JPH1158516A - Laminator and laminator-containing printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a laminator, which can transfer an original under a narrow installation area by a method wherein the installation area and an operation area are made smaller. SOLUTION: In a laminator, in which piled-up stack sheets 5 are pressed under heat by being inserted between a pair 5 of heating and pressing rollers so as to transfer images formed on one stack sheet 3 onto the other stack sheet 3, a conveying path is produced by arranging an inserting table 21 for inserting stack sheets in a pair 5 of the heating and pressing rollers and a delivery table 22 for delivering the stack sheets 3 from a pair 5 of the heating and pressing rollers parallel to each other or inflush with each other. The conveying path is arranged vertically or inclinedly so as to direct the conveying direction of the stack sheets to the vertical direction or inclined direction.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image formed on a receiver sheet by passing a heat-transferred receiver sheet and a paper to be transferred onto the paper sheet between a pair of pressurizing and heating rollers. Laminator to transfer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a printing plate is prepared from a color original and a large number of sheets are to be printed, proof printing is performed and the final printing is performed after confirming the finish. At this time, in the proof printing process, a color proof is created and checked. The color proof can be obtained by thermally transferring an image to a receiver sheet by a thermal printer, and then transferring the image formed on the receiver sheet to real paper by a laminator. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a stacked sheet state in which the book paper and the receiver sheet are overlapped. A receiver sheet 32 on which an image is formed by a thermal printer is placed on a paper sheet 31 placed on a carrier 33 made of aluminum or the like, with the image-formed surface side down, and the paper sheet 31 and the receiver The leading end of the sheet 32 in the insertion direction is covered with a cover sheet 34 made of polyimide or the like, and is inserted into the laminator insertion table in a state of being placed on the carrier 33, that is, a state of the stacked sheet 3. In this case, the process of superimposing the receiver sheet and the actual paper and passing the same through the laminator has been performed manually.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of installation of this conventional laminator. In the figure, 1 is a thermal printer, 2 is a laminator, 21 is an insertion base for the laminator,
Reference numeral 22 denotes a discharge table from the laminator, reference numeral 3 denotes a stacked sheet shown in FIG. 6, reference numeral 4 denotes a rack on which the thermal printer 1 and the laminator 2 are arranged above and below to secure a space, and reference numeral 5 denotes a pressurization for pressurizing and heating the stacked sheet. -It is a heating roller pair. Book 3
When the laminated sheet 3 including the carrier 33 on which the sheet 1 and the receiver sheet 32 are placed is inserted into the laminator 2 from the insertion table 21, the laminated sheet 3 passes between the pressurizing / heating roller pair 5 and is applied. The sheet is pressed, heated, laminated, and discharged from the discharge table 22.

As described above, in the conventional apparatus, the thermal printer 1 and the laminator 2 are stacked in two stages using the rack 4 to reduce the installation area. However, the insertion table 21 and the discharge table 22 protrude to the left and right of the laminator 2, and still require a considerable installation area. In addition, since the overlapped sheet 3 is manually inserted into the laminator 2, a space where a person can enter and exit is required in addition to the insertion table 21 and the discharge table 22.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a laminator capable of transferring a real paper with a small installation area by reducing an installation area and an operation area. It is assumed that.

[0006]

To achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, an insertion table for inserting a superposed sheet in which a receiver sheet after thermal transfer and a paper to be transferred are superimposed. Transferring the image formed on the receiver sheet, comprising: a pressurizing / heating roller pair that pressurizes and heats the laminated sheet therebetween and a discharge table that discharges the laminated sheet; In the laminator, at least one of the insertion table and the discharge table is arranged so as to be inclined so as to be vertical or inclined. According to this laminator, since the insertion table and / or the discharge table are arranged so as to be inclined so that the insertion table and / or the discharge table are in the vertical or inclined direction, a conventional insertion table or discharge table with the same length is provided in the horizontal direction. The horizontal installation area and the operation area are smaller than those of the laminator.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, an insertion table for inserting a stacked sheet in which a receiver sheet after thermal transfer and a paper to be transferred are overlapped with each other, and pressurized by passing the stacked sheet therebetween. A laminator for transferring an image formed on a receiver sheet, comprising a pressurizing / heating roller pair for heating and a discharge base for discharging the superposed sheet, to the book paper; It is characterized in that an inclined table is formed so that the sheet can drop and slide down below the insertion table. According to this laminator, since the inclined table is provided on the discharge side of the roller pair, the overlapped sheet inserted from the insertion table of the roller pair slides down the inclined table and is discharged to the lower side of the insertion table again. The operation area on the discharge side becomes unnecessary, so that the installation area and the operation area are reduced accordingly, and the insertion and discharge operations can be performed only from the same surface side.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, an image formed on the receiver sheet by passing the heat-transferred receiver sheet and the paper to be transferred on the superposed sheet between the pressure / heat roller pair is formed. The present invention is characterized in that a printer with a built-in laminator is provided in the lamination sheet conveying path of the printer, in which the laminator for transferring to the real paper is provided. According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the printer with a built-in laminator, the pressurizing / heating roller is controlled so as not to pressurize and heat at least one of the leading end and the trailing end of the overlapped sheet. It is a feature. Also,
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the printer with a built-in laminator, the pressure / heating roller pair is movable so as to be able to come into contact with and detach from the stacked sheet.

According to the printer with a built-in laminator according to the third to fifth aspects, the pressurizing / heating roller pair is provided in the sheet conveying path of the printer, so that the printing on the receiver sheet and the transfer to the main paper are performed in a series. The operation is automatically performed by the transport operation, and the operation area that is required by performing the operation manually in the past becomes unnecessary, and accordingly, the installation area is significantly reduced. Further, by moving the roller pair in the separating direction so as not to pressurize and heat, for example, the leading end of the stacked sheets in the conveying direction, a non-adhered portion can be formed at the leading end of the stacked sheets in the conveying direction.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of a laminator according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment of a laminator according to the present invention. The laminator 2 is provided with a pressure / heating roller pair 5, and one or both of the pressure / heating roller pairs 5 are heat rollers. As shown in FIG. 6, the receiver sheet 32 and the main paper 31
Table 21 on which a stacked sheet 3 (hereinafter, referred to as a “stacked sheet”) 3 in which the sheets are stacked on a carrier 33 is placed and inserted.
Is provided. On the other hand, on the discharge side of the pressure / heating roller pair 5, a discharge table 22 for receiving the discharged stacked sheet 3 is provided. The insertion table 21 and the discharge table 22
Is inclined so as to have a downward gradient (θ) toward the transport direction of the first direction. The receiver sheet on which an image has been formed by the thermal printer is stacked on the main paper with the front side on which the image is formed facing down, and placed on the carrier from the oblique insertion table 21 in the laminator 2 in the same manner as in the related art. Is supplied to the pressing / heating roller pair 5, the image on the receiver sheet is transferred to the paper by pressing and heating the overlap sheet 3 inserted from the insertion table 21, and then the receiver sheet and the paper are transferred to the carrier. Is discharged to the oblique discharge table 22 while being placed on the tray.

In the laminator 2, the transport path having the entire length L composed of the insertion table 21 and the discharge table 22 is provided at an angle θ with respect to the horizontal plane, so that when the transport path is provided in the horizontal direction. In comparison, the horizontal distance is L (1-c
osθ). Therefore, according to the laminator 2, since the transport path is provided at an inclination, the sum of the installation area and the operation area can be reduced, and is narrower than the conventional laminator in which the transport path is provided in the horizontal direction. The paper transfer can be performed in the installation area.

In the above-described first embodiment, an example has been described in which the transport path is provided at an angle θ with respect to the horizontal plane. However, the transport path is provided with means for preventing the stacked sheets 3 from falling off, for example, a cover sheet. 34, it can also be provided vertically. According to the laminator having such a configuration,
The horizontal installation area can be further reduced as compared with the case where the transport path is inclined.

Next, a second embodiment of the laminator according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the laminator according to the present invention. The laminator 2 according to this embodiment is provided with an inclined base 23 which is inclined downward from the discharge side of the pressurizing / heating roller pair 5 toward the lower side of the insertion base 21 of the pressurizing / heating roller pair 5. The lower end of 23 extends below the insertion table 21. The sliding surface of the overlapping sheet of the inclined table 23 is formed as a smooth surface having a small frictional resistance. Therefore, the pressing / heating roller pair 5
Sheet 3 ′ discharged from the upper surface of the inclined table 23 by its own weight, slides down on the inclined table 23 by gravity, and finally locks below the insertion table 21 (the laminated sheet 3 ″ is The locked state is shown.)

According to the laminator 2, the overlapped sheet 3 inserted from the insertion side of the pressure / heating roller pair 5 slides down the inclined table 23 and is discharged again to the insertion side. The operation area on the side becomes unnecessary. As a result, the sum of the installation area and the operation area can be reduced, and the actual paper transfer can be performed with a small installation area. Also, since the insertion and ejection operations can be performed from the same surface (for example, the front surface),
Operability can be improved.

Next, a third embodiment of the laminator according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a printer with a built-in laminator according to the present invention, which is an explanatory diagram at the time of a laminating operation. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram at the time of a printing operation of the printer with a built-in laminator of FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a built-in printer when a receiver sheet is discharged. The printer with a built-in laminator according to this embodiment is configured as a printer 6 with a built-in laminator by providing a pair of pressurizing / heating rollers in the sheet conveyance path of the printer. The printer 6 with a built-in laminator has a platen 6
01, a thermal head 61 having a heating element opposed to the platen 601, an ink ribbon 64 sandwiched between the platen 601 and the thermal head 61 and sent together with the print, and a receiver sheet wound with a receiver sheet 632. Supply roll 6320 and book paper 6
A paper feed cassette 6310 for storing the paper 31, a discharge tray 6314 for discharging the paper 631 onto which the image has been transferred,
Receiver sheet 63 after transferring the image to main paper 631
Tray 6326 for discarding 2 and heat roller pair 6
03 and a peeling roller 602 as main constituent members.

The paper feed cassette 6310 has a spring 631
2, a sheet metal 6311 urged upward by 2 is provided.
The sheet metal 6311 urges the paper 631 upward and presses it against the pickup roller 604. Pickup roller 6
04 pressed by the pickup roller 6
By the rotation of 04, one sheet of the upper surface is inserted between the pressurizing / heating heat roller pair 603 by the sheet feeding roller 605.

The pressure / heating heat roller pair 603 is rotatable forward and backward, and is movable in directions approaching and moving away from each other. Heating roller pair 603
Is configured to convey the sheet (receiver sheet 632 and book paper 631) while pressing and heating the sheet while moving in the approaching direction, and release the pressurizing and heating of the sheet while moving in the separating direction. A receiver sheet cutter 6325 is provided in a waste path 6324 between the pressurizing / heating heat roller pair 603 and the waste tray 6326, and the receiver sheet cutter 6325 cuts the transferred receiver sheet 632 conveyed to the waste path 6324. It has become.

The operation of the thus-configured printer 6 with a built-in laminator will be described. At the time of printing, the receiver sheet 632 is supplied to the supply roll 6320 as shown in FIG.
Then, an image is printed by the thermal head 61 while being wound on the supply roll 6320 again in the direction of the arrow shown in the drawing. At this time, the pressurizing / heating heat roller pair 603 is on standby while moving in the separating direction, and is brought into a non-contact state with the receiver sheet 632. In the case of color printing, this sequence is repeated by the number of colors.

After the printing on the receiver sheet 632 is completed, in order to transfer the image to the real paper 631, the receiver sheet 632 on which the image is printed is sent out again by one sheet, and the leading end portion of the image when recording the image is pressurized and heated. Heat roller pair 60
3 is placed near the insertion position. Next, the paper 631 is removed from the paper feed cassette 6310 by the pickup roller 604.
, The tip is pressurized and heated heat roller pair 603
At the time of passing, the pressure / heating heat roller pair 603 is moved in the approaching direction, and the receiver sheet 632 and the actual paper 63 are moved.
3 are simultaneously conveyed upward in FIG. 3 while heating under pressure. At this time, when the leading end passes through the pressurizing / heating heat roller pair 603, the leading end of the paper 631 is not bonded to the receiver sheet 632 by approaching the pressurizing / heating heat roller pair 603.

The leading end of the paper 631 that is not adhered to the receiver sheet 632 is peeled off by the peeling roller 602, and the paper 631 peeled off from the receiver sheet 632 is discharged to the discharge tray 6314 by the transport roller 606 after peeling. The separation of the paper 631 can be performed more reliably by inserting the tip of the separation claw 65 between the receiver sheet 632 and the paper 631. Pressurization·
When the vicinity of the rear end of the book 631 has passed, the heated heat roller pair 603 is separated again and returns to the standby position.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the receiver sheet 632 sends the portion transferred to the main paper 631 to the position of the receiver sheet cutter 6325, cuts the transferred portion, and discards it on the waste tray 6326. Note that the step of sending out the receiver sheet 632 for disposal also serves as the step of sending out for preparation of the next print. In this sending-out step, the heat roller (left side in the figure) on the back side may not be separated. In this case, the receiver sheet on which the next printing is to be performed is preliminarily heated, so that the material on the recording surface of the receiver sheet is stabilized, and the recording sensitivity is stabilized.

When the transfer process to the actual paper 631 is omitted, the receiver sheet 632 is sent out after printing, the printed portion is discharged to the waste tray 6326, and then cut by the receiver sheet cutter 6325. The transfer receiver sheet 632 may be discharged to a waste tray 6326 and obtained.

According to the printer 6 with a built-in laminator according to this embodiment, by providing the laminator in the printer, the transfer to the real paper 631 can be performed automatically. ,
Accordingly, the installation area can be significantly reduced. Further, since the transfer can be performed automatically, the transfer operation can be saved. Further, when the leading end of the paper 631 passes through the pressure / heating heat roller pair 603, the pressure / heating by the pressure / heating heat roller pair 603 is performed.
The leading end of the paper 631 and the receiver sheet 632 can be in a non-adhered state, and the releasability between the paper 631 and the receiver sheet 632 can be improved.

[0024]

EXAMPLES In the examples, the following were used. Receiver sheet: FIRS manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
T PROOF Receiver sheet A3WL. Thermal transfer ribbon: FIRST PR manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
OOF proof ribbon J. This paper: Tokishi art paper. Carrier and cover sheet: FIRST PROOF guide plate manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. The resolution of the thermal head was 300 dpi, the surface temperature of the heat roller was set at 170 ° C., and the transport speed during lamination was 7 mm / s in the first and second embodiments, and 12 mm / s in the third embodiment.

[0025]

As described above in detail, according to the laminator according to the present invention, the conveying path is arranged vertically or inclined so that the sheet conveying direction is vertical or inclined. The installation area and the operation area can be reduced, and the paper transfer can be performed in a smaller installation area as compared with the conventional laminator in which the transport path is provided in the horizontal direction. According to the laminator in which the inclined table is provided on the discharge side of the roller pair, the sheet inserted from the insertion side of the roller pair can be discharged again to the insertion side, so that the operation area on the discharge side which was conventionally required is unnecessary. And the installation area and operation area can be reduced. Further, since the insertion and ejection operations can be performed from the same surface side, the operability can be improved. According to the laminator, which has a pair of rollers in the sheet transport path of the printer, the transfer to the actual paper can be performed automatically, eliminating the need for the operation area that was previously required by performing the operation manually. Can be smaller. In addition, if the roller pair is moved in the separating direction so as not to pressurize and heat, for example, the leading end of the superposed sheets in the conveying direction, the releasability of the sheets can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment of a laminator according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the laminator according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram illustrating a printer with a built-in laminator according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and is an explanatory diagram during a laminating operation.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the printer with a built-in laminator of FIG. 3 during a printing operation.

5 is an explanatory diagram of the printer with a built-in laminator of FIG. 3 when a receiver sheet is discharged.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a stacked state of the paper, the receiver sheet, and the carrier.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of installation of a conventional laminator.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Thermal printer 2 Laminator 21 Insertion stand 22 Ejection stand 23 Inclined stand 3 Stacked sheet 31 Paper 32 Receiver sheet 33 Carrier 34 Cover sheet 4 Rack 5 Pressing / heating roller pair 6 Printer with built-in laminator. 601 Platen 602 Peeling Roller 603 Pressure / Heat Heat Roller Pair 604 Pickup Roller 605 Feed Roller 606 Peeling Roller 61 Thermal Head 631 Paper 6310 Paper Feed Cassette 6311 Sheet Metal 6312 Spring 6313 Paper Guide Plate 6314 Paper Eject Tray 632 Receiver Sheet 6320 Receiver sheet supply roll 6324 Receiver sheet disposal path 6325 Receiver sheet cutter 6326 Receiver sheet disposal tray 64 Ink ribbon 640 Ink ribbon supply roll 641 Ink ribbon take-up roll 65 Peeling claw

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An insertion table for inserting a superimposed sheet in which a receiver sheet after thermal transfer and a paper to be transferred are superimposed, a pair of pressurizing and heating rollers for pressurizing and heating the superposed sheet therebetween. A discharge table for discharging the stacked sheets, and a laminator for transferring an image formed on the receiver sheet to the book paper, wherein at least one of the insertion table and the discharge table is in a vertical or inclined direction. A laminator characterized by being arranged at an inclination. 2. An insertion table for inserting a stacked sheet in which a receiver sheet after thermal transfer and a paper sheet to be transferred are overlapped, and a pair of pressurizing / heating rollers for pressurizing and heating the stacked sheet therebetween. And a discharge table for discharging the stacked sheet, wherein the laminator transfers an image formed on the receiver sheet to the book paper, wherein the discharged sheet is dropped below the insertion table. A laminator characterized in that it has an inclined base that can slide down. 3. A laminator for transferring an image formed on the receiver sheet through a pressure / heating roller pair and transferring the image formed on the receiver sheet after superimposing the receiver sheet after thermal transfer and the paper to be transferred to the printer. A printer with a built-in laminator, which is provided in a stacked sheet conveyance path. 4. The printer with a built-in laminator, wherein a pressurizing / heating roller is controlled so as not to pressurize or heat at least one of a leading end portion and a trailing end portion of the overlapped sheet. Printer with built-in laminator. 5. The printer with a built-in laminator according to claim 3, wherein the pressurizing / heating roller pair is movable so as to be able to contact and separate from the superposed sheet.