Abstract:
A printer assembly is disclosed that comprises a printer mechanism and a printer housing. The printer housing has a head end and a body portion, and the body portion includes input keys for controlling the printer mechanism. The printer assembly further comprises an accessory removably attached to the head end, and the accessory includes at least one functional component that is operable independent of the printer mechanism.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/113,105 filed Nov. 10, 2008, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not applicable. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The present invention relates to a handheld printer, and more particularly a handheld printers that permits a user to perform secondary tasks in addition to printing information on label media. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    Handheld printer assemblies are typically used to provide convenient printing capabilities in situations in which use of a desktop printer may be impractical. These situations include labeling chemicals or objects in a laboratory, marking wires during electrical installation, labeling office products, and the like. In order to facilitate convenient printing, handheld printer assemblies typically include a user interface, such as input keys and a display, through which information to be printed can be entered and displayed. A user interface together with other components, such as a microprocessor, a read only memory, and a random access memory, eliminate the need for access to another device, such as a computer, through which information to be printed is sent to the printer assembly. 
         [0005]    The situations described above often include secondary tasks in addition to printing information. For example, electrical installation typically includes testing wires for electrical continuity in addition to marking the wires with label media. Current handheld printer assembly designs, however, do not have the capability to test wires for electrical continuity or perform other tasks in addition to printing information. As a result, an operator must carry a variety of tools to effectively perform secondary tasks in the situations described above. 
         [0006]    Considering the limitations of previous designs, it would be desirable to have a printer assembly that permits a user to perform secondary tasks. It would also be desirable to have printer assembly that is reconfigurable to perform specific secondary tasks associated with different situations. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    In one aspect, the invention provides a printer assembly that comprises a printer mechanism and a printer housing. The printer housing has a head end and a body portion, and the body portion includes input keys for controlling the printer mechanism. The printer assembly further comprises an accessory removably attached to the head end, and the accessory includes at least one functional component that is operable independent of the printer mechanism. 
         [0008]    In another aspect, the invention provides a printer assembly that comprises a printer mechanism and a printer housing. The printer housing includes input keys for controlling the printer mechanism. The printer assembly further comprises an accessory removably attached to the printer housing, and the accessory includes at least one functional component that is operable independent of the printer mechanism. The function component is selected from a group consisting of a magnet for securing the printer assembly on a ferrous surface, a light source projecting light away from the printer housing, a strap anchor, a stand, and electrical testing equipment. 
         [0009]    The foregoing and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which there is shown by way of illustration a preferred embodiment of the invention. Such embodiment does not necessarily represent the full scope of the invention, however, and reference is made therefore to the claims herein for interpreting the scope of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    The invention will hereafter be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like elements, and: 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a handheld printer assembly incorporating the present invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1  as viewed from the opposite direction of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a side view of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 5  is a front view of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0016]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1  as viewed from the opposite direction of  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0017]      FIG. 7  is an exploded perspective view of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1  illustrating a cover and a stand; 
           [0018]      FIG. 8  is an exploded perspective view of an accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1  illustrating a light source and a magnet; 
           [0019]      FIG. 9  is a schematic representation of components of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0020]      FIG. 10  is an additional schematic representation of components of the accessory of the handheld printer assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0021]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a handheld printer assembly  10  incorporating a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a printer housing  2  having a body portion  30  that supports input keys  4  on an upper surface and a display  7  above the input keys  4 . The printer housing  2  also includes a head end  32  adjacent the body portion  30 . The upper surface of the head end  32  includes a media recess  6  that accommodates a cartridge  8  of print media  9 . Print media  9  from the cartridge  8  is fed through a printer mechanism  12  ( FIG. 9 ) disposed within the printer housing  2 . A print head (not shown) of the printer mechanism  12  interacts with an ink ribbon (not shown) and engages the print media  9  to print characters, symbols, or other information on the print media  9 . Other components of the printer mechanism  12  are well known in the art, and in general, the printer mechanism  12  may be any mechanism appropriate for printing information on the print media  9 . 
         [0022]    The print media  9  may be, for example, label media that is known in the art, and generally comprises a carrier web which supports a series of adhesive labels. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the size, width, color, and type of web material varies depending upon the specific printing situation. 
         [0023]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , a lower surface of the head end  32  removably connects to a secondary task accessory  34  via fasteners  76 , such as slotted cheese head screws or the like, that pass through counter bore holes  74  in the accessory  34  and connect to threaded inserts (not shown) in the head end  32 . In addition to the fasteners  76  and inserts, an alignment recess  91  (most clearly shown in  FIG. 6 ) near a front end  41  of the accessory  34  engages an alignment projection  93  of the printer housing  2  to ensure the accessory  34  and the printer housing  2  are properly aligned. 
         [0024]    Referring now to  FIGS. 2-6 , the accessory  34  has a generally flat and box-like shape and includes a lower surface  35  and an opposite upper surface  36  that abuts the lower surface of the printer housing  2 . First and second lateral sides  37  and  39  are disposed between the upper and lower surfaces  36  and  35 . The front end  41  is disposed proximate a front end of the printer housing  2 , and a rear end  43  is disposed proximate the body portion  30  of the printer housing  2 . Diagonal sides  45  and  47  are disposed between the first and second lateral sides  37  and  39 , respectively, and the rear end  43 . The accessory preferably includes an ejector button hole  78  that passes between the lower surface  35  and the upper surface  36  to permit the user to access a print cartridge ejector button (not shown) positioned on the bottom surface of the head end  32 . 
         [0025]    Referring now to  FIGS. 7-8 , the accessory  34  includes a housing  38  that carries one or more functional components that permit a user to perform one or more secondary tasks. A generally thin cover  40  of the accessory  34  encloses portions of some of the functional components within the housing  38  and generally defines the upper surface  36  of the accessory  34 . The housing  38  and the cover  40  connect via fasteners  72 , such as flathead screws or the like, that pass through counter bore holes  82  in the cover  40  and engage blind holes  70  in the housing  38 . 
         [0026]    In the embodiments disclosed herein, the accessory  34  includes the following functional components, described below: a magnet  46 , a light source  50 , a stand  64 , and integral strap anchors  68 . Of course, embodiments of the present invention can include one or more of the listed functional components without departing from the scope of the invention. 
         [0027]    The magnet  46  is mounted in a magnet recess  42  disposed on the lower surface  35  proximate the rear end  43  of the housing  38  to secure the assembly  10  to a ferrous surface. A magnet fastener hole  44  proximate the upper surface  36  and the rear end  43  of the housing  38  accommodates a fastener  49 , such as a countersink screw or the like, to connect the magnet  46  to the housing  38 . 
         [0028]    The light source  50 , such as a printed circuit board/light-emitting diode assembly or the like, is carried by a light source recess  48  proximate the first lateral side  37 . A light source hole  52  disposed on the front end  41  and adjacent the light source recess  48  permits the light source  50  to project light outward from the front end  41  of the accessory  34 . A power source recess  54  adjacent the light source recess  48  and proximate the front end  41  carries electrical contacts  58  and a power source  56  ( FIG. 9 ), such as 1.5V batteries or the like, to provide power to the light source  50 . Similarly, a power source hole  86  in the cover  40  adjacent the power source recess  54  permits the power source  56  to be placed in the power source recess  54 . Alternatively, the light source  50  may be powered by a power source  94  ( FIG. 10 ) disposed within the printer housing  2  that powers the printer mechanism  12 . The power source  94  may be batteries or the like. The housing  38  also preferably includes a switch slot  59  disposed on the diagonal side  45  in which a light source switch  61  is disposed. The light source switch  61  is pressed to turn the light source  50  on or off and advantageously permits the light source  50  to be used independently of the printer mechanism  12 . 
         [0029]    The stand  64  is engaged by stand slots  60  disposed on the diagonal sides  45  and  47 , a stand recess  62  ( FIG. 3 ) disposed on the upper surface  36 , and posts  80  of the cover  40  proximate the rear end  43 . The stand  64  pivots between a storage position ( FIGS. 3-6 ) and a deployed position. Stand tabs  66  disposed on the lateral sides  37  and  39  engage and prevent the stand  64  from unintentionally moving from the storage position. The stand  64  generally matches the shapes of the diagonal sides  45  and  47  and the lateral sides  37  and  39  in addition to a base portion  65  that is received in the stand recess  62 . The stand  64  advantageously permits the handheld printer assembly  10  to be positioned in a more convenient orientation for the user in the deployed position. 
         [0030]    The integral strap anchors  68  disposed on the lateral sides  37  and  39  and the front end  41  of the housing  38  and corresponding carrying strap slots  88  of the cover  40  permit a carrying strap (not shown) to be attached to the accessory  34 . The strap anchors  68  and the carrying strap slots  88  are approximately the length of the lateral sides  37  and  39 . The carrying strap advantageously permits a user to connect the handheld printer assembly  10  to appropriate locations for support. For example, the user may connect the carrying strap to a utility belt or a stationary object. 
         [0031]    The accessory  34  may include several alternative components or alternative connections to components within the printer housing  2 . Referring to  FIGS. 9 and 10 , for example, the accessory  34  may include electrical testing equipment  92 , such as a non-contact voltage detector or the like, as an alternative or in addition to the light source  50 . The light source  50  and the electrical testing equipment  92  may advantageously assist an electrician inspecting and marking wires in a poorly lit space. The electrical testing equipment  92 , if included, preferably connects to the power source  56  of the accessory  34 . However, and as another alternative, the electrical testing equipment  92 , if included, may connect to the power source  94  that powers the printer mechanism  12 . 
         [0032]    As another alternative, the electrical testing equipment  92 , if included, may send information to a microprocessor or controller  96  disposed within the printer housing  2 . The controller  96  may then direct the printer mechanism  12  to print the information, direct the display  7  to display the information, or both. For example, the electrical testing equipment  92  may detect a voltage in a wall circuit during an inspection and send corresponding information to the controller  96 . The controller  96  may then direct the printer mechanism  12  to print a message that indicates “live circuit” or the like. The message may also be shown on the display  7 . 
         [0033]    The input keys  4  preferably control only the printer mechanism  12 , but alternatively, the input keys  4  may be used to control the functional components in addition to the printer mechanism  12 . For example, specific keys of the input keys  4  may control the functional components and not the printer mechanism  12 . Alternatively, both the printer mechanism  12  and the functional components may be operated independently by pressing a different combination of the input keys  4  or by pressing the input keys  4  in a different sequence. 
         [0034]    As briefly described above, the accessory  34  is removably mounted on the printer housing  2  to permit the accessory  34  to be detached from the printer housing  2  when appropriate. Similarly, the accessory  34  may be manufactured with different combinations of the functional components that are appropriate for different situations. For example, in a laboratory setting, it may be reasonable to only include the light source  50  and the magnet  46  as part of the accessory  34 . In addition, the relatively simple construction of the accessory  34  permits the user to customize or reconfigure the functional components for the secondary tasks associated with a specific situation. For example, a user in a laboratory setting may remove the magnet  46  if it is found to be unnecessary. 
         [0035]    While there has been shown and described what is at present considered the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention defined by the appended claims.