Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-Kaisha

Masaya Funamoto

Takashi Yamamoto

Mutsuo Fukuoka

Satoshi Yoshimoto

Hirofumi Sato

Yuichi Harada

Naohisa Kaneko

Tatsuji Imai

Akira Kobayashi

A thin key switch device engagement portions formed in a base plate at a reduced processing quantity as compared with a conventional key switch device by effectively utilizing the thickness of the base plate. The key switch device increases the keystroke quantity while reducing the height of the key top arranged in the key switch device, thereby realizing a low profile key switch device.

Key switch device

A printer is provided with a platen having a sloping plane platen surface, a medium guide path for smoothly guiding paper along the plane including the platen surface, a transparent open/close paper guide positioned above the medium guide path, and two pairs of drive rollers and driven rollers arranged along the platen, with one pair of drive roller and driven roller being disposed in an upstream direction and the other pair of drive roller and driven roller being disposed in a downstream direction with respect to the platen and the paper print movement. The printer is further provided with a ribbon cassette which makes it possible to position a linear portion of an ink ribbon in parallel to the platen surface, a mechanism for switching the linear portion of the ink ribbon between a printable position and a nonprintable position, and a mechanism for attaching a ribbon cassette to a carriage while moving it in a downwardly forward direction.

Recording apparatus with sheet guide

Ribbon cassette with ribbon guide mechanism

Ribbon cassette with feed member

Ribbon cassette with guide member

Recording apparatus and ribbon cassette installed therein

A printer capable of completely erasing printed characters while reducing noise which may be generated during the erasure. After an erase key is manipulated and the holder member is moved to its erase position, a motor is energized and driven at a motor current level of I1 and I2 from a time t0 when the erasing operation starts. A print hammer strikes onto a printing paper through a type and a correction ribbon at a hammer speed of V1. Thereafter, motor current level of I3 is applied to the motor, so that the print hammer presses the printing paper at a contacting pressure of P1. In the subsequent erasure operation, the motor current level of I11 and I12, which are smaller than I1 and I2 in the first erasure are applied to the motor. Thus, the hammer speed when striking onto the printing paper by the hammer is lower than V1. Accordingly, contacting pressure of the print hammer onto the printing paper becomes P11, which is smaller than P1 of the first erasure.

Printer having erasing mechanism for repeated erasure

A hammer driving mechanism in a printing is arranged to prevent double striking during erasing operations. A controller is provided to control the hammer drive means or a stopper based upon whether an erase command or a print command is received.

Hammer driving mechanism for printing apparatus

In a printed character printed with a printing apparatus provided with a plurality of type elements and a print hammer, the specified left or right edge portion thereof has ink adhered heavily on the paper, and this specified edge portion is difficult to be erased when erasing a wrongly printed character with a correction ribbon. In the disclosed character erasable printing apparatus, after moving the carriage from the print position by a predetermined minute distance in the printing direction or in its opposite direction toward the specified edge portion, a first hammering for erasure is carried out, and subsequently after moving the carriage in the direction opposite to above-described movement, at least, and without feeding the correction ribbon relative to the carriage, a second hammering for erasure is carried out with an unused fresh portion of the correction ribbon made to face the specified edge portion having residual ink.

Multi-impact character erasing apparatus with control of correction

In an automatic paper feed device having a platen and a paper bail arranged to be brought into and out of contact with the platen, the paper bail is further constituted to be brought into contact during a paper is fed in an predetermined amount, and to be brought out of contact during the paper is further fed. The shift operation of the paper bail is controlled by a release mechanism including a driven gear arranged to be rotated with the platen and an intermittent gear arranged to be brought engagement in a predetermined range of angle. Thus, it is possible to design the release mechanism freely since the paper is preliminarily fed without shifting the paper bail.

Paper feed device

A type-wheel cassette accommodating a type wheel is mounted on a carriage movable along a printing line on a platen. On the carriage is mounted a holder, on which a printing hammer and a type selection mechanism are mounted. The holder has a pair of first urging pieces extending toward the type-wheel cassette. An ink ribbon guide member intervening between the type-wheel cassette and platen has a pair of second urging pieces extending toward the type-wheel cassette. The first and second urging pieces are in contact with the opposite sides of the type-wheel cassette mounted on the carriage in the neighborhood of the printing position. The second urging pieces urge the type-wheel cassette toward the first urging pieces with the elastic spring force of the ink ribbon guide member, whereby the type-wheel cassette is positioned.

Type-wheel cassette positioner for printer

A printing apparatus comprises a movable carriage mounted with a printing mechanism that reciprocates along a printing line on a platen, and a control unit, which is provided on a printer body in a stationary manner and sends control signals to the printing mechanism for its various operations. A flexible member connected to the carriage and the control unit for transmission of the control signals. For this purpose, the flexible member is connected at one end to the printing mechanism. The flexible member has a first end portion at a proximity of that end, which is clamped by a connecting member pivotally supported on the carriage. This connecting member can swing to permit free deformation of the flexible member which is caused by the movement of the carriage.

Growing community of inventors

Kasugai, Japan

Masaya Funamoto