JPS59169875A - Thermal transfer recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent a thermal transfer sheet from being wrinkled, by a method wherein a rotatable roller provided at a position for contacting a base film surface of a thermal transfer sheet is provided on its peripheral surface with spiral form projected friction streaks the spiral directions of which are opposite to each other from a center toward both ends of the roller. CONSTITUTION:The thermal transfer sheet 1 rolled with a solid ink layer on the inside is passed through a roller 3 rotated in the direction of an arrow, is brought into close contact with a recording paper 2 between a thermal head 4 and a press roller 5, where an ink is melted by the heat supplied from the thermal head 4 and is transferred onto the paper 2, and then the sheet 1 is taken up by a take-up roll 7. The roller 3 is provided with the spiral form projected friction streaks 21 by spirally winding a silicone rubber or the like around a metallic round rod 22 in different winding directions from a central part toward both ends of the rod 22. The winding directions of the streaks 21 are in a direction from the center to the ends with respect to the rotating direction of the roller 3.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording device, and particularly to a thermal transfer recording device that improves the running properties of a thermal transfer sheet and enables good recording.

Recording devices using a thermal head include a thermal recording device using a thermal recording paper and a thermal transfer recording device using a thermal transfer sheet. A thermal recording device is a device that uses thermal recording paper with a colorless thermosensitive coloring layer on a pace sheet.The thermal head is brought into direct contact with the thermosensitive coloring layer, and the thermal head generates heat in accordance with the image signal. Obtained by coloring a coloring layer.

A thermal transfer recording device is a device that uses a thermal transfer sheet with an ink layer on a base film that is solid at room temperature but melts when heated, and uses a thermal head that brings the thermal transfer sheet and recording paper into close contact with the base film. Recording is obtained by generating heat in response to an image signal to melt the ink and transfer it to recording paper.

In such a thermal transfer recording device, recording is performed by heating the thermal transfer sheet from the base film side of the thermal transfer sheet and melting the solid ink, so the recording characteristics of the thermal transfer sheet depend not only on the ink characteristics but also on the characteristics of the base film, especially The thermal conductivity and thickness of the base film are strongly affected, and the thinner the base film, the better the recording characteristics. Furthermore, since the thermal head is exposed to high temperatures, the base film is required to have heat resistance.

For these reasons, very thin capacitor paper with a Fi of about 6 μm to 10 μm is often used as the base film of thermal transfer sheets. Therefore, the thermal transfer sheet becomes stiff and tends to sag from side to side when running, causing waves in the thermal transfer sheet in the running direction and wrinkles in the thermal transfer sheet near the thermal head. When wrinkles occur in the thermal transfer sheet as described above, a problem arises in that recording cannot be performed in the wrinkled areas.

An object of the present invention is to prevent wrinkles in a thermal transfer sheet using a simple mechanism.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a thermal transfer recording device showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which a thermal transfer sheet 1 wound with a solid ink layer on the inside is rotated by a roller 3 that is forcibly rotated in the direction of the arrow. The solid ink is brought into close contact with the recording paper 2 between the thermal head 4 and the presser roller 5, and the solid ink is melted by the heat from the thermal head 4 and transferred to the recording paper 2, after which it is wound up on the take-up roll 7. . On the other hand, the recording paper 2 passes through a round bar guide roller 8, receives ink at the thermal head 4, and is then discharged to the outside of the recording apparatus by a recording paper feed roller 6. FIG. 2 shows the specific structure of the roller 6. That is, the roller 3 is a metal round bar 22
Friction protrusions 21 are formed by winding a silicone rubber band in a helical manner with different twisting directions from the center toward both left and right ends.
It has been established. This roller 3 is attached to the device shown in FIG. 1 and forced to rotate in the direction of the arrow. Note that the twisting direction of this friction protrusion 21 is
The direction is from the center to the end of the shaft relative to the rotation direction of the shaft.

If a guide roller similar to 8 in FIG. 1 were installed instead of the roller 3, the thermal transfer sheet would be undulated due to the aforementioned reason, that is, the stiffness of the thermal transfer sheet would be weak between the thermal head 4 and the presser roller 5. In contrast, by employing a roller 3 having friction ridges 21 and forcibly rotating the roller 3 in the direction of the arrow, wrinkles may easily occur between the friction ridges 21 of the roller 3 and the thermal transfer sheet 1. Since frictional force is generated and the thermal transfer sheet is spread out in the width direction, the thermal transfer sheet will not be undulated, wrinkles will not occur in the thermal transfer sheet, and recording defects will not occur.

In the above-described embodiments of the present invention, the friction ridges are an example in which the roller is a metal rod with a rubber band spirally wound around it, but the invention is not limited to this. For example, the friction ridges are integrally formed by processing the metal rod itself. A similar effect can be obtained.

As explained above, the thermal transfer recording apparatus of the present invention has the effect of being able to perform good recording without causing button wrinkles on the thermal transfer sheet.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a thermal transfer recording apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is an enlarged front view of a roller. Iid thermal transfer sheet, 2 is recording paper, 3 is roller, 4Fi thermal head, 5 is presser roller, 6 is recording paper feed roller, 2
This is a single friction ridge. Patent applicant Nippon Electric Co., Ltd. Figure 1 Figure 2 1 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a thermal transfer recording device that records on a thermal head, the thermal transfer sheet and the recording paper, which are carried in separately, are brought into close contact with each other on the thermal head, and the thermal transfer sheet is rotated to a position where it comes into contact with the base film surface of the thermal transfer sheet before recording. 1. A thermal transfer recording device, comprising: a roller; a friction ridge protruding spirally on the surface of the roller; and the spiral direction is opposite to each other from the center to both ends.