JPH0579516B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention "Industrial Application Field" The present invention is directed to transferring desired information onto a recording medium by using a heat generating resistor element, a laser light source, or other transfer forcing means on a transfer material supported on a base. The present invention relates to a transfer type recording device for recording, and particularly to a recording device that enables repeated reuse of a substrate by reapplying the transfer material to the substrate where printing has occurred after transfer.

"Prior Art" Conventionally, for example, a group of heating resistive elements is placed on the back side of a film-like substrate on which heat-melting ink is supported, and by selectively generating heat in the heating resistive element group, a desired image is printed on recording paper. A thermal transfer type recording device that transfers and records characters or images is already well known, and in this type of recording device, the base body is formed of an endless belt, and an ink application mechanism is attached downstream of the transfer position. Accordingly, an apparatus has been proposed that enables repeated reuse of substrates with missing prints after transfer. (Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun science and technology column dated September 28, 1981) The main structure of such a recording device is shown in Sections 7A to 7B.
To explain briefly based on the figure, 1 is a tray in which ink 2 thermally melted by a heater 3 is stored, and an ink supply roller 4 disposed on the tray 1 with a part of it immersed in the stored ink. , an ink sheet conveyance roller 5 configured to be in pressure contact with the circumferential surface of the supply roller 4 and rotate in the same direction in cooperation with each other, and in order to facilitate uniform application of the ink 2, the supply roller A wire 6 is wound around the circumferential surface of the wire 4.

According to this device, as the supply roller 4 rotates, the ink 2 stored in the tray 1 is conveyed to the contact position between the rollers 4 and 5 while being attached to the winding wire 6 on the circumferential surface of the supply roller 4. It is applied to the ink sheet 7 that is passed through and conveyed between the rollers 4 and 5. The ink sheet 7 coated with the molten ink 2 is solidified before being transported back to the transfer position and is reused.

"Problems to be Solved by the Invention" According to this prior art, since the wire 6 on the circumferential surface of the supply roller 4 is wound, the wire 6
Although a certain degree of uniform application is possible due to the gap created between the ink sheet 7 and the ink sheet 7, on the other hand, since both the rollers 4 and 5 are in pressure contact via the wire 6, the pressure contact force generated during rotation is unevenly distributed. Due to other reasons, the unevenness cannot be completely eliminated, and since both rollers 4 and 5 are in pressure contact, the ink sheet 7 inevitably protrudes toward both ends of the ink sheet 7, and the protruding ink 2 wraps around to the back side. Various defects caused by this, such as adhesion to the heating element group during transfer,
Further, disadvantages such as uneven transfer due to non-uniform film thickness of the ink sheet 7 and stains on various members in the conveyance path of the ink sheet 7 arise.

Furthermore, since the two rollers are pressed against each other, the ink sheet 7 cannot be brought into uniform pressure contact due to the slight inclination between the two rollers, and the ink sheet 7 is likely to be wrinkled or twisted.

The occurrence of such wrinkles and twists is an extremely serious problem as it makes it impossible to reuse the ink sheet 7. Conventionally, this problem has been dealt with by increasing the thickness of the ink sheet 7. However, with this configuration, there is a problem that the thermal conductivity of the heat generating resistor element to the recording paper is lowered, the transfer efficiency is lowered, and the transfer takes time, making it impossible to cope with higher speeds. was.

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is that when the transfer material is uniformly applied to the substrate, the transfer material has a uniform thickness without causing unevenness or protrusion of the transfer material to both side edges of the coated substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a transfer type recording device that can perform repeated coating.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recording device that can prevent wrinkles and twisting of a film-like substrate when the substrate is used, and can respond to thinning of the substrate.

"Means for Solving the Problems" The present invention provides a substrate carrying a heat-melting transfer material,
a support means for sequentially positioning and supporting the substrate at a predetermined position after the transfer material has been transferred; a storage section for storing the transfer material in a thermally molten state; and maintaining the transfer material stored in the storage section in a thermally molten state. The present invention relates to a transfer type recording device comprising a transfer material supplying means for conveying the transfer material to a predetermined position while the support means is on the supplying means side, and there is no contact between the substrate and the supplying means. The transfer material is configured to be able to be applied from the supply means side to the base body side by surface tension generated between the base body and the transfer material in a molten state on the side of the supply means, while maintaining the state of the base body and the transfer material in a molten state on the side of the supply means, and the support means The substrate is made of a heat insulating material with high heat retention, and is configured to be able to maintain the temperature of the substrate facing the supply means at a temperature approximately equal to or higher than the melting point of the transfer material by radiant heat from the supply means side.

In this case, the facing distance between the support means and the supply means to achieve the effect of the surface tension is 0.3 to 0.6
Preferably around mm.

Further, in order to uniformly generate surface tension, it is preferable to perform a smoothing process such as plating on the surface on the side of the supply means.

Although an endless ink tape or an endless ink sheet is generally used as the substrate, it is not necessarily limited to this. For example, an ink tape wound on a supply reel and a take-up reel is used, and the tape winding is completed. Afterwards, the reel may be reversed for use.

Although a roller member for rotating the base body is generally used as the support means, it is also possible to use a member whose base contact surface has an R-shaped cross section, for example.

Furthermore, it is preferable to use a rotating roller, a rotating belt, or the like as the supply means.

"Action" The meaning of surface tension in the present invention will be explained. For example, the facing distance between the support means and the supply means is 0.3~
If the printed part of the substrate with a smooth surface is brought close to the molten ink surface of the supply means in a molten state, even if there is no contact, such as a so-called slit-like capillary phenomenon. The coating can be applied to the side of the substrate where the printed characters are missing, thereby making it possible to apply the coating uniformly without causing unevenness.

In this case, the application width where the surface tension acts is regulated to the width of the proximity of both, that is, the width of either the supporting means or the supplying means, whichever is shorter, and it is possible to completely eliminate the possibility that the transfer material will protrude between both ends of the substrate. .

Furthermore, according to the present invention, the application can be performed while the supporting means and the supplying means are separated from each other without being in pressure contact with each other due to the effect of surface tension. There is no room for twisting or wrinkles, and the substrate can be made thinner.

The support means is made of a heat insulating material with high heat retention, and the base body facing the supply means can be maintained at a temperature approximately equal to or higher than the melting point of the transfer material by radiant heat from the supply means side. Because of this, the remaining transfer material and transfer transfer material on the base side are melted together, making it possible to form a uniform film.

"Embodiments" Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail by way of example with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative positions, etc. of the components described in this example are as follows, unless otherwise specified.
This is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, but is merely an illustrative example.

FIG. 2 shows an overall configuration diagram of a thermal transfer type recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a platen, and a recording paper 11 interposed on its circumferential surface is intermittently transferred in the direction of the arrow at intervals of one line dot by a pulse motor (not shown).

Reference numeral 12 denotes a line head in which a heat generating resistor element array 13 is arranged at a position facing the platen 10, and an ink sheet 15 and recording paper 11 are drawn by a spring 14 arranged on the back side.
is pressed against the surface of the platen 10 with a predetermined pressure, and the ink sheet 15 can be moved intermittently by following the recording paper 11 due to the frictional force with the recording paper 11 for each line of printing.

The ink sheet 15 is made of a heat-resistant resin film, such as polyimide resin, and is formed into an endless belt shape, and its film thickness is set to a thin film of about 10 μm to improve transfer efficiency.

The ink sheet 15 is transferred to a pair of shafts 16 disposed close to the platen 10 and a detour roller 2 that constitutes a part of the ink coating device 20.
1. Skew correction roller 17 that swings in the direction of the arrow
and a tension roller 18 that is tension-supported by a spring 19, so that a predetermined printing operation, which will be described later, is repeatedly performed.

That is, the ink sheet 15 is pressed against the surface of the platen 10 via the recording paper 11, and the ink sheet 15
The ink carried on the ink sheet 15 is transferred to the recording paper 11 by the selective heat distribution of step 3.

Next, when printing for one line is completed, the recording paper 11 is intermittently transported by the width of one line by a pulse motor (not shown), and at the same time, the ink sheet 15 that is in pressure contact with the recording paper 11 is also moved by the friction of the recording paper 11. It follows the force and is transferred intermittently.

After the ink sheet 15 with missing prints is uniformly coated again by the ink coating device 20 on the downstream side of the transfer position, the skew of the ink sheet 15 is corrected by the skew correction roller 17, and a constant tension is applied by the tension roller 18. While holding it, it returns to a predetermined position on the surface of the platen 10, rotates around, performs the printing operation again, and repeats this process.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an ink coating device 20 used in such a recording apparatus.

The coating device 20 includes a storage section 2 that is open at the top.
an ink tank 22 having an ink reservoir 21;
An ink replenishing device 23 that appropriately replenishes ink to 21.
, an ink supply roller 24 disposed in the storage section 221 , the detour roller 21 disposed facing above the supply roller 24 with a small distance therebetween, and the ink supply roller 24 on the downstream side of both the rollers 21 and 24 . Straightening rod 25 placed in contact with ink tank 22
It consists of

The configuration of each part will be explained in detail below. The ink tank 22 has a heat generating plate 223 disposed on the opening side of the upper surface via a heat transfer plate 222, and an approximately semicircular ink reservoir 221 in the center thereof. Reservoir 221
An ink introducing portion 225 extends to the ink tank side wall 224 on the inlet side (left side in the figure), and a rod abutting portion 226 is located above the upper limit position of the stored ink level on the outlet side end of the storage portion 221. , are formed respectively.

The heat generating plate 223 is made of an insulator with a nichrome wire or the like built therein.
The straightening rod 2 is arranged to extend from the inlet end of the ink tank 22 to the rod abutting part 226, and the ink stored in the ink tank 22 and the straightening rod 2 abutting the rod abutting part 226
Perform heating in step 5. The heat transfer plate 222 is made of metal or other material with good thermal conductivity, and almost covers the heat generating plate 223 and extends from the side wall 224 on the inlet end side of the ink introduction section 225 until it reaches the inlet end of the rod abutting portion 226. The ink introduction section 225 is extended.
The heat generating plate 2 is applied to the ink stored in the storage section 221.
23 heat is transferred.

The reason why the heat generating plate 223 is not extended to the ink introducing section 225 side is that due to the heat generated by the heat generating plate 223, the temperature sensor 22 provided on the side wall 224 side
This is to prevent measurement errors from occurring in 7.

An ink replenishing device 23 is arranged above the ink introduction section 225.

As shown in FIG. 4, the replenishing device 23 includes a flow plate 236 disposed below, a disk-shaped heater 231,
A cylindrical solid ink 232 that is solidified at room temperature and melts when heated to about 60° C. or higher, and a bypass pulley 23 disposed on the rear end side of the cylindrical solid ink 232.
The indenter 233 has one end locked to a coil spring 235 interposed in the coil spring 235, and the indenter 233 presses the solid ink 232 against the heater 231 side.
When the coil spring melts and its length is displaced, the detour pulley 234 is rotated in accordance with the amount of the length displacement, and the tensile force of the coil spring is appropriately corrected.

According to the ink replenishing device 23, when the ink liquid level in the ink introduction section 225 falls below the mounting position of the temperature sensor 227 disposed on the side wall 224 at the inlet end of the ink introduction section 225, the temperature sensor 227 is Since the ambient temperature decreases, the sensor 227 detects this and the heater 231
Turn on.

As a result, the solid ink 232 is melted, and the molten ink is dripped into the ink introducing portion 225 through the flow down plate 236, so that a desired amount of ink can be replenished as appropriate.

Note that the temperature sensor 227 is connected to the ink tank 2.
It can also be configured to be used for temperature control of a heat generating plate 223 disposed in 2 and a fixed heat roll 242 to be described later. Alternatively, a ring-shaped heat insulating material may be interposed around the temperature sensor 227 to eliminate external measurement error factors.

Next, the ink supply roller 24 is arranged in the ink reservoir 221 so as to be concentric with the radius of curvature of the reservoir 221, and has one end fixed to the side plate 28 as shown in FIG. A cylindrical metal sleeve 241 whose other end is rotatably supported by the side plate 29 on the shaft 243, and a fixed heat disposed concentrically with the sleeve 241 through a minute gap and fixed to the fixed shaft 243. It consists of a roll 242.

The surface of the metal sleeve 241 is chrome-plated to facilitate ink transfer to the ink sheet 15 due to surface tension, which will be described later, and its overall width in the axial direction is slightly smaller than the ink application width of the ink sheet 15. Set as follows. (See Figure 3) The fixed heat roll 242 has a heat insulating roll body 242b made of phenol resin or other heat resistant material disposed inside a heat generating heater 242a wrapped around the outer circumferential surface to improve heat retention of the heat roll 242. As a result, the molten ink in the reservoir 221 is uniformly adhered to the outer circumferential surface of the metal sleeve 241 while maintaining its molten state, and is transported to the time interval position described later. I can do it.

Note that the heat roll 242 is connected to the sleeve 24.
The reason why it is configured so that it does not rotate together with the metal sleeve 241 is to avoid wear of the heat-generating contacts attached to its circumferential surface.If necessary, even if it is configured to rotate together with the metal sleeve 241, the effect of this embodiment is still smooth. will be achieved.

Further, the reason for creating a small distance between the fixed heat roll 242 and the metal sleeve 241 is to make the heating temperature distribution of the metal sleeve 241 uniform, and therefore, the distance is approximately 100% in consideration of thermal expansion and other factors.
It is preferable to set it to a minute value of about 0.1 mm.

Furthermore, the heating temperature of the surface of the metal sleeve 241 formed by the heat generated by the heat roll 242 is as follows:
Although it is determined appropriately depending on the contact point of the ink and the required viscosity, it is generally a solid ink 232 with a melting point of around 60°C.
If the appropriate viscosity required for preferable ink application is 50 to 100 cps, the heating temperature is 60 to 120 cps.
It is preferable to configure the temperature to be controlled within a range of ℃.

Now, above the supply roller 24, a detour roller 21 is arranged at a predetermined distance.

The detour roller 21 is formed of a resin material having heat insulating properties, and is rotatably supported between both side plates 28 and 29 via a rotating shaft 211 as shown in FIG. Set it to be larger than 15 full width.

Further, the detour roller 21 is connected to the supply roller 24.
The molten ink carried on the surface of the supply roller 24 can be easily and uniformly applied onto the ink sheet 15 by the action of surface tension. Configure.

Since the detour roller 21 is made of a heat insulating material, it is always kept warmer than the ink melting temperature by the radiant heat from the supply roller 24, and as a result,
The molten ink applied to the ink sheet 15 can be rapidly cooled by the ink supply roller 24, and the ink sheet 15 can be cooled quickly by the detour roller 21.
It is possible to slightly melt the remaining ink that is missing in the print on the surface.

Therefore, even when molten ink is applied to the ink sheet 15 by the ink supply roller 24, it is combined with the slightly molten remaining ink to quickly form a smooth and thick ink layer. .

On the downstream side of both the rollers 21 and 24, as described above, a heat-resistant cylindrical straightening rod 25 is provided. The rollers 21 and 24 are brought into contact with each other, and the upper end of the outer periphery in contact with the ink sheet 15 is located above the facing interval between the two rollers 21 and 24.

The correction rod 25 is installed between side plates 28 and 29 at a predetermined angle as shown in FIG.
Ink sheet 15 sandwiched between the side plates 28 and 29
A thin chrome-plated wire 251 is tightly wound in a spiral manner by a length corresponding to the desired ink application width W on the outer periphery corresponding to the desired ink application width W.

As a result, the ink layer on the ink sheet 15 coated between the rollers 21 and 24 in a thick film and smaller than the predetermined coating width W is pressed against the wire winding portion 252, and is thereby excessively coated. While the ink is scraped off to the upstream side of the straightening rod 25, the ink at both ends spreads slightly in the lateral direction, and only the ink attached to the gap formed between the adjacent wires 251 is removed from the wire winding portion 252. The ink is conveyed to the downstream side, where the molten ink is smoothed by its surface tension and solidified before reaching the skew correction roller 17 from the ink applicator 20 .

Therefore, the thickness of the ink layer on the ink sheet 15 is controlled to be thin and smooth by the straightening rod 25, and the length between the wire windings 252 is set to be the same as the predetermined ink application width W. Therefore, it is possible to convey the coating to the downstream side of the straightening rod 25 without expanding beyond the coating width W and with the width being regulated.

Furthermore, since the straightening rod 25 is heated to a temperature higher than the melting temperature of the ink by the heating plate 223, there is no fear that the ink layer will solidify even when the wire winding portion 252 and the ink sheet 15 come into contact. .

Note that both sides 253, 2 of the wire winding portion 252
54 is formed to have a smaller diameter than the wire winding part 252, so there is no risk of the ink layer spreading beyond the width of the wire winding part 252;
The wire winding portion 25 may be formed with a diameter smaller than the outer circumference of the inner rod through a stepped portion.
2 by cutting out both sides 253, 254 of the winding part 2.
formed on a triangular or square cross section inscribed in 52,
By configuring the corner edge portion to be in contact with the side edge surface of the ink sheet 15, the wire winding portion 2
It can be configured to scrape off excess melted ink that has spread outward from 52, allowing for more reliable width regulation.

Further, the correction rod 25 may be configured to rotate or to be fixedly installed between the side plates 28 and 29, but it is maintained in a fixed state during ink application and is adjusted according to the amount of wear of the wire 251. By periodically displacing the angle and keeping the gap formed between the adjacent wire 251 and the ink sheet 15 constant, it is possible to stabilize the regulation of the thickness of the ink layer.

Furthermore, by appropriately selecting the diameter of the wire 251, the thickness of the ink layer can be controlled. For example, the thickness of the ink layer can be set to 4 to 6 μm.
It becomes possible to control the thickness of the film to a certain level.

It seems that the structure and operation of this embodiment have become clear from the above explanation of the structure of each part, but just to be sure, the above-mentioned operation will be briefly explained step by step. Since the ink sheet 15 that has reached the detour roller 21 is heated to about the melting point of the ink layer, the ink sheet 15 is held against the supply roller 24 while slightly melting the remaining ink on the surface of the ink sheet 15. reach the position.

Then, at the opposing position, it faces the molten ink layer conveyed by the supply roller 24, and is transferred to the ink sheet 15 side due to its surface tension.
Together with the slightly molten residual ink, a smooth and thick ink layer is quickly formed. Moreover, the ink sheet 15 and the supply roller 2
4 are spaced apart from each other, an ink layer corresponding to the entire width of the supply roller 24 is formed on the ink layer application surface without expanding in the lateral direction.

Next, the ink layer applied to the ink sheet 15 is transferred to the straightening rod 25 while maintaining its molten state.
When the ink layer reaches the contact position with the wire winding portion 252, the ink layer coated between the rollers 21 and 24 in a thick film and in a predetermined width smaller than the coating width W is pressed against the wire winding portion 252, thereby removing excess ink. The ink is scraped off to the upstream side and spread laterally to become a thinner film, smoothed by surface tension on the downstream side of the layer thickness regulating surface, and solidified by air cooling before reaching the skew correction roller 17. An ink layer that can be retransferred will be formed.

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the configuration of a color recording device using an ink sheet 151 on which cyan, magenta, and yellow inks are gradually applied. Magenta and yellow ink layers A,
Ink coating devices 20A and 20 for coating B and C
B and 20C are arranged along the conveying path of the ink sheet 151 sequentially from the upstream side at predetermined intervals corresponding to the lengths of the ink layers A, B, and C, and one of the ink coating devices 20A, 20B, and 20C is arranged. The detour roller 21 that forms part of the ink tank is located on the housing side plate side, and the supply roller 24 and correction rod 25 are located on the side of the ink tank 22.
The ink tank 22 is placed on each side, and the ink tank 22 is connected to the detour roller 21.
It is configured to be able to reciprocate in the direction of closer contact and separation. A solenoid, an eccentric cam, or the like can be used as the reciprocating means.

First, the other two ink tanks 22B and 22C
, the outer peripheral end of the straightening rod 25 is connected to the ink sheet 1.
51, one ink tank 22A is moved forward to a position where the supply roller 24 approaches and opposes the detour roller 21, and ink A is applied first.

Next, the ink tank 22A is lowered, and the second ink tank 22B is moved forward in the same manner to apply ink B and C sequentially and alternately.

As a result, an ink sheet 151 as shown in this figure is formed. In this case, since the ink layers A, B, and C solidify before reaching the second ink tank 22 from the first ink tank 22, the boundary line portions of the ink layers A, B, and C overlap. Even if the inks are applied, the inks in the ink tank 22 will not mix together.

In this case, it is necessary to devise a method for transferring the image while avoiding the overlapping portion at the transfer position.

In this way, in conventional color recording devices,
The ink sheet 15 would be wasted considerably, but in this embodiment, ink is replenished only for the portions where printing is missing, so ink waste is eliminated, the ink sheet 15 can be reused repeatedly, and running costs are reduced. It is possible to provide a color recording device that can significantly reduce the

"Effects of the Invention" As described above, according to the present invention, since the transfer material is uniformly applied while maintaining the distance between the substrate and the supply means, there is no unevenness or lateral protrusion of the transfer material. , it becomes possible to apply the transfer material with a uniform thickness and with a predetermined application width.

Further, according to the present invention, when a film-like sheet is used as the substrate, it is possible to prevent wrinkles and twisting of the substrate, and to make the substrate thinner.As a result, the transfer efficiency and speed can be increased. It is possible to provide a recording device that can handle the following.

It has various effects such as

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an ink coating device which is a main part thereof, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement relationship of various members. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of an ink replenishing device attached to the ink coating device, and FIG.
The figure is a schematic configuration diagram of main parts showing a color recording apparatus according to another embodiment. Both FIGS. 6A and 6B are explanatory diagrams showing the prior art.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A base that supports a heat-melting transfer material, a support means that sequentially positions and supports the base at a predetermined position after the transfer material has been transferred, and a reservoir that stores the transfer material in a heat-molten state. and a transfer material supply means for conveying the transfer material stored in the storage portion to a predetermined position while maintaining a thermally molten state, the support means being on the supply means side, The substrate and the supply means are kept in a non-contact state and are brought close to each other,
The transfer material can be applied from the supply means side to the base body side by the surface tension generated between the base body and the transfer material in a molten state on the supply means side, and the support means is composed of a heat insulating material with high heat retention property. A transfer type recording apparatus characterized in that the substrate facing the supply means can maintain a temperature substantially higher than the melting point of the transfer material by means of radiation heat from the supply means side.