JP5662045B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a technique that is preferably applied to dealing with print marks and print information remaining on a used ink ribbon or the like.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a thermal transfer type printer that performs printing by thermal transfer by bringing an ink ribbon into contact with an ink ribbon has been used for various applications. In such a thermal transfer printer, an afterimage at the time of printing remains on the used ink ribbon, and it is possible to easily know the print information by viewing this afterimage or performing thermal transfer again.

  In recent years, protection of personal information has become more important and often causes problems in the above-described thermal transfer printer. For example, when the printer is installed in a store for business use, the printer administrator can easily obtain ink ribbon print information. Even when used individually, there is a risk that a third party may know when the used ink ribbon is discarded as garbage. For this reason, the ink ribbon used for printing must be cut into pieces, for example, with scissors or the like so that the print information cannot be recognized, or it must be handled as a secret at the time of disposal by a disposal company.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a printing apparatus that can erase print marks remaining on a used ink film in a short time with a small amount of power. When erasing the print marks remaining on the used ink film, the printing apparatus reads the print marks while winding the used ink film in a direction opposite to that during printing, and creates print data based on the image data of the print marks. The print marks are erased by printing the created print data on the recording paper.

JP 2008-114383 A

  The printing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 attempts to erase the print trace by performing further printing on the print trace remaining on the used ink film. Certainly, it is going to be executed with a small amount of electric power, but the energy is increased by the amount of printing for erasing the print marks, and the configuration of the apparatus becomes more complicated.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides printing information remaining on a used ink ribbon in a simple configuration without applying energy for reprinting in an image forming apparatus that performs printing on recording paper using an ink ribbon or the like. The purpose is to make it unrecognizable.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a printing unit that performs printing by transferring ink held by an ink holding unit that holds ink onto a recording sheet, and a winding of the ink holding unit after printing by the printing unit is performed. A take-up means for taking up, and a glue applying means provided between the printing means and the take-up means and for partially applying glue to the ink holding means after printing.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, in the above image forming apparatus, the glue applying unit is a roller member having a hollow part that contains glue and a surface part provided with a plurality of holes penetrating the hollow part. It may be a thing.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the glue applying unit may be fixed and provided at a position in contact with the ink holding unit after printing.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, in the above image forming apparatus, the glue applying unit may be provided so as to be able to contact and separate from the ink holding unit after printing.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, in the above image forming apparatus, the glue applying unit is in contact with the ink use area in the ink holding unit after printing and is separated from the ink unused area in the ink holding unit. There may be.

  According to the present invention, in an image forming apparatus that performs printing on recording paper using an ink ribbon or the like, print information remaining on a used ink ribbon can be obtained with a simple configuration without applying energy for reprinting. It becomes possible to make it unrecognizable.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a thermal transfer printer according to an embodiment (first) of the present invention. It is the enlarged view which showed the structure of the glue application | coating drum with which the thermal transfer printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention is provided. It is a figure for demonstrating the paste application | coating process which concerns on embodiment (1st) of this invention. It is the schematic diagram which showed the structure of the thermal transfer printer which concerns on embodiment (2nd) of this invention. It is the block diagram which showed the structure of the thermal transfer printer which concerns on embodiment (2nd) of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the paste application | coating process which concerns on embodiment (2nd) of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
In the first embodiment of the present invention, a glue application drum is fixed and brought into contact with an ink ribbon that has been used after printing, and glue is always applied. That is, the paste is applied as a used ink ribbon not only to the part actually used but also to the part not actually used.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a thermal transfer printer according to the present embodiment. The thermal transfer printer 10 of this embodiment is an image forming apparatus that performs printing by thermally transferring an ink ribbon 18 that holds ink to a label 5 that is a recording sheet. The ink ribbon 18 is stretched by an ink ribbon supply roll 11 around which an unused ink ribbon 18 is wound and a take-up roll 17 that winds up the used ink ribbon 18.

  In the middle of the path from the ink ribbon supply roll 11 to the take-up roll 17, a platen roll 12 and a thermal head 13 are arranged, and the ink ribbon 18 passes between the platen roll 12 and the thermal head 13 in a pressure contact state. . The thermal head 13 is means for applying heat to the ink ribbon 18, and the platen roll 12 is means for applying pressure to the heated ink ribbon 18 and the label 5. In this way, printing on the label 5 is performed by heating with the thermal head 13 and pressing with the platen roll 12.

  In the middle of the path from the platen roll 12 and the thermal head 13 to the take-up roll 17, a glue application drum 16 for applying glue to the used ink ribbon 18 is disposed. The glue application drum 16 and the glue tank 14 for containing glue are connected by a supply pipe 15 for feeding glue.

  In this embodiment, the supply pipe 15 has a predetermined length, and the glue application drum 16 is a used ink ribbon 18 stretched by the platen roll 12 and the nip portion of the thermal head 13 and the take-up roll 17. It is fixed and arranged so as to be in pressure contact with. That is, the surface of the glue application drum 16 is always in contact with the used ink ribbon 18, and the used ink ribbon 18 is always applied with a glue before being taken up by the take-up roll 17.

  FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing the configuration of the glue application drum provided in the thermal transfer printer according to the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the glue application drum 16 is provided with a plurality of small holes on the entire surface in contact with the used ink ribbon 18. The size of the hole may be an arbitrary diameter as long as the printed content cannot be discriminated from the ink mark when the ink ribbon wound after the glue is applied is peeled again. In the present embodiment, the shape of the hole is shown as a circle, but the shape is not limited to this, and may be a polygonal shape such as a triangle, a quadrangle, or a star shape, or a shape including an amoeba-like free curve.

  The glue application drum 16 has a hollow portion that accommodates the glue supplied from the glue tank 14 via the supply pipe 15. The plurality of holes provided on the entire surface penetrates to the hollow portion, and when the amount of glue supplied via the supply pipe 15 exceeds the volume of the hollow portion, the paste from the hollow portion to each hole Will be pushed out.

  The processing of the used ink ribbon in this embodiment will be described. First, the unused ink ribbon 18 travels from the ink ribbon supply roller 11 toward the platen roll 12 and the nip portion of the thermal head 13 by winding by the winding roller 17. Then, printing on the label is performed at the nip portion of the platen roll 12 and the thermal head 13. The ink ribbon 18 is continuously wound up by the winding roller 17 even after printing.

  The glue application drum 16 is in pressure contact with the ink ribbon 18 and continues to apply glue to the ink ribbon 18 that is in contact with the ink ribbon 18 while rotating as the ink ribbon 18 travels. The ink ribbon 18 is continuously wound up by the take-up roller 17 even after the glue is applied, and the take-up roller 17 winds up the used ink ribbon 18 to which the glue has been applied and used rolls. And

  In consideration of the case where the waste disposal method differs depending on the municipality, and it is necessary to unwrap and dispose of the ribbon, a plurality of glue tanks 14, supply pipes 15, and glue application drums 16 are provided, and glue having different adhesive strength You may comprise so that can be apply | coated. With this configuration, when using a glue with strong adhesive strength to prevent the used ribbon from being unwound from the roll, use a weak adhesive strength glue to unwind the used ribbon from the roll. It is possible to cope with the case.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the paste application processing according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3A shows the processing of a conventional used ink ribbon (when no glue is applied), and FIG. 3B shows the processing of the used ink ribbon according to this embodiment (when glue is applied).

  As shown in FIG. 3A, when the used ink ribbon 18 is wound up by the take-up roller 17 as it is without applying glue, the printed contents remain as ink marks on the used ink ribbon 18, The printed content can be read when the used roll is unwound. In this case, there is a problem that a third party can acquire the print contents after disposal.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the used ink ribbon 18 is wound with the take-up roller 17 while applying glue in a plurality of small circles, it is used when a glue having a strong adhesive force is used. The finished roll cannot be peeled off and the printed content cannot be read. Even when glue with weak adhesive strength is used, the remaining ink is peeled off in a circular shape by the glue when the used roll is unwound, and the printed content cannot be read from the ink marks. In either case, it is impossible for a third party to determine the print contents after disposal, and the request for protection of personal information is satisfied.

  According to the present embodiment, the used ink ribbon is applied to a plurality of small circles using a glue applying drum with respect to the used ink ribbon, so that the used ink ribbon has a simple configuration and does not apply extra energy. It is possible to make the print information remaining in the printer unrecognizable.

[Second Embodiment]
In the second embodiment of the present invention, a glue application drum is provided so as to be able to contact / separate an ink ribbon that has been used after printing, and glue is applied according to the area of the used ink ribbon. Is. That is, the paste is not applied to the portions that are not actually used, and the paste is applied only to the portions that are actually used. Hereinafter, configurations different from those of the first embodiment will be described, and description of common configurations will be omitted.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the thermal transfer printer according to the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, the glue application drum 16 disposed so as to be in pressure contact with the ink ribbon is driven vertically with respect to the ink ribbon 18 (a direction away from the contact direction). That is, the portion used for printing is contacted and glue is applied, and the paste is not applied apart from the portion not used for printing. The glue application drum 16 is driven by the glue tank 24.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the thermal transfer printer according to this embodiment. The print data transmitting apparatus 100 is a host apparatus such as a personal computer. The transfer printer 200 of the present embodiment includes a data reception / conversion data buffer unit 210 that receives image data, converts it into print data, and buffers it, a print head control unit 220 that controls the operation of the print head, a print head 230, A time difference calculation unit 240 that calculates the time until the printed portion reaches the glue application drum, a glue application drum control unit 250 that controls driving of the glue application drum, and a glue application drum 260 are provided. The print head 230 corresponds to the thermal head 13 in FIG. 4, and the glue application drum 260 corresponds to the glue application drum 16 in FIG.

  Processing of the used ink ribbon in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the unused ink ribbon 18 travels from the ink ribbon supply roller 11 toward the platen roll 12 and the nip portion of the thermal head 13 by winding by the winding roller 17. The ink ribbon 18 travels regardless of the presence or absence of print contents.

  The thermal transfer printer 200 receives print data from the print data transmission apparatus 100, and the print data is sent from the data reception / conversion data buffer unit 210 to the print head control unit 220. Thereafter, print data and control data are sent from the print head controller 220 to the print head 230, and printing is performed on the label by the print head 230.

  On the other hand, the data reception / conversion data buffer unit 210 notifies the time difference calculation unit 240 that the print data has been sent to the print head control unit 220. Then, the time difference calculation unit 240 notifies the glue application drum control unit 250 that the print data has been sent to the print head 230. The glue application drum control unit 250 drives and controls the glue application drum 260 so as to contact the ink ribbon only when the label is printed, and applies the glue to the ink ribbon.

  Actually, as shown in FIG. 4, there is a distance from the position a of the thermal head 13 (printing head 230 in FIG. 5) to the position b of the glue application drum 16 (application drum 260 in FIG. 5). 5 is calculated by the time difference calculation unit 240 in FIG. 5, and when the portion of the ink ribbon 18 used in actual printing has just reached the position b of the glue application drum 16, the glue application drum 16 is in ink. The glue is applied in contact with the used part of the ribbon.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the paste application processing according to the present embodiment. As described above, by driving the glue application drum, the printing operation is performed, and the glue is applied to the unused portion that is not actually printed on the ink ribbon 18 that has passed through the nip portion of the platen roll 12 and the thermal head 13. Instead, apply the glue only to the printed part.

  According to this embodiment, the contact / separation of the glue application drum to the ink ribbon is driven in accordance with the print data, and the glue is applied to a plurality of small circles only on the actual used portion of the ink ribbon after the printing operation is completed. Therefore, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, it is possible to reduce the amount of glue used, and to simplify the operation when it is necessary to unwind and discard the ribbon according to the rules of the municipality.

  The above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment alone, and various modifications are made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Implementation is possible.

5 Label 10, 20, 200 Thermal transfer printer 11 Ink ribbon supply roll 12 Platen roll 13 Thermal head 14, 24 Glue tank 15 Supply pipe 16, 260 Glue application drum 17 Take-up roll 18 Ink ribbon 100 Print data transmission device 210 Data reception / Conversion data buffer unit 220 Print head control unit 230 Print head 240 Time difference calculation unit 250 Glue application drum control unit

Claims (5)

Printing means for performing printing by transferring the ink held in the ink holding means for holding ink to a recording paper;
A winding means for winding the ink holding means after printing by the printing means;
A glue applying means that is provided between the printing means and the winding means, and that applies glue in a circular shape partially and at a plurality of locations to the ink holding means after printing;
An image forming apparatus comprising: Claim wherein the glue applying unit, which penetrates into the hollow portion and the hollow portion for accommodating a glue, characterized in that hole in a plurality positions corresponding to the circular shape is a roller member having a surface portion provided The image forming apparatus according to 1.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the glue applying unit is fixed and provided at a position in contact with the ink holding unit after printing.   3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the glue applying unit is provided so as to be able to contact and separate from the ink holding unit after the printing.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the glue applying unit is in contact with an ink use area in the ink holding unit after the printing, and is separated from an ink unused area in the ink holding unit.

Images