(19)
(11) EP 0 109 329 A3

(12) EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION

(88) Date of publication A3:
11.06.1986 Bulletin 1986/24

(43) Date of publication A2:
23.05.1984 Bulletin 1984/21

(21) Application number: 83402116

(22) Date of filing: 28.10.1983
(84) Designated Contracting States:
BE DE FR GB IT SE

(30) Priority: 03.11.1982 US 438928

(71) Applicant: GENICOM Corporation
 ()

(72) Inventors:
  • Read, John Michael
     ()
  • Popelish, John Anthony
     ()
  • Caulier, Paul Erner
     ()
  • Miller, Donald Eugene
     ()

   


(54) Balanced print head drive mechanism


(57) The shuttle print head of a matrix printer carries a plurality of printing elements and is supported by leaf springs on the printer frame. The print head is fixed to the movable core of a linear electric motor whose driving coil is also supported on the frame by leaf springs. The masses of the print head array and coil are made equal to form a balanced mass/spring system having a natural resonant frequency of oscillation of sinusoidal motion. The resonant frequency is chosen to correspond to a desired print rate. The drive coil is energized with alternating current at the resonant frequency in order to maintain the sinusoidal oscillation of the print head array at the required amplitude of oscillation. Selective energization of the printing elements effects selective printing of indicia at equal space column locations.






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