JPS59207267A - Thermal printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the backward sending of printing papers by separating the printing paper from an ink ribbon without the use of any specific device by providing a notch on a part of the periphery of a platen roller in a thermal transfer color printer. CONSTITUTION:An ink ribbon 4 alternatly coated with plural colors of inks in the longitudinal direction and a printing paper 3 are supplied between a thermal head 2 and a platen roller 8 having a notch 9 on its periphery. When printing is made with a color of ink, a ribbon sender 5 and a paper sender 6 are operated while turning the platen 8 and the ribbon 4 and the paper 3 are moved at the same speed. During the period, the periphery of the platen 8 is pressingly contacted with the head 2 through the paper 3 and the ribbon 4. When the notch 9 reaches the position facing the head 2, printing is ended, and the paper 3 is separated from the ribbon 4. Meanwhile, the ribbon 4 is stopped, the paper 3 is sent backwards to the print startup position, and a preparation for the next color printing is made.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] Technical field of invention The present invention relates to a thermal printer.

Technical background of the invention and its problems Conventionally, as shown in Fig. 1, a cylindrical platen (1)
Paper (3) and ribbon (
4), and this ribbon (4) has a dividing line perpendicular to the ribbon feeding direction and is colored, for example, yellow, magenta,
They are divided into multiple colors such as cyan, yellow, magenta, cyan, etc. Ribbon (4) and paper (3)
is sent in one direction at the same speed to print in the desired color, then the ribbon (4) is stopped, and the printed portion of the paper (3) is placed on the surface facing the thermal head (2) and the ribbon (
Multi-color printing is achieved by sending only the paper (3) in the opposite direction so that it faces the other colored parts of 4), and then sending the paper (3) and ribbon (4) in the same direction again for printing. There are thermal printers designed to do this. In such a device, when only the paper (3) is sent in the feeding direction, it is necessary to separate the paper (3) from the ribbon (4) to prevent the paper (3) from getting dirty. For this reason, the platen (1) and thermal head (
2) must be supported so that they can move toward and away from each other, but such a device has the disadvantage of complicating the structure.

Purpose of the Invention The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is designed to simplify the structure, reduce size, and reduce the size of the paper in a device that performs multicolor printing by feeding paper back and forth and facing the same thermal head multiple times. The object of the present invention is to provide a thermal printer that can reduce the amount of paper and prevent stains on paper.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides printing by feeding long ribbons and paper, which are color-coded with division lines perpendicular to the ribbon feeding direction, in one direction at the same speed, and printing on the paper in an overlapping manner with other colors. At this time, the paper is separated from the thermal head and the ribbon by facing the cut surface formed on the outer periphery of the platen to the thermal head.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the paper from becoming dirty due to friction with the ribbon, and the structure is such that it is sufficient to simply form a cut surface on the platen, allowing for miniaturization and simplification.

Embodiment of the Invention An embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 8. Components that are the same as those shown in FIG. 1 will be described using the same reference numerals. The ribbon (4) is colored repeatedly in the order of yellow (Y), magenta (2), and cyan (C) in a direction perpendicular to the ribbon feeding direction so as to face the thermal head (2). And this ribbon (4
) to feed the ribbon in one direction (5) and this ribbon (
4) and a paper feed section (6) that feeds the paper (3) at the same speed as the paper (3). This paper feeding section (6) is connected to a motor that can freely rotate in forward and reverse directions. (7) is a ribbon feed roller.

However, there is paper (3) on a part of the outer periphery of the platen (8).
A cut surface (9) that is slightly longer than the width of is formed.

In such a configuration, from the state shown in FIG. 5 through the state shown in FIG. 6 to the state shown in FIG. Printing is performed during the process of feeding the ribbon (4) and paper (3) to the left at the same speed. During this time, the outer peripheral surface of the platen (8) faces the thermal head (2). The platen (8) continues to rotate, but at the timing when the cut surface (9) faces the thermal head (2) as shown in Fig. 8, the paper feed section (6) completely reverses and the paper (3) is rotated. 1.1 bon (4)
) to face other colored parts. Immediately after this, the fifth
From the state shown in the figure, through the state shown in FIG. 6, to the state shown in FIG. 7, the paper (3) and ribbon (4) are fed at the same speed and printed in other colors. Three-color printing is performed by repeating this operation three times. Therefore, contents such as labels and admission tickets are continuously printed on the paper (3).

In this way, when the paper (4) is returned to the right by itself, the paper (4) can be separated from the thermal head (2) and the ribbon (4) by forming the cut surface (9). 3) and the ribbon (4) do not come into contact with each other, and it is possible to prevent the paper (3) from getting dirty. Paper (
3) The structure for separating it from the thermal head (2) and the ribbon (4) is simply formed by forming a cut surface (9) on the platen (8), which is extremely simple and can also be miniaturized.

Effects of the Invention Since the present invention is configured as described above, when paper is sent together with the ribbon, printed, and only the paper is returned, the paper can be separated from the thermal head and the ribbon by the cut surface formed on the platen. , the ribbon can be prevented from becoming dirty, and the structure can be extremely simplified and downsized.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a reduced perspective view showing a conventional example, Fig. 2 is a side view showing an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the platen, Fig. 4 is a perspective view thereof, and Figs. FIG. 8 is a side view showing the operation. 2... Thermal head, 3... Paper, 4... Ribbon, 5... Ribbon feed 9 parts, 6... Paper feed 9 parts, 8...
...Platen, 9...Cut surface application person Tokyo Electric Co., Ltd.

Claims (1)

[Claims] A paper and a long ribbon coded in multiple colors are inserted between a cylindrical platen and a thermal head, and the paper is reciprocated in a direction perpendicular to the platen. A paper feeding unit 9 that moves the ribbon and a ribbon feeding unit that moves the ribbon in one direction at the same speed as the paper are provided, and a cut surface that separates the paper from the thermal head is formed on a part of the outer periphery of the platen. A thermal printer with all the features.