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US 4,124,312 AGranted
Impact printer with print wheel cartridge
AssigneeXerox Corporation
InventorRobert A. Johnson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An impact printer is provided with an easy load print wheel mechanism. A print wheel cartridge, containing a print wheel therein, is inserted into a print wheel loaded position and removed therefrom without disturbing the position of a print wheel drive motor or ribbon cartridge. The print wheel drive motor shaft is automatically coupled to the print wheel within the cartridge upon insertion of the cartridge into print wheel loaded position.
Claims11
In an impact printer for use with a print wheel cartridge:
- A movable carriage, a motor supported by said carriage, a rotatable shaft extending from said motor and having coupling means at one end thereof, said carriage having guide means supported thereon for slidably receiving the cartridge therein, said shaft being rotatable relative to said guide means, said guide means being arranged for guiding the cartridge for slidable movement in a direction generally transverse to the axis of rotation of said shaft, and movable means actuatable by the cartridge during movement thereof in the transverse direction for effecting relative movement between said coupling means and the cartridge in a different direction than said transverse direction toward each other to a print wheel loaded position.
In an impact printer:
- a movable carriage, a motor supported by said carriage, a rotatable shaft extending from said motor and having coupling means at one end thereof, a cartridge, a print wheel, means for rotatably supporting said print wheel on said cartridge so that said print wheel is rotatable about a given axis relative to said cartridge, said print wheel having cooperating means engageable with said coupling means in such a manner that said print wheel is driven by said shaft, said carriage having guide means supported thereon for slidably receiving said cartridge therein, said shaft being rotatable relative to said guide means, said guide means being arranged for guiding said cartridge for slidable movement in a direction generally transverse to the axis of rotation of said shaft to a position where said coupling means is generally adjacent to said cooperating means, and movable means actuatable by said cartridge during movement thereof in the transverse direction for effecting relative movement between said coupling means and said cartridge in a different direction than said transverse direction toward each other to connect said coupling means with said cooperating means in a print wheel loaded position.
A method of assembling a print wheel to a rotatable motor shaft of a printer;
- taking a print wheel cartridge and inserting the print wheel cartridge into guide means separate from the rotatable shaft and supported on a movable carriage and slidably moving the movable cartridge on the guide means between a printer platen and drive coupling means on a motor shaft in a direction generally transverse to the axis of rotation of the shaft to bring cooperating means of a print wheel within the cartridge to a position generally adjacent to the drive coupling means and to engage the cartridge with a means to thereafter operatively effect relative movement between said drive coupling means and said cooperating means in a different direction than said transverse direction toward each other to connect the drive coupling means and the cooperating means with each other.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.