JPS59201888A - Ribbon feeding mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable to print in forward and backward directions by a single printing ribbon and contrive to reduce the size of a printer, by a method wherein a printing ribbon let out from one of a pair of reels is inverted, and is supplied to the front face of a thermal head at vertically staggered positions in forward and backward passages. CONSTITUTION:A carbon ribbon 30a having a width of two times of that of an ordinary carbon ribbon is let out from the reel 31, is guided by being fitted to lower parts of guide rollers R4, R5, is twisted by 90 deg., is fitted to a roller R6, is twisted by 90 deg. in the direction for returning to the original side, is again fitted to the guide rollers R4, R5 at upper parts of the latter, and is taken up by the reel 32. The reel 32 is fixed to a shaft 33, and is rotated in one direction interlockedly with the reciprocating motion of a carrier to take up the carbon ribbon 30a. When printing in the forward direction, the tip of a cassette 30 is moved upward by a ribbon-lifting mechanism so that an upper edge part (a) of the lower ribbon part is used for printing. On the other hand, when printing in the backward direction, the tip of the cassette 30 is moved downward so that an upper edge part (b) of the upper ribbon part is used for printing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal blink that prints using a carbon ribbon, and in particular to a ribbon that has a simple structure, allows reciprocating printing, and allows for miniaturization of printers. Regarding improvements to the feeding mechanism.

(Background of technology) In recent years, serial printers such as thermal blink printers have been developed and put into practical use as office machines such as various computer terminals, but with the advancement of office automation, their use in offices has increased. Thermal printers that can print without noise are rapidly becoming popular.They are especially used in word processors and facsimile printers, and there is a demand for printers that can print at high speed, are compact, and are inexpensive.

Thermal blink is a device that selectively sends current to multiple resistance heating elements to form prints in the form of dots, and there are two types: one that prints by thermal transfer onto printing paper via a carbon ribbon, and the other that prints on heat-sensitive printing paper. be. The present invention is applied to the former case.

(cl) Prior Art and Problems The conventional method will be explained below with reference to Figs. 1 to 4. Fig. 1 is a plan view showing an outline of a thermal transfer printer;
2 is a side view of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a different conventional example, and FIG. 4 is a side view of the main part of FIG. 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, a platen 2 is rotatably supported on a side frame 1. Print paper 3 is on platen 2.
The printing paper 3 is 1 - 4a, 4
The paper is sent in the direction indicated by the arrow in the figure by a paper transport mechanism such as b.

Part of the front surface of the platen 2, in the lower part of the figure, is a carrier 5 slidably fitted into a guide shaft 1-6 installed parallel to the platen 2; It is threadedly engaged with a feed screw 7 provided in the.

The feed screw 7 is connected to a motor 9 via a belt 8 or the like, and therefore, the feed screw 7 can move the carrier 5 in the directions of arrows C and D in the figure by the forward and reverse rotation of the motor 9.

Carrier 5 is equipped with thermal throat 11,
The thermal head 11 is provided with a heat generating section composed of a plurality of resistive heat generating elements (not shown) in order to form prints using dots.

A ribbon sheath 10 is mounted on the carrier 5 so as to surround the thermal head 11, and a carbon ribbon LOa is built into the ribbon sheath 10 with a portion of it exposed to the platen 2 side.

The heat generating part faces the platen 2, and the carbon ribbon 1
The printed paper 3 is pressed with a constant pressure through 0a.

As shown by the broken line in the figure, a reel IOC, 10d is housed in the ribbon force center 10, a carbon ribbon 10a is wound around the reel 10c, and the carbon ribbon 10a is wound around the reel LOd. .

The shaft of the reel 10d is connected to a drive mechanism (not shown) that rotates in conjunction with the movement of the carrier 5 in the direction of arrow C.

Therefore, the carbon ribbon 1 fed out from the reel loc
The ribbon 0a is guided by the ribbon guy 1-13, passes between the front side of the heat generating part of the thermal head 11 and the platen 2, and is wound onto the reel 10d.

The surface of the carbon ribbon 10a is coated with, for example, hot-melt ink, so that carbon does not adhere to the printing paper 3 even if it touches it. However, when a character pattern signal is selectively sent to the heat generating part, the printing ton 1-position The heating element generates heat, and the carbon of the carbon ribbon 10a is thermally transferred to the printing paper 3.

Therefore, the carbon ribbon tOa can only be used once.

During the printing operation in the direction of arrow C, the carbon ribbon IO
The ribbon a is fed at the same speed as the carrier 5, and the ribbon feeding is stopped by the return operation in the direction of the arrow {circle around (2)}.

Further, as shown in FIG.
A vapor guide 14 is provided on the right side from the bottom of the platen 2, and guide rollers R1 and R2 are in contact with the platen 2 through a corner window (not shown) of the paper guide 14.

A presser roller R3 is arranged in contact with the upper part of the platen 2 to press and feed the printing paper 3 so that it does not loosen.

The printing paper 3 is printed from the rear of the platen 2)
It is guided by the guide rollers R1 and R2, and is inserted into the lower side of the platen 2, and is brought into close contact with the outer periphery of the platen 2 by guide rollers R1 and R2, and is placed vertically in the thermal direction. .

With such a configuration, when the No. 1 Marhenodo 11 operates, printing is performed on the printing paper 3 on the platen 2,
The thermal printer 1 prints on the printing paper 3 while moving in the direction of arrow C together with the carrier 5.

When printing for one digit is completed, an evacuation mechanism (not shown) moves the throat 11 to the thermal
At the same time, the printing paper 3 is moved away from the surface of the printing paper 3, and the tracks 4a, 4b, etc. are driven for line feed, and the predetermined feed amount is reached.
is transported in the direction of arrow A.

Then, the thermal head 11 moves in the direction of the arrow and returns to the Baum position.

Then, the thermal head 11 comes into contact with the surface of the printing paper 3 again and starts printing in the direction of arrow C.

In this way, the thermal head 11 prints when moving in the direction of arrow C, and does not print when moving in the direction of arrow C. Accordingly, the carbon ribbon +Oa is also wound up only when the thermal head 11 moves in the direction of arrow C.

However, according to this method, since the thermal head 11 can only print in one direction, the time for return movement is wasted, resulting in a slow printing processing speed, which has the disadvantage that it cannot meet the demand for faster printing.

In contrast, as shown in FIG. 3, a different conventional method has been proposed that enables reciprocating printing.

Fig. 3 shows a ribbon cassette 71-20 used in a thermal printer for reciprocating printing.
, 20b and reels 20C, 20d are arranged.

The reels 20a and 20d have carbon ribbons 10a and ]O
The carbon ribbons lQa and lOb are wound around the reels 20b and 20C.

The shafts 21.22 of the reels 20a to 20d have mechanisms (not shown), so that when the upper reels 2Qa and 20b rotate, the reels 20c and 20d stop, and the lower reels 20c rotate.
, 20d are rotated, the lever 20b is at rest.

As shown in FIG. 4, the ribbon cassette 20 mounted on the carrier 5 can switch between carbon ribbons lQa and lOb by moving its tip up and down by a lift magnet (not shown) provided on the carrier 5. .

The second carbon ribbon 10a is used for forward printing, and the lower carbon ribbon 10a is used for backward printing.

Then, by a drive mechanism that is linked to the outward movement of the carrier 5, the upper carbon ribbon lOa is wound onto the reel 20b during outward printing, and the lower carbon ribbon 10b is wound onto the reel 20b during backward printing. It is wound up at °C.

Therefore, since reciprocal printing can be performed, high-speed printing processing is possible.

However, according to this method, although it is possible to speed up the printing process by reciprocating printing, the two carbon ribbons] Oa,
1Ob, and the consumption of both ribbons is not necessarily the same, so the ribbon needs to be replaced frequently.
Since the reels 2°a to 20d are accommodated in two stages, the reels become thicker, so both the width and the thickness become larger. In particular, when the width of the ribbon holder 2o increases, restrictions are placed on the movement range of the carrier 5, making it narrower and reducing the printable range.

Therefore, it is necessary to meet the demand for miniaturization of printer devices.&I
It has the disadvantage of being small.

(d1 Purpose of the Invention The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks.
To provide a ribbon feeding mechanism capable of performing reciprocating printing with a book printing ribbon and downsizing a printer.

(e+ All invention configurations The present invention comprises a pair of reels in the ribbon accommodating section and a reversing means for reversing the printing ribbon fed out from the reels to the return path, and the printing ribbon is removed from either one of the pair of reels. This is a wire feeding mechanism characterized by feeding the thermal head, placing it on the upper F in a reciprocating path via a reversing means, supplying it to the front of the thermal head, and winding it onto the other reel, thereby achieving the purpose. can do.

(f1 Embodiment of the Invention An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing an embodiment according to the present invention, and FIG. The side view, FIG. 7, is an explanatory view of FIG. 5. The same reference numerals indicate the same objects throughout the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 5, the reel 31 is attached to the ribbon cassette 3o.
．． 32 are stored one on top of the other. The reel 31 has a width that can be used for printing on the top and bottom ('17'7, which is twice the width of normal ribbon).
) is wound around the carbon ribbon 30a. reel 3
1 is rotatably fitted on the shaft 33, and the reel 32 is! 1ll
It is fixed to I33 and rotates in one direction in conjunction with the reciprocal movement of a carrier (not shown) to wind up the carbon ribbon 30a.

The carbon ribbon 30a is reciprocated in two rows on both sides of the part where the carbon ribbon 30a is exposed from the ribbon cassette 30, that is, the part that is inserted into the front of the thermal hemlock f"11 shown by the two-dot chain line in the figure. Guide rollers R4 and R5 are provided at the lower left side, and a roller R6 is provided at the lower left side and has a length such that the width of the carbon ribbon 30a is oriented perpendicularly to the guide rollers R4 and R5. There is.

When the ribbon cassette 3o is mounted on the carrier 5, the No. 1 Marhenodo II is located between the guide rollers R4 and R5.

As shown in FIG. 6, the carbon ribbon 30a is attached to the reel 3.
1, the guide rollers R4, R5 are rolled out, guided by being hooked to the lower part of the guide rollers R4, R5, twisted 90 degrees and hooked to the roller R6, then twisted 90 degrees in the direction of returning the original surface, and the guide rollers R4, R5 are rolled out again. This time, it is hooked onto the upper part of R5, guided, and wound onto the reel 32.

Therefore, the upper part and the lower part are connected to the thermal nozzle 11.
The direction of travel is reversed at the front of the vehicle.

This winding speed is equal to the running speed of the thermal head 11, and the upper or lower carbon ribbon 30a is switched to be supplied to the front surface of the thermal head 11 so that the running direction is opposite. That is, new carbon surfaces are constantly supplied.

With this configuration, when printing, the ribbon cassette 30 is mounted on the carrier, and when a print signal for printing in the forward direction is issued, the tip of the ribbon cassette 30 is moved to the printer's ribbon lift (not shown). The carbon ribbon 30a is moved upward by the mechanism, and the upper position a of the lower carbon ribbon shown in FIG. 7 is used for printing.

When the carrier 5 is on the outward path and continues printing, the lower carbon ribbon 30a is used, which moves in the direction of arrow E in FIG. 7 at the same speed as the traveling speed of the thermal head 11.

At the time of line break, the tip of the ribbon cassette 30 moves downward,
The upper edge position of the upper carbon ribbon 30a traveling in the direction of arrow F is used for printing.

In this way, printing can be performed on the upper and lower sides of the carbon ribbon 30a, which is twisted and guided within the ribbon cassette 30 and runs while changing direction, by reciprocating printing using the thermal printing 11.

Therefore, reciprocating printing is possible and the printing processing speed can be increased. In addition, since the printing ribbon supply and take-up reel is in two stages, the width of the ribbon cassette 30 can be shortened, so the paper width can be used effectively by increasing the moving distance of the thermal head 11. This also has the effect that the printer can be made smaller if the moving distance is set to a predetermined length.

In the above embodiment, an example was explained in which the reels 31 and 32 are arranged coaxially in two stages, but reciprocating printing can be performed with one carbon ribbon 30a even if they are not coaxially arranged. Further, the position of the guide roller R6 is not limited to the example.

(g1 As described in detail of the invention, according to the present invention, one printing ribbon can be used for reciprocating printing, so that (1) the printing processing speed can be increased, and the demand for faster printing can be met.

■ Printing ribbon supply 2 Since the take-up reel is in two stages, it does not take up space for blinking. It is possible to downsize the printer with just one slave.

■The ribbon drive mechanism is simplified and only one ribbon end sensor is required. Therefore, it is possible to improve costs.

There are various effects.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a plan view showing an overview of a thermal transfer printer, Figure 2 is a side view of Figure 1, Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a different conventional example, Figure 4 is a side view of Figure 3, and Figure 5 is a side view of Figure 3. The figure is a plan view showing an embodiment according to the present invention, FIG. 6 is a side view of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of FIG. In the figure, 2 is a platen, 3 is a printing paper, 5 is a carrier, 10, 20.30 is a ribbon force cent, 10a, 10
b, 30a are carbon ribbons, 10c, 10d, 2
0a to 20d, 31.32 are reels, 11 is a thermal head, and R4-R6 are guide rollers. 3rd figure - 4th figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] a printing section including a thermal head facing the platen member; a ribbon accommodating section including a reel for accommodating the printing ribbon set in the printing section; and a drive section that moves back and forth in parallel, and each time the printing section moves, the ribbon accommodating section is oscillated and the printing medium set between the platen member and the printing ribbon is moved. In a thermal transfer printer device that prints on a printing medium through a non-slip printing ribbon during printing, a pair of reels are placed in the ribbon accommodating portion, and the printing ribbon fed out from the reel is reversed in a nine-way path. comprising a reversing means, for feeding out the printing ribbon from either one of the pair of reels,
A reel feeding mechanism, characterized in that the reel is arranged vertically in a reciprocating path via the reversing means, supplies the reel to the front surface of the thermal reel, and winds it onto the other reel.