JPH06278299A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a printer capable of urging a user to replace an ink ribbon before the use of the ink ribbon is completed. CONSTITUTION:When a residual quantity mark 41 is detected during printing operation, 'please prepare a preparatory ink ribbon' urging a user to replace the preparatory ink ribbon is displayed on a display panel. That is, when the residual quantity of the ink ribbon 24 during use becomes little and the residual quantity mark 41 is detected by a second sensor 43, indication urging the user to replace the preparatory ink ribbon is informed. Therefore, the user can calmly prepare a new ink ribbon before the use of the ink ribbon is completed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal transfer type printing apparatus in which ink on a film is melted by a thermal head and transferred onto a paper.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a thermal transfer type printing apparatus, a thermal head is arranged opposite to a platen roller. Then, the ink ribbon wound around the supply roll passes between the thermal head and the platen roller, and the transfer is performed on the recording paper in the meantime.

When the ink ribbon is used up to its end and printing with the ink ribbon becomes impossible, by removing the ink ribbon from the apparatus case and replacing it with a new ink ribbon, printing can be continued. .

[0004]

Once the ink ribbon is set in the device case, it cannot be taken out until it is used up. Therefore, conventionally, the ink ribbon is used up to the end, and the necessity of ink ribbon replacement is not recognized until printing becomes impossible. For this reason, a new ink ribbon suddenly becomes necessary, and if a spare ink ribbon is not prepared, it may be impossible to continue printing, which may cause inconvenience.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a printing apparatus capable of prompting the user to replace the ink ribbon before the use of the ink ribbon is completed. It is in.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, in a printing device in which ink of an ink ribbon is melted by a thermal head and transferred onto a paper, from the end of the ink ribbon. A remaining amount mark detecting means for detecting a remaining amount mark provided at a position separated from the starting end side by a predetermined distance, and a notifying means for notifying the remaining amount when the detecting means detects the remaining amount mark. The summary will be given.

[0007]

According to the above construction, when the remaining amount mark detecting means detects the remaining amount mark during the printing operation, the notifying means informs the remaining usable printing amount. Therefore, the user is informed before the ink ribbon is ready for use.
Allows time to prepare a new ink ribbon.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is embodied in a facsimile machine will be described below with reference to FIGS.

First, the structure of the facsimile apparatus will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, a reading unit 2 for reading an image on a document G is arranged inside the apparatus case 1. Further, inside the apparatus case 1, a recording unit 3 for printing on the recording paper P based on the received image data and the like is arranged. Paper cassettes 4a and 4b for respectively accommodating recording papers P having different sizes are detachably mounted in the lower part of the device case 1. Upper paper cassette 4a has B5 size (width: 182m
Recording paper P of m × length: 257 mm) and A4 size (width: 210 mm × length :) on the lower paper cassette 4b.
(297 mm) recording sheets P are accommodated in a stacked state.

A document tray 6 on which documents G are stacked and supported is arranged on the upper part of the apparatus case 1, and a feed assist roller 7 is provided.
By the rotation of, the feeding force is applied to the document G. In the apparatus frame 1, a separation roller 8 and a separation pad 9 for feeding the originals one by one are fixed. On the downstream side of the separation roller 8, a transfer path 10a through which the document G passes is formed by a pair of guide plates 10. A reading window 11 is formed on the one guide plate. And
The reflected light emitted from the light source 12 to the original G through the reading window 11 passes through the reading window 11 again, and finally is applied to the image sensor 15 through the plurality of mirrors 13 and the lenses 14 to form an image of the original G. The reading is done. Further, the plurality of feed rollers 17 discharge the document G after the image reading from the document discharge port 16.

Above the paper cassettes 4a and 4b, a half-moon-shaped paper feed roller 18 is installed so as to be positively rotatable. Then, by the rotation of the paper feed roller 18, the recording papers P are delivered one by one from the inside of the paper cassettes 4a and 4b through the guide plate 19 toward the recording unit 3. Further, due to the rotational force of the feed roller 20, the feed force is further applied to the recording paper P delivered from the paper cassettes 4a and 4b.

The recording unit 3 is composed of a platen roller 22, a thermal head 23 disposed in contact with the platen roller 22, and the like. An ink ribbon 24 housed in the ribbon housing cassette 21 is sandwiched between the platen roller 22 and the thermal head 23.
The platen roller 22 is positively rotated by a motor (not shown). A rotary encoder 61 is connected to the platen roller 22, and the rotary encoder 61 generates a pulse corresponding to the rotation amount of the platen roller 22, that is, the feed amount of the ink ribbon 24.

As shown in FIG. 2, a supply roll support 25 and a take-up roll support 26 are formed on the frame 21a of the ribbon accommodating cassette 21. A supply paper tube 27 around which the ink ribbon 24 is wound is detachably supported on the supply roll support portion 25. on the other hand,
A take-up paper tube 28 for taking up the ink ribbon 24 supplied from the supply paper tube 27 is detachably supported by the take-up roll support portion 26.

Spindle pieces 30 and 31 are detachably fitted to both ends of the supply paper tube 27 and the winding paper tube 28, respectively.
28 is removably and rotatably supported by the supporting portions 25 and 26. The key 30 is attached to each spindle piece 30, 31.
a and 31a are formed, and both paper tubes 27 and 2 are formed.
The key groove 27a, 28a is formed in 8, and the relative rotation between the paper tubes 27, 28 and the support shaft pieces 30, 31 is prevented by their engagement. Gears 35 and 36 are formed on the support shaft pieces 30 and 31 on one side. That is, the supply roll 37 is constituted by the supply paper tube 27 and the support piece 30, and the winding roll 38 is constituted by the winding paper tube 28 and the support piece 31. The gears 35 and 36 formed on the support pieces 30 and 31 are meshed with a gear (both not shown) connected to the roll motor. That is, the rolls 37 and 38 are positively rotated by the driving force of the roll motor.

As shown in FIG. 4, the ink ribbon 24 is
The ink ribbon 24 is provided on the rear side of the trailing end on one side edge thereof.
An end mark 40 indicating the end of is attached. Further, on the back surface of the ink ribbon 24, which is separated by a predetermined distance (6 meters in the embodiment) from the position where the end mark 40 is attached, and on the side edge opposite to the end mark 40, the remaining mark 41 is attached. In addition,
The end mark 40 and the remaining amount mark 41 are formed by aluminum vapor deposition.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, in the apparatus case 1 in the vicinity of the supply roll 28, a first optical sensor 42 composed of a reflection type optical sensor and a second residual amount mark detecting means are provided. The optical sensor 43 is arranged in parallel. The first optical sensor 42 is a sensor for detecting the end mark 40 formed on the ink ribbon 24, and the second optical sensor 43 is a sensor for detecting the remaining amount mark 41.

When the ink ribbon 24 has been wound up and printing cannot be performed with the ink ribbon 24, the ink ribbon 24 is replaced with a new ink ribbon. In this ink ribbon replacement work, first, the ribbon containing cassette 21 is removed from the apparatus case 1. Then, the supply paper tube 27 and the winding paper tube 29 are removed from the ribbon accommodating cassette 21, and the used ink ribbon 24 and the new ink ribbon 2 are removed.
4 are replaced with each other and the ribbon storage cassette 21 is attached again. After that, the ribbon accommodating cassette 21 is mounted in the apparatus case 1 again to be in a printable state.

A guide plate 46 is provided on the upstream side of the platen roller 22. Further, on the upstream side of the guide plate 46, a pair of supply rollers 47 for supply is rotatably supported. On the other hand, on the downstream side of the platen roller 22, a pair of ejection feed rollers 48 are rotatably supported. Further, a recording paper discharge tray 49 is arranged further downstream thereof. A recording paper feed passage 51 formed by a pair of guide plates 50 communicates between the supply feed roller 47 and the feed roller 20 arranged on the paper cassette 4a, 4b side. Therefore,
When the recording paper P sent out from the paper cassettes 4a and 4b passes through the recording paper feed passage 51 and is supplied to the recording unit 3, the recording unit 3 outputs desired data and received image information. Is printed. Then, the recording paper P printed by the recording unit 3 is ejected to the recording paper ejection tray 49 by the rotational force of the ejection feed roller 48.

Next, the electrical configuration of the above facsimile apparatus will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. The controller C is a central processing unit (CPU) 55, a read-only memory (ROM) 56 in which each control program is stored in advance.
And a readable / writable memory (RAM) 57 for temporarily storing the received image information and various data.

A network control unit (NCU) 58 and a modem 59 are provided on the input side of the CPU 55.
Are connected. The NCU 58 connects and disconnects the telephone line based on a control signal from the CPU 55, and the modem 59 modulates and demodulates transmission / reception data. CPU
The reading unit 2 and the first and second optical sensors 42 and 43 are connected to the input side of 55, respectively. The reading unit 2 outputs the read image data to the CPU 55. CPU55
Stores the image data input from the reading unit 2 in the RAM 57. A rotary encoder 61 is connected to the input side of the CPU 55.

When the detection signal of the remaining amount mark 41 is input from the second optical sensor 43, the CPU 55 counts the pulses generated by the rotary encoder 61 by a counter (not shown) incorporated therein. ing. Then, the CPU 55 calculates the feed amount of the ink ribbon 24 based on the pulse count value counted by the counter. The controller C and the second optical sensor 43 constitute a remaining amount detecting means.

On the other hand, the recording unit 3 is provided on the output side of the CPU 55.
Are connected. The CPU 55 drives and controls the recording unit 3 based on the control program stored in the ROM 56.

On the other hand, the output side of the CPU 55 is connected with a display panel 60 for displaying data and the like in each memory. The display panel 60 is arranged on the upper surface of the device case 1. The controller C and the display panel 60 constitute a notification means.

When the CPU 55 receives the ON signal from the second optical sensor 43, the CPU 55 starts counting the pulses generated by the rotary encoder 61 as described above, and the display panel 60 displays "preliminary". Please prepare an ink ribbon "," A4 paper → 20 more sheets can be printed "and" B5 paper → 23 more sheets can be printed "(see Fig. 5).

Then, when the CPU 55 further prints after the above display on the display panel 60,
The display of "Prepare a spare ink ribbon" is retained, but the number displayed on the display panel 60 is changed to "A4 paper →
You can print 19 more sheets. "And" B
You can print from 5 sheets to 22 more sheets. " That is, the CPU 55 counts down the remaining printable number of each size and displays it on the display panel 60 every time when one recording sheet P is printed after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected. .

Therefore, after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected,
For example, when 10 sheets of recording paper P of A4 size are printed, the display on the display panel 60 is "A4 paper can print 10 more sheets", "B5 paper can print 11 more sheets"
Can be rewritten as

That is, since the distance from the end mark 40 to the remaining amount mark 41 is 6 meters, for example, when 10 sheets of A4 size (vertical dimension 297 mm) are printed after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected. The remaining printable number is (6000 mm-297 mm × 10) / 2
97 mm≈10.2 sheets. Therefore, the CPU 55 causes the display panel 60 to display “A4 paper → 10 more sheets can be printed”. On the other hand, regarding the recording paper P of B5 size,
The remaining printable number is (6000 mm-297 mm x 1
0) ÷ 257 mm ≈ 11.8 sheets, so the CPU 55
Causes the display panel 60 to display “B5 paper → 11 more sheets can be printed”.

Further, the CPU 55 uses the first optical sensor 42.
When the ON signal is input from, the characters displayed on the display panel 60 are cleared and the words "End. Please replace with new ink ribbon" are rewritten (see Fig. 6). . Further, when the ON signal is input from the first optical sensor 42, the CPU 55 stops the printing operation.

Next, the operation of the facsimile apparatus configured as described above will be described. Figure 5 CP of controller C
It is a flow chart which shows a processing routine of control performed by U55.

When the processing shifts to this routine, first,
In step 101, the CPU 55 waits for reception of image information. When the image information is received here, the process proceeds to the next step 102, the recording paper P is supplied, the recording unit 3 and each motor are driven, and the printing operation is started. In the following step 103, it is determined whether or not the remaining amount mark 41 has been detected in the previous routine. Here, the remaining amount mark 41
If it is determined that has not been detected, the process proceeds to step 104. In step 104, it is determined whether or not the second optical sensor 43 has detected the remaining amount mark 41. If it is determined that the second optical sensor 43 has not detected the remaining amount mark 41, the process proceeds to step 105.

In step 105, it is judged whether or not the printing of the received image information is completed. When the printing is completed here, the process proceeds to step 106, the supply of the recording paper P, the driving of the recording unit 3 and the motors are stopped, and the printing operation is stopped. Then, the CPU 55 once ends the subsequent processing.

On the other hand, when it is determined in step 104 that the second optical sensor 43 has detected the remaining amount mark 41, the process proceeds to step 107. In step 107, "Please prepare a spare ink ribbon" on the display panel 60, "A4 → 20 more sheets can be printed",
Display “B5 → 23 more sheets can be printed”.

In the following step 108, it is determined whether or not the first optical sensor 42 has detected the end mark 40. Here, the first optical sensor 42 is connected to the end mark 40.
If it is determined that the above is not detected, step 109
Move to. In step 109, it is determined whether or not the printing of the received image information is completed. Here, when it is determined that the printing is not completed, that is, when it is determined that the printing is continued, the process proceeds to step 110. In step 110, the number of printable sheets of the recording paper P of each size displayed on the display panel 60 is counted down. Then, the process jumps to step 108 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

On the other hand, when it is determined in step 109 that the printing is completed, the process proceeds to step 111,
The printable number displayed on the display panel 60 is stored in the RAM.
It is stored in 57. After that, the process jumps to step 106 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

On the other hand, in step 108, the first
If it is determined that the optical sensor 42 detects the end mark 40, the process proceeds to step 112. Step 11
In 2, the display panel 60 displays “End. Replace with new ink ribbon”. And
The process jumps to step 106 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

When it is determined in step 103 that the remaining amount mark 41 has already been detected in the previous routine, the process proceeds to step 113, and the display panel 60 displays "Preparation of spare ink ribbon". please do it",
"A4 → N1 sheets can be printed", "B5 → N2 later"
You can print one sheet. " Where N1, N
The number displayed in 2 is the same as in step 11 of the previous routine.
1 is a number corresponding to the printable number stored in the RAM 57. Then, the process proceeds to step 108 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

The processing operation during the printing operation is executed as described above. As described above, in this embodiment, when the remaining amount mark 41 is detected during the printing operation, the display panel 60 displays
It is configured to display "Prepare spare ink ribbon" to prompt the user to replace the spare ink ribbon. That is, when the remaining amount of the ink ribbon 24 in use becomes small and the second sensor 43 detects the remaining amount mark 41, the display informs that the user is prompted to replace the spare ink ribbon. did. Therefore, the user can prepare a new ink ribbon before the use of the ink ribbon 24 is completed without hassle. As a result, it is possible to prevent the inconvenience of being unable to continue printing due to the absence of a new ink ribbon.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the remaining amount mark 41 is detected, the recording paper P of each size is displayed on the display panel 60.
Is displayed to show how many more sheets can be printed. As a result, the user looks at the number of printable sheets displayed on the display panel 60, determines when to prepare a new ink ribbon, and
The end timing of the printing work can be estimated and smoother paperwork can be performed.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but may be configured as follows, for example, without departing from the spirit of the invention. (1) In the above embodiment, the remaining amount mark 41 is formed at the end of the ink ribbon 24, that is, at a position separated by 6 meters from the position where the end mark 40 is formed, but this separation distance may be appropriately changed.

(2) In the above embodiment, after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected, the display panel 60 displays a message prompting the preparation of a new ink ribbon. That is, it is configured to visually notify the user. On the other hand, when the remaining amount mark 41 is detected, a buzzer sound or a voice may be used to do so.

(3) In the above embodiment, the recording paper P of each size is displayed on the display panel 60 after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected.
The number of printable sheets is displayed, but the remaining length of the ink ribbon 24 may be displayed.

(4) In the above-described embodiment, the embodiment is a facsimile machine, but the invention may be embodied in a thermal transfer type copying machine or printer using an ink ribbon. In this case, after the remaining amount mark 41 is detected, the display panel 60 displays how many more recording sheets can be copied (printed) so that the user can determine the number of originals to be copied, By collating with the printable sheet number displayed on the display panel 60, it is possible to easily determine whether or not the original can be completely copied with the ink ribbon.

[0043]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
A new ink ribbon can be prepared before the use of the ink ribbon is completed, and an inconvenience such as inability to continue printing can be prevented, and a smoother office work process can be achieved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a ribbon cassette, an ink ribbon, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a facsimile device.

FIG. 4 is a schematic rear view of the ink ribbon showing a formation state of an end mark and a remaining amount mark.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a screen state of a display panel when a remaining amount mark is detected.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a screen state of a display panel when an end mark is detected.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU.

FIG. 8 is likewise a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU.

[Explanation of symbols]

23 ... Thermal head, 24 ... Ink ribbon, recording paper as P paper, 41 ... Remaining mark, 43 ... Second optical sensor as remaining mark detecting means, 60 ... Display panel as notifying means

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a printing device in which ink of an ink ribbon is melted by a thermal head and transferred onto a sheet, a remaining amount mark provided at a position separated from an end of the ink ribbon to a starting end by a predetermined distance is provided. When the remaining amount mark detecting means for detecting and the remaining amount mark is detected by the detecting means,
A printing device provided with a notifying means for notifying the remaining amount.