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US 6,471,425 B1Granted
Preloaded stabilizer mechanism in a dot matrix printer
AssigneeTally Printer Corporation
InventorsCraig J. Cornelius, Daniel A. Durland
Life of this patent
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AssigneeTally Printer Corporation
InventorsCraig J. Cornelius, Daniel A. Durland
Estimating the term…
A preloaded stabilizer mechanism in a dot matrix line printer having a reciprocating carriage is provided to: (1) establish a rigid reference point that prevents the print line of the dot matrix line printer from drifting; (2) eliminate backlash; and, (3) create a carriage resonance frequency that is greater than the carriage operating frequency to enhance printer system stability and the reduction of vibration. The stabilizer mechanism is mounted on a support frame of the dot matrix line printer and includes a modified c-shaped bracket member and a spring plate. The spring plate is attached to one end of the bracket member to form a slot. The slot of the stabilizer mechanism receives an offset shaft that is coupled to a shuttle mechanism that provides the carriage with reciprocating motion. The spring plate of the stabilizer mechanism, being slightly deflected, imposes a force against the offset shaft. As the carriage is reciprocated back and forth along its line of movement, the offset shaft moves back and forth along a line that lies parallel to the carriage movement line. When the shuttle mechanism is out of balance with the carriage, the offset shaft imposes a force, corresponding to the amount of the imbalance, against the preloaded spring plate and bracket opening. In this state, the stabilizer mechanism, due to the offset shaft/slot arrangement, works in conjunction with the shuttle mechanism to translate the shuttle. The stabilizer mechanism inhibits the movement of the offset shaft with respect to the printer support frame when the force created by the imbalance is equal to or less than the force of the preload generated by the spring plate.
In a dot matrix printer having a support frame, a carriage reciprocally mounted on the support frame, the carriage having multiple print elements thereon, and a shuttle mechanism coupled to the carriage, the shuttle mechanism causing the carriage to reciprocate on the support frame, the improvement comprising:
A stabilizer mechanism for a reciprocating carriage reciprocated by a drive mechanism, the stabilizer mechanism comprising:
A dot matrix line printer comprising:
A dot matrix line printer comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.