JP2845371B2 - Thermal transfer recording apparatus and facsimile apparatus using the apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording apparatus for transferring an ink contained in an ink sheet to a recording medium and recording an image on the recording medium, and a facsimile apparatus using the apparatus. It is about.

[Prior art] Generally, a thermal transfer printer uses an ink sheet in which a heat-fusible (thermal sublimation) ink is applied to a base film,
The ink sheet is selectively heated by a thermal head in accordance with an image signal, and the melted (sublimated) ink is transferred to a recording sheet to record an image. In general, this ink sheet is a sheet in which ink is completely transferred to recording paper by one image recording (so-called one-time sheet). Therefore, it is necessary to transport the ink sheet by an amount corresponding to the above, and to surely bring the unused portion of the ink sheet to the next recording position. For this reason, the use amount of the ink sheet increases, and the running cost of the thermal transfer printer tends to be higher than that of a normal thermal printer that records on thermal paper.

To solve such a problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 57-8347
No. 1, JP-A-58-201686 or JP-B-62-58917.
As disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication, a thermal transfer printer has been proposed in which a recording paper and an ink sheet are conveyed in the same direction with a difference in speed.

As an ink sheet used in these thermal transfer printers, an ink sheet (multi-print sheet) capable of image recording a plurality of times (n) is known, and if this ink sheet is used, the recording length L is continuously increased. At the time of recording, the ink sheet conveyed after the end of each image recording or during the image recording can be recorded with the transport length smaller than the length L (L / n: n> 1). As a result, the use efficiency of the ink sheet becomes n times as large as the conventional one, and a reduction in running cost of the thermal transfer printer can be expected. Hereinafter, this recording method is referred to as multiprint.

In a conventional thermal transfer printer other than the multi-print system, the ink sheet is conveyed by the same length as the recording paper, and therefore it is assumed that the ink sheet is replaced at the same time as the recording paper.
For this reason, the remaining amount of the ink sheet is not particularly displayed, and the mark or the like attached near the rear end of the ink sheet is detected by the photo sensor to display the remaining amount of the ink sheet.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above-described thermal transfer printer that performs multi-printing, since the used amounts of the ink sheet and the recording paper are different, it is necessary to display the remaining amount of the ink sheet separately from the recording paper. In addition, in order to detect the mark on the ink sheet and detect the remaining amount of the ink sheet as described above, a photo sensor or the like for detecting the mark is required, which complicates the structure of the device and increases costs. Was also a factor.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and has a detecting means for detecting a rotation amount of a supply roller, and based on a rotation amount of a winding roller required to rotate the supply roller by a predetermined rotation amount. This is to detect the amount of ink sheet remaining on the supply roller, so even in a device that can be used by replacing the multi-print ink sheet with the normal ink sheet, the same control can accurately determine the remaining amount of the ink sheet. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal transfer recording apparatus capable of detecting a facsimile difference using the apparatus.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the thermal transfer recording apparatus of the present invention has the following configuration. In other words, a thermal transfer recording apparatus that performs recording by transferring ink on an ink sheet to a recording medium using an ink sheet coated with ink, wherein the ink sheet to be supplied is wound and held, and the ink sheet is supplied by rotation. A supply roller, a take-up roller that takes up an ink sheet supplied from the supply roller, a drive motor that rotationally drives a spindle of the take-up roller, and a detecting unit that detects a rotation amount of the supply roller, Detecting means for detecting an amount of the ink sheet remaining on the supply roller based on a rotation amount of the drive motor with respect to a predetermined rotation amount of the supply roller.

A facsimile apparatus according to another invention has the following configuration. That is, a facsimile apparatus using a thermal transfer recording apparatus that performs recording by transferring ink on an ink sheet to a recording medium using an ink sheet coated with ink, wherein: a reading unit that reads a document image; Transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving a signal according to, a supply roller for winding and holding the ink sheet to be supplied, and supplying the ink sheet by rotation, a winding roller for winding the ink sheet supplied from the supply roller, A drive motor that rotationally drives a spindle of the take-up roller; a detection unit that detects a rotation amount of the supply roller; and a supply roller that is based on a rotation amount of the drive motor with respect to a predetermined rotation amount of the supply roller. Detecting means for detecting the amount of the remaining ink sheet.

[Operation] In the configuration of the present invention, for example, in a thermal transfer recording apparatus, the rotation amount of a supply roller that winds and holds an ink sheet is detected, and the rotation amount of the drive motor with respect to the detected rotation amount of the supply roller is detected. The remaining amount of the ink sheet remaining on the supply roller is detected based on

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[Explanation of Facsimile Apparatus (FIGS. 1 to 4)] FIGS. 1 to 4 show an example in which a thermal transfer printer using an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a facsimile apparatus. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a facsimile apparatus, FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the facsimile apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a transport mechanism for recording paper and an ink sheet. It is a figure which shows a system.

First, a schematic configuration of the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

In the figure, a reading unit 100 photoelectrically reads a document and outputs it as a digital image signal to a control unit 101. The reading unit 100 includes a document transport motor, a CCD image sensor, and the like. Next, the configuration of the control unit 101 will be described. A line memory 110 stores the image data of each line of the image data. The line memory 110 stores one line of image data from the reading unit 100 when transmitting or copying a document, and decodes the image data when receiving image data. One line data of the received image data is stored. The stored data is stored in the recording unit 10
2, the image is formed. An encoding / decoding unit 111 encodes image information to be transmitted by MH encoding or the like, and decodes received encoded image data to convert the image data into image data. Reference numeral 112 denotes a buffer memory for storing transmitted or received encoded image data. Each part of the control unit 101 is controlled by a CPU 113 such as a microprocessor. The control unit 101 includes, besides the CPU 113, a ROM 114 storing a control program of the CPU 113 and various data, a CPU 113, and the like.
RAM 115 that temporarily stores various data as a work area
And so on.

Reference numeral 102 denotes a recording unit having a thermal line head for recording on a recording sheet by a thermal transfer recording method, and its configuration will be described later in detail with reference to FIG. Reference numeral 103 denotes an operation unit including various function instruction keys such as transmission start and a telephone number input key.
Reference numeral 3a denotes a switch for indicating the type of ink sheet to be used. When the switch 103a is on, the multi-print ink sheet is indicated, and when the switch 103a is off, the normal ink sheet is indicated. Reference numeral 104 denotes a display unit which is usually provided in the operation unit 103 and displays various functions, device states, and the like. A power supply unit 105 supplies power to the entire apparatus. Reference numeral 106 denotes a modem (modulator / demodulator), 107 denotes a network control unit (NCU) for performing an automatic incoming call operation and line control operation by detecting a ringing tone, and 108 denotes a telephone.

Next, the configuration of the recording unit 102 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. The parts common to the drawings are indicated by the same reference numerals.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 10 denotes a recording paper 11 which is
This is a roll of paper rolled into a roll. This roll paper 1
0 is the recording paper 1 by rotating the platen roller 12 in the direction of the arrow.
1 is rotatably housed in the apparatus so that 1 can be supplied to the 13 thermal heads. A roll paper loading unit 10b removably loads the roll paper 10. A platen roller 12 conveys the recording paper 11 in the direction of the arrow b and presses the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 between the recording head 11 and the heating element 132 of the thermal head 13.
The recording paper 11 on which the image recording has been performed by the heat generated by the thermal head 13 is conveyed in the direction of the discharge rollers 16 (16a, 16b) by further rotation of the platen roller 12, and when the image recording for one page is completed, the cutter is cut. 15 (15a, 15b) cuts into pages by engagement.

Reference numeral 17 denotes an ink sheet supply roll for winding the ink sheet 14, and reference numeral 18 denotes an ink sheet take-up roll, which is driven by a motor for conveying an ink sheet described later and winds the ink sheet 14 in the direction of arrow a. . The ink sheet supply roll 17 and the ink sheet take-up roll 18 are detachably mounted on an ink sheet loading section 70 in the apparatus main body. Reference numeral 20 denotes an ink sheet sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the ink sheet 14, and reference numeral 21 denotes a spring, which presses the thermal head 13 against the platen roller 12 via the recording paper 11 or the ink sheet 14.
Reference numeral 22 denotes a recording sheet sensor for detecting the presence or absence of a recording sheet.

 Next, the configuration of the reading unit 100 will be described.

In the figure, reference numeral 30 denotes a light source for irradiating a document 32. Light reflected by the document 32 is input to the CCD sensor 31 through an optical system (mirrors 50, 51, and lens 52) and is converted into an electric signal.
The original 32 is transported by transport rollers 53, 54, 55, 56 driven by a not-shown original transport motor in accordance with the reading speed of the original 32. Reference numeral 57 denotes a document loading table, and a plurality of documents 32 loaded on the loading table 57 are separated one by one by the cooperation of a transport roller 54 and a pressing separation piece 58, and a reading unit Conveyed to 100.

Reference numeral 41 denotes a control board that forms a main part of the control unit 101, and various control signals are output from the control board 41 to each unit of the device. Reference numeral 105 denotes a power supply unit for supplying power to each unit, 106 denotes a modem board unit, and 107 denotes an NCU board unit having a function of relaying to a telephone line.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing details of a transport mechanism of the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11.

In the drawing, reference numeral 24 denotes a recording paper transport motor for rotating the platen roller 12 and transporting the recording paper 11 in the direction of arrow b opposite to the direction of arrow a. Reference numeral 25 denotes an ink sheet transport motor that transports the ink sheet 14 in the direction of arrow a. Further, 26 and 27 are transmission gears for transmitting the rotation of the recording paper transport motor 24 to the platen roller 12, and 28 and 29 are transmission gears for transmitting the rotation of the ink sheet transport motor 25 to the take-up roll 18. Reference numeral 61 denotes an encoding plate attached to the rotating shaft of the ink sheet supply roll 17, and slits 63 are radially provided on the encoding plate 61.
Reference numeral 62 denotes a photo interrupter, which is a slit of the encoding plate 61.
By detecting the passage of 63 detects the rotation of the supply roller 17, and Gyotsu the detection of the conveying speed V _I of the remaining amount and the ink sheet 14 of the ink sheet 14.

FIG. 1 shows a control unit 10 in the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an electrical connection between 1 and the recording unit 102, and portions common to other drawings are indicated by the same reference numerals.

The thermal head 13 is a line head. The thermal head 13 is provided with a shift register 13 for inputting serial recording data 43 for one line from the control unit 101.
0, a latch circuit 131 for latching data in the shift register 130 by the latch signal 44, and a heating element 132 composed of a heating resistor for one line. Here, the heating resistor 132
Are driven by being divided into m blocks denoted by 132-1 to 132-m. 133 is a temperature sensor attached to the thermal head 13 for detecting the temperature of the thermal head 13. Output signal 4 of this temperature sensor 133
2 is A / D converted in the control unit 101 and input to the CPU 113. Accordingly, the CPU 113 detects the temperature of the thermal head 13 and changes the pulse width of the strobe signal 47 according to the detected temperature, or changes the drive voltage of the thermal head 13 according to the characteristics of the ink sheet 14. The energy applied to the thermal head 13 is changed.

The characteristics (type) of the ink sheet 14 are specified by the above-mentioned switch 103a. Further, the type and characteristics of the ink sheet 14 may be determined by detecting a mark or the like printed on the ink sheet 14,
Alternatively, the determination may be made based on a mark, a notch, a protrusion, or the like provided on a cartridge or the like of the ink sheet.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a drive circuit which receives a drive signal for the thermal head 13 from the control unit 101 and outputs a strobe signal 47 for driving the thermal head 13 in units of blocks. It should be noted that this drive circuit 46 is controlled by the thermal head 1 according to an instruction from the control unit 101.
The energy applied to the thermal head 13 can be changed by changing the voltage output to the power supply line 45 that supplies current to the third heating element 132. Reference numerals 48, 49, and 35 denote motor drive circuits for rotating the corresponding recording paper transport motor 24, ink sheet transport motor 25, and paper discharge motor 39, respectively. The recording paper transport motor 24, the ink sheet transport motor 25, and the paper discharge motor 39 are stepping motors in this embodiment, but are not limited thereto, and may be, for example, DC motors. . Reference numeral 38 denotes an ink sheet replacement detection unit that detects that the ink sheet 14 has been replaced, and is linked to a lever or the like that detaches the ink sheet 14 (not shown). A signal is output to inform the control unit 101 that the ink sheet 14 has been replaced.

Next, detection of the remaining amount of the ink sheet in the thermal transfer printer will be described with reference to the mechanism diagram of FIG.

The ink sheet 14 is supplied from an ink sheet supply roll 17 and is taken up by a take-up roll 18. The take-up roll 18 is driven by a motor 25 for conveying the ink sheet. Here, the supply roll 17 and the encoding plate 61 are rotated in the direction of the arrow by rotating the take-up roller 18 in the direction of the arrow. The slit 63 of the encoding plate 61
It is assumed to be formed at an angle theta _s as shown in Figure 5.

Here, the ink sheet conveying motor 25 is a winding roll.
Since the spindle 18 is driven, the ink sheet transport motor
Even if 25 is always driven to rotate by a fixed number of steps, the rotation angle of the ink sheet supply roll 17 changes according to the change in the diameter of the ink sheet supply roll 17 and the take-up roll 18. Therefore, in this embodiment, the amount of change is
, The remaining amount of the ink sheet 14 is to be stopped. That is, here, with a checking of the step number of the ink sheet transport motor 25 necessary for encoding plate 61 rotates by theta _s, the ink sheet 14
Wants the remaining amount. The principle will be described below.

Now, the winding roll 18 and the supply roll of the ink sheet 14
And both r ₀ core diameter of the roll 17, the diameter of the supply roll 17 when a predetermined amount of the ink sheet are wound on the take-up roll 18 r _i, the diameter of the take-up roll 18 and r _a. Here, if the length of the ink sheet 14 wound around the ink sheet supply roll 17 is x, the total length of the ink sheet 14 is L, and the thickness of the ink sheet 14 is t, Now, the diameter of the ink sheet take-up roll 18 to the rotation angle when the rr _a and theta ₁ (determined the rotation angle uniquely by the rotation step number of the ink sheet conveying motor 25), the diameter at this time is r _i When the rotation angle of the supply roll 17 is a theta _0, since the ink length and the winding length of the roll 18 wound ink sheet 14 to be taken of the ink sheet 14 fed from the sheet supply roll 17 is equal, r _i theta ₀ = r _a θ ₁ (3) is established.

By using the above-described (1) to (3), {(xt / π) + r 0 2} θ 0 2 = {(L-x) t / π + r 0 2} θ 1 2 Yotsute, Becomes Here, the angle θ of the slit 63 of the encoding plate 61
_{If s} is θ ₀ , the total length L, thickness t, core diameter r _0, and θ ₁ of the ink sheet 14 are known, so the remaining amount x of the ink sheet 14 can be obtained using the fourth equation.

[Explanation of Recording Process (FIGS. 1 to 6)] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an image recording process of one page in the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment. It is stored in the ROM 114.

This process is started when one line of image data for image recording is stored in the line memory 110 and the image recording operation can be started. First step
At S1, the print data for one line is serially output to the shift register 130. When the transfer of the recording data for one line is completed, the latch signal 44 is output in step S2, and the recording data for one line is stored in the latch circuit 131. Next, in step S3, the ink sheet transport motor 25 is driven to transport the ink sheet 14. At this time, the switch
If multi-printing is specified by 103a, the recording paper
11 (1 / n) lines are conveyed in the direction of arrow a in FIG. The process of transporting the ink sheet 14 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 6B.

In step S4, the recording paper transport motor 24 is driven to transport the recording paper 11 by one line in the direction of arrow b. In addition,
The length of one line corresponds to the length of one dot on which an image is recorded by the thermal head 13. Then step
Proceeding to S5, power is supplied to each block of the heating element 132 of the thermal head 13. Then, it is checked in step S6 whether all the blocks m are energized, and when all the blocks of the heating element 132 are energized and the image recording of one line is completed, step S7 is performed.
To see if image recording for one page has been completed. If the image recording for one page is not completed, proceed to step S8,
The recording data of the next line is transferred to the thermal head 13, and the process returns to step S2.

When the image recording for one page is completed in step S7, the step
Proceed to S9 to discharge the recording paper 11 by a predetermined amount on the paper discharge rollers 16 (16aa, 16b)
Send in the direction of. Then, in step S10, the cutter 15 (15a, 1
5b) is driven and engaged to cut the recording paper 11 into page units.
Next, the recording paper 11 cut by the discharge roller 16 is discharged out of the apparatus in step S11, and the remaining recording paper 1 is discharged in step S12.
1 is returned by a distance corresponding to the interval between the thermal head 13 and the cutter 15, and the recording process for one page is completed.

As shown in steps S3 and S4, it is desirable that the transport driving of the ink sheet transport motor 25 be performed earlier than the transport driving of the recording paper transport motor 24. This is because even if the ink sheet transport motor 25 is driven, a time delay occurs until the transport of the ink sheet 14 actually starts due to the characteristics of the motor, the characteristics of the drive transmission system, and the like. Although the same effect can be obtained by driving the recording paper transport motor 24 first, the drive from the start of transport of the recording paper 11 to the drive of the thermal head 13 (the recording operation shown in step S4) is performed. If the time is too long, there is a possibility that a gap is formed between the recorded dots.

Also, the cutter 15 from step S9 to step S12 is used.
The movement of the ink sheet 14 when the recording paper 11 is conveyed in the cutting process of the recording paper 11 by
V _P / n may be used to convey the recording paper 11 in the opposite direction.
May be increased. Further, the sheet may be conveyed in the same manner as the recording sheet 11, or may be stopped.

FIG. 6B is a flowchart showing the ink sheet conveying process in step S3 of FIG. 6A.

First, at step S21, the ink sheet transport motor 25 is turned on.
Step rotation is driven. Next, in step S22, the counter 116 provided in the RAM 115 is
Is incremented by 1 in accordance with the number of driving steps. The counter 116 is set to "0" when the facsimile apparatus starts up.
Has been reset. Next, the process proceeds to step S23, and it is determined whether the slit 63 of the encoding plate 61 is detected by the photo interrupter 62. If the slit 63 is not detected, the process proceeds to step S23, where it is determined whether the ink sheet conveying motor 25 has been driven by a predetermined number of steps. The ink sheet conveying motor 25 is driven by one step. This predetermined number of steps is the number of steps required for the ink sheet 14 to be conveyed by 1 / n of one line in multi-printing. In normal printing with one-time ink sheets, one line of ink sheet is used. This is the number of steps required to convey by minute.

In step S23, slit 6 is set by photointerrupter 62.
When 3 is detected, the process proceeds to step S25, and the remaining amount of the ink sheet 14 is obtained by using the above-described fourth formula based on the count value of the counter 116. Then, in step S26, the remaining amount of the ink sheet 14 is displayed on the display unit 104. This remaining amount display
The remaining length of the ink sheet 14 may be displayed as a numerical value, or may be displayed stepwise, for example, as a percentage or a percentage. The remaining amount detection in step S25 is calculated by referring to a table or the like storing the remaining amount corresponding to the number of steps for driving the ink sheet transport motor 25 (the count value of the counter 116). May be.

Thus, the remaining amount of the ink sheet 14 (or the used length)
Is obtained, the process proceeds to step S27, and based on this value, the number of steps for determining the transport length of the ink sheet 14 transported for one line of the recording paper 11 at the time of printing an image is determined by the ink sheet supply roll 17. And the diameter of the take-up roll 18 is corrected. As a result, the number of drive steps of the ink sheet transport motor 25 to be compared in step S24 is changed. Then, the process proceeds to step S28, where the counter 1 of the RAM 115 is
16 is reset to "0", and the routine proceeds to step S24. After the counter 116 indicates that the remaining amount of the ink sheet 14 is small, the counter 116 is cleared when a signal indicating that the ink sheet 14 has been replaced is input by the replacement detecting unit 38.

Thus, by driving the spindle of the ink sheet take-up roll 18, the ink sheet 14 can be accurately conveyed, and the remaining amount thereof can be accurately detected.

[Explanation of the Second Embodiment (FIG. 7)] FIG. 7 is a view showing the arrangement of a recording paper and ink sheet transport mechanism of the second embodiment, and the same parts as those in the above-described embodiment are the same. Number.

Scales 72 are printed at a constant interval l over the entire length of the ink sheet 14a on the side opposite to the side on which the ink is applied of the ink sheet 14a (the upper side in FIG. 7). This interval 1 is an interval sufficiently shorter than the length in the vertical direction of 45-size standard paper, and the scale 72 is read by the photo sensor 71. 83
Is a driver circuit for driving the recording paper transport motor 24, 75 is a driver circuit for exciting the A phase of the ink sheet transport motor 25, and 76 is a driver circuit for exciting the B phase of the ink sheet transport motor 25. 77 and 78 are both D / A converters.
The control signals 79 and 81 from the control unit 101a are input, and the drive voltage of the corresponding driver circuit is changed to microstep-control the ink sheet transport motor 25. 8
Reference numerals 0 and 82 denote phases A and B of the ink sheet transport motor 25, respectively.
This is the phase excitation signal of the phase. Numerals 73 and 74 denote signals for exciting the A and B phases of the ink sheet transport motor 25, respectively.

Assuming that the diameter of the current take-up roll 18 is r _a , the core diameter of the take-up roll 18 is r ₀ , the thickness of the ink sheet 14 a is t, and the total length is L, when the ink sheet 14 a is used by the length x. , The relationship between the diameter of the winding roll 18 and the remaining amount is as described above. It is represented by Here, when the ink sheet 14a is a rotation angle theta ₃ of the ink sheet take-up roll 18 as it is conveyed by a distance l of the scale _{72, r a θ 3 = l} ... (5) sub connexion, x = L- (Π / t) ｛(l / θ ₃ ) ² −r ₀ ² ｝ Here, the remaining amount x can be uniquely obtained by obtaining θ ₃ from the number of driving steps of the ink sheet conveying motor 25. . This processing is performed by the photo interrupter 71 in step S23 in the flowchart of FIG. 6B.
By determining whether or not 2 is detected, it can be performed in exactly the same manner as the flowchart in FIG. 6B. Instead of correcting the number of steps in step S27, the D / A converters 77 and 78 are used to micro-drive the ink sheet transport motor 25 to reduce the minimum step angle of the ink sheet transport motor 25. You may do it.

In the second embodiment, the scale 72 is printed on the back side of the ink sheet 14a and is detected by the photo sensor 71. However, the present invention is not limited to this.
May be formed by a groove or the like, and the groove may be detected by a photo interrupter or a microswitch. In addition, the ink sheet transport motor 25 and the recording paper transport motor 25 are two-phase four-pole stepping motors, but are not limited thereto, and may be, for example, a DC motor or a servo motor.

[Explanation of Recording Principle (FIG. 8)] FIG. 8 shows an image recording in this embodiment, in which the multi-ink sheet is used to record an image by reversing the transport direction of the recording paper 11 and the ink sheet 14. It is a figure showing a state.

As shown, the platen roller 12 and the thermal head
A recording paper 11 and an ink sheet 14 are sandwiched between the thermal head 13 and the thermal head 13. The thermal head 13 is pressed against the platen roller 12 by a spring 21 at a predetermined pressure. Here, the recording paper 11 is conveyed at a velocity V _P in the direction of the arrow b by rotation of the platen roller 12. On the other hand, the ink sheet 14 is conveyed at a speed V _I in the direction of arrow a by the rotation of the ink sheet conveying motor 25.

Now, when the heating resistor 132 of the thermal head 13 is energized from the power supply 105 and heated, the hatched portion 91 of the ink sheet 14 is heated.
Is heated. Here, 14a is the ink sheet 1
Reference numeral 4 denotes a base film, and reference numeral 14b denotes an ink layer of the ink sheet 14. The ink in the ink layer 91 heated by energizing the heating resistor 132 is melted, and is transferred to the recording paper 11 at a portion indicated by 92 in the ink. The transferred ink layer portion 92 corresponds to approximately 1 / n of the ink layer indicated by 91.

At the time of this transfer, it is necessary to generate a shearing force on the ink at the boundary line 93 of the ink layer 14b and transfer only the portion indicated by 92 to the recording paper 11. However, this shearing force varies depending on the temperature of the ink layer, and the shearing force tends to decrease as the temperature of the ink layer increases. Therefore, if the heating time of the ink sheet 14 is shortened, the shearing force in the ink layer increases, so if the relative speed between the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 is increased, the ink layer to be transferred can be reliably separated from the ink sheet 14. Can be peeled off.

According to this embodiment, since the heating time of the thermal head 13 in the facsimile apparatus is as short as about 0.6 ms, the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 are opposed to each other so that the relative speed between the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 is increased. Is raised.

[Explanation of Ink Sheet (FIG. 9)] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of an ink sheet used for multi-printing of the present embodiment, which is composed of four layers.

First, the second layer is a base film serving as a support for the ink sheet 14. In the case of multiprinting, since heat energy is applied to the same location many times, an aromatic polyamide film or a capacitor paper having high heat resistance is advantageous, but a conventional polyester film can be used. As for these thicknesses, as thin as possible from the role of the medium, it is advantageous in terms of printing quality, but from the viewpoint of strength, 3 to 8 μm is desirable.

The third layer is an ink layer containing an amount of ink that can be transferred n times onto recording paper (recording sheet). This component,
Resin such as EVA as an adhesive, carbon black or nigrosine dye for coloring, carnauba wax, binding paraffin wax, etc. as main components are formulated to withstand n uses in the same place. I have. The coating amount is desirably 4 to 8 g / m ² , but sensitivity and density vary depending on the coating amount, and can be arbitrarily selected.

The fourth layer is a top coating layer for preventing the third layer of ink from being transferred to the recording paper under pressure in a portion where printing is not performed, and is formed of a transparent wax or the like. As a result, only the fourth layer is transparently transferred by pressure, and the background of the road paper can be prevented. The first layer is a heat-resistant coat layer for protecting the base film of the second layer from the heat of the thermal head 13. This is because thermal energy for n lines may be applied to the same location (when black information continues)
Although suitable for multi-printing, whether to use or not can be selected as appropriate. Further, it is effective for a base film having a relatively low heat resistance such as a polyester film.

The configuration of the ink sheet 14 is not limited to this embodiment. For example, the ink sheet 14 may include a base layer and a porous ink holding layer containing ink provided on one side of the base layer. May be provided with a heat-resistant ink layer having a fine porous network structure, and the ink contained in the ink layer. Further, as a material of the base film, for example, polyamide, polyethylene,
It may be a film or paper made of polyester, polyvinyl chloride, triacetyl cellulose, nylon or the like. Furthermore, a heat-resistant coat layer is not always necessary,
The material may be, for example, a silicone resin, an epoxy resin, a fluoro resin, an etrocellulose, or the like.

Further, as an example of an ink sheet having a thermal sublimation ink, spacer particles formed of a guanamine-based resin and a fluorine-based resin on a base material formed of polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene naphthalate, an aromatic polyamide film, or the like. And an ink sheet provided with a coloring material layer containing a dye.

Further, the heating method is not limited to the thermal head method using the above-mentioned thermal head, and for example, an energization method or a laser transfer method may be used.

Further, the recording medium is not limited to recording paper, but may be, for example, a cloth or a plastic sheet as long as the material can transfer ink. Further, the ink sheet is not limited to the roll configuration shown in the embodiment. For example, a so-called ink sheet in which an ink sheet is built in a housing detachable from the recording apparatus main body and the entire housing is detachably attached to the recording apparatus main body. It may be a cassette type or the like.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the case of the facsimile apparatus has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the thermal transfer recording apparatus of the present invention is applicable to a word processor, a typewriter, a copying apparatus, and the like. Applied.

As described above, according to this embodiment, there is an effect that the rotation of the winding roll 18 of the ink sheet is controlled, and the remaining amount of the ink sheet can be detected by the sensor that detects the transport amount of the ink sheet.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, detection means for detecting the rotation amount of the supply roller is provided, and the detection means is provided based on the rotation amount of the drive motor required to rotate the supply roller by a predetermined rotation amount. In order to detect the amount of the ink sheet remaining on the supply roller, the multi-print ink sheet and the normal ink sheet can be used and exchanged.
With the same control, the remaining amount of the ink sheet can be accurately detected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical connection between a control unit and a recording unit in the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a facsimile of the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing a mechanism of the apparatus, FIG. 4 is a view showing a recording paper and ink sheet transport mechanism of the first embodiment, FIG. 5 is an external view of an encoding plate, FIG. 6A and FIG. FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a recording process of the first embodiment, FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a structure of a transport system for the ink sheet and the recording paper of the second embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a recording paper at the time of recording of this embodiment. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the ink sheet used in this embodiment. In the drawing, 10: rolled recording paper, 10b: roll paper loading section, 11: recording paper, 12: platen roller, 13: thermal head, 14: ink sheet, 15: cutter, 16 ...
… Discharge roll, 17… Ink sheet supply roll, 18 ……
Ink sheet take-up roll, 20 ... Ink sheet presence sensor, 21 ... Spring, 22 ... Recording paper presence sensor, 24 ...
... Motor for transporting recording paper, 25 ... Motor for transporting ink sheet, 38 ... Replacement detector, 61 ... Encoding plate, 62 ... Photo interrupter, 63 ... Slit, 70 ... Ink sheet loading unit, 71 ... … Photo interrupter, 72 …… Scale, 7
5,76 …… Driver circuit, 77, 78 …… D / A converter, 100 ……
Reading unit, 101, 101a ... Control unit, 102 ... Recording unit, 103 ...
Operation unit, 104, display unit, 105, power supply, 106, modem, 107, NCU, 110, line memory, 111, encoding / decoding unit, 112, buffer memory, 113, CPU, 11
4,114a... ROM, 115... RAM, 132... Heating resistors (heating elements).

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hisao Terashima 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Ken Takeshi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inside (72) Inventor Minoru Yokoyama 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Takashi Awai 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. ( 72) Inventor Akihiro Asada 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Yasushi Yasushi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko 3-chome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (56) References JP-A-63-98480 (JP, A) JP-A-62-83651 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) B41J 17/02-17/12 B41J 33/14 -33/52

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. Using an ink sheet coated with ink,
A thermal transfer recording apparatus that performs recording by transferring ink of an ink sheet to a recording medium, the supply roller being configured to wind and hold the supplied ink sheet and supply the ink sheet by rotation, and to be supplied from the supply roller. A take-up roller that takes up an ink sheet; a drive motor that rotationally drives a spindle of the take-up roller; a detection unit that detects a rotation amount of the supply roller; and the drive motor that rotates a predetermined rotation amount of the supply roller. Detecting means for detecting the amount of ink sheet remaining on the supply roller based on the amount of rotation of the thermal transfer recording apparatus. 2. Using an ink sheet coated with ink,
A facsimile apparatus using a thermal transfer recording apparatus that performs recording by transferring ink of an ink sheet to a recording medium, comprising: reading means for reading a document image; transmitting / receiving means for transmitting and receiving a signal corresponding to the read document image; Supply roller that winds and holds the ink sheet to be supplied and supplies the ink sheet by rotation; a take-up roller that takes up the ink sheet supplied from the supply roller; and a drive that rotationally drives a spindle of the take-up roller. A motor, detection means for detecting the rotation amount of the supply roller, and detection means for detecting the amount of the ink sheet remaining on the supply roller based on the rotation amount of the drive motor with respect to a predetermined rotation amount of the supply roller. A facsimile machine characterized by having.