JPS61295044A - Recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make maintenance and color change easier as well as permit high-speed recording without clogging by using a system in which a container and an ink container are made separable from each other and ink in small holes or recessions is jetted by the pressure of air bubbles produced by heating. CONSTITUTION:When a film 2 is moved to the direction of arrow, ink 4 is packed into small holes 2a of the film 2 passing through the trap of the ink 4. When the small holes 5 filled with the ink 4 reaches a thermal head 1, voltage is selectively applied to heating elements 3 to heat up the elements 3 quickly. Ink droplets 6 are jetted by the pressure of air bubbles produced the heating. Since a film cartridge 40 is separable from an ink container 64, the clogging of the film 2 in the cartridge 40 can be prevented, and only the ink 4 to be consumed in printing can be exchanged by exchanging the ink container 64. Also, since the cartridge 40 and the container 64 can be integrally removed, the color of the ink 4 can be easily exchanged.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a novel inkjet type recording device applicable to, for example, printers, facsimile machines, and the like.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

Conventionally, various non-impact recording methods have been proposed, such as an electrostatic method, a thermal paper heating method, a thermal transfer method, an electrophotographic method, and an inkjet method.

Under these circumstances, the inkjet method is an extremely superior recording method that has various advantages such as low noise, low power, small size, easy multi-color printing, and inexpensive components. Various developments are underway from a certain point.

Examples of the Infusiera 1 type include a pressure element type, a static pressure acceleration type, and a Bubble Diene 1~ type. However, all conventional inkjet systems eject ink from the tip of a nozzle, and the problem of nozzle clogging has not been completely solved, so they have not been widely used. Another drawback is that the recording speed is slow because a large number of nozzles cannot be arranged closely together, making it difficult to record a large number of dots at the same time.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention was made based on the above circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a completely new inkjet method that does not use fixed nozzles, is free from clogging, is capable of high-speed recording, and is easy to maintain and replace. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an economical recording device that can easily perform the above operations.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention fills a recording medium with a large number of small holes or recesses with recording ink, and when the small holes or recesses filled with ink reach the surface of the heating element, the heating element is activated. By selectively heating, the pressure of the generated bubbles causes the ink in the small holes or recesses to be ejected toward the recording material, thereby recording on the recording material. To the medium
An ink supply means for supplying ink, a recording medium transport mechanism section for transporting a recording medium, a container section for holding these together as a cartridge, and an ink container connected to this container section for replenishing ink to the ink supply section. and
The container portion and the ink container are configured to be separable.

[Embodiments of the invention]

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

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the recording principle. In the figure, 1 is a thermal head, and 2 is a small hole (orifice) with a diameter of 10 to 200 μm.
2a is a film as a recording medium made of metal, organic material, etc., in which a large number of . is a small hole filled with ink,
Reference numeral 6 indicates an ejected ink droplet, and 7 indicates a small hole from which the 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 bubbles (
Recording is performed by ejecting ink droplets 6 due to the pressure of bubbles.

FIG. 2 is a schematic longitudinal sectional side view of the recording device of the present invention, and 8 in the figure shows a paper feed cassette 49 loaded with recording paper as a recording material. The side surfaces are pushed upward by push-up springs 33 . . . , so that the uppermost recording paper 8 is in constant contact with the first feed roller 9 . Above paper feed cassette 49
When the device main body 5 is attached to the integrated housing 134, the rubber magnet 47 attached to its tip magnetically attracts the plate 48 provided on the device main body housing 134 side, and is fixed to the device main body housing 134. ing.

As shown in FIG.
- It is configured to be interlocked with the paper conveyance motor 54 via the paper feed spring clutch 63 which is turned OFF and the gears 56 and 55. Then, the paper feed solenoid 51 is connected to the image/data processing device 133 (the first
When the paper feed spring clutch 63 is energized in response to the recording command (see Fig. 5), the paper feed spring clutch 63 is ONL, and the movement of the paper transport motor 54 is controlled via the gears 55, 56 and the paper feed spring clutch 63. The uppermost recording paper 8 that is in contact with the first feed roller 9 is fed by the transmission to the shaft 139.

Also, the paper feed cassette 49 is fed via the first feed roller 9.
The recording paper 8 taken out is placed in the first paper feed guide 44.
The first and second
The sheet is fed between the paper feed guides 44 and 45 until the leading end hits the contact area between the suction conveyance bells 1 to 15 of the recording material conveyance mechanism 43 and the stopped registration roller 11 which is in rolling contact therewith. Sent and covered in this state.

Note that this device is capable of feeding paper from the manual paper feed tray 17 in addition to paper feeding from the paper feed cellar l-719.
The recording paper 8 such as thick paper that has been loaded all at once on the manual paper feed tray 17 is transferred to the second feed roller 19 and the separation roller 1.
By the action of 8, the sheets are taken out one by one starting from the lowest one, and as in the case of feeding from the paper feed cassette 49, the paper is suction conveyed by the paper feeder L, L, 15, and the stopped nozzle is in contact with this. The rollers 1 to 11 are fed until their tips abut against any of the contact parts, and wait in this state.

The registration roller 11 is configured 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 such that the leading edge of the recording paper 8 is at the first L.
After a certain period of time has elapsed since the first bottom sensor 22 was turned off by blocking the light from the E D 21, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 hits the rolling contact portion of the registration roller 11, causing an appropriate slack. It is stipulated in

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 8 is 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 portion of the recording paper 8 from becoming dirty.

The recording material conveying mechanism 43 includes the first and second rollers 12.14 and the rollers 12.14 within the housing portion 140.
f) A suction conveyance mechanism section 43a as a first floating section which incorporates the passed suction conveyance belt 15 and air suction duct 30 into a unit; and an suction conveyance mechanism section 43a as a first floating section. It has a belt guide plate 27 as a second floating part incorporated in the belt guide plate 43a, and by displacing the belt guide plate 27, it is a belt that presses the suction conveyance belt 15 toward the recording section guide 31 side or retreats it. It is composed of a pressing/retracting means 43b.

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 pushing angle spring 26, and the suction conveyance 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.

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

Further, the impact of the bell 1 to the guide plate 27 as the second floating part is damped by a high viscosity fluid buffer 29.

As described above, the recording material transport mechanism 43, which is composed of the suction transport mechanism section 43a and the pel 1 to pressing/retracting 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 of 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 moved to the registration rollers 11 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 roller 11 and the tenth-
The paper is transported by the clamping transport force of the roller 12 and the suction force of the suction transport belt 15.

At this time, the recording paper 8 is pressed by the belt
It is pressed against the recording section guide 31 by the action of b, and is conveyed while rubbing against the recording section guide 31.

The recording section guide 31 is fixed with the thermal head 1 as a reference, and the rubbing surface of the recording section guide 31 is maintained at a constant distance from the heating elements 3 . The recording section (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

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

However, if the gap is set to 0.1 rNn or less, when the ink 4 permeates into the recording paper 8, this portion expands and the recording surface contacts the surface of the film 2, causing the recording surface to become ink 4.
It was also confirmed that there is a risk of contamination. Therefore, in this embodiment, the recording section guide 3 is attached to the recording section guide fixing reference protrusion 135 (see FIG. 6) of the 1-terminal head 1.
Press the arm part of No. 1 and make the gap 0.2±0.05.
It is strictly controlled to keep it at +nm.

When the leading edge of the recording paper 8 moves further forward, it is nipped and transported by the 20th roller 14 of the suction transport mechanism section 4.38 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. Therefore, the paper is conveyed without applying excessive pressure, so that 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 material conveyance mechanism 43 and is conveyed while being rubbed against the recording section guide 31. In other words, the basic conveyance force for the recording paper 8 is only the suction conveyance saw of the suction belt 15, and the recording paper 8 is conveyed while being subjected to a large frictional force, resulting in uncertainty in conveyance.

However, in this embodiment, the force for pressing 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 is used to press the recording sheet 8 against the recording section guide 31. Due to the reaction force from the guide 31, the high viscosity fluid passes through the high viscosity fluid buffer 29 while resisting the belt guide plate pressing spring 26, and is pushed upward relative to the housing portion of the suction conveyance mechanism section 43a as the first floating section.

In this way, after the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 has passed, the registration row 511 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 when the rear end of the recording paper 8 passes the edge of the recording section guide 38 on the full head 1 side, the belt guide plate 27 receives no reaction force from anywhere.
Total load on belt guide plate 27 and belt guide plate pressing spring 26
It will be pushed down by the force of.

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 8 is covered with the ink 4. It has the problem of getting dirty.

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 high viscosity fluid buffer 29 as described above, the rear end of the recording paper 8 passes through the edge part of the recording unit guide 31. Even if it moves downward, it 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.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 and the II O
In order to prevent the recording paper 8 from coming into contact with the surface of the film 2 due to folds or bends in N, the leading or trailing edge of the recording paper 8 is bent by ±6 on both ends with the heating element 3 in between.
During the limit, the electromagnetic coil 28 that moves from the surface of the film 2 is excited to attract the entire belt guide plate 27, such as the second floating part, upward.

In this way, the recording paper 8 does not come into contact with the film 2 and get dirty, and it passes through the arrangement of the rollers 13 with an extremely small gap and is ejected with clean recordings. The paper will be ejected onto the tray 16.

Also, when the paper is ejected, the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 is placed in the second LE.
The tip of the recording paper 8 is blocked and the rising signal of the second photorenzor 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
Regarding the supply of ink from the recording medium car 1 to the film cartridge 40 as a cartridge, and the supply of ink from the ink supply sections of the film cars 1 to 40 to the film 2).

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 duplex 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. . The ink 4 that has flowed out from the ink container 64 flows out until it fills the obliquely cut end of the transparent ink supply duplex 71, and then flows through the valves 68 of the film cars 1 to 40.
A small hole drilled around the ink supply passage 94
The ink flows into a fine ink supply channel 72.93 (see FIG. 6) formed at the bottom of the container portion 77 of the film car 1 heritage 40 through the ink.

The ink 4 further soaks into an ink supply member 37, 39 as an ink supply means made of felt,
Through this, the ink 4 is applied to the film 2, and therefore the small holes 2a of the film 2 are filled with the ink 4, and bubbles are formed in the ink 4 due to the movement of the film 2 and the rapid heating of the heating elements 3. The recording ink droplets 6 are used as recording ink droplets 6.

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 041.90 made of rubber and a second surplus ink scraping member 4
2.89 J: Air enters and exits the ink supply section when the small holes 2a of the film 2 pass through the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41.90 and 42.89. Therefore, it is possible to replenish the ink 4 from the ink container 64 to the ink supply unit only when the film 2 is being moved, and it is not possible to replenish the ink 4 from the ink container 64 described above only when the film 2 is being moved. It is designed so that it will not be damaged.

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 the ink supply members 37.7 made of felt as shown in FIGS. 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, attach the ink container 64 to the film car 1 helicopter 40.
The operation of attaching the ink container and removing it from the section 65 will be described below.

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, the light from the ink detection LDE 75 begins to pass through and the ink detection photosen leaf 6 begins to be turned on.

The rise of this signal is detected to detect the absence of ink in the ink container 64.

Based on the ink-out detection signal, the device displays a message on the display portion of the device or the display portion of the image/data processing device 133 connected to the device, if the thermal head 1 is detected as described below. - If there is ink 4, a message is displayed indicating that there is no ink in the ink container 64, that is, the ink container 64 needs to 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 completely opposite to that during installation.

That is, the valve 68 of the film cartridge 40 rises, and the ink container mounting part seal 73 is brought into close contact with the lower surface of the ink container mounting part 65 by the force of the nozzle valve spring 69, and the ink 4 in the film cartridge 40 is transferred to the ink container mounting part 65. This prevents the liquid from leaking and scattering to the outside.

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.
The container is opaque in consideration of its weather resistance, and the normal recording density is 2,000 to 5
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 holes 2a of the film 2, and must be replaced every 3 years. Is required. Therefore, the film cartridge 4o 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 housing 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.
The @ theory can be easily made even if the ``@'' is attached. In other words, the color of the ink 4 can be easily changed. 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.

Note that when the film cartridge 40 is removed, the ink 4 remaining in the film car 1-ridge 40 is covered to prevent it from leaking or evaporating.
~The ridge 40 is equipped with a car 1-ridge i85 as shown in Fig. 5, and rotates as shown by the arrow.
Covering the film exposed portion 86, the protruding portion of the lid 85 serves as a first surplus ink scraping member 41,90 and a second surplus ink scraping member 42 of the film car 1 to the cartridge 40.
．． 89 to seal the film cartridge 40.

In addition, the ink absorbing members 34 and 35 shown in FIG.
As mentioned above, when the film cartridge is attached or removed, there is a problem in that the surplus ink 4 accumulated at the top of the thermal head 1 flows down through the wall surface of the thermal head 1 and scatters inside the device. An ink absorbing member 34 in contact with the thermal head 1 in the lower part
, 35, which absorbs the ink 4 that is about to run down and scatter, thereby preventing the above-mentioned problem.

Now, let's move on to the operation when driving film 2).

FIG. 4(a) is a side view of a drive section of the film transport mechanism 144 as a recording medium transport mechanism, and FIG. 4(b) is a plan view of the same portion. The film 2 rotates clockwise and counterclockwise when 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.
In FIG. 4(a), it moves 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 further attaches the left-handed spring 84 to 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 acts in the direction of loosening from the shaft 88. 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 gears 59 and 78 are 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.

Furthermore, as shown in the perspective view of the moving mechanism of the embodiment shown in FIG. 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 an externally wound 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 wheel 97, 100, the recording medium is wound around the shaft 36 via the torsion spring 95, and the film is wound around the shaft 36 in the counterclockwise direction. For winding, the shaft 38 is attached by appropriately twisting the torsion spring 95 in advance so as to bias it clockwise. Therefore, the torsional force of the torsion spring 95 is applied to the film 2.
In other words, an appropriate tension is applied depending on the value of 1 to 1.

In this way, the film car 1 helix 40 is attached to the device (sliding is done while the film 2 is always in close contact with the tip of the thermal head 1 with appropriate pressure, eliminating the problem of the film 2 loosening due to sliding). It is supposed to be done.

Next, referring to FIG. 4(a), the driving gear 58 is
The case of rotating in the counterclockwise cutting direction when viewed from the mounting I side of No. 8 will be explained.

At this time, the drive gear 59 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, 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 rotation in the counterclockwise direction, and the right-hand spring 83 and the left-hand spring 8
7! The action of L and film tension mechanism 142 prevents the film 2 from loosening when attaching and detaching the film cartridge L-ridge 40, and also prevents damage to the film 2 and the thermal head 1 due to excessive tension. It has become.

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 at the heating element 3 of the thermal head 1, and the ink 4 is sent and recorded. It is now possible to do so.

Furthermore, the film 2 is guided by guide means consisting of 4j-id guides for the film 2, indicated by 102 and 103 in FIGS. 6 and 9, located at both ends of the thermal head 1, thereby preventing the film 2 from shifting laterally. It looks like this.

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 the starting position of the multi-hole portion 92 of the film 2 is indicated on this indexing board 80. The first film position detection slit 81 serves as a recording medium first position detection slit, and the second film position serves as a recording medium second position detection slit.
A position detection slit 82 is provided so that the position of the film 2 is detected by a film position detector 79.

When the film drive motor 52 rotates, the film position detector 79 senses the short and long light pulses generated by the short and long slits of the slit 81, and in response, the film position detector 79 detects the short and long light pulses generated by the short and long slits of the slit 81. By comparing the clock pulse of the long slit 81 with the clock pulse of the slit 81, it is determined when the slit 81 is the film first position detecting slit 1~ at the rear end of the long slit of the slit 81 in the sub-rotational direction. The pulse is detected by the 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 ink 4 does not fly out from the small holes 2a of the film 2, reducing the speed. This makes it possible to prevent problems that may occur.

Now, when recording, the image to which the actual device is connected -
A processing device for character data, etc., receives a recording command from the device 133 (see FIG. 15), and drives the first feed roller 9 to feed the film 2 to the recording section. The film drive motor 52 is moved by rotating the film drive motor 52 in the counter-chronological direction as shown by the arrow in FIG. Position the recording paper 8
Film 2 is moved in synchronization with the leading edge of recording paper 8 with the arrival of
move. At this time, the moving speed of the film 2 is 20 mm/sec, which is 1/2 of the moving speed of the recording paper 8 of 40 M/sec.
Seconds.

In fact, even when the speed of the recording paper 8 is varied between 10 and 100 m/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, if the moving speed of the film 2 is V/4 or higher, the surface Dl is 0 (black solid, coverage 7).
5%) 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 could be reduced, and the production of the film 2 could be made easier. That is, when the area of the multi-hole portion 92 is large, the diameter of the small hole 2a (25 to 30 μTrL) is added to the total area.
Therefore, the diameter of the small holes 2a becomes smaller near the periphery, resulting in 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 At the time of initial setting, it is necessary that the film 2 is wound around the first and second eight excess ink scraping members and the 90 side, and the film drive motor 52 is set so that the film position detector 79 is in the first position of the film. It is necessary that the position of the long slit 1 to the similar slit of the detection slit 81 and the similar slit is detected and 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 and 90 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. Located above 90 1. It's -1. 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 41.90 is positioned below the thermal head 1 side with respect to the film 2, the second surplus ink scraping member 42.89 The distance of the film 2 can be reduced, and the area of the film exposed portion 86 of the film car 1 to the ridge 40 of the film 2 can be reduced.

Therefore, the film car 1 to the ridge 40 can be formed compactly. From the point of view of the effect of scraping off excess ink when the fill l\2 moves, it 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 amount to the side opposite to the thermal head 1 through the multi-hole portion 92.

Further, the ink 4 that has moved to the opposite side is scraped off by the second surplus ink scraping member 42, and moves 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 the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41.4.2, the film 2 has small holes 2a... - Not only that, but also a sufficient amount of ink 4 is applied and replenished over 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, let's consider a case in which the multi-hole portion 92 moves downward through the first and second surplus ink scraping members 41, 42.

In this case, the recording side surface of the film 2 is first scraped off by the second surplus 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 1.4.2 will be described. At this time, the surface of the film 2 opposite to the thermal head 1 has already been exposed to the second surface.
Since the second surplus ink scraping member 89 cleans the ink, there is no need for the second surplus ink scraping member 42 to scrape off the ink.

However, paper dust and dirt 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 6, the exposed portion of the film 2 is thoroughly cleaned, and there is no risk of getting your hands dirty when attaching or detaching the film car 1 heir 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 -38= time, the film 2 is slightly moved back and forth several times across the heating cord 3 of the thermal head 1, and at the same time, the suction fan 53 shown in FIG. Paper scraps and dust on the film 2 are sucked into the air suction guide 57.

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, since the paper waste removal process is carried out in the non-perforated portion 91 of the film 2 as described above, the ink 4 on the film surface is cleaned, so that the ink 4, etc. enters the air suction guide 57. It is also possible to prevent the opening angle such that the ink 4 is sucked in or attached to the suction belt 15.

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

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

This is done in order to prevent the ink 4 from being depleted from the heating cords 3 . . . of the thermal head 1 until the series of recording operations is completed. after that,
The paper waste removal process 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 sections of the film cars 1 to 40. The first and second surplus ink scraping members 41.90. and 42.89
is made of a non-breathable material that prevents air and ink 4 from entering and exiting the film car 1-ridge 40.

Next, the relationship between the diameter of the small holes 2a of the film 2 and the pitch between the small holes 28 will be explained with reference to FIG.

Arrow I in the figure indicates the moving direction of the film 2, and a 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, which are 100 μm to 125 μm, respectively. The diameter of the small hole 2a in the figure is 25 μm in the example.
The center-to-center distance P 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 28 is P, the relational expressions H≧2P and V≧2P+D are satisfied, and the resolution is 8 lines/mm as in the example. In the case of small hole 2a
The diameter of D=15~35uTrL, P=40~50
In order to obtain good print quality, it was necessary to keep the thickness within the μm range.

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 conductor 108.121 are A
Covered with a thin wear-resistant insulation 11!136 such as 203°C. Now, a voltage is applied to the heating element 3 and it is rapidly heated, bubbles are generated, and this pressure causes the ink 4 to
The ink 4 in the small holes 2a filled with
24V is applied with a pulse width of 10μ and 88G to eject recording ink and perform recording.

At this time, the energy consumed is approximately 2100 erg/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. It was also found that when T is 3 μm or less, the ink energy consumption 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, T=3 μm.

In the figure, 122 indicates a glass glaze layer.

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 mainly composed of ruthenium oxide, M (M is Ca, 3r, 3a, pb,
A metal oxide thin film containing an oxide of at least one selected from B i and 'rg 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 is now possible to apply large amounts of power and reach high temperatures.
It also increases stability during long-term use. In addition, since this metal oxide thin film has a relatively high sheet resistance value, it generates a high heat density (H) with a relatively small current. The current is reduced, and heat generation from this part can be reduced.Therefore, so-called print blurring that occurs during printing can be reduced.In addition, such a thin film has a positive resistance temperature coefficient, so it overcomes the drawbacks of SnO2-based materials. It has the advantages of being able to improve the speed, applying a large amount of power from the beginning, and being suitable for speeding up.

Next, the structure of the thermal head will be described based on FIG. 11.

14 about the structure of the heating element 3, in this embodiment, the heating element 3 and the electrical conductor 108, 121 are formed on a polyimide film 123 of about 15 μm, which is made of metal made of aluminum. support body 13
It has a structure that is adhesively fixed to 7. It is estimated from the calculation of consumption energy distribution that most of the energy (more than 70%) is consumed by pulsed heating of the heating element 3.
This means that the polyimide film 123, film, etc. are accumulated instead of being used for ejecting the ink 4. Note that 119 is a driver for the thermal head 1;
20 is a protective cover.

In this way, if the A4 vertical feed line printer has a resolution of 8 lines/cm and a recording method of 140 m/V as in the embodiment, the thermal head 1 can be used for high-coverage recording such as graphic recording. The maximum value of the total energy consumption is about 120 W, of which about 107 W is accumulated in the polyimide film 123 and the film.

Such heat accumulation raises the temperature of the film 2 and the ink 4 to near the boiling point of the ink 4, and therefore, the situation in which the ink 4 is ejected changes depending on whether there is heat accumulation or not. In other words, the thermal history of recording causes a problem in that the density of the recorded image becomes uneven.

In this embodiment, the heating element 3 is placed on the polyimide film 123 having a thickness of approximately 15 μm, and the heating element 3 is placed on the electrical conductors 108, 12.
1 is bonded to a metal support 137 made of aluminum, so that the heat energy generated and accumulated in the heating element 3 is quickly transferred to the metal support 137.
Spread.

Since the support body is made of metal, the heat energy diffused into the metal support body 137 conducts heat very quickly and acts to cool the heating element 3 portion. thus,
The heating cycle of the heating element 3 can be shortened and the recording speed can be increased.

Next, the structure of the ink presence/absence detection elements 109 and 112 of the thermal head 1 will be described according to FIGS. 9 and 10(a) and (b). In this embodiment, there are exposed conductor parts 110 and 111 of the ink presence/absence detection element, which have electrical conductors abutted against each other at both ends of the thermal head 1.
0.111 is wear resistant and insulating! II! There is no 136, and it comes into direct contact with the ink 4.

Incidentally, the conductivity of the ink is 10"S/0m, and a small amount of current can flow if a voltage is applied. This state is shown in FIG. 10(a). The exposed conductor portion 110.1
If a voltage pulse of 0N-OFFL is sent to 11 by switch SW, if the ink 4 is
If is at the top of the thermal head 46-1, it will be 0 when the switch SW is turned on.
The voltage at the point temporarily decreases because current flows between the exposed conductor parts 110 and 111. This signal is amplified to detect the presence of ink. As shown in FIG. 10 (1)), when there is no ink 4, no current flows even if the switch SW is operated 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 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 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 L[D75 and an ink detection photosensor 76. This is because we have established the following.

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. .

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 from the heating element array 3 of the thermal head 1 due to a temporary stop, the ink reaches the inside of the film cartridge 40 by restarting the ink presence/absence detection operation. 4 is missing, and a new film cartridge L-Ridge 4 can be detected.
It is also possible to check whether or not the ink 4 has reached the ink supply member 37, 39 in the film cartridge 4O from the ink container 64 just after setting 0.

In this way, when it is detected that there is no ink in the thermal head 1, a status display regarding the lack of 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 instructed to take appropriate action. It is meant to give instructions.

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 material, 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 indicating that the ink container 64 is refilled are generated at the same time, the film drive motor 52, film movement drive shaft 87, 88, etc. By operating the film moving mechanism, the ink 4 can be prevented from reaching the heating element 3 of the thermal head 1.

At this time, the moving speed of the film is 20 m during normal recording.
Although it is moved at a speed of m/V, it is operated at a relatively slow speed, 5 mm/V in the example.

As a result, when there is no ink 4, the electrical conductor 108.12 is caused by the friction between the thermal head 1 and the film 2.
This prevents the wear-resistant insulating film No. 1 from being damaged.

In this way, the film moving mechanism 1a 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 the presence of ink in the normal head 1 and a detection signal indicating that there is no replenishment ink in the ink container 64 are generated at the same time, the display section of the recording cell or the image, character, or data processing device 133 is refilled with ink. A display instructing the operator to replace the ink container 64 and replenish it with new ink 4 is displayed. In this way, after the 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 that there is ink, the recording operation is stopped for a certain period of time, that is, the recording operation is stopped for a certain period of time. The recording paper 8 is also prohibited from being transferred by the user.

This means that enough ink 4 permeates into the three ink supply members 37.3 in the film cartridge 40, and the film 2
The ink 4 is always supplied 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, the thermal head 1 runs out of ink and the container 64 runs out of ink even if there is no means for detecting whether or not the film car 1-ridge 40 is set in the recording apparatus. In most cases, this means that the film cartridge 40 is not actually set. In this way, 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.
It is configured to detect whether the film cartridge 40 is attached or detached.

Next, the overall structure of the thermal head 1 will be described according to FIG.

In the figure, 137 is a metal support made of aluminum, and the thermal head 1 has metal cooling members 114 and 115 on both sides of the metal support 137, and the temperature is detected on the surface of the metal cooling members 114 and 1150. It has elements 117 and 118. In the figure, reference numerals 113 and 116 indicate heating elements of the thermal head 1, which are arranged in parallel with and near the heating element 3.

In this embodiment, the heating element 113, 116 of the thermal head 1 is turned ON or 0FFL by the output signal of the temperature sensing element 117, 118 depending on the change in the environment or the thermal history of the heating element 3.
, the top portion of the thermal head 1 is controlled to have a constant temperature.

First, the metal cooling members 114 and 115 are in direct contact with the film 2, and can effectively cool down the temperature rise of the thermal head 1 due to rise in outside temperature or thermal history, suppress evaporation of the ink 4, and The thermal history of the apex portion of the head 1 is quickly conducted to the temperature detection element, and the temperature in the vicinity of the heating element 3 of the thermal head 1 can be controlled to be always constant.

Also, the metal cooling members 117 are provided on both sides of the heating element 3.
118 and heating elements 113 and 116 of the thermal head 1 are arranged, and the ink 4 and the ink-filled small holes 2a are conveyed to the surface of the heating element 3 even when the film 2 moves back and forth.
The area is preheated prior to recording, so that the energy supplied by the voltage pulse applied to the heating element 3 is reduced.

In FIG. 15, 119 is a thermal head driver, and 126 to 132 are drive circuit sections.

As explained above, according to the above embodiment, by separating the film car 1 to the ridge 40 and the ink container 64, the film 2 of the film car 1 to the ridge 40 does not need to be disposed of before its service life due to increased clogging. Instead, only the consumed recording ink 4 can be replaced by replacing the ink container 64.

Therefore, since only the ink container 64 is replaced frequently, maintenance is easy. Also, since the expensive and long-life film cartridge 40 can be used for a sufficiently long period of time, the running cost is reduced (
cheaper.

Furthermore, since the film cartridge 40 and the ink container 64 can be removed as one unit, the color of the recording ink 4 can be easily replaced. Furthermore, it is possible to avoid mixing different color inks due to mistaken combinations of different colors.

From the film cartridge 40 to the ink container 64
When the film cartridge 4 is removed, the opening of the ink container mounting portion 65 is automatically sealed.
It has the advantage that it is possible to prevent the ink 4 in the ink 4 from evaporating, and by extension, from concentrating the ink 4.

Note that in the above description of the embodiment, the explanation was given for a film in which small holes were provided as a recording medium, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the same purpose can be achieved even with concave portions. 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〕

The present invention is based on the method described above, in which a recording medium having a large number of small holes or recesses is filled with recording ink, and when the small holes or recesses filled with ink reach the surface of the heating element, the heating element is activated. By selectively heating, the pressure of the generated bubbles causes the ink in the small holes or recesses to be ejected toward the recording material, thereby recording on the recording material. An ink supply means for supplying ink to a medium, a recording medium transport mechanism section for transporting the recording medium, a container section for holding these together as a cartridge, and a container section connected to the container section for replenishing ink to the ink supply section. An ink container is provided, and the container portion and the ink container are configured to be separable. Therefore, it is possible to provide an economical recording device that is free from clogging, capable of high-speed recording, and easy to perform maintenance, color replacement, etc.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the recording principle, FIG. 2 is a schematic vertical side view, FIG. 3 is a schematic vertical front view, and FIG. 4(a) 4(b) is a plan view of the driving portion of the film transporting mechanism, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the film cartridge, and FIG.
The figure is a perspective view of the film transport mechanism and ink supply section.
8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the diameter and pitch of the small holes and the shape of the heating element. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the ink presence/absence detection means of the thermal head. a
) is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the ink presence/absence detection means when there is ink, FIG. 10(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 of the thermal head, and FIG. 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 of the electronic control circuit. It is a schematic diagram. 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 +71 (recording paper), 37.39
... Ink supply means (ink supply member), 40...
Recording media car 1 ~ Ritsuji (film cartridge), 6
4... Ink container, 65... Ink container mounting part, 6
7... Ink container valve, 68... Cartridge valve, 71... Ink supply tube, 72.93
... Ink supply path, 144 ... Recording medium transport mechanism (
film transport mechanism). Applicant's agent Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue 2a 2a Figure 1 Figure 9] 2-12211 Figure 8 (a) (b) Figure 10

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) Filling a recording medium with a large number of small holes or recesses with recording ink, and selectively heating the heating element when the small holes or recesses filled with ink reach the surface of the heating element. Therefore, the present invention is a recording device that performs recording on a recording material by ejecting the ink in the small holes or recesses toward the recording material by the pressure of the generated bubbles, and the recording medium is injected with ink onto the recording medium. an ink supply means for supplying the ink, a recording medium transport mechanism section for transporting the recording medium, and a container section that holds these together as a cartridge;
A recording apparatus comprising: an ink container connected to the container section for replenishing ink to the ink supply section, and configured such that the container section and the ink container can be separated. (2) The recording device according to claim 1, wherein the container portion and the ink container are removably attached together. (3) The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the opening of the ink container mounting portion of the container portion is configured to be closed when the ink container is removed.