JPH0374916B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to a printing method for a thermal printer suitable for word processors, typewriters, and the like.

[Background of the invention]

For example, the thermal printer is
As described in the above publication, a heat-sensitive recording medium containing reversible heat-melting ink, that is, an ink ribbon, is interposed between the recording paper and the thermal head, and the heat generated by the thermal head causes the ink ribbon to be heated. The ink is melted to record characters, symbols, etc. on recording paper.

This type of thermal printer has recently become widely used as an output device for office equipment, and is also being applied to word processors, electronic typewriters, and the like. Such word processors and typewriters require correcting or correcting the recording of characters, symbols, etc. on the paper, but conventional general thermal printers require a correction operation to be performed once the characters, symbols, etc. are recorded on the paper. It is difficult to erase recorded characters, symbols, etc. to correct them, and if a mistake is made in printing, there is a drawback that the incorrectly printed part must be corrected by hand or reprinted. .

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned actual situation in the prior art, and an object thereof is to provide a printing method for a printer that can efficiently perform a print operation and a collect operation.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve this object, the present invention sets low printing energy and high energy in advance, applies the low energy to the thermal head during printing, and transfers the colorant on the thermal recording medium to the recording paper. Lift-off involves applying the above-mentioned high energy to the thermal head during printing and correcting the transferred records on the recording paper, and then reversely transferring the colorant once transferred to the recording paper onto the thermal recording medium and collecting it. Printing and collection are performed using one thermal recording medium, and the surface temperature of the thermal head is detected by a means for detecting the surface temperature of the thermal head, and the surface temperature of the thermal head is set to each of the above-mentioned predetermined temperatures. The configuration is such that print operations and collect operations are performed when .

[Embodiments of the invention]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A printing method using a thermal printer according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of an example of a thermal printer in which the printing method of the present invention is implemented, and FIGS. 2a and 2b are side views showing the operation of the printer shown in FIG. 1, respectively. In FIG. 1 and FIGS. 2a and 2b, 1 is a platen, 2 is a platen rubber that defines a printing position, and 1a is a recording paper wound around the platen 1 and the platen rubber 2. In FIG. 3 is a paper guide that guides the recording paper 1a along the platen rubber 2 of the platen 1; 4 is a thermal head that is arranged to face the platen rubber 2 and has a plurality of heat generating elements; 4a is for detecting the temperature of this thermal head; A temperature sensor 5 is a carriage on which the thermal head 4 is mounted and is movable along the platen 1 in the left-right direction in FIG.
Reference numeral 6 indicates a thermal recording medium (to be described later) having a colorant, which is interposed between the thermal head 4 and the recording paper 1a, that is, a printing ribbon, and 7 indicates a ribbon in which this printing ribbon 6 is accommodated and which is attached to the above-mentioned carriage 5. It's a cassette. Reference numeral 8 denotes a carriage holder that movably holds the carriage 5.

Further, 13 shown in FIG. 1 is a drive source, that is, a pulse motor, 15 is a gear group that transmits the rotational force of the pulse motor 13, and 16 is a gear group that transmits the rotational force from the pulse motor 13 via the gear group 15 to a movement mechanism of the carriage 5. , and a paper feed shaft 14 that feeds the recording paper 1a.
This is a clutch mechanism that selectively transmits information to the rotating mechanism.

Next, the schematic structure of the above-mentioned printing ribbon 6 will be explained in the third section.
This will be explained with reference to an enlarged side view of the main part shown in the figure.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 21 is an overcoat layer which is provided so as to be able to face the recording paper 1a and has a low melting point of, for example, 100° C. or lower and a low viscosity, and is made of wax with a thickness of, for example, 1 to 2 microns. It's almost transparent. 22 is connected to this overcoat layer 21 and has a binder having a melting point, viscosity, and elasticity higher than that of the overcoat layer 21, and a coloring agent such as carbon black, and has a thickness of For example, an ink layer of 3 to 8 microns. The ratio of the binder to the colorant in this ink layer 22 is set to a predetermined ratio such that the colorant is larger than the colorant. 23 is a base layer connected to the ink layer 22 and to which printing energy is applied;
For example, it is made of plastic with a thickness of 3 to 12 microns. The affinity, that is, the adhesive force between the ink layer 22 and the base layer 23 described above is
For example, when the printing energy is about 20 to 35 mj/ ^mm2 , it becomes weak, that is, the ink layer 22 easily peels off from the base layer 23, and when the printing energy is about 45 to 55 mj/ ^mm2 , it becomes strong. That is, the ink layer 22 and the base layer 23 are set to be strongly adhered to each other. Furthermore, the above-described affinity between the ink layer 22 and the recording paper 1a becomes stronger when the printing energy is about 20 to 35 mj/ ^mm2 , and becomes weaker when the printing energy is about 45 to 55 mj/ ^mm2 , for example. It is set to .

Next, regarding one embodiment of the printing method in the above-mentioned thermal printer, FIG. 4 a, b, c, FIG. 5 a, b, c, FIG. 6, FIG. 7, FIG.
This will be explained with figures. Note that FIGS. 4a, b, and c are explanatory diagrams illustrating printing operations performed in the thermal printer shown in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 5a, b,
c is an explanatory diagram illustrating the collect operation performed in the same thermal printer, Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the printing energy given to the thermal head and the head surface temperature, and Fig. 7 is the surface of the thermal head during printing. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a change in temperature. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a change in surface temperature of the thermal head during collection.
The figure is a block diagram showing the flow of signals during print and collect operations.

First, the pulse motor 13 shown in FIG. 1 is driven, and the gear group 12 and the clutch mechanism 16 are driven.
The paper feed shaft 14 is rotated to set the recording paper 1a at the printing position. At this time, as shown in FIG. 2b, for example, the rotation mechanism of the carriage 5 (not shown) is activated, and the carriage 5 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction shown in the figure, whereby the thermal head 4 is separated from the platen rubber 2. state, that is, the head-up state.

When the pulse motor 13 is driven in such a state, the above-mentioned rotating mechanism for the carriage 5 (not shown) is activated, and as shown in FIG.
rotates clockwise in the figure, and the thermal head 4 comes into contact with the platen rubber 2 with the printing ribbon 6 in between, allowing transfer to the recording paper 1a, that is, a printing operation, or erasing the recording on the recording paper 1a, that is, a collection operation. In other words, the bed is down.

Note that when performing printing and collecting operations, the clutch mechanism 16 is switched, whereby the rotational force of the pulse motor 13 is transmitted to the carriage moving mechanism via the gear group 15 and the clutch mechanism 16. Then, the carriage 5 is the platen 1.
That is, it moves along the platen rubber 2.

In the head-up state shown in FIG. 2b mentioned above, the head up state shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, a heating operation is performed by applying a pulse signal to the thermal head 4 for a period of about 7 ms, for example. That is, when the subsequent operation is a printing operation, the thermal head 4 is heated and the head surface temperature reaches a predetermined temperature.
In the figure, for example, the temperature is set to about 280°C. When the subsequent operation is a collect operation, the thermal head 4 is heated and the head surface temperature is set to a predetermined temperature, for example about 480° C. in FIG. 8.

If a printing operation is to be performed from such a head-up state, the rotating mechanism of the carriage 5 (not shown) is activated as described above, and the head-down state shown in FIG. The overcoat layer 21 of the ribbon 6 is arranged to face the recording paper 1a. Then, as mentioned above, when the thermal head 4 is heated in the head-up state and the surface temperature reaches, for example, 280°C, the thermal head 4 will finally have a power of about mj/mm ^{2 .}
Since it is possible to provide printing energy of
As shown in FIG. 2, a portion of the overcoat layer 21 having a low melting point first melts and permeates into the recording paper 1a, forming a wax portion 24 on the recording paper 1a.

Then, as shown in FIG. 4c, the ink layer 22 is melted, and as described above, the printing energy is
When within the range of 35mj/ ^mm2 , the base layer 2
3, the ink layer 22 is easily peeled off, and the ink layer 22 and the recording paper 1a are strongly adhered to each other. transcribed.

In addition, when performing a collect operation to correct the characters 25 transferred to the recording paper 1a, the head-down state shown in FIG.
As shown in Figure a, the overcoat layer 21 of the printing ribbon 6 is arranged to face the characters 25 on the recording paper 1a. As mentioned above, when the thermal head 4 is heated in the head-up state and the surface temperature reaches, for example, 480°C, the final result is about 50mj/
Since the printing energy of mm ² can be applied, as shown in ^FIG . When the base layer 23 and the ink layer 22 are in a state of strong adhesion,
Since the adhesion between the ink layer 22 and the recording paper 1a becomes weak, the characters 25 on the wax portion 24 of the recording paper 1a are adhered to the ink layer 22, as shown in FIG. 4c.

In the case of the printing method as described above,
The problem is the relationship between the temperature sensor 4a, which detects a predetermined temperature during print and collect operations, and the control unit 4b, which issues a print command, collect command, non-print command, and non-collect command in accordance with the detected temperature. FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of this relationship. As can be seen from this figure, when a print signal is input to the control section 4b, the temperature sensor 4a detects the surface temperature of the thermal head 4, and when the temperature reaches a predetermined value, the control section 4b issues a print command to the thermal head 4. When the temperature has not reached a predetermined temperature, no printing command is issued from the control unit 4b and printing is not performed even if a printing signal is input. During this time, the thermal head 4 is being heated, and printing is started when the temperature sensor 4a detects a predetermined temperature, for example, about 280°C.

Similarly, during a collect operation, even if a collect signal is input to the control unit 4b, the collect operation will not be performed unless the head surface temperature reaches a predetermined temperature, for example, approximately 480°C, and the temperature sensor 4a will not detect the temperature. Upon detection, a collect command is issued from the control section.

In the printing method performed as described above, both the printing operation and the collection operation can be realized through one printing ribbon 6, and therefore the overall device structure of the thermal printer that implements the printing method is can be made simple and compact.

Further, according to the above-described printing method, when performing a printing operation, printing can be performed through the strong affinity between the ink layer 22 and the recording paper 1a, so it is possible to realize high-quality printing. can.

In addition, according to the above-described printing method, when performing a collect operation, since the characters 25 are adhered to the ink layer 22 from the wax portion 24 formed on the recording paper 1a, the fuzz on the recording paper 1a is removed. Therefore, the surface quality of the recording paper 1a after collection can be kept smooth, and the character 2
When reprinting is performed on the wax portion 24 from which the numeral 5 has been removed, the characters 25 are transferred onto the wax portion 24, making it possible to perform high-quality reprinting.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, printing operation,
During a collect operation, the thermal head 4 is heated in the head-up state so that it can quickly respond to the above operation.
The head surface temperature is monitored by the control unit 4b, and the controller 4b is set to issue optimal heating commands, printing commands, and collection commands, so that the above-mentioned printing and collecting operations can always be performed under good conditions. When pressing the platen 2 with the thermal head 4 to carry out the above operation, a predetermined stable printing energy can always be applied to the printing ribbon 6, and excellent printing performance and collection performance can be obtained. At the same time, the time required for print and collect operations is kept to the minimum necessary time.

〔Effect of the invention〕

Since the printing method of the thermal printer of the present invention is configured as described above, it is possible to obtain excellent printing performance and collect performance by lift-off using only one heat-sensitive recording medium, and also to improve print operation and collect performance. This has the effect that the time required for operation is the shortest possible time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of an example of a thermal printer in which the printing method of the present invention is implemented;
Figures a and b are side views showing the operation of the thermal printer shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 is an enlarged side view of main parts showing the schematic structure of the thermal recording medium provided in the thermal printer shown in Figure 1, and Figure 4 is a side view showing the operation of the thermal printer shown in Figure 1. Figures a, b, and c are explanatory diagrams illustrating printing operations performed in the thermal printer shown in Figure 1, and Figures a, b, and
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between printing energy applied to the thermal head of the thermal printer shown in FIG. 1 and head surface temperature; FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a change in the surface temperature of the thermal head during a printing operation according to the printing method of the present invention, and FIG. 8 shows an example of a change in the surface temperature of the thermal head during a collect operation according to the printing method of the present invention The explanatory diagram, FIG. 9, is a block diagram for explaining the relationship between the temperature sensor and a control section that issues print commands and collect commands. 1... Platen, 1a... Recording paper, 2... Platen rubber, 3... Paper guide, 4... Thermal head, 4a... Temperature sensor, 5... Carriage, 6
...Print ribbon, 7...Ribbon cassette, 8...
Carriage holder, 13...Pulse motor, 14
... Paper feed shaft, 15 ... Gear group, 16 ... Clutch mechanism, 21 ... Overcoat layer, 22 ... Ink layer, 23 ... Base layer, 24 ... Wax part,
25...Character.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 Printing by a thermal printer in which a thermal recording medium having a colorant is interposed between a recording paper and a thermal head, and the colorant of the thermal recording medium is transferred to the recording paper according to the printing energy of the thermal head. In the method, low printing energy and high energy are set in advance, and during printing, the low energy is applied to the thermal head to transfer the colorant on the thermal recording medium to the recording paper to perform printing, and the printing is performed on the recording paper. During collection to correct the transferred record, the above-mentioned high energy is applied to the thermal head to perform lift-off collection in which the colorant once transferred to the recording paper is reversely transferred to the heat-sensitive recording medium and collected again, and one heat-sensitive record is completed. Printing and collection are performed using a medium, the surface temperature of the thermal head is detected by a means for detecting the surface temperature of the thermal head, and when the surface temperature of the thermal head reaches each of the predetermined temperatures described above, printing and collecting are performed. A printing method using a thermal printer characterized by performing a collect operation.