JPS61262168A - Thermal transfer printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make it possible to effectively erase an erronous printing part, by arranging an erasing transfer ribbon at a recording position at the time of the erasion of erroneous printing and lifting off the erroneous printing part in such a state that heat generating capacity per a unit area is increased after a thermal head reached predetermined temp. CONSTITUTION:When erroneous printing was generated, the rotation of a ribbon selector 14 is controlled to hold a cassette 5 to an inclined state. In this state, an erasing transfer ribbon 7 is opposed to the heat generating part of a thermal head 4 to perform desired lift-off. Because larger heat generating capacity is generally required in erasion as compared with that required at the time of recording, the voltage or current supply time to each resistance heat generating part of the thermal head 4 is controlled so as to be made longer at the time of recording as compared with that at the time of erasion. At the time of collection, higher temp. is necessary as compared with the temp. at the time of printing and the time required before predetermined temp. is obtained is long and, therefore, preheating is performed before erasion is started and, after it was detected that the head temp. reached predetermined temp., the erasion of erroneous printing is started.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to a thermal transfer printer suitable for use in word processors, typewriters, and the like.

(Background of the Invention) As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 49-26245, for example, a thermal transfer printer uses a thermal transfer ribbon containing reversible heat-melting ink interposed between a recording paper and a thermal head. The heat generated by the thermal head melts the ink on the thermal transfer ribbon to record characters, symbols, etc. on the recording paper.

This type of thermal transfer printer has recently become widely used as an output device for office equipment, and is also being applied to word processors, electronic typewriters, and the like. Such word processors and typewriters are required to correct the characters and symbols recorded on the paper, but conventional general thermal transfer printers are required to correct the characters and symbols that have been recorded on the paper. - It is difficult to erase symbols, etc. to correct them, and if a mistake is made, there is a drawback that the incorrectly printed part must be corrected by hand or reprinted.

[Purpose of the invention]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer printer capable of effectively erasing erroneously printed portions of erroneously recorded characters, symbols, etc., while eliminating the drawbacks of the prior art described above.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve this object, the present invention provides a recording transfer ribbon carrying a heat-melting ink for recording a desired printed area on a recording paper, and a recording transfer ribbon for recording a desired printed area on a recording paper. A transfer ribbon for erasing carrying a thermoadhesive resin for lift-off is provided, a ribbon selection means for selectively arranging the recording transfer ribbon and the erasing transfer ribbon at the recording position, and a ribbon selection means for selectively arranging the recording transfer ribbon and the erasing transfer ribbon at recording positions; Temperature detection means for detecting temperature, control means for controlling the temperature of the thermal head to a predetermined temperature, and switching means for selectively switching the heat generation capacity per unit area of the thermal head to either large or small are provided respectively. During normal recording, the recording transfer ribbon is placed at the recording position to perform desired printing, and when erasing erroneous printing, the erasing transfer ribbon is placed at the recording position.
The thermal head is placed at a recording position, and after the thermal head reaches a predetermined temperature, the erroneously printed portion is lifted off with its heat generation capacity per unit area increased.

[Embodiments of the invention]

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

1 and 2 are side views schematically showing a thermal transfer printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram for controlling the thermal head to a predetermined temperature. FIG. 2 shows the recorded state of erroneous printing, and FIG. 2 shows the erased state of erroneous printing.

In these figures, 1 is a frame, 2 is a guide shaft fixed to a side bracket (not shown) attached to this frame l, and 3 is a reciprocating drive along this guide shaft 2 in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing. This carriage 3 has a thermal head 4 erected thereon and a cassette 5 mounted thereon. Inside this cassette 5, a recording transfer ribbon 6 carrying heat-melting ink and an erasing transfer ribbon 7 carrying heat-adhesive resin are wound around a hub (not shown), respectively. It is held in two stages, top and bottom.

The recording transfer ribbon 6 and the erasing transfer ribbon 7 are each independently transported by a drive shaft (not shown) that rotates the hub.

8 is a platen fixed to the side bracket, and an elastic body 9 such as neoprene rubber is stuck to the platen 8 facing the heat generating part of the thermal head 4; 10 is a platen fixed to the side bracket. 11 is a paper guide attached to the frame 1, and 12 is a small-diameter driven roller that is supported by the paper guide 11. Reference numeral 13 denotes a recording paper, and after the recording paper 13 is inserted along the paper guide 11, a paper feed roller 10 that is rotationally driven and a driven roller 12 that rotates in conjunction with the paper feed roller 10. While being held between
It is designed to be transferred along a predetermined path between the thermal head 4 and the platen 8.

Reference numeral 14 denotes a ribbon selection device installed on the carriage 3, and the ribbon selection device 14 is composed of, for example, a cylindrical cam having an oblique cam groove around the cylindrical cam and a cam pin that engages with the cam groove. The cylindrical cam is provided on the carriage 3 side, and the cam pin is provided on the cassette 5 side. With this configuration, when the cylindrical cam is rotated in either the forward or reverse direction by a drive motor (not shown), the cassette 5 reciprocates within a predetermined angular range, and as a result, the recording transfer ribbon 6 and the recording transfer ribbon 6 are erased. One of the transfer ribbons 7 is selectively placed at the heat generating portion of the thermal head 4, that is, at the recording position.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained.

When performing normal transfer recording on the recording paper 13, the ribbon selection device 14 is rotationally controlled by a drive motor (not shown) to hold the cassette 5 in a horizontal state as shown in FIG. In this state, the recording transfer ribbon 6 of both ribbons 6°7
is opposed to the heat generating portion of the thermal head 4, and winding driving force is applied only to this recording transfer ribbon 6 to perform desired transfer recording. That is, the recording paper 13 inserted into the apparatus along the paper guide 11 is transferred between the recording transfer ribbon 6 and the elastic body 9 of the platen 8 by the rolling of the paper feed roller 10 and the driven roller 12. The heat-melting ink on the recording transfer ribbon 6 is instantaneously melted and transferred onto the recording paper 13 by the heat generated by the thermal head 4. Therefore, by selectively controlling the heat generating part of the thermal head 4 and controlling the movement of the carriage 3 along the guide shaft 2, desired characters, symbols, numbers, etc. can be printed on the recording paper 13. .

On the other hand, if erroneous printing occurs, the ribbon selection device 14 is rotationally controlled to hold the cassette in an inclined state as shown in FIG. In this state, the erasing transfer ribbon 7 faces the heat generating portion of the thermal head 4, and a winding driving force is applied only to this erasing transfer ribbon 7, thereby performing a desired lift-off.

That is, the thermal adhesive resin on the erasing transfer ribbon 7 is melted and adhered to the erroneously printed area recorded on the recording paper 13 by the heat generated by the thermal head 4, and after the thermal adhesive resin is cooled, the erroneously printed area is removed. is peeled off and erased.

Furthermore, when comparing the respective melting temperatures of the heat-melting ink of the recording transfer ribbon 6 and the heat-adhesive resin of the erasing transfer ribbon 7, the melting temperature of the heat-adhesive resin is generally higher; Erasing using the ribbon 7 requires a larger heat generation capacity than recording using the recording transfer ribbon 6. Therefore, the voltage or energization time supplied to each resistive heating element 4a of the thermal head 4 is increased when erasing erroneous prints than during normal recording, so that heat is generated with large energization energy only during erasing. .

Also, when collecting, a higher temperature is required than when printing.
Since it takes time to reach the predetermined temperature, the head is preheated before starting erasing, and after detecting that the head temperature has reached the predetermined temperature, it is controlled to start erasing incorrect prints. . In this way, since the control means is provided to increase the energizing energy only during erasing, there is no need to particularly increase the energizing energy during normal recording, which is effective in extending the life of the thermal head 4.

The transfer of the erasing transfer ribbon 7 at the time of erasing described above calls back the signal at the time of erroneous printing stored in a storage section (not shown), and applies heat only to the erroneous printing part recorded on the recording paper 13. It is also possible to lift off the erroneously printed area by transferring adhesive resin, or it is also possible to lift off the erroneously printed area by transferring thermal adhesive resin to the entire character surface including the erroneously printed area. .

Further, in the above embodiment, as an example of a selection means for selecting the recording transfer ribbon 6 and the erasing transfer ribbon 7 as recording positions, a cylindrical cam whose rotation can be controlled and an inclined cam groove of this cylindrical cam are used. Although the ribbon selection device 14 comprising a cam pin that engages with the ribbon selection device 14 has been described, the present invention is not limited to such a ribbon selection device 14, and a gear may be used to move the cassette 5 up and down. The movement of the cassette 5 is not limited to the rotation movement using one end as a fulcrum as in the above embodiment, but may also be moved up and down while remaining in a parallel state.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, the temperature of the thermal head can be simply controlled wJ without the need for complicated operations such as manual correction or reprinting of erroneously printed areas on recording paper. It is possible to provide a thermal transfer printer that can be easily and reliably erased.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The figures all relate to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing a normal recording state of a thermal transfer printer, FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing a state of erasing erroneous printing of a thermal transfer printer, and FIG.
The figure is a block diagram for controlling the temperature to a predetermined temperature. 3... Carriage, 4... Thermal head, 4
a... Resistance heating element, 5... Cassette, 6...
... Transfer ribbon for recording, 7... Transfer ribbon for erasing,
8...Platen, IO...Paper feed roller, 12
...Followed roller, 13...Recording paper, 14...
・Ribbon selection device. Agent Patent Attorney 2 Kenji Department Figure 1 Figure 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] A thermal transfer printer in which a thermal transfer ribbon carrying heat-fusible ink is interposed between a recording paper and a thermal head, and the heat-fusible ink is melted by the heat generated by the thermal head to transfer and record onto the recording paper. A recording transfer ribbon carrying a thermofusible ink for recording a desired print area on paper, and an erasing ribbon carrying a thermoadhesive resin for lifting off an erroneous print area that is erroneously recorded on the recording paper. a ribbon selection means for selectively arranging the recording transfer ribbon and the erasing transfer ribbon at the recording position; a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the thermal head; and a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the thermal head. and a switching means for selectively switching the heat generation capacity per unit area of the thermal head to either large or small.
The recording transfer ribbon is placed at the recording position to perform desired printing, and when erasing erroneous printing, the erasing transfer ribbon is placed at the recording position and after the thermal head reaches a predetermined temperature, the unit area is A thermal transfer printer characterized by lifting off an erroneously printed area while increasing the heat generation capacity of the printer.