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US 11,235,600 B2Granted
Tape cassette
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsKoshiro Yamaguchi, Akira Sago
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tape cassette includes a cassette case, a tape roll, an ink ribbon, an arm portion, a long hole, and a ribbon take-up spool. A first distance, which is a length of the long hole in a left-right direction, is larger than a second distance, which is a length from a right side surface of the cassette case to a right side end portion of the long hole. A center of gravity of the tape cassette is located in a specific area, which is an area whose both end positions in the left-right direction are the same as both left and right side end portions of the long hole, and which extends in a front-rear direction of the cassette case. The right side end portion of the long hole is located further to the right than a center of the ribbon take-up spool.
Claims12
A tape cassette comprising:
- a cassette case that has a top surface, a bottom surface, a front surface, a rear side, a left side surface and a right side surface, and that includes a top case having a top plate that forms the top surface and a bottom case having a bottom plate that forms the bottom surface, the cassette case includes a through hole on the top surface, the cassette case having a left-right direction extending between the left and right side surfaces, an up-down direction extending between the top and bottom surfaces and a front-rear direction extending between the front surface and the rear side;
- a tape roll that is a wound tape that is a printing medium and that is housed in the cassette case;
- an ink ribbon that is to be used for printing on the tape;
- an arm portion that includes a part of the front surface and that guides the tape toward a discharge opening along a section of a predetermined feed path, the section extending in parallel with the front surface;
- a long hole that extends in the left-right direction of the cassette case to the rear of and adjacent to the arm portion, that penetrates the cassette case in the up-down direction of the cassette case, and that is formed straddling a center position of the cassette case in the left-right direction, the long hole having a left side end portion and a right side end portion;
- a ribbon spool around which the unused ink ribbon is provided, the ribbon spool having a rotation axis, the ribbon spool is rotatably supported by the cassette case through hole, at least a part of the ribbon spool being positioned between the right side end portion of the long hole and the right side surface of the cassette case;
- a ribbon take-up spool that is adapted to wind the ink ribbon that has been used for printing on the tape;
- and
- a first indicator provided in the part of the front surface included in the arm portion,
- wherein:
- a distance from the rotation axis of the ribbon spool to the right side surface is larger than a distance from the rotation axis of the ribbon spool to the right side end portion of the long hole,
- a length of the long hole in the left-right direction that extends from the left side end portion to the right side end portion is larger than a length from the right side surface of the cassette case to the right side end portion of the long hole,
- a length from a left side end portion of the ribbon take-up spool to the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction is larger than a length from the right side end portion of the long hole to a left side end portion of the ribbon spool in the left-right direction,
- the right side end portion of the long hole is positioned to the right of a winding center of the ribbon take-up spool in the left-right direction,
- the first indicator is positioned to the left of the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction, and
- a length from the right side end portion of the long hole to a winding center of the ribbon spool in the left-right direction is larger than a length from the winding center of the ribbon take-up spool to the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction.
13 more elements
A tape cassette comprising:
- a cassette case that has a top surface, a bottom surface, a front surface, a rear side, a left side surface and a right side surface, and that includes a top case having a top plate that forms the top surface and a bottom case having a bottom plate that forms the bottom surface, the cassette case includes a through hole on the top surface, the cassette case having a left-right direction extending between the left and right side surfaces, an up-down direction extending between the top and bottom surfaces and a front-rear direction extending between the front surface and the rear side;
- a tape roll that is a wound tape that is a printing medium and that is housed in the cassette case;
- an ink ribbon that is to be used for printing on the tape;
- an arm portion that includes a part of the front surface and that guides the tape toward a discharge opening along a section of a predetermined feed path, the section extending in parallel with the front surface;
- a long hole that extends in the left-right direction of the cassette case to the rear of and adjacent to the arm portion, that penetrates the cassette case in the up-down direction of the cassette case, and that is formed straddling a center position of the cassette case in the left-right direction, the long hole having a left side end portion and a right side end portion;
- a ribbon spool around which the unused ink ribbon is provided, the ribbon spool having a rotation axis, the ribbon spool is rotatably supported by the cassette case through hole, at least a part of the ribbon spool being positioned between the right side end portion of the long hole and the right side surface of the cassette case;
- a ribbon take-up spool that is adapted to wind the ink ribbon that has been used for printing on the tape;
- and
- a first indicator provided in the part of the front surface included in the arm portion,
- wherein:
- a distance from the rotation axis of the ribbon spool to the right side surface is larger than a distance from the rotation axis of the ribbon spool to the right side end portion of the long hole,
- a length of the long hole in the left-right direction that extends from the left side end portion to the right side end portion is larger than a length from the right side surface of the cassette case to the right side end portion of the long hole,
- a length from a left side end portion of the ribbon take-up spool to the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction is larger than a length from the right side end portion of the long hole to a left side end portion of the ribbon spool in the left-right direction, and
- a length of the long hole in the front-rear direction aligned with a winding center of the ribbon take-up spool is smaller than a length of the long hole in the front-rear direction aligned with the discharge opening,
- the first indicator is positioned to the left of the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction, and
- a length from the right side end portion of the long hole to a winding center of the ribbon spool in the left-right direction is larger than a length from the winding center of the ribbon take-up spool to the right side end portion of the long hole in the left-right direction.
13 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.