JPH02147280A - Thermal transfer recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prolong the life of an ink ribbon and to enhance printing quality by imparting back tension to a multitime ink ribbon at the times of the taking-up and unwinding of said ink ribbon by a back tension mechanism. CONSTITUTION:The leading ends of both of a back tension lever a9 and a back tension lever b10 respectively freely revolvable around fulcrums A, B are connected to the leading end of a switch lever 13 through a back tension spring all and a back tension spring a12 and the switch lever 13 falls in a clockwise direction by a cam and the back tension lever a9 is pressed to a ribbon supply core 3 by the spring force of the back tension spring all and, by the friction forces of both of them, back tension in the direction reverse to the taking-up direction of a multitime ink ribbon 5 is imparted to the multitime ink ribbon 5. At the time of unwinding, the switch lever 13 falls in the counterclockwise direction and back tension in the direction reverse to the unwinding direction of the ink ribbon 5 is imparted to the ribbon. The wrinkles, taking-up irregularity and winding shift of the ink ribbon generated during reciprocating operation are prevented and always stable recording of high quality is ensured and the life of the ink ribbon is prolonged.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording device that uses a multi-time ink ribbon as a recording medium.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, "
A thermal transfer recording device is shown in FIG.

The ink sheet 20 protected by the cassette case 21 is
When the right detector 26 detects the end, the platen 23
is separated from the thermal head 22, the drive shaft of the ink sheet 20 is reversed, the reel 31 is reversed, and the ink sheet 20 is
was rewinding.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, when the ink sheet 20 is wound and unwound, there is no resistance force in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction, that is, back tension, which causes uneven winding, wrinkles, or misalignment of the winding. .

These disadvantages significantly impair the recording quality during retransfer, and further shorten the life of the ink sheet 20.

Therefore, the present invention aims to extend the life of a multi-time ink ribbon and improve printing quality.

[Means to solve the problem]

The thermal transfer recording device of the present invention uses a multi-time ink ribbon as a recording medium, in which a back tension is applied in a direction opposite to the winding direction or the unwinding direction of the multi-time ink ribbon. It is characterized by the provision of a tension mechanism.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1st
Figure (a) shows a schematic diagram of the thermal transfer recording apparatus according to the present invention during recording, in which a cut or roll-shaped recording paper 2 is conveyed onto a platen 1 that is free to rotate about an axis perpendicular to the drawing. , is pressed by a recording head 6 with a constant load via a multi-time ink ribbon 5 that is fed out from a ribbon supply core 3 and wound around a ribbon winding recoa 4 . Also,
The recording paper 2 and the multi-time ink ribbon 5 are wound around the platen 1 by a presser roller 7 and a peeling roller 8.

Further, the tips of the back tension lever a9 and the back tension lever blo, which are freely rotatable around the fulcrum A and the fulcrum B, are connected to the tip of the switch lever 13 via the back tension spring all and the back tension spring b12, as shown in the figure. In the recording state shown, the switch lever 13 is tilted clockwise by a cam (not shown), the back tension lever a9 is pressed against the ribbon supply core 3 by the spring force of the back tension spring all, and the multi-time ink ribbon 5 is pushed by the frictional force between the two. Apply back tension in the opposite direction to the winding direction (arrow direction in the figure). At this time, the back tension lever blO is not in contact with the ribbon winding core 4.

While maintaining the above state, the ribbon winding core 4, which is rotationally driven and transmitted by a motor (not shown), winds up the multi-time ink ribbon 5, and while being synchronously conveyed with the recording paper 2 from left to right in the figure, the ribbon can be printed in monochrome or color. Recording is performed. Note that at this time, the ribbon winding core 4 and the back tension lever 10 are separated from each other.

Next, when a predetermined number of sheets are recorded, the multi-time ink ribbon 5 goes around, and the ribbon end is detected, as shown in FIG.
As shown in b), the recording head 6, presser roller 7, and peeling roller 8 are separated from the platen 1 and the multi-time ink ribbon 5, and rewinding of the multi-time ink ribbon 5 begins. At this time, the switch lever 13 is tilted counterclockwise, and the back tension lever a9 is moved to the ribbon supply core 3.
At the same time as you move away from the back tension lever blo
is pressed against the ribbon winding core 4 by the spring force of the back tension spring b12 to apply back tension in the direction opposite to the direction in which the multi-time ink ribbon 5 is unwinded.

Using such a back tension mechanism, winding and rewinding of the multi-time ink ribbon 5 during recording is repeatedly performed until it becomes unusable due to recording quality.

Here, the back tension lever a9 and the back tension lever blO are pressed and brought into frictional contact with the ribbon supply core 3 and ribbon take-up core 4, respectively. This can also be done by pressing down.

Further, in this embodiment, back tension is applied to the multi-time ink ribbon 5 using mechanical friction by the back tension lever a9 and the back tension lever blO, but it is also possible to use an electromagnetic clutch or the like.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, in a thermal transfer recording device that performs recording using a multi-time ink ribbon that can be used many times, the multi-time ink ribbon is wound up using the back tension mechanism as described above. By applying back tension during rewinding and rewinding, wrinkles, uneven winding, and misalignment of the multi-time ink ribbon that occur during ribbon winding during recording or reciprocating movement during ribbon rewinding can be prevented, and the ribbon can always maintain a stable height. It guarantees quality records, extends the life of multi-time ink ribbons, and is effective in reducing running costs.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1(a) is a diagram showing the outer path during recording of the thermal transfer recording device according to the present invention, and FIG. 1(b) is a diagram schematically showing the ribbon rewinding time of the thermal transfer recording device according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a conventional thermal transfer recording device. 1... Platen 2... Recording paper 3... Ribbon supply core 4... Ribbon winding core 5... Multi-time ink ribbon 6... Recording head 9... Back tension lever a 10. ...Back tension lever b 11...Back tension spring a 12...Pack tensilon spring b 13...Switch lever or more Applicant Seiko Epson Corporation Representative Patent attorney Kisanbe Suzuki 1 person <b+

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a thermal transfer recording device that uses a thermal transfer ink ribbon that can be used many times (hereinafter referred to as a multi-time ink ribbon) as a recording medium, a process is performed in a direction opposite to the winding direction or unwinding direction of the multi-time ink ribbon. A thermal transfer recording device characterized by being provided with a back tension mechanism that applies back tension.