JP3282855B2 - Thermal recording device recording device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium, and more particularly, to writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium once at a second temperature when writing the information at the first temperature. Then, the present invention relates to a recording device for a thermal recording medium which writes new information and visualizes the new information.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium, when erasing information once written on the thermosensitive recording medium, a voltage applied to a thermal head as an erasing member is changed after the information is written. It was constant irrespective of the passage of time, etc., and did not change the amount of heat generated according to the state of the thermal recording medium.

[0003]

The heat-sensitive recording medium used in the above-mentioned recording apparatus has a problem that the time elapsed since information was once written, the storage environment during that time, and the number of times writing and erasing were repeated. The erasing characteristic shifts from A in FIGS. 8 and 9 to B, C, and D as the number increases. In such a case, when erasing information at the same temperature at all times, there is a problem that written information is difficult to erase or cannot be completely erased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems of the conventional recording apparatus for a heat-sensitive recording medium, and to describe an elapsed time since information is written, a storage environment, writing conditions, and repetition of writing and erasing. It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium which always performs good erasing regardless of the number of times.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is directed to a method for writing information at a first temperature and erasing information at a second temperature. In a recording apparatus comprising a writing member for writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium which can be repeated, and an erasing member for erasing the written information, the erasing member is moved in a direction in which the thermosensitive recording medium is conveyed during a writing operation. In addition to being arranged on the upstream side of the writing member,
A control device for controlling the heat generation of the erasing member and a density detecting means for detecting the density of the information of the thermal recording medium are provided, and the control device controls the heat generation of the erasing member based on an output detected by the density detecting means. It is assumed that. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the control device controls the same thermal recording medium so that the erasing operation is repeatedly performed until the output detected by the density detecting means reaches a predetermined value. It is characterized by the following. According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a writing member for writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium capable of repeatedly writing information at a first temperature and erasing information at a second temperature, and erasing the written information. A recording apparatus provided with an erasing member that performs an operation includes an elapsed time detecting unit that detects an elapsed time since the previous writing of information on the thermosensitive recording medium, and a control device that controls heat generation of the erasing member based on the detection output. And
The elapsed time detecting means is provided on the upstream side of the erasing member with respect to the transport direction of the thermal recording medium during a writing operation. The invention of claim 4 is the invention of claim 3
Wherein the elapsed time detecting means comprises means for detecting an erasing state of information of the thermosensitive recording medium after being heated by a heating member for heating the thermosensitive recording medium provided on the upstream side thereof. Is what you do. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect, the control device controls the heating temperature of the erasing member to a temperature range in which the information on the thermosensitive recording medium can be erased.

[0006]

According to the present invention as described above, in the above-mentioned invention, the invention of the first aspect is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned recording apparatus, the writing member moves with respect to the transport direction of the thermosensitive recording medium during the writing operation. The heat generated by the erasing member provided on the upstream side is controlled by the control device to completely erase the information once written before writing new information, and the thermal recording provided near the erasing member. Means for detecting the density of body information detects the transparency of the thermosensitive recording medium and outputs the information. Further, the control device controls the heat generation of the erasing member by the output detected by the density detecting means to perform the erasing operation. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, in the same thermal recording medium, the erasing operation is performed by controlling the erasing member until the transparency of the thermal recording medium detected by the density detecting means by the control device becomes a predetermined transparency. Is repeated. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus as described above, the elapsed time detecting means provided on the upstream side of the erasing member with respect to the transport direction of the thermosensitive recording medium at the time of the writing operation stores the previous information on the thermosensitive recording medium. The time elapsed since the writing of the data is detected, and the control device accurately controls the heat generation of the erasing member based on the detection output, so that the previous information is reliably erased under the optimum condition regardless of the elapsed time. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect, the elapsed time is detected by detecting the erasure state of the information on the thermosensitive recording medium after being heated by the heating member by the erasure state detection means. The invention of claim 5 is the invention of claim 3
In the invention, the control device controls the heating temperature of the erasing member to a temperature range in which the information on the thermosensitive recording medium can be erased.

[0007]

1 to 7 show an embodiment of the present invention. Since the first embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 and other embodiments are common in many parts, the same reference numerals as those of the first embodiment are used for such parts, and The description will be omitted, and different portions will be mainly described. At the first temperature, information is written (cloudy or colored) and erased (transparent or decolored) at a second temperature higher than the first temperature.
Will be described using a thermosensitive recording material 7 made of a thermosensitive material which is repeatedly performed.

In FIG. 1 showing the first embodiment, the erasing member 1 and the writing member 5 use a thermal head, and the erasing member 1 is moved in the transport direction of the writing operation of the thermosensitive recording medium 7 of the writing member 5. It is provided on the upstream side. The first and second platen rollers 2 and 6 made of an elastic member are disposed to face the erasing member 1 and the writing member 5. The density detecting means 20 of the thermosensitive recording medium 7 is arranged between the two members 1 and 5, and the density detecting means 20 irradiates the thermosensitive recording medium 7 with light.
And a light detecting member 4 comprising an optical sensor for detecting light emitted from the light source 3 to the thermal recording medium 7 and transmitted therethrough, which is disposed at a position facing the thermal recording medium 7. The output of the light detection member 4 is input to the control device 13. The output of the control device 13 is generated by the heat generated by the
The control of the forward and reverse rotation of the two conveying roller pairs 8 and 9 is performed according to a preset program. Write information circuit 14
Is input to the writing member control circuit 15, and the output of the writing member control circuit 15 controls the writing member 5 to perform a writing operation.

In the first embodiment, two thermal heads, ie, an erasing member 1 and a writing member 5, are provided. However, these components use one thermal head as an erasing member and a writing member. Is also good. Although not shown, the light detecting member may be a reflection type provided on the light source 3 side. When a reflection type is used, a reflection plate is provided on the other surface on which the light source 3 is provided. Alternatively, a method such as applying a light reflecting member to the thermal recording medium 7 may be used.

FIG. 2 is a chart showing a control flow of the control device 13 in the first embodiment. To start the erase operation of the information written in a thermosensitive recording medium 7 (step 1) time, a voltage of V = V ₁ in the first erase member 1 (step 3) to perform the erasure. At this time, the thermal recording medium 7
Is transported rightward in FIG. 1, and the transparency of the thermal recording medium 7 is detected by the light source 3 and the light detecting member 4 (step 4). Next, the control device 13 determines whether or not the detected transparency is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (step 5). If it is smaller than the value (that is, if the transparency is insufficient), the first value is determined. , 2 transport rollers 8, 9
Reverse rotated (step 8,9), erasing at a high applied voltage V ₂ than the applied voltages V ₁ for the first erased back into position A thermosensitive recording medium 7 (erase operation before starting position) member 1 To perform the second erase operation. Thus, the erasing operation is repeatedly performed until the transparency exceeds a predetermined value. When the transparency exceeds a predetermined value, the control device 13 determines that the erasing is completed (step 6), conveys the thermosensitive recording medium 7 to the right side in FIG. 1, and writes information by the writing member 5 (step 6). 7) is performed.

In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG.
The controller 13 controls so that a different voltage is applied to the erasing member 1 in each repetition of the erasing operation in accordance with each repetition. Although the applied voltage is set to increase as shown in FIG. 3, it may be set to decrease. In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, control may be performed such that the application time to the erasing member 1 is changed in each repetition. In this case as well, the application time is set to increase with each repetition, but may be reversed. While the method shown in FIG. 3 attempts to control the heat generation temperature of the erasing member 1 depending on the level of the voltage applied to the erasing member 1, the method shown in FIG. The heating temperature of the erasing member 1 is controlled by changing the time. The minimum application time (t _{0 in} FIG. 4) is set to 10 ms or more in order to avoid the phenomenon that only a small amount of erasure is performed and the number of repetitions of erasure is increased, as indicated by D in FIG.

In the first embodiment, if there are restrictions such as the storage conditions of the thermal recording medium 7 and the elapsed time since the writing is known, or if the specification is limited, the erasing member 1 is used. The maximum value and the minimum value of the voltage to be applied are known information such as V _C and V _A shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and V _L ≦ V _A and V _H ≧ V _C shown in FIG. _{If L} and _VH are appropriately divided and driven by controlling the applied voltage to the erasing member 1, erasing can be performed under all conditions satisfying the specification conditions. At this time, the time t ₀ for applying a single voltage is t ₀ ≧ 10
Set to satisfy ms. If such erasing is performed, the optical density detecting means 20 as shown in the first embodiment need not be provided, and the erasing operation can be performed quickly. However, if the density detecting means 20 is provided and the transparency is smaller than a predetermined value, information that the thermosensitive recording medium 7 cannot be used may be displayed on a display device (not shown).

In a second embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 6, a heating member 10 is provided upstream of the erasing member 1, and a pressure roller 11 is provided to face the heating member 10 via a thermosensitive recording medium 7, These units generate and rotate heat by a driving device (not shown). The elapsed time detecting means 21 of the thermosensitive recording medium 7 is disposed between the two members 1 and 10, and the elapsed time detecting means 21
Is a light source 3 for irradiating the thermal recording medium 7 with light, and light emitted from the light source 3 disposed at a position opposed to the thermal recording medium 7 via the thermal recording medium 7 and transmitted therethrough is detected. Light detection member 4 and correction circuit to which the detection output is input
The output of the correction circuit 12 is input to a control circuit 13, and the control circuit 13 controls the erasing member 1 according to a preset program to perform an erasing operation.

In the second embodiment, the thermosensitive recording medium 7 on which information is written is sent to the heating member 10 and is heated by the heating member 10. The information written in the heated thermosensitive recording medium 7 is erased, but the erased state changes depending on the elapsed time from the previous writing. The longer the elapsed time since the information was written, the stronger the cloudy state remains. In this erased state, the amount of transmitted light from the light source 3 is received by the light detection member 4. The density of the heat-sensitive recording medium 7 is converted into a voltage proportional to the amount of light received by the light detecting member 4 and output, and is input to the correction circuit 12. The correction circuit 12 is provided with a memory for the transparency when heated at a certain temperature from the data in FIG. 9, that is, a memory for converting data from a certain transparency to an elapsed time, and comparing the data with the output signal from the light detecting member 4. Detect time. The data output of the detected elapsed time is input to the control device 13,
By controlling the erasing member 1, the information written in the thermal recording medium 7 is erased. At this time, the erasing member 1 is driven by an applied voltage, an applied pulse width, or the number of applied pulses under optimum conditions according to the elapsed time. The thermosensitive recording medium 7 from which information has been completely erased is sent to the nip portion between the writing member 5 and the second platen roller 6, and the information is written. The temperature of the heating member 10 in a range as shown in FIG. 9, that is, the clearing temperature range of the heat-sensitive recording material 7 (T _L ~T _H).

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the magnetic reading member 16 and the magnetic recording member 17 are used as the elapsed time detecting means 21. In FIG. 7, a magnetic reading member 16 is disposed upstream of the erasing member 1 and a magnetic recording member 17 is disposed downstream of the writing member 5, respectively.
A magnetic recording circuit 18 and a clock circuit 19 are provided.
10 and the pressure roller 11 have been removed. Thermal recording medium 7
Is provided with a magnetic recording medium (not shown), and date and time information is recorded thereon by the magnetic recording member 17.

In the third embodiment, date and time information recorded at the time of previous recording by the magnetic reading member 16 is read,
The data is input to the correction circuit 12. The correction circuit 12 has a memory for date and time elapsed time data, and calculates the elapsed time from the read data and the date and time data of the clock circuit 19. The signal of the calculation result is input to the control device 13, and the control device 13 controls the erasing member 1 to erase the information of the thermosensitive recording medium 7. In the thermosensitive recording medium 7 from which information has been erased, the information is written by the writing member 5 and then the magnetic recording member 17 is driven by the clock circuit 19.
The date / time data is magnetically recorded on the magnetic recording medium unit via the magnetic recording circuit 18 to which the date / time data from is input.

[0017]

The present invention is as described above. According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thermosensitive recording medium capable of repeatedly writing information at a first temperature and erasing information at a second temperature. And a erasing member for erasing the written information, the erasing member is disposed on the upstream side of the writing member with respect to the transport direction of the thermosensitive recording medium during the writing operation. A control device for controlling the heat generation of the erasing member and a density detecting means for detecting the density of the information on the thermal recording medium, wherein the control device controls the heat generation of the erasing member based on the output detected by the density detecting means. Therefore, before writing new information, good erasure can always be performed regardless of the elapsed time since the information was written, storage environment, writing conditions, and the number of repetitions of writing and erasing. Good image quality of written information Further, since there is provided a means for detecting the concentration of information thermosensitive recording medium in the vicinity of the erasing member, transparency of the heat-sensitive recording material has the effect of being able to erase completely to a predetermined one. Further, since the control device controls the heat generation of the erasing member by the output detected by the density detecting means, there is an effect that the erasing can be completed completely until the transparency of the thermosensitive recording medium becomes a predetermined value. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the control device controls the same thermal recording medium so that the erasing operation is repeatedly performed until the output detected by the density detecting means reaches a predetermined value. There is an effect that the recording medium can be completely erased until the transparency of the recording medium reaches a predetermined level. According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a writing member for writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium capable of repeatedly writing information at a first temperature and erasing information at a second temperature, and erasing the written information. A recording apparatus provided with an erasing member that performs an operation includes an elapsed time detecting unit that detects an elapsed time since the previous writing of information on the thermosensitive recording medium, and a control device that controls heat generation of the erasing member based on the detection output. However, since the elapsed time detecting means is provided on the upstream side of the erasing member with respect to the transport direction of the thermal recording medium at the time of the writing operation, the heat generated by the erasing member is generated by the control device before newly writing information. Accurately controlled, good erasure can always be performed regardless of the elapsed time after writing the information, storage environment, writing conditions, and the number of repetitions of writing and erasing, and the image quality of the information to be written next Is effective. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the elapsed time detecting means detects the erased state of the information of the thermosensitive recording medium after being heated by the heating member provided on the upstream side for heating the thermosensitive recording medium. Therefore, there is an effect that the erasure can be reliably performed based on the information of the detected elapsed time. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the control device controls the heating temperature of the erasing member to a temperature range in which the information of the thermal recording medium can be erased. There is an effect that can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing control of the control device of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between the number of repetitions of erasing and a voltage applied to an erasing member in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between the number of repetitions of erasing and the application time of a pulse application voltage applied to an erasing member in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing a relationship between an elapsed time after information of the embodiment is written on the thermosensitive recording medium and a voltage applied to the erasing member.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of a third embodiment of the above.

FIG. 8 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between a voltage applied to an erasing member and transparency in an elapsed time after information is written on a conventional thermosensitive recording medium.

FIG. 9 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between a heating temperature and transparency in the number of days elapsed since information was written on another conventional thermosensitive recording medium.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 erasing member 2 first platen roller 3 light source 4 light detecting member 5 writing member 6 second platen roller 7 thermal recording medium 8 first transport roller pair 9 second transport roller pair 10 heating member 11 pressure roller 12 correction circuit 13 Controller 14 Write information circuit 15 Write member control circuit 16 Magnetic reading member 17 Magnetic recording member 18 Magnetic recording circuit 19 Clock circuit 20 Concentration detecting means 21 Elapsed time detecting means

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Shin Inoue, 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company, Ltd. (72) Yoshihiko Hotta 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo No. Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Fumito Masuchi 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-5-197822 (JP, A) (58) Survey Field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 29/36 B41J 2/32

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A writing member for writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium capable of repeatedly writing information at a first temperature and erasing information at a second temperature, and erasing to erase the written information. And a control device for controlling heat generation of the erasing member and a control device for controlling heat generation of the erasing member. A recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium, comprising: density detection means for detecting the density of body information; and wherein the control device controls heat generation of the erasing member based on an output detected by the density detection means. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein:
2. The recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium according to claim 1, wherein control is performed such that the erasing operation is repeatedly performed until the output detected by the density detecting means reaches a predetermined value. 3. A writing member for writing information on a thermosensitive recording medium capable of repeating writing of information at a first temperature and erasing of information at a second temperature, and erasing for erasing the written information. In a recording apparatus comprising a member, an elapsed time detecting means for detecting an elapsed time from the previous writing of information on the thermosensitive recording medium, and a control device for controlling the heat generation of the erasing member by its detection output, The recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium, wherein the elapsed time detecting means is provided upstream of the erasing member with respect to a transport direction of the thermosensitive recording medium during a writing operation. 4. An elapsed time detecting means comprising means for detecting a state of erasure of information of a thermosensitive recording medium after being heated by a heating member provided on an upstream side for heating the thermosensitive recording medium. The recording device for a thermosensitive recording medium according to claim 3. 5. The recording apparatus for a thermosensitive recording medium according to claim 3, wherein the control device controls the heat generation temperature of the erasing member to a temperature range in which information on the thermosensitive recording medium can be erased.