JPH043822Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to a ribbon cassette used in a serial thermal printer. The present invention relates to a ribbon cassette used in a thermal serial printer that prints by moving the cartridge back and forth along the printing line direction.

[Background of the invention] In order to enable color printing and high-speed monochrome printing in a serial thermal printer, at least two carriages each equipped with a thermal head and a ribbon cassette are installed, and when printing in color, the carriages are placed close to each other, and when printing in monochrome, the cartridges are placed close to each other. We have previously proposed a printing method in which the cartridge is sometimes printed at a predetermined distance.

In the case of this printing method, in order to reduce the width of the printer when printing in color, it is desirable to place the thermal head as close as possible, and the relationship between the thermal head and ribbon cassette is shown in Figure 3. .

That is, black ribbon 2 is placed in the left cassette 1L,
When the red ribbon 3 is used in the right cassette 1R, the head insertion recess 4L of the left cassette 1L is provided at the upper right end, and the head insertion recess 4R of the right cassette 1R is provided at the upper left end. Also, as a matter of course, the ribbon 2 in the cassette 1,
Since the running routes of the ribbons 3 are different, the ribbon guides 5 provided in the cassette 1 are provided at different positions. Note that H is a thermal head.

For this reason, it is necessary to prepare cassettes 1L and 1R with completely different configurations, which poses problems in that the cost of the cassette 1 is high and maintenance management is troublesome.

[Purpose of the invention] The purpose of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the prior art described above, and to provide a ribbon cassette with exactly the same configuration so that it can be mounted on any carriage.

[Summary of the invention] For the above purpose, the present invention provides a new head insertion recess at a position symmetrical to the head insertion recess with respect to the center line along the row direction of the carriage mounting surface of the cassette. This is a characteristic feature.

[Embodiment of the invention] Fig. 1 shows an embodiment of the cassette of the invention, in which the head is aligned with respect to the center line along the row direction of the surface where the cassette 1 contacts the carriage 6, that is, the carriage mounting surface of the cassette. A new head insertion recess 40 is provided at a position symmetrical to the insertion recess 4, and by providing the recess 40, one guide 5 is added.

Therefore, by tilting the cassette 1 180 degrees, it can be used as a right cassette. That is, the left and right cassettes 1 can have exactly the same configuration.

FIG. 2 shows the printing section of a thermal printer that employs the cassette 1 of the present invention, and 6 is a carriage on which the thermal head H and the ribbon cassette 1 are mounted, and a belt 7 runs the printing section along the printing line direction. It can be moved back and forth on the extended guide shaft 8.
9 is a platen that holds the paper P.

[Effects of the invention] As described above, according to the invention, ribbon cassettes having exactly the same configuration can be used, ribbon cassettes can be provided at low cost, and maintenance and management can be made very simple.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the ribbon cassette of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a plan view showing the printing section of a thermal printer employing the ribbon cassette of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a plan view showing a ribbon cassette with a conventional configuration. It is a diagram. In the figure, 1 is a ribbon cassette, 2, 3
is the ribbon, 4 and 40 are the head insertion recesses, 5 is the ribbon guide, 6 is the carriage, 7 is the belt, 8 is the guide shaft, 9 is the platen, H is the thermal head, P
is paper.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] A thermal head having a predetermined number of heating elements, an insertion recess into which the thermal head is inserted on the side facing the paper, and a thermal ribbon that moves on the front surface of the thermal head. A thermal printer is provided with a carriage in which at least two ribbon cassettes are mounted, the carriage is reciprocated along the printing direction, and during this movement the heat generating resistor is heated and transferred onto paper, the carriage mounting of the ribbon cassettes. A ribbon cassette comprising a head insertion recess provided at a position symmetrical to the head insertion recess with respect to a center line along the row direction of the surface.