JPS5845976A - Thermal transfer printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To perform preferable transfer print at a high speed by detecting the presence or absence of a signal applied to a dot, thereby varying the moving speed of a thermal head in response to the presence or absence of the dot signal. CONSTITUTION:A CPU 3 generate a printing pattern fed through a signal line S1 from a host computer 2 and obtained from an ROM 7 which operates a function as a character generator based on the printing code stored in an RAM 6. The CPU 2 examine whether there is a heating dot signal in the printing pattern code or not. With the result, the CPU 2 varies the optimum pulse width according to the presence or absence of the dot signal in a motor 4 through a signal line S2 and a driver 3. The driver 3 is connected to the dot units DT1-DT7 of a thermal head 5, thereby energizing the dots according to the respective printing signals.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention is a thermal transfer printer, a detailed guide to the thermal head; after applying a print signal and performing thermal transfer printing, the thermal head is moved a predetermined amount to print sequentially. A new thermal transfer printer.

When performing transfer printing using a normal thermal printer,
The amount of heat generated per dot in the thermal head is the same as that of normal thermal printing (that is, without using a thermal transfer bond).
(hereinafter referred to as thermal printing)
It requires approximately 3.5 times the amount of heat generated compared to that of . now,
” The heat generation amount per dot in the thermal head C is W (mJ), the resistance value is R (Ω), and the applied voltage is V (v
), and the heat generation time is t (msee)2, then the heat generation amount W (mJ) becomes W=Ht.

For example, if the resistance value per dot is 11Ω, the optimal amount of heat generated by each dot for thermal printing is 2.1Ω.
If it is mJ, then .

11. Head ζ: It is necessary to satisfy the relationship shown in FIG. If so, it is necessary to satisfy the relationship shown in FIG. 2 between the voltage applied to the head and the heat generation time.

From the relationship in the above equation, if the resistance value R of the thermal head is constant, the amount of heat generated can be increased. One possible method is to lengthen the time t.In the case of thermal transfer, 1. Since the amount of heat generated from the thermal head determined by the above equation requires time to be transmitted to the transfer paper (-10 minutes, The amount of heat generated is increased by keeping the voltage ■ constant and increasing the heat generation time.

7 as a thermal head for a conventional thermal transfer printer
This is a printer that prints one digit with 5 x 7 dots by moving the thermal head arrayed in a vertical direction (-1 row) 5 times in the horizontal direction, and the motor that drives this thermal head is 1 m-4 phase. If you use a pulse motor, 1
The digit transfer cycle is the position C where the thermal head generates heat; the time it takes for the thermal head to move and come to rest; that is, the time it takes for the 4-phase pulse motor that drives the thermal head to reach the next excitation C - complete (; time for the thermal head to become stable). The sum of tM and the time tH for heating and transferring the thermal head (1
M + tH) 5 times and 2 dots between digits, total 7
Cycle C; is therefore constructed.

FIG. 3C shows a 1-digit transfer cycle when transferring and printing "1", and in FIG.
indicate the dots of the thermal head, and 59s
1 to Sφ4 indicate excitation windings of a four-phase pulse motor. Between digits 1 and heat cycle 1, C has no dot printing signal,
Further, in heat cycle 2, a print signal is applied to DT2 and DT7, and in heat cycle 3, a print signal is applied to all dots 1, and in heat cycle 4, a print signal is applied to
-D771: A print signal is applied and "1" is printed.

Now, assuming a printer with 80 digits per line, -C; requires a time of (1 digit cycle) x 80 + carriage return to transfer one line. In the case of thermal transfer, the thermal head generates heat and the amount of heat generated from the transfer paper C requires time to be transmitted sufficiently, so the time required to complete one line is significantly longer than with thermal printing. In other words, the difference in the amount of heat generated between thermal transfer and thermal printing is proportional to the length of time the thermal head generates heat when the applied voltage is the same.Therefore, thermal transfer requires a large amount of heat. Thermal print C: The cycle is one order of magnitude longer than that, and the running time of the thermal head is significantly slower.

On the other hand, when it is not necessary to consider the heat generation time for the thermal head C2, that is, for example, at the time of carriage return C, the carriages of both the thermal transfer printer and the thermal printer travel in the same amount of time. In other words, the pair of shift motors 6 that move the carriage have enough margin to drive regardless of the heat generation time.

For example, in FIG. 3, there are no dots that generate heat in the two cycles between the digits, heat cycle 1 and heat cycle 5C. If there are no dots that generate heat, it is not necessary to generate heat from the thermal head and transfer the amount of heat to the transfer paper C; 1H. Well, this part is the same as the condition for carriage return.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these points (-), and provides a thermal transfer printer that can control the optimal driving time of the motor (pair of motors that drive the thermal head) to improve the thermal transfer speed and perform printing. The committee's purpose is to provide the following.

According to the present invention C, in order to achieve this object, a configuration is adopted in which the presence or absence of an applied dot signal is detected, and the moving speed of the thermal head is varied accordingly. .In other words, when there is a dot signal that generates heat, C
2 is the thermal head C: C-1 is designed to give the optimum heat generation time for transfer to the thermal head C; and when there is no dot signal to generate heat (- is the C-1 to control the optimum drive time that can be driven to the moving motor C). In order to increase the transfer speed, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below.

FIG. 4 (- indicates the present invention C; the structure of the thermal printer control unit is shown as a block; the reference numeral 1 indicates the thermal transfer printer C; the connected host computer is connected via two signal lines s1; Print command CP
U (Central Processing Unit) 2c; Give. The CPU 2 is sent from the host computer 1 via the signal line S1 to the RAM.
Based on the print code (-) stored in the (random access memory) 6, a print pattern obtained from the ROM (read-only memory) 7, which functions as a character generator, is generated. ) and "FF" to check whether there is a print pattern code C; dot signal that generates heat. As a result,
The presence or absence of the two-dot signal is inputted to the motor section 4g via the T-driver 3; therefore, the optimum pulse width is varied and inputted. Further, the driver 3c- is connected to each of the dot portions DT1 to DT7C of the thermal head 5, and energizes each print signal (-therefore, each dot C).

In this way-configured printer C; for example,
Considering the case of printing "1", the dot signal that generates heat in the heat cycle 2,3. The thermal head (speed C) is controlled such that an optimum heat generation time is given for the thermal head, while the dot signal is not applied during the other cycles and between the digits (;
The speed of the motor 4 is increased and the optimum driving time C is controlled.

Similarly, in Fig. 6 (; is rOJ,
7 (:, the applied pulses are shown, as well as C
When there is a dot signal to be heated, the motor is set so that each drum is given the optimum heating time for transfer.
; On the other hand, when no other dot signal to generate heat is applied, the speed is made as fast as possible in 1; and the moving speed of the motor is controlled so as to increase the overall transfer speed.

As explained above (-1 Invention C), according to the thermal head, the negative dot C; the presence or absence of the applied signal C; therefore, the moving speed of the thermal head is varied (; The head feeding speed can be increased, and good thermal transfer printing can be performed at an increased printing speed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a graph showing the relationship between the applied voltage and heat generation time for a head used in thermal printing, and Figure 2 is a graph showing the relationship between the applied voltage and heat generation time for a head used in thermal transfer. A graph diagram, an explanatory diagram showing a 1-digit transfer cycle in the case of transfer printing T of [ms+ heating strip 1], and a tJ116 diagram are signal waveform diagrams showing another example of transfer printing according to the present invention.1・°・Host computer 2, CPU 3... Driver 4... Thermal head drive pulse motor 5.
・Thermal head 6-RAM
'7...ROM0 Figure 1? C) OW=2.1 [m,]) R=11 [river] Go to Figure 2! Mouth; Part 3 fig. 1 Sashite lla ”J t Iku IL fig. 5 1 屓su im!J cycle

Claims (1)

[Claims] Dot C of the thermal head: A thermal transfer printer that applies a print signal and moves the thermal head by a predetermined amount after thermal transfer printing to sequentially perform printing (-, the dot C; means for detecting the presence or absence of an applied signal) A thermal transfer printer characterized in that the moving speed of the thermal head is changed depending on the presence or absence of the dot signal.