JP2018079653A - Printing device, method for controlling the same, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a print failure when printing an image on a second side of a printing sheet.SOLUTION: A printing device for printing with thermal transfer by a transfer part while winding a printing sheet around a platen drum and transporting the printing sheet includes control means that, when printing an image on a first side of the printing sheet and then on a second side, controls so as to correct a length of a print image in printing an image on the second side depending on a surface finish of a protective layer to be thermally transferred on the first side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a control method thereof, and a program.

  2. Description of the Related Art There is known a sublimation type printing apparatus that performs printing while winding a printing paper around a platen drum having an outer periphery larger than the paper length in the conveyance direction of the printing paper. In such a sublimation printing apparatus, the printing paper is conveyed by the frictional force between the front surface of the platen drum and the back surface of the printing paper. At this time, the conveyance amount of the printing paper varies depending on the frictional force between the front surface of the platen drum and the back surface of the printing paper. Accordingly, the amount of rotation of the platen drum suitable for the frictional force is required, and if the printing paper is not properly conveyed, slipping occurs, resulting in printing defects such as color misregistration and skew feeding.

  In Patent Document 1, slipping of a transfer medium is predicted by referring to at least one of the type and size of the transfer medium and the tension of the transfer medium, and the start timing of heat generation of the thermal head is determined based on this slippage. A sublimation printing apparatus for fine adjustment is disclosed.

JP 2003-39760 A

  In recent years, needs for double-sided printing have increased due to diversification of printed materials. In double-sided printing, when the front side is printed, the image receiving layer of the printing paper and the surface of the platen drum are in contact, and when the back side is printed, the overcoat formed on the front side is in contact with the surface of the platen drum. . In the image-receiving layer and the overcoat, the frictional force between the surface of the platen drum and the surface of the platen drum are different, so that there are cases where the printing paper cannot be properly conveyed when the front surface is printed and when the back surface is printed.

  The overcoat may be treated with a surface finish that changes the appearance of the overcoat, and the frictional force changes depending on the surface finish. Therefore, the sublimation printing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a problem that it is not possible to prevent printing defects such as color misregistration and skew feeding only by adjusting the heat generation start timing of the recording unit.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to prevent printing defects when printing the back surface of printing paper.

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus that performs printing by thermally transferring a printing paper while winding a printing paper around a platen drum, and printing the second surface after printing the first surface of the printing paper. And a control means for controlling to correct the printing length when printing on the second surface according to the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent printing defects when printing the back surface of printing paper.

It is a figure which shows an ink ribbon and a double-sided printing paper. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration of a printer. It is a figure which shows the standby state of a printer. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a double-sided printing paper is in contact with a platen drum. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state where a double-sided printing paper is wound around a platen drum. It is a figure which shows the intermediate state of a thermal head. It is a figure which shows the press state of a thermal head. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state where a double-sided printing paper is conveyed to a switchback conveyance path. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the double-sided printing paper is in contact with the platen drum again. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state where a double-sided printing paper is discharged. It is a figure which shows the surface finish of overcoat. It is a figure which shows the relationship between surface finishing and slippage. It is a figure which shows the correction information according to surface finish. 3 is a flowchart illustrating processing of the printer of the first embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing of a printer according to a second embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an instructed printing order and an actual printing order.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, “printing” refers to a series of overall operations from performing printing based on a printing instruction from a user to discharging printing paper as a transfer medium. In addition, “printing” refers to an operation of recording an image by thermally transferring ink applied to an ink ribbon onto a printing paper or an operation of thermally transferring a protective layer in a printing operation.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an ink ribbon and printing paper used in a sublimation printing apparatus.
R in FIG. 1A is an ink ribbon as a transfer medium. 101 is a base material layer. An overcoat layer as an ink layer or a protective layer is formed on the surface of the base material layer 101. Reference numeral 102 denotes a yellow ink layer, 103 denotes a magenta ink layer, 104 denotes a cyan ink layer, and 105 denotes an overcoat layer. Reference numeral 106 denotes a yellow ink marker for specifying the printing start position of the yellow ink layer 102. Reference numerals 107, 108, and 109 denote ink markers that specify the print start positions of the magenta ink layer 103, the cyan ink layer 104, and the overcoat layer 105, respectively.

  P in FIG. 1B is a double-sided printing paper as a transfer medium. Reference numeral 110 denotes a front side image receiving layer, 111 denotes a base paper, and 112 denotes a back side image receiving layer. The front side image receiving layer 110 and the back side image receiving layer 112 are respectively formed on the front and back sides of the base paper 111. The front side image receiving layer 110 and the back side image receiving layer 112 have the same configuration, and the first surface printed first is the front side, and the second surface printed next is the back side. However, depending on the printing paper, the front side image receiving layer 110 and the back side image receiving layer 112 may have different materials.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a printer as a sublimation printing apparatus.
Reference numeral 201 denotes a printer, 202 denotes an ink ribbon cassette in which an ink ribbon R is built, and 203 denotes a paper tray in which double-sided printing paper P is stored. The front surface of the printer 201 is covered with a front cover 204. By opening the front cover 204 toward the front, an insertion port for allowing the ink ribbon cassette 202 and the paper tray 203 to be mounted is opened. The ink ribbon cassette 202 and the paper tray 203 are detachable in the direction of arrow A through the insertion opening.

  The top surface of the printer 201 is covered with a top surface cover 205. The top cover 205 is formed with a paper discharge tray portion 206 for discharging the double-sided printing paper P on which printing has been completed. Further, the right side surface of the printer 201 is covered with a right side cover 207. The right cover 207 can be opened and closed with the lower part of the printer 201 as a pivot point to enable maintenance when double-sided printing paper is jammed. Reference numeral 208 denotes an input / output terminal unit. The input / output terminal unit 208 allows the user to set print parameters, select an image to be printed, print instructions, or monitor a print state. Transmission / reception of information between the input / output terminal unit 208 and the printer 201 may be wireless or wired.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of the printer.
A CPU 301 performs system control and arithmetic processing of the printer 201. The CPU 301 includes a drive control unit 301a that controls driving and a measurement unit 301b that measures the timing of drive control. An image processing unit 302 performs image processing on image data transmitted from a digital camera, a portable terminal, or the like or image data read from a storage medium. The image processing unit 302 performs various image processing such as decompression processing, resizing processing according to double-sided printing paper P, and image correction processing on the image data, and print data for each color based on the image data subjected to the image processing. Is generated. A flash ROM 303 stores a system control program for the printer 201. The CPU 301 reads a program from the flash ROM 303 and controls each unit based on the read program. An SDRAM 304 temporarily stores image data and is used for data processing work. A portion constituted by the CPU 301, the image processing unit 302, the flash ROM 303, and the SDRAM 304 is a main control unit 305 that mainly processes each control of the printer 201. The main control unit 305 corresponds to an example of a control unit and a setting unit. The flash ROM 303 corresponds to an example of a storage unit.

A recording unit 306 includes a thermal head control unit 307 and a thermal head 308 as a transfer unit. The thermal head control unit 307 converts the print data generated by the image processing unit 302 into an electrical signal and outputs it to the thermal head 308. The thermal head 308 converts the electrical signal into thermal energy and transfers the ink on the ink ribbon R onto the double-sided printing paper P.
In addition, the printer 201 includes a head temperature sensor 309 that detects the temperature of the thermal head 308, an environmental temperature sensor 310 that detects the temperature inside the printer 201, and a head position sensor 311 that detects a pressing position, a retracted position, and the like of the thermal head 308. Have. The environmental temperature sensor 310 corresponds to an example of a temperature detection unit. The printer 201 also includes a paper detection sensor unit 312 that detects double-sided printing paper P and an ink ribbon marker detection sensor 313. The paper detection sensor unit 312 includes a first paper sensor 312a for detecting the feeding of the double-sided photographic printing paper P, a second paper sensor 312b for detecting contact with the platen drum, and a refeed / discharge. And a third paper sensor 312c for detecting the state of this. The second paper sensor 312b corresponds to an example of a length detection unit. The ink ribbon marker detection sensor 313 detects each ink marker for controlling the position of the ink ribbon R.

  A motor driver unit 314 controls each motor in accordance with an instruction from the main control unit 305. Reference numeral 315 denotes a head position drive motor, which is a pressing position for printing the thermal head 308, a standby position for exchanging the ink ribbon cassette 202 and transporting the double-sided printing paper P, and an intermediate position between the pressing position and the standby position. Move to. Reference numeral 316 denotes a paper transport motor for transporting the double-sided printing paper P. Reference numeral 317 denotes an ink ribbon transport motor for rotating and winding the winding bobbin of the ink ribbon R to transport the ink ribbon R. Reference numeral 318 denotes a position change motor that drives a phase switching mechanism for a plurality of parts during each operation sequence of the printer 201.

  A communication unit 319 controls communication with an input / output terminal unit 208 such as a digital camera, personal computer, or portable terminal connected to the printer 201. The printer 201 receives information such as operation instructions and image data transmitted from the input / output terminal unit 208 via the communication unit 319 and transmits the information to the main control unit 305. Reference numeral 320 denotes a memory controller that reads and writes image data from the recording medium 321 mounted on the printer 201. A recording medium 321 stores image data and is detachable from the printer 201.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a standby state of the printer.
In the standby state, the thermal head 308 is separated from the ink ribbon R, and the printed double-sided printing paper P can be conveyed in the discharge direction. The ink ribbon cassette 202 and the paper tray 203 are attached / detached in a standby state.
The ink ribbon R is wound up in the ink ribbon cassette 202. The double-sided printing paper P is stacked in the paper tray 203. Reference numeral 401 denotes a platen drum that winds and conveys double-sided printing paper P. The platen drum 401 has an outer periphery that is larger than the paper length in the transport direction of the double-sided photographic paper P. Further, the platen drum 401 is rotated counterclockwise in the figure by the motor driver unit 314 receiving an instruction from the main control unit 305 driving the paper transport motor 316. Reference numeral 402 denotes a paper feed roller that feeds paper by contacting the double-sided printing paper P. Reference numeral 403 denotes a feed roller, and reference numeral 404 denotes a feed pinch roller. A delivery roller 403 and a delivery pinch roller 404 convey the nipped double-sided printing paper P to the platen drum 401 side. Reference numerals 405 to 408 denote first to fourth swing guides that are biased toward the platen drum 401 by biasing members, respectively. Reference numerals 409 to 416 denote first to eighth rollers. Two each of the first to eighth rollers 409 to 416 are arranged on the first to fourth swing guides 405 to 408, respectively. When the first to fourth swing guides 405 to 408 are urged toward the platen drum 401, the double-sided printing paper P wound around the platen drum 401 is pressed toward the platen drum 401. However, in the standby state of FIG. 4, the fourth swing guide 408 is in a state of being retracted from the platen drum 401 by the rotation of the seventh roller 415.

Reference numeral 417 denotes a movable guide member that can move from the standby position in FIG. 4 to directly below the thermal head 308. 418 is a switchback roller, and 419 is a switchback pinch roller. The switchback roller 418 and the switchback pinch roller 419 can change the leading end in the transport direction of the double-sided printing paper P (switchback) by changing the rotation direction. Reference numeral 420 denotes a paper discharge conveyance guide, which distributes the conveyance direction of the double-sided photographic printing paper P to the paper discharge direction or the switchback standby direction. Reference numeral 421 denotes a paper discharge roller, and reference numeral 422 denotes a paper discharge pinch roller. The paper discharge roller 421 and the paper discharge pinch roller 422 discharge the printed double-sided printing paper P to the paper discharge tray unit 206.
Reference numeral 423 denotes a paper feed transport path, which is a transport path between the paper feed roller 402 and the feed roller 403. Reference numeral 424 denotes a contact conveyance path, which is a conveyance path from the feed roller 403 to the platen drum 401. Reference numeral 425 denotes a retreat conveyance path, which is a conveyance path between the platen drum 401 and the switchback roller 418. Reference numeral 426 denotes a paper discharge conveyance path, which is a conveyance path between the switchback roller 418 and the paper discharge roller 421.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a state in which the leading end of the double-sided printing paper P fed from the paper tray is in contact with the platen drum.
Reference numeral 501 denotes a placement board, which is disposed in the paper tray 203. A double-sided printing paper P is placed on the placement board 501. Reference numeral 502 denotes a paper pressure plate, which lifts the printing paper P toward the paper feed roller 402 by pushing up the placement plate 501 in the paper tray 203. Reference numeral 503 denotes a first paper guide, and reference numeral 504 denotes a conveyance rib provided on the inner surface of the right cover 207. Reference numeral 505 denotes a second paper guide, and reference numeral 506 denotes a support shaft of the first swing guide 405. The first swing guide 405 is supported by a support shaft 506 so as to be swingable. Reference numeral 507 denotes a biasing member that biases the first swing guide 405. The urging member 507 urges the first swing guide 405 toward the platen drum 401.

  The paper feed conveyance path 423 is formed by a first paper guide 503 and a conveyance rib 504 facing the first paper guide 503. A first paper sensor 312a is installed in the paper feed conveyance path 423 to monitor the paper feed operation. The contact conveyance path 424 is formed by the second paper guide 505 and the first swing guide 405. A second paper sensor 312 b is installed in the contact conveyance path 424 to monitor whether the double-sided printing paper P is in contact with the platen drum 401. The leading end of the double-sided photographic printing paper P in the conveyance direction comes into contact with the platen drum 401 from the paper feed conveyance path 423 through the contact conveyance path 424.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a state in which the double-sided printing paper P is wound around the platen drum.
Reference numeral 601 denotes a support shaft of the second swing guide 406. Reference numeral 602 denotes an urging member of the second swing guide 406. The third roller 411 and the fourth roller 412 are rotatably supported by the second swing guide 406.
Reference numeral 603 denotes a support shaft of the third swing guide 407. Reference numeral 604 denotes an urging member of the third swing guide 407. The fifth roller 413 and the sixth roller 414 are rotatably supported by the third swing guide 407.
Reference numeral 605 denotes a support shaft of the fourth swing guide 408. Reference numeral 606 denotes an urging member of the fourth swing guide 408. A seventh roller 415 and an eighth roller 416 are rotatably supported by the fourth swing guide 408. The seventh roller 415 also serves as a support shaft when the fourth swing guide 408 rotates. Here, the fourth swing guide 408 is in a state of being close to the platen drum 401 by the rotation of the seventh roller 415.

In addition, at the timing when the first paper sensor 312 a detects the double-sided printing paper P, the movable guide member 417 moves directly below the thermal head 308. Reference numeral 607 denotes a rotational conveyance path, which is formed by a platen drum 401 and first to eighth rollers 409 to 416. The conveyance of the double-sided photographic printing paper P in the rotation conveyance path 607 is performed by the rotation of the platen drum 401 and the pressing of the first to eighth rollers 409 to 416.
Further, at the timing when the second paper sensor 312b detects the leading edge of the double-sided printing paper P in the transport direction, the paper feed roller 402 is separated from the paper tray 203. The leading end in the transport direction of the double-sided photographic printing paper P that has shifted from the contact transport path 424 to the rotational transport path 607 passes through the second paper sensor 312 b again by the rotation of the platen drum 401. Here, the double-sided printing paper P is transported from the position of the second paper sensor 312b to just below the thermal head 308 by the rotation amount of the platen drum based on the frictional force of the back-side image receiving layer 112. At this time, since the leading end of the double-sided printing paper P in the conveyance direction is urged toward the platen drum 401 by the movable guide member 417, the double-sided printing paper P is prevented from being detached from the rotational conveyance path 607.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of an intermediate state of the thermal head.
In order to detect each of the markers 106 to 109 of the ink ribbon R, the thermal head 308 moves from the standby state to the platen drum 401 side, so that it also serves as a reflector of the ink ribbon marker detection sensor 313. Although the thermal head 308 is located in the intermediate state, the thermal head 308 may not move as long as the marker of the ink ribbon R can be detected without a reflector.
Reference numeral 701 denotes a temporary standby guide. Reference numeral 702 denotes a switchback conveyance path. The switchback conveyance path 702 is formed by the bottom surface of the sheet discharge tray unit 206 and the temporary standby guide 701 in a state where the sheet discharge conveyance guide 420 closes the sheet discharge conveyance path 426. The switchback conveyance path 702 is formed only when printing on the back side where the switchback is not performed in duplex printing. That is, when single-sided printing or double-sided printing has finished printing on the back side, the paper discharge conveyance guide 420 closes the switchback conveyance path 702.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a pressing state of the thermal head.
When the ink ribbon marker detection sensor 313 detects the yellow ink marker 106, the movable guide member 417 is retracted from immediately below the thermal head 308 to the initial position. Immediately after the bias of the double-sided printing paper P by the movable guide member 417 is released, the thermal head 308 further moves from the intermediate position to the platen drum 401 side, and presses the double-sided printing paper P via the ink ribbon R. In this state, the thermal head 308 performs thermal transfer of ink. The double-sided printing paper P is conveyed while being thermally transferred to the front-side image receiving layer 110 while following the rotation of the platen drum 401. In the same operation, when the thermal transfer to the overcoat layer 105 is completed, the thermal head 308 is moved to a standby state, and the movable guide member 417 is again moved directly below the thermal head 308 to urge the double-sided printing paper P. Return to state.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a state in which the double-sided printing paper P is transported to the switchback transport path in order to print the back surface after the front surface is printed.
Reference numeral 901 denotes a third paper guide, and reference numeral 902 denotes a fourth paper guide. Reference numeral 903 denotes a refeed conveyance path, which is a conveyance path from the switchback roller 418 to the delivery roller 403. After the double-sided printing paper P is thermally transferred to the overcoat layer 105, the leading edge in the transport direction of the double-sided printing paper P is detected again by the second paper sensor 312b. At this time, the fourth swing guide 408 moves from the platen drum 401 to a retreat position, and a retreat conveyance path 425 is formed. The retreat conveyance path 425 is formed by the retreated fourth swing guide 408, the first paper guide 503, the conveyance rib 504, and the third paper guide 901. The double-sided printing paper P is transported from the rotational transport path 607 to the retreat transport path 425, nipped by the switchback roller 418 and the switchback pinch roller 419, and further transported. After the leading edge of the double-sided printing paper P in the transport direction is detected by the third paper sensor 312c, it is further transported along the switchback transport path 702 by a predetermined step.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a state where the switched-back double-sided printing paper P is re-fed and is in contact with the platen drum.
By rotating the switchback roller 418 in the reverse direction from the state of FIG. 9, the leading end of the double-sided printing paper P in the transport direction is switched. The double-sided printing paper P conveyed by the switchback roller 418 and the switchback pinch roller 419 is conveyed to the contact conveyance path 424 through the refeed conveyance path 903. When the double-sided photographic printing paper P is fed again and comes into contact with the platen drum 401, the paper discharge conveyance guide 420 closes the switchback conveyance path 702 and secures the paper discharge conveyance path 426.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a discharge state of the double-sided printing paper P after printing on the back side.
The double-sided printing paper P is conveyed while being thermally transferred to the back side image receiving layer 112 while the platen drum 401 is rotated, and the thermal transfer is completed up to the overcoat layer 105. The double-sided photographic printing paper P is discharged from the contact conveyance path 424 to the upper surface of the sheet discharge tray 206 by the sheet discharge roller 421 and the sheet discharge pinch roller 422 through the rotation conveyance path 607 and the retreat conveyance path 425. Is done.

Here, when the back side is printed after the front side is printed, the surface in contact with the platen drum 401 is not the front side image receiving layer 110 but the overcoat of the double-sided printing paper P. At this time, the frictional force between the overcoat and the platen drum 401 is different from the frictional force between the surface-side image receiving layer 110 and the platen drum 401.
In addition, when the overauto is simply heat-transferred, the entire surface becomes a glossy surface, but when the overcoat is finished with a surface, a surface with a different texture is formed in which a low gloss portion and a high gloss portion are mixed. The When surface finishing is performed on such an overcoat, the surface in contact with the platen drum 401 is over-automed with surface finishing of the double-sided printing paper P. At this time, the frictional force between the overcoat and the platen drum 401 differs depending on the type of surface finish.
Therefore, when printing the back side after printing the front side, even if the double-sided printing paper P is transported by the platen drum 401 with a predetermined rotation amount, the transport amount of the double-sided printing paper P is insufficient due to overcoat or surface finishing. Or too much. For this reason, there is a risk that printing defects such as color misregistration and skew will occur in the printing on the back side.

Hereinafter, the configuration and processing of the printer 201 that can prevent printing defects when printing on the back side even when overcoating and surface finishing are performed on the printing on the front side will be described.
First, the surface finish of the overcoat in this embodiment will be described.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of the surface finish of the overcoat.
FIG. 12A is a schematic diagram of a glossy surface that has been subjected to uniform thermal transfer with a single energy without surface finishing. Reference numeral 1201 denotes a single energy for thermal transfer.
FIGS. 12B to 12D are schematic diagrams when thermal transfer is performed so that a pattern is formed with binary energy. Reference numeral 1202 denotes a low gloss portion thermally transferred with high energy, and reference numeral 1203 denotes a high gloss portion thermally transferred with low energy.
FIG. 12B is a schematic diagram of the surface finish pattern 1. FIG. 12C is a schematic diagram of the surface finish pattern 2. FIG. 12D is a schematic diagram of the surface finish pattern 3. The surface finish patterns 1 to 3 have different ratios of low gloss portions. When the ratio of the low gloss portion increases, the area in contact with the surface of the platen drum 401 decreases, and the frictional force decreases.
The frictional force with the platen drum 401 decreases in the order of the image receiving layer, the glossy surface, the surface finish pattern 3, the surface finish pattern 1, and the surface finish pattern 2. That is, the surface finish pattern 2 is most slidable with the platen drum 401.

Specifically, the relationship between the surface finish and the slip amount when the platen drum 401 is rotated to transport the double-sided printing paper P will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the relationship between the surface finish and the slip amount.
When the platen drum 401 and the back side image receiving layer are in contact with each other, the slip amount is almost zero. On the other hand, when the platen drum 401 is in contact with the glossy surface shown in FIG. 12A or the surface finish patterns 1 to 3 shown in FIG. 12B to FIG. For example, in the case of the surface finish pattern 2, a slip of “L2” occurs compared to the back side image receiving layer, and the apparent paper length becomes longer. Here, the amount of slip increases in the order of the image receiving layer, the glossy surface, the surface finish pattern 3, the surface finish pattern 1, and the surface finish pattern 2. That is, the surface finish pattern 2 has the largest slip amount. Thus, when printing the back side, the frictional force between the surface of the platen drum 401 and the double-sided printing paper P changes according to the surface finish of the overcoat on the front side. Therefore, when printing the back side, it is necessary to print in consideration that the frictional force changes according to the surface finish.

  Further, when printing the back side after printing the front side, the frictional force between the double-sided printing paper P and the platen drum 401 also changes depending on the internal environmental temperature of the printer 201. Specifically, the surface of the platen drum 401 is made of a material that does not easily slide with the double-sided printing paper P, such as rubber. Therefore, the frictional force increases on the surface of the platen drum 401 when the environmental temperature increases, and decreases when the environmental temperature decreases. Therefore, when printing the back side, it is necessary to print in consideration of the fact that the frictional force on the surface of the platen drum 401 changes according to the environmental temperature.

From this point of view, the main control unit 305 of the present embodiment further determines the environmental temperature according to the surface finish of the front side overcoat when printing the back side after printing the front side of the double-sided printing paper P. Accordingly, control is performed so as to correct the print length when the back side is printed. Here, the print length is a length in the conveyance direction of print data.
That is, the fact that the frictional force changes according to the surface finish of the overcoat on the front side and the environmental temperature also changes the amount of slip when the double-sided printing paper P is conveyed. Therefore, the main control unit 305 corrects the print length so as to increase or decrease the length corresponding to the changed slip amount with respect to the original print length when the back side is printed. It is possible to prevent shortage or excess.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a correction table storing correction information associated with the surface finish of the overcoat and the environmental temperature. The correction table is stored in advance in the flash ROM 303.
In the correction table, the environmental temperature is divided into low temperature, normal temperature, and high temperature, and the surface contacting the platen drum 401 stores correction coefficients corresponding to the back side image receiving layer, the glossy surface, and the surface finish patterns 1 to 3. Since the frictional force is small and the slip amount is large as the environmental temperature is low, a correction coefficient is stored so that the correction becomes large as the environmental temperature is low. Further, as described above, since the friction force decreases and the slip amount increases in the order of the glossy surface, the surface finish pattern 3, the surface finish pattern 1, and the surface finish pattern 2, a correction coefficient that increases the correction in this order is obtained. It is remembered. The correction coefficient is calculated based on a measured value actually measured in advance.
Here, the environmental temperature is divided into three temperature ranges, but may be divided into four or more temperature ranges in order to improve the accuracy of correction.

Next, a process in which the main control unit 305 specifically corrects the print length using the correction table will be described.
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing processing when the printer prints the double-sided printing paper P. The flowchart in FIG. 15 is realized by the CPU 301 of the main control unit 305 executing a program stored in the flash ROM 303. Here, it is assumed that the ink ribbon cassette 202 loaded with the ink ribbon R and the paper tray 203 containing the printing paper P are mounted on the printer 201 in advance.
In step S1501, the main control unit 305 performs print settings according to a user operation. Specifically, the main control unit 305 sets the printing contents according to an image to be printed and an instruction for surface finishing via the input / output terminal unit 208 by the user. When instructing the surface finish, the glossy surface and any one of the surface finish patterns 1 to 3 are instructed on the front surface side and the back surface side, respectively.

In step S1502, the main control unit 305 starts printing in response to a user's print instruction.
In step S1503, the main control unit 305 feeds the double-sided printing paper P. Specifically, the main control unit 305 conveys the double-sided photographic printing paper P from the paper tray 203 through the paper feed conveyance path 423 until the leading end in the conveyance direction is nipped by the delivery roller 403 and the delivery pinch roller 404.
In step S <b> 1504, the main control unit 305 causes the double-sided printing paper P having the printing screen on the front side to contact the platen drum 401 via the contact conveyance path 424.

In step S <b> 1505, the main control unit 305 rotates the platen drum 401 to wind the double-sided printing paper P around the platen drum 401. At this time, the main control unit 305 moves the movable guide member 417 to a position directly below the thermal head 308, brings the fourth swing guide 408 close to the platen drum 401, and performs both sides by the first to eighth rollers 409 to 416. The printing paper P is pressed toward the platen drum 401 side.
In step S1506, the main control unit 305 cues the double-sided printing paper P. Specifically, the main control unit 305 detects the leading end in the transport direction of the double-sided printing paper P being transported by the rotation of the platen drum 401 by the second paper sensor 312b, and then stops immediately below the thermal head 308. Thus, the rotation of the platen drum 401 is controlled.

In step S1507, the main control unit 305 cues the ink ribbon. Specifically, the main control unit 305 moves the thermal head 308 to an intermediate position so that the yellow ink marker 106 can be detected by the ink ribbon marker detection sensor 313, and then the ink ribbon until the yellow ink marker 106 is detected. Wind up R.
In step S1508, the main control unit 305 performs printing. Specifically, the main control unit 305 returns the movable guide member 417 from the position immediately below the thermal head 308 to the first swing guide 405 side in the standby state. At the same time, the main control unit 305 moves the thermal head 308 from the intermediate position (FIG. 7) to the pressing position (FIG. 8) to press the ink ribbon R and the double-sided printing paper P toward the platen drum 401. Subsequently, the main control unit 305 performs thermal transfer of the yellow ink layer 102, the magenta ink layer 103, the cyan ink layer 104, and the overcoat layer 105 while rotating the platen drum 401. When the main control unit 305 thermally transfers the overcoat layer 105, surface finishing is performed according to print settings.

In step S1509, the main control unit 305 determines whether the overcoat has been thermally transferred. If the overcoat is thermally transferred, the process proceeds to S1510. If the overcoat is not thermally transferred, the process returns to S1506.
In step S1510, the main control unit 305 saves the sheet. Specifically, the main control unit 305 conveys the double-sided printing paper P from the rotation conveyance path 607 to the retreat conveyance path 425.
In step S1511, the main control unit 305 determines whether printing on the back side has been completed. If the printing on the back side has not been completed, the process proceeds to S1512. If the printing on the back side has been completed, the process proceeds to S1522.

In step S1512, the main control unit 305 changes the printing screen of the double-sided printing paper P from the front side to the back side by paper switchback.
In step S1513, the main control unit 305 performs paper refeeding. Specifically, the main control unit 305 causes the feeding roller 403 and the feeding pinch roller 404 to nip the double-sided printing paper P whose printing screen is reversed to the back side.
In step S <b> 1514, the main control unit 305 causes the double-sided printing paper P to contact the platen drum 401 via the contact conveyance path 424. At this time, the main control unit 305 closes the switchback conveyance path 702 with the paper discharge conveyance guide 420 and opens the paper discharge conveyance path 426.

In step S1515, the main control unit 305 rotates the double-sided printing paper P once around the platen drum 401 so that the second paper sensor 312b detects the leading edge and the trailing edge of the double-sided printing paper P in the conveyance direction. .
In step S1516, the main control unit 305 calculates the paper length of the double-sided printing paper P. Specifically, the paper length of the double-sided photographic paper P is measured based on the detection interval between the leading edge and the rear edge in the transport direction of the double-sided photographic paper P detected by the measuring unit 301b of the main control unit 305. Measure the thickness. Here, the calculated paper length is a paper length including a slip amount corresponding to the glossy surface or the surface finishing patterns 1 to 3.

In step S1517, the main control unit 305 corrects the print length of the print data. Normally, the main control unit 305 performs printing based on print data having a print length that is the same as the paper length, but in this embodiment, the main control unit 305 responds to the changing environmental temperature and surface finish pattern. Correct the print length of the print data.
Specifically, the main control unit 305 acquires information on the environmental temperature detected by the environmental temperature sensor 310 and information on the surface finish of the surface-side overcoat that is set for printing. Next, the main control unit 305 extracts a correction coefficient from the correction table based on the environmental temperature information and the surface finish information. The main control unit 305 calculates the corrected print length by multiplying the calculated sheet length by the extracted correction coefficient. In this way, the print length of the print data is corrected according to the environmental temperature and the surface finish.
The image processing unit 302 of the main control unit 305 resizes the print data so that the corrected print length is obtained. That is, the print data is resized so as to have a print length corrected according to the environmental temperature, the surface finish, and the calculated paper length.

In step S1518, the main control unit 305 cues the double-sided printing paper P. This process is the same as S1506.
In step S1519, the main control unit 305 cues the ink ribbon. This process is the same as S1507.
In step S1520, the main control unit 305 performs printing. This process is the same as S1508. At this time, the main control unit 305 can print based on the resized print data, and can perform a print taking into account the amount of slip that changes according to the environmental temperature and the surface finish, and the print length is insufficient or excessive. Can be prevented.

In step S1521, the main control unit 305 determines whether the overcoat has been thermally transferred. If the overcoat is not thermally transferred, the process returns to S1517. In step S1517, the main control unit 305 again corrects the print length of the print data. The reason why the print length is corrected every time printing is performed is because it is assumed that the environmental temperature changes every time printing is performed. That is, when the environmental temperature is higher than the previous S1517, the slip amount is different from the previous time. Therefore, the main control unit 305 does not use the print length corrected last time, but corrects the print length based on the newly detected information of the environmental temperature, and resizes the print data to have the corrected print length. To do. Therefore, even when the environmental temperature changes every time printing is performed, it is possible to perform printing in consideration of the amount of slip that changes according to the environmental temperature and the surface finish. The process of S1517 is performed every time the yellow ink layer 102, the magenta ink layer 103, the cyan ink layer 104, and the overcoat layer 105 are thermally transferred.
On the other hand, if the overcoat is thermally transferred in S1521, the process proceeds to S1522.
In step S1522, the main control unit 305 discharges the sheet. Specifically, the main control unit 305 discharges the double-sided printing paper P, on which the back side printing has been completed, from the retreat conveyance path 425 to the discharge tray section 206 via the discharge conveyance path 426.

As described above, the main control unit 305 according to the present embodiment, when printing the front side of the double-sided printing paper P, prints the back side according to the surface finish of the overcoat that is thermally transferred to the front side. Correct the print length when printing on. Therefore, since the print length is corrected in consideration of the amount of slip that changes in accordance with the surface finish, insufficient and excessive print lengths can be prevented, and print defects can be prevented. In particular, the main control unit 305 corrects the print length when printing on the back side according to the environmental temperature and the surface finish of the overcoat that is thermally transferred to the front side. Therefore, since the print length is corrected in consideration of the amount of slip that changes in accordance with the environmental temperature and the surface finish, insufficient and excessive print lengths can be prevented, and print defects can be further prevented.
In addition, the main control unit 305 according to the present embodiment corrects the print length when printing on the back side according to the surface finish set by the user's instruction, so that correction information corresponding to the surface finish is previously set. It can be stored, and the print length can be easily corrected.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, processing of the printer according to the second embodiment will be described.
In the present embodiment, printing is performed in advance so that a surface-finished image in which the frictional force increases when the back side of the double-sided printing paper P is printed is on the front side. Note that the schematic configuration and system configuration of the printer 201 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. The printer 201 of the present embodiment can continuously print a plurality of double-sided printing papers P. Therefore, for example, the user prints images on the front side (first side) and the back side (second side) of the first sheet, the front side and back side of the second sheet, and the front side and back side of the third sheet, respectively. Instruct.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing processing when the printer prints the double-sided printing paper P. The flowchart in FIG. 16 is realized by the CPU 301 executing a program stored in the flash ROM 303.
In step S1601, the main control unit 305 performs print settings for a plurality of sheets in accordance with a user operation. Specifically, the main control unit 305 sets the print contents according to an instruction of an image to be printed, a surface finish, and a printing order via the input / output terminal unit 208 by the user. When instructing the surface finish, the glossy surface and any one of the surface finish patterns 1 to 3 are instructed on the front surface side and the back surface side, respectively. If the printing order is not instructed, the main control unit 305 sets the printing order based on the image creation date, the image name, and the like.

In step S1602, the main control unit 305 starts printing in response to a user's print instruction.
In step S1603, the main control unit 305 determines the printing order of the front and back surfaces. Specifically, the main control unit 305 compares the surface finish of the image designated as the front side with the surface finish of the image designated as the back side, and the surface finish having a large frictional force with the platen drum 401. The printing order is determined so as to print the image instructed in advance. Note that the order of the frictional force among the glossy surface and the surface finish patterns 1 to 3 is stored in the flash ROM 303 in advance.

  In step S1604, the main control unit 305 performs printing based on the determined printing order. At this time, the processing from S1503 to S1521 in the flowchart of FIG. 15 of the first embodiment can be applied to the printing process. When the back side is printed according to the determined printing order, the surface in contact with the platen drum 401 is an overcoat having a surface finish with a high frictional force. Therefore, when the back side is printed, printing can be performed with a small amount of slip, and correction of the print length of the print data can be reduced.

  In step S1605, the main control unit 305 performs paper discharge adjustment. Specifically, when the designated printing order and the determined printing order are different, the main control unit 305 discharges the double-sided printing paper P so that the designated printing order is obtained. Switchback, refeeding, paper rotation, and retreating are carried out, and the double-sided printing paper P is reversed and discharged. For the second sheet to the last double-sided printing paper P, the main control unit 305 similarly repeats the processing from S1603 to S1605 and ends the processing.

Here, the difference between the instructed printing order and the actual printing order when the flowchart of FIG. 16 is executed will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example when the instructed printing order is changed to the actual printing order. FIG. 17A is an example showing the instructed printing order. For example, the first sheet has a printing order in which the first surface is an image instructed by the surface finish pattern 1 and the second surface is an image instructed by the glossy surface.

  FIG. 17B is an example showing an actual printing order. For example, in the first sheet, when the glossy surface is compared with the surface finish pattern 1, the main control unit 305 is instructed to have a glossy surface because the glossy surface has the largest frictional force when contacting the platen drum 401. The printing order is changed so that the image is printed in advance. Accordingly, unlike the designated printing order, the printing order is determined as an image in which the first side is designated as a glossy surface and the second side is designated as an image in which the surface finishing pattern 1 is designated.

FIG. 17C is an example showing the paper discharge order. Here, when the actual printing order is changed, the main control unit 305 discharges the double-sided printing paper P so that the double-sided printing paper P is discharged out of the order instructed to be discharged without adjusting the discharge. The drawing paper P is reversed and discharged. For example, since the actual printing order has been changed for the first sheet, the double-sided printing paper P is reversed and discharged by switching back.
Similarly, for the second and subsequent sheets, the printing order is determined so that an image instructed to have a surface finish that increases the frictional force when printing on the back side is printed in advance, and the designated printing order is changed. When changed, the double-sided printing paper P is reversed and discharged.

  As described above, the main control unit 305 of the present embodiment has a frictional force between the front side and the platen drum 401 when printing the back side of the images in which printing is instructed on the front side and the back side. An image instructed to give a larger surface finish is printed on the front side. Therefore, since an image for which surface finishing with a low frictional force is instructed can be conveyed with a smaller sliding amount than when printing in advance, the correction of the printing length can be reduced.

As described above, the present invention has been described together with various embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and can be modified within the scope of the present invention. May be.
In the above-described embodiment, the case where there are three types of surface finish patterns has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and there may be two types or four or more types. Further, a glossy surface may be included as one of the surface finishing patterns. Further, a colorless character may be applied as one of the surface finishing patterns. Here, the colorless character indicates a character such as a date or an image identification number in a low glossy part. When the surface finish is a colorless character, the correction information associated with the surface finish and the environmental temperature is stored in the correction table in the same manner as the surface finish patterns 1 to 3 described above.
In the embodiment described above, the case where the correction information is a correction coefficient has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the correction information may be a correction amount. In this case, in step S1517, the main control unit 305 corrects the print length by adding or subtracting the extracted correction amount to the calculated paper length.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program This process can be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

  105: protective layer 201: printer 305: main control unit (control unit, setting unit) 301: CPU 308: thermal head (transfer unit) 310: environmental temperature sensor (temperature detection unit) 312b: second paper sensor (length) Detection means) 401: Platen drum

Claims (11)

A printing device that prints by transferring heat by a transfer unit while winding and feeding a printing paper around a platen drum,
When printing the second side after printing the first side of the printing paper, the printing length when printing on the second side is set according to the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first side. A printing apparatus comprising control means for controlling to correct. Among a plurality of different surface finishes applied to the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface, the setting means for setting the surface finish instructed by the user,
The control means includes
When printing the second side after printing the first side of the printing paper, the printing length when printing on the second side according to the surface finish of the protective layer set by the setting means The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so as to correct.   The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of different surface finishes applied to the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface include a glossy surface and a plurality of surface finishes having different patterns. Temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature inside the printing apparatus;
The control means includes
When printing the second side after printing the first side of the printing paper, depending on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means and the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first side The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so as to correct a print length when printing on the second surface. Length detection for detecting the length of the photographic paper while being conveyed around the platen drum after printing the first side of the photographic paper and before printing the second side Having means,
The control means includes
When printing on the second surface according to the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means, the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface, and the paper length detected by the length detecting means The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein control is performed so as to correct the print length of the print. Storage means for storing the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface, the temperature inside the printing apparatus, and correction information in association with each other;
The control means includes
Based on the temperature detected by the temperature detection means and the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first surface, the correction information stored in the storage means is extracted,
The print length when printing on the second surface is controlled based on the paper length detected by the length detection means and the extracted correction information. 5. The printing apparatus according to 5. The control means includes
Acquiring the temperature detected by the temperature detection means each time a different color is printed when printing the second surface;
5. The printing length when printing on the second surface is controlled in accordance with the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means every time the different color is printed. The printing apparatus according to any one of 6. The control means includes
Of the images instructed to be printed on the first surface and the second surface, respectively, a surface finish is applied to increase the frictional force between the first surface and the platen drum when the second surface is printed. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an image instructed to print is controlled to be printed on the first surface. The control means includes
2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when printing is performed by changing the order of the images respectively designated on the first surface and the second surface, the printed printing paper is reversed and discharged. The printing apparatus according to 8. A method for controlling a printing apparatus that prints by transferring heat by a transfer unit while winding a printing paper around a platen drum,
When printing the second side after printing the first side of the printing paper, the printing length when printing on the second side is set according to the surface finish of the protective layer thermally transferred to the first side. A control method comprising a control step of controlling so as to correct.   The program for functioning a computer as a control means of the printing apparatus of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 9.

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