JP2000203068A - Thermal transfer color printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce a printer in thickness and to provide a thermal transfer color printer capable of precisely transporting a recording paper by a constitution wherein a diameter of a capstan gear which is coaxially fixed to a capstan roller is made to be great. SOLUTION: This thermal transfer color printer 1 comprises a capstan roller 7 and a pinch roller 6 that convey an ink film 5 bridged between a winding bobbin 15 and a supply bobbin 16 and a recording paper 4 by nipping the film 5 and paper 6, a capstan gear 8 coaxially fixed to the capstan roller 7, a thermal head 10 for executing recording on the paper 4 and a head arm mechanism 30 for supporting the thermal head 10. The capstan roller 7 is disposed on a portion at the printing face side of the recording paper 4 that is under a line passing through a rotational center of the winding bobbin 15 and a rotational center of the supply bobbin 16. The capstan roller 7 nips the recording paper 4 at a part to be blank together with the pinch roller 6.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal transfer type color printer which is compact and realizes highly accurate recording paper conveyance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a thermal transfer type color printer having high definition and easy handling has been put into practical use in the printing field. This type of thermal transfer type color printer is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 49-316356, and FIG. 6 shows a schematic configuration thereof.

[0003] In this type of thermal transfer type color printer apparatus 100, in order to carry out recording paper with higher precision, the recording paper 104 is sandwiched between a capstan roller 107 having spike-shaped projections and a pinch roller 106, The recording paper is being conveyed. Further, the capstan roller 107 is disposed on the printing back side of the recording paper, so that the spike-like projection does not damage the printing surface. Capstan roller 10
The recording paper 104 nipped and transported by the pinch roller 7 and the pinch roller 106 is transported to the platen roller 109 side, and is positioned by the paper feed sensor 121.

[0004] A thermal head 110 fixed to a head arm 130 swinging around a shaft 133 is pressed against a platen roller 109 arranged upstream of the capstan roller 107 via a recording paper 104 and an ink film 105, The capstan gear 108 attached to the shaft end of the capstan roller 107 is rotated counterclockwise by a driving force (not shown), and the ink film 105 wound around the ink film supply bobbin 116 is wound around the ink film take-up bobbin 115. While printing, the printing information is supplied to the thermal head 110 to transfer the ink on the ink film to the recording surface, thereby performing printing.

At this time, if there is slight unevenness in the engagement between the capstan gear 108 and the capstan belt (timing belt) 129, unevenness occurs in the transfer pitch of the ink, resulting in uneven feeding and deterioration in image quality. I will. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, in the conventional thermal transfer type color printer 100, by setting the diameter of the capstan gear 108 to be larger than the diameter of the capstan roller 107, the rotation unevenness of the capstan roller 107 with respect to the meshing unevenness of the gears. , And the effect on the feeding unevenness of the recording paper 104 is reduced to obtain a high-definition printed image.

However, when trying to reduce the size (thickness) of the apparatus, a sufficient space cannot be secured between the capstan roller 107 and the underframe 2, and the diameter of the capstan gear 108 must be reduced. Will not be able to get
As a result, there is a problem that the feeding becomes uneven and a high-definition printed image cannot be obtained.

[0007]

However, when the capstan roller 107 is disposed on the back side of the print to reduce the size of the apparatus as in the above-described conventional thermal transfer type color printer apparatus 100, the capstan gear is not used. Since the maximum diameter of 108 is the space up to the underframe 102,
The diameter of the capstan gear 108 must be reduced. Therefore, in the thermal transfer color printer of the present invention, a large-diameter capstan gear is adopted while miniaturizing (thinning) the apparatus, and a thermal transfer type color printer which conveys recording paper with high accuracy is achieved. The purpose is to:

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the invention according to claim 1 is directed to an ink film stretched between an ink film winding bobbin and an ink film supply bobbin. A capstan roller and a pinch roller for pinching and reciprocating the recording paper, and a capstan gear coaxially fixed to the capstan roller for transmitting transmission power from a capstan motor to the capstan roller; A thermal head that presses paper and the ink film against the platen roller to perform thermal transfer recording on the recording paper; and a head arm mechanism that supports the thermal head and presses and separates the thermal head against the platen roller. In a thermal transfer type color printer housed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped frame, in the transport path of the recording paper, The capstan roller is disposed on one side of a straight line connecting the rotation center of the ink film winding bobbin and the rotation center of the ink film supply bobbin and on the printing surface side of the recording paper, and the capstan roller is disposed on the recording paper. A thermal transfer type color printer device characterized in that a portion to be a blank is held in cooperation with the pinch roller. "

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a thermal transfer type color printer according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram for explaining a configuration of a thermal transfer type color printer according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an initial state before recording paper is inserted. FIGS. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the color printer device. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a pressing mechanism of the capstan roller and the pinch roller, and FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a sandwiching position between the capstan roller and the pinch roller.

First, components for printing the recording paper 4 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, in a thermal transfer type color printer 1 according to the present invention, a casing serving as a base of the apparatus is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped box shape. A paper supply / discharge port 18 for recording paper 4 is formed near the underframe 2 at the front of the housing, and an opening is formed near the underframe 2 at the rear of the housing so that the recording paper 4 can pass through. .

The ink cartridge 14 includes a substantially cylindrical take-up bobbin storage section 23 for rotatably storing the ink film take-up bobbin 15 and a substantially cylindrical supply bobbin storage section for rotatably storing the ink film supply bobbin 16. The ink cartridge 14 is detachably attached to the apparatus 1 and has a recording paper of about 5 mm, which is connected to the take-up bobbin storage section 23 and the supply bobbin storage section 22. Are arranged substantially in parallel with the under frame 2 via the transfer area.

The pinch roller 6 arranged on the under frame 2 side of the center of the housing is supported by a pair of resin bearings 24 (see FIG. 4) attached to both side frames (not shown) of the housing. The capstan roller 7 disposed above the pinch roller 6 uses a capstan motor 17 as a rotational drive source, and a deceleration mechanism (not shown).
And a capstan belt 29 and a large diameter capstan gear 8 attached to the shaft end of the capstan roller 7 so as to be rotatable forward and backward.

Here, the capstan roller 7 is arranged below a straight line connecting the rotation center of the take-up bobbin and the rotation center of the supply bobbin, and is configured to contact the recording surface of the recording paper 4. . With this configuration, the axis of the capstan roller 7 can be arranged at a higher position with respect to the underframe 2.
The diameter of the capstan gear 8 fixed coaxially to the shaft can be set to a large diameter. In addition, as described later, the holding portion between the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6 is configured to be about several millimeters on both sides of the recording paper so as to be a margin area of the recording paper 4. The surface is not damaged and the image quality is not deteriorated. Means for transmitting the driving force to the capstan gear 8 include a pulley belt drive, a gear connection drive, a worm gear drive, and the like.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 4, the capstan roller 7 comes into contact with the capstan bearing 28 when the press arm 26 is rotationally urged clockwise around the fulcrum 40 by the capstan spring 27. This presses the pinch roller 6. The shaft end of the capstan roller 7 is slidably supported in the guide groove 25 of the resin bearing 24, and the groove direction is set at an acute angle to the direction in which the capstan belt 29 is stretched. The tension prevents the capstan roller 7 from coming off the guide groove 25, and the tangential direction of the pressure contact point between the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6 is set in the substantially cylindrical take-up bobbin storage portion 23 of the ink cartridge 14. (See FIGS. 1 to 3). On the other hand, this tangent line is substantially in contact with the platen roller 9.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 5, the sandwiching portion between the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6 is about several millimeters on both sides of the recording paper so as to be a margin area of the recording paper 4. On the right side of FIG. 1 upstream of the capstan roller 7, a platen roller 9 that rotates while being in contact with the recording paper 4 is provided. Above the platen roller 9, transfer paper coated with ink of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), or the like is sequentially and repeatedly applied to the ink film winding bobbin 15 and the ink film supply bobbin 16. .

The ink film take-up bobbin 15 is rotated counterclockwise by a drive source (not shown) so that the ink film 5 can be taken up. Further, the ink sensor 20 detects yellow (Y) and magenta. (M), cyan (C) and the like can be searched for. The upper frame 3 is openable and closable about a frame shaft 31. A lock mechanism (not shown) closes the upper frame 3 during printing and replaces the ink cartridge 14 as shown in FIG. For example, when it is necessary to remove the recording paper 4 in the transport path, the upper frame 3 can be opened.

A head assembly in which the thermal head 10 and the heat sink 33 are integrally assembled is supported by a head arm 30 that rotates about a fulcrum 35 provided on the upper frame 3, and a platen is interlocked with the head cam 13. The head spring 12 is provided so as to be able to freely contact and separate from the roller 9, and when the head spring 12 is in contact with the platen roller 9.
Presses against the platen roller 9. The fulcrum 35 of the head arm 30 is disposed within the span between the ink film winding bobbin 15 of the ink cartridge 14 and the ink film supply bobbin 16.
The head assembly can freely contact and separate from the platen roller 9 within this span.

A cam shaft 32 serving as a drive shaft of the head cam 13 is also disposed through the upper frame 3 in the span, and a cam gear for transmitting a rotational driving force from a drive source (not shown) is provided at one end of the cam shaft 32. It is press-fitted. This cam gear can transmit rotational power to the camshaft 32 only when the upper frame 3 is closed. Further, in order to increase the heat capacity of the heat sink 33 which has been miniaturized, the heat sink 33 and the upper frame 3 are made to be swingable by using a tape or sheet of aluminum or copper having high thermal conductivity, a sheet metal, or a spring metal plate. In the case of the device 1, the copper foil adhesive tape 34 is adhered in a loosened state.

Next, the operation of the thermal transfer type color printer 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, as shown in FIG. 1, a state in which the thermal head 10 is separated from the platen roller 9 is defined as an initial state. The recording paper 4 inserted into the paper supply / ejection port 18 by manual feeding or an automatic paper feeding mechanism (not shown)
4 is guided to a gap between the substantially cylindrical take-up bobbin accommodating portion 23 and the under frame 2 and is guided to a contact portion between the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6.

Next, the capstan roller 7 is rotated counterclockwise, the recording paper 4 is nipped and conveyed by the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6, and conveyed to the platen roller 9 on the right side in FIG. And ink cartridge 14
While being in contact with the cylindrical supply bobbin storage section 22, it passes through the gap between the supply bobbin storage section 22 and the underframe 2 and is guided to the housing rear opening 19. That is,
Cylindrical supply bobbin storage section 22 and underframe 2
Is a guide for guiding the recording paper 4.

When the end of the recording paper 4 passes through the paper feed sensor 21, the capstan roller 7 is stopped at a point where it does not fall out of the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6, and
The recording paper 4 is positioned. At the same time, the ink film take-up bobbin 15 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction to carry out yellow (Y) ink heading. Next, thermal head 1
0 is pressed against the platen roller 9 via the recording paper 4 and the ink film 5, and while the ink film 5 is being wound, the capstan roller 7 is rotated clockwise to rotate the recording paper 4 with the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6. It is nipped and transported to the left in FIG. The end of the recording paper 4 on the capstan roller side is guided to the paper supply / discharge port 18 while being in contact with the take-up bobbin storage section 23 of the ink cartridge 14, and is conveyed to the outside of the apparatus 1.

At this time, printing information corresponding to yellow (Y) is supplied to the thermal head 10, and printing is performed by transferring the ink of the ink film 5 to the recording paper 4. Further, the residual heat of the thermal head 10 generated at this time is transmitted to the upper frame 3 through the copper foil adhesive tape 34, thereby preventing the thermal head 10 itself from becoming high in temperature. And 1
When the printing of the color yellow (Y) is completed, the thermal head 10 is separated from the platen roller 9, and the same operation as that shown in FIGS.
Printing of color cyan (C) and the like is performed. When the printing of the third color is completed, the thermal head 10 is separated from the platen roller 9 until it returns to the state of FIG.
The paper is discharged by rotating the capstan roller 7 clockwise until the paper is removed from the capstan roller 7 and the pinch roller 6, and a series of operations is completed.

[0023]

According to the thermal transfer type color printer according to the present invention described in detail above, the capstan roller is disposed on the recording surface, and the pinch roller is sandwiched by the print margin area to form the capstan. Since the diameter of the capstan gear of the roller shaft can be increased, the recording paper can be conveyed with high accuracy while achieving the miniaturization and thinning of the housing, and a high-definition printed image can be obtained.

Further, the capstan roller contacts the print margin area on the recording surface of the recording paper and conveys the recording paper in cooperation with the pinch roller. Therefore, the capstan roller itself transfers the print image on the recording surface. There is no deterioration.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of a thermal transfer type color printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the thermal transfer type color printer of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the thermal transfer type color printer of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a pressing mechanism of a capstan roller and a pinch roller.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a sandwiching position between a capstan roller and a pinch roller.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a configuration of a conventional thermal transfer type color printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Thermal transfer type color printer device 2 Underframe 3 Upper frame 4 Recording paper 5 Ink film 6 Pinch roller 7 Capstan roller 8 Capstan gear 9 Platen roller 10 Thermal head 11 Head cover 12 Head spring 13 Head cam 14 Ink cartridge 15 Ink film winding bobbin 16 Ink film supply bobbin 17 Capstan motor 18 Paper supply / discharge port 19 Opening 20 Ink sensor 21 Paper feed sensor 22 Supply bobbin storage section 23 Take-up bobbin storage section 24 Resin bearing 25 Guide groove 26 Press arm 27 Capstan spring 28 Capstan bearing 29 Capstan belt 30 Head arm 31 Frame shaft 32 Cam shaft 33 Heat sink 34 Copper foil adhesive Group 35 Support 40 Support 41 Connection

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C060 BC04 BC15 2C061 AQ04 AR01 AS02 BB02 BB35 CC00 CD05 CD13 2C065 AA01 AC01 DA04 DA10 DA12 DA16 DA26 DA28 DA37 2C068 AA02 AA06 AA15 AA22 EE03 EE05 EE59 MM21

Claims (1)

[Claims] An ink film stretched between an ink film take-up bobbin and an ink film supply bobbin; a capstan roller and a pinch roller for sandwiching and reciprocating recording paper; and transmitting power from a capstan motor. A capstan gear coaxially fixed to the capstan roller for transmission to the capstan roller; a thermal head for performing thermal transfer recording on the recording paper by pressing the recording paper and the ink film against the platen roller; And a head arm mechanism for supporting and supporting the thermal head and pressing and separating the thermal head with respect to the platen roller in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped frame. The rotation center of the bobbin is connected to the rotation center of the ink film supply bobbin. Disposing the capstan roller on one side of the straight line and on the printing surface side of the recording paper, and the capstan roller cooperating with the pinch roller to pinch a portion to be a margin of the recording paper A thermal transfer type color printer device characterized by the above-mentioned.