printing may commence 20 25 40 45 4 Alternatively an automatic sheet feeder may be pro vided When using an automatic sheet feeder the trac tor set for the second paper path is removed If a tractor
17. of said tractor set about an axis between said alternate positions and said coupling means including a pair of idler gears spaced one from the other and connected to said 30 frame carried drive gear said tractor set drive gear in one alternate position engaging one of said idler gears and in the other alternate position engaging the other of said idler gears whereby said tractor set drive gear is driven by said frame carried drive 35 gear through a respective idler gear in the respec tive alternate positions of said set 39 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on 40 paper means carried by said frame defining alternate paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and advancing paper along said 45 paths toward said print position means mounting said tractor set for movement be tween positions for feeding paper along said alter nate paper paths means for driving said tractor set in each of said trac 50 tor set positions said tractor set including a drive gear said frame carrying a drive gear and means for coupling said frame carried drive gear and said tractor set drive gear when said tractor set is moved into each position thereof such that said 55 frame carried drive gear drives said tractor set through said tractor set drive gear in each said tractor set position said mounting means including
18. of the respec tive first and second paper paths and tractor sets clear of said printhead 17 A method of operating a printer having a housing a printhead and a tractor set for advancing paper toward said printhead for printing comprising the steps of providing first and second discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead locating said tractor set in a first position along one of said first and second paper paths for advancing the paper along said one path toward said printhead driving said tractor set when in said first position to advance the paper along said one path toward said printhead removing said tractor set from said first position along said one paper path locating said tractor set in a second position along the other of said first and second paper paths for ad 5 037 222 aA 20 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 26 vancing the paper along said other path toward said printhead driving said tractor set when located in said second position to advance the paper along said other path toward said printhead and said printer housing having a plurality of discrete faces having respective first second and third dis crete paper feed openings including the steps of mounting said tractor set in said first position thereof for movement between alternate positions for advancing paper received through said first and second paper feed openings respectively along said first paper path
19. push the paper toward the printhead and driving said tractor set when located in said respective positions to push the paper along the first and second paper paths respectively and toward said printhead Tim mV LING PATENT NO 5 037 222 DATED E ETET INVENTOR S Stephens et al It is certified that error appears in the above identified patent and that said Letters Patent is hereby corrected as shown below rave On the title page please correct item 75 to reads as follows 75 Inventors Fred 0 Stephens Waynesboro Ken A Boulanger Charlottesville both of Va l UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Signed and Sealed this Ninth Day of February 1993 Attest STEPHEN G KUNIN Attesting Officer Acting Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks
20. said frame for driving said tractor sets means for selectively actuating said feed means and driving one of said tractor sets for feeding paper along a corresponding one of said feed paths and a housing for said printer frame having a plurality of discrete faces having respective first second and third discrete paper feed openings means carried by said frame mounting said first tractor set in said first path for movement between alternate posi tions for feeding paper received through said first and second paper feed openings respectively along said first paper path and means carried by said frame including said second tractor set for feeding paper received through said third paper feed opening along said second path 14 A printer according to claim 13 including means for parking the paper along said first tractor set and at least a portion of said first paper path when said second feed means is actuated to feed paper along said second paper path into position relative to said printhead for printing 15 A printer according to claim 14 including means for parking the paper along said second tractor set and at least a portion of said second paper path when said first feed means is actuated to feed paper along said first paper path into position relative to said printhead for printing _ 16 A printer according to claim 14 including means for deactuating the feed means for said first and second paper paths to park the paper along each
21. the system Thus no adjustments of the striker bar and rail or the main drive roller are necessary in accordance with this invention Additionally the frame enables the belt tension to be spring adjusted and the cable tension to be self adjusting The material chosen for the mainframe is a fiberglass reinforced thermoset polyester bulk molding compound which is highly dimensionally stable and considered a zero shrink material in relation to mold shrink Mold shrink is listed in the range of 0 to 0 0005 inch per inch which is extremely low Typical ranges for similar per centage reinforcement for amorphous thermoplastics are 0 0010 0 0025 inch per inch This also helps mini mize positional variance The mold process is injection molding In another aspect of the present invention there is provided a printer ribbon cartridge assembly having various unique features Not infrequently it has been found that the conventional mobius loops for example as set forth in U S Pat Nos 4 630 948 and 3 989 132 may sometimes be ineffective to invert the ribbon re sulting in poor quality printing and defects Part of the problem is caused by insufficient tension on the ribbon between the ribbon storage area and the mobius loop In accordance with the present invention there is pro vided a ribbon tensioner to increase the tension of the ribbon before it enters the mobius loop This straightens the ribbon and increases the reliability of the
22. the walls of a bore to force the bearing to a contact area within the bore An axially extending cantilevered leaf spring extends along the internal surface in an axial direction with proximate and distal ends axially spaced one from the other to eliminate radial play between the bearing bore and the shaft These and further objects and advantages of the pres ent invention will become more apparent upon refer ence to the following specification appended claims and drawings BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES FIG 1 is a perspective view of a printer constructed in accordance with the present invention looking from the front top and lefthand end of the printer FIG 2 is a schematic cross sectional view through the printer between its ends illustrating a single tractor assembly shown in full and dashed lines in bottom or front feed positions respectively in a first paper path and in the second dashed line illustration in a rear feed position along a second rear paper path FIG 3 is a view similar to FIG 2 illustrating two tractor sets in the first and second paper paths FIG 4 is a view similar to FIG 3 illustrating two tractor sets in the first and second paper paths with the lower tractor set disposed in an alternate front feed position along the first paper path FIG 5 is a view similar to FIGS 3 and 4 with the paper parked in each of the two paper paths and illus trating a third paper path for feeding cut sheet
23. third path into position relative to said printhead for printing selectively actuating said feed means for feeding paper along one of said feed paths into position relative to said printhead for printing and deactuating the feed means for said one of said first and second paths parking the paper along said one of said first and second paths and actuating the feed means for the other of said first and second paper paths to feed paper along said other of said first and second paper paths into position relative to said printhead for printing while the paper along said one of said first and second paths remains parked therealong 24 A method according to claim 23 including the steps of deactuating the feed means for said other of said first and second paths parking the paper along such other of said first and second paths and thereafter once again actuating the feed means for said one of said first and second paper paths to feed paper along said one of said first and second paper paths into position relative to said printhead for printing while the paper along said other of said first and second paths remains parked therealong 27 25 A method according to claim 23 including the steps of deactuating the feed means for both said first and second paper paths parking the paper along each of the respective first and second paper paths and actuat ing said feed means for feeding paper along said third paper path to locate cut sheet p
24. to the printhead for printing including first and second tractor sets for engaging and feeding the paper along the first and sec ond paths respectively Also provided are means car ried by said frame for driving the tractor sets and means for selectively actuating the feed means and driving one of the tractor sets for feeding paper along a correspond ing one of the feed paths In a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a method of operat ing a printer having a frame a printhead and a tractor set for advancing paper toward the printhead for print ing comprising the steps of providing first and second discrete paper paths for supplying paper to the print head locating the tractor set in a first position along one of the first and second paper paths for advancing the paper along the one path toward the printhead driving the tractor set when in the first position to advance the paper along the one path toward the printhead remov ing the tractor set from the first position along the one paper path locating the tractor set in a second position along the other of the first and second paper paths for advancing the paper along the other path toward the printhead and driving the tractor set when located in N 5 30 50 55 60 65 8 the second position to advance the paper along the other path toward the printhead In a still further preferred embodiment according to the prese
25. 037 222 19 or substantially the same driving force at a greatly re duced cost Particularly the rollers of the present in vention comprise a hub 240 a bore 242 within the hub an outer annular rim 244 and a series of cantilevered spokes or connections between the hub 240 and the rim 244 More particularly the cantilevered springs 246 extend for example from the inner hub 240 a short distance radially outwardly and then extend circumfer entially a predetermined distance for example on the order of 40 to 45 and then turn radially outwardly for connection with the outer rim 244 All of the cantilev ered springs extend from the hub circumferentially in the same direction In this manner the springs 246 de flect such that when a pair of rollers abut one another different thicknesses of paper may be passed therebe tween The deflection of the springs 246 caused by a flattening of the outer surface imparts a spring bias to the paper which assists in obtaining the required pres sure on the paper to enable the paper to be driven through the printer Another advantage of the roller construction de scribed above resides in the capability of the hub to conform to irregular shapes or out of round shafts while not affecting the circularity of the annular rim 244 Additionally the bore 242 is preferably formed slightly smaller than the O D of the shaft which mounts the roller In this manner an interference fit may be formed between
26. 3 FF Load button 69 is then pressed and the motor ad vances the paper manually fed into the nip of the drive roller and pan portion 39 through the drive rollers 36 such that its leading edge cuts the optical sensor The 24 4 A printer according to claim 1 wherein said tractor set mounting means in said first position thereof in paper thereafter automatically indexes to a first line of 5 print position The paper is now ready to be printed and whatever print command is desirable may be actuated To eject the single cut sheet paper the form feed button may be used or the logic circuit will eject the paper automatically To use the automatic form feeder the tractor set TR2 must be removed from the position illustrated in FIG 3 in order to provide sufficient space for the automatic sheet feeder The automatic feeder is per se conven tional except as previously noted While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practi cal and preferred embodiment it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment but on the contrary is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements in cluded within the spirit and scope of the appended claims What is claimed is 1 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining first and second
27. 52 fixed to the opposite side frame 74 Thus each tractor set is held between a tractor locating shaft by hooks 142 on end plates 120 and at its opposite ends by the detent pins 150 and 152 The pins cooperate 55 60 65 with a retaining device at each of the opposite ends of the tractor set to secure the tractor sets in their selected positions and to protectively overlie the drive gears Referring now particularly to FIGS 10 15 the re tention devices generally designated 154 each include a cap or cover 156 having a generally cylindrical side wall 158 and a bulbous or convex dome shaped end 160 Cap 156 has a plurality of legs 162 having catches 164 Legs 162 are received in openings correspondingly located in end plates 120 of the tractor sets whereby the cap is maintained in position on the end of the tractor set substantially overlying and enclosing tractor drive gear 128 As illustrated in FIGS 11 and 15 cap 156 is cut away along a chordline 166 sufficient that only a por tion of gear 128 is exposed outwardly beyond the cylin drical side surfaces 158 of the cap Cap 156 is positioned such that the opening through the side surfaces 158 formed by the chordline 166 is located inwardly of the paper feed openings which provide access to the tractor assemblies 5 037 222 17 In the bulbous ends 160 of each of caps 156 there is provided an opening 168 for receiving pin 150 or 152 To install the tractor set in any one o
28. United States Patent 15 Quick et al 54 PRINTER AND CARTRIDGE ASSEMBLY THEREFOR 75 Inventors Harry C Quick Waynesboro Robert M Schooley Staunton Fred O Stephens Frank A Ellis both of Waynesboro James L Harlow Mt Solon Ken A Boulanger Charlottesville Paul W Snyder Waynesboro John P McAlister Staunton Thomas A Rogel Waynesboro Paul J Morris Crimora all of Va 73 Assignee Genicom Corporation Waynesboro Va 21 Appl No 400 001 22 Filed Aug 29 1989 51 Int CLS oe eesessesesseeeeeenenseneneeeeeanes B41J 11 50 52 U S Cl eesseessesseesseesseossreseesese 400 605 400 616 2 58 Field of Search 400 605 611 613 613 1 400 613 2 613 3 616 1 616 2 226 74 75 56 References Cited U S PATENT DOCUMENTS D 272 741 2 1984 Mailer et al 3 564 999 2 1971 DePuy etal 3 989 132 11 1976 Carson Jr 4 051 941 10 1977 Hebert 4 164 376 8 1979 Yarp ee 400 616 2 4 178 106 12 1979 Mailer et al 4 213 716 7 1980 Carson Jr 4 230 038 10 1980 Hebert 4 234 261 11 1980 Hendrischk et al 400 616 2 4 322 172 3 1982 Furrow 4 350 451 9 1982 Furrow 4 475 677 10 1984 Rutishauser eve 400 616 1 4 543 002 9 1985 Bittner et al 4 568 209 2 1986 Zerillo 4 589 789 5 1986 Quick et al 11 Patent Number 5 037 222 45 Date of Patent Aug 6 1991 4 630 948 12 1986 Karns 4 671 686 6 1987 Howes et al u 400 605 4 742 946 5 1988 Hamamichi et al
29. and mounting said tractor set in said second position thereof for advancing paper received through said third paper feed opening along said second path 18 A method according to claim 17 including the step of locating said first and second discrete openings in side and bottom faces of said printer housing respec tively 19 A method according to claim 18 including the steps of locating said third discrete opening in a side face of said printer housing 20 A method according to claim 17 including the step of pivotally mounting said tractor set in its first position for movement between said alternate positions 21 A method according to claim 20 including a gear train carried by said housing and including the step of driving said tractor set in each of said alternate positions through said gear train 22 A method according to claim 21 including releas ably detenting said tractor set in each of said alternate positions thereof 23 A method of operating a printer having a housing a printhead and a tractor set for advancing paper toward said printhead comprising the steps of providing first second and third discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead providing feed means for feeding continuous paper along said first and second paper paths to locate the paper fed along said first and second paths into position relative to said printhead for printing providing feed means for feeding cut sheet paper along said
30. aper in position relative to said printhead for printing while the paper along each of the respective first and second paper paths re mains parked therealong 26 A method according to claim 23 wherein said housing has a plurality of discrete faces containing dis crete paper feed openings respectively for feeding paper along said first second and third paper paths respectively said feed openings being located in bot tom side and top faces respectively of said housing including the steps of feeding paper through one of said side and bottom faces of said housing in response to actuation of said feed means for feeding paper along said first paper path feeding paper through a side face of said housing in response to actuation of said feed means for feeding paper along said second paper path and feeding paper through said top opening of said housing in response to actuation of said feed means for feeding paper along said third path 27 A method according to claim 23 including pro viding first and second tractor sets for engaging and feeding the paper along said first and second paths respectively driving said first tractor set in response to actuation of said feed means for said first path to engage and feed the paper along said first path and driving said second tractor set in response to actuation of said feed means for said second path to engage and feed the paper along said second path 28 A method of operating a printer having
31. ar 106 is displaced axially along gear 108 for joint engagement with gear 108 and gear 112 of the pulley whereby the belt 84 drives the tractor drive gear 90 through gears 112 108 and shaft 110 Consequently by activating one or the other of the solenoids of the rear and front or bottom clutch assemblies 99 and 102 respectively the corre sponding tractor drive gears on the interior side of frame plate 74 are rotated respectively Turning now to FIGS 10 and 11 each tractor set includes tractor end plates 120 at respective opposite 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 16 ends thereof joined together by a pair of fixed shafts 122 and 124 A tractor set driveshaft 126 also extends between tractor end plates 120 and through the plates 120 to carry a tractor drive gear 128 at each of its oppo site ends Tractors 130 are disposed on the fixed shaft 122 and on the drive shaft 126 The tractors 130 are per se conventional Suffice to say that each tractor 130 includes an endless belt mounting a plurality of pins 132 which project into slots 134 of a pivoted cover 136 The belt for the pins is driven by shaft 126 and hence pins 132 engage in the marginal feed openings of continu ously fed paper disposed between the cover 136 and the body of tractor 130 Tractors 130 are displaceable later ally along the tractor set in a conventional manner by movement of levers 138 which form part of a friction clutch assembly Thus tractors 130 may b
32. ate tear off position After a predetermined time period and after the excess paper is removed the paper drive is reversed to obtain its first line of print position The Park Path button 67 is then pressed identifying the paper in the front paper path P1 as the path to be parked The motor then with draws the paper until the optical sensor senses the top leading edge of the paper at which time the logic counts a predetermined number of steps until the top edge is within the lower tractor set TR1 The paper along path P1 is now parked in lower tractor set TR1 The Park Path button 67 is then pressed again until the rear paper path i e Rear is indicated The FF Load button 69 is then pressed to actuate the solenoid whereby the tractor set TR2 advances the paper along path P2 to a first line of print position The On Line button 75 may then be pressed to commence normal printing operation To employ the manual feed for cut sheet paper as illustrated in FIG 2 the paper along the rear paper path must first be parked if that was the paper used during the last print operation The FF Load button is pressed followed by the Tear Off button 73 The Park Path button 67 is pressed to identify the paper in the rear paper path P2 as the paper to be parked The motor then withdraws the paper until the top edge is within the rear tractor set TR2 to park the paper The Park Path but ton is then pressed until Manual is indicated The 5 037 222 2
33. cated on the interior side of the protective retaining cap 154 The tractor drive gear 90a associated with the front or bottom clutch assembly 102 is likewise located on the interior face of side frame 74 but lies in engagement with a pair of spaced idler gears 170 and 172 carried by frame 74 Thus when the tractor set is hooked on locator shaft 144 for feeding paper from the bottom opening along paper path P1 including path P15 the drive for the tractor set includes gear 90a idler gear 170 and tractor drive gear 128 When the tractor set is pivoted about locator shaft 144 to the position for example illustrated by the dashed lines in FIGS 2 and 11 for feeding paper from the front inlet opening along paper path P1 including path Pla the drive for the tractor set includes gear 90a idler gear 172 and gear 128 Note in each position as illustrated in FIG 11 that retaining cap 154 not only serves to detent the tractor set in the appropriate position but protects the individ ual moving the tractor sets from the gears during repo sitioning of the sets Referring now to FIGS 16 25 there are illustrated eccentric bearings with anti radial play features for use in mounting printer support shafts for example the supporting shaft for the printhead As will be appreci ated precise tolerances are necessary between the sup porting shaft the main printer frame and the bearings associated therewith particularly to eliminate radial play In a
34. ccordance with the present invention there is provided an eccentric bearing arrangement for mount ing the opposite ends of the printhead support shaft although it will be appreciated that the eccentric bear ings hereof may be used to support other shafts for other purposes and are not limited to mounting a print head support shaft Referring now to the embodiment hereof illustrated in FIGS 16 20 there is illustrated a bearing generally designated 200 for insertion in a bore for example formed in a side frame 74 Bearing 200 has a cylindrical outer surface with an outwardly projecting tab 202 for reception in a corresponding 20 25 30 35 40 45 60 65 18 recess adjacent the bore in the side frame plate The internal bore 204 of the bearing is generally D shaped although other shapes may be possible for receiving a correspondingly D shaped shaft 206 for example as illustrated in FIG 17 It will be appreciated from a review of FIG 17 that the center of the cylindrical outer surface is designated at 208 while the center of the cylindrical portion of the inner surface 204 of the bore is located at 210 Thus with the D shaped configu ration of the shaft and bore rotary motion of the eccen trics at opposite ends of the shaft will displace the shaft arid hence for example a printhead carried by the shaft toward and away from a striker bar To eliminate radial play of the shaft three cantilev ered springs
35. d in cross section of the retaining element FIG 15 is an end elevational view of the retaining element as viewed from its inside FIG 16 is a perspective view of eccentric bearing with anti radial play features constructed in accordance 15 20 25 with the present invention and for use at one end of the shaft FIG 17 is an enlarged end elevational view of the bearing of FIG 16 with the shaft illustrated within the bearing FIGS 18 and 19 are cross sectional views thereof taken generally about on lines 18 18 and 19 19 re spectively in FIG 17 FIG 20 is a bottom plan view of the bearing illus trated in FIG 17 FIG 21 is a perspective view of an eccentric bearing with anti radial play features for use at the opposite end of the shaft FIG 22 is an enlarged elevational view thereof illus trating the shaft FIGS 23 and 24 are enlarged cross sectional views thereof taken generally about on lines 23 23 and 24 24 respectively in FIG 22 FIG 25 is a bottom plan view of the bearing illus trated in FIG 22 FIG 26 is an enlarged cross sectional view of rollers for use in the paper drive system hereof FIG 27 is a side elevational view of a single roller illustrated in FIG 26 FIG 28 is a perspective view of a ribbon cartridge assembly employed in the printer of the present inven tion FIG 29 is an enlarged top plan view thereof with portions broken out for ease of illustration and FIGS
36. d paper feed opening along said second path 2 A printer according to claim 1 wherein said first and second discrete openings are located in side and bottom faces of said printer housing respectively 3 A printer according to claim 2 wherein said third discrete opening is located in a side face of said printer housing 10 15 25 45 60 65 cludes means for mounting said tractor set for pivotal movement between said alternate positions 5 A printer according to claim 4 wherein said tractor set includes a plurality of drive pins for engaging and advancing the paper along a paper path a mounting member for carrying said drive pins and pivotally con necting said tractor set and said frame one to the other and a drive gear carried by said member for driving said pins said feed means including discrete gears carried by said frame for engaging said drive gear in said alternate positions of said tractor set respectively 6 A printer according to claim 5 including means for releasably detenting said tractor set in each of said alter nate positions thereof 7 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining first second and third discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead first and second means carried by said printer frame for continuously feeding paper along said first and second paper paths respectively to loca
37. e automatic sheet feeder attached to the printer the printer hereof has the capability of automatically feed ing cut sheet paper along path P3 or feeding paper continuously through the bottom inlet feed opening or alternatively the front inlet feed opening along path P1 Thus when it is desired to employ the continuous paper feed from either the bottom or front feed open ings catch tray 56 is emptied of cut sheets and pivoted about axis A such that it assumes a position illustrated by the dashed lines in FIG 6 By pivoting the tray into that position exit 28 from the printer is cleared en abling the paper to feed continuously along path P1 without interference from paper tray 56 or the rollers 61 and 62 Consequently when the automatic cut sheet feeder is used the continuous paper may be parked by tractor set TR1 in either of its positions for bottom or front feed It will be appreciated that when employing the automatic sheet feeder tractor set TR2 must be removed Only tractor set TR1 and path P1 may be used for feeding paper continuously as an alternate to the automatic sheet feeder when the latter is disposed on the printer Referring now to FIG 7 there is illustrated a control panel from which the various functions of the printer may be controlled The control panel is of course connected to logic circuitry not shown by which vari ous commands and printing functions are carried out but which form no part of the presen
38. e laterally located for registration of tractor pins 132 in the mar ginal feed openings of paper of different widths Guides 140 are also mounted on the stationary shafts 122 and 124 and are displaceable laterally therealong depending on the size of the paper being used to assist guiding the paper along the desired feed path An important feature of the present invention resides in the configuration of the end plates 120 Referring particularly to FIG 11 each end plate 120 at the end thereof opposite driveshaft 126 is provided with a hook 142 Each hook 142 engages over a reduced diameter portion of a tractor locating shaft 144 which extends rigidly between the side frame plates 74 of the main frame Two such locating shafts 144 are provided One is located such that tractor set TR1 may be pivoted about the locating shaft 144 to feed paper along the alternate front or bottom paper feed paths Pla and P18 respectively The other tractor locating shaft 144 ex tends between side frames 74 and adjacent the main drive roller 36 It forms part of the securement for trac tor set TR2 located to supply paper from the rear feed inlet opening along paper path P2 A detent mechanism is provided at opposite ends of the tractor sets to secure the tractor sets in any one of the three positions thereof for example as illustrated in FIG 2 The detent mechanism includes a pin 150 fixed to one side frame 74 and a spring biased axially dis placeable pin 1
39. ed and axial biased pins 150 and 152 respectively Paper is disposed in the tractors 130 of the tractor set TR in a conventional manner The Park Path button 67 is pressed until Front is indicated FIG 7 which readies the solenoid 104 of the clutch assembly 102 The FF Load button is then pushed to energize solenoid 104 to engage clutch assembly 102 The paper is then fed by the tractor set TR past the paper pan 38 for engagement by the drive roller 36 until the paper is sensed by an optical sensor located below the striker bar 32 see FIG 4 at 103 for the optical sensor When the forward edge of the paper is sensed by sensor 103 the paper is then stepped under a logic control not shown to line up for a first line of print in line with the printhead at which time the motor stops The printer is now ready for print ing paper fed along paper path P1 including alternate path P1s The On Line button 75 is then pressed and normal print commands as will be recognized by those skilled in the art are actuated whereby printing com mences It will be appreciated that when the tractor set TR is located in the bottom position paper feed can be changed from the bottom opening to the front opening by pivoting the tractor set TR For example the paper from the bottom feed opening is disconnected and re moved and the tractor set TR is snapped from its de tented position pivoted about the lower tractor locator shaft 144 and detented into the
40. ed position illustrated in FIG 3 and a front paper feed position illustrated in FIGS 4 and 5 both for feeding paper along path P1 For example in FIG 3 tractor set TR1 is positioned to feed paper through the bottom paper feed inlet opening along path P1 particu larly along path P1d of paper path P1 It will be appreci ated that tractor set TR1 may be pivoted into the full line position illustrated in FIG 4 so that the paper may be fed through the front paper feed inlet opening along path Pig of paper path P1 Tractor set TR2 may remain in position parking paper along paper path P2 FIG 3 as paper is fed along path P1 from either the front or bottom feed positions i e paths Pia and P1b respec tively of tractor set TR1 Conversely tractor set TR1 may remain in either of its bottom or front loading positions to park paper along path P1 FIG 4 as paper is fed along path P2 from the rear feed opening In FIG 5 cut sheet paper is illustrated being fed along paper path P3 In this illustration paper may be parked in one or both tractor sets TR1 and TR2 in paper paths P1 and P2 respectively during the cut paper feed operation The tractor set TR1 is illustrated in FIG 5 in the front paper feed position to park paper along path Pia of path P1 It will be appreciated that tractor set TR1 could likewise be positioned in the bottom paper feed inlet position to park paper along path P10 of path P1 during the cut paper feed operation
41. er For example it has become desir able to provide multiple paper paths for feeding differ ent types of paper into the printer for different purposes without the necessity of manually removing one type of paper from the printer in order to feed a different type of paper More particularly in a prior printer sold by assignee of the present application there was provided a single rear paper path including a tractor assembly for the paper together with an option for a bottom paper feed path However the bottom feed path constituted only a roller path and not a tractor driven paper path In many situations tractor feed is more desirable than a friction driven roller feed because of the precise nature of the feed and the current increasing use of continuous form computer paper Consequently it has been found desirable to provide at least two tractor feed paper paths for a printer for feeding paper to the printhead along different paths i e from the front or bottom of the printer along a first path or from the rear of the printer along a second path It is also desirable to use the same tractor set along each of the two paths or provide two tractor sets for use in the respective paper paths depending on customer needs Where two tractor sets are employed the capability of parking the paper in each feed path while feeding paper along the other feed path has also been found desirable Additionally and for added flexibility the printer should
42. f radial play are suitable for flanged or unflanged bearings and for eccentric or concentric bearings An example of a flanged bearing is illustrated in FIGS 21 25 wherein like reference numerals apply to like part as in the em bodiment hereof illustrated in FIGS 16 20 followed by the suffix a In this embodiment instead of a tab or ear 202 an annular flange 220 is provided about the external circumference of the bearing adjacent one end thereof Otherwise the bearing is identical to that de scribed previously Referring back to FIG 9 a lever 222 is disposed alongside frame 74 and is detented into one of a plural ity of selected positions The lever is used for the pur pose of rotating the eccentrically mounted shaft which carries the printhead to displace the printhead toward arid away from the striker bar depending upon the thickness of the paper employed when printing Referring now to FIGS 26 and 27 there is illustrated a pair of rollers for disposition on shafts on opposite sides of the paper Solid cellular foam rubber composi tions have been used previously for forming rollers of this type and provide an apparent softness permitting the rollers spaced axially along a pair of parallel shafts to yield sufficiently to prevent divergence of the shafts However such materials are expensive It has been found in accordance with the present invention that the rollers may be specifically designed to provide the same 5
43. f the three posi tions previously mentioned the hooks 142 are disposed about the tractor locator shaft 144 The tractor set is then pivoted to align the openings 168 with the pins 150 and 152 By displacing the pin 152 axially against the bias of the spring the opposite cap 156 can be located to receive pin 150 in opening 168 By shifting the tractor set slightly in an axial direction toward the fixed pin 150 and permitting the pin 152 to spring bias inwardly to engage in the opening 168 the tractor set is detented in its final position It will thus be appreciated that the retention member 154 serves not only to detent the tractor set in any one of the three positions noted previ ously but also serves as a protective cover for the drive gear 128 Because of the placement of the retaining cap 154 between the end plates 120 and the side frames 74 users of the printer cannot obtain access to the gears inwardly of the retention device which serve to drive the tractor set through the drive gear 128 Referring back to FIGS 9 and 10 it will be appreci ated that the tractor drive gear 90 carried by the side frame 74 and driven by the belt 84 through clutch as sembly 99 lies in meshing engagement with the tractor drive gear 128 when the tractor set is connected to the tractor set locating shaft 144 and detented in position for feeding paper received through the rear paper feed opening for passage along path P2 Note that this drive gear 90 is lo
44. feed position for feeding paper along path P1 including path Pia via the alter nate front feed path Front remains indicated adjacent the Park Path button solenoid 104 of clutch assembly 102 remains ready for actuation and paper feed may be continued along path P1 but including path Pla Thus the clutch assembly 102 and corresponding solenoid 104 are used for both the front or bottom feed locations of tractor set TR A similar operation can be performed by the single tractor set TR for feeding paper from the rear opening along paper path P2 Thus the tractor set TR may be removed from the lower tractor support shaft 144 end wise reversed and located such that the hooks connect 25 30 35 45 50 60 65 22 with the upper tractor locator shaft 144 It will be ap preciated that tractor set TR is detented into this posi tion between the associated fixed and axially biased pins 150 and 152 located adjacent the rear feed opening To print with the paper located in the tractor set along path p2 the same operational sequence is performed except that the Park Path button 67 is pressed until Rear is indicated which readies the rear solenoid 104 of clutch assembly 99 The Form Feed load button 69 is then pressed to energize the solenoid 104 associated with clutch assembly 99 This drives the tractor set TR to advance the leading edge of the paper along path P2 until detection by the optical sensor at which time the paper is s
45. for a printer comprising a housing including an elongated body having ribbon exit and entrance arms adjacent opposite ends and spaced one from the other with a ribbon disposed in said housing and extending between the entrance and exit arms Means carried by the housing are provided for pulling the ribbon in one direction from the housing through the exit arm to the entrance arm and into the housing with manually oper able means coupled to the pulling means for rotation in one rotary direction to pull the ribbon in one direction One way clutch means interconnect the manually oper able means and the pulling means for preventing move ment of the ribbon in the opposite direction upon rota tion of the manual means in the opposite rotary direc tion In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a ribbon car tridge for a printer comprising a housing including an elongated body having ribbon exit and entrance arms adjacent opposite ends of the body and projecting to one side thereof with a ribbon disposed in the housing and extending between the exit and entrance arms Drive means are provided in the housing for pulling the 10 20 25 35 40 45 55 65 10 ribbon from the housing through the exit arm and into the entrance arm The housing includes upper and lower covers substantially coextensive with the hous ing one of the covers including means defining a plural ity of s
46. gs are located along the outside diameter of the bearing for bearing contact within the housing bore This eliminates radial play between the bearing and the housing bore A third cantilevered spring is located within the bearing bore flats This spring forces the shaft to a contact area within the bearing bore which eliminates radial play between the bearing bore and the shaft The bearing material preferably is an electrically conductive polycarbonate for static discharge although any suitable thermoplastic bearing material may be used if static discharge is unimportant i 5 037 222 5 Another aspect of the present invention resides in a unique roller design for the roller shafts Previously solid high density microcellular urethane rollers have been supplied on a shaft in opposition to low density microcellular urethane rollers These individual rollers are conventionally bonded into place and ground to size In accordance with the present invention a new roller design eliminates the bonding and grinding opera tions uses a single common material and substantially reduces the costs of the rollers To accomplish this the basic roller includes an interior hub defining a bore an outer rim spaced radially from the hub and a series of generally circumferentially extending cantilevered spokes extending from the hub to the bore in the annular space therebetween The cantilevered spokes deflect under radial pressure to allow various th
47. he cut paper in position relative to said printhead for printing 10 A printer according to claim 7 wherein said printer includes a housing having a plurality of discrete faces containing discrete paper feed openings respec tively for feeding paper along said first second and third paper paths respectively 11 A printer according to claim 10 wherein discrete paper feed openings are located in bottom side and top faces respectively of said housing 12 A printer according to claim 10 wherein said first paper path has a pair of paper feed openings therefor extending through two discrete faces of said housing 25 respectively said pair of openings extending through side and bottom faces of said housing the discrete paper feed openings for feeding paper along said second and third paths extending through the side and top faces of said housing respectively 13 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining first and second discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead means carried by said frame for continuously feeding paper along each of the respective paper paths to locate the paper fed along one or the other of said paths in position relative to said printhead for print ing including first and second tractor sets for en gaging and feeding the paper along said first and second paths respectively and means carried by
48. housing includes a paper exit slot 28 and a cut paper sheet feeder slot 30 Turning now to FIGS 2 through 6 there is schemati cally illustrated various internal parts of the printer For example there is illustrated a striker bar 32 opposite to which there is provided a printhead 34 mounted on a carriage not shown for traversing movement along the length of the printer There is also provided a main paper drive roller 36 which cooperates with a paper pan 38 and an elongated flat paper pinching spring 40 for driving the paper toward the printhead Paper is sup plied along three discrete paper paths For example a first paper path P1 is provided for feeding paper contin uously through the bottom or front paper inlet feed openings along the flat side of paper pan 38 and past the main drive roller 36 for printing by printhead 34 and eventual exit from the printer past a set of pinch exit rollers 42 The second paper path P2 is provided for feeding paper continuously through the rear paper feed inlet opening along a radially contoured side 39 of the paper pan 38 engaging the main drive roller 36 and past the main paper drive roller 36 for printing by printhead 34 and eventual exit past pinch rollers 42 The third paper path P3 is provided for feeding cut paper sheet through the top inlet feed opening 30 onto the con toured side 39 of pan 38 about the main drive roller 36 and past printhead 34 for exit through pinch rollers 42 and exi
49. icknesses of paper to be driven between mating rollers The deflec tion of the spokes causes a spring back effect which assists to drive the paper forms The spokes also allow the rollers to conform to irregular shapes or out of roundness in the mating shaft Preferably the bore is smaller in diameter than the shaft and enables an inter ference fit between the shaft and the roller yet still resists radial slippage during paper drive operations The material is preferably a thermoplastic rubber poly olefin having a coefficient of friction of 1 05 against paper forms Another novel and unique aspect of the present in vention relates to the zero adjustment striker bar It will be appreciated by those skilled in this art that accurate positioning of the striker bar in relation to the carriage rails and printhead of a printer is absolutely essential Previously positioning has been achieved by secondary operations and various assembly adjustments all of which can readily come out of adjustment Printers of this type use a rigid striker bar whose position must be adjusted relative to the carriage rail system for distance and or perpendicularity Assembly line adjustments of this type are both time consuming and expensive Exist ing adjustment systems include adjustable cam surfaces against which the striker bar face is loaded eccentric cams located in the end of the striker bars which are adjusted after assembly and snugging down screws Of
50. id print head 33 A printer according to claim 32 wherein said tractor set includes a drive gear said frame carrying a drive gear and means for coupling said frame carried drive gear and said tractor set drive gear when said tractor set is moved into each position thereof such that said frame carried drive gear drives said tractor set through said tractor set drive gear in each said tractor set position to advance the paper in the same direction relative to said tractor set in each said alternate position of said tractor set 34 A printer according to claim 33 wherein said mounting means includes means defining a pivotal con nection between said frame and said tractor set for piv otal movement of said tractor set about an axis between said alternate positions 35 A printer according to claim 34 wherein said tractor set is removable from said printer frame 65 36 A printer according to claim 34 including means for detenting said tractor set in each of said alternate positions 37 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining first and second paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and advancing paper along said paths means for releasably mounting said tractor set on said frame housing for movement thereof between posi tions for feeding pape
51. inter having a drive gear for driving the tractor set comprising a pair of mounting members adjacent opposite ends of the tractor set means for connecting the mounting members one to the other means carried by the connecting means for ad vancing paper along the tractor set between the mount ing members including a pair of tractors each including a plurality of drive pins for engaging the paper and means carried by the mounting members releasably connecting the tractor set to the printer Means are also provided for driving the paper advancing means in cluding a gear carried by the tractor set adjacent one end thereof and an enclosure for the gear carried by the tractor set the enclosure being configured to extend about substantially a major portion of the exposed por tions of the gear teeth of the tractor set drive gear leaving a portion of the gear teeth exposed for meshing engagement with the printer drive gear whereby users of the tractor set are substantially protected from the meshing engagement of the gears In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a tractor set for feeding paper in a printer having a drive gear for driv ing the tractor set comprising a pair of mounting mem bers adjacent opposite ends of the tractor set means for connecting the mounting members one to the other and means carried by the connecting means for advancing paper along the tractor set between said
52. laim 29 including the steps of deactuating the drive means for said other of said first and second paths parking the paper along such other of said first and second paths and actuating the 5 037 222 20 25 35 40 45 28 drive means for said one of said first and second paper paths to feed paper along said one of said first and sec ond paper paths into position relative to said printhead for printing j 31 A method according to claim 29 including the step of deactuating the drive means for said first and second paper paths and parking paper along each of the respective first and second paper paths clear of said printhead 32 A printer comprising a printer frame a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining alternate paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor set for engaging and advancing paper along said paths toward said print position means mounting said tractor set for movement be tween positions for feeding paper along said alter nate paper paths said tractor set in each of said position thereof being located along said alternate paper path in advance of said printhead thereby being located to push the paper toward the print head and means for driving said tractor set in each of said trac tor set positions thereby to push the paper along the respective alternate paths toward sa
53. lots spaced one from the other along the edge of one cover the other of the covers including a plurality of pins extending therefrom for reception in the slots the slots being elongated in the direction of elongation of the body a distance greater than their width whereby upon reception of the pins in the slots in an interference fit the registering slots and pins provide tight tolerances in the transverse direction and loose tolerances in the longitudinal direction Preferably one of the covers includes a circular recess for receiving a pin of the other cover whereby the covers are accu rately located relative to one another by such single pin engaging in the circular recess In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a bearing for mounting a shaft comprising a bearing having an outer cylindrical surface defining a first axis and an internal bore having a generally cylindrical inner surface and defining a second axis radially offset from the first axis Means are provided carried by the body for mounting a shaft against rotation relative to the body A pair of cantilevered springs are spaced one from the other about the outer surface each spring having a proximate end secured to the body a distal end free of the body and an intermediate portion between the proximate and distal ends substantially conforming to the cylindrical outer surface the pair of springs being adapted to en gage
54. ly the front or from the bottom of the printer is provided along a first paper path The other or second paper path may be located to receive paper through an opening in an other side preferably the rear of the printer for feeding paper continuously to the print position Additionally a third paper path is provided for either manually or automatically feeding cut sheet paper to the print posi tion For manual feed the paper in the first and second paper feed paths is parked in the associated tractor set For automatic feed of cut sheet paper the paper in the second path must be removed although the paper in the first path must be parked if installed in its associated tractor set For certain customer uses only one tractor set for the continuous feed of paper is employed Such tractor set is interchangeable between positions for feeding paper continuously along the first and second respective paper paths For example when the tractor set is em ployed for feeding paper along the first paper path the tractor set may be disposed in alternate positions to feed paper continuously from paper inlet openings disposed in the front or bottom of the printer Should it be desir able to continuously feed paper from the rear of the printer the one tractor set may be removed from the first paper path and disposed in the second paper path whereby paper may be continuously fed from the rear paper inlet opening to the printhead There is also p
55. n the rear position to feed paper along the second paper path These forms need not be the same width length thick ness weight etc When one paper path is selected from the control panel the other path remains in a paper parked position That is the continuous form in the tractor set disposed in the non selected paper path re mains in that tractor set with its leading edge spaced from the printer drive roller and printhead This enables the paper in the other tractor set to be fed to the print head More particularly a load switch on the control panel is pushed to move the paper along the selected paper path to the print position Other normal print com mands follow When the operator wishes to park this form and use the form parked in the other paper path the paper may be cut using a method such as a form feed function followed by a tear off function selected at the control panel In that method the paper in the currently selected paper path is then moved to a convenient posi tion to tear the paper off against a tear surface at which time the paper may be returned by the operator or timed to move back into its normal printing position The park path command is then selected and this re tracts the paper in the currently selected paper path such that its leading edge is disposed in its tractor set The park path control switch is then actuated until the other newly selected paper path is identified on the control panel Upon the
56. nt invention there is provided a method of operating a printer having a frame a printhead and a tractor set for advancing paper toward the printhead comprising the steps of providing first second and third discrete paper paths for supplying paper to the print head providing feed means for feeding continuous paper along the first and second paper paths to locate the paper fed along the first and second paths into posi tion relative to the printhead for printing providing feed means for feeding cut sheet paper along the third path into position relative to the printhead for printing and selectively actuating the feed means for feeding paper along one of the feed paths into position relative to the printhead for printing In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a method of operating a printer having a frame and a printhead com prising the steps of providing first and second discrete paper paths in the frame for supplying paper to the printhead providing first and second tractor sets for engaging and feeding the paper along the first and sec ond paths respectively providing drive means for each of the tractor sets and selectively actuating the drive means for actuating one of the tractor sets for feeding paper along a corresponding one of the feed paths In an even further preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a tractor set for feeding paper in a pr
57. or feeding paper along said first path the other of said tractor set drive gears engaging the other of said frame carried drive gears when said tractor set is in position for feeding paper along said second path 41 A printer according to claim 40 wherein said frame carried drive gears lie on the same side as said printer frame 42 A method of operating a printer having a housing a printhead and a tractor set for advancing paper toward said printhead comprising the steps of providing first second and third discrete paper paths for supplying paper to said printhead providing feed means for feeding continuous paper along said first and second paper paths to locate the paper fed along said first and second paths into position relative to said printhead for printing providing feed means for feeding cut sheet paper along said third path into position relative to said printhead for printing selectively actuating said feed means for feeding paper along one of said feed paths into position relative to said printhead for printing providing at least one tractor set for engaging and feeding paper releasably mounting said tractor set in said housing for movement between first and second positions for feeding paper along said first and second paper paths respectively locating said tractor set in each of said first and second positions along said first and second paper paths in advance of said printhead and thereby being located to
58. paper from a cut sheet paper feed assembly at the top of the printer FIG 6 is a view similar to FIGS 2 5 illustrating an automatic sheet feeder mechanism for the third paper path and with a tractor located in the first paper path 5 037 222 11 FIG 7 is an elevational view of the controls located on the front face of the printer FIG 8 is a perspective view of a one piece molded printer main frame FIG 9 is an enlarged end elevational view of the righthand end of the printer with its housing removed illustrating the printer drive mechanism FIG 10 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the printer housing mounting a tractor assembly according to the present invention with the tractor set located in position for feeding paper along the second paper path FIG 11 is a schematic representation of one end of a tractor set engaging a drive mechanism therefor carried by the housing the tractor set being illustrated in each of its two pivotal feed positions for feeding paper along alternate paths i e the front or bottom feed paths of the first paper path FIG 12 is an enlarged cross sectional view of a re taining element disposed on each of the opposite ends of the tractor assembly and taken about on lines 12 12 in FIG 15 FIG 13 is an enlarged elevational view thereof illus trating the drive gear carried by the tractor assembly within the retaining element FIG 14 is a side elevational view with parts broken out an
59. r along said first and second paper paths respectively said tractor set in each of said positions thereof being located along said first and second paper path in advance of said printhead thereby being located to push the paper toward the printhead and 5 037 222 29 means for driving said tractor set in each of said posi tions thereby to push paper along the respective first and second paths toward said printhead 38 A printer comprising a printer frame 5 a printhead carried by said frame for printing on paper means carried by said frame defining alternate paper paths for feeding paper to a position enabling the printhead to print on the paper including a tractor 10 set for engaging and advancing paper along said paths toward said print position means mounting said tractor set for movement be tween positions for feeding paper along said alter nate paper paths 15 means for driving said tractor set in each of said trac tor set positions said tractor set including a drive gear said frame carrying a drive gear and means for coupling said frame carried drive gear and said tractor set drive 20 gear when said tractor set is moved into each posi tion thereof such that said frame carried drive gear drives said tractor set through said tractor set drive gear in each said tractor set position said mounting means including means defining a piv 25 otal connection between said frame and said tractor set for pivotal movement
60. rage position with the ribbon threaded through a smudge shield 314 secured along the inside edge of the ribbon cartridge In using the cartridge the smudge shield 314 would be removed from the cartridge and placed on the printhead and the ribbon R would span between the distal ends of the arms 306 and 308 In accordance with the present invention there is provided a ribbon tensioner between the storage area 310 particularly the double dams in that area see U S Pat No 3 989 132 and the mobius loop 312 for pur poses of increasing the tension on the ribbon before it enters the mobius loop This increase in tension tends to 20 25 40 45 50 60 65 20 straighten the ribbon and hence provide increased reliability of the ribbon tracking through the mobius twist To increase the tension a pair of posts 320 and 322 are disposed adjacent opposite sides of the cartridge housing The posts extend perpendicular to the direc tion of ribbon travel Thus the frictional engagement of the ribbon under tension about the two posts 320 and 322 tends to increase the tension on the ribbon before entering mobius 312 enabling the ribbon to track more reliably through the mobius Absent the ribbon tension ing posts the ribbon might not invert in the mobius and could exit the mobius only to invert after it leaves exit arm 308 in the print area which of course would lead to defective printing Also in accordance with the presen
61. ribbon tracking through the mobius loop The ribbon is ten sioned by pulling it about two posts which are disposed perpendicular to the direction of ribbon travel Another feature of the ribbon cartridge hereof is the ratchet clutch in the ribbon advance knob Ribbon fail ure is not infrequently caused by mishandling of the ribbon cartridge prior to its installation in the printer For example an operator may rotate the ribbon ad vance knob in the wrong direction hence fouling the ribbon within the cartridge and causing a ribbon failure In accordance with the present invention a clutch mechanism is provided between the advance knob and the pinion drive for the ribbon Consequently the rib bon advance knob when turned in the incorrect direc tion before installing the cartridge in the printer does not advance the ribbon The ribbon can be advanced only when the ribbon advance knob is rotated in the proper direction and the pinion driven through the clutch between the advance knob and the pinion An other feature of the cartridge of the present invention resides in the fabrication of the upper and lower covers of the cartridge One of the covers is provided at spaced longitudinal positions therealong with a series of elongated recesses and one circular recess The oppo site cover is provided with a series of generally circular pins The pins are received in the recesses with the one pin in the circular recess to accurately locate
62. rovided in accordance with the present invention a novel arrangement of a drive mechanism for purposes of driving the tractor set in any one of its three positions described previously For example a drive motor mounted to one side of the printer housing and through a continuously driven belt provides power to a pair of clutch assemblies When the tractor set is dis posed to supply paper along the first path the clutch assembly associated therewith is actuated such that the belt drive assembly is connected to a drive gear in turn connected to a tractor set drive gear for advancing the 5 037 222 3 paper As detailed hereinafter that tractor drive gear is operable to advance the paper in the tractor set in both of its feed positions for feeding paper through the front or bottom paper inlet openings along the first paper path When the tractor set is removed from the first paper path and disposed in the second paper path selec tion of the second or rear paper feed path from the control panel actuates the second clutch assembly to enable the belt drive to couple another set of drive gears to the printer motor whereby the tractor set in the second path may be continuously driven Where two tractor sets are used a continuous form may be installed in the first tractor set disposed in the bottom or front position to feed paper along the first paper path and an additional continuous form may be installed in the second tractor set disposed i
63. ser it is necessary to remove the slack in the ribbon between the entry and exit arms 306 and 308 respectively To ac complish this there is provided an advancing knob on the opposite side of the cartridge from its engagement with the cartridge drive pinion on the printer and which receives a projecting pin 338 from gear 324 The pro jecting pin 338 has gear teeth 340 on its upper annular end face The inner end face of the bore of knob 336 is provided with matching ratchet teeth 342 Thus rota tion of the knob in one direction for example in the counterclockwise direction illustrated in FIG 29 per mits the ratchet teeth to slide over the ratchet teeth on the end of the shaft 338 without rotating the gear 324 However rotation of the advancing knob 336 in the opposite direction permits the ratchet teeth of the knob to engage the ratchet teeth on the shaft 338 whereby the gear 324 may be rotated in a clockwise direction as illustrated in FIG 29 In this manner the ribbon may be advanced only in the proper direction Another feature of the present invention resides in the connection between the upper and lower covers of the cartridge It will be appreciated from a review of FIG 28 that the cartridge is formed of an upper cover 340 and a lower cover 342 Spaced longitudinally along the inside and outside edges of the lower cover 342 and also along the arms 306 and 308 are a plurality of recesses 5 037 222 21 344 elongated in
64. set is located in the bottom or front feed position along the first paper path the paper in that feed position may be parked By appropriate selection of controls the automatic sheet feeder then feeds individual cut sheets into the printer assembly Another important feature of the present invention resides in the specific construction of the tractor sets which are interchangeable for use in each of the first and second paper feed paths Each tractor set includes a support shaft and a drive shaft disposed between oppo site end plates Conventional tractor drive pin assem blies are carried by the tractor set at locations between the end plates such that the pins may engage the paper feed holes to advance the paper The end plates carry hooks on one end thereof which engage a tractor sup port shaft carried by the printer Adjacent its opposite end each end plate carries a detent for retaining the tractor set in proper position in the selected paper path A tractor drive gear is carried by the tractor set at each of its opposite ends and is cooperable with a printer drive gear for advancing paper along the tractor set and hence the paper path in part defined by that trac tor set The tractor drive gear is substantially encapsu lated or covered by a cap which forms a part of a trac tor set detent A portion of the tractor drive gear is exposed inwardly of the printer for engagement with the printer drive gear in each of the tractor set feed
65. t invention Partic ularly there is illustrated a Park Path control button 67 below three LED lights which identify the paper paths as being the front bottom rear or manual paths i e the first second and third paths respectively described previously By successively pressing the Park Path button 67 the switch sequences until the selected path light is lit Below the Park Path button 67 there is a FF Load i e a form feed load button 69 By pressing this button the paper is moved to its first line of print from a parked position or if paper is detected as al ready present not parked the form is moved to the first line of print of the next page commonly referred to as a form feed command A tear off button 73 is pro vided which when actuated advances the paper until it is aligned at a desired tear off edge On line button 75 upon actuation starts the normal printing function after the paper paths have been selected and the paper is in proper position for printing Various other control but tons are provided which are not related to the present invention For example there is a font control button 71 for providing printing in various styles Referring now to FIG 8 the main frame of the printer 10 is generally designated 70 The main frame 70 5 037 222 15 is a one piece molded construction preferably a fiber giass reinforced thermoset polyester bulk molding com pound formed by injection molding techniques The
66. t invention there is provided a one way ratchet clutch for advancing the ribbon manually It is important to prevent the inadver tent reverse drive of a ribbon by an operator turning the advance knob on the cartridge in the wrong direction This could result in a ribbon failure Previously one way clutches have been used in the ribbon drive motor of the printer but these have required frequent service and were unreliable Thus in accordance with the pres ent invention the one way clutch is provided on the cartridge itself for purposes of preventing advancement of the ribbon in the wrong direction even when the cartridge is not installed on the printer Absent a one way clutch on the cartridge the cartridge could fail prior to installation on the printer because of mishan dling More particularly a pair of gears 324 and 326 are provided in the drive mechanism for advancing the ribbon therebetween The drive gear 324 is driven by a pinion not shown on the printer and which pinion is received in the cylindrical splined recess 328 on the underside of the cartridge as illustrated in FIG 33 The other gear 326 is carried by a member 327 which is pivoted about a pivot 330 and biased by spring 332 into engagement with the gear 324 Consequently by engag ing the pinion in gear 324 the ribbon may be advanced for example by rotating gear 324 in a clockwise direc tion as illustrated in FIG 29 When the cartridge is first supplied to a u
67. t opening 28 From a review of FIG 2 it will also be appreciated that paper path PI includes as parts thereof two alter nate paper paths Pla and P1b Paper path Pla enables paper to be fed continuously through the feed opening in the front face of the printer for disposition along the flat side of paper pan 38 for feed past printhead 34 and exit from the printer through opening 28 as previously described Alternate paper path P1d enables paper to be fed continuously through the bottom paper feed inlet opening and along the paper pan 38 for feed past print head 34 and exit from the printer through opening 28 One or two tractor sets generally designated TR may be employed in the present printer depending upon the needs of the user For example with reference to FIG 2 a single tractor set TR may be variously positioned within the printer housing 12 for feeding paper along each of paper paths P1 and P2 Thus the tractor set TR illustrated by the full lines in FIG 2 is in position for feeding paper received through the bottom feed opening along paper path P1 The tractor set TR may be removed from that position and disposed in the 5 037 222 13 dashed line position illustrated on the right side of FIG 2 for feeding paper received through the rear feed open ing along the paper path P2 Also the single tractor set when located in the illustrated full line position may be pivoted between the full line and dashed line positions
68. te the paper fed along said first and second paths into position relative to said printhead for printing said first and second feed means including respective first and second tractor sets located for feeding paper along said first and second paper paths re spectively said third discrete paper path including third means for feeding cut sheet paper along said third path into position relative to said printhead for printing means for selectively actuating said first second and third feed means for feeding paper along one of said first secand and third feed paths into position relative to said printhead for printing and means for parking the paper along said first tractor set and at least a portion of the first paper path when said second or third feed means is actuated to feed paper along said second or third paper paths re spectively into position relative to said printhead for printing 8 A printer according to claim 7 including means for parking the paper along said second tractor set and said second paper path when said first or third feed means is actuated to feed paper along said first or third paper paths into position relative to said printhead for print ing 9 A printer according to claim 7 including means for parking the paper along each of the respective first and second tractor sets along the first and second paper paths when said third feed means is actuated to feed cut paper along said third paper path to locate t
69. ten the striker bar is tapped into position with a mal let prior to final securement Other methods previously employed include using a round striker bar which does not rotate during printer operation but is cammed into position by eccentrics While a printer frame can be machined to a high degree of accuracy thus eliminating adjustments this is a highly expensive operation In accordance with the present invention there is provided a one piece printer mainframe molded of a material and by a process which produces the necessary dimensions to eliminate the striker bar adjustment while maintaining print quality The mold construction is an important aspect of meeting the necessary dimensional characteristics required to eliminate a striker bar posi tion adjustment Thus the present main frame is formed from a mold constructed such that the carriage rail holes and striker bar mounting surface are formed by the same piece of the mold at each end The left striker bar mounting surface and left carriage rail holes are formed by the left side core of the mold Similarly the right striker bar mounting surface and right carriage rail mounting holes are formed by the right side core of the mold The features that form the left and right striker bar mounting surfaces telescope into and are shut off by the main core of the mold This minimizes positional 20 25 35 40 45 50 65 6 and perpendicularity error and variance on each end of
70. tepped to align it properly for the first line of print The printer is now ready to print paper fed along path P2 On Line button 75 is then pressed and normal printing operations are commenced Where two tractor sets TR1 and TR2 are employed as illustrated in FIG 3 the same or different types of paper may be fed into the tractor sets TR1 and TR2 The Park Path control button 67 is then pressed to provide for either Rear or Front feed If Front feed is selected the solenoid 104 for the front clutch assembly 102 is readied for energization The FF Load button 69 is thereafter pressed to energize solenoid 104 and actu ate clutch assembly 102 The paper in tractor set TR1 will then advance into the print position along path P1 _as previously described Because the clutch assembly 99 for the rear tractor TR2 remains in an unactuated state the paper in the tractor set TR2 remains parked It will also be appreciated that the paper will feed from either the bottom or front feed positions depending upon which of the two positions is desired by location of the paper and the tractor set TR1 If it is desired to feed paper for printing along path P2 and deactuate the paper feed along path P1 and assum ing the printing along paper path P1 has stopped the FF Load button is pressed to locate the paper in posi tion to receive a first line of print of next page The Tear Off button 73 is pushed to advance the paper in tractor set TR1 to an appropri
71. the covers relative to one another As a consequence the toler ances when joining the covers one to the other are tight in the transverse direction but loose in the longitudinal direction Accordingly it is a primary object of the present invention to provide novel and improved high speed printer apparatus including various constructional fea tures methods of operating the printer and printer ribbon cartridges for the printer In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer comprising a printer frame and a printhead carried by the frame for 5 037 222 7 printing on paper Means carried by the frame define first and second discrete paper paths for supplying paper to the printhead Means are provided for continu ously feeding paper along each of the respective paper paths to locate the paper fed along one or the other of the paths in position relative to the printhead for print ing including at least one tractor set for engaging and feeding the paper and means for releasably mounting the tractor set in the frame for movement between first and second positions for feeding paper along the first and second paper paths respectively Means are also carried by the frame for driving the tractor set when located in position for feeding paper along the first and second paper paths Also provided are means for selec tively actuating the feed means for feeding paper along one of the feed paths incl
72. the long direction of the cartridge At corresponding longitudinal and transverse positions along the cartridge there is provided a plurality of projecting pins on the upper cover 340 for engaging in recesses 344 The pins are generally cylindrical Conse quently it will be appreciated that when the cartridge is assembled pins 346 are inserted into the generally rectangular openings 344 Additionally it will be appre ciated from a review of FIG 31 that the long walls of recesses 344 are tapered inwardly toward one another Consequently when the cartridge covers are assembled and pins 346 received in the recesses 344 there is pro vided an interference fit in a lateral direction but a rather large tolerance for the fit in the longitudinal direction To accurately locate the covers relative to one another one recess 344a is cylindrical and receives a cylindrical pin thereby providing both logitudinal and transverse relative positioning of the covers In use the ribbon cartridge is disposed in the printer 10 in the usual fashion and connected with a drive pin ion not shown so that the printer ribbon may be ad vanced during printing Where one tractor set is used it is disposed on one or the other of the tractor support shafts depending upon which paper path is desired For example if a bottom feed is desired the tractor set TR is disposed on the lower tractor support shaft 144 and detented into the lowermost position between the fix
73. the rollers and shaft enabling the rol lers to be assembled onto the shaft by hand while at the same time still resist radial slippage during paper driv ing operations Preferably the rollers are formed of thermoplastic rubber polyolefin which has a coefficient of friction of about 1 05 against paper forms This material is some what harder than a cellular foam rubber but the unique configuration gives an apparent softness and ability to yield while at the same time providing the required drive force Referring now to FIGS 28 33 there is illustrated a ribbon cartridge for use in the printer of the present invention and generally designated 300 The ribbon cartridge includes a housing 302 for a ribbon drive mechanism 304 for tensioning a printer ribbon R in the span between distal ends of two ribbon entry and exit arms 306 and 308 respectively between the printhead and the paper on which printing is to be effected As illustrated in FIG 29 the ribbon is drawn from left to right from the distal end of exit arm 308 to the distal end of entry arm 306 and from a storage chamber 310 Thus the tensioning mechanism 304 tensions the ribbon by advancing it into storage area 310 in a series of folds and from which storage area 310 the ribbon is passed through a mobius loop 312 where it is inverted for exiting the storage chamber via exit arm 308 In the form of ribbon cartridge illustrated in FIG 29 the cartridge is illustrated in a sto
74. ting Additionally mishandling of the cartridge prior to in stallation in the printer has been a problem This some times results in the printer ribbon being jammed and prevented from being advanced The present invention therefore provides novel and improved apparatus and methods for enhancing the performance and capability of a high speed printer in terms of both the apparatus and methods for printing as well as effectively reducing the cost of manufacturing the printer In this connection it will be appreciated that there are a host of individually improved features in the printer and cartridge hereof which collectively give rise to substantial overall improvements in printer oper ation and that of its cartridge and that additionally there are many novel features which are each notable in their own right as well as when taken in various combi nations and permutations Therefore in one aspect of the present invention there is provided a printer having a printer paper feed path system which enables continuous feed of paper along two paper paths The paper in each path can be parked so that the paper in the other path can be fed to the printhead for printing Each paper path may be provided with a tractor set so that continuous forms may be advanced along the selected paper path for printing Through a novel mounting of the tractor set associated therewith continuous feed of paper into the print position from either one side preferab
75. uding means carried by the frame for driving the tractor set when located in a cor responding position for feeding paper along the one paper path In another preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer compris ing a printer frame and a printhead carried by the frame for printing on paper Means carried by the frame define first second and third discrete paper paths for supply ing paper to the printhead together with means for continuously feeding paper along the first and second paper paths to locate the paper fed along the first and second paths into position relative to the printhead for printing The third discrete paper path includes means for feeding cut sheet paper along the third path into position relative to the printhead for printing Means are also provided for selectively actuating the feed means for feeding paper along one of the first second and third feed paths into position relative to the print head for printing In still another preferred embodiment according to the present invention there is provided a printer com prising a printer frame and a printhead carried by the frame for printing on paper Means carried by said frame define first and second discrete paper paths for supplying paper to the printhead together with means for continuously feeding paper along each of the respec tive paper paths to locate the paper fed along one or the other of the paths in position relative

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