JPS61274961A - Thermal head - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an inexpensive thermal head capable of enhancing mounting density, by simple constitution such that a rod shaped member having a lead-out electrode supplying power to a heating element on the curved surface thereof is mounted to the end part of an insulating support and the drive integrated circuit for driving the heating element is mounted to the flat surface part of the insulating support. CONSTITUTION:A thermal head is constituted as an end surface type wherein heating element 3... and electric conductors 108, 121 as lead-out electrodes are formed on a glass round rod 122 as a rod shaped member and the glass round rod 122 is further adhered to the end surface of a glass/epoxy resin substrate 137 as an insulating support. A numeral 120 shows a protective shield resin. Further, the electric conductors 108, 121 of the signal terminal sides of the heating elements 3... are alternately taken out to both sides of the glass round rod 122 and bonded to the drive integrated circuits 119, 119 adhered to both surfaces of the glass/epoxy resin substrate 137 by gold wires 170 and mounting density can be lowered to about a half as compared with such a case that signal wires are taken out only to the single side of the substrate 137.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an improvement in a thermal head applied to a thermal print recording device such as a printer or a facsimile.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

Conventionally, a thermal head has a heating element, which is a plurality of heat-generating resistors, and an electric conductor for supplying power to the heating element on a ceramic substrate treated with a glass glaze, for example. In order to obtain a thermal pattern, a current is passed through the corresponding heating element through an electric conductor to generate heat, and recording is performed.

The above-mentioned ceramic substrate is usually a ceramic substrate that has been polished in order to have flatness. (
(This is called a planar type.) However, the thermal head itself is expensive because it requires polishing, which is expensive. In addition, when incorporating recording paper or an intermediate medium such as a film that is inserted between the recording paper and the thermal head (for example, a porous film for thermal inkjet recording method or an ink ribbon film for thermal transfer recording method), Sufficient surrounding space is required, making the device large. In addition, if the drive integrated circuits are installed on both sides of the heat generating element, the drive integrated circuits will get in the way of recording paper, etc., so in order to keep the board from becoming large, it is only possible to install them on one side, which requires higher integration of the drive integrated circuits. There were problems such as making it expensive and difficult.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to achieve high packaging density with a relatively simple configuration, and to avoid restrictions on the equipment and structure used. The purpose of this invention is to provide a thermal head that is free from heat and at low cost.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention attaches a rod-shaped member such as glass having a heating element and an extraction electrode on its curved surface for supplying power to the heating element to the end of an insulating support. , a driving integrated circuit for driving the heating element is attached to a flat portion of the insulating support near the rod-shaped member, and the extraction electrode on the rod-shaped member and the driving circuit on the insulating support are directly connected. It is designed to be connected using electric wire. As a result, the end face type has a more sufficient space around the head than the conventional flat type, and is easy to process and inexpensive.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained with reference to an illustrated embodiment.

No. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the recording principle of a thermal inkjet recording method to which the thermal head of the present invention is applied. 3 is a heating element disposed in the head portion of the thermal head 1; 4 is a recording ink (hereinafter simply referred to as ink); 5 is a film filled with ink; 6 indicates a small hole from which an ink droplet was ejected, and 7 indicates a small hole from which an ink droplet was ejected.

When the film 2 is transferred in the direction of the arrow, the ink 4 is filled into the small holes 2a of the film 2 that have passed through the ink reservoir section storing the ink 4. Then, when the small holes 5 filled with the ink 4 reach the thermal head 1 where the heating elements 3 are installed, a voltage is selectively applied to the heating elements 3 for rapid heating. let

Then, air generated as the heating element 3 heats @(
Recording is performed by ejecting ink droplets 6 due to the pressure of bubbles.

FIG. 2(a) is a schematic longitudinal sectional side view showing the recording apparatus of the present invention. In the figure, 8 is a recording sheet as a recording member, and this recording sheet 8 is a feeder attached to the main body casing 134 of the apparatus. A large number of sheets are stored in a paper cassette 49 at once, and the lower surfaces of these sheets on the take-out side are pushed upward by push-up springs 33 . It has become. Above paper feed cassette 4
When the rubber magnet 9 is attached to the device body casing 134, the rubber magnet 47 attached to its tip magnetically attracts the plate 48 provided on the device body casing 134 side, and is fixed to the device body casing 134. ing.

The shaft 139 to which the first feed roller 9 is attached is
As shown in FIG. 3, the paper feed solenoid 51
Paper feed spring clutch 63 and gear 5 turned OFF
6.55, it is configured to be interlocked with the paper conveyance motor 54. Then, the paper feed solenoid 51 is connected to the image/data processing device 133 (15th
(see figure), the paper feed spring clutch 63 is ONL, and the movement of the paper feed motor 54 is controlled via the gears 55, 56 and the paper feed spring clutch 63. 139 and the first
The uppermost recording paper 8 that is in contact with the feed roller 9 is fed.

Also, the paper feed cassette 49 is fed via the first feed roller 9.
The recording paper 8 taken out from the recording paper 8 rises along the first paper feed guide 44, and is further transferred to the first and second paper feeds via a pair of feed rollers 10.10 disposed in the transport direction and rolling into contact with each other. The recording medium is fed between the guides 44 and 45 until its tip abuts against the contact portion between the suction conveyance belt 15 of the recording member conveyance mechanism 43 and the stopped registration roller 11 that is in rolling contact with the suction conveyance belt 15, and waits in this state.

Note that in addition to feeding paper from the paper feed cassette 49, this i-position is also capable of feeding paper from the manual paper feed tray 138, so that it is possible to feed paper from the manual paper feed tray 138, so that it is possible to feed paper such as thick paper that is set all at once on the manual paper feed tray 138. The paper 8 passes through the second feed roller 19 and the separation roller 18.
As in the case of feeding from the paper feed cassette 49, the sheets are taken out one by one starting from the bottommost one, and the sheets are taken out one by one at the contact point between the suction conveyance belt 15 and the stopped registration roller 11 that rolls into contact with the suction conveyance belt 15. It is fed until the tip hits it and waits in this state.

The registration roller 11 is designed to be interlocked with the paper conveyance motor 54 (see FIG. 3) via a clutch section (not shown), and rotated when the clutch section is turned on. The timing for starting and stopping the rotation of the registration roller 11 is determined by the first LED at the leading edge of the recording paper 8.
21 is blocked and the first photosensor 22 is turned off, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 hits the rolling contact portion of the registration roller 11 and is set so as to cause an appropriate slack. It is being

By doing this, the leading edge inclination (skew) of the recording paper 8 is corrected, and the leading edge of the recording paper 8 is reliably pushed into the rolling contact portion of the registration rollers 11, and the recording paper 18 is moved by the registration rollers 11 and the suction conveyance belt 15. It ensures a good bite.

Note that a paper waste removal brush 50 for removing paper waste adhering to the peripheral surface of the registration roller 11 is in sliding contact with the registration roller 11 to prevent the recording surface of the recording paper a from becoming dirty.

The recorded member conveying mechanism 43 includes the first and second O-rollers 12.14 and these rollers 12.14 in the housing 140.
A suction conveyance mechanism part 43a as a first floating part is assembled into a unit by incorporating the suction conveyance belt 15 wrapped around the air suction duct 14, and the suction conveyance mechanism part 43a as a first floating part. By displacing this belt guide plate 27, the suction conveyance belt 15 is moved to the recording section guide 31.
It is composed of a belt pressing/retracting means 43b that presses the belt to the side or retracts it.

The belt pressing/retracting means 43b has the following configuration. That is, the belt guide plate 2 as the second floating part
7 is rotatably supported at one end in the air suction duct 30 and housed in a state where the other end is constantly urged downward by the belt guide plate pressing spring 26, and the suction conveyor belt 15 is moved to the recording section. It is pressed against the guide 31.

Further, an adsorption member 141 is attached to the back surface of the pressing plate 27 in a state facing the electromagnetic coil 28, and when the electromagnetic coil 28 is excited, the pressing plate 27
is adapted to be displaced against the urging force of the pressing spring 26.

In addition, the suction conveyance mechanism section 43a as the first floating section is elastically supported by a rolling pressing spring 25 hung on the 10th roller 12, and the belt guide plate 27 as the second floating section is elastically operated by the pressing spring 26. thick recording paper 8
is supplied, it can be displaced by that amount.

In addition, the impact of the belt guide plate 27 as the second floating part is
It is designed to be buffered by a highly viscous fluid aria vessel 29.

As described above, the recording member transport mechanism 43, which is composed of the suction transport mechanism section 43a and the heald pressing/retreating means 43b, and is provided floatingly with respect to the heating element 3...
It has a structure that can be freely rotated around the axis of the roller 12.
It can be rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 2 to open the recording paper conveyance path.

As the registration rollers 11 start rotating, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 is brought into contact with the registration rollers 511 and the suction conveyance mechanism section 43.
The recording paper 8 is caught between the suction conveyor belt 15 of
is held under appropriate pressure by the urging force of the roller pressing spring 25. Then, the registration row 511 and the 10th-
The paper is conveyed by the clamping conveyance force of the roller 12 and the suction conveyance force of the suction conveyance belt 15.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 2 (1)), the recording paper 8 is reduced to a thickness of 0.05 by the action of the belt pressing/retracting means 43b.
It is pressed against a recording section guide 31 made of a 2rrm flexible film, and is conveyed while rubbing against the recording section guide 31.

The recording section guide 31 is fixed with respect to the thermal head 1, and the rubbing surface of the recording section guide 31 is maintained at a constant distance from the heating elements 3. The recording surface (lower surface) of the recording paper 8 always maintains a minute gap, for example, 0.2 mm, with the surface of the film 20, which moves while being in close contact with the heating element 3 disposed in the head section of the thermal head 1. It is configured so that it can be moved while moving.

Note that the leading edge of the recording section guide 31 is connected to the heating element 3.
Since the distance is set to approximately 0.7 trm from ..., the lJ gap between the recording surface of the recording paper 8, which is the recording member, and the film 2 is reliably maintained. However, in the experiment, the tip edge of the heating element 3...
Up to 3 m, the vicinity of the heating element 3 is a flat surface, so
It was found that a certain gap could be obtained.

Furthermore, in fact, according to the performance test of the example, the film 2
It was confirmed that the gap between the surface of the recording surface and the recording surface must be between 0.1 and 0.3 m in order to maintain a resolution of 8 lines/line.

Therefore, the recording section guide 31 has a thickness of 0.311!1
Of course, the following flexible thin plates may also be used. However, since the gap between the recording surface of the recording paper 8 and the film 2 is small, there is a risk that the ink 4 on the film 2 will come into contact with the recording surface. has hydrophobicity, and the heating element 3...
・Because the edge facing toward is knife-shaped,
It was confirmed that the ink 4 was drawn into the lower surface of the recording unit guide 31 by the film 2 along the moving direction of the film 2, and was prevented from expanding and seeping out toward the recording surface side.

Furthermore, in this example, the film 2 has a thickness of 12°5 μm.
photoetching the polyimide film of 25~
A multi-hole portion 9 in which a large number of small holes 2a of 30 μm are formed.
2 was formed, and the surface facing the recording paper 8 as the recording member was subjected to a hydrophobic treatment by thinly coating with Teflon.

This prevents the ink 4 from seeping out on the surface of the film 2 facing the recording paper 8, and even if the ink 4 adheres to the surface, the excess ink scraping member 41, 42, 89, 90 described later will be removed. By using a hydrophilic elastic member, it can be completely cleaned. In this way, it is possible to more effectively prevent the ink 4 from overflowing from the edge portion of the recording section guide 31.

Furthermore, since the surface of the film 2 facing the thermal head 1 and the front surface of the thermal head 1 were subjected to anti-wear treatment with a Siloki II derivative having a thickness of about 3μ2, the film 2 The film 2 and the thermal head 1 are prevented from being moved and causing wear and scratches. This siloxic acid derivative can be produced, for example, by a method in which tetrafunctional silicon tetrachloride is reacted with water in a predetermined amount of a monohydric alcohol or ester to obtain a colloidal dispersion of a partial hydrolyzate. This liquid is applied to one side of the film 2, and the film is formed by heating and leaving at about 50'C to 100C for several hours.

Experiments have shown that this abrasion-resistant material does not cause scratches even when rubbed with steel wool.

In addition, this siloxane treatment is a thin film of glass-like substance silica, which is thermally strong and has some silanol groups in the siloxane network, and is hygroscopic and hydrophilic, so ink 4 is The heating element 3 is uniformly adhered to the heating element 3 by capillary action through the contact surface with the thermal head 1.
Ink 4 can be quickly supplied to...
There is no longer a shortage of supply.

Further, as will be described later, since the film cartridge 40 can be configured to include at least the film 2, the surplus ink scraping members 41, 421, 89.90, and the container portion 77, when the film cartridge 40 is attached or removed from the device, Also, the two sides of the film are thoroughly cleaned, so you can avoid getting your hands dirty.

When the leading edge of the recording paper 8 moves further forward, it is nipped and transported between the 20th roller 14 of the suction transport mechanism section 43a and the paper discharge roller 13. At this time, the recording surface of the recording paper 8 is supported in a dotted manner by the needle roller section 104 of the paper ejection roller 13, and reference roller sections 105 and 106 are in rolling contact with the suction conveyance belt 15 at both ends. Since the paper is transported without excessive pressure being applied, the undried recorded image is not disturbed. (See FIG. 7) Furthermore, the recording paper 8 moves forward, and its rear end passes through the rolling contact portion of the registration roller 11 and the tenth roller 12. At this time, the rear end portion of the recording sheet 8 receives the full load of the recording member conveyance mechanism 43 and is conveyed while being rubbed against the recording section guide 31. In other words, the basic conveyance force of the recording device 18 is only the suction conveyance force of the suction belt 15, and since the document is conveyed while receiving a large frictional force, the conveyance is accompanied by uncertainty.

However, in this embodiment, the force that presses the recording paper 8 against the recording section guide 31 is transmitted through the belt pressing/retracting means 43b, and the belt guide plate 27 as the second floating section moves the recording section to the belt guide plate 27. Due to the reaction force from the guide 31, the suction conveyance mechanism section 43 as the first floating section passes through the high viscosity buffer 29 while resisting the belt guide plate pressing spring 26.
It is pushed upwards relative to the casing part of a.

In this way, after the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 has passed, the registration rollers 11 and the suction conveyance belt 15, which have been temporarily separated, come into rolling contact again, so that the pressure applied to the recording paper 8 is reduced and the belt guide plate 27 Smooth conveyance of the recording paper 8 is realized with only the total load and the urging force of the belt guide plate pressing spring 26.

Further, the recording paper 8 moves forward and the rear end of the recording paper 8 passes the edge portion of the recording section guide 38 on the thermal head 1 side.Then, the belt guide plate 27 receives no reaction force from anywhere, and the belt guide Full load of plate 27 and belt guide plate pressing spring 2
It will be pushed down by a force of 6.

Therefore, as soon as the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 passes the edge portion of the recording section guide 31, the surface of the film 2 and the recording surface of the recording paper 8 come into contact, and the trailing edge of the recording paper is stained with the ink 4. It has the problem of being stored away.

However, in this embodiment, this problem is solved by the measures described below. First, since the belt guide plate 27 as the second floating part has already been pushed upward through the two high-viscosity fluid buffers as described above, the rear end of the recording paper 8 touches the edge part of the recording unit guide 31. Even if it passes, the downward movement will slowly descend due to the buffering effect of the high viscosity fluid buffer 29. Therefore, recording paper 8
The trailing edge of the recording paper 8 can be made to pass through the heating element 3 while the recording surface of the recording paper 8 approaches the surface of the film 2.

Additionally, in this embodiment, the leading edge or trailing edge of the recording paper 8 is folded or bent, and in order to prevent the recording paper 8 from coming into contact with the surface of the film 2, the leading edge or trailing edge of the recording paper 8 is folded or bent. The electromagnetic coil 28 is excited so as to move away from the surface of the film 2 by ±6 m at each end with the heating element 3 in between, and the entire belt guide plate 27 as a second floating part is attracted upward. That's what I do.

In this way, the recording paper 8 does not come into contact with the film 2 and get dirty, and it passes through the roller 13 placement part while maintaining an extremely small gap, and is delivered to the paper output tray with clean recordings. The paper will be ejected onto 16.

Also, when the paper is ejected, the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 is at the 21st E.
The tip of D23 is blocked and the rising signal of the second photosensor 24 is detected to detect that the recording paper 8 has been reliably ejected.

Next, referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the ink container 64
The supply of ink to the film cartridge 40 as a recording medium cartridge and the supply of ink from the ink supply section of the film cartridge 40 to the film 2 will be described.

The film cartridge 40 and the ink container 64 are separable. The ink 4 is stored in an ink container 64, and this ink container 64 is attached to the film cartridge 40.
The ink container attachment is screwed into the part 65 and fixed. At this time, the transparent ink supply tube 71 of the ink container 64
pushes up the valve 68 of the film cartridge 40, which is in close contact with the ink container attachment seal 73, against the biasing force of the cartridge valve spring 69.

On the other hand, the valve 68 of the film cartridge 40 pushes up the ink container opening/closing rod 70, and therefore pushes up the valve 67 of the ink container 64 against the valve spring 66, causing the ink 4 in the ink container 64 to flow out.

Ink volume! The ink 4 that has flowed out from the transparent ink supply tube 71 flows out until it fills the obliquely cut tip of the transparent ink supply tube 71, and then flows through the small hole opened around the pulp tube 68 of the film cartridge 40 and the ink supply conduit 94. A fine ink supply channel 72.93 (sixth
(see figure).

The ink 4 further soaks into an ink supply member 37, 39 made of felt, and is passed through the ink supply member 37, 39 to the film 2.
The ink 4 is applied to the film 2, thus filling the small holes 2 of the film 2.
The ink 4 is filled in the ink 4, and is used as recording ink droplets 6 by the movement of the film 2 and the rapid heating of the heating elements 3, which create bubbles in the ink 4.

In this way, when the ink 4 is consumed and the level of the ink 4 falls below the diagonally cut portion at the tip of the transparent ink supply tube 71, air is sucked in from the air suction passage 74 provided in the ink supply section of the film cartridge 40. ,
This air flows into the ink container 64 through the diagonally cut portion of the transparent ink supply tube 71, causing new ink 4 to flow out.

By the way, the air suction passage 74 is located at the upper part of the ink supply section, and the air volume within the ink supply section is made as small as possible as seen from FIGS. 2 and 3. A first surplus ink scraping member 41.90 made of rubber and a second surplus ink scraping member 4
According to 2.89, air can enter and exit the ink supply section only when the small holes 2a of the film 2 pass through the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41.90.42.89. Therefore, replenishment of the ink 4 from the ink container 64 to the ink supply section is possible only when the film 2 is being moved, and is not performed during non-operation such as when the film cartridge 40 is replaced or when the film cartridge 40 is being moved. It looks like this.

Therefore, the problem of ink 4 being excessively supplied to the film cartridge 40 and leaking from the film cartridge 40 and scattering can be prevented.

Furthermore, since the ink 4 is supplied to the film 2 through an ink supply member 37, 79 made of felt as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the free surface as a liquid within the ink supply is Since the ink 4 is captured between the fibers by the force of surface tension, leakage of the ink 4 to the outside of the film cartridge 40 can be easily prevented.

Next, the operation for removing the ink container 64 from the ink container mounting section 65 of the film cartridge 40 will be described.

When the ink 4 in the ink container 64 is consumed by the above-described replenishment of the ink 4, the level of the ink 4 further decreases and reaches the transparent ink supply tube 71. At this time, light from the ink detection LDE 75 begins to pass through and the ink detection photosensor 76 begins to be turned on. The rise of this signal is detected to detect the absence of ink in the ink container 64.

The device also displays the ink-out detection signal on the display section of the device or on the display section of the image/data processing device 133 connected to the device, as described later. If there is ink 4, a message is displayed indicating that there is no ink in the ink container 64, that is, indicating that the ink container 64 should be replaced.

In this way, the ink container 64 is replaced. In this embodiment, the removal procedure and the valve 64 of the ink container 64 are replaced.
7. The operation of the valve 68 of the film cartridge 40 is exactly the opposite of that during installation.

That is, the valve 68 of the film cartridge 40 is raised, and the ink container mounting portion is brought into close contact with the lower surface of the seal 73 by the force of the cartridge valve spring 69, and the ink 4 in the film cartridge 40 is released from the ink container mounting portion 65 to the outside. It is designed to prevent leakage and scattering.

By the way, the ink container 64 has a capacity of 100c in this embodiment.
Ink 4 except for the ink supply tube 71 mentioned above in c.
9 The container is opaque in consideration of weather resistance, and the normal recording density is 2000 to 50 on A4 sheet recording paper.
On the other hand, the film cartridge 40 records approximately 100,000 sheets/A4 due to problems such as clogging due to paper dust, mold, and dried ink in the small hole 2a of the film 2, and has to be replaced every 3 years. Is required. For this reason, the film cartridge 40 and the ink container 64 are separable, and the structure is such that leakage and evaporation of the ink 4 in each container can be easily prevented.

The attachment of the film cartridge 40 to the recording apparatus will now be described.

In this apparatus, the thermal head 1 is fixed to the main body casing 134, and the film cartridge 40 is shown in FIG.
) and a container located in the film exposed portion 86 of the cartridge 40 shown in FIG.

That is, in FIG. 3, when the film cartridge first support part 60 is inserted into the main body housing 134 and the film cartridge second support part 61 provided at the other end is pushed down, the cartridge fixing spring 62 is moved to the right. , the head of the fixing spring 62 falls into the recess of the second film cartridge support portion 61, and the film cartridge 40 is fixed.

As described above, since the container portion of the film cartridge 40 has a window shape, the film cartridge 40 has a structure that provides sufficient strength.

Furthermore, since the mounting is as described above, the film cartridge 40 can be easily attached and detached, and the ink container 64 can be easily attached and detached.
It can be easily attached and detached even if it is still attached. In other words, it is now possible to easily replace Ink 4. Furthermore, when the film cartridge 40 is attached or removed, the recording member 43 rotates as shown by arrow A in FIG. It is wide open and allows easy removal of paper jams in the recording section, paper waste from the film 2, and replacement of the film cartridge 40.

In addition, in order to prevent the ink 4 remaining in the film cartridge 40 from leaking or evaporating when the film cartridge 40 is removed, the film cartridge 40 is provided with a cartridge lid 85 as shown in FIG.
The lid 85 rotates as shown by the arrow to cover the exposed film portion 86, and the protrusion of the lid 85 is attached to the first excess ink scraping member 41 of the film cartridge 40.
．． 90 and the second surplus ink scraping member 42.89 to tightly seal the film cartridge 40.

In addition, the ink absorbing members 34 and 35 shown in FIG. 2(a) are arranged so that the excess ink 4 accumulated in the upper part of the thermal head 1 when the film cartridge 40 is attached or detached flows down through the wall surface of the thermal head 1 as described above. Although there is a problem of the ink scattering inside the apparatus, in this embodiment, ink absorbing members 34 and 35 are attached to the lower part of the thermal head 1 and are in contact with the thermal head 1, and absorb the ink 4 that is about to flow down and scatter. This prevents the above problem from occurring.

Next, the operation when driving the film 2 will be described.

FIG. 4(a) is a side view of a drive section of a film moving mechanism serving as a recording medium moving mechanism, and FIG. 4(b) is a plan view of the same portion. The film 2 rotates clockwise and counterclockwise as viewed from the side of the film drive motor gear 58 as a recording medium drive motor gear of the film drive motor 52 as a recording medium drive motor, as shown in FIG. 4(a). ), move upward and downward, respectively.

When the film drive motor gear 58 rotates clockwise, the film drive gear 78 rotates clockwise as viewed from the side of FIG. 4(a).

Drive shaft 8 for moving the film as a drive shaft for moving the recording medium
Since one end of the left-handed spring 84 fitted to the drive shaft 87 is engaged with the recess of the gear 78, clockwise rotation of the gear 78 is a direction in which the left-handed spring 84 is further wound around the film moving drive shaft 87. The power of the gear 78 is transmitted to the film moving drive shaft 87.

At this time, the film drive gear 59 as a recording medium drive gear also rotates clockwise, but the right-handed spring 83 fitted on the film movement drive shaft 88 as a recording medium movement drive shaft is relatively driven. It works in the direction of loosening the axis from the 8th day onwards. However, in the case of the embodiment, the drive shaft 8
8 and the right-handed spring 83 rotate in the same direction, so the drive shaft 88 and the right-handed spring 8 are substantially rotated.
A slip with 3 will occur.

By the way, when attaching and detaching the film cartridge 40, the film drive gear 59, 78 is connected to the motor gear 5.
8, there is a risk that the interlocking film 2 will remain loose or remain under too much tension. However, regarding the latter, in the configuration of this embodiment, the drive shaft 88 and the right-handed spring 83 slip, and such excessively strong tension can be alleviated.

Further, as shown in the perspective view of the moving mechanism of the embodiment in FIG. 6, the film cartridge 40 is provided with a film tension mechanism 142 as a recording medium tension mechanism on the side opposite to the drive shafts 87 and 88 for film movement. Therefore, there is no loosening of the film 2, and the film 2 can be formed while rubbing against the tip heating element 3 of the thermal head 1 with appropriate pressure. A ladder wheel 100 is fixed to one end of the film moving drive shaft 87 by a bin 101, and a left-handed torsion spring 95 with one end engaged with a torsion spring fixing portion 96 is fitted to one end of the drive shaft 88. , the other end of the torsion spring 95 engages with the recess 98 of the rudder wheel 97, and the rudder wheel 97
is connected to the ladder wheel 10 via the ladder chain 99.
Connected to 0.

By the way, when the ladder chain 99 is hung on the ladder wheels 97, 100, the recording medium is wound through the torsion spring 95, and the film winding axis 36 is rotated counterclockwise. The film winding is done on shaft 38.
The torsion spring 95 is installed by appropriately twisting it in advance so as to bias it clockwise. Therefore, an appropriate tension can be applied to the film 2 according to the torsional force, or torque, of the torsion spring 95.

In this way, when the film cartridge 40 is attached to the apparatus, the problem of the film 2 coming loose is eliminated, and the film 2 always slides in close contact with the tip of the thermal head 1 with appropriate pressure.

Next, referring to FIG. 4(a), the driving gear 58 is
The installation of item 8 will be explained assuming that it rotates counterclockwise when viewed from the side.

At this time, the drive gear 59 rotates counterclockwise, and the right-handed spring 83 acts to become entangled with the film drive shaft 88. Thus, in this case, the film 2 is directed downwardly, and thus the clockwise direction of the film drive motor 52,
The film 2 can be moved back and forth according to the counterclockwise rotation, and the right-hand spring 83 and the left-hand spring 8
4 and the film tension mechanism 142 prevent the film 2 from loosening when the film cartridge 40 is attached or removed, and prevent damage to the film 2 or the thermal head 1 due to excessive tension.

In any case, the film 2 is reciprocated by the operation of the film drive motor 52 described above, and the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2 is filled with the ink 4 in the heating element 3 of the thermal head 1 to perform recording. is now possible.

Furthermore, the film 2 is guided by guide means consisting of side guides for the film 2, indicated by 102 and 103 in FIGS. 6 and 7, located at both ends of the thermal head 1, so that the film 2 can be prevented from shifting laterally. It has become.

By the way, it is necessary to know where the beginning and end of the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2 are, and when starting recording, make sure that the starting position of the multi-hole portion 92 in the moving direction of the film 2 is at the location of the heating element 3. You need to be able to start recording when you arrive. In this embodiment, FIG. 4(a),
As shown in (b), a film position indexing board 80 as a recording medium position indexing board is attached to the drive shaft of the film drive motor 52, and a record indicating the starting position of the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2 is recorded on this index M2O. A film position detector 7 is provided with a film first position detection slit 81 as a medium first position detection slit and a film second position detection slit 82 as a recording medium second position detection slit.
9, the position of the film 2 is detected.

When the film drive motor 52 rotates, the film position detector 79 senses short optical pulses and long pulses from the short and long slits of the slit 81, and in response, a constant cycle signal built into the electric control circuit 32 is detected. In comparison with the clock pulse, it is determined at the clockwise rear end of the long slit 81 that the slit 81 is a slit for detecting the first film position, and the single optical pulse of the slit 82 is detected as a film position detector. 79, and it is determined that this is the slit for detecting the second film position. In this way, the film drive motor 52 detects the film first position detection slit 81 and stops.

At this time, the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2 (see FIG. 12)
Covering the exposed film portion 86 of the film cartridge 40, the multi-hole portion 92 covers the first and second portions of the film cartridge 40.
The second surplus ink scraping member 89,90 is housed in the ink supply section below. For this reason, the film cartridge 40 is held by the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2, so that the film cartridge 40 is sealed from the outside air.

Therefore, the ink 4 in the film cartridge 40 evaporates, the viscosity of the ink 4 increases, and the speed at which the ink 4 flies out from the small holes 2a of the film 2 is reduced, and the viscosity does not eject at a roaring rate, which adversely affects recording. This problem can be prevented from occurring.

Now, when recording, images and
Upon receiving a recording command from the processing device 133 (see FIG. 15) for processing character data, etc., the film 2 is held for a certain period of time, that is, before driving the first feed roller 9 to feed the recording sheet 8 to the recording section. The film drive motor 52 is moved by rotating it counterclockwise as shown by the arrow in FIG. After waiting for the paper 8 to arrive, the film 2 is moved in synchronization with the leading edge of the recording paper 8. At this time, the moving speed of the film 2 is 20 m/sec, which is 1/2 of the moving speed of the recording paper 8 of 40 m/sec.

In fact, even when the speed of the recording paper 8 is varied between 10 and 1004Il11/sec, when the recording density of the recording paper 8 is 75%, the relative movement direction of the film 2 and the recording paper 8 is in the same direction. Regardless of the reverse direction, as long as the moving speed of the film 2 is V/4 or more, Dl, O (black solid,
It was found that the coverage rate was 75% or more.

The pattern of this experiment is shown in FIG. Therefore, the movement width of the film 2 can be made shorter than the recording length (recording direction) of the recording paper 8, and therefore the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2
The area of the film 2 can be made smaller, and the production of the film 2 can be made easier. That is, if the area of the multi-hole portion 92 is large, it is difficult to make the diameter of the small hole 2a (25 to 30 μm) uniform over the entire area, and therefore, the problem that the diameter of the small hole 2a becomes smaller near the periphery, for example, can be solved. This causes uneven recording density. In this embodiment, since the area can be reduced, such problems can be prevented.

Now, as the film 2 moves in this manner, the rear ends of the multi-hole portion 92 on the side of the first and second surplus ink scraping members 89 and 90 reach the portion of the heating element 3. At this time, the film position detector 79 detects the second film position detection slit 82. Of course, in order for the positions of each part of the film 2 and the relative positions of the first and second position detection slits 81 and 82 of the film position indexing board 80 to be in the above-mentioned relationship, it is necessary to During initial setting, the film 2 is used as the first and second surplus ink scraping members 89
．． 90 side, and the film drive motor 52 allows the film position detector 79 to detect the position of the similar slit among the long slit and short slit pair of the film first position detection slit 81. It is necessary that it is stopped.

This embodiment is based on this assumption.

Now, when the recording paper 8 is continuously fed and an even numbered recording paper 8 is recorded, the first one of the multi-hole portion 92,
After the film 2 is wound up until the end on the side of the second surplus ink scraping member 89.9o reaches the film winding shaft 38 and the ink 4 is supplied, the film 2 is moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the film 2 described above. After waiting for a certain period of time for the terminal end to reach the heating element 3 . . . , recording is performed in synchronization with the leading edge of the recording paper 8 .

In addition, in continuous recording, when recording on odd-numbered recording sheets 8, the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41
．． The end of the multi-hole portion 92 on the 42 side is the film winding shaft 36
After the ink 4 is supplied to the heating element 3.
... and film 2 in synchronization with the leading edge of recording paper 8.
It is supposed to move.

Since recording is continued by such reciprocating movement of the film 2, continuous recording is possible even if the film is not endless.

Now, next, the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41.
90 and 42.89 are arranged such that the contact positions with the film 2 are staggered as shown in FIG. It is located above 90. The necessity of this arrangement will be explained with reference to the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41 and 42.

First, the film 2 must be wound so that the axes 36 and 38 reach the apex of the thermal head 1 and are directed downwards, so that the recording area can be stored compactly and the recording paper 8 must be placed in a tight gap to the heating element 3. It is impossible to keep them close and transport them.

Therefore, if the first surplus ink scraping member 42.89 is positioned below the thermal head 1 side with respect to the film 2, the second surplus ink scraping member 82.89 The distance between and the area of the film exposed portion 86 of the film cartridge 40 of the film 2 can be reduced.

Therefore, the film cartridge 40 can be formed compactly. The effect of scraping off excess ink during movement of the film 2 is as follows.

First, the case where the film 2 moves in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 6 will be described. The film 2 supplied with ink 4 by the ink supply member 39 moves upward, and the first surplus ink scraping member 41 scrapes the surplus ink from the film 2. However, during recording, since the multi-hole portion 92 passes through the excess ink scraping member 41, the excess ink 4 moves by a certain level to the side opposite to the thermal head 1 through the multi-hole portion 92.

Roughly, the ink 4 that has moved to the opposite side is scraped off by the second surplus ink scraping member 42, and is moved to the thermal head 1 side again. In this way, when the film 2 moves in the G direction and the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2 passes through the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41 and 42,
Sufficient ink 4 is applied and replenished not only to the small holes 2a but also to the entire surface of the film 2.

Therefore, this makes it possible to reduce the film speed to 1/4 of the speed of the recording paper 8, as described above.

Now, conversely, the multi-hole portion 92 is connected to the first, second, . Let us consider the case where the excess ink scraping members 41 and 42 of 2 are moved downward.

In this case, the recording side surface of the film 2 is first scraped off by the second excess ink scraping member 42.

Therefore, the excess ink 4 adhering to the surface of the film 2 is scraped off, and the dust and paper dust adhering to the film 2 are also scraped off. In this way, the ink 4 accumulated at the tip of the excess ink scraping member 42 moves to the thermal head 1 side through the small holes 2a of the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2.
Next, it is scraped off again by the first surplus ink scraping member 41 and accumulates at the tip of the first surplus ink scraping member 41 .

This scraped and accumulated surplus ink 4 is returned to the small holes 2 of the multi-hole portion 92 on the opposite side of the thermal head 1.
Move through a... In this way, the surplus ink 4 during recording is removed from the ink 4 of the film cartridge 40.
is collected in the supply section.

On the other hand, the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2 moves in the F direction, that is, downwardly toward the first and second surplus ink scraping members 4.
The state when passing 1.42 will be described. At this time, the surface of the film 2 opposite to the thermal head 1 has already been cleaned by the second surplus ink scraping member 89, so the second
There is no need to scrape off ink using the surplus ink scraping member 42.

However, paper dust and rubber accumulate at the tip of the second surplus ink scraping means 42.

On the other hand, since the film surface on the thermal head 1 side has also been cleaned in advance by the first surplus ink scraping member 90,
There is also almost no need for ink scraping by the first surplus ink scraping member 41.

In this way, the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2 becomes the film exposed portion 8 as the recording medium exposed portion of the film cartridge 40.
By covering the film cartridge 6, the exposed portion of the film 2 is cleaned thoroughly, and there is no danger of getting one's hands dirty when installing or removing the film cartridge 40.

Further, since the lengths M and N (see FIG. 12) of the non-hole portion 91 in the moving direction are longer than the film exposure width E (see FIG. 6) of the film cartridge 40, etc., the first surplus ink scraping member 41.90, second surplus ink scraping member 4
It is possible to prevent air from entering and exiting through a gap of 2.89 mm.

Therefore, the evaporation of the ink 4 can be prevented, and the viscosity of the ink 4 can be prevented from changing, so that the quality of recording and printing can be maintained constant.

Next, the operation for removing paper waste adhering to the film 2 will be described.

As described above, when the film 2 is moved in the G direction, the paper scraps and dust accumulated on the tip of the second surplus ink scraping member 42 are moved together with the film 2 while remaining attached to the film 2, and the paper scraps and dust accumulated on the tip of the second surplus ink scraping member 42 are moved together with the film 2 while remaining attached to the film 2, and are removed from the thermal head 1. It comes to the heating element 3 part at the top of . At this time, transfer film 2 to thermal head 1.
The suction belt 15 is moved back and forth several times with the heating element 3 in between, and at the same time the suction fan 53 shown in FIG.
Paper scraps and dust on the film 2 described above are sucked into the air suction guide 57 through the suction port 107 .

In this way, paper dust and dirt attached to the film 2 can be removed, and the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2
This prevents the small holes 2a from becoming clogged with paper powder and dirt.

In this embodiment, the paper waste removal process is carried out after a certain period of time after a series of continuous recording is completed, so that the problem of reducing the recording speed does not occur.

In addition, as described above, since the paper waste removal process is performed on the non-porous portion 91 of the film 2, the ink 4 on the film surface is cleaned, so that the ink 4, etc. is sucked into the air suction guide 57. It is also possible to prevent problems such as the ink 4 falling off or adhering to the suction belt 15.

Here, the operation of the film 2 when a series of recording operations is completed will be described.

After the successful recording operation is completed, the film 2 is moved at a speed slower than the moving speed during recording for a certain period of time.

This is done in order to prevent the ink 4 from being depleted from the heating elements 3 of the round head 1 before the series of recording operations is completed. Thereafter, the paper waste removal step described above is continued for a certain period of time, and then the exposed film portion 86 of the film cartridge 40 is covered with the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2.

By the way, the first surplus ink scraping member 41.90 is made of an elastic member, and its edge toward the thermal head 1 is located on the lower surface of the film 2 and comes into close contact with the thermal head 1. The ink 4 flowing down through the wall surface is transferred to the small holes 2 in the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2.
a... so that it can be collected into the ink supply section of the film cartridge 40. Said first and second
The surplus ink scraping members 41.90 and 42.89 are made of a non-breathable material that prevents air and ink 4 from entering and taking out the inside and outside of the film cartridge 40.

Next, the relationship between the diameter of the small holes 2a of the film 2 and the pitch between the small holes 2a will be explained with reference to FIG.

In the figure, the arrow ■ indicates the moving direction of the film 2, and the line connecting the centers of the small holes 2a is an equilateral triangle with one side perpendicular to the arrow I. In the figure, H and V are the dimensions of the heating element 3, each having a door size of 10C) μm-125μ.

In the figure, the diameter of the small hole 2a is 25 μm, and the diameter of the small hole 2a is
The distance P between the centers of a is 45 μm, and the minimum distance between the small holes 2a is 20 μm. According to experiments, using the above-mentioned symbols and assuming that the maximum distance between adjacent small holes 2a is P, the relational expressions H≧2P and V≧2P+D are satisfied;
In the case of a resolution of 8 lines/M as in the example, in order to obtain good printing quality, the diameter of the small hole 2a should be within the range of D-15 to 35 μm and 1P to P-40 to 50 μm. It was necessary.

Special considerations are required to achieve good print quality and improve thermal efficiency during recording, regardless of the shape of the heating element 3.

FIG. 14 shows the cross-sectional shape of the heating element.

Here, the heating element 3 and the electrical conductors 108, 121 are A
It is covered with a thin wear-resistant insulating film 136 such as 20s. Now, a voltage is applied to the heating element 3 and it is rapidly heated, bubbles are generated, and due to this pressure, the ink 4 in the small hole 2a filled with ink 4 is rapidly ejected and recorded. In the example, the resistance of the heating element 3 is selected to be 300Ω, and 24V is applied with a pulse width of 10 μsec to eject recording ink and perform recording.

At this time, the energy consumed is approximately 21 oOerQ/element.

This energy is almost constant when the thickness T of the gap 124 between the heating element and the film 2 is 3 μm or more, but when ■ is 1
When the thickness exceeds 0 μm, the jetting force becomes poor and the printing quality deteriorates. Furthermore, when the bottom is 3 μm or less, the ink consumption energy per heating element 3 becomes 2100 or more, and it was found that the smaller T is, the more energy is required. Therefore, in this embodiment, a T-3μ helmet was used.

Next, the following improvements have been made in terms of the durability of the heating element 3.

That is, as proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 59-11851, the heating element (heating resistor) is made of ruthenium oxide as a main component, M (M is Ca13r, 3a, pb,
A metal oxide thin film containing at least one oxide selected from Bi and T in an M/RU (atomic ratio) of 0.6 to 2 is used.

By using a metal oxide thin film in this way, there is no need to consider changes in resistance due to oxidation, as in the past, and it becomes possible to apply large amounts of power and reach high temperatures.
It also increases stability during long-term use. Further, since this metal oxide thin film has a relatively high sheet resistance value, a relatively small current is required to obtain a high heat generation density. Therefore, less current flows through the conductive layer connected to the heat generating resistor as in the conventional case, and heat generation from this portion can be reduced. Therefore, so-called print blurring that occurs during printing can be reduced. Furthermore, since such a thin film has a positive resistance temperature coefficient, it can improve the drawbacks of SnO2-based materials, and has the advantage of being able to apply a large amount of power from the initial stage, and being suitable for increasing speed.

Next, the structure of the ink presence detection elements 109 and 112 of the thermal head 1 will be described according to FIGS. 10(a) and 10(b). In this embodiment, an exposed conductor portion 1 of an ink presence/absence detection element is shown in which electrical conductors are connected to both ends of a thermal head 1.
10, 111, and this exposed conductor part 110.111
has no abrasion resistant/insulating film 136 and comes into direct contact with the ink 4.

Incidentally, the conductivity of the ink is 10'S/cm, and if a voltage is applied, a small amount of current can flow. This state is shown in FIG. 10(a). The exposed conductor portion 110,1
When the ON-OF, L and voltage pulses are sent to 11 by switch SW, if ink 4 is at the top of thermal head 1 as shown in FIG. 10(a), switch S
When W is turned on, the voltage at point Q is the same as the exposed conductor portion 11.
Since a current flows between 0 and 111, it temporarily decreases.

This signal is amplified to detect the presence of ink. As shown in FIG. 10(b), when there is no ink 4, no current flows even if the switch SW operates as described above, so the voltage drop as described above does not occur.

With this, it is possible to detect that there is no ink 4, and it is possible to prohibit the recording operation. As described above, in this embodiment, ink presence/absence detection elements 109 and 112 are further attached to both ends of the row of heating elements 3... of the thermal head 1, so that when there is no ink 4, the heating elements 3... It is possible to eliminate the problem of damaging the heating element 3 by heating and dry cooking.

In other words, even if there is ink 4 at one end of the heating element row 3 and no ink 4 at the other end, the presence or absence of ink can be detected by ANDing the signals of the ink presence detection elements 109 and 112. Therefore, it is possible to detect when there is no ink.

In this embodiment, as described above, the thermal head 1 is provided with the ink presence/absence detection elements 109 and 112, and the ink container 64 is also provided with replenishment ink presence/absence detection means consisting of an ink detection LED 75 and an ink detection photosensor 76. This is what we have set up.

As described above, these ink presence/absence detection means each have their own roles, and at the same time, as described below, they can cause the recording apparatus of this embodiment to perform various operations depending on the combination of their respective states. Ru.

First, in this embodiment, if a voltage is constantly applied to the ink presence/absence detection means 109 and 112 of the thermal head 1 described above,
There is a problem in that the ink 4 is electrolyzed and gases such as hydrogen and oxygen are generated and the exposed conductor parts 110 and 111 are corroded. The presence or absence of ink is detected by applying a voltage.

Furthermore, by doing this, it is possible to stop the recording operation during recording after the start of the recording operation, for example, after feeding the recording paper 8, and after a while has passed, that is, after the ink 4 has reached the thermal head 1. When the recording operation is restarted, the problem of the accurate position of the recording paper being shifted due to the inertia of the feed roller or the like can be prevented in advance.

Further, in this embodiment, when the absence of ink is detected by the ink presence detection operation of the thermal head 1, the film drive motor 52 is driven to move the film 2 for a certain period of time as shown by arrows G and F in FIG. After the reciprocating operation, the ink presence/absence detection operation of the thermal head 1 described above is performed again to detect the presence or absence of ink.

Therefore, even if the ink 4 evaporates and disappears from the heating element array 3 of the thermal head 1 due to a temporary stop, the ink presence/absence detection operation described above can be restarted.
It can also be detected whether there is no ink 4 inside the film cartridge 40, or whether ink 4 has reached the ink supply member 37, 39 inside the film cartridge 40 from the ink container 64 if a new film cartridge 40 has just been set. It can be confirmed.

In this way, when it is detected that there is no ink in the thermal head 1, a status display regarding no ink is displayed on the display section of the image, character, data, etc. processing device 133 to which the recording device is connected, and the operator is informed. It is designed to give instructions on how to deal with it.

Incidentally, the ink presence/absence detection operation of the thermal head 1, the ink presence/absence detection signal, the replenishment ink presence/absence detection signal of the ink container 64, and the operation of the recording apparatus are closely related. In fact, in this embodiment, the recording member, that is, the recording paper 8, is fed toward the heating element 3 only when the detection signal of the presence of ink in the thermal head 1 and the detection signal of the presence of ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time. I try to do that.

This can prevent the risk of running out of ink 4 during recording and having to interrupt the recording operation.

Further, as described above, when the detection signal indicating that there is no ink in the thermal head 1 and the detection signal that there is replenishment ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time, the film drive motor 52, the film movement drive shaft 87, 88, etc. By operating the film moving mechanism, it is possible to cut off the ink 4 from reaching the heating element 3 of the thermal head 1.

At this time, the film moving speed is 20I during normal recording.
Although it is moved at a speed of Ill/■, it is operated at a slower speed, 5 tea/V in the example. As a result, when there is no ink 4, the electrical conductor 108 is caused by the friction between the thermal head 1 and the film 2.
．． This prevents the wear-resistant insulating film 121 from being damaged.

In this way, the film moving mechanism is operated to move the film 2 back and forth until the ink-absence detection signal of the thermal head 1 changes to an ink-present signal.

Then, the image or character or data processing device 13 described above
A "waiting" state is displayed in the display area 3 to inform that the ink 4 is being supplied to the thermal head 1.

By the way, when a detection signal indicating that there is ink in the thermal head 1 and a detection signal indicating that there is no replenishment ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time, an ink replenishment signal is sent to the display section of the recording device or the image, character, or data processing device 133. An instruction is displayed to prompt the operator to replace the ink container 64 and replenish new ink 4. In this way, a new ink container 64
is attached and the detection signal indicating that there is no refill ink in the ink container 64 changes to the detection signal indicating that there is ink, the recording operation is stopped for a certain period of time, that is, the recording paper 8 is transferred toward the heating element 3. It is also prohibited to do so. This is the ink supply member 37 in the film cartridge 40.
．． This ensures that a sufficient amount of ink 4 permeates the film 39 and that the ink 4 is always supplied to the film 2 in the same state.

In addition, in this embodiment, the film cartridge 40 is set in the recording apparatus by the means for detecting that the detection signal indicating that there is no ink in the thermal head 1 and the detection signal that there is no replenishing ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time. It is detected that it is not. This pattern is shown in FIG.

In fact, in the above-mentioned state, when the film cartridge 40 is not set, and even when the film cartridge 40 is set, neither the thermal head 1 nor the ink container 6
4 also shows that there is no ink 4, but,
In either case, the operator is instructed to replenish ink in a major sense.

As a result, even if there is no means for detecting whether or not the film cartridge 40 is set in the recording apparatus, it is possible to detect whether there is no ink in the thermal head 1 or not in the container 6.
No.4 refill ink occurs. In most cases, this means that the film cartridge 40 is not actually set. In this manner, in this embodiment, it is detected that the detection signals of no ink in the thermal head 1 and no replenishment ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time, and it is detected whether the film cartridge 40 is attached or detached.

Next, the overall structure of the thermal head 1 will be described according to FIGS. 9, 11, and 12.

The structure of the heating element 3 has been described with reference to FIG. 14, but in this embodiment, the heating element 3 and the electric conductor 108, 121 as an extraction electrode are made of a glass round rod as a rod-shaped member. The glass round rod 122 is further bonded to the end surface of a glass epoxy resin substrate 137 serving as an insulating support. (Note that 120 is a protective shield resin.) The thermal head 1 normally uses a ceramic substrate, but if you try to provide a heating element pattern or a driving integrated circuit (driver IC > 119) on the surface of the thermal head 1, the front surface will be damaged. Because of the roughness, pattern breakage occurs.As a result, fine patterns cannot be obtained and products with high dot density cannot be made.To eliminate this problem, polish the ceramic substrate,
It is necessary to provide a glass gelatin layer, which increases the cost ^
It is the cause of

In this embodiment, the glass round rod 1 is located near the heating element 3...
22, there is no need for special glass glaze or flat processing, and the material cost is very low.

In addition, in a flat type head or an end face type head in which heating elements 3 are provided at the ends of an alumina plate, it is necessary to form the heating element rows 3 accurately, but in this embodiment, the heating elements 3... Since the substrate on which the . . . does not occur. Therefore, manufacturing is easy and inexpensive.

Further, the substrate supporting the round bar 122 is made of glass.

1 compared to ceramic substrate due to epoxy resin substrate 137
The cost will be /100 or less. However, no matter how cheap the glass epoxy resin substrate is, the minute wiring to connect the drive integrated circuit 119 on the glass epoxy resin substrate 137 and the electric conductor 108, 121 on the glass round rod 122 is difficult to use. Pattern on glass/epoxy resin board 137
If the glass epoxy resin substrate 137 is provided on top of the substrate, the yield will be poor due to pattern breakage unless the glass epoxy resin substrate 137 is polished, and the cost will inevitably increase.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the drive integrated circuit 119 is bonded onto the glass epoxy resin substrate 137 near the glass rod 122, and the drive integrated circuit 119 and the electric conductors 108, 121 on the glass rod 122 are connected as conductive wires. Gold wire 170...
By tying them together, they are not affected by the roughness of the substrate 137. On the other hand, the signal input side of the drive integrated circuit 119 is connected to the first
As shown in the drive circuit diagram of FIG. 6, the number of terminals is about 115 compared to the output side, so even if a wiring pattern is formed on the glass epoxy resin substrate 137, it can be made sufficiently wide, so that pattern breakage does not occur.

In addition, in this embodiment, the electrical conductors 108 and 121 on the signal terminal side of the heating elements 3 are taken out alternately on both sides of the glass round rod 122, and the driving integrated circuits are bonded to both sides of the glass epoxy resin substrate 137. 119 and 119 are bonded with gold wire 170. In this way, the signal line or electrical conductor 108 of the heating element 3 is attached to the side surface of the end face type head.
. . , 121 . . ., the mounting density of the drive integrated circuits 119, 119 can be increased by extending the signal lines, that is, the electrical conductors 108 . . . , 121 . The cost can be reduced to about half compared to that, and the cost of the drive integrated circuit 119 has been significantly reduced, making it easier to manufacture a high-density head.

Furthermore, since the glass round rod 122 is used at the tip of the head, it is easier to separate the recording paper 8 quickly after printing compared to a case where the tip of the head is flat.

As described above, even with the thermal inkjet method, which is almost impossible to use with a flat head, it is possible to manufacture the device at a relatively simple structure and at low cost without being subject to any restrictions on device design.

As explained above, according to the above embodiment, since the rod-shaped heat insulating member is used, it is easy to manufacture and inexpensive in terms of materials. In addition, since no processing to impart flatness is required, the cost is even lower. Furthermore, since it is an end-face type, there is sufficient space around the head, making it possible to convert the porous film of a thermal inkjet recording device into a cassette or the film of a thermal transfer recording device, making it easier to operate the device. .

In addition, in the above description of one embodiment, an explanation has been given of an application to a thermal inkjet type recording apparatus, but the present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to, for example, thermal transfer, thermal color recording, etc. Of course.

In addition, it goes without saying that the present invention can be modified in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, the present invention includes attaching a rod-shaped member such as glass having a heating element and an extraction electrode on its curved surface for supplying power to the heating element to the end of an insulating support, and further comprising: A driving integrated circuit for driving the heating element is attached to a flat portion of the insulating support near the rod-shaped member, and an electric wire is directly connected between the extraction electrode on the rod-shaped member and the driving circuit on the insulating support. It was designed to connect with. Therefore, although the configuration is relatively simple, the packaging density can be increased, there are no restrictions on the device or structure used, and a thermal head can be provided at low cost.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the recording principle of an inkjet recording device to which an embodiment of the thermal head of the present invention can be applied, and FIG. 2(a) is an illustration of the inkjet recording device to which an embodiment of the thermal head of the present invention is applied Schematic longitudinal sectional side view, Figure 2 (
b) is a side view of the main parts, FIG. 3 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view, FIG. 4(a) is a side view of the drive section of the film moving mechanism, and FIG. 4(b) is a side view of the drive section of the film moving mechanism. Plan view,
Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the film cartridge, Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the film moving mechanism and ink supply section, Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the paper ejection roller section, and Fig. 8 is the diameter and pitch of the small holes and the heating element. 9 is a perspective view showing the ink presence/absence detection means of the thermal head. FIG. 10(a) is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the ink presence/absence detection means when ink is loaded.
b) is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the ink presence/absence detection means when there is no ink;
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the thermal head of the present invention, FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the shapes of a multi-hole portion and a non-hole portion of the film, and FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the relationship between film speed and recording density. , FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the structure near the heating element, and FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the structure near the heating element.
The figure is a schematic diagram of an electronic control circuit, and FIG. 16 is a diagram of a drive circuit for a thermal head. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Thermal head, 2...Recording medium (film), 2a...Small hole, 3...Heating element, 4...Recording ink, 5...Small hole filled with ink , 6...
- Ejected ink droplet, 7... Small hole from which the ink droplet was ejected, 8... Recorded member (recording paper), 108, 12
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Extraction electrode (electric conductor), 119... Drive integrated circuit, 120... Protective shield resin, 122...
Rod-shaped member (glass round bar), 137... insulating support (glass/epoxy resin substrate), 170... conductive wire (gold wire). Applicant's representative Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue Figure 1 Figure 2 (b) t (a) (b) Figure 4 C5 j IS Figure 7 Section (a) (b) Procedural amendment (formality) □□, 6 ．． p, 9. 6. Director General of the Japan Patent Office Michibe Uga 1, Indication of the case, Patent Application No. 118130/1988 2, Name of the invention Thermal head 3, Person making the amendment Relationship to the case Patent applicant (307) Tohoku Co., Ltd. 4 , Agent August 27, 1985 6, Subject of amendment 7, Contents of amendment The drawing number of the second cake in the drawing attached to the application is "Figure 2 (b)"
” has been corrected to read “Figure 2 (a)” in the attached circular. Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office Kuro 1) Yu Akira 26 Name of the invention Thermal head 3, person making the amendment Relationship to the case Patent applicant (307) Tohoku Co., Ltd. 4, agent 3-7-2 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo UBE building 7,
Contents of the amendment (1) In the specification, page 19, line 3, the phrase ``Raise.'' is corrected to ``Lower.'' (2) Similarly, on page 19, line 14, delete the word ``fine''. (3) Similarly, page 21, line 11, r37, 79J is corrected to r37, 39J. (4) Similarly, in the 4th line from the bottom of page 27, the phrase ``the above-mentioned right'' is corrected to ``the above-mentioned right''. (5) Similarly, in the 6th line from the bottom of page 28, the phrase ``while rubbing'' has been corrected to ``moving while rubbing.'' (6) Similarly, on page 37, line 5, ``to reach'' should be corrected to ``to''. (7) Similarly, on page 37, line 14, ``Deki.'' should be corrected to ``Deki.''. (8) Similarly, on page 42, line 8, "Ink 4" should be corrected to "Ink 4". (9) Similarly, on page 45, line 5, replace “10” with r.
Correct it as llOJ. (10) Similarly, on page 51, in the third line from the bottom and in the second line from the bottom, the words rVJ are corrected to read "seconds." (11) Similarly, on page 55, line 4, ``front'' is corrected to ``front.''

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) An insulating support, a rod-shaped member attached to the end of the insulating support, a heating element provided on the curved surface of the rod-shaped member, and an extraction electrode for supplying power to the heating element. a driving integrated circuit for driving the heating element, which is provided on a flat portion of the insulating support near the rod-shaped member; A thermal head characterized by comprising a conductive wire for connecting to a circuit. (2) A patent claim characterized in that the signal input sides of extraction electrodes for supplying power to the heating element are alternately provided on both sides of the insulating support, and driving integrated circuits are provided on both sides of the insulating support. The thermal head according to item 1.