JPH04126275A - Recorder and transfer paper - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To ideally conduct a control in winding transfer paper and a detection of a fault relating to transfer paper by a method wherein transfer paper is taken up so that a detection pulse of an encode pattern on the transfer paper is synchronous with a reference pulse, and a position mark representing a coating position of a predetermined color and the encode pattern are detected. CONSTITUTION:An encoder 9 is incorporated in a motor 4. A speed of a platen drive mechanism is servocontrolled by a pulse generated from the encoder 9. A disk 10 having one slit is provided on the other end of a shaft of a worm 7. The rotation of the disk 10 is detected by a transmitting-type optical sensor 11, such as a photosensor. This rotating sensor 11 is connected to a control circuit. A detection output (reference pulse) of the rotating sensor 11 is synchronous with a transfer paper pulse (encoder pulse). A take-up motor 23 is servocontrolled on the basis of the output signal of the rotating sensor 11 to drive a take-up roll 20. Transfer paper 18 is face sequentially coated with four color ink, i.e., yellow Y, magenta M, cyan C, and black K. When a back mark B is detected by a light-emitting and receiving element, the drive of the take-up motor 23 is brought to a stop, and a first color yellow Y reaches just below a thermal head 12.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a transfer paper that perform recording by transferring ink on a transfer paper to a recording paper.

(Prior art) A recording device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 2-569 previously filed by the present applicant.
As described in No. 33, the recording paper placed on the rotatably driven platen roller is fed between the supply roller and the take-up roll by the rotation of this take-up roller. The suspended transfer paper is brought into close contact with the recording paper, and the thermal head is pressed against the platen roller, and the thermal head heats the transfer paper to record (print) the ink (image) of the transfer paper on the recording paper.

The winding of the transfer paper when printing this image is as follows:
This is done via a torque limiter mechanism provided between the take-up roller drive mechanism and the take-up roller. This method absorbs the difference between the transfer paper winding speed and the platen printing speed, which is caused by a change in the diameter of the winding roller.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, the above recording device has a problem in that it is difficult to set the strength of the torque limiter mechanism.
If this setting is too weak, it will not be possible to wind the take-up roll as the diameter increases, and if the setting is too strong, the platen drive mechanism, especially the servo control system, will go out of order, causing problems such as uneven printing.

Therefore, in the recording apparatus of Japanese Patent Application No. 2-56933 mentioned above, a tension control roller is provided which contacts the transfer paper to prevent the above-mentioned printing unevenness from occurring. but,
In this case as well, the angle at which the transfer paper is wound around the tension control roller changes depending on the diameter of the take-up roll, so the effect changes gradually. Especially when the winding diameter is small,
The effect of the tension control roller becomes smaller. Furthermore, when the wrapping angle is increased, the transfer paper and the running system become complicated, and the motor torque for purposes other than printing, such as when positioning the ink, also increases.

On the other hand, as a method for detecting failures such as the end of the transfer paper, cutting, or wrapping around the platen roller, the transfer paper The encoder pulse obtained by connecting a gear to the shaft end of the winding roll and detecting the radial black and white pattern (encoder) of the rotating disk via this gear as the transfer paper is wound is not generated. In this case, it is determined that the failure is due to the end of the transfer paper, the transfer paper being cut off, or being wrapped around the platen roller.

In this case, the period of the encoder pulse changes depending on the diameter of the take-up roll of the transfer paper, so the encoder pulse (
Since failures are determined based on the presence or absence of detection pulses,
It is difficult to set a time constant for determining the presence or absence of this detection pulse, and detection errors are likely to occur due to changes in the cycle of the encoder pulse.

Also, according to this device, the end of the transfer paper can be detected;
Cutting of transfer paper can be detected during printing if the cut position is between the supply roll and platen roller, but it cannot be detected between the platen roller and take-up roll because the transfer paper is fed between the platen roller and the head. It's impossible.

Furthermore, it is impossible to detect when the transfer paper ends during the beginning of the transfer paper.

In addition, in recent recording devices 1 (printers) using the color printing method, especially gradation color printers using the thermal melt transfer method, the method of separating the transfer paper and the recording paper after printing affects the print quality. Therefore, instead of peeling off the transfer paper immediately after printing, it is necessary to control the transfer paper to be wound up and gently peeled off after the recording paper has been advanced several tens to hundreds of lines after printing. It has become.

In this case, in the method using the torque limiter mechanism as described above, the transfer paper winding speed and the platen printing speed do not match. We are responding to these issues in detail.

However, even with this method, there is a problem that uneven peeling tends to occur. Furthermore, there is also the problem of the transfer paper being wrapped around the platen roller, and when detecting this wrapping, wrapping can only be determined while the transfer paper winding motor is on, so the delay in determination may cause the recording device to may cause damage.

Therefore, the present invention solves the problems of the conventional technology described above,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording device and a transfer paper that can effectively control the winding of the transfer paper and detect failures related to the transfer paper.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a recording paper placed on a rotatably driven platen roller. A recording device that performs recording by bringing a suspended transfer paper in such a way that it can be fed by the rotation of a winding roll, and appropriately transferring ink on the transfer paper onto the recording paper by a transfer means, the recording device comprising: A detection means for detecting an encode pattern provided in the paper feeding direction; and a reference pulse generating means for generating a reference pulse, provided on either the platen roller or the drive system of the platen roller, The pitch of □ is set to n or 1/n (where n is a positive integer) times the outer circumferential length of the platen roller that is rotationally driven at the cycle of the reference pulse, and the reference pulse and the detection pulse of the encode pattern are A recording device characterized in that the transfer paper is wound up in synchronization, and a position mark and an encoded pattern indicating a coating position of a predetermined color are formed on one or both ends in the paper feeding direction. The present invention provides transfer paper for

(Function) In the recording device and transfer paper having the above-described configuration, the transfer paper is wound so that the detection pulse of the encoded pattern of the transfer paper is synchronized with the reference pulse, and the paper feeding speed of the transfer paper is constant.

Furthermore, the cutting and end positions of the transfer paper are detected by detecting the position marks and encoded patterns indicating the application positions of the predetermined colors.

(Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a recording apparatus according to the present invention.

In the figure, a platen roller 1 has three clampers 3 on its outer peripheral surface for fixing the leading end of a recording paper 2, and is arranged so as to move toward and away from each other in the radial direction by means not shown.

The leading end of the recording paper 2 is fixed to the clamper 3 by means not shown, and when the platen row 51 rotates to the left in the figure, the recording paper 2 is wound around the platens 0-51. The length of the outer circumference of the platen roller 1 is approximately the same as that of the recording paper 2.

The drive mechanism of the platen row 51 includes a gear 5 fixed to one end of the rotating shaft of the platen motor 4, a gear 6 meshing with the gear 5 and fixed to one end of the shaft of the worm 7, and meshing with the worm 7. It is composed of a worm wheel 8 fixed to the shaft of the platen loaf 1. The rotation of the platen motor 4 is first decelerated by the gear 5.6, and further decelerated by the 7° worm wheel 8, and the platen roller 1 is rotationally driven.

An encoder 9 is incorporated in the motor 4, and pulses generated by the encoder 9 perform a smear control servo of the platen drive system. In addition, at the other end of the shaft of the worm 7, a 10M disc (another encoder plate) having a slit is provided at one location, and the rotation of this disc 10 causes a transmissive optical sensor (rotation sensor) 11 such as a photo sensor. detected by.

This rotation sensor 11 is connected to a control circuit, and the detection output (reference pulse) of the rotation sensor 11 is synchronized with the transfer paper pulse (process/encoder pulse) described later, and the winding motor 23 is connected to the output signal of the rotation sensor 11. The servo lllID is performed based on the (reference pulse), and the take-up roll 20 is driven.

On the other hand, the thermal head 12 is fixed to a support base 13, and the support base 13 is rotatably supported by a not-shown casing (frame) by a rotating member 14.

A pressure shaft 15 is fixed to the support base 13 at the center in the width direction, and when a pressure lever 17 fixed on a shaft 16 is rotated clockwise in the figure by means not shown, the pressure lever 11 The pressure shaft 15 rotates to the left in the figure around the rotating member 14, and the thermal head 12 presses against the platen roller 1.

In addition, when separating the thermal head 12 from the platen roller 1, by rotating the pressure lever 17 to the left in the figure,
The pressure shaft 15 rotates clockwise in the figure around the rotating member 14 by the tension of a spring (also not shown), which has one end fixed to the pressure shaft 15 and the other end fixed to a casing (not shown), and the thermal head 12 is separated from the platen roller 1.

The transfer paper 18 is hung between a supply roll 19 and a take-up roll 20, and the supply roll 19 and the take-up roll 20 are rotatably held in a housing (not shown), and the core of the take-up roll 20 is 21 and a take-up gear 22 are adapted to rotate together with the take-up roll 20. And the winding gear 22
is connected to a take-up motor 23 via a gear 24, and the take-up roll 20 is rotationally driven by the take-up motor 23.

As shown in FIG. 2, the transfer paper 18 is placed in -Y direction.

3 colors of magenta M, cyan C or 4 colors of Y, M, C, and black
Color ink is applied in plane sequence, and a black mark B (position mark) for positioning the first color (Y in this case) is provided at one end in the paper feeding direction, and further outside of that is a black mark B (position mark) for positioning the first color (Y in this case). An encoding pattern P is provided. In this case, the black mark BS is provided on the same side as the encoded pattern P.

When the black mark B is detected by a light emitting and light receiving element to be described later, the drive of the winding motor 23 is stopped, and the first color, leading yellow Y, reaches directly below the thermal head 12.

The terminal end of the transfer paper 18 is fixed to the core 21 at the yellow Y position, and the position of the mark B indicating the position of the terminal yellow Y is set at a distance that does not reach the light emitting and light receiving elements.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part A in FIG. 2, that is, the part of black mark B and encoded pattern P. In this case, the length (width) W of each of the black mark B and the encoded pattern P in the direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction is approximately the same.

In this way, the width W of the black mark B and the encoded pattern P
By making them approximately the same, the light-emitting and light-receiving elements that detect these marks and patterns, which will be described later, can be made the same size, and the distance between the elements can also be made the same, so these elements can be placed on the same substrate. Therefore,
Stable detection becomes possible at low cost.

As shown in FIG. 1, these black marks B and encoded patterns P are formed by light emitting parts (light sources> 25, 26a, 26b and light receiving parts (photosensors) 27 (positions) placed between them from above and below. mark detection means), 28
a, 28b (encode pattern detection means).

The pitch of the encode pattern P is determined when the disc (encoder plate) 10 provided on the shaft of the worm 7 generates one pulse (in this case, the encoder plate 10 has only one slit). , when the disk 10, that is, the worm 7 makes one rotation), the platen opening ~
This corresponds to the amount of movement of the outer periphery of item (1).

However, if the pitch of the encode pattern P and the amount of movement of the outer periphery of the platen roller 1 are integer multiples, the detected pulses can be divided by a frequency dividing circuit in the winding control circuit system, which will be described later. You may also try going around.

Next, the transfer paper winding circuit system will be explained.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the control circuit.

In the figure, the input terminal 31 includes the light receiving section 27 of FIG.
28 detection output pulses are provided as encoder pulse inputs. Further, the detection output pulse of the rotation sensor 11 shown in FIG. 1 is supplied to the input terminal 32 as a reference pulse input.

These encoder pulses and reference pulses are waveform-shaped by waveform shaping circuits 33 and 34, respectively, and their outputs f (f ) and f are outputted from phase comparator H (HH
The signal is supplied to the OT O3C path 35, and an output is obtained from this phase comparator circuit 35, which varies depending on the amount of phase difference between each input pulse.

The output of this phase comparator circuit 35 is amplified through an amplifier output circuit 36 and then supplied to a motor drive circuit 37.
The motors 4 and 23 are driven by the output of the Tanabata drive circuit 37, and the servo is always applied so that the motor output is increased by the delay in the output phase.

In this way, the encoder pulse, which is the detection pulse of the encoded pattern P on the transfer paper 18, is wound up in synchronization with the reference pulse, and the paper feeding speed of the transfer paper 18 is kept constant.

Here, if either the encoder pulse or the reference pulse is an integral multiple, a frequency dividing circuit may be provided next to the waveform shaping circuit 33 or 34 so that the number of pulses is the same.

Furthermore, since there may be cases where the encoder pulse and the reference pulse are delayed by one pulse or more relative to each other, a step-out compensation counter is provided, and the counter value of this step-out compensation counter is 0 (
A circuit may be provided to keep the motor output at maximum until it reaches zero.

On the other hand, a method of detecting failures such as cutting of the transfer paper or getting caught in the platen roller by using encoder pulses obtained by detecting the encode pattern P provided on the transfer paper 18 will be described.

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram showing an example of the detection circuit.

As shown in the same figure, retriggerable monomulti 38A,
38B is used, and a time constant circuit consisting of a resistor R and a capacitor C is connected to this.

The retrigable monomulti 38A is placed on the light receiving element 26a side, and the retrigable monomulti 38B is placed on the light receiving element 26b side.
connected to each side.

Then, the time constant T is set to about twice or more of one cycle of the encoder pulse, and the encoder pulse as shown in FIG.
Due to conditions such as being wrapped around the platen roller and unable to be unwound by the winding row, the encoder pulse becomes constant 111@T
When no more occurrences occur, the output Q changes from high to low as shown in FIG. 6(b).

Then, after detecting the output signal from the light receiving section 21 for the black mark B, the retrig lever monomultis 38A and 383
If the output Q from one or both of the above becomes low, it is determined that the aforementioned transfer paper has been cut or there is a failure in wrapping around the platen roller, and this output is determined to be low. This is used to interrupt the operation control circuit such as a microcomputer that controls the recording operation of the recording apparatus to stop recording operations such as printing and winding of transfer paper.

In addition, if the output Q from either or one of the retrigable monomultis 38A and 38B becomes low when the black mark B is not detected, it is determined that the transfer paper is at the end and the same process is performed. Stop recording operation.

Therefore, even when printing an image or locating the beginning of transfer paper,
It is possible to stop the device without damaging it.

By the way, in normal image printing (thermal transfer method), if the winding of the transfer paper is started at the same time as the thermal head is pressed, the transfer paper can be peeled off immediately after printing. In the case of a method in which the transfer paper is peeled off after a certain period of time after printing, which is used when performing quality gradation recording, the structure of the present invention described above enables peeling by controlling the winding of the transfer paper with a control circuit such as a microcomputer. The position can be easily controlled, and if you start winding the transfer paper after the thermal head has been crimped and the recording paper has been fed a certain number of lines, the peeling position will always be kept constant and the peeling timing will be the same. Therefore, uneven density of ink can be prevented.

The device of the present invention can of course be applied not only to a recording device using a thermal transfer method as described above, but also to a gradation recording device using a thermal melt transfer method. It goes without saying that the present invention can be applied to 1 liter of roll-up of transfer paper in a (printing) type recording apparatus.

FIGS. 7 to 9 are diagrams showing other examples of transfer paper.

As shown in FIG. 7, encode patterns P may be provided on both sides of the transfer paper in the paper feeding direction, or
As shown in the figure, a black mark B may be provided on the side opposite to the side on which the encode pattern P is provided.

When the encoded pattern P is provided on both sides like the transfer paper shown in Fig. 7, the encoded pattern P is usually formed by printing, so even if a pattern is missing due to a partial printing defect, both sides can be The two identical patterns compensate each other for this pattern defect. That is, two sets of elements for detecting the encode pattern P are provided corresponding to the encode patterns P on both sides, and step-out due to pattern defects is prevented by the OR or AND of the detection pulses obtained from these two sets of detection elements. becomes possible.

For example, for an element that outputs a high-level detection pulse at a black mark, a logical sum may be taken.

It goes without saying that if the black mark B is also configured in the same manner, the same effect can be obtained.

When the encoded pattern P and the black mark B are provided on opposite sides, as in the case of the transfer paper shown in FIG.
Even if the WIN degree becomes a little weaker in the direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction), the adjacent black mark B or encoded pattern P
There is no need to worry about erroneous 4r detection. Furthermore, it is also possible to reduce the width W of each pattern, and therefore it is also possible to reduce the width of the entire transfer paper.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 9, the length of the black mark B in the paper feeding direction is made equal to the length of an integer number of encoded patterns P, and the positions of the second color (M) and third color (C) are A black mark may also be provided for output, and each mark may have a length corresponding to the number of encoded patterns P. In the case of the transfer paper described above, a black mark was provided for only the first color, but this is because the length of the outer circumference of the platen roller 1 and the length of one color of the transfer paper are approximately the same. However, in this case, the length of the transfer paper for one color may be better than the length of the outer circumference of the platen row 51.

In this case, when locating the beginning of the transfer paper, by counting the encoded pattern P while detecting the black mark, it is possible to determine which color the mark is for positioning, and to locate the desired color. becomes.

For example, Y may be 4, 1M may be 3, C may be 2, and so on. At this time, the cue position for each color is immediately after passing the black mark.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, in the device according to claims (1) and (2) of the present invention, the transfer paper is wound up so that the detection pulse of the encoded pattern of the transfer paper is synchronized with the reference pulse. Since the transfer paper feeding speed is constant and the transfer paper is wound without applying tension, printing defects such as uneven printing can be effectively prevented and high quality printing can be obtained. In addition, there is no mechanism that makes the winding of the transfer paper unstable, the winding of the transfer paper becomes stable, and the adjustment process and assembly required to stabilize the winding of the transfer paper are also simplified.

Further, there is no influence on the platen roller drive mechanism, especially the servo control system, and there is no problem that these control systems become out of order and uneven printing occurs.

Particularly, in the apparatus according to claim (2), since the peeling position of the transfer paper is always kept constant, the timing of peeling off the transfer paper is constant, and uneven density of ink does not occur.

The apparatus according to claim (2) detects malfunctions related to the transfer paper, such as cutting of the transfer paper or wrapping around the platen roller, using detection pulses of position marks and encoded patterns. Compared to detection using pulses whose cycle changes with changes in the take-up roll diameter, malfunctions related to the transfer paper such as cutting of the transfer paper or wrapping around the platen roller can be detected.

The device according to claim 1s (4) can reliably detect the end of the transfer paper, and can distinguish between the end of the transfer paper and a malfunction related to the transfer paper, such as cutting or wrapping around the platen roller.

In the transfer paper according to claims (5) to (2), accurate servo can be performed by the servo system on the vR device side.

In particular, in the transfer paper according to claim (2), failures related to the transfer paper, such as cutting of the transfer paper or wrapping around the platen roller, can be detected by the detection means on the SIM side.

In the transfer paper according to claim ω, the end of the transfer paper can be reliably detected by the detection means on the apparatus side, and it is possible to distinguish between the end of the transfer paper and malfunctions that damage the transfer paper, such as cutting or wrapping around the platen roller. Become something.

In the transfer paper according to claim (6), the light-emitting and light-receiving elements for the position mark and encode pattern on the apparatus side can be made the same size, and the distance between the elements can also be made the same, so that these elements can be placed on the same substrate. Since the sensor can be provided in the same area, stable detection can be performed at low cost.

The transfer paper according to claim (2) enables ink of a desired color to be positioned.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a recording device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of transfer paper according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a part of FIG. 2. Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a control circuit for winding the transfer paper, and Fig. 5 is an example of a circuit for detecting the end of the transfer paper, cutting it, or winding it onto the platen roller. Schematic diagram shown,
Figure 6 is a waveform diagram showing the input and output waveforms of the circuit in Figure 5;
9 to 9 are diagrams showing other examples of transfer paper. 1... Platen roller, 2... Recording paper, 3... Clamper, 4... Platen motor, 5.5.24...
... Gear, 7 ... Worm, 8 ... Worm wheel, 9 ... Encoder, 10 ... Disc (encoder plate) -11 ... Transmissive optical sensor (rotation sensor), 12. ...Thermal head, 13... Support base, 14... Rotating member, 15... Pressure shaft, 16
...shaft, 17...pressure lever, 18...transfer paper,
19... Supply roll, 20... Winding roll, 21...
... Core, 22 ... Winding gear, 23 ... Winding motor, 25, 26a, 26b ... Light emitting part (light source), 27
, 28a, 28b...light receiving section (photo sensor), 3
1, 32... Input terminal, 33.34... Waveform shaping circuit, 35... Phase comparator circuit, 36... Amplifier output circuit, 37... Motor drive circuit, 38A/38B... Ri Triggerable mono multi, B.
...black mark, C...capacitor, P...1 code pattern, R...resistance. Patent applicant: Victor Japan Co., Ltd.

Claims (9)

[Claims] (1) A transfer paper, which is hung between a supply roll and a take-up roll so that the paper can be fed by the rotation of the take-up roll, is brought into close contact with the recording paper placed on a rotationally driven platen roller; A recording apparatus that performs recording by appropriately transferring ink on the transfer paper onto the recording paper by a transfer means, comprising: a detection means for detecting an encode pattern provided on the paper feeding direction of the transfer paper; and a reference pulse generating means provided on either the platen roller or the drive system of the platen roller and generating a reference pulse, the pitch of the encode pattern being set at the outer periphery of the platen roller that is rotationally driven at the period of the reference pulse. A recording apparatus characterized in that the transfer paper is wound up so that the reference pulse and the detection pulse of the encode pattern are synchronized with each other. (2) The recording apparatus according to claim 1 is provided with a thermal head as a transfer means, and a pressure-bonding means for pressure-bonding the thermal head to the recording paper via a transfer paper, and the recording apparatus is provided with a thermal melt transfer method to transfer the thermal head onto the transfer paper by a thermal melt transfer method. The ink is melted and heated to be transferred onto the recording paper, the thermal head is pressed onto the recording paper, and the recording paper placed on the platen roller is fed by a certain length, and then the transfer paper is transferred to the recording paper. A recording device characterized by winding up. (3) A transfer paper, which is hung between a supply roll and a take-up roll so that the paper can be fed by the rotation of the take-up roll, is brought into close contact with the recording paper placed on a rotationally driven platen roller; A recording device that performs recording by appropriately transferring ink on the transfer paper onto the recording paper by a transfer means, wherein an encode pattern provided on the paper feeding direction of the transfer paper is placed on the platen with respect to the paper feeding direction. encoded pattern detection means for detecting the front position and the rear position of the roller; and an encoded pattern detecting means for detecting the application position of a predetermined color of the plurality of colors of ink provided on the paper feeding direction of the transfer paper and applied sequentially on a predetermined surface. and position mark detection means for detecting a position mark indicated by the position mark, and if the detection pulse of the encode pattern is no longer detected after the detection of the position mark, it is determined that there is a failure in winding the transfer paper, and the recording operation is stopped. A recording device characterized by being stopped. (4) The recording device according to claim 3, when the position mark is not detected and the detection pulse of the encode pattern is no longer detected, determines that the transfer paper has ended and stops the recording operation. A recording device characterized by: (5) A transfer paper characterized in that an encode pattern is provided on one or both ends in the paper feeding direction. (6) The transfer paper according to claim 5 is characterized in that a position mark is provided on one end or both ends in the same paper feeding direction on which the encode pattern is provided. (7) The transfer paper according to claim 6 is wound around a core, and when the transfer paper is attached to a device and pulled out, the transfer paper has a length such that the position mark at the end does not reach the position mark detection means on the device side. A transfer paper, characterized in that the transfer paper is fixed to the core at a position. (8) The transfer paper according to claim 7 is characterized in that the encoded pattern and the mark have substantially the same length (width) in a direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction. (9) In the transfer paper according to claim 6, the length of the position mark in the paper feeding direction is an integral multiple of the length of the encoded pattern in the paper feeding direction, and the length of the position mark in the paper feeding direction corresponds to each color. A transfer paper characterized by having marks of different lengths.