JPH0361060A - Thermal transfer recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the peeling of an ink from an ink sheet, the deformation of the ink sheet, and the like by a method wherein the ink sheet is fed in the same direction as a recording medium and, thereafter, rewound reversely by a predetermined amount as the recording medium remains fixed. CONSTITUTION:A pick-up roller 7 is rotated in a direction of an arrow (h). A platen roller 12 is rotated in a direction of an arrow (e) by a recording paper feed motor. Simultaneously, an ink sheet 14 is fed in a direction of an arrow (b) by rotating a rewinding motor and an ink sheet feed motor. In this manner, recording paper 11 and the ink sheet 14 are fed in the same direction (b, c) at the same speed. Thereafter, the recording paper feed motor is excited, and the recording paper 11 is fixed by the platen roller 12. The ink sheet 14 is fed by a predetermined amount in a direction of an arrow (a) by rotating the ink sheet feed motor and an ink sheet winding motor while being slid on the recording paper 11 to be taken up on a take-up roll 18.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording device that records an image on a recording medium by transferring ink contained in an ink sheet to a recording medium.

[Prior art] Generally, thermal transfer printers are heat-melting (or heat-sublimating, etc.) printers.
An ink sheet with ink applied to a base film is used, and a thermal head selectively heats the ink sheet in response to an image signal, transferring the melted (or sublimated) ink to recording paper to record an image. Is going. Generally, this ink sheet is one in which the ink is completely transferred to the recording paper by one image recording (so-called one-time sheet), so after recording one character or one line, the recorded length is It was necessary to transport the ink sheet by the amount corresponding to the amount of the ink sheet, and to bring the unused portion of the ink sheet to the next recording position without fail. For this reason, the amount of ink sheets used increases, and the running cost of thermal transfer printers tends to be higher than that of ordinary thermal printers that record on thermal paper.

In order to solve these problems, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 57-83
471, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-201686, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 62-58917, a thermal transfer blink has been proposed in which a recording paper and an ink sheet are conveyed at a speed difference.

The present invention is a further development of the invention described in the above publication.

L Problems to be Solved by the Invention] An ink sheet (so-called multi-print sheet) that can record an image multiple times (I) is known, and if this ink sheet is used, the recording length can be continuously recorded. When recording,
The transport length of the ink sheet transported after each image recording or during image recording is set to be smaller than that length (L
/n: n> 1). This relationship is expressed as V,=V,/n, where Vp is the conveyance speed of the recording paper, and ■1 is the conveyance speed of the ink sheet. As a result, the usage efficiency of the ink sheet is n times higher than that of the conventional method, and it is expected that the running cost of the thermal transfer printer will be reduced. Further, at this time, in order to prevent the ink sheet from sticking to the recording paper, a method of setting v + = v p / n may be used. Hereinafter, such a recording method will be referred to as multi-print.

In such a multi-print method, when cut paper (cut paper) is used as the recording paper, the following problems arise. That is, (1) Such a thermal transfer printer is generally configured such that a recording paper and an ink sheet are sandwiched between a platen roller for conveying the recording paper and a thermal head for recording an image. Therefore, after transfer recording is complete, when the cut sheet of recording paper is ejected or when the recording paper is inserted up to the thermal head position, only the ink sheet is placed between the platen roller and the thermal head. will exist. Here, record paper and ink sheet 1
Since the above-mentioned speed difference is provided between the transport speeds of the ink sheet and the ink sheet, slippage occurs between the platen roller and the ink sheet. As a result, the ink on the ink sheet may adhere to the platen roller, and the recording paper conveyed to the next recording position for image recording may be stained.

■Tension is applied to the ink sheet due to the friction between the ink sheet and the platen roll in the state of ■ mentioned above.
There are problems such as deformation of the ink sheet.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional example, and when an ink sheet and a recording medium are conveyed in the same direction or in opposite directions for recording, and when the recording medium is ejected or inserted, the ink sheet and the recording medium are It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal transfer recording device that transports a recording medium in the same direction as the recording medium to prevent ink from peeling off from an ink sheet and deformation of the ink sheet.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer recording device that eliminates wastage of ink sheets by adjusting the use position of an ink sheet that moves when a recording medium is ejected or inserted.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the thermal transfer recording device of the present invention has the following configuration. That is, the thermal transfer recording device records an image on the recording medium by transferring ink contained in an ink sheet to a recording medium, and is capable of conveying the ink sheet in a forward direction and in a direction opposite to the forward direction. an ink sheet conveying means, a recording medium conveying means for conveying the recording medium to a recording position, a recording means for acting on the ink sheet and recording an image on the recording medium conveyed to the recording position; When the recording medium is conveyed by the recording medium conveyance means, after the ink sheet is conveyed in the same direction as the recording medium by the ink sheet conveyance means,
and control means for controlling the ink sheet conveying means to rewind the ink sheet by a predetermined amount in a reverse direction while the recording medium is stopped.

[Operation] In the above configuration, when the recording medium is conveyed to the recording position by the recording medium conveying means that conveys the recording medium to the recording position, the ink sheet is After conveying the ink sheet in the same direction as the recording medium, the ink sheet is rewound by a predetermined amount in the opposite direction while keeping the recording medium fixed.

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

[Description of facsimile machine (Figs. 1 to 3)] Figs. 1 to 3 are diagrams showing an example in which a thermal transfer printer using an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a facsimile machine. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the facsimile device, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the conveyance mechanism for recording paper and ink sheets. It is.

First, the schematic configuration will be explained based on FIG. 2.

In the figure, reference numeral 100 denotes a reading unit that photoelectrically reads an original and outputs it as a digital image signal to a control unit 101, and is equipped with an original conveyance motor, a CCD image sensor, and the like. Next, the configuration of this control section 101 will be explained. A line memory 110 stores image data for each line of image data, and when transmitting or copying a document, one line of image data from the reading section 100 is stored.
When image data is received, one line of decoded received image data is stored. Image formation is then performed by outputting the stored data to the recording unit 102. Reference numeral 111 denotes an encoding/decoding unit that encodes image information to be transmitted by MH encoding or the like, and decodes received encoded image data to convert it into image data. Further, 112 is a buffer memory that stores encoded image data that is transmitted or received. Each part of the control unit 101 is controlled by a CPU 113 such as a microprocessor. In addition to the CPU 113, the control unit 101 includes a ROM 114 that stores control programs and various data for the CPU 113, and a CPU.
It is equipped with a RAM 115 for temporarily storing various data as a work area of 113.

This recording section is equipped with a 102-digit thermal line head and records images on recording paper using a thermal transfer recording method. This configuration will be described in detail later with reference to FIGS. 3 and 1. 103 is a key for various function instructions such as starting sending, and a personal key for the phone number.
103a is a switch operated by the operator to instruct the type of ink sheet 14 to be used; when switch 1.03a is on, the ink sheet for multi-printing is used; when it is off, the ink sheet is used for normal printing. This indicates that the ink sheet 14 is loaded. Reference numeral 104 is a display section that is normally provided in the operation section 103 and displays various functions, the status of the device, and the like. 105 is a power supply section for supplying power to the entire device. Further, 106 is a modem (modulator/demodulator), 107 is a network control unit (NCU),
108 is a telephone.

Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the configuration of the recording section 102 that carries out recording and conveys recording paper and ink sheets will be described in detail.

In the figure, 10 is a recording paper 1 which is plain paper (cut paper).
This is a recording paper cassette that stores a plurality of sheets of paper. Recording paper 11 loaded in this recording paper cassette 10
are separated one by one by the rotation of the pickup roller 7 and conveyed toward the thermal head 13. 37 is a pickup motor that rotationally drives the pickup roller 7. Furthermore, a platen roller 12 conveys the recording paper 11 in the direction indicated by the arrow and presses the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 between it and the heating resistor 132 of the thermal head 13. Thermal head 13
The recording sheet 1, on which the image has been recorded due to the heat generated by the
, 16b. Then, the discharge roller 16a
, 16b rotate in the direction of the arrow, so that the recording paper 11a on which the image has been recorded is ejected from the apparatus. Reference numeral 24 denotes a recording paper transport motor for rotating the platen roller 12 and transporting the recording paper ↓l in the direction indicated by the arrow. 26
．． A transmission gear 27 transmits the rotation of the recording paper conveyance motor 24 to the platen roller 12.

Further, 25 is an ink sheet conveying motor that rotationally drives the capstan roller 71. Furthermore, 41 is an ink sheet winding motor that rotationally drives the take-up roll 18. During thermal transfer recording, the ink sheet 14 is conveyed in the direction of arrow a by the rotation of the capstan roller 71 and the pinch roller 72, and is driven to the take-up roll 18. It is wound up. 28 is a winding roll 18 that controls the rotation of the ink sheet winding motor 41.
It is a transmission gear that transmits information to the Further, a slip clutch 75 is installed on the rotating shaft of the take-up roll 18, and a gear 75a of the slip clutch 75 meshes with a gear 28 attached to the rotating shafts of the winding motor 41. There is.

With this configuration, the ink sheet 14 conveyed in the direction of arrow a by the rotation of the capstan roller 71 and the pinch roller 72 can be wound up by the winding roll 18. Here, the amount of winding by the winding roll 18 is set to be slightly larger than the amount of conveyance of the ink sheet 14 by the capstan roller 71 and the pinch roller 72, and the difference in the amount of winding is determined by the slip clutch. 75. This prevents wrinkles or slack from occurring in the ink sheet 14 between the capstan roller 71 and the take-up roll 18. Also, the value of the reduction ratio 11 by gear 28 and the value of gear 26
．． By appropriately setting the value of the reduction ratio LP according to No. 27, the value of n described above can be set.

Reference numeral 17 denotes an ink sheet supply roll that winds the ink sheet 14, and several slip clutches 76 are provided on the rotating shaft of this supply roll 17. A gear 76a of this slip clutch 76 meshes with a gear 39 provided on the rotating shaft of the rewinding motor 38. As a result, ink sheet 1
When the ink sheet 4 is conveyed in the direction of the arrow a, the supply roll 17 freely rotates clockwise by the action of the sliding clutch 76 to supply the ink sheet 14 in the direction of the arrow a. On the other hand, when rewinding the ink sheet 14 in the direction opposite to the direction of the arrow a, the ink sheet supply roll 17 is rotationally driven in the counterclockwise direction by the rotation of the rewind motor 38.

Further, when rewinding the ink sheet 14, the take-up roll 18 is freely rotated counterclockwise by the action of the slip clutch 75, so that the ink sheet supply roll 17
can rewind the ink sheet 14.

A thermal line head 13 has a heating resistor for one line in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the recording paper 11. 14 is a multi-ink sheet capable of recording multiple times. 21 is a spring, and the recording paper 11 and inksee]・
14, the thermal head 13 is pressed against the platen roller 12. Also, 22 is the recording paper 1
In addition to detecting the presence or absence of 1, recording paper (cut paper)] 1
This is a recording paper sensor for detecting the leading and trailing edges of the paper.

FIG. 1 shows a control unit 10 in a facsimile machine according to an embodiment.
1 and the recording unit 102. Parts common to other drawings are indicated by the same drawing numbers.

The thermal head 13 is a line head. This thermal head 13 is operated by a shift register 130 for manually inputting one line of serial recording data 43 from the control section 10↓, and a shift register 130 by a latch signal 44.
A latch circuit 131 for latching 30 data is provided with a heating element 132 consisting of a heating resistor for one line.

Here, the heating resistor 132 is divided into m blocks indicated by 132-1 to 132-m and driven.

Further, 133 is a temperature sensor attached to the thermal head 13 for detecting the temperature of the thermal head 13. The output signal 42 of this temperature sensor 133 is A/D converted within the control unit 101 and input to the CPU 113. As a result, the CPU 113 detects the temperature of the thermal head 13 and outputs a strobe signal 47 corresponding to the temperature.
or change the pulse width of the thermal head 13.
The energy applied to the thermal head 13 is changed according to the characteristics of the ink sheets 1 to 14 by changing the driving voltage and the like. The characteristics (type) of this ink sheet] 4 are instructed by the switch 103a of the operation section 103 described above.

The type and characteristics of the ink sheet 14 may be determined by a mark printed on the ink sheet 14 or a mark or cutout attached to a cassette or cartridge of the ink sheet.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a drive circuit that 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. Note that this drive circuit 46 operates according to instructions from the control unit 1.01.
The energy applied to the thermal head 13 can be changed by changing the application time output to the power line 45 that supplies current to the heating element 132 of the thermal head 13. 22
Reference numeral 20 indicates the recording paper sensor described above, and 20 indicates an ink sheet sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the ink sheet 14 and the conveying speed of the ink sheet 14. Reference numerals 31, 32, and 40 are driver circuits for rotationally driving the corresponding recording paper conveying motor 24, ink sheet conveying motor 25, and ink sheet winding motor 41, respectively. Further, 33 to 35 are driver circuits for rotationally driving the pickup motor 37, the ink sheet rewinding motor 38, and the paper ejection motor 39, respectively. In addition, each motor used in this example is
In this embodiment, a stepping motor is used, but the motor is not limited to this; for example, a DC motor may be used.

[Operation Description (Figs. 1, 4 to 13)] Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the 100% recording process in the facsimile machine of this embodiment. It is stored in the ROM 114 of.

This process is started when one line of image data to be recorded is stored in the line memory 110 of the control unit 101 and a state is reached in which the recording operation can be started. Also,
FIGS. 5 to 12 show steps in the conveyance process of the recording paper 11 and ink sheet 14 shown in the flowchart of FIG.
4 is a cross-sectional view showing the conveyance state of the recording paper [1] and the ink sheet 14. The operation will be described below based on the flowchart of FIG. 4 and these cross-sectional views.

First, in step S1, the rotation of the pickup motor 37 is started, the rotation of the pickup roller 7 is started, and the conveyance of the recording paper 11 is started. Then, in step S2, the recording paper 11 is conveyed until the leading edge of the recording paper 12 is detected by the recording paper sensor 22. When the leading edge of the recording paper 12 is detected by the recording paper sensor 22, the process advances to step S3, and the recording paper 11 is further conveyed in the direction of arrow C. Then, the leading edge of the recording paper 1 is pressed against the platen roller 12 to correct the skew of the recording paper 11.

The operations up to this point are shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7. In FIG. 5, the pickup roller 7 starts rotating, picks up one sheet of recording paper 11 stored in the cassette 10, and There is. In this figure, reference numeral 8 denotes a spring that presses the recording paper 11 against the pickup roller 7. Reference numeral 9 denotes 1 to ray, which house the recorded recording paper 11 discharged from the apparatus through the ejection port ray 6, and the same parts are indicated by the same number in the drawings to be described later. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the recording paper 11 picked up by the rotation of the pickup roller 7 is conveyed in the direction of arrow C, and the recording paper sensor 22 detects the leading edge of the recording paper 11.

Furthermore, FIG. 7 shows a state in which the recording paper 11 is further conveyed in the direction of arrow C by the rotation of the pickup roller 7, and the leading edge of the recording paper 11 is brought into contact with the platen roller 12.

Next, in step S4, as shown in FIG. 8, the pickup roller 7 is further rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow, and the recording paper conveying motor 24 is caused to rotate the platen roller 12 in the direction indicated by the arrow e. At the same time, the rewinding motor 38 and the ink sheet transport motor 25 are rotationally driven to transport the ink sheet 14 in the direction indicated by the arrow. At this time, as described above, the ink sheet take-up roll can freely rotate in the direction of the arrow g by the action of the slip clutch 75, so the ink sheet 14 is conveyed in the direction of the arrow. In this way, the recording paper 11
and the ink sheet 14 are transported at the same speed and in the same direction (b, c direction).

After this, in order to locate the beginning of the recording paper 11, the leading edge of the recording paper 11 is moved a predetermined distance C3 from the recording position by the thermal head 13.
The conveyance of the recording paper 11 is completed after the recording paper 11 is fed an extra amount. The total transport length of the ink sheet 14 transported in step s4 is assumed to be 44.

Next, in step S5, as shown in FIG.
1 is fixed, and the ink sheet conveying motor 25
Then, the ink sheet winding motor 41 is driven to transport the ink sheet 14 by a predetermined amount in the direction of arrow a while sliding it between the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 and wind it onto the winding roll 18 . The length of this rewound ink sheet 14 corresponds to the distance β4 described above. Here, since the rotation shaft of the winding roll 18 is provided with the slip clutch 75 as described above, the ink sheet 14 can be wound up without slack by the rotation of the ink sheet winding motor 41. . Note that, since a slip clutch 76 is attached to the rotating shaft of the ink sheet supply roll 17, the ink sheet supply roll 17 can respond to the winding of the ink sheet 14 without driving the rewind motor 38 in reverse. The ink sheet 14 can be extended by rotating in the direction of the arrow.

Then, in step S6, one line of image data is transferred to the thermal head 13, and the thermal head 13 is energized to record one line. At this time, the heating elements 132 of the thermal head 13 are energized and driven for each block. In this way, when one line of image recording is completed, the ink sheet transport motor 25 and the ink sheet winding motor 41 are driven to transport the ink sheet 14 by (1/n) lines in the direction of arrow a. Then, the recording paper transport motor 24 is driven to transport the recording paper 11 by one line in the direction of arrow C. Here, if the conveyance speed of the recording paper 11 is 1, and the conveyance speed of the ink sheet 14 is 1, then V, = -nV
, the relationship is established. Note that this one line has a length corresponding to the length of an L dot recorded by the thermal head 13, and the minus sign indicates that the conveyance directions of the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 are opposite to each other.

Recording paper 11 and ink sheet 14 during image recording
FIG. 10 shows the conveyance state. Then, in step S7, it is determined whether the image recording process for one page has been completed, and if the image recording process for page 2 has not been completed, the process returns to step S6 and the above-described image recording process is executed.

When the image recording process for one page is completed, the process advances to step S8.
As shown in Fig. 11, the recording paper 11 is
a is fixed, and the capstan roller 71 and take-up roll 18 are rotationally driven to transport the ink sheet 14 a distance 46 in the direction of arrow a while sliding it between the recording paper 11a and the recording paper 11a.

This distance C6 will be described later. At this time, the recorded recording paper 11a is held between the platen roller 12 and the thermal head 13 at a distance of 22'7 degrees Celsius from the rear end or the recording position by the thermal head 13 at the end of recording. This state is maintained even when the ink sheet 14 is transported.

Next, proceeding to step S9, as shown in FIG. 12, the platen roller 12 is driven to rotate in the direction of arrow e, and
The discharge roller 16a is rotated in the direction of arrow q to discharge the recorded recording paper 11a toward the tray 9. At the same time, the ink sheet 1 to rewind motor 38 and the ink sheet transport motor 25 are rotationally driven to rotate the ink sheet supply roll 17 in the direction of the arrow, and the ink sheet 14 is moved in the direction of the arrow to the recording paper 11. Rewind at the same speed.

In this way, the recorded recording paper 1↓a is conveyed to the tray 9, and the initial position of the ink sheet 14 is set. Next, the process advances to step SIO, and it is determined whether or not the next page's image 5 "2 record" is to be recorded. When recording the image, the process returns to step S1 and the above-mentioned operation is repeated. In this way, the image recording of the next page is performed. If this is not done, the image recording process ends.

In addition, when recording the image mentioned above, the ink sheet 1
The value of n that determines the feed of recording paper transport motor 24 is
This depends not only on the amount of rotation of the ink sheet transport motor 25, but also on the transmission gear 26 of the drive system of the platen roller ↓2.
It can also be changed by changing the reduction ratio of the transmission gears 29 and 30 of the drive system of the capstan roller 71 and the capstan roller 71.

Further, when the recording paper conveyance motor 24 and the ink sheet conveyance motor 25 are both constituted by stepping motors, the minimum step angles of the motors can be set by selecting different ones from each other. In this way, the relative speed between the recording paper 1 and the ink sheet 14 is
(1+1./n)Vp.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the conveyance state of the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 described above, and parts common to the previously described drawings are indicated by the same number. Furthermore, the hatched portion of the ink sheet 14 indicates an unused portion, and the unshaded portion indicates a used ink sheet portion.

(I) shows the ink sheet 14 relative to the platen roller 12.
Indicates the initial position of

(I'l) shows the conveyance operation of the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 1 in step S4 of the flowchart of FIG. Here, in order to insert the recording paper 11 between the platen roller 12 and the thermal head 13, the platen roller 1
2 in the direction of arrow e, and also rotates the rewind motor 38 and the ink sheet transport motor 25 to move the ink sheet 14 a distance 4 at the same speed as the recording paper 11.
4 in the direction of the arrow. Note that at this time, recording paper 1
1 is conveyed in front of the recording position of the thermal head 13 (in the direction indicated by the arrow) for cueing. Here, if we show the relationship between the above-mentioned degrees Celsius 1 and 44, β4≧CI.

(III) is step S5 of the flowchart in FIG.
The operation is shown below. Here, the platen roller 12 is not rotated, and the ink sheet 14 is conveyed in the direction a by 4 degrees Celsius while being slid between it and the recording paper 11.

(IV) is the conveyance speed of recording paper 11 ■2, ink sheet 1
4, the image recording is performed while maintaining the relationship of Vp''n・■1, and the image recording of one page is completed.Here, the ink sheet 14 is L
/ It is being transported by n lines in the direction of arrow a. At this time, a portion 15 of length f2.7 that is not used for recording is formed on the ink sheet 14. Then, the recording paper 11 finishes the recording operation with only a length of 2 degrees Celsius remaining from the recording position to the rear end of the recording paper 11.

(V) is the recording paper 11a that has been recorded in the next operation (VI).
In order to bring the unused portion of the ink sheet 14 to the position shown in (I) after discharging the ink sheet 4, the ink sheet 4 is transported in the direction of arrow a (here, the recording paper transport motor 24 is The platen roller 12 is energized and fixed.At the same time, the ink sheet conveyance motor 25 is rotationally driven to convey the ink sheet 14 a distance in the direction of arrow a at a speed faster than that during recording.

(Vl) shows the discharge process of the recorded recording paper 11a.

At this time, the platen roller 12 rotates in the direction of arrow e,
The recording paper 11a is discharged toward the tray 9 by rotation of the paper discharge roller 6. At the same time, the ink sheet 14 is also conveyed by the rotation of the platen roller 12, the rewinding motor 38, and the ink sheet winding motor 41 at the same speed as the recording paper 11a in the direction of the arrow C5 by a distance of 5°C. Here, the relationship is A6=f25-z2t and A5>g2.

In this way, the process returns to the operation indicated by (T), and the next image can be recorded.

[Explanation of Recording Principle (FIG. 14)] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an image recording state when an image is recorded by reversing the conveyance directions of the recording paper 11 and the ink sheet 14 in this embodiment.

As shown in the figure, a recording paper 11 and an ink sheet 14 are held between a platen roller 12 and a thermal head 13, and the thermal head 13 is pressed against the platen roller 12 by a spring 21 at a predetermined pressure. Here, the recording paper 1] is conveyed in the direction of the arrow at a speed of 2 by the rotation of the platen roller 12. On the other hand, the ink sheet 14 is transported in the direction of arrow a at a speed of 1 by the rotation of the ink sheet transport motor 25.

Now, when the heating resistor 132 of the thermal head 13 is energized by the power supply unit 105 and heated, the ink sheet 14
A portion indicated by a diagonal line 81 is heated. Here, 14a
14b shows the base film of the ink sheet 14, and 14b shows the ink layer of the ink sheet 14. Heat generating resistor 132
The heated ink in the ink layer 81 is melted by supplying electricity to the ink layer 81 , and a portion of the ink 82 is transferred onto the recording paper 11 . This transferred ink layer portion 82 corresponds to approximately 1/n of the ink layer 581 times smaller.

At the time of this transfer, at the boundary line 83 of the ink layer 14b,
It is necessary to generate a shearing force on the ink and transfer only the ink layer portion indicated by 82 onto the recording paper 11. However, this shearing force varies depending on the temperature of the ink layer, and the higher the temperature of the ink layer, the smaller the shearing force tends to be.

Therefore, if the heating time of the ink sheet 14 is shortened, the shearing force within the ink layer increases, so if the relative speed between the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 1 is increased, the ink layer to be transferred is transferred to the ink sheet 14. It can be reliably removed from the

According to this embodiment, since the heating time of the thermal head 13 in a facsimile device is as short as about 0.6 ms, the conveyance direction of the ink sheet 14 and the conveyance direction of the recording paper 11 are set in opposite directions (opposed to each other). , the relative speed between the ink sheet 14 and the recording paper 11 is increased.

[Description of Ink Sheet (Fig. I5) Fig. 15 is a sectional view of the ink sheet used for multi-printing in this embodiment, and here it is composed of three layers.

First, the second layer is a base film that serves as a support for the ink sheet 14. In the case of multi-printing, thermal energy is applied to the same location many times, so aromatic polyamide films and capacitor paper with high heat resistance are advantageous, but conventional polyester films can also be used. Considering the role of a medium, it is advantageous for the thickness of these materials to be as thin as possible in terms of printing quality, but from the viewpoint of strength, a thickness of 3 to 8 μm is preferable.

The third layer is an ink layer containing an amount of ink that can be transferred n times onto a recording paper (recording sheet).

This component mainly consists of resin such as EVA as an adhesive, carbon black and nigrosine dye for coloring, carnauba wax and paraffin wax as binding materials, and is designed to withstand use in the same place n times. It is blended. This application amount is 4-8 g/m2
Sensitivity and density vary depending on the coating amount, and can be selected arbitrarily.

The first layer is a heat-resistant coating layer that protects the base film of the second layer from the heat of the thermal head 13. This is suitable for multi-printing in which thermal energy for n lives may be applied to the same location (when black information is continuous), but whether to use it or not can be selected as appropriate. It is also effective for base films with relatively low heat resistance, such as polyester films.

Note that the structure of the ink sheet 14 is not limited to this embodiment, and may be composed of, for example, a base layer and a porous ink-retaining layer containing ink provided on one side of the base layer. A heat-resistant ink layer having a microporous network structure may be provided thereon, and the ink may be contained within the ink layer. In addition, examples of the base film material include polyimide, polyethylene,
It may also be a film or paper made of polyester, polyvinyl chloride, triacetylcellulose, nylon, or the like. Furthermore, although a heat-resistant coating layer is not necessarily required,
The material may be, for example, silicone resin, epoxy resin, fluorine resin, nitrocellulose, or the like.

An example of an ink sheet containing a heat sublimable ink is a base material made of polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene naphthalate, aromatic polyamide film, etc., and spacer particles made of guanamine-based resin and fluorine-based resin. An example is 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, and may include cloth, plastic sheets, etc. as long as it is made of a material that allows ink transfer. In addition, the ink sheet is not limited to the roll configuration shown in the embodiment, and for example, the ink sheet is built into a housing that is removable from the main body of the recording apparatus, and the so-called ink sheet is installed and removed from the main body of the recording apparatus together with the casing. It may also be a sheet cassette type.

The thermal transfer material used in the present invention has an ink layer mixed with a binder and a coloring material as a support. Examples of the binder used in the ink layer include carnauba wax, paraffin wax, Sasol wax, and microcrystalline wax. Waxes, waxes such as castor wax, higher fatty acids such as stearic acid, palmitic acid, lauric acid, aluminum stearate, lead stearate, or their metal salts, derivatives such as esters, polyamide resins, polyester resins, epoxy resins , polyurethane resins, acrylic resins, and the like can be used singly or in combination of two or more of conventionally known resins. Further, as the coloring agent, conventionally known coloring agents such as carbon black, nigrosine dye, lamp black, Sudan black SM, Fast Yellow G, benzine yellow, pigment yellow, Indofast orange, and irgazine red may be used. Use one type or a mixture of two or more types. Note that the thickness of the ink layer is 1 to 2
The thickness is preferably 5 μm, and more preferably 3 to 15 μm.

Here, if the ink layer thickness is less than 1 μm, there is a risk that it will be difficult to obtain sufficient recording density in double-density recording, and if it exceeds 25 μm, it may peel off from the support or the recording energy must be increased. This is undesirable as there is a risk that it may not be possible.

This ink sheet has the characteristic that better image recording can be performed by rubbing the recording medium and the ink sheet together while applying heat.

As explained above, according to this embodiment, the ink sheet is moved at the same speed when inserting the cut recording paper between the thermal head and the platen, and when ejecting the recording paper from the thermal head and the platen roller. The following effects can be achieved by transporting the materials. That is, it is possible to prevent the ink sheet from being damaged and to prevent ink from adhering to the platen roller without releasing the pressure of the thermal head on the platen roller, thereby preventing staining of the recording paper and deformation of the ink sheet. .

Further, when the recording paper is inserted and ejected, the ink sheet is conveyed in the same manner as the recording paper, thereby preventing the recording position of the ink sheet from shifting, thereby eliminating waste of the ink sheet.

3.Although this embodiment has been described in the case of a full-line type recording apparatus, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can of course be applied to a serial type recording apparatus.

Further, in each of the embodiments described above, the thermal transfer recording device is applied to a facsimile machine, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the thermal transfer recording device of the present invention can be applied to a word processor, a typewriter, or a copying machine. Of course, it can also be applied to

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, when recording using a recording medium, when the recording medium is ejected or inserted, the ink sheet and the recording medium are conveyed in the same direction. This has the effect of preventing ink from peeling off and deformation of the ink sheet.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to eliminate waste of ink sheets by adjusting the use position of the ink sheet that is moved by the operation of ejecting or inserting the recording medium.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the electrical connection between the control unit and the recording unit of the facsimile machine of the embodiment, Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the facsimile machine of the embodiment, and Fig. 3 is the recording in the facsimile machine of the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the conveyance process of the recording paper and ink sheet in the facsimile machine of the embodiment. FIGS. 5 to 12 show the conveyance state of the recording paper and ink sheet. FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the movement of the recording paper and ink sheet in this embodiment, FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the state of the recording paper and ink sheet during recording in this embodiment, and FIG. The figure is a sectional view of the ink sheet used in this example. In the figure, 7... Pickup roller, 8, 21... Spring, 9... Tray, 10... Recording paper cassette, 11... Recording paper, 12... Platen roller, 13
... Thermal head, 14 ... Ink sheet, 16
... Discharge roller, 17... Ink sheet supply roll, 18... Ink sheet take-up roll, 20... Ink sheet sensor, 22... Recording paper sensor, 24...
Recording paper conveyance motor, 25... Ink sheet conveyance motor, 31-35.40... Driver circuit, 37...
・Big thick motor, 38...Rewinding motor, 3
9... Paper discharge motor, 41... Ink sheet 1 to winding motor, 44... Strobe signal, 71... Capsun roller, 75.76... Sliding clutch, 1
00...Reading unit, 101...Control unit, ■03...
Operation unit, 104... Display unit, 106... Modem, 1
07...NCU, 113...CPU, 114...
ROM, 115...RAM. 132...Heating resistor.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A thermal transfer recording device that records an image on the recording medium by transferring ink contained in an ink sheet to a recording medium, and is capable of conveying the ink sheet in a forward direction and in a direction opposite to the forward direction. an ink sheet conveyance means; a recording medium conveyance means for conveying the recording medium to a recording position; a recording means for recording an image on the recording medium conveyed to the recording position by acting on the ink sheet; , when the recording medium is conveyed by the recording medium conveyance means, after the ink sheet conveyance means conveys the ink sheet in the same direction as the recording medium, the ink sheet conveyance means conveys the ink sheet while the recording medium is stopped. A thermal transfer recording apparatus comprising: a control means for controlling the ink sheet to be rewound in a reverse direction by a predetermined amount. (2) A thermal transfer recording device that records an image on the recording medium by transferring ink contained in an ink sheet to a recording medium, the apparatus comprising: an ink sheet conveying means for conveying the ink sheet; a recording device that acts to record an image on the recording medium; a recording medium transport device that transports the recorded recording medium from a recording position by the recording device after the recording on the recording medium is finished; and the recording medium. When the recording medium is conveyed by the conveyance means, before the ink sheet conveyance means conveys the ink sheet in the same direction as the recording medium, the ink sheet conveyance means moves the ink sheet to a desired position while the recording medium is stopped. A thermal transfer recording apparatus comprising: a control means for controlling the quantitative conveyance in a direction opposite to the conveyance direction. (3) When the recording medium is conveyed by the recording medium conveyance means, the control means transports the ink sheet to a desired position after the ink sheet conveyance means conveys the ink sheet in the same direction at approximately the same speed as the recording medium. 3. The thermal transfer recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the thermal transfer recording apparatus is adapted to rewind a fixed amount in a reverse direction.